>> this is a fox news alert. disgraced financier jeffrey epstein found dead in his jail cell overnight in what the doj is calling an apparent suicide. welcome to america's news headquarters from washington, i'm kristin fisher and surprising since epstein was on suicide watch. leland: a lot of questions and more theory. if you check out twitter on hour by hour basis. dare we say this is a coincidence perhaps, more than two weeks since the 66-year-old was placed on suicide watch and one day after thousands of documents were unsealed in connection with his lawsuit that was filed by his accusers with a lot of prominent and powerful names in that lawsuit. jacqui heinrich, digging through

this since the news broke this morning. hi. >> jeffrey epstein as we know had been placed on suicide watch nearly three weeks ago now after he was found in his jail cell with marks on his neck. we're not able to confirm whether he was still on suicide watch whens with a found-- when he was found this morning. sources say that he hanged himself, but we have not been able to confirm that detail. we know he was found unresponsive in his cell around 6:30 this morning and despite life saving efforts both at the prison and a downtown hospital epstein was pronounced dead. the question will now become, who let this happen and how did it happen? someone in federal custody, especially someone on suicide watch should be under constant surveillance and not be allowed to have any items use today harm yourself. we spoke with an expert who says the prisons only obligated to give clothing to inmates who

they think could use the clothing for self-harm not to mention bed sheets, shoe laces and sharp objects. there should have been constantly surveillance for people like epstein if they were on suicide watch. since he was found with marks on his neck in july, it would have triggered measures because of the suicide prevention program. epstein would have been placed in solitary confinement physically checked at least every 60 minutes by staff and put in a room with no architectural features that would allow self-injury or obstructed view. and the prison has criteria who is allowed to observe an inmate and the guards based and emotional stability, maturity and even those guards would be

under watch. and lisa bloom tweeted predator jeff ren epstein killed himself on behalf of the victims i represent we would have preferred justice. our cases-- or excuse me we would have preferred he face justice. our civil cases can still proceed against his escape. victims deserve to be made whole for life long damage that he caused. we are just getting started. and she also tweeted this morning that she's lobbying for his assets to be frozen because of those pending civil cases so a lot more to come on this this morning, leland. leland: so many questions in terms of what happens to the evidence that was taken from his home in those search warrants. jacqui heinrich following it all. than thanks. thanks. >> well, you're looking at live pictures from the iowa state fair. sorry, i lied, that's not a live

picture. leland: we've got four live pictures. kristin: it's where the democratic candidates are addressing the crowd in one of the most important early campaign stops in the race for the white house. 13 presidential hopefuls will be making their cases to voters there this weekend, including frontrunner joe biden, and gabbard and others. >> jay inslee, thank you for taking a break from eating the fair food and talking to us. >> some ice cream, it's great. kristin: i look forward to it, i'm going in a few days. let's start with jeffrey epstein's death, what do you make of it? >> people don't rejoice death. what i make of it, this should not be the end of justice for the victims of this individual. we have to make sure that continues. we have to stop the trump

administration doing things like it did to hire a person who gave a sweetheart deal to the deceased. >> but that labor secretary acosta has resigned. >> he's resigned and never should have been hired in the first place. look, this administration makes a habit of hiring cronies that injured people including the last secretary of labor and now we need the justice system to protect victims of this incredible disaster so we've got to remain committed to that. kristin: let's talk about your central campaign pitch. you've made climate change the center piece of your campaign. i know you have not fully endorsed the green new deal, but you do welcome most of its principles. i'm curious how that's playing with a lot of the iowa voters you're meeting in a state where there are a lot of farmers, ethanol producers. how is your message playing with those very important early voters? >> really well. we've had a boost of enthusiasm and supporters recently because

he have' had the strongest action against climate change. farmers are getting killed by the donald trump administration and they're being flooded over a billion dollars of damage because of the floods. the science is clear, the floods will get worst because of the climate change. the aridty of our soil is getting worse and we've paid for in department of agriculture, the productivity of our crops will decrease. we need a plan to help farmers and i have to make sure they're participants in the economy. and get a revenue stream to get co 2 into the topsoil and-- >> if i could interrupt you there, i want to pop up something from the quad county corner process in iowa he says the green new deal would be devastating to rural america and have a negative impact on the entire agricultural supply change from cattle owners to

drivers, to-- what are you going to do to help those people if your policy supports go into play. >> ethanol refiners, trump crushed the ethanol-- don't talk to me about the farmers, donald trump is crucifying our farming industry. we can't sell our cherries to china, we can't move our soy beans. grain was littering the midwest a few months ago because of the floods and he won't do a damn thing about it. i think that tucker carlson should have a permanent vacation, he's lying to the american people just like donald trump. climate change is killing this country and we need someone to protect it, i will do. >> you're the first candidate to call president trump a white supremacist and now many of your

democrat democratic candidates are following suit. are you at all concerned that by using that language you're helping president trump. >> i don't think that i'm helping him. i've sued him in court and-- with terrorism, if you see something, say something, i see something, i see constant appeals to division of donald trump. i see constant missing opportunities to unite us. i see someone taking children away from their parents at the border. and this country is better than that divisive rhetoric. we need someone to unite us and need a president to do that. and i think that the republicans who are sycophants and not

speaking up. they ought to show courage and speak up when this country needs protection. >> all right, governor inslee, i'll let you go back to the fair food. leland. leland: you'll have to report back on next trip. kristin: i'll bring back food for you. leland: fried twinkies. we'll get to that in minute. a 23-year-old las vegas person had conversations with people with white supremacist beliefs, as well as conducting surveillance of a gay bar. he faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison and $250,000 fine. kristin. kristin: a bipartisan proposal about red flag laws is gaining

momentum in the senate following back to back shootings in texas and ohio. and president trump has signaled support for the plan. mark meredith, i know this is something that's going to be huge when congress gets back. >> this conversation is going to keep going on. you talked about the headline that president trump says in the wake of last weekend's two mass shooting there's now support for expanding red flag laws and background checks. he believes that congress can move the legislation forward. >> i think we can get something good done. i think we can have some really meaningful background checks. we don't want people that are mentally ill, people that are sick, we don't want them having guns. >> all eyes are turning to mitch mcconnell. mcconnell rejected calls from democrats to end the august recess and he says he's willing to have debates next month the, but in an interview he says it's

too early to guarantee any of the proposals will pass. >> when we get back hopefully we'll be in a position to agree on things on a bipartisan basis and go forward and make a law. >> the n.r.a. as opposed expanding background laws in the past and the president have spoken to n.r.a. officials and he believes they'll eventually support. >> and the n.r.a. says the proposal discussed by many will not have prevented the horrific tragedies in el paso and dayton and make millions of law abiding citizens unable to protect themselves and their loved one. in 2016, they were a huge supporter of the president, 30 million to the campaign, kristin. we'll look and see if the back and forth continues after he gets back to vacation. kristin: and it will interesting to see how it plays with the president's base. leland: he says that the base

would trust him in his words yesterday. let's bring in democratic congressman and member of the house oversight committee from california. good to see you, sir, good to see you. leland: the president says he wants meaningful background checks, quote, unquote. what do those words mean to you? >> well, i'll take him in this instance at face value. that to me means that he would support moving our two bills forward which would save lives. and-- >> but give me. >> , 80, 90% approval. leland: give me specifics in terms of what a bill that had very meaningful background checks would mean to you. >> the two bills we've passed out of the house that are now in senator mcconnell's possession. leland: and the specifics are? >> the specifics are they would close the loopholes so for gun shows, personal sales you would have to get a background check and you would allow the federal government to do ten days rather than three days to get those background checks.

leland: okay. members of your party, in fact, the senator from california running for president views things on this issue a little bit differently. we'll listen to her and then get your reaction. >> okay. >> when elected i will give the united states congress 100 days to pull their act together on this, and put a bill on my desk for signature and if they do not, i am prepared to take executive action to put in place a comprehensive background check requirement to also require the a.t.f. to take the licenses of gun dealers who violate the law by executive action. i will put in place a ban on the importation of assault weapons into our country. leland: wow. that's a lot farther than what you just laid out. >> and i-- i don't disagree with senator harris, but we've got something that could be a huge accomplishment that would help save lives. 100 americans lose their lives, the majority of them to suicide by gun violence in this country every day.

