mike emanuel, fox news. >> bret: fox news learn the banking economy is looking to the circumstances that standard & poor's to downgrade the country's credit rating last week. no indications that the committee launched a formal probe. >>> the house of representatives is pulling the plug on its page program. speaker boehner and nancy pelosi informed members today they cite is cost of program and advances in technology to supplant many duties of pages. we will talk about what happened with the market and president obama's comments when the fox all-stars join me in the break. while we're away check out jonathan serrie's report on what the abandon boats tell us about the economy on the home page. foxnews.com/specialreport. >>> we didn't need a rating agency to tell us gridlock in washington in the last several months has not been constructed to say the least. we knew from the outset that a prolonged debate over the debt ceiling, where threat of default used as a bargaining chip could do damage to the economy and the world. that threat coming after a string of economic disruption in europe, ja

first, mike emanuel on the hill. when will we find out who is going to be on this committee that makes the decisions about what to cut next? >> well, shep, senate republican leader mitch mcconnell said he is working on it didn't have an exact timetable but said it would be soon. a senate democratic leadership source says it should be sometime this week. as for what they will do, here is senate democratic leader harry reid. >> i think that people are going on the joint committee should be open to solving the debt problems of this country and not let ideology stand in the way. this is more about saving our country from the future long-term deficit problems we have than political ideology. 12 lawmakers will have a big job. $1.5 trillion by thanksgiving or serious automatic cuts kick in, shep. >> shepard: this was a crisis of the lawmakers making. while the fight wasn't pretty the lawmakers point out they did crisis for now. >> variety of talks with a variety of leaders and stalls and stops and starts and phone calls and

let's get back to our congressional correspondent mike emanuel who is live at the rotunda there. , i guess the talk of what to do and when to do it in the way of future cuts begins right away. >> absolutely, shep. i was at a press avail with majority leader harry reid talking about is there a need for comprehensive deficit reduction and he said not only yes but hell yes. and so you get a sense that if this passes tomorrow the united states senate that over the next few years we're going to be talking about deficit reduction plans. not new programs, not new ideas. how do we get the fiscal house in order and so there you have the majority leader saying that and a recognition here on capitol hill that if this passes it may be a good first step in terms of some cuts but there is going to be a lot more pain ahead for in terms of government programs, shep. >> shepard: ed henry at the white house. what might we expect in the way of recommendations from the president if any. >> they have made clear that the president has put all kinds of things on the table. in that grand bargain they wer

mike emanuel, fox news. >> bret: fox news learn the banking economy is looking to the circumstances thatd & poor's to downgrade the country's credit rating last week. no indications that the committee launched a formal probe. >>> the house of representatives is pulling the plug on its page program. speaker boehner and nancy pelosi informed members today they cite is cost of program and advances in technology to supplant many duties of pages. we will talk about what happened with the market and president obama's comments when the fox all-stars join me in the break. while we're away check out jonathan serrie's report on what the abandon boats tell us about the economy on the home .page. foxnews.com/specialreport. [ jon ] we don't just come up here for the view up in alaska. it's the cleanest, clearest water. we find the best, sweetest crab for red lobster we can find. yeah! [ male announcer ] hurry in to crabfest at red lobster. the only time you can savor three sweet alaskan crab entrees all under $20, like our hearty crab and roasted garlic seafood bake or sn crab and crab butter shrimp.

chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel is here with that part of the story. good evening. >> good evening. there were times in the past several weeks where it looked like congress might not find a debt compromise in the end, many lawmakers say they didn't love the deal but voted to avoid default. >> ayes are 74, the nays are 26. >> after weeks of battle they volted in a bipartisan way to send debt compromise to cut 2.1 trillion in deficit to the president. before the vote, the senate republican leader praised the party for holding the line and starting to turn things around. >> slowing down the big government freight train from the current trajectory will give us the time we need to work toward a real solution, or give the miles per hour people the time they need to have their voices heard. >> reporter: but the debt deal involved senate and house top leaders selecting three members each for a new congressional super committee. speaker boehner, reid will choose the cochair from the group. the task find another $1.5 trillion in cuts by thig. >> people are going

mike emanuel on the top story at the bottom of the hour tonight. ama said today we may never get that tax mope back, mike. >> that's right. he says it's cost 360 million so far. if the congress does not act before recess is over, it may end up costing more than a billion dollars. a bigger concern is probably those 7 a thousand or so workers who have been sent home without pay and are not able to work and collect paychecks. at a time economy is very ticket taxes not being collected by the government, shep. country ought to work about unions. >> the union issue is very interesting. there was an original transportation bill that the white house issued a veto threat on effects the ability of airline and rail employees to unionize. the smaller bill, the short-term bill that they passed in july does not do that. here is house majority leader eric cantor. >> well, you know, that disagreement is really under the underlying bill. this was the extension that that really is not a part of this discussion. the issue about organization for labor has to do with be

