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American Airlines Loose Seat Problem; Obama, Romney Prep for First Debate; Security Concerns Months Before Attack; New York Sues JPMorgan Over Mortgage Securities; NAACP Pushes Voting Rights for Ex- Felons; The Unpredictable "October Surprise"; Interview with NFL Legend Kerry Sanders; Jets Owner Betting on Romney; Amex to Refund $85 Million

Aired October 02, 2012 - 09:00   ET

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


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Thanks to both of you.

Happening now in the NEWSROOM, air scare. American Airlines in full damage control mode this morning after new reports of seats coming loose mid-flight. Now inspectors are on the case.

A massive fireball. Explosions and intense heat forcing dozens of people to evacuate.

And it's one, two -- there it is, three. They're in. The Detroit Tigers, the Washington Nationals and the Oakland A's join baseball's playoff party.

Plus --

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: American Express in hot water with the government because of deceptive lending practices. Customers could be in line for refund checks for hundreds of dollars. Should you be getting some cash? Find out.

NEWSROOM starts now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

COSTELLO: But we do start with breaking news this morning. Two U.S. Border Patrol agents have been shot in southern Arizona and we've now learned that one of those agents has died from his gunshot wounds. The FBI and Cochise County Sheriff's Office, they're leading the investigation.

The shooting happened near the town of Naco, Arizona, that's near the area where border -- with that Border Patrol agent involved in that "Fast and Furious" program was shot and killed, Brian Terry. We'll have much more on this story, we'll get much more information in the next two hours of NEWSROOM.

Also this morning, it sounds like something out of a nightmare. Imagine being on a plane and having your seat detach from the floor mid-flight. It's happened at least twice in the past few days on two American Airlines planes. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Passenger seats, rows 12D, E and F came loose out of the floor. We don't want that thing flying around and hurt the passengers behind them. The seat is loose and can rotate pretty quickly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Yesterday a flight from New York to Miami had to return to JFK after some seats came loose in the cabin. And last week, a flight from Boston to Miami had to make an emergency landing at JFK in New York after three seats detached from the floor during the flight. The plane was in the air.

Our affiliate WPLG's Ross Palumbo has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROSS PALUMBO, REPORTER, WPLG: Passengers call it chaos. American Airlines climbing into the sky with seats suddenly coming loose.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The seats flipped backwards. It was actually a complete nightmare.

PALUMBO: The nightmare for her began on Saturday. This woman too shaken to show her face says she was just flying from Boston to Miami when suddenly on take-off three seats flipped over.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And so people were essentially on the laps of the passengers behind them.

(LAUGHTER)

PALUMBO: Humorous now, but a serious scare then. The pilot immediately called for help.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Passenger seats, rows 12D, E and F came loose out of the floor.

PALUMBO: With one passenger now in a crew jump seat and two others in two empty seats, the plane immediately diverted to New York's JFK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't want that thing flying around and hurt the passengers behind them.

PALUMBO: They landed without injuries, without further incident. On a similar American Airlines Boeing 757, a similar incident. There was another row of loose seats on take-off. This time on a flight from JFK to Miami and another scare.

SETH KAPLAN, AIRLINE WEEKLY: Nobody got hurt. But certainly it's not the most reliable airline right now.

PALUMBO: From bankruptcy to mass lay-offs, American has had picketing, pilots call in sick, hundreds of flights delayed, hundreds more canceled.

KAPLAN: This is certainly an airline that's had more than its share of problems.

PALUMBO: And now this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The seat is loose and can rotate pretty quickly.

PALUMBO: Passengers left flying by the seats of their pants.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People were hysterical, trying to figure out their connections.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: In a statement, the FAA said American Airlines has taken eight aircrafts with similar seat assemblies out of service until they can be inspected. Much more on this story in the next hour of NEWSROOM.

In Hong Kong, police have arrested six crew members from two passenger boats that crashed last night, killing at least 38 people. Police arrested the crew members on suspicion of endangering passengers. One hundred, twenty-three people were pulled from the water. It's unknown how many others are still unaccounted for. This is Hong Kong's deadliest ferry accident since 1971.

