ron claiborne. >> good morning, everyone. the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks is expected to "the washington post" reports after the 2012 election because of fierce opposition from two of them were wearing suicide vests. no afghan or nato troops were killed. >>> and police in north carolina have confirmed that missing 12-year-old zahra baker is dead. they identified a bone as hers. it was found five miles away from other remains. her father and stepmother are prime suspects in that case. abc's yunji de nies reports. >> reporter: the search for zahra baker is over. >> investigators are devastated. that we're not able to find zahra alive and bring her home safely. >> reporter: investigators found human remains, which matched the missing 10-year-old, in a wooded area outside her hometown. zahra's father and stepmother reported her missing on october 9th. the police say no one outside the family had seen her after september 25th. this week, her mother arrived from australia overwhelmed with grief.

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ron claiborne took a look at final efforts to reach those voters and what they say they really want. >> happy election day! >> go, meg, go! >> good morning. >> reporter: election day 2010. the candidates of course pronounced their optimism. >> we're looking forward to victory tonight. >> reporter: there were final rallies. senator patty murray campaigning before dawn in seattle. >> i'm focused on getting through the next 12 hours here, talking to as many voters as possible. >> reporter: and while bill clinton was calling cleveland radio shows, targeting stations with young listeners -- a key part of the democratic base. >> i hope the young people listening to me, even if you don't agree with me, get out and vote today. >> hello, how are you? >> reporter: sarah palin was also on the radio targeting conservative voters. >> the gop has to understand, the machine has to understand we're not sending republicans, commonsense conservatives, to d.c. to sing kumbaya with obama. we're sending them to stop obama. >> reporter: more than 500 senate, house, and governor races now in the hands of t

ron claiborne reports on the unusually diverse selection. >> reporter: in michigan, it's a hay farmerning for the house. >> when you work on a hay farm your whole life, people aren't voters. they're your neighbors. >> i think it's a revision of america. >> reporter: in southern california, a police officer is running for the first time. in northern california, a candymaker. and then, there's the owner of a pizza parlor. he's the republican nominee for a seat in mow lean, illinois. they're a handful of the dazzlingly diverse group of more than 200 candidates seeking public office for the very first time. most are running for the house of representatives. 16 candidates running for congress are doctors including larry bouchon, an indiana heart surgeon, who was upset about health care reform. >> people in the private sector need to step forward. >> reporter: four of the first-time candidates for office, are basketball or football players. then, there's the gospel singer from frog jump, tennessee. ♪ 138 women are major party candidates vying for house seats. 38 candidates are latino. and 6

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >> it is an immensely powerful post. and tomorrow, i will be sitting down to question the man himself, john boehner, the first major network interview with the incoming speaker of the house. >>> and coming up, $600 billion to save the economy? a bold new plan. but will it work? so now, i can join the fun and games with my grandchildren. great news! for people with copd, including chronic bronchitis, emphysema, or both, advair helps significantly improve lung function. while nothing can reverse copd, advair is different from most other copd medications because it contains both an anti-inflammatory and a long-acting bronchodilator, working together to help you breathe better. advair won't replace fast-acting inhalers for sudden symptoms and should not be used more than twice a day. people with copd taking advair may have a higher chance of pneumonia. advair may increase your risk of osteoporosis and some eye problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking advair. i had fun toda

ron claiborne, abc news, syracuse. >>> and tonight, we all salute them.ou again tomorrow night from out west. until then, good night. op captioned by closed captioning services, inc.

