11% of you said, yes. 89% of you said, no. that's the "the ed show."... 33 miners trapped for months in chile may now be just hours away from their freedom. hot button issue, which topic is dominating political debates across the nation ahead of election day? and the big one, chilling predictions on a long overdue earthquake in california. hi everybody, good morning. i'm thomas roberts. those stories and more are straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc. good to have you with us. we begin this morning with the final hours before freedom after enduring more than two months

underground, chile's 33 trapped miners are now less than 24 hours away from being brought safely to the surface. tonight, rescuers are expected to begin hoisting the men up to what will be no doubt a big celebration. nbc's kerry sanders filed this report for us late yesterday from chile. >> reporter: teams here conducted a test. the escape capsule traveled 20 feet inside the steal pipe without a problem. so they went a step further and sent it down the shaft within feet of the trapped miners. >> we didn't send it down because we could risk that somebody could jump in. >> reporter: his good move reveals the level of confidence here. the only reason the rescues are not underway is because some of the equipment is still being anchored into a concrete slab. soon an escape pod will be hooked up to a heavy-duty wench.

the capsule travels down the shaft for the first 183 feet inside that steal reinforcing pipe. past that, driven simply by gravity, it sides down the rock walls 8,157 feet through slight s turns. the trip up is expected to take no more than 15 minutes. who comes up first? the list remains secret tonight. what we know is that the men down below were all fighting for positions. each wanted to be last, a sign of their brotherhood developed over the last two plus months. kerry sanders, nbc news, chile. back here in the states, the clock is ticking for canada. it's counting down to midterm election day now just three weeks away. last night senate candidates sparred over several issues, but the debate over health care was hands down the topic of the night. tracie potts is in washington, d.c. with all the details on that. good morning. >> reporter: the big picture is democrats are behind and struggling to separate themselves from washington. >> and send less money to washington. >> reporter: kentucky's democrat

for senate came out and said it. >> this election is not about president obama, this election is about jack conway versus rand paul. >> reporter: republicans are trying to tie democrats to pelosi and big spending, namely health reform. >> his health reform is a prime example of what is wrong with washington. >> is incredibly expensive and complicated. >> reporter: even if the gop wins, some analysts say health reform is not going away. >> obama health care will be there as long as democrats are there. >> reporter: democrats argue some of that big spending helped the economy. >> the stimulus package did put a floor, a bottom to the fr free fall. >> reporter: now the issues are tax breaks, and who gets them. >> there's not a lot of appetite for raising taxes. >> we can't raise taxes.

taxes are counterproductive. >> reporter: rare agreement in an election where both sides are trying to distance themselves from what they say hasn't worked in washington. with president obama's approval rating low, former president bill clinton is also hitting the campaign trail in some of these tight races. thomas? >> reporter: tracie potts in washington, thank you. last night on "the last word with lawrence o'donnell" ron paul of texas was asked his thoughts about abolishing the social security program. >> it's going to abolish itself when we go bankrupt and the money fails. we are on the verge of a dollar crisis. the checks won't buy anything. the medical care in this country is going down. so, what i want to do is, at least in a temporary way, preserve what we have and not hurt these people. listen once again, the only way

we can do this is we have to live within our means, cut -- i want to cut the war spending of obama. i want to cut all this expense overseas. i joined with barney frank in this effort to cut spending overseas, bring troops home from korea, bring troops home from europe and help these people who are dependent on the government. it's wrong to be dependent. you're right. it shouldn't happen. we should work for the day when these individuals can take care of themselves once again. >> make sure to catch lawrence o'donnell's last word on the biggest issues and compelling stories of the day. "the last word with lawrence o'donnell" airs weeknights at 10:00 p.m. on msnb. here's a look at some of the stories also in the news today. producers and crew on the film set of "transformers 3" got some unscripted action when the bumblebee got side swiped by a real police vehicle. some thought it was a scene from

