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Obama, Romney Campaign in West; U.S. Government Sues Bank of America

Aired October 24, 2012 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Soledad O'Brien will be examining provocative questions about skin color, discrimination and race in "Who Is Black in America?" The documentary premieres Sunday, December 9, at 8:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN.

Hello again, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in for Brooke Baldwin.

The blitz is on out West with 13 days until the election. President Obama and Mitt Romney are blazing trails in the Western swing states. We heard a short time ago from Governor Romney at his first stop today in Reno, Nevada. This evening, he will be in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

And talk about a blitz, take a look at the president's travel plans. He will be in four states today, then four more states tomorrow. Just a short time ago, he stopped in for lunch at Antonella's pizza in Davenport. He shared a table there with three local diners.

CNN chief White House correspondent Jessica Yellin is following the president on the trail.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka.

Here in Davenport, Iowa, President Obama turned out and was quick to ask the crowd to vote. This battleground tour is all about two things, getting out the early vote, and energizing undecided voters, trying to sway, I should say, undecided voters to come over to his side.

To them, he's pushing his economic message and telling them he has a detailed plan, a specific plan for the second term. We got a bit of a glimpse of that when an interview he did with "The Des Moines Register" that was meant to be off the record was put on the record. He revealed that he plans to pursue immigration reform in a second term.

Right away in the first year, he thinks he could get that done. He said and he also believes that the sequestration crisis, this fiscal cliff we all talk about in Washington, that he believes that will be resolved and he will reach something equivalent to that grand bargain we were all talking about, with about $4 trillion worth of deficit reduction. So two pieces of news for a second term agenda. And the president on the trail also telling the crowd here that he is the same principled man in his words that he has been all along, trying to draw a contrast with Romney who they of course have said is changing throughout the campaign. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There are some folks in this crowd who probably have been following me since I was running for the United States Senate. And, you know what, you can -- like this guy right here, who I served with in the United States Senate, George Shadid.

And, you know, you could take a videotape of things I said 10 years ago, 12 years ago, and you would say, man, this is the same guy, has the same values, cares about the same people. Doesn't forget where he came from. Knows who he's fighting for.

And you know what? I haven't finished all the work that we set out to do back in 2008. But I have fought for you every single day that I have held this office.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YELLIN: And from Iowa, Fredricka, the president goes on to Denver, Colorado. He will make stops in Florida, Virginia, again in Ohio, he goes overnight to Las Vegas, and he will also stop in Los Angeles to tape the Jay Leno show, and then Chicago, Illinois, to cast an early ballot for himself, no doubt, before returning to the White House -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Jessica, thanks so much.

If you're counting, that's eight states in two days for the president and here is a glimpse at how the race stands, less than two weeks until the election. Our CNN poll of polls is showing Mitt Romney one point ahead of the president, 48 percent to 47 percent.

Joining us now live, CNN's Jim Acosta. He's traveling with the Romney campaign in Reno, Nevada.

We have been listening to Mitt Romney there. We understand right now he's talking a bit more about small businesses and what he can do for the small business industry, and all of this, just 13 days away, before Election Day.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Fredricka, we're listening to Mitt Romney right now here in Reno, Nevada. It's part of a big swing state blitz for the GOP nominee.

I will try to keep my voice down just a little bit because this crowd behind me is also here to hear Mitt Romney, not to listen to me. But I can tell you that with the theme that we have been hearing so far during this speech here in Reno, Fredricka, is about families. Mitt Romney said the word families six or seven times in the last several minutes, laying out his agenda for what he would do if he were elected president.

And he said that that pertains to the housing market here in Nevada, which is obviously a very important issue, all of the foreclosures that have happened in this state. But he also extended that to the issue of Medicare. He went after the president for those cuts in Medicare that Mitt Romney said pay for the president's health care law and so on. And so we're going to be hearing this message I think throughout this day.

It is perhaps a sign of the message to come for the rest of this swing state blitz. And, Fredricka, he is going to have quite a hectic schedule over the next several days, perhaps not quite as hectic as the president, but from here he goes on to Iowa, then Ohio, then back to Iowa, then back to Ohio again, and then Florida and Virginia. And you can just look at that schedule and see exactly sort of what the campaign is doing right now.

