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Romney, Obama Prep For First Debate; Supreme Court Faces Big Issues In New Term; Syrian Foreign Minister To Speak At U.N.; Suicide Attack Kills NATO, Afghan Forces; The Candidate To Fix The Economy Is; Fourth Quarter Starts Strong; Schwarzenegger Opens Up In New Book; Honey Boo-Boo Gets a Raise; Stolen Renoir Found at Flea Market; Europe Shocks U.S. at Ryder Cup

Aired October 01, 2012 - 10:00   ET

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

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Stories we're watching in the NEWSROOM.

The art of the zinger. May the best delivered line win. Our debate about the debate.

Targeted killings in Afghanistan and U.S. soldiers are dying. The American general in charge of NATO forces says he's mad as hell.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, optimistic or delusional? Even after a tell-all book admitting multiple affairs, he wants Maria back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: I just did not know how to. I was just I think too scared about losing everything, losing her, losing the family, and I just didn't know how.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And the find of a lifetime, a Renoir at a flea market, finders keepers, losers weepers, right? Not when the insurance company is involved. NEWSROOM starts right now.

Good morning. Happy Monday to you. I'm Carol Costello. It is just 36 days until the presidential election, and both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama will be virtually invisible today. They're hunkering down for Wednesday's debates and a chance to score big points in a race that's still too close to call.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: Let's be honest. I mean, I'm not going to sit here and come on this morning and sugar coat the last couple of weeks. They've been tough.

But here's the great news for Republicans, we have a candidate doing extraordinarily well on Wednesday night. The first time he has the opportunity to stand on the same stage with the president of the United States and the first time a majority of the people are going to vote in this race will have an opportunity to make that direct comparison and see the two of them.

And when they do, I've seen Mitt Romney do this before. He's going to come in Wednesday night, lay out his vision for America, he's going to contrast what his view is with what the president's record is and the president's view for the future and this whole race will be turned upside down come Thursday morning.

DAVID PLOUFFE, SENIOR ADVISER, WHITE HOUSE: Challengers tend to do well in debates. We believed all along Governor Romney probably has more benefit out of this debate than we do.

But what we're going to tell the American people on Wednesday night as we have the whole campaign is exactly where we are as a country, where we need to go, how to rebuild an economy that makes the middle class secure and great details so people understand if this president gets re-elected what he's going to do for the middle class in the next four years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK, so let's debate the debate, shall we? CNN contributors Will Cain who leans right and LZ Granderson who leans left are back. Welcome, gentlemen.

WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Good morning.

COSTELLO: So, Will, everyone's saying this is a game-changer, but most voters have made up their minds. Is it?

CAIN: Right. And more often than not, these debates really aren't game changers. You know, you were talking during your talk back zingers, and there are those moments, of course, Ronald Reagan and several others.

But have they really ever dictated the outcome of an election? You know, a lot of political science suggests the debate has only dictated the outcome of the election twice. In the 1960s, 1960 election when Richard Nixon came out looking very haggard against the sharp and attractive John F. Kennedy and in 2000, when Al Gore was condescending toward George W. Bush.

The point is, more than zingers, what seems to affect the outcome is your general likability. How you come across. Last point, Carol, I saw Newt Gingrich give advice to Mitt Romney and laugh about that and whatever fashion you'd like.

But he said that these debates. His expert told him it's 85 percent visual, how you look, 10 percent how you say something, your tone, and 5 percent, only 5 percent what you actually say. That would certainly reinforce this likability prism.

COSTELLO: Well, that 5 percent -- that's really kind of depressing.

CAIN: It is.

COSTELLO: LZ, let me ask you this about likability. I mean, remember in 2008, Obama had a problem with likability and he's turned that around. He's now the more likable candidate. But there is a danger to him to appear unlikable in this debate if he gets too snippy or too condescending or too professorial.

LZ GRANDERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Absolutely and it is because he's coming from a position of authority. He's coming from position of power. I mean, let's face it. Everyone expects him to win this debate, everyone, apparently except for Governor Chris Christie.

So, you know, he will have -- there is a danger of him coming in to this thing perhaps sounding overconfident. Because even though he's in a better position, the country is still in a very tedious position, and so he can't come in as if everything's hunky dory and this guy is coming to bother him. He's got -- and respect that Governor Romney is a viable candidate, the country is not exactly where it should be and that he's vulnerable.

