voter saw beyond size. >> i think having a governor that is smart and has the perseverance to do what's right is hot and sexy. >> reporter: contrast that with letterman's top ten ways the country would be different if chris christie were president. >> number two, instead of iraq we'd invade ihop. >> reporter: prepare for a steady diet of jokes. jeanne moos, cnn. >> no more vinos only cheetos. yea! >> reporter: new york. >> he does talk it, though. he doesn't make fun of himself necessarily. that can be brutal. >> that's brutal. >> it is. huckabee was in there as well. i covered huckabee in little rock when he was there. he said, t.j., discovered the secret to losing weight. eat right and exercise. >> he ran a marathon. >> lost 100 pounds. >> it's uncomfort ab, though, isn't it. >> seems mean-spirited in some

cases is what it is. >> come on, people, be nice. >> on that note, it's all yours. >> good to see you. >> i'll look for your tweets. >> pressure is on. thanks very much. we have lots straight ahead beginning with the fbi and dealt of hopt homeland security out with a warning after the killing of an american-born al qaeda leader in yemen, the bulletin says anwar al awlaki, that killing could spark attacks in the united states by home grown violent extremists. that's the same kind of bulletin that was issued after osama bin laden was killed. awlaki was killed by a cia drone in yemen. his fluency in english and technology skills made him a top recruiter for al qaeda. there are reports that the missile strike that killed awlaki killed samir k khan. he grew up in new york city and north carolina and an editor of

"inspire" al qaeda's online english language magazine. we're hearing reports the drone attack in yemen may have also killed a third alleged terror leader. ibrahim al asiri is a saudi bombmaker implicated in a number of terror plots against the united states. athena live from washington. what more are you hearing? this is an incredible notch in the belt of intelligence, u.s. intelligence. >> reporter: certainly as defense secretary leon panetta said yesterday, this has been a bad year for terrorists. what we're learning from a u.s. official there's indications that he might have been there but it's unclear yet at this point if he was killed. it goes along what we're hearing from a yemeni official as of today the other operatives who have been killed have not been identified. the idea he's one of them is a rumor.

he's the bombmaker considered the top bombmaker for al qaeda in the arabian pens l.a. he was behind that thwarted christmas day attempted bombing in 2009 of that plane going into detroit by the underwear bomber, the man known as the underwear boerm. also said to be behind a plot later sending bombs to the u.s. on plane in those printer cartridges. it's still not clear if he was killed. we're waiting to hear more about this and keeping watch. >> how concerned are you about potential retaliation. >> they put out a bulletin late last night, issued a joint intelligence breaching saying the drone strike in yemen could, quote, provide motivation from home grown attacks by "homeland" extreme extremists. this is exactly the people they were trying to inspire and

recruit to al qaeda. there's no indication at this point that anyone is planning an attack so really just a warning to remain vigilant as well. >> thanks so much in washington. >> thanks. from afghanistan there's word of a major blow to a terror group. you may not be that familiar with. some experts consider haqqani to be more dangerous than taliban. they have captured the senior in afghanistan. coalition officials announced the capture today. it happened tuesday in eastern achlgt the operation was carried out by nato and afghan forces. the haqqani is based in pakistan. now to the amanda knox trial in italy. the american exchange student could be spending her final weekend in an italian prison. she's appealing her 2009 murder conviction in the death of her former roommate. the verdict could come monday. matthew chance is covering the

trial for us. matthew, the expectation is amanda will be speaking. that would happen monday, right? >> reporter: she's definitely doing that. she's making what they call a plea of innocence, 15 minutes to stand up in front of the judges and jury inside this court in prejudicia and try to convince them she is innocent of the killing of meredith kercher and they should quash the 20-year prison sentence she's currently serving in a prison outside this town and set her-free and her boyfriend raffaele sollecito, also accused of killing meredith kercher as well. we're told by her father the speech is going to be in italian. she spent the last several months deciding what she's going to say. it's very well rehearsed and also delivered with some

passion. >> she, of course, is hoping for release, but prosecutors are saying they want her to actually spend even more time in prison, that the sentence would be extended, right? >> that's right. they are asking a judge not only to uphold the conviction but increase the 26-year sentence again them, 25 year against raffaele sollecito to life imprisonment. they say these people, the prosecution is, they may have young but they killed tore nothing and deserve the maximum sentence. prosecutors went on to say they are just lucky in italy the maximum sentence isn't the death penalty. >> matthew, what can you tell us about this jury, the makeup of this jury. >> it's five women, three men, two of those men are professional judges, which is a

