they say was planning a columbine type attack on his high school. and perilous perch, an urban cliffhanger, after a sanitation truck crashes through a third floor wall. captioning funded by cbs >> good morning, everybody and thanks for joining us. i'm betty nguyen. president obama plans to unveil his latest plan to boost the economy and cr post labor day speech. the proposal will include tax cuts and republicans are already trashing the notion. today mr. obama begins a ten-day vacation. joel brown is in washington with more on this. good morning, joel. >> hey, betty, good morning to you. after a bruising summer of debt limit battles and increased concern about a double dip recession, president obama heads off on vacation later today leaving strong hints about what he has in store to jolt the

economy when he gets back. president obama returned to the white house wednesday night but he won't be there long. now that he's wrapped up his economic bus tour he'll head to martha's vineyard for a ten-day vacation with his family. wednesday the president told cbs news's anthony mason he doesn't think there will be a double dip recession but he is concerned about the country's weak job market. >> we are in danger of not having a recovery that's fast enough to deal with what is a genuine unemployment crisis for a whole lot of folks out there. >> reporter: a new gallup poll taken before the president's midwest trip found just 26% of americans approve of his handling of the economy, his lowest rating yet. still president obama insists canceling his vacation now and calling congress back wouldn't do much good. >> i think that if all we're doing is the same posturing that we saw before the debt limit vote, that's not going to encourage anybody. that's going to discourage people. >> reporter: next month the president will unveil a new

proposal aimed at creating jobs and slashing the deficit but his republican rivals say it's too little too late. >> i don't think he understands what it takes to make the economy work. >> reporter: former massachusetts governor mitt romney and texas governor rick perry stepped up their attacks wednesday. >> president obama's policies which he claims reversed the recession increased unemployment. >> reporter: like the rest of the gop field, they're determined to convince voters they have the cure for the nation's ailing economy. the white house has not said where and when the president will unveil this new jobs and deficit plan but we're told it will include some new ideas, betty, that the public has not heard before. >> we're looking forward to hearing about that. all right, joel brown in washington for us, thank you, joel. as we reported, the president will unveil his latest plan to invigorate the economy and reduce the plan. during an interview with anthony mason, mr. obama said the problems can be solved.

>> it would be one thing if we had the kinds of problems that greece did where you potentially have to completely restructure your economy and your society. that's not the situation here. here we're talking about closing some loopholes in the tax code, making some modest adjustments in entitlements, paring back a little bit on programs that don't work. >> during his just completed midwest tour, the president said it will take at least a year for housing prices and sales to start rising. florida state prosecutors are considering whether to charge a tampa teenager as an adult in an alleged plot to bomb his old high school. police say the plot could have been deadlier than the 1999 columbine masser is in colorado. kelly cobiella reports. >> reporter: according to police 17-year-old jared caino planned his attack for freedom high down to the minute, plotting to plant bombs in classrooms with the intent to

kill 30 of his former teachers and classmates. >> we were probably able to thwart a potentially catastrophic event the likes of which the city of tampa has not seen. >> reporter: a search of caino's tampa apartment turned up a journal detailing his plans, drawings of the school and supplies to make powerful bombs. >> the material that they found included fuel sources, shrapnel, plastic tubing, timing and fusing devices within his room. there were two individual faculty members that were specific targets, and then he also mentioned his desire to cause more casualties than were suffered at columbine. >> reporter: on caino's facebook and myspace pages, there's no mention of the plot or any other threats. pictures show the teenagers with bottles of alcohol and one with a machete. caino was expelled from high school in march of last year for what officials would only

describe for inappropriate behavior. police say he's been arrested before for drug possession and carrying a concealed weapon. most students say they didn't know caino. >> i was shocked. why would somebody ever want to do that. >> it's still in the back of my head just think being it but since they caught him and stuff i'm not that worried anymore. >> reporter: police say caino was acting alone but not saying very much about his motive. he apparently tried to explain himself while appearing before a judge wednesday morning but his court appointed attorney stopped him. kelly cobiella, cbs news, tampa. vice president joe biden meets with top officials in china this morning, the second day of his five-day trip there. biden was given an honor guard welcoming ceremony in beijing. the struggling u.s. economy will likely top today's agenda. biden will also visit the sichuan province, which was hit with a deadly earthquake three years ago. syrian state tv says security forces have withdrawn from the besieged port city of la takia.

