If you want to see what a billion dollars can buy, come to Holly Springs, North Carolina. It’s home to the nation’s first Cell Based Flu Vaccine Manufacturing facility. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services footed part of the bill, paying 40 percent of the billion plus it cost to build the plant.  Swiss drug maker Novartis paid for the rest. So what is cell-based flu vaccine?

It’s a faster way of making vaccines that’s been around since 2000, and is currently used in many European countries. The method uses replicated animal cells instead of chicken eggs which is the fifty-year old traditional method of making flu vaccines. As shown with the current pandemic, sometimes it takes the virus a long time to grow in eggs, which leads to vaccine shortages.

Cell based technology has yet to receive FDA approval here in the U.S.  Why?

Federal Health Officials say when it comes to vaccines, they exercise an abundance of caution. In order for the FDA to approve a vaccine of any kind, it usually involves extensive testing and clinical trials. Those trials take time, but we are dealing with a pandemic right now. Many people are still waiting in long lines all over the country to get the 2009 H1N1 Vaccine. For them, the threat is real, and they want to know that something is being done to prevent flu vaccine shortages in the future. The facility here in Holly Springs is slated to be fully operational in 2012, but plant officials say they could get emergency approval to produce cell based vaccines as early as 2011, in the event of another pandemic threat. Once it gains FDA approval, the plant can make up to 150 Milllion doses of Flu Vaccine within six months of a declared pandemic. That’s four times the amount of vaccine federal officials had hoped to have by now, seven months after swine flu first emerged.

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By Fox & Friends host Gretchen Carlson

Today I traveled to The Villages in Florida to interview Sarah Palin. A big crowd had gathered — some starting yesterday morning — to get a book signed. Gov. Palin pulled up in her bus, accompanied by her daughter Piper and her baby Trig. Her parents and aunt were with her as well.

My mom was with me too! Since I am about to start my Thanksgiving vacation. First, I’ll run at least 4 chunks of the interview tomorrow on Fox and Friends btwn 6-9am EST. I’ll be live in Florida to talk about the interview.

We discussed news of the day, specifically Afghanistan and the newly proposed war tax. We talked about sexism in the campaign. Palin spoke a lot about Hillary Clinton. She said she hopes she will speak up more.

We talked about things in the book people won’t know about Sarah Palin! That was fun!

Finally, I asked her and her daughter Piper about their Christmas traditions for our Fox and Friends Christmas Eve Special.

I am glad I decided to delay my vacation to secure an interview I’ve worked more than a year to get.

The one question Palin won’t answer is what she plans to do iin 2012! See you bright and early tomorrow.

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Aaaaaannddd, they’re OFF!  That is the declaration that hasn’t been heard at historic Hialeah Park since 2001, when the track shut down.  But Hialeah, Florida’s lush and tropical landmark is about to reopen.   Thanksgiving weekend will see a return of horses and gamblers in the stands, which needed all kinds of work to get back into shape.  150 construction workers have been installing the plumbing, painting, and electrically wiring this place in double shifts to make the deadline.  That’s a lot of sweat — literally.  It’s still 85 degrees in South Florida, and Hialeah is a couple dozen miles from the beach, so, no ocean breeze like you get in Miami Beach to cool you down a notch.  Out in the center of the track, there’s a flash of pink that the horses will be sprinting by.  It’s a flock of pink flamingos, and as local lore has it, they’re the descendents of the pink flamingos made famous in the opening of the hit 80s tv show Miami Vice.  Crocket and Tubbs are long gone, but the developers of Hialeah Parks reopening can already sense the return of the good times.  And this place does look spiffy, freshly painted and polished.  And in front of the main entrance, little kids will learn the history here.  A big statue of Citation, the triple crown winner who raced here on its way to becoming a horse racing legend, will welcome all spectators on their way in.

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It’s the biggest company you’ve probably never heard of, and today, according to Governor Bobby Jindal, CenturyLink is hiring. Up until this year, CenturyLink was CenturyTel, a company of about 6,000 employees based in a sleepy corner of Northeast Louisiana. Last year, CenturyTel announced they were buying Kansas-based Embarq., a company three times the size of CenturyTel. The new combined company has 20,000 employees/workers. CenturyLink is now the fourth largest communications company in the country. Not bad for a little telephone company that started in someone’s living room back in the ’30s.

