this morning, damage and destruction. >> the end of the summer slam, thanks to powerful storms, outages, flooding, downed trees from georgia to maine. responding to romney. the president on letterman. his first words since the race was rocked by romney's comments about the now-famous 47%. and you knew he couldn't stay away for long. tv legend regis philbin, announcing his new daytime tv gig. one that he doesn't plan to get up too early for. and jennifer aniston's new role, pregnant with triplets. her hilarious new video, not afraid to make fun of herself. good morning, everybody. i'm john muller. >> and i'm sunny hostin.

paula and rob are on assignments. we begin this wednesday, with millions of people along the east coast dealing with the aftermath of a wicked storm. >> the clash of powerful weather systems, leaving a huge mess in its wake. from the maryland shores, to manhattan sidewalks, the fierce storm caused chaos, as high winds and heavy rains, delivering a dangerous double-punch. as the cold front swept in from the west, the system barreled up the east coast. a corporate jet trying to land in blinding rain in macon, georgia, hydroplaning and crashing. in north carolina, the fast-moving water flooding parking lots and washing out bridges and roads. more than eight inches of rain in towns outside of philadelphia. and millions of people in the new york area, spending hours under a tornado watch, as power lines snapped and trees were tossed on to houses and cars. and this morning, up and down the i-95 corridor, from washington, d.c. to boston, utility crews will be scrambling to restore electricity to tens of thousands of people, as

chainsaws roar into action, cleaning up the debris. autumn arrives in just three days. but the summer of 2012 is not leaving quietly. and stay with us. sam champion tracking it all. he'll have the very latest on this wild weather coming up on "good morning america." and now, to the storm growing over the romney campaign after those remarks on hidden videotape. >> running mate paul ryan defends the comments. but also calls romney, quote, obviously inarticulate. and president obama has weighed in, as well. here's abc's tahman bradley. >> reporter: appearing on cbs' "late show with david letterman," president obama threw an elbow at mitt romney, for his controversial comments, that nearly half of americans view themselves as victims. >> one thing i've learned as president, is you represent the entire country. my expectation is that if you want to be president, you have to work for everybody. not just for some. >> reporter: it was the president's first time weighing in on the secretly recorded video, leaked to the left-leaning "mother jones" magazine, showing romney telling wealthy donors that 47% of the country is dependent on government.

>> and so, my job is not to worry about those people. i'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives. >> reporter: since the tape's release, the romney campaign has been scrambling to control the damage. romney, last night, on fox news. >> we were, of course, talking about a campaign and how he's going to get close to half the vote. i'm going to get half the vote. i want to get 50.1% or more. >> reporter: the obama campaign moved swiftly to seize on the tape, launching this web video, with chicagoans reacting. >> i actually felt sick to my stomach. >> it shows he's out of touch. >> reporter: the controversy comes at an awful time for the gop nominee. he's fallen behind president obama in most polls. and the comments highlight one of his weaknesses. voters don't believe he's empathetic. a recent abc news/"washington post" poll found that 58% of americans said romney would favor the wealthy over the middle class. republicans are trying to take attention off the romney tape. pointing to an audio recording of then-state senator obama, 14 years ago, appearing to endorse wealth redistribution.

the obama campaign called the attack desperate. john and sunny? >> tahman bradley in washington. thank you. overseas news. a french satire magazine is publishing cartoons of the prophet muhammad today, which could re-ignite outrage over the anti-islam film. last year, the magazine, called "charlie hebdo," put out an issue, supposedly guest-edited by the prophet and got its offices firebombed. the magazine is claiming its right to free speech. the french prime minister says it's a, quote, catastrophe. nato commanders have ordered a temporary halt to rejoin operations with afghan troops that are the cornerstone of the west exit strategy. the move comes after a major spike in the number of nato troops killed by their afghan counterparts. those so-called insider attacks, as the turmoil over that film rages on. and in beijing, the american ambassador got swept up in a protest against japan. chinese demonstrators surrounded his car, as it neared the u.s. embassy, which is very close to the japanese embassy. china and japan are in a fierce struggle over some islands.

