continue the conversation on today's stories go to our blog at cnn.com/amfix. >> great being with you. >> hi, kira. >> good morning. >> loved watching you guy this is morning. nice dynamic t. two smartest people in television news. that is for sure. candy, we'll miss you. >> excuse me. >> i meant candy and that guy to the left. yes. no. it was great. >> you'll hear from me later on. >> i'll hear from candy, too, i have been all morning. bye, guys. good morning everybody. lady gaga wages war on behalf of gays in uniform. an army of diehard fans in the ear of d.c.'s most powerful we ugth pop star's potential to impact don't a"don't ask, do

tel tell". the fda weighs in on the safety of the so-called frankenfish. a district attorney puts the move on a domestic abuse victim. and now he says he won't step down. it's 9:00 a.m. on the east coast. you're live in the cnn newsroom. it's getting harder to be shocked by anything in politics. here is a story that meets the challenge. a politician admits she dabbled in witchcraft. it's not a local crackpot running for dog catcher. it's christine o'donnell, a republican nominee for u.s. senate and a darling of the surging tea party movement. here's her surprising claim resurfacing from a 1999 interview. >> i dabbled into witchcraft. i never joined a coven. >> you were a witch? >> i didn't join a coven. let's get this straight.

>> i love this, you're a witch. you go i was a witch. wait. >> that's exactly why. because -- because i dabbled into witchcraft, hung around people doing these things. i'm not making this stuff up. i know what they told me they do. >> okay. her kmenltds are raising eyeb w eyebrows and concerns from the gop establishment. but what matters most of what voters are thinking just six weeks ahead of the midterm elections. jim acosta will join wisconsin the results of a weekend straw poll. and john avalon looks at her mission, damage control. o'donnell canceled two sunday talk show appearances after this came to light. and now you are calling her the new queen of wing nuts. >> ah, the queen of the wing nuts. this week she was clear to say she was not a wing nut, she was specific about that. but she is revelations haven't helped. when you cancel sunday shows that is sign of a campaign in

crisis and damage control mode. this is the newest revelation, but in reality, these sorts of claims have been dogging her campaign early on. the libertarian reason magazine called her a crackpot of the first order before the primary. whether you find this witchcraft claim more controversial or offensive than statements like, say, that aid sufferers shouldn't be called victims that's a judgment call. there is a lot more where this comes from. >> karl rove weighed in, not showing her love. and she actually tweeted sunday night on that and said that if she did have the powers of a witch then karl rove would be backing her candidacy. >> well, that's one way to spin it. >> does she owe an explanation to her fellow republicans? >> i don't think this should be taken that seriously. what it's indicative of this is a comment made on politically incorrect ten years ago.

it's a candidate who has a huge amount of baggage, who will be radioactive to voters in the common sense center of america because of this and many, many other statements and questions about her candidacy. questions that other republicans were raising before the primary saying folks, we've got a good chance to pick up joe biden's seat if the nominee is mike castle but a bad chance if it's christine o'donnell but has run for the senate three times in five years. >> no one has come out, well, republicanwise and had her back. mike pence was on america this morning, he skirted around the issues. we got six weeks and counting. this is not her first obscure moment, shall we say. you talked about, we watched them, we covered it. >> just the tip of the iceberg. >> that's what we're wondering is this just the tip of the iceberg and how long until someone gets behind her or says that's it, got to go. >> you know, i think she's, look, she won a close partisan primary. the problem is that's not representative of the entire

electorate. she has the strong backing of the tea party express. a quarter of a million dollars in her campaign. there is a lot more where this comes from because throughout 1990s she was a professional social conservative activist going on television shows from mtv to politically incorrect and playing the role here and that is something that's going to create vulnerabilities, there is videotape and a lot of it of her saying things which can really alienate or raise reasonable questions among reasonable-minded people. >> i don't know. can you imagine twitching your nose being able to change policy. >> that's the positive. >> that's actually a nice way to look at it. >> liz montgomery. >> boy, did we age ourselves there. great to see you. let's turn to the political movers and shakers who matter. the voters. jim is in new york with the results of a straw poll that was held over the weekend.

hey, jim. >> you have to admit getting back to christine o'donnell, a vanishing act on the sunday talk shows this weekend. you know. >> that's right. >> it may take hocus-pocus to get out of this fix for christine o'donnell. >> she might need to switch something. >> exactly. speaking of christine o'donnell, i saw her at the values voters summit as well as a lot of conservatives and her candidacy does bring up an interesting point. that is she is sort of a hybrid candidate in the republican party of two very powerful political movements, social conservatives that put george w. bush in office, helped him win two elections, and this big growing political movement the tea party movement. you know, even though there's all of this tape out there and bill maher said that he's going to release a clip every week until she comes on his show so this is going to get interesting as we go on.

you know, she is very much supported inside both of those movements, and as we saw, she was able to beat a guy who was a former governor in mike castle in delaware, and a congressman who won multiple elections there. getting back to the values voters summit, talking about the conservatives out there, there was another guy who did very well at the summit this weekend, mike pence, the republican congressman from indiana. he won a straw poll, was kind of a surprise because mike huckabee won that straw poll over the weekend. mike pence is another guy who also brings together social conservatives and tea partiers, looking forward to not the midterm but 2012 that could be a pretty good combination on the republican side. >> jim acosta, thanks so much. rapidly moving wildfire has forced evacuation of more than 1600 homes in utah, investigators say the fire broke out at a national guard base

during a training exercise. 3500 acres have burn and four homes destroyed. two firefighters have been injured. winds are go blowing up to 50 miles per hour and fire crews are concerned about more wind gusts. waves and high winds are whipping through bermuda even as hurricane igor spins away. that storm brushed fast island overnight. a near miss still a big deal. igor is enormous and hurricane force winds were clocked 90 miles away from the center leaving trees and power poles splintered. as the sun is coming up tens of thousands of people waiting out in darkness are getting ready to take stock of that damage. reynolds wolf is live in bermuda. give us the latest, reynolds. >> reporter: well, the latest is as you mentioned the sun is peeking through the clouds a bit. things are drastically improving but not before this island got ravaged by winds for nearly 36

hours. tropical storm force winds with hurricane force winds, the worst of which happened during the overnight hours and into the early morning. it was not just wind, though. pounding waves, incredible surf. we have video showing you some of the tall waves, the wind at times impossible to stand still with being battered around. the winds and the waves created flooding right along the coast, many streets impassable due to the water coming on shore. tree limbs broken throughout island. with the shattered tree limbs they hit those power lines, power lines of course toppled down caused power outages. this island is bermuda's home for 67,000 people. two-thirds are waking up without power. if this follows through very similar in terms of the recovery efforts back in 2003 with hurricane fabian. in that situation it took areas up to three weeks for power restoration. hopefully not as bad. as we wrap things up despite

widespread reports of roof damage, window damage, no building collapses, no deaths, no major injuries. all things considered they did dodge a bullet. >> all right. thanks so much. engineered salmon moves closer to the dinner plate. the fda weighing in on the safety of the so-called frankenfish. so i can just drop off my car and you'll take care of everything? yep, even the rental. what if i'm stuck at the office? if you can't come to us, we'll come to you in one of our immediate response vehicles! what if mother won't let me drive? then you probably wouldn't have had an accident in the first place. and we're walkin'! and we're walkin'... making it all a bit easier -- now that's progressive! call or click today. ♪ i was young and i was stupid ♪ i had just turned 17 ♪ a harmonica and a box guitar ♪ ♪ in a canvas-covered wagon stuffed... ♪

