christmas to you. martha: we'll see you tomorrow, folks beings "happening now" starts right now skwroepbz hello i'm skopb scott. jenna: i'm jenna lee, we are here in the fox newsroom. happeng right now a jam-packed day on capitol hill. we are waiting for the senate to vote on the president's tax cut compromise, as opposition to that deal, jon, grows and more in the house. jon: leading democrat chris van hal hropbd are maryland is calling the state tax provision a give away to the wealthiest americans. in an editorial in today's "washington post" van holland says it will add $23 billion to the debt without adding a single job. jenna: strong words there, and there is also growing criticism of this deal from the right as well as some prominent republicans come out against the tax cut compromise. plus the tea party patriots urging the packages' defeat.

the president weighing in on all the opposition earlier today. >> i know there are different aspects to this plan that members of congress on both sides of the aisle object, that's the nature of compromise. we worked hard to negotiate an agreement that is a win for middle class families and a win for our economy, and we can't afford to let it fall victim to either delay or defeat. jon: after taking up the tax plan the senate will consider the new start agreement with russia which calls for nuclear arms reductions. today in the house congressman patrick murphy is introducing a bill to repeal the "don't ask don't tell" policy which bans gays from openly serving in the armed forces. jenna: is there going to be a quiz on this later for our viewers. jon: it's a very full plate. jenna: we'll are talking about it for the rest of the show. as congress takes up all of the key issues and there are so, so many of them the president is keeping his eye on the economy today meeting with top business

leaders and ceo's. wendell tkpwhroel eris live at the white house with that story. what did the president say. >> reporter: he's talking with the leaders of some of the bigot firms, general electric, boeing, google, american express about ways to into lower the unemployment rate. the money is basically parked in banks. the about the is expected to lean on the ceos to spend some of that money and put people back to work. >> i am looking forward to getting good ideas from them. i definitely am going to talk to them about how we can get more hiring out there. >> reporter: the president speaking to reporters as he walked across pennsylvania avenue from the white house to the summit. a lot of that money was amassed in the last year under programs that were intended to stimulate hiring, either through federal subsidies or federal loan guarantees, almost day-long

summit is going to include break out sessions on ways to increase exports and stimulate this country and include jobs skills and training. jenna: the live chat is lighting up as you're talking about the president today, and the big question they have, is will this compromise actually boost hiring? do we even have an answer to that? >> reporter: folks here think it should in a couple of ways, both by putting more money in the pockets of the middle class to increase demand, and also by providing businesses with some certainty that their taxes won't go up over the next couple of years. before he went over to the summit the president indicated that the tax cut compromise is good for people who are looking for work and those who are not. >> i'm absolutely convinced that this tax cut plan while not perfect, will help grow our economy and create jobs in the private sector. it will help lift up middle class families who will no

longer need to worry about a new year's day tax hike. it will offer emergency relief to help tide folks over until they find another job. >> reporter: democrats are still going to push for changes in the compromise bill, both before today's senate vote and probably before the vote in the house. republicans have indicated they won't accept any changessess or compromise. the president made clear in his comments today there isn't time to argue about it. jenna: thank you. on the hot seat day a great tkpwrez, steve forbes. he's run for president, he runs a multi-billion dollar empire. in a few minutes he'll be answering your questions about the economy, the tax cut deal. what do you want to do. jump on the live chat and click the link on the foxnews.com home phaeupblg or send us an email to fox news.com. jon: the senate is taking a look

at a massive spending bill that hit the desk yesterday packed with thousands of earmarks. they are set to cost americans billions of tkars. two of them actually got perks after they died. where is the rest of the money supposed to go? this last minute move to push through this 1,924-page bill that funds the entire government, it's causing quite an uproar isn't it. >> reporter: i'll say, we will are outraged, especially on the republican side, but some tkep krats to. republican leader mitch mcconnell described it as long last spending binge that repeats all the mistakes that voters demanded in november congress stop doing, listen. >> americans told democrats last month to stop what they've been doing, bigger government, 2,000 page bills jammed through on christmas eve, wasteful spending. this bill is a monument to all three. >> reporter: now the problem

critics argue is that trying to push through a 2,000-page bill in three days will make it difficult if not impossible to review and consider all the 1.2 trillion in spending in there. listen. >> wthey are trying to jam through at end of this year a 2,000-page $1.2 trillion package that was written behind closed doors. >> reporter: so lots of objections over what senator john cornyn called lots of sweetheart deals. he says the ominous spending bill might just as well be called omni bus. jon: aside being brought up at the last minute and the big push to pass it before christmas, earmarks is the big controversy here. >> reporter: that's light there are more than 6,000 earmarks at the latest count at the cost of some $8 billion. an earmark is any congressional lee directed spending.

some of that spending may be justified. but lawmakers say how can anyone know? how can they make a considered judgment when the bill is dropped on senators just before christmas with the idea of pushing it through in three days? republicans, and some democrats are arguing the senate should just do what the house did, pass what is called a continuing resolution or cr, that just continues spending at current levels until february or so when lawmakers would have time to examine the spending calmly and carefully. jon skwroepbz won't that be unique, calm and careful on capitol hill. >> reporter: it certainly would skwroepbz jim angle thank you. jenna: he was talking about all the earmarks and the portion and the spending bill. one of them that is not too happy is john mccain. >> 12:15 my office received this appropriations bill. 1,924 pages long for a grand

total of $1.1 trillion. are we tone deaf? are we stricken with a amnesia, what is going on here? jenna: chris stirewalt joins us. can you answer the senator's question, what is going on here. >> reporter: it is the last stand of the appropriators. there is a wind of change coming into congress next year, you have a lot of new members, a lot of tea party anger about spending and secrecy and all of these things. and what you see here are the old cardinals of the appropriating system in the senate, led by senator daniel iwye from hawaii pushing through a very old fashioned kind of measure, which what they did was took a dozen spending bills laying around, bundled them together inside the senate appropriations committee and then launched this thing and

they only have until saturday to get some money approved or the federal government is going to run out of cash and shut down. jenna: one of the questions that comes up when you talk about new versus old, the new congress versus one that may be acting more old fashioned, the question comes up is how legitimate are some of these taxes that are taking place in the lame-duck session, not only legitimate legally but legitimate to the american people. >> reporter: the congress is able to spend money and do anything else just like any other congress. as you point out in terms of what it does to the standing of congress in the public mind that is a s se serious conversation. we saw right now that congress reached a new low in gallop's attracting, in the low teens it's a bad situation, and what this basically does is reinforce the motion and it's a bi-partisan notion that we heard from voters this year that says it's time for reform and time for change. what this also does is shifts