Governor Bobby Jindal announced today that CenturyLink has agreed to stay in Monroe through 2019 and will add 350 jobs. The announcement couldn’t come at a better time for the region. Unemployment in the region hovers around 10%, well above the state average. and traditionally, this has been one of the poorest parts of the country. Almost everyone I talked with today mentioned how devastating it would have been if CenturyLink were to have relocated. It’ll be interesting to see how the company grows from here. Walk around CenturyLink headquarters and it feels more like a family business than a future Fortune 500 company. Employees greet each other like they’re at church and call out to one another by first name. They all turned out for the governor’s announcement in the atrium and then celebrated with a lunch of turkey and all the fixings. It may be just a tiny blip of good news in a sea of bad economy stories, but it’s happening in a place where they can really use it.

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By FNC Reporter Orlando Salinas

A couple of weeks back i burned off a day at Cleveland elementary school in Tampa Florida…

I was there to learn about something called the “renaissance program”… The idea is to pay “the best teachers” bonuses of 5 to 10% to teach students at some of Hillsborough counties poorest and worst performing schools.

I watched these kids … Watched their teachers … Listened to the principal talk up the program and  I gotta tell you — I liked what I heard and liked what I saw.

A patient teacher and kids who reminded me — of me! The 5th grade boys were full of wiggling energy — and the girls were paying more attention — don’t they always?!

I remember having a really hard time in elementary school… Math had always been my arch enemy– and I had a math teacher who Told me that I was nothing “but a stupid little boy”.

That stuck with me — and the other week as I sat there in Mrs. Emily Fagan’s classroom at Cleveland Elementary …  I found myself thinking ‘how wonderful it would have been to have had someone teaching me like Mrs. Fagan. A teacher who it seemed — loved teaching!

The kids there at Cleveland may not come from wealthy families, but their families love them enough to push for this “renaissance program”. And the teachers who are part of it, I don’t think they do it for the money, I think they do it cause they want their kids to have a fair shot at a better future.

And that starts by growing a thriving “mental garden” — a renaissance if u will

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Boeing V. Union

When Boeing recently decided to build the second assembly line for its 787 Dreamliner plane in Charleston, South Carolina, the politicians and union members in Washington State howled in protest. ‘How could they?’ ‘Was there no loyalty to Seattle?’ Boeing explained the decision by saying it came down to labor stability and long-term competitiveness. Translation: No more costly strikes and more flexibility from its labor force. Company officials decided that those goals were not attainable as long as the jobs were held by members of the International Association of Machinists. And after getting huge tax breaks from the South Carolina Legislature, Boeing bolted.

The IAM says the company was only negotiating with the union in order to get a sweeter deal from Charleston. They point to the fact that Boeing hired a lobbyist months ago and bought land adjacent to an existing facility where the new plant will be built. The union, however does not acknowledge that it would not give Boeing everything it wanted in exchange for the 3,000 jobs. The company wanted a 10-year, no strike contract. IAM offered an 8-year contract. Boeing wanted to give 2% annual pay raises. The union wanted 3% plus $15,000 worth of bonuses over the next 6 years. Also, the IAM was asking for a guarantee from Boeing that it would build all future new planes in Washington state and demanded that Boeing remain neutral when the union tried to organize in plants that are currently non-union. In other words, the union wanted to tie the company’s hands for years to come. Boeing would have none of it.

And so a trend that we have seen in the auto industry and the aerospace industry continues … manufacturing jobs leaving strong union states for the non-union South. Did the union shoot itself in the foot? Perhaps. The new assembly line in South Carolina makes it more likely that when Boeing has to build a replacement for the 777 or the 737 it will leave Seattle for Charleston or elsewhere.

The move by Boeing does come with substantial risk, however. While it would not have to build much in the way of new infrastructure in Seattle, Boeing does have to construct a 600,000 square foot plant for the 787 assembly. That will cost an estimated $1.5 billion. In addition Boeing will have to train a whole new workforce to build it’s most important new plane in over a decade and a plane that is already 2 years behind schedule.

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By FNC Reporter Steve Brown

It isn’t often I’m required to shower … twice … to get an interview.

Last week … we traveled to Country View Family Farms in Fannettsburg, Pennsylvania. It is a large pig-breeding operation. It is also the latest target of Mercy for Animals.

The animal welfare group (which openly urges the public to switch to a vegan diet) got one of its ‘investigators’ hired at the farm earlier this year. The investigator was only identified as “he” … and Mercy for Animals says this man was employed at the farm for three months.

