janice, thank you. we heard rich edson is trying to do something for farmers out there, but not likely. jon: a little rain would be more likely, although at this point, it's -- jenna: maybe easier than getting republicans and democrats to agree on something. jon: indeed. thank you for joining us on this monday. jenna: "america live" starts right now. megyn: hi, everybody, back in new york. with just eight weeks to go until election day, there are signs that president obama's campaign is hoping to rip a page from the 2004 playbook of the george w. bush re-election effort. welcome to "america live," i'm megyn kelly. incumbents have historically enjoyed polling bumps following their party's convention, and the president's predecessor was no different. president george w. bush was up about nine points at this time in 2004 and rode that wave of enthusiasm straight into a second term. president obama is seeing a small bounce this week, and there are reports that he hopes

to duplicate that 2004 race. but there are some very different challenges he faces this time. chris stirewalt is our fox news digital politics editor and host of "power play" on foxnews.com live. so the initial polls suggest that governor romney did not get a bounce from his convention, and the president did. maybe as much as a five-point bounce. and so what does that tell us, and how would he parlay that into victory as george w. bush did back in '04? >> well, megyn, as we talked about, romney on purpose split his bounce. he chose paul ryan early, got some juice out of that, kept it going through his convention. he made a strategic decision to change the narrative. the president is looking for a more traditional thing. but remember, george w. bush had been trailing john kerry through all the spring and all the summer, drew it into a tie in august and then, boom, came out with that big nine points he got immediately after the

convention. and though he gave a lot of it back, the contour of the race was set. and advisers to the obama campaign say, look, that's our scenario. we're going to give some of this back, but there's going to be a considerable bounce, and we're going to enjoy this incumbency advantage all the way through to the end. but contra that, the romney campaign says, hey, wait a minute, you're going to get a sugar high, but this is just in your base. look who was speaking at the democratic national convention, sandra fluke and jen her grand holm and -- jennifer grand holm and all this stuff. it's in places like california and new york that don't matter anyway, and this is just a reflection of democratic enthusiasm, and when the real con contour of the race returns, you're going to be back to a dead even matchup with some things looking good for governor romney. meg there's no question that the convention message seemed tailored toward the base and not toward independent voters. lots of heavy focus on abortion and getting, you know, free

contraception coverage free to the people receiving it, not necessarily overall free. but it's more than a bounce in new york and california. the latest ppp, that's the democratic-leaning poll, but it shows obama up by five in ohio, chris, and then there's gravis marketing which shows -- i'm sorry, that shows, actually, romney up, but that predated the democratic national convention. so there's at least some polling that shows a bounce in ohio for the obama team. >> well, we love all the polls we can get, we're certainly glad to have every data point that we can put in the hopper, but we don't have real good polling yet on these states, and certainly rasmussen has some stuff that indicates otherwise. we're right now waiting to see how big obama's bounce is, if it's real, what states it occurred in. but i would tell you this, and this is something we've talked about many, many times. in a re-election effort, it comes down to this: do you want to keep the guy you've got, and is the other guy plausible? for this race it's very clear, and the democrats have all but

ceded this point, that americans do want a change. they're not happy with president obama's leadership on the economy which is the most important issue -- megyn: well -- i'm sorry, you wrote an interesting power play piece today talking about this very point, talking about how the president's message has to different than george w. bush's was for three reasons. number one, president obama has lower job approval ratings, the nation is more pessimistic, and you say the character attacks are proving less effective than those launched by bush backers against john kerry. as you point out last week, one thing that was very interesting at that democratic convention was how many times they now had to concede in their own terms that mitt romney is a good man. that's very different than we heard prior to the rnc. >> the dog torturing vampire who is indifferent to the death by cancer of employees of companies all of a sudden was -- well, he's a good man. we stipulate he's a good man, a good guy. the consequence for president obama was george w. bush could

count on the swift boat veterans for truth to tear down john kerry's central resumé point about his service in vietnam. barack obama's tried to do it himself, and he's suffered in the public esteem which was once insurmountable for the president, now is down almost to the same level as romney in polls. so he paid a price for that so defining romney was more difficult, and, yes, the atmosphere is much, much worse than it was nationally in 2004. that first debate's going to take place on october 3rd in denver. mitt romney has survived long enough to get there, if he conducts himself in a presidential fashion and seems plausible, this race could swing widely. remember, 1980 after the conventions jimmy carter, who would go on to get routed by more than ten points, was up five points on ronald reagan. megyn: wow. chris stirewalt, thank you. and don't we all remember those 20-plus republican debates in the primary and caucus season? mitt romney developed over the course of those, you know,

almost two dozen debates to really be hitting his stride at the end and was getting all sorts of favorable response to the way he performed, and then we found out he fired the debate coach who was largely credited for his change in performance. so why did he do that, and how will that work for him when he gets to october 3rd? how much did he need that guy? can't wait to find out in denver, colorado. governor romney is back on the campaign trail today in the key swing state of ohio. he's meeting with factory workers in the northern town of mansfield. the governor spent the weekend preparing for those upcoming presidential debates -- there will be three in the month of october, plus one among the vp candidates. president obama, meantime, spent the weekend in florida getting unusually up close and personal with the voters. there you see it. a pizza shop owner at one stop showing his enthusiastic support by actually picking up the president in a bear hug. all this had to be worked out with the secret service and coordinated in advance, we believe, but it made for a picture that got a lot of

attention today. it was very uplifting. well, democratic donors also gave the president a win last month. the first time since the last spring -- [laughter] i wish you could sit where i sit some days and see what's on the teleprompter. [laughter] anyway, it's the first lift he's had since last spring, fund raising speaking, putting the president slightly ahead of mitt romney in the fundraising race. team obama pulled in $114 million in campaign contributions for the month of august. governor romney just over $111 million. that officially ends the governor's three month winning streak when it comes to the money game, but it's also the third straight month that the romney campaign has raised more than $100 million. fox news alert out of chicago, the mayor there, rahm emanuel, right now holding a news conference on chicago's public school teachers hitting the picket line today.

city officials denying several of their demands for a new contract, including a 19% salary increase. nearly four times higher than what the average american receives. right now the average salary for a teacher in chicago just over $74,000. that's an expensive city, but school administrators can average as much as $120,000 a year. that's a huge burden for a school district dealing with a bum deficit of -- budget deficit of well over $600 million. steve brown joins us live from chicago. just hearing a bit of that presser, steve, the mayor just sounded, i mean, down. >> reporter: yeah. i mean, megyn, this is a strike that the mayor says is unnecessary and wrong, and he understands that there are an awful lot of parents of school children that are going to be inconvenienced at least for the time being until they iron this out. they are still talking, but the teachers are also walking. walking those picket lines outside the schools, outside the cps headquarters, demanding a better deal from the city.