pressure onto president obama, if his former senate colleagues are conducting business in this way is it incumbent on him to say something about it or push back against it. jenna: lots to say about the role of the president moving forward, chris. a quick procedural question. if this omni bus spending bill is not passed and the continuing resolution does not get passed and the government does not get funded past this weekend are they going to start voting on the tax compromise bill by candlelight? what actually happens then. [laughter] >> reporter: i think what is going on right now is a very high stakes game of poker. one to prevent tax increases across the board for all americans running alongside of this huge spending bill. if the fight over the spending bill blows up it could derail the tax compromise, because as you say, the lights may go out if they don't get something done by saturday. this is a challenge for floor management and this is a very, very high stakes game of chicken

that the two houses of congress and the two parties are playing right now. jenna: the fox will b the lightt the fox news studios. so they can join us. you're going to be hanging out with us for the next two hours. >> reporter: yes. jenna: you can get chris' political power play log onto foxnews.com/aehq. breaking news 47-7 skwroepbz the u.s. border patrol reports one of its algts has been shot and killed in southern arizona. >> reporter: the agent was gunned down late last night. southern arizona an area nyiri owe rico, arizona. the agent's name was brian terry. he was shot and killed after he encountered suspects. four people are in custody,

another still at large this hour. k-9 units are looking for the man. it happened in the peck canyon area, north of nogales. u.s. customs and border protection has issued a statement saying that agent terry's murder is a tragic reminder of the ever present danger that border agents face each an every day. it happened in a high traffic area busy with drug smuggling. u.s. law enforcement says that mexican cartels buy thousands of weapons in this country, guns that have claimed more than 31,000 lives in mexico since late 2006. obviously now the violence is spilling over to our side of the border. 80% of the weapons used by mexican drug traffickers come from the united states. the state department says about 90% of cocaine entering america transits through mexico and certainly most of the marijuana and heroin also comes from across our southern border. if you think you have any information about this case that

could help authorities, there is the tip line. you can give that a call, 877-u.k. bp-help. skwroepbjenna: what are some ofs white house contend tkaers contg about the deal? could this be our future if america doesn't get a handle on debt. violent protestess in greece because of austerity measures and their financial crisis. more on this just ahead. [ sneezes ] you're up next.

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president obama and republicans. but it is not proving popular with potential republican presidential contenders sarah palin and mitt romney. shannon bream is live in washington with a look at why. shannon. >> reporter: let's talk about those two. sarah palin of course was the vice-presidental nominee in 2008 has tweeted that the president is so wrong about the economy. she has also offered her support for senator jim demint who called the deal a mistake and said he wouldn't vote for it on capitol hill. he calls it a bad deal, sarah palin says jim demint has got it right. also mitt romney a former governor was in the race for 2008. he wrote, quote one thing is certain why we cannot rebuild our system overnight we are not required to borrow the funds to pay for it. the deal is sacrificing the bed-rock republican principle that new expen today durings be paid for with offsetting budget

cuts. those are provisions that should be very, very popular with one group, the tea party group and fiscal conservatives. it should be of benefit if these two should decide to run. jon: thank you shannon. martha: the senate is preparing to vote on the massive tax cut package. is it a good deal for you? that's the question we'll be asking next to steve forbes, he's in the hot seat. he's going to take your questions. get on our live chat by clicking the link at our home page or send us an email "happening now" at foxnews.com. bullets fly at a florida school board meeting. have you seen this video? the gunman opens fire on members at point-blank range. you have heard from the witnesses, now you'll hear from the survivors. it's in a live report just ahead. >> i was just taking notes, doing regular, then i saw him come out spray paint a big circle with a line or a v through it. then he says i have a motion for

you and pulled out his gun. when he pulled out his gun that's when i hit the floor 4, i ducked. it was like one of the most scariest moments in my life.

jon: some incredible video crossing our international desk. check out the scene in athens today. [gunfire] jon: greek police firing teargas and flash grenades outside parliament. labor unions declared a 24-hour strike over as territory measures pulling greece out of a crisis. they broke paving stones and threw them at police. at least five people hurt in all of fighting. south koreans preparing for the

worse as they prepare for the worst for north korea. thousands of people put on masks and rushed to shelters. the u.s. is stepping up diplomatic efforts in that part of the world. bill richardson who has led several diplomatic missions to the court is headed to the island. martha: lawmakers debate the controversial tax cut compromise in the senate ahead of the big vote there we are bringing in steve forbes, editor and chief of forbes media to answer some of your questions on what is going on in d.c. great for you to be with us today. >> great to be here, thank you. martha: the question is whether or not this tax cut compromise will actually create jobs. >> i think it will prevent the loss of massive numbers of jobs early next year. letting taxes go up like that would have a devastating impact

on the economy. trip calf this congress, which is why they had such losses the democrats, they load up this bill with a lot of junk that shouldn't be in it. i think we have to hold our noses. recognize there is heart burn in it but keep the focus on the big thing making sure the american people are not slammed by big tax increases on january 1st. martha: as we hold our noses and brace for what is going to happen in tk-fp c. according to you will it boost the economy to what potentially could go toward our deficit. >> it would be good to boost the economy. that means asset values, not only will we have a better economy and have more growth, but asset values will not go down. if this bill is defeated and we have these hideous tax increases come january 1st you'll see a hit in the financing almarkets. credit again slowing. small businesses are having a hard enough time, they don't

need another slam on it. this bill has a lot of garbage on it but we have to defend the american people from those massive tax increases. martha: the president and members of both parties have talked about tax reform and the future, and kurt petersen had this question for you. i says mrs. forbes is in favor of a flat tax as am i. what percentage does he believe need to be paid to fund the operation of government if indeed some day we had a flat tax? >> you could have exemptions for adults and children. i have a proposal where a family of four would have to pay no federal income tax on the first $46,000, the rate above that at only 17% and have no taxes on your savings. so you can have a very low rate, below 20%, satisfactory exemptions so you can keep money for the basic necessities of family and have a very low rate with it, and help savings as well. 26 countries have had a variation of the flat tax and it's worked everywhere it's been tried. martha: in some countries we are

seeing debt and deficit being a huge issue for them. we saw the video in greece and the protest on the street. arlene had a great yes, she asked, mr. forbes how far into debt does america have to be before it's insolvent? what would you say? >> i think the key thing is, we could -- if we had a world war for example we could take on a lot more debt to defend ourselves. what is hurting america is not just the binge spending but also these massive taxes, massive regulations which are hurting future growth and hurting the creation of new businesses where future growth is going to come from. so i think not just focusing on the debt per se, but on the tax burden, on the government taking over the economy, via regulation, we see it with healthcare, we see it with the financial system, they are going to try it elsewhere, we have a fight on all fronts, spending, taxes, regulation. that battle is beginning, when the new congress comes in, that's why i'm optimistic about

the future. i think the socialist attempt on america is going to be rolled back. martha: phil, dustin, chaz, a few of our guys on the board, jeremy had this question. they are turning you into a financial adviser for free. they want to know where are you investing right now? >> i'm putting money in the stock market, even know i know talking about heart burn it may give us some heart burn in the next year or two. you have to look into the future. if you stay disciplined and put a certain amount each month into mutual funds, index funds with low expenses and realize you're going to have ups and downs. america eventually gets things right. the market is cheap today just as it was 30 years ago before ronald reagan came in and the future looked very bleak. this is the time to put it in in a disciplined way. realize you'll have ups and downs. let that certain amount go in each month in several funds.