What the ‘investigator’ got … was video of some unsavory practices at the farm:

- piglets picked-up by their ears and tossed

- shots of piglets castrated and tails removed without anesthesia (there are none with FDA approval)

- piglets stampeded into a narrow corridor

- adult pigs being repeatedly tattooed by workers using sticks with metal prongs dipped in ink

- vaccination of piglets (including one where the animal had a mask drawn on it with a marker intended to show which piglets had been vaccinated)

- pregnant sows in gestation ‘crates’…which while providing opportunities to monitor feed and care gives the animal little room to move

- the euthanizing of an adult pig with a bolt-gun which required repeated ‘shots’ to finish the job

- piglets still alive after being placed in bins charged with CO to euthanize those which were too small or injured

When producer Marla Cichowski contacted Country View and told them about the video and asked for an interview to explain … they had one request. They wanted me to tour the farm. Because of bio-security measures (to make sure I didn’t transport any disease in or out) I had to do what every employee there does daily.  I was required to shower before going into the facility … and shower coming back out.

During the tour in company coveralls, bump-cap, socks,  underwear and boots … I saw none of the objectionable things in the video.  (Exception, the gestation crates where pregnant sows are held and monitored. I had discovered before arrival they ARE standard in pig breeding farms). The veterinarian, Dr. Jessica Clark answered all my questions about how and why things were done at the pig-breeding facility.

I learned quite a bit unfortunately, Country View would not allow us to bring in a camera so we could show how the place operated. After the one-hour tour of some 2,500 sows and many more piglets, I returned to the showers got back into my civilian clothes and got on with the interview.

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By FNC Reporter David Lee Miller

If you are reading this online you know at least something about the Internet. Chances are however, you don’t know the Internet is running out of addresses.

I don’t mean domain names like Fox News.Com Internet address are the numerical designations assigned to each Web site. They operate invisibly behind-the-scenes. After all, computers don’t understand English. They speak numbers.

The address shortage could end Internet expansion. No new Web sites for schools, businesses and the government. Forget the hope of one day connecting your toaster oven to the Net.

When the current system called IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) was created decades ago no one could imagine the explosive growth of the Internet. In addition to computers, nowadays phones, cars, and even household appliances are connected to the web or soon will be.

The computer scientist nicknamed the father of the Internet, Vint Cerf,  said when he helped create the current address system decades ago, he never imagined it’s 4.3 billion addresses would not be sufficient.   If someone made the suggestion a larger system was needed, Cerf said he would have thought they were “out of their gourd.”

Cerf is now advocating a new address system called IPv6. According to the experts who administer the Internet the number of potential address is a number so large it is hard to fathom. To put the expansion in perspective, if the current system is a golf ball, the experts say, the new one is almost the size of the sun.

As Cerf might explain, in order to imagine a number this big, it helps to be out of your gourd.

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“If you mess with America’s feelings, America will hurt you.” A line delivered by Richard Heene’s Defense attorney, David Lane, when asked by someone in the crowd of reporters what he’s learned from the case unofficially known as Balloon Boy.

The Heenes did not make a statement today and were clearly not interested in the flurry of media attention this time around. Instead, Mayumi, the mother of the Heene clan, quietly listened as Judge Stephen Schapanski explained the charge against her of false reporting to authorities. It’s a misdemeanor offense and a lesser charge than she may have faced had her husband not plead out to a class 4 felony.

According to the attorneys in this case and affidavits filed in the Larimer County Courthouse, Mayumi admitted in a videotaped interview with a police officer that the events of October 15th, when people around the globe watched in terror (and curiosity) as a giant saucer shaped balloon drifted in the Colorado sky supposedly carrying her son, was a hoax. The family had been planning it for two weeks, Mayumi said. This admission, attorneys say, could have cleared the way for authorities to charge the 45 year old mother of three with a felony.

This was a risk the family says it could not afford. You see, if Mayumi Heene were convicted of a felony, as a Japanense citizen, she would be deported to her native country. In a statement released by David Lane, Mayumi’s husband Richard chose to “fall on his sword,” and plead guilty to a more serious charge, so that his wife would not have to. It was a package deal, said Lane. After both Heenes voluntarily admitted to the charges against them, Judge Shapanski let both know that restitution would be sought and that jail time was a possibility. The cost of the four hour chase last month, that involved the cops, sheriff’s deputies, the national guard and the Federal Aviation Administration, is till unknown, but estimates start around 60-thousand dollars. Judge Shapanski will make the final decision during the Heenes sentencing hearing in December.

