with four days before congress high-tails it out of washington, there was plenty of talk about the dire consequences of the looming fiscal cliff. we're talking about tax cuts expiring for everyone automatically, payroll taxes going up, emergency unemployment benefits ending and, of course, the $1.2 trillion in so-called sequestration cuts. about half of that sum is going to come from defense. >> the obligation of the commander in chief is to act like the commander in chief, and that would be to prevent these cuts, which in the words of his own secretary of defense, would devastate our national security. >> interesting, acting like a commander in chief, because a lot of the previous commanders in chief have done a lot more than barack obama may be about to do. we've certainly been here before. ronald reagan during his second term cut defense spending by about 10%. the cold war was winding down. those cuts continued under former president george h.w. bush, about 18% in cuts. and then former president clinton. clinton did start to increase defense spending during his term but it still ended lower than where it was when he took office. another thing that stands out to me about this chart is defense spending. it's higher now than it was in the cold war or even during vietnam. it looks like it was higher during world war ii although there were extraneous spending items then. but the chart is courtesy of the center for american progress and the department of defense. so when you look at that, you have to ask the question, do the claims of national security disaster add up when it comes to the sequestration? i asked that question to someone who should know the answers. >> sequestration could have a devastating impact on our overall economic condition. you mentioned 2 million jobs lost. that could raise the unemployment rate on a national level by about 9%. we're talking about both defense and non-defense jobs. sequestration impacts both elements of the budget. >> so help me understand because i've heard that argument and it makes sense. but then i look at some other numbers and it doesn't make sense. for example, the cuts, in terms of real terms, the cuts that the defense department already agreed to and then the sequestration on top of that would only be about 11%, in real terms. ronald reagan cut defense by 10% in his second term. george h.w. bush cut it. so this is right in line with those. that seems to make sense. >> yes, when you're talking about percentages, always matter where is you're starting from. i think it's more instructive to actually look at the dollars being cut f. you look at the total between defense and non-defense, it would represent a reduction of over $100 billion in the coming fiscal year. and that's really the number you have to focus on that translates into the economic impact that we're talking about. so a structure today, this would be a precipitous set of cuts that would happen very quickly, would happen without the benefit of strategic thinking on how they would be applied. to do that at a time when our nation continues to face an array of security issues around the globe that demand our attention, demand our presence, demand our military capability, really does not make any sense. >> so are you saying, then, that on a percentage basis, that these cuts would be fair, but your problem is the way they're going about it? they're cutting everything as opposed to maybe cutting some things that really should go and keeping other things? >> what we're talking about here is another $500 billion in cuts. if we're talking about those two added together, i would not say that that would be an appropriate level of cut. >> but that's where i get the 11%. getting those two together is where i get the 11%. on real terms, which, again, is about the same as ronald reagan did. so -- >> no, from the total size of the cut, this magnitude would -- relative to the array of issues that our department of defense is addressing around the globe, i believe be unprecedented. if you look at what secretary pennetta has said, he's been clear that the department's ability to meet its requirement, to really execute its mission would be fundamentally impaired by this magnitude a cut. and by that, we're talking about the second $500 billion. >> but then -- let me just get your answer to this. in 2008, we had nearly 188,000 men and women serving on the ground, troops on the ground in iraq and afghanistan. now in 2012, we only have 67,500 and we're going to have even fewer. as we have fewer people actually serving in war, we would appear to need fewer tools for them to use in those wars, right, not more? >> yeah, this isn't just a matter of quantity. if you look at the capital investment in the nation's infrastructure, to support our military over this last decade, we've had to bias the investment toward the conflicts we've been addressing. so there really has been a reduced amount of investment to support the force structure. >> how many people will you have to lay off at the beginning of next year due to the sequestration specifically? >> it's hard to tell exactly today. that's part of the challenge that we're all dealing with with sequestration. the law that was implemented species a percentage cut and has some description of how that gets applied. we've sought guidance from the federal government to be more clear about how sequestration would actually be implemented. the federal government itself is having difficulty coming up with that guidance because of the nature of the law. >> i want to bring in john avlon now. what's interesting is he said that we didn't have an overall number for how many people they'd have to lay off, even though he stood by the industry lobbying association's number of 2 million. i thought they would have more specifics to make their point. >> that was not all about specifics, that interview. where you stand is a matter of