correspondenwere responding to a broken water main. crews pulled out the 42,000 lb. truck later in the day. jon: thank you for joining us. "live desk" starts right now. [captioning made possible by fox news channel] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- martha: hello, everybody. this is proposing "live desk." i am martha maccallum. trace: i am trace gallagher. this is where the news begins. it behind us is the national desk. they cover america for fox news. this is the foreign desk. they are covering the globe. every picture that comes into fox news channel comes in right along this area. we call this the media desk. on the "live desk" those stories will be in the three boxes.

in the top box, the u.s. envoy to the iaea now says iran is moving much closer to being able to build a nuclear bomb. you're getting reaction to that. in the middle box, amazing video from colonel oliver north, who is in the remote desert in afghanistan. if you are wondering how u.s. marines get supplies, these pictures are worth a million words. in bottom box, the woman accusing roethlisberger of red be hurt has made him an offer that he can accuse. martha: we begin with president obama in primetime tonight. you will appear before a joint session of congress. he will outline his priorities in the overhaul of our health- care system. the white house has promised

that the president himself will lay out exactly what his priorities are in clear terms for the american public to think about. now we have this just coming into the newsroom moments ago. this is senator baucus, an extremely important player in this. he is a member of the crucial gang of six. he says that his finance committee will move ahead, that they will have legislation later this month. he declared that a government- run option has no chance. public option has no chance of passing in the senate. a major new poll shows and of and majority of americans disapprove with the way the president is handling health care. major garrett is at the white house.

he is still working on tonight's speech. >> it gives you an idea of how high on his agenda this is. democrats believe it could be jeopardized if the party fails to prove it can govern. i am told by the white house advisers that the president took the latest draft of his speech on air force one as he flew to the walter cronkite memorial services in new york. he will return back to washington, d.c. one thing that may delay the white house is these last minute edits by the president, which shows how deeply involved he is in the formulation of this speech. martha: one of the elements is the inclusion of some special guests. we have seen as in the past, but this has a twist. >> the white house new media team has sat down with some of these americans and shot

interviews with them to talk about their stories. those interviews will be posted about 3:00 p.m. this afternoon on the white house website. americans can get the idea of who the president will talk about as he introduces these people in his speech and refers to their health care problems as a part of his reason to persuade congress to follow his lead on health care reform. martha: as the president, as the public is most aware, the legislative branch has a lot of power here, too. how much can this be to make a difference? >> from the month of july to where we stand now, the president's approval rating has

fallen 9%. his overall handling of his job as president has suffered seven%. even though robert gibbs said yesterday that he did not think august had been a suspect in the presidency or health care in general, the polls indicate otherwise. i am told by many democrats backed one of the principal motivation is to give the speech is to shake up the polling data and make more americans comfortable with the idea of comprehensive health- care reform, and to diminish and the hostility to the idea by setting aside some of the arguments that cropped up at the town hall meetings in august. the white house will be looking closely at the polling data on friday. martha: major garrett, thank you very much. trace: republicans will give their response. they have chosen louisiana

congressman boustany to deliver the speech. who is he? what are his credentials for this high-profile address? molly henneberg is in washington. was boustany chosen because he is a heart surgeon? >> absolutely. and he is on the ways and means committee. boustany was a heart surgeon for 20 years. he knows about the health-care system. he is very concerned about maintaining the independence of the doctor-patient relationship. trace: how long do we think he is going to speak? do we have any idea what he will say? >> his speech is written. will run about five minutes. it will focus on the republicans' approach to health- care reform, what boustany calls common-sense reform. he is likely to stress working in a bipartisan fashion to get this done.

trace: talk about bipartisan fashion. how far is boustany willing to go to compromise with democrats? >> he says it is important to get all options on the table pretty stopped short of supporting the so-called public option. he also said republicans want to be involved in this debate but are getting shut out by democrats. listen to this. >> we have been working hard to talk about the things that are important, building the doctor- patient relationship, working hard to get the cost of health care down. we want to work in a bipartisan way with this president and with congress. we feel we have been left out of a lot of the debate so far. >> as for following the president tonight, is a tough job. boustany says that after working 20 years as a heart surgeon in the operating room, hughes used to the pressure. trace: molly henneberg, thank you. fox news will cover both the president's address to congress

and the gop response by congressman boustany. martha: a report from the u.n. nuclear watchdog warning that iran is getting closer to producing a nuclear bomb. the obama administration is giving iran until the end of this month to join new talks, or to face new sanctions. iran is refusing to halt the enrichment of uranium or to negotiate. the foreign minister of iran delivered a package of proposals to western diplomats today. they addressed various global issues and that iran says it is willing to discuss with the un. trace: devastating images out of turkey today, making the nation look like a war zone. the worst flooding in decades.

others are trapped on the roof of their cars. at least 20 people have reportedly died. authorities are blocking off roads and advising people not to travel in that area. martha: there are some new worries about the impact of the h1n1 virus on the workplace, and on the u.s. economy. just think about this. a new harvard study shows most american businesses are not prepared to deal with a swine flu outbreak. 2/3 of the company's surveyed said they would not be able to keep up with a normal operations if half of their employees were out sick for two weeks. the harvard researchers say that the company's need to change their sick policies. trace: in less than seven hours

until the president addresses congress in what many are calling the most important speech of the obama administration. and democrats in the house are bringing a new concept to the debate over government run health insurance. they are calling it a trigger. what is it and how will it affect you? karl rove will break it down for us next. >> fires are fired to distract enemy missiles. 6 tons are dropped in a matter of seconds. trace: and nightfalls as heroes fly. colonel oliver north takes us high over the afghanistan on a mission to resupply our marines behind enemy lines. he is a super bowl winning quarterback accused of rape. his alleged victim says she is

ready to drop all the charges. there's a major catch. ?7

trace: in the top box, that is a live look at san francisco. that is steve jobs. he is the keynote speaker at the apple music meeting.

