everybody. have great morning. making news in america this morning, isaac strengthening. >> in an ominous scenario, the storm is roaring in the gulf of mexico, target, the gulf coast on what will be the anniversary of hurricane katrina. and even though isaac is sparing tampa for the most part, republicans are making changes to their convention schedule. an extremely brief session is set for today. plus, hello, convention season. we have the results of a new abc news poll. republican mitt romney and president obama in a dead heat. from afghanistan, another insider attack. an afghan solder opens fire causing more deaths among those on the same side. good morning, everybody.

what is turning out to be a busy monday morning. we begin with isaac. >> the storm is gaining strength this morning as it spins in the gulf of mexico. states of emergency are in effect across the entire gulf coast. residents watching, waiting, and hoping for the best. republicans are adjusting their convention schedule. >> it's getting serious out there. evacuation orders, school closings. the whole thing. t.j. winick starts us off. he's in tampa with the latest. good morning to you, t.j. >> reporter: rob and paula, good morning to you both. i can tell you that right now, activities at the republican convention have been canceled for the day, as florida governor rick scott and all those in the gulf states prepare for isaac, which is strengthening at this hour. isaac is becoming more focused. the center more clear. after at least eight died in haiti, the storm ripped across

key west, causing some flooding. the storm is expecting to pick up steam. it could be a category 2 when it hits the coast. >> i urge mississippians to monitor their local media and heed all warnings and evacuation orders issued by local and state officials. >> reporter: just days before the seventh anniversary of katrina, the city of new orleans is on edge. >> with katrina, we thought, it will be okay. it ended up being the worst. >> reporter: drivers are lined up for gas. residents are buying plywood. the city has declared a state of emergency. officials are warning be ready for anything. >> we're encouraging all of our people the stay alert, monitor local weather conditions in their area, follow up with what local officials are telling them. >> reporter: in south florida, millions pummeled by wind and rain. as isaac is whipping up waves. >> we're going pretty much ride it out until afterwards and see

how it's going to go. >> reporter: across the state, schools are closed for over 1 million students today. strong winds and over a half foot of rain are in the forecast. as a result, republican officials have scaled back the convention from four days to three. >> i got my raincoat on. i'm ready for some weather. >> reporter: the republican convention here in tampa will convene for just five minutes today. really a formality. before adjourning until tomorrow. rob and paula? >> all right, t.j. winick reporting from tampa this morning. thanks, t.j. staying with the political part of the story, our brand new abc news poll released this morning shows president obama and mitt romney in a statistical dead heat. >> among registered voters, 47% support romney. meanwhile, 46% back the president. mr. obama lags a bit more when it comes to the economy. >> 50% of the voters trust romney to handle the economy. the president seven points behind on that issue, which is front and center for most

voters. one final political note this morning, ron paul is lashing out at what he says are efforts by party leaders to marginalize his supporters at the convention. at a counterrally, paul urged those supporters to stand firm. he's so far refused to endorse romney. keep it here on abc news as we cover the national convention this week. diane sawyer and george stephanopoulos will anchor our coverage tomorrow through thursday nights. it kicks off at 10:00 p.m. eastern time each of those nights. back to isaac, millions of people are keeping a close eye on the storm. so we turn to accuweather for the latest. on its path. >> the all-important track. meteorologist jim dickey joins us now with some details. >> isaac looks to strengthen, moving into favorable conditions, warm water, 86 to 90 degrees, the water temperature. there is some dry air it's fighting. along with this, it will also

bring heavy rainfall in the remainder of the day including the tampa area. strong gusts, as well. the storm will continue the strengthen, likely becoming a category 2. making landfall anywhere from new orleans to mobile, alabama, rob and paula, back to you. >> thanks, jim. as isaac barrels ahead, people in haiti are struggling to clean up from its deadly toll. at least two children were among the eight people killed across the poverty-stricken nation. still struggling to recover from the 2010 earthquake. isaac has forced more than 14,000 haitians from their homes. in japan, the flooding rains of a typhoon have hit the island of okinawa. thousands are without power as strong winds pound the area. many schools and government offices were closed because of the blackouts. about 25,000 troops are stationed on that island. two american troops were killed in afghanistan this morning, victims of so-called insider attacks.