They're starting to look at states that they need to win, should they not win some of those big three states, Florida, Ohio and Virginia. If you lose one or two of those big three states, you need a win in Iowa, you need a win in Nevada. That's why we're seeing this campaign schedule laying out -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Jim Acosta there in Reno, Nevada, thanks so much.

We're going to talk about the key state of Florida where the lead there too is razor thin. Take a look at this CNN/ORC poll taken last week before the final debate. Mitt Romney leading Barack Obama by just 1 percentage point, and that's well within the poll's margin of error.

Chief business correspondent Ali Velshi is on the CNN battleground bus tour, talking with voters in four key swing states, Florida, North Carolina, Virginia, and Ohio.

And Ali joins us now from Winter Park, Florida.

So, Ali, you know, what is going to be the thrust of the message there, particularly with the president? He will be in Tampa tomorrow morning. You know, you have been talking about a very wealthy and also a mostly elderly community in the midsection, but then in the southern portion of the state, you talk about, you know, a big Latino turnout, but they don't vote as one monolith either.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Right. Right, they don't, although if you were to characterize, you could characterize the Cuban population in Miami as traditionally favoring Republicans over Democrats.

Here in Orlando, for instance, there's been a bigger growth in the Puerto Rican or non-Cuban Latino population. And they're even less monolithic than that. The ground operation probably takes precedence over whether or not you're attracting a particular group, but you hit on something bigger, Fred, and that is Florida has every economic issue in this country. The wealthy in Florida are older in some cases, and this has the largest population of people over the age of 60. Worried about their investments, worried about Medicare, worried about Social Security. Then you have got the housing problem. This state was ground zero for foreclosures and home price drops. You're now starting to see the combination of those low interest rates and low home prices.

Orlando area has seen housing -- the number of houses that have started to be built increasing every month for the last several months. So the message here has got to be highly specific. Which one of these candidates is going to do more to improve the economy? Florida has seen an improvement, but it's still has an unemployment rate that is higher than the national average.

And, as you know, Fred, the reason we're here, swing state, the biggest swing state, 29 electoral votes, dead heat between the two candidates right now. And they're working really, really hard, in fact, right behind me, a gathering of women for Romney. Ann Romney is going to be there. Cindy McCain will be there very shortly. They're really, really working Florida very hard, Fred.

WHITFIELD: What does that message, I guess, have to be that will resonate with most? Because as you said, it is a very diverse community, but the clock is ticking, you just have 13 days left. There has to be a very pointed, specific message that any of the candidates have to deliver, that resonates with a lot of people. What would that be in Florida?

(CROSSTALK)

VELSHI: That's the problem. The thing that resonates with a lot of people may not be the specificity that the undecideds need. We're in a county, we're in counties where really the decision is going to be made by those people who are uncommitted, undecided at the moment and they are holding out because they want some specifics.

They look at Barack Obama's vision of the future, Mitt Romney's and they say, which one of these guys has a better chance of actually getting to where they want to go? It might even trump ideology. The idea that they both want a better economy, we know that. Which one going to get it done? And people have said to me, they are lacking that specificity, they want it, but that's not really what the candidates are giving them.

I'm not sure what is going to help them make their mind up in the next 13 days, but they're going to make the difference. Individual voters in this state could carry the election. Everybody knows how important Florida is to this election.

WHITFIELD: Florida, Florida, Florida, as they say. All right, Ali Velshi, thanks so much in Winter Park. Appreciate it.

Up next, former CIA operator Bob Baer joining me live on the e- mail sent to the White House as the deadly attack on the U.S. Consulate was unfolding.

Plus, we're watching the Atlantic, where Hurricane Sandy is barreling north.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It has been at the heart of a bitter back and forth in the presidential campaign and on Capitol Hill, what the Obama administration knew after four Americans were killed in Benghazi, Libya.

Now just released e-mails show just two hours after the initial message the consulate was under attack, government officials knew a terror group took responsibility. A government e-mail sent to the White House, the State Department and the FBI had a subject title of -- quote -- "Update 2, Ansar al-Sharia claims responsibility for Benghazi attack" -- end quote.

It then goes on to say -- quote -- "Embassy Tripoli reports the group claimed responsibility on Facebook and Twitter and has called for an attack on embassy Tripoli" -- end quote.

