captioning funded by cbs captioning funded by cbs it's wednesday, july 4th, 2018. this is the "cbs morning news." toasty temperatures are in store for much of the country this fourth of july holiday, and the extreme heat is posing a problem for crews battling dozens of wildfires in the midwest. new video shows boys trapped in a thailand cave in good spirits but the rise in water is putting pressure on finding an exit for the soccer team.

and race may no longer be a factor in the college admissions process. president trump rolls back an obama-era policy on affirmative action. good morning from the cbs studio 57 news headquarters in new york. i'm don dahler in for anne-marie green. for much of the country, the temperatures are more of the same. the heat won't go away. this morning heat advisories and warnings are posted in the central and northeastern u.s. excessive heat warnings are posted in parts of california, nevada, and new mexico. more sweltering record-high temperatures are possible for your holiday barbecue. many areas can expect feel-like temperatures in the triple digits. out west, the heat and dry conditions are making it harder for crews battling a slew of destructive wildfires. in southern colorado the so-called spring fire destroyed at least 104 homes about 205

it's believed to have burned 123 square miles and is one of six large wildfires burning in colorado. there are six large wildfires burning across the west including nine in new mexico and six in california. thousands have been forced to evacuate. paul deanno, chief meteorologist, at our san francisco station kpix, has more on the heat wave. >> there's a huge impact impacting millions of folks with excessive heat right on july 4th. let's talk about which areas will be affected the most. cincinnati, new york, philadelphia, boston, chicago all under a heat warning or heat advisory. advisory or heat warning for july 4th. how hot are we talking? these are the air temperatures

before humidity factors in. 90s for boston, 90 for washington, d.c., 90 for chicago. the heat index will be between 100 and 110. 97 in dallas. not much in the way of humidity in vegas, but still hot. phoenix, 114, sacramento, the capital of california coming in at 90 degrees. one thing that won't be a big deal is widespread thunderstorms. i'm meteorologist paul deanno, cbs news for san francisco. overseas the rescue of the soccer team in thailand. heavy rains are forecast for this weekend. it may force officials to make tough decisions about how to get the boys safely to the surface. laura podesta has more on this. good morning, laura. >> good morning, don. we've seen images of the boys.

they appear to be in good spirits. the focus now is keeping them healthy, monitoring that rainy forecast, and establishing a line of communication between the team and their families. the 12 young soccer players and their coach are seen in these new videos smiling and even laughing despite being trapped in a cave for 12 days now. most are huddled together wearing foil thermal blankets. the boys introduced themselves and say they're in good health. a navy s.e.a.l. can be seen treating the boys with ointment on their feet and legs. others are off to the side sleeping. outside the cave the families are hoping for the best as they watch the videos. it's like he has been given a new life, this mother said. a phone line is being installed so the soccer players ages 11 to 16 can finally talk with their parents. a thai navy s.e.a.l. commander says a team of seven including a doctor is staying in the cave.

they've been brought in to determine which boys are strong enough to swim out of the flooded cavern, but experts say the training will take time. >> it's a group of 13 individuals that will all react differently and require a different level of training. >> today the governor said the boys practiced wearing diving equipment but they haven't practiced any practice dives. the other alternative is to wait for the rain drops and monsoon is expected to last until october. there are, of course, many media outletsen the ground now in thailand, and according to a report in the bangkok "post" newspaper, the thai interior minister says the evacuation must speed up. he insists the kids be brought out before the rain resumes. don? >> laura podesta here in new york. thank you. ahead on "cbs this morning," we'll talk with the coordinator

of the nags tional cave rescue coordinator about the challenges rescuers in thailand face. back in this country, president trump interviewed three more potential supreme court nominees. said he'll announce the replacement on monday. he's now interviewed at least seven candidate. yesterday speaking to people, he spoke about the process. >> i think you'll be very impressed. very talented people, very brilliant people. i think you'll love it. just like with justice gorsuch. we hit a home run there. we're going hit a home run here. >> reporter: lee's office said a call was an interview, but the white house would not characterize it that way. the contentious issue of affirmative action will likely play a role in it. this morning civil rights groups are criticizing a move by the

administration to get rid of guidelines that encourage schools to use race as a factor in admissions. jan crawford reports. >> reporter: the announcement came in a dear colleague letter advising school officials the trump administration was withdrawing obama-a administratn guidelines affirming the actions. it was widely expected as the justice department affirmed it. former obama administration's catherine lhamon blasted it. >> it's something the supreme court has recognized for all of us. >> reporter: they refused to end affirmative action entirely. justice anthony kennedy was the key swing vote. his retirement could shift the court's balance on affirmative action, and a case is brewing in the lower courts.

