for that we're going to turn to ron claiborne. good to see you, ron. >> good morning, dan, bianna, good morning, everyone. >> syria is stepping up its brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters. thousands of syrians are fleeing to neighboring turkey this morning as troops have sealed a town near the border. 36 people reportedly killed on friday when syrian security forces opened fire during demonstrations across that country. >>> and in afghanistan, a roadside bomb hit a bus in the southern part of the country this morning. at least 16 people have been killed including 8 children. >>> and survivors of last month's massive tornado in joplin are facing a new threat, disease. some have developed a fungal infection. three people who were hospitalized with the infection has died. >>> growing jitters at the economic recovery has stalled since stocks tumbled friday. the dow closed below 12,000 for the first time since march. the benchmark has fallen now six straight weeks after peaking at nearly 13,000.

men have that distinguished ron claiborne look these days. not the same for women. >> well, i think it looks good on women. you don't think so? >> yeah. >> thanks for coming in. >>> and coming up on "good morning america," your week "in three words." ♪ morning america," your week "in three words." ♪ [ female announcer ] imagine skin so healthy, it never gets dry again. can your moisturizer do that? [ female announcer ] dermatologist recommended aveeno has an oat formula, now proven to build a moisture reserve, so skin can replenish itself. that's healthy skin for life. only from aveeno. if you have painful, swollen joints, i've been in your shoes. one day i'm on p of the world... the next i'm saying... i have this thing called psoriatic arthritis. i had some intense pain. it progressively got worse. my rheumatologist told me about enbrel. i'm surprised how quickly my symptoms have been managed. [ male announcer ] because enbrel suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events in

ron claiborne is here this morning. when you're covering the latest on these, these just came out. >> these just came out on her facebook page, dan and bianna. she looks remarkably well. a couple of photos smiling. they were taken by a longtime photographer there in phoenix, taken on may 17, the day after "endeavour" took off, with her husband, of course, aboard. hair is shown there trimmed short, looking well, smiling. the photographer said he was very inspired to see how much she had recovered in those five months since she was shot back in january in tucson in that assault that killed a number of people. she was in a good mood, smiling and laughing. remarkably recovery, amazing photos just coming out right now. >> clearly one must imagine the pressure that gabby and her family were under over the past few months to have a photo released. the media being out there. all we've seen are reports in the newspapers. we haven't seen a photo of her. clearly this may be their way of saying, we're going to jump ahead and releas

for that we're going to turn to ron claiborne. good to see you, ron. >> good morning, dan, bianna, good morning, everyone. >> syria is stepping up its brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters. thousands of syrians are fleeing to neighboring turkey this morning as troops have sealed a town near the border. 36 people reportedly killed on friday when syrian security forces opened fire during demonstrations across that country. >>> and in afghanistan, a roadside bomb hit a bus in the southern part of the country this morning. at least 16 people have been killed including 8 children. >>> and survivors of last month's massive tornado in joplin are facing a new threat, disease. some have developed a fungal infection. three people who were hospitalized with the infection has died. >>> growing jitters at the economic recovery has stalled since stocks tumbled friday. the dow closed below 12,000 for the first time since march. the benchmark has fallen now six straight weeks after peaking at nearly 13,000. one bright spot, drivers could

here's abc's ron claiborne. >> reporter: he's being called the "bionic dog." naki'o is believed to be the world's first canine to have four prosthetic legs. christie pace adopted him a year and a half ago. he had been abandoned in an icy cellar. he lost all of his pows due to frostbite. >> i have a soft spot for my rescue animals in general. i just knew i could help him out. >> reporter: she raised money to pay for prosthetics for naki'o's two rear legs. then the maker of the artificial legs offered to make two more, for free. just look at naki'o now. >> definitely is a more confident dog. he can actually run after a ball, and beat another dog to a ball. it's really nice to see. >> reporter: veterinarians are calling it groundbreaking. >> i saw a happy dog running around, really being a dog. that's the whole point in bringing them back to their original want, and wanting to play and live and run around. >> reporter: in recent years, veterinarian medicine has advanced, well, by leaps. there are now braces, prosthetics, even implants for dogs and cats who've los

here's ron claiborne on the backlash and the questions. >> reporter: aarp has been fighting hard against any move by congress to trim social security benefits. >> some in congress want to cut medicare and social security, cutting your benefits so washington can pay its bills. >> reporter: but the powerful lobbying group for older americans is now quietly accepting that some cuts are inevitable to save social security from going broke. >> aarp understands there are going to have to be some changes. >> reporter: at what was described as a heated meeting of aarp's policy council, the panel reportedly acknowledged it would have to accept that the retirement age, now 66, will have to be pushed back further. benefit levels reduced and contributions raised. >> we know there are going to be pieces we don't like. we're certainly going to fight for the pieces we do like. >> reporter: while the group will not advocate benefit cuts, that would spark revolt among many of its 35 million members, it will not stand in the way of some kind of reduction, provided they the not affect current recipients. >>

