in the ground. those are wonderful things. governor perry doesn't believe he created those things. if he tried to say that, it would be like al gore saying he invented the internet into michael dukakis created jobs three times faster than you did, mitt. >> as a matter of fact, george bush and his predecessor created jobs at a faster rate than you did, governor. >> that's not correct. >> yeah, it is correct. it was certainly spirited and that was 33 seconds of barbs. there were six other candidates there but the debate looked like the mitt and rick show. we'll talk about that with tim farley in a few minutes. one thing all eight of those candidates agree on is president obama. none of them thinks the president understands how to fix the economy. tonight the president will had put his jobs plan before the public and a joint session of congress. one democratic source says the plan could top $400 billion. it includes a lot of infrastructure spending, money for state and local governments, and targeted tax cuts. we're told it would be paid for in part by closing corporate loop holes and raising taxes on the wealthiest americans. the president's address is tonight at 7:00 eastern. cnn's live coverage begins an hour earlier at 6:00 eastern. today the so-called super committee holds its first meeting in washington, the deficit passy as part of last month's debt ceiling agreement. 12 members of both houses of congress, half democrats, half republicans, assigned to come up with a $1.5 trillion deficit reduction plan by november 23rd. they get started at 10:30 a.m. eastern. a medicare fraud pos se has its hands full. federal agents have busted 70 alleged medicare crooks in the last couple days, including doctors and nurses, accused of ripping off the government to the tune of $300 million in bogus claims. the assistant attorney general said this, quote, from brooklyn to miami to los angeles, the defendants allegedly treated the medicare like a personal piggy bank. officials say the schemes involved services like home health care and psychotherapy, as well as medical devices. authorities in carson city, nevada, released 911 calls from the shooting rampage tuesday at an ihop restaurant. a gunman shot 11 people with an assault rifle, including several members of the nevada national guard. three guard members died along with a civilian woman. the suspect killed himself in the parking lot. listen to one of the frantic 911 calls. >> ihop. get there right now. automatic weapons. >> how many? is it inside? >> i don't know. saw one guy going in. he's coming back out with a gun. he's shooting people in the parking lot. he's got an automatic weapon. get out of there. >> we're on the way. >> ryan, move! [ inaudible ] he's shooting at us now. >> authorities are still trying to figure out a motive. the suspect did not have a criminal history. his family members said he had a history of mental health problems, though. in texas an elite search team helping to look for people who might be trapped in the huge wildfire near austin. the fire has killed two people and destroyed 576 homes so far. one county official expects more homes will burn. the cause of the fire still unclear, but a separate fire about an hour away could have been caused by arson. investigators think four teenagers started it in a wooded area. that fire reached the subdivision and wiped out 11 homes. this more than an week after irene came through, what's left of tropical storm lee is hanging over the mid-atlantic and northeast and bringing heavy rain and more potential flooding from washington to new england. let's head to atlanta and check things out with rob marciano. oh, i'm tired of hurricane season. >> yeah. you know, it's -- we're already into the end and we've really only had two impactful storms in the u.s. but they've been big impacts including irene and tropical storm lee which has wandered onshore. we knew the moisture would be a big deal and has turned out that way. video out of eastern pennsylvania where flooding is becoming a huge issue. this is shot from yesterday and the pictures i'm sure we'll get out of other places this morning will be much, much worse because it's done nothing but rain nonstop overnight. the susquehanna, the schuykill and some of the smaller creeks getting into record flood stage. upstage new york, up the susquehanna valley through binghamton, they're seeing big-time flooding as well. middleburg seeing it also and the rains continue. here are the flood watches and warnings posted for the northeast. the green means you got river flooding and -- where is my clicker? all right. if we can take gr 107 that would be sweet and get the right source up there. we've got flash flood warnings posted for a good chunk of the i-95 corridor, including philly is under a flash flood warning right now and new york city getting a fair amount of rainfall at the moment. here's the radar. looking for some big-time rain across parts of the northeast and as that happens, we're going to see some travel delays as well. there you go. the other issues we're looking at maria, named yesterday. that's way out there in the atlantic ocean. maria is going to make a run at the u.s. after it skims the caribbean islands. some of the rainfall totals we expect today and your delays across the northeast, detroit, new york and boston. and here is your forecast track forma