allegations of unwanted sexual advances calling them pure fiction and outright lies. >> the person calling trump out the most is not hillary clinton, it's first lady michelle obama. she delivered a blistering rebuke of trump for bragging about sexually assaulting women on video. the stakes could not be higher right now. you've got just 25 days until the big election. and only five days until the third and final clinton/trump debate. we have it all fcovered for you. there's lots of news. let's begin with brianna keilar live in washington. good morning. >> good morning. this race is getting nastier and more contentious. you had first lady michelle obama in new hampshire and sharply denouncing the nominee and donald trump is defending himself. he is lashing out against people in his own party as his poll numbers keep dropping. >> this is a struggle for the survival of our nation. >> reporter: donald trump

issuing an apocalyptic call of arms amount allegations of sexual misconduct. >> our campaign represents a true threat. >> reporter: portraying himself as a smear campaign, a conspiracy orchestrated by clinton, the media and the establishment. >> this is crossroads in the history of our civilization. >> reporter: the republican nominee flatly denying the accusations against him. >> these claims are all fabricated. they're pure fiction and they're outright lies. >> reporter: even suggesting that natasha stooynoff, a writer for "people" magazine who said she was attacked by trump in 2005, was not attractive enough. >> look at her, look at her words. you tell me what you think. i don't think so. >> reporter: trump's speech a stark contrast to michelle obama's emotional call to women to rise up against him. >> i have to tell you that i

listen to all of this. the shameful comments about our bodies. the disrespect of our ambitions and intellect. the belief that you can do anything you want to a woman. >> reporter: the first lady condemning trump's lewd comments captured on tape about women and sexual assault. >> it is cruel. it's frightening. and the truth is, it hurts. >> reporter: speaking in deeply personal terms while refusing to mention trump by name. >> this isn't about politics. it's about basic human decency. it's about right and wrong. and we simply cannot endure this or expose our children to this any longer. not for another minute. and yet alone for four years. >> reporter: president obama and vice president joe biden also taking on trump while campaigning for hillary clinton. >> his admission of what is the textbook definition of sexual assault is not inconsistent with

the way he's abused power all along. >> reporter: the president hammering republican leaders who have just decided to withdraw their support. >> you claim the mantle of the party of family values. and this is the guy you nominate? and stand by and endorse and campaign with until finally at the 11th hour you withdraw your nomination. you don't get credit for that. >> reporter: donald trump has two rallies in battleground north carolina. that is a state where the latest polls have him falling behind. hillary clinton is off the campaign trail again today for a star-studded fund-raising swing on the west coast. he does have her husband and daughter campaigning for her. as well as obama he is in ohio trying to rally voters in that state where early voting is under way. >> brianna, thanks so much for all that reporting. jessica leeds is telling her

story to cnn's anderson cooper. she says that dawned tru dthat assaulted her on a plane more than 30 years ago. >> he wasn't flirting and i don't think i was flirting. we were just talking. >> and then the meal finished. >> then the meal finished and the stewardess cleared away the dishes and everything else like that. and it was like suddenly he's like encroaching on my side of the seat. and his hands were everywhere. >> did he say anything? >> no. and i didn't either. >> you didn't say anything? >> i didn't say anything. >> you say his hands were everywhere. can you be specific? >> well, he was grabbing my breasts and trying to turn me towards him and kissing me and then after a bit, that's when his hands started going -- i was wearing a skirt and his hands

started going towards my knee and up my skirt. and that's when i said, i don't need this. and i got up. >> is that literally what you said? >> i don't know if i said it out loud -- >> that's what you were thinking. >> i do remember thinking the guy in the other seat, why doesn't he say something? >> could other people see? >> the guy in the seat across the aisle could see. and i kept thinking well maybe the stewardess is going to come and he'll stop. she never came. >> do you know how long that went on for? >> not real long. no. no. i would say just about, what, 15 minutes? that's long enough. >> that's a long time. >> yeah. >> did he actually kiss you? >> yeah. >> on the face or on the lips? >> wherever he could find a landing spot, yes. >> and, i mean, 15 minutes is a very long time. >> well, you know, it seemed

