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Space Shuttle "Endeavour" Travels the Streets of Los Angeles to Its Final Destination; Second Presidential Debate on Tuesday; New Apps for Ordering a Can

Aired October 13, 2012 - 15:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Michael Vick is a dog owner again. He's served 18 months for bankrolling a deadly dog fighting ring. The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback says as a dad, quote, "It is important to make sure my children develop a healthy relationship with animals," end quote. Vick had been banned from owning a dog until his probation ended in May.

A Florida man gets quite a shock when he finds a giant eyeball on the beach. You can see it right there. He turned over the eye, roughly the size of a softball, he turned it over to police who sent it to a lab. The Florida official wildlife commission is working to figure out exactly what kind of an animal that big eyeball may have come from. A spokeswoman said it probably is from a large fish. But she thinks more like a squid. The findings should come to the surface next week.

All right, you're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Welcome back. Let's get you up to speed of some of the top stories right now.

Space shuttle "Endeavour" lumbering through the streets of Los Angeles at two miles an hour. It's final destination, permanent display at the Science Center of California. Thousands of Californians are turning out to see this slow massive tour up close.

And there are just four weekends left before Election Day. And Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan are spending this one campaigning in the key state of Ohio. Ryan is making three stops there today. Romney is holding two rallies. This morning in Columbus, he put in a little time pressing for the next big debate for President Obama. That showdown is scheduled for Tuesday night in Hempstead, New York.

President Obama is preparing for the debate for the next three days in Williamsburg, Virginia. He's under particular pressure to do well after getting critical reviews in the first faceoff last week. The town hall style debate will be hosted by our own Candy Crowley.

And police are investigating a troubling incident at President Obama's campaign office in Denver. Officials say a shot was fired at the office yesterday, shattering the window. People were inside the building at the time. Luckily, no one was hurt. Police say they don't have a suspect yet, but they're investigating a possible suspicious car at the scene.

The CDC is out with new numbers on the spread of that deadly meningitis disease. Within the last hour, the CDC says 15 people have died. One hundred ninety eight people may have been contaminated because of the contaminants in the steroids used, making them exposed to fungal meningitis.

All right, now to the space shuttle "Endeavour" which is the largest vehicle to ever roll through the streets of Los Angeles, it is an amazing site.

And CNN's John Zarrella is there watching it all, there with thousands if not millions of other people who have lined the streets to see it up close and personal.

JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka, certainly thousands here. And this is the second viewing location that had been set up along the route today. And you can see behind me here, the sea of people who have come here for the festivities that are going to take place here. Look over here, American flags. People holding American flags here. It's like a terrific -- having fun?

You ready for it? A couple more hours.

WHITFIELD: Oh, my God.

ZARRELLA: I'm sorry. I'm not supposed to be a kill joy, but you know, they have run into a little bit of -- well, they ran into a few difficulties up on Crenshaw in that direction where they have had to really slow down. They were literally within inches of the trees and at one point. They had to lay some sand down to build up a curb because it actually kind of jumped the curb with the tow vehicle to get up to it.

Now, Stephanie Stilson is with me. And Stephanie is with NASA and prepared all of the vehicles for their journeys. And you knee that it was going to be difficult.

STEPHANIE STILSON, NASA: Absolutely. They have been planning this for 18 months, going through the route, making sure they could get through. Bit, we knew there would be, maybe, some snags along the way. But, that's what we prepared for. You have a convoy with them that can handle anything they're doing. So, as you mention, slowing down, making sure we're doing the right thing, making sure we don't damage anything along the way, especially the vehicle. So, they are doing all the right thing.

ZARRELLA: And that's especially important to you. I mean, you know, you work to make these things fly, and here you are, and you have to catch yourself, right, because they don't fly anymore. They're artifacts.

STILSON: Absolutely. I was talking to a lady, and she said I was so close, I could almost touch it. I said I'm glad you didn't. Please don't. So, I'm still in the mom mode, right? Don't touch the vehicle. But, when we get it there safely in the best configuration we can get it there and that's what we're here to do.

ZARRELLA: Stephanie, thanks so much. Always great to have Stephanie with us. She is (INAUDIBLE). Look here, some kids.

