celebrities and their sons wearing hoodies and saying we're all trayvon. i'm tamron hall. the "news nation" is continuing to follow a new development in the trial of major nadal hasan. the judge is now refusing to let the defense attorneys helping hasan off the case. now in a heated exchange with the judge one of the attorneys said he thought it was morally repugnant to continue helping hasan when they feel he is intent on seeking the death penalty. the judge having already denied a previous request to limit their roles told them they would have to take it up with a higher court. for now they will have to follow her order. the judge is allowing hasan to continue representing himself as more witnesses took the stand. he still has not cross examined any of them. nbc's mark potter is outside the courthouse in texas. he joins us. mark, that was one of the other points of outrage for some people is that hasan would be in a position to cross examine some of the very people he's accused of shooting down that day.

he's not done so so far. what else are you seeing in court today? >> reporter: well, aside from the argument you were talking about, it will go to an appeals court, it was very dramatic testimony as soldiers and former soldiers took to the stand to describe what happened on november 5th, 2009, when 13 people were killed here, 31 were injured in this rampage shooting at a processing center. soldiers, former soldiers told of seeing others being shot, hearing them scream, watching them die, being shot themselves. it was very, very dramatic. one of them, staff sergeant michael davis, said that he heard a young woman screaming out, my baby, my baby, my baby. and we know that a 21-year-old soldier, francesca velez, private first class from chicago was shot and killed. she was nine weeks pregnant. another soldier shot four times said he looked over his shoulder and he saw ayman there standing

there laughing. he said to himself, this is it. he did survive and in court today he pointed his finger at major nadal hasan and identified him as the shooter. during all this time hasan never showed any emotion, not one whip of emotion. he never seemed to lower his eyes. he never shook his head. he sat there looking straight ahead. when he had an opportunity to ask questions, he never asked any questions. he said i have no questions when queried by the judge. it was a stunning day in terms of the testimony and, again, a startling day to see how he responded to it. he had no interest at all in responding to what he was hearing from the witness stand about what he had done -- what he is admitted to having done. >> mark potter, thank you very much. since hasan's trial is being held in a military courtroom, there are a number of factors that make this a more complex situation. even though he's admitted to carrying out the shooting, hasan was prohibited under military law from pleading guilty because

authorities are seeking the death penalty. experts say the military's justice system is not used to dealing with the death penalty. when it has, many of the convictions have been overturned. joining me now live is captain glen sulmacy, homeland security expert at the u.s. coast guard academy. thank you so much for joining us, sir. >> thanks for having me, tamron. >> first, let's talk about the situation with the attorneys. they are side bar attorneys assigned to assist hasan if he needs it. he so far is acting as his own lead counsel. they want off this and now this could go to an appellate court. what do you make of what's happening and will this affect the outcome of the trial? >> it could. like in regular court martials, we have free of charge to any counsel, counsel assigned to him. he's fired two. he's going forward with his own case pro se before the court's court martial proceeding.

the three defense attorneys were side barred to assist felt that the case was morally repugnant is the quote they used and they couldn't possibly go forward because they felt they were collaborating with the prosecution. they weren't able to fulfill their ethical obligations. military lawyers have ethical obligations to zealously represent their client. in this case they felt they couldn't do it. the judge said, hey, this is a matter of them not getting a longs, not having the same trial strategy and thus they wanted to proceed forward. the colonel said, sorry, folks. you have to stay on there. you assist him and he'll be allowed to proceed pro se. they're going forward with the trial. any time someone who is not a lawyer tries themself before any courts of law leads to problems, grandstanding, potential issues that can ensure that the case is overturned on appeal. >> so far he's chosen not to

cross examine any of the witnesses as you heard mark potter talk about the testimony today, the emotional testimony of people saying what they heard, what they saw, what they experienced that day. hasan in his opening statements, which were just a few minutes, clearly said he's the person. so for a civilian it's hard to understand why this could proceed even though this man has flat out said i am the individual responsible for this, i did the shooting, i took those lives. >> i think part of it is he said in his 45 second opening statement, tamron, i'm the person who shot them. he's arguing that his case is self-defense as he heard. he joins the taliban. he switched sides. he feels he's fighting on behalf of a just case against u.s. forces. that's the 13 deaths and the 35 or 32 attempted murders are all justified under the laws of war. so he's arguing a very strange case. what will happen when you have this is a chance for him to grandstand. as you know, he's also said that he's actually embarrassed and he