it will announce a new product. it is likely to be an upgrade of the ipod. in the middle box, the massive wildfire outside los angeles is more than 60% contained. this thing has been burning for 15 days. two firefighters have died in that fire, which has been rolled arson. in bottom box, this is a category 3 hurricane now. it is fred. it was upgraded today by the national hurricane center. we will get a forecast coming up later on. martha: it is a very big night tonight as the president lays down the ggauntlet.

he will say what he wants and the health-care reform. house speaker nancy pelosi is valid to keep the government run aspect, the so-called public option, in this deal. >> i am not one of those who says it is not a good deal if you do not have the public option. >> i do believe that in order to pass a bill in the house, we will have a public option. as is the legislative process. martha: a little tension there between steny hoyer and nancy pelosi. karl rove, welcome to you. former senior adviser and deputy chief of staff to president bush. what do you make of the back- and-forth? >> it is representative of one of the big challenges president obama will have in tonight's speech. it is relatively late.

we are eight months into the process. it is clear that the bill cannot pass the senate with the public option. nancy pelosi is drawing a line in the sand. one of the big challenges tonight will be for the president to tell us where he comes down on this and place a bet on one approach or another. martha: moments ago we listened to senator baucus, the lead democrat on this gang of six in the senate. he says he is hearing a lot about the trigger option from the press. he said that the trigger option does not really come up. >> it is interesting. this was talked about a lot last week as a possibility. the trigger was included in medicare prescription drugs. this is where everybody pointed to. the question was would there be a number of competing plans

available in every part of the country? there was a trigger that said that if there is not at least two in every competing area in the country, there would be a possibility for a government-run plan. there are dozens of competing plans in every region of the country. you could design a trigger for this and it would be absolutely certain of being pulled. it would guarantee a government- run health plan. that could be defined very easily. it could set a lusty insurance companies -- it could say if there's a reduction in the growth rate of health-care spending by the insurance companies in a certain amount, there will be a government-run plan. was a very interesting statement by senator baucus. he also examine one of the other big three challenges that president obama faces. will he embraced bipartisanship as senator baucus has? or will he go the direction of

nancy pelosi? martha: i want to play the briefing at the white house. i wonder what president obama thinks about this. listen to what robert gibbs said about this trigger. >> as i understand the trigger that is proposed on capitol hill is that if certain reforms are not met in a region of the country, if the region of the country is dominated by one health insurance provider, like alabama, if there are not enough options for people in the region, that would trigger a public option. martha: was this a way out for the president? if he looks at those on the left and says, i guarantee that if those health insurance companies and all those big corporations do not get a handle on this, the government will make sure they do. >> if he goes that way, it is a completely phony trigger. it is clearly just an attempt to

get a government-run health plan. take the problem that robert gibbs talks about where in alabama, the market is dominated by blue shield. there's a way to get around that. allow people to buy health care insurance across state lines like auto insurance. if you want more companies, and there are at least 1300 companies that sell health-care policies in america, if you want more of those companies competing for business, allow them to sell across state lines. it is an easy way to solve this. it does require a lot of government, a lot of bureaucracy to do it. martha: that cross border competition is coming up in a lot of corners of this discussion. let me ask you about the president and his presidency. do you look to denied as a moment where we assee president obama taking a stand on this?

-- you look at tonight as the moment where he will take a stand on this? >> he is very late coming to this particular discussion. he has backed health-care reform. he has stayed away from endorsing a specific plan of action. it may be too late now. he may have needed to do that earlier. the biggest problem that he faces tonight is that he will have to try to sell what is increasingly a less popular idea. he will have to sell his version of health care to a populace that is more concerned about what he is talking about. this is not the first time we have heard this. by my count, he has given at least 111 speeches or news conferences in which he has talked about health care. he has got to come up with something new. it is awfully late in the game.

martha: it is always great to see you on the "live desk." thank you very much. trace: thousands of miles from home, surrounded by men who want them dead. marines in afghanistan on the front lines, but not forgotten. oliver north will show us how america's bravest get the supplies they need to fight the taliban. we will take you over the war zone in three minutes. >> how many missions have you done? >> about a couple dozen so far in afghanistan. >> do you ever get any thank you notes? >> no, but i know they appreciate what we do.

lpóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóóó

trace: we are talking and lot about health care and politics, domestic issues. we cannot forget that we are fighting two wars. colonel oliver north is in southern afghanistan. he is tied to along with the brave men and women responsible for emergency supply for marines in helmund province. >> we are with the marine expeditionary brigade. more than 10,000 marines made emergency supply, they turned to major edwards. >> i am the engineer officer. >> how many airdrops have you done? >> this is their 22nd. .

this will be 375 bundles to marines. >> how will this happen? >> bebel load up the c-130. they will push them out the back. there are pros. >> how many of mentionthese miss have you done? >> a couple of dozen here in afghanistan. >> do you ever get any thank you notes? >> no, but i know they appreciate what we do. fires >> are fired to distract enemy missiles. 6 tons are dropped in just under seconds. then is back to the base to

reload and refuel for another mission. >> it is marines' light stays that keep our troops supplied in southern afghanistan. i am oliver north's for fox news. trace: this is a life-and-death, getting supplies to these marines. martha: it makes our job look pretty easy. it is an incredible story. we appreciate what they're doing. coming up, he has been referred to as the regulatory czar. what exactly is he saiying? he is known for some pretty controversial views. we will tell you the background. this is for you guys.

there's a new book that claims to reveal the real reason why women want to have sex. trace: you do not want to know. martha: do you think you know your wife or your girlfriend? trace: you do not want to know. fox feel like making love are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert

your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today. he better not be on the bed. you know you're gonna need it. why not stock up now? get everything you need for fall cleaning and fall allergies at an unbeatable price. save money. live better. walmart. if you feel fraud or identity theft only happens to other people, then don't bother watching this commercial. i've taken precautions all my life to protect my identity. i've been in law enforcement all my life...