You guys are you excited to be here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

ZARRELLA: Yes. You're excited?

CROWD: Very excited.

ZARRELLA: Everybody has their cameras. Look, they're all ready to go and they're waiting on it. You know, up on the stage there, Debbie Allen, the famous choreographer and dancer, they're doing to be doing a production here as well. This is going to be one terrific stop, but a couple more hours they're going to have to wait out here. Fortunately, a little warm, but this is a pleasant, lovely Los Angeles day -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Yes. We're very familiar with Dada, the Debbie Allen dance academy that was helping to put on the performance there.

And hey, John, the weather is beautiful so who cares about waiting another two hours before they get to see a piece of history roll by? All right.

All right, John Zarrella, thanks so much there in Los Angeles. And we're going to keep an eye on the shuttle throughout the coming hours. The box on the screen as you'll see momentarily, will show that shuttle's movement through Los Angeles and stay with CNN all day. We're your source as the shuttle moves to the California science museum. Also, we will have live streaming on CNN.com/live. There it is right there.

All right, what's next for the future of space exploration? Well, our guest coming up says it could be brighter than a supernova.

And now, just 24 days until Election Day, and it looks like the race is getting even tighter. In one particularly red state, President Obama is gaining momentum.

CNN political reporter Shannon Travis joining us live from Washington.

So Shannon, tell us about the new poll out in Arizona.

SHANNON TRAVIS, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Yes, surprise, surprise, Fred. Who would have thought that Arizona, the race would be tightening for the presidential candidate in Arizona? Our CNN electoral map shows that state as leaning Romney. But take a look at the new poll from the Rocky Mountain, at the Rocky Mountain poll. President Obama, 42 percent, Mitt Romney, 40 percent, among all voters. That's an amazing turnaround from just a few weeks ago in this same poll that was showing Romney ahead, again, Arizona has only voted for one democrat in the past 60 years, senator McCain obviously won his home state in 2008. So this is a bit surprising. Not only is it surprising to Arizona, Fred, but besides what we have seen in other polls and states, host the first presidential debate. Let's take a look at a few other numbers from a recent survey from the American research group. For Florida, among likely voters, Romney, 49 percent, Obama, 46 percent. Same group, ARG in New Hampshire, Romney, 50 percent, Obama, 46 percent. Again, among likely voters, both of those polls obviously well within the sampling error.

So, a statistical dead heat, but both of the polls showing Romney having momentum in the states after the first debate. We have seen that across a few polls, so the Arizona poll, interesting and definitely defies the trend we have seen in other polls in other states, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Wow. OK. So, Florida, remarkable numbers there. Arizona, what about the rest of the country?

TRAVIS: Yes. The rest of the country, I mean, again, we have seen some tightening, some movement towards Romney. You know, this poll position can be a little tricky. Some polls show, you know, wider margins, different spreads than others. But we have definitely seen overall, predominantly, a momentum toward Mitt Romney after the first debate performance which underscores even more, Fred, that President Obama going into the second debate, he has to do a lot better. He admitted he didn't do as well as he hoped to do.

WHITFIELD: OK. We'll see what happens on Tuesday. The pressure is on both candidates quite frankly.

All right, Shannon Travis, appreciate that.

All right, lots of interesting things going on surrounding this race to the White House, including this. The Romney campaign now denouncing a racially charged t-shirt someone wore to a Romney/Ryan rally. A man at Romney at Lancaster, Ohio, apparent yesterday was photographed wearing a shirt saying put the white back in the White House, as you see right there. A campaign spokesman tells CNN the shirt is quote "reprehensible and has no place in the election." Their words, the spokesman says, no one from the Romney team saw the shirt at that event.

Meantime, more doping accusations against Lance Armstrong, a former teammate and cycling team in the suit speaking out. We will have details on that.

And hitchhiking goes digital, new apps that let you get a ride with your Smartphone.

And later, an update on country singer, Tim McGraw's efforts to help wounded veterans get home.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's check international headlines now this hour.