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ron claiborne is on the story. ♪ >> reporter: charleston, south carolina, where the civil war began,re tradition, conservative tradition, is woven deep in the politics. >> i think it's a new day. >> reporter: and it's where tim scott, an african-american, is running for congress as a republican. and proud conservative with the backing of sarah palin. do you consider yourself a tea party member? >> absolutely. i think if you believe in conservative government, if you believe in free markets or capitalism, if you believe in not spending money you don't have, you're a tea party member, as well. >> reporter: polls show scott far ahead in a district where white voters outnumber blacks three to one. who are you voting for? >> tim scott. >> tim scott. >> he's proven himself. i don't think race really factors as much as many people believe in the south anymore. >> reporter: if scott is elected from his charleston district he would be the first african-american republican elected to the house of representatives from the deep south since 1901. this year, 42 african-americans ran for the republ

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >>> there is a verdict tonight in an infamous political trial. a jury in texas found tom delay guilty of money laundering and conspiracy. he was once one of the most powerful republicans in congress. they called him the hammer. now, he could face years in prison. >>> now, sarah palin doesn't need to speak out to get attention. she is everywhere this week. book tour, reality show and "dancing with the stars." but today she spoke out anyway, calling into a radio show and uncorking a couple of brush-back pitches at two of america's most admired women. jon karl was listening. >> reporter: it may be an odd month for someone thinking of runs for president, but sarah palin took a shot at a popular former first lady from her own party. >> the majority of americans don't want to put up with the blue bloods, and i say it with all due respect because i love the bushes, but the blue bloods who want to pick and choose their winners instead of allowing competition to pick and choose the winners. >> reporter: she even blamed the bushes for the current state of

ron claiborne, abc news, syracuse, new york. >> and tonight, we all salute them.ou again tomorrow night from out west. until then, good night. >>> this is a man whose marital problems tied up traffics for two hours today. tonight what led him to do it. >> the price of police protection in the aftermath of the bart shooting. million dollar dispute over who should pick up the tab. >> he might have been the next mayor of oakland. tonight, he wants another look at how the choice was made. >> it's confronted. >> and tonight the misinformation adding to the chaos of the san bruno explosion. >> pro testers have forced the closure of the fruit veil bart station where oscar grant was shot and killed last year. >> tonight's protest is supposed to be directed at oakland police who shot and killed another unarmed man, derek jones monday night. >> abc 7 is live on the scene for us. >> well, they do see parallels and as you said, pro testers have managed to shut down this bart station, the gates are down, and no trains are going through here. the demonstrateor arrived about 5:0

. >>> and now for a check of the morning's other headlines, here's ron claiborne. >> hey, john, good morning to you. pope benedict has signaled what could be a major change in catholic church policy on the use of contraceptives. in an interview, the pope said it is okay to use condoms in some cases. more from abc's miguel marquez. >> reporter: the pope's comments on condom use may be narrow. but they could have huge implications for catholics around the world, particularly in aids-ravaged africa. >> as someone who worked in africa for a few years, i know the catholic church's stance on condoms really does influence people's behavior. >> reporter: the pope says, in rare cases condom use may be justified like an hiv-positive prostitute using condoms to prevent the spread of the disease. the pope says the church still doesn't consider condom use moral. but it calls limited acceptance a first step in a movement toward a different way, a more human way of living. since 1968 the church has stuck to its total ban on condom use, much to the frustration of some catholic clergy and workers in

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >>> it will be a big day tomorrow and tomorrow night.p you right in the middle of the action here on abc news and see you on "world news" tomorrow night. >>> because of you, we're going to win. >> final hours of the 2010 campaign. >> this is the last place we're going to win the world and and republicans hoping that california follows course. >> i feel like we're going to win. i'm really excited. >> good evening, everyone. there is a final push to get out the vote. >> jerry brown is wrapping up his campaign tonight. republican, meg whitman discounting polls showing her trailing by double digits. >> mark matthews is in oakland tonight with what has become the most expensive governor's race in state hist rye barbara lee, i understand it's jerry brown is in the house. he's going ton the stage a

we'll be watching this closely. >>> for the other headlines of the day, we turn to ron claiborne. >>good morning, everyone. in the news, president obama gets an agreement to protect europe against a attack. the leaders agreed on a missile shield to protect europe and the united states. >>> and an ohio coroner is expected to give new details about three missing people, whose remains were found in trash bags hidden in a hollow tree. tree trimmer, matthew hoffman, who led police to the bodies is the only suspect in the killings. >>> and a bill to pay black farmers and native americans more than $4 billion for mistreatment by the u.s. agriculture and interior departments. the black farmers were underpaid federal aid that native farmers were paid. >>> you've heard of a deer in headlights. how about a deer in christmas lights? this deer in colorado got in the holiday mood early with a long string of lights around his antlers. relax, the antlers will come off, if not earlier. >>> here's a quick look at the weather. bitter cold grips parts of the west. only 13 degrees in billings, montana. w