In response, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said people must wait for what the independent accountability review board concludes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Posting on something on Facebook is not in and of itself evidence. And I think it just underscores how fluid the reporting was at the time, and continued for some time to be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: OK, let's turn to Bob Baer, a former CIA director of operations in the Middle East and a CNN contributor.

Good to see you, Bob. Administration officials are pointing out this same terror group also denied responsibility for the attack on another occasion just minutes if not hours in between. So how much weight did this e-mail have for the decision-makers on September 11?

BOB BAER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, I think the important point in all of this, these e-mails, is the White House and the State Department knew that the consulate in Benghazi was under military attack. This was not a demonstration. There were large explosions, heavy gunfire.

Secondly, this went on for nearly six hours and the White House was aware of it, as was the secretary of state or should have been. And nobody did anything. This just went on and on and on. And at the end of it, when it was too late to save the ambassador, and the other three people killed there, it was -- they spun the story on this, saying, it was very confusing, we didn't know what was going on.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: What could have been done -- if you're talking about the six-hour span, what could have been done that wasn't done in your view?

BAER: Well, there are drones in the area. I don't know how deployable they were at the time. There was government forces that could have been moved faster.

Remember, we have to -- we still -- the details are being dribbled out on this story, which I find very disturbing. It has become a partisan football. And we're not getting to the facts. The facts is four people were sacrificed there.

We don't know what the security status was before this. We don't actually know how the ambassador died until this point. I realize this is going to an accountability review board, and it may come out at some point. I hope it does.

But right now, this thing has landed in the middle of American politics and we still don't know. I was talking to some SEALs today, and the two ex-SEALs that died there, you know, fought in a long prolonged battle. And they were just out there and the question is why.

WHITFIELD: OK. Well, let's examine another e-mail, reading just like this, saying -- quote -- "Embassy Tripoli reports the firing of the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi has stopped and the compound has been cleared. A response team is on site attempting to locate the mission personnel."

So we now know that this was sent. Militants actually had broken into the Benghazi compound. But given your experience kind of on the ground, what do you imagine was happening given the geographical differences between Tripoli and Benghazi? What do you suppose was happening in terms of conveying the immediacy of information?

Because that's what we're doing here, is we're examining the immediacy of information, but if all of those who were involved in Benghazi were, you know, in peril, then Tripoli is the nearest location. But how accurate would Tripoli be able to be when the clock is ticking?

BAER: Tripoli wouldn't, but the first call would have been made to the Libyan government, the military forces in Benghazi, and demanding that the embassy be...

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: But isn't this a problem too there, the Libyan government? You're talking as though it was established, and it is a very porous and not very solid at that point or even now.

BAER: I'm sure nobody picked up the phone. But there are disturbing aspects to this. How could they not locate the consulate personnel and the ambassador? The safe room is known when they went in. I hear these outrageous rumors that the ambassador actually had been kidnapped for a time before he died. I simply don't know.

These are still early reports. We're talking weeks after this happened and we don't know. And keep in mind, this is not -- this was an attack on U.S. sovereign territory. It has never happened before since the attack on our embassy in Iran. This isn't a light matter that we should easily dismiss.

And I think the faster we appoint an independent commission to look into it, the better we are, the safer our other consulates and embassies will be.

WHITFIELD: All right, Bob Baer, a former CIA director of operations of the Middle East and a CNN contributor, thanks so much for your time.

BAER: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, up next, a proposed temporary cease-fire in Syria. Find out what's behind this possible truce.

Plus, Hurricane Sandy barreling its way up the Atlantic. I will tell you about the chances of the storm hitting the U.S.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: In Syria today, a rare note of optimism from diplomats trying to end the civil war there.

The U.N.'s point man for peace in Syria says the government has agreed in principle to stop fighting over a four-day holiday that begins Friday. As encouraging as that sounds, there is a problem. Every cease-fire that has been negotiated has failed. During 19 months of fighting, an estimated 30,000 people have been killed, most of them civilians.

Tropical Storm Sandy gained some strength today and has been upgraded to a hurricane now, winds packing speeds of up to 80 miles per hour now lashing Jamaica. The storm is expected to spin toward Cuba, making landfall tomorrow in Cuba.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

WHITFIELD: All right, back to the campaign trail as President Obama hits the swing state and reports suggesting his administration is secretly developing a matrix in the fight against terrorists, complete with kill lists, mapping devices and a secret targeting center -- details on that next.

