autism, half of it taped in new york and the other half is live from here with him hosting. tomorrow night, and don't forget the big rally october 30th. want to sit here for an interview, you can. go to cnn.com/larryking, enter our contest. being the king. the winner will come to the set and turn the tables on yours truly. >> i'm totally entering! >> larry: friday night, the cast of "modern family" will be here. now anderson cooper and "ac now anderson cooper and "ac 360." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com good morning. it is a pink penalty. breast cancer awareness month. you see pink all over the place. people trying to show their support for the cause. that's what some high school football referees thought they were doing but just a little

pink could get them now suspended. plus we're used to seeing americans training iraqis on the battlefield, but now it is the other way around. a look at how iraqis are helping u.s. veterans in the water, no guns, no armor, no helmets needed, just a pair of oars. and we as always want to start by welcoming our troops watching on the armed forces network in iraq, afghanistan, around the world, thank you for being here. thank you for what you do. this is your "cnn sunday morning," 6:00 a.m. in atlanta, 1:00 a.m. in baghdad. i'm t.j. holmes. >> and i'm suzanne malveaux. nine days to the mid term election, and one group is trying to convince some voters to stay home. >> don't vote this november. this is the only way to send them a clear message. >> you heard that right. we have been telling you how important these mid terms are, but now another group is telling you not to vote. we'll tell you who paid for that

ad and who exactly they're trying to target. also, celine dion has two new members of her family today after giving birth to twins. we'll tell you how mom and sons are doing. also, she is a world class athlete. she's a model. she's an actress. and she's also a double amputee. we talk to the woman who have redefining disabled this morning. again, we'll get back to these midterms now. cnn, as always, the place for all the politics you are ever going to need. we're counting this down. we are just nine days away now. >> lots of politics. on the day after, we could wake up to a totally different balance of power. that is why we see republicans, democrats, the white house all pulling out the stops in a last ditch effort to take control or to keep it. here's the way it looks. as many as six seats are considered toss-ups. republicans need ten to take control.

the house looms as the gop's biggest payoff. 45 races are considered toss-ups. republicans need 39 to take control. 13 governor's races will also be decided on november 2nd, and the president, of course, very much aware of what is at stake. he only has nine days to turn the momentum his way, and the calendar, of course, is a constant reminder of the democratic wave that swept him into office in 2008 threatens to turn into a republican rip tide that could drown his administration in the midterm elections. the president absolutely needs young voters to come out again in large numbers. so at a rally at the university of minnesota just yesterday, he laid it out on the line telling the crowd i need you to keep fighting. >> it looks like you're kind of fired up. and i need you fired up.

because in just ten days, you have the chance, not just to set the direction of this state but also help to determine the direction of this country, not just for the next two years, but the next five years, the next ten years, the next 20 years. and just like you did in 2008, you have the chance to defy the conventional wisdom. meanwhile, sarah palin is using the president's own words as she urges republicans to keep working until the very last minute. president obama says he thinks americans are frustrated and not thinking straight about the midterm elections. and palin's rallied 2,000 -- yes, that's right. 2,000 republicans in orlando just last night and said voters are right to be worried. she says the president's policies are scaring people. >> we are afraid, knowing that your economic policies are driving us off a cliff and knowing that your fundamental

transformation of america is turning into a nightmare. this is not the america that the rest of the people want. this is not the america that patriots fought and died for and are still dying for today. this is not the america that floridians fight for to protect, to persevere through every day. >> palin is supporting marco rubio, the republican locked in a three-way race for senate for florida. from the republican rally in florida last night to a debate there this morning. >> big debate taking place there. it's our election express rolled into tampa, where this debate is going to take place. we are set up there and set up there strong for what should be a pretty intriguing debate because the race itself has been pretty intriguing. we mentioned marco rubio, the republican. the two others running, charlie crist, the independent there, and kendrick meek, the democrat,

debating this morning. candy crowley is there, and she sets the stage for us. >> reporter: hey, t.j. and suzanne. a couple of hours, 9:00 a.m. eastern, we're having a debate here at the university of south florida in tampa. it is for the senatorial race here in florida. it's going to be a big one because it's got great characters. frankly, marco rubio, who's the new kind of it guy in the republican party. he's got a lot of money coming in here. he was originally fueled by tea party activists. we have the governor charlie crist. he used to be a republican and basically got chased out of the republican primary because rubio was doing so well. crist running as an independent. and we have the democrat looking for some room between rubio and crist to kind of find some traction. he has been sort of consistently placing third, but the meek camp is hoping that they can frankly draw some blood here in this debate coming up. they think, because time is running short, that they really have to go after marco rubio,

who at this point is the front-runner. in any case, we expect some fireworks, but we also are expecting substantive debates. i can promise you this, they're substantive questions. you'll have to watch. >> always substance with candy crowley, and you can see that debate coming up here when we sign off on "cnn sunday morning" at 9:00 eastern time. candy crowley hosting the florida senate debate, 9:00 a.m. eastern time. school, teachers. you expect your math teacher knows math. the science teacher knows science. the english teacher knows english. that might not exactly be the case. >> and still to come, some english teachers, ones that may be on the receiving end of the test taking. you'll see. they put a white check on the top of every box to let people know that their cereals have healthy whole grain, and they're the right choice... (announcer) general mills makes getting whole grain an easy choice. just look for the white check.