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how about frankenfish for dinner. it's not a fish you can find in the water but some day might be at your local supermarket. the food and drug administration is holding a public hearing now on genetically engineered salmon. they say the salmon are safe for eating but a lot of other people are saying not so fast. senior medical correspondent elizabeth cohen joining us. what's the difference between this salmon and ordinary salmon? >> this salmon matures faster so it can get to market faster. that's really the only difference. let's take a look at how they did this. it's kind of interesting. this is a fish called an ocean pout. it's not eaten much which is

probably why the name is unfamiliar. what they do, these ocean pout, they have growth hormone all year-round. they take dna and put it into the salmon. the salmon only have growth hormone usually for a couple of months a year. so, in other words, by taking a gene from a fish that has growth hormone all year putting that in the salmon, the salmon grow faster. the company that makes it says that is the only difference is that these salmon mature faster. they look and taste and everything else like a regular old salmon. >> so have they studied exactly what happens when humans eat this genetically modified fish. >> they haven't done really major studies where they feed people this fish and see what happens. so no, the answer is no. the company says look, why should we need to do that. these are exactly like salmon except for this difference in this one gene. there is a coalition of groups of nutritionists and consumer

advocates say look, we don't know what happens when people eat this. we think there should be long-term studies. >> when would this go in the marketplace? >> it would take a couple of years. the fda is holding hearings. even if they say let's move it would take a couple of years. >> thanks. so you heard what senior medical correspondent liz cohen had to say. what is your opinion. good idea or something that should be thrown back. tell us what you think. go to cnn./kira. lady gaga, the fact she is a pretty big pop sensation. how about leading the charge against the military's controversial "don't ask, don't tell policy"? [ male announcer ] the financial headlines can be unsettling. but what if there were a different story?

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checking top stories, karl rove calling on a republican senate nominee to explain her comments on witchcraft in a 1999 interview christine o'donnell said she dabbled in witchcraft. >> a wild fire forced evacuation of 1600 homes in utah. it's destroyed four homes. the wild four began on a national guard base's firing range. hurricane igor moving away from bermuda after battering the islands. igor not expected to hit the u.s. but could cause life

threatening rip currents on east coast beaches. from special forces to special accommodations an officer paralyzed in the line of duty hopes to get the permission and surgery to walk again.

♪ well known for wild outfits among many other things today pop star lady gaga goes to maine promoting equally. last night she tweeted that she is going to attend a rally in portland organized by a gay rights group. they are trying to convince the state's two undecided republican

senators to vote yes to the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell policy." there is a message on youtube. more than a million hits. >> i have called both of the senators that operate in my district. i will not stop calling until i reach them and i can leave them this message. i am a constituent of the senator. my name is stephanie joanne angela germanotta also known as lady gaga. i'm calling to ask the senator to vote with senators harry read and levin to repeal don"don't a don't tell" and oppose john mccain's shameless filibuster and finally repeal don't ask don't tell. >> the vote in the u.s. senate is slate forward tomorrow. stick around. about 45 minutes we're going to look at whether or not lady gaga has enough star power to take on the political powers in washington. an army soldier paralyzed in

the line of duty hopes to embark on another mission to could help him and others like him possibly walk again. stumbling blocks being money and indecision involving cutting edge surgery that yet to be approved in the united states. barbara starr has the story. >> reporter: kyra, a military source told me about a soldier trying to convince the pentagon to pay for an extraordinary medical procedure he believes will help him. chief warrant offer and his team were ambushed in 2008. romy was shot in the neck. this motorcycle loving special forces commando instantly paralyzed from the neck down. >> i want to get better. i want to be able to hug my children. i want to be able to hug my wife. >> still on active duty romy has a mission, convincing the army to pay for an innovative surgery

that might help him regain some movement and maybe even walk again. >> i was told once that when special forces i may be the first ones into a mission, that i guess this is the mission i need, that i'll be sent on for the other soldiers. >> reporter: romy and his wife scoured the internet looking for help. >> we started researching it. found out that dr. limas was doing this. >> reporter: the doctor has been performing leading edge surgeries placing cells from the back of the nose onto injured spinal cords, it's worked in several cases. we spoke to dr. lima via skype. >> what i'm talking about recovering, i'm talking about patients walking with the walker again, and having movements on the legs again after years of

paralysis. >> reporter: military officials say it's not an approved procedure in the u.s. romy made his case to a panel of military specialists. asking them to approve $60,000 in costs. the army is still reviewing the proposal. lima has told him he'll have to be in rehab for years, a soldier still working out, getting conditioned. >> so for him to say that the physical therapy is the most important part. >> that doesn't scare you. >> not at all. >> reporter: it's what you do. >> exactly. >> i promised romy i was going to raise this flag over ground zero. >> reporter: scott stops by to say hello. they have built this motorcycle side car so romy can ride again. it's the romy spirit. >> reporter: never quit. >> never quit. thank god. >> i'm determined that i'm going

to -- i'm not going to be like this for the rest of my life. >> reporter: military leaders like to say they'll do everything to help the wounded. in the case of romy, we will see if that's a promise kept. kyra. >> romy is one of more than 8,000 coalition troops who have been wounded in the 9-year afghan conflict. if you want to learn more about the men and women serving our country check out our webpage, home and away on cnn.com. for millions of people living along the gulf of mexico, it seems this day would never come, the bp well permanently sealed. lots of long term questions. in a few minutes some answers straight from the head guy. 'pva [ female announcer ] when you have a softer bath tissue,

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guess what. you don't have to be a i frayed to check out your 401(k) statement. september has been a pretty good month t. dow has risen and it's on track to gain again today. alison is joining us with the good news from the new york stock exchange. this is a new twist. >> it is a nice twist. we expect to see modest gains at the open and more reason to look at the 401(k), so far this month the s&p 500 is up more than 7% on track for its best september in 56 years. this week on wall street it's going to be all about housing. we're going to get new numbers on housing affordability. later this week some data on home construction and sales. housing is really a major concern for wall street because it makes up a huge part of the economy. and as we learned three years ago when the recession began,

housing has a big ripple effect. since impact of the first time home buyer tax credit has faded we're now going to get a more accurate reading on that sector, on the housing sector. shares of home builder lanar up 4% today, the company swung to a profit last quarter and the average sales price picked up and that is expected to give a boost to the market in the early going. let me ask you this. what do you like best about the fall? could it be the cool, crisp air, the changing leaves? or how about octoberfest, the grand daddy of all beer parties. it kicked uf in germany. this year marks the 200th anniversary but there is something new, a ban on smoking. 6 million people are going to be attending this event. 17 days and more than 13 million pints of beer are expected to be served. me thinks a lot of people calling in sick during this drunk fest.