rhea. nate was formed yesterday afternoon and last night a little closer to home through the southern gulf of mexico. this, you know, a long shot, carol, but, you know, in an ideal world maybe we'll get some of the moisture from this through texas but right now our computer models aren't showing that. we'll keep you updated on nate which right now preliminary forecasts bring it into mexico over the weekend. >> did you find your dliker? -- clicker? >> no. just like a man. >> even hitting the space bar is not working this morning. so we're off to a good start here, carol. we'll see you in a half hour. >> just like a man to lose his clicker, but i won't make fun of you this morning even though i just did. >> see you carol. the top gop candidates debate last night but it's not what they said that has comedians talking. >> i don't know if you've seen all the candidates together in one place, but they look like castaways on an old sitcom. you know. yeah, the billionaire, the movie star, the professor, the skipper there. >> it's not the most impressive field of candidates. wap these candidates, like when apple unveils a new iphone, going maybe if i wait a while a better one will come out. >> it's hard to keep track of what all these candidates stand for. even for them. because there are a lot of them right now and -- look at this. >> tonight, from the ronald reagan library, a republican presidential debate. michele bachmann. newt gingrich. this guy. there he is. yes. he might be one. and mitt romney. >> oh. surely people know ron paul. the story of the apple iphone 5 lost in a bar is far from over. find out why police in san francisco are now launching a new investigation, but first check out the quote of the day. this is the quote. if barack obama remained roughly where he is now, sure, i think i could beat him. end quote. find out who said that coming up in 90 seconds. it's probably not who you're thinking it is. it's nine minutes past the hour. that works at the molecular level to help your engine run more smoothly by helping remove deposits and cleaning up intake valves. so when you fill up at an exxon or mobil station, you can rest assured we help your engine run more smoothly while leaving behind cleaner emissions. it's how we make gasoline work harder for you. exxon and mobil. ♪ this is the kind of truck that has it all. guess that means, you can do it all. it's the chevy season of doing. now, combine the all-star edition discount with other offers for a total value of $6,000 or qualified buyers can get 0% apr for 60 months plus a thousand dollars cash allowance on all silverado models. get to your chevy dealer and get that truck today. but sometimes i wonder... what's left behind? 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[ female announcer ] from neutrogena® naturals. ilgts is ten minutes past the hour. back to your quote of the day. quote -- that was former new york city mayor rudy giuliani. he said that to piers morgan and said it just last night. he was talking about a presidential bid and if he might, you know, kind of ran, he could probably win. apple, and nike, are making our high-tech headlines at this hour. let's head straight to hong kong and kristie lu stout. this apple thing is getting weirder and weirder. >> weirder and weirder. new twist in the story. police in san francisco have launched an investigation into the search of a man's home by apple xwlooes employees. last month two apple investigators searched a man's home looking for what is believed to be a prototype of the next iphone lost in a bar. the man told sf weekly that he consented to the search when the investigators identified themselves as police. and he said it was not clear the pair searching his home were from apple and he would not have authorized the search if he had known. the police, they are not adding any comment. apple has declined to offer its side of the story. it's not going to go away, this story. carol? >> i don't think so either. let's talk about something fascinating, though. nike is going to introduce these self-lace-up shoes. it sounds so back-to-to the future for me. remember that movie? let's remember together, shall we? >> of course. >> let's remember together. one of the best movies ever. nike has reached out to a few select shoe nerds with a most interesting invitation. it came in a box and inside the box a number of things but 1980s candy and a personal message on an ipod from doc brown. these shoe nerds have been invited to, quote, an unveiling that could change the course of time. one year ago bloggers caught on to nike filing a pat tent for self-lacing sneakers like the pair marty mcfly wore in "back to the future 2." if this invite is any indication, seems the year in the movie, which is 2015, is closer than when think. everything will be unveiled tonight at a private reception in hollywood. if only we could be there. >> i know. i wish i could. that seems so lazy to me, but still kind of cool. kristie lu stout, thanks as always. eight candidates debated, but two seemed to steal the show. has it come down to a two-person race? we'll take a closer look. it's 13 minutes past the hour. but first today is your day to ask for forgiveness. i'm sorry. i forget to say this. september 8th is national pardon day. actually started back in 1974 when president gerald ford pardoned richard nixon in the watergate scandal. 