>> it always takes courage to speak up against injustice. >> reporter: in recent years, asian americans have become vocal poentds of affirmative action, which they say holds them to higher academic status than whites and students. kelley babphavong is a rising junior. >> for us to be asian americans and have our application be reduced to an identity and hold us in a higher regard is really demeaning. >> reporter: larry bacow said his school does not discriminate. >> diversity is an important component of that because we learn from our differences. >> reporter: jan crawford, cbs news, washington. coming up on the "morning news," explosive allegations. a congressman is accused of ignoring abuse claims when he was an assistant wrestling coach. and caught on video.

a commuter's leg gets stuck in a train gap. why she didn't want to call an ambulance. this is the "cbs morning news." want to call an ambulance. this is the "cbs morning news." hi! aren't you hot? eczema again? it's fine. i saw something the other day. myeczemaexposed.com. your eczema could be something called atopic dermatitis, which can be caused by inflammation under your skin. maybe you should ask your doctor? go to myeczemaexposed.com to learn more. alcohol based mouthwash burns. and that could leave you with... burn face! but colgate total mouthwash is different. it kills 99% of germs without the burn of alcohol! kill germs without the burn. try colgate total mouthwash today! how did we test our with two pounds of steak. in each hand. dixie ultra. stress tested so you can stress less at dinner.

what if you had fewer headaches and... migraines a month? botox® prevents headaches and migraines before they even star. botox® is for adults with chronic migraine, 15 or more headache days a month,... each lasting 4 hours or more. botox® injections take about 15 minutes in your doctor's office and are covered by most insurance. effects of botox® may spread... hours to weeks after injection... causing serious symptoms. alert your doctor right away, as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing,... eye problems, or muscle weakness... can be signs of a life-threatening condition. side effects may include allergic reactions, neck and injection site pain, fatigue, and headache. don't receive botox® if there's a skin infection. tell your doctor your medical history, muscle or nerve conditions,... and medications, including botulinum toxins, as, these may increase the risk of serious side effects. with the botox® savings program, most people with commercial insurance pay nothing out of pocket. talk to your doctor and visit botoxchronicmigraine.com to enroll.

police in florida have caught a woman on surveillance video falling out of a moving suv at a busy tampa intersection on monday. she appear ed to be unconscious as a man carried her back to the suv. nobody called police which prompted a search for her. the investigators say the 21-year-old said she fell out after leaning against a previously damaged door. she suffered bruises to her legs and elbows. turns out the man in the video was her boyfriend. the "dayton daily news" reports says ohio republican congressman jim jordan knew about case of sex abuse at the school but failed to report

them. jordan is a founder of the ultra conservative freedom caucus. he served as an assistant wrestling coach at ohio state in the 1990s. the wrestlers say jordan knew that a team doctor was groping male wrestlering at the time. jordan denies knowing anything about the sex abuse allegations. the "telegraph" reports acteder kevin spacey is facing three more sexual assault cases in brittain. that brings the number to six that the scotland yard is investigating against spacey. the new cases involve alleged assaults between 1996 and 2013, and yesterday guy pearce who starred with spacey in "l.a. confidential" said he's been accused of being handscy. "the indianapolis star" says a church has placed statues of

jesus, mary, and joseph in a chain link cage to protest president trump's zero tolerance policy. they were placed outside the church monday night. the church's lead pastor said the homeless family was homeless with nowhere to stay and the bible says we're supposed to love our neighbors as ourselves. "usa today" reports a woman trapped between a subway train and the station in boston begged bystanders not to call an ambulance because she couldn't afford it. she slipped and suffered a laceration to her leg. she was taken to the hospital. some say it captured the state of health care in america today. and "new york times" reports an unusual jailbird was found in the city's rikers island jail complex, a snowy owl. a corrections officer found the owl in a courtyard on sunday when it was near 100 degrees.