where you sit. the head of this business is not going to want defense spending to be cut at all. but it's stunning to see him not have an answer. when you raised historical comparisons and made the point that we have been here before, the republican presidents have cut defense spending. before that chart, go back to eisenhower, nixon, when we have fewer wars, we spend less on defense. and defense contractors aren't going to like that. that's not news to anybody. >> a lot of the numbers, too -- it's frustrating, he says the cuts are big. that's because we were projected to have lots of increases in spending. >> this is what lobbyists always cry about. they're judging against projected spending. if you cut that, they consider it a cut outright. what boggles my mind isn't just people like him. i understand his self-interest is in keeping defense spending at unprecedented levels. historical, these cuts are not unprecedented. what boggles my mind are members of congress who talk about reducing deficits. and after the super committee, couldn't make a deal. they don't like the pain it causes. any cuts can be said to reduce economic growth. but if you're serious about it, you deal with it, not just demagogue it. and this boggles my mind. >> what now are your odds of -- there's the whole debate going on of pre or post -election. are you more optimistic? >> i would love to be. let's say these folks want to avoid the pain of sequester. there's a way to do it. make a deal, cut spending, reform entitlements, raise revenue. this was never anyone's first choice. it was always supposed to be pain. >> john avlon, thank you very much. a plea for reason and accountability. there's a little of it out there. still "outfront," mitt romney is talking about his taxes, but talk is not action. and penn state university may be on the verge of a huge blow tots already crippled football program. and then, she wrote an article about the glamorous life of asama al assad, the wife of the syrian dictator as the syrian regime began cracking down on its people. now the reporter telling the behind-the-scenes story of what she says really what happened when the first lady of hell, as she called her, duped her. do you see it ? there it is ! there it is ! where ? where ? it's getting away ! where is it ? it's gone. we'll find it. any day can be an adventure. that's why we got a subaru. love wherever the road takes you. wow, there it is. those surprising little still make you take notice. there are a million reasons why. but your erectile dysfunction that could be a question of blood flow. cialis 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, like needing to go frequently or urgently. tell your doctor about all your medical conditions and medications, and ask if your heart is healthy enough for sexual activity. do not take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. do not drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effects may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. if you have any sudden decrease or loss in hearing or vision, or if you have any allergic reactions such as rash, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing, stop taking cialis and get medical help right away. ask your doctor about cialis for daily use and a 30-tablet free trial. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 like a lot of things, the market has changed, tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 and your plans probably have too. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 at charles schwab, we'll give you personalized recommendations tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 on how to reinvest that old 401(k). tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 so talk to chuck tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 and bring your old 401(k) into the 21st century. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 rollover your 401(k) or ira and receive up to $600. tdd#: 1-800-345-2550 see schwab.com for terms and conditions. throughout our entire lives. ♪ one a day women's 50+ is a complete multi-vitamin designed for women's health concerns as we age. ♪ it has more of seven antioxidants to support cell health. that's one a day women's 50+ healthy advantage. to support cell health. last season was the gulf's best tourism season in years. in florida we had more suntans... in alabama we had more beautiful blooms... in mississippi we had more good times... in louisiana we had more fun on the water. last season we broke all kinds of records on the gulf. this year we are out to do even better... and now is a great time to start. our beatches are even more relaxing... the fishing's great. so pick your favorite spot on the gulf... and come on down. brought to you by bp and all of us who call the gulf home. now our second story "outfront," mitt romney dodging questions about his taxes again, in an interview with abc news. >> there was one year when you paid about a 13.9% tax rate. can we clear this up by asking you a simple yes or no question? was there ever any year when you paid lower than the 13.9%? >> i haven't calculated that. i'm happy to go back and look. but my viewis, i have paid all the taxes required by law. >> you say you would go back and look. you would look for us? >> i haven't looked at the tax rate paid year by year. i know that i pay a very substantial amount of taxes. and every year since the beginning of my career so far i can recall. >> we're betting that mitt romney is aware of whether he paid 13.9% or less in some years. roland martin joins me along with alice stewart. alice, there's something else that mitt romney said during that interview. he said, quote, from time to time i've been audited, i think as happens to other citizens as well. and the accounting firm which prepares my taxes has done a very thorough and complete job paying taxes as legally due. this seems