it up with the prez. how are the nerves? >> i'm fine because i represent all bad golfers across america and my goal is to be bad and i think i'm way ahead of the fold. but today is patriot golf day. as you know, guys, this is the time where golf clubs across america give a portion of their green fees, take donations all for those who have been fighting our wars and serving our country, educational needs, 87% of those who lose their lives in battle have families left behind to get no educational aid and that's what this thing is all about today. so you have the pga president. he's a great golfer. you have major dan rooney, the founder is a pro and a fighter pilot with three tours in iraq. he's a great golfer and president bush is an excellent golfer and he is for the second year in a row chairman of patriots golf day. that will be great and i'll represent all those people who say to themselves i can't golf. i'm not a good golfer. i'll give some other way. no, i represent all those people who aren't golfers who want to give back and are going to go out there and struggle through. >> right. and now brian, the thing about president bush is in addition to being a good golfer, he's a fast golfer. he hits the ball and away he goes. >> right. i was told, too, since -- and dave, you know this, since i don't golf that much, i was told by the way, if you continue to golf, you will never golf this quick in your life. this is not the way it's done. when you get to your ball, you hit your ball so we'll be through the 18 holes in 2 1/2 hours. take a look at what we're looking at here. this is the hole we're going to tee off on in 2 1/2 hours and walk straight through. we're going to talk first with the president, curious to talk with him about how everything is going. since the book tour, we haven't seen him and then we're going to go out and play 18 holes and tape three of the holes so later on next week, we'll get to see some of that interaction and see if i've put any skill into any game, if i've shown any ability. >> the operative word about taping, we can cut out all your bad shots. >> this will be -- >> i wouldn't do that. you get a mulligan? >> gretchen, you are street smart. you are so street smart. that's exactly it. very little footage of me. >> all right. so we've got a busy three hours live from new york and dallas as well. all right, brian, stand by. in the meantime, we'll talk about what's going on politically. we've heard the president wants to give a big jobs speech after his vacation in martha's vineyard. well, yesterday, it was revealed that apparently, the white house sent out a note that they wanted a joint session of congress. this without actually asking the house of representatives whether or not it was ok. they said no. we'll tell you why in a moment but first of all, ann coulter last night said a joint session? that's kooky. >> the idea that he's calling a joint session of congress for this. i mean, that is for state of the union addresses, for an announcement of war, after an attack on the nation. joint session of congress, just to hear the same old nonsense from this guy? >> so that's ann coulter's point of view. herman cain running for president on the republican side of things had this to say about it. >> i think initially it was political mischief and then i think the administration and the president and his people sat back and said you know what? what if we go up against the republican debate and our ratings are less than the debate? i don't think they wanted to play that card. but i happened to believe that it was political mischief. >> there you go. >> well, look, first ann coulter's criticism. president bush had two nonstate of the union joint sessions. now, one was to start to lay out his budget plan when he first took over as president and the other was post 9/11 so comparatively, you would say this falls much further down in importance than the two president bush calls. the back and forth is clearly not over. >> after it was announced that the president wanted the joint session of congress and the speaker said you can't do it, the speaker suggested the next night because of logistical reasons, eventually, the white house did cave. you got to wonder, if the president wanted to make the speech next wednesday, why didn't he just do it from the oval office? there's a simple reason. he wanted a joint session so all the people in washington, all the members of congress would be right there and he would stand there and he would lecture them for a half-hour about, look, i want to do something to create jobs and you guys are slowing me down. so it's an optics thing. he wanted to be the lecturer and -- >> remember that he -- >> now he's up against the first nfl football game depending on the time of his speech next thursday night. the game starts at 8:30 p.m. eastern time. stay tuned to see. >> who wins that? >> not the president. there's no chance you come out scoring well against the nfl season opener. >> when it comes to the schedule according to jay carney, it was just a coincidence. they had absolutely no idea there was going to be a republican debate on at exactly the same time and even though the speaker didn't say look we'd like you to change the night because of logistics, he did mention the debate but the debate is on. it's going to be on wednesday and now the president is going to be on thursday. >> here's the e-mail from president obama's team. next week, i will deliver the details of the plan and call on lawmakers to pass it. whether they will do the job they were elected to do is ultimately up to them. but both you and i can pressure them to do the right thing so this e-mail came out immediately after the president's team announced that they would acquiesce and move his speech to thursday night and the e-mail was entitled "frustrated" so you can see this theme will continue no doubt into this jobs plan speech of blaming congress and to steve's point of wanting to be in front of those members of congress to deliver the speech. >> congress has never rejected a proposed date for a joint session of congress. this was historic in that regard. was it a coincidence? e-mail us and let us know what you think about it. >> usually they work it out ahead of time. they call the speaker's office and say what do you have going that day? apparently it didn't happen. this is another -- some of those people on the president's left flank, they go oh, you should -- you caved! you