northeast are desperate to escape the flooding and the damage unleashed by hurricane irene. we re tracking the rescues and the danger right now. and we ll put the arrest of the uncle in a dui charge. this hour, and whether they matter to most american. i m wolf blitzer and you re in the situation room. up first this hour, a very tough political debate over national security that will unfold between president obama and his republican challenger, whoever that might be. the commander in chief dep and it s no coincidence that war and foreign policy are getting more attention on the campaign trail with the ten-year milestone of the 9/11 attacks only a few days away. let s bring in cnn s jim acosta. he s watching all of this unfold. we know the economy will be issue number one. but national security will be a key debating point for the democratic and republican candidates. that s right. it s flareed up recently with libya and with the killing of osama bin laden. it s still import
that hostages held captive for 12 years were rescued. a red cross official describes the ethnic violence now occupying or occurring in kyrgyzstan as a catastrophe. the conflict flareed up after the government was overthrown in april. it s home to a u.s. military base vital too troops in afghanistan. lightning struck a tank that caused a huge fire that shut down two interstate highways. firefighters used special foam to extinguish the blaze at the colonial pipeline. all eyes are on south africa now that the country is hosting the world cup.