>> oh, yeah. i wouldn't be surprised. actually, i kind of like the dancing the best. that's probably created by all of the beer. >> could be all of the beer. the markets, we're up across the board, kyra. >> i had to pause for a moment. okay. that's all good news. there was nothing negative. i guess we're all in shock. >> the beer got everyone in the mood. >> everybody's pounding them from octoberfest. thanks. well, the worst oil spill in u.s. history is now officially sealed. we probably didn't expect to hear that. but pressure tests actually officially confirm that the concrete is holding and bp's ruptured well is permanently plugged. that announcement comes nearly five months after oil first started gushing into the gulf of mexico. the broken well spewed more than 200 million gallons of crude oil in the gulf and was temporarily capped for about, well, more than two months ago. oil is no longer washing up

along the shore but gulf residents say tar balls can be found in ankle deep waters. the government's point man retired coast guard admiral thad allen the subject of our a.m. extra. boy, i bet this is a bittersweet moment for him, john. >> certainly a big relief, no question about that. remember back april 20th is when the deepwater horizon well exploded, killing 11 people. almost exactly five months to the day, september 19th, that the well was finally declared dead. i talked with admiral allen, i said there is so much mistrust on the gulf coast, british petroleum, bp, can you give us a guarantee this is dead. they said we believe that this well is dead. we're not going to hear from it in terms of the oil leak. however, of course still a larger response going on to the millions of gallons of oil that

leaked into the gulf. 2600 vessels, 25,000 people still working to clear the oil. now there are other concerns as well raise bid folks from the university of georgia. samantha joy, that there are sediments on the ocean floor that are filled with hydrocarbons and leftover oil that is settled down to the ocean floor. the government is saying, well, maybe we can't say this is oil from the mccondo well. here's what admiral allen said in response to that question. >> what we really need do is harness all of the resources of the federal government and the state and local institutions including academia and build a data base that can tell us more about the gulf. right now the readings we're taking don't show large concentrations but we're talking about microscopic particles of oil. we need to understand what's happening on the sea floor. that's what our intention is to do testing. >> this testing will continue as well. the government investigation into what happened back there on april 20 continues.

bp released preliminary findings and also has new information saying when the relief well tapped into the outer part of the well it's called the anulist. you have the well casing, the pipe down the middle. then the raw rock around it. that space is an anulist. oil had come up that way through that -- which caused that blow-out. bp says they didn't find oil or gas in that surrounding space between the pipe and the rock. so they say that there was not a design flaw that was involved here. so, they are trying to come up with ammunition to beat back potentially against anything the government investigators find. >> well, and thad allen, his life changes quite a bit now. >> it does. he's going to stay on until the 1st of october, only another week and a little bit, then going into private life, looks like he's going to stay in washington, joining a think

tank, we've got the name but the name has not been released so we'll let the admiral do that. but still staying very much in the policy field when he goes to this think tank. >> doesn't surprise me. he's done a lot of thinking. a number of years, we need that brain in other places. >> in whatever he hopes to do. >> exactly. he's tired of thinking. poor guy. thanks, john. sarah shourd freed but part of her remains locked up. she is vowing to work toward gaining the freedom of her two hiking companions. i'm ahmed mady and i'm a homebuilder. my father brought me up to give back to society... felicia jackson promised her late sister that she would take care of her children. but she needed help.

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compannions allegedly crossed over into iran from iraq last year. >> reporter: sarah shourd is back in the united states but her homecoming is bittersweet. clutching her own mother's hand and staying close to the mothers of her two companions left behind, the freed american hiker called their arrest a big misunderstanding. >> we committed no crime and we are not spies. we in no way intended any harm to the iranian government or its people. if we were indeed near the iran/iraq border that border was entirely unmarked. >> reporter: iran's president ahmadinejad is in new york for the united nations general assembly. iran promised to try the hiker on spy charges but not offered evidence that they were up to no good. can their release be negotiated? >> translator: we're always prepared to talk but under fair

conditions and respectful conditions. if somebody thinks that they can like order us around or rule us and talk -- later talk, that wouldn't work. >> reporter: sarah shourd did not stray from a prepared statement and did not discuss her treatment. she appeared composed and vowed to work to free her two companions. >> i stand before you today only one-third free. that was the last thing that josh said to me before i walked through the prison doors. >> reporter: doctors have given her a clean bill of health adding her spirit may be bruised but not broken. >> wednesday night our larry king will ask the iranian president about the case against sarah shourd's hiking companions, plus iran's nuclear program and more. let's check our top stories now.

hurricane igor moving away from bermuda but strong winds are causing concern. there has been rain, power's knocked out to two-thirds of the island. no reports of serious damage. a fire outside salt lake city, utah forced evacuation of more than 1,600 homes. schools are closed so. far 3,500 acres have burned. paris hilton expected to plead guilty to cocaine possession. she was arrested last month in a casino. she is expected to serve jail time. christine o'donnell a darling of the tea party, a target of the democrats. we're going to look at the ad wars that are heating up in delaware.

the latest from the best plittal team. paul steinhauser in washington. what's crossing? >> you were talking about christine o'donnell. yesterday democrat desire not waste time. a new ad going after o'donnell for what they call her fiscal irresponsibility. and just in the last hour i learned that the tea party express, remember, that is one of the major tea party organizations, they say they have new ads up in the works, tv, radio in support of o'donnell. they were the group that pumped her $250,000 in to help her out in her primary upset over mike cassel. jay, go in here. also new, obama to headline fund-raiser monday. the president playing fund-raiser in chief, going to pennsylvania. not only to headline and be the

main attraction but also at a separate one to help out joe sestak, the congressman from southeast pennsylvania, the democrat's nominee and for the senate this and polls suggest he is trailing his republican rival in a number of polls, the democrats of course want to hang on to the seat if they can. finally the vice president. he's also out there as well. vice president joe biden going to ohio. between the vice president and the president, this their fifth visit to ohio in the last month. the vice president will team up with the democratic governor out there, face as challenging re-election. remember, presidential politics also important in ohio, not just about this year's midterm. a lot of stuff going on, on the political ticker. c cnnpolitics.com. >> thanks, paul. we'll have your next update in an hour. for the latest you can go to our website. a prosecutor who is supposed to advocate for the victims of crime actually makes a move on