Plus, one of America's biggest banks sued for a billion dollars over alleged mortgage fraud -- what this bombshell means for Bank of America next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It is a pretty good bet Bank of America is regretting today that it ever bought Countrywide Financial. Countrywide, the troubled mortgage giant, is at the heart of a $1 billion lawsuit the Justice Department has filed against Bank of America. Justice officials say Countrywide was defrauding the government and Bank of America allegedly continued the scheme when it took over Countrywide back in 2008.

CNN's Alison Kosik joining me live now from the New York Stock Exchange.

Alison, explain the U.S. Justice Department's allegations against Bank of America.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: OK, Fredricka.

These allegations involve a mortgage program that was under Countrywide Financial when it was still around called the Hustle. This program began in 2007 according to the government and continued under Bank of America through 2009.

Its goal, to write lots of mortgages and write them fast to keep these loans moving forward, to get them through the approval process. And to keep them moving, Countrywide actually through some quality controls out the window that would have backed up the process. It was up to Countrywide to make sure these loans met certain standards before passing them on to Fannie and Freddie.

That clearly didn't happen, said the government. In fact, the government says in some cases some applicants didn't even have critical pieces of paperwork, but were approved anyway. Here is one thing that made it worse, Fredricka. This Hustle program gave loan processors bonuses for pushing through more loans, basically giving them incentives to cut corners -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so what is the response from Bank of America now?

KOSIK: So we haven't heard back from Bank of America yet. But we're hearing about these mortgage-related lawsuits more and more now, one from Wells Fargo.

Actually, Wells Fargo was hit with a similar lawsuit two weeks ago, and you know what? With these lawsuits like this, they're really a big unknown for banks and what they're even doing as they are report their earnings, they're saying how they're setting aside money for possible litigation, so they're almost expecting this -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: OK, so, meantime, the Federal Reserve just a short time ago made another announcement about the state of the economy. Pretty upbeat. Elaborate for us.

KOSIK: You know, nothing new is how I would certainly term this latest statement from the Fed, with the Fed saying that the economy is growing at a moderate pace, saying that the housing market is still showing improvement.

But the big takeaway that you get from this statement is, look, the economy is still not in great shape, that the Fed still wants to continue helping the economy, AKA, its bond-buying program, until the job market shows substantial improvement -- Fredricka. WHITFIELD: All right, Alison Kosik, thanks so much for those updates. Appreciate it.

All right, the disposition matrix, you're probably hearing about it for the first time. Sounds like a sci-fi movie. Well, it is actually a a secret database used to hunt down terrorists. "The Washington Post" reveals the Obama administration has been working on this matrix for years. It is not just a list of kill names. It includes other resources to help nab terrorists beyond the reach of drones.

Let's bring in "Washington Post" intelligence reporter Greg Miller, responsible for the article today. So, how long, Greg, has this secret matrix been in development?

GREG MILLER, INTELLIGENCE REPORTER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": Well, it's fairly new. I mean, it's been in development for a little over a year and it still remains a work in progress.

I mean, it's been described to me as something that's been helpful in mapping out contingencies for the government as it pursues counterterrorism targets beyond the reach of American drones and something that could become increasingly crucial as al Qaeda continues to morph and take advantage of the turmoil across the Middle East and North Africa.

WHITFIELD: So, is this what the president was alluding to Monday night during the debate? Just roll this clip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: There is no doubt that attitudes about Americans have changed, but they're always going to be elements in these countries that potentially threaten the United States and we want to shrink those groups and those networks and we can do that, but we're always also going to have to maintain vigilance when it comes to terrorist activity.

It is absolutely true we cannot just meet the challenges militarily. And, so, what I've done throughout my presidency and will continue to do is number one make sure that these countries are supporting our counterterrorism methods.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So is this moment kind of what inspired you to write the article where you write in today's "Post," you know, it is, quote, "designed to go beyond existing kill lists, mapping plans for the disposition of suspects beyond the reach of American drones."

MILLER: Well, I mean, this article has actually been in the works for some time and it's taken us about a year to put this series together.

And what we're really trying to do is take a step back and the implication of the effort that has gone in to create the disposition matrix is that the United States now envisions carrying out drone strikes, targeted killings for a long time to come.