the incident comes as american embassies around the world are on high alert. investigators are trying to figure out what caused this explosion and fire at a gas pipeline facility on the texas/mexico border. at least 26 people died in the accident near the city of reynosa, across from mcallen, texas. pipelines in mexico are often tapped by thieves who steal the fuel. and hundreds of thousands of students head back to the classroom this morning in chicago. striking teachers have agreed to return to work after more than a week after walking the picket line. one of the main sticking points over teacher evaluations appears to have been resolved. the city agreed to reduce the emphasis on student test scores. the teachers also agreed on a longer school day. the catholic church has just been hit with a new round of allegations in the child sex abuse scandal. eight new lawsuits claim the archdiocese of philadelphia covered up child sexual assault allegations against seven roman catholic priests.

convicted monsignor william lynn is among those named in the lawsuit. space shuttle "endeavour" takes off for its final resting place in california. the flight from florida had been delayed for two days because of stormy weather en route. the entire spacecraft will spend tonight in houston before taking off again for los angeles. >> all right. time, now, for the weather across the nation. all that rain clearing out in the northeast, except for a few lingering showers in maine. scattered thunderstorms in florida. showers in the upper midwest, from minneapolis to the canadian border. up to ten degrees warmer than normal in the pacific northwest. >> 76 in seattle. mostly 80s in the rockies and great plains. 70s from boston all the way down to atlanta. and when we come back, what some people are doing today just to get a free doughnut. and then, pink slips at a major airline. why american is ready to let thousands of mechanics and ground workers go. and later, regis philbin, trading his morning retirement for a new gig.

welcome back. the belt-tightening at american airlines is under way. the bankrupt carrier has notified more than 11,000 workers they could lose their jobs. and it's cutting flights this fall. and with the pilots staging unofficial job actions, at least one travel writer says american is unreliable. and travelers should choose another airline. there is another sign this morning of how tough it is to buy a home. mortgage lending last year hit

its lowest point in 16 years. it's a combination of weak demand for the loans and tighter standards for the borrowers. home purchases, lending activity fell in most areas. they were hit hard by the foreclosures and the falling prices. things just keep getting better and better for apple. its stock closed at more than $700 a share yesterday, thanks to the strong presales for the iphone 5. investors apparently believe the company's revenue will keep growing. apple's stock is up 73% just this year. it was already the world's most valuable company. and if you absolutely, positively have to be the first on your block with an iphone 5, and don't want to wait online, there's always ebay. bidding for an unlocked phone that will work on a canadian wireless service, is above $11,000 now. that's right. $11,000. but it does come with free shipping. american phones are running $900 and up. you can get a free doughnut today if you don't mind acting a little foolishly. is that any good? that was my pirate talk. it's talk like a pirate day at

krispy kreme. and if you don't mind acting foolish just like just i did, you can get a free doughnut. dressed completely like a pirate, you will get a dozen doughnuts. i like doughnuts. >> i can do that. >> i'm not going to do that. i think i just did it for enough people. right? >> it was good. >> it was all right. thank you. coming up, a sports marathon. not on the track, on the baseball field. plus, a little fun got lifeguards in hot water. now, people are coming to their rescue. and an awesome display of nature's fury. a breath-taking spectacle called a firenado. get ready for a feeling of clean like nothing else. extreme clean from aquafresh. it showers your whole mouth with rich micro-active foam. thousands of germ-killing bubbles seek out hard to reach places and help kill the sources of bad breath then rinse clean away

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the filmmaker who videotaped it, just happened to be in the area scouting for locations for a video. it sounded like a jet engine and lasted for 40 minutes. pretty amazing. and now, for a look at morning road conditions. slick spots in the upper midwest, around the twin cities, green bay and the upper peninsula of michigan. a wet commute in maine. and showers could dampen roads in florida, anywhere to the south of jacksonville. >> if you're flying, it should be easy going. weather-related airport delays are only expected in boston and miami. and speaking of travel, prince william and kate have wrapped up their visit to the solomon islands. >> the royal couple return home, having scored a legal victory in the battle over the topless photos of kate. here's abc's bob woodruff. >> reporter: just as the court's decision was coming down, will and kate were enjoying some regal treatment. it would be a happier day for the famed couple, certainly worth a little dance.