COSTELLO: OK, and Will, I'd like to ask you about this because that 47 percent saying and that secretly recorded video, that's really hurt Mitt Romney. And he's got to really respond to that. I heard "Politico" reporting that President Obama is going to mention the 47 percent thing every third question.

CAIN: Every third question -- yes, look, I think there's two ways you can go if you're Mitt Romney on kind of talking about that 47 percent. You can choose the path I have, which when I've come on your program and others and that's actually try to break down the numbers of what was meant by the 47 percent.

Talking about who pays taxes, who receives government subsidies and try to break that down and shed some more light on it because it was sloppy and didn't make sense. That's probably not the right path to do. Don't pursue nuance like that in a debate.

And you mentioned it earlier, Carol, the 100 percent, you know, response, but that's truthfully the one he's got to go with to suggest that his economic policies and conservative ideology believe they apply to 100 percent of voters and people within the economy. Help them all.

COSTELLO: And also, LZ, I will say this, that you're right, President Obama can't make things look hunky dory because they're not in the economy. Many people are still hurting.

So Mitt Romney according to some political analysts will continue to hammer away at that 8 percent unemployment rate and like the stagnant nature of our economy.

GRANDERSON: And he should. The problem is, is Mitt Romney saying these things. And it's not just about the 47 percent that was mentioned in that speech. You have to remember, he also talked about if I was perhaps Latino, things would be easier for me, I would be winning this thing already.

I mean, he said a bunch of other things in that video that this is going to undermine his ability to really attack the president on domestic policies and seen as believable. Because we saw Mitt Romney talking in private about how he really feels.

So what he says on stage is going to sound hollow because we saw him behind the scenes. And that's his greatest obstacle about the whole video.

It's not about the numbers Will is trying to break it down. It's the sentiment behind the entire video, which was very condescending to Americans, which came from a place of elitism.

COSTELLO: OK, he just misspoke.

CAIN: No, I think, Carol, he makes a good point. That's going to be very difficult for Romney to continue to readdress that 47 percent. On the flip side, this will be the first time someone can really go after President Obama over the administration's handling of what went down in Libya and their explanation it was a spontaneous attack. This is the first time that somebody can really push directly on President Obama about that.

COSTELLO: OK, we'll see what happens on Wednesday. The debate about the debate has to end now, thank you so much. LZ Granderson and Will Cain, much appreciated as always.

CAIN: Thank you.

COSTELLO: CNN's live coverage of the debate starts Wednesday night 7:00 Eastern.

The highest court in the land is now in session for a new term. Supreme Court justices are putting on their robes for the first time since the most talked about decision the court's made in decades, of course, that would be Obamacare.

Crime and justice correspondent, Joe Johns is live outside the court. We never get to see the justices walk into the court. It's kind of a bummer.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: No, I know. It just doesn't happen. I think they come in the back way quite frankly, Carol.

COSTELLO: But they're going to tackle some really controversial issues this term.

JOHNS: Yes, I think so. Probably the biggest cases they've actually accepted are, starting with affirmative action. This is a case that's going to be heard in October. It was brought by a woman in Texas who says she was denied admission to the University of Texas because of her race.

She's white. And the court has said for a long time that as far as they're concerned at some point they're going to get rid of race-based admission policies that affirmative action at universities one day will probably have to go. The question is, whether it has to go now -- Carol. COSTELLO: So let's talk about the relationship between the justices. Because many say that Justice Roberts, you know, deciding decision on the constitutionality of Obamacare kind of created some bad blood between John Roberts and conservatives. Other people say, well, this is John Roberts' chance to make the court even more conservative because the liberals owe him one.

JOHNS: Yes, and I think a lot of people say both are true and a lot of people say neither. Obviously, these people are behind closed doors. You don't know exactly what goes on, but Justice Scalia, who is certainly one of the most right-leaning, if you will, justices has actually said no, there's no bad blood between us and we're moving forward.

But there is that question of the court moving to the right as a result of the health care decision. People go both ways. I think a lot of the observers that I've listened to before said this court is very incremental and they don't move drastically one way or the other.

So we'll have to see at the end of the day. I mean, you have other possibilities of an abortion case decision at some time, same sex marriage. A lot of opportunities this session for the court to really move in there and say whether they're going to be a true conservative court -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Joe Johns reporting live outside the Supreme Court this morning.