they mentioned that they're pretty close on economics. for a financially-strapped school district, they're close. the city has on the table a four-year, 16% increase in salary. that's what they're close on. what they're not close on, the new teacher evaluation system, how the teachers will be graded going forward which the teachers say they haven't heard enough about and are not ready to sign off on. there is some acrimony between mayor emanuel and this particular union. he ran on a pledge to lengthen the school day. he accomplished that, essentially adding an hour. but teachers had griped from the start that this was done without their input. >> they kind of put us here, i think it did. the lack of, you know, kind of like working with, you know, with the teachers' union, just like posing on us -- imposing on us what we were going to have done. >> reporter: that lengthened school day, done without their input, has essentially made teachers or not necessarily

trusting of the city's school system, nor the mayor, so they're not willing to take their word on it or take the city's word on teacher evaluations and other items. they are still talking, both sides are still meeting, megyn, but it doesn't appear they're close to ironing out those key issues, even with the economics mostly ironed out. back to you. megyn: steve, thank you. we also have breaking news this hour on america's economic standing in the world, and it is not good. lou dobbs next on why america is now number seven. we were number one in 2009. now we're number certain in one critical -- seven in one critical category. that's next. and a christian pastor who had been sentenced to die is now being released in the iran. this is a huge development. the final chapter, we hope, of one man's spiritual saga that he says began with his simply practicing his faith. jay sekulow's here. and new fallout in the fight between the chair of the democratic party and the newspaper that caught her in a

lie and posted the audio to prove it of after she went of after the newspaper reporter. now that newspaper wants dnc chair debbie wasserman-schultz to apologize for not once, but twice suggesting the paper made up the whole story. >> i didn't want say he said that -- i didn't say he said that. and, unfortunately, that comment was reported by a conservative newspaper. not surprising that they would deliberately misquote me. begin. tomato, obviously. haha. there's more than that though, there's a kick to it. wahlalalalallala! smooth, but crisp. it's kind of like drinking a food that's a drink, or a drink that's a food, woooooh! [ male announcer ] taste it and describe the indescribable. could've had a v8.

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megyn: fox news alert on a new report showing america is quickly losing ground in a key measure of economic might. according to the annual survey from the world economic forum, the united states of america has slipped to seventh in competitiveness down from number one in 2008 when president obama was elected to the white house. joining me now, lou dobbs, host of "lou dobbs tonight" on fox business network and a

syndicated radio host. and the headline in the albuquerque journal is, dear america: nobody shouts, we're number seven! [laughter] number seven! >> well, we could start a shout too. we're also number 14, number 29 whether we're talking about mathematics and natural sciences test scores. ball of it comes down o this -- but all of it comes down to this reflection of not being able to shout -- megyn: why is the world economic forum telling us we're so much less competitive than we used to be? >> they seem to perceive a certain mistrust on business and this government. i don't know where they got that they seem to have noticed we're $16 trillion in debt which exceeds our national gross domestic product. megyn: talk about the credit downgrade. >> the credit downgrade which, by the way, i think is one of the silliest things in this report because that downgrade had absolutely no effect, that is putting us on a negative outlook. it didn't have an effect. in fact, treasury's rallied from that point -- megyn: but, but, but, this

number that we're now number seven, we were number one, the number one most competitive economic cup in the world, now we're number seven, this is related to our debt and other items? >> it's related to debt, it's related to government and the relationship with business, the confidence in the future. it is related primarily, in my opinion, to a country that is to longer focused on prosperity, economic growth and driving forward. and that's -- and the irony of this survey, which is done every year, is that the northern european countries rank higher than we do, and they are the ones in the grip of a massive sovereign debt crisis and, by the way, looking at the possible disintegration of the european union, ultimately, as a prospect. so, i mean, there's a lot going on here. but the essential issue within this report is none of this matters right now to voting americans, only to the extent --

and this is something that governor romney and congressman ryan have got to understand if they're to prevail in this election -- it is how all of these numbers relate to the well being of our middle class and those who aspire to it. and if they don't have the good judgment, sense and strategy to focus on the voter and how he or she will be better off after voting for governor romney, then it is a stalemate with president obama. whose policies have been disastrous, as we see reflected in this report. megyn: there was a lot of talk about that over the past couple weeks as we saw the republicans at their convention focus on debt and jobs, and we saw the democrats -- >> hallelujah. that's about as exciting as paint dry. megyn: last week at the democratic national convention, we saw a lot more focus on social issues like abortion and reproductive rights and birth control -- >> by the way, at the end of the day that's a bunch of nonsense as well. the democrats and republicans have these pools of nonsense that they repair to reflexively. they've got to understand that

this is right now a new normal that the american working man and woman will not accept. it's time to return to growth, it's time to return to prosper by -- megyn: when you say -- >> time for the american family to understand that they can hold together financially, and their children will be better off. megyn: just so our viewers know, these are the latest numbers. national debt's at $16 trillion, 46.7 million americans were on food stamps in june, that's a record. manufacturing activity declined to its lowest level in three years. we can always rely on manufacture, not so much right now. gas prices reaching a high for -- >> they've doubled since president obama took office. >> and the jobs report for last month was weak and disappointing, according to folks on both sides of the aisle. so you tell me, lou, why is this race so tight, because the american people seem to believe that even though it's not moving quite as quickly in the right direction, it is move anything the right direction. why doesn't --

>> yeah. 60% of those surveyed in the most recent polls say -- as high as 70% in the polls -- say that we're not moving in the right direction. megyn: but the horse race. >> the horse race is neck and neck, and i think that there are lots of rationalizations from both republicans and democrats as to why that is the case. but the fact is that this is not a republican nominee to this point who's made the case for the american citizen and consumer and worker as to why he or she should support a man who seems right now, i swear to you, it seems at times he wants to be the agent of u.s. multi-nationals. if you're going to be an agent of business, be the agent of small business in this country because that's where jobs are created. u.s. multi-nationals come down just about at neutral when it comes to the interests of a working man and woman. megyn: what does that mean? i don't understand your point. >> the u.s. multi-nationals have a diverse international, global -- megyn: you're talking about

companies that have a base overseas as well as locally? >> any one of these major multinationals. megyn: and you're suggesting mitt romney is speaking more to those groups than he is -- >> and he's speaking so abstractly. when we talk about debt and productivity, that's all fine, but what the man and woman who every morning get their kids ready for school, who go out and work for a living, what they want to know is that job will be there, that their prospects of their children will be greater, and that is not a bunch of gobbledygook about productivity, international capital, trade -- megyn: how are you going to clear the path for me to do what i need to do. >> yeah. keep the desk clear so you can get to your assignment. that's one part of it. how about turning it to prosper my? we have leaders who are so hide-bound in their orthodoxy whether it's left or right, they're not making sense, and they can't even discern that fact themselves, apparently, nor can the leaders of their respective parties. and that's critically,