president bashar assad told the u.n. all military operations against the protesters have stopped. residents say troops arrested hundreds of people yesterday. the u.s. is expected to demand today assad step down. activists say at least 2,000 people have died in the five-month uprising. in libya, rebels are closing in on moammar gadhafi. the rebels say they discovered a mass grave of about 150 civilians slaughtered by gadhafi sources and the u.s. is deploying two more armed predator drones for operations. in eastern afghanistan a suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance of a nato base near the city of gardez. two afghan guards were killed, seven were injured. there were no american casualties. at least 20 people were killed in the western province of harat when a mini bus hit a roadside bomb apparently. in spain thousands clashed with police in madrid yesterday, they're protesting the high cost of pope benedict's four-day

visit, which begins today. spain is grappling with deep troubles and high unemployment. the pope's visit will cost spanish taxpayers about $72 million. on the "cbs moneywatch" it was a down day for asian markets. ashley morrison is here in new york with the latest on that. good morning, ashley. >> good morning to you. asian stocks were lower this morning. tokyo's nikkei lost more than 1.25%, while hong kong's hang seng also lost more than 1%. on wall street yesterday stocks closed mixed. the dow was up 4 points while the nasdaq finished down 12. it's reported that the justice department is investigating whether standard & poor's improperly rated dozens of mortgage-backed securities. the "new york times" reports s&p analysts wanted to award lower ratings on bond mortgages but were overruled by business managers. all of this allegedly happened before the financial crisis. the higher ratings made the mortgage securities appear less risky and consequently more valuable and that led to record

profits for s&p. an attorney at the securities and exchange commission charges the agency destroyed important documents related to thousands of preliminary investigations. an agency spokesperson says not every document the agency makes is obtained but it feels the destructions may have hurt the agency's ability to pursue important cases like bernie madoff's ponzi scheme. and betty if you're looking for a home, here are the most affordable communities in the u.s., topping the list is the central florida community of hunter's creek, where "money" magazine says the median price of a home is $80,000, followed by lake jackson, texas, which is near houston, where homes average $125,000, and wesley chapel, florida, which is near tampa at $134,000. >> yes, i didn't see manhattan on there anywhere. >> no, the other end.

>> won't for a very long time. ashley, thanks for joining us. just ahead on the morning news a muslim militant threatens david letterman. plus hugs and tears as joplin, missouri, hits a milestone in their recovery from a devastating tornado. first scott pelley has a preview of tonight's "cbs evening news." >> all across the country, people are locked into homes they can't afford and they're facing foreclosure. we'll tell you about a way that could help homeowners get out without the bank ever taking over. that story tonight on the "cbs evening news." they can hit you year round... indoors or out. [ sniffles ] oh to have relief. prescription nasonex is clinically proven to help relieve nasal allergy symptoms... including congestion, runny and itchy nose and sneezing. [ female announcer ] side effects may include headache, viral infection, sore throat, nosebleeds, and coughing. infections of the nose and throat and eye problems, including glaucoma or cataracts may occur.

have regular eye exams. slow wound healing may occur, so do not use nasonex until your nose has healed from any sore, surgery or injury. nasonex can increase your risk of getting infections. avoid contact with infections like chicken pox or measles while using nasonex. ask your doctor if nasonex is right for you. [ female announcer ] visit nasonex.com for more information. that's what people could say if you're still using a liquid foundation that can settle into your lines and wrinkles and make you look older. covergirl and olay floats above lines and makes you look younger. can your anti-aging makeup do that? simply ageless from olay and easy, breezy beautiful, covergirl.

♪ looking forward to your first cup ♪ morning! big day, huh? thank you. ♪ oh that mountain grown taste, ♪ ♪ just what you need ♪ for the big race. daughter: morning mom! are you excited? ♪ as you finish every mile... ♪ how rewarding are those smiles... ♪ [ cheers from the crowd ] ♪ the best part of wakin' up... ♪ mommy, you did it! ♪ is folgers in your cup. cleanup is under way this morning after a massive fish kill on the border between louisiana and mississippi. hundreds of thousands of fish were killed on the coral river after a discharge from a paper mill on saturday. a depleted oxygen level in the water is blamed for the fish deaths. the company apologized. students returned this morning to the second day of

