it's thursday, august 20th. this morning, fragile democracy. the polls are open in afghanistan, with bombers trying to disrupt the process. severe storms. an uneasy night in the midwest. powerful winds rip apart homes and businesses, with more storms in the forecast. and kennedy's concern. in his own words, a wish from the ailing leader, as he looks in his own words, a wish from the ailing leader, as he looks ahead to a senate without him. captions paid for by abc, inc. good morning. and thanks for being with us. well, it is election day in afghanistan. a big test of that nation's progress, with millions of voters choosing their next president. >> plus, security is a major concern today, as the taliban threatened to disrupt the

process. nick schifrin joins us from kabul this morning, where thousands have already voted. how's it going so far, nick? >> reporter: jeremy, thousands are voting. thousands will continue to vote for the next few hours, until the polls are closed. but as you said, not without a few incidents. there was a major shootout between police and three taliban suicide bombers on the streets of kabul this morning. luckily, the police were able to kill two of those suicide bombers. the third escaped. police are still looking for them. they've actually since confiscated the cameras of some of the journalists who have gone to that scene. so, clearly, police are really concerned about the violence, concerned about reporting on that violence. the big concern about the violence and fears of promised violence across the country by the taliban, is that nobody will come and vote. and the key there is that this election will be legitimate, only if the turnout is high enough. and so, u.s. and afghan officials are hoping that the election stays quiet enough. and mostly, it has, except for a

few incidents. so that thousands of afghans, indeed millions of afghans, as many as 17 million, come out and vote today. >> and election results not as speedy in afghanistan as here in the u.s. it could be weeks before an outcome is announced. why is that? >> reporter: yeah. what the independent electoral commission says here, it will take them until about september 3rd, in order to release provisional results. and i'm sure we'll get leaks before then. the reason it takes so long, is afghanistan is one of the most isolated countries on the planet. we shot some video a couple of days ago, of delivering ballots by donkeys. some of these villages are so isolated, that no cars or no trucks can arrive. some of the security in some of these villages that only army helicopters could reach these villages. of course, if the ballots are hard to get to, they're hard to bring out. the same don dishgs same helicopters will have to take out the ballots. and we don't know the winner --

the final results. we don't know the winner for at least a month. >> makes sense when you put it that way. abc's nick schifrin, reporting from afghanistan. thank you. security forces are also being individual lint in iraq this morning. two, huge truck bombs were detonated outside government buildings in bag dad yesterday, killing at least 95 people and wounding more than 400. other government sites were hit by rocket and mortar fire. officials blamed al qaeda in iraq and saddam hussein loyalists. u.s. forces who left iraqi cities by the end of june, could do little but stand by. here at home, we're following a developing story this morning. severe storms leaving a huge cleanup job across the midwest. there's been 18 tornadoes reported in several states. and with the details, now, here's emily schmidt. >> reporter: in minnesota, the storms arrived with little warning. and left behind remarkable damage. >> i could see the cloud spinning. and there's cars ahead of me that were pulled over. i could tell that something was hitting.

>> i just seen anything flying up in the air. everything. and it was like, dark. >> reporter: storm watchers spotted at least three funnel clouds around minneapolis wednesday afternoon. the sudden, strong winds picked a woman up off the street, toppled trees in an instant. >> like a domino effect. they kept falling. and a huge piece of somebody's roof just hit the car. and it was like -- >> reporter: skies looked similar across neighbors states. iowa's fayette county spotted this tornado, that did nearby damage. in stanley, iowa, a tornado flew through this farm. >> i headed to the basement. went to the porch. and come out here. what a mess. >> reporter: storms in central illinois sent at least six people to the hospital with injuries. and left thoughts thousands more without power. >> i watched the roof go across the street. into the other house. and it was pretty wild.

>> reporter: the midwest expects more severe weather today, while the east coast focuses on hurricane bill. the category 4 hurricane is now in the atlantic and could cause large swells and beach rip currents by the weekend. >> being in the summertime season, and people wants to go out and enjoy the beach weather, the waters are going to start getting dangerous. >> reporter: bill could pick up steam as it moves north. but here's the catch, forecasters still don't know how close this hurricane is actually going to get to land. jeremy? >> abc's emily schmidt. thanks, emily. ted kennedy is clearly thinking about who will sit in his senate seat next, even as he battles brain cancer. the massachusetts democrat has written a letter to his state's governor. the paper says that kennedy asked that massachusetts senate succession law be changed, in order to avoid a long absence when his seat becomes vie cant. kennedy seeks to have his successor appointed to have maximum support for a health