apologized to alla for the fact that he was serving along the side of the armed force who are wrong in this case. >> i want to point out numbers. 11 of the 16 death sentences handed down by military jurors in the last 30 years have been overturned. >> that's correct. >> no active duty soldier has been executed since 1961. there are some concerns out there that we could see a mistrial for a number of reasons, including according to some reports there was a concern that key evidence, material that hasan had between he and his side attorneys helping him were seen by the prosecution. >> there's multiple issues there. this can be overturned on appeal. we're not necessarily in the armed forces contrary to what most of the public thinks and believes. they're not accustomed to trying cases that are called capital cases, death penalty cases. there's only 16. 11 have been overturned. the last time an execution occurred was during president

kennedy's regime. the prosecution felt strongly that they should proceed with a capital case. the likelihood it might be overturned continues to grow daily, daily, daily as the case becomes more and more really confusing, a little bit absurd. >> thank you so much for your insight today, sir. thank you. >> thanks for having me. developing news in the nationwide manhunt for the missing 16-year-old girl and the man suspected in her abduction. we've now learned that the suspect, james lee dimaggio, had recently admitted to having a crush on hannah anderson, who is the daughter of a long-time friend. according to a friend hannah was creeped out by the unwanted attention and did not want to be left alone. they say they could be headed to the canadian border after unconfirmed sightings. that prompted new amber alerts

for those states. the authorities fear the boy may have been killed with his mother over the weekend. nbc's joe prior is live in san diego with the latest. what else are we learning about what they're saying is the strange obsession that he allegedly had with hannah? >> yeah, tamron. friends tell us that it really did creep her out but she only confided that information in her friends and apparently did not share any of that information with adults or even her parents. now at this point we can tell you right here the sheriff's office is receiving tips and leads from all across the country right now. the fbi is helping out with this search and authorities in mexico are also helping out. this truly is a national, even international manhunt but there was a cluster of possible car sightings yesterday in northern california and in oregon that's really getting the most attention. that prompted those amber alerts in oregon and washington state

but so far no confirmed sightings of that blue nissan versa or the suspect or the kids. now 16-year-old hannah anderson and her 8-year-old brother ethan have been missing since that fire this past weekend. their mother was killed in the fire. another victim was found in the remains. it could be ethan but at this point the coroner is saying that it is very difficult to make a positive identification. the suspect is james dimaggio. he is a close family friend, was even described as being like an uncle to these kids, but hannah's friends tell us that she felt uncomfortable around dimaggio because he said he had a crush on her. he said if he were her age he would date her. because of all of this information detectives truly do believe that hannah is in grave danger. they are looking at the possibility that they could have been driving north toward the canadian border. as we mentioned, mexican

authorities are also aiding in this search so they're looking at that possibility because the home where the fire happened is so close to the mexican border. >> right. >> they're receiving tips from everywhere. they're also telling us that dimaggio is an experienced camper. they're asking people at camp grounds and national parks around the area to keep an eye out for them. also developing right now in southern california, the race to contain a dangerous and out of control wild fire, the silver fire injured four firefighters and burned one civilian from head to toe. officials evacuated thousands of people and urging others to shelter in place as hot and dry flames spread towards more communities. miguel almaguer is on the phone. miguel, what's the latest? >> reporter: tamron, i can tell you fire officials are escorting us to where some of the brunt of the damage is. there are 15 structures completely destroyed. we should point out that this fire is still very active, very much on the move.

about a mile away from where we're standing we can certainly see some flames and some smoke in the air. this fire is on the move because there are so many bone dry hill sides here, this area, much of this region is a tinder box. there's drought like conditions here. firefighters say in addition to those draw the like conditions, what you have here is 15 to 20-mile-an-hour gusts that are helping to fan the flames. this blaze has chewed across more than 10,000 acres. some 1,000 firefighters are on the front lines. they're being aided today by the air attack. there are seven air tankers, close to 15 helicopters. the big dc ten that they bring out for the big wildfires is very active today. it's a wind driven fire so crews are battling the winds while they're up in the air. hand crews have made some progress. there is 10% containment now. certainly good news for firefighters on the front lines. this fire, as you know, began yesterday afternoon. it was a small fire, about 300 acres. it quickly quadrupled in size reaching more than 10,000 acres

now. it's certainly a dicey situation up here, tamron. >> miguel almaguer, we'll keep our audience up to date. "ebony" magazine is being criticized. it features black celebrities and their children wearing hoodies. we'll talk to "ebony's" editor in chief about the special edition and the criticism jamarko rubio and rand paul 2016. one star may be falling while the other is on the rise. join our conversation on twitter. you can find us @tamronhall and my team at "news nation." the house caught fire and we were out on the streets. [ whispering ] shhh. it's only a dream. and we have home insurance. but if we made a claim, our rate would go up... [ whispering ] shhh. you did it right. you have allstate claim rate guard so your rates won't go up just because of a claim.

