Skip to main content

tv   Shepard Smith Reporting  FOX News  May 11, 2017 12:00pm-1:01pm PDT

12:00 pm
>> shepard: it's noon on the west coast. 3:00 in washington. today we saw a remarkable interview with the president of the united states. one in which he said he planned to fire the fbi director james comey regardless of recommendations by officials. he talked about what happened when he asked comey if he, the president, was under investigation. plus, in washington, lawmakers have been firing questions at the man that took over running the fbi after the president fired comey. >> did you ever hear director comey tell the president that he was not the subject of an investigation? >> did you commit to informing this committee of any effort to interfere with the fbi's ongoing
12:01 pm
investigation between links of russia and the trump campaign? >> has the dismissal of mr. comey impeded, stopped or negatively impacted any of the work any investigation or any ongoing projects at the fbi? >> director, has anyone in the white house spoken to you directly about the russia investigation? >> shepard: all the answers are coming up. the affordable care acting director, andrew mccabe. that's coming up. first from the fox news deck, an entirely new explanation of the firing of james comey. from the president and from the vice president, the reason was the recommendation of the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein and the attorney jeff sessions.
12:02 pm
today the new explanation. the president decided the director must go. he told nbc news he was going to fire comey no matter what his advisers recommended. >> he's a show-boat, a grandstander. the fbi has been in you know that. i know that. everybody knows that. you take a look at the fbi a year ago. it will in virtual turmoil. less than a year ago. it hasn't recovered from that. >> monday you met with the deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. did you ask for a recommendation? >> what i did, i was going to fire comey. >> you made the decision -- >> i was going to fire comey. there's no good time to do it, by the way. they -- >> in you're letter i said i accepted their recommendation. you already made the decision. >> i was going to fire regardless. he made a recommendation.
12:03 pm
he's highly respected. very good guy. very smart guy. the democrats like him, the republicans like him. he made a recommendation. but regardless of recommendation, i was going to fire comey. >> shepard: again, the president said he was going to fire coney no matter what the attorney general jeff sessions or rod rosenstein recommended. that's new. here's yesterday's version. >> the president took strong and decisive leadership to put be safety and security of the american people first by accenting the recommendation of the attorney general to remove director comey as the he of the fbi. >> accordingly the president accented the recommendation of his deputy attorney general to remove james comey from his position. he asked them for their recommendation based on the conversation that they had on monday. he asked them to put that recommendation in writing. they came with to him on his own. the president had lost confidence in comey from the day he was elected.
12:04 pm
>> shepard: that was 24 hours ago. now the very first statement from the white house after the firing quoting here, president trump acted based on the clear recommendations of attorney general jeff sessions and deputy attorney general rod rosenstein. the two positions can't exist. one or both. administration is looking to the real reasons. in short, investigating whether as critics suggest if he fired comey to under undermine or impeed the investigation. that would be obstruction of justice. john roberts is live on the north lawn. the explanation. john? >> there's been an evolution here. tuesday they were pegging it to the confirmation of rod rosenstein. he opened up a case and decided to review it. it didn't wash. i was skeptical of it suggesting
12:05 pm
it might go further than that. we found out that was the case. as to the statements that came out tuesday night and again wednesday morning, this was pegged to the attorney general. sarah huckabee sanders today said they didn't have the information at the time. i can tell you that the white house communications was blind-sided by all of this. some of the members were at the eisenhower building at an ice cream social with veterans when they got urgent phone calls because the president had needed he needed to share. today at the briefing, sarah huckabee sanders said she hadn't had the opportunity, the time to gather all of the facts, nor the access to the president. listen here. >> i hadn't had a chance to have the conversation district lly - directly with the president. i didn't ask that question, had you already made that decision. i went off of the information
