5 Things to Know for Your New Day – Monday, August 26

It may be getting close to "go" time for the U.S. when it comes to Syria. There are pressing concerns at home too, with a massive wildfire threatening one of America's most famous parks. And the Donald joins us to talk about a $40 million lawsuit filed against him by the state of New York.

It’s Monday, and here are “5 Things to Know for Your New Day."

Every weekday morning around 6, we’ll hit the top five stories of the day, clue you in on a few other buzzy items and let you know about some of the must-watch stories coming up on CNN’s new morning show, “New Day.”

1. SYRIA

Hard line out of Washington: In just a few days, the tone from the United States has changed. President Obama was measured in his midweek comments to CNN, but now pressure is building for the White House to consider action against the Syrian government. For its part, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government says there is no way it has used or will use chemical weapons, but a U.S. official tells us that multiple international sources have already collected evidence from the site of a suspected chemical weapons attack. So Obama gathered his national security team over the weekend, and they talked military and diplomatic options. U.N. inspectors will officially get to see the site today.

Fred Pleitgen in Syria and Pentagon correspondent Chris Lawrence will join us live this morning.

2. WILDFIRES

At all costs: It’s a little hard to believe that firefighters are making progress against a blaze that is less than 10% contained, but that what appears to be what’s happening with one that threatens Yosemite. "We're a long way from complete," a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service says, "but at least our boots on the ground are getting a better handle on it." Their main goal is to keep any more flames out of one of America’s best-known parks. More than 2,800 people are battling the blaze, but they are working in what officials say are extremely dry conditions and inaccessible terrain.

Nick Valencia is at Yosemite and will have the latest for us this morning.

3. 8-YEAR-OLD GUNMAN

So many questions: We’re still in shock over the story about the 8-year-old boy who last week shot his 87-year-old caregiver, reportedly after playing a violent video game. The case is sparking outrage - and fierce debate over what really happened and whether those violent games are to blame. One of the big questions is how did the child, who by Louisiana law cannot be charged with a crime, get hold of the gun? The makers of the game “Grand Theft Auto IV” say access to the gun is to blame.

Sara Sidner will examine the case at 6 and 7.

4. VIDEO MUSIC AWARDS

They still show videos? Miley Cyrus’ dad is famous for his “Achy, Breaky Heart.” Gosh, the poor fella is probably waking up with one today. Miss Miley performed on the MTV Video Music Awards last night, and it was the reason your social media went BOOM! Cyrus took over the stage with gigantic, dancing bears and more twerking than viewers at home probably knew what to do with. Before the party in the USA started, we thought the big deal was going to be the reunion of 'N Sync. While a lot bit shorter than we had hoped, it was awesome to see the lads come back for Justin Timberlake’s big night.

What is Miley Cyrus going thru?!? Lawd.

— Lisa Respers France (@LisaFranceCNN) August 26, 2013

Thanking God for so many blessings tonight. Continue to pray for world peace. More love ...less hate.

— Billy Ray Cyrus (@billyraycyrus) August 26, 2013

Nischelle Turner has the scoop for us at 6.

5. TRUMP SUED

You're ... due in court: America's most famous billionaire has never been one to shy away from the spotlight, and he’s had his share of bad headlines. Like the one from New York where the state is suing him for alleged fraud - fraud the attorney general wants $40 million for. At issue are investing classes. His Trump University promised to teach sure-fire real estate techniques, but according to the suit, that promise was little more than a bait and switch from a $1,500 class to a $35,000 one. Trump’s camp says it’s just a publicity stunt by the state.

No one, no matter how rich or popular they are, has right to scam hard working #NY’ers. Anyone who does should expect to be held accountable

— Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) August 25, 2013

Lightweight A.G. Eric Schneiderman, who has been a total failure in office, failed to report the 98% approval rating of students for courses

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 25, 2013

Donald Trump will be our guest at 8 to explain his side of the story, and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will be with us at 6.

Bonus Biggie: At 8, Jason Carroll brings us an exclusive interview with the 10-year-old Pennsylvania girl who got a new set of lungs after her parents sued for new transplant rules for children like her.

Those are your five biggies for the day. Here are a few others that are brewing and have the Internet buzzing.

Grab some tissues: This story is simply amazing. A 96-year-old man sees an ad in a newspaper about a singer-songwriter contest. He is inspired to write a tribute to his wife, Lorraine, whom he was with for 75 years. She had died only a month before Fred sat down and penned a song. Green Shoe Studio's people are so moved by his story, they go see Fred, interview him and decide to professionally record the song for free. This is the story of "Oh Sweet Lorraine."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDi4hBWsvkY

You’re going to need a bigger can of Raid: A million cockroaches have escaped from a Chinese farm and ... wait. What? Is this the beginning of a horror film? Why on earth would someone intentionally be raising cockroaches? For medicinal purposes, of course, reports Gizmodo. In case you were wondering, the critters were being fed fruit and biscuits every day until some rascal messed with their greenhouse home and let them out. This led us to Google: How far can cockroaches travel in one day?

A million cockroaches escaped from a Chinese farm and are on the move http://t.co/rGawNnFuBX nightmare 😐

— Ferdi (@flimsss) August 26, 2013

She’s not one to be picked on: She was told by someone on a dating site that her picture was being used for an embarrassing and mean-spirited meme that thousands of people were sharing. She couldn’t believe it. When she found it was true, she couldn’t believe there wasn’t anything Facebook would do about getting the picture. And by then, the meme had spread to other social media. So this feminist set out on a mission. Kelly Martin Broderick actually shared the meme - which was a picture of her holding a sign with the phrase “This is what a feminist looks like,” with the phrase “That’s pretty much what I expected” added by the reposter - with a personal note on Internet meanness. And she’s started her own Tumblr to show the diverseness of feminism.

Just submitted my #wearefeminists photo to http://t.co/yeMaHcQxpA! feminist @MoCoYoungDems represent! @artsykelly pic.twitter.com/opT7cbT5Vi

— Katherine Mullen (@MullenKat) August 23, 2013

She’s right, seeing is believing: Remember when Miss Utah gave her incoherent answer at the 2013 Miss USA pageant? This time, it’s Joanlia Lising, one of the Miss Philippines USA contestants, who gets stumped by a question about which one of the five senses would see want if she could only have one. She starts off fine, but ….

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjLp4CF5stI

I kinda like your head: According to National Geographic, the kestrel (it’s a type of falcon) likes to nest in dead trees, dirt banks, even hollow cacti. Add another one to the list.

We have one more before you go. Check out the cat that gets caught trying to loot a dresser drawer.

Now, that's all you need to know to get an early start to your morning.

Be sure to tune in to "New Day," from 6 to 9 a.m. ET, join us at NewDayCNN.com and go and have a GREAT NEW DAY!