In Pakistan, police have made more arrests in the attack on the 14- year-old girl. Officials say Malala Yousufzai remains in critical condition, but her vital signs are stable. She was shot in the head by Taliban fighters because she publicly defends girls' rights to an education.

In Syria, rebel fighters are celebrating. They claim they shot down a government jet over Aleppo province. Human rights activists say a number of rebel fighters were wounded in a government air strike while trying to storm a military camp close to the Turkish border.

And now to the doping scandal involving Lance Armstrong and yet another reason his fans may doubt his claims of innocence on doping allegations. His former teammate, Australian pro cyclist Matt White has admitted to doping when he was a member of Armstrong's U.S. postal team. His statement comes days after the U.S. anti-doping agency released thousands of pages of evidence against Armstrong.

Joining me now is CNN international anchor, Jonathan Mann. I'm so disappointed to hear all of this. I know a lot of people are, because, you know, you want to give someone the benefit of the doubt, and he, Lance Armstrong has come out so strong, reminding people that I never tested positive. Now there's new evidence that makes it a little difficult for him to fight.

JONATHAN MANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: And it isn't just a little bit of evidence. We are talking about 1,000-page report. We are talking about the teammates who rode with him, the team mates who knew him best, his best friends on the team that he served on are coming forward saying not only did he take the drugs, something he vehemently denies, but they were forced to take it as well. But he kind of pressured them, if you want to be part of the team, if you want to help us win, you have to take them as well. It wasn't just that Lance Armstrong himself breaking the rules. He was encouraging the other people who wanted to ride with him to break the rules too.

WHITFIELD: So, that's kind of explaining why some of them are breaking their silence now. They have felt conflicted for so long and now they're feeling like, wait a minute, you forced me to do this and now I have to lay it out all?

MANN: Essentially. I mean, what has happened is that there has been a succession of riders who were caught. And so, while they were identified as cheats, Lance Armstrong could say, they're already cheats. Don't, you know, paint me with their brush.

But now, people are coming forward like George Hincapie who had not been caught and who willingly acknowledged for the first time using these drugs. But what's remarkable is not just that other people are blaming Lance Armstrong and saying I feel terrible, and you know, I wanted to come forward.

People are coming forward who didn't take drugs and saying, you know, what about us? And I'm thinking very particularly about one rider whose name is Fabian Cancellara. He's not a household name around the world, but he rode against Armstrong. He wasn't his teammate, he wasn't a friend. He was a competitor. And what he said to say is that riders are again paying the price for what went wrong six or seven years ago. That's not fair. And here's the part that really gets me. Lance has insured that the early years of my career were wasted years. I hope that this time is finally behind us.

So here's a guy who rode against Lance Armstrong when Lance Armstrong was cheating, it seems. He denies it.

WHITFIELD: He said he was clean.

MANN: He was clean, and he couldn't win because --

WHITFIELD: He can't compete.

MANN: He can't compete. And now, he's claiming he's still riding and the sport is still soiled by the stain of the Armstrong years. So, this is a guy who loses out twice just trying to get out there and ride a bicycle and win races. I mean, I'm a supporter of Lance Armstrong. I think you have been too.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

MANN: An extraordinary man, a great champion and --.

WHITFIELD: Because you want to believe he's just exceptional. He's the one, the stand-out, the anomaly athlete who has done so much, defied the odds.

(CROSSTALK)

MANN: It's easy to think of this as a victimless crime creating by a great hero, but there were victims, the honest athletes competing against him. And so, it changes the story.

WHITFIELD: So, still not proven. We're talking about the release of more evidence, and among those bits of evidence or, you know, this pile of evidence, talking about the saline solution he and other members of the U.S. postal team injected before submitted to tests, and that's why their blood seemed clean on these tests, et cetera. That's among the things, and his masseuse is also among those who are speaking out, who for a very long time honored that close relationship between masseuse and athlete, would never spill the beans and is so now.