to -- it confuses me even more. he's been audited, which proves the point we've been making for a while. he's never done anything wrong or remotely shady in his taxes. why won't he release the returns? >> why should he? he's acted in compliance with the law. he's produced the last two years of his tax information. he has never broken the law in this regard. why should he? if he does release two more years, the media and the obama campaign is going to want him to release ten or 20. this is a pathetic distraction from the obama distraction who would rather talk about something that the average person is not concerned about than what people are concerned about which is the obama administration's record for the past three years, which is not good. >> roland, one thing i have to say, i think the right question was asked. people would care if he paid less than 13.9%. there have been reports out there because of losing investment income in 2009 may have paid no taxes that year, zero. >> this is hilarious. this is the guy who tells us he loves his father and he wants to 'em matthew late his father. wasn't it his father who set the standard for releasing taxes? now he wants to roll that back. here's the whole deal. republicans were trying to get mitt romney to release hisaxes back in march so this would not be an issue. what he has just done is handed the obama campaign a bat to bash him upside his head like in "the untouchables." they're going to run ads showing conservatives saying, he should release his taxes. so romney, what are you doing? you're not going to win this argument. your daddy set the standard. follow your daddy. >> if he's not nothing to hide, why not do it? to be fair, the standard has changed. like it or not, most people now who run for president are releasing six to 12, in some cases, 20 years of taxes. why not, alice? if you've got nothing to hide, take the 20,000 pages, have fun. >> he's done everything the law has required him to do. i can assure you, i've traveled across this country on the campaign trail. not one single person has asked any questions about the income tax return of any of my candidates. i can assure you when we have 23 million americans out of work, we have an abysmal gdp at 1.5%, we have unemployment above 8% for the past 41 months, that is what people are concerned about, who is going to get in there and turn those numbers around. >> alice, hogan gidley said that he thought that mitt romney should release the taxes. >> the point is, mitt romney has released everything that he has required by law that he has to do. what he's doing, smartly enough, is heading on the campaign trail, talking about what people want to hear about. the average person is concerned about jobs and the economy. the latest gallup poll says they want their presidents to focus on health care, the economy, doing away with corruption in government, the education and social security. those are the issues that people are talking about. i don't know why we're wasting time sitting here talking about something when the average person is not concerned about that. >> alice, don't give me the gop talking point. your former boss who you were working for said during the campaign, mitt, release your taxes. so i'm sure during the santorum campaign, you guys used that as a talking point. please don't give a gop talking point. you know romney is hurting himself because he is giving the impression, i have something to hide. this is why you do this four months ago. he's only hurting himself. >> he's released everything by law he's required to do. and he's doing what we need to be doing at this stage of the game -- what we're doing, 99 days out from this election. people are concerned about what are your policies, what are your views, what are your positions on the key issues, which is turning the economy around and creating jobs. that's what he's doing. that's why right now, the poll numbers show he's neck and neck with the president. and for a sitting president to be neck and neck at this stage of the game is not a good place to be. >> i want to turn the conversation before we go to something else. this is the democrats saying they're going to include gay marriage as a platform in their official party platform at the conventi convention, in north carolina, it's a gutsy move. roland, why are they choosing to do it? >> easy. >> this could cost a couple of states. >> keep in mind, it was president barack obama early in the year who was not supportive of this being included in the platform. once he came out and announced that he was supporting same-sex marriage, that changed the whole ball game. i wouldn't be surprised if you polled folks nationally that probably thought it was already in the platform for the democratic party. >> alice, final word. will this galvanize voters for the gop or a non-issue now? >> if the gay marriage issue wants to take on the traditional marriage folks, game on. i think they're in for a tough battle. the fact of the matter is they may galvanize their base, but this election will be decided by the independents. those folks are results oriented. they want someone who will produce results in the presidency. >> thanks very much to both of you. we appreciate it. next "outfront," the court battle between titans. the two biggest phone makers on the planet. and a new milestone in the miraculous recovery of aimee copeland. a big milestone and her father is going to tell you about it "outfront." managing expenses seems to... get in the way. not anymore. ink, the small business card from chase introduces jot an on-the-go expense app made exclusively for ink customers. custom categorize your expenses anywhere. save time and get back to what you love. the latest innovation. only for ink customers. learn more at chase.com/ink [romney singing]: oh beautiful, for spacious skies, i'm barack obama and i approve this message. for amber waves