critically important that it get resolved. megyn: we end where we began because that study putting us at seventh cited one of the other things -- hold on a second, government debt and credit rating, a lack of trust in government, as you say. >> real quickly, we could be number one in competitiveness, but that could also reflect the lowest wages in the world marketplace, and that would make us more competitive. that isn't the kind of competitiveness this country's about. this country's about being productive, smarter, efficient and providing a lifestyle, a quality of life, a standard of living that has always been the envy of the world. right now it is in a shambles because of the idiocy of recent leaders, including this one. megyn: lou dobbs, thank you. >> great to be with you. megyn: always interesting. coming up, the white house is expected to take questions on this new report we just told you about, and whether the president takes the blame for this, takes responsibility as lou mentioned, we will have that news as it

happens and a live report from the white house just ahead. and joe biden getting up close and personal with a group of bikers. new details of the woman sitting on the vice president's lap. i want to know about the two guys on the left and right. also, one of his unique requests to the bikers. ♪ riders on the storm, into this house we're born ♪

megyn: well, new questions about border security after the feds put the brakes on a repatriation program. for seven years it provided free flights back to mexico for illegal immigrants caught crossing the border at a total cost of $100 million. trace gallagher has more on why the program's been stopped. >> reporter: well, the program was designed to save lives, meggening, because -- megyn,

because you had so many illegals dying from the heat and then those who made it were arrested and dropped south of the border, they would simply try to cross again. so the plane flights were from tucson to mexico city, and the idea being if you could push them further south into mexico, you would at least make their journey north farther and then try to discourage them from going north, but then the government accountability office said, no, the flights were not stopping them, just slowing them down a bit. so then the arrests of illegals dropped to a 40-year low a couple of summers ago, and the planes were flying half empty, sometimes mostly empty. the cost, as you said, hit $100 million for six years. it became hard to justify. the border patrol considered filling those planes with illegals who committed crimes in this country, but then the mexican government said, no, they didn't want families to have to fly with criminals. so this summer the flights were halted altogether, and the program has now been stopped. for now the border patrol can

either put illegals in jail or bus them to border towns along the mexican border, but a lot of these border towns are complains because their own citizens are raising their crime rates and their unemployment rates. now dhs is considering a brand new program, megyn, that would fly criminals in this country, illegals who committed crimes, from el paso back down to the deepest part of mexico. funding for that still in question. the money from this program where it goes, we just contacted department of homeland security and border patrol, they still have not gotten back to us. they say when they get a statement ready, they will. megyn: wow. hey, before i let you go, happy birthday, trace gallagher. >> thank you, megyn. megyn: is it true? >> it is true, sadly. megyn: are you a virgo? >> 39. i'm a virgo. me and bill o'reilly and scott the director, we all share the same director. megyn: i know, and happy birthday to scott and bill as well.

all of you, twin-teen on a beautiful september day. congratulations. >> reporter: thank you very much, megyn. very nice. megyn: my brother, he's also a virgo, and he said he wanted to be a leo because it's so close, he said it seems so much more manly, he thought. he doesn't like the little mascot for the virgo. [laughter] it's not good. okay. moving on, relief today for the family of a christian pastor jailed in iran. the islamic regime has released this man once sentenced to death on charges of trying to convert muslims to christianity. there have been reports over the past couple of months and years, actually, that he may have been already put to death. obviously, those were not true, and now today this man is releaseed. we'll be joined by jay sekulow on it. also, a new book from washington today by bob woodward, washington post editor, chronicles some of the worst of washington when it comes to our country's financial crisis. detailing what really happened between the white house and congress during the big debt

ceiling deal of the summer of 2011. it really provides an insight into how washington works and why we hate it. and we will bring that to you right after this break. >> dealing with the white house is like dealing with a bowl of jell-o. i'm not going to get into the partisan sniping that we heard earlier. >> it is hard to understand why speaker boehner would walk away from this kind of deal and, frankly, if you look at the commentary out there, there are a lot of republicans that are puzzled as to why it couldn't get done. it doesn't get any better than endless shrimp at red lobster. with a wide variety, you can mix and match all day. scampi, grilled, the fried -- there's nothing better. [ male announcer ] at last, red lobster's endlesshrimp is back, but only for a limid time, for just $1. try as much as you like, any way you like, like new parmesan crusted srimp or new teriyaki grilled shrimp, all with salad and unlimited cheddar bay biscuits,

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the entirely new lexus es. and the first-ever es hybrid. this is the pursuit of perfection. meg megawell, the white house took questions in just the last hour over a new book about the contentious debt debate last year. remember? we had to raise the debt ceiling in this country, and there was this big showdown between the president and congress. in his new book "the price of politic," bob woodward details what happened between the white house and capitol hill during that debate that happened in the summer of 2011. and as the negotiations between the president and house speaker john boehner hit a fever pitch, things turned nasty before they collapsed. and now we're getting a behind-the scenes look at just how nasty they got and how these men and those who support them really operate. joining me now, former deputy

assistant to president george w. bush brad brakeman, and south carolina democratic party chair dick harpootlian. it's amazing these politicians continue to sit down with bob woodward, but they do. [laughter] he decided we needed to raise the debt ceiling, and normally they rubber stamp it in congress. otherwise we default on our debts. last summer the republicans said we're not doing it unless we get certain cuts for it. we want you to sort of tend to the overall fiscal health of the country, president obama. and they went into the white house, according to woodward, john baner in and harry reid went into the white house and said, look, we on capitol hill think we have a deal, it's going to require you to do certain thing, two steps, including one right before the 2012 election, and president obama said, no way. i don't care that you on capitol hill have reached a deal, i'm not doing it, i'm furious you would even suggest it, i'm not putting myself in that position right before an election, and tim geithner was apparently

looking to him, according to woodward, brad, and saying, you don't understand. if this is the only deal they're offering you, this is the deal you have to take because he apparently said the 2008 financial crisis will be seen as just a minor blip compared to the crisis we're about to go into unless you accept this deal. the president said, no, and they wound up redoing it. does it show strength on the part of pram that? obstinance? what does it show, brad? >> it shows that the president didn't have even control of the congress, that he controlled at the time. they dismissed the president entirely, and when boehner thought he had a deal with the president and went back to his caucus and said we made a deal, the president reneged on it. and it shows, also, the famous line in there by pelosi when she put the president on hold like you do with an unwanted sales call at home that the president really became an irrelevant part of the negotiation. and when push came to shove, the president dug in his heels, he even threatened to veto can which geithner said would have been horrific.