like forever. so, i got up, got my bag and i went back to the coach section. and i went all the way back to the tail of the airplane. the last seat in the last aisle. and sat down. >> let's discuss with someone who supports donald trump and is unimpressed by these accusations. republican congress ted married for 41 years. you have three kids. god bless you for that. what donald trump said on that tape and in that video, what he demonstrated you say just locker room. you actually say it was stuff in a locker room, which, obviously, you know wasn't true. why doesn't it bother you? >> this election. you hear enough allegations on both sides about this person and this person. the thing that i look at is we're $20 trillion in debt. there's crisises breaking

throughout the world on our foreign affairs policy. we have a broken immigration system and a failing health care system and i want to find a candidate that will fix the problems of america and when i compare mr. trump to mrs. clinton, it's obvious which way we're going to go. we're looking at the survival of the constitution republic that we have and i think it's a very clear choice. >> what about being a christian, though, does in fact a character assessment of both of these people. you have been outwardly critical of hillary clinton in the past but not donald trump. >> i have been pretty critical of him, too. if you look through the bible, the bible is covered with people of bad moral judgment. king david, you know, i mean, you can start there. and just work through the bible. and you've seen people of poor judgment, moral judgment and what happened is they've done and gone on and done great things because they were inspired. >> do you put donald trump in that category? >> no, i don't put anybody --

>> just trying to get your context. >> i think there's some things that we've all done. if you're living on this planet. there are things that we've all done and the judge will not let you be judged. those are biblical principles. if you are a christian, you believe in those things. what you do, you just move on from that and look at what we're trying to do. $20 trillion in debt. social security, medicare. they're starting to fail. obama care is failing. we need to redirect this country. we need a leader that is going to lead and stand up and protect the rights that we have in this country and i say donald trump is the person over mrs. clinton. that's my choice. >> donald trump didn't talk about these issues that you're outlying. he hasn't done it for a long time and he hasn't given a pres conference in a long time. what he said yesterday is that i as the media and working with hillary clinton to destroy his campaign and making up all these accusations. do you agree with that, sir? >> you know, i'm hearing accusations on both sides, chris. i'm hearing both sides getting

deeper and deeper in the gutter. i'm looking for the person to raise their head out of the gutter and start climbing up. let's do what's best for america and, again, if i compare donald trump to hillary clinton, you know, there's things we can point fingers at and say, you know, let's stop the nonsense. let's stop the childness. i'm looking for the adult to raise up and you'll see mr. trump do that. i truly believe that. >> is the accusation of sexual assault nonsense? >> absolutely not. but you can look at what happened on the clinton side, too. >> has hillary clinton been accused of sexual assault? >> if you look at her what her husband allegedly has done and she has stood by and this is going back into the garbage in the gutter and i choose not to live there and the american people, for the most part, choose not to live there. the media attention stays on there and, of course, both candidates are great at keep piling it on. >> but, again, you call it

gutter talk and nonsense and, look, to a certain extent, i think all common sense would go your way. let's focus on what really matters here. you are talk about women who are accusing him of having sexually assaulted them. that has to matter. if it true, it would be a crime. doesn't that have to matter. don't you have to be somewhat curious about the truth behind it? >> i just heard on your program the accusations are there. that's not proof. that's not been proven and it was 30 years ago. why does it take somebody 30 years to speak out? i'm not defending him and i'm not defending any action s he dd or defending mr. or mrs. clinton on what they did or didn't do. who is going to lead this country oout of the mess that we are in. when you start looking at what america stands for and the principles that made america great, our core valus and the constitution. who best to serve america to

protect those rights that we have to make this country strong and great, again. >> so, you're saying that donald trump shares your values and that's why you're voting for him for president? >> i'm not saying i share values with anybody. i'm saying mr. trump is the person that -- >>ia just said, congressman, the american core values that we have to protect those and defend those. you're saying he gets what those values are and you must agree -- you have to own the totality of the person. you don't get to support part of somebody, you have to support all of them, right? >> when you look at our core values. our rights come from a creator, not our government. our founding principles that we are all created equal and that's held together by the constitution. so, who's going taproteo protec. ? hillary clinton has a projection