13 minutes past the hour. and i'm sorry you have to wake up this early. well-being. we're all striving for it. purina cat chow helps you nurture it in your cat with a full family of excellent nutrition and helpful resources. purina cat chow. share a better life. just having some chicken noodle. starting my progresso soup for lunch plan, huh. nope, just having some tender chicken and some tasty noodles. let's see... south western vegetables... 60 calories, oh beef pot roast... ...ya' know those jeans look nice. they do? yup. so you were checking me out? yup. [ male announcer ] progresso. 40 soups 100 calories or less. new splenda® essentials™ no calorie sweetener with b vitamins, the first and only one to help support a healthy metabolism. three smart new ways to sweeten. same great taste. new splenda® essentials™. the tragedy of september 11 united our country. this year, as we open the 9/11 memorial in new york city, we ask that you join us to honor, remember, and reunite. to learn more or to reserve your visit, go to 911memorial.org. good morning, washington, d.c. good morning to you. new polls have shown president obama isn't doing so hot when it comes to his approval rating and comedians certainly have taken notice. your punch line. >> this has been a rough summer for president obama. once again, his approval rating has hit an all-time low. right now his approval rating is somewhere between teen mom and "sex in the city 2." >> things are not looking good for president obama. he's getting hammered in the polls, and for a couple years there nobody touched him. now i think these people who do the polls are starting to pile on. >> president obama is expected to speak about the economy and job creation on thursday. but a new "washington post" poll shows confidence in his abilities has hit a new low. 62% say they disapprove of his handling of the economy, 47% can't stand the president's painting, 41% say his jump shot is terrible, 37% disapprove of how the president consumes a chile dog. 27% dislike his pregolf ritual and 34% don't care for his treatment of flies. >> it just seems -- >> oh, i really enjoy that, tim farley. tim farley joins us now, host of "morning briefing" on sirius xm. did you watch the big debate? >> here for every minute, did a postgame wrap-up. quite an evening of i think dynamic discussion, wouldn't you say, carol? >> absolutely. i thought it was really quite interesting. before we get down to our debate, let's talk about their debate. the republican frontrunner rick perry made his de beau last night, clashed with mitt romney and called it a ponzi scheme. >> it is a ponzi scheme to tell our kids that are 25 or 30 years old today you're paying into a program that's going to be there. anybody that's for the status quo with social security today, is involved with a monstrous lie to our kids and it's not right. >> tim, that probably played to the base, but not so much to other kinds of voters. what do you think? >> well, even republican strategists that i've spoken to in the brief period of time between the debate and now seem to think this would be a problem for rick perry in some of those republican states where there are significant numbers of retirees. for example, florida, which is a big state, and if he needs to get the nomination he's going to have to do well in states like that, pennsylvania and so on. it is something that i think he's going have to do a little more explaining about, ponzi scheme and monstrous lie and mitt romney was quick, by the way, to sound almost reagan-esque in his defense of social security, not necessarily as a handout, but rather as a safety net which is the original design of the program. so i don't think americans are against social security. polls don't seem to indicate that. rick perry may be flying in the face of the polls even among republican faithful. it could be a problem for him moving forward, carol. >> yeah. mitt romney also says maybe we should fix social security, not annihilate it, something like that. another hot topic both men talked about and sparred over, was the jobs creation issue. here's romney challenging perry on that issue. >> texas is a great state. texas has zero income tax. texas has a right to work sfapts a republican legislature, a republican supreme court. texas has a lot of oil and gas in the ground. those are wonderful things. but governor perry doesn't believe that he created those things. if he tried to say that, it would be like al gore saying he invented the internet. >> and then, of course, perry responded by saying, michael dukakis created more jobs in massachusetts than you did, mitt romney. it was an interesting exchange, though. which side won? >> yeah. mitt romney hit back and said george bush created nor jobs in texas than you did or at a faster rate. one thing that did strike me about this, this discussion about jobs is germane to what president is talking about, romney, perry and former governor huntsman were able to reflect to their job creation, left someone like michele bachmann out of the mix and separated rick perry and mitt romney from the pack. you mentioned this at the top of the show, turned into almost a two-man show. i did talk to a lot of, again, people who follow this very closely and there seems to be an agreement we saw the eventual republican nominee last night, although there