that will do it for us. "the live desk" is up right now. [captioning made possible by fox news channel] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- çmartha: hello,ç everyone. trace: we begin with breaking news on the wildfire that is fast approaching and the los angeles area. hereç is why the fire is so it is moving across mountain terrain that has not burned in 40 years, so there is enough prideç rushç -- drybrush to tn the mountains into a fireball. 50 homes have already burned. 12,000 are inç its path. evacuatik orders continuing up and down the fire lines. one woman tried to stay put until she saw how dangerous things were. >>ç i am done. çi am ready to get out of here

and be able to sit down and breed. trace:ç so far 2000 people have been forcdt out. -- down and breath. weather forecasters are also çpredicting ifcseasing winds, combining with the low humidity, it is a scary situation for the firefighters as well as the residence. adam housley isç reporting. we watchedç those claims get closer and closer to you as the morning goes by. >> that is right. -is falling down like snow. -- that is rightç, the ash is falling down like snow. firefighters did an amazing job channeling the2eátátj away from these homes behind@%ñ and as

they were pulling out, they literally took a the hoses and moved around the corner to tcble this fire. this isç burning toward the otr part of this neighborhood. the idea is to channel this fire away from the homes. let it burnç on theç mountain, the do not let it reach homes themselves. it is difficult fire fighting right now. ççhere is some video giving yn idea of what the conditions are like on the ground. i got a message from an official from cal fire and hç is remindingç everyone to stay hydrated. firefighters, the media, even people staying back here in their homes, they are reminded

to stayç hydrated and to stay t of the way. çover to my left, there is a swath of smoke. that is where the fire is actively burning. they are bringing in a helicopter is right now to drop 9$(lc@&c+ çthe helicopters just started their dropping routes in the last 30 minutes. they will circleç around -- hee he comes right now. he gets an idea of where he will go, and the visibility is so thick outç here, it is basicaly snowingç ash. they are getting water from a very close location. as he comes back through, he will likelyç drop on the second pass.

where he is going to hit this above the they bunch ofç homes that we areç nearby. there has not been a fire here for about 60 years -- there he goes. they are doing anç amazing job. what you do)u see on the ground or the fire fighters on the ground helping them to locate, and at the same time doing what they can on the ground before they have any kind çof embersç to deal with. what makes this different this time is there is no wind. these are not santana conditions. it isç just extremely dry and extremely hot. -- santa ana conditions. trace: thank you. it is warm and sunny where you

ç1,600 gallons of water. martha: you can get more information on the fires on our çwebsite atç foxnews.com/hous. adam just posted a bunch of photographsç from the scene. trace:ç on top of that, of yous are sending us amazing pictures of the wildfires. if you have any photos or videos you want to share with us, send them to usç at ureport@foxnews.comç. this was taken from miles away. imagine how frightening this scene would be. çmartha: is the latest slap in the face from libya. muammar al-qaddafi for win himself a huge party commemorating his fourth anniversary in power. the peak of this evening will be

the triumph and videoç of the return of the man convicted in the lockerbie bombing, abdul basset al-megradhi. he was let go from a scottishç prison on "compassionateç grounds" because he was dying of cancer. now we have the latest on this alleged deal we have been talking about between the u.k. and libya, to releaseç him as part of aç petroleum deal with british petroleum. what we know now, according to a spokesperson from gordon brown, letters exchanged on theç alled deal say that theç secretary jk straw came into libyan demands that the lockerbie bombing be included as part of a transfer deal, that thatç would set the groundwork. çthe secretary is denying that there was any such deal. trace: in the meantime, the top

u.s. commander in afghanistan is pushing for a changeç in our wr strategy. çstanley mcchrystal is submittg a report to military leaders today. nato officials say it spells out a plan to develop afghan security forces and improving çthe country's government, anft did not include a request for additional u.s. troops, but is expected to make that request in coming weeks. in the meantime, conservative columnistç george will recommending a different çstrategy, the removal of groud troops from afghanistan. jennifer griffin is following this from the pentagon. where is his review right now? >>ç this is the strategyç revw we have been waiting for. it was supposed to be a 60-day review. it became a 90-day review period and came into the pentagonç -- review. çit came into the pentagon the

other day and have president obama will be receiving a copy when he goes to camp david. it is about 20 pagws long. unlikeç most documents in washington, this one has not been leaked. some of the details, we have been able to glean what is inside, and there are no request for moreç troops, but from peoe who have readç the report, they say they are laying the groundwork for more troops. trace: what else do we know from the report? >> in the last few weeks we have been reportingç about certain changes in the wayç that generl mcchrystal wants to fight the war. i am told that it is a combination of his july 6 tacticalç directive, talking about protectingç afghan civilians, using less force, and doing more protection of the afghan population.

it is a combination of that directiveç and also a counter insurgencyç guidance that he released -- a seven-page report -- on friday. that gives you an idea of how he wants to turn things around. he willç also call for the doubling of afghan security forces. martha: it may be the calm before the storm right nowçç. have you seen the president's approval numbers lately? the latest ones we have seen are continuing to slide. now the disgruntlemn] that we are seeing across town hall çmeetings is stretching beyond health care. where is this going? >> said down, sir. what did you say, siv @ --ç sit down, sir.