12:06 pm
that i had when i answered your question. i've since had the conversation with him before i walked on today. he laid it out clearly. he made that decision. he had been thinking about it for months, which i said yesterday and have said many times since. wednesday, i think was the final straw that pushed him. >> clearly the totality of the information was not available to them when they initially came out, shep. they had the long letter from the deputy attorney general laying out his reasons why he thinks that comey should be fired or at least that the fbi needed new leadership if it didn't go as far as saying if he should be fired. there was a report last night that rosenstein had threatened to quit. we're told by the spokespeople at the justice department that that did not happen. that rosenstein never threatened
12:07 pm
to quit. >> shepard: john, more on the labelling of comey as a show boat. >> yeah, sarah huckabee sanders did not back away from that at all. not exact language. saying basically probably based on the numerous appearances that that's evident with the behavior. it speaks clearly what he said in testimony and public statements in the two press conferences he had regarding the hillary clinton e-mail scandal. so shep, she's not backing off of what the president said to lester holt of nbc, nor would it be white for the principal press secretary to contradict the president. shep? >> shepard: president said the fbi director told him three times that he was noticed under federal investigation. the president saying that he asked comey about that. here's the 1 1/2 minute exchange with lester holt. >> let me ask you about your
12:08 pm
termination letter to mr. coney. you write "i greatly appreciate you informing that i'm not under investigation." why did you put that in there? >> he told me that. i've heard that from others. >> was it in a phone call? meet face to face? >> i had a dinner with i'm he. he wanted to have dinner. he wanted to stay on. >> he asked you to dinner? >> that dinner was arranged. think he asked for the dinner. he wanted to stay on as the fbi head. i said i'll consider. we'll see what happens. we had a very nice dinner. at that time he told me you're not under investigation, which i knew anyway. >> that was one meeting. >> when you're under investigation, you're giving all sorts of documents. i knew i wasn't under. and i heard it was stated at the committee, some committee level that i wasn't. >> that didn't come from him? >> during the phone call he said it and another phone call he said it. he said it once at dinner and then said it twice during phone
12:09 pm
calls. >> did you call him? >> in one case i called him and one case he called me. >> did you ask him? >> i asked him, yes. i said if it's possible, would you let me know, am i under investigation? he said you're not under investigation. >> but he's given sworn testimony that there's an on going investigation into the trump campaign and possible collusion with the russia government. you were the centerpiece of the trump campaign. >> well, i know that i'm not under investigation. me, personally. i'm not talking about campaigns or anything else. i'm not under investigation. >> shepard: remember, in the letter, which the president sent regarding comey's firing, he thanked the outgoing fbi boss telling him the feds that were not personally investigating him. the fbi has not confirmed that comey said that. today the new acting fbi director told lawmakers he could not comments on what comey might or not have told the president. john roberts with us again from the white house.
12:10 pm
the white house says that president trump asking comey if he's under investigation if there's a conflict of interest. >> there's established protocols that the justice department has laid down. when it comes to the president in particular, we're into a real gray area here. the most recent protocols were up dated in 2009 by then attorney general eric holder. here's what it says about communications between the white house and the department of justice. the justice department will let those under investigation to know when it's important for the performance of the president's duties and important from a law perspective. the president can say it's important in the execution of his duties to know whether or not he's under investigation. it's a little gray area here. it's not criminal law. sarah huckabee sanders asked whether it was appropriate in the briefing.
