exchange because many palestinians were serving life sentences for deadly attacks against israel. we'll be heading to shalit's hometown where fred pleitgen is. this is a very heart-wrenching moment for many israelis who are concerned about potential retaliation given how many of these soldiers have been released and with actual euphoria from many palestinians. fred pleitgen is with us now in gilad shalit's hometown. good morning, fred. >> reporter: good morning, christine. certainly the people here in shalit's hometown of mitzpe hila. there was controversy where people were saying the political price is too high. one of the things they're concerned about is not only that some of the people they're releasing could become violent again, but also this could spawn other groups to kidnap other israeli soldiers. that is certainly not the feeling here in shalit's hometown. people are saying they're happy he was back, scenes of jubilation as these first television pictures came showing shalit. this is really the first proof of life that people here in israel have gotten of gilad shalit in several years. this was certainly a very happy moment for them. people here are celebrating. now, of course, it's time for the process to come to an end, a very long process where he'll be flown to a military base, reunited with his family, he'll see the prime minister and come back here to his hometown. we believe that will be in about two, maybe three hours. >> how was shalit captured? why has it taken so long to he gain his freedom? you look at these pictures of him. he's still clearly a very young man. >> reporter: it has taken a very long time. the interesting thing about all this is that the tms palestinian authority was declaring statehood. were lookin for a public relations victory, if you will. at the same time, israeli is very concerned about what's going on in the middle east as well. we've noted that egypt was one of the main mediators. they're, of course, going through a lot of political turmoil as well. it wasn't sure how long the situation -- what the israeli prime minister calls this window of opportunity would still be open. that's why it seems now was the right time for both sides to strike this deal and see it through, christine. >> fred pleitgen this morning in gilad shalit's hometown. thank you very much, fred. in return for his freedom, 477 palestinian prisoners released. the second stage of the swap involving the release of some 550 palestinians is scheduled to take place later this year. israel and hamas agreed to the exchange last week. turning to the battle for the republican presidential nomination in this country, the candidates will square off in a debate hosted by cnn tonight in las vegas. much of the spotlight is expected to be on herman cain. his recent surge in the polls and continue versal remarks are drawing sharper focus from his opponents and the media. one of the issues his 9-9-9 tax plan. >> if he stays at this point in the polls, his opponents will start running ads against it saying if you like it, you'll pay more taxes. he concedes some people will pay more. the people most likely to pay more are the people hurt most by the recession already. >> how will they handle the heat of the contest? find out by tuning in to the western republican presidential deb late at 8:00 eastern here on cnn. president obama will be back on the road for day two of his bus tour to promote jobs, urging lawmakers to pass his $447 billion jobs bill piece by piece since the senate shot down his package. >> this week i'm asking members of congress to vote -- what we're going to do is break up my jobs bill. maybe they couldn't understand the whole thing all at once. so we're going to break it up into bite-size pieces. >> the president is spending the night in north carolina. he eeld hold a roundtable meeting with educators in jamestown before moving to virginia. all eyes on wall street this morning. will u.s. markets recover from yesterday's steep sell-off. the dow ended down 247 points, 2.1%. the nasdaq composite lost 53 points. that's about 2%. the s&p 500 fell 23 points around 2%. here is what's happening overseas. the shanghai composite, hong kong's hang seng and japan's nikkei all posting negative figures this morning. right now the markets in europe are also down. everything hinges on just what the fear or the hope of the moment is about europe's debt crisis. the three american hikers who were jailed on spying charges in iran are throwing their support behind the wall street protesters. josh fattal, shane bauer and sarah shourd took part in an occupy demonstration in the hometown of oakland, california. the trios say they applaud the protesters activism. >> i saw people paying chess, free food, camp similar to this and it was totally inspiring. >> to come back and see our country coming back to life and see the city coming to life like this is really, really a wonderful homecoming. in atlanta a victory for wall street protesters. mayor reid now says the demonstrators can remain in a city park through november 7th as long as they remain peaceful and nonviolent. high cell phone bills can be a shock to anyone's system. but wireless carriers agreed to a new deal that could soon spell relief for all cell phone users. we'll fill you in. first, our quote of the day. there's good creepy and there's bad creepy. today's creepy is tomorrow easinessity. see what tech giant said that in about 90 seconds. it's eight minutes after the hour. and company and company committed to improving lives with honest, personal service, 5-year price lock guarantees and consistently fast speeds. ♪ at aviva, we wonder why other life insurance companies treat you like a policy, not a person. instead of getting to know you they simply assign you a number. aviva is here to change all that. we're bringing humanity back to insurance and putting people before policies. aviva life insurance and annuities. we are building insurance around you. the progresso chicken noodle you made is so good. it's got tender white meat chicken. the way i always made it for you. one more thing.... those pj's you like, i bought you five new pairs. love you. did you see the hockey game last night? 