. >> we say hello to ron claiborne. >> good morning, everyone. protesters in oakland, california, angered by the two-year sentence given to a white transit policeman, who shot and killed an unarmed black man, went on a rampage. smashing windows. 150 demonstrators were arrested. the protest was over a judge's decision that sentenced the transit officer to the minimum two years in prison. >>> and singapore and malaysia airlines have temporarily canceled flights into jakarta, indonesia, because of continued eruptions of the mt. merapi volcano. 118 people have been killed by the eruptions, which have been on again/off again for more than a week now. tens of thousands of people who fled their homes are still crowded into shelters. >>> and the flight data recorders have been found in the wreckage of the cuban plane that crashed, killing all 68 people onboard. officials are still trying to identify the victims. 28 of them foreigners. autopsies will be performed today. the plane was en route from santiago to havana, when it crashed on thursday. >>> and a

that is ron claiborne, eating his way across america, in search of the college town hangout that servesup the best grub to ravenous students. it's all in the name of journalism. but really, our best bites challenge, college edition. you nominated your favorites. this morning, we'll show you the four finalists. >>> good morning, america. i'm john berman. >> i'm bianna golodryga. it's saturday, november 20th. john, thanks for coming in, filling in for dan. you went all-out. you weren't taking the small bites for the camera. >> one of those sandwiches had in it. philly cheese steak, mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers, jalapenos, and bacon. i'm here to talk about it. >> and you're still here. we're glad you're still here, ron. >> such a trooper. >>> also ahead, helping our neighbors. it's just one of the things you've been doing this week. we'll take a look at "your week in three words," coming up. >>> we begin with a big story out of california. it's the latest in a murder case that's left hollywood shocked, stunned and completely baffled. why would someone gun down a high-powered but well

ron claiborne, back again. good morning. >> good morning, everyone.spread flooding from hurricane tomas. at least eight people died. but the devastation could have been a lot worse. the storm weakened just before it struck. >>> protesters in germany delayed a train hauling nuclear waste. as two activists hung from a bridge to block the tracks. police eventually removed the protesters so the train could take the atomic material to a storage facility. >>> and more than 43,000 runners are participating in the 41st annual new york city marathon today. among those tackling the 26.2-mile course, rescued chilean miner, edison pena, who prepared by jogging around the underground tunnels for the ten weeks they were stuck underground. >>> finally, president obama took a break from more serious meetings with indian officials and stopped at a school in mumbai, where he and first lady michelle obama, danced with students. it was part of a festival, celebrated by hindus and sikhs as a victory of good over evil, as it sometimes turns out. >>> a quick check of the we

. >> want to turn to ron claiborne with the other headlines.ood to see you. >> hey, good morning, bianna. good morning, dan. mike, good morning, everyone. >>> well, president obama is headed back home following a ten-day trip to asia that focused on free trade. it was his longest trip abroad since taking office. in japan he visited the great buddha statue and mr. obama told russia's president dmitry medvedev that he would press the lame duck session to start the s.t.a.r.t. weapons nuclear treaty. >>> aung san suu kyi says she will keep fighting for human rights. after being released from seven years of house arrest yesterday, she told cheering supporters the basis of democratic freedom is freedom of speech and would continue calling on the west to repeal economic sanctions that hurt ordinary people in her country. >>> the auction of bernie madoff's property brought in big bucks. it included his slippers which sold for, if you can imagine this, $6,000. i don't know about that. a grand piano went for 42,000 bucks, and his wife ruth's diamond enga