12:11 pm
here's her response. watch. >> isn't it appropriate for the president of the united states to ask the fbi director if he's under investigation? >> i don't believe it is. >> one of these conversations happened at a dinner where the fbi director was asking to stay on as fbi director. don't you see how that's a conflict of interest? the fbi director saying he wants to keep his job and the president is asking whether or not he's under investigation? >> i don't see that as a conflict of interest. neither do the many legal collars. >> the suggestion there that if a guy is trying to keep his job, maybe it's to tell the president what he wants to hear as opposed to what's going on. senator grassley said that he was told very much the same thing by the fbi director, that president trump was not a target of the investigation into russia, shep. >> shepard: you asked a question about democrats and others that had said that they were in favor of the removal, the firing of,
12:12 pm
the resignation of this same director comey. and that those same people are now complaining about the timing thereof. >> yeah, there's no question sarah huckabee sanders read a long list from the democrats saying that he needed to be fired, resigned, whatever. this was all in the wake of his october 28th pronouncement that he reopened the hillary clinton e-mails with ten days left to go in the electioelection. they're saying that was then, this is now. back then they called for an fbi investigation into russia and possible collusion and members of the trump campaign to influence the election. so they're saying the timing of all of this is quite different than it was six months ago. that's the point that i asked sarah huckabee sanders about. listen here. >> democrats clearly didn't like
12:13 pm
james comey too much after the pronouncement that he was reopening the investigation into hillary clinton's e-mails. their point is that the timing is different. that this was in the middle of an investigation. do they have a point? >> not at all. mr. mccabe made that point far better than i could today when he said there's been no impediment to the investigation. as i said before, any investigation that was taking place on monday is still taking place today. >> so the white house is insisting, shep, that this investigation is still on going. doesn't matter who is running the fbi. the people who are at the fbi, the public servants are looking into this. even some republicans are agreeing with democrats that the timing of all of this looks bat. justin amash, the republican of michigan, is joining elijah cummings in calling for an independent commission to be struck to look into this and take it out of the hands of the
12:14 pm
fbi. >> shepard: thanks, john. the head of the fbi is looking at this and directly going against the white house and his team. the investigation into russian meddling next. ♪ fun in art class. come close, come close. i like that. [ music stops suddenly ] ah. when your pain reliever stops working, your whole day stops. awww. try this. for minor arthritis pain, only aleve can stop pain for up to 12 straight hours with just one pill. thank you. ♪ come on everybody. you can't quit, neither should your pain reliever. stay all day strong with 12 hour aleve.
12:15 pm
12:16 pm
>> shepard: the new acting director of the fbi shot down today some of the claims from the white house and president trump about the bureau's russia investigation and former director james comey. the fbi acting director andrew
12:17 pm
mccabe testifying at a hearing on national security threats. he directly contradicted statements from the trump administration about the bureau's russia investigation. the white house has called it one of the smallest things on the fbi's plate. >> is it a small investigation in relation to the other work you're doing? >> we consider it to be a highly significant investigation. >> so it's not one of the small things? >> i would not say that. >> he would love nothing more than for this investigation to continue to its completion. i think one of the reasons that the hoax component is the collusion component. that has been the false narrative that you guys have been pushing for the better part of a year. i think that's the piece that he is repeatedly talking about being the hoax. >> shepard: during the hearing, the acting fbi director mccabe
12:18 pm
responded to reports that director comey asked for more money and manpower for the investigation. >> we have the adequate resources to do it and i know we have resourced that investigation adequately. in terms of that investigation, i can assure you we're covered. >> shepard: the senate intelligence committee has invited comey to testify in a closed session next week. we have no word on whether he will attempt. catherine herridge is live on capitol hill. catherine? >> the fbi has hundreds if not thousands of investigations on from bank robberies to countser terrorism. you'd think the top guy would have an impact if he told the senate committee if it's not disrupted the russian case. >> has his dismissal impeded or stopped any of the work, any
12:19 pm
investigation or any ongoing projects at the federal bureau of investigation? >> simply put, sir, you cannot stop the men and women of the fbi from doing the right thing, protecting the american people and upholding the constitution. >> on the white house claims by the president that director comey told him three separate times that he was not the focus of the investigation, what current and former agents have told fox news if in fact this was the case, this would be a most improper of the fbi director and a major violation of the rules that they operate under. we may learn his side of the story if he testifies here on the hill next week. >> shepard: acting director somebody cabe contradicted a white house claim about former director comey. >> that's right. look, there's 36,000 people who work at the fbi, so it's hard for any single individual, whether it's mccabe or the white house to summarize the view of the entire work force. however, today mccabe testified that based on his experience as a deputy director, there was no
12:20 pm
loss of confidence in comey. >> is it accurate that the rank and file supported comey? >> that's not accurate. it's been the greatest privilege and honor of my life to work with him. i can tell you also that director comey enjoyed broad support within the fbi. still does to this day. >> for the second day in a row, the white house spokesperson stuck to their position that had heardels and former members of the fbi and privately. >> i can speak to my own personal experience. i've heard from countless members of the fbi that are grateful and thankful for the president's decision. i think that we may have to agree to disagree. i'm sure there's some people that are disappointed. but i certainly heard from a large number of individuals. >> mccabe did testify that after
12:21 pm
comey testified about the e-mails from hillary clinton, there was frustration about the agents and they were vocal about it. >> shepard: thanks, catherine. continuing coverage of the firing of the fbi director. our next guest explains why former director comey's next move is extremely important. new bike? yeah, 'cause i got allstate. if you total your new bike, they replace it with a brand new one. that's cool. i got a new helmet. we know steve. it's good to be in (good hands).