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with memberships and fees. but not walmart. they have hundreds of generic prescriptions for just $4 for up to a 30-day supply or $10 for 90 days. save money. live better. walmart. trace: we are back in the newsroom because this is where the news begins. çthe national deskç is coverig america. over here, the foreign desk covering the globe. every picture that comes into fox news comes in and through here, the media desk. çthose pictures will always ben ;u$e right-hand side of the screen. in the top box, hurricane

jimena heading for mexico's baja peninsula. it is expectedç to hit the area in a few hours. çwhile tourists are heading do, some locals are staying put, fearing massive looting if they leave. that is a look at wall street. çdropping just aç bit. in the bottom box, the astronauts in the space shuttle discovery have a space walk ahead of them today. çthey will also beç unloadinga treadmill. martha: from what we hear from lay low week. now there is talk from some

corners to hit the ground çrunning into attainable by the health care horns, so to speak, when he gets back to it. >> he is the president. he ought toç have a bill of his own. çi cannot remember president clinton, president bush, president reagan ever deciding congress -- ever leaving it up to congress to decide what is in a bill. ç

your reactions to what bob dole seems to be saying in simple terms? he needs to get back there and put his name on a bill and ly on the line exactly what he wants. ç>> this is something that we have seen since the first week of the obama administration outsourcing legislation to congress, whose job is tradrionally to write it. çi think that was a fatal miste made in the first week. we have seen itç again with health care, lettingç congress,

535 people with different interests, writing the bill. it has been a disaster and has hurt his approval ratings. çmartha: he has to come back ad he hasç to refrain this debate, on the heels of -- reframe this debate, on the heelsç of the passing of kennedy. çwhere do you expect him to go? >> i think senator dole's advice is good buys. he needs to startç defining his health care proposal. çif he takes a big loss, it may be a loss for the democrats, and then your predictions are looking good. this has really been in çdiscussion about the economy more so than health care. çthey tried to say health cares important, that it is something that we have been trying to do, and that it is a moral issue. ççbut american people are

concerned about the spending, the war in afghanistan, the cia potential scandal. there is so sg(r right now in the cooker, people thiny we are doing too much. especially on the economy, let's calm down. martha: when you are sitting çdown at the oval office with yourç top advisers, labor day weekend is over. what does he specifically say about how he is going to fix this thing, orç if he had different expectations? ç>> he has done that pretty clearly. he is one of the great talkers of my lifetime, but paradoxically, the more he talks çabout this legislation,ç thes support he gets. he was on a call with catholic leaders and said it was a moral and ethical obligation to sup -iq"áju legislation, if you

that is about as self righteous that you can get -- as you can get as president. i do not know what kind of advice i would give. his talking is what it does not include, and i am glad you brought up the topic of the catholic church. historically, the catholic churchç has spoken in favor of universal healthç care. it is stunning when you have a number of high-profile catholic bishops in the country -- and we happen to have pictures and a quotation from one ofç them for you -- theyç are turning againt the plan. take a listen to when the archbishop in denver had to say --

all of theseç parts bishops tak about abortion as one of the issues here. he is casting a broad net here. he says the plan does not make sen[e/ >>ç abortion is an issue for te church and the one to be sure any changes in health care plan did not allow for the government to pay for abortion. you areç right, it is a bigger of what is exactly in the bill and what we will get. unlike tucker, i think if he was to say exactly what heç is standing for, he would do better. çmartha: what are the chances that he comes back and says we're going to focus on health care for theç uninsured. we are going toç come up with a plan for the first. is he going to start small and tried to get something? juan first.

>> that is a great idea. çwe could expand medicare to p3 can say exactly what it will cost. the american people could respond to that. >> it is a tough argument. çbasically, we are or to charge you rjuuz be with people you have never met. it is a tough case. he needs to appeal to people's self-interest. m@btha: thank youç. always a pleasure to speak to you. make sure to watch on friday as well when tucker hosts a specialçç, do you know what textbooks your children are really reading? tucker carlson will beç bringig us that. trace: itç is the source of on limited information but soon there could be a national web

master in charge of the internet, where withç the flipf a switch, could shut itç down completely. and bruce willis used in nuclear bomb to break up an asteroid in space, but this is the real deal. pç if you're taking 8 extra-strength tylenol...

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oh, oh. no glass ceiling. the freedom to name your price. now, that's progressive. call or click today. trace: we want to update youç n the interest coming from california. thatç is outside of the los angeles area. that is the station fire.

it had burned nearly 100,000 acres. çabout 6000 homes are in its 2500 homes have been evacuated. 58 homes have burned to the ground, and it is still burning in theç mountainsç separatinge mojave desert from the downtown area. this thing is 5% contained, whichç is nothing. the questionç now is when the wind comes, how strong will indeed, and how many firefighters will be relocated to help defend? çmartha: liberal growp& are criticizing the white house over a plan that could make president obama the nation's altman web master. there is a senate bill in the works deshwned to shift authority to the internet toç e oval office. right now that falls under homeland security.