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because opportunity can start anywhere, and go everywhere. let's keep it moving. ♪ you want to talk weather? >> let's talk some weather here. let's take it to pictures. i pressuappreciate our i-report that get to stories we just can't get to. take a look at this coming down. that's hail, dime-sized, we're told, those pellets you're seeing. this happened yesterday morning in the indian state of punjab. it was truly fascinating for our 7-year-old i-reporter. said it's the first hail storm ever he was caught in. glad he was able to videotape. sometimes those things can be a little dangerous if the pellet,a

little larger. but those seem small enough, and that's why he can enjoy this one. >> he was mesmerized by this, obviously. we're still looking at asia, much of it dealing with a typhoon. that's their equivalent of a hurricane. close to home, tropical storm richard looks to make landfall soon, possibly at hurricane strength. let's get the latest from meteorologist bonnie schneider at the cnn weather center. >> we're definitely looking at richard strengthening before it makes landfall. this is a really impressive storm even though it's close to land. tropical storm richard's maximum winds are at 70 miles per hour. when they get 74 or greater, that's when we have a hurricane. right now the storm is really bearing down on honduras. you can see the bright flashes of purple and orange on the map. that indicates the clouds where we have the heaviest rain. some of that rain could be in excess of 5 inches of rain. so the forecast takes it to hurricane strength over the next several hours, and as it works

its way across belize, where interestingly, there's a hurricane warning right now. then it will emerge over the bay of campeche and cross mexico. this could be worse, but it's not going to be a good situation for central america. notice the winds, the gusts are as high as 85 miles per hour, which takes it to above hurricane strength. here in the u.s., let's check it out. lots of rain sliding across the midwest. let's go to areas north of chicago into wisconsin and michigan. that's when we're seeing the heaviest rain at this hour. a lot of thunderstorms sliding into grand rapids, and if you take a closer look to new england, look at this. a little snow in higher elevations of upstate new york, vermont, and new hampshire. wet weather creeping into the boston area. today is the second day of the head of the charles regatta. the big race along the charles river in boston. the winds have been problematic with this race. we're not going to see the best weather to get off to a start. we're also seeing spotty showers along long island's east end and

towards the jersey shore, delaware and maryland. i want to show you the temperatures today because they are looking pretty good. it's actually really warm in lots of places. 85 in dallas, texas. 75 in washington, d.c. lots of fall leaves here on the map. if you're looking for where we are peak color right now, definitely parts of the midwest and into northern new england. we're looking at a high temperature of 58 degrees in boston, 69 in new york city, and 75 in washington, d.c. >> bonnie, we appreciate you as always. thank you so much. canadian diva celine dion is the proud mother now of twin boys this morning. we'll show you all the best. they haven't been named yet, but the babies came into this world weighing 5 pounds, 10 ounces, and 5 pounds, 4 ounces. they were delivered by cesarean section in west palm beach, florida. >> the babies are healthy. didn't come without a scare. dionne had to be admitted to the hospital a week ago to prevent

the premature delivery of the twins. how she had a tough time getting pregnant this time around. also, she has a 9-year-old, i believe, with her husband as well. had a tough time both times getting pregnant, and this latest round she had to have six rounds of in vitro fertilization. she has been very difficulvocal her difficulty in getting pregnant. it has paid off. celine dion, now the proud mother of two baby boys.

14 minutes past the hour now. we're coming into the final days before the midterm elections. whole lot of money going into advertisements. all sorts of groups you probably never heard of. they are pushing their agendas. >> analysts say the total money could be in the billions. josh levs with a look at how it's playing out on tv screens across the country. advertising going on. we have seen an amazing number of ads this go round. >> amazing. there's an analysis that says ultimately issue and ad spending this election season might end up being $3 billion. because it's the midterms, a lot of these are targeting specific voting groups or specific states. let's take a look at the latest one. >> remember we need to send a message to all politicians. if they didn't keep their promise on immigration reform, then they can't count on their vote. democratic leaders must pay for their broken promises and betrayals. if we just go on supporting them

again this november, they will keep playing games with our future and taking our vote for granted. don't vote this november. >> don't vote. those are the key words that got people talking. this ad was also made in spanish. it sparked controversy after it aired a few times on the radio. it was slotted to air on univision, but the spanish language tv network pulled it. the group behind it is latinos for reform. i spoke to the head of the group, robert posada, and they are made up of about ten businessman. it's a small ad, but it's part of a large phenomenon, a huge phenomenon in this election cycle, conservative backed groups getting money this election. evan tracy explained. >> it's a role reversal from the past two elections. clearly, republican money had been on the sidelines in 2006. they weren't happy with the way things were going. in 2008, obviously, they weren't happy with john mccain, who had been trying to put these groups out of business.

and you had democrats really energized and motivated. this year, because of things like there's no single payer in the health care bill, the cap and trade bill didn't pass. you didn't see any democratic money coming into the process. but you're starting to see it now. i think the president has been really hitting on this issue, and he's probably gotting some of these democrats off the sidelines and back into the races. >> there are some third parties pushing for democrats as well. the ad i showed you before focused partly on voters in nevada. here's one also in nevada pushing for harry reid. >> high school was 46 miles away. they said going would be impossible. so he walked and hitched his way. 46 every monday, 46 back come friday. >> telling the story of him and saying harry reid has always been willing to do what seemed impossible. this is from votevets.org made up of veterans. this is like most ads that shows up on the tv screen that describes itself as nonpartisan.