if anything, it shows incompetence, laziness, aloofness, and i can go on. megyn: you know, dick, there was a sort of bipartisan understanding, that there was going to be a debt ceiling increase, but the president was going to have to revisit this once more before the election, and that was the deal breaker for president obama. he did not want to have to revisit this before he ran for re-election. and yet it says you had geithner telling people, this will be something you cannot cure. if there is a default, if we don't raise this debt limit, it is something that would be incel bl, incurable, it would last for generations, and it says that president obama was nonetheless resolute in the white house that he was not going to agree to anything that required him to revisit this prior to election 2012. >> well, i think the proof's in the pudding. they raised the debt limit. so -- megyn: in one step. >> the idea that -- >> yeah, faced with sequestration. now we're faced with something hanging over our heads that is even more catastrophic than the deal they made.

megyn: go ahead, dick. >> well, i mean, first of all, this sequestration was supported by paul ryan and every republican in the house voted for it. megyn: and those are the automatic spending cuts that are now going to kick in. >> the automatic spending cuts come january. megyn: cut $1.2 trillion out of over spending -- our spending over the next ten years. >> absolutely. and that was the deal that was cut. and let me say this to you, i think it was a good deal. we got the debt limit lifted, number one. number two, we're going to have to confront whether or not we're going to, the bush tax cuts expire january 1 and this 55 billion in defense and 55 billion in domestic goes in effect january 1. now, paul ryan championed that, he voted for it, he lobbied for it, he's your vice president, and yesterday on "meet the press" mitt romney said paul ryan was wrong. so we're going back and revisiting something. the president was resolute, and

if you read robert caro's new biography, the last chapter in the lyndon johnson biography, if you read them, lyndon johnson was just as tough and got the same kind of confrontation and backed him up just like president obama -- >> the day of reckoning is much worse than if they went to an original deal that was bipartisan. that's the point you're missing. >> brad, you need to -- >> makes it much worse in january. megyn: i want to ask you something else, because it talks a little bit about the personalities involved. he writes that president obama was furious with respect to this proposal, this two-step proposal, and john boehner apparently sat down with bob woodward, the author, and said that president obama was, quote: moaning and groaning and whining and demanding during this phone call he had. then the president told bob woodward, that's not true. i don't moan, i don't groan, i don't whine. i'm not desperate. i was very angry about how he had behaved. i mean, it is watching the sausage getting made, is it not,

brad? >> it is. and the process is ugly. but if the president were a leader and he were somebody who even had control of his own members in the house and senate, the president would have been treated by an equal partner instead of somebody who was detached. and i think that's the lesson you learn out of the woodward book. megyn: why do politicians keep sitting down with bob woodward, dick? you tell me. they all sit down with him, and it doesn't work out quite the way they thought it was going to. >> it's like the moth and the flame, and maybe me and that camera. [laughter] they're attracted to it because it's bob woodward, you know? he's -- but let me just, i want to say one other thing, megyn, before we leave, and that is the president won. boehner can't control his own caucus, and by the way, the congress has the lowest rating it's ever had, and the president now after the convention has an approval rating above 50%. we're headed in the right direction. and, brad, you need to get a the

world is ending sign when you go on the show in the future because that's how you and mitt romney -- >> no, the world will start anew on november 7th. >> it will when barack obama wins and is sworn in. megyn: all right, guys. thank you. good to see you. >> good to see you. megyn: coming up, before aaron vaughn was killed in afghanistan in 2011, he asked his family to keep quiet about his assignment to seal team six and his role with the armed services. but after the bin laden raid, the administration made this elite group a household word and gave film makers special access to the details of their mission. now the vaughns, his family, are upset, and they are speaking out in an exclusive interview about what they believe was done to their son. [ female announcer ] e-trade was founded on the simple belief

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megyn: well, some huge news this weekend on a story we have covered over the past couple of years right here on "america

live." the case of an iranian pastor who was sentenced to death for refusing to renounce his christian faith. this weekend he was finally reunited with his family after spending the last three years waiting to die in an iranian prison. after a six-hour hearing, the 35-year-old was found guilty of a lesser charge and was ultimately released and sentenced to just time served. trace gallagher has the details. unbelievable, trace. >> reporter: it really is. and remember why this is so big, because under iranian law you can be executed without warning at any time. so this is very unexpected, his release, and some who follow iranian law very closely say this must have been some kind of disagreement between iranian leadership about the degree of punishment because only the supreme leader, eye tole ya -- ayatollah khamenei, can commute

a sentence. the local court acquitted him of apostasy or abandoning islam and convicted him of evangelism among muslims. they sentenced him to three years, he got credit for time served. many be believe, megyn, international pressure is what got him freed including media pressure from shows like "america live." jay sekulow, in the american center for law and justice, as we know, fought very long and hard for his freedom, and on this show in may jay sekulow predicted this would happen. listen. >> when the pressure continues, i believe he walks and so does his lawyer, and he's -- here's why. they don't do business the with the united states, but they do business with brazil, with the e.u., with germany. this becomes a diplomatic approach that has to be given here. >> reporter: now that said, the pastor's future is still very much a concern because two decades ago another christian pastor had his apostasy charge

reversed, and two days later he was murdered when he got out of jail. now you can see he's with his wife and two children. exactly what his immediate future plans are still at this point a little bit unclear. megyn? megyn: wow. trace, thank you. well, according to human rights groups, the pastor was just one of hundreds of people in iran saving time on faith-based charges. jay sekulow is chief counsel for the american center for law and justice which led the effort for the pastor's release, and what a moment it must have been to hear that news, jay! >> it was. we called it a god moment because, frankly, megyn, we weren't expecting that. we were expecting new charges. that was the information we were getting on the ground from the lawyers, that new charges were expected to be brought. and i think trace is exactly correct. what happened here, the ayatollah made the decision that the international pressure and spotlight on this was just too

much for the scream to bear, and -- regime to bear, and the pastor walks out of jail to his two children and wife, first time in 1,062 days. and i want to reiterate something i've said before, i want to thank you and fox news for covering this because it gave it a global interest. we were tweeting three million people a day, a lot of that because of the interest that you all had in this case. and we won this through media advocacy. this was not a situation where you are going to really get justice in a courtroom, although his lawyer, a valiant effort on his lawyers' behalf, that's for sure. but he's out, he's free. we're monitoring him closely, and there's been a history in the past where people have been released and then murdered, so we're watching that very closely. megyn: i mean, what do you think was the straw that broke the camel's back? you know, there had been attention to this, and yet we kept hearing that the death sentence was in place, and then we would get false reports that he had been executed. >> correct. megyn: what do you think was the ultimate, you know, straw that