This morning, the world's peacemakers focus on one of the most dangerous places in the world. The United Nations General Assembly is hearing from the foreign minister of Syria, a country torn apart by civil war and brutal government.

New numbers show nearly 30,000 people have died in just a year and a half and the foreign minister will try to defend his regime to a skeptical world.

CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom is in Beirut. So Mohammed, are there any indications we'll hear anything new from the Syrians today?

MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, the short answer to that is, no, there aren't. We expect that the Syrians will continue to be entrenched and defiant. We expect that Syrian foreign minister will continue to very much defend his country's actions.

The Syrians have stated from day one that they're engaged in a battle against armed terrorist groups. They believe that they're being targeted by foreign countries. Many times in the past few months, they have continued to lash out against Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey.

They say those are countries that are arming the rebels there and they don't accept this foreign interference as they are saying. So we expect to hear much more of this. The foreign minister of Syria has been meeting with other foreign ministers there in New York trying to drum up support.

But he's really likely to reach a more hostile audience today. In the past week at the U.N. G.A., so many world leaders have been huddling, trying to find some sort of corrective course of action for what's going on in Syria, but nobody's been able to. This civil war rages on unabated -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Mohammed Jamjoom reporting live from Beirut this morning.

The Taliban claiming responsibility for a suicide attack this morning targeting NATO forces in Afghanistan. Officials say the bomber drove a motorcycle packed with explosives into a joint patrol of Afghan and NATO forces in the eastern part of the country.

Three NATO service members and four Afghan police officers were among those killed. In just this past weekend, two Americans were killed in an insider attack that may have involved insurgents in Kabul.

The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan told CBS' "60 Minutes," he's mad as hell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GENERAL JOHN ALLEN, U.S. COMMANDER IN AFGHANISTAN: I'm mad as hell to be honest.It reverberates everywhere across the United States. We're willing to sacrifice a lot for this campaign. We're not willing to be murdered for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: U.S. troops have been training Afghan forces to defend its country as America plans to pull out of Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

Talk about the economy and still issue number one for most of us. Who do the experts think would be better for the economy Obama or Romney? The answer next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: The economy is one of the biggest issues for voters this year. So CNN Money asked who would be better for the economy, Governor Romney or President Obama?

Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange. She has all the details on this. Good morning, Alison.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. So we found out that these economists who were surveyed were asked this question. Who would most help the U.S. economy and they reluctantly picked Mitt Romney.

The CNN Money survey also shows, sadly enough, that none of these economists were excited about either one of them. So the 17 economists, the way it was broken down was nine picked Romney and three picked Obama. But here's what speaks out on all this, five of them couldn't commit to anybody because they said, you know what? It doesn't matter because neither one can really fix the economy. Even some of the Romney supporters, they aren't enthusiastic.

In fact one of them, Bill Watkins, he's with the Center for Economic Research. He said Romney's policies would be less bad or the economy than Obama's. So basically, you know, it's the lesser of two evils. Not exactly a big sign of confidence here.

But some say Romney is more likely to have more success getting legislation through Congress and supporters of Obama say he's more likely to reduce the deficit and cut entitlement spending like Social Security.

But, you know what? It is kind of sad, Carol, that it wasn't much excitement for either of them as far as helping the economy one way or the other -- Carol.

COSTELLO: OK, so let's talk about the economy and something like a little brighter that's happening where you are. The Dow is rising.

KOSIK: It is. So, yes, this does actually begin the fourth quarter and it looks like stocks are beginning the fourth quarter with gains. Stocks were already higher and then came out big sort of granddaddy of manufacturing reports.

It's called the IFM report and it showed that manufacturing here in this country at least for September was back in expansion territory. And this is a big deal because manufacturing has shown contractions for the past three months in a row.

So this surprise to the upside, putting investors in a good mood, enough of a mood to buy into the market today.

COSTELLO: I'm sure all of this will enter into the world of politics too. Alison Kosik, thanks so much.

Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning, will the presidential debates be game changers?

Forget all that talk about Romney the amateur debater. Republican Governor Chris Christie says the debate will be a game changer for Romney.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIE: I've seen Mitt Romney do this before. He's going to come in Wednesday night, lay out his vision for America, he's going to contrast what his view is and what the president's record is and the president's view for the future and this whole race is going to be turned upside down come Thursday morning.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: But the question is to zing or not to zing. Word on the street that Mitt Romney has been practicing zingers since August, the kind of thing that resonates like when Lloyd Benson said to Dan Quayle, you, sir, are no Jack Kennedy.

