good night. welcome to "world news." tonight, isaac arrives. barrelling into the gulf of mexico at this hour. already, battering parts of florida with high winds, heavy rain. tonight, the new path just out. another american city preparing. abc's weather editor sam champion leading our extreme weather team, out in force tonight. rain check. sudden changes at the republican convention. not taking any chances. their new kickoff time. and the captain on their first night? ann romney. why they are counting on her at this convention. too heavy to treat? tonight, the new controversy. the patient who says she was turned away. she says the doctor told her she was too overweight. the outrage tonight and what that doctor is saying now. and the american hero. those first steps on the moon, the world watching. where were you that night? what was the white house preparing just in case? as we unearth that rare abc news

interview with neil armstrong's parents in the hours before he landed on the moon. >> do you have any idea what neil's first words might be when he steps off on the moon? >> i hope he says something that unites the world. good evening on this sunday night. and we begin here with tropical storm isaac, now reaching into the gulf of mexico. florida, already feeling its wrath tonight. you can see over my shoulder here this evening the storm now stretching 400 miles across, as it now heads closer to the u.s. mainland. and the breaking news at this hour, the changing path. a state of emergency now declared in new orleans because of the newest track coming in. angling towards louisiana now. of course, new orleans devastated by hurricane katrina, seven years ago this wednesday. isaac's fierce winds are battering south florida, including the vulnerable florida keys. millions along the gulf coast preparing tonight. changes to the republican convention in tampa already under way. our extreme weather team across the region tonight.

leading us off, abc's weather editor sam champion. he's in naples, florida, tonight with the latest track. sam, good evening. >> reporter: good evening, david. and you topped that big headline. all eyes are paying attention to isaac now. the recent hurricane warnings are out. and they include, that city, new orleans, and a good part of the gulf coast that they didn't include earlier. take a look at the warnings that are out right now. they go from morgan city, louisiana, include new orleans, run all the way to destin, florida. that includes pensacola. towns like mobile, biloxi are involved in this. there's a tropical storm warning out for the rest of the florida coast. and what that means is, good news for florida residents because there's less of an impact there. there will be coastal flooding and you'll get that push of water, it lot go behind that parallel level. we are focused on the nose of that storm and where it's headed right now. and it looks like it's got that bullseye, if you follow this path, by early wednesday morning, right across gulfport.

that means that track, if you take that track, you'd have 50 to 70-mile-per-hour winds around lake pontchartrain. now, let's show you what else -- one of the reasons why we're so concern and we're not focused right on the dead center of the forecast line here. look at the models. they go well west, as well. almost to the texas coast line. and if you look at that, then you can see right now that these models are having a hard time picking the end point. and all eyes before we get to wednesday have to be focused on what might happen with that storm. it spends a lot of time in the gulf and it will really strengthen. david? >> you'll be there for "good morning america," i know, sam, thank you. thanks to you, leading us off tonight. we want to go south of where sam is to the florida keys, where abc's matt gutman is standing by. having already felt the effects of isaac this evening. matt, good evening to you. >> reporter: and to you, david. the center of the storm has just passed us. we've seen hurricane hunters overhead. still packing about 50, 60-mile-per-hour winds. dumping eight inches of rain on south florida. everything from here in the keys

all the way up through south florida is going to be closed tonight and into tomorrow. and, for most people, the worst is yet to come. here in south florida, millions tonight pummelled by lashing wind and rain. isaac whipping up waves, the rain sideways. schools closed for well over a million students in florida tomorrow. water, the big threat, according to florida's governor. >> still looks like we'll have landfall somewhere in the panhandle. we are still saturated. so, we have a big concern there about flooding. >> reporter: nearly 750 flights canceled. airports are closed in the florida keys and here in key west, the runway turned into a swollen pond. it looks like this airport is absolutely packed, but most of these cars are parked here to get out of the flooding zone. this is one of the highest points in all of key west. go inside this airport and -- absolutely empty. but wind capsized some boats, damaging others. the highway here, still passable. some city streets have already flooded out. it's now 3:00.

a lot of these streets in key west starting to flood. and you know that the storm is very close because the rain stings your face when it hits you. an illusive storm from the start, isaac's drift west towards new orleans has sent chills through a city forever haunted by hurricane katrina. drivers there already lining up for gas, buying plywood as city officials warn residents to be prepared. >> we're certainly encouraging all of our people to stay alert, to monitor local weather conditions in their area, to follow what local officials are telling them. >> reporter: isaac has already been deadly. at least seven people are dead in haiti, where streams dry just three days ago turned into roaring reminders of isaac. and all we're seeing here, david, the wind, the rain, the storm surge is going to be but a fraction of what they're going to see as the storm continues to churn north of here into the gulf coast. david? >> you hear that extraordinary wind tonight. matt gutman, thank you. with isaac's track now moving west, the wind and the rain still expected in tampa, of course, the sight of the republican convention, set to kick off tomorrow.