they were traveling in a convoy when one of the vehicles struck a road side bomb. the troops got out. a dispute erupted. an afghan soldier killed the two americans an was then killed by return fire. 12 american troops have been killed by afghan soldiers in about three weeks' time. in syria, word of what could be the worst mass killing yet in that bloody civil war. activists report seeing the bodies of more than 300 civilians in the city of damascus. syrian state tv reported that armed forces have cleansed the town of terrorist groups. state tv also confirmed that rebels shot down a government intercept a nearby town. these pictures show it spiraling to the ground. we're following a developing story overnight from central america. a 7.3 earthquake has struck off the coast of el salvador, followed by a 5.3 aftershock. a tsunami warning was issued but

then canceled a short time later. there are no reports of damage so far. rural southern california has been rattled by moderate to small earthquakes. the largest one was a magnitude of 5.5 centered near the town of brawley. about 20 mobile homes were pushed off their foundations. no immediate reports of serious injuries. with that, let's look at the weather from across the country on this monday morning. isaac could spawn tornadoes along the gulf coast. thunderstorms around memphis, little rock, and dallas. stormy in the four corners region. heating up in the rockies. scattered afternoon showers in the northeast from boston to d.c. >> 90s from billings to colorado spring. 70s in the pacific northwest. 80s from the midsection into the east coast. and coming up next after the break, where you won't see the candidates for the rest of the campaign. and two rental car companies on the verge of becoming one.

your business news is straight ahead. and you might remember former south carolina governor mark sanford, well, he's going to the chapel. i'll spare you my singing voice. >> please do. i'll spare you my singing voice. >> please do. i'm only in my 60's... i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses.

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welcome back, everyone. there's a major deal in the rental car business. hertz is buying dollar thrifty in a $2.3 billion deal. after sever years of trying to take over the smaller rival, regulators still have to okay this deal.

some consumer experts warn it could lead to less competition and higher prices. general motors has a message to president obama and mitt romney. please stay away until after the election. gm is banning the candidates from campaign visits. to its plants, trying to distance itself from either political party now that its bankruptcy is behind it. but the u.s. treasury is the largest gm shareholder. aaa says the average price of unleaded gas is now $3.75 a gallon. 16 cents higher than a year ago. heading into the labor day holiday. and prices, they're expected to be pushed even higher as isaac disrupts oil production in the gulf of mexico. and samsung says it's not done fighting. they're vowing to go all the way in the supreme court after being ordered to pay more than $1 billion in damages to apple. a california jury ruled against samsung in a widely watched

patent case, saying they copied technology from the iphone and ipad. well, "the expendables" is proving to be dependable at the box office. "the expendables 2" with sylvester stallone and a host of other stars was the weekend winner once again. it took in 13.5 million bucks. "the bourne legacy" was second with $9.3 million. and "paranorman" was third. with $8.5 million. >> sly still has it, doesn't he? >> still rocking and rolling. all three of those box office numbers together wouldn't be nearly enough to buy the most expensive apartment if asia. >> an unidentified buyer is buying the 8th story of a 12-story building. it works out to almost $10,000 a square foot. that -- that's almost makes

manhattan look almost reasonable, which is hard to do. >> almost reasonable. >> almost. when we come back, an issue so many parents have questions about when it comes to their baby boys. and speaking of baby boys, details about the new one none other than snooki has now welcomed into our world. [ music playing ] [ music playing ] you won't run into deals this big just anywhere. head to sears labor day event right now. get up to 30% off appliance.

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the gulf coast. a slick commute from memphis to houston. roads are wet in the rockies. if you're flying today, airport delays are possible in miami, new orleans, and dallas. well, the nation's most influential group of pediatricians has made major decision about circumcising baby boys. they say the health benefits outweigh any risks. >> the doctors saying that insurance companies should pay for the procedure. even though it's not done as often. pediatricians say parents should make the decision even though it reduces the risks of hiv and other infections. and in other news this morning, a hate crime trial gets under way in cleveland this morning involving members of an amish group. 16 members of the amish group accused of hair-cutting attacks. they say the government should not get involved in internal church matters. they all turned down plea bargains and could face long prison terms in convicted. the coast guard is hoping to

have shipping traffic moving again on the mississippi river after a barge got stuck. over the weekend. the barge ran aground near greenville, mississippi. 18 vessels were waiting to head north and 21 more were waiting to head south. the drought has drastically lowered water levels. causing several barges to go aground. fires are still burning in venezuela's biggest oil refinery two days after an explosion ripped through the plant. the blast killed at least 39 people and severely damaged hundreds of nearby homes. the refinery can't start until days after the fire is out. venezuela is major sup plier of oil to the u.s. back here at home some lighter news. mark sanford, the former south carolina governor is now engaged to his long-time girlfriend. his future wife is the argentine woman that he secretly left south carolina to visit just a few years back. >> to cover his five-day

disappearan disappearance, sanford claimed he was hiking the appalachian trail. the discovery of that lie unraveled his political career and his marriage. a dubious distinction for the new york jets this morning. after three losses in a row, they still have yet to score a preseason touchdown. not a good start. speaking of touchdowns, here's some highlights from espn. randy scott here with your "sportscenter" update. peyton manning and the broncos looking not only for a win but also consistency. against the niners yesterday in denver. pick things up first quarter. manning, so far in the preseason, zero touchdowns to go with three interceptions. getting that ratio right right there. eric decker from ten yards out. broncos, a 10-0 lead. ensuing drive, alex smith issues with the snap. frank gore can't get it. ball still loose. broncos recover.