Now the march to the presidential election just five weeks from today. A major weigh station could be tomorrow's presidential debate. But for those minds already made up, two battlegrounds now in play. Earlier voting begins today in the Bellwether state of Ohio. The Obama campaign is mobilizing its supporters to seize an early lead there.

And in Florida, the first absentee ballots hit the mail today. Traditionally the state's Republicans tend to have the edge in those mail-in votes, but who will gain the advantage in tomorrow's presidential debate? Despite days of intensive coaching and practice sessions, both candidates trying to appear loose.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: People want to know, who's going to win, who's going to score the punches, and who's going to make the biggest difference in the arguments they make, and there's going to be all the scoring of winning and losing. And, you know, in my view, it's not so much winning and losing.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Basically they're keeping me indoors all the time. It's a drag. They're making me do my homework.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That was the president at a polling station in Nevada. He just called some random voter and that's what he said. Our CNN political director Mark Preston is in Denver for the showdown and sort of the quiet before the storm. Right, Mark?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL DIRECTOR: It sure is, Carol. But you're right. You know, the candidates right now in their campaigns are trying to lower expectations tomorrow night. Tens of millions of people will tune in. And for a lot of people who haven't made up their mind yet, tomorrow's night -- debate could be decisive. It could turn people's minds about who they're going to vote for in November. So there's a lot riding on how well Mitt Romney and how well Barack Obama perform tomorrow night.

COSTELLO: And just in time, on, I guess, the eve of the debate, there's a new poll of poll out. Tell us about it.

PRESTON: It is, Carol. And we get this new CNN poll of polls, just calculated about an hour ago. We've calculated together six different polls and it shows that the race is really a dead heat right now. Barack Obama has a very, very short lead right now over Mitt Romney nationally. So this is what the national numbers look like, 49 to 46 right now, Barack Obama.

But we should note that this race is really going to be won and lost in states where I stand right now. Colorado. Other states such as Nevada, Virginia, Ohio, as you said, which is voting today, in Florida. These are very important states that the candidates will be focusing all of their time on as they head into the spring, into November -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Mark Preston, reporting live from Denver this morning.

CNN's live debate coverage begins tomorrow night at 7:00 Eastern.

CNN has learned months before the 9/11 attack in Libya that killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans, there were security concerns surrounding the diplomatic mission in Benghazi. The White House first called the attack spontaneous, the one in Benghazi that killed the ambassador, but now says it was preplanned by terrorists linked to al Qaeda.

The Republican chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Mike Rogers, says it's a -- clear key information was left out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE ROGERS (R), CHAIRMAN, HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: It is very clear to me that there was this -- pieces of information for convenience's sake that fit a narrative that they believed -- you know, I don't want to question their motive, but what they thought they were doing, I don't know if it was political or not. I don't have any information if it was political or not. It was clearly done. And I -- you know -- and I know other committees are going back to look at to see if Congress was deliberately misled, which would be a violation of the law.

(END VIDEO CLIP) COSTELLO: I'm joined now by our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr.

And, Barbara, I know you've been digging into this for new information. You say as early as April, the United States sent special forces into Benghazi for a specific reason.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: They did, indeed, Carol. What we've learned is that a very small team of Special Forces commandos were sent to that Benghazi compound. This was back in April. If you think back a U.N., a United Nations convoy in the region had been attacked. There were growing security concerns at that time back in April, about what was going on in that region in eastern Libya.

So the U.S. sent a team of about four Special Forces commandos to the Benghazi compound. They did a security assessment. What could be done to improve security at the facility. And they recommended apparently, we are told, a couple of things that seem fairly minor in retrospect. Sand-bagging some positions so Libyan forces who were there, contractors, essentially, could help fight back if the place came under attack and also more training for some of that private security force that was hired for the consulate compound.

No word on how much of this was implemented and whether there were additional security recommendations beyond that. But it really goes to the point that as far back as April, there were growing security concerns there, something the ambassador would have been well aware of as the militias in eastern Libya appeared, appeared to be gaining strength and coalescing according to the intelligence coming in at the time.

(CROSSTALK)

STARR: You know --

COSTELLO: So here's the question, Barbara. Was there ever any discussion of sending troops back to secure the site?

