making news in america this morning, tropical storm cindy pounding the gulf coast. forecasters are warning of high winds, heavy rains and flooding. we're live in the storm's path. president trump hits the road with a late night rally in iowa. his new plans for immigration and the wall along the southern border, plus, after the closed door meeting senate republicans will reveal their health care plan today. what we already know about it. the stabbing of an officer at an airport is now being investigated as a possible act of terrorism. what we're learning overnight as police raid the suspect's home. and out of the hospital and showing off her arm, the officer wounded at the congressional baseball practice throwing out a first pitch.

a good thursday morning to you all. we are keeping a close eye on cindy. >> yeah, take a look at what a wide area is affected by the storm. nearly all of the u.s. gulf coast from texas to florida. the heavy rain and winds also extend quite a way inland. >> this is the scene right now at george bush airport in houston complete with raindrops on the camera lens in looks clear. >> only a handful of flights to and from houston have been canceled so far but airline passengers should keep checking with their carriers. >> besides flooding and rough seas tornadoes and waterspouts are likely today. like this one that was spotted off pensacola, florida. abc's marci gonzalez is about 300 miles to the west of there in lake charles, louisiana. marci, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, kendis and diane. yeah, right now it's just a bit drizzly and breezy here so while it may not be that bad here, some areas are getting soaked, bracing for more than a foot of rain and that is just a part of the storm's expected impact.

with pounding rain and wind guffs up to 65 miles an hour, the first tropical system to make landfall this season is hitting the gulf coast. the effects being felt across five states. >> being prepared for the worst. >> reporter: tropical storm cindy is bringing the expected, already leaving parts of grand isle, louisiana and this neighborhood in galveston, texas, underwater. >> it could be worse. and that is a good thing because i've been through quite a few of them. >> reporter: with voluntary evacuations ordered for some low-lying areas, elsewhere storm hearty southerners with sandbags ready and supplies bought are riding out this storm. >> you know, we made a thing out of it, okay, everybody, one room, we're going to, you know, bring the water, bring the lanterns, bring everything. >> reporter: tropical storm cindy is already blamed for at least one death. a 10-year-old boy hit by a log picked up by the storm surge on an alabama beach. a state of emergency declared

alabama and louisiana. there and across the storm zone -- >> i've never seen the waves this big. >> reporter: -- concerns of flash flooding, power outages. >> it's notorious for losing electricity. >> reporter: and tornadoes with the leading edge of this storm filled with funnel clouds and one already possibly touching down in the florida panhandle. >> thank god nobody was hurt. yeah, this is terrible. >> reporter: and the risk of tornadoes continues throughout today and into tomorrow as the storm moves inland. kendis and diane. >> all right, marci, we know just because it looks calm means it will stay that way. you're expecting 5 to 8 inches there. take all the precautions you need. marci gonzalez from lake charles, louisiana. thanks, marci. to the president who is back in washington this morning after taking a victory lap in iowa overnight. >> the president addressed supporters at a campaign-style rally in cedar rapids vesseling in a string of conditional wins by republicans and slammed democrats and offered up new

abc's janai norman has the latest. >> reporter: president trump still under siege in washington went back to his base wednesday rallying al baghdadi a crowd in the heartland. >> we have made amazing progress. >> reporter: at his fifth rally since taking office trump talked about plans for new immigration rules and his belief anyone seeking admission to the u.s. should be able to support themselves financially. >> and should not use welfare for a period of at least five years. >> reporter: plus, a new plan for the wall along the u.s./mexico border. a wall trump insists mexico will pay for. >> we're thinking about building the wall as a solar wall. >> reporter: and true to form, the president railed against the media and democrats. >> if we went and got the single greatest health care plan in the history of the world, we would not get one democrat vote because they're

they're obstructionists. >> reporter: but the president without a single major legislative achievement and who is reported to be under investigation for obstruction of justice didn't fail to make headlines. he referenced his secretary of commerce wilbur ross' presence at the rally noting why his cabinet is full of billionaires. he doesn't want poor people in positions of power on economic issues. >> i love all people, rich or poor. but in those particular positions, i just don't want a poor person. does that make sense? >> reporter: and this comes as the congressional black caucuses refused to meet with president trump over his policies arguing some significantly hurt low income americans and it's worth noting the president's proposed 2018 budget includes more than a trillion dollars in cuts over the next decade to government programs like medicaid and food stamps. kendis and diane. >> janai, worth noting wilbur ross is worth $2.5 billion. definitely not poor. the president also said he hopes to deliver a new health care plan with