care reform bill. there's a new report about the conversation that an air traffic controller was having during a deadly collision over the hudson river. one controller jokes about barbecuing a dead cat minutes before the collision. it also shows the controller remaining on the phone until just before the plane collided with the helicopter. nine people died in that crash. the first challenge to california's ban on gay marriage will go to trial early next year. two same-sex couples are challenging proposition 8, which was passed by voters last november. a federal judge set the trial date yesterday. and warned voters against any delaying tactics. it's likely the case will go before the u.s. supreme court. harvard and princeton are sharing the top spot in the latest college rankings by "usa news and world report." the ivy league rivals are followed by yale at number three. and there's a four-way tie for four in the fourth spot.

the ratings are based on s.a.t. scores, selectivity and alumni giving among other factors. well, now, for this morning's weather from around the nation. another stormy day in the midwest. damaging winds, hail and isolated tornadoes from michigan to oklahoma. off and on showers and thunderstorms with some severe weather along the east coast and gulf coast. hot and sunny it west. and almost fall-like in parts of the midwest. >> highs only for 60 in fargo today and the twin cities, today. 74 in omaha. boise hits 100. salt lake city, 93. phoenix, 109. a hazy and humid 91 in new york. 84 for boston. across the south, 90 for new orleans. and 98 in dallas. new credit card rules take affect today. should the cancer-stricken bomber of pan am flight 108 go free? a court could grant that request in a few hours. and milwaukee's

crime-fighting mayor talks about that incident that got him all banged up. these days, when you have to spend, shopping online can help save. doing it with bank of america can help save a lot more. up to 20% cash back from over 300 online retailers with our add it up program. just sign up and use your bank of america debit or credit card when you shop online. it's one of the many ways we make saving money in tough times a whole lot easier. introducing the all new chevy equinox. with an epa estimated 32 miles per gallon. and up to 600 miles between fill ups. it's the most fuel efficient crossover on the highway. better than honda cr-v, toyota rav4

and even the ford escape hybrid. the all new chevy equinox. ♪ fresh and tasty naturally ♪ a dip for you, and a dollop for me ♪ ♪ daisy just goes with family ♪ so, do a dollop, do, do a dollop of daisy ♪ ♪ do a dollop, do, do a dollop ♪ ♪ things taste better with a dollop of daisy ♪ ♪ do a dollop, do, do a dollop of daisy ♪ ♪ do a dollop, do, do a dollop of daisy ♪ ♪ do a dollop, do, do a dollop of daisy ♪ if saving money happened as automatically as everything else? at bank of america, it practically does. use the bankamericard power rewards visa credit card and earn rewards like cash back with every purchase. cash you can put into savings. or even use to help pay down your credit card balance.

it's one of the many ways we make saving money in tough times a whole lot easier. stocks are rising across the board this morning. tokyo's nikkei average jumped 1.8% today. hong kong's hang seng is higher. in london, the ftse opened higher. wall street starts the day with the dow at 9279, after gaining 61 points yesterday. the nasdaq added 13 points to close at 1969. well, the first part of a major overhaul to credit card

regulations goes into effect today. credit card companies must now give customers 45 days' notice before changing interest rates or fees. congress passed the legislation last spring, with additional rules scheduled to take effect in february. but many credit card companies have been jacking up rates and other fees ahead of the changes. the government could announce by tomorrow, its plans to wind down the cash for clunkers program. hundreds of car dealers have already stopped offering the rebates. they're concerned they won't be reimbursed. but the transportation department is assuring dealers they will get their money. the popular incentive program is on pace to burn through its $3 billion fund by early next month. thousands of americans suspected of hiding money in secret, swiss bank accounts are now going to pay for it. swiss banking giant, ubs, has reached a deal with the u.s. government, agreeing to name clients believed to be evading taxes. thousands more americans are now expected to voluntarily disclose their holdings to the irs.

jetblue is grounding that popular all-you-can-fly promotion. the deal was so popular, jetblue was concerned it would sell too many tickets. the $600 unlimited pass lets customers fly anywhere they want for one month. no surprise that was popular. >> such a good deal. you can get the latest business news anytime on our website. the address is abcnews.com. coming up on this thursday, should a court show compassion and release the pan am bomber? plus, americans are living longer than ever. so, what is behind our longer lives?

but those days came and went, and the cigarettes remained. but today's a new day. and a few simple steps can make a real difference in your next quit... things like starting with a plan to quit smoking... getting support... and talking to your doctor about how prescription treatments can help you.