instead, tuesday now. these two images say it all tonight. inside the arena, hoisting the balloons. outside, though, these images coming in from tampa tonight. neighbors filling sandbags to protect against the storm surge. let's bring in abc's senior political correspondent jon karl tonight. and jon, as one romney strategist said to me, a republican convention in florida? this is what you get. >> reporter: exactly. during hurricane season. but this is the calm before the storm, as you can see. heavy rains and winds are expected tonight. as you point out, they've already had to cancel the first day of the convention, a four-day convention will happen over three days. they've just released the schedule. all those people that were supposed to speak tomorrow will be speaking over the following three days. they're just making everybody's speech, david, a little bit shorter. now, they don't rule out further delaying this convention, even moving into friday, but convention officials are saying they fully expect to go on now, tuesday, wednesday and thursday as their convention. one thing they have done, david, is they have distributed

umbrellas to all of the delegates. unfortunately, they are not permitted inside the convention hall. >> we'll see how that goes. and jon, on the first night, which is tuesday, ann romney, the headliner. and we're getting late word tonight that she's practicing with the governor? >> reporter: that's right. and this is a big moment in this convention. they believe that ann romney is perhaps their most powerful person to be able to portray what they call the real mitt romney. to humanize him and to present him as somebody who is not only able to lead, but likable. >> all right, jon karl, see you right there in tampa. thank you. the president, meantime, on the eve of the republican convention, hoping to keep up the heat after a week of headlines over abortion and a woman's right to choose. after republican congressman todd akin said earlier this week that during rape, the female body has a way to, quote, shut the whole thing down, avoid pregnancy. the president trying to tie that controversy to mitt romney's running mate, paul ryan, who cosponsored bills with congressman akin.

>> he has signed up for positions, extreme positions, that are very consistent with the positions that a number of house republicans have taken. and whether he actually believes in those or not, i have no doubt that he would carry forward some of the things that he's talked about. >> i want to bring in abc senior political editor tonight, rick klein. inside there in tampa. and rick, the president's strategy pretty clear here. >> reporter: that's right. he wants -- the president wants to make todd akin into mitt romney's running mate. the reason is, anything he can do to tie romney to those comments, to those sentiments, that is tying romney to extreme, out of the mainstream elements inside his party. those are the sentiments, the feelings and perceptions mitt romney can't afford to have emanate from the hall here in tampa. >> but rick, in the meantime, governor romney fiercely pushing back tonight. i wanted to get your reaction from wh on what we heard from the governor today.

>> i think it was a terrible statement on his part. i think it was uninformed. i think it was outrageous and offensive. i've asked him to get out of the race. i think i have distanced myself from the kind of thing he said as far as i possibly can. >> the governor talking about what congressman akin said just days ago. rick, the governor trying to push back, too. >> reporter: everything he can do to make himself into mainstream mitt, maybe moderate mitt, is so critical, these women voters that we talk about. and, of course, key to that strategy is ann romney, first speech on tuesday night, maybe the most anticipated one of the week. including her husband. >> rick klein tonight with the bigger picture. rick, as always, thanks to you. and of course abc news's convention coverage kicking off tomorrow on "good morning america" and on "world news." tuesday night, with diane sawyer, george stephanopoulos at the anchor desk in prime time. that's tuesday through thursday every night, 10:00 p.m. eastern. and tomorrow night, right here on "world news," diane and the romney boys, governor romney's sons. an important part of this campaign. how they describe their dad. that's with diane right here tomorrow night. meantime, back here, new details tonight about the gunman who killed his former coworker and then pulled out his gun near

the empire state building. police opening fire on him, bystanders hit in the crossfire. here's abc's ron claiborne now. >> reporter: a police search of the gunman's apartment turned up extra ammunition for the handgun he used to shoot a former coworker and literature about martial arts and sniper marksmanship. also found, an envelope with his keys left for his landlord leading investigators to conclude that jeffrey johnson did not expect to return home. surveillance video captured the dramatic moment friday when two police officers confronted jeffrey johnson. you can see johnson turn, raise his arm and point his .45 caliber semiautomatic at the officers. four seconds later, the officers open fire. did the police warn him, speak to him before? >> yeah, he said, "stop, stop," and we heard the shooting. >> reporter: nine bystanders were wounded, none seriously, in the hail of gunfire. all were hit by police bullets or fragments of bullets. johnson never got off a shot, police say. >> well, the bullet went in and came out my right arm.

