link to all ten success stories. the emotional return of congresswoman gabrielle giffords. the congresswoman, you can see her there on the left, who helped make it happen talks about what it was like to be there next. and sanjay gup tarks what he noticed about her right arm and what it might mean about her recovery. i got mine in iraq, 2003. u.s.a.a. auto insurance is often handed down from generation to generation, because it offers a superior level of protection and because u.s.a.a.'s commitment to serve the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. begin your legacy. get an auto insurance quote. u.s.a.a. we know what it means to serve. so i want to major in biology. miss gopie is the best teacher i ever had. she's amazing, i love her. [ jade ] i'm teaching jasmine ap biology.

i knew she had the talent... i always pushed her. [ jasmine ] her class you literally have to think, like it takes so long to do her homework. [ jade ] she's gained the confidence that she can achieve anything. [ jasmine ] i'm going to be a pediatrician... and i'm going to make this dream come true. a 100 percent. ♪

all right. here it is. the moment everybody is talking about today. congresswoman gabrielle giffords on the floor of the house, seven months after being shot in the head. she returned for the first time

yesterday to cast her vote in favor of the debt deal. her friend and fellow congresswoman debbie wassermann schultz helped york straz gifford's entrance into the chamber. she described what it was like. >> it was just the most overwhelming -- i mean i -- it would be hard -- my heart -- all of our hearts were so full, and you've had some grizzled hardened members with very hardened hearts. everybody just melted when she walked into the chamber. it was so incredible. >> it is hard to believe how good giffords looks after what she has been through, of course. our dr. sanjay gupta is here to tell us what he noticed most when he saw the congresswoman. sanjay? >> randi, as you look at that video, one thing to keep in mind from a medical standpoint is that three quarters of those who had the injury she had, don't

survive. to see her walking on the floor puts that into a little bit more of a context. there are certain things i'm looking for specifically including fact that her right arm is not moving. if you look at what she's mouthing to people around her, it's short sentences, thank you, i love you. she obviously has very good attentiveness there. recognizes her name and acknowledges lots of people. it's quite remarkable and as the rehab doctors put it, she's in the top 1 percentile for people who recover after an injury like this. the rehab she was going through was pretty extensive in terms of trying to strengthen that right side of the body, in terms of trying to teach her to communication, to express not only through the spoken word but through the written word, the gestures. this is all part of speech. her come pre hegs has never been a problem. her ability to understand and

process has always been there, even right after the injury, she was able to hold up two fingers when the paramedics asked her to do so and she's been able to understand all along. but, again, she's out of the hospital. she's in outpatient rehab. this event last night is a big part of that rehab as well, being surrounded by family, being surrounded by friends, getting the emotional support of all those people around her. that helps. a lot of data will suggest that. but she's seven months in to her rehab. 12 to 18 months is when people have maximum improvement but they can continue to improve for a long time after that as well. so i'm sure they'll continue to work on her strength, work on her speech. again, just a remarkable thing last night to see her and to see how far she's come along. randi, back to you. >> sure was incredible. the man accused of shooting the congresswoman is currently being held in a federal mental hospital after being dying nosed as schizophrenic and being income pent to stand trial.

what do the american people thing of it? joe is standing by in washington. only one calcium supplement does that in one daily dose. new citracal slow release... continuously releases calcium plus d for the efficient absorption my body needs. citracal. can be even more powerful, with precise pain relieving cream. it blocks pain signals fast for relief precisely where you need it most. precise. only from the makers of tylenol.