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If you’ve been curious about whether the world comes to an end in 2012, or wondering if now is the time to seriously get closer to God …  please be assured that as far as any expert I’ve talked with …  the world will still be around pretty much as it is today in 2013. (That doesn’t mean, you shouldn’t cozy up to the big guy!)

Here’s the lowdown.

Fact: the ancient Mayans were great mathematicians and astronomers, obsessed with time. They created these long-count calendars of five cycles, totaling around 26,000 years. At the end of every cycle they predicted that some sort of major event would happen. What that event would be they didn’t know. The last cycle ends on December 21, 2012.

Director Roland Emmerich took that fact and created the worse-case scenario, for a big budget, $260 million, Hollywood disaster flick. It’s the disaster flick to end all disaster flicks.

Fact: Most Religions have End-Times prophecies. Most are preceded by some sort of series of cataclysmic events. None of the prophecies gives a time frame.

But that hasn’t stopped anyone from guessing.

People throughout history have looked on all our wars, natural disasters and general mayhem, as signs that the world is coming to an end. But yet, here we are.

There’s one prediction we can be assured of: With hundreds of books written about 2012 and the Mayan calendar, “2012″ the movie will likely bring good fortune to many a folk.

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I’ve covered enough high profile search and rescues to know that if the missing would have had some kind of a GPS locator beacon they probably would still be alive. James Kim, the San Francisco techie who got stuck in the Oregon mountains during a snowstorm could have been saved by technology. He left his family in the car while he went for help only to die of hypothermia while teams looked for him. Cases like that, led many people to buy the latest locator gadget. And now authorities are starting to see some abuse of the products by people who have little experience in the back country. They call it Yuppie 9-1-1.

Mostly it’s people hitting the S.O.S. when they’re tired or cold and don’t want to work to get out of the woods. Another abuse takes the cake. A father and son were camping in Arizona. They initiated a search three days in a row. The last time was because they drank water from a stream that tasted salty. Irritated rescuers finally yanked them out of the woods. Over a 15 year period search and rescues in national parks alone cost taxpayers more than $58-million. Beacons can actually reduce the cost of legitimate emergencies by giving rescuers an exact location to pinpoint the search. But abuses are frustrating sheriff’s departments and the many volunteers who conduct these operations. There’s no substitute for preparation. And if these novice outdoorsmen continue to be the ‘hiker who cried wolf’ they could end up getting charged for their ‘rescue’. Currently New Hampshire is the only state that allows for a rescue bill, but if the Yuppie 9-1-1 trend accelerates look for other states to follow.

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And the big winner of the night at this years CMA Awards… Taylor Swift! Taking home 4 awards including Best Female Vocalist, Album of the Year, and the coveted Entertainer of the Year! Swift came by backstage to talk with us about all her wins, so did Brad Paisley who served as host and will go home with an award.

We also spoke with Lady Antebellum, winners for two categories: Best Single of the Year and Vocal Group. They say although this isn’t their first industry nod, they still have a lot to prove.

Next up, Best Duo: Sugarland, who used their acceptance speech to give a shout out on stage to fellow nominees Brooks and Dunn who’ve announced a split. Sugarland came by (CMA in hand) and talked about how good it feels to be the 43rd winner in this category.

And… we got to drop in on his CMA rehearsal, now he’s a CMA winner – Darius Rucker! We can stop calling him new to the genre now I think… A bonafide country star with the statue to prove it. One he says will go on display right between his Grammys.

And that’s a wrap from the 2009 Fox News coverage of the CMA Awards. Now its time to make your predictions for 2010…click “comment” below to do so!

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Ashley and Jill Dobson on the red carpet!

Plenty of cowboy hats and a couple of boots made it onto the red carpet at the CMA’s tonight, as all the country stars dressed to the nines to celebrate the night and honor their peers. 

To name a few we caught up with… Reba McEntire, who wore her own “Reba” line dress! A shiny black floor length gown fitting for county royalty. The multi-tasking star discussed all her latest projects and from clothing to furniture and of course new music this year, she’s been busy.

Several former American Idols made there way over too like Diana Degarmo in bright pink and Danny Gokey (who we spoke to already earlier in the day, but we wanted to know how his first CMA red carpet was going!)  