[ whispering ] are we still in a dream? no, you're in an allstate commercial. so get allstate home insurance with claim rate guard... [ whispering ] goodnight. there are so many people in our bedroom. [ dennis ] talk to an allstate agent... [ doorbell rings ] ...and let the good life in.

welcome back. "ebony magazine" is responded to the criticism. we have so many tea party readers to lose all zero of them due to our september cover would be devastating. this comes after conservative websites like michelle malkin's says it's much easier to slap on a hoodie and pretend to fight for social justice than to recognize a black american is more likely to be mur dird by another black american than some white hispanic man. the coverage includes spike lee, dwyane wade and boris kojo along with trayvon martin's family. joining me, amy barnet, editor in chief of "ebony" magazine. thanks for your time. >> not at all. thanks for having me. >> there have been rumors people

call for boycotts. that turns out not to be the case. there's no uniform call for a boycott but that has not stopped a number of websites beings many of them leaning to the conservative side and criticizing ebony for this magazine choice. what was behind your decision to take such a strong stand? >> you know, ebony has been the magazine of record for the african-american community for the past 68 years and so for us it is incredibly important that we reflect the concerns of the readership that we've been serving for the past nearly seven decades. toward that end we have recognized that there's been an issue regarding the plight of african-american boys in this country. we started a series called saving our sons in the may issue of this year to address the concerns and to shed some light on the issues that our boys are facing. so when we heard about the zimmerman verdict we understood that our readers were going to be incredibly concerned about what this would mean for all african-american boys. and we felt it was very important to create some iconic

imagery that our community could grasp on to and it would help to continue the conversation about how to improve the lives of our children. >> in the article itself with spike lee, dwyane wade and boris, you have them discussing what they would tell their sons about growing up as young black men in america. what are some of the things they shared in these intimate conversations? >> you know, it's so challenging. those of us who are raising black boys as i am and as many of my readers are, we're confounded about what to tell our sons. it was really interesting to hear dwayne and boris and spike talk about the fact that they need to caution their boys about how to deal with authority, about how to deal with the police, how to be incredibly careful when confronted in an environment in which they're not comfortable, they don't understand. it is a shame that as parents of black boys we have to be additionally concerned with the very lives of our children being threatened in today's society. >> and for those out there who say as was the case with this

website associated with michelle malkin that there somehow is an implication that "ebony" or others ignore black on black crimes. that is not the case. "ebony" has led the way on many social issues on this planet. here we are. i know the magazine has discussed black on black crime from issues related to teen pregnancy and other social issues that affect the african-american community. >> well, exactly. i mean, as i mentioned before, we've done the saving our sons series in every issue since the may issue. now we've actually partnered with the white house initiative on academic excellence for african-americans to do a series of town halls starting in november this year and extending through 2014 surrounding the issues that face african-american boys, including gun violence, including, you know, frankly racial profiling which i think is the root of this entire case leading to trayvon martin. >> were you surprised at all that at some of the backlash or

some of the sniping that came after it was revealed that these covers would be dedicated to this conversation? >> you know, it's an unfortunate realities of race relations in america today. i mean, it's the reality that there are many people out there who do not understand that african-american boys are targets. you know, they are targets of violence. they are targets of racial profiling and, you know, was i surprised? no, because i understand that there are many people out there who really do not comprehend the danger that our boys face walking down the street on a day-to-day basis. >> amy barnet, thank you so much for your time. again, this is the september edition of "ebony" magazine. stunning covers. thank you so much. appreciate it. >> thank you for having me. still ahead an amazing story out of chicago. so the fbi has reopened a decades old kidnapping case after a 50-year-old man

