making news in america this morning. >> the vice presidential candidates clash on just about every issue. >> watch out, middle-class. the tax bill is coming to you. >> that's a bunch of mularkey. >> and why is that so? >> because not a single thing he said is accurate. >> joe biden and paul ryan didn't give an inch to one another. we have the details from danville, kentucky. also, moving day, for the space shuttle "endeavour." it is starting a two-day trip through the streets of los angeles. the postal service adds a penny to the cost of your forever stamps. its newest effort to stop all the red ink. and the san francisco giants and detroit tigers are looking forward in baseball's playoffs. two more teams will move today.

good friday morning, everybody. it was a decidedly different debate than last week's presidential faceoff. this time, joe biden and paul ryan clash on virtually every issue, stopping short of, basically, calling each other liars. >> now, the question is, who won? an overnight yahoo! poll of over 130,000 people may have the best answer of all. and it was 50/50. abc's brandi hitt is in danville, kentucky. good morning, brandi. >> reporter: good morning, rob. good morning, paula. yes, the vice presidential debate definitely lived up to expectations. both sides sparred throughout the night. and many do believe that vice president biden helped make up for president obama's lackluster performance last week. the first and only vice presidential debate sparked a few fireworks. >> it's been done a couple of times. >> it has never --

>> john kennedy lowered tax rates, increased growth. ronald reagan -- >> oh. now, you're jack kennedy. >> reporter: vice president joe biden and republican challenger, paul ryan, delivered stark difference on domestic and foreign policy. including how to fix the economy. >> we're going in the wrong direction. look at where we are. the economy is barely limping along. >> it shouldn't be surprising for a guy who says 47% of the american people are unwilling to take responsibility for their own lives. they pay more effective tax than governor romney pays in his federal income tax. >> reporter: ryan went after president obama for his response to the u.s. consulate attack in libya. >> it took the president two weeks to acknowledge that this was a terrorist attack. >> reporter: while biden challenged ryan's proposed changes to medicare. >> you are jeopardizing the program. you're changing the program from a guaranteed benefit. >> reporter: it was a more heated back and forth than the first presidential debate. and biden often laughed at ryan's arguments. >> joe biden understood, tonight, he had to go back out there and do what president

obama failed to do last week. >> reporter: with the race still tight, both president obama and mitt romney, watched closely. >> i thought joe biden was terrific tonight. i could not be prouder of him. >> reporter: and in the end, their running mates even shared a few laughs. >> i think the vice president very well knows that sometimes the words don't come out of your mouth the right way. >> i always say what i mean. >> reporter: that got a lot of laughs last night. now, the next big debate is next tuesday. that's when we see president obama and mitt romney faceoff for round two in new york. reporting live in danville, kentucky, brandi hitt. rob and paula, back to you. >> look forward to round two. abc's brandi hitt reporting this morning from danville, kentucky. thanks, brandi. and president obama, as you heard, gave vice president biden's performance a thumbs-up last night. he watched the debate aboard air force one, returning from one of his last fund-raising events before the election. the president chided mr. romney

for calling himself, quote, severely conservative, and now, trying to reinvent himself as a moderate. and during a campaign swing through north carolina, mitt romney again went after the obama administration's handling of the terrorist attack in libya. romney accused the president of failing to, quote, grasp the seriousness of the incident. today, romney will hit the trail again, joining his running mate at a rally in the state of ohio. little perspective of last night's debate. it may have been contentious. but, hey, at least it didn't get physical. check out this faceoff between two veteran california democrats, running for the same seat. at one point, congressman brad sherman grabbed his opponent, congressman howard berman, and shouted, do you want to get into this? the audience, hooting and hollering, until a sheriff's deputy had to step in to separate them. >> take it out outside, fellas. it's getting hot. and a dire warning about cyber security from the nation's top defense official.