12:22 pm
what are you doing? getting your quarter back.
12:23 pm
fountains don't earn interest, david. you know i work at ally. i was being romantic. you know what i find romantic? a robust annual percentage yield that's what i find romantic. this is literally throwing your money away. i think it's over there. that way? yeah, a little further up. what year was that quarter? what year is that one? '98 that's the one. you got it! nothing stops us from doing right by our customers. ally. do it right. let's get out of that water.
12:24 pm
>> shepard: continuing coverage of the fallout from president trump's firing of the fbi director, james comey and the contradictory statements coming out of the white house. aaron, your take on this extraordinairy 24-hour turn around. >> it's been a remarkable
12:25 pm
period. you have things proceeding on two tracks. you have the actual investigation, which is heating up and the battle in the court for public opinion. donald trump has taken a gamble lately. he likes to seize the narrative. we know this investigation by the fbi is going on. he's been treating on it, talking about it, trying to diminish it and then he gives an interview to nbc in which he makes a number of very interesting statements that undermine some of the people in his own white house. he's trying to seize the narrative, get us to see his point of view but there's a certain risk involved there. >> shepard: it would appear the second time the president has been sent out apparently to make statements which then the president himself contradicted. that happened first with flynn, with general flynn. and they said they fired him as a result of it. now it's happened with this matter. the president said there was a recommendation. the president took it.
12:26 pm
now the president said what the vice president said is not true. >> look at the white house officials and aides that have been put in an uncomfortable position. sean spicer and sarah huckabee sanders and the vice president have been out there for 48 hours saying how comey was fired. and mr. trump puts out a different story saying he was going to be fired anyway and it wasn't in fact a report from rod rosenstein that prompted the firing. you have mccabe going before the senate and being put in a position to contradict the president of the united states. the white house said that mr. comey had lost the support of the rank and file in the fbi and mccabe said that's not. >> shepard: as journalists when you get a series of explanations for something of high importance and those explanations tend to
12:27 pm
contradict each other and something is obviously not true because they can't both exist. there's this -- normally there's the tendency to look for the thing that makes the most sense. the president's detractors are saying vocally is they believe the reason for all that is that the president saw what director was comey was doing regarding the investigation into the russian business and his own potential involvement and he's too close for comfort. he has to go. that narrative, whether it's true or not, is it destructive? >> that's the risk in this. in the court of public opinion, the president is -- he has facts on his side so fact. there's far there's no evidence of collusion of people in his orbit and his operatives. but an investigation is ongoing.
