>> you bet, tamron. i think that romney wasted about four months in this campaign where he should have been at the point he's at right now coming out of his convention, and he's behind. i think the metric system here, because he had a phenomenal debate performance to get it to even to him as an acceptable alternative. that's the phrase we're using today. now you wonder if the president comes out and hits a home run in a town hall format that you think might benefit him with his charisma, maybe it goes back to a couple of weeks ago. i'm interested to see how romney will perform here. he's really good when he has prepared text, but in a crowd he comes across at the guy who shows up at the party with a sweater vest and it is, you want to play yahtzee? >> this is the logical question anyway, our first read team says will this be his in touch or out of touch moment? they refer this to blowing up the stereotype, that he does not understand the plight of the average americans. does he understand, steve diese, t

>> tamron, it is an attempt.ct, his second tv ad we have seen, an earlier one was a minute tv ad this is a short 3er 0-second one, trying to do everything they can to try to repair the damage. you have played it obama ad flag battleground states across the country where they are hitting at that mares 47% comment and i will make the point that in our nbc news/"wall street journal" poll, mitt romney trails on looking out for the middle class by 20 points so still a lot of work to do >> mark murray, thank you vet. i will see you tomorrow for your thoughts on the postdebate. >>> and the news nation gut check is next. we are tackling the debate. ah. fire bad! just have to fire roast these tomatoes. do you churn your own butter too? what? this is going to give you a head start on your dinner. that seems easier sure does who are you? [ female announcer ] new progresso recipe starters. five delicious cooking sauces you combine with fresh ingredients to make amazing home-cooked meals. ♪ ambiance [ female announcer ] new p

i'm tamron hall.th msnbc tonight with special primetime coverage of the vice presidential debate at 8:00 p.m. eastern. "the cycle" is up next. that ma. with wholesome noodles and bite sized chicken, nothing brings you together like chicken noodle soup from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. >>> i'm crystal ball live in danville, kentucky. joe biden and paul ryan are here. it's fight night for the vice presidential candidates, expect both of them to come out swinging. >> i'm steve kerr knack ki. new battleground poles are out. did the debate do damage to his campaign. >>> this is so completely wrong. mitt romney's got an image problem. literally. maybe it's

i'm tamron hall. the "news nation" is following the feint debate of the election and a new poll showing where likely voters stand right now. first to the debate, tonight as mitt romney's team seemed to it tip its hand when it comes to the strategy. as with the first debate, when mitt romney attempt it to win over the undecided voters by, quote, hugging some of the president's policies? romney adviser dan senor was asked this morning about the difference between the candidates on iran on "morning joe." >> i think it's a shift from -- >> hold on. this is important. he has always said the military option should be looked at over and over. the military option should be the option of last resort. i think this is like splitting hair. the reality is governor romney has been laying out this it strategy for years. >> and that was on the topic of just iran, but as you saw there, the president just landing or that's mitt romney i should say landing. both men are in boca raton. john hileman had a little fun of go

tamron?, thank you very much. >>> nbc news special coverage of the crisis in the middle east is called "at the brink" and it continues tonight on nbc nightly news and all the platforms of nbc including msnbc. >>> still ahead, i'll talk to a political rhetoric expert about how the words, tone, answers at the debate could decide the winner and loser. he says romney needs to project a, quote, maturity that allows him to be presidential. plus, governor christie says the whole race will be turned upside down come thursday morning. do you agree with governor christie? it is our gut check. find behind the scenes picture including a dance party we had right before the show. [ male announcer ] in blind taste tests, even ragu users chose prego. prego?! but i've bought ragu for years. [ thinking ] wonder what other questionable choices i've made? i choose date number 2! whooo! [ sigh of relief ] [ male announcer ] choose taste. choose prego. more than 50 times a day? so brighten your smile a healthy way

back to lester and tamron.y here in new york was that the yankees won last night. they'll face off against the tigers for the american league championship series. they did it with a-rod on the bench, the highest paid player in baseball. wow. >> does that make me a sore loser? all i could hear was texas rangers, texas rangers. >> wow, you're tough. you're tough. all right, go team. maria la rosa is outside on the plaza. a little brisk out there, but nonetheless, a beautiful day. >> we want to say an early happy birthday to you. what's your name, where are you from? >> samantha roberts from ohio. >> she's cold. it's not so much the cold in the central part of the country, it's the severe weather that we're really concerned about today. you see the whole area in red from des moines all the way down to del rio. the heightened risk for tornados is more like western missouri down into northern texas. you can see the radar is lit up already. lots of heavy rainfall. lots going on. a lot of college match-ups in this are