took some crazy risks as a kid. but i was still over the edge with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more, and now i'm also taking lipitor. if you've been kidding yourself about high cholesterol...stop. 80% of people who have had heart attacks have high cholesterol. lipitor is a cholesterol lowering medication, fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke

in patients who have heart disease or risk factors for heart disease. [ female announcer ] lipitor is not for everyone, including people with liver problems and women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. you need simple blood tests to check for liver problems. tell your doctor if you are taking other medications or if you have any muscle pain or weakness. this may be a sign of a rare but serious side effect. great ride down. if you have high cholesterol, you may be at increased risk of heart attack and stroke. don't kid yourself. talk to your doctor about your risk and about lipitor. more now on the passage of the debt ceiling agreement. joe johns joins me from capitol hill. what do the american people think about it. >> we've got a new cnn orc poll. frankly, randi, the resulting

are fascinate bug not necessarily surprising. let's just take a look at them. starting out with the president's jobs approval rating. this is always high among democrats but actually down 3% from 80% to 77%. among independents, the president's job approval rating is up three points. and among republicans, it's up six points, but then that only get him to 12% so that tells you something. meanwhile the bickering an confusion on capitol hill continues to have its effect on the job approval ratings of congress. we'll take a look at that. when you look at that and ask the question how many people approve, 14% approve. 84% disapprove. we gave them a fill in the blank question. elected officials who have dealt with the debt ceil having acted like responsible adults. only 17% said yes to that. spoiled children, 77% of respondents have said that congress has acted like spoiled children. how big a surprise is that given

what we've seen? >> not surprising. it shows how people think of how things went down in washington, joe. >> that's for sure. >> what's the latest word, very quickly, on the super committee. how close are we to having that formed? >> we're told in about two weeks they're going have to name the members of the super committee. it will be six republicans, six democrats, and each leader in the house of representatives, both democrats and republicans, they each get to name three people. and then the fun thing is right around thanksgiving the super committee is going to have to come up with all of its recommendations, so there's a joke around the capitol they're going to deliver the biggest turkey ever to people on thanksgiving. >> i'm sure we'll see more polling on that. thank you very much. within the past few minutes they talked to reporters about the debt deal just pass and the president just signed. already the battle lines are apparent. here's senate minority leader

mitch mcconnell. >> i'm often asked what would you do to get the economy going. my answer's always the same. let them flourish so we have chance again to have a growing economy, which, of course, will produce more revenue for the government. so that ought to be our single focus. not only at home during the recess, but when we come back here. >> and when they come back from their august break, congressional leaders will form that special bipartisan committee to look for a trillion dollars plus additional savings and clear the way. as my colleague wolf blitzer just said if you hated the debate you will live to despise what's straight ahead. news continuing with brook baldwin. hi, brooke. >> hello, everyone.

exhale. the detlet of default is over. a short time ago the president signed the extension. a lot of folks are saying, hey, big surprise, of course, that got it done. okay, all well and good. but dl are reports out there that as late as last sunday and with a deal appearing unlikely, the white house was making preparations to send out timothy geithner, the u.s. treasury secretary to prepare the american people for a stock market crash. folks, that was only 48 hours ago. so this thing was pretty close. and here's the pretsident. he spoke this afternoon from the rose garden. had a word or the two with congress for taking this thing to the brink. watch. >> we receive in the past few days washington has the ability to focus when there's a timer ticking down and there's a looming disaster. it shouldn't take the risk of default, the risk of economic catastrophe to get folks in this

town to work together and do their jobs. >> joe johns, we didn't give you much break from talking to randi to talking to me. i appreciate your standing by for me. >> you're welcome. >> i'm curious if you've seen some members of congress with their bags packs, ready to roll for five weeks of vacation. do you sense a sigh of relief from those walking through the hall? >> quite frankly, they're ready to get out of here and people who work for them are ready for them to get out of here. nonetheless, i'm ready to tell you, sighs of relief? perhaps. i was sitting in the chambers for the vote. quite frankly, on the democratic side, i got this real sort of overwhelming sense of dread on their part. it's really interesting because when you think about it, the united states senate has now passed this huge compromise, come together, and some would say save the country from financial disaster, and people look miserable out there. that's because there are so many apprehensions about what's going to happen next, what's this