12:28 pm
the president has asked us to see this as not important, not heading anywhere, as a hoax. the more the line comes under the white house comes under challenge, it's harder to believe what he says about the investigation. >> shepard: thanks, aaron. >> thank you. no a russian government spokes western is blasting american journalists they asked that country's top diplomat concerning james comey calling the journalist bias. it's one of many headlines today about rush as secretary of state rex tillerson meets with the foreign minister there, sergey lavrov in alaska. they're set to discuss the future of that area and it's important to note that russian bombers made a couple of provocative fly-byes near the coast of alaska. last week and for the first time ever reported, u.s. military officials said they intercepted
12:29 pm
a pair of fighter jets escorting bear bombers. the jets flew within 50 miles of alaska's coast. jonathan hunt is in fair backs. jonathan? >> shep, it's interesting that the russian foreign minister, sergey lavrov is taking the opportunity while on u.s. soil to show that the putin administration stands shoulder to shoulder with the trump administration in dismissing the investigation of possible trump campaign collusion with the russians as fake news and essentially a waste of time. as he stood literally shoulder to shoulder with secretary of state tillerson at the opening of this arctic meeting today, neither man would say anything on any subject. it was left to a russian foreign ministry spokeswoman to dismiss the u.s. media focus on the investigation story. in a statement she said "this indicates the colossal bias of
12:30 pm
the media and control by certain political groups. we've asked for comment from secretary of state tillerson, a chance to talk to him. we've been refused that opportunity by the state department. shep? >> shepard: the secretary of state, rex tillerson and the russian foreign minister, sergey lavrov, expected to hold their own meeting today, right? >> we're just being told by the state department, shep, there will be no bilateral meeting no one-on-one meeting here in fairbanks between the russian foreign minister and the secretary of state. they talked. they're obviously chatting as they're part of the group meeting here but no one-on-one meeting. the focus is on the eight nations that have territory there's talking about issues like climate change. worth noting, given president trump's well-known skepticism about climate change, secretary tillerson was among the eight
12:31 pm
that signed on to the fairbanks 2017 declaration that said that the -- there's concern that the arctic is warming at more than twice the rate of warming in the rest of the planet and reiterating the fight that is necessary to fight global climate change that is a nonbinding agreement but worth noting that the trump administration has signed on to it. we're told we're not go to get to speak to either man today. if we do, whether they like it or not, we'll ask them about james comey and the rush investigations. >> jonathan hunt live in fairbanks. democrats are threatens to put the entire united states senate in slow motion in response to president trump's firing of the fbi direct er details coming up. (announcer vo) when you have type 2 diabetes
12:32 pm
there's a moment of truth. and now with victoza® a better moment of proof. victoza® lowers my a1c and blood sugar better than the leading branded pill, which didn't get me to my goal. lowers my a1c better than the leading branded injectable. the one i used to take. (jim) victoza® lowers blood sugar in three ways. and while it isn't for weight loss, victoza® may help you lose some weight. non-insulin victoza® comes in a pen and is taken once a day. (announcer vo) victoza® is not recommended as the first medication to treat diabetes
12:33 pm
and is not for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not take victoza® if you have a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer, multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to victoza® or any of its ingredients. stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck or if you develop any allergic symptoms including itching, rash, or difficulty breathing. serious side effects may happen, including pancreatitis. so, stop taking victoza® and call your doctor right away if you have severe pain in your stomach area. tell your doctor your medical history. taking victoza® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may cause low blood sugar. the most common side effects are headache, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting. side effects can lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems. now's the time for a better moment of proof. ask your doctor about victoza®. >> shepard: a fox report now. police in hong kong staging a
12:34 pm
terror attack drill. more than 300 police involved. the drill included officers and others posing as terrorists all in preparation for the china president visit next month. a school bus with a dozen kids this morning in kirkwood, missouri ran down an en bainiem. the post dispatch newspaper said one student flew out of an merge exit. everybody will be okay. a bear went up a try and gave folks a show in wisconsin. it happened in wisconsin rapids, west of green bay. the bear stayed in a tree all day probably because nobody brought it a trampoline.