of grain, for purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain, america, america, god shed his grace on thee, and crowned thy good, with brotherhood... battle of the titans. it doesn't get better than thi a battle between the biggest and sexiest tech companies on earth. this is the battle between samsung and apple. there is no david in this story. there are billions of dollars at stake and you might end up losing your phone, too. this matters. jury selection has begun in the patent fight between apple and samsung. basically apple want samsung to pay $2.5 billion to apple, in sales, damages and lost profits for supposedly violating its patents. the intellectual property being fought over includes things like the tap to zoom and scrolling functions you're accustomed to. but one of the biggest issues is design. take a look at this. apple says that after the iphone came out, samsung started copying its design. this is in the apple legal brief. they say this is what you were doing before, samsung. look at your little phones. they look like blackberries. then here came the iphone. and now look at the samsung devices. apple says, doesn't that look familiar? and look at the time line. this is an interesting image. this is for the ipad. again, apple is saying, this is what samsung's product looked like before. then out we came with the ipad and now look at samsung's now touch screen tablet after the ipad 2. samsung says this is a whole load of -- it's bogus. samsung's briefs describe this as cherry-picked by apple and they have a complicated thing that shows the iterations of phones to show that the iphone was not the catalyst for how your samsung galaxy looks. that brings me to the number tonight which is -- $24. that's how much apple wants for every single device that samsung is selling that violates what apple says is its design patent. this is according to fos patents, a blog tracking this battle day in and day out. $24 a device is a lot of money. samsung says apple is violating some of its patents and wants money from apple on its 3g technology. it goes back and forth and back and forth. but the bottom line is it's big money and it could affect whether you're able to have those samsung galaxy phones that now are much more popular than apple's around the world. still "outfront" in our second half, new york city mayor michael bloomberg has a new target in his so-called nanny state. an interesting term, considering now he is trying to force women to breastfeed. and a former reporter says she was duped by the first lady of syria. probiotic cap each dayn heh helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! 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now our third story "outfront," mayor michael bloomberg and his so-called nanny state. he's taking on baby formula now. starting in september, bloomberg will implement his "latch-on nyc" initiative. new mothers will be encouraged to breastfeed. nurses have to sign out the baby formula and explain to them why it's not the best thing to do. this is a "voluntary" initiative. but so far, two-thirds of new york city hospitals have already latched on to the idea. >> most public health officials want to encourage women to breastfeed at least for the first couple of weeks because the outcomes are better. if they can do it, that's great. if they can't, they can't. our job -- we're not making anybody do it. we're suggesting it. >> "outfront" tonight, renee silar. also "outfront" tonight, kristin howardson. i love both of your blog names. let's get to it. does the mayor have a point? obviously he said, i'm looking at a couple of weeks. but pediatricians recommend six months of breastfeeding. is he doing the right thing? >> before anybody says anything, i have to say, i'm a big appropriate of breastfeeding. i nursed both of my children. i just don't think this is the way to get that done. i don't think -- he says it's a voluntary program. but a woman who's just had a baby and her hormones are all sort of being regulated and she's got this screaming child and she's trying to feed this baby and then you have to call a nurse and ask the nurse for formula, it seems like so much. then the nurse is going to stand over you and lecture you about -- >> right, if you don't want to do it or it hurt, you're made to feel that you're a failure or a bad mother. >> exactly. i feel like this is one more attack on mothers and on women. i feel like -- it's not that women don't want to try. i think most women understand, most everybody know that is breast is best unless you've never heard that before, which i'd be shocked by. we know that breastfeeding is good. we know it's best. but like in the case with me and my daughter, it took three weeks before we figured it out. >> it can take time. what about the new york health department? they're putting out a lot of numbers out there. one of them, 100% excess risk of inner ear infections. that can happen early on in a baby's life if they're on formula. but 44% of all infants get that, whether they're -- ear infections, whether breastfed or not breastfed. some of these numbers appear to be a little bit scare tactics. >> yeah. it could be. but i do think that this initiative is good in that i think that there is pretty rampant formula pushing happening in american hospitals all across america. i know when i had my babies, both times i was given a gift bag that had branding of formula all over it. i was offered formula bottles by nurses. so i do think that there's a middle ground here that we should be driving for where women are encouraged to breastfeed and aren't just offered a bottle of formula to give to their children as soon as their baby is born. >> what do you think about that? they're pushing formula, is that a fair characterization? >> it's been a long time since i had a baby. but pushing formula might be a bit much. but she's right, there should be some