the movie. the wreck temporary halted production, but shooting will continue all week. a florida woman is going to get some help from a problem that's been buzzing over her. a company that specializes in africanized bee also remove a huge beehive 30 feet high in her tree, after several others said they couldn't help. even the city refused because it was on private property. until it's down, she warns neighbors to stay inside. the largest pumpkins are still rolling in. at a competition in california a gorgeous gourd tipped the scales at 1,435 pounds. this is the first time in 11 years that a home-grown pumpkin has taken the title. the winner's secret, you wonder? pumpkin seeds donated by a previous win perpendicular. back in florida, ten little crocodiles cracked through their eggs one after another after another. they may be small now, but with a 1 stsh,200 pound dad named maximo, they won't be strong for very long.

now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins. >> reporter: the ninth hurricane of the season has just formed. this is kind of close to home, but this one, like all the other hurricanes this year does not look to effect the united states. this looks to stay on the weaker side of the hurricane scale. it goes from category 1 to category 5 this will most likely be a category 1, maybe at most a 2. the only areas for concern are down there maybe in cozumel or cancun. that should be about it with this storm. doesn't look that impressive. kind of a small storm. as far as the forecast from the hurricane center, right now barely on the lower end, category 1 hurricane. it will continue to move to the north as we go throughout the next two days. it should be off the coast of cancun wednesday night. after this, it looks like it will head for the u.s., but it will stall out and weaken near the western tip of cuban and die

out by next weekend. the sheer, the things that rips storms apart will increase in the days ahead. that's why this should not turn into a big, strong storm and be a big problem for florida, such as wilma was. this storm system, hurricane now, probably the cancun area, a tiny bit of rain and damage. that's about it. it doesn't look like significant impacts. computer models are all weakening it. only one brings it close to south florida. as of now, that looks like an unlikely scenario the other stories going on around the country, big storms rolled through areas of the northeast and southern new england yesterday, including new york city. we also had strong storms down there in southern portions of louisiana. heavy rain on the coast now. as far as the morning forecast goes, you need the umbrella, be ready for a slow commute around philadelphia, trenton. new york city, just about done with your rain. from philly is where you are seeing the worst of it. d.c. and baltimore look dry. new orleans, showers for you. the heaviest rains are shifting

south of interstate 10 leer, down along the coast. gusty winds along with them. forecast for today, we will be wet down in south florida the next couple of days. some of that moisture is being sucked up to miami and the keys. showery weather, boston, new york and philadelphia, even that will improve during the day. the bottom line, we have a hurricane out there. it does not look like this one will head for the u.s. we have been lucky. nine hurricanes, none of them have headed for us. >> all right. let's keep the streak going. wall street ready to wririnn record pay, and who thinks a fling with the boss gets you a promotion? the giants try to finish off bobby cox and the braves, could brett favre put aside the distractions and help the vikings beat the jets?

ready to try something new? campbell's has made changes. adding lower sodium sea salt to more soups. plus five dollars in coupons to get you started. campbell's condensed soup. pass it on. campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™

can stop frequent heartburn before it begins? heartburn happens when stomach acid refluxes into the esophagus. prilosec otc uses a unique delayed-release system that protects the medicine as it passes through the stomach's tough acid. then it gets absorbed into the body, turning off many acid-producing pumps at the source. with just one pill a day, you get 24-hour heartburn protection all day and all night. prilosec otc. heartburn gone. power on. new aveeno positively radiant tinted moisturizers, with scientifically proven soy complex and natural minerals give you sheer coverage instantly, then go on, to even skin tone in four weeks. new aveeno tinted moisturizers.

welcome back to "first look." i'm thomas roberts. here are some of the top news making stories this morning.