and my identity was stolen. did you know that identity theft has topped... the federal trade commission's list of consumer complaints... for the last eight years? it's a serious problem for anyone with a social security number. and it continues to get worse. fact is, on your own, there are many things... you can do to deter identity theft. protect your social security number, shred and destroy, be internet savvy, use intricate passwords, safeguard your purse and wallet. seriously, are you really going to do all that? no, really are you going to do all that... for you and your family? at lifelock, the gold standard in identity theft protection, we're here to help. we take proactive steps to deter identity theft... to help stop it before it happens. lifelock identity theft protection can be yours for just ten dollars a month. call now. when you are a victim of identity theft, from that point your whole entire life... is spent trying to protect your identity. and i say "trying" because it's a full-time job... just trying to protect your identity.

if your identity is stolen, nothing can be more... frustrating or more time-consuming... than cleaning up afterwards. at lifelock, all we do is think of ways to help protect your identity. and if you do become a victim of identity theft... while a member of lifelock, because of a failure... in our service we help you fix it and work toward... restoring your good name. it's part of our one million dollar total service guarantee. this peace of mind comes included with your... ten-dollar-a-month lifelock membership. sign up now and we'll send you a lifelock paper shredder... to help you keep your identity even safer. for lifelock peace of mind at just ten dollars a month, and to receive your paper shredder, call now and mention "shredder." call now and mention "shredder." call now or visit lifelock.com. ♪

trace: we have brand new information on three big stories. the president has a whole lot of convincing to do tonight in his address to congress. mike emanuel is on the north lawn of the white house. >> he worked on the latest version of the speech on his flight to new york. he regrets giving more specifics months ago, rather than allowing his critics to take shots all summer. we're told we will get details and some personal stories from people struggling in the current health-care system. trace: will we have enough swine flu vaccines? some companies are scrambling? >> yes, clinical trials are underway to see of the nation's limited supply of swine flu vaccine can be stretched by giving each dose a boost. researchers at stanford university are exploring the use of a chemical that will boost to

the response. it could reduce the amount of vaccine needed for protection against the swine flu by making each dose more potent. it could be a big deal. trace: a very big deal. an unflattering documentary about hillary clinton is in a movie? free speech? shannon bream is live at the supreme court. >> makers of the movie wanted to air it at the same time that hillary clinton was running for the presidency. the federal elections commission found it was political advocacy and really put a damper on those efforts. that led to the bigger question, how can corporations spend money when it comes to political elections? trace: shannon bream at the supreme court. that is brand new information. martha: thank you. your recent resignation of the white house green jobs czar van jones has put the spotlight on

some other czars that work for the white house. one of those getting the attention is regulatory czar cass sunstein. james rosen is live in washington. a couple of things have come up in a look at cass sunstein's record. the first thing is done right through his position has changed a bit over time. >> that is not in doubt. what is in doubt is whether cass sunstein was forthcoming in his change of views. on july 14 of this year, he wrote --

>> however, the widely cited harvard professor had a different view two years ago in a lecture at the university of chicago law school. >> the right to bear arms is the success of an extremely aggressive and resourceful social movement. and has much less to do with the standard legal arguments then appears. >> cass sunstein went on to say in that lecture that the individual right to have guns, as it is conceptualized now, is best taken as a contemporary creation and a reflection of current fierce, not a reading of the civic centered found in debates. martha: has he really advocated

that animals should be able to pursue human beings -- able to sue humans? >> he did. he said animals should be permitted to bring suit to prevent violations of current law. his reasoning rested in part on the concept of suffering. at the very least, he said people should kill rats in a way that minimizes suffering. if my two cats were able to sue me, i would probably be in court every day. martha: he does not mention exactly how this would work. >> he did say that they would have humans as their representative. one has to imagine class action.

martha: how many rats does it take to make a class? thank you very much, james rosen. trace: listen up. we finally know why women have sex. shockingly, is not necessarily love or lost. according to the authors of a new book, romance and passion are low on the list. instead, the motivations are more mundane. 84% to admit to having sex to have a quiet life or to bargain for household chores. others say they do it to relieve boredom. that cannot be my house. even out of sympathy for their man. and research shows that most men find most women attractive, but the feeling is not really neutral.

most women do not find most men attractive at all. martha: the one that i love did not make the list. it was the number of people who said it was just something to do. trace: one of them said i really wanted him to take the rubbish out. martha: i could watch tv or do my nails, or that. trace: men are in this fog. they don't like. martha: it is not true. ok, let's get back to space. months after the hubble space telescope undermined an extreme makeover, we finally see these incredible images. these are breathtaking images. they prove that the hubble space telescope is back and better than ever. look at that.

the images show stars, galaxies, and some of those look like the birth of stars. the repairs could give the telescope up to 10 more years of life. beautiful stuff. trace: converting the critics on health care reform. will president obama be able to change the game tonight? congressmen from both sides of the aisle will join us on the "live desk" in three minutes. businesses more efficiently,

so we've brought in a team of experts to help. one suggestion is to make your shipping more efficient with priority mail flat rate boxes from the postal service. call or go online for a free supply and up to $160 in offers from authorized postage vendors. shipping's a hassle! weighing every box... actually, with flat rate boxes you don't need to weigh anything under 70 pounds. if it fits, it ships for a low flat rate. ok, but i ship all over the country. you can ship anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. ship international, too. yes, but i ship hundreds of things, in all sizes. great, because flat rate boxes come in four sizes. call and we'll send a free supply, plus up to $160 in offers. when you're ready to ship, we'll even pick them up for free, no matter how many you have. priority mail flat rate boxes only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship. call or go online now to get started.

announcer: you could buy 300 bottles of water. or just one brita filter. ( drop plinks ) brita-- better for the environment and your wallet.

trace: president obama's joint session address to congress could be in game changer in his push to overhaul health care. the inclusion of the public option has taken a lot of heat from both sides of the aisle to a volunteer from both sides of the aisle. congressmen and serv, welcome t. i have heard that this is a

poker game and the president is all in. what are the odds that the president comes up with a royal flush? >> i'm not sure how far i cared to go with the poker analogy. i hope that the president has listened to the american people. the american people do not want the government to take over their health care program. the house republicans have listened to the american people and we are with them. i would use a car analogy. people wanted their health-care system touned up, they do not want it repossessed. we need health care reform. the status quo is unsustainable. it's more important to do it right than to do it quick. trace: major garrett has been reporting today. he is now reporting that the president will pitch public option, but he will sell its like it will not be as threatening as we think it is.