12:35 pm
12:36 pm
we asked people to write down the things they love to do most on these balloons. travel with my daughter. roller derby. ♪ now give up half of 'em. do i have to? this is a tough financial choice we could face when we retire. but, if we start saving even just 1% more of our annual income... we could keep doing all the things we love. prudential. bring your challenges. >> shepard: the leaders of the senate intelligence committee say president trump's former national security adviser
12:37 pm
general michael flynn is now refusing to turn over documents for the russia investigation. now he doesn't have a choice and could face prison time if he refuses to hand over those documents. the senate intelligence committee had subpoenaed michael flynn, did so yesterday. lawmakers from both parties say general flynn may have broken the law when he accepted foreign payment, including $33,000 from the russia government's tv network rt back in 2015. let's turn to josh ledermaleder. this is a serious turn in this story. >> it is. the president has said this trump russia business is much about nothing. it's not even a high priority fbi investigation. well, all the developments that have come out in the past week,
12:38 pm
especially the ones you talked about with mike flynn suggest the opposite. obviously this is serious. very real documents that senate investigators are trying to get their hands on that they were unable to do by voluntarily asking flynn through his attorneys to hand those over. now you also have on the law enforcement side, actual subpoenas trying to get at this information. so all the signs suggest this is a very serious real investigation that could be heating up. >> shepard: mike flynn's attorneys said famously now that he has a story to tell in asking for immunity for mike flynn. anything more on that or mike flynn's teams response to the subpoena? >> so far his attorneys have decided not to say anything about the papers. the fact that he's being subpoenaed, forced to hand over
12:39 pm
documents absent any immunity deal suggested that those discussions were not going very well or at least that senate investigators and the u.s. attorney's office was not willing to say yeah, we'll give you a free pass. they're looking for more. >> shepard: and these documents would give further incase of flynn's ties to russia during the campaign period and before? >> that's right. there's two periods of scrutiny existing right now. one is the period before election day, before inauguration, the time when trump was a candidate and then president-elect and then of course there's that short by very important three-week period when flynn was the national security adviser. from all indications, investigators are looking at both periods to try to find out what kind of contacts flynn had with the russians, other government and whether they were appropriate. >> the president fired him but
12:40 pm
at the same time said the media had mistreated him and he was a good man. what is the current position on mike flynn in this investigation? >> shepard: the white house is trying to distance themselves from flynn saying he didn't work at the white house that long. at some point the white house was suggesting he didn't even have that large of a role prior to the white house taking office in january. of course, we all recall flynn at the republican national convention giving the speech about hillary clinton. but trump has continued to go back to this idea that flynn has been mistreated by the press. >> shepard: josh lederman. thanks, josh. >> thanks, shep. >> shepard: democrats are threatening to slow down the united states senate. they seem to already being doing so and demanding a proper response from republicans to the fbi director james comey's firing, this comes at a time when the white house and the gop senators are facing tough
12:41 pm
battles like healthcare reform and the confirmation of the fbi chief. if senate committee on aging has a long history of looking out for older americans on issues like medicare and scams targeting seniors. >> i'm baffled by this. this has nothing to do with the firing of james comey. this is a hearing that has to do with the health and well-being of america's seniors. >> susan collins, republicans and democrats have tried this tactic of obstruction in the past with varying degrees of success. mike emanuel with the news on capitol hill. what are senate democrats dem d demanding now, mike? >> they're using to procedures they're allowed to to make a point. the senate democratic leader
12:42 pm
chuck schumer had these demands. >> we want a special prosecutor for mr. comey. we're wanting to hold off briefings with the attorney general and the deputy attorney general. >> james comey has been invited here to capitol hill next tuesday to appear before the bipartisan senate intelligence committee. other senators say they want him in an open session so the american people can hear directly from comey. shep? >> shepard: mike, what do republican lawmakers say about this to the effect of the republican's agenda? >> it's a packed agenda. they want healthcare reform. they've struggled with that. they want tax reform. another heavy left item. they will have to confirm a new fbi director, which could be a heavyweight fight. the house speaker paul ryan told us that essentially congress
12:43 pm
must get their work done. >> it would be a little strange if democrats are going to filibuster funding the military. democrats are going to filibuster securing our border. if they're going to filibuster the things that people sent us here to do. so it would be surprising to me if they're going to just try to shut down all of congress and do nothing. that makes no sense to me. >> some are calling this clearly a distraction, the whole comey fight. they don't need it when they're trying to get things done for the american people. bottom line, it's a distraction and more this week. shep? >> shepard: thanks, mike emanuel. stunning claims from america fighter pilots. they now tell fox news problems with their own planes are more likely to kill them than enemy fire. they say the problems include loss of oxygen in the cockpit. details and the response from the united states military. that's next.