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a district attorney in wisconsin says he won't quit his job. even after sending a string of sleazy text messages to a sex abuse victim. this one's pretty hard to com prehend. i got to to start from the beginning. a 26-year-old woman goes to the police and accuses her ex-boyfriend of trying to choke her to death. the ex-boyfriend is charged and the case starts working its way through the justice system. calumet county district attorney ken kratz is prosecuting the case. he allegedly starts hitting on the victim. police records say he called her a tall, young, hot nymph, asking if she was the kind of girl that likes secret contact with an older married elected da, are you kidding me? the victim says she felt pressured to start a relationship with kratz out of fear that he'd drop the case. for a while kratz called the

whole controversy a smear campaign. now he's apologizing saying he'll go to therapy. but he's not going to step down. >> my behavior was inappropriate. i'm embarrassed and ashamed for the choices that i made and the fault was mine alone. this behavior showed a lack of respect, not only for my position but for the young woman that was involved. >> yeah. you think so? he's just the latest guy to be added to our scandal list. remember john ensign sending this. how wonderful it is, scared but excited. that's pretty innocent compared to the text that tiger woods alleged mistresses say they got. i want to treat you rough and it gets x-rated from there. or how about the former mayor who talked sex and marriage with his chief of staff. i've been dreaming all day having you all to myself. whatever happened to fidelity,

courtship, moral compass? time to give the thumbs a rest, boys. here's what we're working on in the next hour beginning with stephanie elam. >> well, we're talking about a sensitive subject for people, black people make less, save less and pass less money on to the next generation. what's driving the financial divide? i'll have that story in the next hour. >> reporter: and the sun is out, igor is gone and it's time to assess damage. i'll bring you the full report coming up from bermuda. >> thanks, guys. also ahead from pop star to public policy shaper? lady gaga voicing support to repeal "don't ask, don't tell." >> i'm calling to ask the senator to vote with senators harry reid and carl levin to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" and oppose john mccain's shameless filibuster. we need to do this. >> will she make an impact?

we're talking about it next hour.

well, weather plays a huge role in warfare, so an accurate forecast is critical before the troops move in.

that forecast is provided by an elite military weather team and our own rob marciano joined them. >> reporter: this is the special combat, combat weather squadron. let's go see what they do. in a hopeless attempt to have me fit in, they provided me with fatigues and safety gear. this is my country. this is special operations weather team. sowt, baby, at least for a day. there's let's than 100 sowts in the air force. from world war ii to afghanistan, they deployed onto the battlefield, working with the likes of the army rangers, navy s.e.a.l.s. and other special forces. their weather call is key to a mission's success. >> if you look into the floor and the plane crashes, this is how you get out. >> reporter: what is that about

plane crashing? >> we'll be off to the west. >> reporter: today is jump day. >> sign off on equipment check. >> reporter: they rehearse on the ground what they'll do in the air. we're on the tarmac now. they have all of their gear they typically bring on a real mission. lieutenant colonel joe benson commands the combat weather squadron. how important is what you guys do to the overall mission? >> most of what we do is the collection part of weather. in other words, we go out into places that are either hostile and inaccessible to other troops and we go and collect weather observations. we go and assess a river condition. we do terrain. >> reporter: sometimes getting there requires a parachute. >> this is the main? >> don't pull that. >> reporter: what's this? >> that's the reserve. >> reporter: loaded into the back of a c-130 are 18 special operations weather soldiers. you you want an accurate

forecast on the battlefield, sometimes you have to jump out of a plane. >> are you guys ready back there? >> we're ready. >> reporter: one minute before they go out the back door, i legally can't jump and i'm not disappointed about that. with the static line guys out at 2500 feet, we climb higher, and the spotters eye the next drop zone. six weather jumpers left at 10,000 feet. they jump free fall. they get weather forecasts behind enemy lines. they're the ones that do it. you guys rock. what comes next is an adrenaline filled minute falling as fast as 200 miles an hour.

deploy the chute and get on the ground asap. this could be hostile territory, and the weathermen have arrived. certainly an eye opening experience, kyra. i heard about these guys over the years but i've had a hard time reading up and seeing pictures. obviously, that's the idea when you work with a covert, small special forces unit. tomorrow we'll talk about exactly what they do when they get on the ground and you'll meet the here rose that are bringing the accurate forecast to the soldiers fighting next to them. >> do they have to be on the ground it forecast? >> reporter: we say, there's nothing like good observation b observations to get a good forecast, but, more specifically than that and something i didn't really think about until i spent time with these guys, they do much more than forecast the weather. in the military, everything is mission-specific. if they have to cross a river, they have to make sure the river

is crossable for both men and equipment. if they have to go over a mountain pass, they have to make sure they can get over the terrain, if there's avalanche danger. there's a lot month to this than weather forecasting. these guys different than the guys i went to school. >> seeing you in the fatigues, you look like you're ready to join the military. >> reporter: my skill set is not where theirs is. lady ga ga not just social networked but socially minded. consider her recent political prowess. she won her very public facebook popularity war, of sorts, with our commander in chief, president obama. she tops the president by 1 million more twitter followers and also been known to tweet senate majority leader harry re reid. we're learning why. her cause, equality for gay

members of the military. check out her most recent posting on youtube. already more than 1 million hits. >> i have called both of the senators that operate in my district. i will not stop calling until i reach them, and i can leave them this message. i am a constituent of the senator. my name is stephanie joe an angelina germanotta, also known as lady ga ga. i'm calling to ask the senator to vote with senators harry reid and carl leaven to repeal don't ask don't tell and oppose john mccain's shameless filibuster. we need to do this for our gay and lesbian soldierers and finally repeal don't ask don't tell. >> now lady ga ga is bound for portland, maine to lead a rally. her goal, getting the two undecided republican senators there to support her cause. cnn senior congressional