of her ideals. she thinks government is the solution. she thinks government-run health care is the best way. she'll go after your first amendment, second amendment and we're seeing that in congress now. i don't have time to go into that at a future date. the garbage i see coming out of congress as far as what we're trying to stave off and then i see donald trump will stand strong to protect those, those rights that we have and the other thing is we are looking at the supreme court justices for the next lifetime appointments on supreme court justices, federal judges and district judges and, you know, i've sat with donald trump. we met with him. and he has already vetted 11 conservative justices that will preserve those values i just mentioned. when you look at those values that made america great as a country, when you look at those, those are neither republican or democrat, those are american ideologies and i see donald trump protecting those with the

help of congress and over mrs. clinton. i'm going to stay there and i'm not saying my opinion is the same as his opinion or his is the same as mine. on his other stuff and his personal life and the things he did. let the courts work that out. i'm not going to be the judge of that. >> ted yoho, thank you for making the case for donald trump. appreciate having you on "new day." >> thank you. a back-to-back speeches and they crystallize the ugly state of this race. which voice will voters hear on election day? we discuss that, next. one pan, less than 30 minutes. because if they aren't going to eat it, at least you didn't spend too much time making it. campbell's one dish recipes.

made for real, real life.

just checking my free credit score at credit karma. what the??? you're welcome. i just helped you dodge a bullet. but i was just checking my... shhh... don't you know that checking your credit score lowers it! just be cool. actually, checking your credit score with credit karma doesn't affect it at all. are you sure? positive. so i guess i can just check my credit score then? oooh "check out credit karma today. credit karma. give yourself some credit." sorry about that. won't replace the full value of your totaled new car. the guy says you picked the wrong insurance plan. no, i picked the wrong insurance company. with liberty mutual new car replacement™, you won't have to worry about replacing your car because you'll get the full value back including depreciation. and if you have more than one liberty mutual policy, you qualify for a multi-policy discount, saving you money on your car and home coverage. call

for a free quote today. liberty stands with you™. liberty mutual insurance.

just 25 days to go until election and the polls show that donald trump's numbers are slipping. join us to discuss "washington post" columnist josh rogan and "new york times" national political reporter alex burns. gentlemen, great to have you. josh, okay, first, 25 days in this campaign is an eternity. things happen in this 24-hour

news cycle so rapid fire that 25 days is a long time. if today donald trump were to ignore the allegations and come out and speak about the economy and jobs, can he turn things around? >> yes, a lot of time. people are voting now, okay. so the damage every day is actual real damage. but what you're suggesting here and you got to the heart of the matter, he needs a strategy, right? what we've seen over the last 48 hours or the five days since the video came out, they're flailing. you have the obama presidency, the clinton campaign, they have their surrogates out and their messaging out and their talking points. everyone has a job. everyone is sticking to their script and the trump people are all over the place. so, yes, they would be wise to figure out a response and then try to move on and then try to talk about the things that they want to talk about. but it's not happening. >> you say everyone is sticking to a script and you're right, of course. but michelle obama, the first lady ridy did inject a personal on what she thinks donald

trump's words are in her speech and give it a real wallop of emotions. let's listen to a portion of that. >> i have to tell you that i listen to all of this and i feel it so personally. and i'm sure that many of you do, too, particularly the women. the shameful comments about our bodies. the disrespect of our ambitions and intellect. the bheelief that you can do anything you want to a woman. it is cruel. it's frightening. and the truth is, it hurts. it hurts. >> alex, obviously, democratic women like that. the crowd liked that a lot. can she sway any republican women or are people so entrenched in their corners? >> i think she can. not just democratic women who respond to maesage like that, i think, frankly, a lot of men. i think you have in michelle

obama certainly one of the most prominent, admired and most liked women in public life. hillary clinton can say all those same things that michelle obama did but she is asking people to vote for her personally and whenever a politician is advocating for herself or himself, it sounds different. >> hillary clinton doesn't share much of herself. she doesn't say how hurt she is or how she feels. she gives a different speech than that. >> she does. even though she is married to the democratic president of the united states and certainly a partisan figure in many respects, for your average voter, the first lady just as a position seen as above or outside of politics. she can make those kind of arguments and have people hear them in a different way than if they would hear them from a candidate or even from her husband. >> let's look at the poll numbers. this is about suburban women that both sides have been trying