STARR: You know this has been the question on the table. After the attack when you see the pictures, that the site had been trashed, possibly classified information left behind and a real need to guard the facility for potential law enforcement reasons, if the FBI was to come in, it's a crime scene. And yet people are able to walk around.

What we are told is there was never a serious request for military help. Because if you think about it, Carol, this was essentially now hostile territory. Insurgents with rocket-propelled grenade launchers, shoulder-fired weapons, you would have to send a pretty heavy military footprint of people and equipment and supplies and have the Libyan government's permission to do all that in order to put the military there to secure the site. So that was not a serious consideration we're told.

COSTELLO: Barbara Starr live at the Pentagon this morning. In financial news this morning, the government is taking a closer look at who may be partly responsible for the financial meltdown, and that's now led to a lawsuit against one of the nation's biggest banks. The New York attorney general is accusing JPMorgan Chase of defrauding investors.

Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange with more details.

Good morning.

KOSIK: Good morning, Carol. So let me take you back to 2008. Over the course of a weekend, JPMorgan actually bought Bear Stearns in a government-backed acquirement, actually. So what essentially stands right now is that JPMorgan is legally responsible for Bear's actions. So unfortunately for JPMorgan, these are the types of responsibilities you take on when you acquire a company.

So now what's happening is New York -- the New York attorney general is suing JPMorgan over these mortgage-backed securities. These are mortgages that were bundled together and sold to investors during the housing boom. And it led to the housing bust because when people couldn't make their payments, mortgage-backed securities went south, banks and investors lost billions of dollars.

Now attorney general said Bear systematically failed to fully evaluate the loans, largely ignoring the defects that their limited review did uncover and it kept investors in the dark. Translation for you here? Bear didn't do its due diligence. And when the bank did find defects with the mortgages it was selling, it didn't tell anybody. Even worse, the New York attorney general is saying that even when Bear was made aware of the problems, the attorney general says they didn't fix them -- Carol.

COSTELLO: OK. So this is a civil lawsuit because, you know, a lot of people out there think someone should pay, like with jail time for this sort of stuff. But it's a civil lawsuit, and that means fines, it's not jail time, if they're convicted of this.

KOSIK: Right and -- exactly. And just so you know, the only major sort of trial that's come from the Wall Street meltdown happened in 2009 when two Bear Stearns hedge fund managers were found not guilty of inflating the price of their mortgage-backed securities. But really that is the big criticism here is who's paying the price?

But JPMorgan is responding to this, by the way, Carol. JPMorgan is trying to distance itself from this, it's stressing that the lawsuit deals with Bear Stearns. And you know what, that's understandable. Because the securities in question, they were issued, you know, long before it bought Bear, in 2006 and 2007. But JPMorgan is still planning to contest these allegations with JPMorgan saying it's disappointed the New York attorney general pursued its civil action without offering us an opportunity to rebut the claims.

I'm sure we will be following this closely as all of this unfolds -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Thanks, Alison. Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange.

It's probably one of the last groups of people you'd think about having voting rights. But civil rights groups are battling out in Florida to make sure former felons can vote.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: It is now 16 minutes past the hour.

Civil rights activists in Florida are launching a new campaign to make sure that former felons have a right to vote. In case you're wondering, 36 states allow felons the right to vote after they served their term and they've gone through parole or probation.

There are only two states where felons can vote by absentee while actually in prison. Those two states are Vermont and Maine. And in 12 states, convicted felons can now lose their right to vote permanently. Florida is one of those states and that's where the civil rights come in.

Joining me now chairman Ben Jealous and Kemba Smith Pradia.

Welcome to both of you.

KEMBA SMITH PRADIA, KEMBA SMITH FOUNDATION: Thank you.

BENJAMIN TODD JEALOUS, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NAACP: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Ben, I want to start what's happened in Florida, that some felons who are now out and served their time no longer have the right to vote?

JEALOUS: What's most disturbing that's happening here is in this country where voting is a right and in this country where we believe in second chances, this state gave formerly incarcerated people the right for that reason, about 10 years ago, with Republican Governor Crist. But, then the Democrats won Florida in 2008 and shortly after that, the governor changed and the conversation shifted.