the french court's ruling prohibits the magazine called "closer" from publishing anymore of the pictures of kate. while demanding the digital copies be returned to the royal family within 24 hours. stiff fines for failing to comply. but the magazine has already sold 400,000 copies. and the photos have now been published in ireland and italy. next, the royals want criminal charges brought against the magazine and an investigation into who took the topless pictures of kate. >> williams' very angry. this type of photography and this type of journalism won't be tolerated. >> reporter: if convicted the photographer, who has yet to be identified, could spend up to a year in jail. the royal couple determined to seek justice. bob woodruff, abc news, solomon islands. a former yale university student is being held in california on a $1 million bail, accused of making threatening comments online. 21-year-old eric yee allegedly posted on espn's website that he was watching children and wouldn't mind killing them.

there was mention of an aurora, colorado, style massacre. police linked the comments to the los angeles area home where yee lives with his parents. they found several guns in the home which overlooks two schools. 13 california lifeguards and their manager, fighting to get their jobs back. ♪ >> they were actually fired because of this spoof of the dance craze "gangnam style." officials decided they used the city resources without permission. hundreds of their supporters turned out for a city council meeting last night. thousands more have signed an online petition. no decision, yet. but the mayor has launched a new investigation. give me a break. give them their job back. well, an intriguing scrap of paper is renewing an age-old religious debate. did jesus have a wife? a harvard scholar has unveiled a faded piece of papyrus that contains the phrase, quote, jesus said to them, my wife. it goes on to say, quote, she will be able to be my disciple.

karen king, the harvard professor, is asking other experts to weigh in. the driving force behind nfl films has died. steve sabol was the organization's president. he started nfl films with his father in the 1960s. and their work helped make the nfl what it is today. and it revolutionized how sports is broadcast on tv. he died yesterday, after battling cancer. 69 years old. in sports, a wild night in baseball. one game just wrapping up. we'll get to that in a moment. first, a series of blowouts across the big leagues. we get the highlights from espn news. >> good morning. randy scott here with your "sportscenter" update. justin verlander won the mvp award for the tigers last season. he wants to keep the mvp in the "d" this season. at least that's what he tweeted. miguel cabrera, looks like he's going to prove verlander right. tigers, hosting the athletics last night. bottom three. that's miguel cabrera. that's gone. that's his 39th of the year, but his 1st of the night.

in the eighth, the bases loaded. the tigers up sixth. and that's a grand slam. his 40th of the year. first tiger hit for him since cecil fielder in 1991. rangers and angels out west. mike scoscia's boys trying to keep pace in the wild card. that's texas' tanner scheppers, and a wild pitch. iannetta scores. fearless and freaky fast. he's in behind him. the angels would get eight runs in that inning alone. and then, later, erick aybar, a little more insurance, padding that lead. 11-3, your final. the halos win. astros/cardinals. st. louis 8 of 11, taking on a team that 99 losses as of last night. that's kyle lohse. he's a pitcher. he's working the dish in the bottom of the fifth. plates a run. next batter, jon jay. that will go to left center. and lohse comes in to score. and the way he pitched, that's fine. seven scoreless innings to get his 15th win.

the cardinals win. 4-1, your final. espn's wednesday night baseball tonight from the motor city. coverage starts at 7:00. justin verlander on the mound for the tigers. i'm randy scott. have a great day. and finally, some sleep for seattle baseball fans. but they went to bed unhappy. the mariners and the orioles went to 18 innings before taylor teagarden blooped a base hit in right field to bring in the go-ahead run. baltimore won 4-2. the game went 5:44, ending just short of 1:00 a.m. seattle time. >> they're a little tired. >> 18 innings. >> 18 innings. up next, "the pulse," with jennifer aniston sporting a giant baby bump. and call him the brew master in chief. the president opens up about that new hobby. and regis philbin, finding a new home on daytime tv. hi, i'm phil mickelson.

i've been fortunate to win on golf's biggest stages. but when joint pain and stiffness from psoriatic arthritis hit, even the smallest things became difficult. i finally understood what serious joint pain is like. i talked to my rheumatologist and he prescribed enbrel. enbrel can help relieve pain, stiffness, and stop joint damage. because enbrel, etanercept, suppresses your immune system, it may lower your ability to fight infections. serious, sometimes fatal events including infections, tuberculosis, lymphoma, other cancers, and nervous system and blood disorders have occurred. before starting enbrel, your doctor should test you for tuberculosis and discuss whether you've been to a region where certain fungal infections are common. don't start enbrel if you have an infection like the flu. tell your doctor if you're prone to infections, have cuts or sores, have had hepatitis b, have been treated for heart failure, or if, while on enbrel, you experience persistent fever, bruising, bleeding, or paleness. [ phil ] get back to the things that matter most. ask your rheumatologist if enbrel is right for you. [ doctor ] enbrel, the number one biolog medicine prescribed by rheumatologists.