the senate is working on its version of the legislation behind closed doors set to be released today. congressional aides say the bill would drastic cut made cade and penalties on people not buying coverage and block federal funding to planned parenthood. unlike the house measure it keeps obamacare subsidies based on income instead of age. harassment are getting a clearer picture of the scope of russian attempts to interfere in the u.s. election. officials outlined efforts to hack into electronic electric systems in nearly two dozen states and flood the internet with misinformation. former homeland security chief jeh johnson told the house intelligence committee that he offered assistance to the states as he became increasingly concerned. >> in 2016 the russian government at the direction of vladimir putin himself orchestrated cyberattacks on our nation. that is a fact plain and simple. >> johnson said the hacking did not change the election totals but he wasn't sure if other meddling influenced public opinion and thereby the

and russia has canceled a meeting aimed at improving relations with the united states. a top state department official was headed to st. petersburg to meet with his russian counterpart when the talks were called off. russia says the u.s. ruined the meeting by announcing updated sanctions and refusing to turn over two russian diplomatic compounds in maryland and new york. one more note about russia and the scandal. president's son-in-law is facing more scrutiny over his security clearance. democrats say credible allegations about jared kushner's contacts with russian officials should be enough to suspend his access to sensitive information. they're demanding to see the security clearance applications and all related documents from kushner and former national security adviser michael flynn. both men had failed to disclose their meetings with top level russian officials. in the meantime, kushner is focusingen on other things like attempting to restart the stalled peace talks and met with benjamin netanyahu in jerusalem to discuss potential next steps in the process. it was followed by a meeting in the west bank

palestinian president, mahmoud abbas. the white house played down any expectations for a quick result saying forging peace will take time. investigators are digging into the life of the man accused of stabbing an officer at the flint, michigan, airport. the suspect, amor ftouhi lived in montreal. authorities there have raided his home. a published report this morning claims ftouhi is a dual citizen of canada and tunisia. he is accused of stabbing that officer in the neck while yelling, god is great in arabic. the fbi is looking into it as an act of terrorism. officer jeff neville is listed in stable condition. >> a look at your weather now. residents of the southwest are bracing for another day of blistering heat. temperatures will be 10 to 15 degrees above normal. phoenix has set new records each of the past three days making it tough to fight

several homes destroyed by fire in southern arizona. that was probably sparked by lightning. about 150 homes in new mexico were evacuated because of a fire there. but that fire is now contained and those residents were being allowed to go home overnight. well, still ahead right herage american kidnapped by the taliban last year seen alive in a new video. an abc news exclusive in the rocky mountain treasure hunt. that's turned deadly. what police are demanding from the author behind the hunt. plus, guns, ammunition and a massive machete. a man is accused of having this cache of weapons at a train station. was he planning an attack?

i was kidnapped along with my colleague tim weeks by the taliban from kabul. my captors treat me well. >> so that is new video of kevin king, an american held by the taliban for nearly a year now. and king is heard there appealing to president trump to negotiate a prisoner exchange for his release. the taliban kidnapped king from the american university in kabul last year. he is a teacher at that university and in the video he's seen with an australian colleague, it's the first time they've been seen since january when the taliban released a similar video. an air national guard pilot is recovering this morning after his f-16 fighter jet caught fire and crashed. it happened yesterday at ellington airfield in houston. the pilot on a norad training flight managed to eject before the crash but nearby