are not too many willing to say it is just a two-person race but seems to be closer to that, carol. >> just briefly on the subject of michele bachmann, she did so well in her first debate appearance. this time she just seemed, i don't know, just paled when it came to, you know -- >> they didn't ask her the questions either. they didn't direct questions to her, number one. number two, i think there was a sense people now expect a little more of her. when she first appeared it was a sense that she was a cartoonish character and dispelled those myths quickly but now, perhaps, they expect a little more than some of the talking points and she seems very adept at delivering those and looks good, but there seems to be a lack of depth and that's one of the things. but the big problem she just didn't get the questions last night so she didn't get a chance to respond. >> the first question posed to michele bachmann came 14 minutes into the debate. tim farley, enjoyed it as always. thanks so much. remember cnn's tea party republican debate is coming your way this monday at 8:00 p.m. eastern. several hockey players with ties to the national hockey league killed in a plane crash. we'll have more details on what happened that's coming up after this quick break. it's 21 minutes past the hour. ♪ sing polly wolly doodle all the day ♪ ♪ hah it is 23 minutes past the hour. this is your "am: wake up call." thanks for joining us this morning. head around the world with zain verjee live in london. good morning, zain. >> good morning to you, carol. we want to focus a little bit about what happened in russia. there was that really tragic plane crash and most of the victims that were killed were actually team members of a hockey team and it was -- it's just so sad. it's unclear exactly what the cause was. we want to show you pictures, too, of a vigil, carol, that's being held by fans that went to a stadium, lit candles, put the hockey team scarves there, placed flowers, too. you know part of the problem with some of these russian planes, there's always a question about their safety of these passenger planes. so that's being thrown into question. it's a tragic story for russia and the russian leader gave his condolences. carol? >> and for hockey fans in the united states, three of those players played on the detroit red wings. we're grieving here as well. let's talk about mexico because the mexican government, correct me if i'm wrong, but they're training their residents to use guns to protect themselves? >> yep. that's exactly right. they're doing this in garcia in mexico, and it's a course they're offering. it's a new one and it's free. anyone who has a weapon, who has a permit, can be trained how to use it effectively because a lot of people just want to defend their families because of all the violence that's been going on in different parts of mexico. what they're doing is they're offering these courses and they've got something like 3,000 people that have already signed up, engineers, school teachers, and even housewives, who have handguns. this is a new project that they hope will be effective and that will allow people to use guns effectively. >> wow. zain verjee, reporting live from london, thanks so much. it's submerged in floodwaters for days now a nebraska nuclear power plant has been rated among the worst in the country. the big concern about that just ahead. it's 25 minutes past the hour. ♪ [ male announcer ] sitting. waiting. hoping. that's a recipe for failed investing. open an e-trade account and open doors, seize opportunities, take action with some of the most powerful yet easy-to-use trading tools on the planet all built to help you maximize the potential of every dollar you invest. successful investing isn't done by throwing ideas against the wall and hoping. it's done by lowering your costs and raising your expectations by using unbiased research and powerful screeners to build a diversified portfolio with stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and every etf sold. and we'll help you every step of the way. with 5-star research and free educati covering everything from the basics to advanced investing strategies. start now and we'll give you up to $500 and let you trade free for 60 days. visit our website, call us, open an account. e-trade. investing unleashed. 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[oinking] [hissing] [ding] announcer: cook foods to the right temperature using a food thermometer. 3,000 americans will die from food poisoning this year. check your steps at foodsafety.gov. good morning to you. thursday, september 8th. this is your "am: wake up call." i'm carol costello. thank you for joining me this morning. it is about half past the hour. just more than a week after irene came roaring through, what's left of tropical storm lee is hanging over the mid-atlantic and the northeast. it's bringing more heavy rain and more potential flooding from washington to new england. and a pair of tropical storms have popped up on the radar. maria is out in the atlantic and nate is in the southern gulf of mexico. it's likely to hit mexico by this weekend. a nebraska nuclear power plant has been named one of the worst in the nation for its safety systems. there have been concerns about the fort calhoun plant since it flooded back in june. now the nuclear regulatory commission has