>> shepard: mike emanuel in washington tonight.onnection with with a phone hacking scandal at news corps' british tabloid news of the world. news corps is the parent company of fox news channel. we're told the suspect in custody is a former senior editor at that news corps paper who used to run the news desk. his is the 12th arrest so far as police there investigate accusations that employees illegally spied on people they were covering from celebrities to politicians to murder victims to dead soldiers. several top executives at news corps have also resigned in the scandal. news corps is trying to convince investors that the news of the world scandal will not hurt the rest of the company. and today it took a step in that direction. reporting earnings that beat expectations on the street. the media conglomerate actually posted a 22% drop in quarterly profits compared with the same period last year. that loss due according to the company on the hit it took on the sale of social networking site myspace. without that news corps reports

mike emanuel our man on capitol hill. doo we know about how this committee is going to work, mike. >> shep, great focussen othe types of lawmakers' pick. the top lawmakers on capitol hill will select three people each. six republicans, six democrats. they need to, by thanksgiving, find about $1.5 trillion in savings. for more on the super committee, take a listen. >> it's extremely important that i pick people who are willing to make hard choices but not locked. >> in i think they will be mature enough act in the best interest of the country. also, frankly, they are not going to want to fail for their own reputations. >> the congressional leaders have an august 16th deadline to name those who will serve on the super committee. shep? >> shepard: mike, we just mentioned it, tell us will get action. they are going to get action because this time there are major consequences. >> that's right. serious across the board cuts kick in if congress doesn't agree by december 23rd there are concerns about national security, which coul

jon: mike emanuel keeping an eye on things live there on capitol hill. what a day. thanks, mike.na: we'll be back, of course, as news develops. as mike was just mentioning, these are some of the final speeches before the vote actually takes place which we expect any moment. one of the things we've talked a lot about is the detours this deal has taken to get to this point leaving bruises on just about everyone involved. as we wait for the president to make a statement in the rose garden just a few minutes after the final vote -- that's what we expect be -- we are lucky enough to have bret baier back with us who anchors "special report "and broke a whole bunch of news yesterday on our show. this is a conclusion of some sort, at least for this bill, and it's passed with bipartisan support in the house. are there any lingering questions at all about its fate in the senate? >> reporter: no, jenna. it's going to pass. the question is, really, the only lingering question is by how many. they need 60 votes for this, this cloture vote. that's, essentially, the vote that we're watching. th

mike emanuel is live from our washington bureau with more. mike, what are some of the key issues after congress returns from its brief recess here in august? >> reporter: one thing we'll be looking for in the coming days is the key four congressional leaders to pick three members each for the super committee that is going to have to find $1.5 trillion in savings, part of the deal the president signed yesterday by thanksgiving. if they don't find that savings then they are talking about serious cuts across the board. there will be a lot of pressure on that group. otherwise democrats have said they realize with the .2% unemployment that people care about jobs, here is house leader nancy pelosi. >> it's time for us to completely focus on jobs, so i have no intention for the next weeks and months to be talking about this committee. it has its responsibilities. we will make our appointments and the nature of who they are will be self-evident. but we cannot turn ourselves into a place where we are just talking about the process of this. >> reporter:

mike emanuel has the names and we learn which six republicans will it is on the panel.: reactions is republicans picked those highly unlikely to agree including dave camp from michigan, and fred upton and another veteran member known as boehner establishment republicans. in the senate, republican leader mcconnell picked jon kyl, the second highest position in the senate and a senior member of the finance committee, and pat toomey a fiscal hawk, and rob portman from ohio, budget director for george w. bush and he knows the ins and outs of the federal budget and the white house press secretary offered this reaction. >> every member of congress who is elected and sent to washington to represent his or her constituents has a responsibility to act seriously when asked to deal with such a serious serious and the president expects the appointed members of this select committee will did so. both republicans and democrats. >>reporter: the names are the republican side of the negotiating table and we know that there will be three more democratic names still to come. >>shepard: we

chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel live from across the capital there. t was so easy to do, could happen that quickly, why didn't they do this two weeks ago. >> harris, the first priority was trying to do a longer termed deal which the f.a.a. hasn't had since 2007. in this package, democrats were worried about republicans cutting eas, the essential air service, a subsidy for small, rural airports that cost taxpayers as much as $3,700 per ticket. in the end, the transportation secretary used his authority to strip that out of the deal. in a paper statement, president obama said, quote, this elm pass was an unnecessary strain on local economies across the country at a time when we can't allow politics to get in the way of our economic recovery, so i'm glad that the stalemate has finally been resolved. but this extension only funds the f.a.a. through september 16th. harris. >> so they stopped this by hitting pause. so will we see this again in september? >> well, that's quite possible. republicans don't want to keep doing these extensions. the deal passed to

but, first, mike emanuel on capitol hill. it may not be perfect but a lot of lawmakers seem relieved today. >> that is absolutely true. bottom line is they were getting close to default and they are saying a lot of americans wondered if washington was broken and if lawmaker could get the job done, and they did just that. here is democratic leader durbin. >> with this vote, 74-26 we averted a crisis. america has avoided defaulting for the first time in our history on our national debt. the fears and concerns of americans across the board were considered by this congress and as a result we have come together on a bipartisan basis. >>reporter: some suggest the process is not pretty but the republican leader said it wasn't necessarily meant to be when the founding fathers created this country, so, crisis averted, the president signed the bill, and we will see what the next fight is. >>shepard: most who voted for it indicated they do not love it and are now looking for the next big fight. >>reporter: and coming out of this deal a

mike emanuel our tough congressional guy looking into all of this. tonight, mike? >>reporter: the best guess at this point, and it is just a guess, we do believe a vote should happen in two hours from now. they have decided to allow the house to go first and then the senate. and it is looking likely the senate will vote tomorrow after the house of representatives has taken care of its business. today we have seen leaders talking to their caucuses and prospective members trying to address their concerns and gather their support for the respective measures. the white house, and all the congressional leaders are trying to drum up support. we saw vice president biden here. here is what he had to say. >> i didn't go to convince. i went to explain. and lay out how we got to where we are. this is so important for the country. my career up here after 36 years i never asked another person to vote against what is their interest. i was treated well. and my sense is that they expressed all their frustration. and i would be frustrated, as well. >> it is not unhap

but we begin with chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel who tells us where we are in the votingcess right now. mike? >> reporter: bret, good evening. a lot of discussion on capitol hill. lawmakers sounding off on what they don't like about the bipartisan debt compromise. the house is due to vote first this evening, speaker boehner made it clear it's not just on his shoulders to deliver the votes to pass it. >> this is an agreement between the bipartisan leaders of the congress and the president of the united states. >> vice president biden on capitol hill spent 2-1/2 hours speaking to upset house democrats, unhappy with the spending cut in debt compromise. >> i didn't go to convince. i went to explain and lay out exactly how we got to where we were and why this is so important for the country. my career up here after 36 years i never ask another perp to vote against what they have interest on. i was confident my sense, i was treated well. my sense is that they expressed all of their frustration. which i would be frustrated if i was there as well. >> reporter: not just liberals t

mike emanuel, there is so much polarization in washington now that all they seem to be able to do, reallylike with any degree effectiveness is name post offices. report very well, president obama today expressed concern for the f.a.a. employees and thousands of construction workers being suspended. they are losing pay and the construction projects are not being built so the president appealed to congress to get this done by the end of the week. >> don't put the life of thousands of people at risk, don't put projects at risk. and don't let $1 billion at a time when we're scrambling for every dollar we can to get left on the table because congress did not act. so, i am urging the house of representatives and the senate to take care of this. >> this $1 billion is based on fees not collected from the airlines and what the administration estimates could be lost if this is not resolved before congress returns from recess. we also heard today from the senate leader hoyer. take a listen. >> we need to act on this issue now. 75,000 americans demand it. our country demands it. it is irresponsible t

our chief white house correspondent is there live, and mike emanuel working capitol hill at the capitolf them are going to act in a way that person did, michelle bachmann and not let this happen? >>reporter: the house will be the tougher sell, the body language from senators i saw suggested a lot of them seemed relieved there was some sort of deal trying to avoid driving our economy off of a cliff after august 2nd so both leaders in the senate, mcconnell and harry reid, are strong supporters and are effective trying to get votes and the tougher sell is the tea party folks in the house of representatives and, then, you have the liberal groups who are also opposed and the minority leader pelosi has not really come out saying she is all on board with this so all indications are that they will let the house go first and that is where the hard work is right now. >>shepard: the white house go with that, ed? >>reporter: well, there will be anger on both sides but that the middle is going to carry this and they think the fact they have all the leaders on board, that they will get just enough vo