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well, it's time to check "the pulse," stories you'll be talking about today. and it wasn't all serious local talk when president obama paid a visit to the late show last night. >> david letterman asked him about a little side project at 1600 pennsylvania avenue. >> is it true you're making beer in the white house? >> that is true. >> is that legal? >> i don't know. >> we'll look into that. >> we got a little operation going there. you know, if the president sees this thing doesn't work out, well you know, have a little microbrewery thing going on. >> yes, when the president came out, there was an empty seat joke. that clint eastwood routine with the chair is still good for some laughs. >> got to love it.

is it legal? i don't know. >> you tried to make some beer, right? >> me and a buddy tried to brew beer in college. three weeks. we followed all the directions. we bought all of the material. it was awful. >> maybe the president's is a little better. >> he probably has great help. we were flying blind. when regis left "live" last year, he made it clear he was not retiring. he's back on the air for another morning show. this time, paired with rachael ray. >> reege will be joining the perky ray one morning a month. the 81-year-old host said when the offer time in, he couldn't refuse. he can't cook a thing. well, jennifer aniston is turning heads with her new viral video, as she's poking fun at herself while cashing in on a new ad. >> the commercial was a spoof on what might be going on behind aniston's closed doors. it takes place on her home security tapes. it's tabloid fodder, including a

comical baby bump. take a look. >> oh, god. oh, god. oh. so much better. how are my triplets doing? >> pretty good there. aniston had fun with her rachel hair-do. there's cameos by jimmy kimmel. ryan seacrest acting as a host of a fake magazine show. >> that's nice, right? see her poking fun at herself. she has been the subject of all of this tabloid stuff. is she progress? is she not pregnant? >> now, she has triplets and the rachel hair was a wig. how little we knew. very good. for some of you, the local news is next. >> for everyone else, we'll be back with shark researchers turned shark wranglers.

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. next, what to do about crime in the bay area's biggest city? >> right now, endeavour is on its final flight. how you can get a front row seat. >> mike will have a look at our forecast. cooler this morning plenty of sun. i'll show you when cooler afternoons will end.hunderstormf florida. and a few lingering showers in maine. and finally this morning, hooking a big one off the coast of cape cod. >> yeah. real big. scientists and fishermen, combing the waters of new england, searching for great

whites. and they managed to wrangle a 2,000-pounder. liam martin of our boston station got onboard. >> reporter: we're about three miles off the coast of chattham, on the world's only vessel that can catch, capture, tag and research the ocean's top predator. >> they're breeding here with the bloodwork. >> reporter: this is the architect. chris fisher of "shark wranglers." the goal is to pull great whites onboard so they can tag and study them. and on thursday, they got the catch of a lifetime. >> whoa. >> reporter: she's been dubbed genie, a 15-foot great white. scientists were able to attach this tracking device, an axel rommer the to her dorsal fin. and release her. researchers have been tracking genie ever since. >> for the first time, a north atlantic white shark was spot-tagged. now, we'll be able to solve the

puzzle of her life. >> reporter: learning that pattern will tell researchers where genie breeds and gives birth. that information is vital to protecting her. >> they're under assault right now. up to 70 million sharks a year are killed for a bowl of soup in china. >> reporter: the operation is expensive. a $2 million endeavor and relies on donors. joshua morrow of "the young and the restless" is one of the contributors. and this shark expert says the recent increase of great white populations off massachusetts means this could be a common sight going forward. >> there's clear indications that we're taking more and more each year. we went from tagging eight in 2011, to now, we're over 15, 16, in 2012. >> reporter: liam martin, news center 5. >> amazing stuff. >> yeah. that's what's making news in america this morning. >> stay with us for "good morning america." have a great wednesday.