discovers the couple who raised him, they're not really his parents. how did this happen? plus, the unbelievable video of the moment a tour bus is hit by a truck. look at this, the impact so severe the driver was sucked out of the window. more of this video and how this all happened coming up. [ male announcer ] let's say you pay your guy around 2% to manage your money. that's not much, you think. except it's 2% every year. go to e-trade and find out how much our advice and guidance costs. spoiler alert: it's low. it's guidance on your terms, not ours. e-trade. less for us. more for you. a regular guy with an irregular heartbeat. the usual, bob? not today. [ male announcer ] bob has afib:

atrial fibrillation not caused by a heart valve problem, a condition that puts him at greater risk for a stroke. [ gps ] turn left. i don't think so. [ male announcer ] for years, bob took warfarin, and made a monthly trip to the clinic to get his blood tested. but not anymore. bob's doctor recommended a different option: once-a-day xarelto®. xarelto® is the first and only once-a-day prescription blood thinner for patients with afib not caused by a heart valve problem, that doesn't require routine blood monitoring. like warfarin, xarelto® is proven effective to reduce the risk of an afib-related stroke. there is limited data on how these drugs compare when warfarin is well managed. no routine blood monitoring means bob can spend his extra time however he likes. new zealand! xarelto® is just one pill a day, taken with the evening meal. and with no dietary restrictions, bob can eat the healthy foods he likes. do not stop taking xarelto® rivaroxaban without talking to the doctor who prescribes it for you. stopping may increase your risk of having a stroke.

get medical help right away if you develop any signs or symptoms of bleeding, like unusual bruising or tingling. you may have a higher risk of bleeding if you take xarelto® with aspirin products, nsaids or blood thinners. talk to your doctor before taking xarelto® if you currently have abnormal bleeding. xarelto® can cause bleeding, which can be serious, and rarely may lead to death. you are likely to bruise more easily on xarelto®, and it may take longer for bleeding to stop. tell your doctors you are taking xarelto® before any planned medical or dental procedures. before starting xarelto®, tell your doctor about any conditions, such as kidney, liver or bleeding problems. ready to change your routine? ask your doctor about once-a-day xarelto®. for more information including cost support options, call 1-888-xarelto or visit goxarelto.com. [ male announcer ] you wait all year for summer. ♪ this summer was definitely worth the wait.

♪ summer's best event from cadillac. let summer try and pass you by. lease this cadillac srx for around $369 per month or purchase for 0% apr for 60 months. come in now for the best offers of the model year. right now the fbi is reviewing a 50-year-old baby kidnapping case. in 1964 a woman disguised as a nurse snatched infant paul franzack from a chicago hospital. police and the fbi searched but could never find the baby. 14 months later in new jersey officials found an abandoned baby and thought he was the same child. that incompetent fant was returned to the parents from illinois. that boy now fully grown convinced his parents to take a

dna test. here's how franzack described the news in a public video. >> i am not the kidnapped baby that you had stolen from your arms on april 27th, 1964. this means that the real paul joseph franzack may still be out there and still be alive not knowing who he is. this also means that i do not really know who i am. >> nbc justice correspondent pete williams joins us. pete, this man doesn't know his actual age and who his parents are, but obviously people are confused as to how this even happened. how was the child given to the family in new jersey without any verification it seems? >> reporter: the child was found in newark, new jersey, and given to the parents who were in chicago and the police thought that it was the missing child. why they thought so isn't clear. there were no fingerprints. it isn't clear whether there were baby footprints which are

commonly on birth certificates, but in any event everybody seemed to be convinced that this was the missing child. apparently mr. franzack began to have doubts himself at quite an early age when he found some old newspaper clippings crawling around the attic of his parents' house. it was last october he says when he decided to ask his parents if they would be willing to submit to a dna test and earlier this year he got the results. the reason the fbi has now said they will reopen the case is they said they couldn't do so unless they found the original case files and after a 50-year-old case it was very unlikely they were still around but it turns out they were. the fbi has the original case files so they're re-opening the case now. who knows what they'll find. they hope that maybe technology, meaning dna and other evidence, will help them, and i think what they really hope is that all of this renewed attention may cause

someone to come forward who was aware of this at the time and never said anything. >> yeah, it's interesting also how a lot of this information got out. you've got this facebook page, who is paul fran zzack. he talks about waking up finding his whole identity is up in the air. they've had some luck with uncovering some documents, it seems like a needle in the haystack with all the time that's passed. >> without question. he's now a college administrator in henderson, nevada, family of his own, but this is a nagging question for him and he would like to see if it's resolved. of course, if the child who was actually kidnapped is not him, as it appears from the dna, he thinks that child would like to know it, too. there are loose ends to be tidied up. it is very much a long shot. >> it is. incredible story. thank you, pete, for the update.