The Judds (Wynonna and Naomi) came by too and made sure to recognize Veterans Day. They also spoke with us about working together and what this year means to them since 25 years ago today they won their first award as The Judds at the CMAs. 

Now the show is going on and we are backstage waiting for all the winners to tell us if it really is an “honor just to be nominated” or… if its always better to win!
Stay tuned for more from here at the Sommet Center in Nashville.

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I have the privilege of spending Veterans Day in a place where it carries special meaning this year. Last week, a gunman stationed at Ft. Hood in central Texas, started shooting and killed 13 people. Twelve of the victims were members of the military. At a time when soldiers risk their lives every day in Afghanistan and Iraq, they certainly don’t expect to risk their lives once they make it safely home. As the investigation continues, and the wounds of the injured begin to heal, the family of those killed will begin to bury their dead. Their sacrifice is a world apart. Even though they were not killed on the battlefield, in the end they were killed because they had a commitment to serving their country. No one but soldiers and those serving soldiers were killed or wounded that day.

Today at a press conference, three soldiers wounded during the attack were in front of the cameras. They are part of a unit who lost three people in the shooting. I can only begin to imagine the pain they and their families are experiencing. They will deploy to Afghanistan before the year is out.

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Hurricane Ida, which in a span of about 24 hours broke apart from a Cat 2 hurricane to a Tropical Storm to a Tropical Depression, is now less of a wind event, and all about the rain.  Flash flood warnings are in effect all up through the South,  from Alabama north to Virginia and beyond.

Being based in Miami, I tend to cover a lot of these type of stories, as Florida gets hit by a lot of the hurricanes and tropical storms that strike the US.  The days are long, wet, and dreary, typically.  In hurricanes, even worse:  no power, sometimes for 100 miles in all directions.

Not the case with Ida.  Really a “boring” storm, from our point of view.  Not even all that much rain where we were positioned, at Ft. Walton Beach, Florida.  But the Atlanta-area is expecting more than 4 inches of rain.

Stay tuned to Fox News Channel for the latest on Ida!

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When the military wants to get something done, it can do so with amazing speed and efficiency.  I’ve seen this firsthand in some pretty far-flung locations like Afghanistan and Iraq …  and was reminded of it by the building of the security wall at Fort Hood, Texas.

Using massive forklifts and Con-Ex shipping containers, the U.S. Army has built a protective barrier around a field in front of the III Corp Headquarters Building to keep families, dignitaries and the President safe and out of sight.

By my calculation, the main portion of the wall runs nearly 900 feet long and stands almost 30 feet tall.  A side wall runs more than 200 feet with containers stacked two and three high.  Several members of the White House Press Corp told me they’d never seen anything like it, although I’ve been told by others that both former President George W. Bush and former Vice President Dick Cheney got similar treatment at visits to other military posts.

Inside the wall the majority of press is assembling in a penned in area at the very rear in a corner (is there an underlying message here…?).  Some 2000 chairs have been set up much closer to the platform and podium built near the driveway in front of the HQ, where family members of the Fort Hood victims and some of those wounded who were treated and released will join politicians, officers, friends and members of the public wishing to pay tribute to the fallen.

The mood here has been somber, respectful and reflective.  There is little discussion between soldiers and the press about warning signs that may have been missed by investigators regarding suspect Major Nidal Malik Hasan’s reported contact with radical islamists overseas.  They’re not looking to place blame or point fingers, at least not to us.  What we’re hearing time and again is how proud they are of their fellow soldiers in the way they handled the incident, treating the wounded (including the alleged killer himself) and supporting each other in a time of crisis. The focus here is on healing and staying on course, allowing the investigation to move forward while learning lessons to try and prevent anything like this from ever happening again.

Rick Waits for the ceremony to begin.

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Sesame Street celebrates its 40th anniversary Tuesday. FOX News visited every kid’s favorite neighborhood to chat with Elmo, Grover and Abby Cadabby. It was great to get a behind-the-scenes look at the people who bring these furry friends to life. Our cameraman had to be very careful not to show too much – we didn’t want to ruin the Elmo mystique for any young fans! Speaking of young fans, I prepared for the interview by getting question suggestions from my nieces and nephews. And of course, I couldn’t help but mention my “research team” to Abby Cadabby, Grover and Elmo:

The characters all told me that they love to learn. Abby Cadabby told me, “”The thing about learning, it happens all the time in every single moment.” Grover proudly told me he can count to 20. And Elmo said, “Elmo loves to learn. It’s really cool!” Sesame Street Executive Producer Carol-Lynn Parente says education has been the top priority since the start, but, “The methods we’ve used to teach the curriculum, the ABCs and 123s, that’s changed a lot over the years.”