how about saving some of those lives so we've got something in front of us, if it can have bipartisan support do it. leland: do you understand how republicans would be worried when they hear democrats talking the way that kamala harris just did, if you give a mouse a cookie it's going to want to go after the milk, a slippery slope, the background checks and next thing we have a president talking about executive action to overturn something that so many view as a constitutional right? >> leland, i think we can focus on what's in front of us in the senate right now and we can have-- >> but, congressman that's the argument in front of us right now by republicans. do you think that's a reasonable fear on their part? >> no. i think we've got something in the senate right now, let's vote on that and let's continue to have a discussion. these incidents, unfortunately, these three incidents would have happened anyway because these folks would have got assault weapons so i agree that we should look further, but it should be a national ongoing discussion. leland: when you say look further i'm guessing you're

talking about an assault weapons ban which brings up the question what is an assault weapon in your opinion? >> well, that's defined by the department of justice so i'm a co-author of a bill with david cicilliny that would do that. but i want to focus what we have in front of us, that could be an accomplishment for both parties. now, that republicans and democrats do support. the notion that we can never agree on something, we have to disspell and we have an opportunity to do that? well, it's interesting that the last time that congress really skipped the august recess was in 1994 dealing with the crime bill and the violence against women's act and the assault bill, assault rifle ban, i should say. is it time to call congress back? do you believe that the time is now or are you okay to wait till september? >> i think we should be called back. i would go back in a moment's notice and i think the senate should be called back and vote on this. leland: do you take the president at his word when he says he's ready to do business

on this in september or do you think this is republicans trying to run out the clock and get the conversation changed to something else? >> i'll take him at his word, but we will find out if they do play it out, then the american public will see that. if they support joining with us, they'll see that as well. thanks, leland. leland: thank you. and you make a good point in terms of it's time for the american people to see some kind of action of congress to agree on something. thank you, sir. kristin. kristin: now from reaction from the republican side we bring in ohio congressman and house budget and energy committees, bill johnson. congressman, i'd like to ask you about your congressman in ohio michael turner. he now backs a ban on the sale of assault weapons. do you? >> i think you have to ask the question, what is an assault weapon. we have to be very, very careful that we don't violate the rights of law abiding citizens, the constitutional rights by banning

things that are simply scary because we don't understand them. i don't think that there's a common definition of what a assault weapon or a military style weapon would be. and this is a debate that obviously we need to have, but i certainly think that that's a slippery slope. kristin: but if there were a defined definition of an assault weapon, is there some category of that that you would get behind? >> well, you know, we can look at that. again, the devil is in the details. there's already a ban at the federal level on automatic weapons, for example. there's already a federal law that requires a background check on every commercial sale of a firearm. and so, you have to ask the question, would any of what

we're talking about potentially doing, would it stop any of the violence that already occurred? look, i was on the baseball field in 2017 shortly before the shooting started that shot-- when steve scalise was shot. i've got a 15-year-old son that goes to a public school. these are issues that i'm very, very concerned about as a citizen, as legislator and as a parent. but the second amendment right for american people to keep and bear arms is a fundamental right guaranteed in our constitution, and we can't make political or emotional decisions about these things. >> but congressman, president trump and the republican governor in your state, they now support expanded background checks. do you? >> well, to say that republicans have done nothing to strengthen background checks, that's just not true. i'm not saying that. >> if you look at what we did-- okay, but that's the

insinuation. kristin: no, i'm asking if you support the expanded background checks like the one that president trump says he's willing to get behind and the governor of your state has now said he will get behind as well. >> well, i think we have to look at what the details are. i haven't seen what the president is proposing. i haven't seen the details of what the governor is proposing. i can understand emotional responses to these tragic events, and loss of life. those families have scars now that will never go away and i get that. but we can't make emotional and political responses to this issue. kristin: let me play something that president trump said just yesterday when he was asked if he thought the n.r.a. and its leader, wayne laperriere, how he thought they might react to proposal for expanded background checks. >> i think in the end wayne and the n.r.a. will either be there

or maybe will be a little bit more neutral and that would be okay, too. it's a slippery slope. they think you approve one thing and that leads to a lot of bad things, i don't agree with that. kristin: i only have a few seconds left. do you think that the n.r.a. could get behind it, background checks? >> i can't speak for the n.r.a. i can speak for the people that i represent in my district and they value their second amendment rights to keep and bear arms very, very strongly. they want to do things like the 1.2 billion dollars that we put into the budget and the president signed into law, in the 115th congress to deal with some of the mental health issues and training for law enforcement to deal with some of these mass casualty, mass shootings. kristin: okay. >> but we're going to have to look at what specifically they're talking about. but i can't speak for the n.r.a. kristin: got to leave it there.

understood, congressman, thank you so much. >> i can only speak for thosery represent. kristin: thank you. >> congressman, very much. leland: president trump says he's got a new letter from kim jong-un. what's in it?

to be their best, kids need good nutrition.

and practice... lots of practice. get them started right with carnation breakfast essentials. it has protein plus vitamins and minerals to help kids be their best. carnation breakfast essentials. hey! i live on my own now! i've got xfinity, because i like to live life in the fast lane. unlike my parents. you rambling about xfinity again? you're so cute when you get excited... anyways... i've got their app right here, i can troubleshoot. i can schedule a time for them to call me back, it's great! you have our number programmed in? ya i don't even know your phone anymore... excuse me?! what? i don't know your phone number. aw well. he doesn't know our phone number! you have our fax number, obviously... today's xfinity service. simple. easy. awesome. i'll pass.

>> president trump is in bedminster, new jersey today, starting his summer break from washington after a busy week on the road and rich edison is in new jersey with more. hey, rich. >> hey, good afternoon, kristin. president trump is spending his day at nearby bedminster new jersey golf club. he's out of washington, and congress is out of town so the president believes that he's confident that once they all return to d.c. they will be able to do something on expanding background checks. and even for skeptics, he thinks

he can mostly get them on board. >> we need intelligent background checks, okay? this isn't a question of n.r.a., republican or democrat. i will tell you, i spoke to mitch mcconnell yesterday. he's totally on board. he said i've been waiting for your call. he's totally on board. i spoke to senators that in some cases, people, friends of mine, but pretty hard line senators and when i say that i say that in a positive way, hard line on the second amendment and they understa understand. >> senator majority leader has only committed to bipartisan conversations to potential solutions and mcconnell says that senators will return next month as scheduled following august recess. democratic leaders in congress say they spoke with the president yesterday and told him the senate should take up and pass house passed bills on universal background checks.

the national rifle association says it opposes any that limits arms for law abiding citizens. before arriving in new jersey yet afternoon, the president traveled to fundraisers out in the hamptons, one of those, steve ross who owns equinox and soulcycle and some high profile celebrities are boycotting the fitness chains and the president says that helps ross. >> that makes steve much hotter. i haven't seen him, see him in a little while. the concept makes him hotter. he's very happy,'s got a very successful -- a lot of people are going, two fundraisers, one is steve and another gentleman, i guess they're going to raise 11 or 12 million dollars. >> and the republican national committee confirmed that yesterday that the president raised $12 million at those fundraisers out in the hamptons. kristin and leland, back to you.