broke the camel's back for the ayatollah? >> i think the economic realities when you've got governments that do business with iran like brazil who we had representatives, my son jordan and his wife went down and met with brazilian representatives, talked to the vice president. we had a very significant outreach from brazil x brazil went to iran, and the same thing in russia, by the way. we've got an office in many miss cow, and the russian -- moscow, and this became a national embarrassment, and there started to be economic consequences, plus it was embarrassing for the ayatollah and the regime. everybody around the world knew about him, and the end result, i think, that pressure was what resulted in his releitz. and the end result, i think, may well bode well for others that are in a similar situation as we keep the spotlight on this persecution that minority religions, specifically here christians, are having in the middle east. it's a difficult situation in iran. there's a lot of trouble in

egypt right now, but this was a great victory. thrilled is an understatement, as you can tell. this is beyond anything we anticipated this quickly. i thought it might happen. as i said in may. but, boy, i didn't think it was happening saturday, so that was great news. megyn: i want our viewers to know that the american center for law and justice, your group, is specifically dedicated to the ideal that religious freedom and freedom of speech are inalienable, god-given rights, and you stood up for those principles here successfully, jay. good for you. >> thanks. thank you for following this, megyn. it really made a difference. megyn: follow me on twitter, let me know what you think @megyn kelly. well, controversy growing over a series of welfare ads from the romney campaign accusing the obama administration of taking the work requirement out of welfare. some of on the left say the ads are flat out false, others on the right defend them as blindingly accurate. in just a few minutes, we will try to get to the bottom line from a man who met with the

clintons on the original welfare reform bill along with someone who actually ran the welfare program in the state of new york. also, rapper nicky my imagine the getting death threats what she did that has a lot of fans so upset. ♪ ♪

megyn: well, singer nicki minaj is reportedly getting death threats after, apparently, endorsing governor mitt romney for president. the star appeared to slam president obama as lazy in some of her lyrics and rapped that she is voting republican.

her fans, some of them, did not seem to like them. a number of the rapper's twitter followers posted disturbing threats on her life. today president obama told a florida radio station he was not sure that was actually an endorsement since the rapper likes to play, quote, characters for her music. about 20 minutes ago she responded in a tweet thanking the president for understanding her humor and sarcasm and saying she sends her love and support. well, a fox news exclusive, new questions about how the obama administration handled information about the killing of bin laden. petty officer aaron vaughn was a member of seal team six, the unit behind the bin laden raid. he was later killed along with 16 other seals when their helicopter was shot down last year. now his parents are speaking out saying the administration put a target on their son's back when it publicly identified his unit. our chief intelligence correspondent catherine herridge is live in washington with more. catherine? >> reporter: well, thank you,

megyn. billy and karen vaughn say their son's voice was filled with anger and uncharacteristic fear after vice president joe biden revealed just two days after the raid that the navy seals were behind it. >> aaron called me and said, mom, you need to wipe your social media clean of any reference to me or any of my buddies, and he actually said to me, mom, there's chatter, and all of our lives could be in danger, including yours. >> reporter: so how do you feel as a father to have your son identified? >> we expect better out, out of the high-ups in this our government. and i believe what the administration did then, i believe it was criminal. >> reporter: the vaughns are now speaking publicly about their son, what it meant to lose him in afghanistan, and they're sharing that experience with other military families. fox asked the vaughns whether it was possible that the vice president identified the seals because the administration and the entire country were so grateful. >> i can tell you one thing,

seal team six did not want to be identified. so it wasn't that they were trying to be proud of them, because those men do not need a pat on the back. >> uh-huh. >> they don't work for that. >> reporter: did aaron tell you that team six was angry? >> yes. everybody that he talked to, yes, absolutely. they were very angry. >> reporter: so it was like the rug got pulled out from under them. >> yes. >> the administration could have said special openers. isn't it kind of fun to go back and forth, was it navy seals, or was it this? >> reporter: the vaughns told us they felt the entire seal community should be respected and given their pryce if that's what they wish, megyn. megyn: wow. an incredible interview. catherine, thank you. >> reporter: you're welcome. megyn: a troubling new survey from the world's leading economic forum shows the united states losing its edge in global competitiveness, and how. slipping to number seven after topping the list just four years ago. moments ago, the white house suggested someone is to blame for that, and we'll show you who

they say it is. next. plus, president obama repeatedly attacking governor romney's ads on his handling of welfare reform. governor romney suggests that the president's taking the work requirement out. the administration says that's false. coming up, we'll ask the man formerly in charge of running new york state's welfare program to separate fact from fiction. stay with us.

megyn: breaking news from washington on an ugly report that shows the united states dropping like a stone when it comes to competing in the global economy. welcome to a brand-new hour of "america live." i'm megyn kelly. we brought this news last hour. america has fallen to 7th place in global competitiveness from first place in 2008. another reminder of the terrible state of america's economy two

months out from the election. >> reporter: this is another tumble from the world economic forum for the u.s. as you mentioned. with it comes to global competitiveness we have fallen into 7th place. there has been a lot of backlash. no one shouts, "we are number 7". they include debt, inflation, the credit rating, government wastefulness and the burden of government regulations. the forum reports government cannot make services efficiently if they have to pay interest on high debt. the rankings also put the u.s. in 54th place when it comes to the level of trust the public has in our politicians. in its editorial the

"albuquerque journal" points the finger of blame at barack obama. just moments ago white house press secretary jay carney says gop parred andship is to blame. >> there is a simple solution and it's called compromise and the willingness to accept we have to have a balanced approach. that's something that body accepted beyond the ideological realms on capitol hill. >> reporter: there is more bad news on the way. i have gone the an exclusive preview of another ranking that measures the consistency of a nation's institutions and policies with the concept of economic freedom. would you think the u.s. would do well, with you there is a

sharp tumble there as well, megyn. megyn: not far from the white house lawmakers are back on the hill after a 5-week vacation. they go home to speak with their constituents and try to keep their jobs and they had big issues to deal with, taxes, spending cuts and a debilitating fiscal cliff coming to us this january. with the presidential election less than 2 months away, congress is expected to do the bare minimum. and focus on preventing you from kicking them out. they are going to focus on preventing a government shutdown later this month. they only have two months to last until we find out what happened to them. this whole presidential election could come down to the battleground state of ohio. no republican has won the white house without winning the state

of ohio and experts say it's not likely to be done here either, mitt romney's plan for getting 270 electoral votes require that he wins ohio. that's where he is gearing up for a rally with factory workers. his running-mate paul ryan will be in ohio later this week as will vice president joe biden on wednesday. with a clock ticking down folt elections the candidates campaigning furiously through those campaign states. they are also launching last-minute ad blitzes. but there are legal battles that could be the game changers. in ohio a dispute over early voting could be headed for an emergency review by the state supreme court after the attorney general appealed a ruling that orders the state to restore early voting to everyone. they said only military voters get this certain privilege.