>> you bet. still ahead, macy's and kroger's under fire after it shows they worked behind the scenes to kill an equal pay bill. now there are calls for boycotts. plus, san diego's mayor has been sued now -- is being sued by one of the 13 women accusing him of sexual harassment. he claims he can't get a fair trial in his own town. it's just one of the things we thought you should know. now yof a kick in the rear! v8 v-fusion plus energy. natural energy from green tea plus fruits and veggies. need a little kick? ooh! could've had a v8. in the juice aisle.

but, dad, you've got... [ voice of dennis ] allstate. with accident forgiveness, they guarantee your rates won't go up just because of an accident. smart kid. [ voice of dennis ] indeed. are you in good hands?

"that starts with one of the world's most advancedy," [ voice of dennis ] indeed. distribution systems," "and one of the most efficient trucking networks,"

"with safe, experienced drivers." "we work directly with manufacturers," "eliminating costly markups," "and buy directly from local farmers in every region of the country." "when you see our low prices, remember the wheels turning behind the scenes, delivering for millions of americans, everyday. "dedication: that's the real walmart" welcome back. right now kentucky senator rand paul is on a break from attending six different political events in his home state. just a week after going at it with new jersey governor chris christie, senator paul is hosting roundtable meet and greets with voters. well, a new poll out of new hampshire shows rand paul in second place behind chris christie but a second poll shows rubio has plummeted to last

place with 6%. is there a story line with the rising star and falling star with the likely presidential candidates in 2016. joining me is anna palmer. thanks for your time. >> thanks for having me. >> so when you look at this number or these numbers, again, this is a snapshot from new hampshire, rand paul, 16%. marco rubio scraping the bottom at 6%. are we seeing perhaps an early story line here? >> well, it's certainly telling a new bump, particularly for senator rubio. it's a little disconcerting. he's been out there in front for weeks and months pushing immigration reform. that has gotten some of the conservative base across the country upset. he's gotten crosswise and has gone into a quiet mode and hasn't spoken about immigration. has started taking up fiscal matters. you see him woo that right side again to make sure he is not at odds in the coming months as he decides whether or not to actually do a presidential bid. >> did he get a bump, meaning

rand paul, from the chris christie back and forth and marco rubio took a hit as we are seemingly stalled over comprehensive immigration reform? >> certainly rand paul has been out there on a lot of things. i don't know if we can attribute it to the chris christie fight. it drove that libertarian wing that he is like. he's been out front on some other controversial issues from military sexual assault, supporting taking that out of the chain of command, the decision to prosecute. he's also gone recently saying that he's going to have the plan for detroit, maybe needing a conservative bailout plan. he's hitting across the board. i don't know if we can attribute it to the christie issue. >> let me play a little bit of the matthews report yesterday. >> i predict the hard right is going to take over the republican party in 2016 and the nomination is going to rand paul. you watch. this is what i do for a living. >> and michael steel was on

"morning joe" and he said the conservatives will have to answer the question who is the true conservative in the crop of guys and gals, those are his words, when you're looking there. back to marco rubio. it seems some of the more conservative in the party quite honestly have this love caution, i won't say love hate, love caution regarding him. >> i think they have a real strong sense of love in terms of florida, in terms of the fact that he can bring them a huge hispanic and latino population which they struggled with last cycle. there's the issue of immigration reform which he's been very much out in front of. it's stalled past the senate gang of eight. he's taken a quiet approach on that because i think he's very aware that the right wing, some of the people that he wooed, the talk radio hosts can change in a second and really go against him. that can hurt him in terms of his national prospects in iowa and certainly new hampshire. >> anna palmer, thank you so

much for your time. great seeing you. >> thank you. a progressive group in texas is calling for a boycott of macy's and kroger's food store because of their opposition to an equal pay bill. now according to a report in the houston chronicle, macy's, kroger's, and other retailers lobbied governor rick perry to veto the bill which he ultimately did in june. the bill would have brought texas in line with the federal lily l li lily ledbetter fair pay act. it duplicated federal law but the author says she was shocked to find macy's and kroger's oppose the bill. and wendy davis who sponsored it in the state senate was surprised at the news. joining me is "huffington post" senior political reporter, amanda turkel. i'm surprised lawmakers would not be prepared for a lobby from some of these corporations who greatly benefit by not