correspondent, dana dash. lady ga ga fan, maybe. hey, i understand you cancelled your brack fast to talk about this. i'm starting to wonder what you were playing on the radio this morning. >> reporter: i have a poker face. >> well, don't ask, don't tell. the showdown is definitely looming, right. >> reporter: no question. it is looming. there's a vote scheduled for 2:15 tomorrow morning. what we're talking about here, kyra,a vote to proceed to a broader defense bill. in that defense bill is that authorization to repeal the don't ask don't tell policy, but the issue -- nothing is ever easy in the senate. the issue is republicans, pretty much all of them, say that they're angry at the way the process in which the senate majority loird is bringing it to the floor. they want to have chans to amend or change it, and reed is not

allowing them to do that. so that's the primary reason why even some republican supporters of the repeal are going to stick with their party likely and block this from coming to the floor. >> do we know how influential lady ga ga is on this, and what, you know, do the senators think of her? do we know anything about this? to us it came out of nowhere, and all of a sudden we're learning about all of this attention she's gaining. >> reporter: no question. the reality is the senators that she is targeting today in particular, the two republican senators from maine and one we know because she's on the record, susan collins, she agrees with the pop star that this policy should be repealed, but the problem that lady ga ga and more specifically the whole gay rights community that she's working with, the problem they're running into is the process and procedure in the senate, and this is the gridlock that we've been looking at.

this is the latest example of the gridlock we've been looking at for various reasons for a long time. how influential will she be on collins and rsnowe? it's hard to tell. it depends on whether the leaders come up with a plan to allow this bill to go forward. my sources are saying right now that doesn't look have good. let's talk more about today's rally and lady ga ga's star power. the service legal network is organizing today's event in portland and he's joining us by phone. i understand lady ga ga is sleeping on the bus. we tried to get you to wake her up. we want to hear from her. >> she is sleeping on the bus. she should be here by mid or late afternoon for this don't ask don't tell repeal rally. i agree that the two senators

from maine are critical here. they have been a bridge for bipartisanship before, and we think that they can be that bridge again to break the deadlock that was just referred to. we do need a vote, and we need for it to be bipartisanship. >> now, aubrey, way lady ga ga? why this voice? >> well, because she cares passionately about this issue. she was with some of our clients, service members who were discharged under don't ask don't tell about 2 1/2 weeks ago in washington. she heard their stories. she was moved by those stories, and she wanted to become even more active in being a propose opponent to repeal don't ask don't tell. in fact, she invited those clients to go with her to los angeles to the video awards, which you may have seen about ten days ago, and within the

last two or three days, she decided she wanted to come here to maine to take the story to senator collins and to senator snowe, and, indeed, to not only all of the new england senators, but to all 100 senators, and her message is pretty straightforward. let's find a way to break through the posturing, the spinning. let's find a bipartisan way to get a vote tomorrow. >> so, aubrey, i took a look at the youtube video that she posted, already more than 1 million hits. is it affecting the switchboards there in the offices of these senators, and have people taken to the web to take action? >> well, we hear that from capitol hill. in fact, we heard that the switchboard was overloaded on the capitol and that, indeed, callers were having trouble getting through. they've been texting the senators and they've been

calling. i think it is having an impact in senate offices, but as was noted earlier, at the end of the day this will have to be worked out between the minority leader, senator mitch mcconnell, and senator harry reid, the senate majority leader. i think senator collins and senator snowe and some other key republicans are the link to breaking through this stalemate, reaching an agreement to ensure a vote tomorrow. i think that can happen. it is too close to call at the moment. i think we would all agree with that. as we speak, i don't think senator reid or senator mitch mcconnell knows how this is going to turn out tomorrow, so that makes it violate for people who care about repeal to weigh in now in. >> aubrey sarvis, we'll follow the bus trip into main. thank you so much. >> thank you.

ferocious waves and high winds whipping bermuda. igor brushed past the island last night. a near miss still a big deal. igor is enormous. hurricane force winds clocked some 90 miles away from the center. reynolds wolf is trying to fight against the gusts. he's live in bermuda for us. we just saw twa -- what it was like last night. >> reporter: we've had a bit of a transformation in the last couple of hours. the storm clouds pushing north around the center of circulation, leaving behind co-bault clear skies. let's go to the video is show you the story. it was unbelievable. pounding surf and very heavy rainfall and the winds just amazing. we're talking tropical storm

force with hurricane force winds of the center that came closer especially in late afternoon and evening hours and overnight. it reached its fuel furry. it does not make direct landfall. it past to the west, southwest of the island but we caught the northeast quadrant. we had, of course, the heavy winds which caused all kinds of power outages. this morning those conditions are better. we spoke to the elbow beach resort management. the general manager went around and so far he likes what he sees. >> i'm happy. on a quick sursry inspection, looks like minimal damage, a couple little dividers down here and there. the beach erosion is little intense down there, but as you can see, we have a lot of beach. compared to fabian, this a good outcome. >> reporter: now, fabian, which he's referring to, struck back

in 2003, that was a devastating storm, smaller in size to igor but had much stronger winds. it caused all kinds of damage around the island, killed four people, widespread damage. in fact, parts of the island were without power up to three weeks. the situation is getting better as the storm moves north. it's time to assess the damage across the island. two-thirds of the island without power. no injuries or deaths to report. nearly five months after a deadly explosion triggered the worst oil spill in u.s. history, bp's well is permanently sealed. pressure tests confirm that the concrete is holding. the broken well spewed more than 200 million gallons into the gulf of mexico. the gulf residents say that tar balls can still be found in ankle-deep water. earlier we heard from the government's point man on the

crisis. >> it's going to go on as long as it takes to get the marshes is beaches clean. we have detailed plans that we negotiated with the states and parishes in louisiana to determine, if you will, how clean is clean, and in some areas, we're going to stay with this for quite a while. the marsh areas in barataria bay still have oil and need work. some of these places we have to negotiate and agree nothing further can be done, then that's it but right now we're still at it. >> much of the focus is on the sea floor where some tests have shown concentrations of oil. sarah shourd back home and speaking out about her ordeal. she and two hiking companions were taken into custody after allegedly crossing over into the country last year. shourd joined by the mothers of her two hiking companions spoke to the media after arriving back in the united. >> shane and josh do not deserve

to be in prison one day longer than i was. we committed no crime and we are not spies. we in no way intended any harm to the iranian government or its people and believe a huge misunderstanding led to our detention and prolonged imprisonment. >> cnn wednesday night, our larry king will ask the iranian president about the case against sarah shourd's hiking companions. the roman coliseum in flames for art's sake and that illusion is making italians take a double take. when i brush, i like to do a really mediocre job.