released a report claiming the plant doesn't have adequate procedures in place. >> we will not restart that plant until it's safe to do so, until we'll inspected every system, looked at every structure system and component to ensure that plant is safe before we start it back up. >> on a scale of a to f, the nrc gave the plant a d, as in dog, putting it in the bottom two of the nation's 104 nuclear power plants. a former nasa scientist pleaded guilty to attempted espionage. stuart david knowjet was accused of trying to sell classified information to israel. the crime caught on fbi under cover surveillance. he pleaded guilty in exchange for a 13-year sentence. a washington state man has pleaded guilty to planning an explosive device during a martin luther king march. he was accused of placing a device voois along the parade route in spokane, washington. authorities describe him as a white supremacist. no one was hurt. one drink a day may improve the health of older woman according to research at the harvard bring ham's women's hospital in boston. they based their study on the conclusion of 100 females. moderation is the key. this next story will definitely be a talker today. it's another black eye for pageant moms. >> here comes paisley. >> who watches this stuff anyway? this is 3-year-old paisley. her mom wendy dressed her up as a prostitute for the hit reality show "toddlers and tiaras." the outfit based on julia roberts character in "pretty woman." mom tells tmz she sees nothing wrong with it, adding her toddler has no idea she was dressed as a prostitute. wow. a new report out that shows the united states is slipping when compared to other world economies. we'll talk about what categories are causing the united states to slip. 32 minutes past. exclusive to th. and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. ♪ visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. usaa. we know what it means to serve. ( singing along ) ( singing high note ) that should do it. enjoy your new shower. ( door opens, closes ) ♪ ♪ baby's coming home tomorrow ain't that news man ain't that news ♪ 33 minutes past the hour. for morning money news head it to christine romans here in new york with me. christine, the president's big speech slated for later today. tonight at 7:00 p.m. eastern or 7:30 p.m. eastern to be exact. what do investors want to hear from the president tonight. >> they want to hear there's money bhoving throughout the economy, that the government has efficient and targeted ways and means to get the job market growing and hear there's not going to be a complete political disharmony and discord in washington to get it done. there were some hopes yesterday in the market that would happen and that's one of the reasons why they were higher. hopes that the president can find some things that -- and some ways, i guess, to get republicans on board with his plan and get money moving again and get jobs created, carol. >> there has already been some movement in the stock market because things have been slipping out about the president's speech. is that heartening? >> it's heartening to those who want to see money flowing. something interesting from the afl-cio on the left to the chamber of commerce on the right you've got agreement for infrastructure spending, agreement for some kinds of targeted tax cuts. you've got the big business community in terms of some of the groups on board with the president, some of the things he wants to do. the question is, does politics get in the way and campaign trail politics get in the way. are you starting to find some common ground on ways we can get jobs growing. remember, the stimulus, it promised -- the white house promised if we passed stimulus and all that money spent that the unemployment rate would stay below 8%. that didn't happen. and that's something that is going to be one of the criticisms i'm sure of anything the president comes up with. they promised before it would work and it didn't. >> at least there's agreement between the u.s. chamber of commerce and the afl-cio. >> can you believe it. >> that's a bright note before the next topic. the new report that shows the united states is slipping when compared to other world economies. explain? >> in 2008 the u.s. was the world's most competitive economy and after the financial crisis it has slipped to number five. the bottom line here is that below as you can see, switzerland, singapore, sweden and finland, down the list to number 26, china is moving up. the bottom line developed economies are moving down the list, developing economies are moving up the list and becoming more competitive. the problem in the u.s. is economic vulnerabilities according to the world economic forum who put this together. and some aspects of low public trust in our politicians and our institutions and concerns about government inefficiency, anemic growth, the things we're fighting about and gridlock in washington also at play in these numbers. >> i'm going to tell you, i think that the way that congress -- the way that congress is behaving now is hurting america and this is another example of that. >> christine romans, see you in a bit, thanks so much. from a gold medal to steel handcuffs, in two minutes, the former olympic gymnast who lost his balance in the back of a police car. but first, check out our get smart question. according to a survey done by ibm, which u.s. city ranks the worst for commuting? as in your car commuting. a, los angeles, b, new york city, or c, chicago. we'll have the answer coming up in two minutes. stick around. 