as you heard, one of the reasons for that is where this money is coming from. something else i'll just mention is the supreme court decision we talked about called citizens united which ended up freeing up corporate funds to sponsor the ads out there. here's how you can weigh in at facebook and twitter. we're talking about third party ads and whether they're influencing your vote or not. we'd love to hear from you. we'll have your responses to the 8:00 a.m. hour today. suzanne and t.j., it is a staggering sum of money. that there is why so many people are seeing so many new issue ads this time around. very different from anything we've ever seen before. >> you've got to wonder if it's really going to work for the voters. wonder if they tune it out after a while. see how this plays out. >> if not, we can see a lot more two years from now and two years from now. this might be the start of something huge. some iraqi olympians in the united states now back to paying back those who fought in their

country. >> this is an interesting one, something you probably wouldn't imagine. but u.s. forces trained iraqi forces, but iraqi athletes are now training americans here. we'll explain. it's 18 minutes past the hour. ♪ every day you check the weather, check the time ♪ ♪ check the news online ♪heck the wife, eck the kids ♪ ♪ check your email messages ♪ check the money in the bank ♪ check the gas in the tank ♪ check the flava from your shirt ♪ ♪ make sure your pits don't stank ♪ ♪ check the new hairdo, check the mic one two ♪ ♪ 'cause i'm about to drop some knowledge right on top of you ♪ ♪ you check a lot of things already why not add one more ♪ ♪ that can help your situation for sure ♪ ♪ check your credit score ♪ free-credit-score-dot-com ♪ free-credit-score ♪ you won't regret it at all! ♪ check the legal y'all. >>offer applies with enrollment in triple advantage.®

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welcome back. 22 minutes past the hour. welcome in our nadia bilcic, our cnn producer. this is interesting. we're used to hearing about americans training iraqis, but iraqis are now training americans right here. >> yes, in terms of rowing. today is the head of the st. charles regatta, which is one of the biggest rowing events, if not the biggest rowing event in the entire world. there are over 900 competitors from 21 countries, and all kinds of teams compete. there's even a disabled team competing today. but what's very unusual is we have two teams. one is a group of iraqi afghanistan war vets, and they have been trained by an iraqi team who has come from iraq, an iraq rogue team, to train this team. now, iraqis have to train on the tigris river, so it's very tumultuous.

so they're really superb rowers. and in 2008, there were four olympic athletes competing at the olympic games, and two of them were rowers. remember, during saddam hussein's time, you didn't particularly want to be an athlete. you were tortured. remember those times? so these are six olympian rowers who are training the american team. let's hear from bob smith from the community rowing as to why he thought this was such a brilliant idea. >> we're not there to fight. we're there to win the peace, and anything we can do to build relationships, even if it's just a tiny little thing, is better than shooting a bullet. >> and rowing is such a wonderful team-building event because, think about it, you have to work together. then you have to create and go through obstacles together. so so maybe our team should do a rowing team building. >> yeah, we need some team building around here, lord knows. but the iraqis, they are here to compete in that particular race, right? >> last week they were training.

the last couple of weeks they've been training the americans, only the veterans, the afghan-iraq veterans. and today, yesterday and today is the competition, and they have been competing against each other. we don't yet know who's going to win. >> we don't know how they did. >> we'll let you know. maybe by 8:30 we'll know. >> we'll have an answer. and that sound bite you used really sums it up about partnership, working together, anything you can do to improve the relationship, i think, is great. >> and they are enjoying it and thriving. apparently, it was a most incredible bonding experience. >> all right. nadia bilcic, we always appreciate you. always giving us something interesting here. we've got more interesting stuff coming your way. it's the idea that a car that will never have an accident may be possible. in pursuit of this goal, lexus developed the world's most advanced driving simulator, where a real driver in a real car can react to real situations without real consequences. the breakthroughs we innovate here may someday make all cars safer.

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good sunday morning. probably still saturday night for some of you you folks. in san francisco, it's 3:30 in the morning. take a live picture down on the emba embarcadero. still looking at the bridge in the background. >> it was still dark out here when we got to work. >> hello to you all, wherever you may be. whether you're getting up to make a bowl of cereal or stumbling in from the club, wherever you are. welcome. i'm t.j. holmes. >> did you stumble in from the club? >> i don't stumble, suzanne. i stroll in. i stroll in. >> well, i didn't come from the club. i'm suzanne malveaux. thanks for staying with us this morning. we've been talking a lot about politics, and i know you might be getting sick and tired of it. i certainly hope not. we are fascinated by this stuff. nine more days to talk about this, probably still a lot to talk about leading up to the midterm elections. the president is on the road, a

lot of candidates up there on the stump, and they will because a lot is at stake. the control of krong is up for grabs. >> here's what we're talking about. six senate seats considered a toss-up. 45 races in the house that are considered too close to call. and on the state level, 13 slots for governor are in play. with the clock ticking, both parties rolling out the big guns to win over undecided voters. our cnn deputy political director paul stein hauser is taking a look at the week ahead. >> good morning, suzanne and t.j., a busy week on the campaign trail. this is the last full week before the midterm elections. let's start with president barack obama. he is in rhode island helping out fellow democrats. at the end of the week, he makes stops in the midwest. vice president joe biden also out on monday. it will be his 100th campaign event in the election cycle. stumping for democrats in the week ahead, first lady michelle obama and former president bill clinton. on the republican side, top

names, including haley barbour of mississippi, chairman of the republican governors association. he kicks off a five state tour this week and he'll have big guns on the republican side helping him out as they campaign for republican candidates. also in kentucky, a big debate showdown, the last one in that senate contest, which is a deviivisive contest between ran paul the republican nominee, and jack the democratic nominee. and finally our last cnn polls of this election season. we'll have five state polls in five crucial battleground states. a busy week ahead. suzanne, t.j., back to you. >> thanks to paul steinhauser, as always. one of the important battle ground states out there is always florida. it's going to be that way again. usually a key battleground in the presidential elections, but interesting in this midterm period as well. could play a role in the balance of power in washington, d.c. 25 congressional races up for grabs, but the big one is the senate race that everybody is going to be keeping a close eye on. we are going to be having a

debate between those three this morning. you want to stick around because this is going to be pretty much unpredictable. charlie crist, the governor there, is going head to head against kendrick meek, the democrat, and also marco rubio, the republican in the race. candy crowley is going to moderate the senate debate between those three. you're going to see it live here where you normally see candy during her show. you're going to see that live this morning at 9:00 eastern time. then tomorrow night, the focus, you're going to keep it on florida, the gubernatorial debate here. the republican rick scott going up against the democrat alex cink. they are really tight in the polls. john king is going to moderate that debate. monday night, 7:00 p.m., on john king, usa, right here on cnn. >> you and i have been talking about this story as well. this is kind of surprising. high school football referees could be penalized for their support of breast cancer awareness month.