MANN: She was like a drug mule. She was his masseuse. They're assigned to teams. These guys' legs need to get worked on it, worked on after a day or a month. But she acknowledged that they had her not administering the drugs. She said she wasn't comfortable with that, but they would give them to her to dispose of because they couldn't put them in the garbage in the team hotels because they were afraid, they would be found there. They couldn't go get the drugs. They sent her across the borders to go drive the drugs back. So, she was like the mule. And so she knew it was going on. I think she was very clear that she never saw Lance inject himself and he denies it once again, but it was clear she was asked to handle packages and dispose of packages that nobody on the team wanted to be publicly identified with.

WHITFIELD: So, something about guilt that may have provoked some of these stories or has allowed some of this material or testimony to be admitted as evidence.

MANN: Everybody says they knew it was wrong at the time. Everybody has come forward and said, I knew it was wrong. I felt pressured into it. It was Lance Armstrong, it was the team. But no one feels good about it. And many in fact say, now that is out, they feel whole lot better.

WHITFIELD: OK. And still unclear what will happen to his seven Tour de France titles. He still has the titles, but big question mark as well as an Olympic medal, at least one.

MANN: We're waiting to hear.

WHITFIELD: All right, Jon Mann. Thanks so much.

All right, a father who lost his daughter to a drunk driver decides to protect other children in his community from the same fate. You'll hear from him straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Five years ago this month, a Montana father lost his daughter to a drunk driver. Now he has set out on a mission to protect all of the children of his community from the same fate. Meet CNN hero Leo McCarthy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEON MCCARTHY, CNN HERO: October 27th, 2007, was a beautiful autumn day. Mariah, she was with her two friends. I didn't know the last time I kissed her would be my last time. Later that night, they were walking down this path when an underage drunk driver swerved off the road and hit them. Mariah landed here. She died that night. They were only a block away from my house. Mariah was only 14, and I'm thinking, how did this happen? It is so preventable.

My name is Leo McCarthy. I give kids tools to stay away from drinking. Our state has been notoriously top five on drinking and driving fatalities in the country. The drinking is a cyclical disease we allow to continue.

Mariah's Challenge is to be the first generation of these kids to not drink.

In the eulogy, I said if you stick with me for four years, don't use alcohol, don't use illicit drugs, I will be there with the bunch of other people will give you money to go to a post-secondary school.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I promise not to drink until I'm 21.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I promise not to get in a car with someone who has been drinking. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I promise to give back to my community.

MCCARTHY: I think Mariah's challenge is something that makes people thinks a little bit more to say, we could be better.

Mariah's forever (INAUDIBLE). I can't get her back, but I can help other parents keep their kids safe. If we save one child, we save a generation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: And I had a chance to talk to Leo McCarthy about what it means to be a CNN hero and how Mariah's challenge has helped young people achieve their dreams.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCCARTHY: I do see my daughter in her friends, and you always wonder how she would be or how she would grow up. And there's also that sad feeling. There's also a deep grace with that, knowing that youth that are coming up have an opportunity to talk about what's going on out there in their streets and their hallways of school. It's part of your life. You atone for it and you acknowledge it, and you always try to bring good out of bad all the time.

WHITFIELD: And how do you look forward? What kind of future do you see in Mariah's Challenge?

MCCARTHY: I hope it picks up quite a bit. I hope in 10 to 15 years, we don't need a Mariah's Challenge, that it's a tool that every youth and every parent and every loved one uses at the dinner table to talk about what's going on so the lines of communication during the teenager years are opening wide and accepting on both ends so we never have to have a Mariah's Challenge. That the cyclical teenage rite of passage of everyone thinking they have to drink is not there anymore because it's not a rite of passage. It doesn't have to be. The only way we can do that is giving tools to parents and schools and our teenagers, saying you're sacred. That you're greater than the situation always and there's always someone there you can call when it's not a good place to be at. And if you follow a life of simple self-respect, incorporate your family, your community, you can grow old, and that's what the tools are, helping you grow old.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And Leo McCarthy is just one of our top ten honorees eligible to become the CNN hero of the year. Cast your vote at CNNheroes.com. The winner will receive $250,000.

All right, the massive space shuttle "Endeavour" is inching through the streets of Los Angeles. Straight ahead, the tight squeeze and the crowds turning out to see the shuttle's last trip.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, now to the space shuttle "Endeavour" which the largest vehicle to ever roll through the streets of Los Angeles. It's an amazing site. And CNN's Casey Wian is there watching it all first hand.