he caught the owl and took her to a nonprofit that cares for birds. they named the owl lorax after the dr. seuss character. she'll eventually be released back into the wild. still to come, new technology is lighting up the sky on the fourth of july without a familiar risk. fourth of july without a familiar risk. i needed legal advice for my shop. that's when i remembered that my ex-ex- ex-boyfriend actually went to law school, so i called him. he didn't call me back! if your ex-ex- ex-boyfriend isn't a lawyer, call legalzoom and we'll connect you with an attorney. legalzoom. where life meets legal. i look like..., most people. but on the inside, i feel chronic, widespread pain. fibromyalgia may be invisible to others, pis r fibromyalgia is thought to be caused by overactive nerves. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves.

i'm glad my doctor prescribed lyrica. for some, lyrica delivers effective relief from fibromyalgia pain... and improves function. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions, suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worse depression, unusual changes in mood or behavior, swelling, trouble breathing, rash, hives, blisters, muscle pain with fever, tired feeling or blurry vision. common side effects: dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain, swelling of hands, legs, and feet. don't drink alcohol while taking lyrica. don't drive or use machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. those who have had a drug or alcohol problem may be more likely to misuse lyrica. with less pain, i can do more. ask your doctor about lyrica. if you're eligible, you could pay as little as $25 a month. here's look at today's forecast in some cities around the country.

♪ god bless america my home sweet home ♪ that was melodious happy cops are two boston police officers performing an independence day performance of their own take of james corden's carpool karaoke. they're calling it cop karaoke. their rendition of "god bless america" has become an internet sensation. fireworks are part of a tradition, but many communities, especially in the fire-prone west, are rethinking the quay they celebrate their independence.

carter evans has the report. >> reporter: with massive wildfires like this one in northern california burning out of control, there's a growing concern about the trouble this could cause on the fourth of july. now as a precaution, towns like carefree arizona have canceled their fireworks shows. >> safety is our overriding concern. >> reporter: but carefree's mayor found a way for the show to go on, lighting the sky with drones. >> they described it, sent us a video, and we said, let's do it. >> reporter: call it fireworks without the fire. das ts displays thanks to hundreds of tiny drones carrying l.e.d. lights. >> it's really light. >> reporter: natalie cheung helped put on a display during a concert of lady gaga. so they're following a pre-planned pattern in the sky.

>> yep. we know what's going to happen to our drones at every single frame. >> reporter: they found it's an alternative way to this year's olympics and music event like coachella. but during the increasing fire season in the west, they're an ail tern turn. fireworks sparked 869 fires in california. the most in five years. it may be a new way. here at the rose bowl they're appearing for that iconic fourth of july show and firefighters have already made preparations as well. they've laid down 16,000 pounds of fire retardant over 54 acres just in case. carter evans, cbs news, pasadena, california. still ahead, an appetite for victory. we'll tell you how many burgers this woman ate to beat out the men in a stomach-turning contest. many burgers this woman aetd to beat out the men in a stomach-turning contest. ain. now? watch me.

( ♪ ) joni: think i'd give up showing these guys how it's done? please. real people with active psoriatic arthritis are changing the way they fight it. they're moving forward with cosentyx. it's a different kind of targeted biologic. it's proven to help people find less joint pain and clearer skin. don't use if you are allergic to cosentyx. before starting cosentyx you should be checked for tuberculosis. an increased risk of infections and lowered ability to fight them may occur. tell your doctor if you have an infection or symptoms of an infection. or if you have received a vaccine, or plan to. if you have inflammatory bowel disease tell your doctor if symptoms develop or worsen. serious allergic reactions may occur. mitzi: with less joint pain, watch me. for less joint pain and clearer skin, ask your rheumatologist july 4th holiday... details on today's crackdown in santa rosa. more evacuations are ordered as firefighters try to get a handle on the wildfire burning in yolo and napa counties.

and two men plead no contest in connection with the ghost kl what the victi'e in sents... join us for kpix 5 news this morning... beginning at 4:30. good morning. it's wednesday, july 4th. here's look at today's forecast in some cities often the country.

