waxed live and in hd, this is abc's -- >> live and in hd, this is abc 7 news. >> rhaps the most important debate of president obama career. >> so much anticipation -- this time it will be undecided voters asking the questions. >> round two. president obama and governor mitt romney face up in the second debate, a town hall moderated by the moderator who says that the format presents unique challenges. >> they have to connect, not just with the people who are looking into the television and watching them, but to the people on stage with them, 80 or so undecided voters chosen by gallup.

it is a much more intimate and a close interaction with voters. >> obama is under pressure after his last turn on the debate stage got bad reviews. >> won that debate is not bad -- two that debate could very mel -- very well mean he loses the war. you could see a different president obama -- he could be aggressive but does not want to be seen as overly aggressive. >> romney has seen a boost in polls and confidence on the campaign trail. >> people are getting behind this campaign. >> at a town hall without a podium and with audience interaction, the candidates style and audience can take on added weight. at the first town hall debate president george h. w. bush repeatedly checked his watch a sign some saw that he did not want to be there. commentators said bill clinton

walking toward the audience to handle a question about the recession, highlighted his ability to connect with voters. one thing that can make it hard for a candidate to be aggressive is this. >> can we focus on the issues and not the personalities and the mud? >> analysts say it could be good for the president. >> to be able to draw from the energy the energy of the public and the crowd. >> as for romney, one of his challenges during the entire campaign has been in not being able to connect. -- with the common man and woman and child. he has to be able to come across as connecting. he has to come across as caring and likable. >> the candidate that makes a person -- a connection with the person asking a question is making a connection with the folks back tom. >> the stakes could not be higher. >> i spoke with politico -- i started by asking what they

thought of -- president obama as plan of attack would be. >> he has to show up to participate, and i do not just been physically. he has got to engage has to give crisp, sharp answers we did not see from him last time. his staff is working hard on that. we have to see him ready to defend his own record and willing to press mitt romney on the various positions mitt romney has taken. the obama campaign has unveiled this argument starting after the first debate about the two made romney's, who is the real one? we'll have to see the president continue that line of attack if he wants to be effected. >> the president may have a bit of an advantage because of the town hall setting. something that mitt romney might not have been comfortable with or excelled in in the past. >> the format for this debate would seem to play into president obama s strength rather than mitt romney's, relating to people, relating to

the average american. they feel the average american's pain. some might say that -- however, that was something that romney did he effectively in the first debate. he showed a much more personable side of themselves, had some humor. if he can continue to that -- do that as he has in the past few weeks, that could be a very successful debate for mitt ro >> mitt romney has to repeat. that is the question for him -- can you repeat? can he look as strong if president obama really does in gate and give us his best night instead of an off night. one reason mitt romney looked so strong was the president obama had such a bad night. it was not his night. the question is, when there -- they are s -- more evenly best -- best game, who can come out on top? >> i want to end to talk about the late arlen specter. he passed away today of cancer. he was a perennial fighter through his career in some anyways.

>> absolutely, a lion in the senate. 30 years there. combative, irascible -- these are all adjectives you here today to describe senator specter. he was a moderate, a dying breed, really, in the republican party, and that sparked the end of his own political career. he switched to the democratic side and then lost. he is known for grilling anita hill during the clarence thomas hearing. he is known for irritating and pleasing both sides of the aisle, sometimes at the same time. depending on the day. he really made his mark in the judiciary committee, brought the skills of a prosecutor to bear their in numerous confirmation hearings and elsewhere in the senate. >> he never let anything set him back to that is right. he kept fighting. >> a rich history. rachel thanks much for talking. quarks and to gary > trayvon martin -- george zimmerman is heading back to court. >> what his attorneys succeeded

in doing that and make its appearance different. >> after a beautiful sunday, some big changes on th

>> some of the stories we will talk about this week. george zimmerman willie back in court this week. he is scheduled for his first court hearing before a newly appointed judge. trial date -- there is not one yet. >> you can check out our coverage of the second

presidential debate on tuesday night. president barack obama and republican nominee mitt romney will face off at hofstra university. you can watch it right here on abc 7. >> speaking of the president the white house will be open for fall garden tours, your next chance to check out the white house kitchen garden, the jacqueline kennedy garden, and more. go to wjla.com for a link to the details. >> metro is showing off new cars. >> steve is back with a look at your work week. >> first, the federal minute. >> one of the unique characteristics of the government market is that sometimes politics influences business decisions. last week, the house intelligence committee warned private and public sector organizations from buying products from huawei, but -- alleging that they pose a

security risk, which the company is humanly denies. this has put defense contractors in the middle of two political forces. they want to -- giving a 60-day report -- notice from the sequestration. senator mccain said the notice is politically noted and seeks to stop it. political forces prevented the merger of two enormous contractors, eads, and bae. do they need to keep an eye on business opportunities as well as the political forces behind them? for this and david smallwood: maryland money needs to stay in maryland.d. it's just that simple, i mean, it's a no brainer. anncr: every year marylanders spend five hundred and fifty... million at casinos in west virginia, delaware... and pennsylvania. one west virginia paper calls it a "cash cow" for them. but its cost maryland over one billion dollars. money that could have created good jobs and... better schools for us. question seven keeps maryland

money in maryland. david smallwood: question seven, i think it will be a... good thing for the state of maryland.