let that work for you and it will do such fine. martha: are you considering another run for the white house. >> reporter: i'm an agitator now, no. martha: we thank you for taking some of our viewer questions mr. forbes, thank you so much. >> thank you. >> on the ground. on the ground, please. jon: that was the scene in panama city, florida. we are getting new information on a terrifying story all caught on cameras. school board memorandum percent were recounting memories last night when a man shot at them point-blank range. >> please don't, please don't, please don't. >> i'm going to kill you, don't you understand?

jon: in the end that gunman on the floor there, clay duke, was the only person to lose his life. steve harrigan is covering it for us live from miami, steve. >> reporter: jon after the terror of yesterday afternoon these florida school board members are expressing gratitude just as being alive today and they are praising each other for their behavior under fire. the superintendent says one of the heros is mike jones, a security guard who came in and fired twice and hit that gunman. >> i'm telling you, mike saved our lives. now it doesn't get any more real than that, you don't have to believe that or whatever, but we were in there and i'm telling you that that gentleman was not going to stop shooting. he only turned around after he had been hit twice by phoeubg and mike and eupl got into the shooting barrage and that's what saved our lives. he had more ammunition and he was going to keep going. >> reporter: another person whose behavior is being singled

out is ginger littleton. she was the only female member of the board. she was allowed to leave with the other women, she decided to come back and with her purse tried to strike the gun out of the gunman's hand. she explained what was going through her mind at the time. >> i looked at my colleagues which at that point were lined up like birds on a wire, one chair after another. his gun was hanging to his right side. i don't think there was really any thought to it, i either do something now or i walk away and something very, very bad will happen. >> reporter: some new details coming out about the shooter. clay duke a 56-year-old, a one-time massage therapist had served five years in prison on gun charges before. he certainly meant business yesterday. he had april 9-millimeter with 12 rounds in it, a second clip in his back pocket and 50 more rounds in his backpack. jon: it's amazing more people

weren't killed or hurt in that incident. steve harrigan in miami, thank you. martha: our government is about to release brand-new reports on the war in afghanistan. we have a preview for you straight ahead. plus it's cold outside, freezing temps, dangerous conditions, winter storm warnings you need to hear straight ahead. úkúçwñc; o

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martha: thousands are people are without power. it's not because of the snow in

fact, a rare torn tphaeud doe i. it damaged dozens much homes, ripped the roofs right off of some of them. hail followed this twister causing several accidents on a nearby interstate. jon: do you have a fireplace in your apartment? martha: not in new york, no. don't have it. jon: it was a nice night to build a fire and curl up next to it, icy temperatures sweeping across much of the country, including right here in new york city. folks outside bracing against the wind and bone-chilling cold. any relief in site? let's ask the weather machine, janice dean is in the fox weather center. j.d. >> reporter: i think i've said may, before, right. jon: exactly. >> reporter: jenna has a beautiful puffy coat to keep her warm that winter. jon: the puffy coat comes back. martha: and leave it on in the

apartment. >> reporter: it's very cool. we'll have to get it on "happening now." it's so cold mickey mouse is freezing his tail off. overnight 31. gainsville 23. it will remain cold overnight tonight, then we'll see a little moderation. if you're not bundled up in a puffy vote. ten in cleveland, 25 in memphis. bee have risk for really dangerous ice across portions of alabama alabama and mississippi. state troopers don't have enough troopers to get to the accidents across portions of northern mississippi and alabama alabama, so that pink on your screen is freezing rain and/or sleet. icy roads, people are urged to stay off the roadways. you've got that icy mix across pourings of the northern plains and the upper midwest, that is cold air in place and the moisture that falls through

freezes on contact. advisories from the northern plains, all the way down to the south, knoxville, places that could see freezing rain, dangerous conditions. jon: not a good day for driving in that stuff, that's four sure. >> reporter: no, sir. jon: janice dean thank you. >> reporter: you bet. jon: senator john kerry says democrats have enough votes to pass the new start arm's control treaty with rushing sha. some republicans not only object to it but they say republicans are moving too quickly on it. this will make our country safer. let's bring in a naval command commander. admiral stuffelbeam what do you think about john kerry saying there are a the number of votes to get this passed. >> i don't know what the votes

are on the hill today. i would say it's probably in favor of a treaty and for good reason, we need it. jon: we need it why? >> for a number of reasons. the first is that what was the whole point of doing strategic arms reductions in the first place but to make the world safer. to get back to the principles that president reagan established, the second piece is that we don't have a way to verify what is going on in the russian nuclear forces unless we can expect and give them the access to look ot ours. we need to have that ability to be able to know what they are doing, and for tpepl 4 to have cough dense in what they are doing. the third reason reus, though not a part ever the treaty it is a bargaining chip for the mission defense initiative, or the shield as it's known in europe, which was not designed to threaten russia what over but to help put iran in a place where we are protected from their issues. the fourth issue might be that if we don't go forward with this

treaty russia may lose interest in this and walk away and we have to start all over from the beginning. probably in my mind the last and most practical reason is we have not built nuclear war heads in many years, and our stockpile is aging. there will come a time when we don't know how serviceable those things will be, so it's to our advantage to go ahead and get them out of the inventory. jon: many of those who object to the street tee, though, say that it is not so much because of what it does vis-a-vis russia but that it does, perhaps, because they feel they haven't had enough time to look eight it does perhaps leave us open to an attack from aeu iran or north korea. how do you answer that? >> i don't think this particular treaty, which is between russia and the united states would either advantage or disadvantage the iranians for what it is we

want to do. if this is a bargaining chip that helps us get the russians on board for us to deploy a defense shield in europe to protect all of us from iran then that is a good thing. but there are other agendas at work that i'm aware of that are on the hill. there is a group of people who believe that it is just too expensive to build enough conventional forces for us to hold anybody at risk, if you will. and so the nuclear option is a cheaper one. the deterrent factor has worked for many years and there are those who don't want to see that reduced. jon: let's turn our attention to the afghanistan conflict for a moment. the obama administration is conducting its review of the conduct of the war there. that is due out tomorrow, as i understand it. but the national intelligence estimates are providing a view of how our military, and our intelligence agencies think that conflict is going, and there is a lot of pessimism on the part especially of the intelligence