to court. first, we'll look at women. hillary clinton is 19 points above donald trump right now. with suburban women she is 24 points. he is at 29% with republican women a suburban women. >> i think it's too late. as a native of suburban philadelphia, been there recently. my informal poll is that these purple counties, especially bucks county, montgomery county they're not going to go trump. these people just have had enough. they're shell shocked. they were open to it. trump has an economic message that appeals to these women, especially republican women. but, it's too late. they're done. and this is what they're telling everybody who will listen. so, the only recourse that trump really has is to try to push up the numbers with his base and with the demographics that favor him, white men, as much as he can to make up for this loss. >> hillary clinton is going on ellen degeneres' show today and

we have a little clip of it where she talks for the first time about what she felt about donald trump's presence behind her during the debate. let's listen to this. >> because of the revelation of the public video and everything that came out on "access hollywood," you know, he was, he was really, you could just sense how much anger he had. he was really trying to dominate and then literally stalk me around the stage. i would just feel this presence behind me. ad i thought, whoa, this is really weird. and, so, i was just trying to stay focused. >> alex, his supporters are going to think this is a little too convenient now because these accusations have come forward she said he was stalking her around the stage. she didn't seem nervous.

she seemed to be in command. but what do you think about now this narrative that she felt he was stalking her? >> we have seen candidates try that move before. this is something al gore tried against george w. bush to physically intimidate him on stage. it plays differently that it is a man and a woman. a gender dynamic there. >> if she did feel that way, should she have said it before? >> i don't think you hear her out there, i think we'll see the full clip, but i don't think the tone of that is particularly accusatory like shame on you for doing that. but there is this, it is something that a lot of voters responded to. it's something, frankly, because i was so busy taking notes on literally what they were saying i largely missed in the debate that he was doing this and then afterwards you hear everybody saying, my goodness, what was he doing on that stage. >> alex, josh, thank you. good to get your take. no question the first lady gave an emotionally charged speech speaking out on trump's lewd remarks.

here's a bit of it. >> i can't stop thinking about this. it has shaken me to my core in a way that i couldn't have predicted. >> where did this come from? we'll talk to those who know her about the origin of this powerful message, nest.

♪ ♪ ♪ lease a 2016 lincoln mkx for $349 a month. only at your lincoln dealer.

first lady michelle obama delivering a powerful speech about lewd comments and sexual assault. here's a little bit. >> we all know that if we let hillary's opponent win this election, then we are sending a clear message to our kids that everything they're seeing and hearing is perfectly okay. we are validating it. we are endorsing it. we're telling our sons that it's

okay to humiliate women. we're telling our daughters, this is how they deserve to be treated. we're telling all our kids that bigotry and bullying are perfectly acceptable in the leader of their country. is that what we want for our children? >> whom is this going to resonate with what the first lady just said? joining us is desiree rogers. good to see you. >> good morning. >> you know the first lady very well. >> absolutely. >> this speech we understand. she changed what she was going to say in the context of the moment changed and this came out of her very quickly. she knew exactly what she wanted to say. who is this michelle obama? >> this is the real michelle obama. i think the emotion you hear in her voice. her ability to really articulae personally and how this can impact this nation. you're hearing something from the heart. this is not made up.

this is her. >> she said, "i feel it so personally and the truth is, it hurts. it hurts." why does she feel it so personally? >> i don't know exactly but for any woman that has experienced your body being talked about in a negative way. you feel that pain and that hurt. i think that is what she is talking about. just the amount of disrespect that these lewd comments that this gentleman has made is just ridiculous. >> it does feel as if she has had some experience. >> it's saddening, it's disgusting. it is really unacceptable. >> i don't know what she's reflecting in terms of some personal life or whatever, but she had to go down this road several times in her political life. in 2008, she raised a lot of eyebrows with her line, i'll probably mangle it. but you know what i'm talking about. if you can't control your own house, you can't control the white house. which was seen as a straight