kristin: rich he had edson, thank you. leland: and the president was playing down north korea's latest missile test, saying that kim jong-un apologized for the test and the two plan to meet again, quote, in the not too distant future. interesting, yesterday he said he would meet with him at some point and now we're into the not too distant future. >> it's closer and closer. leland: closer and close. >> he had the north korean dictator on his mind and in particular impressed bypist p-- by hispenmanship. he'd like to meet as soon as the joint u.s.-south korea exercises are over. a long letter much complaining about the ridiculous and expensive exercises and the president says he agrees, despite the fact that his own military advisors believe the exercises are a crucial element

of the bilateral relationship. >> as you know, i've never liked it either, i've never been a fan. you know why? i don't like paying for it, we should be reimbursed for it. i don't like it either. and addressed north korea's launch last night of two more missiles into the sea of japan. he says it was a small apology for testing the short range missiles and that this testing would stop when the exercises end. i look forward to seeing kim jong-un in the not too distant future. a nuclear-free north korea will lead to one of the most successful countries in the world. now, the pentagon confirmed to fox news last night this is the fifth time that kim's regime launched missile tests in two weeks, but the president is not letting him stop facing a meeting-- >> he wrote a beautiful page, top to bottom, a really

beautiful letter. >> another meeting between trump and kim is something that the secretary of state has talked about a lot. several times in recent weeks and pompeo backed up trump's claim that it doesn't violate what happened in hanoi earlier this year. leland: what do you make of this. the president was out at 10 a.m. eastern, saying he got the letter the night before and by 10 p.m., not even 10 p.m. by 5:00 or 6:00 p.m. we knew about the short range missile tests. you have to make of that that the north koreans were watching that news conference and what he said and then decided to launch those missiles. >> perhaps. though we don't know to what degree kim and his regime sees this as, you know, maybe they're not necessarily violating the letter of this agreement that they struck with trump, but it certainly violates the spirit of trying to renew diplomatic ties with the united states. leland: any reporting behind the scenes what the north koreans

are saying what they want because of these test stests? >> a lot of the military experts that i speak with say they're going to push to the and strengths. leland: if they keep doing short range tests, they can bargain it away-- . thank you for your reporting gillian, kristin. kristin: 2020 candidates are flocking to the iowa state fair hoping to get their message out in the early voting state. hillary vaughan is in the state covering it all. >> kristin, we're taking you to the fair. you can see that kamala harris is flipping her first piece of pork, what they do since ronald

reagan, and she's flipping one and she says she wants to try one. we expect she'll get a taste soon. every day, visionaries are creating the future. so, every day, we put our latest technology and unrivaled network to work. the united states postal service makes more e-commerce deliveries to homes than anyone else in the country. e-commerce deliveries to homes ...and it's now on sale fors and just $59.ories. it can lead you on an unexpected journey...

...to discover your heritage. get your dna kit (now) for just $59 at ancestry.com.

eh, not enough fiber... chocolate would be good... snacking should be sweet and simple. the delicious taste of glucerna gives you the sweetness you crave while helping you manage your blood sugar. glucerna. everyday progress >> democrats vying for the 2020 presidential nomination are slamming president trump at the iowa state fair today. as they hope to drum up support in that early voting state ahead of next month's democratic debates. hillary vaughan live at the iowa

state fair with more on what the candidates are saying and hillary, i believe that you just caught quite the moment during our live tease to you. >> kristin, we are still here with senator harris, and she is getting grilled or at least she's on the grill. that's what every presidential candidate does here at the iowa state fair. she wanted to see the famous butter cow. and she's at the grill and she hit the president over trade saying he's not stood up for working people and his tax bill benefitted corporations and not farmers that have been particularly hit by his trade policy, but gun control is a central topic here at the fair. there are 18 presidential candidates speaking at a gun safety forum in iowa and 2020 democrat mayor pete buttigieg is blaming republicans for in the taking action on gun controls. >> i've never heard of an issue that 94% of americans agree on and that's what they're saying now.

we're talking about most republicans, most gun owners think we ought to do that. when i say most republican, i'm most republican people, not most republicans in congress. >> we also heard harris talk about her own plan to take executive action on gun control measures, if she was president and congress did not act within 100 days and ask if she would be concerned of the legality of taking executive order on gun control. her team looked into it and they have no concerns about it and she says that walmart should stop selling guns until they enforce a background check. and she has no problem with selling guns if they have the background checks. and we asked her about the suicide of jeffrey epstein and she told us that she does not think that-- or she doesn't have enough insight into the particular issue to comment on that, but she did say that talking about

the problems surrounding private prisons and also, looking at increased oversight into incarceration, but we did hear from new york senator kirsten gillibrand at that gun forum reacting to the news. >> i don't know the details of the suicide, so i don't know, i don't even know how he did it. it should be reviewed. >> so we are going to hear from nine total presidential candidates here at the iowa state fair today. harris was the second to take the stage. many more, including elizabeth warren and cory booker coming later this afternoon. kristin. kristin: they're keeping you busy, hillary vaughan. leland. leland: the voice of cedar rapids iowa with us now. doug heard on am 600 and worldwide on the interweb. doug, first for the optics of this, it's almost impossible

perhaps say mike huckabee spending time at the iowa state fair, to see any of these candidates look comfortable. has anybody passed that test? >> really up to this point, no. first of all, leland, thank you for having me back on. it's difficult for candidates to become comfortable at the iowa state fair. number one, you have 20 minutes up in the des moines register soap box. they have 20 minutes to get up in front of the crowd and pitch their candidacy and it can be tough at times because you've had hecklers. remember mitt romney, he had his hecklers. leland: romney was the one who said that corporations are people, too. that didn't-- >> exactly. leland: that stayed with him for a long time. >> it did and when you make mistakes like former vice-president joe biden did yesterday. the gaffe that he had. every well meaning person knows he didn't mean what he was saying, but it's just those kind of things, they get amplified and blown up on the really

biggest stage at the iowa state tear. leland: it's interesting, because this is not biden's first rodeo when it comes to gaffes even in this cycle. president trump yesterday said he didn't think that biden was playing, with quote, a full deck of cards and yet a-1 in the new york times asking can anyone catch biden? i put that question to you. >> it's going to be difficult for them. they're going to have to do something to separate themselves. right now, i was having that conversation with a friend of mine who is a democrat and what it comes down to now is that democrats are moving so far to the left at this point. they're struggling to push each other that far to the left. you only have a handful of people also-rans, john delaney, bullock, the governor of montana, they're staying somewhat centrist, but the democrat party is running so far to the left to try to capture that group that they're running into one another. leland: and they're running into

one another trying to call the president worse and worse names. some shied away from the quote, white supremacist terms. others have not. yesterday before he left on marine we talked to him about it, take a listen. >> democrats calling you and your supporters a white supremacist helps you? >> i don't like it when they do it, i'm not any of those things and i think it's a disgrace and shows how desperate the democrats are. for them to throw out the race word again, racist, racist, racist, that's all they use-- they called nancy pelosi a racist, she's not a racist. they call anybody a racist when they run out of cards. leland: iowa is not, for example, new hampshire, it's certainly not south carolina. how does it play there? >> it's interesting because they think that the phrase iowa knights is something that we're known for and the coarseness of

the politics and everything is difficult. when it's the president, he's sometimes a coarse speaker. when you hear one like elizabeth warren says that the president is a white supremacist and when you say that and his supporters, you're calling 50% people that out there. and you're not building bridges, i don't think it plays well to iowa voters. we're in the middle of a trade war with china. we're an ag based state and largest hog producer in the country. and with the trade wars extends, we had flooding early on and reduced returns from that and the president is playing a very high stakes game with china right now and interesting to see if that's going to pay off for him. leland: i believe it's your former 0 governor who is the ambassador, am i correct? >> yes, the u.s. ambassador to china and i think that that's

goodwill in and of itself may be one thing that keeps this relationship moving forward. leland: all right. i believe we're talking to a farmer who is iowa strong from outside there at the state fair next weekend. we appreciate you taking your time during the weekend. we know you're busy during the week, it means a lot. >> leland, thank you for your time today. leland: kristin. kristin: unrest in hong kong and police and protesters clash in the streets. the latest on these protesters coming up. this is the couple who wanted to get away

who used expedia to book the vacation rental which led to the discovery that sometimes a little down time can lift you right up. expedia. everything you need to go.

