personal with the world's most dangerous shark. good morning, everyone.ost you are looking at the government shutdown clock up on times square. it could be less than 17 hours away, from a government shutdown. and if they do not reach a deal, cynthia, there are all kinds of consequences. the washington monument, just one of many national monuments and parks that will close if there's no deal. and that's just the beginning. right now, we're fighting three wars. troops will not get paid during this. but members of congress will. and that will cause a lot of outrage if it comes to pass. we'll have the latest on where things stand and what it means for you in a moment. donald trump also making headlines for taking aim at the president. trump says he's gearing up for a presidential run. why he's getting so much traction right now. >> and drawing a lot of fire right now. the vice president's daughter shout out at him on facebook the other night. john berman will have details on that. we have a stunning twist in a murder mystery this morning. the wife of a hotel heir is facing new charges of killing her husband's mother, as well. when we've got big news from our parent company this morning. disney, creating kind of magical headlines, so to speak. a new magic kingdom announced in a very special place. >> you might be able to guess where it is. we'll have the details in a bit. right now, let's get to the potential government shutdown. and jake tapper at the white house. when the president came out from meeting with negotiators last night, he said he wasn't wildly optimistic. but those staff members met last night to try to work out the differences. >> reporter: that's right, george. it appears as of now we are headed for a government shutdown. right now, separating the two sides are roughly $6.5 billion in new cuts. that's minuscule compared to the size of the overall budget. and, of course, republicans keep pushing this rider, this provision, banning all federal funding to planned parenthood. president obama met with house speaker john boehner and other congressional leaders last night. >> there's still a few issues that are outstanding. they're difficult issues. they're important to both sides. and so, i'm not yet prepared to express wild optimism. >> reporter: so, what would a shutdown mean? starting tonight at midnight, the paychecks of 1.6 million active-duty troops. even those in harm's way, will start being delayed. >> a lot of these young troops live pretty much paycheck-to-paycheck. >> reporter: what that means is sergeant casey walker, a father of three, back at ft. campbell from afghanistan. >> it means pretty much not getting bills paid that need to be paid. gas, of course, to get to and from work. >> reporter: the shutdown will impact americans from sea to shining sea. one of the first impacts, tomorrow's annual cherry blossom festival in washington, d.c. >> it would be very sad if they closed down the cherry blossom festival. >> it makes me hate the government. >> reporter: come monday, more serious issues. no new federal housing loans. most veteran benefit customer support services would be suspended. construction could be delayed with the epa not able to process permits. remember that financial crisis that almost brought down the economy? routine oversight of financial markets would stop. and certain fbi initiatives would be on hiatus. >> initiatives like child pornography or cyber or other arenas on the criminal side would have to be put on hold. >> reporter: george, negotiators broke at about 3:00 in the morning to talk about -- from their negotiations. president obama said last night he wanted an answer from speaker boehner and senate majority leader reid by this morning. so, we should know in a few hours whether this is really going to happen. >> right. a congressional aid told me they expect to call the president around 10:00, 10:30 this morning. let me get into more details about what this government shutdown means. starting at midnight tonight, the 800,000 federal workers who are going to be furloughed have to shut off their blackberries. they're not allowed to make calls on government cell phones. they're not allowed to send e-mails from that moment on. if they do, that is actually a crime. that has to stop starting tonight. going into the weekend, as we said, national parks and monuments close. this is a big impact here. national park officials estimate that about 1.5 million people visit national parks every week. a median impact, as well. and for the federal workers, the average federal worker makes about $1,400 a week. the ones that are not essential will not be receiving that right away. that's going to have a huge economic impact. the total impact there for the 800,000 federal employees, $1.1 billion coming out of the economy. even if it's made up later, that's going to be a real hit. now, we want to go back to jon karl on capitol hill, about where this stands. jon, jake