punch tahio hillary clinton thef her live with bill clinton. now she seems to have fully embraced hillary clinton. what is the evolution? >> the evolution is she is the first lady of this country and we really now are at a really strategic point where this nation has to make a decision. and my feeling is that enough is enough. i mean, these kinds of lewd comments. this kind of rhetoric. i mean, i think she said i have to take a stand. i have to call on everything that i can, every power i have and in the position that i'm in and the feelings nat i have and i have to push as hard as i can to get our folks out. and that's what i believe. >> it does feel as though the first lady does have power. this does feel like a pivotal moment and she is seizing on it or even creating a pivotal moment and she did the same thing as you'll recall during the democratic national convention where, at first, there were these e-mails that have come out and bernie sanders supporters were staging a muteiy

and hillary clinton came out and gave a speech that was seen as a turning point. what is her future? has she considered running for office? >> i don't know. but i do think you mentioned it is a turning point. i think all of us men, women, black, white, whatever race you are, you are going to be able to say, you know what, i really don't feel this way about women. i'm not a sexist. this is not how i want my daughters or children to be raised whether they're boys or girls. i think that her voice is really a voice that people are hearing. people are hearing and listening to because it's beyond the rhetoric. this is not rhetoric. this is emotion. this is true. this is -- >> did you think the first lady recognizes that power that she has in these civil moments. >> when you're emotional and you're talking about something that is so important to you only hope that people hear you. i only hope that she feels that people hear her and i think it's a genuine, authentic voice and i

think that's what people will respond to. >> genuine, authentic voice. politics is complicated. >> yes, it is. >> in real life if you tell me i can't run my own house. if you knew me better, desiree, that's it. we're done. but politics is different. how has the michelle that you know negotiated that? because she came in very raw in 2008 and that was her power. now, she's embracing the same person she once had to go against. how has she managed that? >> here's what i would say, in any position, you mature over time. you start to get your sea legs and you make decisions about what's going to be important to you. she has done a tremendous amount on healthy eating and the empowerment of women and girls. she's been graceful throughout this whole process and you get better and better at it. and i think that's what we see. we see a very mature woman. a woman that knows what she wants and what's important to

her and, most importantly, not afraid to speak about it. >> you won't say she'll never run. >> i have no idea. i have no idea. but not afraid. and i think in today's world when you think about politics, everything is measured. everything is judged. don't say this, don't do that. you see a woman who is truly saying what she honestly believes. >> desiree rogers, thanks so much for giving us a window into the first lady. we appreciate you being here. >> thank you. donald trump now taking on a media giant he is threatening to sue "new york times." could legal action open him up to bigger problems? our legal and media experts break that down, next. "credit karma, why are you checking your credit score?" "you don't want to ride the 13l forever, do you?"

"credit karma huh?" "yeah, it's free." "credit karma. give youself some credit."

amazing sleep stays with you all day and all night. with sleep number, you choose the exact firmness and comfort you want - and so does your partner - for the best sleep ever. it's the final days of the columbus day sale, with the queen c4 mattress set now only $1399.98. plus 24-month financing. learn more at sleepnumber.com

donald trump continuing his war with the media. listen to this. >> instead of the issues, they've slandered and libelled me with false accusations, but we will not let these lies distract us from our campaign. and it's a campaign of truth. the "new york times" and they're inventing false claims without any evidence, no witnesses, no nothing. supposedly years and years ago. i never met these people. i don't know who they are. they are made up stories filed right before the election. >> he's threatening now to sue "the new york times" for libel but they say they welcome the opportunity to fight the gop nominee in court. is this something trump will do? joining us now, paul allen and author bill carter. great tahave yo have you guys.