expedia. would shakespeare have chosen just "some pens?" methinks a tul pen would serve m'lady well. thanks. and a unicorn notebook! get everything on your list. this week's doorbuster- school backpacks for $10; $10 in store or online from the advisors at office depot officemax. if you have moderate little things can be a big deal. that's why there's otezla. otezla is not a cream. it's a pill that treats plaque psoriasis differently. with otezla, 75% clearer skin is achievable. don't use if you're allergic to otezla. it may cause severe diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting. otezla is associated with an increased risk of depression. tell your doctor if you have a history of depression or suicidal thoughts or if these feelings develop. some people taking otezla reported weight loss. your doctor should monitor your weight and may stop treatment. upper respiratory tract infection and headache may occur. tell your doctor about your medicines, and if you're pregnant or planning to be. otezla. show more of you. ♪

is here. five days. five deals. for fifteen dollars get a different deal every weekday til six pm like endless shrimp monday admiral's feast tuesday four-course feast wednesday and more. five days. five deals. fifteen dollars. see you before six. >> california firefighters battling a fast-moving fire in alameda county today. the county's fire department saying in a tweet that the fire is now 100% contained and the flames that began friday burned in total 248 acres. local air officials have issued an air quality warning, as you might be able to understand from all of that smoke in the area

>> it's been a rocky week for stocks as the market reacts to heightening trade tensions between the u.s. and china. and down 90% with the s&p 500 dropping 19 points and nasdaq dropping 80 points. how this affects businesses here in the united states. pwpc partner and developer, mitch rochelle. i'd like your take on the impact on the markets here. i mean, we had this trade war, now the very early stages of possibly a currency war. what do you make of how the market handled it this week? >> i think that baked into the markets was the notion that something would happen, and when they saw that trade war tensions is escalating, i think that the markets pulled back and said, wait a second all the companies reporting earnings sort of in line or ahead of expectations said if trade war escalates, then we may have adjust guidance

downward and that's why the market is starting to retreat, saying, whoa, this could impact our economy. kristin: the losses accelerated yesterday after president trump made a remark as he was leaving the white house for bedminster new jersey, he asked would he possibly cancel his next meeting with the chinese. here is what he said. listen to this. >> we have an open dialog, we'll see whether or not we keep our meeting in september. if we do, that's fine. if we don't, that's fine, but it's time that somebody does what we're doing and i said the american taxpayer is not paying for it. we had a big day in the stock market yesterday, but the american taxpayer is not paying for it. kristin: so how big of a deal will it be if president trump and the white house decide not to hold the next meeting in september? >> i think part of that is negotiating tactics, but the fact of the matter is our economy will pay for it if we have the 10% tariff on 300 billion dollars worth of imports and those are the ones that hit the consumers. companies will likely pass that

along, so i think while some of the tariffs may have been absorbed by business so far, this next round could be ones that actually impact the consumer and since our economy is so dependent upon the consumer, i think that's what's freaking out the markets. kristin: let's go into the consumers and businesses and purchasing of agriculture products and currency dropped against the dollar to the level not seen in a decade. so, what does this mean for businesses and for just average people as they prepare to, you know, do a lot of back-to-school shopping? >> just on going back to the previous segment before the break, the battle ground states like iowa are those that are hit by some of the agricultural exports to china. so part of that may be negotiating tactics on their part to try to politicize this a little bit. i don't think there will be a price at the pump, if you will--

or price at the backpack, whether it's backpacks or smartphones, going into september and beyond we are going to see those prices go up most likely if those tariffs are imposed. kristin: and how about farmers? we why just-- we were just looking at the video from iowa state fair. a lot of farmers in that state we know they've been hit very hard with these tariffs and ongoing trade war, do you see it getting better for them? >> not in the near term. it's not just the united states that's impacted. bilateral trade between united states and china is down 14% year to date. so pain is being felt on both parts, but the agricultural industry and the manufacturing industry are arguably feeling it the most. i don't think that that's turning around soon unless there's some sort of deal on the table and big issues that still need to be resolved are the intellectual property and the

like, those issues are not getting solved soon if we're not sitting down and arguing constructively about it. kristin: and how about the alleged currency manipulation, the ongoing trade war, what are you looking for next week to see how it's going to continue to play out? >> i think the market is generally looking for more indications that our economy is strong. our exports are relatively a small part of our economy so we're not dependent upon exports the way that china and some other countries are. we're looking for signs around the world because the biggest fear around our country because we're doing so well is that the contagion from slowdowns in other countries will creep into the united states. when you have numbers out of germany or numbers out of the u.k. those are the ones that we here look at to see if those are going to be a sign of problems to come, but for the most part our economy remains very, very strong and somewhat resilient to all of this noise going on around the world. kristin: i've got to leave it there. i'm sure you have more exciting things to do on a saturday.

thanks for coming in and talking to us. leland: we saved him from his golf game, come on. a look for an accused murderer who escaped prison and stole a tractor. any better than this? dad, i just caught a goldfish! there's no goldfish in this lake. whoa! it's pure gold. we're gonna be rich... we're gonna be rich! it only gets better when you switch and save with geico.

hey! i live on my own now! i've got xfinity, because i like to live life in the fast lane. unlike my parents. you rambling about xfinity again? you're so cute when you get excited... anyways... i've got their app right here, i can troubleshoot. i can schedule a time for them to call me back, it's great! you have our number programmed in? ya i don't even know your phone anymore... excuse me?! what? i don't know your phone number.

aw well. he doesn't know our phone number! you have our fax number, obviously... today's xfinity service. simple. easy. awesome. i'll pass. [ gi♪ ling ] let'[ doorbell ]-up. [ slap ] your nails! xfinity home... cameras. xfinity home... disarm the system. door's open. morning... welcome to the neighborhood. do you like my work? secure your home with x1 voice control. and rest easy knowing you have professional monitoring backing you up.

awarded "top pick" by cnet. demo at an xfinity store, call or go online today. xfinity home. simple. easy. awesome. >> escalating tensions in hong kong as police and anti-government protesters clash in the streets. ellison barber live with more. hi, ellison. >> hey, kristin, yeah, protesters say if the government thinks they will give up this fight, the government is wrong. thousands of people have gathered all across hong kong, thousands heading into the city's international airport on saturday for the second day in a row. most of them wearing black, some covering their faces, some handing out pamphlets, others holding signs. all seeming to protest

peacefully in one of the world's busiest airports. >> following clashes in hong kong, we tried to take things back to the more peaceful way. so today we gather in the international airport to try to spread out more to the international audience. >> in other parts of the semi autonomous territory, things were a lot more tense. protesters and police clashed well into the night. police reportedly used tear gas with little to no warning after hundreds of protesters blocked an intersection. the hong kong protests began about two months ago after the government tried to introduce legislation allowing defendants to be extradited it mainland china where courts are controlled by the ruling communist party. that controversial bill is suspended. but the protests continued. activists say they're about something bigger, they want more freedom and greater democracy and they want hong kong's leader to resign. it's hong kong's biggest political crisis in decade and

many say it poses a serious challenge to the china's central government. they've accused foreign powers, mainly the united states of fueling the unrest. the united states, or the state department has called those claims from beijing ridiculous. kristin. kristin: ellison barber, thank you very much. leland. leland: live pictures of the iowa state fair. well, they're not live. but it's happening for the next ten days. who is eating pork on a stick right now? and what are they saying when we come back? hopes you drive safely. but allstate actually helps you drive safely... with drivewise. it lets you know when you go too fast... ...and brake too hard. with feedback to help you drive safer. giving you the power to actually lower your cost. unfortunately, it can't do anything about that. now that you know the truth...

are you in good hands?

too many people a restless night's sleep. there's a better choice. aleve pm. the only one to combine a safe sleep aid and the 12-hour pain-relieving strength of aleve. that dares to last into the morning. so you feel refreshed.