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first stamp, london, victims of the church sex abuse scandal are calling on pope benedict to take action and not just apologize. benedict met with five six abuse

victims and talked about the scandal at mass in britain. >> to think of the immense abuse of children, especially within the church and by her ministers, above all, i express my deep sorrow to the innocent victims of this despicable crimes. >> thousands of protesters democrat straight against the pope's visit. one sign seen in the crowd accused benedict of being the boss of the world's largest sex gang. in vatican city, the library reopening to the public after being closed for three years. the library's collection includes 1.6 million books and hundred of thousands of manuscripts. in rome, one of the seven wonders of the world is on fire. not really. it's an illusion. they burned around landmarks

around the world. italians love it. 20,000 people have driven by to see it. crossing the english channel, a quadruple amputee finished the swim. he lost his legs from the knees down and arms from the elbow as down in an electrical accident. he made the channel crossing to inspire those who think life is nothing but suffering. a texas high school quarterback and an entire community desperate for answers about how he falls to his death in the middle of a friday night game. today just seemed like a great day to save. oh, it's not just today. with our free loyalty program, you earn great stuff like accident forgiveness and bigger discounts just by staying with us. oh! ooh! so, what you're saying is, it gets even better with age. oh! tell me we're still talking about insurance.

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checking top stories, karl rove calls on republican senate nominee to explain her comments on witch craft. in a 1999 interview, she said she dabbled in witch craft. there was a fire in herriman, utah. utah's governor just back from an aerial tour this morning, praising the work of firefighters for saving many other homes. igor moving away from bermuda after battering the island with high wind and heavy rain. igor is not expected to hit the u.s. but could cause life-threatening rip currents on east coast beaches.

your money and tacks are in the center of the most bitter fights in washington. in 110 days, the bush tax cuts are to expire. democrats want to it extend them but not for the wealthy. we have the editor at large, who wrote about the study, and why do economists say this may not be the best idea. >> it's interesting what 18 of the 31 it economists surveyed said. they think the number one priority from washington should be to extend all of the tax cuts. the economy is so fragile right now that the majority of the economists we surveyed seemed to think that extending tax cuts for everyone would be the most beneficial for short-term health of the economy, trying to get it back on track again. >> bapaul, let's take an exampl. what does this mean for a family

of four making $75,000 a year? >> it would increase their tax bill by about 26$2600 a year, which is a significant amount for any family, let alone right now when people are wondering whether or not the economy is going to recover to the levels it was before the financial crisis hate few years ago. so that's why really there is this urgency in washington to get something done, to at least extend the tax cuts for the middle class if not everyone. >> what happens on january one if congress doesn't do anything? >> if nothing is done which is probably a long shot. hopefully something will get done because of the political brouhaha that would result from no action, you would have taxes raised for the vast majority of tax paying americans because you would have taxes revert back to the pre-tax cut levels from

2001. >> we will follow it, paul.

well, the small community of west george, texas is trying to come to grips today with the death of a star high school athlete and scholar. play was actually halted on friday night after reggie gator threw a touchdown pass and then collapsed. he was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late. several colleges had actually shown interest in this straight-a student, and his coach, dan hooks, spoke to us about this young man's death and the reaction from all his fans and friends. >> it's devastating. i mean, it's just hard to talk

about it. they were all crying and falling out. well, you couldn't say anything to comfort them. what are you going to say? you lost a 17-year-old child and nobody knew what the circumstances were or nothing. it's really bad. >> gator's car remained parked at the school over the weekend, and it's quickly become a memorial covered in flowers and notes. no word on what caused his death. the pressure of being a head football coach can take its toll. michigan state beat notre dame on saturday. after the game, spartan head coach mark antonio was admitted to the hospital with symptoms of a heart attack. antonio won't be at next week's game but is expected to make a full recovery. who said baseball wasn't a contact sport. check out yesterday's highlight reel between the cubs and marlins.

>> ouch! oh, lord! >> reporter: a baseball bat breaks and a piece plows into the player. >> the bat shattered and the big barrel part of the bat hit him right in the side. >> reporter: miami dade fire rescue rushed him to sun is the light staim stadium. >> the drive down the line is going to bounce over the fence. that's a double. >> reporter: durl the second inning of the marlins versus cubs game, a fast-flying chunk of wood pierced tyler colvin. >> he was coming in from third on a hit, and the bat just boom right 32 his chest, the pointy end of it, too. he stopped for a few seconds and kept trotting in but he was stunned. >> when we saw colvin go down to his knees when he was crossing home, you knew something was wrong. >> reporter: colvin came off the field and was air-lifted to jackson memorial hospital.

the cubs say colvin is stable and only suffered from a little external bleeding. >> he's a strong guy up here. maybe that had something to do with it, and i more importantly, he dodged a bullet. >> reporter: colvin's wound will heel but after getting hit, he may not hit the diamond for a while. >> dangerous game. the ball is being thrown hard and that's just part of it. >> once again, that's wsbn reporting. tyler colvin is being treated with a chest tube in hopes of preventing a collapsed lung. tens of thousands of u.s. troops have a check waiting for them from uncle sam but they are not cashing in. why the commander in chief is trying to convince them it's not a scam. [ male announcer ] if you have type 2 diabetes,

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to hand out free, no strings attached money to about 145,000 troops who were forced to stay on duty a after the 9/11 attacks but the pentagon is having a tough time convincing troops it's not a scam. last year congress set aside more than $500 million for troops who were stop lost, a controversial emergency measure used by the pentagon to keep deployed unit in the field. critics compared it to a back-door draft. one person made is sound like it was a long shot. >> he basically made is sound like if world war iii popped off it would be activated but there's no chance, just sign here. >> i think it's dishonest. if somebody wants to be at war, but if they have done their four years, okay, i signed a contract for four years, i'm done. >> but soldiers are now eligible for back payments of $500 each

for each months of service. that comes out to a lump sum of between 3800 and 5,000. they have to sign their check one month from tomorrow. as of today, more than $24 million was unclaimed. they are scrambling to track down eligible vet vans and asked for help from the commander in chief. >> i know there's been some confusion and skepticism out there. some veterans think this is some sort of gimmick or scam or that it's a way for the government to call you back to service. nothing could be further from the truth. as your commander in chief, i'm here to tell thank you this is no gimmick or trick. you worked hard. you earned this money. it doesn't matter when you were active or reserve or a veteran who experienced stop loss or the survivor of a service member who did. if your service was extended,

you are eligible. >> they mailed letters, flooded facebook and twitters but the message isn't getting through. we have a guest from d.c. joining me. tom, why is it so hard to get these thousands of vets to apply for this money? >> well, it's hard to reach out to vets. vets don't all live in one town or one community. they're all over the place. we have gotten a little under half who are eligible to apply but we have to push to get the other half. this is free money and this is their hard-earned overtime pay at a time when the economy is bad and veteran unemployment is very high. >> very high. why do so many of these men and women think that this is a scam? >> well, i don't know if they actually think this is a scam. you're always going to have those outliars, but it does seem