agencies when it comes to a border penetration by insurgents running out of pakistan and then heading inch afghanistan to fight, then going back. your take on it from a military perspective? >> well, i'll say it this way, and we'll hear more words about this tomorrow in terms of what the administration's intent is. but one of the things that is a reality is that military commander's have been reprieve mission and that is to set conditions that would allow us to withdraw troops as early as maybe july of 2011. we are starting to see som flexibility build into that now coming from president karzai, supported by nato and our administration talking about up through 2014. the issue really becomes one of, what is the strategic end game for afghanistan? if we don't hear that tomorrow, what really is the intent of the world for afghanistan, then what

it really will be is a measuring yardstick of what do the troops come out. and i think that that could be difficult to object soerb in a couple of ways, but probably the most important way is that consider where it is that we have been and what positive affects we have created. post world war ii we stayed with japan, we stayed with germany and look at the successes that they have had. in more recent times we've talked away from countries in south asia including pakistan. we've walked away from haiti a number of times. jon: it sounds as though you're saying stay the course is the answer there. i don't think we have a choice. we have to do everything we can to set the conditions to get our troops out and hope that the government of afghanistan stands up for its own security and becomes a sovereign nation. jon: admiral, thank you. martha: you were just talking a little bit about this, jon but lots of action on capitol hill today including possible senate package of the big tax cut deal we've been talking so much about. a brand-new poll with sobering

numbers from members of congress on both sides of the aisle. the worst in gallop's history. karl rove is here to weigh in on that. what deals can you find at mom and pop shops for christmas shopping? we'll tell you the deals that are out there just ahead. [singing] >> happy holidays. >> happy holidays. >> while the merry bells keep ringing, happy holidays ... ♪

martha: let's take a quick look at what is happening right ou on wall street and what is happening with your money. the dow is up after closing at its highest level yesterday, the highest level we've seen in over two years time. you might remember that steve forbes toiled us a little while that stocks are cheap and that may be the reason why. we are still a few thousands points from where we were before the crisis. speaking of recovery the

president is meeting with 20 major business leaders behind closed doors talking about how to forge ahead in this economy. we had that tax cut compromise lingering on capitol hill. as far as wall street, it is probably more focused today on better than expected news on more factories, we'll keep an eye on the dow, though, jon. jon: stocks are cheaper if you have money, right? america is on the road to recovery, so what is working? competition with specialty retailers seeing if they can compete with the big box chains this holiday season. claudia cowan is live with that. >> reporter: stores have to get creative and offer more than a great product and service. here are how a few that are managing to stay a float. for this store in davis, california, competing in the shadow of a major target means standing out in other ways.

>> they can't give the one-on-one personalized customer service. they are not going to be serving their customers breakfast on friday morning. >> reporter: while many small stores have closed others are thriving even when their signature product is being sold down the street for less. >> they have a niche, they service their customers, they provide a quality product. those are the businesses that are going to survive. >> reporter: while she can't afford to publish a catalogue. >> they always have the cutest dresses. >> thank you. >> reporter: sarah shaw emails her regulars and uses facebook to lure new customers into her cozy boutique in san francisco. >> every time we get merchandise, photograph it put it on facebook, i have a blog that people visit regularly so they know what we are getting in. >> reporter: and the personalized attention keeps customers coming back. >> i have full confidence that by spring we are going to be back where we were a few years ago. >> reporter: in fact many small business owners hope that by

next year they won't just be able to start hiring again, but they'll be able to invest in strategies that set them apart from the megaretailers and deliver a very clear message, jon, that when it comes to getting more bang for your buck smaller is better. back to you. jon: it would be nice to see somebody start hiring in this country, wouldn't it? claudia cowan. thank you. you can find a lot more information on what some small stores are offering to compete with big box retailers to survive and then pros tere in this recession, check it out on foxnews.com. martha: the house is taking up the repeal of "don't ask don't tell." and the military policy banning gays from serving openly in our armed forces is sparking a brand-new firestorm. what a top marine commander said that has some outraged. also a daring heist on the vegas strip, an armed bandit getting away with $1.5 million in casino chips. what police are now doing t catch him. how are they going to get this

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martha: now to the hunt for the bellagio bandit in las vegas. anyone trying to cash out a high denomination of chips at the posh casino will probably attract attention, this is why. an armed bandit made off with at least $1.5 million worth of the chips in a dramatic heist yesterday. you can see the suspect run from the scene wearing a motorcycle helmet of all things. joining us now a lieutenant from the las vegas police department. any leads today. >> since information was released today we've been getting a variety of leads to follow-up. in answer to your question, yes, we do have some, but none that we can talk about currently.

we've still got a lot of work to do. martha: why the pwa lodg bellag? >> why not. martha: you think it was a random target and not and even side job. >> we are not certain. we are still in the infancy of the investigation. we have a lot more work to do. the bellagio is a fine establishment in las vegas, it's on the strip, a major tourist destination, why not the bellagio. martha: it happened very early in the morning as well. we keep on referencing the $1.5 million of chips. for those of us who are not gamblers, how many actual chips is that if someone leaves with $1.5 million worth of it. >> if you see the surveillance video the suspect doesn't have anything in his hand, it was enough for him to put on his person and walk out with. we are talking large

denomination chips, 25,000 and below. martha: with those large denominations is there any sort of tracking device or identification on those chips that helps you if someone tries to now spend them? >> well, you know, i don't want people to forget that the las vegas casino industry has been in business for a very longtime, they certainly have safeguards and protocols in place in the event chips come up missing or are misused or disappeared. they have safeguards in place but it isn't anything we are going to discuss publicly. martha: lieutenant, have you seen anything like this before? >> one thing we got asked yesterday, is this a common occurrence. the answer to that is no. in 2009 we had nine casino robberies. the bellagio makes ten for this yearar. most of the events you can question the sobriety of most of the people who commit them. we do a fairly good job of catching them. we don't see a lot of this, this

is unusual. martha: we'll stay on this. we'd like to have updates from you, thank you for joining us today. >> any time, thank you. jon: debate on the senate floor right now on the tax tut compromise, the vote later on today. we will talk live with karl rove about this and the battle shaping up in the house overhe tax cut deal. also, new fears that north korea may be an even bigger nuclear threat than iran. the north may be moving towards another nuclear test. what the u.s. needs to do, next.