i'm very, very lucky. very blessed. >> reporter: it's not that unusual for innocent bystanders to be hit by crossfire between police and a suspect. even on a crowded street, police officers are trained to shoot, if they have a clear shot at someone they consider a threat. essentially, it's a judgment call. >> if he has to be neutralized within a crowd, it is better to take him out than to risk him shooting the officers and other people in the immediate vicinity. >> reporter: inevitably, injured bystanders sue the police department or the city. some win large judgments or settlements, but courts have tended to grant police latitude and immunity from liability when they can show the suspect they shot posed a threat. as police say johnson did on friday. >> and abc's ron claiborne joins us here on the desk tonight. you looked at these cases before, bystanders filing civil suits after something like this. what have the courts told us before? >> reporter: some plaintiffs do win, but it's a tough standard. let's look at a case in new york state. a few years ago.

the state's highest court ruling in a case involving a young mother hit by police gun fire, the police shooting out with a suspect. they ended up saying the shooting was justified because the suspect was armed and had been shooting at the police. >> all right, ron claiborne, with us here tonight. ron, our thanks to you. across this country tonight, remembering an american hero. you likely woke up to the sunday papers this morning, "the washington post" talking about the small step. "the new york times" saying the giant leap. for the country at the time, this was so important. and tonight, we've unearthed the abc interview with neil armstrong's parents, just hours before he landed on the moon. >> that's one small step for man. one giant leap for mankind. >> reporter: almost a quarter of a million miles away, the moon came much closer that summer night. because of neil armstrong's famous first step. not quite 39 years old, that july evening, armstrong spent two hours, 21 minutes walking in the lunar dust. taking pictures of his crew mates. raising the american flag. and stretching america's imagination.

so many parents watching with their children. >> men from the planet earth, first set foot upon the moon. we came in peace for all man kind. >> reporter: with americans divided at the time over the vietnam war, the moon landing, at least for one night, brought a beleaguered country together. it was an american goal met. >> we choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things because that challenge is one that we're willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone and one we intend to win. >> reporter: it turns out it was sheer happenstance that made armstrong the first man on the moon. nasa's "apollo" crews worked in rotation. and armstrong's crew was assigned to "apollo 11." he was a quiet, reserved man, born in small-town ohio. fascinated with flying from his teens. and in the hours before armstrong landed on the moon, his parents back in his hometown, being interviewed by abc news. >> do you have any idea what neil's first words might be when

he steps off on the moon? would you take a guess? >> i don't know. i won't say, because i don't know. i'm sure he'll be so thrilled that maybe he won't be able to find words. >> what do you think, mr. armstrong? >> i have no idea what he'll say, but i hope he says something that unites the world. >> reporter: they had no idea what the world would hear. in fact, it's believed armstrong came up with those historic words himself, on the way to the moon. he said he thought he had said, "it's one small step for a man." >> that's one small step for man. >> reporter: but later saying he probably left it out. that moon walk, by armstrong and buzz aldrin, was the most-watched television broadcast in history up to that point. 1 out of every 6 people on earth were watching. later we learned that armstrong thought landing on the moon, not walking on it, was far more challenging. shooting over the lunar surface, looking for a smooth place to touchdown. mission control had warned him he had less than 30 seconds of fuel remaining when they finally made it.

>> houston, the eagle has landed. >> reporter: it was a singular moment for this country. national pride soaring when they came home. greeted by crowds across america and in 29 other countries. after that, armstrong tried to return to a private life and making rare speeches to urge that exploration go on. >> there are great ideas undiscovered. breakthroughs available to those who can remove one of truth's protective layers. there are places to go beyond belief. >> reporter: neil armstrong had said he did not want solely to be an icon, but he could never escape his place in history and where he made history. on the moon. so many of you writing me this weekend on facebook about where you were that night. and we'll share some of your stories later here. also ahead here on "world news" this sunday night, the patient who says she was turned away, told she was too overweight? the outrage. and tonight, what the doctor is now saying. and later, from the moon to mars tonight. a new angle from that landing. "curiosity" still roving the red

