it's tuesday, july 28th. this morning, terror in carolina. the fbi arrests a group of men charging them with planning terror attacks in the name of islam. the call just released. 911 recordings shed new light on the controversial arrest of a harvard professor. and ready to play. once a role model for many, michael vick gets a green light from the nfl after serving time. michael vick gets a green light from the nfl after serving time. but will any team take him? captions paid for by abc, inc. good morning. thanks for joining us on this tuesday. it is the second case in just a

week of american citizens charged with supporting radical islamic terrorism. >> seven north carolina men, alleged to have trained here at home for a, quote, violent jihad overseas. >> this morning, the men are being held at an undisclosed lockup, far from the town where they trained. john hendren has the details. >> reporter: good morning, jeremy and vinita. a senior law enforcement official tells abc news, if alleged plot in rural north carolina, is the latest example of islamic radicals recruiting on american soil. the fbi is calling it a homegrown terror plot. seven north carolina men are charged with supporting terrorism and conspiring to commit murder abroad. the fbi raided the home of the alleged ring leader, 39-year-old daniel boyd. maybes say they're bewildered. >> it's scary to me. to be honest with you.

that makes me nervous for my children. i spoke with him on several occasions. and never was there any idea that he was involved in something like that. >> reporter: according to the indictment, daniel boyd went to pakistan and afghanistan, and received military-style training in terrorist training camps for the purpose of engaging in violent jihad. it also says he fought the soviets in afghanistan. >> the recruitment to radical jihadist movements, as well as homegrown terrorists, who want to attack us here in the united states. and the real problem is, how do you figure out who they are? >> reporter: last week, a 26-year-old long island man was charged with joining al qaeda, attacking u.s. soldiers in afghanistan, and giving al qaeda details about the new york transit system. and the fbi is investigating why more than 20 young men have gone to wage jihad in somalia. the fbi says the north carolina men raised money and were willing to die as martyrs. the men are not accused of

plotting attacks in the united states. but u.s. officials fear that young men like these will soon begin to plot attacks here on american soil. jeremy and vinita? >> john, do we know anything about the relationships between these men or how they met? >> we know that daniel boyd, apparently recruited his two sons. that the other guys are generally men in their 20s. one of them is in his 30s. we don't know where they met. they apparently weren't going to a mosque. at least daniel boyd was not. and one mosque in the area, the islamic association of raleigh, is distancing themselves from boyd. so a lot to come out. >> john hendren this morning. thanks. we'll have more on these terror arrests coming up later on "good morning america." also this morning, there's major developments in the criminal investigation of michael jackson east death. abc news has learned that the investigators will likely list the powerful drug propofol as a contributing factor.

and sources say there were other prescription drugs in jackson's system. according to the associated press, dr. conrad murray injected jackson with propofol just after midnight on the day he died. attorneys for murray deny he caused jackson's death. the race debate that exploded after the arrest of herry louis gates may play out thursday evening. that's when president obama, professor gates, and sergeant crowley will meet for a beer at the white house. >> reporter: cambridge city officials say they are releasing the tapes to put this incident behind them. >> there's no way we can continue to go forward, if there's any lingering doubt that there is anything being hidden. >> reporter: and so, they made public the phone call that started it all. >> can you tell me exactly what happened. >> i don't know what's happening. i just had an older woman

standing here. and she noticed gentlemen trying to get in a house. >> reporter: the caller, walking by on a lunch break, is clearly confused by what she sees. >> they had to barge in. and they broke the screen door. and they finally got in. and when i looked. i went closer to the house a little bit, i noticed two suitcases. i'm not sure if these are two individuals who actually work there. or who live there. >> reporter: contrary to the police report, she was not specify that the men are black. >> were they white, black or hispanic? >> well, they were two, larger men. one looked kind of hispanic. but i'm not sure. >> reporter: when sergeant crowley arrives at the scene, he radios headquarters. and it's clear that gates has told him he live there's. >> gentleman says he resides here. but keep the cars going. >> copy. >> reporter: there are still a lot of questions because there's no types of what transpired between gates and crowley. the sergeant is back on the beat. and the city of cambridge is ready to move on.