And the new Republican Governor Scott came out and took away the right to vote from those very people who have been -- who had received it back from the past governor.

COSTELLO: Why did he do that?

JEALOUS: You know, he would never really give us a straight answer. We know that when these laws were first expanded, when a wave of them swept the country and here in Florida, it was expanded greatly just after the civil war. The reasons that were given were very clear. They said whether it was New York, or Virginia, or the governor talking about trying to block Negro suffrage, that the intent was to disproportionately suppress the black vote.

But these days, you can't talk that plainly. And so, when we confronted the secretary of state, she just kept on telling our folks here that it was very important, but wouldn't explain why it was so very important to do so.

COSTELLO: And, of course, we don't have the governor's side of the story. He is working hard to purge ineligible voters from the roles in Florida. We know, there's been a campaign to do that.

Kemba, many people know your story. You were convicted of a federal crime involving drugs, you were sentenced for 24 years, and later, Bill Clinton commuted your sentence to about six years. So, how does your story play into this cause?

SMITH PRADIA: Well, I'm from Virginia. My case is from out of Virginia. And ultimately last year I was able to vote in the state of Indiana because that's where I was residing at the time. But I recently relocated back to Virginia, where in the state of Virginia, there are over 450,000 people who are disenfranchised, formerly incarcerated people.

And ultimately, I'm having to go through this whole waiting period. I put in an application to get my rights restored in August. Unfortunately, I still have not received a response and I speak for the practically 6 million disenfranchised people across the country who aren't afforded the opportunity to vote.

And in my opinion, it's something that should be a basic fundamental human right. Once a person has served their debt to society, that there should be automatic restoration of voting rights.

COSTELLO: I would venture that some Americans would put voting rights for prisoners or former felons last on the list. So, can you respond to those people, Kemba?

SMITH PRADIA: Basically, we have over 2 million people who are incarcerated in this country. When you talk about this form of reentry and the fact that these people are going to be your neighbors, for me I'm unique. I was given executive clemency from the president, have a strong sense of family support and have the resources.

But it's difficult, reintegrating back. And on historical election days, not being able to participate and seeing other people participate, it makes one feel inferior. You don't want people trying to reintegrate, trying to live a better lifestyle to feel this way. It's hard for me to be able to explain to my children why I'm not able to vote when I pay taxes, they see me working hard and doing things I should be doing as a citizen.

JEALOUS: And what this comes down to really is do you think voting say right or a privilege? Because if voting is a right, then people who have paid their debt to society should be able to vote. If it's a privilege, then that's a whole other conversation.

Unfortunately, what we're seeing in our country right now is the demographics are changing, more of this rhetoric that voting is not a right. That voting is a privilege. And it should really be outrageous to all of us, because the very foundation of our country is that voting is a right. We should also point that Vermont and Maine probably have the two smallest black populations in the entire country. Unfortunately, race has been a big part of this.

In the state of Virginia, where she's from, when the law was put in place, when it was embed into the state constitution back in 1902, the person who was doing that was actually talking from the floor of that convention said and I quote, "Because of this plan, the darky will be zeroed out as a factor in our state's politics within five years."

So, unfortunately, it was a very sordid racial history --

(CROSSTALK)

COSTELLO: You're saying this is of a race issue than anything else? Is that what you're saying? Or is it --

JEALOUS: Well, what I'm saying at its very origin, when you go back and you read the reports from the --

COSTELLO: I'm just talking about today. I'm just talking about today. Is it a racial issue today?

JEALOUS: But you can't separate it. Look, when the -- when Virginia put this into their state constitution in 1902 and it's been there ever since, you have to ask the question, why was it put there in the first place? And what you see is that it was put there in the first place as a rush to Jim Crow reforms intended to suppress the black vote.

We've tolerated it ever since. So, you know, there are some things like voter ID where people may say are similar to Jim Crow. This, unfortunately, is a vestige of Jim Crow.

Here in Florida, you really only have two big points that this was used. One was right after the civil war, when it was greatly expanded. It had been used for about 24 years before but greatly expanded right after the civil war. Then you have Governor Scott putting it back in place after the prior Republican governors decided to cut bait with that sordid history, affirm people's right to vote and affirm their right to a second chance.