talked a little about the negotiators that worked until 3:00 a.m. coming out of the meetings, democrats and republicans couldn't agree on what the disagreement was. >> reporter: absolutely. and they both sounded pessimistic. they say the amounts of the cuts have been resolved. but i talked to a republican on the house said saying, they're not resolved. and they have disagreements on policy. so, at this point, it looks like they will call the president at 10:30 this morning. but the news will not be good. >> news will not be good. and a big question there is whether house speaker, john boehner, who told me time and time again, he doesn't want a shutdown. but can he sell the deal to his conference? >> reporter: on that, they actually say they're optimistic. if they can get a deal, if they can get the spending cuts up near that $40 billion amount, they can get some resolution on the policy, they will be able to pass it in the house. but, george, they're not there yet. >> jon, we have a couple of seconds left. this is so hard to read. but what is your gut telling you? is the government going to shutdown? >> reporter: my gut is we'll have a last-minute deal. but i wouldn't put a lot of money on that. >> i'm with you on that one. let's go back to cynthia. >> wow. another political story making news this morning, donald trump's growing poll numbers on a list of possible presidential contenders. since he first appeared on "gma" last month, he's been taking to the air waves to question president obama's birth certificate. what's he up to? john berman is here with some answers. >> cynthia donald trump knows how to make people watch. but many people now are wondering, are they watching a serious candidate or a circus actor? does he really believe that president obama wasn't born in america? or is he just selling his favorite product, trump? in just a few, short weeks, donald trump's stands on where president obama was born has evolved. from this -- >> the reason i have a little doubt, just a little, just a little, is because he grew up and nobody knew him. >> reporter: to this -- >> i want him to show his birth certificate. >> reporter: to this -- >> i say it's a real possibility. much greater than i thought two or three weeks ago, then he has pulled one of the great cons in politics. and beyond politics. >> reporter: in the same three weeks, trump's poll numbers have gone from this to this, nearly doubling in less than a month. also increasing, ratings for "celebrity apprentice," up every week since he started the birther rant. while it may boost his popularity now, some say it's bad long-term strategy. >> everybody knows that donald trump is entertaining. but you cannot become president of the united states on being a good entertainer. >> reporter: indeed, several nonpartisan watchdog groups say this certificate proves he was born in hawaii in august 1961. there were birth announcements in local papers. statements from officials in hawaii. and that's been more than enough for john mccain, mitt romney, sarah palin and most prominent republicans. >> for republicans to even be bringing it up, i think it's a waste of energy and time. >> reporter: the white house isn't talking about trump. but vice president joe biden's daughter, ashley, went after him on facebook last night, saying he makes me ill. this discussion is just so insulting. and boycott "apprentice." despite most of the facts out there, trump claims he's so concerned about where the president was born, he has investigators on the ground in hawaii. cynthia? >> john, in a word, is he running? or is he not? >> he's running for something, whether it's president or ratings. i don't think we really know. >> george? >> the last time he was on, i expressed a great deal of skepticism about his run. he called me immediately after the show and said, i'm going to prove you wrong. i said if you prove me wrong, come here and talk about it. >> there you go. now, to japan, where there's no relief from the crisis. the strongest aftershock yet, a 7.1 quake that knocked out power for many in japan. even led to a tsunami warning yesterday. neal karlinsky joins us from tokyo. neal, you were right in the middle of it. >> reporter: george, we were rocking back and forth for a good, solid five minutes during this one. i was on the phone with colleagues in new york at the time. they could hear my building creaking and groaning under the strength of the quake. for people in japan, it's one more problem they don't need. right away, it was clear this wasn't just another aftershock. buildings swayed violently for five minutes. you can see a power station exploding in the distance. 