especially. >> tamron, no. no, tamron, i'm not being hard on him. saying that that kind of emergency final provision for people in need is what will happen if 23 million americans end up losing the kind of support that they're provided in social terms by the government. that's where people will end up. i mean, i volunteer somewhere in manhattan, and i can tell you, there are lines of people who are in desperate need even now. if the kind of budget that paul ryan wishes to impose on this country were ever to come to pass, that's where people will go for the needs that they have. >> in tonight's debate no props are allowed, but perhaps the president will reflect upon what you've said and bring up these soup kitchen moments with congressman ryan to go after the budget plan presented by ryan that is partly or somewhat supported by governor romney to make a larger point than the photo-op point, which was maybe he thinks he's a hands-on individual. i think under the way you articulated it, martin, this is an opportunity or moment if the president has that

a i'm tamron hall.e meantime we'll have continuing coverage of sandy on msnbc throughout the night. my friends at "the cycle" will pick up our coverage right after a quick break. years of our government employees insurance company, or geico...as most of you know it. ...i propose savings for everyone! i'm talking hundreds here... and furthermore.. newcaster: breaking news. the gecko is demanding free pudding. and political parties that are actual parties! with cake! and presents! ah, that was good. too bad nobody could hear me. geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. open enrollment is here. the time to choose your medicare coverage begins october 15th and ends december 7th. so call to enroll in a plan that could give you the benefits and stability you're looking for, an aarp medicarecomplete plan insured through unitedhealthcare. what makes it complete? it can combines medicare parts a and b, which is your hospital and doctor coverage with part d prescription drug

i'm tamron hall. the "news nation" is calls what our first read calls the first high wire act following hurricane sandy's devastation with exactly one week into lakz day. we're getting in brand-new video. take a look. this is a glimpse of the severe damage this storm has caused along the jersey shore. this video coming in only a short time ago. aerials from new jersey national guards show entire neighborhoods, homes heavily damaged, many of them covered in sand. sandy is being blamed for at least 29 deaths across the eastern seaboard. this is a deadly storm and damage estimates are right now up to $20 billion and could rise. nearly 8 million people from the carolinas to ohio, 8 million without power. president obama held a conference call with governors and mayors in affected area after declaring several states federal disaster areas. the president canceled all campaign events for the third day. within the past few minutes we got word that the president's travel pool was told to gather at white house,

>> reporter: good afternoon, tamron.te house, the obama campaign feeling good about this jobs report today. you heard the president talk about it during his first campaign event in virginia a little early on today touting the fact that this is the lowest jobs or unemployment rate since he took office. the president made that claim, and the crowds really went wild starts to cheer. he went on the report to turn the page after his lackluster debate performance on wednesday. he has also, tamron, been using really ramped up rhetoric to talk about his republican challenger, mitt romney. he accused mitt romney of not being the real mitt romney on wednesday night during that debate saying he appeared to be more moderate, walked back some of his initial positions. mr. obama said his health care plan would cover pre-existing condition, that's a claim that the campaign walked about. today mr. obama said romney had been fact-checked by his own campaign. took a slight at that. trying to rally support in ohio where early voting has al

he didn't mention, tamron, that ronald reagan had tip o'neill. had a congressional partner who understood that the country was in peril and needed help. but what president obama has had is an obstructionist congress that care more about damaging him than they do about the damage that the country's suffering. the president has to lay that out. he has the american jobs act. he will talk about it more and more. it would generate 1 million jobs. republicans in congress including john boehner fought him tooth and nail on fundamental items, tamron, like infrastructure and could have yielded another 1 million jobs. we know that infrastructure is how you put people back to work. >> right. >> the american recovery and reinvestment act, 10% went to inf infrastructure and generated 35% of the verifiable jobs. we don't have a tip o'neill because the republicans want to defeat barack obama. he has to lay that out. don't let folks get away with talks about ronald reagan without talking about tip o'neill with massive margins in the congress at the time but he w