but soon, the president, in an emergencyç situation, would be able to pull the plugç on all private networks, if we were in some sort of a cyber security emergency. some people in the country are very worried aboutç this. catherine herridge, who is behind thw bill? >> let's begin with legislation. there is the cyber security act of 2009 put forward,ç a bipartisan bill, by jay west virginia and republican olympia snowe. it would allow the president to declare a cyber security and emergency and do what is necessary toç respond to the emergency,ç including taking control of the internet. comparison about president bush "f!rown and all the airplanes on ç9/11, if there was some sort f threat, that he should have the

ability to do that. >> that is the best analogy. i spokeç with a top cyber securityç official under the bh was a good analogy. çplanes being grounded on 9/11. it would be similar. the bottom line for most people is the type of attack they are worried about in the future wouldç have two elements of attack. çit would cripple communication bodies and even first responders. ççthe first type of attack wew in that vein was the russian invasion. there was a first wave of cyber attacksç on the government website and that wasç followedy

a conventional attack. that is the type of scenario that the government is concerned about. çmartha: thank you very much. çmartha: blueprint for a device thatç could save the earth froa çcataclysmic asteroid. if this happens, you will not need to worry about the internet. british scientists are making plans for a grab a tractor. designed to attract a large space rock away from the earth. it would close toç withinç 150 feet and create a smaller gravitational pull.

ççthe british and initially thought that was a crazy idea. then they start to think about it and they reconsidered. the only problemç is it would have to be launchedç 15 years before the potential collision. it wouldç need an entire team f trace: that music, by the way wasç from "lost in space." çit is about as bad as hurricas get, making its way to the west coast. jimena. aç powerful category 4 storm. this couldç cripple the area. we will go to the weather center next.

and attendance is down, so one church in michigan has a chance toç -- has an idea to fill the empty seats. are you receiving a payout from a legal settlement or annuity over 10 or even 20 years? call imperial structured settlements. the experts at imperial can convert your long-term payout into a lump sum of cash today.

trace: dangerous conditions in bris gutierrez is at lake travis. >> lake travis behind me is 40% full. it is the third driest summer on çrecord here. in fac(!je)jáz bad, residents are having to haul in their own water because the well is they've a lot on have gone dry. in fact, some ofç them are 380 feet deep. çtrace: thank you, kris gutierrez. something experts say seniors are doing to supplement t$ir income that should onlyç be doe as a last resort. orlando salinas is in south florida. >> if you are oldç enough, have enoughç equity, a reverse mortgage could be your answer,

but it could be a financial death sentence for many american seniors. çback to you. trace:ç take a look at this picture. this is what the scene looks like in the california just outside of los angeles. this fire hasç burned 100,000 acres withç no sign of slowing down. let's go to adam housley who is on the fire lines. >> firefighters are still battling this from the ground andç from the air. they are still havingç issues. homes seem to be out of the woods here, but there are fire crews making sure that all of the ground fires are put out. çit isç still dry and warm ane fire is still definitely burning in california. trace: thank you. that is brand new information. çmartha: take a look at someçf these amazing images that some of you are sending to us.

this one comes in from waning in south pasadena, showing the çstation fire. çflames have scorched 190 squae miles since it started. this comes from justin mcdonald showing firefighters on the groundç in auburn, california. çdiane earnest took this 4zmñshe is 5 miles away from the fireç in oak glenn. if you have any videos or photographs to share with us, as alwayak sre that you stay safe if you do so. can cause devastating damage and completeç structural failure, accordingç to the national hurricane center. evacuation orders for baja,

california right now. most tourists and some localsç. çbordnoing on the category 5ricane with winds tping at 145 miles per hour. now peopleç along the southern u.s. are tracking theç storm. domenica davis is ithe weather center. >> we are still lookingt th system move west. to the southf cabo. it is movingç at aive speed ho. here is the latest track. it shows the store making hurricane. çthis is what we are watchin by night will

e:cuinaeal wihe dev.çcutting ao boost attendance in church. a coupleç of new signs going up çin a michigan community. one sign says -- another one says -- ççalso signed by the gatekeepr himself. >> probably against what we are doing because god is doing some awesome thknm in our church every week. çhundreds of people are being impacted. >> we will do what i sin, to reach

something edgy to get people's attention. mission accomplished. remember her?mer miss californi- carrie prejean is firing back with aç lawsuit againstç the s usa organization. remember this meeting monday got together and said everything was going to be ok? herç publicist is also involve. çthe 22-year-old lost her crown when state pageant officials said a breach of contractçç ce termination. her lawyer tells us that if she had not answer the questionç -- çwhat do you think?

trace: hit in double murder mysteryç -- and doubleç -- a double murder mystery in virginia. police have no leads. what they are asking from the çpublic, and we will speak to e çrev. who knew david for most f his life. he ran off with his secretary! she's 23 years old! - oh, come on. - enough! you get half and you get half. ( chirp ) team three, boathouse? ( chirp ) oh yeah-- his and hers. - ( crowd gasping ) - ( chirp ) van gogh?