ron claiborne has that story. >> reporter: charleston, south carolina, where the civil war began, whereition, conservative tradition is woven deep in the politics. >> i think it's a new day without any question. >> reporter: it's where tim scott, an african-american, is running for congress as a republican and proud conservative with the backing of sarah palin. >> do you consider yourself a tea party member? >> absolutely. i think if you believe in conservative government and free markets or capitalism, if you believe in not spending money you don't have, you're a tea party member as well. >> reporter: polls show scott far ahead in a district where white voters outnumber black voters three to one. >> who are you voting for for congress? >> tim scott. >> tim scott. >> i don't think race plays as much of a role anymore. >> reporter: if he's elected, he will be the first african-american republican elected to the house of representatives from the deep south since 1901. this year, 42 african-americans ran for the republican nomination for house seats. 14 of them won. and like republicans ev

ron claiborne reports. >> reporter: this nation's report card was not one that many parents would like to see brought home. the latest study showed that many high school students cannot read at even the most basic level. >> this is an education electro cardiogram and what it says is, we're not making progress fast enough and this patient needs to be shocked back into life. >> reporter: still, the results were a slight improvement. >> i find it difficult to get excited about a two-point increase. i'm happy it didn't go down. but i don't see a reason to expect it should have gone down. rrl overall, the findings were alarming. 52,000 high school seniors nationwide took the reading exam last year. the average score was actually two points higher than 2005, but four points below 1992 levels. and math scores were also up slightly. education secretary arne duncan said today in a statement, today's report suggests that high school seniors' achievement in reading and math isn't rising fast enough to prepare them to succeed in college and careers. and when you drill down into the numbers, the pi

. >> all right, let's go to ron claiborne. he's been at the polls with all of you today, and we wanted to know what you had to say in that bell weather state of pennsylvania, about what you're feeling and thinking as you vote. >> reporter: election day 2010. the candidates, of course, pronounced their optimism. >> we're looking forward to victory tonight. >> the larger the turnout, the bigger the victory. >> reporter: there were final rallies. senator patty murray campaigning before dawn in seattle. >> i'm focused on getting through the next 12 hours here, talking to as many voters as possible. >> reporter: and while bill clinton was calling cleveland radio shows, targeting stations with young listeners, a key part of the democratic base. >> i hope the young people listening to me, even if you don't agree with me, will get out there and vote today. >> reporter: sarah palin was also on the radio today, targeting conservative voters. >> the gop has to understand, that machine has to understand that we're not sending republicans,

but as ron claiborne reports, plenty of others are wallowing in wealth, living at prerecession levelst the haves and have nots. >> reporter: on wall street the party is back. corporate profits broke records in the third quarter this year and with the whiff of mega-million bonuses in the air top executives celebrated like they did before the recession. like the american banker in hong kong throwing a lavish party with women dressed like playboy playmates. then there's fred clark. when we first met him clark had lost his job with united technologies. he is still unemployed. what are your expectations for 2011? >> get a job. >> do you think you will? >> i have to. >> reporter: but while millions are still reeling and out of work with the fed predicting no relief any time soon, for the richest americans the good times are once again rolling. posh restaurants are crowded. christie's auction house has bids for expensive items pouring in again. >> that's what we've been told since jfk, that a rising tide lifts all boats. in this current economic period it looks like a rising tide only lifts

once again, ron claiborne. >> hey. good morning, again, dan and bianna.rning, everyone. >>> we begin with a developing story in pakistan. police say they've arrested a man wearing an explosive vest who was on his way to attack a mosque in islamabad. he and another suspect admit it. they were planning to bomb buildings in the capital, including parliament. >>> and new concerns on a dangerous computer virus powerful enough to disrupt iran's nuclear programs. security experts now say there's evidence that the stuxnet virus is up for sale on the black market. that's raising concern that criminals or even terrorists could get their hands on it and target infrastructure here in the u.s., like power grids or sewage treatment plants. >>> in medical news, a new study on the dangers of secondhand smoke. the world health organization now estimates that 600,000 people die worldwide every year from breathing in smoke from another person's cigarette. one-third of those victims are children. >>> and finally, we all know it's a busy day for people in the retail industry.