a little to good to be true. this is something our government has not done well before but congress have the veterans community came together a couple of years ago and decided, you know what, veterans and military members deserve their overtime pay. being deployed is a hardship, being held past your contract is more of a hardship. let's give them their overtime pay. you get paid when you work overtime. so should they, and like i said, in a tough economic time, this is something we can do to help our service members battle high unemployment and get them their stop loss pay. you need to go to defensestop loss.gov. >> that's a lot of money, and vets are out of work. it's a horrible economy. you would think they would be right in there getting this nice lump sum of cash. what happened? where was the mistrust built? >> well, especially if you have been stop lost, some vets feel

like they were a little bit cheated, even though, you know what, they sucked it up and drove on and did their duty. obviously, when you leave service, you're going to feel like you want to stay away. you just don't want to be bothered, so you may not be paying attention to the normal avenues to the department of defense or veterans community are using to get to you. that's why it was important that the commander in chief hit it hard, hit it home. >> what happens to the money if they don't claim it? >> it goes away. it was written in for only one year, and you have one year to apply for this allowance. there's a couple things to do. first of all, if you know a vet or know anyone who has been in the military and ask them if they have been stop lost, and if they say yes, tell them to go to the website and apply before october 21st. >> you say it's tough to track down a lot of these vets.

what's being done to track down these troopers that deserve this money? >> the dod has been pretty comprehensive over the last year, sent out postcards to everyone in her records who they think were held under a stop loss order, sent out mass e-mails, facebook and twitter and reached out to organizes like iava to reach out to our members and done live chats on our social network of veterans and talked to the american legion, and the vfw to get the word out that if you have been stop lost you may have money coming to you. >> tom tarantino, thank you for your time. >> thank you. creating wealth and passing it on to future generations, the american dream but rarely the reality for african-americans. eg that i want to do completely on my own -- i like to discuss my ideas with someone. that's what i like about fidelity. they talked with me one on one, so we could come up with a plan that's right for me, and they worked with me to help me stay on track --

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how many times have we debated this? are we in a resession? is the resession over? were we ever in a recession? poppy harlow joining us. according to the economic research center, the recession has been over to a while, but how powerful is this statement? >> for more than a year. this is the official statement that the economists around the world, all of us, are waiting for comes to the us from the national bureau of economic research. these are the only folks that can say when the economy is in a recession and when it has emerged. the statement just came out. they had a meeting yesterday and what they decided is that the u.s. economy came out of a recession in june 2008. so more than a year ago, they said it was an 18-month cycle. you remember, they said the recession began in december 2007, lasted until june 2009.

this is an 18-month long recession, they're calling it, the longest of any recession we've seen since world war ii. we had the 16-month recession in '81-'82 and '73, '75. the housing market doesn't look stronger, and the job market has gotten weaker, some would say, since the official end of the recession, and what they say to that is we will determine whether a new resession has begun. we have been debating over it time and time again whether american families feel it ended more than a year ago is a big question. >> it is all so confusion. how do you determine that this, i guess we're saying, first recession, because we could be in another recession, actually ended in 2009? what evidence throwed that?

>> it's a great question. i'm poring through the report. they're saying what the committee decided, all of these people coming together, in 2009 it looked as though business activity picked up again across the u.s., whether you're looking at manufacturing, finance. they say business activity picked up. they do say, and this is important, they say the committee did not conclude that economic conditions since that month have been favorable to the economy. so they said that's when the turn happened. so business could look stronger for a month or two months and that's what they call it the official end of the recession. they continue to point out it doesn't look like conditions since have been favorable. what is also important, and you will see it continue here on cnnmoney, why don't we feel like the recession is over? you have more and more economists saying it feels like there could be a double-dip and we'll bring you more on that throughout the day. i guess officially an end to the

recession more than a year ago. >> a month ago we were debating whether we would see a double-dip. here we go. when it comes to making it saving money in this country, there's a huge gap between blacks and whites. stephanie elam joins us. blacks have less than one-fourth of the wealth enjoy bide the average american family. why? >> it's a huge problem. if you take a look at black families, you find money is a taboo subject to broach almost up there with sex. it's something families do not talk about it, and because of a that it leads to a dismal rate of saving and preparing wealth. we met a family who making sure they don't fall into the same pattern. >> reporter: chris rock has joked about black people and their money. >> shaq is rich! the white man that signs his check is wealthy!

wealth is passed down from generation to generation. >> reporter: there's a sad truth in his humor. studies show black people toned chronically make less, save less and pass less money onto the next generation than their white counterparts, and if you don't have assets, you can't pass them on. >> give us lord our daily brady. >> reporter: marvin and kathy dickerson are making sure their family doesn't follow the same pattern. married for nine years, the couple started planning their finances before well coming their children. >> how is this a fair fight? >> we knew we had to invest because we knew one day we were going to have kids, and we wanted our kids to have more than what we had. >> reporter: the dickersons developed a budget, paid off their debt, began investing, set up a will, a trust, and 529 plans to pay for their kids' college educations.

>> we can pass that wealth or those assets onto our kids with a $1.5 million tax exemption. >> reporter: this family is the exception. according to the brookings institution, the median net worth of black americans is about $28,000. compare that to $140,000 for the median house hold nationwide. what were your parents saying to you to make sure it was so important? >> you work, you save. >> reporter: while march rin is a spender, katherine is a saver, so they make decisions together. >> kathy had this guiding principle if she spent $100 she got a headache. as we got married and had more resources, you could add another zero. very valerie coalman more vis points to reasons plaque americans are so behind in creating wealth and passing it

on. >> money is very much an off-limits topic in average families but in african-american families almost taboo. the 401(k), we are not participating, and when we do, we are contributing far less than most other people, but, in addition to that, there is this overwhelming need for becoming more financial literate, and we aren't. >> not talking about rich. i'm talking about wealth! >> reporter: but it's more than just talk for the dickersons. it's a way of life. so, you know, when you hear chris rock joking like that, kyra, it is really funny. i love chris rock because he goes straight to the jugular about what we're thinking out there. when you take a look at the unemployment rate among blacks it is always at recessionary levels whether we are in a recession or not. you heard from poppy we are not in a resession but it doesn't matter. it is 50% higher than white americans at all education levels, and there's a lot more

part-time workers in the black population, so they don't have access to 401(k) and when they do, there are issues of going ahead and using those services to prepare for retirement. it's a huge problem. you have lower earnings and lower savings rates but something that really has to change. one note about the dickersons, it's interesting to see kathy grew up talking about finances. in marvin's family they didn't talk about it, so he learned a lot from her. they were together for 22 year, college sweethearts, and they are passing this information on to their kids so they are fortified to pass it onto their kids. >> he invested in their love as well. >> they have been together for a while, and they know how they respond to things. they are unified team and have discussions together. whether you are white or black or hispanic, you need to talk about your finances. you need to talk about how to