supporting equal pay. >> well, i think what was a little bit sneaky about this is that they weren't really lobbying the legislature not to pass it quite as much so what they did though is they quietly sent these letters to governor perry so that, look, it's getting by the legislature but you, governor perry, can still veto it. that is where they focused their attention. >> what is perry saying now that this information has been made public. >> the governor's spokesman said that the governor listens to a wide range of voices on this. he didn't really say whether the retailers were a key constituency in the reason he vetoed the bill but there's a good chance that i think governor perry was probably not going to back this bill whether the retailers wrote in or not. >> as we mentioned, macy's and kroger's, the food chain, grocery store very popular in my home state obviously. what are they saying regarding this boycott especially when you think about who mostly shops at these stores?

>> right. i mean, that is part of the reason this group, progress texas, is doing a boycott, because they say these groups try to present themselves as very woman friendly, very mom friendly, very family friendly and then they are saying they're against this equal pay bill. texas says it relied on the texas retailers association, this business group that said we don't need this bill. there are already federal ways for women to sue for discrimination. i've contacted macy's and so far they haven't responded. >> 42 states have passed equal pay law. women currently make 77 cents for every dollar men earn. what are some of the female lawmakers who now have the spotlight on them after wendy davis took her stand, what are they saying out of texas is the next move? >> one state senator has already canceled an august 7th event in texas at a macy's store for a tax free weekend. she's canceled it.

she was upset about that. there may be some blow back coming new future. >> amanda terkel, thank you for joining us on this report. >> thank you. still ahead, a new study shows programs that combat childhood obesity like the first lady's "let's move campaign" may be working. we'll show you which states have made the most progress when it comes to childhood obesity. some of the most popular small cars struggling in a new type of crash test. which cars fared the best and which did the worse? speaking of crashes, this is amazing. dramatic tour bus crash is caught on tape. in china. surveillance video shows the moment a truck slammed into the bus as the driver reversed down a highway after missing an exit. the impact so severe the driver flies out of the side window. another clip shows passengers

being tossed around the bus. 22 of them suffered various injuries. the driver in the truck was killed. [ man ] look how beautiful it is. ♪ honey, we need to talk. we do? i took the trash out.

i know. and thank you so much for that. i think we should get a medicare supplement insurance plan. right now? [ male announcer ] whether you're new to medicare or not, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. it's up to you to pay the difference. so think about an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan, insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. like all standardized medicare supplement insurance plans, they help cover some of what medicare doesn't pay. i did a little research. with a medicare supplement plan, you'll be able to stay with your doctor. oh, you know, i love that guy. mm-hmm. [ male announcer ] these types of plans let you visit any doctor or hospital that accepts medicare patients. and there are no networks. is this a one-size-fits-all kind of thing? no. there are lots of plan options. it all depends on what we need and how much we want to spend. [ male announcer ] call now to request your free decision guide. it could help you find an aarp medicare supplement plan that's right for you.

what happens when we travel? the plans go with us. anywhere in the country. i like that. you know what else? unitedhealthcare insurance company has years and years of experience. what do you say? ♪ i'm in. [ male announcer ] join the millions already enrolled in the only medicare supplement insurance plans endorsed by aarp. remember, all medicare supplement plans help cover some of what medicare doesn't pay and could really save you in out-of-pocket medical costs. you'll be able to choose your own doctor or hospital as long as they accept medicare patients. and with these plans, there could be low or no copays. you do your push-ups today? prepare to be amazed. [ male announcer ] don't wait. call today to request your free decision guide and find the aarp medicare supplement plan to go the distance with you. go long. so, if you're sleeping in your contact lenses, what you wear to bed is your business. ask about the air optix® contacts so breathable they're approved for up to 30 nights of continuous wear.

serious eye problems may occur. ask your doctor and visit airoptix.com for safety information and a free one-month trial. tens of thousands of supporters that oppose egyptian president morsi held a post ramadan prayer. his rarely seen wife made a surprise appearance on stage at the main demonstration in cairo. egyptian -- egypt's military has not yet followed through on its threat to break up the sit-in by force but tensions certainly are running high. yesterday authorities declared that attempts by others have failed and that the decision to remove pro morsi protesters is time. ayman molvedin is there.