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[ male announcer ] new bengay cold therapy. the same technology used by physical therapists. go to bengay.com for a 5-dollar coupon. your nutritional needs can go up when you're on the road to recovery. proper nutrition can help you get back on your feet. three out of four doctors recommend the ensure brand for extra nutrition. ensure clinical strength has revigor and thirteen grams of protein to protect, preserve, and promote muscle health. and immune balance to help support your immune system. ensure clinical strength... helping you to bounce back. ensure! nutrition in charge! it is 39 minutes past the hour. this is your "am: wake up call." now back to our get smart question. which u.s. city ranks as the worst city for commuting? is it a, los angeles, b, new york city, or c, chicago? the answer is -- los angeles. ibm did a global survey of 20 cities around the world and american cities didn't even make it into the top ten of the worst cities. the worst city for commuters around the world, is mexico city. if that makes you feel any better. presidential hopefuls squared off in a debate last night at the reagan presidential library in california but it was mitt romney and texas governor rick perry who stole the show. >> we created more jobs in the last three months in texas than he created in four years in massachusetts. >> texas is a great state. texas has zero income tax. texas has a right to work state. a republican legislature, a republican supreme court. texas has a lot of oil and gas in the ground. those are wonderful things. but governor perry doesn't believe that he created those things. if he tried to say that, it would be like al gore saying he invented the internet. >> michael dukakis created jobs three times faster than you did, mitt. >> it's clear this is a two man race. perry stumbled, wasn't that comfort with the format. mitt has been in the dog and pony show since 2007. there wasn't a major stumble to throw perry off. for the longest time hesitated saying he was the frontrunner because the polls say so but clearly the pile on tonight by everyone else, shows that they all perceive him as the frontrunner and i don't think they knocked him off tonight. but he definitely needs to get on his game a little better than he did tonight. >> cornell, governor perry said he felt like the pinata there. were his opponents effective at stemming his momentum. >> i think there were a couple things about this. i think the lead will be ponzi scheme. i think the romney camp is jumping on it. >> explain that, what romney said. >> he -- perry referred to social security as a giant ponzi scheme and basically, you know, when given the opportunities, say dick cheney doesn't even think it's a ponzi scheme, thinks it's an important program, he went all-in on the idea that social security has been bad from the beginning as a giant ponzi scheme which quite frankly it is middle america doesn't think that it's a ponzi scheme and i think when you talk about his electability, i think the romney camp has an opening here to say to republican voters, look, this guy is not electable with this sort of thinking that is outside of american mainstream. i think that was a major stumbling block. >> candidates will meet up again at cnn's tea party republican debate and you can watch that live right here next monday at 8:00 p.m. eastern. let's take a quick look at sports, shall we? starting with the big news out of indianapolis. star quarterback peyton manning injured and possibly done for the season. the colts have said manning will miss sunday's opener for sure. it will be the first time he's missed a start in his 13-year career. boxer oscar de la hoya stirred up eyebrows when pictures of him dressed in drag surfaced a few years. that is not the picture of him in drag. he denied he was the guy wearing fish nets and lingerie but "the new york post" reports oscar de la hoya is admitting, yes, that was me. he says he had been drinking and taking cocaine. de la hoya checked himself into rehab in may. gymnast paul hamm the star of some police dash cam video out of columbus, ohio. hamm was arrested after he allegedly smacked a cabbie, refused to pay him and damaged his cab. then he gave police a hard time as they arrested him. hamm works as an assistant gymnastics coach at ohio state. the school plans to wait to see how the criminal case goes before deciding his fate. coming up in a few minutes, we'll tell you about a couple new tropical storms that have popped up on the radar and before we go, on this day, in history, back in 1664, the big apple got its name. it was originally named new amsterdam after it was purchased from the -- purchased by the dutch from native americans. but once it was -- once it was overthrown by the english in 1664 the name was changed to new york. it was named in honor of the duke of york who led the mission to overthrow the dutch. now you know. it's 43 minutes past the hour. ♪ the 9/11 memorial is for my 343 brothers who didn't make it. and for my brother. this shows the world that we can rebuild. and that we are strong. it's for the heroes like my dad. robert