i think it's hard to believe. >> it's simple. it was subtle. and you see it. a pink whistle. why would that get referees suspended? that's a possibility, folks. it's 32 minutes past the hour. a? you can see everything ok? just stay off the freeways, all right? i don't want you going out on those yet. and leave your phone in your purse, i don't want you texting. >> daddy... ok! ok, here you go. be careful. >> thanks dad. >> and call me--but not while you're driving. we knew this day was coming. that's why we bought a subaru. thanks. i got the idea from general mills big g cereals. they put a white check on the top of every box to let people know that their cereals have healthy whole grain, and they're the right choice... (announcer) general mills makes getting whole grain an easy choice. just look for the white check. new aveeno positively radiant tinted moisturizers,

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so get allstate. you could save money and be better protected from mayhem like me. [ dennis ] dollar for dollar nobody protects you from mayhem like allstate. we're coming up on 35 minutes past the hour. bonnie and suzanne with me to talk about stories that got our attention. the biggest breaking news stories but still stories that got our interest. this story upset a lot of folks. i know you've been seeing the pink for breast cancer awareness. the coolest thing, the nfl, have you been watching? you're not a big sports fan. >> i watch a little. >> the nfl had their guys in pink and everything. so watch this video from a high school football game in washington state. 140 high school football referees got together, you know what, let's use pink whistles in the game. didn't wear pink hats or pink shoes, just something subtle, pink whistles, to raise

awareness, and they were dedicating their game checks to breast cancer awareness. so what happened now? that's a violation. they didn't get permission from some official association to use the pink whistles. so these guys could get suspended for two games, meaning they would lose their paychecking for those two games as well. >> i hope they reconsider, i really do. these guys were trying to do something good, good hearted. >> and you saw the fans were displaying the pink. this is a big deal, and i think it sets a bad example if they get reprimanded for doing something good for breast cancer research. >> they are saying the opposite. the association is saying it's a bad example if you don't punish them for not following rules. they say the example needs to be set. if the players break rules, there are consequences. take a look at the reaction coming in to this. >> it sends a wrong message to the kids that are playing the game. if they can choose to break the rules, why can't other people do the same thing? >> i think it's a shame.

i think the message they're sending is simple. we're looking for a cure for breast cancer. >> so everybody clearly is -- >> i agree with her. >> comes down on that side. we don't know what's going to happen exactly yet. we'll hang tight and see what happens to those guys. they did it on their own, a simple gesture. >> it's nice to see people coming and really responding to this month because it's such an important cause. >> absolutely. >> they have the pink lights. the white house was pink for a day. that was really cool to see. let's move to the next one here. this is something we were talking about earlier. you expect your math teacher to know math. the science teacher to know science. english teacher to know english. in rhode island, the state education commissioner wants to test all teachers now to determine if they can write and speak english fluently. they want competency tests to be a part of the state teacher certification program. hasn't been approved yet, but they say they're responding to

some of the concerns of parents. parents have had some complaints that maybe the teachers aren't so proficient in english. some, of course, clearly offended by this, but all of us would think naturally, should a teacher have to? if you're teaching in this country, should you have to? >> you would think they would to get through getting a masters degree in teaching, in education. >> i mean, the white house, the secretary of education, arne duncan, they're talking about standards for teachers to keep their jobs. in d.c. they fired a whole bunch of teachers for not being proficient. english is one of those thing. >> it seems like a given, i guess. everybody, of course, should have english. we'll see if they decide to go through with that. this video, i haven't seen this. everybody's been talking about this in the newsroom all morning. let's go ahead and roll this, and we'll tell you what you're looking at. you're looking at guys in a football stadium in australia tossing basketballs from all over the stadium and making

their shots. now, these guys clearly are pretty -- this one here, you would assume would have to be doctored. >> these must be rigged. i don't know. >> it's following the ball. i was thinking the same thing, but you can see the ball moving. >> there's got to be a little metal pellet inside the ball and a magnet. don't you think? >> these guys have been practicing this, but the thing is -- yes, we all thought it was a fake. but the news station down in australia actually went out and put these guys to the test with their own cameras. so this is news video. these guys certainly didn't rig it. now, to your point, suzanne, maybe. something's got to be up. >> i'm looking at this, and i can't -- i'm sorry. >> i keep looking for a trick edit, but you're right. there isn't one. >> excited as they are. here's another. he's tossing off a bridge, and they're making these shots. now, these guys do this stuff. they're hot shot shooters.

they call themselves how ridiculous or something like that. they're actually raising money for charity through these efforts. but their reaction as well. they seem pretty excited when they make it. that seems genuine. i mean, the hugging and what not, is it that serious? but hey. >> i think that's part of the act. >> they seem surprised that they're making every one. all right. i made another one. >> you said it this morning. 39 minutes past the hour. quick break.