yunji de nies, abc news, cambridge. don't expect to see a lot of republican sub port for supreme court nominee sonia sotomayor, when the senate judiciary committee holds its confirmation vote today. only one committee republican has said he's voting for her. the government is putting an all-out emergency call on the obesity epidemic. health officials told a second day of meetings today to address the crisis. here's sharyn alfonsi. >> reporter: a normal weight person spends about $3,400 on medical expenses every year. an obese person, nearly $4,900. those figures were released on the first cdc conference on obesity. >> this is not a result of a change in our genes. what has changed is our environment. >> reporter: the cdc is now lobbying lawmakers to take the lead, encouraging them to slim their cities, by doing everything from creating parks,

to moving schools within walking distance of residential areas. but who will pay for all that? well, health officials seem to like the idea of a federal soda tax. they say we consume about 250 more calories a day than we did just 20 years ago. and most of those calories come from a soda can. still, supporters say it could cut health care costs. and america's ever-expanding bottom line, all in once. sharyn alfonsi, abc news, new york. and now, the bottom line for this morning's weather from around the nation. stormy today in parts of the midwest and central plains, with hail, gusty winds and heavy rain, from michigan to colorado. heavy downpours from east texas, into the southeast. scattered thunderstorms over the rockies and florida. and very hot in parts of the west. >> that's right. a blistering 115 in phoenix. 102 in portland. and 95 in seattle. mid-80s in st. louis, detroit

and indianapolis. 77 in the twin cities. seasonable along the east coast, with temperatures near 90 from boston to miami. it's 89 in new orleans. and 92 in dallas. and still to come this morning, market momentum. housing sales pick up with the biggest gain in nearly a decade. and perilous plunge. a kayaker drops off a giant waterfall and lives to tell the tale. i never thought it could happen to me... a heart attack at 53. i had felt fine. but turns out... my cholesterol and other risk factors... increased my chance of a heart attack. i should've done something. now, i trust my heart to lipitor. when diet and exercise are not enough, adding lipitor may help. unlike some other cholesterol .lowering medications,, lipitor is fda approved .to reduce the risk..., of heart attack, stroke, and certain kinds ! of heart surgeries... in patients with several common risk factors... or heart disease. lipitor has been extensively studied...

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the housing market is in

focus again today, with everyone looking for more signs of a rebound. a report out this morning details home prices in the top metro areas of the country. new numbers yesterday showed sales of new homes jumped 11% last month. that is the biggest monthly gain since 2000. and much better than economists expected. >> this has been a sector of the u.s. economy that's been a drag on the u.s. economy for almost four years now. and the fact that it's moving into positive territory, that's a significant shift of momentum for the u.s. economy. >> one reason homes are selling is because prices have tumbled. they're down an average of 12% from last year. some disappointing earnings report offset the good housing numbers. tokyo's nikkei average was virtually unchanged today, ticking down a point. hong kong's hang seng is higher. in london, the ftse opened higher. wall street starts the day with the dow at 9108, after gaining 15 points yesterday. the nasdaq added 2 points to

close at 1967. rising oil prices are pushing up gas prices again. prices at the pump rose 4 cents in the past week to an average of $2.50 a gallon. it was the first increase in a month. well, with more people managing their bank accounts online or on their phones, there appears to be less of a need for bank branches. "the wall street journal" is reporting bank of america will close about 10% of its 6,100 branches because of these changing customer preferences. the bank didn't say when it would close the branches. verizon wireless is fighting for the right to claim it has the nation's most reliable network. the company asked a federal court to rule that its advertisements are truthful and accurate. at&t challenged those ads saying that verizon came up with a new formula for calculating reliability. still to come on this tuesday, the healing powers of a popular candy. can it work on a devastating injury? and a controversial move by

the nfl. sending michael vick back to the gridiron, after serving time in prison. how does jell-o sugar free pudding fit all that rich,

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welcome back. these are the latest headlines from abc news. the fbi has arrested seven men in north carolina, accusing them of training for terror missions overseas. new reports indicate michael jackson's personal doctor injected him with the anesthetic propofol, the night before his death. abc news has learned the drug will likely be listed as a contributing factor in michael jackson's death. and defense secretary gates arrived in iraq overnight, to meet with u.s. troops and talk with iraqi leaders. here at home, michael vick says he is grateful for getting another chance to play in the nfl. >> there are conditions. and in order to play, vick must first find a team that wants him

diana alvear has more. >> vick, looking for the 40. he's got it. >> reporter: former atlanta falcons quarterback, michael vick, may soon be back on the field. monday, nfl commissioner, roger goodell, announced he had been reinstated, with conditions. >> whether he makes it on the field for the nfl, is something to be determined on the field. but he has big decisions off the field to make, in the way he conducts himself. >> reporter: while no team has indicated any interest in signing vick as of yet, his reinstatement, allows him to take part in preseason practices, workouts and meetings. even play in the final two preseason games. vick was suspended indefinitely from the nfl, after pleading guilty to federal dogfighting charges in 2007. a raid of his virginia estate, yielded equipment typically used in dogfighting, as well as

several dogs that were in such bad shape, they had to be euthanized. >> my deepest apologies to everyone. >> reporter: vic's incourse nation was a stunning fall from grace. the quarterback set several records, and earned millions from lucrative endorsement deals. deals that ended with his arrest. he filed for bankruptcy shortly thereafter. following goodell's announcement, vick issued a statement thanking him. saying, quote, the last two years have given me time to re-evaluate my life, mature as an individual, and understand the terrible mistakes i made in the past. diana alvear, abc news. pete rose is approaching the 20th anniversary of being banned from baseball for gambling. it's been reported that baseball commissioner bud selig has been seriously considering reinstating rose. but sources tell our colleagues at espn, that selig has not changed his thinking about rose's status. a new study finds texting behind the wheel may be even more dangerous than drunk driving.