it seems like it's only a mama ter of ti-- matter of time that something will happen. >> reporter: it's very difficult to assess that. it is unlikely anything will happen now. the atmosphere in cairo is perhaps as festive as it has been in the past several years. as a result of that, we are seeing some calmness, if you will, on the streets. there's no doubt after the religious holiday is over, there will be questions of whether they'll try to crack that down. there have been some indications that the negotiations are over and that the dialogue has now failed. diplomatic efforts have failed. that leaves them no choice but to use force to try to break up these protests. certainly in the coming several days we'll get a better sense of it. the interim government has come out and said they are required by law to break up the protests. they are not safe.

they pose a risk to national security. they have laid the ground work and they have laid the public groundwork for saying public dialogue is not over yet. that's what some within the government are still trying to do. a late night shooting rampage in the dallas area tops our stories in the texas area. an explosive device was used in the two separate shootings. four people killed and four others injured. police took a suspect into custody at the site of the second shooting. the fbi and other agencies are involved. and people in nashville, tennessee, are trying to clean up there. heavy rain caused flash flooding early this morning. some people had to evacuate to their roofs in order to get away. so far there have been no reports, thankfully, of any

injuries. results from a new crash test show that half of the small cars tested did not do well. the tests performed by the insurance institute for highway safety mimics frontal impact crashes. among the cars that received a poor crash rating are the 2013 nissan sentra and the 2013 kia soul. cars that were deemed marginal, 2013 chevy sonic and the 2013 volkswagen beetle. both nissan and kia issued statements to nbc standing by the safety of their cars. the honda civic got the best rating among the small cars tested. well, in recent years we've seen all kinds of initiatives aimed at getting kids to eat healthier and be active. perhaps most notably the first lady's let's move campaign. now it appears some of the hard work is paying off. a new study by the sentences centers for disease control shows for the first time in decades the number of obese children in the u.s. is, in fact, declining. between 2008 and 2011 obesity

rates dropped or stayed the same in 40 states you see shaded on that screen and at least 18 states the rate of obesity among low income preschoolers dropped. researchers tracked the height and weight of nearly 12 million low income 2 and 4-year-olds. when it comes to what's contributing to the drop, experts are pointing to a number of factors including changes to the government's wic program to emphasize healthier foods and an increase in breast feeding. the campaign has more than 10,000 child care programs participating. joining me is mimi ross, the national action against obesity. thanks so much for joining us. >> thanks, tamron. >> how do you process this? is this good news or are we desperate for something? >> i think both. we are desperate for something and good news. i think it's a signal that we let childhood obesity get as bad as we were going to let it get as a society. i think we're starting to see the shift.

i have to say, tamron, childhood obesity has been in the mainstream headlines for a decade. when you see a child under the age of 10, who's under the age of 5 and is overweight, we all owe that child an apolapology. we've known what to do and we have failed most children. >> when you look at the map, states that showed a decline, 18 states, i won't read all 18 of them, some of the highlights, california, new mexico, minnesota, minnesota, georgia, florida. i point out mississippi, minnesota, georgia, and florida. we know the stereotypes that probably are quite true when you look at the food culture of some of those southern states. >> the southeast does struggle. i come from a long line of obesity. i think the real message is it doesn't matter where you live. it doesn't matter if your mother, grandmother, father, aunts, uncles, in my case, they're all obese. that doesn't mean i have to be obese. we're seeing a transition.

>> so preschool the study was followed preschoolers. that is such a smart move. that's where it has to happen. >> i want to read the first lady's response to the numbers. she says today's announcement reaffirms my belief that together we are making a real difference in helping kids across the country get a healthier start to life. i see it as a balance of kids. you can play the video games but you can go on your bike.

i know it's not always easy to nurse. it was tricky. i had a lifestyle that made it doable for me. so i hope that i'm so glad to see more women nursing. i'm so glad to see that this is being addressed. that zero to five age bracket, so important. >> thank you so much. pleasure having you on. >> thanks, tamron. coming up, the head of the rnc barring nbc and cnn over planned hillary specials. and be sure to like the

"news nation" on facebook. we're at facebook.com/newsnalgs. because all these whole grains aren't healthy unless you actually eat them ♪ multigrain cheerios. also available in delicious peanut butter. healthy never tasted so sweet. the ones that let you call for help. and i said, "that's not for me! that's for some old person!" but we finally talked my mom into calling adt. then, one day, i slipped and broke my hip. the pain was terrible, and i couldn't get to the phone. i needed an ambulance, so i pushed the button. it's okay, mrs. anderson. the paramedics are on their way. it was so good to hear adt at the other end. [ male announcer ] adt home health security services. with one touch of a button, you can summon help from anywhere in your home and talk with adt's trained professionals, who can call for emergency assistance and even stay on the line until help arrives. 1 out of every 3 people over 65 will fall this year. adt helps you maintain your independence starting at just over $1 a day.