should have done it on wednesday night. the president is not only having trouble with his left flank, he's having trouble with the right and he's having trouble with the independents and this is all reflected in a brand new quinnipiac poll where it shows that look at rick perry out of nowhere and suddenly, he is within the margin of error of beating the president of the united out that poll. >> but mitt romney. romney does better against the president. >> but when you take republican voters, perry leads romney by about 6%. somehow when you match him against the president, romney fared better. what do you make of that? >> i make that you can't make nothing about the polls right now. >> they think romney is more electable than perry. >> yes. let's face it, what will be very important to see governor perry in his first debate. he has everything to lose at this point because he's risen so high up in the polls but people will be watching him very closely and say yeah, that's why i do like him or oh, my gosh, maybe he isn't who i thought he was. >> perry vs. romney, head to head thing was just with the republican voters and then with the president vs. mitt romney, they tie because they included all voters. and mr. romney does better with independents than mr. perry does at this point. >> that could be very important. as could women in 2012 and women, that is where the president is also struggling. that number, 41% approval rating by women, down 11% in just three months. that's very obviously key number. >> that's the lowest it's been for him. >> that is the lowest and why? well, the purse strings. obviously, the women are the ones -- >> who have the checkbooks saying we don't have money, we don't have jobs and we're not happy. >> yep, that will be an important voting block for the president to try to get that back. if he wants to get re-elected. let's talk about a story we told you about yesterday. it has to do with the labor department and the secretary there, she had put out an e-mail or some sort of a message. >> an agreement. >> that she would allow illegals here working in the united states to get the same benefits and protections as american citizens who are working here in the united states and for clarification's sake, a news outlet went back to the department of labor and said is that what you really meant and now they've come back with the statement saying yeah, that's exactly what we meant and some believe that's a violation of some of the laws that we currently have on the books in this country. >> yeah, it's a little crazy and you think about it, this really doesn't do -- this does a disservice to people who are in this country illegally. it's like, ok, why would i even bother going through the process of signing up to become an american citizen? i might be deported if i sign up because i can get all the same protections that american workers get right now under hilda solice's plan so why bother? >> that isn't to say those workers doesn't deserve protection but you check the labor department's own web site and it says it has laws that hire only legal workers. it's strange to bend over backwards as critics say to help them stay here illegally. >> let's talk about the same secretary solice because she has purchased a new car, a very, very popular car in this country right now and, of course, one of the reasons as the leader of the country to buy an american car is put out a good message that you are supporting things that are built here in america. the only problem is that this particular car is built at two canadian plants and now they're having to answer questions -- having to answer questions about that. here's the secretary. >> i thought what better example could i set if i encouraged my staff to go and purchase and seek how we would acquire a vehicle that would, for me, send a signal that we're for supporting our american workers, american made products. >> like gretch said, it is built in canada and it is built with canadian parts and if you're curious, even though it is built by chevy, the money stays in canada. so oops. >> i don't know about that. >> it does. >> ok. because this particular thing i noted said that the company official noted the profits do come back to the united states. we'll find out about that for you. >> well, she did go on to say we also want to be fuel efficient. she got it right there. >> congratulations. >> only part that she got right. >> and she's got a hot car and it's silver and she calls it the silver bullet. >> chevy is increasing 60% of the parts of this car to being built in the united states but yeah, built and assembled in canada. >> it's a little -- >> all right. let's do a little headlines for you now for your thursday because we're continuing to see the fallout from hurricane irene, the flooding beginning to recede this morning but now we're getting a closer look at the damage left behind. this is brand new video from upstate new york, entire neighborhoods there completely levelled. and in washington, d.c., irene caused even more damage to the washington monument. officials found brand new cracks and water at the monument's base but one of the worst hit areas, paterson, new jersey, floodwaters keeping nearly 150,000 people out of their homes. on sunday, president obama will visit that town. and it's raging wildfires forcing people out of their homes in north texas. more than three dozen homes now destroyed. and now the flames are making their way towards some farms there, planes and helicopters being brought in to battle the heavy flames. dry, windy conditions still making it difficult to fight the fire, under 30% contained at this time. and firefighters tackling flames in oklahoma as well. the fire threatening homes near oklahoma city. several more homes were destroyed yesterday on top of the 33 wiped out the day before. the fire also threatening interstate 40. some people now returned home and sifting through the ashes. no word on what started that fire. remember that miracle hockey shot made by an 11-year-old boy in minnesota? nate smith won 50,000 dollars for making this amazing shot. but the insurance company not giving him the cash. here's why. his twin brother nick was supposed to take that shot because he actually won the raffle ticket but nick wasn't inside the arena at the time so nate did it instead. their dad stood up and admitted to the switch. the company now donating $25,000 of the prize money to youth hockey. and