strange thing about the legal system, not all civilians as it were. two professional judges. the rest are, the majority are women. they are expecting to retire from the court shortly after amanda knox gives this little speech on monday. it could take between three, six, eight hours before they reach a verdict. we're expecting it sometime monday night. >> all right. matthew chance, thanks so much, in perugia, italy. our legal guys avery friedman anderson richard herman will be along and dissect the appeals process and look at amanda knox's chance of freedom. all right. now for some political wrangling in this country. it should have some of you making your choice for u.s. presidential nominee a little sooner than you thought. florida has moved up its republican primary to january 31st. that would make it the first state to hold a presidential contest. that's not sitting well with new

hampshire which traditionally holds the first primary. now it can move its date up to december. that's right. december of this year, 2011. our political reporter rachel strike feld is in new hampshire right now. first, rachel, what exactly are state leaders saying about florida's primary change and how it will impact everybody else? >> reporter: well, new hampshire leaders responded immediately after florida moved up its primary. the secretary of state put out take statement on the website vowing to protect the status. he moved up the filing date, the date when candidates need to file paperwork so they get on the ballot, which is a signal to us it could be moved up into december as you said. the state republican party chair put out a statement calling any state who moved up the primary saying it's doing a disservice to voters and backing up new hampshire's cherished tradition of being the first in the

nation. >> some going full speed ahead. governor rick perry is campaigning. what's he saying and what's he being asked about these days there? >> reporter: rick perry is on his fourth visit since he declared his candidacy. i can tell you what he wants to talk about, jobs and economy and jobs record in texas. we've been hearing a lot about that. also at his events east been hosting town halls. we heard from voters on social issues, climate change, his view on whether that's man made. people asked about his views on illegal immigration and social security. rick perry continued to back up the things he said about those issues previously. i will tell you the majority of what we're hearing about, questions about how to turn the economy around, how to get america working again, that's an issue that the perry campaign thinks will work for them. >> meantime some say it's getting a little aggressive between some of the candidates particularly between romney and perry. what's happening? >> i think it's safe to say we've moved into a new more

aggressive stage in the campaign here in new hampshire. after perry's town hall in derry, new hampshire, the romney campaign passed out this booklet. you can see it. it's got a picture of rick perry firing a gun. it's called "rick perry's plan to get america working again." when you open up the booklet, most of the pages are bank. that's the romney campaign making a statement pointing out mitt romney put out a detailed jobs plan full of pages and charts and graphs. we're waiting to hear rick perry's detailed job plan. >> has there been a response from the perry camp about that booklet and how it's being interpreted from the romney camp? >> i spoke with senior adviser paul young here in new hampshire. he said if you want to know what rick perry's detailed jobs plan is going to look like, look at texas. look at his job creation there and that will give you an idea. >> rachel, thanks so much from

new hampshire this afternoon. all right. everybody does it. you use your debit card. not just once or twice in a week, but you use it probably daily. guess what, now there may be a once in a month fee in which to use your debit card. big banks earning billions by charging you to use your own money. contaminated cantaloupes claimed the lives of two more people. break down the numbers and tell you what cdc is telling us about the listeria outbreak. at exxonmobil we know the answer is yes. when we design any well, the groundwater's protected by multiple layers of steel and cement. most wells are over a mile and a half deep so there's a tremendous amount of protective rock between the fracking operation and the groundwater. natural gas is critical to our future. at exxonmobil we recognize the challenges and how important it is to do this right.

this is something making a lot of people nervous. two more people dead after

eating can't loet containmented with listeria from a colorado farm. the center for disease control said one person died in new mexico and another in colorado. the listeria outbreak first reported september 12th and traced to jensen farms. it can take weeks before symptoms occur. it can take a week to three weeks after you eat a containmented product before you become ill and as much as two months to become ill. some people may still have the jensen farm cantaloupe in refrigerators. if you have them labeled anything other than than that, it's okay to eat. if the label looks like this, that's what the jensen farm label looks like, it's not safe to eat. throw it out. >> a total of 58 people in eight states died after eating the containmented fruit.