call now to receive free activation and a free guide to living alone. i'm glad adt could call for help. so am i. [ male announcer ] protect your independence. call today for more information and ask about special discounts for aarp members. adt. always there.

welcome back. you can join the "news nation" on twitter. find our twitter page, it's @newsnation. there's a lot of things going on today. here's some things we thought you should know. san diego's mayor filner is requesting a change of venue. he filed a motion saying he can't get a fair trial in san diego because of the media coverage. his former communication director is suing him and the city. he's now undergoing behavioral treatment. the chair of the republican national committee is standing firm in his threat to exclude nbc and cnn from the 2016 presidential primary debates if they go ahead with planned projects on hillary clinton. he knew he would be treated fairly by the shows hosts, it wouldn't necessarily be the case

he feels during the election. >> i'm not going to have you moderate the republican debate -- >> why not. >> in the primary. there's a difference. >> why not? >> because you're not interested -- because you're not actually interested in the future of the republican party and our nominees. that's not a slam on you, mika, but i have to choose moderators that are actually interested in the republican party and our nominees. it's not going to be nbc if they continue to go forward with this mini series. >> in a statement nbc news says it is completely independents of nbc entertainment and has no involvement in this project. he'd be open to having a talk radio debate. the pentagon is going to provide same sex spouses certain benefits like benefits and housing. they'll provide benefits to unmarried gay partners and will

allow them to take ten days of unpaid leave to travel to states where they can get married. those are just things we thought you should know. time for the "news nation" gut check. on the judge's decision to allow major nadal to continue to represent himself. earlier the military barred the attorneys from dropping the case or being allowed to take over. the attorneys say hasan is trying to convince jurors to convict him and give him the death penalty. the judge's ruling is causing them to violate their rules of conduct. the judge says she's surprised that this is causing a moral dilemma. here's a question. should the judge allow the attorneys assisting nadal hasan to recuse themselves from the case? they say being on the case is morally repugnant. go to our site to cast your vote. thanks for hanging with us. i'm tamron hall. "the cycle" is up next. okay, a? b?

b. a? that's a great choice. let me show you some faucets to go along with that. with the latest styles and guaranteed low prices, you can turn the bath you have into the bath you want. good choice. more saving. more doing. that's the power of the home depot. right now, this abbey vanity combo is a special buy. just $299. [announcer] there's no hiding the beneful baked delights.from new heartfuls are made with real bacon... ...and oven-baked to crisp perfection. new heartfuls from beneful baked delights.

and you know what i walked out with? [ slurps ] [ dad ] a new passat. [ dad ] 0% apr. 60 months. done and done. [ dad ] in that driveway, is a german-engineered piece of awesome. that i got for 0% apr. good one, dad. thank you, dalton.

[ male announcer ] it's the car you won't stop talking about. ever. hurry in to the volkswagen best. thing. ever. event. and get 0% apr for 60 months, now until september 3rd. that's the power of german engineering.

i'm abby huntsman. breaking news on "the cycle" today. 60 square miles burning near l.a. historic flooding near nashville. rooftop rescues are happening right now. we'll bring you that video. >> i'm jonathan in for terraine. how does that saying go, penny wise and pound foolish. i'm krystall ball, president obama does something no sitting president has ever done. the reaction is mixed. we'll tell you what we think about it. >> jfk's final days on earth. we uncover the good, the bad and some of the downright ugly. we'll get to some of that plus the file straight out of hollywood. people are deciding the fate of whitey bulger and they're about to finish the job. that, my friends, was a mafia reference.

the untouch abls in minutes, hours, perhaps even days reputed boston mobster whitey bulger will learn if he is, in fact, untouchable. a jury is deliberating in a racket tearing trial against him. a judge reminded them they need to reach a unanimous verdict. a conviction could result in life behind bars. only has this trial lasted two months already but bulger was untouchable for almost 17 years after he fled boston in the mid '90s, it wasn't until 2011 and all the way in southern california when he was finally captured. now we wait for a new chapter to close in this mafia tale. where the truth is often stranger than fiction. we have