( chirp ) even steven. - ( chirp ) mansion. - ( chirp ) good to go. ( grunts ) timber! ( chirp ) boss? what do we do with the shih-tzu? - ( crowd gasps ) - ( chirp ) joint custody. - phew! - announcer: get work done now. communicate in less than a second with nextel direct connect. only on the now network. deaf, hard of hearing and people with speech disabilities access www.sprintrelay.com. ♪ bicycle, what are we waiting for? the flowers are blooming. the air is sweet. and zyrtec® starts... relieving my allergies... 2 hours faster than claritin®.

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he wuld tell i i $ mlion i wiaw fo loinotmboasinday aof h de hotopss een no ccompleted p martha was describing ho close

that house is. is is near interstate 10. rea, the sal gabrmountains, it is a60-mile motain rang angesfrom mojave desert. en these ms a pushed wn by wind, it is like being fithroh in a fire h not bur here for ovyearer0 c imagineall of that drruthe groundine theyve lt 58 homesn ma: th is a the r ervoir i an th

ffithu at anyone wh may haeen near 24swh erfuce having a spiritual faith that people do not realize. >> absolutely. i think that -- thank you for having me on here today. i cannot express enough the kind of godly young people that they both work. they just radiated christ everywhere they went.

>trace: i would be enraged. the parents are clearly torn up. they have shown this intestinal fortitude that you just cannot see. again, they are so spiritual, looking past this with a better face. >> rage, anger, questions, all of those things were our first initial responses. the child's family was a perfect example of that yesterday. they said that god would give us a piece that passes all understanding. i cannot understand how they are dealing with it except for claiming that promise. god has promised to give us peace through the most difficult times. it is certainly the time that i have the most difficult time as

a youth pastor. martha: what you say to them when they have to counsel through this kind of grief about how god can let this happen? >> we try not to ask a question playa of god. in this time we focus on a verse from the bible that says that we grieve like people that have no hope. that is where our focus has to be. we can drive ourselves crazy trying to question the why of things. the one thing that both families have said to me at separate times, in their lives they lived by god. they said that in the deaths they want god to be glorified. if you had seen the funeral yesterday, person after person that stood to testify -- as friends, roommates, dorm mates

at virginia tech but each one, each talk about what a great young people they work and more importantly each one talked about how godly they were and their desire that they themselves would impact others around them to be more christlike. trace: a tragedy. thank you, reverend. martha: let's look at the pictures that we are getting of these incredible fires. this is an area that is sort of grabbing on to the brush, it has not seen it in 40 years. a highly unusual fire that is getting closer to the greater los angeles area. it is a frightening situation for these folks in california. we will show you the pictures and what is going on there on the fire lines, right after this.

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martha: just moments from now we are going to hear directly from president obama, who has just been briefed on swine flu preparedness in our nation. he is going to be up there with the big players. as soon as that comes in, we will take you right there about how wet -- have already we are. -- how whaready we are. schools are ready with contingency plans. wisconsin has a plan to keep the lessons going. sofa school, what is that?

i think i would have liked it. >> [laughter] right? it is bringing the school to the kitchen table or in this case, the sofa. what is happening in milwaukee public schools is that paper packets will be made. one huge building about 1 mile from here will be converted, just in case, and these paper packets will be sent to students -- healthy and sick -- once a week. that is an event that schools around this area have to be shut down. milwaukee schools look at a number of different options, including the television, internet, and radio. they are going with it the good old standby of the paper packet. martha: the good old standby is always the best way to go. thank you. we are just getting these pictures into the newsroom. they are coming from glendale.

we are told that this is a controlled burn. you are looking at an intentional fire, we are told, and we will continue our breaking news coverage of the fires in california and everything else. back to the white house in a minute. 7

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martha: welcome. trace: we are alive because the news begins in the newsroom, coming out to you from the control room. the situation in afghanistan is changing by the minute. admiral mike milk -- mike mullen says that the situation is deteriorating. [captioning made possible by fox news channel] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- trace: george will says that he thinks the ground troops should be pulled out of afghanistan, we both get into that debate coming up. also, this man, jason stinson, an american football high school coach that is on trial. the first in history to be on trial for homicide after one of his fliers died of heatstroke. this trial could change coaching in america as we know it. take a look at these pictures coming out of southern california. this is a station fire and we

have a live look coming out of glendale. we are being told that this is a controlled burn, meaning that firefighters have said this fire as a fire line against the last line of defense of the fires raging down the hill, which have doubled in size. 2800 more homes in the fire's path. let's get by to the fire line, where we have been watching it come racing down the mountain. what is the latest? >> what a difference one hour makes. one hour ago this neighborhood was under siege. the hills behind it were completely gulf -- and gulf in flames. fire crews have been working on this and over the last hour they were able to knock out the flames and people in the neighborhood are breathing a sigh of relief. we might be able to see a bit of

flames right there behind me. now the people directly in the neighborhood below are a bit nervous. let me bring in one of those residents, we watched her racing up and down the neighborhood, she was a bit worried. how are you feeling? >> a little nervous. >> what do you think is going on in your neighborhood? >> there are not many people left. we are standing guard, hoping for the best. >> you are concerned about your animals? >> i had my chance to get out, but i did not want to leave my house and i have my dog with me. >> firefighters are doing the best they can. thank you so much. >> thank you for everything you are doing for us, firefighters. you are doing a great job. >> the residents are so thankful. it is unbelievable, you are standing in the street and watching the flames coming down to the edge of the curb.