would you spend $5 a month for the privilege of using your debit card? big banks like bank of america are betting you will. cnn's christine roman s breaks t down. >> reporter: five bucks a month, that's how much they will charge to use debit cards. customers are voicing displeasure. >> not psyched about it. i'm switching. >> reporter: the fee will not apply if you use atms or have a premium account with a high balance. why the new fees? a bank of america spokesperson said the economics of offering a debit card have changed with recent regulations the regulation they are referring to is the durbin amendment. it goes into effect saturday and reduces the amounten of money used to make a purchase it will drop from $0.44 to between $0.21 and $0.44. that may seem like pennies but

it's expected to cost banks $6.6 billion a year according to strategy and research. b of a aren't the only making changes wells fargo has a $3 in some markets, suntrust $5 on some this summer. regional expected to roll out a $4 fee next month. with regulation along with legislation last year shutting down the bank's fee machine of overdraft charges, financial institutions are finding new ways to generate income. but all these new fees are leaving customers jaded. >> it's a matter of a very little time before they send you a notice saying they are tacking on a fee in another way. >> reporter: cnn, new york. michael jackson's personal bodyguard testified as did 49ers responders. our legal responders are ready to dissect the first week of testimony in the conrad murray trial. they are next. life insurance companies

treat you like a policy, not a person. instead of getting to know you they simply assign you a number. aviva is here to change all that. we're bringing humanity back to insurance and putting people before policies. aviva life insurance and annuities. we are building insurance around you. turning to some big legal cases, amanda knox accused of killing her roommate four years ago. her appeals trial is winding down and she's expected to speak to the courtroom monday. let's bring in our legal guys. richard herman, criminal defense attorney and law professionaler

from las vegas. good to see you as well. >> hi, fred. >> this is the last stand in her appeals process, the last chance. richard, the prosecutors are saying, wait a minute, not only do we stand behind investigations we want her to get more time. do they make a good argument to get that? >> it's hard to make that serious argument when three-quarters of their case was thrown out by the appeals court, the dna, claimed it was degraded. it's grandstanding saying we want to put her in forever. i shutly think there will be a reduction. 50% of these cases that go on appeal in italy result usually in some decrease in prison time. i think she's going to get a decrease, but i don't believe at this point that on monday she's going to have a ticket to fly home. i just don't think it's going to happen.

avery. >> i think she's got a shot, fredricka. i think much of it is, again, dna being blown up. again, we have a different defendant. during the trial she was flippant, younger. i think that 15 minutes that she presents on monday will have profound effect on these judges and jurors together. i agree we're going to see substantial reduction. i'd like to see an acquittal based on motive and lack of dna and i think that's what we're looking at but not less than a substantial reduction. >> let's try and look into the crystal ball if we can and look towards, what is it -- what's the content that needs to be in amanda knox's appeal? through her attorneys they have said the evidence wasn't there, there's nothing to corroborate she was, indeed, there and may have participated in this killing, richard, but what can amanda knocks, what can her voice tell this courtroom that they have not heard?

>> just attack the credibility of the witnesses that stood up and tried to attack amanda knox. the key government witness against her, is his credibility worth it? he did it for a reduced prison sentence. the other people who testified on behalf of the government attack credibility. like christine said she has to be pristine, pray and plead with them to let her go. i don't think it will be enough. i think there was enough evidence to keep the conviction. >> avery, how much time does she need to spend on that night of her recollection of what did or didn't happen? >> well, she's the only one who really knows at this point. rudy guede in the penitentiary. he was convicted on substantial evidence. that's going to be a focus of

the other thing that these jurors and two judges have to see is the sobriety by which she is presenting herself. she's going to demonstrate to them, look, i've done everything. i've always been a good student, a responsible person. these circumstances are being used by the prosecution who basically called her names, fredricka, instead of dealing with the evidence. bottom line, her natural presence i think will sell and it will work. >> all right. let's move onto michael jackson. >> one quick thing, fred. fred, she's going to have to give them a an alibi for that night. she's never provided an alibi. if she wants this conviction thrown out, she's going to have to give a credible alibi. >> let's move to the michael jackson conrad murray case now. avery, in your opinion, what was the one thing the defense or prosecution really nailed this week to set the tone for week two? >> well, clearly mr. alvarez

testimony, logistics director, he's a security guard, basically saying at the time or shortly after the death, conrad murray ordered him and assisted him in cleaning up the medications. he's not a cleanup crew, he's a doctor. the other thing was the theatrical effort to perform cpr. the guy is a cardiologist, fredricka, and he had no idea what he was doing. those two elements will resonate in the jury. it's going to be difficult to neutralize that. >> richard. >> fred, alvarez's credibility was shot and impeached concerning the position of the body. he said the body was on the floor. when the paramedics came, they said the body was on the bed. he didn't remember it. they are going to come back in summation and bring that up to him. here is what stood out, fred, when the paramedics got there,