aleve pm. there's a better choice. >> but the bureau of prisons would typically look into this, just under half hour ago, attorney general william barr announced he's taking inquiry to

highest level writing i was appalled that jeffrey epstein was found dead early this morning from apparent suicide while in federal custody. mr. epstein's death raises serious questions that must be answered. in addition to the fbi's investigation i've consulted with the inspector general whose opening an investigation into the circumstances of mr. epstein's death. jeffrey epstein placed on suicide watch nearly 3 weeks ago now after he was found in his jail cell with marks on his neck, we've not been able to confirm whether or not he was still on suicide watch when he killed himself this morning, but those are the questions we are asking right now to the metropolitan correction center, bureau of prisons and justice department, epstein hanged himself and not been able to get that detail confirmed either, but we do know he was found unresponsive in his cell around 6:30 this morning and despite life-saving efforts both at the prison and downtown hospital, epstein was pronounced dead. so the question now becomes who

let this happen, how did this happen especially when someone in federal custody, especially under suicide watch should be in surveillance and not allowed to have any items that could be used to harm yourself. we spoke to an expert, the prison isn't obligated to give clothe to go inmates who they think might use clothe to go hurt themselves not to mention beth sheets, sharp objects, there should have been constant surveillance in video and in person during this time that epstein was under suicide watch, we know that he was found with marks in july. the bureau prison suicide prevention program has these in place, ep tine would have been placed in solitary confinement and checked every 60 minutes by staff and put in a room with no features that would allow himself to injury himself or keep him out of view from guards. the bureau of prison have criteria of who can be allowed

to watch inmate in suicide watch, the guards are selected on a strict basis of emotional stability, maturity, responsibility and even those guards would be supervised by another observer, so the fact that this was allowed to happen, somehow happened at mcc, very upsetting to those seeking justice, a lawyer representing some of the victims has asked that all of the assets be frozen because of the pending civil cases. leland. >> jacqui heinrich with us on that, we will check back in as developments warrant, jackie, thanks. >> president trump sounding off on china saying he's not ready to make a deal with beijing as tensions rise, jonathan live with more, hi, jonathan. >> hey, kristin, president trump clearly believes the u.s. has the upper hand.

>> they've had the worst year than they've had in decades, companies are leaving china, they would want to make a deal, i'm not ready to make a deal. >> trade ties between u.s. and china have deteriorated badly since august 1st, since president trump announced he would impose 10% tariff on final $300 billion worth of chinese import on september 1st in response, china holds purchases of u.s. agricultural products prompting concerns on the effect on u.s. farmers, concerns dismissed by the president. >> as i said, our people are not paying for the billions and billions of dollars that came in, 16 billion which i gave to the farmers because they were targeted by china. that's a small fraction of what they've taken in. >> now, mr. trump also labeled china as currency manipulator

after the country's central bank allowed currency to weaken to 11-year low against the u.s. dollar, some experts have suggested that was another warning shot to the u.s., the start of a new phase in the trade war, some worry it could tip the u.s. into recession, others say don't panic. >> so it's a negative that slows down growth but doesn't turn the economy over, doesn't create disaster, people tend to be making mountains mole hill, reasonable mole hill but still a hill. r certainly seem at best, confused at worse, rattled with the dow and the nasdaq ending down friday, now face to face trade talks to take place in washington next month and clear that both sides are negotiating indirectly through president trump's public pronouncements and china's actions ahead of

that date, kristin. >> jonathan hunt, thank you, leland. leland: for more on this assistant to the president for trade and manufacturing policy peter navarro who at least leading -- >> one leader in this and that's president donald j. trump and robert lighthizer. >> he seems to be listening to you on this one. >> that's overblown. i never thought i have seen humility in washington, we will mark the tape. >> i have the best trade team in history. leland: then what's the threat, what's the threat if china begins or continues on their currency that manipulation, you said there's serious consequences? >> there's no threat. leland: what are the consequences? >> what's happening with china now as we have methically put tariffs on as china has basically refuse today negotiate

-- refused to negotiate in good faith, we have seen lower currency, since tariffs started the chinese yuan has gone down 12% offsetting much of the tariffs that we imposed, the other thing china does is lower prices, so we have seen virtually no inflation. i have something and i want to give to you made, promises made and promises kept. >> let's stick on -- i will look at that. >> currency manipulation is the last -- leland: here is the question, what would you -- if china continues devaluing their currency which as you point out to offset the tariffs what tools would the united states respond with? >> so secretary mnuchin has branded currency manipulator. leland: step 1, what's next. >> step one, he has wide-range of tools at disposal, step one -- leland: step 2.

>> work with international monetary fund to get china to do the right thing here and then we have tools to -- leland: like what? >> the manipulation, how do they manipulate currency? leland: specifics on what they are going to do? >> i understand that. hostility here. it's really simple, when china manipulates currency, they go in and intervene in the currency markets so they buy dollars. leland: right. >> so what the treasury department has ability to do among other things is the counter act that, that would be one thing to do, but when they do that keep in mind that when they're lowering currency to offset tariffs they are bearing the burden of tariffs. leland: let's be clear on this, the money that comes into the u.s. treasury comes from u.s. companies, it does not come from the chinese companies. >> you're wrong, sir.

leland: i want to understand, president trump says chinese pays for tariffs. >> you can't keep doing this, okay, you're overbearing and demonstrating a lack of understanding of dynamics. sir, what are you doing here? leland: i'm asking questions. >> give me a chance to respond here. leland: please. >> that translates to a lower price, so a total offsets any tariff impact, they wind up pay paying for it, they are also cutting prices, so you're talking about a paper transaction when in fact, china -- >> okay. >> you understand this. tariff on 10% and they lower currency 12%, right? are consumers hurt, absolutely not. we have raised $35 billion with the tariffs from the china tariffs, they've borne the

entire burden, using tariff revenues to basically make those farmers -- leland: sir, i have to -- >> we have to back off here. you are going off -- leland: okay. i will try to roll off the set. hold on, you said farmers were made whole. i ask the questions and you answer, you said farmers were made whole, i've had a number of farmers on the program that are not made whole at all, are they not telling the truth? >> sir, that's a silly question you're asking me because i haven't met those farmers, i haven't heard you talking to them. leland: okay. >> secretary of agriculture sonny perdue has program which has made those farmers whole using payments that we've gotten -- leland: just because they said they have been made whole we should take --

>> ho hostility. leland: this isn't hostile, typically people ask questions and answer questions. >> why do you keep interrupting me, that's all you do here, roll back the tape, start to answer questions. leland: we have to run, we appreciate it. >> interrupting me. probably 30 times. leland: if you answer the questions it's a lot easier, we appreciate it, thank you very much. kristin. >> all right, well, the so-called red flag gun law is gaining momentum in the senate and the president has signaled support for the plan in the wake of mass shootings in texas and in ohio, mark meredith live with more, mark. >> hey, there kristin, a number of potential new gun laws being discussed one of them comes from republican senator lindsey graham and democratic senator blumenthal, both want to implement red flag laws, through grant program it would allow law enforcement to take weapons away from people deemed to be a risk to themselves or others, a judge would later determine if those

weapons should be returned to their owner. >> there has to be imminent threat to harm to one self, go to judge, the gun owner can come in and defend themselves. >> big question many in washington are asking will senator majority leader mitch mcconnell would allow any potential gun law to reach the floor, mcconnell rejected calls to bringing congress back into session, here is what he had to say. >> we are going to put together a bipartisan discussion and get started so that we are hopefully by the time we get back, narrow some differences and see what we can turn into a law rather than just finger-pointing. >> for his part he's open for debate on gun control and expanding background checks for gun purchases. >> i think we can do meaningful, very meaningful background checks, i want to see it happen, so i've got a lot of support and

i also have the support of other people on the other side. >> democratic leaders released a statement thursday following a conversation they had with the president and statement on your screen that says the president gave us assurance that is he would review the bipartisan house passed legislation and understood our interest in moving as quickly as possible to help save lives, of course, a lot can change between now and when lawmakers return in september, gun control advocates say they plan to keep the pressure on congress, kristin, to get something done. kristin. >> and they'll be a lot of pressure on congress to make it back in september, mark meredith, thanks, leland. leland: 2020 more than dozen presidential candidates pitching platforms at the iowa state fair today hoping to make a splash in the first in the nation caucus, hillary vaughn there as we are getting the grill.