this is kind of like you love it or you do not, the public option. is there a way to soft sell it? >> absolutely not. in public option, you will not have an option to you have the public. the government can tax people to subsidize the product. they will still control whether or not you see your doctor, which dr. uc, and what kind of health-care insurance you will have. they've -- will control which dr. you see, and what kind of health-care insurance you have. we have legislation on the republican side. we want to empower patients to choose their own doctors. trace: the white house has said for weeks that if there is a better plan out there, put it on

the table. are there better plans? are they listening? >> the congressman of wisconsin has a plan through the congressman of arizona has a plan. dr. tom price of georgia has a plan. they all have several features in common today in power the individual. -- they all have several features in common. they andempower the individual. it goes across state lines. there are options on the table. i hope the president will take the time to take a look at them. trace: thank you. we have been telling you how a top democratic leaders have disagreed on this government-run option. a new poll shows more than half

a country opposes the plans. look at the numbers. house speaker nancy pelosi says they have the votes to pass the bill. blue dog democrats like mike ross of arkansas say they do not support the inclusion. do they really have the votes to push through the public option? the senior debt and a member of the house ways and means committee -- this looks like a very steep climb for the president tonight. >> i do not think so. there are four national polls that show support for the public option. i found that people were confused and a little bit skeptical, but once you got the chance to explain, people are very supportive. trace: people are supportive. look at people in your own party, and they are looking at

this like they're not in support of this. look at mike ross, a blue dog democrat, who no longer supports the public option. steny hoyer says he could go with it or without it. nancy pelosi says they have the votes. do they have the votes? >> i think they do. steny hoyer said he was 100% behind the public option. we have spent billions of dollars on bottled water every month in the country. there's a very good public option that is a lot less expensive. turn on the faucet. there's mass transit and private transportation. they're all sorts of options. the choice and competition gives americans the opportunity to do what is best for them and their families. that is what we are trying to propose. trace: i want to bring up a quote from steve hildebrand.

you touched on that. americans are confused and they are very skeptical today about this entire public option and this health care reform. >> it is understandable. we are trying to reform 17% of the economy. it's a huge undertaking. it is a huge system with a lot of moving pieces. the confusion is understandable if. i am glad that we took the month of august to go home and spend the time talking to our constituencies. trace: talking? you've got an earful. is the president listening? will he make it clear that he hears it? >> i think he will show that he is willing to reach across the

party line and adopt some principles that republicans have put forward. we need to ask the republicans whether they will support the proposal now matter what concessions we make, and a matter what part of their plan we might adopt. i have not heard any republicans say that if you give me this, i will vote for reform. their main mission is to stop the reform. martha: ben roethlisberger finding himself in hot water, accused of rape. his attorney says he will reject a settlement offer. he calls it bizarre. we will tell you what is asked of ben roethlisberger and what is his response.

martha: an attorney for nfl

quarterback ben roethlisberger says he is rejecting any settlement offer that he received in a sexual assault case. the accusations stem from an incident in las vegas last year. a former casino worker claims that he assaulted her in a hotel room. the attorney is calling the offer bazaar. here is what she would like ben roethlisberger to do. and into the allegations, to apologize, and to donate to an abused women's negotiatioorgani. >> it would be an admission of guilt. if she could still sue him because he will have admitted that this act. the admission is evidence against him. separately, the prosecutors have investigated the claims and have decided there was not evidence to prosecute.

thirdly, there's something called his contract with the pittsburgh steelers, which has a morals clause. if he admits to committing a felony, he will never play in the nfl again. it is truly bizarre. this would give new life to the allegations. trace: is this a hint that she will go after him for a lot of money? >> no, i think it is a last- ditch effort on the part of her lawyers to end this with some saving face for her. the police who investigated this -- please do not hesitate to investigate just because they defended is a celebrity. they have said there is insufficient evidence. there is no case. you do not wait to this length of time. you do not have intimate contact with the person after the rape.

martha: it was in lake tahoe, not las vegas. when she tried to gain? >> she is trying to save some face and i think her lawyer is trying to get a fee. this is a trap for him. the statute of limitations for this is two years. she has one year to sue. the state has five years in which to bring a criminal case against him. the commissioner of the nfl could terminate the contract on a moment's notice. martha: she knows there's all this focus on football right now. if she brings this up again, maybe he will be forced to give her a little something. >> she waits until the nfl season starts. trace: it is football season. thank you martha:. martha: speaking of football, this is a serious story. new developments in the trial of a high-school football coach

charged with reckless homicide in the death of 15-year-old max gilpin several. players have taken the stand. they're talking about exactly what happened that day. was it a tough practice? was there something different going on that day? that is next. if you've had a heart attack

caused by a completely blocked artery, another heart attack could lurking waiting to strike. a heart attack caused by a clot, one that could be fatal. but plavix helps save lives.

plavix taken with other heart medicines, goes beyond what other heart medicines do alone, to provide greater protection against heart attack or stroke and even death by helping to keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots. ask your doctor about plavix, protection that helps save lives. if you have a stomach ulcer or other condition that causes bleeding you should not use plavix. taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin may increase bleeding risk, tell your doctor before planning surgery or taking aspirin or other medicines with plavix, especially if you've had a stroke. some medicines that are used to treat heartburn or stomach ulcers, like prilosec, may affect how plavix works, so tell your doctor if you are taking other medicines. if fever, unexplained weakness or confusion develops, tell your doctor promptly. these may be signs of ttp, a rare but potentially life-threatening condition reported sometimes less than 2 weeks after starting plavix. other rare but serious side effects may occur. if you take plavix with other heart medicines, continuing to do so will help increase protection against a future heart attack or stroke.