classes in joplin, missouri, as the city recovers from a deadly tornado back in may. many students were wearing hand made new clothes made by people from all over america. cynthia bowers reports. >> how are you? >> good. >> reporter: there were plenty of hugs, a few tears, and a lot of new outfits. the first day of school is a rite of passage but here in joplin it's the biggest benchmark so far in the long road to recovery. seamstress susan stewart lives 25 miles away in pitsburg, kansas. >> i don't have a chainsaw, i don't know how to drive a bulldozer, can't put a roof on. two days later it struck me i always had a new dress for the first day of school so i asked ladies to make garments. it was just the right thing to do. >> reporter: she reached out online to the sewing community and in less than three months she got more than 1,400 hand sewn dresses from all around the

country, including this one from cindy smith in san jose, california. >> once you've seen that kind of devastation, you go, oh my god, that's just awful. how could somebody go through with that, it's devastating for a child to lose everything, this is something i can do to give back and gave me a chance to sew for little girls. >> reporter: last night, smith's outfit was scooped up by sydney wheat and this morning the fifth grader wore it for the start of the school year. how does that make you feel? >> really good. that somebody would make something like this, that's that pretty. >> reporter: exactly what susan stewart had hoped. >> i wanted to be able to make a lot of little girls feel like princesses on their first day of school. this isn't just something that covers your bodies. this is something to feed your souls. >> reporter: cross-country kindness helping to stitch the fabric of this community back together. cynthia bowers, cbs news, joplin, missouri. >> what a terrific project.

in other news, a muslim militant has posted a death threat against david letterman. a u.s. intelligence monitoring group says the posting urges followers to "cut the tongue" of the tv star because of a joke letterman made about al qaeda. straight ahead your thursday morning weather, and in sports, shades of willie mays as the twins ben revere makes some sensational catches. slap! slap! slap! slap! slap! ] [ male announcer ] your favorite foods fighting you? fight back fast with tums. calcium rich tums goes to work in seconds. nothing works faster. ♪ tum tum tum tum tums use the hand towel analyzer at kleenex.com and find out what could be on your cloth hand towel. [ ribbits ] upgrade to kleenex hand towels for a clean, fresh towel every time. these are our ocean spray sparkling juice drinks

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here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. new york partly cloudy 86. miami thunderstorms 90 degrees. chicago sunny and 82, dallas, sunny, 104 degrees there. l.a. a sunny 86. time now for a check of the national forecast. the latest satellite picture shows storm clouds over the desert southwest heading toward kansas and nebraska. the northwest and northern plains are clear while the northeast has scattered clouds. later today expect showers from the ohio river valley to upstate new york. powerful thunderstorms will hit the northern and central plains. it will be sunny and very hot in texas and oklahoma. while the northwest is cool, especially in western washington and oregon. in sports, a controversial call in kansas city. in the third, the royals billy butler hits the long ball against the yankees, looks like it strikes the railing before bouncing back on the field. the umps call it a homer

upsetting yanks manager joe girardi. royals squeak by new york 5-4. take a look at this. the twins' ben revere makes a sensational over the shoulder catch right on the warning track. on the third he stretches out for an amazing diving grab. minnesota takes out detroit 6-5. and in oakland the a's brandon allen long fly bounces off the center field wall and adam jones baubles the ball so allen races around the bases for an in the park homer. oakland over baltimore 6-5. good news for nascar fans. espn reports danika patrick will drive full time next season and also reportedly plan to enter select sprint cup races next year. when we return, another look at this morning's top stories and the amazing new drug that can stop the deadliest form of skin cancer.

is still holed up inside a san rafael hotel with a possible hostage. what officers are saying about their next move. the second hack attack in a week targets bart police. how it's putting officer's safety at risk. a school bomb plot that could have been worse than columbine. how cops stopped it.. and the disturbing materials they found. plus.. the new racy lingerie for 4 year olds! does it go too far? join us for cbs 5 early edition ... beginning at 4:30. ,,,,

on the "cbs morning news," here's a look at today's weather. storm clouds will form in the desert southwest. in the northwest, there will be plenty of sunshine. you can look for some blazing heat in the southern plains with seasonal temperatures in the northeast. here's another look at this morning's top stories. the white house says president obama will unveil a new plan to lower the deficit and create more jobs after labor day. he and his family head to martha's vineyard today for a ten-day vacation. a 17-year-old florida boy has been arrested for allegedly planning a columbine style attack on his high school. police say they found fuses and timing devices in his apartment. each year about 68,000 people are diagnosed with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. the food and drug administration approved a first of its kind