here's ron claiborne. >> reporter: as a proud marine, john rafferty took part in the u.s.rk time in my life. >> reporter: suffering from ptsd, he heard about a business program at syracuse university for people just like himself. disabled veterans of the iraq and afghanistan wars. he applied and was accepted. >> where do you think you find opportunity? >> reporter: it's called the entrepreneurship boot camp for veterans. the brain child of mike haynie, former air force officer. now business professor at syracuse. it's aimed to teach disabled veterans who have a hard time fitting into a 9:00 to 5:00 job, how to start their own small business. >> bomb blast or gunshot has changed their lives forever. if they can craft a vocation for themselves through self-employment, they can craft that vocation in a way that allows them to accommodate some of those challenges. >> reporter: the program was just expanded to family members caring for severely injured vets. in the first class, lolita bagley whose son was severely brain damaged by a grenade in iraq. five years ago she quit her

. >>> unfortunately, we don't have ron claiborne with us this weekend. but fortunately, we have jeremy hubbard filling in. nice to see you. good morning. >> good morning. keep your elbows to yourself. >> happy black saturday. >> same to you. good morning, everyone. the korean crisis could be cooling off after heated words of war between the north and the south. and china warns against military action near its coast, as u.s. and south korean forces get set for joint naval exercises in the yellow sea. abc's alex marquardt has the latest. >> reporter: good morning, jeremy. a rare show of remorse from north korea today. they say the deaths of two civilians in tuesday's attack were regrettable. but the north blamed the south for the deaths, saying the civilians were deployed as human shields around military installations. today, the funeral of two marines killed on tuesday was broadcast live on national television. tomorrow, the u.s. and south korea begin four days of joint military exercises. around ten warships are taking part, including the carrier "george

ron claiborne, abc news, new york. >> a diverse group indeed.rting at 9:30 tonight, 8:30 central. >>> there is chilling proof that last week's plot to blow up air cargo planes had been in the works for awhile. they made a dry run in september. abc news chief investigative correspondent brian ross broke the story and has the details now. >> reporter: like the real bombs, the dry run packages were sent by air cargo from the airport in yemen to addresses in chicago. u.s. officials tell abc the dry run packages were intercepted in transit in september following an intelligence tip that they contained religious books and literature and were sent by someone with ties to al qaeda. >> they wanted to follow the packages using the tracking system to know exactly when they got to a point, how long a timer had to be set for so that the bomb would go off at the right point, which presumably was over chicago. >> reporter: u.s. officials say while they feared the real thing was coming, it was not until late thursday that they had specific information based on

ron claiborne, abc news, syracu syracuse, new york. >> so nice to see it after all those men and womenoverseas. some of them the ultimate sacrifice. they come back here and have a chance to build a new, better life. >> programs like that too, they really say that a soldier's intuition and mind and team-building skills can really transition into the business world quite nicely. so that's why you're seeing a lot of these be successful, especially after programs like that. so it's awesome to see. >> great news. >> that's all the news for this >> great news. >> that's all the news for this difficult problems for a fortune five hundred company. i can run a successful business. i can manage your home improvements. i can publicize your message. i can motivate your audience. i can put my military experience to work for your company. i can teach your children. i can boost your bottom line. i can add value to your workplace. i can be a loyal and productive employee. but i can't put my skills to work for your organization if i'm not given the opportunity. if you don't recognize my talents and abi

ron claiborne, abc news, syracu syracuse, new york. >> so nice to see it after all those men and womena chance to build a new, better life. >> programs like that too, they really say that a soldier's intuition and mind and team-building skills can really transition into the business world quite nicely. so that's why you're seeing a lot of these be successful, especially after programs like that. so it's awesome to see. >> great news. so it's awesome to see. >> great news. >> that's all the news for this when someone gives blood, when a hand reaches out, that moment when heartbreak turns to hope, you're there through the american red cross. down the street, across the country, around the world, you help save the day, every day. your support truly matters. you can help today. visit redcross.org. >>> money matters. the president addresses currency problems with asian nations. why american jobs may be at stake. >>> money wasted on a high-tech border fence. the glitches in a high-tech security wonder. >>> and, flying high. how a paper airplane soared to the heavens. >> we just come up with