So Casey, the shuttle is navigating pretty tight spots. What is it, less than five miles away now from its destination?

CASEY WIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It's getting pretty darn close, Fredricka. Somewhere in the neighborhood of four to five miles left in this journey. And we got through or we showed you earlier than real narrow stretch that the shuttle had to ne navigate, and we have now been through that. We're now through a much wider spot.

But even so, as you can see over here. They are actually having to trim some trees, cutting them down to make room for "Endeavour." So far, though, everything has gone very smoothly. They have not had to cut down any trees. They have not had to take out any additional power lines. So we're anticipating that the shuttle is going to arrive as scheduled sometime this evening at the California science center -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And so Casey, I know folks have their cameras out there, but you know, is there any hooping and hollers, too? How excited are people that they get to see this?

WIAN: I think a lot of people are initially in awe when they see the shuttle go by. In some areas, it's just silence and just sort of staring at it in awe and taking pictures. Other areas, people are a little more organized and hoot and holler. We have heard people chanting "USA, USA." We heard music playing. It's a very festive atmosphere. Tens of thousands of people if not more have lined the streets of Los Angeles over the last few days to witness what is really a once in a lifetime or a once in forever event.

WHITFIELD: That is incredible. Casey Wian, thanks so much. And of course, throughout afternoon, we have a box upon our screen where you can continue to watch the movement and then you can also go to CNN.com/live to see it live stream there.

Casey Wian, thanks so much. Appreciate that.

All right, perhaps you need a ride, not by way of shuttle but maybe the more traditional route. And of course, there's an app for that, too. We test out mobile hitchhiking.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Hitchhiking is going mobile. Smartphone car service apps are popping up in many cities around the country now, and these apps allow people to get a ride with a click of a button or a tap of a screen.

Our CNN money tech reporter Laurie Segall puts these services to the test.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LAURIE SEGALL, CNN MONEY TECHNOLOGY REPORTER: Need a ride? Well, a lot of companies are popping up that allow you to get a ride using your Smartphone, so we decided to put it to the test.

So, the first one we're going to try is called Uber. You can see it's locating me. Uber uses GPS to locate passengers who request pickup and choose between ordering a taxi, town car, or an SUV in the area.

There we go. So, we have a driver who is going to arrive in five minutes. Hi, how are you? Uber?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

SEGALL: Awesome.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At the end of the day, again, it's all about the commute.

SEGALL: It's really nice to have a personal driver just an app away. But here is the catch. During times where it's tough to find a cab or the weekends, Uber often ups the price, so you might end up paying more than expected.

When you initially sign up for Uber, you enter your credit card information into the app. Now, I can go to my Smartphone and then it shows how much I paid. I paid $25, not exactly cheap.

What a cheaper approach? One San Francisco based start-up is giving us another alternative. Lyft cars are marked by a pink mustache. Log in using facebook, open up the app, and request a pickup.

My pink mustache car has arrived. OK. So, this is the move?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

SEGALL: OK.

JOHN ZIMMER, CO-FOUNDER, LYFT: You have cabs driving around in San Francisco or Manhattan, looking for people with their hand in the air. With technology, you can get a lot more information into this to make it way more efficient.

SEGALL: On average, lift's founders say rides cost 20 percent less than taxis. But how safe is it to jump in a car with a stranger? $10 bucks.

ZIMMER: We check for, you know, a background check, DMV record check. We interview all of them.

SEGALL: Lyft, like similar apps, brands itself as a car sharing service, but has to navigate complex state regulations about who can operate a car for hire service.

ZIMMER: We have a great team of lawyers who have looked at this before we did anything, made sure what we were doing was 100 percent legal. SEGALL: It's an ongoing battle that Lyft and its competitors will have to fight as they try to stay on the road.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Wow, that's pretty inventive. Laurie is now joining us from New York.

So, these services are really kind of shaking up the transportation industry. It always comes with something, you're going to pay more or maybe your ride isn't going to be as comfortable. But in the end, you think it's a courageous, you know, move and a great option for a travelers, commuters?

