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CNN Sunday Morning
Mail Explosives, 'Underwear' Bomb Linked; Thousands Rally for Sanity and/or Fear; Tomas Strengthens to Category 2 Storm; Superman Gets New Look
Aired October 31, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Good Sunday morning.
We now know what may have been an intended target of a suspicious package from Yemen: a Chicago synagogue that serves a small gay and lesbian congregation.
Also, look at this picture. Look at the commotion on stage behind former President Clinton. He's speaking at a rally for an Ohio candidate when the candidate bolts from stage while the president is speaking. We will tell you why.
Top of the hour here now, folks. From the CNN Center, this is your CNN SUNDAY MORNING. And we want to, as always, welcome our troops who are watching on the Armed Forced Network in Iraq, Afghanistan and around the world. Thank you for being here. Thank you for what you do.
Six a.m. here in Atlanta, where I sit; 1 p.m. in Baghdad. Good morning to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes.
Let me tell you what I got coming up for you here over the next 90 minutes. Thirty thousand are expected to turn out for what's called for the People's Marathon today. But these folks aren't out there competing for cash and prizes. Oh no. They're running for something much more special to them. Many of them have lost loved ones at war and they're running to honor them today. We'll take you there live, coming up.
Also, the huge rally yesterday in Washington, D.C. It was an interesting one judging by a lot of the pictures we saw. A lot of signs were out there as well. "Being political is not the same as being partisan" - that's just one example. We'll show you some more of those signs and also hear what the host, Jon Stewart, and Stephen Colbert actually had to say.
Also, do you recognize this guy? That's a superhero you should know. Yes, that's the Man of Steel. He is getting a new-millennium makeover. Some think though this Superman is just a bit too dark. We'll tell you more about this morning.
But first, back to that Chicago synagogue that may have been targeted by al Qaeda. Or Chadash is the name of this small congregation of about 100 people. They serve the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. It held its Sabbath service with heavy security in place. Synagogues across Chicago have been taking security precautions.
Police also told the other likely target, another synagogue - and its name, An-Shi-Immit (ph). That synagogue - they have been keeping a close eye out for suspicious packages, suspicious deliveries as well.
Hear now from the Or Chadash synagogue, calling these developments "unnerving."
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
VOICE OF UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're only about 100 members, so it was a little bit of soul-searching to figure out why we had come on to maybe the international eye. But now that we're - we're starting to get information that there may have been more packages, we're starting to believe that this might have just been random - a random selection of various Jewish organizations in Chicago.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: All right. The investigation now - investigators believe the same person or persons who built the Christmas Day underwear bomb - you'll remember that one from last year - also had a hand in this latest plot. The devices show similarities in how they were put together. Britain's prime minister says the explosives were meant to take down a plane.
In Yemen, meanwhile, they have arrested a woman believed to be connected to the packages, which were shipped from that country. One of her relatives also being questioned by police there as well.
Investigators now saying the packages contained five times the amount of explosives in the Christmas Day attempt. They were assembled professionally, designed to be detonated by a cell phone. U.S. investigators aren't sure a plane, or possibly those two synagogues in Chicago, were the actual targets.
Let's turn back now - we have been counting down for quite some time - I won't be counting down for you much longer. Only two days until Election Day. This is the homestretch. And of course, this is the last weekend, the last opportunity for many of these candidates to get out and about in a lot of these tight races. Of course, you know, one of the highlights, one of the tightest races out there is with the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid out in Nevada. He is battling against the Republican Sharron Angle in a really tight race out there.
Almost every poll showing right now and most of the experts are predicting that the GOP will, in fact, take back the House of Representatives. The mystery now is what is going to happen in the Senate. And they believe that is going to be close.
Now, the president hit the campaign trail - hit it hard yesterday. Had three stops, three different states. He was in Connecticut as well. This is the Connecticut stop. He started out in Pennsylvania. Ended up in Illinois at the end of the night, in Chicago. The president is trying to give a boost to Alexi Giannoulias. That's the Democrat that's running to take Obama's old Senate seat there in Illinois. The president is going to campaign in Cleveland today.
Meanwhile, the former president, Bill Clinton, he has been out and about in force He's campaigning in Florida tomorrow for Kendrick Meek. Meek is running third in a three-way race for Senate there. President Clinton is making his appearance just days after reports that he actually asked Meek to get out of the race in an effort to help keep the Republican, Marco Rubio, from winning.
Still now, on politics, what was this yesterday? Stewart and Colbert at their rally. They say it wasn't political, but with the midterms just days away, a lot of people weren't really buying that.
So how did this all play out? Our Kate Bolduan was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear was more comedy show or music fest than it was overtly political rally. Appearances included Ozzy Osbourne, Sheryl Crow - even R2D2. The organizers were comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert; they insist this was not a political rally targeting a left-leaning or right-leaning crowd.
So what was this? Here's Jon Stewart in his - in his own words.
JON STEWART, COMEDIAN: This was not a rally to ridicule people of faith or people of activism or to look down our noses at the heartland or passionate argument or to suggest that times are not difficult and that we have nothing to fear. They are and we do.
But we live now in hard times, not end times.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is really about making a statement in - in - by body count for me. I found it important to be here to show my son that it's important to be here for something that's not evil, fearful, critical. You know, something that doesn't have to be - it could be for fun, but still make a statement at the same time. And that was an important point for me.
BOLDUAN: And two men who make a living off of mocking politicians and criticizing the media did just that today, with a final message of - quote - "if we amplify everything, we hear nothing."
Maybe the biggest rally on this very political weekend didn't include a single politician at all - T.J.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. And thanks to our Kate Bolduan.
And thanks to our Reynolds Wolf as well simply for showing up.
Reynolds, good morning to you, buddy.
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I don't know if - is there a message you're trying to convey there?
HOLMES: Hopefully, it was obvious.
WOLF: It happens every - every football season. I do disappear quite a bit.
Guys, we got a great forecast we're going to share with you around the nation. Some places a little bit more of a trick than a treat.
Plus, the tropics, very active. We've got a big storm to talk about. That's coming up in just a few moments.
HOLMES: In just a few moments as well, still a little - a little football action, which you were very excited about yesterday, and understandably so.
WOLF: More eagle (ph).
HOLMES: More eagle (ph).
WOLF: Good times.
HOLMES: Seven minutes past the hour. Reynolds and I will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. Nine minutes past the hour now.
Once again, we are - not - well, we are starting to wrap up the - the tropical storm - the hurricane season.
WOLF: Absolutely.
HOLMES: But still, that doesn't mean we're winding down necessarily with the amount of storms.