he had flat lined. michael jackson flat lined. he was dead. conrad murray is going to testify when he walked back -- by the way, conrad murray is absolutely going to have to take the stand in this case. he's going to say when he came back into that room michael jackson was dead, nothing could bring him back. there was no pulse, no nothing. he was dead. if someone put a gun in their mouth and blew their brains out, it doesn't matter who calls the paramedics and when they call them, doesn't matter what they tell the paramedics. >> he's not disputing that, he's disputing is he not, whether he was negligent, whether michael jackson took his own life by pumping his body with additional propofol. >> that's the entire case, who gave the fatal dose of propofol. if a jury believes conrad murray only gave the 25 milligram injection, he's going to be acquitted. if they think he gave the fact dose, it's over. >> that's not going to happen. >> why?

>> the defense is michael jackson took drugs in addition. what we heard from alvarez is that michael jackson had a catheter in him. he couldn't have gotten up. he could not have taken that additional drug. >> this sets the tone of what we're going to see next week, a lot more the prosecution and defense has to produce in order to try to paint a clearer picture about what happened. we're not done with you guys, however, we have other cases we want to talk about. when we come back in a few minutes we'll be talking about a new cheating scandal. this involving s.a.t., college student underarrest for taking it for other students. meineke's personal pricing on brakes. i tell you what i can spend. i do my best to make it work. i'm back on the road safely. and i saved you money on brakes. that's personal pricing.

more americans are traveling fwi train. to find out why reynolds wolf got on board in this week's "on the go." >> reporter: train travel is becoming a popular alternative to flying. >> ridership has soared. amtrak has seen record breaking ridership seven out of the last eight years. >> reporter: even though it's not much cheaper than the airlines. >> it may surprise you that the price to travel, for example, from new york to chicago is about the same by train or air. >> reporter: but passengers don't have to pay for their bags, can you take three checked bags and two carry-ons for free. >> in addition their loyalty program has improved so the

website is much more user friendly, amtrak.com which has an interactive route map and information about deals and packages. >> reporter: trains are also becoming more tech savvy, expanding free wi-fi and adding at seat power outlets to charge electronic devices. it does take longer to get there by rail but this just might be the season to try the scenic route. >> fall is a fabulous season to travel by train. you get an up close look at vibrant colors. when you travel by train, the journey becomes part of the fulfilling experience. >> announcer: on the go is brought to you by national car rental. go national. go like a pro. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle...and go. you can even take a full-size or above, and still pay the mid-size price. i'm getting an upgrade.

[ male announcer ] as you wish, business pro. as you wish. go national. go like a pro. now through january earn a free day with every two rentals. find out more at nationalcar.com. at aviva, we wonder why other life insurance companies treat you like a policy, not a person. instead of getting to know you they simply assign you a number. aviva is here to change all that. we're bringing humanity back to insurance and putting people before policies. aviva life insurance and annuities. we are building insurance around you.

the security video in 2008 and jailhouse medical facility shows the actual moment casey anthony found out that remains of her 2-year-old daughter caylee were found. anthony heard the news on television. the a judge said the tape was too inflammatory to be played in court. anthony was acquitted of murder. in afghanistan there's word of a major blow to a terror group. they have captured haqqani network senior commander there. it happened tuesday in a province southeast -- in the southeastern portion of the country. the haqqani network is based in pakistan. cnn's nick peyton walsh is on the phone joining us from kabul, afghanistan. what are you learned about the capture of the haqqani network's leader. >> reporter: he's one of the senior officers of the haqqani

network in afghanistan, haqqani often based in pakistan. he was arrested tuesday, heavily armed but gave himself up according to a nato official of at that point it seems to have taken a while to have confirmed his identity and act on some intelligence gathered during that particular raid. this is a key individual said to be in charge of operations here. haqqani is a vitally dangerous part of the insurgency, behind the attack on the u.s. embassy here a couple weeks ago and many other high profile instances inside the city here. nato seeing this when they have heard reports about mounting violence across the country. certainly the haqqani network, highly sophisticated for insurgency known to be adaptable and resilient now without key leader. fredricka. >> the haqqani network, is it rivalling the strength of the taliban or even the al qaeda network there in afghanistan?