COSTELLO: All right. NAACP chairman Ben Jealous and Kemba Smith Pradia, thank you both for joining us this morning, we appreciate it.

JEALOUS: Thank you.

SMITH PRADIA: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Talk back question this morning: will President Obama beat himself in the debate? We'll talk.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Now is your chance to talk back on one of the big stories of the day. The question for you this morning: will President Obama beat himself in the debate? President Obama is running around the country saying what a great debater Mitt Romney is. But some political analysts say the president should stop lowering expectations and do a little self reflection, because as "Politico's" Glenn Thrush says, President Obama's greatest enemy isn't Romney, it's himself, because, shall we say, the president is quite confident.

Here he is at a polling station in Henderson, Nevada.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Basically they're keeping me indoors all the time. It's a drag. They're making me do my homework.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: He was joking but polls show that most people believe that Obama will ace the debate. Still, Obama's advisors are concerned about the president's tendency to appear smug, testy and even impatient.

Remember what he said to Hillary Clinton during a primary debate four years ago?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's very likable. I -- I agree with that. I don't think I'm that bad.

OBAMA: You're likable enough, Hillary.

CLINTON: Thank you so much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Some felt that comment oozed condescension and cost Obama the New Hampshire primary a few days later.

Political analyst Larry Sabato says, despite Obama's likeability, the president is pretty frosty. Sabato says that in debate, Obama has to do something that doesn't come naturally, smile, make his points, but being gentle.

So, the talk back question for you today, will President Obama beat himself in the debate? Facebook.com/CarolCNN, Facebook.com/CarolCNN. Your responses later this hour.

One dramatic event can influence the outcome of any election. It's called the October surprise. We'll show you some of the best examples of that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: OK. You're looking at it. Live picture out of Denver, Colorado. Final preparations being made for the first presidential debate. Of course, that will take place tomorrow night, as you well know. CNN's coverage starts at 7:00 Eastern.

Sex scandals, arrest histories, even wars have influenced voters days or weeks before the presidential election. Sometimes they're planned and sometimes they're not.

Our senior congressional correspondent Dana Bash looks at some of the more memorable October surprises.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Election year 1972. The raging unpopular war in Vietnam consumed the bitter campaign battle between President Nixon and George McGovern. Suddenly, on October 26, 12 days before the election, Vietnam negotiator Henry Kissinger made a surprise declaration, to cement Nixon's front-runner status.

HENRY KISSINGER, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: We believe that peace is at hand.

BASH: It was the first so-called October surprise, a late-in- the- game campaign event with a significant impact on the election.

ROBERT DALLEK, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: In order to win re- election for Nixon in 1972, they needed an end to the Vietnam War, and this was sort of the definitive statement.

BASH: The most famous October surprise was in 1980, and the surprise was what did not happen. Fifty-two U.S. hostages held in Iran were not released before the election, despite President Carter's efforts. Instead, they were freed as soon as Ronald Reagan was inaugurated, setting off Democratic suspicions, never proven, that Reagan emissaries back-channeled with Iran to delay freeing the hostages and denied the troubled Carter campaign a huge pre-election boost.

DALLEK: It fed into the whole dynamic of the 1980 race and the sense that Jimmy Carter was a stumbling, ineffective president.

BASH: Fast forward to 1992. President George H.W. Bush was already on the ropes against Bill Clinton over a sluggish economy when Casper Weinberger, former President Ronald Reagan's defense secretary, was implicated in the Iran-Contra scandal shortly before Election Day -- bad news that Bush, who served as Reagan's vice president, did not need.

In 2004, a classic October surprise. Osama bin Laden released a video on October 29th, just four days before Election Day, in a razor- thin race between President Bush and Kerry. Three years after 9/11, it served as a reminder of the terrorist threat, and strategists in both parties believed helped President Bush.

More recently, the term "October surprise" has come to mean a seismic event in the fall of an election year. Though most have centered around foreign policy, others have been about the economy like in 2008. When the economy imploded, John McCain's advisers say his campaign collapsed along with it and never recovered. Historians say in order for an October surprise to have a real 11th hour impact, it has the feed into a narrative that exists, whether it's Carter's ineffectiveness or questions about McCain's credentials on the economy.