SEGALL: I mean, look, I will say when I first heard of this, I was like, who on earth is going to use their phone to order a cab? And I mean, a car marked by a pink mustache? At first, when I saw that I was like, you're either completely crazy or you might be on to something.

But I will say, even on my way over here, Fredricka, I couldn't get a cab for the life of me, and I looked at my phone and was very close to ordering an Uber, or you know, in some cases that Lyft actually comes to New York, it's cheaper than some of the traditional apps.

And as you see more of them and what happened is we're seeing so many of the apps now. As you see more, the price might be a little bit cheaper. I mean, I have used Uber and paid a little too much, I won't lie, but I think they could be on to something.

WHITFIELD: And so, what about the regulations? What was the answer to that?

SEGALL: Still, there are complicated regulations when it comes to this kind of thing. We want to do the car service. We can't really do that without doing a lot of homework. You need permits, you need licenses. But, you know, the way Lyft is kind of going around this and skirting the issue is they're making themselves out to be a ride- sharing organization.

So, if I looked at their terms of agreement actually this morning, and let me read it to you, Fredricka. They say Lyft offers information and a method to connect drivers and riders with each other but does not and does not intend to provide transportation services or act in any manner as a transportation carrier.

So, if you look at that, they're making it to be your driver's in a commercial driver. There, you just do a person and you just want a ride and when I paid - when I paid. When I took the Lyft ride, I donated to him as opposed to paid to him. So, there's all these little ways they're going around this, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Wow. A little technicality meaning they're not going to get out of the car and help you with the bags if you're trying to get to LaGuardia or anywhere either. SEGALL: You know, they're pulling out all of the props. They have like - you know, you do a fist pump when you get in. You can play your iPod. I mean, listen, they really want this to work. And they have really got some disrupted technology, and you have the attention of the traditional taxi services. And, you know, when they're looking at you, you know you're on to something.

WHITFIELD: Wow, very inventive. All right, very cool. I'm sure things will take off.

Laurie Segall, thanks so much.

For more high-tech ideas and reviews, just go to CNN.com/tech and look for the gaming and gadgets tab as well.

All right, as the "Endeavour" makes its way to its final home, what's next for the future of space exploration? One scientist said it's not over. We will find out what could be ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Now that the shuttle program has ended, what is next for the future of space exploration? My next guest says the end of this era could be the beginning of something big. Lawrence Krauss is a physicist and professor at Arizona state university where he studies space and astronomy. You're joining us from London today.

OK, so you weren't a big fan of the space shuttle program in the first place. You actually wrote an op-ed in the guardian where you say, quote "if we are going to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on human space travel, we need to have a rational plan that can excite the imagination of the next generation of would-be scientists and explorers. The space shuttle did not provide such a plan."

You were a blatant and blunt to say that the shuttle program has been costly, but it's been boring. So what do you want to see in the next phase of space exploration, or do you see a next phase?

LAWRENCE KRAUSS, AUTHOR, A UNIVERSE FROM NOTHING: Well, it's a really good question. I think, right now, with the current economic climate to really do serious human space exploration is incredibly expensive. And I don't know whether any party has the gumption.

They like to talk the talk, but walking the walk is a little different. It's incredibly expensive, and clearly going around 200 miles above the earth isn't that exciting. So, you want to go to the moon or Mars and you want to do it for - by the way, you want to do it for adventure.

The science, the really important science that NASA does doesn't involve humans. It's the adventure. People want to see people boldly go where no one has gone before, basically.

WHITFIELD: Do you think it's better now that there's like the commercial incentive to keep it going? That it will make a difference? KRAUSS: I think it's moving in the right direction. I think what the current administration is doing is right. NASA has shown how to get into near-earth orbit. And now, we have seen that commercial enterprises can get not just cargo but maybe eventually astronauts up to that big tin can in the sky called the space station. And I think near earth's orbit is really for commercial enterprise, except for certain things like communication satellites or defense purposes. But you need the government to go beyond there. I don't think private enterprise, people talk about going to Mars on private space ships, but it costs so much money. It's to go to Mars would cost several hundred billion dollars. And I just don't see a business plan that makes it worthwhile.