>> we are here at the iowa state fair, 9 candidates total, those recent candidates delivered pitch to iowa caucus goers, congressman tim ryan who is here with me now, hot topic is gun control and i want to ask you, congressman, you've been putting a lot of pressure on senate majority leader mitch mcconnell to take action on this issue, he's indicated that he's ready to have serious discussion in august recess, is that not good enough? >> i think we should come back into session, what we saw in el paso and dayton, ohio, i was in dayton for 2 days, this keeps happening, what we have at the senate has support of 90% of the american people, over 70% of gun owners, so this is something that we want the make sure guns aren't getting in the hands of people, let's go do it now. you saw the times square video of people hearing motorcycle

running for their lives. >> there is some red flag legislation making -- gaining momentum in the senate by senator graham or blumenthal. would you support? >> i would if covered properly. doesn't close loopholes that we need to close, is it appropriate, yes, i will support it, of course, but we have to go further than that. it's not about taking people's guns, i'm a hunter, it's a cultural issue for us in ohio, you can protect your family, you can go hunting, this is about the weapons of war on the streets. >> we heard senator kamala harris explain if she becomes president and congress does not act within 100 days she will take executive action on gun

control, would you do the same? >> i would sit down with the attorneys and figure out what we could do potentially, you know, i don't always like too much executive authority, whether it's going to war or anything else, but i would go as far as i could legally to try to protect the american people, that's really the number job of the president and i think president trump is advocating his responsibility to keep us safe. >> have you had any fried food here at the fair? >> no, but i'm dying, i smell it all, i'm ready to rock. >> thank you, congressman, we appreciate your time. leland, different thoughts on gun control here, in addition to the sate fair and candidates that are taking, also gun safety where 18 presidential candidates are speaking in iowa as well, leland. leland: hillary vaughn in the crowd, kristin. >> for more on this political panel vice president of hamburger gibson creative kevin and former hillary for america corks founder of run for

something amanda litman, so, guys, let's start with the front runner, former vice president joe biden because we all know he's prone to gaffes, he called himself a gaffe machine but he made a pretty big gaffe this week, i want to play it and get your reaction on the other side. >> we should challenge students, we have a notion that somehow you're poor you cannot do it, poor kids are just as bright and just as talented as white kids, wealthy kids. black kids. asian kids. [applause] >> so the biden campaign released a statement saying that the vice president misspoke and immediately corrected himself during the refrain he often uses to make the point that all children deserve a fair shot, but gaffe is a gaffe, i will start with you, amanda, what do you make of that? >> i don't think joe biden is a racist or meant anything other than misspeaking when he said this, that being said, i think it raises really important

questions about his stemna -- stamina and it's really worth knowing he can as president or as democratic nominee stick it out on campaign trail. >> kevin, do you think it's indicative of larger problem for biden? >> yeah, as you pointed out at the outset of the segment, former vice president is prone to making gaffes, i was with him in campaign launch in philadelphia and on the trail, he shows a lot of vigor, of course he misspeaks as the president do. we have 180 days left until iowa caucuses but american people, early state voters will judge him when they see him up close and personal. >> president trump already pounced on the gaffe, the challenge for biden going forward every single statement he makes is going to be scrutinized not just by media and democratic opponents but also by president trump as well. let's take a look at the latest

polls specifically in iowa because mammoth university and biden before he made the comment but biden has a very large lead in early-voting state, 28%, warren, 19, pete buttigieg at 8. meredith, which candidate has really stood out to you in terms of the pitch that they have been making to voters at the iowa state fair, amanda, i'm sorry. >> i'm impressed by elizabeth warren's campaign, she has committed to showing up and building grassroots infrastructure, they hear from her over and over again. i don't think any campaign has that kind of presence. we are a long way from iowa caucus, anything can happen. >> a lot can happen, warren surges in the polls, kevin, what is interesting to you? >> i couldn't agree with you, the folks i talk to iowa saying

elizabeth warren is doing grassroots network. harris got huge endorsement, well-known democratic family that is with the fair -- at the fair with her today, but, you know, i think as you're seeing now joe biden is kind of playing catch-up with hiring folks and building grassroots network, cory booker has a strong team in iowa, as we know from barack obama's surprise win it's all about organizing and getting folks to the polls. >> especially in state like iowa, kevin and amanda, not melissa. >> jeffrey epstein found dead in federal lock-up, what this means for the investigation into other people in epstein's world?

urke) a "rock and wreck." seen it. covered it. at farmers insurance, we know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two. ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪ ♪now i'm gonna tell my momma♪ ♪that i'm a traveller ♪i'm gonna follow the sun♪ ♪now i'm gonna tell my momma ♪that i'm a traveller transitions™ light under control™

you could win a trip to where your ancestors once lived... ...and connect with your heritage, your history... ...maybe even new family! visit ancestry.com for all the details. your next great adventure awaits! that's ensure max protein, for all the details. with high protein and 1 gram sugar. it's a sit-up, banana! bend at the waist! i'm tryin'! keep it up. you'll get there. whoa-hoa-hoa! 30 grams of protein, and one gram of sugar. ensure max protein.

here, hello! starts with -hi!mple... how can i help? a data plan for everyone. everyone? everyone. let's send to everyone! [ camera clicking ] wifi up there? -ahhh. sure, why not? how'd he get out?! a camera might figure it out. that was easy! glad i could help. at xfinity, we're here to make life simple. easy. awesome. so come ask, shop, discover at your xfinity store today.

>> president trump is down playing north korea's ballistic missile and that kim jong un could be open for negotiations. >> yeah, dig into it, that would be awesome. he's definitely on top of president trump's mind, president's last act before heading out of town on summer vacation and tell the press how impressed, in a letter to me sent to kim jong un he stated nicely that he would like to meet and start negotiations as soon as the joint u.s.-south korea exercise are over, long letter, much of it complaining about the ridiculous and expensive exercises, now the president says he agrees with that assessment despite the fact that his own military advisers believe the exercises are

crucial element of the bilateral relationship. >> as you know, i've never liked it either, i'm never been a fan, you know what, i don't like paying for it, we should be reimburse for it and i've told south korea, i don't like it either. >> the second part of tweet about missiles into the sea of japan, writing it was also a small apology for testing the short-range missiles and that the testing would stop when the exercises end. i look forward to seeing kim jong un in the not too distant future, north korea will lead to one of most successful countries in the world. pentagon did confirm to fox news last night that this was the fifth time north korea has launched missile test in two weeks but the president is not letting that stop him from pursuing another face to face meeting. >> i think we will have a another meeting, he really wrote a beautiful 3-page, i mean, from top to bottom, a really beautiful letter.

>> the idea of another meeting now between trump and kim is something that secretary of state mike pompeo has been talking about quite a bit in recent weeks, backed off president trump's claim that the firing of the short-range missiles doesn't violate the agreement the u.s. hatched with north korea in hanoi earlier this year, kristin. >> so if the next meeting, face to face meeting it's interesting to see exactly what happens especially that president trump -- >> if they make progress. >> president trump suggested that he might invite kim jong un to the white house. something to watch. something to see. gillian, thank you, leland. leland: fox news alert, disgraced financeer jeffrey epstein found dead in prison cell this morning. justice department calling an apparent suicide, with that we bring in kevin carol, former chief council of the u.s. council on organized crime,

there are a lot of conspiracy theories on this one especially given some of the names that were dropped yesterday as being part of epstein's world and perhaps even in worst vein than that, do you believe any of that and should we believe that he was allow today commit suicide? >> leland, thanks for having me on, i wouldn't believe in conspiracy theories, it's probably horses and not zebras. this was incompetence on the federal bureau of prisons here and i don't think he was murdered. leland: bill barr saying he was appalled on this, he was on suicide watch, unclear if he was still on suicide watch when this happened, but, boy, for a case that seemed to have the potential to snare -- >> doesn't look good, the deposition testimony that was released yesterday by order of