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could lose a few pounds. but when she recently went looking for a new primary care physician, ida said one doctor turned her away because of her size. >> she was telling me that she couldn't care for me because i was over 200 pounds. i mean, i've never heard anything like that. i thought doctors were there to help. >> reporter: that doctor is this woman, helen carter from boo massachusetts. the doctor says her office can no longer take on heavy patients, after several members of her staff were injured working with overweight people. some of her patients were grandfathered in. dr. carter says overweight patients would be better off with a nearby specialist. >> there's an obesity center over at umass that is much better staffed and has more resources than i do. >> reporter: and dr. carter may be within her rights. according to the american medical association's ethical guidelines, stating, quote, both patients and physicians should be able to exercise freedom in choosing with whom to enter into a patient-physician relationship. but medical ethicist arthur caplan says just because it's legal doesn't make it right.

>> when you say you're going to be a health care provider, a doctor, a nurse, i think you got to go the extra mile and then some, even when there's inconvenience, might come at additional cost. to handle some of your patients. >> reporter: and we reached out to dr. carter late today. she claims ida was not turned away, but instead chose not to return after being informed of the new policy. the doctor wants her patients to understand the financial burdens that go along with caring for overweight patients, especially for a small practice. >> you were telling me ida still looking for a doctor. i'm sure there's somebody out there that's going to help her. thank you, john. when we come back here on "world news," turns out this hot, dry summer just might have one silver lining. something that might taste very different at your dinner table. that could be a question of blood flow. cialis tadalafil for daily use helps you be ready anytime the moment's right. you can be more confident in your ability to be ready. and the same cialis is the only daily ed tablet approved to treat ed and symptoms of bph,

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as we all know, this summer has been so tough on american farmers. but tonight, word that the heat and lack of rain has been good for at least one crop. grape growers in the midwest say it could be a good year for wine. the grapes are smaller this year. that concentrates their flavor and the sugar. and some fascinating new video tonight of "curiosity" rover landing on mars. this is what it would have looked like to be riding on the red planet. the video was made out of thousands of photos taken as the rover touched down, all put together now by nasa. when we come back on the broadcast tonight, where were you when neil armstrong landed on the moon? your stories here. and we check back in with sam on isaac tonight. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help.

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and finally tonight here, americans remembering where they were when this happened, those first steps on the moon. so many of you writing me about it. and tonight here, your stories. >> first step foot on the moon. >> reporter: so many of you writing to us after learning of this country's loss. neil armstrong, the astronaut who proved to a nation what was possible, with an entire country watching.

so many of you pointing out that you were watching in black and white. bernard writing me on facebook, "i am sure the stars are welcoming him back home." susan adding, "i remember watching neil armstrong walk on the moon. i was 10 years old at the time. and thought it was amazing that we, as americans, could do that. rest in peace, neil armstrong, one of the last true pioneers." diana saying, "what a great day in history. i cried, i yelled. i was so excited. a true hero." many of you writing in you weren't even born yet but his was the name you learned in history class. his walk, right into the history books. >> got the flag up now and you can see the stars and stripes. >> reporter: ruth writing, "since that walk on the moon, i thought of him as immortal." and it was a viewer named daniel who perhaps said it best. "god speed, mr. armstrong. you made america proud." he certainly did. thank you all for weighing in. before we go tonight, we want to go back to sam champion down in florida. sam, this new track. >> reporter: david, here in naples, folks are still out because the worst weather will be here overnight tonight.

but take a look at where the end of the track is. and that's the big headline for isaac, this storm, with a hurricane warning in new orleans. potentially the strength of a category 2 storm with plenty of time to gain strength from where it is now all the way through the warm waters of the gulf. in some cases, this is much more than 80 degree water. that's hurricane food, david. >> warm water does not bode well for this hurricane. sam champion, thank you. could be a huge deal for new orleans. millions of americans, all along the gulf coast tonight on alert. and we'll be covering this first thing in the morning on "good morning america." diane sawyer anchoring from florida tomorrow night here. good night.

>> ama: breaking news out of san francisco, two-alarm fire burns in the mission district. >> alan: preparing for a parade for the boys or summer. >> ama: within just the last few minutes, firefighters contained a house fire in mission district. it broke out 40 minutes ago. you're looking at video from when that happened. it started in cottage behind a larger house near 24th and capp street. crews called for reinforcements. there are no reports of injuries and the fire department hasn't said what may have started the fire. we'll have more tonight at 11:00. >> alan: good evening. i'm alan wang. >> ama: i'm ama daet