leon panetta says we are facing the threat of a possible cyber pearl harbor, in which foreign computer hackers take control of the nation's power grid, transportation and financial network. as an example, panetta said a hostile group could derail a passenger train that's loaded with lethal chemicals. investigators in colorado are asking for the public's help in finding a suspect in the kidnapping of jessica ridgeway. what is believed to be the little girl's body was discovered not far from where she disappeared just a week ago. positive identification has been made more difficult by the fact that parts of the body are missing. and the first suit has now been filed in the deadly meningitis outbreak. a minnesota woman who may have gotten the tainted steroids is suing the drugmaker. the death toll has now risen to 14. and officials fear it could go even higher. there's now 170 confirmed cases. federal health experts are warning people who have gotten those shots that they should be on the lockout for symptoms over

the next couple of months. and some breaking news to report to you this morning. the european union has been awarded this year's nobel peace prize. the announcement was just made by the secretive nobel committee in oslo, norway. the award comes for the u.e. since its greatest economic crisis. in its comment, the nobel committee recognized the e.u. for six decades of reconciliati reconciliation, decency, and human rights in europe. time, now, for the weather across the nation. up to eight inches of the white stuff, mountain snow in colorado and utah. showers in the pac northwest. morning rain and thunderstorms in los angeles, vegas and albuquerque. severe storms with a chance of tornadoes around wichita, oklahoma city and amarillo. >> summer-like in the south, with 80s from dallas to atlanta. the midwest and northeast are cold and windy and in the 50s. mostly 70s, meanwhile, in the rockies.

coming up this friday morning, another space shuttle heads to its final home. but first, something to irritate you on a friday. new evidence that banks are still tacking on plenty of fees. and some welcome news about the airlines. it's all next.

welcome back, everybody. well, you better keep an eye on your bank statements. a new pew study says a dozen major banks are still not being clear about their checking account fees. and many are charging more for some basic features. sometimes the fees aren't listed on bank websites. but they're in those checking account disclosure statements

that you get in the mail sometimes. the study says they actually run a median length of 69 pages. well, the maker of mini-wheats has a not-so-small problem on its hands. kellogg's is recalling almost 3 million boxes of the cereal because they could be contaminated with small pieces of metal. kellogg's blames a faulty manufacturing part. two years ago and had a major recall, when apple jacks, froot loops and other cereals had a funny taste and smell because of a packaging problem. >> that cereal's in our snack room upstairs. >> yeah. it's in my cabinet at home, too. the cash-strapped postal service is hoping to make up some of its huge losses one penny at a time. rates are going up, shockingly, once again. january 27th, including first class mail, which will go up a penny to 46 cents. priority mail shipping will increase about 4%. the post office expects to lose

a record $15 billion this year. well, flying might be a hassle. but on the bright side, at least you have a better chance to get where you're going on time. new government numbers show that between january and august, airlines had an 82% on-time arrival rate. that's the best showing in 18 years. and canceled flights dropped to a record low. >> real quick. you ever notice how you get a plane ticket and there's a time on there. the time on the ticket is always longer than what the captain tells you when you get on the plane. that's the numbers, to make it seem like you get there on time. i'm just saying. >> we'll do an abc news investigation. >> i'm going to call brian ross. a famous fast food face is getting a makeover. get ready for a new look at wendy's. >> for the past 30 years, this has been the face of wendy's. those familiar red pigtails and the little freckled girl. now, there's the update. all part of an overhaul for the entire brand. the new logo will be used

starting in march. the name wendy comes from the daughter of the chain's founder, dave thomas. i think my family has single-handedly supported several wendy's in our lifetime. when we come back this morning, "endeavour" rolls out towards the california science center. and the latest from maine, where a prostitution case has plenty of people rather nervous this morning. introducing balan, the new way to save and get more of what you love walgreens for. it's easy to get points on everyday purchases, and easy to redeem them for just about anything anyone in your family could want. just make sure you save enough points for a little something for yourself. sign up today, in-store or online. it's instant points and endless rewards. and it's all right here. at the corner of happy and healthy. hd 8.