middle ground. i don't believe that middle ground is having a nurse sign out the formula each time you need to feed your screaming baby. >> what about, though, the difficulty that a lot of women will have to deal with? which is, they have to work. soon after having a child, they have to go back to work. i know that technically there's all these things in place where you can breastfeed at work or pump. but for a lot of women, that's not practical. >> i think it's important to notice that this initiative is addressing children in hospitals. this wouldn't have any effect on working moms. we're just talking about the time period of when a woman's in a hospital. it's really just 24 to 48 hours after birth. after that point, every woman can leave and do what they feel is best for them. >> but it literally took me three weeks of frustration, trying to teach and trying to work out this breastfeeding dance with my own daughter. that was not with someone standing over my head saying, you're doing it wrong. that's not, i don't believe, the support that nursing mothers need. they need it to be in a loving and caring environment and not someone saying, hey, you're doing it wrong, the wrong way. >> thanks very much -- go ahead, final word, kristin. >> i think in that case, we have to trust that nurses are going to be gentle and helpful with moms. the hope is that they're not going to be shaming but that it's going to encourage nurses and moms to give ate shot instead of just reaching for the bottle. >> thanks very much to both of you. viewers, let us know what you think. mayor bloomberg, what is next? soon his picture will be on the wall in hotels like in certain parts of the world, maybe. fourth story "outfront," leon panetta has some advice for syrian leader, bashar al assad. >> i'm sure deep down assad knows he's in trouble and it's just a matter of time before he has to go. >> what would you say to him? >> i would say if you want to be able to protect yourself and your family, you better get the hell out now. >> get the hell out now. to date, human rights groups say the conflict in syria has left more than 20,000 people dead. but before the atrocities in syria happened, "vogue "report er wrote an article. but it was removed from its website. "outfront" tonight, joan juliet bek buck says she was duped by asma al assad and her family. i was saying, what was she thinking with this article? and now you're going to tell us what happened. what happened that made that article come out the way it did. >> well, the piece was -- "vogue" is a magazine that looks for the positive f. you're in "vogue," you're going to look great, you're going to be wearing great clothes. and whoever writes about you is going to say only the best things about you. that's the way it goes. but i went -- at the time, bashar al assad was thought maybe as a reformer. hillary clinton said it. lots of people said it. john kerry was there the whole time. there was hope that maybe bashar al assad was not an evil person like his father and that he and his wife, the beautiful asma, represented something new in the middle east. it was evan believed he could be some kind of conduit to peace in the middle east. >> and i think we should note, in your defense, that the research and the writing of this article was actually done in december of the year before, before really anyone even knew about tunisia -- >> as i write in "newsweek," i was given this assignment on the 1st of december, 2010. the tuniscsonisitunisian fruit himself on fire on december 16th. i was already in damascus. during january, there were small uprisings in various middle eastern states. tunisia happened by the middle of january. and by then, ben alari has fled. that dictator was gone. there was also egypt where we were all cheering what wassing happening in tahrir square. >> you said, she is fresh and very chic. you talk about syria, a place without bombings, unrest or kidnappings. >> right. but there's a couple of other lines where i say that it conducts strict electronic and personal surveillance on both nationals and visitors. >> which you experienced, right? >> which i experienced. but it was funny because somebody got into my computer. but i didn't actually have the computer looked at until i'd finished writing the piece because i didn't know exactly what it meant. and it was something, you'll think about it later. >> so a lot of people are going to say when you look back on what you saw -- forget what you wrote and whether you wrote it more glowingly than you wish you did. what about the relationship between asma and bashar and the children? what, looking back, did you see? >> what i saw -- obviously when people are being visited by americans, they're at their best. they want to look gorgeous and glamorous and their house is going to be really clean. so she used a brand-new saucepan. i don't know if that meant that the house was a fake set with all new props or if they'd gone out and bought a new saucepan -- >> you raised the possibility that it could have been a set. it could have been a fake place. >> it could have been a fake set. i don't have the political training. i'm not a political journalist. i know what was exactly in front of my eyes. and it was kind of a nerdy guy who didn't seem threatening or particularly complex. >> really? not particularly complex? interesting. >> and a woman who was very, very on message. she's a banker. i don't really trust bankers. everything she said was for me to know that the children of syria were her number one concern, that with her discovery centers, she was going to help the children of syria have the confidence to build a civil society. she said it to me so many ways and so many times, i had gone -- because i was hoping to look at antiquities. all she talked about was enabling the children of syria. >> and you in "newsweek," your headline is requests mrs. assad duped me, the