three, two, one, go! >> what better way to celebrate the nation's independence than eating a burger. in this case, lots of burgers at ninth an jewel independent burger championship in washington's capitol. molly skyler wooved down 17 burgers in ten minutes. molly collected $1,500 for her efforts. some dramatic body camera video shows a dog being rescued from a raging fire. a home saturday in stockton, california, and spread to a nearby neighbor's shed. in the shed the firefighters

found a dog trapped in a cage. they doused the dog and shed with water. the 7-year-old pit bull named rocky wasn't hurt. >> and after more than 70 years, a virginia veteran has been reunited with a part of his military past. 97-year-old ronald gaines lost his dog tags while serving in italy during world war ii. they heard stories but didn't think much about it until they were contacted by an italian family who found the tags buried in their garden in the 1980s. they tried to find the owner for years, but couldn't. they recently tracked gaines down and returned the tag. >> he doesn't realize a lot of things. just to see him holding those dog tags and probably reflecting on some of the things he does remember, you know, is really exciting for me. >> gaines' family says the in instead they worked hard to find its owner. coming up on "cbs this morning," from "ant man" and the

"wasp" to "mission impossible: fallout," we'll look ahead at the summer movie season. i'm don dahler. this is the "cbs morning news." , i drink boost optimum. boost optimum with 5 in 1 advanced nutrition helps support muscle, energy, bone, normal immune function, and vision. boost optimum. be up for life. you finished preparing overhim for college.rs, in 24 hours, you'll send him off thinking you've done everything for his well-being. but meningitis b progresses quickly and can be fatal, sometimes within 24 hours. while meningitis b is uncommon, about 1 in 10 infected will die. like millions of others,

your teen may not be vaccinated against meningitis b. meningitis b strikes quickly. be quick to talk to your teen's doctor about a meningitis b vaccine.

our top story this morning, the oppressive heat wave that won't go away. this morning heat advisories and warnings are posted in the sentra u.s. they're posted in parts of california, nevada, and new mexico. many areas of the country can expect feet-like temperatures in the triple digits. president trump is stepping up pressure on america's nato allies to increase their military spending and he's putting it in writing. major garrett has more. >> reporter: ahead of next week's nato summit in brussels, president trump sent a letter to the prime minister of norway that made clear he will not relent on his criticism of nato

allies' lagging defense budgets. norway, the president wrote, remains the only nato ally sharing a border with russia that lack as credible plan to spend 2% of its gross domestic product on its defense. norway is far from alone and the president has reportedly sent similar letters to other countries. of the 28 nato nations, only three besides the u.s. spent the promised 2% on its defense last year. throughout his presidency, mr. trump has prodded nato nations to spend more. >> which many of them have not been doing. many of them have not been even close. >> reporter: european allies are hoping next week's summit goes better than last week's g7 summit in canada. that meeting was marked by tense exchanges between mr. trump and other world leaders over trade. >> if the expectation was that a weekend in fwufl shar -- beautiful charlevoix was going

to transform the president's outlook on trade in the world, then we didn't quite perhaps meet that bar. >> reporter: since then the trade war has only ratcheted up. ahh har harley davidson said itvion hasd it would move some of its motorcycle production overseas. europeans fear these disputes demonstrate disunity doond so just before the president will head to helsinki for his summit with russian president vladimir putin. now, the white house insists mr. trump has challenged russian aggression in europe and argues his push for more defense spending among nato-member nations will help, not hurt those efforts. major garrett, cbs news, the white house. coming up on "cbs this morning," a hospital in cleveland denies that it's liable for the loss of more than 4,000 eggs and embryos in a freezer failure. dr. tara narula has the latest

on the legal battle. plus, the differry war is heating up. how the demand for fast deliveries may be pushing retailers too far. and we'll look ahead to the summer movie season. that's the "cbs morning news" for this wednesday. thanks for watching. i'm don dahler. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

i'm kenny choi. let's take a live look outside from our "salesforce tower" camera our exclusive

shot. clear conditions now, it could be cloudy in certain spots for the fireworks shows. we'll tell you where. good morning, thanks for joining us. it's wednesday, july 4th. i'm kenny choi. >> i'm michelle griego. we are very patriotic in our red, white and blue. >> excited for the holiday. >> happy birthday, america. >> a lot of people have the day off. i hope you will enjoy the weather. it's going to be cooler. here's what to expect. your weather headlines include a beautiful shot of san francisco. look how clear it is now. we have higher clouds at the coast. it is a cool holiday, the coolest day of the week. then cool temperatures and also in other ways. clouds by the bay for the fireworks shows this evening. so just something to keep in mind. inland areas -- our futurecast models showing it's clear but clouds at the embarcadero. mostly clear inland, especially by this afternoon. sunshine in many spots. e