Most officials in the Obama administration think it will be extended at least another decade and that's a pretty astonishing thing to consider given than this is a country that really recoiled the idea of targeted killings before September 11, 2001.

WHITFIELD: So, it sounds like the president and your sources are saying this is, you know, I guess a sign of the times. It is here to stay.

You also write that, you know, a significant, quote, milestone looms, the number of militants and civilians killed in the drone campaign over the past ten years will soon exceed 3,000 by certain estimates, surpassing the number of people al Qaeda killed in the September 11th attacks.

So, in other words, you're saying this has been a fairly effective approach. And promises to be even more so?

MILLER: Well, I think what that statistic shows is that this is a much larger program than most people realize, that in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, we started to hear and read about drone strikes on a very small basis and most people regarded those as -- that as an emergency measure and probably a finite measure.

But under the Obama administration, those strikes have continued and accelerated and there have been hundreds of strikes in Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia and elsewhere under the Obama administration.

You're right. That number is creeping up past the total number of Americans killed about 11 years ago.

WHITFIELD: All right, Greg Miller of "The Washington Post," thanks so much, appreciate it.

MILLER: Sure.

WHITFIELD: On to Florida, bogus letters going out to voters across the state telling them they're not eligible to vote. Up next, reaction from one of the people who received a letter.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, recent polls show the race for the White House is a dead heat in Florida. Take a look at the latest CNN/ORC poll.

But in a state where the stakes couldn't be higher, some suspicious letters have been showing up. The letters claim to be from the county election supervisor saying this, quote, "Failure to submit this form within 15 days will result in the removal of your name from the voter registration rolls and you will no longer be eligible to vote."

"A nonregistered voter who casts a vote in the state of Florida may be subject to arrest, imprisonment and/or other criminal sanctions," end quote.

Well, the problem is, the letters aren't coming from anyone official and they target mostly Republicans.

Earlier, I spoke to one of the voters who actually received the letter, Bill Bishop, president of the Jacksonville city council.

And I also talked to CNN's Joe Johns who has been following this story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: How did it strike you when you received it? Did it look authentic?

BILL BISHOP, RECEIVED BOGUS VOTER LETTER: When I received the letter, at first blush, it looked like just another piece of political junk mail, but then after closer inspection of the outside of it, it had just enough officiality to it that it made me open it up. But even then it didn't quite look exactly right.

WHITFIELD: So, given you work for the city, you probably are a little bit more astute as to what kind of mail looks official or not.

Do you know anybody else who received this kind of letter and, if so, what was their reaction? How have they responded?

BISHOP: Well, I don't know anybody personally who also received it. I do know there were several in Jacksonville that did.

And after further conversations with our supervisor of elections, there were many throughout the state and in multiple counties that received them.

WHITFIELD: All right, Joe Johns, our correspond out of Washington is also with us now to join in on the conversation.

Joe, you recently did a documentary about voter fraud, intimidation and, you know, voter I.D. changes in laws. Is this -- this kind of campaign where these letters are going out, is this kind of in sync with a wave of confusion sweeping many jurisdictions across the country leading up to this election day?

JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, I think that's exactly the word you need to use. We're talking about confusion here and there's a lot of confusion around the country, certainly there in the state of Florida.

And I think Mr. Bishop is one good sort of representative of it, and the question is why, why would somebody create confusion?

In this case, the authorities say they're looking at it as, you know, plain and simple, mail fraud. The FBI, we're told, has just announced that they have launched an investigation, joining up with United States postal inspectors and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, all to try to take a good hard look at why letters like these coming from Seattle, Washington, going to the state of Florida would actually have been put in the mail, for what purpose?

Confusion, yes, but the thing that is interesting is that, if you look at Mr. Bishop, there are a lot of others we're told who are people who are very politically active, who received these letters, so it doesn't appear that the objective was just to quietly make people not vote.

WHITFIELD: Many also targeted registered Republicans and when you look at a post mark from Seattle to some of these Florida addresses, what does this tell you about this campaign or who might be responsible? Who is behind this kind of letter campaign?

JOHNS: Well, as far as who is behind it, I have no idea. This is something that just doesn't make any sense.

All it could potentially do it just tie up various time of the employees of all of the supervisor of elections office because it doesn't ask anybody to do anything other than contact your supervisor of elections.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Bill Bishop and Joe Johns there.