>> coming to metro stations near you -- state of the art train cars. abc 7 got a chance to see what makes them so different. >> as soon as the doors opened, you could see the difference and everybody wanted a peek

inside the new rail car. colors were picked because they were set -- thought to be soothing. >> blue and gray. >> the seats -- look for more leg room and better back support. >> we wanted to be inviting. we want more people to ride metro. >> metro riders asked for these changes, and some even took in part to the design process where they decided the flooring was -- had to go. >> red white and blue -- it appeals to a patriotic sense we have in washington, the nation's capital. >> new display boards let you know where you are and where you are going. once you get there, no worries about getting stuck between the doors. a new system allows drivers to control doors individually. cameras are set up inside for security and the outside is designed to meet new safety standards. >> the cars are designed so that if there is a crashed it will

absorb the crash rather than add to the problem of the people on board. >> we showed the railcar to folks to rely on it -- >> it looks nice and clean. >> costing $2 million each, some wonder if this will mean a better -- higher fare. >> production starts this winter in nebraska, and they should be on the tracks in early 2013. >> looks pretty cool. >> it does. >> $2 million a car. >> that is a lot. >> us take a look at the weather -- we have some rain headed our way. steve? >> right now temperatures are unbelievable. almost midnight, 67 at reagan national airport. a cold front just off to the west of us. over here, across indiana, moving out of illinois, this moves our way from west to east. best chance for the stars -- showers will start across garrett and allegheny county.

you can see the areas of yellow that is the heaviest rain. not to pass the metro area until 9:00 10:00 11:00, then moving toward the delmarva. we may see the potential for strong to severe thunderstorms across southern maryland and the delmarva peninsula. not expecting a severe weather upright, but do not surprised a piece yourself with a heavy downpour and a few gusty areas of wind. >> makes sense. this is where we are for the forecast -- the overnight hours dropping to 55 degrees. grab the umbrella for tomorrow. your extended outlook will call for temperatures that will cool behind the cold front on tuesday. lower 70's on thursday, chance of a few showers on friday. do not be surprised if you find gusty winds. i got you white chocolate pumpkin. oh, please don't call me "pumpkin." no, that's white chocolate and

pumpkin. oh. pumpkin. ha ha! you've never tasted pumpkin like this. try new pumpkin white chocolate or pumpkin mocha coffees and lattes today. [ male announcer ] president obama says he's creating jobs but he's really creating debt. the facts are clear. obama's four deficits are the four largest in us history. he's adding almost as much debt as all 43 previous presidents -- combined. and over 30 cents of every dollar obama spends is borrowed. much of it from countries like china. he's not just wasting money he's borrowing it and then wasting it. we can't afford four more years. [ romney ] i'm mitt romney and i approve this message.

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>> the rate of a severe childhood obesity has tripled in the past 25 years. some say they have no choice but to turn to controversial surgery, but there is a new option helping teens drop weight with less risk. >> 19-year-old amber is down 10 sizes from a year ago. >> i feel a lot different. >> it started in third grade -- >> i turned to teaching. it was my stress release.

>> by age 15, she was 300 pounds. >> i tried curves, weight watchers various exercises. they just were not right. >> she turned to mount washington pediatric hospital's program. she qualified for barry after surgery and opted for a new procedure l. >> we removed three-quarters of the stomach. >> its since the summit to this -- from the size of a football to a banana. the surgeon says it is used on adolescence, rapidly rising over other types of surgery because it is less risky. >> fewer restrictions. it seems to be a better procedure as far as the safety for the adolescent. >> is probably safer for teenagers. >> this pediatric nutritionist warns that every adolescent patients should be screened medically and psychologically

before surgery. >> they want to do this for the right reasons. there have been concerns about addiction and depression in people who have gone through the surgery. >> i get really stressed that with finals -- i start going back to food. >> instead she turns to exercise. eight -- 80 pounds lighter, she has shed the weight and her old self image. >> you want the skinny chick inside of you to come out -- i think she came out. >> those hospitals have criteria for adolescent surgery. typically, ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [ male

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