in atlanta, jonathan serrie, fox news. a sequel packs a punch at the box office..games""brings in big money in book sales.candace dold crunches the numbers and tells us where we can hear some famous singers in our area for today's lowdown. lowdown. 3 3 3 3 it was an action-filled weekend at the box office ... with one action-packed movie kicking out another one for the top spot. spot. "the expendables two". muscled its way to first place with about 29-million dollars. "the bourne legacy" fell to second... bringing in 17-million dollars. the comedies "paranorman" and "the campaign" came in third and fourth. and "sparkle"... starring the late whitney houston... debuted in fifth place... with 12-million dollars in ticket sales.nats the hunger games when it comes to best-selling books... having a bow and arrow might be more effective than having a wand. that's according to amazon... which says "the hunger games" trilogy has surpassed the harry potter books as the more popular series on its website. what's even more interesting... is that "the hunger games" series consi

>> bret: jonathan serrie in atlanta. thank you. prosecutors today said the suspect in the aurora, colorado, theater shooting made previous threats and was banned from the university of colorado after failing a key exam six weeks prior to the rampage. the university kicked james holmes from campus and shut off his i.d. he is accused of killing 19 people and wounding 5 others. new fox poll out tonight as we count down to convention. fox all-star weigh in on the campaign highlight and polls on the other side of the break. i ta insulin, so i test... a lot. do you test with this? freestyle lite test strips? i don't see... beep! wow! that didn't ta much blood. yeah, and the unique zipwik tab targets the blood and pulls it in. so easy. yep. freestyle lite needs just a third the blood of onetouch ultra. really? so testing is one less thing i have to worry about today. great. call or click today and get strips and a meter free. test easy. >>> i happen to think the president lack of understanding about how individual initiative, hard work, e

jenna: jonathan serrie for us in tennessee. thank you.idential campaign. both sides launching attacks and counterattacks. what were they fighting about, and who got the upper hand? our panel looks at who won the week, coming up. jenna: we already talked a little bit about syria, but there is a lot of fresh fighting there. we're going to be talking more about what's going on in aleppo, the biggest city. the obama administration is getting ready for its next new action. we'll tell you about that. >>> also, here in this country the mighty mississippi in some big trouble because of the drought. we'll talk about that next. ♪ and we're rolling, rolling, we're rolling on a river. ♪ questions? anyone have occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'. jon: here, now, some of the top stories we're keeping an eye on for you right now. in connectic

. >> shep: jonathan serry. thanks. let's bring in guests. rcedes is here, randy, jonathan hunt is back with us again. you reacted when you heard the news. >> welcome for getting it right finally after a century. how ridiculous. 54% of the population have actually work in this country are women. why wouldn't you allow them to get in. they have the biggest buying power in the world. you are going to ex collide women from playing golf? why? because it's a tradition and we're going to continue doing? you have to wake up. there are women -- i'm surprised they accepted the invitation. >> shep: i'm guessing that had to be pretty well planned. >> absolutely. there are women that wouldn't play in augusta for the reason, you have isolated us and denied our interests there. >> shep: they got away witness for all these years. a private club can do whatever they want but there was a lot of pressure. >> it's very interesting. truth of the matter is, i give them credit for standing firm. i totally see mercedes' point by the time token they weren't going to

jonathan serrie live on that story out of the atlanta. what did you find out, jonathan?eporter: good morning bill. you might be surprised to see the number of highly ranked hospitals, places such as massachusetts general, on a list of more than 2200 hospitals facing potential medicare penalties for the number of patients who come back within a mo well-known new york presbyterian and university of chicago medical center could lose some medicare funding in october. a policy that will affect roughly two out of three hospitals evaluated by medicare according to analysis by kaiser health news. >> readmissions has been a low-hanging fruit for medicare. they have been very unhappy that about two million medicare beneficiaries are readmitted every year. between 30 days of discharge. >> reporter: the penalties are part of the affordable care act effort to reward hospitals for the quality of care they deliver instead of quantity of services but physicians debate whether readmission rates are the best measure of quality. >> among patients with heart failure, hospitals that have hig

jonathan serrie is live in new orleans with the latest. >> reporter: that storm surge already havingn impact. look at color of the water. it's ocean green normally. the mississippi is brown and muddy. the ocean is pushing the ocean water upstreams. it reversed the flow of around new orleans. the water has risen four feet. the barges you see along the stretch of the mississippi, you don't see them today. that has a huge impact on commerce. listen. >> the river has been totally closed since 9:00 a.m. central time. that's a huge consequence. for every single day the mississippi river is closed in new orleans the detrimental economic impact to the united states is $300 million a day and that number grows exponentially after fourth day due to the loss of supply and demand. >> reporter: the army corps of engineers closed the interharbor navigational canal. this was built after hurricane katrina. it's part of the $14 billion plus renovations and repairs that went into the levee system protecting new orleans. most residents we spoke with said they are optimistic the levees will hold in place