An undecided voter drawing unwanted criticism following her recent question at the presidential debate. Up next, hear the woman's message to her critics.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: A new study backs up this question that came up in the second presidential debate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHERINE FENTON, UNDECIDED VOTER: In what new ways do you intend to rectify the inequalities in the workplace, specifically regarding females making only 72 percent of what their male counterparts earn?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: A report just released from the American Association of University Women finds for every dollar a new male college grad is paid, a female grad earns 82 cents.

And while research may support voter Katherine Fenton, well, she has been facing a lot of backlash for bringing up the gender gap in pay.

CNN's Randi Kaye has her story.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This 24-year-old undecided voter never imagined that a simple, nonpartisan question would make her a target of vicious attacks by conservatives.

Yet by the time the candidates finished answering her question, the Twitter-verse and the blogosphere knew the name Katherine Fenton.

Could you see the political divide in the comments on your question?

KATHERINE FENTON, UNDECIDED VOTER: Easily.

FAYE: Conservative author Matthew Vadum took to Twitter immediately with this. "Katherine Fenton, questioner, brings up the femi-Nazi leftist lie that women don't get pay equally."

And conservative commentator Michelle Malkin tweeted, "Softball, #ladypartstool, Katherine Fenton asks Obama how he will rectify gender pay disparities."

How did it feel to be called by a woman a "lady-parts tool?"

FENTON: She should be ashamed of herself. That's awful.

You know, I -- we're one and the same. I'm standing up there, trying to make a point that ultimately is working in her favor and, for her to say things like that, I think is really irresponsible and, you know, again, hurtful.

KAYE: Conservatives have long downplayed the gender pay gap. Some have suggested men work more hours in higher paying jobs.

Katherine who still hasn't decided who to vote for doesn't buy that.

FENTON: If it were a man asking, it would be because, oh, I have the best interests of women in mind and I love my daughter and I love my wife.

But because I ask, I am this monster, that has all these crazy idea in her head.

KAYE: By the morning after the debate, conservatives were all riled up, a smear campaign was in full swing and all things Katherine Fenton were fair game.

And not just on Twitter, the conservative publication "Free Beacon" printed this article. Written anonymously, the article suggested Katherine's twitter account revealed she liked to "get wet" at happy hour and that purple juice was her choice to get blackout drunk.

FENTON: A lot of what they found was taken out of context. That's why I felt no need to even defend it or address it because they were inside jokes.

I'm 24, yes. I drink. That's legal. Yes, I have had boyfriends. All of that seems pretty normal to me.

KAYE: Any regret in asking that question?

FENTON: Zero. I would do it again if I had a chance.

KAYE: What angers her most is those attacking her don't know anything about her. She's a teacher. Her parents are ultra- conservative, she says and she's a registered independent who voted for Republican John McCain in 2008.

This year, she's having a hard time choosing a candidate because she wants more specifics. She likes ObamaCare because it's allowed her to stay on her parent's health insurance, but she also likes Romney's business sense.

At 24, she's focused more on social issues than tax cuts and foreign policy.

FENTON: I want to know where you'd like to see the country to go, but I also want to know how you intend to get there.

KAYE: And, unfortunately, debate number three didn't get Catherine Fenton the answers she needs, leaving her wondering still who to vote for.

Randi Kaye, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: This political season has provided its fair share of fodder for the late night laughs. Up next, a look at how late night comedy impacts voters in campaigns as President Obama gets ready for Leno tonight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: all right. President Barack Obama will take a quick break from his two-day battleground state blitz and sit down tonight with jay leno. He's working the late night comedy circuit to try to woo voters in the home stretch now.

Mitt Romney's wife, Ann, made her "Tonight Show" debut back in September.

Kareen Wynter reports on new research showing late night comedy shows may have an impact on this election.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anybody else better off?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am. Doing great. Doing real good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This summer, one of my horses failed to medal at the Olympics, so I know hardship.

WYNTER: Late night political humor, it's funny. STEPHEN COLBERT, TALK SHOW HOST: My man Mitt just has Clint Eastwood, Donny and Marie Osmond, the lady from "Northern Exposure" and I want to say Joy Behar's older sister.

WYNTER: It's biting.