bill, will he bring the suit against "the new york times"? >> he threatens lawsuits all the time but in going through records the only time he brought a lawsuit was actually many, many years ago. i think, 20, 25 years ago one lawsuit against "chicago tribune" that described his s skyscraper as an ugly monstrosity. >> apparently it was an ugly building, he never built it after the article appeared. >> full disclosure. trump threatened to sue me when i was at abc news and we were doing an investigation into his finances. i have to tell you, the power of the threat usually works. it makes people especially if they have money in the game think about whether they want to go down this road and defending what they do. "the times" seems to be taking a different posture. why the confidence? >> i think they feel like, first of all, they have legitimate on the record people talking. they feel like it's consistent

with what he said before. it's not like out of the realm of possibility and they know they haven't done it recklessly and the idea that you have to have a public figure has to have proof of falsity. so, they have very safe ground. i also think they're confident that he will not follow through on this. this is, i think, for applause lines at his rallies. he's going to continue this until the election and then quietly it will be over and he'll say something like, oh, i'll destroy them another way. i think that will be a strategy. >> here's a little bit more about how "new york times" is feeling. they said we did what the law allows and published newsworthy information about a subject of deep public concern. if mr. trump disgris, we welcome the opportunity to have a court set him straight. there are no witnesses other than the women who say it happened. don't they count as a witness? >> they certainly do count in a very important way and as long

as "the new york times" investigated the claim responsibly they interviewed the women and, of course, the women are on record now saying, in fact, these things happened. so, it's going it be very difficult to prove that "the new york times" created journalistic irresponsibility. >> as long as they vetted the claims the way they are, you know, this does feel, again, we know that victims are supposed to be believed, but you do have a duty to vent. it feels different reporting wise than it did with clinton in the '90s. then there was this need to have contemporaneous cooperation, they can't be intimate, you have to find people who objectively knew something. that's why the state troopers were so important in that. i don't see that here. even when they say they spoke to four people with one of the woman's allegations. they were familiars. they weren't people who at the same time she went to somebody. the "people" magazine woman is a different scenario.

but we're just talking about "the times." do you see a relative softness here on this reporting? >> if you make a comparison that if isn't astringent as it was and you can also say this follows right after his on the record comment. well, it certainly, it was not on the record literally, but taped, microphone comments that are completely consistent with the activities that these women are talking abouabout. trump himself is talking about activities like this. >> paul, about the "people" magazine one. i want to dive into that for a second. this was a celebrity reporter, an entertainment reporter who went to mar-a-lago to do a profile on donald and melania on their one-year anniversary and this was about to be about their first year of wedded bliss. when she went up to make a

wardrobe change and according to her, we're going to have an affair. here's what we're going to do. and he's denied this. melania trump has put out a statement, interestingly, about this from her attorney. he says, the reporter says that then they encountered each other months later on the street and greeted her warmly and said, why haven't i seen you around? the two are not friends and were never friends or even friendly. we therefore demand a prominent retraction and apology. so, nothing about the claims, but that they didn't encounter each other on the street. >> it's kind of fascinating because i agree with you that the "people" magazine thing is extraordinarily disturbing. it's on his one-year wedding anniversary and the reporter covering a celebration of that while his pregnant wife is upstairs. the other thing that is interesting about this is she's

standing by her man in much the same way that hillary clinton stood by bill clinton denying that those things happened. i think a lot of people kind of give the women a pass in that situation. maybe we should give melania a pass, as well. >> parallels that seem to be lost on donald trump sometimes when he brings it up. bill, thank you. paul, thank you. 11-year-old braden garnett just celebrated a birthday he will never forget after police and fire rescue went beyond the call of duty. we have your ticket to the party. and this sunday at 9:00 p.m. on cnn's "parts unknown" anthony bourdain in the chinese province with a taste of china's spicy cuisine. let's take a look. >> what happens when america's favorite bad boy chef and upright french chef eric repair go to china? eric's never been to china

before. nor is he used to the elevated levels of, shall we say, heat and spice. >> this is very sweet and sticky, but i like it a lot. >> in fact, his delicate system totally can't handle what he's about to get. >> oh, my god. my sinuses, you have no idea. >> he's so in for it. >> holy cow. whoa. that spice prevents me to think right. spicy. >> i feel like my face is changing. ♪

turn the trips you have to take, into one you'll never forget. expedia plus rewards. earn points on over one million hotels, flights, and packages.