feeling better doesn't mean you're not at risk. stay with plavix. announcer: you could buy 750 bottles of water or just one brita faucet filter. ( drop plinks ) brita-- better for the environment and your wallet. from brink's home security... you can now expect from broadview security - for home and business. call now to get the proven technology of a broadview security system installed for just $99. day or night, broadview is on the job, ready to respond when trouble strikes. i'm sending help right now. (announcer) the same professional monitoring you expect from brink's home security, you can now expect from broadview security - for home and business. broadview security - the next generation of brink's home security. call now. [captioning made possible by fox news channel] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

martha: "live desk." i am martha maccallum. trace: i am trace gallagher. brand new stories. there is breaking news concerning federal authorities arrested 11 acorn workers for voter registration fraud. >> we are constantly updating the news stories. there's the acorn story. there are two other stories. one is on pedophile pockets. the other is on the two-paea pay movement and how it may have surpassed the republican party as the new voice of conservatives. trace: we are looking at foxnews.com.

the big story is president obama and his joint address to congress. >> you can watch that live streaming on foxnews.com. martha: a demonstration of growing opposition to the president's reform plan is about to get underway on capitol hill. more than 1 million signatures are delivered on a petition to stop health-care legislation before it gets to the president's desk. chief political correspondent carl cameron is in the russell rotunda to describe this for us. what is the message? we heard senator baucus earlier today. what is the message from the gang of six? >> the message is a fairly bleak one for the president. this committee and the senate finance committee, and the

bipartisan group of three democrats and republicans, it has been the only place where there has been a bipartisan effort to work on health-care reform legislation. today, the chairman of the committee, senator baucus basically said it is not looking good. he said the democratic proposal for the so-called public option remains dead on arrival. here's a little bit of what max baucus had to say. >> i think with increasing conviction that's a public option cannot pass the senate. as each day goes by in talking with senators. >> you cannot get much more negative than that. the chairman, an influential senator, the democrat from montana. the president is preparing to make a joint address to

congress. he faces that such a negative ity. pretty tough stuff for the president to contend with. martha: the question is, what does he do with that? does he present some sort of alternative? is there an alternative presented to him that he can find palatable enough to bring to the american people? i know he is still working on the speech. >> there's a tremendous number of choices and problems for the president. put the shoe on the other foot. if you were the member of the legislature, in the case of max baucus, you are confronted with an option to do you upstage the president and come up with an alternative, or do you push it down a few more weeks and ignore the pressure? >> i do not know how many republicans will be on board. if there are not any, i will

move forward in any event. >> in the next two weeks, max baucus will create a bill for his committee and getting prepared to come to the u.s. senate. he wants to have republicans involved. that means something other than the public option. it is essentially a thumb in the eye to anybody who wanted to hurry up or sign onto the public option. max baucus is not exactly on the same page of the president on the day of the president's big speech. martha: thank you very much, carl cameron. trace: there has been a mid air collision above the town of coolidge, ariz., which is just south of phoenix. one person has been killed. it happened about a baseball field. you can see the small plane could we do not know the number of passengers on board the planes. we do know that one of the small airplanes was from a training facility, learning to fly you

might say. that is one of the airplanes. the other one has damage to the propeller. we do not know which plane had a fatality. my assumption is this one. we do not know if the other one landed safely, but it is in a lot better shape than this one. this is in coolidge, ariz.. this happened around 45 minutes ago. harris faulkner has late breaking information on this. >> i am trying to figure out exactly the question that you ask, how many people were on board. the witnesses said they could see the two planes coming toward each other. there is more damage to one plane than the other. one of the planes is from the oxford airline training center. i was in this area a couple of days ago. they have had some winds in this

area. i do not know if that had anything to do with it. they have had some dust storms in this area just south of phoenix. that will be one of the questions i will be asking authorities. just a couple of days ago, it was certainly an issue. one of the planes is out of the oxford airline training center. the two planes collided over south phoenix today. there's one fatality according to the faa. trace: my guess is a cessna 150. they are still looking for the other plane. this is mostly on controlled airspace. thank you very much. you can bet that doctors will be watching the president's address to congress for a closely tonight. some doctors have openly questioned at the president's understanding of how the medical profession works.

more than 10,000 doctors signed off on a petition delivered to every u.s. senator. what did president obama say that doctors find offensive? >> he said a couple of things. he suggested that doctors make decisions about care not on the best interest of their patients, but rather how much money they make of certain treatments. >> the doctor may look at the reimbursement system and say to himself, i make a lot more money if i take this kids tonsils out. >> that logic depends on primary care doctor been the one who would also perform the surgery, which is simply not the case. even aside from that, doctors are deeply offended by the notion that they determine care by how much money they make on

various treatments. trace: that is a pretty dark description of doctors motivations. >> one that they absolutely reject. the doctors say that is absolutely not true. in another case, he pointed to the case of diabetics and said that doctors would make a bundle if they go ahead and amputate a leg, saying they could make up to $50,000 on that. the doctors say his whole characterization is completely untrue. trace: thank you. fox news will cover the president's address to a joint session of congress, and the gop response by congressman boustany. live coverage will begin tonight at 7:55 p.m. eastern time. the government is spending trillions of your tax dollars.

a lot of it goes to pet projects. some are better than others are bringing home the bacon. let's get to william la jeunesse in los angeles tracking your taxes. >> many in congress treats the taxpayer like their personal atm. it is those put politics -- it is those pet projects that drive taxpayers crazy. take a look at senator inouye. he is proposing $12 million for sea turtles. $5 million for a super computer just for hawaii. $24 million for the east-west center, which is a private think-tank that even the president wants to cut. and $500,000 for music enrichment programs for native hawaiian children.

he is one of the last of the old breed who thinks that bring home the bacon. trace: william la jeunesse in los angeles, thank you. a high-school football coach is on trial after a player collapses in what some are calling a ruligrueling practicen 94 degrees heat. the boys teammates are now taking the stand and telling what they remember of a horrible day. >> he said the running but stopped when somebody quit the team. >> what did you take that to mean? >> we would run harder than we usually do. trace: now this man's future is pain in the balance as the jury will decide his fate. our legal panel will hammer that .