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martha: hi, everybody, we have fox news alert for you now as the senate gets ready to vote on the tax bill. they are now wrapping up debate on the compromise measure to keep the current tax rates. in the next few minutes we are expecting a series of procedural votes to finalize the bill as it moves to the floor for a final vote by the full senate.

a simple majority is all that is needed to pass the bill, by the way. the entire process is expected to last about an hour. the senate has other business to consider as we've been telling you about, for example the start treaty. this might move faster than expected and we could have final senate approval of the tax bill before this hour is over. jon: senators want to get home before christmas, don't they. martha: i don't know if they are going to. that's what the senate majority leader harry reid said yesterday, we are going to work through new years, i don't know. jon: there is a lot going on in the senate and a lot this hour. martha: i'm jenna lee. jon: and i'm jon scott. from capitol hill to new concerns about nuclear north korea. new video of south korea holding a huge civil defense drill, preparing for a possible attack by the north. the sound of sirens bringing the city of seoul to a virtual

standstill, drivers stopping their cars and trucks on the road, schools holding evacuation drills, pedestrians running for shelter in the nearest subway. meanwhile new concerns right now in washington about the advanced state of north korea's nuclear weapons program. the obama administration is coming to the conclusion that the north's technology is much more advanced than iran's program, making the north a far bigger threat. joining us now faction news national security analyst kt mcfarland. north korea invited that stanford expert in a little while ago to show eupl some of their nuclear facilities. he came back absolutely tkpwhraber gased by what they have and what they've done. some say it was a sales mission by north korea. >> absolutely it was a sales mission. the north koreans don't sell anything to the world that the world wants except missiles and nuclear weapons. who do they sell them too, iran. they've been the major supporter

for the iranian nuclear and missile program. to have an american professor come look at a nuclear facility, have his jaw drop and him say, this is har better than we thought, what are you going to do in tehran, they are going to say, we want some of that stuff. jon: it makes it that much tougher to take those facilities out in the event of a war. >> absolutely and the korean peninsula is bubbling over. north korea sunk a ship. jon: they may be getting ready for another nuclear test. >> they are giving all the indication toss that. they've ratcheted up the rhetoric and their actions. the south koreans who have been rethraeupbd up to this point they have to respond, politically their own domestic population. if you look at the map right at the red borderline is the

capital of south korea, seoul. that border is a trip wire. there are 30,000 american troops on that border. if the north escalates, if the north does kind of miss cal khraoutsmiss cal cuelater. could you have a real crisis, not because anybody really wants a war but because they will miscalculate. jon: you said the south korean president saw his numbers drop 40% because he hasn't been aggressive enough. >> he fired the new defense minister. he's sounding very, very military, he says if the north responds that the south will respond and really bring them to their knees. the rhetoric is escalating and potentially, as you're seeing now with this basically this nation-wide air raid drill in south korea, they are getting very nervous too. and the problem from our perspective, we are there. the united states have 30,000 folks on that border, it's a

trip wire, china is right there, china is north korea's major ally, they have refused to temp the situation down, they have refused to get north korea to back down. this could spin out of control very quickly. jon: what are the requirements if they lob a few artillery shells does the u.s. immediately get involved and respond? >> we have a mutual defense treaty with south korea. it's a treaty that says, if you're attacked we are coming to your aids. we have ships in the region, troops on that borderline. if south korea is attacked the united states is by necessity in that war. then you worry what happens with the north koreans. the chinese are just as staunch an ally as they are. jon: it will be very tense for a while. >> you have to keep watching that. thank you, jon. martha: fox news alert happening right now on capitol hill we have voting underway. a series of votes happening over

the tax cut deal in the senate. eventually we are going to get to that up or down vote on the bill, but the first procedural vote is taking place right now. this bill keeps the bush tax cuts for two more years, it extends jobless benefits for one more year, it also cuts payroll taxes pu there is a whole lot in this bill. chief political correspondent carl calm ran is live from the rotunda, carl. >> reporter: voting is underway, there are essentially three proposed changes that are going to be debated, and all of them are expected to be summarily defeated because as the president and republicans who negotiated this $858 billion extension of tax cuts and unemployment benefits have said, it can't be changed or the delicate coalitions backing it will collapse. the president came out and spoke about it very assertive lee prodding congress to get to work and make no delay and no defeat on this.

then harry reid the senate democratic leader who has long been a critic of this just before the vote says he's on board too. here are the two of them. >> we worked hard to negotiate an agreement that is a win for middle class families and a win for our economy and we can't afford to let it fall victim to either delay or defeat. >> we'll pass this tax bill within the next couple of hours, a tremendous accomplishment, whether you agree with all the contents of the bill or not, everyone should understand this is one of the major accomplishments of any congress. >> reporter: in order to do it as i said they've got to kill all the proposed changes. the one they are debating on the floor is from tom coburn which would pay for the extension of unemployment benefits by cutting spending. there is another one that would make the bush tax cuts permanent and the estate tax permanent. there is one from bernie sanders

who would let taxes go up on the highest income brackets, all of that is expected to go away. it is expected to pass with overwhelming numbers and boost the poe momentum for this and make it increasingly likely that house democrats who have been complaining loudly for weeks ultimately will come around and support it and move onto other business before the holidays. martha: thank you very much, carl. jon: there is also a showdown looming on capitol hill over "don't ask don't tell," the ban on gays openly serving in the u.s. military. the house is expected to pass a repeal of that policy today. that vote would send it right back into the senate. so what happens then? steve centanni live in our d.c. bureau to see how it could all play out. time is running out, what is the legislative game plan here, steve. >> reporter: the house will probably pass it, pass the "don't ask don't tell" repeal today as you mentioned. of course they already passed one that was attached to the

defense authorization bill but that was shot down by the senate. now they'll vote on a stand alone version, it's not attached to anything. as you know the president and top pentagon leaders are pushing for repeal during this lame-duck session. some of the service chiefs testified now is not the time with the u.s. engaged in two wars. the question now is the legislative timing. will the senate pick up a new version of the "don't ask don't tell" repeal in time to get it done? first the tax bill needs to pass, then it looks like the start treaty with russia will come up in the senate all before "don't ask don't tell," possibly leaving little if any time to get the repeal passed by this congress, jon. jon: if it does come up for a vote in the senate during this session is there a chance that it could pass? >> reporter: yeah, there is. there are some republicans supporting it. ee mowings are as always running very high around this issue. congressman john garamedi says this.

>> he had two tours in iraq, brought both of his cops back safely without any loss of members to his company, but he also honored the commitment of the military not to lie and to be honest and great forward. he was gay. and he was drummed out of the military. >> reporter: but republicans say the idea needs for study, more congressional hearings. congressman buck mkeeon in california said rushing to repeal "don't ask don't tell" in a hr-d session is extremely troublesome. the next few days will tell whether it's finally repealed. jon: steve centanni in washington for us. martha: we had breaking news just earlier, a u.s. border agent killed after confronting suspects in an area that has seen its share of drug violence. what federal authorities know about his killers. we have a story for you coming right up. plus karl rove on congress' all time low in the polls, doesn't matter which party you're in,

it's a tough job right now. it's a packed schedule as well on the hill today head to your front row seat in politics for a playbook on all the action. the tax cut extension bill. the "don't ask don't tell," all that and more on foxnews.com on hehq. ready sensei. hey tough guy, tat cold needs alka seltzer plus! it has the cold-fighting power of an effevescent packed in a liquid-gel for all over relief! hiyah! dude!