WOLF: That is very true.
We had one system yesterday that we were talking about, and that was Shary. That has actually - thankfully for us, it's been - it died out in the northern Atlantic.
But we are watching another system. This is Tomas. Tomas currently a Category 2 storm. It is a powerful system at that, with winds sustained of 100 mph and gusts up to 120. It has just left the Leeward Islands and Windward Islands in its wake. There has been quite a bit of damage in parts of Barbados.
And as this storm chugs its way a bit more to the west, it's going to move into an area with very minimal upper-level winds, which we refer to as shear, which can sometimes destroy these storms - rip them apart. But it's also moving into an area with very warm water in parts of the central Caribbean. Things look very, very possible for this intensifying. In fact, that's what the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center indicates - the possible intensification as we get into Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Notice the numbers from 2 to 3 - yes, it's forecast that it may go to a Category 3 storm. A major hurricane as we get into 2 a.m. Friday.
And if you look at that cone of uncertainty, there are many places that might be affected by that - mainly the Dominican Republic, possibly Haiti, perhaps even Cuba, maybe even Jamaica before all is said and done. If you have any travel plans in any of these spots, say, in the next couple of days, you might want to call ahead to your travel agent. Could be an interesting day for you.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HOLMES: Reynolds, I know you're happy this morning. The No. 1 Auburn Tigers - they're going to hold on to the No. 1 spot. Not really a close game.
And there is your hero: Cam Newton. Can we give him the Heisman?
WOLF: You know, it was an amazing game yesterday. I mean, the young man from College Park, Georgia - 6'5, 250 pounds - did it all. He actually went on the ground; he went through the air. Actually caught a - a reception....
HOLMES: Is that right?
WOLF: ...a touchdown from Cody Burns, whose uncle happens to work ....
(CROSSTALK)
WOLF: ...at CNN. So yes.
HOLMES: That - that kid's a stud. He really lit up Arkansas when he played. It was unfortunate. But the kid can play. The kid can go.
But it looks like he might wrap up the Heisman. But as - as always, at 6:00 here, we know that our men and women in the armed forces are watching on the Armed Forces Network around the world.
We don't have good news to report, necessarily, about some of your armed-forces teams. Navy went down. Air Force went down. Both lost close games though. No blowouts. But, you'll be happy to know, Army beat up on the - well, the Virginia Military Institute. So what do you do there? But at least that was a win.
But Oregon is the other one we need to tell people about. The No. 2 team in the country beats the mess out of USC. It was close for a little while. So it looks like Auburn - if they can hold, the No. 1 went out. Oregon can - went out as well. That will likely be your national championship.
WOLF: But yes - you have to remember though, you've got Georgia, the Bulldogs, lost a very close game to Florida yesterday. Some say they should have won the game. Plus, Auburn's got to play Alabama. Alabama's an incredibly good team.
HOLMES: Yes.
WOLF: A wonderful team, who - who - you know, they may - many people say they still have an outside shot at a national championship. So you - you never really know.
Plus, this coming week, Auburn plays the - the mighty Mocks from Chattanooga. And when Auburn and Chattanooga get together....
HOLMES: Right.
WOLF: ...you just have to throw out the record books.
HOLMES: You know - but we're going to bring this tape back. And I hope you're not mocking Chattanooga there.
WOLF: Oh no, of course not.
HOLMES: All right.
WOLF: The snacks, the moccasins - (INAUDIBLE), they'll bite you.
HOLMES: But we need to tell you about the World Series. A lot of people are interested in that.
The World Series in Arlington - the first World Series to be hosted by the Rangers. And it went well. They got their first World Series with a 4-2 victory over the Giants. Now the Giants are up 2 games to 1.
It's going to be interesting. I think tonight - both former President Bushes are going to throw out the first pitch.
WOLF: Wow.
HOLMES: I believe former President George H.W. Bush was at the game last night. He's - of course, has some ties to that area and that team in particular.
So good World Series shaping up.
Coming back though, we're going to be checking in with Josh Levs. He's got a Halloween surprise for us all. So we're standing by for that.
Also, Reynolds don't go anywhere. Got a little trivia for you on this Halloween weekend. Do you know - do you know where the custom of Halloween comes from in the first place? We're going to give you a hint here actually. It's - it's actually two countries, not just one.
Is it the U.K. and Ireland; Italy and Switzerland; or the U.S. and Canada?
Ponder that, Reynolds. Fourteen minutes past the hour.
Quick break. Your answer when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, that's what you want to hear on a Sunday morning.
Sixteen minutes past the hour here, folks.
It is - yes, it's - it's Halloween, isn't it?
WOLF: Mm-hmm.
HOMLES: You forget sometimes.
WOLF: Yes.
HOLMES: But yes, we asked you before the break: Where did the Halloween tradition come from?
The U.S. and Canada; Italy and Switzerland; or the U.K. and Ireland?
I didn't know this, but the answer is 'A,' from the U.K. and Ireland. What eventually became trick-or-treating began with people going house to house, doing what they called "souling." They were asking for small breads called "soulcakes" in exchange for a prayer.
The practice then came to America with Irish immigrants in the 1800s, and after several reincarnations, and we Americanized it a bit, we went from asking for prayers to just, 'Give me some candy.'
And that is where we are now.
WOLF: That is where we are. (INAUDIBLE) - there's - there's some kids that come to houses now, they don't even say 'trick or treat.' They just say, 'Give me some candy.'
HOLMES: They actually do do that.
WOLF: (INUDIBLE). They demand. They don't ask. And it's weird.
HOLMES: I'm that guy though that turns all the lights off in the front of the house.
WOLF: I'm the guy who turns out the lights but then hides behind the bushes and then (INAUDIBLE) - and it's always good times. They - they run. Candy goes on the ground and I scoop it up. And good times.
We're all winners when that happens.
HOLMES: Josh, let's continue the - the Halloween theme here, as I say good morning to Josh Levs with something for us.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Wasn't - wasn't - didn't the jack-o- lantern come from a - a - like, a myth about a guy named Jack who had to wander the Earth...
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: ...couldn't go to heaven, couldn't go to hell, something like that.
LEVS: Yes. I think he carved out a turnip and he had a burning coal or something and he had to walk around the whole Earth like that.
Wow, that stuff's getting really serious.
All right. This is light. You guys are going to love this. I - I got a gift for us.
I got a call - I got an e-mail from the fine folks at JibJab.com. And they put together a heck of a JibJab for Halloween. And it has three guys, two women in it. So they - they put us all in.