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[ male announcer ] as you wish, business pro. as you wish. go national. go like a pro. now through january earn a free day with every two rentals. find out more at nationalcar.com. it's just about ten minutes after the hour. this is your a.m. wake-up call. back to our quote of the day. there's good creepy and there's bad creepy. today's creepy is tomorrow's necessity. that's from sean parker. that was his answer when asked about facebook tracking people. gilad shalit has been officially handed over to israeli defense officials. we've been watching this all day. this is the huge prisoner swap between this one israeli soldier and some 1,027 palestinian prisoners. you're seeing two different kinds of groups of images here. you're seeing elation among some palestinians that these protesters, half have been released. you're also seeing concerns but also happiness in israeli. concerns because there are those who have been victims of terrorist attacks by pal stain i don't knows who say they are mortified, quite frankly, that some of these dangerous soldiers are being allowed to go home. he's being interviewed right here. that's gilad shalit on egyptian tv. you're looking at pictures of gilad shalit being interviewed. we'll continue to follow this breaking story this morning. let's go to meteorologist rob marciano. i hear there's a freeze warning for much of the midwest. already? i guess it's about time, a couple weeks before halloween. >> it is. this is the month where we'll have temperatures that will be record breaking one day and snap back the next. that's what we're seeing right now. temperatures in the atlanta area. in the 80s yesterday, record highs. temps will snap down into the 20s before too long. a couple weather systems heading across the country. this one through the mississippi river valley. rain and thunderstorms through st. louis, across little rock and shreveport, louisiana. the last system is heading up into parts of florida. that's going to be with this system which is a tropical one. it's going to feed in tropical moisture getting caught up in the jet stream. we don't think it will develop into a monster hurricane or anything, small chance of it becoming a depression or storm in the next few hours. for the most part, heavy rain and gusty winds across florida. this will combine with another weather system that will be rolling across the eastern seaboard. there you go. system one, two, they all come together across the southeast and the atlantic coast and have a party and make their way towards the northeast with heavy rain. miami, tampa, orlando, you're under the gun as far as thunderstorms that will cause travel delays. same deal in chicago. in atlanta later on today and gusty winds across ferth. you mention the cold air, as these two systems collide and make their way up the east coast. the back side is going to be on the chilly side. that cluster of thunderstorms that is rolling through the mississippi river valley today kicked up some winds and some dust across west texas yesterday. check out this video out of lubbock where a good old-fashioned doesed storm kicked up. we call it a haboob technically. that kicked um the famous dust in texas, up to even a thousand feet high. a lot of residents that live there say they haven't seen one this bad in at least five years, even strong enough to knock down trees and fire lines for about 1500 people. can you imagine, christine, having something like that coming your way? that would be a frightening, frightening sight. >> no. i've been in a dust storm in phoenix. i'm from the midwest where it's flat as far as the eye can see and there are no dust storms. that was pretty impressive stuff. thanks, rob. >> you bet. the catholic church has an urgent need for new priests. church leaders are hoping an app -- that's right, there's an app for that, finding priests. they're hoping it will help them find the perfect recruits. al, b! 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(phone ringing) chase sapphire preferred, this is julie in springfield. the days of calling your wireless carrier outraged over your bill can be a thing of the past. let's go to kristie lu stout. for the longest time the wireless carrier said they didn't have the technology to tell you before they went over their limit. now they're changing their tune. >> that's right. because they made a deal. cell phone sticker shock may soon be history. on monday the vast majority of america's wireless carriers reached an agreement with the fcc. they agreed to alert consumers when they approach their monthly limits for voice, data and text or when they're about to incur those steep global roaming charges. a second alert will be sent when customers reach those limits. this comes after a two-year government probe into bill shock. you know what i'm talking about, a sudden hike in monthly charges to your cell phone bill. the fcc says some 30 million americans have experienced bill shock. the alert system, it will roll out starting october of next year. a bit of await there. christine? >> there's an app for everything. the catholic church being creative in the hopes of recruiting new priests. >> the catholic church de signed an app to promote vocations in the priesthood. the number of recruits has plummeted in recent years. they're hoping technology will end the trend. it's called the vocations app, designed by a catholic priest in ireland along with a dublin-based software firm. it includes twitter, facebook, news feed and a series of texts. it's available form free. christine, you're right, there is an app for everything. >> kristie lu stout, thanks so much. for weeks it looked like the republican presidential race would come down to mitt romney and rick perry. that was the outlook for several weeks. now herman cain and his 9-9-9 plan grabbed most of the attention. what will it take for romney and perry to turn things around? ladies rejoice and gentleman get out the razors, today is national no beard day. if you don't like the clean-shave en look, you can always grow another. orange chi. over p.f. chang's home menu orange chicken women men and uh pandas... elbows mmm [ male announcer ] wanchai ferry, try it yourself. ♪ we're centurylink ... we're committed to improving lives and linking americans to what matters most with honest, personal service... 