martha: we have breaking news on the border with mexico, authorities arresting four suspects tied to the murder of a u.s. border patrol agent in southern arizona, this just happened last night. on the phone with fresh information agent angel candelaria. he's a spokesman. what happened. >> all i can do is confirm that border agent brian terry was shot and killed in an encounter with armed suspects. right now the border patrol has four subjects in custody.

there is an on going search for other suspects. martha: we are taking a look at the map here. can you tell us whether this happened -- this incident happened on the u.s. side of the border or the mexican side of the border? >> yes, this did happen on the u.s. side of the border, just west of rio rico, arizona. martha: the leader of the union that is representing border patrol agents had this to say just moments ago, he said that this particular agent was shot trying to catch what he called bandits who target illegal immigrants for robbery. can you confirm that? >> unfortunately at this point we can't confirm any of that. you know, the official statement that we can provide at this time is what i just provided to you. martha: what can you tell us about brian terry? >> right now i really can't provide any information on him either. martha: we appreciate it, sir. i know you're probably very busy

today. we'll stay on this story as it develops. agent candelaria thank you for joining us today. >> absolutely, thank you. jon: well, what do you think about congress and its job performance? lawmakers hitting a new low in the eyes of many americans. according to a recent gallop poll only 13% of voters approve of the job congress is doing. that is the worst congressional rating in gallop's history. let's talk about it with karl rove, a chief adviser to former president bush and a fox news contributor. is there anything about this congress that makes its rating come in so much lower than previous? >> part of it is people's attitudes about the election. once having voted out the democratic majority it sort of

like opens the flood gate, get them out of there. there are a couple of other things that are happening that are making people more anxious about congress. we see it in the fact that people are waking up to realize that congress has had two years to take care of the issue of the tax cuts and they are scrambling here at the last minute to get it done. people are starting to hear from the federal government is two months into its fiscal year, nearly three months into it without a budget. then they are being treated to the spectacle of congress trying to rush through major pieces of legislation which what seems to be undue haste, and some of them like the omni bus spending bill stuffed with earmarks. everything bad about congress is being reiterated by this congress as it tries to do all of these things in a lame-duck session. jon: it does seem with major pieces of legislation on tap, for instance the federal budget, and also things like the start treaty, congress is focusing on some relatively smallish use, like the d.r.e.a.m. act, or the

repeal of "don't ask don't tel tell." >> reporter: i think that adds to it. in the modern history of the united states since we went to a point where the congress was sworn in in january, and the president was sworn in in january as well instead of march, we've never had a lame-duck session that's passed controversial legislation, major controversial legislation. we passed major legislation but it has been of a bi-partisan consensus basis. now we have the start treat taoerbgs the "don't ask don't tell," all these other things, the land act that h-r rereid is attempting to get through, all of which members of congress and i think more importantly the american people are saying, what are they trying to do, we don't understand what is exactly in the bills, why are you trying to rush it? american people know bad things happen when the congress moves too fast trying to do too many things, particularly when they are a big unwieldy bill like we

this in the omnibus bill. jon: it does seem people in both parties didn't get the message from the last election. >> reporter: i grant you that there are republicans and democrats who have earmarks in there. you have a lot of democrats and few republicans. what caught my ear was senator mcconnell who heretofore has defended earmarks joined in the moratorium ban and said if they are not removed from the bill, including ones that would benefit his own state of kentucky he would lead an effort to filibuster the bill and stop it. that is a big change. once again congress is sort of thumbing its nose at the american people who on november 2nd said stop these kind of practices and congress is trying to ram it through right here at the end rather than passing a simple resolution to keep the government going until january and then let the new congress do it in a deliberate, thoughtful fashion when there can be public opinion

paid to it and the bills can be read. jon: we mentioned the overall approval of congress at 13% right now. even with democrats, it's dropped from 38% in october to 16% right now. why? >> reporter: well, in large measure because the change in the control of the house of representatives has already happened in their minds. part of it is is they have the same concerns as every other american about doing too many things, doing it unseam lee, doing it the wrong way. the democrats lost the house of representatives. they are mad at the speaker to be and the republican majority who hasn't even taken office yet. that is to be normal and to be expected when we are living in a time that we are when there are strong feelings on both sides and both parties. jon: karl rove's book is out in paperback, covers the obama

administration and other hot topics. thank you. >> reporter: thanks, kwro*pb. martha: we have another book to talk about too. this book the pentagon doesn't want you to read, so much so the defense department bought up almost all the copies. the man behind this first person account of the war in afghanistan is now taking on his military sensors and joins us next in a fox news exclusive. plus, we have our must see moment of the day, a police officer under attack, getting help from an unlikely partner. [ male announcer ] this is steven, a busy man.

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jon: right now a fox news exclusive on a book that the pentagon doesn't want you to read. the department of defense even take being the unprecedented step of buying all of the first-run copies it could find of operation dark heart, it's a

revealing first-person account of the war in afghanistan. the defense department then destroyed those copies. the book's author, tony shaffer is now suing the pentagon saying military brass were trampling on his first amendment rights. he. jane: us now. we've had you on before, we've talked about the book before. the new develop it is you are actually going after the pentagon, you say what they did was unfair. >> not only unfair, clearly illegal and against a fundamental right we all have which is the first amendment. during the redaction process which we've talked about before on the air the fact is i presented to them unclassified sources for most if not everything within the book and offered up to them the access to the paid researcher who actually did a great deal of the research and back story for the thing. and they chose to ignore the sourcing documents, jon, some of these things go back 20 years to when i was a brand-new case

officer. i actually had the evaluations. it was privacy act and it was my choice to reveal them or not but they were not classified. it's this kind of hraoup l u.n.r me to talk to my attorney, and he felt this was clear grounds for a first amendment lawsuit against the pentagon. jon: it's so sad you have to laugh, but you wrote a book about being an intelligence officer and helping to prosecute the war in afghanistan and you say part of the reason that so much stuff was redacted from the second printing of your book was because the pentagon says, this essentially shows you're and intelligence officer. >> it's looney. at one point in time i went in and during the retkrabgs process and presented them this unclassified information. and the comment was made, well it shows a pattern. jon, as you than i both know, i think the american people figured out i'm a former

intelligence officer. i don't think there is a secret there. more importantly there is great information that they didn't want to come out especially with the war going the way it is. we demonstrate with clear, factual examples of the existence of safe havens. a lot of the information we knew was bad back in 2003, even now we're not doing adequate jobs in it. i think that is a big issue too. i don't think they wanted the bad news out in many ways. jon: in this era of wikileaks when so much stuff is being dumped out there, truly harmful stuff, why have they been spending so much time focusing on you and our book. >> an excellent question. part of this you have to ask yourself and the american people have to ask this. they new the wikileaks was going to occur. they took my book, bought it, destroyed. i don't think it has to do with the security in my case, i think it's trying to chill people from coming forward and telling the