first lady of hell". >> what happened, she enabled -- did she do it deliberately? by telling a totality of over 200,000 children, young syrians, aged between 5 and, say, 20, that they had the power to change the way things were in their country, by telling them that, was it she who enabled the nine -- the 15 kids who at the end of february 2011 wrote a graffiti on the wall of their school saying, the people want the regime to change -- these are the kids who were arrested. these are the kids who were tortured by assad's regime. and for me, the whole reason i wrote this piece, i met a woman who was on message like a banker, but it was all about enabling the kids. and from the moment the atrocities started, which was with the torture of the kids who had done the graffiti and this torture was discovered at the end of march, from the moment this started, i was saying to myself, who's this woman i met? who only spoke about enabling the children of syria? >> maybe there's a very great irony in all of this. thank you very much, joan. we appreciate it. joan's new article about the story -- and it's worthwhile in reading. it's a minute move minute of what she saw and what happened. i enjoyed it much more than the first article. it's in "newsweek" right now. the recovery of aimee copeland, the young woman we've been talking about. she won that battle with flesh eating bacteria. her father with the milestone she achieved this week is "outfront" next. man: there's a cattle guard, take a right. do you have any idea where you're going ? wherever the wind takes me. this is so off course. nature can surprise you sometimes... next time, you drive. next time, signal your turn. ...that's why we got a subaru. love wherever the road takes you. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] you've been years in the making. and there are many years ahead. join the millions of members who've chosen an aarp medicare supplement insurance plan insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. go long. insured by unitedhealthcare insurance company. energy is being produced to power our lives. while energy development comes with some risk, north america's natural gas producers are committed to safely and responsibly providing generations of cleaner-burning energy for our country, drilling thousands of feet below fresh water sources within self-contained well systems. and, using state-of-the-art monitoring technologies, rigorous practices help ensure our operations are safe and clean for our communities and the environment. we're america's natural gas. it's hard to see opportunity in today's challenging environment. unless you have the right perspective. bny mellon wealth management has the vision and experience to look beyond the obvious. we'll uncover opportunities, find hidden risk, and make success a reality. bny mellon wealth management is at the heart of every innovation. with the sleep number bed, it's not about soft or firm. it's about support where you find it most comfortable. the magic of this bed is that you're sleeping on something that conforms to your individual shape. wow! that feels really good. you can adjust it to whatever your needs are. take it up one notch. my sleep number is 50. i'm a 45. and now, for those interested in trying memory foam, sleep number introduces our new memory foam series-the only beds that combine cradling memory foam with the amazing dual-air adjustability of the sleep number bed. the memory foam bed that's perfect for couples. so whatever you feel like, sleep number's going to provide it for you. memory foam just found its better half. sleep number. hurry in now and enjoy introductory savings of $500 on our most luxurious memory foam bed set. plus, two free coolfit pillows! ends august 15th. only at one of our 400 sleep number stores, where queen mattresses start at just $699. . and now we're back with our outer circle where we reach out to sources around the world. tonight, we go to uganda. there's an ebola outbreak that's been difficult to detect because patients are sick but aren't showing the typical symptoms. david mckenzie is following the story. i asked him what officials are doing to control the outbreak. >> reporter: there's been a deadly outbreak of the dreaded ebola virus in east africa. so far, 14 people have been killed by the virus. there's no known cure. and it spreads very fast and kills very quickly. it all happened in the western part of the country. the initial case was a pregnant woman. nine members of her family died when it's believed they buried her, as well as a health worker who worked to try and save her life. now the center for disease control boyced in atlanta is sending a team out to uganda. there's a team there with the world health organization and government officials to try and cur b this outbreak. one thing working in their favor is it's such an effective killer, it's often hard to spread outside of the region where it started. erin? our fifth story "outfront," aimee copeland, the 24-year-old who lost her leg a foot and her hands to a flesh-eating bacterial infection that almost killed defying the odds in her recovery. she's in the midst of grueling physical therapy sessions that are geared towards the basics. getting in and out of a chair. she's also learned to work with a new hand and leg prosthetics. it's been a miraculously quick recovery. andy copeland has been giving us updates. good to see you. i know physical therapy sessions have been difficult. what are some of the things that most recently she's mastered? >> well, i'll tell you, just the regiment she's under now is incredible. she does 200 crunches in about seven minutes. 