DALLEK: It's not so much that -- suddenly eureka, this has been so surprising, so amazing, but rather, people nod, yes. This is where we thought things were going.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: That is so fascinating.

Dana Bash is live from our Washington bureau. So, question, do some think Friday's jobs report from the Labor Department, could that be an October surprise?

BASH: Sure. Why not, Carol? At this point, anything could be an October surprise. But, you know, the fact is that maybe we've already seen it. Maybe it was the tragedy in Libya, the unrest in the Middle East and how the candidates responded. Maybe it was that infamous 47 percent remark that Mitt Romney had.

Maybe one or both of the campaigns has some dirty trick in their pocket that they're going to be ready to get out there at the 11th hour. But you know what? If we knew, it wouldn't be called an October surprise now, would it?

COSTELLO: That's very true. You've got that right.

Dana Bash, that was a great story. Thank you so much.

BASH: Thanks, Carol.

COSTELLO: CNN's live debate coverage begins tomorrow night at 7:00 Eastern.

Part of the pro-football Hall of Fame is hitting the road. And guess what? NFL legend Barry Sanders, there he is. I'm so excited, Barry, that you're here. We'll talk to Barry Sanders next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Three more teams have clinched their ticket to baseball playoffs. Detroit Tigers are American League Central champs after beating up on Kansas City last night. Miguel Cabrera, look at him there. He hit a home run as he closes in on a possible Triple Crown. That's awesome.

Champagne showers fill the Washington Nationals dressing room, too. The Nats clinch the NL East after Atlanta lost last night. Washington's 19-year-old rookie sensation Bryce Harper, he can't drink yet. They sprayed apple cider on him instead of champagne and he took a few sips of that.

And the Oakland A's claimed an American League wild card spot after beating Texas. If the A's can beat the Rangers in the regular season final two games, the A's will take the AL West crown. Amazing in Monday night football.

Among for another reason -- the Chicago Bears made Tony Romo absolutely miserable. The Bears picked off the Cowboys quarterback, count 'em -- five times. Five. They returned two of those for touchdowns. Bears went on to beat the Cowboys on their home field 34- 18. It's the second time in his career Romo has been picked off five times in a game.

And checkout this trick play from a California high school game. The Oakmont Vikings going for an extra point at the end of the game. You'll see it here.

But the holder throws a wedding bouquet pass, a high behind the back talk, and it's caught for a two-point conversion. Yes, what a play. Oakmont beats Lincoln, 44-43. Actually, this was not the first wedding bouquet pass. Deadspin.com reports a high school from Washington state also used the trick play, but amazing nonetheless.

There's another kind of trickery on the field when Barry Sanders carried the ball. I mean, the way he used to fool defenders. Sanders defined elusiveness. He was one of the hardest runners to bring down in the history of the game.

But we have grabbed him this morning to talk about a project he's a big part of. It's a traveling exhibition from the pro-football Hall of Fame.

Good morning, Barry Sanders. There you are.

BARRY SANDERS, NFL LEGEND: Good morning.

COSTELLO: There you are, being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Seeing those pictures, how do you feel?

SANDERS: Feels great. Brings back a lot of great memories.

COSTELLO: Tell us about the exhibition. What's it about?

SANDERS: You know, it's a great story that the NFL and Hall of Fame tells. It's a traveling exhibit. It really kind of brings the story of the hall of fame to fans in respective NFL cities and so you'll be able to, you know, do things like step into a replay booth and make a call, for instance, or put on an authentic NFL jersey and learn about, you know, all the great characters that have played the game.

This year is Hall of Fame 50th anniversary. So, that's what we're doing.

COSTELLO: Who is your favorite character?

SANDERS: I would probably say someone like Vince Lombardi. He really represents what the NFL is, and what all coaches aspire to and the great motivator and great champion. And so I would probably say someone like him would be my favorite. COSTELLO: You know, I think people visit the football Hall of Fame once, but they should go back because it's been totally redone and is a fascinating place to visit now.