neighborhoods had to be evacuated as the team worked to secure the air-to-air missiles that plane was carrying and no one on the ground was hurt. the pilot got away with only minor injuries. meanwhile, on the west coast a dramatic rescue caught on camera as three men were plunged into san francisco bay after their catamaran capsized hatching just five minutes before a ferry was able to rescue one of them. five minutes later the coast guard scooped up the other two. the thing is all three men were not wearing the proper life jackets or even the proper clothing. they were all treated for mild hypothermia. very lucky those bystanders were there. the condition of congressman steve scalise has been upgraded to fair gravely wounded when a gunman opened fire on congressional republicans during their baseball practice. his doctors say the louisiana lawmaker is making good progress and starting a long period of rehabilitation. the capitol police officer crystal griner also injured during the baseball practice shoot-out is making good progress. you e

throwing out the first pitch at last night's congressional women's softball game. it's an annual game between lawmakers from both parties as well as members of the media. humble brag here, abc's mary bruce scored the game's first run in the media's 2-1 win. >> yeah. all right. i know if we have a company softball game, mary bruce, that's who i'm recruiting. all right, when we come back an abc news exclusive. jurors in the bill cosby trial are talking about what happened during deliberations. hear what led to that mistrial. and why the wildly popular fidget spinners just landed on a list of most dangerous toys. own fighting robots. s hr destroy. but when it comes to mortgages, she's less confident. fortunately for sarah, there's rocket mortgage by quicken loans. it's simple, so she can understand the details

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damage. >> besides the gulf coast drivers this morning will also find wet roads throughout most of the south and most of the interior northeast as well as much of the upper midwest. >> if you're flying expect airport delays in new orleans, houston, denver and chicago. authorities in new mexico are calling for the end of a treasure hunt that led to people actually being killed. >> they're calling the hunt nonsense and also insanity. after a man died while looking for hidden chest. abc's clayton sandell with the details. >> reporter: people are literally dying to find forrest fenn's infamous treasure and now new mexico's top cop wants it to end. he claims he's hidden a chest full of golds among other thing worth millions. a second person has died trying to find it. paris wallace found sunday was a colorado pastor. fenn says one of the points of his treasure hunt is to get people exploring the great

is not hidden anywhere dangerous and if people are putting their lives at risk to find it they're looking in the wrong place. he says i have given a lot of thought about ending the search but i'm not sure what that would accomplish. clayton sandell, abc news, denver. >> a jury in wisconsin has found a former milwaukee cop not guilty in the killing of a black man. it sparked two days of riots. that officer dominique hagan brown was cleared of charges in smith's death. smith was armed when he ran from the officer raf a traffic stop and was shot twice dropping his gun between those shots. prosecutors argued he was defenseless at the time of the second shot. the defense claimed the officer feared for his life. and police say these were the weapons a 28-year-old man was carrying when he was arrested at a pasadena, california, train station. now, in addition to the assault rifle and that huge knife, the man had plenty of ammunition along with a bible and a

no connection to terrorism has been found. now for an abc news exclusive on the bill cosby sex assault trial. the pennsylvania jury deliberated more than 50 hours before a mistrial was declared over the weekend. now a juror who asked to remain anonymous tells abc news that two hold-outs prevented a guilty verdict and in the words of this juror, the hold-outs were just not moving no matter what. at one point during the deliberations one juror punched a concrete wall and broke his pinkie. we're going to have much more on this and these shocking revelations on "good morning america." well, flu season officially ended last month but this morning, we're hearing that this past season's flu vaccine did a poor job of protecting some americans. health officials say despite the vaccine being well matched to flu bugs it was essentially ineffective in protecting dulls 18 to 49 as well as seniors over 65. however, it was about 60% effective among young children. a consumer

souping a new alarm over fidget spinner toys. the world against toys causing harm issued its summer safety report warning that the spinners can fall apart and those small pieces create a choking hazard. children in at least two states have been rushed to hospitals with at least one of those children requiring surgery. up next in "the pulse," oscar winner and billion dollar businessman, well, he's now selling a company too for a small fortune. and the chest baring statue of a former president. can you guess which president this is? well, it's turning heads. t it c, 'cause different sides of you struggle with which ones to make. well, what if you kept making good ones? then? you could love your numbers. discover once-daily invokana®, a pill used along with diet and exercise to significantly lower blood sugar