here's abc's ron claiborne. >> reporter: 20 years ago, there was the gerber baby. but today's gerber commercials feature not one baby, but dozens. >> say hello to the gerber generation. >> reporter: a reflection of what the next generation of americans really look like. meet yaretzy, born last wednesday in new york city. according to projections of census figures, hers is the face of america's future. for the first time, non-white children, latino, african-american, asian-american, outnumber white children. >> the idea that where we had a white middle class pop ration, that we talk about in the 1950s and 1960s, that's disappearing. >> reporter: this new generation is still in the cradle, but as these infants grow up, america will start to look very different. already, the trend lines are clear. older americans are whiter. younger americans, more non-white. most of that change is being driven a surging latino population. with a much higher birthrate than any other ethnic group, further bolstered by legal immigration. latinos have already passed african-americans as

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >> interesting stuff. researchers say these numbers provide the clearest confirmation yet of this changing social order in which racial and ethnic minorities will become the u.s. majority by mid-century. this all comes in light of these recent anti-immigration bills, very controversial, being tp)ts of the country. the gay marriage rights being discussed everywhere. you have to factor in all sorts of things within the context of this. >> and historically america's really been a melting pot. as you were saying, for the first time the numbers are really different. in fact, if you look at all children in the country under the age of 3, the most recent census says that more of them are nonhispanic whites. used to be 60% were white children. >> in 1990. >> now it's less than 50%. definitely a shift. big shift. >> changing the fabric of the entire country. >>> coming up, the major chaos surrounding justin bieber. >> bieber fever! >> and it was not his fans in the middle of the trouble. >> when bieber comes to tow

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >> hear that? that sound of silence? that's the miami heat fans not cheering because the dallas mavericks are celebrating their very first nba championship. >> it was a great series. mvp, dirk nowitzki helps the mavs beat the heat, 105-95 in game six of the finals. it all happened on miami's home turf. insult to injury there. dallas fell to the heat in the 2006 finals as well. dirk nowitzki calls the series unbelievable. he looks pretty happy. >> sweet revenge. depending on who you ask. crushing defeat for the dream team. lebron james will have to wait for another year to silence his many critics, still does not have an nba title to his name, despite how incredible of a player he is. >> so much has been made of dwayne wade, lebron james together. it was said they were unbeatable. >> they were talking about winning five, six, seven, eight. you have to win one first, guys. >> all right.ç we will be right back. at least the mavs fans will be. hopefully the heat fans stay with us too. >>> well, you know, sometimes it's so f

thank you for reporting this morning. >> let's check the headlines with ron claiborne. good morning again. >> good morning. good morning, everybody. in the news. the obama administration may speed up plans to bring u.s. troops home from afghanistan. thanks to strikes that left al qaeda paralyzed. high ranking officials tell "the new york times" that al queda is crippled in the region and the draw down can be accelerated. >>> tributes pouring in for clarence clemons, the saxophonist from bruce springsteen's e street band nicknamed "the big man" died saturday from complications from a stroke. >>> and rory mcilroy appears to be cruising to a victory at the u.s. open golf tournament. the 22-year-old enters the final day of setting the lowest score after the tournament with an eight-stroke lead. that's after three rounds. >>> finally, wimbledon starts tomorrow, but american bethanie mattek-sands, check this out, tennis-inspired dress. it's made partially with tennis balls. self-described lady gaga wore it to the pre-wimbledon tournament party. >> you can't play in that. >> y

ron claiborne is here for that. good morning. >> good morning. good morning, everyone. the death toll from the fiery train crash in nevada has climbed to six. investigators now say there's evidence the driver of the big rig did try to stop his truck before it slammed into the side of a speeding amtrak train. abc's lisa stark has the details. >> reporter: in the middle of the nevada desert, investigators combed through the charred and gutted wreckage, looking for clues. >> our mission is here to understand not just what happened but why it happened and recommend changes to prevent it from happening again. >> reporter: the big mystery, just why did a semi truck speed into the amtrak train? it happened at a marked crossing, and witnesses say the gate was working. they now know the driver did try to stop. they found extensive skid marks from the truck indicating the driver had slammed on the brakes. the truck plowed into the side of the train friday afternoon, a moment of sudden impact that set off a huge fireball. passengers still in shock over what happened. >> my heart f