MITT ROMNEY, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Binders full of women.

JON STEWART, TALK SHOW HOST: Binder of women, book of broads, notebook of nipples, whatever.

WYNTER: But is it more than mere entertainment?

Lauren Feldman of American University says the impact of late night comedy on voters shouldn't be ignored.

LAUREN FELDMAN, PROFESSOR, AMERICAN UNIVERSITY: Just like traditional news, news analysis, the debates, conventions, political advertising all shape how people make sense of politics and make sense of the candidates, so, too, does "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" and "Saturday Night Live."

WYNTER: Feldman conducts viewer surveys to measure how these shows influence our politics. She finds that, while they don't necessarily persuade anyone to vote a particular way, they do play an important educational role.

FELDMAN: I have a forthcoming study that finds that people gain factual knowledge from "The Daily Show," particularly when they approach the show as news as opposed to considering it as purely entertainment.

WYNTER: Comedy Central partnered with the research group, True Insights, to study the impact of late night humor.

Its research concluded that half of voters age 32 and younger frequently use political satire shows like Stewart, Colbert and SNL to, quote, "follow politics and the election."

The research showed that 37-percent use shows like Letterman and Leno for the same purpose.

Recognizing the significance of these shows, the candidates have made several appearances on them.

President Obama recently sat down with Jon Stewart for a mostly substantive interview along with a few jokes.

STEWART: We have been speaking now for I think a good 12-to-14 minutes. And I am curious, how many e-mails during that time do you think your campaign has sent to me?

OBAMA: It depends on what is maxed out?

WYNTER: No political figure has felt the negative impact of late night humor more than Sarah Palin. Tina Fey's impersonation of her on SNL in 2008 became a defining caricature.

TINA FEY, PORTRAYING SARAH PALIN: And I can see Russia from my house.

WYNTER: Palin never said those words exactly, but it stuck, thanks to funny Fey.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Vice President, I know you're under a lot of duress to make up for lost ground, but I think people would be better served if we didn't keep interrupting each other.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You don't scare me shark eyes.

WYNTER: Election 2012 may not have proven quite a rich a target, so its ultimate flubs remains to be seen, but in the midst of a mudslinging horse race.

OBAMA: Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets.

ROMNEY: The president began what I call an apology tour.

WYNTER: If nothing else, we could all use a little comic relief.

STEWART: Which version of Barack Obama would respond? The first debate's Sleepytime McGillicutty or Prettytalk Jones.

OBAMA: Candy, what governor Romney said just isn't true.

STEWART: It's alive.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, as the Pakistani teen targeted by the Taliban recovers from her attack, police now say they have now identified the main suspect in the assault and CNN has an exclusive look.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Just a couple minutes away from the top of the hour. You know what that means, Wolf Blitzer and "The Situation Room." What do you have on tap, Wolf?

WOLF BLITZER, ANCHOR, "THE SITUATION ROOM": Lots of political news. Only 13 days to go as you know, Fred, and we're watching this race for the White House very, very closely.

Very interesting, something unusual happened, I know you've been covering it. The president of the United States gives an off the record interview to "The Des Moines Register" in Iowa getting ready to endorse either the president or Mitt Romney.

And all of a sudden after "The Des Moines Register" complains the fact it's off-the-record, the White House says go ahead and publish the whole thing. There's some interesting nuggets in there. The president thought he was speaking off the record, but he says he thinks he knows why he'll win re-election if, in fact, he does win and he shares that thought with the editorial writers at "The Des Moines Register."

We've gone through that transcript. There's some other information as well. We'll be all over that. All of the other political news, as well.

WHITFIELD: We look forward to that. Wolf Blitzer, appreciate that. "The Situation Room" less than two minutes away.

All right. Heightened alert now along the Gaza border with Israel after new fighting erupted between militants and the Israeli military. Two days of air strikes have killed four Palestinians. At least two of them are described as militants.

Israeli forces say they bombed sites in Gaza where they say Palestinian rocket attacks into Israel were originating. This is damage to buildings on the Israeli side. Officials say a Palestinian rocket attack sent several people to the hospital yesterday.

And an important development out of Pakistan. Police there say they now know who shot and critically wounded 15-year-old activist Malala Yousufzai. CNN has exclusively obtained this picture of the main suspect in the girl's shooting.