making news on this friday, july 23rd. >> clearing out. as a tropical storm moves in. ships involved in the oil cleanup have been ordered to evacuate the gulf. but first, florida braces for bonnie. terror threat. americans born and bred, turning to jihad. dozens charged in just the past month. and call of the wild. an encounter with an angry buffalo, inside one of the most popular national parks. and good morning, everybody. efforts to stop the oil spill have come to a halt this morning, as tropical storm bonnie threatens the gulf. the storm is expected to cross over south florida in just a few hours, with winds up to 50 miles per hour and heavy rain. >> then, bonnie could take aim

for the gulf, where evacuations are already under way. emily schmidt joins us from washington with more. emily? >> rob and vinita, good morning. we're getting more tracking on that storm right now. looks like bonnie should be southeast of miami in just a matter of hours. then, she's going to move straight towards louisiana. as this storm moves forward, it means one big step back for the oil containment process. after a week of progress containing the oil spill, the well cap is holding. but the weather is not. tropical storm bonnie is headed straight towards the oil spill site. >> mother nature takes its course. you can't do nothing about it. take safety measures. and hope that everything works out already. and it's not a bad storm. >> reporter: most of the spill's rigs and vessels, including relief well drilling, have stopped. and they're moving out, significantly setting back efforts to kill the well. >> as the storm comes in the time we're away, which could be from a few days to two weeks.

>> reporter: the ships that monitor if well cap will be the last to leave. >> we are prepared to leave the well at this particular event. >> reporter: bonnie could hit the spill area tomorrow afternoon. >> the winds will come out of the southeast and east, and drive the oil to the shore of louisiana. >> reporter: bobby jindal worries that winds and waves will churn uf to 70 million gallons of oil. >> everybody's watching the weather. wants to know what the depression's going to do. >> reporter: this really is a case of timing. it's so rare to have a storm move over southern florida into the gulf at this time, in july. bonnie is one of a fifth during a century of record-keeping. >> emily schmidt, thanks. how much rain can florida expect today? and where is bonnie going next? >> we get the answers from

accuweather.com's amy arenson. >> bonnie is a tropical storm, moving west-northwestward, up to 40 miles per hour. already bonnie has unleashed its heavy rains across the bahamas. throughout the day today, we're talking heavy rain in places like key west, miami and naples. that marines tropical downpours for the southern third of the sunshine state. up to six inches of rain in some locations. not only are we talking heavy rain, we're talking tropical storm-forced winds. that means wind gusts up to 40 miles per hour. as we continue to track bonnie, it's expected to move into the gulf of mexico here. that poses a concern for the oil spill region. reaching that region late saturday, heading into sunday. let's take a look at the worst-case scenario here. as bonnie reaches the region as a tropical storm, it's going to push the oil to the marshlands of louisiana. back to you, rob and vinita. >> thanks. an ampion is in the region with the latest on

bonnie, starting at 7:00 this morning on "good morning america." the gulf will get another visit from the president in just a few weeks. the house has announced that the first family will spend a long weekend vacationing on florida's gulf coast next month. fired government worker shirley sherrod has accepted president obama's apology. sherrod was forced to resign over an internet clip that falsely showed her making racist remarks. the president is reminding his staff not to respond too quickly to media postings like that one. but to take their time and think through the issues. that goes for secretary tom vilsack, who fired sherrod. >> he jumped this gun, partly because we live in this media culture where something goes up on youtube or a blog, and everybody scrambles. if there's a lesson to be drawn from this episode, it is rather to be jumping to conclusions and pointing fingers at each other, we should all look inward and try to examine what's in our own hearts. as a consequence, i think we will continue to make progress.

>> president obama also urged sherrod to accept a new position, a job helping the agriculture department tackle discrimination. you can see more of the interview with the president, later on "good morning america." the senate has approved a war funding bill, rejecting, though, $20 billion tacked on by the house for domestic issues. the bill authorizes $60 billion for the wars in afghanistan and iraq. and related spending. the house is expected to go along with the senate version in the end. a congressional panel has charged new york democrat charles rangel with ethics violations. the specifics will be revealed at a public hearing thursday. but the investigation did focus on his real estate holdings, fund-raising and financial disclosures. rangel remains popular in his harlem district. but it could complicate democrats' bid to keep control of congress. the military has booted out a gay officer who was an outspoken critic of its policy on homosexuals. lieutenant dan choi announced

yesterday, that california national guard discharged him. choi, who is an iraq war veteran, announced last year he is gay. he protested the don't ask/don't tell policy outside the white house in march. that policy could soon be repealed. the former governor of nevada has died, after falling from the roof of his las vegas home. terry gin suffered an apparent heart attack while making repairs on his roof. he served two terms during the state's most pros prus era. now, for this morning's weather from around the country. severe storms, with 80-mile-per-hour winds and golf ball-sized hail, could pound the dakotas and iowa. rain should hit the great lakes region, arizona, new mexico and south texas can expect some heavy rain. the west coast, meanwhile, can expect warm and pleasant weather. >> the mid-atlantic and south will be hot. highs could reach 97 in baltimore. 98 in atlanta. 96 in new orleans. it should be cooler in the northeast. 86 in new york. 80 in boston.