you can only imagine the fear that he would have and the relief that you would feel of the firefighters fighting the fires out. trace: look down here, i want to show you, can we put the picture back up? that picture at the control, look at how close the flames are to these homes. not only that, this is kind of a narrow scope, if you widen it out you will see that those homes are actually surrounded by flames. you can see the fire and the fire crews, fire trucks -- this is called for a tentative firefighting. they will go into back yards, use the pool water, building up the fires to act as a line of defense. sometimes it works, many times it does not. right now they are depending on the wind. if it shifts the entire scenario could change and they might have to get in their trucks and move on to the next subdivision or

neighborhood that they can try to save. they try to save the house as long as they can, but when the flames get closer they have no choice other than to get in their trucks and run. martha: sounds like a good idea when you look at those pictures. let's bring in t.j. lynch, he was evacuated from his home in california. can you hear me ok? >> yes. martha: tell me about your story. you left your house on sunday, how is it right now? >> when last we saw it, our home was still standing. you see reporters still up there. we have a call in to them to get the lowdown. as far as we can tell, flames

are coming downhill rapidly, they are incredibly high when they hit one of those old oil- filled mediterranean trees, they got off like a roman candle. martha: have you ever experienced anything like this in california? >> not like this. i can safely say that no one in our neighborhood has ever experienced anything like this. as a screenwriter, my job is to come up with fantastic and sometimes catastrophic scenarios for a living. when in actually happens, it is of course much more sobering. martha: how difficult was the decision to leave? did you think that it was real? did you feel that it would come up to your house? or did you think did you could wait it out? >> this was our second mandatory

evacuation. yesterday at noon the police cars were up and down the street. we had been out of town and missed the first evacuation complete. we did not see any immediate threat. there was very little smoke over the house. it had been lingering in smoldering. we were on our second day. when they started evacuating us, everyone was kind of surprised. but there was a sense of urgency. we were left to load up everything of value into a car, which is a disconcerting experience. we just stayed parked in the driveway. they were right. at 6:00 in the evening, massive flames came over the hill. martha: we wish you all of the best and we hope that your home is doing ok.

we are glad that you had an opportunity to get out of there. there are many like him that are waiting this out. we will continue to show you the vote as they are sending us. jody sent as a photo taken from her nephew's fire truck. you can see the smoke clouds rising. look at that picture from that helicopter. look at this picture, showing the scene at night. it is almost beautiful, these fires burning over the ridge. but man, it is a scary, scary event for the people that are threatened. right now we are waiting for president obama to come out and speak. he has just received the latest information on how the swine flu is going to progress in this

country, or to the best of their ability the they can figure it out. it is quite frightening. our kids are going back tomorrow, trace's has his kids going -- trace as his kids going back today. wendell, who had briefed the president? what do we know about what we are going to hear? >> the president met with members of his cabinet to make sure that they are prepared for the return of the swine flu virus, making sure that they are prepared to offer state and local officials whatever help they need, they will be the front line of defense. he also wants to make sure that the public understands the threat and how to defend against it.

wash your hands frequently, keep your kids at home if they are sick, and recognize that the h1n1 virus does not pose much of a medical threat more than the seasonal flu virus. new york officials were speaking earlier today about the fact that visits to the hospital er in may and june were up three times and four times higher than normal. officials want to prevent that from happening, as much as one- third of the country could be exposed to the virus. unless you are at risk, unless you have existing medical conditions, you do not need to go to the hospital emergency room or get the flu vaccine. just take the normal precautions for the flu, recognizing that it would possibly be comfortable --

uncomfortable, so the president will be trying to reassure the country that they are doing all that they cannot, letting the country know what they should understand about how to prevent the spread and how to deal with it if you get it. medic -- martha: we will go back to the white house as soon as we get more. thank you. dr. manny has a new way to look at this. we will be bringing that to you as well. trace: the faa is investigating whether southwest airlines installed faulty parts in passenger jets, specifically in the wings and shield-project -- shield-protected jet flaps. shannon is live from the airport. how many are we talking about? how worried should passengers be? >> they were initially talking

about 46 airplanes or so. it is being called an unauthorized parking -- trace: folbaum, let's listen. >> for the first time in 18 months the manufacturing sector has expanded, statistics showing it at the highest in two years. greater production of cars and electronic equipment. these companies are starting to invest more and produce more, showing that we are on the path to economic recovery. there is no doubt that we have a long way to go. i and others in his administration will not let up until americans looking for job can find them. this is another important sign that we are taking steps to bring the economy back from the brink and that they are working. we just had a good meeting about

the ongoing efforts to prepare this country for the h1n1 flu virus this fall. i want to thank john brennan, our cdc director tom freemen, an hour senate, sibelius and locke. when we saw this back in the spring, as i said, i did not want everyone to be alarmed, but i wanted them to be prepared. we often get a second, larger wave of these viruses in the fall. response plans have been put in place across the government. we will be putting the best information out there, as that situation changes we will continue to update the public. we are also making steady progress in developing a safe h1n1 flu vaccine. we set -- expect that the vaccine will begin soon.