tamron?> we know a lot of people that live in the area just hoping to be able to get to their homes to see a glimpse and assess as so many others have had a chance to do and still rough going and we wish everyone obviously throughout the region the best. thank you for the latest there. tough to hear the people assess the damage. colorado senator mark udall is back and we'll get his thoughts on the newest battleground polls that shows the president slightly leading in three states that count. plus, the president returns to the campaign trail tomorrow. i'll talk with presidential historian douglas brinkley of how sandy could elect the election and the president's transition of being on the ground today and the campaign trail tomorrow. but first, new york senator schumer announced in the past hour a team of experts of illinois and contractors around the country on the way to lower manhattan right now to start pumping water he said by tomorrow. meantime, there seems to be slow progress in restori

good news for us, tamron.d like to thank eating right, whole grain, multigrain cheerios! my bowl, my spoons! mom, are those my jeans? [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios has whole grain and 110 delicious calories. ...more grains. less you! multigrain cheerios in multi-grain cheerios peanut butter. something this delicious could only come from nature. now from the maker of splenda sweeteners, discover nectresse. the only 100% natural, no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. the rich, sweet taste of sugar. nothing artificial. ♪ it's all that sweet ever needs to be. new nectresse. sweetness naturally. >> this is a wbal-tv 11 news in baltimore. >> looks like the weather is going to be quiet this halloween day. should not have trouble with trick-or-treat. 30% chance for a rain shower. high temperatures around 55 degrees. chilly but quiet going into the weekend. [ harry umlaut ] here we go. [ sally umlaut ] what? the five

i'm tamron hall. the "news nation" is following overwhelming anxiety from both campaigns over a windfall of new polling that could alter the narrative about who is up and down in this race for the white house. many new polls show the president widely panned debate performance may have closed the gap in key swing states in romney's favor. adding to the fodder, the headline of the article, "did obama just throw the entire election away?" sullivan writes, quote, i'm trying to see a silver lynning but whether a president sem-immoates on live tv and a record number of people watch, it's hard to see how they recover. questions about the future of the obama candidacy coming as new reports emerge on an all-out rebellion inside the romney campaign led by ann romney and their son, tagg. politico says the romney family staged an intervention and pushed the recent shift to the center. politico writing the family rebellion long little, despite mitt romney's initial reluctance to change reached a climax in septembe

>> tamron, it's on the table.t certainly has sat ratded, and the president raised it last night, i'm sure mitt romney would have declared it wasn't him in the video, that it was clint eastwood or somebody else. he lied about everything else. >> you are banking over the next days that the president -- >> the president told the truth and had a krconversation with t american public. >> they point out how the president may have lost the debate, he can still win the next 24 hours. how will the jobs report, for example, factor into the big picture? plus, if your candidate doesn't win, jetblue may have an offer you can't refuse. it's one of the things we thought you should know. you can join the "news nation" on facebook. we're at facebook.com/newsnation. this is ilia's song of the day for you. >>> time for your birs entrepreneur of the week. andrew wausentach is the owner of his family's business. today these tanks are shaped by hand with half-century old tools. he says you don't throw out what works. you just build upo

i'm tamron hall. we're following two big stories right now. we have live pictures from one location. capitol hill where right now there's heated partisan back and forth over the attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi. while acknowledging a thorough investigation is needed, house democrats accuse republicans of leaving them out of the investigation leading up to the committee hearing and playing politics. >> although the chairman claims we are pursuing this investigation on a, quote, bipartisan basis, that's simply not been the case. the chairman has withheld documents provided to the committee which is in violation of the house rules. it's a shame they're resorting to such petty abuses in what should be a serious and responsible investigation of this fatal attack. >> and -- >> we know that the tragedy in mbenbenghazi ended as it did. we now know that, in fact, it was caused by a terrorist attack that was reasonably predictable to eventually happen somewhere in the world, especially on september 11th. requests of extensions of more security b

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>> reporter: well, the timing is everything here, tamron.ne of these storm squalls from outer reaches rolling in here across singer island. he visibility has come down and it's raining very hard. the temperature around 81, you can feel that drop now around 70. that cool downdraft air looking down the beach. the double red flags, not a whole lot of wind. they're sustained winds. we get a brush-by by sandy tonight and tomorrow. we'll have coastal issues with the wind, beach erosion and rip currents out of the water today, tomorrow and saturday. no major preparations here in south florida from the palm beaches it to miami. they have taken in all the beach chairs and cabana stuff except on the beach. they'll probably pull it back later. the biggish suh uis what happens after it gets past florida. we have two models. the american model and the european model. the morning run of the american model came in. now it came around to that european solution, which is looked like gloom and doom. now we have the american model bringing the center in toward