And the two women are the women who follow us later in the day, Fredricka Whitfield and Jacqui Jeras. Take a look here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, JIBJAB CARTOON)
(MUSIC AND RAPPING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: Skip ahead to the next section. You're going to have T.J. as a mummy.
(CROSSTALK0
LEVS: There you are, T.J.
WOLF: Nice. You got some bling going on there, too.
HOLMES: You know what? Last time, my hands weren't watching my face.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: I'm OK with this this time. You know, this one ain't bad compared to the other ones I usually end up with. I think I came out better this time (INAUDIBLE)
(LAUGHTER)
LEVS: They covered all the hands this time, so there's no hand issues this time.
HOLMES: And Fredricka is so beautiful, she just pulls it off - no matter - you can't make this woman look bad.
WOLF: She's always good-looking.
LEVS: Jacqui looks great. WOLF: Always elegant.
(CROSSTALK)
LEVS: And you know, it's the best Halloween rap I've ever seen.
WOLF: Amen.
LEVS: Huh?
HOLMES: And that was Jacqui?
LEVS: That was Jacqui Jeras.
HOLMES: Oh, the JibJab folk.
What's the next JibJab - what's the next (INAUDIBLE) - will it be Christmas? Thanksgiving?
LEVS: I'm sure it'll be Thanksgiving.
HOLMES: Thanksgiving...
LEVS: We'll be back.
HOLMES: ...will be the next one.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: All right. Josh, thank you.
And I got something else that a lot of people might not recognize here. A new look for somebody else we're all familiar with.
Take a look at this picture. Do you recognize that guy? You should. That's the legendary superhero Superman. Looks like he's about to rob somebody.
Twenty minutes past the hour. Stick around. We'll explain the new Man of Steel.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Good morning, Atlanta, Georgia. Downtown Atlanta, where we sit here at our world headquarters of CNN. Getting started on this Halloween Sunday.
Had to show folks something some found a little frightening. When you call for Superman, he's supposed to come help you out. He's a - the friendly face that's supposed to come save the day.
What would you think about this guy coming to get you?
LEVS: Yes, he looks like a - a mutant. He looks like a - like a - he looks like a demon. He looks like the bad guy that Superman's supposed to stop. HOLMES: It's the eyes, I think. I don't why the eyes were necessary.
But to explain to folks what we're looking at here - DC Comics giving a new look to their guy, Superman. They're trying to make him more contemporary, trying to attract a different audience. So this kind of goes away from the traditional.
Now, who knows what he will look like once we see him in his - the full Superman garb. But essentially, he would be walking around the streets as a - a hooded hoodlum, essentially, with the Superman outfit underneath - Renny.
WOLF: Quick question. I mean, have - have we - have we reached the limits of our creativity? Can we not come up with something new? I'm serious.
I mean, we've - we've already - we've been there, done that with Superman. Can we not have a new superhero that no one else has ever heard of? Can we have a Frog Guy? Make someone called 'Frog Guy'?
LEVS: Frog guy.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
WOLF: With suction cups for fingers and - and he eats giant mosquitoes and he - he just basically hops everywhere he goes.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: Now, they actually - there was a new look they gave to Wonder Woman as well. I think we have that picture, too.
LEVS: That's just more modern. She doesn't' look angry. She doesn't look mean. She doesn't look like the bad guy that you'd want to stop (INAUDIBLE).
WOLF: She's no Lynda Carter. Or Nell Carter.
(CROSSTALK)
WOLF: She's not a Carter at all. Look at her.
LEVS: Well, there will never be another Lynda Carter.
HOLMES: She looks like a - quite frankly, just anyone walking down the street. She looks very - like a pop star almost there. But a new Wonder Woman.
Again, they're just trying to update some of these characters that they have. So - but Wonder Woman ain't bad though. Superman needs some work.
We saw this rally yesterday in - in Washington, D.C. The Jon Stewart-Stephen Colbert rally. And of course, we just want to throw that in there, because we think that's fun.
(LAUGHTER)
HOLMES: But they told people to show up yesterday with the most outlandish, fun signs they could come up with. And this lets you know just how insane it got out there.
LEVS: They - you know, they actually - they are asking people on the website for the event to judge the sanity level of the signs out there.
But you know, maybe she's on to something. Think you would run?
WOLF: Hell yes. I'd vote for you, man.
HOLMES: Insanity.
WOLF: I would vote for you.
HOLMES: This is insanity.
(CROSSTALK)
HOLMES: And this young lady - though, she actually wrote in. She actually does - she's probably watching now. But she watches us on Saturday and Sunday mornings here. So we appreciate absolutely her viewership.
But again, people were having fun out there, and clearly, she was having fun with that sign. I do not have a new career. Take the banner down off the bottom. People are going to get confused and think I'm running for president or something. It's not happening.
All right. Now this is something else we want to show you.
LEVS: Do you hear that? He's officially ruled it out. It's off the table.
HOLMES: Yes, this - this - this ain't happening. Come on. Seriously. Everybody knew that beforehand.
But this is something else. When - when a president is actually speaking, especially - a former president is on stage speaking, it's rude to walk out on that former president in the middle of his speech - especially if that president is there to support your race, your candidacy.
That's exactly what an Ohio congressman did. He bolted. He bolted. But he had a good excuse. We'll explain.
WOLF: Frog Man could be there to save the day. He really could.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Good morning, Washington, D.C. beautiful shot of the Capitol this morning. Things are going to be changing in Washington, D.C., after Tuesday.
Of course, elections just a couple of days away now. As always, stay right here with CNN, the Best Political Team on Television. We have got you covered.
T. J. Holmes here for you, bottom of the hour here on this CNN SUNDAY MORNING. Give you a check of some other stories we're keeping a close eye on this morning.
Or Chadash, that's a congregation in Chicago, and it is based in a synagogue that may have been the target of a package from Yemen that was packed with explosives. Again, it serve the gay and lesbian community there in Chicago, only about 100 members of this particular congregation.
Meanwhile, in Yemen, as part of this investigation, at least one person has been arrested. That is a woman, and that woman's relative is also being questioned as a part of this investigation.
Turn to Turkey now. We're just getting word today that a bomb blast in Istanbul has killed at least ten -- excuse me. Let me correct that. It has injured at least 10 police officers. Also, another 12 civilians were hurt. The party known as the Kurdistan Workers Party -- that's a group known as the PKK, suspected to be behind this bombing.
Also, turn to Indonesia where the death toll from Monday's earthquake and tsunami has gone up to 449. That earthquake triggered a tsunami. Some 22,000 people are without their homes right now. Still you have hundreds more missing, again, after that earthquake on Monday that registered with a magnitude of 7.7.