As for President Obama, he says there'll be no time for zingers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Governor Romney, he is a good debater, I'm just OK. But what I'm most concerned about is having a serious discussion about what we need to do to keep the country growing and restore security for hardworking Americans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: But Obama's advisers hope not in a smug elitist way. There will likely be a lot of talk from President Obama about Romney's 47 percent quote and from Romney about the stagnant economy and Libya.

But both candidates must address these issues in a concise personal and friendly way and if you ask comedian, Darrell Hammond, that's tough when you're overly scripted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DARRELL HAMMOND, COMEDIAN: I think that these guys use coaches, which is odd to me because, you know, the less coached you are, the more natural you are. The more natural you are, the more personal you are, the more personal you are, the more general you are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: So in other words, zing away, but deliver it in a way that matters. So the talk back question for you today, will the presidential debate be a game changer? Facebook.com/carolcnn, your responses later this hour.

The highs and lows of his life as a world champion body builder, actor and later politician, we're talking about Arnold Schwarzenegger.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is opening up about the affair with his former maid that destroyed his marriage. He's telling all in his autobiography "Total Recall." That book is coming out today.

This morning he told "Good Morning America" how that misdeed with his maid hurt a lot of people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHWARZENEGGER: And the -- nor do the kids and nor do everyone in the extended family. So everyone has been hurt by that and that, you know, I'm trying to rebuild all that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: I'm joined now by Laurence Leamer. He also talked to Arnold Schwarzenegger about his new book and you write for "The Daily Beast." I neglected to mention that.

But you sat down with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and I'm thinking as I watched these interviews that none of us really knew this person.

LAURENCE LEAMER, CONTRIBUTOR, "THE DAILY BEAST": Yes, before "The Daily Beast," I mean, I had lunch with him and the publicist arrived late. So I'd ask Arnold if I could record it and I recorded it.

And it's a very different Arnold than on "60 Minutes." It's very revealing of this man who is isolated, having a hard time dealing with getting old. He has an incredible life story.

Unfortunately because he has his biography come out now and insists on writing about the scandal, that's all anybody's talking about.

COSTELLO: It is, and you know, listening to these things. Like he said he wouldn't tell his wife things like, I'm going to get open heart surgery until he was getting it the next day or I'm running for governor. He didn't tell her that until a few days he had to decide. And it's sort of like he lived life on his own terms and to heck with everyone else.

LEAMER: He calls it being secretive, others would call it lying. I understand why he sees it that way, but everything in his life is an exaggeration, over the top. And it's just a sad business.

He wrote this autobiography too soon. He wrote it too fast and he wrote it too long. He did it in less than a year at 660 pages long and now he's out there. It's a mess. It really is. And it's unfortunate it didn't happen -- it's his ego getting in the way.

COSTELLO: Let's play something else that Arnold Schwarzenegger said. This is from his interview on "60 Minutes," let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCHWARZENEGGER: I think it was the stupidest thing I've done in the whole relationship. It was terrible. I inflicted tremendous pain on the Maria and unbelievable pain on the kids.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Of course, he's talking about this maid. You know, another question he was asked on "Good Morning America" about the maid. You know, George Stephanopoulos asked him, why did you keep this woman in your home when you figured out her kid was your kid? He responded by saying, well, I didn't want to hurt the maid.

LEAMER: No, he told me something else. I'm sure it's the truth. Look, he's the governor. If this comes out, if Maria finds out, maybe she'll divorce him. It's going to ruin his ratings as governor.

So he wanted to keep it quiet as long as he could. The problem, look, he did this bad thing and it could have happened. My problem with him, what did he do afterwards? Maria wanted to try to keep the marriage together. She wanted him to go to therapy.

He wouldn't go to therapy because he doesn't want to deal with anything painful and dark within his life. And then when Maria wanted to separate, Arnold wouldn't leave the house.

So Maria, his wife of 25 years, the mother of his four kids and a woman who lost her mother and father in the last year had to leave the house and go live in a hotel. Arnold said he'd like to have his wife back, I don't think that's the way to do it.

COSTELLO: Well, he says he's optimistic. He says he thinks Maria wants the family to get back together too. Is he kind of delusional?