president obama is promising an investigation into failed rescue attempts by u.s. special forces that ended in the death of a british aid worker held captive in afghanistan. after reviewing surveillance footage, nato said yesterday it was possible that an american grenade mistakenly killed 36-year-old linda norgrove, not her taliban kidnappers. for the first time ever, doctors are treating a human patient with embryonic stem cells in a government-approved study. an unnamed patient in atlanta, who was recently paralyzed with a spinal cord injury is now helping scientists determine the safety of the procedure. oprah winfrey says she's disappointed with the acquittal of a woman accused of abusing students at her girl's school. the woman was found not guilty yesterday of allegations that she improperly touched several teen girls at the school soon after it opened in 2007. researchers are warning that a major earthquake known as the big one could strike southern california at any time. new research shows the san andreas fault is now overdue for

a major shift, meaning it could trigger an 8.1 quake along the 340-mile stretch between monterey county and the sultan sea. now here is a look at the markets. the dow jones was up 3.86 yesterday. in trading overseas, the nikkei fell 200 points. in hong kong, the hang seng dropped 85. bond markets were closed for columbus day and stocks barely budged, but it wasn't everywhere on the street. corns surged 5% on monday. ibm was also on the rise yesterday. big blue shares hit an all-time high closing just high of $140 a piece. a little acquisition action on

the street, children's clothing retailer, gymboree agreed to be purchased by bain. and goldman sachs is joining the ranks of several banks halting foreclosures. and mercedes-benz recalled several vehicles after problems with power steering. the "wall street journal" is reporting that despite the still struggling u.s. economy, paychecks on wall street are on track to break a record high for the second straight year. according to the journal, nearly three dozen top financial firms are set to pay 4% more in compensation and benefits over the last year.

finally, it seems a large number of american workers favor mixing business with pleasure. a recent so-called best boss survey found that 17% of those questioned think sleeping with the boss will help you get ahead. 7%, well, they were speaking from experience. bobby cox takes his curtain call with the braves. plus they say everything is big in texas, that includes trick shots. you are watching "first look" on msnbc. wall street is getting back on its feet.

but the financial landscape is still full of uncertainty. in times like these, you need an experienced partner to look out for you. heads up! and after 300 years we have gotten pretty good at that.

hi, everybody, welcome back to "first look." i'm thomas roberts. in sports, the atlanta braves manager bobby cox made his final farewell last night after 20 years in the dugout. with more on that, here is nbc's fred roggin. good morning. we start with the baseball playoffs where it was the end of an era in atlanta. in a thrilling back and forth game, bobby cox's braves could not avoid elimination against the giants. game four in atlanta, picking it up in the sixth. the braves lead it 1-0. derek lowe had a no-hitter pitching until the sixth, deep and gone. ross' solo shot tied the game for one. in the seventh, ross came through. a base hit to johnny venters. poster posy scored but burrell was called out at home. to the ninth. braves down to their final out. two men aboard for cabrera. brian wilson got him to ground out that did it. the giants beat the braves 3-2. they win the series. and that is the final game of bobby cox's incredible career.

he now heads into the retirement. to the nfl, the vikings and the jets. brett favre with a chance, at least during this game, to put all the off the field distractions behind him. farve fumbled a handoff to adrian peterson. the ball is loose and the jets recover. favre's second fumble of the game. that would lead to a jets' field goal. later in the third, this time favre delivered 37 yards to randy moss, their first as teammates. favre's 50 0th career touchdown pass. ahead to the fourth, jets leading, 22-20. farve tried to rally the vikings. he was picked off by lowery who went 26 yards for the score. farve and the vikings lose it, 29-20. they're now 1-3. the jets are 4-1. with basketball season right around the corner, we thought we would get you in the move by this incredible trick shot. by the group called dude perfect. from the top deck of cowboys stadium, nailed it. one more look. if it's a fake, it's an incredible fake. it looked pretty real to me.