5-year price-lock guarantees... consistently fast speeds ... and more ways to customize your technology. ♪ ♪ ♪ one, two, three, four ♪ you say ♪ flip it over and replay ♪ we'll make everything okay ♪ walk together the right way ♪ do, do, do, do a vacation on a budget with expedia. make it work. booking a flight by itself is an uh-oh. see if we can "stitch" together a better deal. that's a hint, antoine. ooh! see what anandra did? booking your flight and hotel at the same time gets you prices hotels and airlines won't let expedia show separately. book it. major wow factor! where you book matters. expedia. president obama wants congress to pass his squlobs bill. he's stopping at nothing to make sure you help him spread the message. jay leno with your punch line. >> he wants us to do this stuff and it's hard to keep up with him. >> sounding like candidate obama he urged the richmond audience to call -- >> i want you to call, i want you to e-mail, i want you to tweet, i want you to fax. i want you to facebook, send a carrier pigeon. i'm trying to help. i'm trying to do my part. >> all right. time for our political ticker. just hours away from cnn's big republican debate. seven gop candidates will face off this time in vegas vying to win their party's nomination. for more on the debate, let's go to tim farley host of "morning briefing" on sirius xm potus. we'll go to herman cain, all the tax analysis, his 9-9-9 plan. will we see republicans pouncing on him? >> depends on who the rival s. vegas, baby, vegas. there will be no jon huntsman on the stage which leaves only one centrist, if you will, mitt romney. that means republicans are trying to stake out the right side, if you will, of the spectrum. so michele bachmann, newt gingrich, rick santorum going up against cain. you may get criticism from ron paul. that brings up the question about where is rick perry is all of this because he was considered to be the top candidate get together the right of the republican party. he has somewhat fizzled. i still say he's got a lot of money and can still make it happen in some of the um coming contests. but mitt romney is going to be sifting back watching it all happen. at the end of the debate come out if not unscathed, certainly in the lead. despite what national polls say, i still think mitt romney is the front-runner among republicans right now. >> tim, iowa moving its caucus to january 3rd. so will the battle for the republican nomination, will it be over by the end of january? will there be a nominee by the end of january? >> i didn't hear the question fully, but i think if ari fleischer is right and there's a chance he's pretty strong about this, he understands these things, the way the compressed schedule is working right now, if mitt romney can win in new hampshire, which is likely, if he does okay in iowa and he may pull off a win here depending on how well perry does, i don't see herman cain getting a win in iowa and we see south carolina come good morning. it's tuesday, october 18th. this is your "a.m. wake-up call." it's christine romans in for carol cos stall low joining you live from new york. the time is now 5:28 in the east. investigators poring over the horrific scene discovered in a dirty philadelphia boiler room. they're looking to see if there may be other victims. the suspects are accused of locking up four mentally disabled people. those are the suspects there. police believe they did it to steal their social security checks, locked away for nearly two weeks in filthy conditions, the victims are now speaking out. >> came with a bat in my head. all this was real dirty. >> it was real dirty. >> did cue guys willingness give you her information. >> no, she asked for it. >> she took it away from me. >> the fbi investigation has turned up documentation for dozens of other people. jurors in the michael jackson case watching their phones waiting to hear when they'll head back to court. the trial is on hold until at least wednesday so defense attorneys have time to pour over fresh lab results. the worst nuclear disaster since chernobyl may be winding down sooner than expected. the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant in japan may reach cold shutdown by the end of the year. this is according to the plant's owner. that would be about a month ahead of schedule. experts say to fully clean up the aftermath it will take years, maybe even deck cases. pentagon officials deny talks have stalled over an agreement to allow some u.s. troops to remain in iraq after 2011. they say talks with iraqi officials are on going. sources tell cnn the issue continues to be legal immunity for soldiers who will stay. the u.s. military wants it. the iraqis don't. december is the withdrawal deadline for some 39,000-plus troops still in iraq. marines wearing bracelets commemorating friends killed in action are told to take them off. marlene uniform codes label kia bracelets as unauthorized jewelry. some say they'll risk punishment to wear them. others say they'll obey the rules but hope they reconsider the ban. at least one top marlene says he's looking into the issue. china's economy the envy of western economies. we'll talk more with ali velshi in 60 seconds. we're centurylink... a new kind of broadband company committed to providing honest, personal service from real people... 5-year price-lock guarantees... consistently fast speeds... and more ways to customize your technology. ♪ new fiber one 80 calories... ...with its sweet honey taste, 40% daily value of fiber... ...and 80 calories per serving... ...you may want to tell a few friends. ♪ or all of them. ♪ i'll go get my bowl. [ female announcer ] new fiber one 80 calories. yes, you can actually love breakfast. ♪ for morning money news, it's ali velshi in new york. corporate earnings today. we'll find out how well companies are doing and how well consumers and investsers are, too. >> all eyes were on where is christina. i walked in today and we're normally sitting around talking. i was all alone having to fend for myself. as you know better than anyone else, corporate earnings, it's like when you