>> they are very different beasts. the taliban is much more associated with former government here, much more of a sprawling fractured group. haqqani seen as more sophisticated in some ways, more well disciplined, they have supporters in pakistan. they have other interests across the whole region and, of course, heavily involved in fighting serbs as well. al qaeda a diminished presence coming back some say. certainly haqqanis are the ones drawing the most attention in the past months or so because of the high profile attacks, fredricka. >> nick, thanks so much from kabul. criminal charges against dom strauss-kahn in the united states were dropped. now he wants the civil suit thrown out. you won't believe what he is claiming to help him get those charges dropped our legal guys take on that case after this. americans are always ready to work hard for a better future.

since ameriprise financial was founded back in 1894, they've been committed to putting clients first. helping generations through tough times. good times. never taking a bailout. there when you need them. helping millions of americans over the centuries. the strength of a global financial leader. the heart of a one-to-one relationship. together for your future. ♪

the two trains and a bus rider. the "i'll sleep when it's done" academic. for 80 years, we've been inspired by you. and we've been honored to walk with you to help you get where you want to be. ♪ because your moment is now. let nothing stand in your way. learn more at keller.edu.

what's vanishing deductible all about ? guys, it's demonstration time. let's blow carl's mind. okay, let's say i'm your insurance deductible. every year you don't have an accident, $100 vanishes. the next year, another $100. where am i going, carl ? the next year... that was weird. but awesome ! ♪ nationwide is on your side out of 34 wealthy nations, the u.s. ranks 25th in math and 17 in science. so sesame street is actually trying to do something about that. with an initiative called stem. christine romans met up with one of the stars shows to find out what it's all about. >> elmo, what does stem mean?

>> what does it mean? >> remember, science, technology, engineering and math. >> do you like math? >> i like math. elmo likes to count. one, two, three, four, five, six, seven -- >> is it fun? >> yes. you can use it when you're cooking. if you're going to use two eggs or three eggs, stuff like that. >> why is it important to get kids excited about stem, science, technology, engineering and math? why are they making it part of this? >> it's always been sesame street's tradition to give kids a head start, leg up. when you boil down the curriculum, it's perfect for preschoolers because it's about asking questions and investigating and experimenting. >> experimenting. >> right. that's how you learn. >> experimenting.

>> it's a big word, elmo. >> you've learned words like i'm told you learned about amphibian and balance? >> and ingredient and liquid. yeah. >> why are you learning these words? >> because they are really cool words. it's really fun to learn what they mean. >> you learned engineer. what's an engineer? >> that's when you build something. you're an engineer. >> creative. >> creative. >> static numbers and math and tables but something you're trying to show kids is part of learning and part of life. >> it is. it's very physical. stem is fun. it's physical fun. it's about testing out things. any questions kids have we encourage parents not to answer questions but explore the answers together.

dominique strauss-kahn said he was going to do and monday he did. he asked a new york judge to dismiss the civil suit filed against him by the hotel maid. his argument, he had diplomatic immunity. our legal guys, avery friedman and richard herman. he's arguing he had diplomatic immunity with regard to the civil case. why didn't he make the argument during the criminal phase as well, avery? >> because it doesn't apply. there's no diplomatic immunity. he held a position with international monetary fund. that's not a sovereign state. again, he's going to advance creative arguments. at the end of the day he's looking for procedural ways to beat the case before the case ultimately has to go to trial. >> okay. richard, he and his team are

saying i had diplomatic immunity. did he? would he? as the imf chief at the time? would he have diplomatic immunity if he's on a trip on personal business paying for his hotel with personal money and not imf money? help us understand who has diplomatic immunity, who has it, does he? >> his side is arguing he does. united states courts to rely on customary international law which would grant diplomatic immunity to him. the united states will not grapt it to him. trust me, fred, if there was any chance of him getting it, i know the attorney that represented him in the criminal case, he's an extremely competent attorney, if there's any chance of diplomatic immunity that would have been thrown in the criminal case. it was not used then. it does not exist. once the jury hears her on the phone, the. >> now on the phone, talking to