the u.s. court of appeals and second circuit taken back in 2016. it's not as if epstein was shot while walking into the grand jury while he was going to give live testimony but not a good look. leland: you think about some of the names that were put out in that grand jury testimony, just by self-described victim saying essentially that epstein pimped her out, innocent until proven guilty, does it make it harder or easier to prove those people guilty now? >> we read the indictment today and, you know, the charge of misconduct, you know, is certainly disgusting and it would have been very good to be able to have epstein in court, to have to answer for this, likely have invoked the fifth amendment but there's still way they can go after this, the physical evidence from the

execution of the search warrant on his town house which now nobody will have the standing of admissibility of it. >> if you're a person in epstein's orbit or represent a person in orbit who might have participated in unsavorily activities, which seems a lot of activities went on in his orbit, are you more worried or not less worried on this news? >> i'm still worried, what i'm looking at one is inspector general investigation going on in plea deal reached in 2008, 2, i would assume that they'll probably be civil suits against epstein's estate by the victims and then 3, looking at the indictment that was issued this year but the southern district of new york, they list employee one, employee two, employee 3,

other associates, they are not named but i would be interested -- all of the misconduct that's in the -- leland: based on your reading of the documents so far and the tea leaves here, did the government feel as though they had reach the top of the food chain, if you will, and were going down or were they going -- trying to go up from epstein on to the food chain or at least out to a circle of friends not just enablers? >> what struck me as being bear bones indictment that i think the government probably knew more than they were letting on, so absolutely, they could have been trying to get epstein to flip and give up the bigger fish. one thing i'd be interested to know is the date stamp on some of the child pornography that was discovered in his house and made in his house and whether that would solve any statute of limitations issue for people that were involved in conspiracy. leland: boy, the investigation continues as you said, believe in competence rather than

conspiracy, we hear the fbi is investigating this which is unusual, appreciate your insight. kristin. >> president trump maybe on his august vacation but that hasn't stopped him from tweeting, more of what he's saying next.

to be their best, kids need good nutrition. and practice... lots of practice. get them started right with carnation breakfast essentials. it has protein plus vitamins and minerals to help kids be their best. carnation breakfast essentials.

who used expedia to book the vacation rental that led to the ride ♪

which took them to the place where they discovered that sometimes a little down time can lift you right up. ♪ flights, hotels, cars, activities, vacation rentals. expedia. everything you need to go. expedia. the first survivor of alzis out there.ase and the alzheimer's association is going to make it happen. but we won't get there without you. join the fight with the alzheimer's association. walkabout wednesdays are back! get a sirloin or chicken on the barbie, fries, and a draft beer or coca-cola - all for just $10.99. hurry in! wednesdays are for outback. outback steakhouse. aussie rules. ♪ if. ♪ >> president trump is away from

this weekend, starting off his summer vacation in bed minister, new jersey. rich edson is here with more, president trump is not taking break from twitter. >> reporter: no, he's not at all, not taking a break from a lot here, but, you know, this is his first full day of his central jersey vacation. he's supposed to be here for about a week and a half. congress is out until next month. the president says when they all return, he is confident they can get together on legislation to expand background checks. >> i think in the end wayne and the nra will be a little bit more neutral, and that would be okay. it's a slippery slope. they think you're pro one thing, and that leads to a lot of bad things. i don't agree with that. >> reporter: the national rifle association opposes any measure that limits access to firearms for law-abiding citizens. as for the senate majority leader, mitch mcconnell, he

has said and only publicly committed to a bipartisan conversation about potential solutions. mcconnell says senators will return next month as scheduled, despite democrats wanting them to come back early all following this august recess. democratic leaders in congress say they spoke with the president and told him the senate should take up and pass a house bill on universal background checks. before arriving here yesterday afternoon, the president traveled to fundraisers out in the hamptons. one of the hosts was stephen ross whose company owns equinox and soul cycle, and now some high profile celebrities are boycotting the chains. the president contends the controversy is actually helping ross. >> i think it makes steve much hotter. i didn't speak to him yet, i'll see him in a little while. the controversy makes steve ross hotter. they'll figure that out in about a week, but he's very happy. he's got a very successful -- a lot of people are going. we have two fundraisers.

one is steve, one is another gentleman, and i guess they're going to raise $11 or $12 million. >> reporter: the republican national committee says the president hit the top of that range, $12 million in those fundraisers. kristin? kristin: bill hemmer is in for chris wallace tomorrow, he has an exclusive interview with kellyanne conway. check your local listings for time. and then howard kurtz's panel will talk about the media coverage of those mass shootings in texas and ohio and president trump's visits to both of those states. tomorrow at 11 a.m. eastern. leland: iran is warning israel, saying that tehran would view the action as a, quote, clear threat and reserving the right to take action. this comes following reports israel was going to assist the u.s. to protect shipping in the strait with intelligence. and with that, we bring in

former deputy assistant secretary of state in the obama administration, currently washington strategy group president joel rubin. good to see you, joel, thanks. always nice to know where the iranians stand. >> well, they certainly stand against israel, and there's no doubt about that. and if israel's going to support american intelligence-gathering -- leland: we know they do, they just said the quiet part out loud. [laughter] >> well, yeah, and that's always been behind the scenes, and now israel's getting overt, but israel has the right to do that, and we have the right and responsibility to get the most accurate information that we can about security in the gulf. leland: we have national security rights to keep the strait open. >> we do, and right now our policy is driving us in the opposite direction. we're seeing a lot more incidents at sea, and it's a dangerous moment. this is why congress recently as well did pass a bill that required authorization for military force by the u.s. and

28 republicans in the house supporting it, and they called on the president for military authorization -- leland: right. this after the iranian shutdown. the drone. at some point though, iran -- say what you want about their nuclear facilities, but they still have the blood of thousands of americans on their hands. why is confronting them and trying to cut off their ability to fund hezbollah and others a bad thing? >> there's nothing wrong with trying to confront it, but you have to do it in a smart way, and right now our policy may be punishing them economically, we've got maximum pressure campaign, but we're not achieving anything at the table, and iran has the ability to restart its nuclear program, and it puts us in this position of, well, what's next? does it mean military strikes? leland: but the last time, you know, you think about the last time the iranians really got a punch in the nose from the united states, president reagan in the 1980s. we didn't hear from them for a

while ago a after that, number one, and number two, we did it alone. >> the 1980s, that's one thing, but the policy seems to be angling towards a regime change policy in iran. we are not looking at a policy where we're trying to get a diplomatic deal with iran -- leland: well, you want to talk about -- the obama administration was kings of the regime change in the middle east. you guys threw them all out. >> what there wasn't was a u.s. invasion force, there wasn't an american military -- leland: there was a huge military operation -- >> in libya, there was. leland: and in yemen. >> that was an operation that was supported by a variety of countries in the arab world and in the arab league, and it has turned out disastrous because we pulled i out of insuring -- leland: what you're saying is that the obama administration policies didn't work, therefore, the obama administration policy on iran should be trusted because that was the right one? >> no. what i'm getting at is regime

change overall is dangerous, and it puts you in a bod position. -- bad position. what we're looking at with iran and the diplomatic deal we had in the obama administration was avoiding all of that. leland: so you agree parts of the obama administration policy was disastrous -- >> nobody's only nip tent. omnipotent. the danger here with iran right now is that we are heading into a military confrontation with iran, and that is -- leland: at least so far the president's held out on that. >> he's being driven in the direction that could be dangerous. leland: all right, joe, appreciate it. >> thanks, leland. kristin: an iranian woman in minnesota pleaded guilty friday in a tax case. restrict thed technology from companies in minnesota and massachusetts. she faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. and authorities searching at this hour for an escaped

tennessee convict suspected of sexually assaulting and killing a female prison administrator. curtis ray watson was first discovered missing wednesday morning. authorities are asking residents to stay vigilant. there have been no credible sightings of watson as of yet. leland: all right. this is not exactly your traditional rescue. why spacex sent a crew to recover, there it is, a nose cone rocket. ♪ ♪ this is nice.

yeah...yeah, this is nice. hmm. how did you make the dip so rich and creamy? oh it's a philadelphia-- family recipe. can i see it? no. philadelphia dips. so good, you'll take all the credit. booking.com offers free so bookers can book now... and ask their boss later. [do you want breakfast or no?] free cancellations! [definitely breakfast.] how good is that? be a booker at booking.com.