41 minutes past the hour now. they are the movers and shakers. from the white house to the board rooms, even the cat walk, and they're offering up words of

wisdom on all the hot topics of the day. >> i was the one who got a chance to actually talk to these women. "fortune" magazine held a women's summit recently, and i spoke to some of the most powerful women in the world to get their opinions on business, how to break the glass ceiling, all kinds of interesting -- >> impressive group. >> it's a very interesting group. all a part of our series on women who rule the world. they are mothers. >> my passion is, i have to say, my kids. >> models. >> they were like, oh, you can never be a successful model because you're a black girl. >> media moguls and movers and shakers. >> i rule the company with my head, heart, and hands. >> women who rule the world. >> what do you rule? >> i rule ann taylor. >> i run pepsico. >> i'm the secretary of health and human services. >> i rule b.e.t. networks. >> right now, probably just my household, and even my husband would probably question that. >> we sat down with some of "four tune" magazine's 50 most powerful women and their

featured speakers, many of them ceos, to get their take on the big issues, starting with any words of wisdom for president obama. what do you think about the obama administration's economic policies? is it good for big business like yours? >> the health care reform is going to be tough for a lot of big businesses. this administration needs to do a lot more and understand business a little bit more, and i think with larry summers leaving and some of the other turnover in the white house, maybe this is an opportunity to get more business leaders involved in the discussion. >> getting into the discussion has meant figuring out how to punch through the glass ceiling. >> i think i think slightly differently, but i think like other women, not just other men. >> knowing your subject matter. being the expert. >> i bring a lot of emotion to work. i look at owl of my employees in pepsico as members of my family. >> people telling me i couldn't do it, and it's been like that

through my entire career. it used to frustrate me, and now it excites me. >> the excitement comes from following their passion. for some, it was instilled early in life. >> my dad ran for office when i was 5, and i grew up thinking that's what people did. they went door to door, put up yard signs. >> you sold cupcakes for mcgovern? >> i did. i was about 8 years old. and my parents were always very active in the community. >> for others, it was a hard-earned struggle to be on top. >> i was very strategic in figuring out how to break through, and i was like, just be yourself. also being myself had to do with gaining a little weight. >> as mothers and wives, balancing professional success with family life means sacrificing. >> we've been married for 35 years, and we're sort of now in a commuter marriage. >> i try to leave there by 5:00 or 5:30 at night because i really want to have dinner with my boys. >> so any advice to young women today? >> i think women have to be

willing to take a few more risks. >> to not be ashamed of their dreams. to not be ashamed to want to be the best. >> one thing they all have in common is they love what they do. >> to me, i think it's true for all today, work is life, and life is work. you have to love it. i love my job. >> if your job is hanging out with p. diddy, what do you do for fun? >> that's a good question. i guess my job is fun. you know, i enjoy it. >> you're about to meet another powerful woman, the editor of "essence" magazine, angela burton murray. she's live in the news room. we'll talk to her. if you think all batteries are the same, consider this:

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many american business women are the driving force behind topnotch companies. we've got one right here. that's right. angela burton murray is editor in chief of "essence" magazine owned by time warner. "fortune" magazine had the topmost powerful women. you were 51. i was 52. we didn't get the list. >> next year we're there. >> you are powerful in your own right, of course. what do you think? what is the one thing that you face that is different than, say, others? >> i think it's interesting. when you think about women in leadership roles and driving the strategy behind these fortune 500 companies, it's really about vision and making sure that you have the strategic vision to be able to lead the organization.

can you also get by and across the organization to make sure everyone is moving in the same direction? and then it comes to execution. can you get the ball across the goal line and make sure you're going to have the bottom line results that are going to result in profitability and increase shareholder value? i think all these women that you had the opportunity to talk to are great examples of doing all of that. >> now, a couple of them who i talked to, debra lee, ceo of t b.e.t., kay crill. when i asked them is the obama administration friendly to big business? what do you think? >> i think, as evidenced by what some of the women had to say, there are concerns in big business that the administration has not been as sensitive and cooperative to help them address the issues they were looking at. they were talking about health care earlier in the segment and what a challenge that's going to be for businesses to absorb

those costs. >> does it affect your business? >> our business, time warner. >> true. >> it does have an impact, and it has an impact on the readers of our magazine as they think about what are the challenges they're facing not only in the workplace but personally? >> how so? >> it's about, you know, for women, when you look at the changing landscape of women and what they're doing, you have a lot of situations where women are now the largest bread winners within the families. that's a lot of responsibility that's being heaped on them. they've got to worry about making sure they're making enough money. do they have adequate health care to cover their family? also, work-life balance. how am i able to do it all and still have quality of life? >> i've heard this before where people say, can you have it all? maybe you can, but not all at the same time? what is your experience? >> i think that's what it really comes down to. not all at the same time. you and i were talking before the break about how you're trying to juggle all these things. you love what you do as a career.

obviously, your family is your first priority, and you want to try to be in a corporate environment that allows you to succeed at work but also have a personal life and spend time with your children. but when you talk to women at all levels of the organization, they're all struggling with that issue. >> one of the things that i noticed when i talked to these women is that they all -- they have a passion for what they do. >> of course. >> they love their jobs. when young women look at you, i mean, what do you tell them in terms of -- >> i tell them it's all about passion. if you love what you do, you will never work a day in your life. when you're passionate about it, you're going to run through a brick wall to try to get it done. and i think that's what's important. and passion is also infectious. that will go throughout the organizati organization, and people will be just as excited as you are about the project or joining your team. that's what people want. they want a leader that's passionate about what they're doing and is going to make sure that everybody wips. >> we're excited to have you here this morning. i know you're passionate about

what you do. thank you very much, angela. i appreciate it. >> thank you, suzanne. she is a world class model, an actress, one of the best athletes in the world. she is also disabled. the inspirational story of amy mullins is next. i can't believe i used to swing over those rocks... took some foolish risks as a teenager. but i was still taking a foolish risk with my cholesterol. anyone with high cholesterol may be at increased risk of heart attack. diet and exercise weren't enough for me. i stopped kidding myself. i've been eating healthier, exercising more... and now i'm also taking lipitor.