All right, can we say we're down to two days? Some people maybe even counting the hours right now until Tuesday's elections. They're getting help from a lot of big names that are out there on the campaign trail. Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser is in West Virginia for us.
PAUL STEINHAUSER: Hey, good morning, T.J. We're just two days away from a crucial election right here in West Virginia. Republicans think they have a good shot of winning back the Senate seat here that's been in Democratic Party hands for over half a century.
If they win this race and some other close contests, they've got a good shot of winning back control of the Senate. They need 10 seats to do that. One state away from here, Ohio, and that's where later today you'll see President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden teaming up at a Democratic Party rally in Cleveland.
Some crucial races that state. It's not just Democrats, though. On the Republican side, look for Sarah Palin later today at a Tea Party Express rally in New Jersey. Some other top Republican surrogates crisscrossing the country.
Remember in these final days, it's all about getting the get out the vote efforts to manning the phone banks, getting your final commercials on air, trying to influence your voters and your base voters to get out there and vote on Election Day.
Later today, of course, as well, we've got some brand new CNN poll numbers coming out on the battle for Congress and on the president's approval rating. Those will be our last poll numbers before Tuesday's midterm elections. T.J., back to you.
HOLMES: All right and thanks to our Paul Steinhauser as always. And like I mentioned, a lot of big names are out there stumping for a lot of these candidates, including the former President Bill Clinton.
Now he was on stage stumping for Democrats in Canton, Ohio, yesterday, but look at what happened. You've got the former president up there speaking. Everybody is listening, paying attention to him.
And again, he's there for Congressman Joe Boccieri. Now look behind him while the president is speaking, there's a commotion. Things are going on. They're not paying attention clearly to the president, and the candidate himself takes off. And now listen to what happens.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: The baby is now being born. Tell him good-bye. You know what, we have both sets of parents here, the grandparents.
You'd be amazed how many times I take a picture with a very pregnant woman, and she immediately gives birth like that. I would like some credit for your fifth grandchild being born into the world. We got another Democrat. I wish we could register that baby before it's too late.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Boy, Clinton can handle a crowd in a moment, can he not? Again, that was Congressman Boccieri. He did have to dash. Wife went into labor with their fifth child. His wife did have a healthy baby girl, I believe she was eight plus pounds and her name was Emma. I do believe as well so congratulations, but a funny moment out there on the campaign trail.
We'll turn back to Halloween here now. You saw a lot of kids out there trick or treating and you have seen probably going to see some more this evening.
But, you know, sometimes they put animals in outfits as well. Take a look at this, what was happening at the Atlanta Zoo. We'll tell you about the treats and the tricks going on there.
But first, take a look at some more Halloween pictures for members of our CNN family.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: It's 37 minutes past the hour now. We have been showing you a lot of Halloween pictures this weekend. Let's show you a few more, as we keep the ominous music up.
This was in Atlanta, an annual event they have here called "Boo at the Zoo." They had about 300 pumpkins they put out there in the animal exhibit, and you can see what the animals decided to do with them.
I had a pretty good time trying to figure this out. They played with the pumpkins. Some of them gnawed on the pumpkins. All of these pumpkins came in -- some of them came in at least from a Michigan farm that donated seven prize-winning pumpkins that weighed more than 100 pounds each. What are those critters right there, Reynolds?
REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I believe those are otters. That is not an otter. That is some kind of -- I don't know what that is. A funky looking bird we saw a moment ago. Those are crazy, nuts, insane, crazy for pumpkins.
HOLMES: I know we have storms to talk about, still hurricane season. But I assume you're going to give a trick or treat forecast. I won't get ahead of you here.
WOLF: No, it's OK because we're a food show. It's based on a conversation we're having with the rest of America.
If you want to start talking about some big storms, we'll get right to that. Here it is, this is Tomas. It is Category 2 storm, winds sustained at 100 miles per hour. Gusts have been well beyond the century mark at 120.
The storm, you can see it on the map. You can see, of course, the deep convection with the reds and the purples. Let's show you the pictures that we have. It was actually taken from Barbados in Bridgeport. Take a look at this.
Here's a Catamaran on land ripped apart by some of strong winds that we've had as we fast forward to some to some of other devastation we've had across this area. This is now going to be in the wake of this system. Where is it headed?
Well, we could see more of this layout possibly in parts of Jamaica, maybe even parts of say eastern Cuba, maybe even Haiti, maybe even the Dominican Republic before all is said and done.
But it's a very powerful storm, and it indicates -- there are many indications that it may strengthen in the coming days. Couple of reasons for that, one very warm water that happens to be in the center of the Caribbean Sea.
The second thing would be minimal shear. Very weak winds aloft, that will actually allow this to intensify, in fact, the National Hurricane Center believes it may do bring it up to a Category 3 storm as we get to 2:00 a.m. on Friday with winds of 150 miles per hour, some gusts got in 140.
So this could be the strongest storm in the planet. Again, there's a lot of uncertainty over the next couple of days what might happen to the storm. But at this time, it doesn't pose a threat to the United States. We'll keep a sharp eye on it certainly wishing good thoughts for our friends down in that part of the world into the Caribbean.
Very quickly, let's fast forward and show you what you can expect for this evening. Chicago, the windy city, little bit of a breeze off the lake with 47 degrees. For trick or treaters in New York, 49 degrees, 65 in Atlanta, 76 in Houston, 63 in Los Angeles, 53 in Seattle.
For everyone else who happens to get out today, maybe doing some work around the yard in Atlanta, 74 degrees, plenty of sunshine, mix of sun and clouds for Atlanta, Denver, 63 degrees. Nice and dry in the city of Denver, but back in the front range of Rockies and higher in the elevations, you might get anywhere from three to six inches of snowfall. That's a quick wrap. T.J., let's get back over to you.
HOLMES: All right, Reynolds. I appreciate it. I know something you'll be keeping a close eye on today and a lot of football observers will. Will this streak end? Brett Favre has been in the news a lot lately for a bunch of different things, but it appears right now his streak that is on the line could live to see another day.
The streak I'm talking about is the record for most consecutive starts for an NFL player, a quarterback no less. Now, he has an injured ankle, as we know actually has two fractures in that ankle.
The man has played in 291 straight games, starts. That goes back, folks, to 1992. Think about what you were doing 18 years ago. This man has been there every single Sunday since 1992.
So they're going to decide whether or not -- they're going to wait until a few hours before game time before he actually plays. If they give him a chance to win, he hasn't been playing well.