de niro: this year, the national september 11 memorial opens in new york city. join us to honor, remember, and reunite. to learn more or to reserve your visit, go to 911memorial.org. good morning to you. it is thursday, september 8th. this is your "am: wake up call." i'm carol costello. thank you so much for joining us this morning. it is 46 minutes past the hour. let's head around the world with zain verjee, live in london. first up, is this strange new home video of libyan leader moammar gadhafi. should i say ousted libyan leader moammar gadhafi. he's frolicking with his grandkids. >> yeah. let's take a look at the video, carol. this was shot around 2005. it's home video in his compound that was known as bab al azizya and here we see a doting grandpa gadhafi playing with one of his grandchildren there. you can't hear the banter on the video but basically he says don't you love me and his granddaughter says no, he says why do you hate me, am i not good, am i not sweet, she goes no. the rest of the tape shows him being very affectionate and one portion of the tape cutting some food for one of his grandkids. one of his sons appears to be in this video as well. this is a totally different side to gadhafi that we've seen. he ruled with an iron fist. and was a very brutal regime that he presided over. >> so, why did this pop up, this video? >> more than likely it was actually found by reuters and this was exclusive video by them. it probably popped up the way everything else has popped up, sifting through a lot of the stuff in the bombed out remains and destroyed remains of his home. >> got you. okay. let's talk about this story. this story out of france, where -- >> let's talk about it. >> i'll let you talk about it. >> let's talk about sex. so basically, carol, what happened is, this woman was upset her husband wasn't having enough sex with her so she took him to court and yes, it's in france, and the french judge citing article 215 of france's civil code said married couples have to agree to communal life which means having sexual relations. and so he made the man pay damages to his wife, something like more than $10,000. she said that she was married to him for 21 years and wasn't getting enough. he said that he had health problems and was also too tired sometimes. carol? >> and i bet he really wants to have sex with her now. thank you, zain verjee. >> yes important stuff i'm following. okay. talk about ohio governor john case sich he's giving a mom who lied to get her kids into a better performing school, he's giving her a second chance. the governor has reduced kelly williams-bolar's two felony convictions to misdemeanors. he says the punishment didn't fit the crime. the mom's attorneys say the reprieve will let her finish college and become a licensed teacher. federal agents have busted 70 alleged medicare crooks in the last couple days, including doctors and nurses. they're accused of ripping off the government to the tune of $300 million in bogus claims. the assistant attorney general said this, quote, from brooklyn to miami to los angeles, the defendants allegedly treated the medicare program like a personal piggy bank, end quote. and in texas, an elite search team is helping look for people who might be trapped in that huge wildfire near austin. that fire has killed two people and destroyed 576 homes so far. one county official expects more homes will burn. the cause of the fire still unclear. but a separate fire about an hour away could have been caused by arson. investigators think four teenagers started it in a wooded area. that fire reached a subdivision and wiped out 11 homes. just more than a week after irene came roaring through, what's left of tropical storm lee is dumping its leftover rain on the mid-atlantic and the northeast. let's head to atlanta and check in with rob marciano. when will it stop? >> boy, you know, we were hoping it would be stopped by now, but it certainly has at least another 12 hours to rain itself out. take a look at some of the rain totals across parts of the northeast. we're seeing some serious flooding across maryland, delaware, pennsylvania, upstate new york as well and d.c. had a horrible rush hour yesterday afternoon and not getting better this morning. 8 to 9 inches in some of these spots and it's still coming down. so flash flood warnings in the red there. a good -- a lot of the shenandoah, susquehanna valley and east of there we're seeing heavy rain including some of the major cities. there you go, there's the radar. a lot of it coming down right now. be prepared as you head out the door, a slow go. it's not really making much progress to the east so it will be with us for at least 12 hours, maybe more than that. delays at the airports as well. detroit, new york, boston, d.c. and philly, everything you saw there on the radar still, plus san francisco. let's break down the tropics, katia, a hurricane going to miss us, but big waves. tropical storm maria, which probably will remain a tropical storm but that may make a better run at the u.s. we're hoping that peels off as well. more immediate concern is what happened overnight last night tropical storm nate which is brewing down there in the southern gulf of mexico. bay of campeche. forecast to become a hurricane and likely go into mexico some time over the weekend. i should warn you that our computer models