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amy mullins. she's a world class athlete. she's a model and an amputee. she credits her so-called disability for her success. >> she tells her story to cnn's dr. sanjay gupta in today's "human factor." >> amy mullins wants to redefine disabled. >> what i found when looking up disabled, it was shocking. it starts out like stalled, maimed, lame, mutilated. at first it was almost humorous to me. i was reading this thinking, you can't be serious? >> at 1-year-old, mullins became a double amputee. she was born without fibula bones in her legs, and doctors amputated what was left. having never met another amputee until she turned 18, life with prosthetics was challenging. >> when i was a teenager, junior high, i would have traded prosthetics for flesh and bone legs in a heartbeat. >> but look at what she's accomplished. as i said, amy is redefining the very term disabled.

>> the shift for me was going through this process of, you know, wishing i was something else to acceptance and then to celebration, having fun with it, to then deciding actually i determine what my strengths and weaknesses are. >> it's that determination that propelled mullins to become a successful agent recent, a model, an athlete. she was named "people" magazine's 50 most beautiful people in the world. she broke track records in 100 meter, 200 meter, and long jump events. when she's not competing, she spends her free time working with the women sports foundation. >> we use this phrase a lot. in spite of having prosthetic legs, she's been able to accomplish x, y, and z. i finally was able to articulate why i was alfrustrated with that this year. it's because of having prosthetic legs that i've been able to accomplish x, y, and z.

>> to mullins her prosthetics are a source of strength, not disability, and that's a message she wishes everyone could hear. >> ultimately, one day, if i could just be aimee mullins. it doesn't have to be prefaced with disabled athlete or whatever. >> dr. sanjay gupta, cnn, reporting. just nine days to go until election day. both sides, republicans and democrats, are putting out their star players to get you to the polls. so which side is going to win? and we've got a big group to sing the same tune. choirs from all around the world chime in to sing the same spiritual hymn. take a listen. ♪ way back in calvary

the love that you gave ♪ >> from florida, california, toronto even, we'll tell you how they made this happen. this is your "cnn sunday morning" for october the 24th. i'm t.j. holmes. >> i'm suzanne malveaux. it's 7:00 a.m. in atlanta and 5:00 a.m. in cheyenne, wyoming. thank you so much for starting your day with us. nine days to go until these critical midterms. everyone is out there campaigning, stumping. the candidates are out there, of course, and the president is out there as well. even though his name is not on the ballot, he's trying to help folks stay in office or get elected. control of congress is up for grabs. >> there's a lot at stake here. as many as six senate seats are considered a toss-up. 45 races in the house are also just too close to call. and on the state level, we are talking about 13 spots for governor that are up for grabs. well, florida's battle for the u.s. senate seat is a three-way race. >> the candidates here are going to square off this morning. actually, just a couple of hours

for now on a debate that you can see and only see right here on cnn. our senior political editor, mark preston, is in tampa. he is going to be there covering this debate as well. mark, hello to you, as always. florida always pretty interesting spot. why in this case? why so much attention on these three? it's been a lot of ups and downs in this whole race. >> reporter: look, this has been one of the premiere battles of this senate election cycle, the reason being, t.j., you have a three-way race, as you have. you have the governor charlie crist, a former republican. he was supposed to walk into this seat. he was pushed out of the primary by the tea party candidate marco rubio. crist hasn't given up. he's running as an independent. he still wants the senate seat. on the democratic side, we have kendrick meek, the democratic nominee. and in a couple hours right behind me, they will do battle on this stage. a week until election day. a lot on the line. this is a senate seat that

republicans really want to hold on to because it's imperative, as they try to march to try to take over the senate in november. >> mark, why should we care about florida? if you're somewhere else watching this race. >> reporter: well, you know, let's look at it in the macro terms. not only do we have this senate race that is very important, we also have a gubernatorial battle down here between the democrat alex cink and the republican rick scott thach. that debate is going to be tomorrow night kt 5700 p.m. you also have a lot of house races on the line. a lot of democrats in trouble. 35 seats for the republicans to take back the house of representatives, and republicans think, if they can pick up four or five seats down here in florida, they'll be well on their way to taking back the house majority, suzanne. >> you're not the only one who's in florida. sarah palin just yesterday. how was she received? >> reporter: very well.

sarah palin, when you have people show up at these rallies, they tend to be the real activists. they're the ones that are really excited. her goal yesterday and the previous week in california is to try to encourage republicans to keep the enthusiasm up. there is a little concern in the republican party the enthusiasm gap will wane before the november elections. they want these voters excited. they want these voters to not only go to the voting booth on november 2nd they want them to get their neighbors to go to the voting booth. they want them knocking on doors. sarah palin yesterday in orlando, just to the west of me here, was rallying the troops. of course, we've seen president obama on the campaign trail. we'll see lots of republicans on the campaign trail. a lot on the line in these closing days of the midterm election. suzanne, t.j.? >> all right. thank you, mark. >> of course, it's always unpredictable when you're talking about politics and live debates. we've got a live one coming your way. those three candidates we just talked about -- crist, meek, and rubio -- we're finishing off on air.

our candy crowley is going to see that. candy crowley is going to moderate the debate 9:00 a.m., where you would normally see her show, "state of the union." coming up, two of my favorite people to talk to from the left and the right because they can handle a civil conversation. look at those two faces right there. those two people aren't going to be yelling and barking at each other, are they? [ female announcer ] join yoplait in our commitment to fight breast cancer. for every pink lid you send in, yoplait will donate 10 cents to susan g. komen for the cure. with your help, we've donated $25 million over 12 years. so let's continue to make a difference one lid at a time. is a powerful force. set it in motion... and it goes out into the world like fuel for the economy. one opportunity leading to another...