and the obama team challenged that saying everybody should get early voting and the court agreed with the obama team. in pennsylvania a state law requiring a photo i.d. is headed to the state supreme court after a decision to uphold that requirement was appealed. arguments set to begin tomorrow. joining me now judge andrew napolitano. pennsylvania and ohio, especially ohio are critical to this election. so what is happening in those two states that could change the outcome here? >> those two states are symbolic of the reaction by states to proven and alleged fraud in 2004 and 2008. in the midst of all that, indiana enacted a law that required everybody the get an i.d. you can get them for free and get them quickly. the supreme court upheld that

law. so many courts, lower federal courts as you know have followed the supreme court on the voter i.d. law. so it is likely that in my view that pennsylvania's law requiring a government issued i.d. sort of like a driver's license will be upheld. where the courts have gone the other way is when the states have tried to change when people can vote. and ohio is unique. ohio said if you are in the military or if you are living overseas you have a longer window in which you can get your ballot here than if you actually do live in ohio. formerly the window was the same. if you are not in ohio on election day whether you live here or in england you had time to vote before election day. ohio reduced that time to vote to make it cheaper and less expensive. easier for them to count the votes and said no. both of these cases are on appeal. i suspect the voter i.d. will be

upheld. but i suspect regulations affecting when people can vote will go in favor of more time to vote rather than less. megyn: in ohio it pitted team obama against military families and military members. the military members said we get treated specially for a reason. we deserve the special treatment. once you have courts saying you have to treat the military the same way you treat the general electorate that will result ultimately in courts saying forget it, it's too much of a headache, nobody gets the extended period. they were upset with what happened in ohio. you mentioned demonstrated voter fraud. whenever we do these segments we get e-mails from democrats in particular saying what demonstrated voter fraud? people in one state in which tens of millions cast their votes? >> bush versus gore says on its

face don't use this as precedent or other opinions. about it basically says the state has to treat everybody similarly and if the state is not counting votes accurately because they count them differently in one state than another, that is a form fraud. you remember and the people who e-mail you should remember this. the voter fraud we saw in pennsylvania two years ago where people with baseball bats are preventing others from voting. so there is certainly a basis for states to claim that fraud will affect the outcome of the vote. the state has a compelling interest in assuring votes are tabulated accurately no matter who wins or loses. megyn: the became administration has been on a mission to challenge these laws. purging the voter lists of people who might not be citizens, that got shot down.

they believe it diseven fran choose is legitimate voters. a military veteran, an american citizen got purged off the voter rolls. when they require voter i.d., sometimes real american citizens get shut out because they were born in georgia 70 years ago and can't get a birth certificate to prove they are a citizen and they don't drive and they don't have the photo i.d. >> the supreme court examined that issue in 2008 and said where the state gives these photo i.d.s for free, where the state has a reason to believe without the voter i.d.s it's vote tabulations might not be accurate. that's good enough. may dan, that decision was supported across the board by liberals and conservatives on the supreme court. that opinion is likely animating a lot of these lower courts as they view whether or not state

i.d.s are discriminatory against people who don't have driver many licenses or whether they do assure accurate voting. the supreme court has said as long as the burden is minimal. as long as there is no cost. as long as you can get tonight a supermarket as well as at a division of motor vehicles office, it's fair. megyn: they also say you can cast a provisional ballot. if you are about to be disenfranchised you do get to vote. if the election is tight and they need to look at those provisional ballots, then they do. we'll be hearing more from the judge on that between now and november. the romney ads on welfare reform are causing a lot of controversy. they believe president obama is stripping the work requirements out of welfare. remember president clinton insured those were in. they say president obama is slowly taking them out.

the obama team claims that's a lie. and independent fact checkers have accused the romney campaign of misleading on that. we'll go right to the source. two experts who have either had a hand in crafting the atlanta mark welfare legislation under president clinton or helped implement it. they will join us after this break to tell was they think. plus one of the most famous moments in courtroom history. o.j. simpson trying on the bloody glove that did not fit. but was the glove tampered with by famed defense counsel johnny cochran? a warning for your next vacation. see why you should not try to touch the wild animals. [ mother ] you can't leave the table till you finish your vegetables. [ clock ticking ]

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>> july 12 ball quietly ended work requirements for welfare. you wouldn't have to work and wouldn't have to train for a job. mitt romney strongly believes work mist be part of welfare. megyn: two things getting as much attention and reaction in this election as governor rom numbers ads blasting president obama on welfare. as the president's election team and fact checkers in the mainstream media claim they are false and a gross distortion of the facts, or are they? our next two guests not your ordinary experts on this. a former professor of the university of maryland. he met with hillary clinton just after the law was passed requiring work for welfare. russell sykes administered new york city's welfare for work

programs for years. hopefully you can help even me understand this. it's sort of a difficult concept. but under president clinton he passed a law that required work for welfare. he wanted to prevent people who didn't want to deal with pane employer from sitting at home collecting a welfare check. he said you have got to get out there and do a certain amount of work. it's suppose to be a hand up, not a hand out. now let me start with you, russell. what has president obama done to that? >> he issued a guidance to states saying they can circumvent those rules. they used the terms and guidance that they can be judged in lieu of work requirements. at least several times. which means the very clear responsibility, personal responsibility and expectation that if you are on welfare didn't have a job and you were able body, half of the case

loads who fit that definition had to look for work, get work and train for work. not pears we are using fuzzier language about that. megyn: the obama administration says no we are trying to increase work under the program, not decrease. we heard that in president clinton in charlotte. they say this is trying to give states for flexibility in helping families get to a place where they can find work. is that true? >> i think frankly two interesting responses. if they had the authority to do this all along using a legal back door which is what they did, why didn't they do it in 2008? and secondly i don't think it is true. they talk about things that will be more classroom and education, for cooperation with other workforce components, all of which seem to harken back to the days before the 1996 laws where people could languish and didn't

have a hope of a job. we know work is the best avenue out of poverty. states that have gone the it right recognized there will always be low-wage workers and they supplemented their wages through the low-income credit. that what we do in new york and that's why we put people to work, they are far better off than being on welfare. megyn: douglas, what do you make of this. politifact rated this as pants on fire, saying it the's not true that president obama is trying to strip the work requirement out of the welfare law. >> sometimes they get it wrong. they asked a former republican staffer on the hill about this provision and he said this new provision they proposed would give them the ability to cut