it will be voluntary but strongly recommended. for all that we do in the federal government, every american has a role to play in responding to the virus. we need state and local governments on the front lines to make antiviral medicines and vaccines available, taking the steps necessary for the health care system. we need health care providers and hospitals to prepare for an increase in health care worker load. we need families and businesses to make sure that there are plans in place if a child or co- worker stays home with the flu. most importantly, everyone needs to be informed about individual risk factors. stay home if you are sick. wash your hands frequently.

take all the necessary precautions to stay healthy. it sounds simple, but it works. for people that would like to learn more about. i would like to commend every member of my team. we have done an extraordinary job in preparing for the flu outbreak. we anticipate some issues coming up over the next several months. we are confident that our team that has been assembled here has done an extraordinary job in preparing for whatever might happen. we appreciate you all >> are you

going to send more troops to afghanistan? martha: all right. despite a shouted question at the end about afghanistan, today's message is about h1n1. you could see his advisers, but we do not really know what we're going to get this fall. wendell is at the white house, standing by to give us more. a pretty direct statement. we do not know what is coming or when. we have seen the progress of h1n1 through the southern hemisphere. it does not appear to have changed significantly from the outbreak that theme to this country from mexico.

different populations, more people in their 20's and 30's, so more likely to become seriously ill, no numbers greater than those who already have problems with seasonal flu. the president said take normal precautions to prevent disease transmission, the government is doing all they can to make sure that officials are ready to deal with the outbreak if it arrives. once again, trying to get people comfortable so that they do not overload the hospital. if one-third of the population is exposed, we cannot afford the have the same number of people go the hospital and emergency room.

martha: thank you. out purchasing school supplies last night, they have got the shoes right next to the notebooks. i bet that that would be a big seller this fall. >> the reason that people panic is that they just do not have the right information or they get disinformation. ç[j

if you want to know if you had immunity, there are available blood test. you can go to some laboratories and ask if you have been exposed to the virus and if you have immunity. for whatever the reason might be, it could cost you a lot out of pocket, but that technology might be available to you. trace: 97% of the population is not going to get a blood test. they are going ask right now, do i need a shot or not? >> look, vaccines are good in the sense that if you have risk factors -- like if you are a pregnant woman.

we know for a fact that young adults can be affected because they do not have a lot of community as compared to people over the age of 65, who we now have partial immunity. trace: swine flu, we just answer this earlier -- and in new, i had swine flu? >> i did you are. if this virus wants to meet a alternative testing for h1n1? >> absolutely. you can go to a laboratory and have your blood tested to find out if you have immunity. bill: will the same vaccine work? >> if it mutates in the next

couple months and there is a new wave of virus, that asim will be of it. trace: so, you tell us to relax, the new free us out? all bets are off? >> want to know everything about h1n1? >> go to [inaudible] -- foxnews.com. trace: your story is on the radio tomorrow? >> favorite radio show in the country.

>> this is longevity. >> what happens outside of the bedroom does not leave the bedroom -. trace: hot question, hot dancers. dr. manny, thank you. martha: they were supposed to be guarding against terror attacks in this country. instead, look at what they are doing. sleeping on duty at one of our nation's largest, most travel bridges.

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trace: we have to keep showing you these pictures, as they come and they are just amazing. this is the california wildfire from our affiliate. but at this, this is just coming up over the side of the house. look at roof. the eight homes have already burned. now you have got other homes in danger. 2100 other families have been evacuated. they are saying that 2003 thousand homes are in the path of the fire. you see this kind of spotty fire? that is not the whole thing. these fires move so quickly, all it takes is one member or one spark to light a home and it goes up like that.

firefighters then have to move on. as you look at these pictures, consider the big picture -- it just takes one amber from these dry, at interest brush to start the homes on fire. -- tinderous rushed to start these homes on fire. we are also looking at hurricane jimena. the national hurricane center says that this could be devastating. we will keep our eyes on that. the dow jones is not having a good day, brought on by declines in the financial and energy sectors of the market. martha: know where the high for security guards asleep at the job at the george washington bridge. a crucial commuter link between york city and new jersey. anyone could have walked right past with a bomb headed out to

the bridge or anything else along those lines. instead, you know what happened? a concerned citizen took out their camera and took a few snapshots. brian wilson has live in new jersey but what happened after that. >> it was an interesting story. this bridge gets a lot of traffic, you said. 2 million vehicles cross this bridge between new jersey and manhattan each week. 100 million per year. it is also a suspension bridge, the kind of bridge that al qaeda said it wanted to take out. it is guarded. as you can see in these pictures, at times it is not guarded very well. these pictures cyclist that crosses this bridge on a regular basis. several times he saw the guards sound asleep on the job. he said that if he did that again -- if they did that again,

he would have to turn in the pictures. today he explain why he felt the need to do that. >> what would happen if something happened on the bridge if this guy was asleep on duty? someone deciding to that made the bridge? i could not live with that. >> the guard in question have been fired by the security firm hired by the port authority to guard the bridge. the port authority suggested that joe did exactly the right thing. here is part of the statement that they released. "the port authority welcomes the public vigilance on matters of safety and security, we encourage customers to contact us if they encounter anything out of the ordinary. this is another example of citizen journalism at work, where citizens take pictures with their cameras and the then turn them over to the media. sometimes it is a trolley operator that sends a tax while he is driving.