chicago and indianapolis, can expect highs of 94, with detroit reaching 93 degrees. and when we come back this morning, the war on terror's newest front. ordinary americans bent on jihad. and new video just coming in. severe summer storms in the midwest. flooding roads and shutting down a major airport overnight. ♪ think fast, go slow ♪ now i know ♪ freedom is all that i need [ female announcer ] ladies, raise your spoons. now there's nothing left standing between you and a satisfying breakfast. introducing special k low-fat granola. with 50% less fat than the leading granola and 5 grams of fiber per serving, it's a satisfying way to help you manage your weight. special k low-fat granola -- a taste of freedom.

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weeks. tokyo's nikkei average jumped 2.3% today. hong kong's hang seng is higher. in london, the ftse opened slightly higher. this comes after the dow surged 201 points yesterday. the nasd the nasdaq climbed 58 points. wall street is under attack again for the bonuses it handed out during the height of the financial crisis. the obama administration is releasing a report today which finds 17 financial firms paid nearly $1.6 billion in excessive bonuses immediately after accepting all that taxpayer aid. goldman sachs, citigroup, and aig are among the companies named. but since most of them have paid back their bailouts, there's not much the government can do. a new study estimates the bp oil spill could cost the gulf coast up to $23 billion in tourism over the next three years. travel and tourism generates up to $34 billion a year in coastal communities. and employs 400,000 people. the group that commissioned the study wants bp to pay $500 million for a marketing campaign

to help bring those visitors back. a former general motors engineer and her husband have been charged with trying to steal trade secrets from the automaker. the couple allegedly copied thousands of documents about gm's hybrid technology. and then, tried selling them to a chinese rovel. gm estimates the value of the stolen information at $40 million. in today's "usa today" tech report, a look at dell's new tablet computer. the company started taking orders for the streak this week. it has a five-inch screen. it also doubles as a phone. "usa today's" ed baig thinks it may have trouble catching on. >> it will appeal to people who are thinking about this as a good, portable tablet for maps. for watching video, that sort of thing. you're not going to think about it, at least in a good way, if you're thinking about this as your smartphone. i just don't think this is the way to go, if you're thinking phone first. >> and you can read ed's full

review on usa toad.com. the iphone's reception problems have been well-documented. last week, the company said it would give out free bumpers to fix the problem. but apparently, that's not the only solution. two new york designers came up with a band-aid for the phone. it started as a joke. but business has been brisk. coming up next on this friday morning, crustacean crisis. the plan to ban lobster fishing off the east coast. and a woman records her own run-in with an angry buffalo. ab

southern wisconsin can expect more rain today after a sudden storm turned milwaukee streets into rivers last night. 7 1/2 inches of rain pounded the city in just a couple of hours. milwaukee's airport is still closed. and check this out. a sink hole suddenly opened beneath an intersection in downtown milwaukee, swallowing a cadillac escalade. the driver has been hospitalized. if you're driving near the great lakes today, expect some wet roads on i-80, from cleveland to chicago. tropical storm bonnie, could flood i-95 south of miami. and floods are possible from i-95, from dallas to des moines and san antonio. floods could hit i-20 from dallas to waco. >> if you are flying today, expect airport delays in milwaukee, detroit, chicago, houston and miami. an american accused of links to terrorism will appear at a detention hearing today in a

virginia. zachary chesser is charged with providing material support to a group with ties to al qaeda. >> chesser is far from alone. officials say the number of home-grown terrorists is on the rise. pierre thomas reports. >> reporter: the fbi claims zachary chesser, who just two years ago was a student at a suburban virginia high school, became a terrorist hell-bent on jihad. neighbors can't believe chesser, a former high school athlete, wanted to join al shabaab, the al qaeda affiliated terrorist group based in somalia. the same group suspected in the recent bombings in uganda that killed 73 soccer fans. >> i'm just shocked. i'm surprised. not the kind of thing i would have expected in this neighborhood. >> reporter: abc news has learned chesser is 1 of 34 americans charged and accused of ties to international terrorists in the past 18 months. law enforcement sources tell abc news the trend represents an

unprecedented spike in home-grown terror that has them deeply concerned. >> the last six to nine months has seen more fbi activity in this country against radical islamists than the days immediately after 9/11. >> reporter: some of those charged are well-known, like faisal shahzad, convicted of trying to blow up a car in times square. others barely made headlines. brian vinas, accused of attacking a u.s. military base in afghanistan, and providing al qaeda with details about new york's rail system. many, including chesser, allegedly used the internet to contact radicals like anwar al awlaki, who has been tied to the ft. hood massacre and the failed christmas day and times square bombings. >> i think this is what we have feared for a very long time, that finally the ideology of radical islam is effectively reaching into the united states, to disaffected people here. over the internet, and through other ways. >> reporter: authorities are in a race against time to find these domestic radicals before there's a successful attack here