actually making your body feel better... making your whole day better. hi, everybody. i'm boomer esiason. and that's exactly what tommie copper does for me. now, they call it "wearable wellness" and they have infused it into everything they do. sleeves that help support aching elbows and knees. tops that can help ease your overworked, sore back and shoulders. bottoms that help relieve stiff thighs and hips. and even socks and orthotics that provide added support and comfort. [ angie ] tommie copper's helped me feel better since the minute i put it on. if i could cover my entire body in tommie copper, i probably would! [ male announcer ] tommie copper is the pioneer of comfortable copper compression. relief from everyday aches and pains, effective odor and uv protection, moisture wicking, and incredible comfort! trust the original.

add wearable wellness to your wardrobe. call now or go to tommiecopper.com. order 2 or more items and get free shipping. [ boomer ] work, performance, or whatever your day brings, experience the difference of comfortable compression. tommie copper. life hurts, feel better. >> police and firefighters in central illinois are coming together to brighten a bullied boy's birthday.

they're going beyond the call of duty. cnn's kyung lah has that story. >> braden garnet's world is often a lonely one. diagnosed with asperger's dyslexia and a condition that causes misalignment of his eyes, other kids can be cruel. >> i struggle because people are calling me names. i'm getting bullied constantly. >> reporter: what do they say to you? >> i'm a cross eyed freak and i'm not good at kick ball. >> reporter: it's hard, huh? braden's 11th birthday was coming up. his mother hoped this year would be different. how many kids did you invite? >> 36 total. >> reporter: how many said they would come? >> as of two days before, only three were going to be there. >> reporter: that's happened every birthday since he was 5. this year was different. >> i sent a e-mail to detective

eaton. >> reporter: what about this e-mail caught your attention? >> i thought, you know, if it was my child, and nobody showed up, what would i say to him? so i thought, we can do this. >> reporter: detective eaton spread the word to the beat cops. >> they're talking about this special kid, braden, and if we could go and surprise him at his birthday party. >> reporter: the cops called the fire chief. >> we put it out to the guys, and within just a few minutes we had three guys that said yeah, we'll show up. >> reporter: why bring the big rig? >> why not? go big or go home. >> reporter: big is what they did. >> i got you. >> reporter: more than a dozen police officers and firefighters played paintball with braden for his birthday. they brought their kids. pooled their money for presents, and for just one day braden forgot his daily challenges. so did these officers. >> yeah, thanks a lot. >> it's tough being a cop right now. >> it is. >> reporter: what do you tell your kids about being a cop?

>> sorry. was this about a birthday party or was it something more? >> we are people, just like him. real struggles. you know. real feelings. and real families. >> kyung lah, cnn, pekin, illinois. >> what a beautiful demonstration of going beyond the call of duty. made that boy's life, not just his birthday. >> so nice and police officers do things like that all the time i'm so glad that we feature it. >> important part of the story. so october, october surprises. supposed to be like one big thing in an election it's like every day there is a surprise. leaked e-mails, the tapes, the accusations of sexual misconduct. now, they are dominating the

final stretch of the race. and it seems like it could still get worse. let's discuss where we are, what it means. cnn political comment itary journalist author carl bernstein. carl, you've seen it all but you ain't never seen anything like this, have you? >> i think this is the darkest, most dangerous moment in our history, in at least 60, 70 years. we've never had a nominee for the presidency the likes of donald trump. the kind of demagoguery, racism, xenophobia, and really, a kind of sociopath on the part of the candidate such as we've seen here, and with a huge following, who is now trying to delegitimize the very democratic system under which we operate. including the election itself. it is a fraught moment that requires -- >> he puts it on you. he puts it on us. he says none of that's true what you just said. you just want it to be true, because he's going after

clinton. he's going after the establishment. and that's where you live in the media, and he represents the rest of the country. >> let me start by saying hillary clinton has been a terrible candidate. and under other circumstances she would probably lose and you could have a real contest. of ideas. this is something different. this is danger, demagoguery from someone who is antithetical to what we believe as a democracy. it is a time of requiring courage, courage from republicans, from the right wing, we've seen it with people like charles kraut hammer. he has got a fabulous piece in "the washington post" and i watch charles on fox saying what he says about this candidate and the need to reject him in our culture. the same with george will. it is a time for courageous republican voices to get up and say you know, let's elect our