SANDERS: It really is. That's what we're trying to do, give people a little taste of canton in this traveling exhibit. It will come around to a lot of your NFL cities. And it really gives you a real feel for, you know, the Hall of Fame itself there in Canton. If you can't come to Canton, maybe you can make it out to this traveling exhibit.

COSTELLO: Especially if you're there. Although I doubt you'll be at all the exhibits across the country.

I really would love to ask you about your son. He's playing at Stanford. He's playing your position. How is he doing?

SANDERS: Doing well. Red shirt freshman. And, you know, they're having a good year.

And, you know, like I said, he won't see any action this year, but that's where he is, working hard. And, you know, they're still having -- have a great team and hoping for big things from them.

COSTELLO: Is he as good as you or will he be as good as you were?

SANDERS: Well, I don't know. I mean, that's putting a lot of pressure on him, you know. The thing I'm happy about, he was good enough to get a scholarship and good enough to get a scholarship to Stanford and so, you know, that's -- he's on his way. And so, I'm happy for him.

COSTELLO: I heard so many articles where he was quoted saying he realized how great you were and no way you can compare. He seems to have his had head on straight, too.

SANDERS: You know, he's a good young man. And done a fine job and, you know, it's natural to make the comparison, but, you know, at the same time, you know -- even to be able to make it into the NFL is really difficult and something that's not a given. And I think he understands that.

COSTELLO: Just a question. Because I know you're a Detroit fan still. I won't ask you about the Lions. They've had a slow start to put it mildly.

But the tigers, that's amazing. Miguel Cabrera, will he win the Triple Crown and should he get MVP?

SANDERS: He has my vote for MVP, absolutely.

And, you know, it's been a fantastic year. Tigers have put together a string of years that we're proud of as Detroiters. And, you know, it's a very exciting time now to be a Detroit Tigers fan.

COSTELLO: Not so much a Lions fan, but I'm sure they'll get it together. Who knows? Barry Sanders, thank you for being with us this morning.

SANDERS: It's been my pleasure. Thanks for having me.

COSTELLO: We'll be right back.

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COSTELLO: Forty-six minutes past the hour, checking our top stories now.

At least 38 people are dead after a passenger ferry collided with another boat off of Hong Kong. The second vessel filled with families going to see a fireworks display started sinking after the impact. Police have arrested six crew members from the boat on suspicion of negligence.

A French prosecutor drops an investigation into Dominique Strauss- Kahn's link to a possible gang rape in Washington. A Belgian woman has now withdrawn a previous statement and now she says she doesn't want to press charges. The former IMF chief is still under investigation, accused of participating in a prostitution ring in France. Strauss-Kahn denies any wrongdoing.

A massive fire under control in the Canadian city of Winnipeg. Explosions at a plant that makes racing fuels and fireballs and thick black smoke into the air. Evacuated residents have not -- have been allowed back home now. There are no reports of any injuries and no word on what caused this fire.

The owner of the New York Jets seems more concerned about Mitt Romney than, you know, the quarterback controversy or the Jets winning or anything like that.

"SHOWBIZ TONIGHT's" A.J. Hammer joins me now.

Actually, if you think about it, that's probably a good thing.

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT: Yes, I mean owner Woody Johnson, Carol, says that he is more focused on the presidential race than a race for a playoff spot. And I actually do think the Jets fans may welcome this distraction, and certainly from thinking about the last game their team played. Thirty-four to nothing loss to the 49ers on Sunday. They don't want to remember that. I won't reveal that again.

Considering the results on the field, Johnson may actually have a better chance backing Romney. But take a listen to what he just told Bloomberg TV.

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ROBERT "WOODY" JOHNSON, OWNER, NEW YORK JETS: Well, I think you always have to put country first. So I think it's very, very important that for -- not only for us, but for our particular kids and grandkids that this election come off with Mitt Romney and Ryan as president and vice president. (END VIDEO CLIP)

HAMMER: OK. So Johnson is choosing Paul Ryan over Jets coach Rex Ryan. But he is a major fundraiser for the Romney campaign in New York and Connecticut, also in New Jersey. Just as he was for John McCain and George W. Bush. So the news isn't too surprising.