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try the #1 gastroenterologist recommended probiotic. align. align naturally helps maintain digestive balance. ♪ ooh, baby, can i do for you today? ♪ try align today. some spectacular characters were taking shape over the skies of new mexico. larger-than-life flowers, animals, and even rock stars took flight. >> this is the special shapes rodeo at the annual balloon fiesta in albuquerque. some high winds made for rough landings. but the event didn't disappoint. with that, a look at your morning road conditions. snow-covered passes in the colorado and utah mountains. a wet ride from southern california to vegas and albuquerque. thunderstorms also drench highways from wichita to amarillo. slick highways in the pacific northwest. >> if you're flying, airport

delays are possible in los angeles, san diego, san francisco, and vegas. the retired space shuttle "endeavour" is on the move this morning. >> the aging spacecraft has begun its two-day journey from the airport to its final home at a los angeles museum. here's abc's tahman bradley. >> reporter: overnight, the space shuttle "endeavour" began its final journey. "endeavour" left the los angeles airport en route to its retirement home at the california science center. >> i'm going to watch it. i want to see it. >> reporter: it's a terribly complicated move. although "endeavour" is traveling just 12 miles, it's going to take 2 days for the 5-story, 165,000-pound shuttle to reach its destination. >> moving something the size of the shuttle with a 78-foot wingspan through the city streets is maybe not rocket science. but it's not too far from it. >> reporter: in south l.a., along "endeavour's" route, crews cut down hundreds of trees. and dozens of power lines were removed. major roads were closed and traffic diverted, as authorities took extra precautions.

the city also placed restrictions on where the public can watch "endeavour," saying streets are just not wide enough for the shuttle and crowds. some who live along "endeavour's" route are annoyed. >> it's a good thing. it's history. it's a historical thing. everybody wants to be there. instead of being pushed away from it. >> reporter: "endeavour" will be parked here, at the shuttle display pavilion, until construction of its permanent display is finished. >> i'm pretty sure it's going to be a pretty remarkable thing to see. and it's really going to motivate kids. >> reporter: one final mission for a shuttle that traveled more than 100,000 miles in space. tahman bradley, abc news. a michigan businessman has pleaded guilty to trying to hire a hitman to kill his wife's murderer. >> bob bashara said he had nothing to do with the strangling death of his wife, jane, back in january. but heavyman joe gentz says mr. bashara hired him to do it. bashara has not been charged in his wife's murder. authorities say he wanted gentz

dead so gentz couldn't name him in the upcoming trial. and a third man has died after a parking garage under construction collapsed on the campus of miami-dade college. doctors say a worker who was rescued after being trapped in the rubble for 13 hours was unable to survive his serious injuries. emergency crews say they expect to recover one more body from inside that collapsed structure. and two alleged customers of a maine woman accused of running a prostitution ring out of her zumba studio are trying to keep the client list from going public. a lawyer for the two alleged customers filed a motion in court yesterday, ahead of the expected release of the names today. alexis wright has pleaded not guilty to 106 counts of prostitution, as well as other offenses. >> the little black book. here's the talker story of the morning. michael vick is a dog owner again. the revelation comes just three years after vick was released from prison on a dogfighting conviction. the eagles' quarterback angered animal activists by tweeting a

picture of his daughter with a box of dog biscuits on the table. vick says he wants his children to develop a healthy relationship with animals. and college football has lost a true classic personality. beano cook worked as a commentator on espn broadcasts since 1986. always a passionate pundit. he supported the college game instead of the pros. and his last blog post said health issues hit him at the wrong time, the start of the college football season. beano cook died in his sleep yesterday. he was 81. and with that, some of last night's highlights, now, from both baseball and football. we get those from espn. >> welcome to your "sportscenter" update. i'm jorge andres. justin verlander and the tigers trying to close out the a's in game five. he would be dealing against coco crisp, not so much. how about stephen drew? strikes out swinging. bottom second, now. josh reddick, didn't even see it.

now, remember, verlander had 11 strikeouts in game 1. top third now. austin jackson, a deep ball to center. omar infante would come around to score. jackson had two rbis in this game. his second career multi-rbi postseason game. top seven. tigers now up 4-0. prince fielder at the dish. gets an rbi single that scores jackson. tigers up 5-0. as the a's are 11-54 this season when trailing after seven innings. bottom nine. a's down six. seth smith would ground out. verlander, with nine innings of work, ten strikeouts, not a single earned run. as the tigers win 6-0 and win the series, 3-2. ben roethlisberger and the steelers looking for the first road win of the season. taking on the titans. first quarter, roethlisberger threw for 363 yards to pass terry bradshaw for the most passing yards in steeler history.