talk to your doctor about prescription treatment options. and make this time, your time. summer days were not good to my skin. (announcer) new neutrogena total skin renewal. it's clinically tested to help undo the look of a year's worth of skin aging in just one week. do-overs do exist. (announcer) total skin renewal neutrogena. welcome back. these are the latest headlines from abc news. at least 18 tornadoes are being reported across several american states. there is a lot of damage to clean up. but so far, no fatalities. voters in afghanistan are largely ignoring threats by the taliban, as they vote today for

the country's next president. and senator ted kennedy is acknowledging his frail health. in a letter to the massachusetts governor, he asks for a change in the law to fill his seat quickly when it becomes vacant. there is plenty of interest on both sides of the atlantic right now about the fate of a former libyan intelligence agent. >> abdelbasset ali ail me gra hi, has been serving a life sentence for the an pam flight that blew up over lockerbie scotland. >> reporter: a decision has been made in the case of 57-year-old abdelbasset al megrahi, the man accused of taking place in the bombing of pan am 103. to release him on compassionate grounds. and that decision will be announced later this morning. receiving from terminal cancer,

megrahi has been serving his sentence in a scottish jail. he could die in three months, allowing him to be released on groupeds of compassion. megrahi was convicted of the pan am attack that killed 259 people on board and those on the ground of lockerbie. he was told he would spent a minimum of 27 years in prison before being considered for parole. now, if this morning's statement from the justice minister, kenny macaskill, could be released in days. only serving two weeks for every person killed in that attack. mr. macaskill faced pressure from the u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton expressed opposition to the release. >> i think it is absolutely wrong to release someone who has been in prison based on the

evidence about his involvement in such a horrendous crime. >> reporter: since his conviction, megrahi has attempted to appeal the verdict. an argue that had been a huge miscarriage of justice. but only days ago, he propped the plea to be returned to libya under a prisoner transfer agreement. while he may spend his final days in his country, he will die without having cleared his name. >> sonia gallego, in london. thanks, sonia. the mayor of milwaukee, is on the mend, after being attacked as he tried to intervene in a domestic dispute last weekend. he suffered a shattered hand, last two teeth and had deep cuts to his face in the incident. barrett said he did what any good citizen should have done when he heard a woman screaming. >> things got very, very ugly, very, very quickly. >> the 20-year-old suspect in the case is expected to be charged later today.

now, to some truly amazing news about the state of the nation's health. americans can expect to live longer. 75 years for men. 80 years for women. a new report says there's been important progress in the battle against many major diseases. here's david muir. >> reporter: the new numbers are more than just remarkable. they're record-breaking. a child born today is now expected to live to nearly 79. nearly a year and a half longer than we were living just a decade ago. >> we're doing more things for our health. we're getting screened. and we're becoming more engaged with what we need to do. >> reporter: and because of that, the mortality rates are down, for more than half of the 15 leading causes of death. flu deaths, down 8.4%. heart disease deaths, down 4.7%. all seeing declines. doctors credit huge advancements in medicine and patient knowledge. >> 20 years ago, if i told a patient their cholesterol was too high, the first thing they

might have said was what's cholesterol. today, the question back is, do you mean my good cholesterol or my bad cholesterol? >> reporter: the study shows that women still outlive men. but that gap has narrowed to five years. >> men got the message that they should stop smoking. >> reporter: african-american men in particular made big gains. now expected to live to 70. a breakthrough, doctors say, in getting public health messages out. the cdc also studied the number of americans who have died from hiv/aids. more than 11,000 in 2007. that's down 10% from the year before. and the police blotter found fewer deaths, too. homicide deaths down 6.5%. and deaths from accidents, down 5%. >> david muir reporting. up next, nascar takes over the white house. and lottery fever grips the nation. powerball and megamillions both with giant jackpots.

a parade of nascar's best drivers preceded president obama and jimmie johnson on to the white house south lawn. johnson's number 48 car was also there. the event honored johnson's accomplishment. but the president used it to pay tribute to nascar's support of u.s. troops and its record of community service. some baseball highlights now. we get those from j.w. stewart at espn news. >> good morning. we start with the matchup of division leaders. the cardinals at the dodgers. adam wayne wright going for his 15th win. wayne wright serves it up to casey blake. his 14th homer of the year. wainwrig wainwright. the thousand gets away. pujols moves to third on the year. he would score on matt holliday's sac fly. bottom nine. last chance for l.a.