And he's not alone. More than a few team owners in all of the major sports are politically involved. But of course there can be a backlash from these kinds of political stands. There's this famous quote from 1990. Maybe you remember this. Michael Jordan was asked to support a Democratic candidate for Senate, and he declined by saying at the time Republicans buy shoes, too.

Of course, Carol, he's currently the owner of the Charlotte Bobcats and he raises money for President Obama. But I don't think he's really all that concerned at this point in his life and career that people are going to alienate him because of his political choices.

COSTELLO: Well, of course, back in the day, he was selling a lot of shoes. So maybe that was the reason for that comment.

HAMMER: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

COSTELLO: A.J. Hammer, thanks so much. A.J. will be back with us in the next hour for more showbiz headlines.

The man behind the "Kony 2012" viral video gets ready to sit down and talk about his breakdown and hospitalization.

And one credit card company is paying out hundreds of dollars to each of its cardholders. And it's not because they racked up a bunch of reward points.

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COSTELLO: One credit card company is shelling out big money to customers, but these aren't your typical cash back rewards. No, American Express is set to give up $85 million in refunds or hundreds of dollars to about 250,000 of its cardholders after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau accused American Express of deceitful practices.

Alison Kosik is at the New York Stock Exchange to fill us in.

KOSIK: Exactly, so yes, the CFPB, what it is doing, Carol, is accusing Amex of what's called deceptive lending practices. Sound familiar? It should, you know, this is a term that we heard a lot during the recession that led to the mortgage meltdown.

Now the CFPB was created a few years ago to crack down on these things. So it's certainly cracking the whip this year because just this year alone Discover and Capital One have had to refund their customers for these deceptive practices. Now in this case, this Amex case, CFPB says Amex charged people late fees that were above the legal limit, plus the DFPB is saying telemarketers misled customers telling them they'd get 300 bucks for signing up for what's known as its Blue Sky credit card, that didn't happen.

Amex also is accused of discriminating against new applicants based on age. So all of these things are -- and the result of all of these things actually is that Amex now has to refund its customers. So $85 million will go to 250,000 people -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So how do people get their money?

KOSIK: OK. So it -- the money will actually go directly into your account if you've still got an Amex account. If you're not an Amex customer anymore, the company will wind up mailing you a check. Now the amount of the refund is really going to depend on what your situation is. So people, let's say, who were promised that $300 for the Blue Sky card, they're going to get that money. Others will reimburse -- will be reimbursed these late fees plus interest.

Now if you want more information on this, go to CFPB's Web site. You can go to Consumerfinance.gov. It's on the screen, I believe. Consumerfinance.gov. But one thing that the CFPB is saying, Carol, is it's Amex that's responsible for notifying you, that you shouldn't have to do anything. That if some other strange entity calls you and says, hey, we're going to help you get your refund, just know that that's a scam. It's Amex that's going to contact you -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Alison Kosik live at the New York Stock Exchange.

"Talk Back" question this morning, will President Obama beat himself in a debate? Your responses next.

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COSTELLO: "Talk Back" question of the day, will President Obama beat himself in the debate? This from April. "Obama has class. He has important things to say and solutions to talk about. All Romney can do is sling mud because he has no strategy or defense and most importantly, no solutions."

This from Eleanor, "Arrogance always looks better than humility to those who believe themselves to be gods." Whoa.

This from Bob, "Who cares? Worst two choice since Ford and Carter. And another reason to disband the two-party system in America."

And this from Dean, 'The president always rises to the occasion and has proved he works best under stress. I'm confident he'll get his message across tomorrow night loud and clear."

Facebook.com/carolCNN if you'd like to continue the conversation. The next hour of CNN NEWSROOM starts right now.

Happening now in the NEWSROOM, scare in the air.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The seat is loose and can rotate pretty quickly.

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COSTELLO: Seats on American Airlines planes coming loose in mid- flights. Eight planes now grounded and the FAA is investigating.

Counting down to tomorrow's first presidential debate, is President Obama's biggest challenge not Mitt Romney?

Legalizing marijuana, it's not just a pipe dream in the state hosting tomorrow's debate.