. >> jonathan serrie live on the ground in new orleans. thank you. the army corps reporting that all of its levees from in tact at this point. there are several levy systems the army corps system and local parish levees as well. fox news ovconfirming the downi of a levy in plaquemines parish. the army corps of engineers levy protecting all of new orleans. >>> let's get the lathes on isaac's path from maria molina in the weather center. >> we know isaac was forecast and still is forecast to be a very slow mover over southeastern louisiana. we have a prolonged period of time. we are still expecting those tropical storm force conditions and even possible hurricane force conditions. so even though isaac has maximum sustained winds at 80 miles per hour we could see stronger gusts of 90 or even 100 miles per hour. some of the worst conditions are moving into the city of new orleans as the eye wall continues to push in. we are seeing heavy rain out there. we are talking about over 6 inches already reported in the city of new orleans. we are seeing some of t

jonathan serrie is life from atlanta -- live from atlanta with a look at that. what kind of hospitals are we talking about here? >> reporter: according to a kaiser health news analysis, these penalties are going to be affecting hospitals across the boards, even some such as massachusetts general. some physicians fear the penalties will have a disproportionate impact on safety net hospitals that treat patients with limited access to primary care as well as academic research hospitals that take on difficult cases. >> often these kinds of institutions take care of the most sick patients. they're sent patients by other hospitals because of specific expertise that they have. so perhaps it shouldn't be surprising that some of the nation's best hospitals do have slightly higher readmission be rates compared to ore hospitals -- other hospitals. >> they take into account the relative illness of the patients that are coming into a hospital, so if safety net hospitals are caring for patients that are generally sicker, that's going to be accounted for by the measures. what

jonathan serrie is live from tennessee.been fueling this in this mosque. >> reporter: this has been here in rutherford county, tennessee for three decades. until the controversy erupted over the building of this mosque recommend pwers say they received nothing but warm hospitality from the folks in this community. that leads them to believe it's outside groups stirring up small opposition groups locally. these opponents launched an unsuccessful legal challenge earlier claiming that islam is a falls religion attempting to replace the u.s. constitution with sharia law. a judge almost halted construction saying they failed to provide public notice of a meeting. they said the judge had created a separate standard for the mosque, and a separate judge ruled in the mosque's favor. >> a mosque has to be treated the same as other religious groups. the judge said you can't treat a religious group differently because it's unpopular. that is the rule that will protect the mosque today, a synagogue tomorrow and a church on sunday. >> re

jonathan serrie live for us from new orleans. jonathan. >> reporter: jon, authorities report at least five storm-related deaths both here in louisiana and neighboring mississippi. i want to show you some video from plaquemines parish where rescuers recently discovered the bodies after man and woman searching flooded homes in the braithwaite community in plaquemines parish. some residents rejected a evacuation order and became stranded when floodwaters went on top of a left v. in the community. in the a city just across the mississippi river from new orleans a man decide in a restaurant fire that could not be controlled because of isaac's strong winds. the other fatalities involve a tree falling on a tow truck driver and a man who fell out of a tree while helping friend prepare for the storm. meanwhile authorities in florida are trying to identify the body of a man that washed ashore at the pensacola naval air station. they're trying to determine whether the body is that of a 47-year-old jet-skier who went missing earlier in the we

that is fox's jonathan serrie reporting for us. a sloping strong band of wind and rain was clamming the crescent city i'm sarah simmons i'm wisdom martin. it was seven years ago to the day that hurricane katrina hit new orleans and the gulf coast and now they are being devastated again by more storms, more rain, possible flooding, all kind of things. >> not as bad as katrina. >> well, right. we have to wait and see obviously. they are in the middle of it now. all indications are this storm is not quite s powerful as katrina. the maximum is only 0 miles per hour with gusts to about 90. katrina was a category three hurricane. >> still eerie that it is happening the same day. >> still very strong. there is a live look at your radar. still a category one hurricane. maximum winds, 80 miles per hour. the storm is keeping its strength together and it is now moving. that is good news. an hour ago, it was stationary. see the darker yellows and even the reds you see over new orleans, that is an extremely heavy band of rain likely dumping a c