james loney flies out to holiday. cards win, 3-2. d-backs and phillies. cliff lee is 3-0, since coming over in the trade with cleveland. he had five ks through five innings. got plenty of offensive support. here in the bottom of the fifth, ryan howard, off dan haren. three-run home run. his 31st. cliff lee would go the distance. a two-hitter. he struck out 11. he's 4-0, with the phils. phils take it 8-1. red sox and blue jays. roy halladay on the mound for atlanta. jason bay takes him deep here. a two-run home run in the fifth. team-leading 27th for bay. in the sixth, the blue jayce threatening. they had the bases loaded in two and outs. but encarnacion flies out to end the threat. encarnacion went 0 for 4. batting less than .200.

the red sox, lead the a.l. wild card by one game over the rangers. jeremy and vinita, back to you. there's a lucky winner for one of the biggest lottery prizes in history. >> a single winning ticket for the powerball jackpot was sold in south carolina. the pot, growing since july 1st was back down to $20 million. >> we'll have to wait until tomorrow night, to see if anyone wins megamillions. that prize jumped to a whopping $207 million. >> time to get a ticket. it looked like a giant sugar rush on what's known as the crookedest street in the world. >> san francisco's lombard street was transformed into a larger than life version of candyland. it featured lollipops and kids dressed as game pieces. it was in honor of candyland's 60th anniversary. >> love seeing kids get that excited for anything. for some of you, your local news is up next. >> for everyone else, "america this morning" continues after this. hi help you?

we're shopping for car insurance, and our friends said we should start here. good friends -- we compare our progressive direct rates, apples to apples, against other top companies, to help you get the best price. how do you do that? with a touch of this button. can i try that? [ chuckles ] wow! good luck getting your remote back. it's all right -- i love this channel. shopping less and saving more. now, that's progressive. call or click today. clean so deep... ...it's like your old mop's worst nightmare. ♪ [ thunder crashes ] [ man ] love stinks. ♪ love stinks! ♪ yeah! yeah! [ female announcer ] swiffer wet cloths clean better than a mop with new cleansers that attract dirt deep into the cloth and lock it away. new swiffer wet cloths clean better, or your money back. ♪ love stinks!

i felt this deep lingering pain that was a complete mytery to me. my doctor diagnosed it as fibromyalgia muscle pain and then he recommnded lyrica., fibromyalgia is thought to be he result of over-active nerves that cause chronic, widespread pain. lyrica is fda-approved to help relieve the unique pain of fibromyalgia. and with less pain, i can do more uring my day. how sweet is that? lyrica is not for everyone. tell you doctor about any serius allergic reaction, that causes swelling or #affects breathing or skin, or changes eyesight including blurry vision or muscle pain with fever or tired feeling. lyrica may cause suicidal thoughts or actions in a very small number of people. some of the most common side efects of lyrica are dizziness, sleepiness, weight gain and swelling of hands nd feet., do not drink alcohol while taking lyrica. you should never drive or operate machinery until you know how lyrica affects you. if you think you might have fibromyalgia, ask your doctor about lyrica.

very pleasant good morning to you. i'm jamie costello. this far away from 5:00. this far from the weekend. we're getting closer. top stories first before weather and traffic. it looks like it could come any time. the man responsible for killing 198 americans could walk out of prison a free man this morning. a fire in essex. you'll only see it on abc2. wait until you hear from one of those living here. he said it was his fault. and went up to christiana mall, sports shop last year, you found sports jerseys. this is the joe jersey. i'm jamie costello. let's get to weather now and find out how this thursday is going to shape up with meteorologist susan schrack. >> thank you. good morning. it's quiet. and there's a lot of stars out

there. a very pretty sky first thing this morning. right now a look over the harbor. you can see it's 73 degrees, relative humidity 96%. winds calm. barometric pressure on the way down. certainly no rain to talk about today, not even any cloud cover. temperatures are looking in the low 70s for the most part. an we're seeing clear skies but expecting to see the clouds developing in the afternoon. 82 degrees by noon. then the afternoon is going to kick in some thunderstorms as well. looking at 80 degrees for a daytime high. let's check the roads with kim. >> thank you very much. good morning. at this hour traffic is running mostly quiet as we check the outer loop on the west side at liberty road. no incidents. however, we have several construction projects on the east side of the outer loop that has some lanes closed there. 695 at 95, all the outer loop lanes are closed this morning. you should look for a detour. also, on the outer loop between bel air road and 95, left two lanes closed for construction. and northbound harbor tunnel