4 million people were plunged into darkness. and at least two people were killed, one by the shock of it. but the greatest concern was for the fukushima nuclear reactors where workers were forced to evacuate. power company officials came out to reassure the public saying, we don't recognize any new leaks so far. the radiation levels remain steady. for a battered japanese public, it was a frightening reminder. are you worried about the aftershocks and the nuclear reactor? the problem is so large, it's difficult to comprehend, she says. in fact, at two other facilities, the onagawa plant and the higashdor plant, they have measures taken. fuel rods were spilled on to the floor. but it was contained. experts monitoring the crisis are worried that strain has been put on the reactors. >> these reactors have been subjected to an enormous amount of stress. every shock adds to it. >> reporter: one more news from toyota. they've been shut down since the quake. today, they will resume partial production at all of their plants, in the coming weeks. it's a baby step. but they're trying to get on their feet now. how fast is too fast on the interstate? texas is looking at upping their speed limit to 85 miles per hour. and they -- if they do, texas highways would be the fastest posted speed limits in the country. yunji de nies went for a spin to see if that's safe. >> reporter: 85 miles per hour on the open road. sounds easy, even thrilling. but is it safe? >> the difference is the stopping distance. and i don't think it's realized until you get to the brake pedal and understand that you're not going to be able to stop. >> reporter: race car instructor, don harple, showed us how much distance you need to fully stop. at 65 miles per hour. 75. 85. and 90. >> so, that's 90 miles per hour. pretty exciting behind the wheel. >> reporter: not exciting if you're on the highway, though. >> not at all. the reaction time, the distance traveled, it's amazing how much footage you golf ball up in a short amount of time. >> reporter: this is where we stopped at 65 miles per hour. if the speed limit is 85, chances are, a lot of drivers are going 90. at that speed, you need at least another 120 feet before you could come to a complete stop. still, some texans like the idea. >> one thing is, if i can get from point a to point b faster. >> people are speeding anyways. just make it legal. >> reporter: faster speed means more fatalities. speed-related crashes account for one-third of all accidents. >> the likelihood of survival is just extremely low if you crash at those speeds. >> reporter: and even if you're in control, do you really trust the rest of the road? >> if you're the first car in the situation, and i have time to do that, now, i've got to worry about someone coming to the back of me. >> reporter: and hitting really hard. >> very hard. >> reporter: for "good morning america," yunji de nies, abc news, brazelton, georgia. >> seems scary, george. >> it does. we're going to turn to a stoi ant how powerful an addiction gamble can be. one woman won $14 million at the slots. and then, lost it all back and then some. andrea canning is here with a closer look. after blowing all of the winnings, she stole from her own family? >> reporter: jennifer dennison allegedly cleaned out her in-laws by forging chex and stealing social security income and life insurance policies. it doesn't seem possible. but police say this florida woman blew $14 million playing slot machines. an addiction so strong, the thrill of those magic triple 7s landed her behind bars. >> theoretically she could spend the next couple decades behind prison. >> reporter: she won $13 million at this tampa casino. but she quickly gambled the winnings away. and police say she drained her in-laws' life savings to fuel her addictions. >> miss dennison had basically wiped out their accounts to the tune of $500,000. >> reporter: jennifer's father-in-law, laverne, says she charmed them. >> she would visit us. she has one bad habit. >> reporter: it's a bad habit donna has fought hard to beat. >> i never would have thought i would have won this kind of money. >> reporter: the mother of four says just one win of $27,000 at the slots was like a drug. >> we were the typical family. and then, all of a sudden, i was going to the casino more and more. you just chase after the losses. >> reporter: she lost thousands of dollars. and started stealing checks from a friend to cover her debts. >> i was tired of the lies. >> reporter: the gambling industry is increasingly going after women. online, so-called sexy slot machines are offering prizes like manhattan shopping sprees. or gamble with carrie bradshaw. casinos across the country feature "sex and the city" theme slots. >> they've said, this is how we're going to get them. >> reporter: and almost half of problem gamblers are women. brad lamm is the author of "how to help the one you love." >> she was the one serving the drink. now, she's invited to sit down and play at the table. there's been a turn. that's why we're seeing a lot of the spike in gambling and addiction problems with women in the united states. >> reporter: police say jennifer dennison was able to steal from her in-laws because her husband had power of attorney over