those are your headlines. >> good shot. happy ending. >> all right. straight ahead on this thursday, remember that solar company that the president touted as a shining example of green innovation? remember that? well, it went bankrupt. stuart varney on that story coming up next. good morning. >> and it's a shirt that says i'm too pretty to do homework but is the message too ugly for young girls? we report, you decide. [ male announcer ] heard this one? listen to this. three out of four americans don't get enough vegetables. so here's five bucks to help you buy v8 juice. five bucks. that's a lot of green. go to v8juice.com for coupons. you can count on us. but also a caring touch. you learn to get a feel for the trouble spots. to know its wants... its needs...its dreams. ♪call 1-800-steemer. exclusive to the military. nd commitment is not limit to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. ♪ visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. usaa. we know what it means to serve. introducing nfl mobile for 2011. built to bring you the game. only from verizon. built so you can rule the air. >> welcome back, everyone. last year, president obama visited solar company while promoting his green jobs initiative and he touted the company which was awarded a heap of stimulus cash as a beacon of that effort. >> and we recognized that there was only so much government could do. the true engine of economic growth will always be companies like solyndra. companies like solyndra are leading the way through a brighter and more prosperous future. through an act, this new factory is the result of those loans. >> what a great sales pitch by the president of the united states for that company solyndra. here's the latest news. they've had to declare bankruptcy and now they have fired over 1,000 workers and steve -- stuart varney joins steve, gretchen and dave here on the couch to say this is a gigantic blow to the president. >> it's an embarrassment. you just heard the president say that this is the true engine of economic growth is green jobs and now he puts 535 million dollars into solyndra, this california solar company, they're bust. the money is gone period. >> why? >> well, solyndra issued a statement and they blamed -- >> the chinese. >> in part, they blamed the regulatory environment. in california, the regulatory environment is particularly difficult so here you've got california, 12% unemployment, flat broke chasing manufacturing, solar companies out with this kind of regulatory climate. this is not pretty. >> and so the 535 million dollars was a guaranteed loan. that was gone. to the point that you say regulatory and policy uncertainty. these are the complaints that we hear from businesses across the country. is that not directly towards the democratic administration who is, some say, overregulating and providing uncertainty? >> listen, i don't know whether it's directed towards the administration. that particular criticism. >> ok. i'll say that. but what it -- it raises the question, are we doing the right thing here. are we getting our money's worth? there are four solar companies in america which have received $3 billion worth of subsidies. now, the solar industry in its totality employs only 93,000 people in america. that's it. >> 93,000. >> that's it. >> and if a company can't make it with all that federal stimulus cash, then it's a problem. all right. stu varney, we'll be watching you today on fbn. >> straight ahead, the ground zero memorial to become a skateboarding park in a couple of years? that's what our next guest says. she's blaming the current administration in washington. >> and a gift from god, a man who has been unemployed for two years finds 150 grand in his backyard. so what did he do? what would you do? more importantly, do you have 150 grand in your own backyard? stick around. the stronger the rapids, the more we loved it. took some wild risks when i was young. but i was still taking a risk with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more, and now i'm also taking lipitor. if you've been kidding yourself about high cholesterol, stop. along with diet, lipitor has been shown to lower bad cholesterol to 60 percent. lipitor is fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in patits who have heart diase or risk factors for heart disease. [ female annncer ] lipitor is not for evyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if y are taking other medications or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. lets go... haha. if you have high cholesterol, you may be at increased risk of heart attack and stroke. don't kid yourself. talk to your doctor about your risk a about lipitor. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] the most legroom per dollar of any car in america. the all-new nissan versa sedan from $10,990. innovation sized. innovation for all. >> to him for some quick headlines. a chilling new twist in the robyn gardner case. police say surveillance video shows gary giordano choking her and screaming "i'll kill you" hours before she disappeared. oh, man. a judge just ruled to keep him behind bars for at least two more months as the investigation continues. and new jersey's anti-bullying law goes into effect later on today. it's one of the toughest in the nation. law allows students to call the cops on bullies but board members say it goes too far. schools have to assign an anti-bullying specialist now to investigate complaints and schools will be graded on their efforts regarding bullies. >> next sunday marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and the white house wants all government officials on the same page. so it's issued guidelines to federal agencies telling them exactly how to observe september 11th. rosaline talon lost her brother, firefighter shawn patrick on 9/11. she's our guest this morning. it never gets too old or too late to say i'm sorry for your loss. >> thank you. >> and i know this 10th anniversary will be very difficult for you as we approach it in the next coming week. i know now what's extra difficult for you are these guidelines that have been set because you believe it's a way of white washing what happened 10 years ago and trying to put political correctness ahead of what actually happened, correct? >> i still feel that 9/11 has been manipulated by the politicians to suit their needs politically and ideologically. when i think of 9/11, i think most americans think o