super committee going to do, what's going to happen to entitlements, and there's not a real good feeling, though the thing people want again and again is compromise and it apparently happened here, brooke. >> you're sensing dread on the floor. we mentioned the vote. the vote was 74 in favor, 26 against. and, you know, just before they voted. republican leader mitch mcconnell declared victory on behalf of the tea party forces that forced this epic battle. let's listen to him. >> i, too, wish we could stand here today and act on something much more ambitious, but i'm encouraged by the thought that these new senators will help lead this fight until we finish the job and i want to assure you today that although you may not see it this way, you've actually won this debate. >> i mean, joe, tea party

republicans pretty much won this thing. if you look at the roll call, a number of them still voted against the agreement and they say they're not done. joe, have they schooled washington on how to get what you want? >> there's certainly no question they're a force, and they're a force because they have a lot of supportering out in the country as well as a lot of people on capitol hill. at the same time you have to look at the numbers on capitol hill know what was going on here. the president of the united states does not control the house of representatives. the republicans do. in fact, the minority in the senate is so strong that democrats really can't do but so much. so that's the card, you know that is correct the president of the united states has been dealt, and he just has to deal with it. so he has to compromise or he's not going to get anything done at all. that's the bottom line. >> speaking of compromises, look ahead to this super are committee as it's been dubbed,

this bipartisan group, six and six -- excuse me, three and three. they're going to try to hammer out another 1.3. let me ask you this. is paul ryan going to be allowed to sit on the committee? >> you're pushing it hard. that's what everybody has been asking, not so much paul ryan but who's going to be pointing them. who you've got on the committee could very well determine an outcome. he seems like a logical choice, but who knows. for example, the majority o lead over the senate says he wants to put people on there that are going to be come promiesd. what if you get illogical people? it's so important. if you don't get a decision at

the end of the day, you have triggers. it's fun to watch. that's going be with one of the big stories in washington over the month or two. >> perhaps sitting at the table means a feather in a cap. i asked him if he wanted to be on it. he said, brooke, i don't know if i want to do that again. we'll have to see, joe johns. >> it could be a job killer. >> who knows. >> you could make a whole bunch of bad decisions. >> hopefully not, joe johns. thank you so much for me live on the hill. joining me now senator roy blunt, republican of missouri. nice to have you on. i have you as having voted yes on the agreement. is that rice. >> that's right. >> okay. are you willing to tell me right now that your side won? did the republicans win this, sir, and if not, why not? >> i think where my side won is

we changed the way we do business on the issue of how we're spending money and the whole question of accumulated debt. in fact, there's some figures out there that would indicate if every time the debt ceiling comes up over the next few years, we'd have a pay for for every debt dollar ceiling incrude. we'd have the budget balanced in a decade. there's no other comparable that could get it done that quickly. you know, the controls one third of the three-part process it takes to get a bell. i thought everybody was slow in realizing that the end of the day nobody was going to be haine with the process. i think it could have been better, but i think it could have been a whole lot worse. straight debt limit increase.

revenue increases as part of that. >> let's look ahead. joe johns and i were just talking about the super committee. i know a lot of your fellow republicans are wired, particularly the notion if they farmg we go hundreds of dollars in military cuts. senator blunt, does that worry you? >> it worries me. i've been of the view that everything has to be on the table, and if the military can justify everything they're doing. they're the only pant that they can justify. there's a reason that those triggers are what they are, to try to encourage this committee to come one a ronald.

and come up with a resolution. i'm a republican, i think the committee structure is the way we can do big things with the divide government. divided government is the best time to deal with three issues. >> forgive me for interrupting. i do want to give a bigger picture if i may step back since we're talking military and cutting the debt. i want to look at something together, sir. i don't know if you have a monitor. i know our viewers certainly can. look at this pie. so the united states of america, our military bucket here accounts for 43%. you see the dark purple on the right side? 43% of all military spending in the world. this is in 2010 here. united states of america, close to $700 billion. you see they're below the u.s. our closest competitor is kai--a china. why is it s so necessary for the u.s. to

