it is easy to second-guess. we do take care of our own, leave nobody behind. the biden administration has managed as well as it can be managed under the circumstances. it is what america is all about, pulling together, leaving nobody behind. this couldn t have been done in a more orderly manner. i respectfully disagree. announcer: americans held hostage, kind enemy lines, day 20. sean: all right, day 20, americans held hostage, held behind enemy lines, the taliban terrorists, and tonight, we begin in may, one month before the taliban s fighting season. this was president trump s deadline for withdrawal. now, if and it is a big if the taliban, if they followed through with all of their promises, because they knew if they broke any rules, harmed any americans, killed any of our allies, they knew under donald trump the consequences, they would be dire. and according to president trump, no matter what, the united states would maintain control of bagram air f
top of the hour. thanks for staying with us. i m victor blackwell. and i m alisyn camerota. we have just learned that president obama will speak from the white house at 4:30 p.m. eastern time. and that will be to explain his critical decision on afghanistan, that u.s. troops will withdraw by that august 31st deadline. the president told world leaders today that the threat to u.s. troops is the key reason for sticking to that initial date that was set in the agreement with the taliban. president biden, though, has asked for contingency plans in case he decides that the u.s. needs to stay in the country longer. and the taliban, meanwhile, have reinforced their hard line today. they say they will not accept any extension of a u.s. presence beyond that date, which is now one week away. and the taliban declared today, afghans cannot leave and ordered the crowds at kabul airport to just go home. a few moments ago, a taliban spokesman said the roads to the airport are only open
i m kim brunhuber. this is cnn newsroom. the u.s. is experiencing a surge of new coronavirus cases and it s posing a danger to unvaccinated americans. for the first time since may, the country has recorded 20,000 new cases for several days in a row. health experts fear cases may keep trending higher, because fewer than half of americans are fully vaccinated. the biggest clusters of unvaccinated people in the u.s. are in the southwest and midwest. los angeles county is jumping 165% over the past week. dr. stephen peroti joins me from san francisco. he is the associate executive director with the permanente medical group at kaiser permanente. thank you so much for joining us, doctor. we re seeing the rise of the delta variant, mostly in the south and places like missouri, where the investigation rate is extremely low, but also in california where it s now the dominant variant, probably the best example is l.a. county. it s reported the highest number of cases in months now
package and this is the house looks to vote on a bipartisan infrastructure plan with deadlines to prevent a government shutdown and raise the debt ceiling. john: the biden administration concedes the fate of the president s agenda is precarious. the president looking for a middle ground over his massive tax and spend plans. in moments ago, senator joe manchin saying he wants a $1.5 trillion package, a lot less than what the president wants. they voted pretty consistent. i don t vote any of them if they are much more progressive or much more liberal. but i m not asking them to change, i am willing to come from zero. anita: fox team coverage, bret baier will join us in just a few moments and chad pergram has a latest on capitol hill. john: will but we begin this afternoon with white house correspondent peter doocy. how do things look there? so far they look quiet and you know how these things go. you don t hear a lot from the president if he doesn t have some good n
you know what that song means, the countdown is on, one day away from the south carolina republican primary. 50 delegates are up for grabs in nikki haley s home state, where she trails the president by double digits. can she turn things around? you are watch fox and friends first, i m carley shimkus. todd: i m todd piro. the most decisive contest in gop primary, the winner going on to secure the party nomination in every race, but one. real clear politics shows president trump with 25-point lead over nikki haley on the eve of her home state primary. brooke singman has more. brooke: polls open at 7:00 a.m. and will close at 7:00 p.m. according to new polling 42% of south carolina primary voters say immigration and border security is most important issue facing the country. 13% say the future of democracy. worth noting south carolina is an open primary state, that means any registered voter can participate. taking another look at this real clear politics average, haley