her boyfriend in prison saying i know he's a rich guy and i know how to deal with this, once they hear the tape it's over. >> you don't see the civil case moving forward. avery, what about you. would seem as though an interpretation could be the defense, dominique strauss-kahn, his attorneys are kind of grasping at straws trying to find how to make this civil suit go away. we bring this up. >> sure. we just heard elmo talking about amphibians. we get this. he's got to get out of this mess. he's raising procedural issues. he's raising other issues. ultimately they are genuine issues of material falk. the jury will have to resolve it if they can't settle it in advance. nice try, not going to work. that's all. >> all right. let's move onto these s.a.t.s. very good try. they thought it was going to work. it did for a while but now you've got a college student who

allegedly took s.a.t. tests for six other students and all of them are facing now criminal charges. richard, why is it the school district wouldn't be dealing with something like this. why is it these are now criminal charges these students are facing? >> scream to destraud, criminal impersonation, these are state crimes in new york. that's why it's not staying just in the school district. the gentleman who did the testing, the mike ross-type character from suits, who took it, this real guy got s.a.t.s. he got these levied at him. he's going to get a deal, mp he sat w it very well could be the tip of the iceberg. how many of these standardized tests who sits in for these people. how do you stop it. medical tests, legal, law tests, s.a.t.s. the stakes are so high. the desire to get into the highest and greatest schools are

so great. it's probably the tip of the iceberg. >> tip of the iceberg would mean there are others who may have allegedly taken the test for or other students who took him or others allegedly up on the offer. avery, why would he be able to plead a deal, possibly? why go ahead and say this is part of a very tiny network or whatever it is, you know, his story might be. why? >> well, the bottom line is the nassau county d.a. has done the right thing. there's going to be some kind of deal. the kid has no record. bottom line, the guy who did it, smart guy, 2400, this guy nailing 2100, 2200 scores for people. it really makes your blood boil. we know those who teach, there are wonderful students, working hard. they may not score as high as we'd like to see on their boards and they are not getting into

the schools. the ets that administers it doesn't punish, says invalidate the scores, take it again. that's no deterrent. you need deterrent to stop this at this level. when you have corrupt young people, fredricka, they turn into corrupt government officials and corrupt business people. >> not the why but how, on what grounds would he be able to, you know, plead or get some sort of deal? because if there's some admission, that, yes, i did assist, why would prosecutors say, okay, we're going to go easy on you. that's assuming that's part of the deal. i guess i'm confused on -- >> they want his cooperation. they want to find out who else is involved, how broad this is. believe me, it is a national problem. i think it's a small thing for prosecutors to do. get a deal, find out who else is involved, reduce the terms. >> richard? >> it's criminal law 101.

the first one in makes the deal and spills the beans and rats out everyone else. when i said it's the tip of the iceberg, i meant, look, we don't know number one how many others he sat for and how many weeyear he's been doing it. take that aside. new york. how many other states out there, who knows how many are doing it. >> avery, richard, thanks so much. always making us smarter. >> always fun. >> i've heard that amphibian thing. that was hilarious. thanks, guys. what do you get when you take two brown bears from the bronx zoo and add pump since? a viral video hit. you'll see it next. and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest oil reserves in the world. a large part of that is oil sands. this resource has the ability to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. at our kearl project in canada, we'll be able to produce these oil sands with the same emissions as many other oils

and that's a huge breakthrough. that's good for our country's energy security and our economy. aflac... and major medical? major medical, boyyyy! [ beatboxing ] ♪ i help pay the doctor ♪ ain't that enough for you? ♪ there are things major medical doesn't do. aflac! pays cash so we don't have to fret. [ together ] ♪ something families should get ♪ ♪ like a safety net ♪ even helps pay deductibles, so cover your back, get... ♪ a-a-a-a-a-a-a-aflac! [ male announcer ] help protect your family at aflac.com. [ beatboxing ] just having some chicken noodle. starting my progresso soup for lunch plan, huh. nope, just having some tender chicken and some tasty noodles. let's see... south western vegetables... 60 calories, oh beef pot roast... ...ya' know those jeans look nice. they do? yup. so you were checking me out?

yup. [ male announcer ] progresso. 40 soups 100 calories or less.

okay. i've got a little viral video a little early, reynolds. when is the last time you've been to the zoo? >> a little while. you can consider the wolf house where i live like the zoo. >> i like that maybe time to go to the bronx zoo. there's cute, cuddly bears there. they are putting on quite a show this october. they aren't that cute and cuddly, i didn't mean in terms

of small. they are cute and cuddly when you see them with the pumpkins that have been tossed into the pasture for them. >> unbelievable. i'm perplexed. that's something they normally don't have in their native state. most bears don't have a giant gourd to gnaw into. don't you think they would do that with anything? could be a watermelon, anything at all. >> that's true. 'tis the season. they are carving their pumpkins in their own special way. >> what do they do at easter, throw in easter eggs? >> maybe they throw in peeps, not people peeps but marshmallow peeps. that's cute. >> it is cute. >> i like that. that's when they look cute and cuddly even if they are 300 pounds. >> talking about the change of season here, that fits into the whole pumpkin thing. it feels like october.