address what happens if something happens to someone. families are not doing that. we need to do more of it. valerie coleman says you can talk about your finances now or fight about them later. >> rather talk than fight. fighting a financial crisis from the pulpit. the black church has fought for civil and human rights and now its waging a war on debt, almighty debt, black in america special coming on thursday, only on cnn. hurricane igor moving away from bermuda, but strong winds are causing concerns. there's lots of rain and power knocked out but now reports of serious damage. bp announced it has cemented shut the well. the well started spewing oil five months ago. the food and drug administration is holding a hearing right now on a jeannetn genetically engin

salmon. we want to get your reaction to genetically modified salmon. would you eat it? alex says, why not, there is no reason to believe it is a problem. i'm more concerned about manmad toxins in our food than a single gene modification in a salmon. katherine says no to genetically engineered anything. the fda is irresponsible to market these without testing. tmk, what happens when the genetically modified salmon mate with normal salmon the fda needs to rethink their stance on genetically modified decisions. we want to hear from you. thanks for writing in. just over six weeks until midterm elections. we have all of the nchls for you. we have a story just into the cnn newsroom. details in a couple minutes. you can make it in just 14 minutes.

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time now for stories from the best political team on television. joining us, dana bash. what's crossing, dana? >> reporter: news that we just posted. cnn has learned that house republicans on thursday will unveil their much-anticipated process for governing should they get the majority back.

this is quite different than 1984. we remember the contract with america, all of the republicans on the steps of the capitol. this is going to be different because as you see here, posted here from myself and our intrepid congressional reporter joe joe wall. this is a smaller event at a hardware store in serling, virginia. republican leaders are going to meet with small business owners and come out and have a press conference, very different from the contract, also, because that was a very specific list of 20 agenda items. this is going to be about 20. that was 10. this will be about 20. it will be focused on things that voters care about this year, like small businesses, like jobs and things like that and will talk about how they would run the house of representatives differently if they were in charge. this is brand new. cnn has learned first. it is on the ticker. for the rest of what's crossing on the ticker, i turn it over to mark preston.

other stories crossing right now, while they might be unified over that agenda they'll release on thursday, whether or not unified republicans is in alaska. lisa murkowski decided to run as a write-in candidate. she was on "state of the union" with candy crowley. she says she's a victim of a smear campaign and is going to run even though she doesn't have the backing of the republican establishment who switched their allegiance to the tea party barked candidate. christine o'donnell, of course, is the republican senate nominee up in delaware. well, she said some interesting things over the past week or so, and, in fact, there's been something unearthed from 1999. she talked about how she dabbled in witch craft, and, of course, karl rove, the famed republican strategist asked her to explain

it, and she responded to that karl rove comment and used a little humor. she said i did comment if i were a witch, rove would be a supporter. i would have turned him into a newt because gingrich says we're going to win. >> thank the. next political update in one hour. a reminder, for the latest political news, check in with dana and mark with us or go to the website, cnn politics.com. spinach, and cheese. but calcium, vitamin d and exercise may not be enough to keep your bones strong. so ask your doctor about once-monthly boniva. boniva works with your body to help stop and reverse bone loss. studies show, after one year on boniva that's exactly what it did for nine out of ten women. and that's what it did for me. (announcer) n't take boniva if you problems with your esophagus, low blood calcium, severe kidney disease, or can't sit or stand for at least one hour. follow dosing instructions carefully. stop taking boniva and tell your doctor if you have difficult or painful swallowing, chest pain

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tribute to men and women in uniform who made the ultimate sacrifice in iraq or afghanistan. today we lift up capital darryl lewis from washington killed in an insurgent attack in afghanistan in june, 2007. michael gallagher served with him and sent us this memory. we lived across the haul in our barracks, went on missions together. he was killed a few days after i shipped out. i hope he's remembered for his leadership and sacrifice that came without a thought for his own well being and for his devotion to his family and country. if you have a comrade or loved one would you like us to honor, just go to cnn.com/homeandaway, type in the name, pull up the profile, send us your thought us and pictures, we promise to keep the memory of your hero alive. ♪ thank you friend for all your freedom that we've come to know ♪ here's a myth: you get nothing for driving safely.

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personal pricing now on brakes. tell us what you want to pay. we do our best to make that work. deal! my money. my choice. my meineke. >> going cross country. florida, an angry father storms onto a school bus to confront kids he believed bullied his daughters. james jones thought somebody threw a condom on his daughter who has cerebral palsy. he was charged with disorderly conduct. jones later explained his anger. >> my daughter is not going to be hazed and beat up and touched

on and the way they have done. i'm very sorry. i apologize. this is not just for me. heading east to new york city, don't plan any trips to nike's flag ship store on manhattan east 57th street. bed bugs have taken over nike town and they have closed their doors. it's unclear when the store will reopen. the power of positive thinking being credited for helping an inner city school in florida turn the tables of test schools. david bowden from ft. myers has the story. >> reporter: in a strip mall on dr. martin luther king boulevard, there's a battle going on. >> we are waging wore on ignorance. >> reporter: the weapons of choice, pencils, paper, and positive attitudes. >> we believe anything worth doing is worth doing well. >> reporter: and if these young students of the lee charter academy are the soldiers, this

is their general, dr. shirley chapman. >> i'm making a difference for children that many others have given up on. >> reporter: the veteran educator and her staff dress in fatigues every nond remind the children of their most important mission. >> you can go to kindergarten clean through eighth grade, and they will explain to you ignorance means without knowledge and we're here to learn. >> reporter: learning is what they're doing. back in 2004, the school had a state rating of f, and but chapman was determined to defy stereotypes of inner city schools, not allowing kids or staff to feel sorry or discouraged with their financial or social surroundings, and just told them to believe that they could succeed, and it worked. >> we have high expectations for children. it doesn't matter what you look like, it doesn't matter what you bring when you come. what matters is what you receive

once you get here. >> reporter: a disciplined, intense learning atmosphere. >> i like my teacher and my classma classmates, and i like everything about my school. >> i believe in the students here. i believe that the children are just as bright, just as talented and gifted as every other student in lee county, as every other student in the state of florida, as every other student in this country. >> reporter: the plan of attack seems to be working. for the last three years, the school has maintained an a grade from state officials. their work even acknowledged by governor charlie crist, and while chapman applauds her staff and students for beating the odds, she says the war against ignorance is far from over. that's from david boden from our cnn affiliate in ft. myers, florida. that does it for us.

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