@=h

trace: in the top box, garrison keillor is treated in a minnesota hospital after suffering a minor stroke. in the middle box, does a live look -- that is a live look. the faa says a least one person is dead after a mid airplane collision.

one of the planes was sawed in half. the reports said the pilot of the other plane landed safely with some damage to the front propeller. in bottom box, president obama. one of the guest speakers today in new york at memorial services for tv news anchorman walter cronkite. martha: thank you. there are new developments today in the trial of a former high- school coach charged in the death of one of his football players. he died a couple of days after this practice. this is a picture of 15-year-old max gilpin. they played in very hot weather that day. it was one year ago. some have called it a brutal workout. his younger teammates are now

taking the stand to talk about exactly what happened during the practice, and revealing some disturbing information. >> were you allowed to get water? >> no. >> did the coach say anything to you when you were having problems? >> yes. he called me a coward. martha: that must be very tough for the players on this team. a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor join me. we have seen the mother and father. it is an excruciating tragedy. i think everybody agrees that this was a tragic event. now the teammates are up there. they have been told not to talk outside the courtroom. you can bet that this was very hard for them. the thing that we are learning for sure is that they were

denied water. this kid was told that if he gave up that he was a c oward. in an earlier in sound bites, the player was asked what he was told that day. he said that they would run until somebody cquit. >> it was not the ordinary pattern and practice of the coach. we are now talking about raising this to a criminal case, not a civil case. it will be very hard because there was not an autopsy performed in this case. you better be sure that you can prove to the jury that this boy died, and you have an autopsy to prove it as a result of the

defendant's criminal conduct, which they do not have. martha: bid may be wrong. it may be something we need to address in this nation, but is it criminal? >> the prosecutor has a pretty good basis. the prosecutor has an obligation to put the evidence out there. presumably a grand jury may have heard the case already and found that there was reasonable cause to believe that a crime was committed. that is why we have the jury system. martha: there was adderall in the mix, and a muscle builder was also believed to be taken by this young man. we do not know what else. as you said, there was no autopsy. it will be difficult to prove

this to a jury beyond a reasonable doubt that this boy would not have died if the coach would not have pushed him so hard. >> this will put a chilling effect on the coaches across the country. coaches push their players hard. this coach did not know that this young boy had any medical history that would affect his coaching. now all of the coaches across the country will be scared. if somebody dies on my clock, am i going to be criminally liable for his debts? that is very scary. martha: should the rules be changed? i have two young sons to play football. they get water breaks every 50 minutes -- 15 minutes. i have heard this is common at the high-school level. it is crazy. is there any result that would

come from this short of a criminal prosecution? >> you would hope that schools across the country will take note. part of the whole culture of the organized football is to really push the players. we are talking about a tough game. martha: thank you very much. we will stay on top of this trial and we will continue to tell you about all of the news. thank you. back to you. trace: harry reid is now speaking. >> it is the only thing that gives those two large bodies, the house and the senate, stability. i have done everything within my power as a member of congress to make sure that i am doing everything i can to create stability in the senate. i do the same in the house. i think you find thaone reason e

democratic caucus is so stable is because they're not talking around for chairmanship's. as a result of the passing of senator kennedy, one in the committee is (as happens in the senate, there are different people qualified for those chairmanships. senator dodd had the opportunity to return of a number of his committees. to his credit, recognizing the amount of work ahead of him, he has decided to stay as chairman of the banking committee. senator harkin has decided to give up the chairmanship of the ag committee and take on the health committee. he is both qualified to do this.

he has worked for many years on the health and human services as part of the appropriations committee. it is a perfect fit. trace: that is the senate majority leader harry reid. we have been anticipating this for a while. we thought that christopher dodd would take over the position of the house committee chair that ted kennedy was in charge of. he has decided not to. now, the gentleman to the right of every reid, tom harkin, will now take over. he could immediately take control of that. it could be very crucial in this health care debate. he built his investors out of billions of dollars and now we are getting a look at what bernie madoff did with all that money. it is all about to be sold off. how you can get a little bit of

what bernie had. ♪ >> mr. big stuff, who do you think you are? mr. big stuff, you're never going to get my love. businesses more efficiently, so we've brought in a team of experts to help. one suggestion is to make your shipping more efficient with

priority mail flat rate boxes from the postal service. call or go online for a free supply and up to $160 in offers from authorized postage vendors. shipping's a hassle! weighing every box... actually, with flat rate boxes you don't need to weigh anything under 70 pounds. if it fits, it ships for a low flat rate. ok, but i ship all over the country. you can ship anywhere in the country for a low flat rate. ship international, too. yes, but i ship hundreds of things, in all sizes. great, because flat rate boxes come in four sizes. call and we'll send a free supply, plus up to $160 in offers. when you're ready to ship, we'll even pick them up for free, no matter how many you have. priority mail flat rate boxes only from the postal service. a simpler way to ship. call or go online now to get started. mr. evans? this is janice from onstar. i have received an automatic signal

you've been in a front-end crash. do you need help? yeah. i'll contact emergency services and stay with you. you okay? yeah.

trace: brand new information out of coolidge, arizona, just south of phoenix, two planes collided. two people have died. presumably those were in that plane. we were told the other plane landed safely. one of the planes was a training plane. one of them came from a training facility. that plane appears to be a cessna 150.

the tail section of the plane is probably 500 yards away by my guess. it was a pretty good distance away. we do not know if two people were on board the plane, or there may be more. it started out as one fatality. there are now two fatalities. my guess is that is a two seat er. we will bring you more information as it comes in. two dead in a mid-air collision just south of phoenix, ariz.. martha: do you have a few million dollars? if you do, we have a slight a palm beach mansion and a new york penthouse that belonged to bernie madoff. the u.s. marshals service will start showing his upper east side apartment this week. it is more than four thousand

square feet. it features lots of marble and fireplaces. one is in palm beach. one is in new york. there are lots of luck in closets -- there are lots of walk in closets. if they sell off these mansions, the one in palm beach is a modest 87 hundred00 square. there are three boats. bull, and other variations on that theme. the marshals are hoping to raise millions of dollars to repay bernie madoff's victims. he is now in prison, sentenced to 150 years in prison. maybe this is a start in getting some of that money back. have you heard this one? a big day for the beatles fans.