information. the cope pen hagan that came out with wikileaks should be in the public domain. i don't support wikileaks. the government, dod and others when they go after whistle blowers for myself they create the atmosphere for wikileaks to exist. i'm not trying to destroy the government or the dod i'm trying to form accountability and create change so we don't make the same mistake in the future so our kids don't have to fight and die in a war useless lee. jon: the book is operation dark heart. the art author his tony shaffer. thank you. >> thank you, jon. martha: some of the drama that is going down behind the scenes on capitol hill. we told you the senate was going to take up the start treaty this afternoon. jim demint doesn't want to take it up, he doesn't like the bill. there is a request by him to

have the bill read out loud. that could take 12 hours time. the white house responding in their press release by the press secretary robert gibbs and this is what they have to say, calling this a new low and putting political stunts ahead of our national security and saying it's exactly the kind of washington game-playing that the american people are sick of. robert gibbs also going onto say that senator demint wants to waste 12 hours to read the text of the treaty that has been available to every member of the senate and public for more than eight months. there is something that senators can use to request an out loud reading of a bill. it goes back according to chad pelgram our white house producer who always writes great blogs for us on foxnews.com to a time when bills were written by hand with a quill. not everybody got a copy, so they were read out loud. sepbs can still ask for the bill to be read out loud. that has not been erased from senate history. if it's done, you can imagine for a bill that's as big as the

star street tee, that's 12 hours. for the omnibus bill, 1900 pages. jon: you're not going to get that read in 12 hours. maybe some of our senators don't know how to use the internet. martha: they are looking tho do some procedural maneuvering. jon: really interesting to watch it. we'll do that for you. a firestorm over the potential repeal of tkapbt "don't ask don't tell." why one high ranking general says repealing the policy could risk the lives of our troops. reaction from both sides coming up. also orlando salinas in the freezing cold, what florida farmers are doing to try to protect their crops. >> reporter: these florida farmers and citrus growers are having mixed results in saving these tropics crops. it looks like the strawberries at least are going to be this fine. i'm orlando salinas, that story coming up in just a couple of

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402 just east of sarnia, ontario. those lanes are opened after hundreds of tourists were stranded monday and tuesday, jenna. 24 hours in their cars. so people were rescued, no one was hurt. i mean, the video is just incredible and, unfortunately they're going to get more blizzard conditions later on today. so people are advised to stay off the roadways. but just incredible video we saw yesterday and thankfully no one was hurt. people were rescued. that is good news. the temperatures still extremely cold north of the border and south of the border all the way down to florida. i know we'll talk to orlando salinas who is in florida. record cold temperatures overnight last night and again tonight. windchills, what it feels like if you're outdoors and not protected, minus 3 feels like in minneapolis. they were dumped on with record-breaking snow a couple days ago. feels like 10 in des moines. because of that cold air that's what we're dealing with the freezing rain or

sleet across the south. dozens and dozens of accidents across mississippi and alabama into tennessee. so folks are urged to stay off the roads there as well. so the winter weather, i mean it is extreme winter weather center today, jenna. back to you. jenna: still a few days away from officially being in winter. >> that's right. jenna: janice dean, thank you very much. we're going to move down to florida, huh, jon? jon: that's for sure. freezing temperatures causing lots of troubles for farmers there. some have to go to extremes to protect their crops and save what they can. orlando salinas is in plant city, florida. two nights of freezing temperatures, orlando. how bad is it? >> jon, last night it got down to low of about 24. are we are in plant city. this is known as the strawberry capital of the world. this is 100 or so acres beautiful strawberries in a place called fancy farm. this man that owns this place he told us he has been out overit. >> and made sure his plants

and strawberries were taken care of and they're safe. these folks fared okay. one of the things i want to show you. this, again a strawberry. this held up beautifully but their friends a little further toward the south around miami, homestead area they did not do so well. they were not prepared, jon as these folks are. more southerlyly veggies, tomatoes, green beans, they did not fair so well. in central florida they got over the worst part of this freeze. jon: they're using water and freezing of it, the ice to protect the crops from freezing? >> yeah. sound counter intuitive. why would you want to spray freezing cold water on your plants to keep them safe? but we have the video. overnight that is really what they do. when the temperatures think 32 degrees, that is the hard number, they start to spray their fruit. what that water does when it freezes it, it shells the fruit, keeps it safe, keeps it at that constant degree.

as the temperature starts to rise during the day the water shuts off. that water melts off the strawberries and you have a safe crop. jon: orlando salinas live from florida. orly, thanks. jenna: a lot has been said about "don't ask, don't tell". happening now on capitol hill we're awaiting a vote in the house to repeal that law that bans gays from openly serving in the military. all this as the commandant of the u.s. marine corps igniting a new firestorm with comments to "stars and stripes". take a listen. >> i don't want to lose any marines with the distraction. i don't want to have any marines that i'm visiting at bethesda with no legs be the result of any type of --. jenna: that was at a briefing. we have the executive director for the as far as members legal network. elaine donelley, center for military readiness. we heard from the general about the stakes. that is my first question for both of you starting

with aubry. what is at stake here with the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell"? >> well this afternoon the house will vote in perhaps two or three hours for the second time to repeal "don't ask, don't tell". i would expect that that bill will then go over to the senate, perhaps, tonight. and that bill can be called up immediately by the senate. for debate and consideration. senator lieberman and senator collins have a bill ready. i'm told by their staffs that they have over 60 votes in the senate to repeal "don't ask, don't tell". they already --. jenna: i apologize, aubry. i want to get your thoughts on this though. when i asked what is at stake for you personally and why you think we should repeal don't ask don't tell, how do you answer that question? >> i think this is about the integrity of gay and lesbian servicemembers who serve our country every day. the chairman of the joint chiefs, admiral mullen said it very well. it is about their integrity and it is about the

integrity of all the men and women in uniform. this --. jenna: elaine, to get your thoughts on this, you do not want this repealed. what do you think is at stake and why do you not want to see this act repealed? >> well i think the commandant is reflecting what the marines themselves have said. if the law is repealed, roughly a third said they would leave the service. another 16% said they would consider leaving. when you lose that many good marines, then you really do hurt the force. you do put lives at greater risk. this is not a firestorm. this is a teachable moment because aubry sira on the web page called for resignation of commandant. this means, and i hope +++cl5j

crossed the line. it is already if we have discussion about the stub stance and merits. here he entered into speculation. and i might add irresponsible speculation. he doesn't know what is going to happen in terms of open service. but i would say this to what elaine just put on the table. we heard dire predictions back in 1948 when president truman issued the executive order to end seg a nation in the ranks. -- segregation. we heard that would hurt recruitment. we heard reports for