that's your "first look" at sports, i'm fred roggin. now for another look at the weather, here is bill karins with the weather channel forecast. did you see that shot? >> it has to be fake. >> you think? >> haven't we had a couple of them lately? they're so unrealistic, i mean -- i don't know, what do you think? >> i -- i don't know. i prefer to believe in people. i'll say it's real. >> i'll take the opposite stance and not believe in people. let's talk about this hail yesterday. i want to show you the path of the storm here. the green is the hail reports. i'm here in brooklyn. let me show you what it looks like outside of my window. listen to it. this is, again, this was about 8:00 last night. this is the hail coming down, about quarter-sized hail at my house. i did see reports in the new york city area of one-inch hail. also a lot of lightning with that and gusty winds. that hail wasn't quite big

enough to do damage to the cars or break windows. those storms are now gone. you can see the wet weather still with us in philadelphia and central jersey. it looks like all of new england for the most part is dry. one or two showers will brush through southern new england today. not a lot of wet weather on your commute, unless you are in fill limit temperatures are cold from albany northwards, northern new england, a very chilly morning. a lot of areas in the 30s. the bigger cities are much warmer at 65 in d.c. you can see the temperature differential. cold every air to the north, warmer air to the south. today's forecast, showers early and clouds. the forever cacast will improve dramatically throughout the day. wednesday looks great. thursday, cooler, rainy conditions, especially for the second half of the day in the mid-atlantic. we are done with the severe weather threat, now we are

getting into more typical rainy weather. >> you will keep your camera handy? >> i always have it handy. i missed the tornado a couple weeks ago. >> the sexiest woman alive title goes to? you have to stick with us. courteney cox and david arqutte are making news with their marriage. you are watching "first look" on msnbc. we've been financing taylor guitars for over eight years, helping them build a strong dealer network. bringing music to people... i like that. ♪ ♪ [ bob ] i didn't know you could play. i didn't either. ♪

i didn't either. of the season to get you in the mood to motor... including classics like, 'thirty one days of ways to save.' 'skidmarks and smokescreens?' 'kiss my resale value.' and the timeless 'make it mine for $199.' celebrate this motor-tober with a new 2011 mini cooper hardtop for 199$ a month. everyone has someone to go heart healthy for. who's your someone? campbell's healthy request can help. low cholesterol, zero grams trans fat, and a healthy level of sodium. it's amazing what soup can do.

look," i'm thomas roberts. last night on "late night with

jimmy fall jimmy fallon," he joked about a man who ran naked in front of president obama yesterday. >> obama called the stunt highly immature, and owe biden called it totally worth it. the rockefeller center ice skating rink opened this weekend, you guys. nice change of pace. i like it. nice change of pace. usually when they deliver to ice for nbc, it's for kathy lee's mini barr. don't know if you heard about this, a high school in texas has a new club where girls don't wear makeup. yep. it's called the softball team. >> on "late night tonight" johnny knoxville, and musical guest everest. that's "late night with jimmy fallon" on your local nbc station. it's time for a look at your -- your "first look" at entertainment news. the marriage of a popular

hollywood couple is coming to an end. we're talking about the 11-year marriage between courteney cox and david arquette. they are calling it quits. the pair confirm they separated months ago but remain friends and co-parents to their 6-year-old daughter, coco. esquire magazine has named its sexiest woman align. 36-year-old minka kelly stars on "parenthood." in real life, kelly stars as the girl friend of derek jeter. kelly's issue of esquire hits the stands november 19th. and be sure to set your dvrs for thursday night. you never know what will happen on a live show. this week's episode of "30 rock" is doing just that, airing live. details for the script of the nbc comedy are under wraps, but the cast is expected to get visits from guest starts like john hamm and matt damon. bill, do you think they're nervous do it live? this is live right now. >> the regular -- tina fey, no.

she is used to live. some of the other actors, maybe. >> i bet they'll be excited. i'm thomas roberts this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned, "way too early" with willie geist starts right now. today is the day. after more than two months underground, the chilean miners will be lifted out. are they ready for the attention they'll get, and how will that one wife finesse the wife and mistress crying tears of joy. rand paul dismisses bill clinton's endorsement of his opponent because of the monica lewinsky scandal. do people still care about that? speaking of scandal, brett favre returns to new york amid an nfl investigation. the question is, what does favre tell his