this one, an 82-yard connection to mike wallace. steelers up 7. fourth quarter, matt hassleback finds kenny britt. 62 yards and this touchdown. we're tied at 23-23 in the fourth. and the kick is up. rob bironas for the game-winning 40-yard field goal. titans win, 26-23. that's your "sportscenter" update. i'm jorge andres. have a great night. there's some baseball history to report. this is the first time since divisional playoffs started that all four series will have gone five games. >> san francisco was powered by a grand-slam home run by buster posey. they beat the reds to advance to the nlcs. first time a team has been down two games and gone with the win. washington got a walkoff home run from jayson werth to force today's game five against st. louis. and the orioles topping the yankees in 13 innings. they play game five today, as well. >> playoff baseball. all right. coming up next this morning, "the pulse." a couple shoutouts to a few of our colleagues here at abc.

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mmmm. great grains. search great grains and see for yourself. time to check "the pulse" this morning, which features two of our very own here at abc news. first up, our martha raddatz, who was getting overwhelmingly positive reviews for her handling of last night's veep debate. >> some republicans were criticizing her for cutting off paul ryan. but overall, the response has been good. some celebs tweeting last night. actor/director mark ruffalo, said martha raddatz was great. eva longoria called martha the best moderator ever. and film critic, roger ebert said he votes for martha raddatz to moderate all of the debates.

and terrific news about our dear friend and colleague, robin roberts. she is waking up in her own bed in her own home this morning. >> she's out of the hospital after spending a month there for her bone marrow transplant. now, back home, enjoying the riverviews she loves. her doctors, nurses, family on-hand cheering her on for the next step in her recovery. she said part of her strength, coming from the good wishes of all of you who are watching. and finally, marine biologists in south florida have an eye-popping mystery on their hands literally. check out what washed up on pompano beach. a giant eye, about the size of a softball. >> they think it belongs to a sea creature. they're just not sure what kind. so, now, this eyeball is on ice until someone can determine its species. sorry if we ruined your breakfast. we do have an eye for great stories, don't we? >> well played, farris. for some of you, now, your local news is coming up next. >> for everyone else, we'll be back with a marine who came to the rescue, even when he really didn't have to. stick around.

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deadly shooting in san jose. >> giants look ahead to the playoffs. a's may have lost but they are a win we are fans. >> what is ahead for the weekend weather? >> still leftover moisture then sunshine and warmer than average weather. >> sue hall will haverillo to wichita. it's going to be cold in the midwest, as well as the northeast. and finally from us this morning, the true meaning of teamwork. a determined, young boy had shown himself and the world just how much he could do. >> but when he needed a little help along the way, the right person was there to step in.

reporter lena deflores has the story from pensacola, florida. >> reporter: 11-year-old ben baltz lost his leg to bone cancer at the age of 6. yet, he has crossed six triathlon finish lines in his lifetime. all of them without his right leg. all of them without help. but it was this finish at the sea turtle triathlon that has captured america's heart. >> and it just breaks. it's broken before. but not in a race. >> reporter: ben had completed two-thirds of the triathlon. he had swam 3 miles, biked 150 yards and was halfway through his 1-mile run, when a marine noticed his athleticism. >> ben was passing other contestants. he was doing really well. and we were watching for a second. and all of a sudden, his prosthetic failed. >> reporter: but ben was not to be stopped. >> he had jumped up and tried to fix it while continuing the

race. >> reporter: what did he say to you? >> you need help? >> he said no, i'm going to finish. >> reporter: then, ben realized, in order to cross the finish line, just a half-mile away, he would need his leg or a helping hand. meanwhile, ben's mom waited for him at the finish line, wondering about her son. >> he just never showed up. i was getting worried. >> reporter: but there was no need. for marines, there's no much thing as off-duty. >> i told him to hop on. >> he picked me up. >> he hopped on my back. >> and ran the rest of the race. >> and we finished the race. >> and all of a sudden, the announcer said, ladies and gentlemen, turn around and see what's going on on the course. >> they were cheering us on. >> reporter: so, what does this duo think about their newfound fame? >> there's a lot more that deserve more than me. >> it's kind of neat. >> great story. that's what's making news in america this morning. >> stay with us for "good morning america." have a great friday. have an even better weekend, everybody.