Sesame Street also focuses on current concerns, such as obesity, with segments on healthy eating. The show has had its criticisms through the years, from this recent report, all the way back to its inception. Parente tells FOX, “If you look at those early years of Sesame Street, there was lots of concern that we were creating short attention spans in kids because the show was so fast-paced, because it was modeled after commercials and advertising. But if you watch those shows now, they look so slow-paced.” Parente also tells me that since the show has been around for so long, some of its original viewers are now parents and even grandparents, who can enjoy Sesame Street again with the little ones in their lives. The best part of our visit — I now have the answer to the age-old question, “Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street?”.

Reporting from Sesame Street: FOX News Crew Jill, Ravelle, Brian & Rich

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Kris interviews Capt. Reis Ritz ER Physician

We’re live at Ft. Hood, just a day after a gunman killed now 13 people and hurting another 28 other people. Investigators are still trying to piece together what happened yesterday. At this point, they’re saying the suspect, a solider, Major Nidal Malik Hasan, acted on his own when he came into the Solider Readiness Center and started shooting. Investigators would not comment on a potential motive – they say, it’s just too early to tell. They interviewed witnesses through the night in the search for answers.

Ft. Hood is in a day of mourning today. Of the thirteen people killed, twelve were soliders and the other was a civilian. Of those hurt, all are in stable condition. The suspect is also in stable condition.

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Health officials have told us all along to get the H1N1 vaccine, it’s our best defense against the deadly virus. At the same time, we’ve been reminded not to forget about getting our seasonal flu shots. That’s why it’s frustrating for people waiting in long lines all over the country, only to be turned away. Vaccine supplies are running low because of production delays, but adding to the problem is an increased demand for the seasonal vaccine. Concerns over H1N1, have led many people to get vaccinated who normally wouldn’t. So far, 85 million people have gotten seasonal vaccine. That’s 25 million more than this time last year.

Now reports that some large employers, including Wall Street banks, have received H1N1 vaccine even while hospitals and clinics are trying to accommodate those in high risk groups.  In a story that first broke in a BusinessWeek article, some financial companies like Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup have received shipments: Goldman got 200, Citigroup received 1200 doses. Goldman confirms the order, but says it’s up to the CDC to make decisions on distributing vaccines, and the shots will go to high risk employees.

During a House Sub Committee meeting in Washington yesterday, Federal Health Officials were questioned at length about Flu vaccine shortages and production delays. CDC Director, Dr.Thomas Frieden, said the shortages are very frustrating, but said they can’t do anything about them. So far, there have been almost no cases of seasonal flu, it’s all H1N1. Then again, seasonal flu usually doesn’t show up until late winter. Manufacturing companies are focusing their efforts on making more H1N1 Flu vaccine, because health officials expect it to peak before vaccine supplies can catch up.

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In Cleveland today there are two stories that have captured the attention of the locals. Ohio has voted to bring gambling to their state and a convicted sex offender is in custody charged with 5 murders and may soon be charged with more authorities say after 10 bodies and a skull were found inside and behind his home.

Since the early morning hours, families of missing women joined local residents to stand outside  the home Anthony Sowell lived in and try to fathom what may have gone on inside. It is a home Sowell, who had served 15 years in prison for rape and returned to in 2005, will likely never return to again if the prosecutor here gets what he wants … A conviction that he says could bring the death penalty.

Today during his first court appearance, Sowell a former marine, acknowledged to the judge he understood the charges against him . So far, at least five counts of aggravated murder, kidnapping, felony assault and rape the last three based on a claim a woman made that she’d been attacked at the house several weeks ago but escaped.

Sowell was registered as a sex offender at the address and though cops visited him since his 2005 release, they never went inside. This has baffled neighbors who say they complained about a smell coming from the home for years. Authorities say the decomposing bodies may have been there that long too. Maybe days, maybe weeks, maybe says the police chief for years. City councilman Zach Reed talked to me about how this could happen, what folks here are saying about it and what needs to be done:

The Carmichael family, one of the families who came here looking for answers this morning … got the one they feared the most. Their loved one was one of the women whose bodies were removed from Sowell’s home. As much as the Carmichaels wanted to know, it had to be truly devastating to learn that the mother two daughters loved so much and the daughter a mom, the elder Mrs. Carmichael who gave her DNA cheek swab to gain that answer, had died in such a violent way. The girls told me for the last week they just had a feeling they would find out.