senators, our congressmen, we must reject trumpism as un-american. >> yet so many voters and supporters of trump just want to talk about jobs. they want to talk about the economy. they want to know where they're going to get their next job. >> this is why i say hillary clinton has been such a bad candidate. she allowed bernie sanders and trump to correctly identify the anger at the elites in this country as well as she was so late to understand the pain of working-class people in this country. it's as if she were tone deaf. that's not what this election is about at this point. she understands it. that's demonstrable. she ran a bad campaign. so what at this point. we need to re-establish our faith in our democracy in this country and if it means for people who don't like hillary clinton and the democrats still accept someone who believes in democratic principles which the

nominee of the republican party demonstrably does not. that's what michelle obama was talking about yesterday. >> is 25 days too late? or is it an eternity on a campaign? is there a way for donald trump to stop talking about the allegations against him, and get back to what really resonates with his crowd and with his supporters and jobs and what he can do for the economy? >> unfortunately what is resonating and what has carried him with his base is not just the jobs message. rather it is the xenophobia, the racism, the homophobia, the anger at the press, taken to a point you can again talk about the press and have a debate about the conduct of the press. to say there is a conspiracy in this country between the press, the clinton campaign, the democrats, is so outrageous, so far from the truth, we need a fact-based campaign. we've lost it. we don't have a chance of regaining it in this election. right now is a time for courage.

courage for those in the republican party on the right who need to repudiate once and for all the demagoguery, the hate message that is dominating their candidate's presence in an historic election, and let's say this country cannot stand donald trump or any more of this kind of campaign. >> you know it's an interesting question. it mate be a little bit too inside baseball for people at home but still dave bossy is citizens united. they're a very powerful organization, not just because of the court case that you're familiar with, that was really about the lawyer in the case not dave bossy or the organization. but i wonder, this is a real tough moment for him, too. that organization has always been rock ribbed conservative values. they've never really backed people who are personally, you know, outrageous. i wonder what it's like for the people close to trump right now to realize who they're with and where they are. >> i -- i can't be in their

heads. what i do understand, and i think some historical perspective, and it's too easy, perhaps, to say joe mccarthy. but i think we need to go back to joe mccarthy and the darkest period of american history, and realize that in the mccarthy era, when we had this kind of demagoguery and hate, and allegations of conspiracy between all kinds of elements in the political culture, that mccarthy was never the nominee for president of the united states. we are this close, and we need to very quickly in this country get that close, and say this is not america. and that is what i would hope that especially in the right wing press they take a look at their candidate. i think that center left press i think the press the mainstream press has taken a very good look at hillary clinton, and her failings. and they are an awful lot of them. she had a very, very rough time,

especially with the server and the press for all the right reasons. as you know nobody's been tougher on her than i have. i've written the biography of her. but this is something different in america. this is a strain we have never seen unloosed at the presidential level and it's time to put a stop to it by good people. >> carl bernstein. always great to get you thoughts. thanks so much for being here. >> just yesterday we had the two speeches back-to-back that seemed to show the crossroads that this country is indeed at. let's get right to it. >> it's so abhorrent. >> textbook definition of sexual assault. >> it is cruel. and the truth is, it hurts. >> these vicious claims are totally and absolutely false. and the clintons know it. >> his hands were everywhere. his hands started going up my skirt. >> these events never, ever happened. >> this isn't about politics.

it's about basic human decency. >> this is a conspiracy against you, the american people. >> we've already learned donald trump is. we have to prove who we are. >> this is "new day," with chris cuomo. and alisyn camerota. >> good morning. welcome to your "new day." we are at a moment of reckoning in the presidential race. we saw it play out in realtime. back-to-back speeches. michelle obama and then donald trump each providing such stark contrasts to the other. the most we've seen in this election. for trump's part, he was angrily denying allegations he made unwanted sexual advances on several women saying it is all lies and more than that, it's part of a conspiracy between the clintons, and the media, to take him down. >> and first lady michelle obama also gave a stunning speech yesterday, a blistering condemnation of trump for bragging about sexually assaulting women. so this does seem to be a defining moment in this race.