treatment. dr. jon lapook has details. >> reporter: with her advanced melanoma spreading, sherry zanith found out she's eligible for a new drug. >> i came up to the ninth floor, ran into the doctor, she said i just got approved, how exciting. >> reporter: her dr., anna pavlic helped test the new treatment, a drug called zelboraf. >> close to 60% of patients will derive benefit from this, longer term survival. >> reporter: in a study of almost 700 patients, survival was 84% with zelboraf, versus 64% with an older chemotherapy drug. the new medicine is the latest example of targeted therapies. the target is a protein called braf which regulates normal cell growth. in about half of melanoma patients this protein mutates and causes uncontrolled growth,

spreading the cancer. this drug turns off that mutation. >> there are still patients on the first trial with this drug, now almost three years old, who are still taking the drug and still have complete disease control. >> reporter: that's exactly what sherry zanith is hoping for. dr. jon lapook, cbs news, new york. authorities here in new york this morning are investigating how a truck was left perilously dangling in the air. check it out. yesterday the sanitation truck smashed through a wall and hung for hours off the side of a city repair shop. the driver was rescued and hospitalized in stable condition. this morning on "cbs morning news" the latest on the president's controversial visit to martha's vineyard. i'm betty nguyen. this is the "cbs morning news." ♪ thank you! ♪

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a a massachusetts boy has earned the honor of catching what is possibly the biggest blue shark in state waters. 15-year-old jeffrey ledge landed a 12-foot, 458 pounder off

gloucester. he used about ten feet of line to do it and a lot of muscle for about a half hour. boy, that's some catch. from hybrid cars to light bulbs, going green is a great way to help the environment and save money. as bill whitaker reports one city in california has discovered there's nothing more green than goats. >> reporter: in the blue collar town of lemon grove, california, residents are doing a double take. >> this is a lot of goats. >> reporter: 150 goats, to be exact, hauled into this vacant downtown lot on official city business. >> they love what they do. >> reporter: what they do is eat a lot. mary sessom is mayor of lemon xwroef. grove. >> they don't get sick, they don't call in and say i don't feel good today. they don't care how hot it is, how cold it is. they're out there doing their job. >> reporter: and by not using workers with weed whackers -- >> they have saved us thousands of dollars. >> reporter: they've also caused a sensation with urban dwellers

whose experience with goats doesn't go much past the petting zoo. >> it's awesome and amazing that they eat so much. in like one day. >> reporter: 5-year-old cade can count the number of times he's seen a goat before. >> zero. >> reporter: but mayor sessom says this is more than a novelty act. >> i think the learning experience for them hopefully what they're getting away is not only can animals do something just besides look cute and fuzzy but they can also serve purpose in our society helping us keep our environment clean. >> reporter: and perhaps saving lives. lemon grove, like many towns in southern california, has steep hillsides. earlier this year a lush green but after months without rain -- >> this is extremely dry, tinder box dry. this will support and carry fire quite well. >> reporter: deputy fire chief tim smith says if the goats can get to the brush before the nexi strong santa ana winds it could avoid a repeat of devastating wildfires that have scorched san

diego county the past several years. this herd of goats has already managed to clear one entire hillside in less than two weeks, creating a natural fire break for hundreds of homes. so when the deputy fire chief sees a clump of dry brush -- >> this means a fast moving fire. >> reporter: but to a goat -- >> i would say that this is probably filet mignon. >> reporter: so tasty they keep coming back for more. >> it's been a win/win for us. it's cost effective environmentally friendly and fun. >> goat. >> bill whitaker, cbs news, los angeles. >> filet mignon, that's one way to look at it. coming up later on "the early show," more on anthony mason's interview with president obama, plus a florida school superintendent explains how they caught the 17-year-old accused of trying to blow up his high school. and going new school to learn history, the rapping teachers who mix hip-hop with homework. that's the "cbs morning news" for this thursday. thanks for watching, everybody. i'm betty nguyen. have a great day.

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highway is open just in time for th g commute. a live report on the hostage si a standoff in san rafael now pushing 18 hours, but a