The coroner says they want families of other missing women to come forward. Without getting maternal DNA samples he says making a match can be tough.

The prosecutor calls Anthony Sowell a dangerous threat to the public. For now he will remain behind bars. His DNA likely unable to be able to be matched the coroner says because of the condition on the bodies. A grand jury will have to decide what Anthony Sowell is facing but it could include the death penalty.

Cops say this is the second worst criminal investigation in the state. The last years involved 14 bodies found at a single location I’m told. If more bodies are found, and cops say they will dismantle the home and check abandoned homes in the neighborhood in case there are more victims yet to be discovered. If the body count rises by just 4, it will be the deadliest crime scene investigators say they’ve ever seen.

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by FNC Reporter Alicia Acuna

The state of Arkansas is run by a popular Democratic governor and predominantly Democratic legislature.  The congressional delegation is made up of one Republican U.S. Representative, three Democratic ones and two Democratic U.S. Senators.  But if you ask folks around here, most will describe their state as conservative.  After all, they chose Senator John McCain over Barack Obama by 20 percent in 2008.  President Obama did not make Arkansas a campaign stop last year, and everyone we interviewed on this story mentioned it.  He clearly didn’t need it to win, but he may need Arkansas in 2010.  That’s because Democratic Senator Blanche Lincoln is running to keep her seat in Washington and her opponents are talking like they can already taste the sweet victory.

Doyle Webb, Chairman of the Arkansas Republican Party predicts, “This seat will change hands next year. Arkansans are ready for a change, Senator Lincoln has not been the United States Senator that they thought she was when she was elected. She’s drank too much of that Potomac River water and she’s forgot what it is to be an Arkansan, and become more of a Washitonian”.  Senator Lincoln rejects that notion.  While she acknowledged in an interview with us that, “2010 is a gonna be a tough election year,” Lincoln said, “it always is when you run midterm of a new administration.  I did it in 1994 when our own Bill Clinton…had just won the presidency, it was midterm of his first term. And it’s always difficult.”

Adding to the Senator’s challenge, is the debate on healthcare reform.  Dr. Art English a professor with The University of Arkansas at Little Rock Political Science department says, “I actually think she’ll win re-election but it may be a bit of a struggle. But right now I think with the health care debate, of course she’s been right in the vortex of that because of her re-election.”

Senator Lincoln says she does not support a government run, government funded option, but says the country needs to reform its health care system. In its current version, the health care reform bill introduced by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, is not popular with Arkansans.  This state has the second largest senior citizen population in the country (Florida is first). Concerns about potential Medicare cuts and increased taxes prompted a group called, 60plus.org to run TV ads appealing to Senator Lincoln.

She’s  in a tough spot: does she go with national party loyalty? Or cast a vote that reflects the constituents back home?  Either way, she loses something.  What Senator Lincoln does seem to get is the impatience growing around the goals of this administration. She told us, “People’s expectations have been high and most of them know that we don’t move at breakneck speeds in Washington.  But unfortunately when expectations go up, people want to see the results, and I want to bring them results, but I want to make sure that it’s positive and it’s what’s right for Arkansas, it’s what’s right for the country”.

Election day 2010 is not only a year away, it’s an eternity away in political time. A lot can happen, and probably will.

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In sports “helmet cams” offer a unique, first-person perspective of events as they happen on the racetrack or the football field.

Now, the San Jose police department is set to become the first in the nation to test out a similar – though much smaller – technology to help officers collect evidence and protect themselves from false allegations of misconduct.

Last week, a few dozen officers attended a demonstration of the cameras, which will be integrated into their uniform, and worn over their ear like a bluetooth. Some cops found the headsets cumbersome, and i tried on several for a stand-up before finding a way to make one fit correctly (lots of napkins stuffed behind my hair to make it snug!). We thought rank and file cops might be opposed to recording their every move in the field. But when so much of what they do is called into question later, and it’s just their word against someone else’s – many officers said they’d welcome the technology as evidence to support their account of events. Right now the department has no set policy about when the cameras must be turned on, though they expect to have very clear guidelines set once this test period is over. I suspect the department will require the cameras be used more often than not, and seriously question those officers who don’t hit “record,” when the action starts.