spend more than anyone around the world? i thing what happens is when u.s. isn't voichbled in leadership play, look at what's happening in libya, nato, supposedly the greatest military of all time and in seven weeks they're out of ammunition. the united states has carried without any question more than its share of the load. at the same time we can't gel our allying to step up to the plate. we could look at everything the military is doing. that's probably more important than evaluating what we're spending compared to what everybody else is spending in view of my number one obligation of the federal government and that's to defend the country. >> i kept hearing the word jobs, jobs. the president saysite e time to turn the corner and get back to job creation. with the election looming now

come next november dut your party have any incentive to help him win with job creation or not? >> sure. i think there was a time this economy would respond. i think it will be the next president. the president's poll is, there are nearly u hundreds of regulators in the last month. and every one of them has december kieshed it. the president is going to pay the price for that, i think, because. >> but will your paerts jump in and hem cry yates jobs first of all, the government doesn't create private sector jobs very effectively if at all. secondly, we've got to be doing everything we can. what do we do to encourage more private sector job formation and

we are very mitch on the side of that. frankly it's the middle of 2011. by the time this machine would really grind into place it ooh going to be next year before you see any recovery of all the regulation, higher utility bied. it's grounded the economy to a place where the prs is rightly concerned. >> i the think that concerns a lost americans. thank you so much. have a night vacation. now watch this. >> evaneryone's going to have t chip in. that's only fafrmt. >> president obama says the debt deal is just a first step, so what is the next step? we'll check in with white house correspondent jessica yellin next. also ahead, the search is over for 11-year-old celina cass

after divers found her body near a new hampshire. there's more than a jar of olay moisturizers in every bottle of olay bodywash to leave your skin feeling soft and smooth. with olay.

[ martin luther king jr. ] i still have a dream that one day on the red hills of georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. i have a dream today! [ male announcer ] chevrolet is honored to celebrate the unveiling of the washington, d.c., martin luther king jr. memorial. take your seat at the table on august 28th. while i took refuge from the pollen that made 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®.

[ male announcer ] want to pump up your gas mileage? come to meineke for our free fuel-efficiency check and you'll say...my money. my choice. my meineke. squloo if you are now just flipping the channels tuning in, great news, the threat of default has passed. president obama signed the debt reducing debt limit extension. let's go straight to the white house to chief white house correspondent jessica yellin. niece to see you. i want to go behind the scenes

of vice president joe biden. tell me what was his role and how crucial was his role in averting the first government default? >> crucial, brooke. i'm told he was the main point person in the final negotiation to get this deal done. according to my sources he did speak to speaker boehner on sunday but his conversation with mitch mcconnell sealed the deal. they have a historic relationship. they met regularly during the vice president's term in office here. they've kept that up. and then in this final week during these negotiations there was some contact, but after speaker boehner's bill passed the house and it was clear it was going to defeat the senate, then senator mitch mcconnell, called vice president biden, said what he would need on his end and two of them went back and forth all weekend. the senator getting back and forth. of course, the president's team had done a ton of legwork ahead

of this, months of negotiating before, but, yeah, he was a closer in this one, a key closer. >> a key closer. it sounds like -- i know you were at the rose garden. it seems like the jobs were pervasive. let's listen to just a portion of it. >> both parties share power in washington. both parties need to take responsibility for the improvement. it's our collective responsibility as americans. i'll be discussing additional ideas in the weeks ahead to help companies hire, invest, and expand. >> jessica, i hate to even ask this as i actually just posed the question to a republican senator here, but do republicans, do they have any incentive, any vested political interest in actually seeing the economy improve? i mean there is aen election sort of around the corner. >> well, we'd all have to be

incredibly cynical to say that one party or another wants americans to be out of jobs. so, yes, everybody has an interest in washington because they come here because they want america to be healthy and prosperous, but there is -- one would assume. but politically on the two parties are at logger heads, there is acrimony in this town where people who worked in 30, 40 years have flfr seen. the question is how does the president get the agent dan pushed forward that it is challenging. one of the questions, a lot of democrat behind the scenes, not at the white house necessarily but people who worked at the white house for a long time isn't there power they can use. just in small ways to help create small jobs doond littand things? maybe he'll have to ask himself that as he wages war from the political front and while working from the white hous