two major releases today for fans of all ages. here is a great video. the first one will be apple records will release the long awaited remastered beatles albums. also, the release of the hotly anticipated beatles rock band. the great thing about this is that your kids learn all the beatles songs. the computer giant apple announced a new version of the itunes music software. apple also introduced a new ipod that can't shoot a video and works as a pedometer -- that can shoot a video and worked as

a pedometer. steve jobs came out today. he said that he is working at apple and he is loving every day. good to see you back in action trace:. within one week, the obama administration must decide what to do about nearly a dozen cases in guantanamo bay. the cases involve some of the most highest profile detainees, including the 9/11 co- conspirators. as the white house decides what to do, it turns out none of the options are all that appealing. catherine herridge, what kind of pressure is the administration facing? >> the administration faces a significant pressure point next week. must transfer some of these cases out of guantanamo. when the president announced that his administration would close guantanamo, the cases already in the commissions, which include the 9/11 conspirators, were all put on

hold. it has to be renewed every 120 days. the current deadline runs out on september 17. asking for more time this time would bring the total delayed to one year. this is something the obama administration wants to avoid. as one of the lawyers said to me, at this stage, a looks like this administration's idea of justice at guantanamo is no trial at all. trace: and the options the administration has? >> there was a meeting of senior and deputies, the white house state and justice met last week, and there were three options. one was to ask for another 90- day continuation. the second is to pull the case is without prejudice. that means that charges can be brought again in the future. and the third option is to maintain the status quo, which would include more pretrial hearings at gitmo. it was described as an extremely

messy situation. right now, just about 5% of the detainees at guantanamo have been transferred out since the president's announcement. trace: catherine herridge, thank you. martha: we have spent a lot of time telling you how to not catch the h1n1 virus. things like washing your hands. what if your child does come down with the flu? what should you do after that happens? five important tips you have to know if your child gets h1n1. have arthritis pain, you could end up taking 4 times the number... of pills compared to aleve. choose aleve and you could start taking fewer pills. just 2 aleve have the strength... to relieve arthritis pain all day.

and we didn't find out until i was going to get... my driver's permit at fifteen, seven months. i think the stories that affect me the most... are the ones i hear from children. they go off to start off in life, and by no fault of their own, they're already in a hole. you're supposed to, uh, protect your children. it's hard to protect them from an identity theft when... you don't know who's out there doing it. so how do you protect them from an unknown source? i just couldn't believe it and i was really... frustrated and just... flabbergasted, i guess. security. peace of mind. protection. that's what lifelock provides. to this day we don't know the damage... that's been done to his credit. now we gotta go get my credit fixed... and get it back to where it's just nothing.

i was told that i could write a letter... to the credit reporting bureau, or to write it to all three, 'cause some get it reported, some don't. the one thing i would tell you is take action. learn what you can do for yourself for free, or look at a service, in detail, like lifelock, who can be there for you, put that frontline of defense, and have a $1 million guarantee. parents need to realize that this can happen to you. it's my identity, and i don't like people... messing with my stuff. protect yourself, your family, and all you've worked hard for. take control of your identity. protect yourself with lifelock's... proactive protection and our $1 million... total service guarantee. security. peace of mind. protection. that's what lifelock provides. you can take control of your identity. call now for special savings and we'll also give you... 30 days to try lifelock absolutely free. call now and mention id.

call now or go to lifelock.com. ♪

trace: we have a brand new information on three big stories. general stanley mcchrystal has banned its troops from having alcohol in afghanistan after a slow response to a deadly firefight. >> the top u.s. commander in afghanistan, general mcchrystal, has banned the use of alcohol at nato headquarters in kabul. he says the thursday night parties were becoming a distraction. this follows an airstrike incident in kunduz province in which dozens were killed, including civilians and a general mcchrystal was concerned.

trace: in about five hours, the president will address congress in a pivotal stage. the finishing touches are still been put on. >> the white house spokesman robert gibbs said that president obama will do some tinkering with the speech this afternoon. it will feature the stories of some americans that are struggling in the current system with a lack of insurance, illness, or no insurance at all. those people will be in the vip section with the first lady. trace: a movie about the first lady. >> should corporations be able to spend their money on political speech advocacy during campaigns the same way that individuals do? the maker of the hillary clinton movie, a very unflattering film, says yes, we should be able to

market as well she is running for president. today the justices had to decide just how far big money can go in having a voice in your next election. trace: shannon bream outside the supreme court. that is brand new information. martha: thank you very much. h1n1 is all the talk this fall. we know it is going to start spreading to other places. the schools are very concerned. what if your child gets it? dr. manny alvarez is with me to describe the steps. what is the first thing you should do? >> the first thing to do is to quarantine yourself. make sure you isolate that child in your house, if at all possible to make sure you keep other children away from him or her, including the other family members. when you quarantine, you have to make sure the toiletries are separate. martha: but you have to get in there to treat them.

>> put a mask on. put the gloves on. martha: and then consider antiviral medication. >> it works very effectively this time around. that is a conversation you need to have with your pediatrician. it minimizes the length of the flu. martha: but only take them if you have it. >> yes, and this is a conversation you have with your doctor. the second is high fevers. if you have those types of high fevers, you have to think about things like tylenol. martha: anything over 101. >> and also hydration. when you have a fever, you lose

a lot of water. check how many times your child goes to the bathroom. that is a way of telling that they are high trading and -- that is a way of telling if they're hydrated. and the color of the child is very important. also, respiration. if they are breathing fast, or if they cannot catch their breath, you will need to call the doctor or call 911. finally, you can go back to school 24 hours after the fever has stopped. the same thing goes for adults and going back to work. even though you start feeling a little bit better, stay home at least for 48 hours. you want to make sure you are fever free for 48 hours.