welfare. but the obama administration would never gut welfare. i don't believe they would do that. senator obama was against the welfare bill. many of the people in the administration are not supportive of the welfare bill. they believe in using everything but the mandatory work approach to welfare reform. i think that the fact checkers just got this one wrong. megyn: you think in giving these states more flexibility the obama administration is about to give them a pass on the work requirements? >> the whole idea of the welfare reform law was to take flexibility away from states because too many states had been offering job training, life skills training, lord knows what else. megyn: personal journaling, weight loss. shoas those are some of the examples. >> they used to be called job

training junkies. they went into job training after job training. megyn: so now has president obama reopened that door? president clinton pointed out there were some republican governors who were say together obama administration we want more flexibility and president clinton was saying he gave them that responsibility to create more work requirements not less. >> some flexibility was taken away in 2006 under the deficit reduction act. but states have broad flexibility already. and i think the door has been reopened to activities that don't lead to employment. to activities where again people languish in different settings where for peer ideas time that don't lead to a job. and that's a shame. when you are on welfare you are undoubtedly poor. when you have a job in this state you get a lot of support

that make you less poor. i don't understand the thought. it's apparently going back to the day where it' better to get a check without any expectations in return than it is to work and have your benefits supplemented. megyn: when you see that pants object fire that politifact gave the romney sad do you agree with that? >> i don't agree with pants on fire. i think the fact of the matter is -- i go back to -- if this authority to do with the administration has just done as always existed why are they doing it in july of 2012 instead of soon after he was inaugurated in 2009? megyn: why are they doing that? >> i leave that for the conclusion but it has to do with issues of mobilizing people they hope will turn out for them and vote. megyn: are you a partisan guy, russell? >> not at all. i have been in different parties

all my life. i ran the program fairly and equitably in new york. i just believe in work. >> i'm not partisan. i like to call them as i see them. megyn: thank you so much for being here. all the best. the story behind an intriguing political photo that is vice president biden in the middle and a female biker who appears to be sitting in his lap. that's next. my brother doesn't look like heart attack patient. i'm on a bayer aspirin regimen. [ male announcer ] be sure to talk to your doctor before you begin an aspirin regimen. i'm a fighter and now i don't have that fear.

megyn: time may be running out in the negotiations over iran's nuclear program. as israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu talks withdrawing a red line for iran's nuclear program and crossing that line could mean war. there are serious debates over where it should be drawn.

the nuclear chief is requiring access to a key nuclear site. >> reporter: so far there has been no access granted about it u.n. inspectors into the parchin military facility where it's believed the iranians are testing the nuclear trigger, the explosive used in such a device. this comes as the israeli prime minister is demanding the united states and its allies draw a red line to publicly say if iran continues past this point u.s. will attack. so far the u.s. has declined to do that. secretary of state hillary clinton says the united states does not believe in setting deadlines against iran. so far iran has played its hand very well. they continue to enrich iranian, all the while sitting at negotiating table and buying time all along. the rhetoric in israel is israel

is allowed this to continue if the united states makes some kind of firm commitment to a military strike. the hope is the united states doing that would get iran to finally back off and stop continuing to enrich uranium. the thought in israel is, in order for an israeli military attack to be effective would have to strike sooner because they do not have the long-range bombing capability that the united states does. 7 united states has been asking israel to continue to wait and give it more time. the war drums are continuing to beat as the israeli prime minister is giving interviews and talking about red lines. both iranian president, the israeli prime minister, and president obama will be in new york more the u.n. meeting. just to give you an idea of the things we are seeing here. the paper here. this was the weekend edition of the daily papers.

you can see the men who would lead the attack into iran. the headline says, it's in our hands. back to you. megyn: leland, thank you. questions about three of barack obama's top staffers. do they have too much influence and why is one getting secret service protection on your dime. a critical moment in the 20th century when o.j. simpson tried on the gloves. now a bombshell allegation from one of the prosecutors and the response. >> you look at o.j. simpson over there and he has a rather large head. o.j. simpson in a knit cap from two blocks away is still o.j. simpson it's no disguise it makes no sense it doesn't fit,

fit does fit, you must sea quit.

megyn: new questions are being raised about the obama administration and three of its top staffers. a "new york times" article recently called valerie jarett the other senior adviser in the west wing.

national security adviser tom donelan is thought to be behind the leaks coming out of the white house. so why isn't that getting more attention. pat, you have come out with his big piece going off about this -- a couple days ago -- talking about how this is incredible and these are major headlines, in particular what's happening with valerie jarrett? >> she is the most powerful person in the white house and she has a way of dealing with people that's strange. nobody paid attention. she has a full secret service detail. megyn: we pay for that. >> do you know how much that costs? 24 hours. whole teams of agents.

transportation. we don't know why. no one has explained it. chief of staff in the line which has no portfolio in national security running around with a full security detail. what i understand when she was on vacation. >> i was with democratic bundlers and they went to a dinner party with her and there were four or five secret service agents. they asked why does she need secret service protection and why would she need it on vacation on martha's vine yard. megyn: maybe she received specific threats? >> we have no idea. the president can give secret service protection at will to whomever he wishes. there are lots of senior advisers. unless there is something specific, how long has this been

going on. it smacks of let them eat cake. presum.>> to have an answer to r question from the people who know the answer. megyn: according to the "new york times" article people started asking questions. but got no answers. >> david plouffe is a senior advisor, probably one of the most powerful with valerie jarrett in the white house. to take money from a telecommunications company doing business in iran. $100,000 fee. a month before he goes into the white house. pretty simple that's a conflict of interest. he ought to give the money back. megyn: does it compromise the

presidentw when it comes to how he will deal with iran? >> when i was work for president clinton i had people approach me with offers that i thought were inappropriate. one of which came from intermediaries of the government of iran. you know what my answer was? a simple no, don't want to talk, don't want to meet. full stop. megyn: these companies may realize they can't compromise the president so they go to the underlings and try to compromise those folks. >> nobody walks up to you and gives you $100,000 and wants nothing in return. that's not the way the game works. he was on abc last week. not a single question about this. i lived through in the carter administration back in the days when the press did its job. any kind of scandal or issue, same thing happened with bill

clinton. not just republicans. even though the press liked bill clinton they went after him. this administration is immune from it. then take tom donilon, the leaker in chief. you will all of the evidence points to him -- all of the evidence points to him as the porn who did this. >> suspect and on drone selection. things we should never hear about. megyn: congress is investigating where they came from. but we do know about the criticisms that they make president obama look like a leader ... >> dianne feinstein said it's a danger to national security and puts people's lives in danger and she found out things she didn't know. he made millions sat fannie mae when he was the chief lobbyist and counsel for jim johnson when