. >>> now, let's check the morning's other top stories with our friend, ron claiborne, again. >> good morning, bianna and dan. good morning, again. >>> we begin with an explosion at a hospital in afghanistan. this morning at least 20 people were killed when a car bomb blew up outside the hospital just 25 miles from the capital of kabul. the blast killed hospital patients, doctors and midwives and flattened several buildings. dozens more were injured. a taliban spokesman says the group denies responsibility for that attack. >>> and the house of representatives has sent president obama a strong but largely symbolic rebuke over the war in libya. democrats and republicans voted overwhelmingly to deny the president the authority to wage war against libya, but the lawmakers voted down a measure to cut off funding for u.s. operations there. since april the u.s. role has been largely limited to supporting nato. >>> and president obama is jumping into the high-stakes talks over raising the national debt limit. the president will meet with senate leaders on monday hoping to hammer out a deal to

claiborne. good morning. >> good morning, everyone. >>> firefighters battling two of the worst wildfires in arizona history won't get any help from the weather. today gusty winds and very low humidity are forecast through tomorrow. crews are racing to save small communities from the so-called wallow fire. our abbie boudreau has the latest. >> reporter: it's one of the worst wildfires in arizona history scorching 140,000 acres and counting. >> it's very devastating to a lot of the families, the people who work up here, just the whole community. >> reporter: homeowners now being asked to evacuate, preparing for the worst. >> scary, very scary. >> my wife took a lot of pictures last night of the contents. >> reporter: arizona governor jan brewer saw firsthand the size and scope of the wallow wildfire in eastern arizona. >> it was absolutely frightening. it was unbelievable. the expansion of the smoke. >> reporter: huge plumes of smoke can be seen as far away as new mexico and colorado. already the

and our ron claiborne went into the kitchen to put them to the test. >> reporter: george washington had a thing for cherries -- not just cherry trees. bill clinton loved to munch on a big mac or two. and hefty william howard taft ate, well, just about anything. today, the new national archives exhibit on americans and food reveals new details about the culinary preferences of our presidents. dwight eisenhower was devoted to vegetable soup, which he ate almost every day. queen elizabeth once sent ike a recipe for scones with a note she wrote herself. "i generally put in less four and milk," she wrote, "but use the other ingredients as stated." that recipe is part of the exhibit, along with presidential favorites like john kennedy's fish chowder, and lyndon johnson's famous chili. first we need the tom tomatoes. today, we set out to make some lbj chili. we asked marcus samuelson, world famous chef who has prepared state dinners at the obama white house, to help prepare it. >> when you read this recipe, not that much has changed. >> reporter: chef samuelson also whipped up another dish fea

here's ron claiborne. >> reporter: the results of the tests are stunning. the overwhelming majority of american students in three grades, ignorant about basic facts about american history. >> most students, of course, successfully could recognize president lincoln. not everyone could name, completely sort of two things he was well known for. >> reporter: the test known as the nation's report card was given to over 32,000, 4th, 8th, 12th graders across america. 20% of fourth graders, 17% of eighth graders and 12% of high school seniors rated proficient in the subject. most were baffled by a multiple choice question asking which document contains the basic rules that run the government. the answer the constitution. it was a question we found that stumped many adults we asked. >> hmm. >> declaration of independence. >> i do not know. >> not sure. >> reporter: for the 12th graders things weren't much better. fewer than a quarter knew the basics of the korean war or that china was an ally of north korea. there was some good news in the report as bad as it was. o

claiborne. >> good morning. in the news, former presidential candidate, john edwards, says he did not break the law and will fight the charges against him. edwards pleaded not guilty to charges he illegally used campaign money to hide his pregnant mistress. >>> and a new jersey amusement park will reopen today, a day after an 11-year-old girl died when she fell from a ferris wheel. the ferris wheel will remain closed until the cause of her fall is determined. >>> the nfl and the players were back in court friday. the players urged a federal appeals court to declare the league's three-month lockout illegal. >>> and a principal in houston had to eat earthworms after losing a bet with her students. the preschool through third graders read more than 28,000 books this year. that was inspired by the book "how to eat fried worms." i hope she got some salt and pepper there. >> an episode of "survivor." >> this was not my school in houston. >> i would have read a lot of books to get my teacher to do that. >>> now, let's

still, seems nothing could pressure the prince to tie the knot, something he confirmed to abc's ron claiborne in 2006. >> any plans in the near future, the distance future, that you can disclose? >> i have no plans in the near or distant future. >> reporter: as for the charlene runaway rumors, a palace spokesperson told "people" magazine, none of this is true. and we think it comes from utter jealousy. so, for now, it seems the three days of festivities with a concert by the eagles, 2 ceremonies, 3,500 dinner guests and fireworks remains on. quite the party. and despite reports that say police acting on royal orders literally stopped charlene at the airport, the palace says the "a" list invitees include karl lagerfeld, aston kutcher, demi moore will witness a royal wedding. >> princess grace's wedding. remember the pictures. >> so beautiful. >> hope it works out. all right, bee, thanks. >>> casey y thony's lawyers go after her parents. dan and nancy are back to talk about the dramatic testimony. >>> and the dangerous stunts gone wildly viral that you need to watch out for. the teenagers makin