fox's jonathan serrie has the story. >> reporter: augusta national golf club announcing its first female members in 80 years, former secretary of state condoleezza right and financier darla moore becoming the first women in green jackets when the club opens in october for a new season. in a statement the chairman of augusta national billy payne is saying, "these accomplished women share our passion for the game of golf and both are well known and respected by our membership." this comes after decades of controversy over the golf club's all male membership policy. augusta national which opened in 1932 also did not have a black member until 1990. secretary rice welcoming the decision issued a statement saying, "very visited augusta national several occasions and look forward to playing golf, renewing friendships and forming new ones through this very special opportunity." 58-year-old moore is vice president of rainwater, a private investment condition founded by her husband. in the 1980s with chemical bank she became the highest paid woman in the banking industry. today the white house is

let's head to jonathan serrie live in new orleans this morning. rning again. the rain continues to cause flooding problems as the slow moving storm system continues to unleash huge amounts of rain, even though the winds are dying down. communities such as slidell on the other side of lake pontchartrain from new orleans is reporting some flooding in its old town neighborhood. the problem is they have these pumping stations, but the surrounding bayous are filling up with water so rapidly that the pumping stations currently can't remove the water as rapidly as it's rising. then as you go closer to the coast and communities such as placquemine parish, you have the issue with the storm surge pushing the water, even some of the back waters against the levees. not army corps of engineer levee, but much smaller. in one community, the water actually overtopping the levee. officials having to go in and evacuating residents. a manns tri evacuation area who decided to hunker down in their homes thinking they would be safe in the category 1 storm. not the case.

let's go live to jonathan serrie in new orleans. >> good morning to you.near the east bank. local authorities are going around door to door warning residents that they need to get out of that outlying area of placquemine parish. it was under a mandatory evacuation, but some die hard residents refused to leave. what happened is the water levels got so high that they overtopped this levee. this was not an army corps of engineer levee, but a local levee. only eight feet tall. the water has been lapping over and according to some reports, beginning to creep into some of those homes there. meanwhile, there were two placquemine parish employees on that levee inspecting it. they became stranded on the levee. they're okay and they're in radio communication with their supervisors. but it will be a matter of time before rescuers can get out and get them off that levee. here within the city of new orleans, the advance levee system, improved levee system that the army corps of engineers invested more than $14 billion in is holding just fine. the city is doing fine and

jonathan serrie is live in new orleans. jonathan, how aree the levees holding up? lots of folks want to know that. >> reporter: yeah, very well here in new orleans, heather. in new orleans the army corps of engineers spent nearly $15 billion improving the left v. -- left v. system. some of the low-lying communities have been having problems outside the state line in mississippi. a controlled release of water from a damaged dam at the edge of a lake that was swollen by hurricane isaac's heavy rains. officials are optimistic they can do this without flooding communities downstream in louisiana but out of an abundance of caution state officials ordered the mandatory evacuation of residents along the river so no one gets hurt in case things go terribly wrong. again mississippi and louisiana authorities are optimistic they can perform this operation without placing any homes or lives in deputy, heather. heather: jonathan, what about fatalities, what can you tell us about that? >> reporter: yeah, unfortunately the death toll has just been raised to four. there was an eld

bill: jonathan serrie live in new orleans. what is it like where you are right now?we are experiencing heavy rains and a torrential downpour. this is the convention center. you may recall during katrina it was a refuge of last resort for people from the rising waters. but they are using it as a staging area for the national guard which has a huge presence. 4,000 national guard are on standby. 8,000 being called in in the aftermath of this storm to help with communications, engineering and possibly medical operations. bill, back to you. bill: i want to hang with you for a moment. this storm made landfall last night at 5:00 p.m. it's 9:00 in the morning the next day. how are the levees holding up and what has your night been like there? >> reporter: it has been have much like what you see. we have seen very little change. this is such a slow-moving storm that it just continues to batter the louisiana coast. here in new orleans the levees are holding up very well. they underwent a renovation of $14 billion in the wake of katrina. but it's a different story in the low-ly

we'll start with jonathan serrie live in new orleans. how seriously are residents taking the warnings there? >> very seriously. long lines at gas stations, some residents taking to twitter and other social media to alert others as to which gas station still has supplies. we also went to stock up on supplies at a local supermarket and found the store completely out of bottled water, almost out of bread and running low on flashlights and other supplies that you might need in a hurricane. it's not an indication of any roads being sealed off, as you can see the weather here is absolutely beautiful, trucks can come and go, but it just shows you the consumer demand for these supplies. residents of new orleans clearly taking the warnings very seriously, jenna. jenna: that seems like good news at least at this time. we mention the timing, isaac is expected to make landfall on the 7th anniversary of hurricane karina. that is astonishing. you can't write that. that's ironic. what is different now from seven years ago if you look at the city. >> it