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can anything happen now between a week and a couple days from now that can be a game changer? >> i think the surprise, t.j., is democrats are going to do much better than everybody thinks, than everybody has been giving them credit for. we saw a lot of polls, including a "newsweek" poll this past weekend, where president obama is at 50% approval rating. but the generic ballot has democrats up 48% to 42%. we also see early voting is very, very positive for democrats right now. we're beating republicans by 10% across the board. our democratic candidates, importantly, the ones that were very targeted by republicans and should have been out by now, are hanging on. they are in the fight. they are talking to their constituents. i think we're going to have a pretty good day on november 2nd. i think you'll see we're going to keep the house. >> i'll give you that. lenny, that would be a surprise to a lot of people if she's correct. >> it would be a surprise if she's correct.

early voting is not something people have done well. that's a surprise. with president obama coming back on the campaign trail, there's going to be a bump there. there's still enough time to go down. the difference is republicans have been campaigning against this congress for two years. the democrats just started campaigning 30 days ago, and the democrats' message has changed. two years ago, president obama was all about hope and change. now he's out there campaigning on fear and apprehension. that's a completely different message. it sounds an awful lot like the republicans who got thrown out of office two and four years ago. that's how they used to campaign. scaring you into voting for them versus voting for the other guy. president obama doesn't do this that well. >> okay, fear and apprehension. maria, let me bring you back in here. are we as bad off as a country in our communities, in our neighborhoods, as you would think when you turn on the tv? i was out all last week talking to people in communities, and i was actually encouraged to find they're not bickering and going back and forth like we see a small percentage of people doing, namely politicians, who seem to sometimes hijack the air

waves. are we as bad off as you would think if you're listening to politicians? >> i think you hit it on the head, t.j. absolutely, there's a lot of angst. there's a lot of anger with what washington has done and washington hasn't done. but to your point, the american people have always been very, very positive. they want to look forward. they want to move forward, which is why the democratic message has really been resonating of late because president obama and the democratic candidate,talking about how it's been the democratic policies that have moved the country forward, trying to get us out of this ditch, this hole that republican failed economic policies were the ones to put us here in the first place. so democrats are really hoping that that message of hope, of moving forward, of progressing and fighting for the middle class against the special interests, which is the only thing that republicans have fought for, you know, historically, is going to make

sure that our core democratic constituents and disaffected independents across the board will come out and vote for us and understand what is at stake. >> lenny, on that point, you see what i'm getting at? i talked to folks who sat across the table from each other. i don't agree with a doggone thing that guy over there is saying on religion, politics, taxes, or anything, but i'll buy him his cup of coffee. i saw that kind of agreement that was different from what i hear from politicians and pundits we have on tv day in and day out. >> i agree with that. i think that what needs to really happen from a nonpartisan point of view is that energy needs to take over politics. unfortunately, what transpires is you find a lot of people, usually it's the fringes, the people that stay involved in politics all the time, that 10% that does, and now you get people that are jumping on the bandwagon because the mid terms are coming up in nine days. they'll get involved, and they'll go away. who ends up running the energy politically once again? it becomes the same politicians and the same mindset.

we have this hyperpartisanship coming out of washington and the state capitals throughout the nation that needs to be cooled down by the people. if it there's anything maria and i can both agree on, it's that we need to take politics back to the people on the higher level so we have the decorum we're supposed to have in american politics. >> maria, is the best thing that could happen to president obama and his re-election bid is to lose congress? he will have somebody. he will have an enemy to run against. he can say, they stood in my way, and he can hold them accountable next time around when it's time for them to start campaigning. could that be a good thing for this president in that regard, at least? is >> i know there's a lot of pundits who like to say that, but i think the bottom line is no. i don't think that would be either best for president obama, or more importantly, best for the american people. president obama and the democrats have a very positive agenda of trying to move this country forward for economic progress, for education

progress, for the future of our families, the future of our country. and the only way to really do that is to make sure that democrats keep congress so that they are able to help this president move that positive agenda forward. unfortunately, what we've seen these past two years is that republicans want to obstruct that progress. >> maria and lenny, i know that democrats believe in their agenda, but there's another half of the population that doesn't believe in that agenda, and that half believes they should have a say and have some kind of check on this president and this congress, lenny? >> t.j., if the agenda was that positive, how come democrats are not running on that agenda. people have not forgotten about the corn oscar kickback, gatorade, and everything else. people are not running on their accomplishments. they're running on the stimulus and health care. they're running on, gee, do you really want to give congress back to the republicans? that's a message that's scaring you by looking backwards to the bush administration. i don't know if it's going to play out as well as it did in

2008. that is something we really would like to move away from. i do think the republicans are going to take over congress. i hope that makes president obama move to the center, get some stuff done with more cooperation because people call the republicans obstructionists, but people forget there was a super majority, and they had an overwhelming majority in the house of representatives as well. they got their health care package. they got their stimulus package. you can't blame republicans on those two passages of legislation. >> okay, maria. go ahead. i know you couldn't wait to jump in there. you're going to have to wrap this up for me, but you were shaking your head and giggling the whole time while my man lenny was talking. you go ahead. >> the bottom line is that democrats are on the side of the middle class and working class families in this country. what we've seen from the republicans and what we will see again, if they take over congress, they will fight for the special interests, for the insurance industry, for big oil, for the financial companies, for credit card companies, who are the ones who have basically made life very tough for middle class families historically. it's been democrats that have

stood on the side of middle class families in trying to move forward with economic progress. we hope republicans will join us in fighting for the middle class in this country. that's what has made this country so great. we need to go back to that greatness, to that positive energy, to that positive image and work together to solve our problems. we would like nothing more than for republicans to work with us on that. >> 15 seconds, lenny. >> the thing that democrats in america need to remember, they keep looking back to the bush administration and the years prior to this, but, look, tom delay isn't coming back to capitol hill. marco rubio is. it's a different type of republican, different type of leadership. we've got to move forward, maria, not look back, remember? >> we tried your way. it didn't work. >> on that point, though, will you guys come back next weekend so we can pick up right there? >> absolutely. >> absolutely, t.j. >> right on that point. we can look back all day long. a lot of people would say, yes, this is a different crop, a different breed of politicians that are coming in. who should get a chance as well.