12:44 pm
i needed something more to help control my type 2 diabetes. my a1c wasn't were it needed to be. so i liked when my doctor told me that i may reach my blood sugar and a1c goals by activating what's within me with once-weekly trulicity. trulicity is not insulin. it helps activate my body to do what it's suppose to do, release its own insulin. i take it once a week, and it works 24/7. it comes in an easy-to-use pen and i may even lose a little weight. trulicity is a once-weekly injectable prescription medicine
12:45 pm
to improve blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes when used with diet and exercise. trulicity is not insulin. it should not be the first medicine to treat diabetes, or for people with type 1 diabetes or diabetic ketoacidosis. do not take trulicity if you or a family member has had medullary thyroid cancer, if you've had multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if you are allergic to trulicity. stop trulicity and call your doctor right away if you have a lump or swelling in your neck, severe pain in your stomach, or symptoms such as itching, rash, or trouble breathing. serious side effects may include pancreatitis, which can be fatal. taking trulicity with a sulfonylurea or insulin, increases your risk for low blood sugar. common side effects include nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, decreased appetite and indigestion. some side effects can lead to dehydration, which may make existing kidney problems worse. once-weekly trulicity may help me reach my blood sugar goals.
12:46 pm
with trulicity, i click to activate what's within me. if you want help improving your a1c and blood sugar, activate your within. ask your doctor about once-weekly trulicity.
12:47 pm
>> shepard: some american fighter pilots say they're very concerned about their personal safety while at work. a safety issue in some f-18 war planes putting them at risk they say while they try to defend the country. lea gabrielle is here. she used to fly the f-18s for the navy. what is this? >> i speak with active duty pilots. they're talking about a problem that's like being intoxicated while flying. they didn't want to go on camera for fear of damaging their career. but they show all pilots are in creasingly in harms way before they go into combat. >> since 2009, the department of the navy has seen a rise in hazard reports regarding what are called physiological episodes in f-18 hornet and super hornet aircraft. physiological episodes are when pilots become impaired with symptoms that jeopardize their
12:48 pm
flights. they're caused by oxygen loss or depre depressurization in the plane. i spoke with some pilots and they said the alarming situation is warsening and they're seeing first hand how it's affecting the mindset of our military elite. one pilot said "we signed up for this. it's an inherently risky business. you may not come back each time you take the aircraft airborne but we should have a better than average chance." another pilot said "when i go flying in combat, what is more likely to kill me is not getting shot down by i'm -- enemy fire, it's a failure of the most basic life support system." according to testimony from a navy add mir ray from 2015-16, the rate of these dangerous insets increased in some models
12:49 pm
by 90%. the navy and the marine corps say they take pilot safety very seriously. the navy said it's a complex issue. they're learning to their concerns and working to find a solution to the problem. the marine corp says they're trying to find the root cause. pilots and the crew have to take off in f-18s knowing that they could have the problem and there's no automatic emergency system, nothing that would defect there's a problem and feed them oxygen in an emergency. so shep, you mentioned that i'm a former f-18 pilot. as part of my training, they deliberately starved me of ox gen. i couldn't do basic math or play patty cake let alone land in an emergency situation. >> are they taking it seriously? >> there is. another training aircraft they have grounded because of these
12:50 pm
types offish u 82 -- issues. but it's a very dangerous situation for these pilots. >> lea gabrielle, thank you. one of the worldest largest diamonds was up for sale today. the auction didn't go exactly as planned. plu plus, a small visitor bumming a ride of unsuspecting tourists heading down under. check your bags. stay with us. garden weeds are scoundrels. with roundup precision gel®, you can banish them without harming plants nearby. so draw the line. give the stick one click, touch the leaves and the gel stays put killing garden weeds to the root. draw the line with roundup precision gel®.