LEAMER: No, he's not delusional at all. He's an immensely shrewd man. What a smart thing to say this morning. Yes, I want her back. He knows she's not coming back, but makes him look good and sells books.

COSTELLO: He's also in the middle of this bitter divorce, right, because they haven't settled yet?

LEAMER: Yes. Maria has gone through hell for a year and a half. Imagine what it's been for her, now after a year and a half to go through him having his book coming out and talking about this.

He didn't have to do this. He could've taken -- he said he turned down $5 million and they paid him whatever they paid him. Take $1 million less and don't talk about this. Say this is a private matter. I'm not talking about this.

This morning, we wouldn't be talking about this, we'd be talking about the extraordinary life this man has. It's a great American story.

COSTELLO: Laurence Leamer, thanks for sharing. We appreciate it. And you can read more about it on "The Daily Beast" and your interviews on there too with Arnold Schwarzenegger.

LEAMER: Sure is, thank you.

LEAMER: Thanks so much.

COSTELLO: Candidates are gearing up for the first presidential debate. It happens in just two days and it's going to be a big one. The report from the "New York Times" says Mitt Romney has been practicing some debate zingers since August. But will the strategy work with President Obama? We'll talk about that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Good morning, I'm Carol Costello.

Thank you so much for joining us. Checking our "Top Stories" at 30 minutes past the hour.

The U.S. Supreme Court begins a new term. Justices could decide a number of critical issues including same-sex marriage, affirmative action and voting rights. The last term you might remember delivered the historic ruling upholding the health care reform law.

California becomes the first state to ban straight to gay therapy for minors. Governor Jerry Brown signed the legislation, the sponsors says the so-called conversion therapy is just plain dangerous. But a conservative group plans to file suit saying the law violates constitutional protections.

The first presidential debate now just two days away but if you listen to the candidates, neither one is expected to win. Both candidates are seriously downplaying expectations for their debate performances, but Mitt Romney has a few zingers in his back pocket. In fact and he's been practicing those zingers for over a month.

President Obama says, hey, I'm not going to do zingers I'm just going to talk to that guy on the couch.

Joining me to talk debate strategy, our CNN contributor Maria Cardona who is a Democratic strategist and political columnist and Republican strategist Matt Towery. Welcome to both of you.

MATT TOWERY, ATLANTA/DC BASED POLLSTER & COLUMNIST: Thank you.

MARIA CARDONA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Thank you good morning.

COSTELLO: Ok so I'm going to start with you, Maria, because word on the street is Mitt Romney has been practicing zingers since August. Do zingers really work?

CARDONA: It's going to be interesting, Carol. Because, sure, they could work to, I guess, underscore who won the night and who won the debate. But will it work to actually be a game-changer for this campaign? That's certainly going to be up to the voters.

I think Mitt Romney needs to be careful with that because the more that you practice a zinger, the more apt you're going to be to actually zing it. And I think what Romney really needs to show is that he's a likable guy but at the same time he's got to be aggressive. That's a very delicate balance.

And he's going to have to actually change in the minds of voters in less than two hours what has taken two years to cement in their minds, which is that he's actually not a likable guy and that he doesn't understand the problems of everyday Americans and middle class families.

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: Ok so on -- so on the subject of aggression, Matt, you wrote a piece that is -- that the key to winning this debate is being the aggressor but not being aggressive.

TOWERY: Yes.

COSTELLO: What do you mean by that?

TOWERY: Well, first of all, I agree with Maria and that is if you have too many zingers, you can -- you can overwhelm the audience and they all collectively end up meaning nothing. He's got to chose one zinger and it's got to be sort of -- as much as possible from the heart or at least not appear to be so planned.

As far as being aggressive, go back to the 2000 race between Al Gore and George W. Bush, we saw Gore sigh and get upset and he actually went into the -- the personal space of Bush at some point and stood sort of in front of him. And that sort of turned the audience off.

So you can't be aggressive, if you're aggressive sometimes you appear to be the bully. You have to be the aggressor, though, and by that I mean, for example, most of the candidates who win these debates or who at least go on to win the presidential race are the ones who come in better prepared, appear to be sharper and appear to be on their game.

So yes, Mitt Romney needs to prepare and I think he does need to come out with one good line that the media will run over and over the next day but most of all he needs to look sharp against a very sharp Barack Obama.

This business of Barack Obama not being a good debater, that's ridiculous, he is excellent and Mitt Romney is good too. He can be very good as he was against Newt Gingrich in Florida. He KO-ed Gingrich, he need to do something like that again.