jim harbaugh, the niners bench boss, he would like a word. ensuing broncos drive. peyton manning doing what great quarterbacks do. finding decker again. 10 of 12, 122 yards and two touchdowns. broncos up, 17-0, getting a little greedy here. going for the onside kick. matthew willis recovers it. before it goes ten yards. so the niners set up shop. and smith, quick strike to his big tight end, vernon davis. 44 yards down the sideline. niners go on to win, 29-24. national league baseball, chipper jones's last regular season game in san francisco. a nice ovation from the fans. fans did not like this. top four. juan francisco, gone. off big-time timmy jim, tim lincecum. jason heyward, when he's healthy, he's strong. he's healthy and strong there.

braves go on to win, 7-1 is your final. monday night baseball tonight on espn. american league action. rays in texas taking on the rangers. derek holland expected to go against david price. 8:00 p.m. eastern time on espn, espn3 and live on the watch espn app. well, the 2012 little league world series title goes to -- japan. the youngsters from tokyo are celebrating a 12-2 victory over u.s. champion tennessee. >> at least it was close. >> not really. it's ten runs. >> japan hit five home runs in their win on sunday. their ace pitcher struck out eight in four innings. the winners jogged the traditional post game victory lap with flags from their country and the u.s. >> congratulations to them. >> must be a real good team. that's an ugly score. >> 12-2. it's all right, though. it's little league. up next, "the pulse" prince harry getting back to business after, shall we say, a little too much exposure. >> just a touch. and a different kind of protest.

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prince charles reportedly talked to him and has banned boys-only holidays. on top of that, his girlfriend has dumped him. >> there's word that britain's ministry of defense has put him on probation for bad judgment. baby news this morning. nicole snooki polizzi has given birth to her first child, a boy, lorenzo dominic. weighing 6 pounds, 5 ounces. >> a rep for snooki says, the world just got another guido. nicole, enzo and jionni are doing great. >> i can't believe she's a mother. but she is. a controversial rally in asheville, north carolina. the second annual go topless event to champion women's rights. >> it's not against the law to go topless in north carolina. some cities and towns have passed local laws to ban the act. after the weekend rally, some in asheville say their city should, too. >> on that note, enjoy your

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next, tropical storm isaac picking up steam over the gulf. we'll have the latest on the storm track. petaluma's baseball hero are coming home today. we'll have a live report. >> mike is following the weather. here at home a warming trend is on the way. isaac drifting towards afternoon showers in the northeast. finally from us this morning, a terrifying high-speed chase across two states with police in hot pursuit. >> at the wheel, an iowa mom weaving in and out of traffic.

endangering everybody on the road because of faulty accelerator. abc's john schriffen has the story. >> i'm coming up on a bunch of cars. i'm so scared. i just -- please -- oh, my god. i'm scared to death. >> reporter: it's every driver's worst nightmare. lori in the black suv, speeding down the highway, not able to stop. >> have row put your car in neutral. >> i can't get to it move. >> are you able to hit your brakes at all? >> i'm trying everything. >> reporter: her accelerator jammed. trapped on a packed highway with her speed increasing with every minute. >> i'm going 98 miles an hour now. >> reporter: minutes later. >> oh, my god, i'm going 108 miles an hour. >> she's going 108 miles an hour. >> reporter: ultimately going 115 miles an hour. somehow she managed to dodge cars at high speed. and call 911. watch as she swerves into the

median, not once, not twice, but three times. all to avoid hitting other cars. state troopers arrive within minutes. driving alongside her vehicle, they direct traffic out of her bath. >> can you see them? one's in front and one's in back of you. >> reporter: for 30 miles and 59 minutes, nothing can stop the car. but incredibly, there were no accidents and no one was hurt, because suddenly, the engine stopped. the car comes to a halt. and she stumbles out to safety. >> i was like, oh, my god, i'm safe, i'm safe, i'm safe. thank you, thank you. i have a little angel that says -- don't drive faster than i can fly. and -- i think that's what helped me. because -- >> reporter: john schriffen, abc news, new york. >> great driver. >> she had a whole legion of angels