them. and he trusted her to run their finances. she would blow up to $250,000 in a day. >> so hard to believe. andrea, thanks very much. now, to sam with the weather. >> happy friday. the day we have to get through before we get to the weekend. let's see what's offered up here. strong to severe storms rolling through the country. from st. louis to louisville, you're involved in this. lexington, cincy. asheville towards atlanta. the giant area of storms is going to pop up. but we think these will be the strongest storms. check out the numbers. for dallas, it's about 15 degrees above normal today. but a lot of warmth across the country. i will merely mention that for l.a., starting in the 40s. barely getting into the 60s, is much colder than normal. folks in the northwest today will get a look at the sunshine. they haven't seen it in quite a while. cynthia? >> we always like sunshine. now, to a big announcement by our parent company, disney, breaking ground overseas on a huge, new magical kingdom. juju chang has been following the story overnight. a few hours ago in shanghai. >> the events were festive and colorful. but it's a complex deal that was launched this morning. ten, long years in the making. "the wall street journal" says it will likely end up being the largest direct foreign investment ever made in mainland china.t direct foreign it involves hotels, shops and at its core, a magic kingdom-style theme park. >> good morning. >> reporter: with the chinese greeting and mickey mouse and crew dressed in mandarin costumes, disney launched an ambitious, now partnership in china this morning. to villagers who lined the roads, cheering the earth-movers, breaking ground on the theme park. >> china is one of the most dynamic markets in the world. most populous country in the world. shanghai, one of the most dynamic cities in the world. >> reporter: since revolutionizing the industry with disneyland in 1955, disney has gone global. from france, to japan. now, mainland china. >> it's been a global company now for over half a century. disneyland china is going to be uniquely disney. there will be things familiar about it to people who visit our other parks around the world. but it will also be specific to china. >> reporter: like most international businesses, disney is eager to enter the $3.1 billion strong consumer market. it's a strategy that involves movie distribution, and disney branded schools. >> all of the businesses trying to get into china, none have been all that successful. if disney could get a 24-hour cable channel in china, that would be huge. >> reporter: and the castle is slated to be the biggest of all. disney ceo, bob iger, was asked what he wants the china people to think when they see it? >> we want them to say, wow. look at that big castle. >> it will be. and the mayor of shanghai says this morning that the disney theme park will help raise shanghai's profile and make it a tourist destination. >> i hope it will be back. it will be fun. "gma" will be there. >> it will be fun. coming up here, a murder mystery takes a stunning turn. the wife accused of murdering her millionaire husband may have also killed his mother. and imagine getting this close to one of the deadliest and imagine getting this close to one of the deadliest predators on the planet. wontfor the last two years? well, it toured around europe, getting handling and steering lessons on those sporty european roads. it went back to school, got an advanced degree in technology. it's been working out -- more muscle and less fat. it's only been two years, but it's done more in two years than most cars do in a lifetime. how about a coastal soup and grilled shrimp salad combination? or maybe skewers of wood-grilled shrimp. seafood lunches starting at just $6.99 at red lobster. ♪ good morning [ male announcer ] there are sixteen fresh-picked oranges squeezed into each carton of tropicana pure premium and absolutely no space for added sugar, water or preservatives. tropicana -- we put the good in morning. now maryland most powerful doppler radar and the forecast certified most accurate by weatherate. #:26. we are looking at maryland most powerful doppler radar. ran across the area. it is light wind near elkton and up 95. but bel air through aberdeen is heavy. the orange shadeings getting more prominent here and yellows from towson through hunt valley we have got some moderate to heavy rain and back towards pikesville through the city itself. extending towards the south it breaks up near annapolis. showers makes a return there and we expect rain pretty much tonight story all day long. 45 the current reading the hagerstown and york and easton fairly iewn furled and not much movement. 49 the best we will do. plan for a wet and chilly friday. let's check on the roads with kim. >> reporter: thanks. an earlier accident on the inner loop at pulaski high wasway has been cleared. traffic is getting-- highway has been cleared. no report