mike emanuel live in washington tonight. debt limit includes a so-called super committee to recommend more spending cuts by thanksgiving and clearly the markets and the credit agencies have very little faith now in our government. >> shep, that's right. that group of 12 has a big job ahead. so does the entire congress. if congress doesn't get moving on the budget for the next fiscal year, we could be counting down to a government shutdown on october 1st. president obama says his hope is friday's downgrade news will give leaders in washington a renewed sense of urgency. >> i intend to present my own recommendations over the coming weeks on how we should proceed. and that committee will have this administration's full cooperation. and i assure you we will stay on it until we get the job done. >> and we will know the names of those 12 lawmakers who will make up that super committee by some time between now and a week from tomorrow. shep? >> shepard: we have been hearing about a possible downgrade for a long time. lawmakers, som

fox's mike emanuel is live in washington. mike, we're still waiting to hear who some of these supercommittee members are. what do we know? >> reporter: well, all eyes are on house democratic leader nancy pelosi to see what her three picks will be to the supercommittee. we know the nine others. let's take a look at the three senate democrats who will be on this supercommittee. a senior group in terms of 77 years of united states senate experience. you've got john kerry, max baucus and, of course, patty murray. murray is being chosen to be the co-chair of this overall committee, so that is what it looks like in terms of senate democrats. at the white house, spokesman jay carney says the president looks forward to engaging with all members of the supercommittee. take a listen. >> as you know, the committee hasn't formed yet, in fact, not all the members have even been named, although we're getting there. but the president will, as he said, have very specific ideas about where he thinks, you know, the committee could come together

mike emanuel is live in washington with more on this mike. >> reporter: jenna, good morning.ery interesting pick, some names that we thought might be on there, not on there, including congressman paul ryan, a lot of people thought he would be named from the house republicans but let's look at some of the folks making up this supercommittee, in the house republican side, you have jeb hensarling, conference chairman, house ways and means committee damp kampp from michigan, fred upton from michigan, and speaker boehner has named hensarling a key member of his leadership team to be the co-chair of this supercommittee. in terms of senate republicans, you have john kyl from -- jon kyl from arizona, many consider him an obvious pick, he is the republican whip in the united states senate, pat toomey from pennsylvania, a small businessman, also served in the house of representatives, a fiscal hawk, also named to the committee, then you have senator rob portman from ohio, he has an interesting background because he served as the head of the office of management and budget under preside

shannon: mike emanuel joins us live from capitol hill.tainly the senate leadership has to be relieved. >> 74-26 in today's washington is about as bipartisan as it gets. we are here on august 2 and our economy is not heading towards default. after the vote senator had this to say. -- senator harry reid had this to say. >> the debate was long and it wasn't easy. for weeks the american people watched and wondered whether congress could get its job done. we got it done and brought our economy back from the brink of disaster. in the end of the two sides came together. that's how our system works. neither side got what they wanted, each side laments some of the things we had to give up, but that's the way it is. >> reporter: you heard that lukewarm support from people who vote for this package saying it was not exactly what they have drawn up themselves. but with the clock ticking they recognized this was the best thing they could do to avoid default. shannon: we are getting word the president signed that bill. but for those who were not satisf

mike emanuel live in washington with more on that. we know the names of all 12 now. general feedback there in d.c., mike? >> reporter: well, jon, it seems like a formula for gridlock. six republicans, six democrats, six from the house, six from the senate. if they stay in their respective partisan corners, it seems to be a recipe for gridlock or a roadblock, stalemate, whatever you want to say at this point. so we asked a longtime adviser to senate majority leader harry reid for his take. take a listen. >> like i said, i think all are serious, substantive picks. there's some that i have disagreements with. i don't know, for instance, how senator toomey can sit there after having voted against the debt limit increase a couple of weeks ago, but having said that, you know, all, i think, are designed to, a, reflect their different constituencies and, b, reflect their caucus as well. >> reporter: now, jim manly believes that everything needs to be on the table in these discussions, that means looking at revenue, also looking at the entitlements which are long-term drivers

mike emanuel is live for us in washington. what are the expectations for this so-called super committee. >> reporter: conventional wisdom is the top for members of congress will pick members who share the same priorities with leadership. the hope is they will act in the best interests of the country. take a listen to john mccain of arizona. >> i think it will be a serious battle, and i think that those of us are worried about this nation's security are going to have to fight hard to preserve a level of defense spending that preserves our national security. >> reporter: nancy pelosi says protecting entitlements, social security, medicare and medicaid is a priority for democrats. if six democrats protect entitlement and six republicans protect defense spending and refuse to raise taxes, you can see the strong possibility of gridlock. jon: the cuts are do by thanksgiving but there is another battle congress has to face. >> reporter: the fiscal year 2012 starts october 1st. congress has been funding the government using continuing