REYNOLDS: Yes, this year. He's at rough times and certainly as you mentioned a lot of things going on and off the field. But you said two fractures?
HOLMES: Two fractures in his ankle.
REYNOLDS: You take one hit by one of those 280-pound linemen, and you can do a lot more damage than just a simple fracture.
HOLMES: That's the question. Can you help the team, but also can you protect yourself if you're out there? But he made the trip to New England. They're playing the Patriots today. He said he wouldn't have gone if he didn't think he was going to start. So wow, all eyes once again on Brett Favre. It's very interesting.
Reynolds, appreciate it. We'll check with you in a second and we'll going to be checking in with out Nadia Bilchik coming up. A simple ceremony in the exotic surroundings of the Maldese Islands, now a public relations disaster for the whole country.
A couple paid thousands and thousands of dollars to renew their wedding vows, but what they got was not what they were expecting and it got lost in translation.
Nadia Bilchik will translate for us. Going to be hanging out with her in just a second over there, 42 minutes past the hour. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Good morning. New York City. Get a little light on that town. You can make out one well-lit structure out there, that is the Statue of Liberty.
So good morning to New York. Good morning to you all this morning. About a quarter to the top of the hour here on the CNN SUNDAY MORNING. I'm T.J. Holmes still here with you. I'll give you update on some of the stories we're keeping a close eye on today.
A small Chicago congregation may have been the target that's what we are hearing now, may have been the target of one of two of those packages sent from Yemen.
Or Chadash is the name of this particular congregation. It serves the gay community. Only has about 100 members, but the head of that congregation says they were, in fact, one of the recipients of those packages. Of course, the packages did not make it to their destinations here in the U.S.
Meanwhile, there's been a woman arrested in Yemen as a possible suspect, and that woman's relative also being questioned about the plot. Two days to go until the midterm elections.
President Obama was out and about yesterday. He hit three different states that, of course, is the president. You saw the former Alaska governor Sarah Palin as well. She was in West Virginia stumping for the Republican Senate candidate.
Also, thousands turned out on Washington's National Mall yesterday to see Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. You see Stephen Colbert making his appearance in dramatic fashion.
This rally to restore sanity, as they called it, and/or fear had Colbert hitting the stage. He was an evel knievel guard. He was in that capsule that was used to bring up the miners in Chile.
So a lot of rallies all over the place yesterday took a part in this. We'll be talking more about this throughout the morning. Quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: All right. About 10 minutes to the top of the hour. As always, joined by Nadia Bilchik. We had such a good time yesterday. Actually just got a tweet from someone who said don't call you a vixen today - our conversation yesterday.
NADIA BILCHIK: If you know, you can't take yourself too seriously. You know, Shirley Maclaine said, if you can laugh at yourself, you'll be forever amused.
HOLMES: We are always amused here, laughing at ourselves, but this isn't funny. When I read the teasers for it, it sounded like it was kind of a little comical, but it's sounds a little serious. What was happening here?
Couple trying to renew their vows, beautiful exotic island of Maldives. Romantic, so far so good, right? Supposed to be one of those special moments, but they wanted to do it in the local and native language, and they didn't understand.
BILCHIK: Yes, they thought they would come to this exquisite island and renew their vows and have this spiritual island experience.
HOLMES: Where is the couple from?
BILCHIK: The couple is European. Some of the reports are saying U.K., some say Switzerland, but we know they're from Europe. They're asking at this point to please be anonymous because what happened was so embarrassing.
HOLMES: OK, what went down here?
BILCHIK: What went down was they come to the ceremony and it's in Tahiti, and he's called the celebrant who conducted the ceremony and he did it in the local language of Tahiti.
But what he actually did was curse them. He called them swines. He said their children will be swines. In fact, it was so bad that I cannot repeat on air what he actually said.
Now remember humor, and really comedy is based on incongruity, so two disparate things. So it's quite amusing about him saying all these terrible things and then looking terribly serious.
To his friends in the moment, it may have appeared absolutely hilarious. They were very straight-faced, interestingly enough, but one of the staff members videoed it, and it got onto Youtube.
HOLMES: OK, did the couple have any other family members there with them?
BILCHIK: No. They were renewing their vows. They thought, if you look at their expressions, there they were receiving this information as if it was such a lovely thing, and what he was really saying is your life is cursed, your children are cursed, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
HOLMES: So were the other -- the locals there, were they laughing?
BILCHIK: The thing is they weren't. They were looking -- they were part of looking somber, and at one point one of the staff members did say, OK, I think it's enough now.
But he carried on and on and on cursing them. But look at the internet age that we live in. So a moment is taken, put onto Youtube, and suddenly what was a single moment becomes a global possible catastrophe because the Maldives depends on tourism and weddings for this moment.
So we really need to be aware of the power of obviously in that moment what he did was completely incorrigible, terrible.
HOLMES: Why? What was the point?
BILCHIK: Well, he obviously has a thing about westerners, this particular person. But what the government of the Maldives says is really that the Republic of Maldives is shocked and saddened by the behavior of certain members of staff at the Vilu Reef Resort who conducted a renewal of vows ceremony during which two visitors to the Maldives were insulted and humiliated.
The event was captured on video and subsequently uploaded onto the video stream. But they were, they've said they've instructed the Diplomatic Service to immediately contact the other Diplomatic Service and just how shocked and horrified -
HOLMES: Any punishment for the --
BILCHIK: Yes, I mean, the celebrant was immediately fired so - but a beautiful moment turned really disastrous and possibly disastrous for a country that depends on tourism, and most people in the Maldives are wonderful people. It just shows how one person can actually ruin the reputation of an entire country.
HOLMES: Do we know what anniversary this was for the couple, how many years?
BILCHIK: This was a renewal. They look like they'd been married probably 10 or so years, but they were invited back to the Maldives to have another ceremony and a coconut planting and a sailing.
Particularly when people go to India, Katy Perry recently went to India. Do you think they understand their ceremony? People who go to Las Vegas, Japanese or Chinese, do you think they understand their ceremony?
HOLMES: You assume no one is going to cuss you out during your special day. This is horrible. This is like the woman yesterday who had the wedding without the husband. I'm sorry.
BILCHIK: This is a pretty unfortunate incident to have happened and with global ramifications.
HOLMES: Nadia, we appreciate it. Interesting story there. Hopefully it works out for the Maldives, but like you said, the whole country shouldn't be punished for this one guy.