concerns of safety. jenna: aubry, that is a good point. let me ask elaine that question. are you on the wrong side of history with that example aubry said. >> absolutely not. we don't ask women in the military to live in close quarters with men with little or no privacy. that is a lesson seems to be lost on all the advocates of this new gender order. the recommendations of the working group are really quite extreme. i think the marines know this would cause, in fact we know that 67% of the marine combat arms said the effect on unit effectiveness would be negative. not positive. so i think members of congress, look what is going on here. they're being rushed to vote before they even look at those findings. they're being misled by headlines being spun by the department of defense. there is a phoney argument out there that they have to act fast before the courts do. that is ridiculous. jenna: aubry, you're, let me jump. in our an army veteran. have you ever been in combat? >> i have not been in

combat. jenna: to elaine's point. >> but if i may, i did serve in a combat unit. i pulled guard duty on the north korea bored for almost 13 months. and i can tell you again, elaine is speculating. she does not know what is going to happen. but more importantly, no one is being rushed. this issue has been before this congress for almost two years now. it is time to vote. this law --. jenna: we're going to ask, elaine and aubry to have a final comment. we only have a minute left. i would like you to do one thing. >> sure. jenna: when we're discussing this policy we tend to leave out some of the people that it affects. what we're showing our audience on our screen right now, is six soldiers who died in afghanistan just a few weeks ago. all of them under the age of 25. and, they died in combat and this is, this is, an act that will affect them. you both made very strong points but at this moment

i'd like you both to take the final 30 seconds each and talk directly to the troops and tell them exactly why you're taking the stand that you are. aubry, first and then elaine you finnish. >> well, what i would say to all the troops today is that you already know that gays and lesbians are serving with you. some of them are serving with you openly. some of them are in foxholes, foxholes with you today in afghanistan and iraq. and you know that they have not had any adverse impact on unit coersion -- cohearings, morale or good order. in fact i say to the marines. you responded to the survey, the pentagon survey, that 84% of you said, you marines said, you could do this. you would do this. and in fact, i would also say to the marines that marine general cart wright --. jenna: i'm sorry i have to interrupt. i have to get elaine in.

we have a hard break. elaine, go ahead. >> aubry, is is not about you or your friend lady gaga or activist haves pushing for this. it is about our combat arms. they're the ones on the line. there is nothing beneficial in the report delivered to congress last week that would improve readiness, recruitment, retension in the armed forces. this is a political agenda of the president and members of congress better just slow this down, have serious hearings on this. there is no --. jenna: we appreciate both of you and you're welcome back here any time. we'll be right back.

>> hey, everyone i'm megyn kelly. a spending bill with $8 billion of earmarks including 10 million bucks for a tribute to a dead congressman. what could these lawmakers be thinking? monica crowley reacts. plus john stossel is here on how your tax dollars are going to fund alpaca farms. i say alpaca farms.

found taken of youth in a pill? major trials coming next year on a drug they say makes 80-year-olds as healthy as 20-year-old's. doesn't make them feel as healthy but makes them healthy. dr. siegel explains. she forecasts the weather for "abc news.". her outlook. a national face arrested for making a false rape charge. hear why she did it in kelly's court at the top of the hour. jon: a fox news alert. the senate is now voting on the president's tax cut compromise. the other big story on capitol hill is that 2000-page spending bill that got dumped on senators desks. boy, that has some republicans fuming. rich edson from the fox business network joins us from washington. all right, 2000 pages, phil, what's in it? >> headline number is more than a trillion dollars to fund the federal government for about the next ten months. what has got folks upset hear is the $8 billion cost,

about 6 thousand plus earmarks including small fruit research, aviation education, swine waste management, thousands of projects across the country and a whole bunch of democratic and republican districts in the states, jon. jon: but there is a whole lot of opposition to this thing the way it has been introduced, right? >> there absolutely has been. most of it coming from republicans. they say and point out, look we just had an election a month ago where the american people voted to cut back on much of this spending and this is flying in the face of the american voter. this is what senator john mccain had to say about all this. >> 12:15 my office received this appropriations bill. this appropriations bill. 1924 pages long, for a grand total of $1.1 trillion. are we tone deaf? are we stricken with amnesia? what is going on here? >> time is running out, jon.

federal funding authority for much of this funding stops on saturday. back to you. jon: rich edson, fox business network. rich, thanks. jenna: we saw this having to do a lot with the economy. madness on the streets of athens. mobs attacking members of the government. why are people so angry? we have a live report, next. [shouting] 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. but not for your eyes. they're still so tired-looking.

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[shouting]. jon: well that's what is happening right now in greece. some of the most violent protests against austerity measures since the country plunged into its worst financial crisis in 65 years. at one point the rioters descending upon a former

greek minister outside a luxury hotel. a band of bodyguards, only thing keeping him from being torn apart really by that angry mob. greg burke is streaming live from rome. he has more for us now. gregg? >> hi, jon. we've been following the european demonstrations for months now and nowhere do they get rougher than greece. the reason for that, greece is in the toughest shape in europe. they have to make the biggest cuts. nobody wants to hear his or her salary is going to be cut. today's protests got violent very quickly. the arm of choice seems to be the molotov cocktail. these are basically crude firebombp bes. gasoline put into a beer bottle thrown at police. riot police in greece seem used to this type of thing. it is the 7th such protest this year. police giving as good as they get. firing tear gas into the crowds as they make their way through athens, with

tens of thousands of people. athens was brought to a standstill at some point today because of transportation strikes. airport is shut down. also ports as well. the subways. schools were closed. even journalists on strike. this will, there will be several more before the end of the year, transport strikes, actually going on tomorrow. and finally, jon. as you can see from those pictures, things got very violent today. it actually has been worse. earlier in the year, in the spring time there were three people killed when the protesters torched a bank. three people in the bank working there unable to get out. jon? jon: that will be great for greek tourism, too. all the pictures of rioting in the street. they're really helping out their country. unbelievable. greg burke in rome. thanks. jenna: as the senate considers the tax bill, another battle is shaping up on the flipside. the latest spending plan includes thousands of earmarks otherwise known as pork. it will add up to billions of your tax dollars. plus, it is normal for police to protect citizens, right? but this time, a woman comes

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call this toll-free number on your screen now... for this free information kit, including this... medicare guide and customized rate quote. jenna: a story with a good ending, a good samaritan helping a police officer. and officer stops a car for a missing headlight. the drive is uncooperative to say the least, shoving the officer, reaching for his gun and taser. you see the woman, ran up, helped the officer, hit the driver. it looks like she is helping out. jon: i'm not sure how much she is helping. you've got to give her credit for trying to do the right thing. the police don't exactly encourage this kind of thing. jenna: you can see the fight lasts for five minutes. they say thanks to the woman they were able to ginn control. they don't recommend anyone doing the same thing she did, it could be dangerous, you never know, they do appreciate her help and