12:51 pm
12:52 pm
12:53 pm
>> shepard: you deserve a diamond. one of the largest diamonds ever found is for sale right now. it's quite large and quite expensive. lillian is here with the details. >> this it is right here.
12:54 pm
709 carats. it was found in sierra leone. it was turned over to the government and tried to auction it off today but rejected the highest bid, $7.8 million. >> shepard: what did they want to start it? >> the pastor said no less than 50 million. there was one that sold last year for $65 million. that's might be where he getting the $50 million number. more expects say it's about quality than size. it's one of the top 20 largest stones ever found. so they're going to make some money off of it when they try to sell it. >> shepard: looks like somebody spilled a slurpee on it. >> yeah. has some interesting coloring. they're keeping it a secret what the government price is that they're looking for. so we know what the pastor said he wanted. >> shepard: wouldn't turn it down? >> no.
12:55 pm
>> shepard: thank you, lillian. you can say what you want about america's immigration issues. at least we don't have toads trying to sleep in. in australia, they're warning agents to check for hitchhiking toads. they found three of them in luggage and in one case in a man's show. you think you'd be aware of it if you had a toad in your show. apparently not. australia has strict quarantine rules to keep out the invasive species. this is an image from the official apology video. the moral here, if you're going to australia, leave your dogs and toads at home. we'll be back to look at a break through to look at devices that help run our lives and that break through happened on this day in history. (man vo) it was may, when dad forgot
12:56 pm
how to brush his teeth. (woman vo) in march, my husband didn't recognize our grandson. (woman 2 vo) that's when moderate alzheimer's made me a caregiver. (avo) if their alzheimer's is getting worse, ask about once-a-day namzaric. namzaric is approved for moderate to severe alzheimer's disease in patients who are taking donepezil. it may improve cognition and overall function, and may slow the worsening of symptoms for a while. namzaric does not change the underlying disease progression. don't take if allergic to memantine, donepezil, piperidine, or any of the ingredients in namzaric. tell the doctor about any conditions; including heart, lung, bladder, kidney or liver problems, seizures, stomach ulcers, or procedures with anesthesia. serious side effects may occur, including muscle problems if given anesthesia; slow heartbeat, fainting, more stomach acid which may lead to ulcers and bleeding; nausea, vomiting, difficulty urinating, seizures, and worsening of lung problems. most common side effects are headache, diarrhea, dizziness, loss of appetite, and bruising. (woman 2 vo) i don't know what tomorrow will bring but i'm doing what i can. (avo) ask about namzaric today.
12:57 pm
iget a cash rebate of up toring $2,000 on selected models. or get the outlander 450, starting at $5,499. visit your local dealer for details. can-am. the ride says it all.
12:58 pm
12:59 pm
>> shepard: on this day in 1951, computers got extra brain power with the patent application for a new kind of memory. the u.s. navy needed faster computers for flight simulators and scientists at m.i.t. got to work. it was an early form of ram, random access memory. it took one micro second to access the data. that's hundreds of thousands of times slower than today's devices. but it was a giant leap forward in computing. it happened 66 years ago today. should news break out, we'll break in. breaking news changes everything on the fox news channel. bad numbers out from macy's and kohl's. retail having a hard time.
1:00 pm
oil was up today, which took energy stocks up. depending where you are, fairly flat. neil cavuto understand these things better than us. "your world" with neil cavuto is next on america's choice for news and information on cable. this is fox news channel. >> he wanted to stay on as the fbi head. i said, you know, we'll consider. we'll see what happens. we had a nice dinner. at that time he told me you're not under investigation, which i knew anyway. >> that was one meeting. >> when you're under investigation, you give documents and everything. i knew i wasn't under. and i heard it was stated at some committee level that i wasn't. >> neil: all right. that was the president after being interviewed by lester holt on nbc news. that is creating reverberations what the president knew and what kind of blessings he got from the outgoing fbi director, now fired fbi director,