we will get there at the end of the show. all right, a lot to get to this hour but we look ahead to tonight, president biden will deliver the state of the union address in less than nine hours from now. and he certainly will have a lot of explaining to do to the nation. first, there is the growing controversy over the chinese spy balloon that flew over the country for more than a week. before he took action. the record-breaking biden search at the southern border and the scandal surrounding his son hunter. i don t think he will mention that. plus, his address tonight seen as a kickoff for his 2024 campaigns. yes, he is running, i told you he was but he may have a lot of convincing on that front. the poll says majority of democrats don t want him to run again and biden to talk about unity but that may be a tough selling point considering he just said this on friday. judgment till my jobs are up, which is a rub from inflation is down and covid no longer controls our life. the
sieve. you didn t see a lot of drama or palace intrigue. what you saw was surgical execution day after day after day. ron desantis taking a not so subtle jab at former president donald trump. the florida governor s book tour is bringing more attention to the 2024 gop presidential race even though he s not yet officially a candidate. also ahead, the latest on the kidnapping of four americans in mexico and why officials think the group was ambushed right after crossing the border. plus, we ll have expert analysis on the major fight happening right now in ukraine as both sides battle over the city of bakhmut. good morning and welcome to way too early on this tuesday, march 7th. i m jonathan lemire, and thanks for starting your day with us. we ll begin here as election deniers are claiming victory this morning after three more republican led states announced that they re pulling out of a national bipartisan program that helps protect against voter fraud. election official
a very good wednesday morning to you, i m jim sciutto. and i m erica hill. we begin this hour with new details about the victims and also the gunman in that deadly mass shooting at michigan state university. first, the three people killed who have now been identified and so young, 20-year-old brian fraser, 19-year-old arielle anderson and 20-year-old alexandria verner. the 43-year-old gunman we ve learned apparently did leave behind a note and a criminal history that includes a gun charge, but what is still unknown this morning, the motive, and also how he got the firearm, which was reportedly used in the shooting. you look at pictures of their kids you think of their poor families. also ahead this morning, former south carolina governor nikki haley makes the first stop of her 2024 presidential campaign, we re going to take you live to charleston, south carolina, and just in a key report shows that retail sales surged in january, beating expectations. more signs of a ve
following a train derailment 12 days ago in ohio. hazardous chemicals contaminating air and water. some people are getting sick and some animals are dying. welcome to a new hour of america s newsroom i m dana perino. bill is off today. good morning, john. john: i m john roberts. complex environmental disaster and many questions still unanswered. folks have been allowed to return to their homes. serious safety fears remain despite assurances the air is safe to breathe and concerns are spreading about the potential impact on the water supply as a plume of pollution spilled into the ohio river flows toward the mississippi. i think the residents have every reason to be concerned. we ll continue to dig. that s the importance of these testings, testing the water, testing the air. i know hundreds of tests have been conducted but still residents are reporting things that have to be answered. dana: we re covering this story from all angles. emily lives nearby and felt the effe
getting sick and dying in the area. the epa told fox this just hours ago. we have been in over 460 homes testing the air quality. we re going to test 28 more homes today. the data shows that there s no elevated levels. martha: so east palestine resident chelsea simpson said her lips with polka-dotted and had red patches on her skin. governor dewine will respond and give answers in his home state. first, let s go to garrett tenney live in east palestine today with the latest. hi, garrett. hi, martha. every day we re hearing more stories like those while officials say based on all the data that they collected so far, the danger has passed. the air is safe to breathe and the soil is safe and the small amount of chemical that is being detected in the drinking water shouldn t be a concern for folks. that disconnect between what the officials are saying and what folks are seeing and experiencing first hand is why most of the folks we ve talked to here don t have a lot of conf