Got a couple other headlines here I need to give you entertainment-wise. This was a big congratulations we need to give to a young American woman. There she is. A young American woman, a teenager from Kentucky. I think we can call her now the most beautiful woman in the world. She has earned the crown as Miss World at a contest. The 60th Annual Miss World contest took place in China. But again, 18-year-old Alexandria Mills is her name. Congratulations. She's bringing the crown home to the U.S.
Also, you "Sopranos" fans out there, you'll certainly recognize this actress. She has died, Denise Borino-Quinn. She played the wife of a mob boss in that award-winning series on HBO. She died Wednesday of cancer. A funeral mass was held for her yesterday. But Borino- Quinn, she was just 46 years old.
All right, 54 minutes past the hour now. Coming up, a different form of rehab for wounded veterans. They're getting golf instruction from some of the best out there. Getting help to recover. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Clearly in a Santana mood this morning. A beautiful shot of Chicago this morning. Good morning to you all, Chicago and all places around and in between.
Welcome back to the CNN SUNDAY MORNING where would you like to be working right now? If you had the option of working your current job or maybe working a happy place like Disneyland, what would you take, do you think?
A new survey finds that the military actually a happier place to work than Disney. This is a survey out there that ranks the most blissful places to work, and it places all four branches of the military and the National Guard before Disney, before Microsoft as well.
And the survey was done by Career Bliss. That's an online career guidance site, but it used, listen to this, benefits, job security, and opportunities for advancement as factors for those results.
A group of PGA instructors are proving golf is more than just a game. A program called game on helps injured veterans in San Diego. They give free golfing lessons as a form of rehab.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE BEUDY, SPINAL CORD INJURY PATIENT: The program gets people out of the hospital, if they're still inpatients in the hospital, which is always a good day for that moment in life.
HOLMES (voice-over): Now, one veteran's in the program said his spirits were lifted just by being able to get out of the wheelchair and swing a club.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Top of the hour here now. Good morning to you all. Welcome back to the CNN SUNDAY MORNING. We now know what may have been a target of one of those suspicious packages from Yemen.
A Chicago synagogue that serves a small gay and lesbian congregation. We are getting new details as well this morning, or just minutes ago, and we're going to share them with you about the arrest that has taken place in Yemen.
Also this morning, keeping an eye on what's called the People's Marathon in Washington, D.C. It's the fourth largest in the country. It's called the People's Marathon.
It's the Marine Corps marathon. They are not running for cash and prize in this one, something much more. We will take you live and talk to one of the participants this morning.
But, hello to you all, from the CNN Center. Seven a.m. here in Atlanta, Georgia, where I sit. I'm T.J. Holmes.
We want to get started again on an update on this terror threat. A Chicago synagogue that may have been targeted by al Qaeda, Or Chadash -- that's a small congregation of about 100 people that serves the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Heavy security was in place for its services this weekend. Synagogues across Chicago are already taking security precautions as well.
Police told the other likely target of it was another synagogue there in Chicago, told them as well to keep an eye out for suspicious package among any deliveries. One person who heads the synagogue, Or Chadash, talked to us about this unnerving threat.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
LILI KORNBLUM, CO-PRESIDENT, CONGREGATION OR CHADASH: We're only about 100 members. So, it was a little bit of soul-searching to figure out why we had come onto, maybe, the international eye. But now that we're starting to get information that there may have been more packages, we're starting to believe that this might just have been a random selection of various Jewish organizations in Chicago.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now, let's get back to more on this investigation now. Experts think the same person or persons who built the Christmas day underwear bomb -- you remember that one in Detroit? The same person who built that bomb also had a hand in this particular plot. The devices show similarities in how they were put together. Britain's prime minister says explosives were meant to take down a plane.
Again, about those new details I was telling you about, a woman had been arrested in Yemen. We got that word yesterday. But now, we understand she has been identified as Hanan Al-Samawi. She is an engineering student.
We're going to get more on this suspect in just a moment with a live report.
Also, investigators now say the packages contain five times the amount of explosives that were in that Christmas Day attempt -- you know, the underwear bomber. They say they were assembled professionally and designed to be detonated by a cell phone.
U.S. investigators aren't sure a plane or maybe the two U.S. synagogues in Chicago were the actual and ultimate targets.
Again, we're going to go live here in just a moment with more on this particular story and an update about the arrest that has been made.
Meanwhile, another big story here in the U.S. It will be a big story for the next several days and thereafter. Two days now until Election Day, a lot of candidates out and about. They're locked in some very tight races across the country. Just two days left before Election Day.
One of those notables that's trying to hold on to his job, the majority leader -- Senate majority Leader Harry Reid out in Nevada. He's being challenged by a Republican, and a Tea Party-backed candidate, Sharron Angle.
Just about every poll you see out there and just about all the experts now say the GOP will control the House. But now, the mystery is whether or not the Senate is going to be in play and if Republicans can take over control of that house as well.
Still on politics, two comedians playing a big part of politics right now. Huge rally in D.C., you may have heard something about it just yesterday.
With the midterms just two days away, even though you had comedians, Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart of Comedy Central, putting this on, a lot of people not buying that this was just supposed to be a show, just supposed to be entertainment, just supposed to be funny. So, did it play out politically?
CNN's Kate Bolduan was there.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: T.J., the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear was more a comedy show or music fest than it was overtly a political rally. Appearances included Ozzy Osbourne, Sheryl Crow, even R2-D2.
The organizers were comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. They insist this was not a political rally targeting a left-leaning or right-leaning crowd. So, what was this?
Here's Jon Stewart in his own words:
JON STEWART, COMEDIAN: This was not a rally to ridicule people of faith or people of activism or to look down our noses at the heartland or passionate argument, or to suggest that times are not difficult and that we have nothing to fear. They are and we do. But we live now in hard times, not end times. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is really about making a statement in -- by body count for me. I felt it was important to be here, to show my son it's important to be here, for something that's not evil, fearful, critical, you know, something that doesn't have to be. It could be for fun, but still make a statement at the same time. And that was an important point for me.
BOLDUAN: And two men who make a living off of mocking politicians and criticizing the media did just that today with a final message of, quote, "If we amplify everything, we hear nothing." Maybe the biggest rally on this very political weekend didn't include a single politician at all -- T.J.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: All right. Thanks to our Kate Bolduan, as always.
And the candidates in this election, some say they're a different breed. We're going to be talking about it with a couple of strategists and friends of our program here in just a moment.
Also, families and friends -- they are running in the Marine Corps marathon taking place today, supposed to get under way here in just a moment. Some 30,000 expected in D.C. You're looking at video from a previous rally. But they're not running for cash and prizes. They are running for their loved ones lost in war.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Nine minutes past the hour.