tamron. >> thank you very much, ron.e on how the vice president is preparing, jokes and all for thus's debate, we go to the news campaign. what kind of scoop have you got for us other than maybe a joke pretending you forget the debate in two days. >> the vice president is in wilmington, delaware at his home. he's taking six full days off the campaign trail here to get ready. he's working with chris van holland, democrat on the house budget committee that worked extensively with ryan on issues like the deficit, medicare and social security. van holland understands ryan's policies but how he presents those. other senior staff is david axelrod as well as biden's former chief of staff and one time senator ted kaufmann. we're hearing about the book "the young guns" written by ryan and his colleagues outlining his deficit and debt policies. biden has been on the trail talking about it this book and these policies. these are attacks he's been honing over the last couple weeks and months. really what you see is biden addressing

this is one stop, tamron, on a three-day trip. the other goal during these three days is really to reassure his base supporters here in california after that lackluster debate performance that you were just discussing. to reassure them he can get his campaign back on track. we heard him joke about it last night before his hollywood supporters, but today he's trying to hit the reset button and remind folks why they should support him and to really give them confidence that he is going to come back in a strong way in these next two debates he has. from here he heads to san francisco for more fund-raisers. >> i'm curious in this. we had chris on a short time ago, the democratic strategist. he feels this debate story or the president's debate performance has legs if you will because of the media. you have the president referring to it even jokingly. still it lingers in his remarks. do you get the sense behind the scenes it really is sticking with him? that can be a motivating factor to ensure that he does a much better job than next t

i'm tamron hall. we're following the beginning of the end game, i should say. it's an all hands on deck frenetic tour of swing states today as president obama and governor romney fight to close the deal in the final 13 days of the race for the white house. president obama right now on the way to colorado. the second stop of a two-day battleground glitz that started in iowa. >> this is the first stop on our 48-hour fly around campaign marathon extravaganza. we're going to pull an all-nighter. we joke but all of this speaks to something that's really important and that is the issue of trust. there's no more serious issue on a presidential campaign than trust. >> and you can follow the dots and follow where the money's being spent by both campaigns and see where all eyes likely focused election night. right now, ohio is the ad capital, dollar capital of the world if you will. $177 million being spent by the campaigns in that state alone. followed by florida at $174 million and virginia, $136 million. and ohio is where in a few minutes congressman paul ryan will gi

i know the liabilities attached to the profile, tamron, but that's the bed he chose and he has to have a private sector-like fix for the economy. >> no time limits on answers, moderator's discretion, domestic policy, at least 90 minutes devoted to the economy. we're going to talk about a new nbc news/"wall street journal" poll that looks at this debate. do you buy what chris christie said yesterday, this is a game-changer come thursday? >> he was being very truthful. for the romney campaign where they are right now, the national polls tighten a little bit, but the battleground polls is he still has a major problem. it's the narrative killing this campaign, and he has to change that narrative. he has to be extremely aggressive and respectful at the same time while also being elm thettic and delivering specifics. that's a lot to do in a 90-minute debate. i think the challenge for both candidates and where president obama may have a strength. rom knee, i don't know if he does or not, the no time limit. you have no time limit on these answers can be dangerous and an incredible opportunity.

tamron is right.res like this for a woman politician would -- we wouldn't be talking about conspiracies. we'd be talking about the fact her credibility was undermined. so i think for the ryan camp, they have to be very, very careful here because their image is very malleable right now because it has not been established either through his political career or through this particular campaign and that's why you're getting the kind of jokes you're getting around these images. what was he taking them for anyway? >> vanity. >> they're not racy. i don't want to go too far. it's not like this is some racy magazine, but give -- >> we're not suggesting that. >> given his youth and the fact he's not well-known. i know at the time the pictures were taken he did not know he would be picked as the vice presidential candidate -- >> he was a seven-term congressman. >> as a congressman still. >> absolutely. and somebody with ambition. so i think, you know, there's some maybe -- i think in your world they call them gl

good news for us, tamron.re those my jeans? [ female announcer ] people who choose more whole grain tend to weigh less than those who don't. multigrain cheerios has whole grain and 110 delicious calories. ...more grains. less you! multigrain cheerios in multi-grain cheerios peanut butter. something this delicious could only come from nature. now from the maker of splenda sweeteners, discover nectresse. the only 100% natural, no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. the rich, sweet taste of sugar. nothing artificial. ♪ it's all that sweet ever needs to be. new nectresse. sweetness naturally. >>> breaking news at 9:26. a kroosh on the outer loop causing huge delays in maryland. danella sealock has the first 4 traffic. >> aaron, this is happening just now. the accident is in the process of clearing. it was blocking most of the road here. now, just the right lane is blocked. the accident activity was moved over to the right shoulder lane. let's talk delays. this is the outer loop of the beltway at new