at home. pierre thomas, abc news, washington. three officials whose huge salaries sparked outrage in a small california town have resigned. the decision was announced after a closed door meeting early this morning. anger had been building ever since it was revealed the city administrator made nearly $800,000. and the police chief, $457,000. the average salary for residents of the town was about $30,000. lobster fishing along a huge stretch of the atlantic coast has survived a proposal to ban it. scientists recommended a five-year ban from south of cape cod to north carolina, because lobster populations have dwindled. lobstermen argue that would kill the entire industry. fishing regulators have agreed to give current conservation measures a little more time to succeed. if you wonder why national parks warn people to keep their distance from the animals, take a look at this. a woman traced a bison in a national park, when an object

suddenly hit it. the bison charged. she was bruised while the friend tripped and hurt her shoulder. a bison charged and injured another visitor at yellowstone earlier this summer. time, now, for sports news. here's sara walsh at espn news. >> good morning. an emotionally wild game for boston fans who thought they were witnessing history. and instead, saw an utter collapse late in the game. john lackey on the mound. had a no-hitter going. in the eighth inning here, when josh bard would single to right center with two outs. lackey went eight innings, two hits, no earned runs. his team was in good shape, though. in the bottom of the ninth, red sox up 6-1. it's not over. franklin gutierrez, crushing a two-run home run off manny delcarmen. the mariners are down 6-3. boston has a pitcher there.

it would disappear. jonathan papelbon. jose lopez scores. mariners, down 6-4. after a walk, bases loaded. jack wilson to short. the flip to second. the throw to first gets away. and two runs would score. mariners score five in the ninth. we're tied at 6-6. we go to the 12th. mariners with the bases loaded. one out. okajima gets lopez to foul out. milton bradley pops to third to end the inning. the red sox get out of a jam. top of the 13th. two on for eric patterson, who has had enough. it's late from the east coast. patterson doubles to left center. two runs come in to score. the red sox win 8-6. back to you guys in the studio. up next, the stories we'll be following today. we'll be right back. icicicicicic

now, a look ahead to the stories we'll be watching on this friday. ships working the gulf oil spill are heading to port, as tropical storm bonnie approaches. it could be a two-week delay in permanently plugging the leak. michelle obama returns to

the gulf today for her second visit. the first lady will visit pass ka gool la, mississippi. the shrimping season opens in alabama. government tests have shown no oil in the area. and fishing will resume in about one third of the areas the government had closed. secretary of state hillary clinton is headed home after a week of diplomatic visits. she leaves vietnam, after a meeting of nations ended with six-party talks on north korea's nuclear program. a blend of star power and geek chic comic con is going on in san diego. comic con runs through sunday. you saw will ferrell dressed up as the animated character in his movie. >> that's going to be a cool event. for some of you, your local news is coming up next. >> for everyone else, "america this morning" continues after

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coming up next at 4:30. san jose mayor says he is not waiting for major league baseball anymore. and new information from neighbors on the family pit bulls that mauled a two-year-old boy to death yesterday. his step grandfather is charged in the tragedy. and kristine hanson has the forecast. >> a little warmer temperatures yesterday, but we'll have the >> well, lots of people like a cold beer when it's hot. not me. but that's probably been the case for thousands of years.

beer is certainly a part of the history of this country. >> but beer is actually part of historymaking moments. could that be the truth? the answer may surprise you. here's abc's diana alvear. >> reporter: when america said -- >> yes, we can. yes, we can. >> reporter: they had no idea president obama was putting the can back in the white house. beer diplomacy began brewing last summer, after a confrontation between a harvard professor and a cambridge cop, threatened to boil over into a racial controversy. the president intervened, hosting what was quickly dubbed the beer summit. the idea, sheer a cold one to show no hard feelings. last june, the usa/england showdown at the world cup, prompted a bet over, what else? beer. the president and the prime minister each promising to drink an ale of the other's choosing. the game was a draw. so, as a compromise, the two swapped beers. >> yes, i did enjoy drinking the

3-1-2 beer cold. >> reporter: it is no surprise that beer was front and center in our relations with britain. back when george washington was president, it played a starring role in our fight for indianapolis. washington's new york office, is right here at the bull's head tavern. in 1853, he stopped by for a porter on his way to watch the british troops play. the first president had his own beer recipe. thomas jefferson petitioned congress to grant a brewer american citizenship, in hopes beer became more popular. and fdr mayo his presidency in part to his promise to repeal in prohibition. george w. bush's tea toter will status keep the oval office beer-free for eight years. but president obama shows the world that beer is back. diana alvear, abc news, new york. >> making us all