[ soft piano music playing ] mm, uh, what do you do for fun? -not this. ♪ -oh, what am i into? mostly progressive's name your price tool. helps people find coverage options based on their budget. flo has it, i want it, it's a whole thing, and she's right there. -yeah, she's my ride. this date's lame. he has pics of you on his phone. -they're very tasteful. ♪ ♪ >> nasa just released a new photo taken by the mars curiosity rover, a panorama of what's known as the teal ridge as curiosity celebrates its seventh anniversary on the red planet. joining us now to discuss the next steps forward is space exploration nasa administrator jim bridenstine. administrator, thank you so much for taking time off your summer

break to come in and chat with us. >> thank you, kristin. kristin: let's start with this big anniversary, curiosity on mars for seven years now. what have we learned during that time? >> so it's been an amazing journey. this little rover, curiosity -- i say little, it's about the size of a jeep -- it has discovered many things to include that the methane cycles on mars if are commensurate with the seasons of mars. that might not mean a lot to very many people, but it is an increased probability that we could find life on mars. curiosity has discovered that, you know, in this lake bed where it has been living for seven years, it has discovered that there is, in fact, evidence of mud and flowing water. there are pebbles that are perfectly round which which indicates that not only was it a lake bed that was stagnant, but there was actually flowing water. and so when we add all of this up to include the discovery of

complex organic compounds, in other words, the building blocks for life which don't exist at all on the moon, but they are all over mars, the probability of finding life on another world is going up. we don't know that it's there, we don't know that it was ever there, but we want to find out. and to the extent that anybody finds out, it should be the united states of america, and that's why the president has been committed to planting an american flag on mars. kristin: and how much longer do we expect curiosity to be operational on the martian surface? >> that's a great question. it was supposed to be operational for two years, it's now been seven years, and it is still going strong. nasa has an amazing list -- history of these rovers on mars. we've now had robots on mars for 22 years. earlier this year we celebrated the end of life of opportunity which was a mars rover that was supposed to be on mars for 90 days, and it lasted for almost 15 years. so nasa has really done an

amazing job in building these robots, landing them -- again, the united states is the only country that has ever landed on mars. we've now done it eight times, and we're doing it again next year, we will launch, in 2020, july of 2020, we're going to launch the mars 2020 rover which will, in fact, include a helicopter. so we're going to fly a helicopter on another world for the first time in history. kristin: that sounds cool. spacex had a big week, and i love showing any of their videos because they really are so cool whenever we get a chance. this week a rocket nose cone from one of its falcon 9 rockets, we have some video of that if we can pop it up, it landed on earth because back on earth it was caught in a net on a boat in the middle of the ocean. so that happened. also this week spacex unveiled its new star hopper prototype which is a spacecraft it's going to use to send humans to the moon and eventually mars someday. so in one sense, spacex is

nasa's competitor, right? because both of you are trying to go to mars eventually, but nasa has also just announced a new partnership with spacex. what exactly are you hoping to gain from spacex? if tell me a bit more about how that relationship is going to work in terms of the things you are trying to develop as you guys go to the moon and mars? >> that's a great question, and thank you for asking it. a lot of people seem to believe that nasa and spacex are competitors. in fact, we are not. they are a contractor of nasa, and we pay them to develop capabilities that are essential to the united states of america. for example, right now commercial crew, we are launching astronauts to the international space station within a year for the first time since the retirement of the space shuttle, which i know, kristin, your parents flew on. we're going to go back to international space station for the first time in eight years on commercial rockets. spacex is going to provide one,

boeing is going to provide one. they are contractors of ours. but i think there is a narrative that is incorrect that somehow we are competitors when, in fact, they're a contractor of nasa. we need them to be successful, we want them to be successful, and star hopper, this star hopper's a great capability where they are going to land on the moon with cargo, according to them, within the next two years. i will tell you sometimes they are overaggressive on their time schedule. that is not nasa's time schedule, that's what they are saying. but at the same time, they are a great partner as are our other partners, and we want them to be successful. kristin: well, jim, we look forward to seeing what you and spacex and blue origin, what all of you are able to accomplish. i could ask you a ton of questions, but i'm getting a hard wrap. >> okay, thank you. leland: tornadoes sweeping across europe. where and the storms involved, next. ♪ family is all together

family is all together and we switched to geico; saved money on our boat insurance. how could it get any better than this? dad, i just caught a goldfish! there's no goldfish in this lake. whoa! it's pure gold. we're gonna be rich... we're gonna be rich! it only gets better when you switch and save with geico. too many people a restless night's sleep. there's a better choice. aleve pm. the only one to combine a safe sleep aid and the 12-hour pain-relieving strength of aleve. that dares to last into the morning. so you feel refreshed. aleve pm. there's a better choice.

kristin: check out this tornado caught on camera sweeping across amsterdam. the tornado ripped through the dutch capital overnight, and at least 19 people were injured when it swept through luxembourg on friday, and there could be more windy weather coming today. we check in with meteorologist adam klotz in the extreme weather center. hi, adam. >> reporter: yeah, the weather has been wild in europe really all summer, big heat wave kind of fueling some of those storms. we've got a little bit of our own heat wave across the middle of the country lingering for the next couple of days. temperatures in the lower 90s still relatively early in the day across portions of the great lakes. these temperatures are going to continue to rise. we're going to be getting feels-like temperatures up to 105, 110 degrees, heat

advisories stretching across the gulf states, over towards florida and running up the mississippi river. spots getting up to 105, 310, this can be dangerous -- 110, these are your forecasted highs, your actual highs by the time you get going into this afternoon, but when you add in the humidity, that's when you start seeing these numbers run up. running to the north, also feeling like 107 this afternoon, it gets only hotter for us as we run into our sunday where more spots running up to 105. tulsa, 111. it is going to be very steamy. now, the only way to cool this off may be a little bit of rain, unfortunately, in that area it's not going to happen. we're tracking showers for your saturday, kind of a little bit of a system brewing down in portions of southern florida, so expect rain off and on throughout the weekend, and another fairly large low pressure system trying to come together in the pacific northwest. not a lot there yet, but we are going to be seeing some rain over the next couple of days and

eventually kind of running into the middle of the country. kristin: with that rain and heat, but here in d.c. we have one of the best days you could possibly get. leland: not the swamp. not quite as swamp-esque. very nice. i enjoyed watching our coverage of the iowa state fair. it was like a preview of your diet for the next week. kristin: i know, i'm so excited. fried oreos. i normally don't eat a lot of meat, but i may have to go in for one of those porks on a stick, give it a whirl. leland: we expect a full report back. kristin: i'll bring some back for you. leland: news continues from new york next. we'll see you tomorrow. ♪ ♪ behind you, ♪ beside you, and up ahead... you can keep your mind on bigger things. ♪ safety first. ♪ and second.

♪ and throughout the all-new ram 1500. motor trend's 2019 truck of the year. ♪ motor trend's 2019 truck of the year. you don't really talk about your insurance unless you're complaining about it. you go on about how... ...it's so confusing it hurts my brain. ya i hear ya... or say you can't believe... ...how much of a hassle it is! and tell anyone who'll listen... (garbled)....it's so expensive! she said it's so expensive. tell me about it. yes.. well i'm telling the people at home. that's why esurance is making the whole experience surprisingly painless. so, you never have to talk about it, unless you're their spokesperson. esurance. it's surprisingly painless.

? >> the fbi is now on the case investigating the apparent suicide that's shock of jeffrey epstein. attorney general william barr says the department of justice's inspector general is investigating those circumstances of epstein's mysterious death after the wealthy financier was found unresponsive in his jail cell this morning at the metropolitan correctional center in downtown manhattan. his death in federal custody coming as he was awaiting trial on those explosive sex trafficking charges and only one day after a batch of new court documents were released providing new, sordid details about his alleged crimes. hello, everyone, and welcome to "america's news headquarters," i'm eric shawn. arthel them and i'm arthel neville. epstein's death also comes