they were wrecking fannie mae and putting us in the hole. he's still getting a pension. he's 50 years old. >> fannie mae required $200 billion bailout from the government. the whole issue of jerusalem not being the eternal capital of israel which was the democratic platform. platforms are vetted in the white house. tom donilon is an old campaign guy. it's inconceivable he didn't pass judgment on it. has the administration changed its policy? megyn: we were told that the president didn't know about it. >> i was in the white house when we did a platform in 1986. you don't do a platform without the explicit knowledge of the administration. megyn: even on the romney side they are saying governor romney

doesn't agree with the abortion platform. >> they may walk away from it. >> inconceivable. >> this is a change in national security -- at least on the record. this is very delicate stuff. it's still a major commitment. megyn: it sounds like our complaining business yes some conduct but also lack of media attention. >> the meade why doesn't tell us why. let the chips fall where they may. megyn: it was the "new york times" that outed valerie jarett. >> where is the followup? i don't care whether it's obama or romney, the country needs to know. the press job isn't to decide which truth you are allowed to know. they are in the tank and may have decide they must protect this president unlike any

president in history. megyn: 56, 57 days to go until the election. kids do not try this at home. there is a reason why these animals are called wild. would you look at this? plus it may be the most famous moment in the most sensational murder trial of any century. o.j. simpson trying to put on the bloody gloves that didn't seem to fit and did indeed lead the jury to acquit. now the bombshell allegation that this evidence was tampered with by johnny cochran. >> if you look at o.j. simpson over there and he has a rather large head. o.j. simpson in a knit cap from two blocks away is still o.j. simpson. it's no disguise it's no disguise it makes no sense. it doesn't fit. if it doesn't fit, you must acquit. [ lisa ] my name's lisa, and chantix helped me quit.

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megyn: earlier today we showed you a picture of president obama being lift up in the air. but take a look at this. when the woman said she had nowhere to sit. he offered a chair next to him and fleend close for a conversation. the vice president asked one of the bikers. maybe it was troll who is also an ordaind minister, also asked if he could borrow one of their bikes saying they don't let me ride anymore. the biker respond probably not. we are told this group is called the shadow riders.

the name tag of the guy on the right is troll. feel free to send me your proposed captions on twitter @megynkelly. a blast from the past. remember this moment from the trial of the century. o.j. simpson putting on one of the bloody gloves prosecutors say he wore during the grisly murders of nicole simpson and her friend ron goldman. the glove that didn't quite fit the legend's hand. >> if you look at o.j. simpson over there an has a rather large head, o.j. simpson in a knit cap from two blocks away is still o.j. simpson. it's no disguise, it's no disguise. it makes no sense.

it doesn't fit, and if it doesn't fit, you must acquit. megyn: those new accusations coming in from a former prosecutor of the simpson trial. remember christopher darden? he claims the defense team tampered with those gloves. joining me now lis weihl, and mark eiglarsh. criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor. good old chris darden it was marcia clark and chris darden. i was in law school riveted to the trial like most americans were. chris darden speaking to a law school forum comes out with these bombshell allegations. >> he specifically is naming johnny cochran who has access to the bloody glove and must have manipulated the lining,er to it up which would explain why simpson's hand couldn't get in there. i'm glad he said it.

this country has the first amendment which allows to say the most outrageous and offensive things you want. and now we in the court of public opinion can say these things. but when you wait 17 years and johnny cochran is dead, i must say the following. if the glove is torn, it can't be worn. megyn: chris darden said the bailive told him the defense had the glove during the lunch hour and he says it's been his suspicion for a long time the lining was manipulated. it would be extraordinary for a through make that up. >> they have been waiting 17 years for this bombshell to come out. if you had any indications before now he would have brought it out. megyn: he said the reason he didn't do that was because it would have been quota whiney

little snitch approach to life. >> i don't think so when you are talking about a murder trial. i think more what we are talking about is a guy all these years later going, you know what? in law school 101 they teach us, you don't kind of bring in the defendant to help you because the defendant is not there to help you, prosecution. the defendant is there -- megyn: explain that. tell the viewers if they don't remember it. the reason we saw o.j. simpson trying the gloves on. who asked him to do that? >> the prosecution did. they said put this glove on. so then you have this thing with o.j. trying to put the glove on. what i would say if you have a bank robbery case and you have bank robber on trial. you say read that bank robbery statement to me.

megyn: he was a paid actor. he had latex gloves on and it was a prosecutorial error to ask him to do that. alan dershowitz is suggesting now he's having a regret over having done that. >> he is. but let me give in side information. i had a conversation with marcia clark in the green room in l.a. at another network and i asked her every question i wanted to ask her about the o.j. case. and guess whose idea it was to have o.j. try on the glove in judge ito. immediately marcia clark said no. and chris darden said that might be a good idea. he's complaining saying i don't want to come across as a whiney person. you ha an obligation if you think the defense is tampering with evidence. 17 years ago to bring that up. megyn: you put the bailive on

the stand and say the bailive told me after the break the defense has access to this glove during the lunch break and we believe it's been tampered with. >> it's an ethical and may even be a criminal violation. megyn: let's entertain the notion that maybe it's true and all these years later he's just coming forward with it. is there any way the results of this case get challenged? >> no. >> he was acquitted. if you were talking about a defendant that was convicted and was serving time, you have new evidence coming in that would be exculpatory, yes. the prosecution doesn't get that kind after joy of new evidence, no. megyn: the defense made the challenge to the glove. they talked about how they believed water damage had shrunk the gloves. they made an argument and the jury didn't bite. >> and there was a rumor

kardashian had o.j. take certain pills it doesn't matter. this jury would never have convicted based upon the evidence. it's my understanding they even met with the next of kin and said we are not going to win this one. meg are's in jill on other charges to this day. don't go away. as part of a heart healthy diet. that's true. ...but you still have to go to the gym. ♪ the one and only, cheerios or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements.

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megyn: now to the battle ground state of ohio where mitt romney is speaking to factory workers in mansfield. if you like you can watch the whole thing streaming on our web site foxnews.com. beware of the bbe -- beware of t

yellow stone national park. why do the adults near the child seem to encourage the children to approach the wild animal in the first place? >> reporter: the authorities say this is a case of an irresponsible adult leading inexperienced children. you can see the guy doing the videotape. one guy has an ipad and there is the adult walking up. you can hear him encouraging one of the children to touch the bison. you can see he's agitated and shake his head. the adult if you listen to this knew the animal was not happy. >> his head movements, i'll get you, i will get you.

report report west montana chamber of commerce posted this video because they are angry at how the adults reacted. guess what happened to the adult? they flee and leave the kid on his own. play it. justin, run! there is the tough guy parent goes back and they are all laughing and the authorities say that birks son, they are very quick and if that kid hadn't been quicker he would have run them over. you go to yellowstone park, you have got to follow the rules when it comes to the animals. megyn: that remind me of the seinfeld episode. that's not good.

trace, thank you. ap. .