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Easton, Pennsylvania is a historic town nestled in the Lehigh Valley at the confluence of the Delaware and Lehigh rivers. It was the site of one of the three public readings of the Declaration of Independence on July 8th, 1776 and is home to Lafayette College, Crayola Crayons and former Heavyweight Boxing Champion Larry Holmes, aka “The Easton Assassin”.

Easton is also roughly 72 miles from both New York City and Philadelphia, PA, which means there are Yankee fans and Phillies fans living and working side by side. Actually a lot of people here root for both teams since they rarely play each other (the only other time they met in the World Series was 1950 when the Bronx Bombers swept the Phillies in 4 games).

The Mayor is one of those people having a tough time choosing sides, especially since he grew up and went to school in the city.

“If the Yankees had made it and the Phillies hadn’t, you would have rooted for the Yankees?” I asked Mayor Salvatore Panto. “I definitely would have been a full Yankee fan.”

“And if the Phillies had made it and the Yankees didn’t…” I continued “you would have definitely rooted for the Phillies? Definitely …” he replied. “So now with both in there together…?” I asked. He laughed “It is a tough struggle!”

Larry Holmes grew up in Easton and never left, despite winning 69 prize fights (including his first 48) and millions of dollars in purses. He was Champ for 7 1/2 years, beating opponents including Muhammad Ali, Ken Norton, Earnie Shavers, Gerry Cooney and James “Bonecrusher” Smith. He invested in real estate in town over the years, buying a hotel and office buildings and plots of land, some of which he recently sold off. He’s a great grandfather (twice) about to turn 60 and looking to simplify his life but still owns a bar/restaurant in town (on Larry Holmes Drive) and that’s where we met for our interview.

Me: “Is it hard to decide which team to root for?”
Champ: “No because I know who I like and I want to see win and I want to see the Phillies win.”
Me: “But you spent a lot of time in New York…?
Champ: “I started my boxing career there on 149th street in the Bronx. I got my butt kicked! That’s probably one of the reasons I don’t like New York!”
Me: “If someone starts rooting for the Yankees in your bar are you going to throw them out?”
Champ: “No because they have a right to root for whoever the want to.”
Me: “Are you going to beat them up?”
Champ: “(laughs) no but if you were rooting for the Yankees in my bar I would throw YOU out!”
Me: “Any message for Yankees fans?”
Champ: “Go cry, it’s going to be alright, you got next year!”

The Champ bought everyone pizza for lunch (delivered to the restaurant) since his kitchen was closed so we made a bet. If the Phillies win I’m buying the next pie. If the Yankees win he owes me a beer.

I think it’ll be worth the drive back to collect.

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One of a handful of key national debates right now is over the stimulus. Is it working? We traveled to Oregon for an answer because the Beaver State was the first in the nation to report how the money is being spent. So far about $1.1 billion has flowed through the state as stimulus. But a vast majority of that, roughly $700-million, has not gone toward job creation. Instead, state officials decided to spend the money to avoid deep spending cuts and shore up the social safety net for those who are hurting right now.

Most of the money has gone to education. That means teacher and professor salaries. It has allowed the state to avoid a lot of layoffs and the prospect of having to close schools early.  The second biggest chunk of spending has gone toward social services. The state increased money for food stamps, Medicaid and unemployment benefits. It has also increased some agencies such as the Department of Human Services. DHS has hired hundreds of new case workers to deal with the higher number of families on public assistance. We interviewed one of the new hires. He himself had been out of work and on food stamps before getting the job.

Government officials in Oregon say the stimulus is working because the money is getting directly into the hands of people who need it most. But critics say what’s really happening is the growth of government and the creation of jobs that are unsustainable when the stimulus money dries up. Oregon’s unemployment rate is still at 11.5 percent, well above the national average which is just under 10-percent. 3 out of every 4 jobs that has either been saved or created in Oregon is in the public sector. Private companies, the engine of job growth in America, have added precious few positions. So back to the original question, ‘Is it working?’  If you’re that new employee at DHS you’d no doubt say it is. Government officials say the recession would be far worse if they had not propped up the struggling. But if you’re a private business owner who is still laying off workers, you’re likely wondering when if ever you’ll see light at the end of the tunnel.

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