COSTELLO: Ok. Maria, let's pretend you're a Republican strategist.

CARDONA: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Ok so Barack Obama supposedly every third question is going to mention this 47 percent thing. So -- so what would be a good way to combat that for Mitt Romney?

CARDONA: Well, I think that what he has started to do is something that he should continue to do, which is talk about the 100 percent. He should not get into trying to explain the 47 percent because that's just going to be a loser for him. The problem, though and again, is what I mentioned earlier that there is this narrative and this image of Mitt Romney that has already cemented in voters' minds.

And frankly the 47 percent comment why it was so damaging is because that wasn't a surrogate, that wasn't a Democratic strategist or the Obama campaign saying that about Mitt Romney, it was Mitt Romney saying that about Mitt Romney.

So he should try to focus as much and pivot to talk about the 100 percent and be specific. Because that is what has been missing from what his plans are versus what the President's are for the middle class.

COSTELLO: Well and Matt, on the subject of likability, I'm sure that Governor Romney's going to -- I mean, I've heard it said that the President isn't used to being challenged anymore and that might put him on the defensive and all this likability stuff will go by the wayside because President Obama will get snippy.

TOWERY: Well, I don't think, listen, Barack Obama is a very controlled political type. He knows what to do when the pressure is on. We've seen it in the last few weeks.

I would say this. I started the whole career at 30 something years plus ago in political debate. I would look for what we call a spring board. And that is to take the things that they're talking about are all in the past. If I were Mitt Romney, I would move this to the future, I would talk about the impact of the Obama legislation that we've seen and what impact it might have on the future in the next four years versus what he offers in the future in the next four years.

I haven't heard enough of that.

And I think also if you've seen Romney come out very quickly with answers, there are one, two, three, enumerated that sound like he has real ideas and proposals, he'll appear to be a lot more of a together candidate than we've seen in the past. If he comes out the way he's been sort of generally speaking trying to get Obama upset, Obama's not going to bite for it.

So he needs to be really concise, he needs to enumerate and he needs to have one zinger, not a bunch of them.

COSTELLO: Matt Towery and Maria Cardona thanks so much.

CARDONA: Thank you so much, Carol.

TOWERY: Thank you.

COSTELLO: I hope you visit us again. CNN's live coverage of Wednesday night's debate starts at 7:00 Eastern.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: If you are not one of the millions of people who watch TLC's new hit reality show "Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo", let me introduce you to Honey Boo-Boo.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HONEY BOO-BOO, REALITY TV STAR: I'm 6 and I'm a beauty queen. I want to win the biggest trophy with a lot of money. I want money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And for those of you who do watch the show, I just have a -- A.J., why, but -- but people love the show. And I guess they're looking at a big payday.

A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Yes, well, people do love the show, Carol. Unfortunately, I think a lot of people are fans for all the wrong reasons and I don't think anybody really expected the show to be as big of a hit as it has become. It averaged around 2.4 million viewers an episode, they peaked out at 2.9 million viewers. So it's not surprising that TLC, the network airing the show has now ordered more.

And while Honey Boo-Boo may be known for her catch phrase "holler for a dollar," the family was reportedly being paid very little for the first shows. So I guess they did some hollering and now there are reports from places like TMZ saying they gotten a big raise.

Now we've reached out to Honey Boo-Boo's family about those stories, they're not commenting. And yes, the show does take a lot of critical heat. It probably shouldn't be used as a parenting guide, but they do have their charms, Carol. There are some very funny moments in the show. And I guess it's just fun to say Honey Boo-Boo.

COSTELLO: It really is. You know, I've never thought of it that way, but it is fun to say Honey Boo-Boo.

HAMMER: Yes.

COSTELLO: A Honey Boo-Boo moment.

HAMMER: I'm smiling right now because you just said it three times.

COSTELLO: Ok. So Monday cannot go by without talking Lindsay Lohan.

HAMMER: Yes, Lindsay Lohan told police that she was assaulted early Sunday morning at a New York City hotel by a guy that she was out partying with and she sustained some minor injuries. She did tell police that her assailant Christian LaBella had been taking pictures of her throughout the night on his cell phone.

Well when he wouldn't stop she grabbed the phone, ran into the hallway and says LaBella then choked and assaulted her to get the phone back, so she pulled the fire alarm to get help and that's when the police showed up.