We continue to give updates about this terror plot -- these suspicious packages sent from Yemen that were meant for Chicago, but intercepted, of course, in Dubai and the U.K.
Our Mohammed Jamjoom joins me now from Baghdad. Mohammed has reportedly extensively and spent a lot of time in Yemen recently.
But we are getting an update about the suspect who is being held in this case. Tell us what you have. And, again, this is a woman being held.
MOHAMMED JAMJOOM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, T.J. We have information from a lawyer who's been asked by this woman's family to represent her, that her name is Hanan Al-Samawi. She is an engineering student at the University of Sana'a in Yemen. That's in Yemen's capital.
She was arrested last night. There was a raid. They surrounded her house -- Yemeni security officials.
The president of Yemen had come out saying there was a prime suspect in this case, that it was a female. Right now, we're getting details as to who she was. This is according to Abdul Rahman Barman. He's a human rights activist and lawyer in Sana'a. He was contacted by the suspect's father to represent his daughter.
The lawyer is saying that she is innocent. She will be cleared of this.
And Yemeni government officials have not confirmed the name of this suspect. They've not given any more details beyond the fact that somebody was arrested.
We also got confirmation from a Yemeni government official last night that there was a second woman, a relative of the first woman, who was also being questioned in connection to this terror plot -- T.J.
HOLMES: And, Mohammed, what will this mean for the investigation going forward? They're certainly going to be looking at who this woman knows and knew, and who she's been dealing with in the past.
JAMJOOM: Oh, absolutely, T.J. There's still a lot of conflicting information about this case. As I said, the Yemeni officials are being very quiet about the identity of this woman. Why exactly they suspected her. They said that because of the information they got from the Americans, they were able to trace these packages back to her. We don't yet know how.
There were reports possibly -- there was a phone number, a cell phone number that was traced back to the woman that had some connection to the packages.
But again, her lawyer, or the man who will be her lawyer as of later today, who's been asked to represent her, says he's not gotten details from the government. He says that she is innocent. She will be proven innocent. And we still don't know the identity of the second woman who's being questioned, what their relationship is with the first woman, and why the Yemeni government officials believe this woman is connected to this plot -- T.J.
HOLMES: All right, Mohammed Jamjoom for us in Baghdad -- we appreciate you as always, Mohammed. Thanks so much.
Eleven minutes past the hour. We're going to take a quick break. When we get back, our conversation and the closing arguments on this election season.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC)
HOLMES: Beautiful picture of the Capitol, where things are a changing in a couple of days, literally two days, until we go vote in the midterms. Are you ready to get this over with? I wonder if the president this morning is ready to get it over with. Actually, I believe he's waking up in Chicago this morning -- but a shot of the White House in D.C. as well.
A lot of people tired of the campaign rhetoric, the hot air, if you will -- a lot of people just over it. Well, we had a conversation here last weekend that a lot of people enjoyed because it wasn't necessarily just rhetoric and it wasn't heated. A couple of folks we love talking to here.
Take a listen. We're going to move this conversation forward.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Will you guys come back next weekend so we can pick up right there where we left off?
MARIA CARDONA, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Absolutely, T.J.
LENNY MCALLISTER, REPUBLICAN COMMENTATOR: Absolutely.
HOLMES: Right on that point, we can look back all day long. But a lot of people would say, yes, this is a different crop, a different breed of politicians that are coming in, who should get a chance as well. Don't just look at the "R" or the "D" next to the name.
So, we will start with that next week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now, When I invited Maria and Lenny last weekend, it was kind of like what you say when people leave the house, it's just something you say, come back, you don't think you'll actually do it. But these two actually showed up again this morning.
From Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona; and in Chicago, Republican commentator Lenny McAllister.
Just giving you guys a hard time. Good to see you both.
So, I will pick up right where I left off last weekend. And, Maria, I will start with you again. We're talking about the Marco Rubios, the Christine O'Donnells, the Sharron Angles, who are coming in, Tea Party-backed.
A lot of say they're not part of the establishment. So, what will they establish? Is this a new crop, a new breed that we could see bring something else to the Republican Party? Or are you just think they're going to be part of the Republican Party of old?
CARDONA: Well, you know, I do hope that if they do come into power, that they would try to offer something new. But the problem is, T.J., that their own leadership has said, both Pete Sessions and John Boehner, respectively, have said that if the Republicans take over Congress, they would go back to the same exact policies that were in place in 2006. And Boehner followed it up by saying that they would be different than they've been.
And the problem with the folks from the Tea Party is that they think they're going to come in to shake up Washington. But there's not going to be enough of them to make sure that the establishment goes with them.
And in addition to that, what the Tea Partiers have been offering are pretty extreme solutions. When you talk about wanting to go get rid of Medicare, wanting to go get rid of Social Security, wanting to go get rid of the Department of Education -- these are not policies that are going to help the United States get out of this economic mess that, frankly, Republicans helped put us into in the first place.
HOLMES: Let me Lenny get in there.
Should we give these new faces -- if they get elected, should they be given a shot to prove they are not the same old Republican guard?
MCALLISTER: They absolutely should be given a chance to show that they're not the same old Republican guard -- first and foremost, because of the fact that they are actually closer to the grassroots of America than the politicians from 2006 and 2008 that came in with the Democratic wave when they were throwing out Republicans that were -- that were spending too much, voting on policies and procedures that Americans didn't necessarily agree with. And at that time, there was a very unpopular Iraqi war going on as well.
These Republicans have campaigned. They have not been inside of the establishment. They have been folks listening to folks in the grassroots, and they have the momentum of people that have been involved politically, doing the activism for months. Of course, we should give them a chance because they're going to at least remember what they were supposed to do -- humble servant leadership, listen to the people of the United States and then serve accordingly.
HOLMES: All right. Let me move to another topic now. And I'm going to ask both of you about it. Be short with me. I don't want to spend too much time, or maybe we should.
What was this rally, Lenny, in D.C.? What was that about yesterday?
MCALLISTER: I think that rally yesterday was about saying, listen, folks, you have to be able to pull the coverage back a little bit, see what the rhetoric is, see what the reality is, and make sense of it all. Do not deal in this gloom and doom that comes from the extremism.
We're all still Americans. Let's debate. But let's be able to laugh at each other and realize that we're one big family.
We may not always be happy, but we're in it together. Let's get some realism when it comes to that, and let's start moving forward so in 2011, we can put our best foot forward when it's a lot lighter than what we've been seeing out there. HOLMES: Maria, did you see a political slant at all to that rally yesterday? Or was this supposed to be entertaining and fun?