sometimes it is a subway operator not paying full attention to the job. there is another case where airline pilots were partying too late, trying to make their flight and citizen journalists bring us the photos that bring it to the public's attention. with all this bad behavior and a camera in everyone's pocket, there is nowhere to hide. martha: that is a good thing, i think. like they say, if you see something, say something. that is what this gentleman did. there is no hiding from brian wilson. for more stories, check out foxnews.com and search for the phrase "know where to hide." thank you, brian. trace: we have brand new developments on the war in afghanistan, a brand new strategy after the deadliest month for troops so far. right now the white house is

reviewing the plan. what has a senior defense official told fox news. john boehner has to stay here in three minutes. ( chirp ) team three, boathouse? ( chirp ) oh yeah-- his and hers. - ( crowd gasping ) - ( chirp ) van gogh? ( chirp ) even steven. - ( chirp ) mansion. - ( chirp ) good to go. ( grunts ) timber! ( chirp ) boss? what do we do with the shih-tzu? - ( crowd gasps ) - ( chirp ) joint custody. - phew! - announcer: get work done now. communicate in less than a second with nextel direct connect. only on the now network. deaf, hard of hearing and people with speech disabilities access www.sprintrelay.com.

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>> the latest advisory has the category four weakening just slightly, expected to do so more over the next 24 hours. still expected to be a major hurricane by late tomorrow. we will have all the details for you throughout the day. trace: in central texas, the worst drought in decades. chris? >> take a look, this is lake travis. you can see that it is 40% of where it needs to be. you can see that boat ramp out there, just one example of where the water has gone. the entire city of austin is affected, and the drought continues. trace: how is the stimulus going?

how about this for outrage. $2 million? five jobs. >> $2 million of your money have been traced to the state of new hampshire to purchase four chartered buses to improve commuter transit. critics say that that money will only create a few more bus driver jobs. a spokesperson for the federal transportation department says that there is an effect, companies that make the bosses may have to hire more workers. many states and cities are looking to upgrade their bus fleet. trace: molly, live from washington, d.c., thank you. martha: president obama maintained that president bush had abandoned the important fight in afghanistan. a war of his choosing, obama contended, was in iraq. now, obama is overseeing as

commander-in-chief. general mcchrystal is now in the process of releasing a 20 page report. so far he says that the situation is serious but salvageable. today george will argues that it would take hundreds of thousands of coalition troops, the u.s. is headed toward the number of 68,000, one decade or more to create the kind of stability that would prevent the reestablishment of al qaeda in afghanistan. he says will help the troops that are there and do what can be done from offshore with intelligence, drumlins, and air strikes. an interesting argument. we want to bring ambassador john bolten to get his thoughts. >> glad to be here. martha: talk to us about what we are hearing. it sounds like this report

indicates that mcchrystal will call for more troops initially to train afghan soldiers and police. right? >> that is the direction he is clearly moving in, the right direction to go. the real question is what president obama thinks our objective in afghanistan is. in that sense i think that some of his analysis is quite interesting. the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff have said that we need to eliminate the culture of poverty in afghanistan. that is not going happen anytime soon. i think that the president's decision on general mcchrystal's recommendation will make it into his war. martha: to your point about how rough things are in afghanistan, it has been pointed out that they have a $23 billion gdp in afghanistan, which is about the size of boise, idaho.

in the entire world, only somalia has a weaker government. also, a lot of reports about the fact that the government is corrupt and a mess and that his second in command is a drug trafficker. what you think about that? >> a weak government in afghanistan is nothing new. this is something that we are going to fundamentally change, especially since many congressional democrats have served notice on obama that there is only one year to get this right. the problem will not be solved in one year. they need to focus on two objectives in afghanistan. one, making sure the taliban and al qaeda do not use it as a safe haven. no. 2, making sure that the taliban and other religious fanatics do not take over in nearby pakistan. trying to eliminate the culture

of poverty in afghanistan is not the prime strategy. martha: one, the mission is to stabilize the country. two, continuing to hammer at any kind of taliban base or target that we can find. do you recommend pulling out the troops on the ground? >> bronrott that point, i think it is not the case that the only alternative analysis is to stay for an extended period of time and build irrigation ditches. the u.s. has to focus on destroying as much of the television capability as weekend. there needs to be a much larger drug eradication program to make it clear that the taliban will not get revenues from the sale of illegal drugs. martha: a lot of people might listen to this argument and say wait a minute, the same people

that argued for the increase of troops in iraq, that there was an attainable goal, that that was george bush's role -- war, they are now saying that we should not be in afghanistan, they are saying the opposite. what you say about that? >> that is an ad hoc analysis of who is for what in iraq and afghanistan. i would rather decide strategic objectives. i think that we only have one important american objective, making sure that america is. martha: de doocy barack obama and freezing the number of troops in afghanistan any time soon? >> my guess is that he will follow the general's recommendation to do that. i think he will have trouble

from his own side of congress. martha: good to see you. thank you. trace: a groundbreaking case out of kentucky, a coach charged in the death of one of his players. a twist to the story could mean trouble for the prosecution. next. @ (announcer) illness doesn't care where you live... ...or if you're already sick... ...or if you lose your job. your health insurance shouldn't either. so let's fix health care. if everyone's covered, we can make health care