don't just look at the "r" or the "d" next to the name. we'll start with that question next week if i can get you guys back. good to see you as always. >> thank you, t.j. >> god bless. >> god to be here. >> get them back next week. it's a civil conversation. that's refreshing to see. >> it is. we try our best. >> the rs and the ds doing the best they can. when cnn put out the call for church kwichoirs across the country to sing in one voice, the response was overwhelming. ♪ ♪ >> good morning and welcome to another beautiful day. it's melissa dawn johnson, your global branding and personal transformation strategist. this is your morning motivation. one of the most undervalued but

essential meals of the day is breakfast. you know, sometimes we get so busy in the hustle and bustle of our day that we forget the essentials of a very good and l baed breakfast. as you get on with the week, i would encourage you to take a few tips. number one, take time to eat. make it a priority. if you've got to prepare your meals in advance, that could be a good thing as well. number two, make sure that hydration is a part of your day. water is an essential part of keeping you energized and keeping you balanced. and, finally, number three, take time to sit down. oftentimes we are so busy we eat on the run. we're standing up. we're eating in the car. taking time to enjoy a meal can do your body good. until next time, please visit us at our facebook group called morning motivation. i'd love to hear your tips on how you're staying motivated each and every day. we'll see you soon. make every day grand-tastic. [ female announcer ] does your smooth last into a second day,

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but you see, with the help of her raymond james financial advisor, she had planned for every eventuality. which meant she continued to have the means to live on... even at the ripe old age of 187. life well planned. see what a raymond james advisor can do for you. we're just letting it ride. our mike has been open for a few seconds. i love this song. >> this was a campaign song too. one of those campaign songs you can jam to. across the country this morning, there are dozens of gospel choirs that are celebrating something new. >> yeah, they participated in a

worldwide project that was organized by us. when i say us, i mean suzanne and i. they brought all their voices together to sing as one. it was actually cnn, but we're a part of it. josh levs is with us with a song that should get us all going this morning. >> you know what happened here. they reached out all over the world and got an amazing response. more than 50 choirs took part in this project ultimately. it's all part of "black in america" which focused on the role of the church and the importance of the church. our folks at cnn i-report reached out to all these choirs and said, hey, go ahead and send us your tape singing this song, and they put them all together. let's take a look, and i'll tell you more about it. ♪ today today we'll never lose ♪

♪ to the highest >> we'll let this keep going. they're singing the blood will never lose its power by andre crouch. basically, the i-report team told everyone what key to sing in, to use the best quality mikes they could get to get good quality audio and encouraged to sing a capella, which makes it easier for us to hear it. they were encouraged to sing in a place of worship or in a location they felt represents their hometown in a good way. in the end, more than 50 different choirs raising their voices. let's listen to a little bit more, and i'll show you where the whole thing is. ♪ will never lose its power >> that really is a beautiful thing. i know you want to hear the whole thing, which is why i've linked it up for you at facebook and twitter. i'm at facebook and twitter, josh levscnn. god thing to see on a sunday

morning. be sure to tune in at 8:00 p.m. eastern for black in america "almighty debt" with our soledad o'brien. one of the things we look at is the role of the church. good way to kick off sunday morning and wake people up a little bit. >> i think i'm going to go to church this morning. i think i might. >> i feel like i have gone to church this morning. this is nice. >> that is not going to do. you still need to go. that didn't count. >> come on, it's beautiful. >> josh, we appreciate it. thanks. coming up, a 13-year-old that was battling a terminal disease. this is a great story, though. that sounds like a bad beginning to it. but the child is getting a wish fulfilled. >> and we are actually with her as she takes a special trip to alaska on a coast guard training helicopter, and she's wearing flight suit and all. interesting grooming. thanks. i got the idea from general mills big g cereals. they put a white check on the top of every box to let people know that their cereals

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i'm meteorologist bonnie schneider. you're looking at the capitol in washington, d.c., enjoying a gorgeous sunrise. really does look quite nice. we're looking at rain sweeping across much of the nation's midsection. lots of heavy downpours in chicago where it rained yesterday to michigan. all of that is sweeping to the north and east. new england will see wet weather. even boston, second day of the charles, gorgeous weather yesterday. hard to get a perfect weekend. last year it actually snowed at the start of the race. we'll be looking at rain sliding to the south as well into the long island area. temperatures look good. i want to take a quick check of the tropics because we're still monitoring richard out there. here's tropical storm richard bearing down on honduras, belize. both of these countries have hurricane warnings in effect because the storm is just near hurricane strength. if you see the track, you'll see some good news with the storm. it's likely to dissipate when it reemerges into the bay of campeche. before then, it will bring torrential downpours through

central america. three to five inches of rain. you can't rule out mud slides. we'll keep a close eye on richard throughout the day. ked . with yummy hamburger helper? oh! tada! fantastically tasty, huh? ummm, it's good. what would you guys like? hamburger helper. what?! one pound... one pan... one tasty meal! ♪ but i really love my bank ♪ i hate-- didn't quite catch that last bit. i said i really love my bank. right... is there a problem ? it's not really raging, man. uh, we were hoping for more raging ? well, you said write from the heart. yeah... don't do that. at ally, you'll love our online savings account.

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