researchers at virginia tech, found texting while driving ins your chances of having an accident by 23 times. the study was conducted on truckers. but researchers say the high risk a applied to all of us. could blue m&ms or blue gatorade, have healing powers? blue food die, may help in treating spinal cord injuries. rats were able to walk again. one side-effect, the rats' skin turned blue while they were undergoing treatment. high school seniors looking to have a good time on campus, might want to apply to penn state university. the 2009 princeton review survey rates penn state as the number one party school. the university of florida slips from first to second place. and the university of mississippi rounds out the top three. this is the first time penn state has taken the title. its football tailgate weekends likely gave it the edge. >> not sure if the schools will

use that as a recruiting tool or not. coming up, an amazing night for one big league slugger now headed for the history books. and late-night laughs. the comics weigh in on sarah palin's departure. >> it was -- it was a moving day for sarah palin. she went out on to her porch and for sarah palin. she went out on to her porch and waved good-bye to russia. causedcompletely artery, another heart attack could be lurking, waiting to strike. a heart attack caused by a clot, one that could be fatal. but plavix helps save lives. plavix, taken with other heart medicines goes beyond what other heart medicines do alone to provide greater protection against heart attack or .stroke and even death, by helping to keep blood platelets from sticking together and forming clots. ask your doctor abou plavix,, protection that heps save lives., (female announcer) if you have stomach .ulcer or other condition that causes bleeding, you should not use plavix. when taking plavix alone or with some other medicines including aspirin, the risk of bleeding may increase so tell your doctor before planning surgery.

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discover a smoothie like no ther! new activia smoothies. creamy, delicious, and above all, and istains clinically proven new activia smoothies.te your digestive system./ ♪ activiaaa! mother nature put on quite a show off the coast of florida, with a dancing waterspout near clearwater beach. waterspouts are common in florida this time of year. they dissipate before reaching lang. it was a death-defying plunge that shattered a world record. tyler brad made the drop from washington's paloos falls in his kayak. it is the longest such descent ever. more incredible details, as brad

joins us live, later on "good morning america." josh willingham of the washington nationals joined baseball's most elite groups last night, by hitting two grand slam home runs in the same game. he did it on the road, against the milwaukee brewers. willingham is just the 13th player ever to accomplish the feat. now, with other baseball highlights, including another grand slam, here's mike yam at espn news. >> good morning. we start with a little baseball for you. two of the best teams in the national league squaring off, the dodgers and the cardinals. matt holliday making his first appearance in st. louis. holiday getting it done with the bat. mark derosa coming around. the throw cut off. that's a run. holiday with the rbi. batting over .600, since being acquired by st. louis. cardinals up 2-1. mark derosa getting it done with the bat. his 18th homer of the season. his fifth as a xard nal. astros/cubs. bases loaded, bottom nine here.

one out for mike fontenot. tries the suicide squeeze. milton bradley, tagged out coming home. take a closer look at it. taking thishd on the play. bottom 13, now. still a 1-1 game. boyses loaded. alfonso soriano, no doubt about that one. he knew that right off the bat. cubbies win 5-1, in 13 innings. soriano, his fourth career grand slam. his third career walkoff home run. incidentally, all of those have come in extra innings. cubbies, riding high with the win over houston. soaring, now, michael phelps competing in the men's 200 meter freestyle. phelps wins the heat with a time of 1:45.23. enters tomorrow's final with the third-best time. former alaska governor, sarah palin, has slipped from

the spotlight, at least temporarily, as she commits to her next move. >> but the late-night comics, are providing plenty of material. >> so, that's the difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom. pit bulls don't quit and try to pretend like their quitting's not really quitting because they're quitting. by the way, when you have 15 months to go in your 1st term, i don't think that's lame duck status. i think that's just -- you're bored. >> during her speech, she was heckled. did you know that? yeah. yeah. apparently, it was just someone in russia yelling, keep it down over there. >> and i thought this was only to be expected. sarah palin took a swipe at certain people in the media. i wonder who she had in mind. >> dave, of course, referring to his famous flap with sarah palin.