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trace: 17 minutes until the top of the hour, a high school coach has been charged in the death of one of his players. the judge has denied the charge to the late -- the request to delay the trial. he is charged with reckless homicide and endangerment in the death of this boy. he collapsed during practice last august while running in 94 degree heat. he died three days later. this is the first time an american football coach has ever been brought up on criminal charges for the death of one of

his players. this is precedent-setting. >> it is. the jury probably feels that they can tell the deaf -- the difference between a guy was a coach and a guy who was a criminal. trace: put up the full screen for me. over the past 40 years, 120 heat stroke deaths in high school, college, and professional levels. that was back in the days where you did not give the kids water because they had to get tougher. they started in the 1990's, and since then 35 players. this happens a lot. this is one of those things in football. this is what happens when we play football. >> he was pushing hard. if you cannot prove that a

minimum that this is why the kids died, and there is no autopsy as well. trace: which will be critical to the prosecution. >> without an autopsy, you are asking the jury to make guesses. trace: the coach would make them run back and forth for 200 yards. five kids got sick, two quit, and this kid died. the coach, clearly baby went a little too overboard? >> was he working them too hard? maybe. the jury gets to decide if that counts as murder. trace: case could change coaching in america as we know it. martha: we are looking at a football for a second. trace: 100 degrees? martha: much better watch football rather than play it.

shepard: more kids, it might happen. have you heard about this? you have heard about the murders -- good lord. this guy comes in and says that it looks to him like they were all beaten to death. there were eight people in what all. now there are questions about whether they were about to be evicted. not to say that he is implicated in anything, but we are going to speak with a reporter from the florida times union newspaper. then there is the smartest thing. have you heard about this? scientists are saying that it might be better if we just sent to mars astronauts on a one-way ticket. in other words you go to mars, you work there your whole life, then you die there. i can come up with a short list of people that might want to

volunteer. martha: a one-way trip to mars? shepard: i will go. the world would be better off. this is written down here somewhere. talking to someone fascinating. director of the origin initiatives at the arizona state university physics department, author of "physics of star trek." martha: there is some indication that at some point there is a tiny bit over there. shepard: have you been outside today? martha: is a gorgeous? shepard: this day is the best day of the year in york city. zero clouds. martha: it should be like that every week. shepard: just a little bit breezy, no clouds. if september is payback for june, i may never see you again.

martha: but you will be on that one way to get to mars. trace: everybody on lsu has a one way to get to mars. shepard: we want them here until november. there is a business to take care of. trace: we will get more of that as the days come. russia, looking to boost their auto industry. the rubles for clunkers program that could wind up helping detroit. .

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[captioning made possible by fox news channel] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- trace: let's take you back live to california. the smoke, the flames out there -- look how close that is. you can see all around the smoke and flames, there are

subdivisions in homes out there. it has already burned 58. there are 2000 more in its path. as you look along this line, those are all fires. those are all encroaching on the homes below. we have three or four thousand people out of their homes with a mandatory evacuation. there has been a new round of mandatory evacuations issued. look at the smoke of flank of this fire. it has burned upwards of 100,000 acres. it is still going. you can see it is not really moving. that is a good sign. if the winds pick up this afternoon, that is a bad sign. it could push these fires dangerously close to the homes below. martha: russia taking a page from the usa looking to take a page from the cash for clunkers program.

residents get a $1,500 rebate for russian-made vehicles. they are all producing cars, at least parts of them there. dana, how is this going to work exactly? >> this is vitally important for american auto manufacturers. they have not seen a lot of growth at home. these emerging markets are particularly critical for them. it is a very important emerging market. general motors has about 11% of the car market here. this cash for clunkers program says that anyone with a car over 10 years old, traded in and the russian government will give you $1,500 to buy a new car. 30 million cars in russia. it is anticipated at least half of them are more than 10 years old. that is why this program is

important. martha: it looks like we are looking at a couple of those. as always, thank you very much. trace: rubles for wrecks. martha: his release from prison sparked outrage around the globe. we're learning from the u.k. that they may have cut a lucrative oil deal for british petroleum as part of this deal for his freedom. what newly released documents are telling us about one of our nation's strongest allies straight ahead. limb: dude that was sick! i've been hangin' up there for, what, like, forty years? and then - wham - here i am smacking the pretty off that windshield of yours. oh, what you're looking for an apology? well, toss another coin in the wishing well, pal. it's not happenin'. limb: hey, what's up, donnie? how you been?

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martha: it has been good having you with us here today. trace: "studio b" with shepherd smith begins now. shepard: brand new information about the release of the pan am flight 103 bomber. newly released documents and what they reveal about accusations that the mass murderer was set free in exchange for oil. what, if anything, did the obama administration know and when? did hillary clinton know? who knew? the answers in 30 seconds. first, we have three boxes full. number one is full of fire. the smoke is affecting people across the border in las vegas. across the border in las vegas.