400 leg lifts in about seven minutes. she does an untold number of push-ups. in fact, one day i went there to see her, she was doing push-ups and her therapist, she must have talked to him for five minutes while she was doing push-ups. she does this thing called planks and side plarngs. i looked it up to find out what it is. it's just an unbelievable regiment she does for an hour and a half each day. >> how many of the prosthetics does she have? is she fully acclimated with? >> she's actually -- has three prosthetics now. she has two hooks that she uses basically in place of hands. it's interesting, it seems that after having those hooks on for about ten minutes she seemed to have been able to master the ability to use them. she reached over, there were a pair of shorts, she was going to get up and transfer over to her wheelchair from the bed and she reached over and effortlessly grabbed the shorts, threw them across her body and said, let's get in. he looked and said, wow, usually it takes three days for somebody to be able to master the coordination of using those hooks to do something like that. plus, she has one prosthetic on her right leg which is the area of her below knee amputation. her left side, she still doesn't have her prosthetic yet on that side. that side's not really that healthy. she still has some sores that are pop up and it's possible she may require an additional surgery there sometime before the end of the year. >> you're standing in front of your house. you've got a developer that's been helping your build what's calling amy's wing. how is that coming? i know that's going to be a place that she -- completely friendly to her when she does return. >> yeah. it's been remarkable progress. polti homes has stepped in and really knocked this thing out in regard time. they gave us a schedule of 40 days but i think they're scheduled to complete this sometime next tuesday. so it's amazing that they've knocked it out in the time frame that they have. we also have a general contractor, casey moon, who's working on the inside of our structure now. he hopes to be done with the existing structure by the 14th. so we're really pushing that to make sure everything's ready in time for aimee to home. >> this has been a time that could have been many months away. given what you're describing with her push-ups and her -- the miraculousness of this recovery, when do you actually expect her to come home? >> well we're seeing she's going to be home by the 22nd. i told her, said, great, when you come home, i said, i want to have cameras there, everybody, you know, seeing aimee come home. she goes no, dad, i don't need that, i need -- let me come home. and she said, i just need to come home. because i felt like it was going to be a great big moment that we could record. she doesn't even want me to record it with a home video. she said, you know, did you record me when i went off to college? okay, this is the same thing, don't make a big deal. she's asked us to give her some personal time when she comes home, that she can become acclimated to her new environment, and just be able to enjoy being home because, gosh, she's been in a medical facility now for three months, and we're really looking forward to her being a place where she's -- feels safe and where she feels like she's finally home. >> and that will be a great day. up front next, a russian rock band held in jail for almost five months would no end in sight. why the government's cozy relationship with the church could be behind it. why wouldn't you make that call? see, the only thing i can think of is that you can't get any... bars. ah, that's better. it's a beautiful view. i wonder if i can see mt. rushmore from here. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. chase scene netflix coming soon extra butter tickets swoon penguin journey junior mints movie phone evil prince bollywood 3d shark attack ned the head 5% cashback signup for 5% cashback on movies through september. it pays to discover. you see us, at the start of the day. on the company phone list that's a few names longer. you see us bank on busier highways. on once empty fields. everyday you see all the ways all of us at us bank are helping grow our economy. lending more so companies and communities can expand, grow stronger and get back to work. everyday you see all of us serving you, around the country, around the corner. us bank. hey america, even though slisa rinna is wearing the new depend silhouette briefs for charity to prove how great the fit is even under a fantastic dress. the best protection now looks, fits and feels just like underwear. we invite you to get a free sample and try one on too. in march, we brought you the story of the russian punk band. they put on masks so you can't always tell which ones are there. they're known for being anonymous and politically charged. more than 100,000 people took to the streets of moscow earlier this year, singing a song called "putin chickens out." according to russian authorities, they went too far. on february 21st when they stormed the altar of the christ the savior cathedral to sing an anti-putin punk prayer. they were only there for about a minute but it offended many believers and shortly after the performance three of the band's members were snatched off the street and currently face up to seven years in prison. they've been held with no bail since february which is almost five months. their trial finally began in moscow today. the official charge is hooliganism with, quote, religious hatred. is this about religion or politic? the prosecution says the women's treatment and the charges are fair but there appears to be more to it. although church and state are officially separate under russia's constitution, the orthodox church is one the primary supporters of putin. this cozy relationship has led much of the russian public and celebrities to champion the pussy riot cause. the lawyer for the band said, the documents tried not to make it look like a political case but for us it's obviously political and when someone says there's no political prisoners in the country we feel like laughing. this week,