jenna: that was jonathan serrie in hurricane isaac. is weakening but i think it is still a category one hurricane and moving slowly. a lot attention to here. by the time it moves out, new orleans could get hit with nearly 2 feet of rain. plus you have that storm surge. the reinforced levee system is working so far, but we have heard of some flooding and rescues meeting to take place. we have a commander of the eighth coast guard district in new orleans. we heard from her yesterday. joining us again today. what we know about rescue right now. are there reports? you know of people that are trapped in their homes? >> good morning, jenna. there are search and rescue elements that are being worked, and that element is a multijurisdictional buffer. we have perished and state and coast guard and louisiana national guard that are all working. right now they're our neighbors and individuals in the parish that are working together to help each other. we still have hurricane conditions in louisiana. as we move out of this phase where we hunker do

jonathan serrie was also live from new orleans. all night he wore protective safety goggles to protect his eyes from the debris in the whipping wind. easy for me to laugh sitting here in the studio. new orleans was not the only area hit. the water is also rising this afternoon in mississippi, and how. this is the scene in gulfport. the director of the u.s. national hurricane center reminding people that isaac will continue to hit this area throughout the day, the thing won't move, it's just at thi sitting there. there is news from new orleans from water from lake pons train could overflow. rick leventhal is standing by right now live from us. >> we've been getting rained on for about 24 hours now. the good news is the wind has died down significantly, probably ten to 15-mile an hour sauce stained winds. a gust within the last hour of 25 miles an hour. last night we were getting tropical storm force winds throughout the night, 50, 60 miles an hour. the building we were in was rocking. the biggest thing is the storm standing on a con

jonath jonathan serrie with the latest from the ground. >> hi, dagen, even no landfall is hours away,already having an impact. isaac has reversed the flow of the mighty mississippi. the river behind me normally would be a muddy brown and right now looking at sort of an ocean green because there is literally water from the gulf of mexico washing upstream. the water level has risen about four feet here just this morning on the mississippi river. because of the potentially dangerous conditions navigating this stretch of the river, the barges are avoiding this portion of the mississippi and that of course has a huge impact on commerce. listen. >> the river's been totally closed since monday morning, a huge consequence, because for every single day the mississippi river is closed here at new orleans, the detrimental impact to the united states is 300 million dollars a day and that number grows exponentially after the fourth day due to the law of supply and demand. >> meanwhile, on land, we're noticing national guards troops around sensitive buildings. these ones you see are protecting the

jonathan serrie is live in atlanta with more. >> reporter: this is huge, a potential resolution to airestorm that has been going on for years. on the one hand you had allegations of government over reach and on the other side environmental concerns. today nashville-based gibson guitar corporation has reportedly reached a deal with federal prosecutors. under that deal the government will not pursue criminal charges against the company, as long as gibson full tpeups it's side of thfulfills its side of the agreement. let's look at the major provisions of this agreement right now. under the agreement gibson will pay a $300,000 fine. the company will make a $50,000 donation toward tree conservation efforts, and the company will withdraw its claims to wood already confiscated by federal agents. federal agents first raided gibson in 2009 confiscating ebony from madagascar that they used to make finger boards. madagascar bans the export of certain materials. gibson said it was precut and approved for sale by local officials in madagascar. the government argued cutting the wood did not make i

jonathan serrie live in new orleans. is some sort of a storm brewing now inside the tampa history center. >> steve: it sounds like a jet airplane tested a motor in here. >> gretchen: hopefully that's not the airplane that will come crashing down. >> steve: one thing about florida, they have great air conditioning. >> brian: that's great point. we salute your froen. >> gretchen: let's get in some headlines. he was on the vp short list. fox news confirming that rob portman will play president obama in debate rehearsals for mitt romney. he has played the president and joe lieberman in past debates and says he's tougher than the actual candidate. >> how do you prepare for that? do you try examine get in their head? do you look at what they say? >> you know, the key is to be tougher than they are so that when dick cheney was halfway through his debate, he thought wow, that's not so bad. i'm glad portman is not here on the stage. >> gretchen: portman also played al gore and john edwards for debate practice. >>> the father of s