CARDONA: Well, I think both. And I do agree with Lenny that it was about underscoring, again, the sanity that people should try to continue to inject, and what we've been having is the silly season, this crazy season of politics.
But I do think that it also underscored the big difference between this rally and what went on a couple of months ago with Glenn Beck, which is -- yes, there are angry folks out there, and that anger needs to be taken seriously, but at the same time, we can have a civil debate and really talk about the solutions that Americans are looking for.
And this is, again, what I think is the problem with this new crop of Republicans if they were to come and take over the House. They're not interested in solutions, T.J.
You heard it from the own Tea Partiers themselves. They want to stay true to that anger. They want to stay true to holding what they call the politicians in power in Washington accountable.
They're not here to make any deals. They're not here to compromise. And anybody who knows anything about politics understands that you have to come here to try to compromise. President Obama tried to do that and was slapped in the face over and over again by Republicans.
HOLMES: I'll let you respond, Lenny, before I move to the next question -- just because you were shaking your head.
MCALLISTER: Well, you know, if the Republicans aren't worried about solutions, the Democrats aren't worried about compromise. They compromised with each other when it came to health care reform, when it came to stimulus and putting kickbacks in there. They didn't compromise with Republicans.
The Cornhusker kickback didn't involve a Republican. Gatorade didn't involve a Republican. It involved each other.
So, if one's only not worried about the solutions, and then the other's probably not worried about compromise either, which goes back to why you need the new crop of politicians coming in and being more humble than what we've seen in Washington over recent years from both sides of the aisle.
HOLMES: I've got to move on because I've got to get one last one in. What we saw happen in Florida, the Senate race down there, Rubio, Crist, and Meek. You have President Clinton reportedly trying to get Meek to get out of the game, so therefore his votes could possibly go to the independent Governor Crist and therefore give him the victory and keep Rubio out.
So, Maria, let me ask you -- should the ultimate goal be for Democrats to win the seat or to keep a Republican from having it? CARDONA: Well, I think the ultimate goal for Democrats should be to try to figure out who has the best solutions in terms of trying to solve not just Florida's biggest problems, but the nation's biggest problems. I've got to take Kendrick Meek at his word, which is that he's going to continue in this race because he's got to continue to give Floridians the choice that they deserve. You know, he has worked very hard.
And what I think is so interesting in this political season is that there are going to be some surprises, T.J. I think one of the surprises could be Florida. One of the surprises could be the fact that I still believe deeply that control of the House of Representatives by Republicans is not a foregone conclusion.
HOLMES: Well, you're one of the few.
CARDONA: There's still going to be surprises left out there.
HOLMES: You're one of the few.
Lenny, you wrap it up here for me. She hit on several things, but you wrap it up here for me.
MCALLISTER: She's definitely one of the few. And Democrats should try to make sure that Marco Rubio doesn't have that seat, and that's the strategy that President Clinton was going after, because not only will Marco Rubio make that a Republican seat, but it will end up being a rather influential Republican seat by a freshman senator. And that's what they're worried about, a young, influential voice that can sway public opinion over the next two years and start doing some real damage in 2012 -- not just at the presidential level, but once again, at the senatorial and congressional levels as well.
HOLMES: Lenny, Maria -- and, Maria, I know you want to jump back in there. But I've got to go. I would invite you guys back weekend.
CARDONA: Oh, T.J.
HOLMES: And I know you'll show up. So, I'll hold my tongue this time.
Maria, Lenny, really, you guys, it's always a pleasure to talk to you all because, yes, you disagree and you are passionate about your issues. But you're always -- are always, always civil, and we absolutely appreciate that.
Guys, we'll talk to you soon.
CARDONA: Thank you for having me.
MCALLISTER: We're all Americans, T.J.
CARDONA: Absolutely.
HOLMES: Good point there. Good point there. All right. I want folks to stick around to RNC Chairman Michael Steele. He's going to be talking to our Candy Crowley today. What's the future of the GOP after Tuesday's midterms? You can find out on "STATE OF THE UNION" right here, 9:00 Eastern
Quick break, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Well, they are deadly, mysterious, and sometimes sexy. On this Halloween, many people are fixated on blood-sucking vampires. We talked to some folks about Hollywood vampires and their impact on our lives.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I said stop!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are rolling and action.
STEVEN R. MCQUEEN, "JEREMY GILBERT": My name is Steven McQueen, and I play Jeremy Gilbert on "The Vampire Diaries."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop. You're hurting Elena. Everything you're doing to her is hurting Elena.
MCQUEEN: You know, there's a lot of vampire stories being told right now. My favorite are definitely the old ones.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am Dracula. I bid you welcome.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm guessing you're new here.
KATERINA GRAHAM, "BONNIE BENNETT": I just think it's ingrained in our society. It's desire to be something greater and bigger and more magical than maybe what your life really is.
CANDICE ACCOLA, "CAROLINE FORBES": It's nice that the modern vampires keep a sense of relatability and want to blend in, and they don't just like cast themselves away in some dark dreary castle.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to drive a stake right through your heart.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: God, you're hot.
NINA DOBREV, "ELENA GILBERT/KATHERINE PIERCE": Vampires are just so sexy and dark and mysterious. And right now, they are on an all time high and a boom.
DR. CAROL SENF, PROFESSOR, GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: I'm Dr. Carol Senf. I'm a professor in the school of literature, communication and culture of the Georgia Institute of Technology. Thinking about vampires, thinking about zombies is, I think, extremely healthy because it allows us to think about what is it in my life, in my world that frightens me? What I at least recognize and would like to emulate is the flying, the ability to shape shift, and, hey, there's something really enticing about immortality.
MCQUEEN: Out of all a vampire's powers, which one would I prefer?
ACCOLA: Probably vamp speed, being able to speed from one place to the other.
DOBREV: The coolest thing I get to do on the show, and one of the reasons I love playing Katherine is that she can compulse anyone and get anything that she wants basically.
MCQUEEN: I would like to move really fast, super speed.
GRAHAM: I love the fact that my character can touch someone and get a sense off of them, and I think that's the closest thing to what I might have or that somebody who's watching might have.
ACCOLA: You get to wear the fangs. You get to run around and kick boys' butts. You know, bite people, and it's sexy. It's exciting. It's a challenge. Playing a vampire is pretty fun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Someone here just said you've got a nice tan for a vampire. Aren't they supposed to have pale skin and what not? Who knows?
All right. But more of your top stories -- we're going to be coming back to you at CNN SUNDAY MORNING at the top of the hour with more live news.
But right now, I need to hand it over to my doctor -- "SANJAY GUPTA, M.D." starts right now.