Now police originally arrested LaBella, but after doing a little investigating they decided to drop the charges. But what makes the story even more interesting, is that LaBella is actually a staffer for a Republican Congressman in Illinois. He even has a picture of himself with Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan on his Facebook page.

Not exactly the kind of publicity anybody needs or want. I don't see it coming up on the debate on Wednesday night Carol, but still a really interesting twist for the story.

COSTELLO: It's really, really strange. As is everything with Lindsay Lohan.

HAMMER: Yes.

COSTELLO: A.J., many thanks to you.

HAMMER: You got it.

COSTELLO: Join A.J. Hammer on "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" 11:00 Eastern on HLN.

Imagine picking up a box of junk at a flea market for $7 and then discovering a painting inside that box worth $100,000. Oh. But the insurance companies are involved now, so don't get too excited. We'll tell you why.

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COSTELLO: 45 minutes past the hour. Checking our top stories now.

The so-called Carmageddon II had another happy Hollywood ending without the traffic tie-ups that many had feared. A ten-mile stretch of Interstate-405 in Los Angeles reopened last night ahead of schedule. Officials shut down the highway as part of a massive roadway project that included demolishing part of a bridge.

An accident involving two school buses near San Antonio this morning left one of the drivers dead. Our affiliate KENS also reports three kindergarten-age students were taken to a nearby hospital. No word on their condition. A local sheriff's spokeswoman says it's still unclear what caused the crash.

Notorious bank robbers, Bonnie and Clyde, might have made their biggest haul nearly 80 years after their deaths. Two pistols owned by the bank-robbing duo went for a cool $500,000 at auction. The guns were found on the bodies of the couple when they were fatally shot by police in 1934.

Families may have to dig deeper to pay for milk. A "New York Daily News" quotes Senator Charles Schumer as saying milk prices could double if Congress doesn't improve a new farm bill. The Senate's passed it but not the House. A more dire warning coming from the National Milk Producers Federation, it says milk could hit $6 a gallon.

Oh, yes. It's an addictive dance that's gone viral worldwide and here's more proof. Hundreds of prisoners in the Philippines are doing their best rendition of Psy's Gangnam Style dance.

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COSTELLO: Yes, if you don't know Psy, you've been living under a rock. Gangnam Style is the most liked YouTube video ever with 335 million views and the song is also number two on the U.S. charts. Makes me laugh every time I see it.

It's a mystery worthy of one of those Hollywood heist movies. A painting by the famed artist Renoir stolen more than half a century ago from a museum has resurfaced under the most unlikely of circumstances. And now it's the focus of an FBI investigation. Here's Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's 5 1/2 by 9 inches worth between $75,000 and $100,000 and back from the dead. Titled "On the Shore of the Seine" by Pierre August Renoir Believed to have been painted for his mistress in 1879, this landscape has made a mysterious journey.

DOREEN BOLGER, DIRECTOR, BALTIMORE MUSEUM OF ART: This is just what we all fantasized about finding a great treasure, unknown somewhere.

TODD: Doreen Bolger is director of the Baltimore Museum of Art. Her institution once had that Renoir on display. Loaned by a well-known local art patron named Sadie May. More than 60 years ago, the painting was lifted.

(on camera): The circumstances around the theft of the paining are not clear. But this is the library's record of the painting, the cards saying that it was lent here, this notation saying that it was stolen from the museum in November, 1951. That was only about five months after the lender Sadie May died.

TODD: Fast forward to 2010, a woman at the Harper's Ferry flea market in West Virginia is attracted to a nondescript box.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She paid for a cardboard box full of miscellaneous items.

TODD: Including a doll, a plastic cow and the long-lost Renoir. The purchaser who wants to remain anonymous took the painting to the Potomac Company, an auction house in Alexandria, Virginia, where it's being kept now. What happened between high-end heist and flea market haggle over roughly 60 years is virtually unknown.

(on camera): How tough is it to piece together how it might have made the journey?

BOLGER: You know, I think people feel a painting by a famous artist like Renoir, it just ought to be very clear, but, you know, life has so many twists and turns. It has friendships and deaths and divorces and all kinds of chaos and moving, you know, changing of occupations. It's very hard to speculate what of the circumstances would cause a painting to change hands.