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may cause low blood sugar. the choice is yours. ♪ lower your blood sugar with invokana®. imagine loving your numbers. there's only one invokana®. ask your doctor about it by name. hdid you get that email i sente wyou...before you wake up. ... when life keeps you up... zzzquil helps you fall asleep in less than 20 minutes. because sleep is a beautiful thing. ♪ time for your thursday "pulse" starting with new dad george clooney amassing quite a nest egg in one shot. has nothing to do with his acting career. >> clooney is

tequila brand in a whopping billion dollar deal. the british company that owns guinness is offering $700 million up front and then the rest over a period of time. >> clooney will have to share the proceeds with his business partner and friend rande gerber who, of course, is married to cindy crawford. they founded casamigos tequila just about four years ago. >> billion dollars and four years. not too shabby. >> not bad at all. prince harry is dropping a bombshell family secret. >> in a revealing interview with "newsweek" magazine harry revealed that no one in his family wants to be king or queen. he said as this generation of royals modernizes, the monarchy, none of them really wants the job but he says that they'll carry out their duties at the right time. he also calls the monarchy a force for good and captain obvious, no one will be able to fill the boots of his grandmother, the queen who has been on the throne for 60 years. a statue of the nation's 16th president is turng

heads in chicago. >> so check out this nine-foot-tall depiction of a young abraham lincoln getting some buzz. see if you can tell why. metal muscles perhaps. also got that flowing hair. >> great hair. >> some are saying it really comes down to the half buttoned shirt. got a new nickname, by the way, babe-raham. >> one reviewer says young abe linc a state of

in louisiana, with tropical storm cindy hitting the gulf. at least one death is already being blamed on the storm. in alabama, police say large waves slammed a log into a 10-year old boy, killing him. good morning washington. toss to eileen

alert today - hottest day of the week today (low 90s) - rain tomorrow; very humid & breezy - turning nice saturday afternoon & great sunday! today: hot and humid. isolated pm thunderstorm. highs: 89-92 winds: sw 5-10 mph tonight: mostly cloudy. warm and muggy. showers developing by dawn. lows: 68-75 winds: sw 5-10 mph friday: am showers. very humid & breezy. isolated pm thunderstorms. highs: 87-90 winds: sw 10-15 g 25+

d-c police may be headed to court over arrests during the inauguration day protests. the a-c-l-u filed a lawsuit against the department, chief peter newsham, and the city. the organization claims police officers didn't just lock up rioters... but they also rounded up many peaceful demonstrators who were protesting legally. the lawsuit makes a variety of claims including excessive force - and denying people food and access to bathrooms for up to 16 hours. the department says it will investigate any allegations of misconduct. so far-- a dozen people have pleaded investigate any allegations of misconduct. so far-- a dozen

guilty to various crimes stemming from the inauguration day riots. also happening today-- bryan moles is due back in court. moles was arrested last month after police say he checked into the trump international hotel, with an arsenal in his car. he was released and told to stay away from the district. but police say the pennsylvania man came back, used drugs, and made cryptic comments about last week's shooting of majority whip steve scalise. a judge has revoked his release, and is order moles to undergo a mental evaluation. elsewhere in the district-- a guilty plea in a charity fraud case. the washington post - reports john burch - pleaded guilty to wire fraud- for embezzling 150-thousand dollars. burch is the former head of a d-c charity for vietnam veterans. he reportedly took donations meant for veterans families- and used the money for unrelated meals and hotel stays. he's facing 18 months in prison and a 55-thousand dollar fine. sentencing- set for october. the countdown is on. in less than two months, nasa expects a total eclipse of the sun. something that hasn't happened in nearly a century. while a solar

every 18 months somewhere on the globe...this one will be seen across the country on august 21st. if you want to see it safely...you'll need a pair of solar glasses. if miss this year's eclipse, you will have to wait 40 years to see the next one. it's xx and we're just getting started. tropical storm cindy-- preparing to make landfall. the storm's impact already proving deadly in the south. our stormwatch weather team now tracking its path. complete stormwatch coverage, coming up . good morning washington. i'm larry smith. and i'm autria gofrey. lets get right to the tropical storm that already lashing states in the gulf. marci gonzalez is live down in lake charles louisiana. good morning marci. how are the conditions down there?

- code orange air quality alert today - hottest day of the week today (low 90s)