>> it's fall now. time to put away the sandals. >> before we go away, fred, take a look at this. the rest of the viewers across the country. parts of pennsylvania even into new york, portions of west virginia and maryland we're seeing not only rain, a little pink pop up on radar, talk about freezing precipitation, freezing air aloft. we're not expecting any significant accumulation. kind of interesting to see. what is not interesting, possibility of two to three inches of rainfall in new york and parts of pennsylvania. we don't need that to happen. looks like it might happen through the weekend. any places inundated by heavy rainfall, trust me, quite a bit of it, might see a flooding situation. keep that in mind. friends from pittsburgh, state college back to altoona, be advised, could see rain over the weekend. one of the reasons we see it. air of low pressure off the atlantic, cold air aloft, give some freezing precipitation, sunny and warm to the west and nice and warm in texas.

highs in places like billings. fredricka going up to 90 degrees. doesn't seem like fall-like. >> doesn't same fair. i'm sure it will change. five military veterans serving their country one joke at a time. their story when we're come back.

ford fusion has now been named the most dependable midsize car by jd power and associates. we go to kimberly. any thoughts on this news? i have no idea what's goin on. ford fusion named the most dependable full-sized car they told me it's the most dependable midsize sedan and they ran back into their little box.

. keeping your sense of humor in a war zone is not easy, but a group of gis did it by find the funny side of their military duties. here is cnn's barbara starr. >> i used to get in trouble i thought [ bleep ] private was a rank. every time i heard my name, it was like [ bleep ] private. >> these are gis of comedy. all veterans. as they like to say, still serving the country one joke at a time. we sat down to talk at the famed hollywood improv club where they performed. former staff sergeant started the standup comedy group. >> i wanted to get a group of guys together who are all comics, all professional comedians, all from the military or served in the military. >> meet the man known as g. >> bring a bouncer get in free.

>> gno period riley signalman second class. >> reporter: now fulltime comedians sharing the laughter born of observations of military life. >> my first sergeant pulled me out of formation today and sent me for psychiatric evaluation because he said you never stop laughing. you don't take anything seriously and there's something wrong with you, boy. so tests were inconclusive. >> air force major saw some of the oddities in iraq. >> we would land. i'm a cargo guy. wow, it sucks here. see you guys. >> reporter: all the guys say they saw the world somewhat differently as children. >> i came from a very funny family. we were deported from cuba. as a kid -- >> deported from cuba. >> that's right. that's right. my dad was a political prisoner. he protested communism. he went to jail.

>> i know what you're thinking to yourself. you're thinking there are 6 billion chinese on the planet and i've never seen one with a guitar. >> reporter: tom's family were refugees from vietnam. his father was a political prisoner. one day in iraq the laughter stopped. >> i got shot in the back of the head. i remember thinking, dam it, this uniform is clean this morning. there's blood on it. i haven't taken a shower in three weeks. this is going to suck. >> tom stayed in iraq and suppressed it all. >> all that fear and anxiety built up until i came home and i snapped. and the ptsd set in like -- my roommate got killed before i came home. so comedy saved my life quite literally. kevlar, helmet, whatever, comedy saved my life. >> now, a brotherhood of tears

and laughter. >> we're beyond friends. we're brothers. >> barbara starr, cnn, los angeles. [ man ] natural gas vehicles are used somewhere... but not in my neighborhood. ♪ [ female announcer ] we're throwing away misperceptions about natural gas vehicles. more of the vehicles that fuel our lives use clean american natural gas today. it costs about 40 percent less than gasoline, so why aren't we using it even more? start a conversation about using more natural gas vehicles

in your community. ♪ [ male announcer ] with 50 horsepower, dual overhead cams and fierce acceleration, the gator xuv 825i will shatter your expectations. ♪ and so no one gets left behind, check out our all-new, affordable xuv 550s at johndeere.com/gator.

aspercreme breaks the grip, with maximum-strength medicine and no embarrassing odor. break the grip of pain with aspercreme.