TODD (voice-over): And she says records of artworks were not digitized and tracked then with the sophistication used now. The FBI is investigating that trail. Authorities and probably lawyers will also have to determine whether the painting is rightfully the property of the woman who bought it for $7, the museum, or the insurer who paid out the claim. Right now it's not clear who that insurer was either.

(on camera): What would Sadie May say about this whole situation?

BOLGER: Sadie May was a pretty extraordinary woman. She, I'm sure she would be amused to find her reputation brought to the surface and so much attention paid to her.

TODD (voice-over): as much as they want the painting back, museum officials aren't prepared to say they'll wage a legal fight to get it. Right now they're focusing on piecing together how the painting was stolen and how it got to a flea market in West Virginia.

Brian Todd, CNN, Baltimore.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Wow.

Europe's best golfers celebrate a stunning defeat on the United States on the American soil. And they can thank a Chicago cop for his help. We'll talk about all that next.

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COSTELLO: 52 minutes past the hour.

This news just in to CNN, the Indianapolis Colts head football coach, Chuck Pagano, he's been diagnosed with leukemia that's according to the Colts' owner and CEO Jim Ursay. They held a news conference earlier this morning. According to Ursay, Pagano says he feels that he will win the battle and get this disease in remission.

From what we're understanding from "USA Today", Coach Pagano is now in than Indianapolis hospital in isolation. He's expected to be there for the next six weeks. This was a (inaudible) week for the Indianapolis Colts. He was feeling unusual fatigue. He went to the hospital to get it checked out and they found out he had leukemia. So he's battling and, of course, our prayers are with him.

Depending on your point of view, this year's Ryder Cup will go down as either one team's stirring comeback or another's epic collapse.

CNN's Shane O'Donoghue is at the Medinah Country Club in Illinois. A shocking win for Europeans, a bitter loss for the Americans.

SHANE O'DONOGHUE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was a meltdown, really, for the Americans and a real miracle for the European team, Carol. It was not expected from the European standpoint that they would be able to come back because they've never been behind by so much and staged such a comeback in this particular competition. The last time anyone came back from a four-point deficit was in 1999 and that was on home soil for the Americans of Brooklyn (ph). And that was a stunning final day of display then.

But for the Europeans to come over to the American soil and to achieve this victory, well, it's truly historic. It was not expected at all. The Americans looked like they were going to be racing favorites and certainties on the final day. All they needed from a possible 12 points was four and a half. They only managed three and a half.

So it was left to the Europeans to lead from the front, leading by example with an incredible spirit and an incredible belief. And they won the first five matches. It filtered through the entire team. And the United States could not respond.

Tiger Woods had a very poor week here and, indeed, the whole American team were left dumbstruck on the final day after combining so well over the first two days and displaying wonderful team spirit. But it just did not fire at all on the final day. An incredible win for Europe.

COSTELLO: I didn't know golfers could get that excited. Talk about amazing.

Let's talk about Rory McIlroy. He won a big match but he almost missed his tee time which is of course, kind of embarrassing.

O'DONOGHUE: Well, it was a little bit embarrassing and certainly it could have been a lot worse for the European team if he had arrived late. He left, with just 12 minutes to spare. He was watching the Golf Channel all morning and the time was being relayed to him in Eastern time. It was 12:25 -- it was what they were announcing all morning. So he got that into his head, that that was his tee-off time.

In actual fact it was 11:25 a.m. local time, central time here in Chicago. So he eventually got a call at 11:00 a.m. And said you're on the tee in 25 five minutes. He had five miles to travel, it was heavy traffic. He managed to hitch a lift with a state trooper and got here as I said with very little time to spare but no practice, went out on the course and delivered a point. So it was stunning.

And his captain Jose Maria Olazabal was able to laugh about it later and gave him a surprise gift as they celebrated.

COSTELLO: Oh. I thought you were going --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSE MARIA OLAZABAL, PROFESSIONAL GOLFER: Before we do anything, I want to present you with this wonderful award. You make sure you get on time to the tee next time.

(CROSSTALK)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: I was hoping you would show that.

O'DONOGHUE: It was a funny moment at the very end of a thrilling day. As I said, it could have been a lot worse had Rory missed out. He's the world number one, it was a real error on his part, but he got away with it and the European team are celebrating.

COSTELLO: All right. Shane O'Donoghue, thank you so much for that report.

The next hour of NEWSROOM coming up right after a break.

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COSTELLO: Hello, everyone.