are all over the place with that one. that is not a slam dunk. hoping to get some of the moisture into texas but certainly no guarantee of that. all right. rocket fans, space fans, grail going to be going up hopefully at 8:37 eastern time. there it is on the launch pad there at ksc. everything has an acronym. grail stands for gravity recovery and interior laboratory. i don't know how they get interior from something orbiting the moon but this puppy goes up and then two spaceships kind of separate from it and they orbit the moon in tandem and they're basically going to x-ray the moon. we know so much about the surface of the moon, obviously from manned missions and the like, but we don't know much about the core of it, what it's made of, so they're going to take measurements over the next few years and try to figure that out. who doesn't love a rocket launch there, carol. we hope to cover it live for you at 8:37. hopefully everything pans out. a lot of variables that go into that. >> yeah. they all have to do with weather. it's up to you, rob marciano. >> we're working on it. >> thank you so much. time to take a look at the word of the day. actually it's an acronym. you heard rob say it, everything is an acronym. the acronym, is u.a.r.s. find out what it means after this break. it's 52 minutes past. me sneeze. but with 24-hour zyrtec®, i get prescription strength relief from my worst allergy symptoms. so lily and i are back on the road again. with zyrtec® i can love the air®. a mouthwatering combination are of ingredients...e for you! i know you're gonna love. 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[ male announcer ] to get the flights you want, sign up for a venture card at capitalone.com. what's in your wallet? uh, it's okay. i've played a pilot before. four minutes to the top of the hour. this is your "am: wake up call." now back to our word of the day. actually it's an acronym this morning. u.a.r.s. standses for upper atmosphere research satellite. the 60 ton piece of equipment from nasa is scheduled to fall through earth's atmosphere late this month or early next month. the kicker is nasa doesn't really know exactly when it will fall back to earth or where. most of the satellite will reportedly burn up in the atmosphere, but not all of it. nasa will release more information to the public tomorrow, but they tell us the risk to your property or your person is extremely small. the post office could be facing a default, although it's bad news for many people, it's good material for comedians. here's what jon stewart and david letterman. >> the post office has come up with its own plan to fight back against the e-mail. let's see if it works. watch this. >> the post office is giving customers what they want, with our own quick, efficient new e-mail service. it's easy to use. first, type a text of your e-mail on your computer, save it to a usps approved floppy disk, packed in a shipping box and bring it to your post office with the recipient's address. select, priority, first class, second class, or medium mail to the e-mail processing center in eugene oregon. within three to four business days it will be hand delivered. the recipient inserts the disk in 245ir computtheir computer a file. without major and fast congressional action some suggest the postal service could shut down altogether by winter. >> all it takes is major and fast congressional action? well, let's just shut that [ bleep ] down now. all right. let's head to carter evans for a look at your money this morning, joins us live from the nasdaq marketsite in new york. good morning. >> nice to have a little comic relief. we've got a couple reports coming up this morning. couple very important. the weekly unemployment numbers. consumer credit, that's very important. also the trade balance today. we're going to find out what that is. so, ahead of all of that and the president's speech, let's not forget, look at this. futures just barely on the positive side. dow futures up 5, nasdaq up a fraction, s&p 500 up about 3.5. things kind of hanging in the balance right now. >> okay. let's talk about bank of america because there's something of a shakeup -- >> yeah. >> there's a lot of things shaking up at bank of america but this may signal something bigger. >> there are very big changes going on right now in bank of america. it could look very different when this is all over. right now, the company is shaking up the executive ranks. it effectively split the bank into two units, one for its business and the other for its consumer units. it's making a lot of changes right now. it could lead to more layoffs, perhaps, hundreds of bank closures, one of the big stories on cnnmoney.com. carol. >> all right. carter evans live from the nasdaq marketsite, thanks to you as always. "american morning" continues right now. i'm christine romans. mitt romney and rick perry kicking it up a notch, tangling over jobs and social security at last night's fiery republican debate. who came out on top? we'll break it down ahead. >> i'm carol costello. we're hours away from the unveiling of president obama's highly anticipated jobs plan and we have new specifics on what we can expect the president to propose. propose. on this "american morning." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good morning everyone. it's thursday, september 8th. welcome to american