martha: thank you very much, dr. manny alvarez. back to you. trace: this is a big deal. we just had senate majority leader harry reid and senator baucus and christopher dodd talking about the public option. they are kind of going back and forth. senator baucus said the senate did not have the votes. harry reid said it was his first choice, but usually to work around it. we will talk about the public option next. and how does the president convince america, who does not like it, to like it?

to silence headaches... doctors recommend tylenol... more than any other brand... of pain reliever. tylenol rapid release gels... release medicine fast. so you can stop headaches... and feel better fast.

trace: just crossing, major garrett has just put this in.

president obama will push for a public option in his speech to congress tonight, which happens in five hours. i want to bring in the former white house deputy assistant to president bush. it is pretty good nebgig news -t is pretty big news to hear that from the president. am i citing a with nancy pelosi? >> temporarily. barack obama understands that he cannot walk away from the public option tonight. he will push for it tonight. he understands that when the health-care bill is negotiated between the senate, which will not pass the public option, and the house that is insisted on

it, he will be able to say that i did all i could and now we have to get practical. trace: you call this a hail mary. if the president does not say this is what i am strongly in favor of, if he says i want the public option, but i know i have no chance of getting the public option -- is that disingenuous? >> president obama is going down with the ship. there's a shake up on the house committee of the senate. the president will come out with something that the american people have made up their minds already. the president has flip flopped this summer on whether to have public option or not. now he will come on television and say we need the public option -- is back to square one. there's no support for the public option period.

trace: public option has very little support. he has his own party infighting over the public option. how do you get the republicans on board if you cannot get your own party on the same step? >> there's a mark, a mark up, conference committee, and then negotiations. there's a long way to go. the president was for the public option before he was against it. my prediction is that there will be no public option. trace: are the american people in the mood for a two-step? he said they will pass the public option in the house, and not in the senate, and down the road we will have to negotiate. >> the american people are fed up. the president was posted tell us eight months ago.

before congress adjourned for the summer, the president said sign that 1000-page bill. now he said, let's wait and let them hear from the constituents. we saw what happened at the town hall meetings. the american people do not want health-care reform. they wanted the economy fixed. trace: this is from representative mike pence. he said -- it is time for the president to ignore is that these town halls are more than just manufactured. the president has to say i hear you. >> the president and his people understand that the town hall meetings are real. unfortunately for the administration, the democratic house is real, too.

the two-step is part and parcel of the process of getting rid of the public option because the town halls, the people who do not want this program. trace: every time the president has had one of these speeches, his numbers go down. this is it. this was the speech to the joint session of the congress. this will be it. we're hearing from doug, this will not be it. >> when you addressed a joint session of congress, you better have a plan together. they expect this to be the deal. the fact that the president has waffled at least 12 times and has given 28 speeches -- i think the american people have heard enough. >> this is politics. if we can get to a compromise on

health care, it is all to the good. trace: thank you. martha: we're watching some of what is coming in. shepard: hello. it is good to see you. did you read these cellphone study? some cellphones it meant a lot more radiation than others. i happen to carry two. one of these is horrible and what is not so bad. martha: i hope you tell me afterward. that is a great untold story. i think we will find out a lot more about what is happening when you keep a cell phone next to your head all day long. shepard: i hope it is not a bad thing. and you heard about the woman who is accused of keeping her 6- year-old son in a crawl space

for a couple of years? the father will be with us today. the father was originally accused of abusing the child, but was cleared of all that. and one more thing on this health care debate. the senator of wyoming will be with us. he was a medical doctor for 24 years. he will weigh in on the public option versus non public option. we will have a republican and democrat on. martha: thank you very much. trace: nasa is giving us a new look at the cosmos. brand new pictures from the newly refurbished telescope. these are spectacular. next. >> fox bid is the great space

coaster. we will explore. a place where dreams die fast and free ♪ . ..xn0] . are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years?

call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today. i'm more active, i eat right, and i switched to new one a day women's active metabolism.

last month, this woman wasn't even able to get around inside of her own home. they chose mobility. and they chose the scooter store! if you or a loved one live with limited mobility call the scooter store! no other company will work harder to make you mobile or do more to guarantee your complete satisfaction. if we pre-qualify you for a new power chair or scooter and your claim isn't approved, the scooter store will give you your power chair or scooter free. that's our guarantee. they were so helpful and nice. they filed all the paperwork, and medicare and my insurance covered the cost. we can work directly with medicare

or with your insurance company. we can even help with financing. if there's a way, we'll find it! so don't wait any longer, call the scooter store today. martha: we have brand new images -- have you seen these pictures? they are a glimpse of distant galaxies through hubbell -- hubble's all seeing eye. you recognize that when, right? it lies about 6 million light years from us. in the constellation -- one of

my favorites -- curse a major -- ursa major. >> nasa only released 10 so far today. these were taken in june and july. remember, back in may, astronauts went out there for that last job. that is a shot of a dying star, but it still looks like a butterfly dying star. that is the old telescope on the bottom, and the new on the top. if we froze those, you could see that direct comparison. the one on top is the new improved telescope. $1 billion in repairs. two new instruments completely replaced. they were not working before. you can see the difference in accuracy and color is just unbelievable. if you thought the old hubble space telescope was of inspiring, -- awe-inspiring,

this certainly portends what is to come. martha: nothing more beautiful than nature. trace: a new study ranks cell phones by radiation level.

?7

if you're like a lot of people, you have high blood pressure... and you have high cholesterol. you've taken steps to try and lower both your numbers. but how close are you to your goals? there may be more you can do. only caduet combines two proven medicines... in a single pill to significantly lower... high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

in a clinical study of patients... with slightly elevated blood pressure and cholesterol, caduet helped 48% reach both goals in just 4 weeks. caduet is one of many treatment options, in addition to diet and exercise... that you can discuss with your doctor. caduet is not for everyone. it's not for people with liver problems... and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. to check for liver problems, you need simple blood tests. tell your doctor about any heart problems... and all other medications you are taking... or if you experience muscle pain or weakness, as they may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. how close are you to where you want to be? ask your doctor if caduet can help you go... for both your goals. martha: thank you for coming to the "live desk"," everybody. trace: "studio b" starts now. shepard: this could