. >> tamron hall is over at the news desk. new york. >> reporter: offer closing its doors for two days for the first time in its and lots and lots of flights have also been cancelled. back to you. >> all right, mandy. thank you very much. the teen who allegedly confessed to killing 10-year-old colorado schoolgirl jessica ridgeway has been charged as an adult with 17 counts, including four murder charges. prosecutors also say 17-year-old austin sigg sexually assaulted jessica. if convicted as an adult, he faces life in dozens of performers showed up. ♪ the sun will come out tomorrow ♪ ♪ but you've got to hang on until tomorrow ♪ ♪ come what may ♪ tomorrow, tomorrow, i love you, tomorrow ♪ >> you can join in from home. the performers managed to raise some cash for the red cross before they head badding to their new jobs over on broadway. it is now 7:19 on ♪ today, today >> oh, wow. >> we all saw that coming, tamron. >> thank you very much. >> got to love her spirit. >> let's go back to al in atlantic city for a forecast. al? >>

. >> as we say good morning, tamron hall. look at you gorgeous in red. >> hi, good morning, guys. hey. >> great to see you. matt had to leave a little bit early. check in with nat at the news desk in a morning but coming up, one of my favorite segments, steals and deals. jill martin is here. >> do we really need two umbrellas? >> come under my umbrella, ela. >> look what she's got? >> 85% off wine. got to hear about that. designer clutches. >> i like that. >> shopping party. jill is coming up. >> nice. we'll take the cocktails and the clutches. sounds like a party to me. meantime, they have, yes, count them, seven children and a thriving business to boot. this family will be here to show us how to create a play room, love this, that's suitable for children of all ages, functional and fun. don't have to spend a fortune. one of their kids is a drummer. >> wow. >> so we'll see if that kid will break it down. love that they have kids of all ages. breaker will break it down. >> oh, breaker, awesome. got this rock star vibe already. >> teens to little ones, suitable for all of them. lov

>> well, it's a long cherished position within the republican party, tamron. one of the first planks in the platform in every state of the union that life is sacred and a gift of god and what i heard richard mourdock and in a state he'll win and romney will win, maybe i would have worded it differently but echoed the first principle in almost every republican party platform in the united states of america. >> okay. so in the case where he says a horrible situation of rape that it is something that god intended to happen, in addition to the life as some interpreted that if the life then is a situation that god intended then the rape is what god intended, as well. >> well, i always love this idea of what exactly god intended. when it comes from people -- >> that's the very reason people don't like to see religion in politics because it's subject to interpretation of what you or maybe richard mourdock believes is god intended or not god intended. that's why -- exactly. >> why is it when the president quotes from the bible the first murderer to justify the welfare

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my colleague tamron hall has a look at what's next. hi, tamron. >> hi, andrea.following breaking news. president obama is now in new jersey, touring firsthand the damage caused by sandy. with govern or the chris christie. the president is expected to start the ground tour within the hour and bring you details. nbc's first read team says don't be surprised if the losing side whoever it turns out to be ends up blaming sandy as a result. well, the president will return to the campaign trail. we'll talk with a presidential historian regarding how the disaster affected the president's plan of attack moving ahead. also, why the head leans read ohio working class voters could be the key to president obama's re-election. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >>> hi, everyone. i'm tamron hall. following big,

my colleague, tamron hall, has a look at what's next coming up on "news nation." >> hi, tamron. >> greatt hour in las vegas there's no rest for the candidates. later tonight, as mentioned, president obama and governor romney will both appear at the legendary al smith dinner in new york where they're supposed to go from throwing bows to jokes at each other, which could not awkward considering by all accounts these meent do not and why some pro-life activists tried to get the president uninvited. speaking of not liking someone, why one of the romney boys would say that he was prepared to slug after making that comment. on gasoline. i am probably going to the gas station about once a month. last time i was at a gas station was about...i would say... two months ago. i very rarely put gas in my chevy volt. i go to the gas station such a small amount that i forget how to put gas in my car. [ male announcer ] and it's not just these owners giving the volt high praise. volt received the j.d. power and associates appeal award two years in a row. ♪ that's a good thing, but it doesn't cover everyth