And so, I think it is going to be the government and I suspect what may happen is the same thing happened in the 1960s. What will drive it will not be science, will be sort of not cold war, but prestige. If China sends astronauts to the moon, I'm pretty certain we are going to be quickly making sure we have astronauts there as well.

WHITFIELD: But, you do see that there have been good things that come from space exploration as we know it?

KRAUSS: Oh, yes, absolutely. But, I think the really good things have come from unmanned space exploration. Fredricka, you look great sitting in an anchor's desk, but you're not really meant for space. You're a 100-pound bag of water and it's much better to send a robot. And I think, I'm so excited when I see the curiosity rover on Mars. Every morning, I wake up and look for the photographs it sent. And frankly, I'm more excited by that than if a human was there because if a human was there, they would be taking the pictures. But Rover, curiosity is literally sending me the pictures like they had a little iphone and they're a tourist and they're there for ten years moving, I find it very romantic to think of them alone there, they don't need food, they don't need music, they don't need companionship, moving along the surface.

And so, NASA has done incredible science with the Hubble space telescope, without humans. I think there's no doubt we have to be honest that when we send humans into space, 99 percent of the cost is to get them back alive. And so, there's very little money left for science. And I think we do it for adventure.

When I was a kid, I stayed home and watched the Apollo moon landing. It excited me. It made me want to be a scientist in that sense.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

KRAUSS: So human space exploration does inspire people, and perhaps that's the reason we should do it. But we shouldn't pretend we're doing it for science.

WHITFIELD: I spoke earlier with Leroy Chao, and he said today was kind of bittersweet as he watches shuttle "Endeavour" kind inch its way through Los Angeles, making its way to the final destination of the museum. And he said bittersweet because yes, you know, the space program has been inspirational. You know, he loved being an astronaut. But at the same time, he says, you know, the U.S. being able to fly some of its own astronauts with the Russians is a beautiful, new frontier.

You know, we're also seeing others who have taken a commercial or exploratory route on their own. We have been following the dare devil Felix Baumgartner as he's planning to leap from the edge of space, from a big helium kind of balloon with this freefall of 128,000 feet.

I mean, do you see any real parallels here? Is that the kind of direction that people should be excited about, that people will take their own personal risks and do things like this?

KRAUSS: Well, I think for just beginning to get into space, Virgin Airlines is talking about tourism, people can go up for a few seconds and vomit up there in space and come back down. And this dare devil may do -- may do some interesting science if the parachute doesn't open, we'll see how big the crater is.

But, I think we're seeing other people like my friend Elon Musk who is riding SpaceX are actually commercially taking stuff to the space station. And I think that's a new direction. And that's very important. It gives the U.S. government, I think, time to look and see where can government do things that private industry can't? I think the grand missions are the kind of thing that only a government can do, and maybe as you pointed out, maybe international collaborations, if that could ever happen.

The kind of money that -- the kind of money it would take to send humans to Mars, several hundred billion dollars are the kind of things we would want to share. Whereas, by the way, we could send a rover to Mars for a little over what it takes to make a movie about sending Bruce Willis to Mars. So, there is the difference.

WHITFIELD: All right, Lawrence Krauss. Thanks so much. Making science and exploration a whole lot of fun, we appreciate that. That's why you are a professor, right, joining us from London today.

All right, appreciate it. Thanks so much.

All right, you may not know -- wait a minute. Let's try that one more time.

So you may not get what you ask for when you search for a political candidate online. The Romney campaign's Google surprise.

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WHITFIELD: All right, political topics are huge right now on internet search engines, but it is not often that the search engines themselves become the political story.

CNN's Athena Jones shows us what happens when you search for the wrong word on Google.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Google, Yahoo!, Bing, search engines are a part of modern life. The top searches on Google during the vice presidential debates were Joe Biden, conflating, malarkey, and who is winning the debate. It is a window into the minds of millions of web users.

But search engines can also raise eyebrows. For instance, when I type completely wrong into the Google image's search, I get a lot of pictures of Mitt Romney.

Google says the gallery of photos was unintentional. Its algorithm simply picked up on news coverage of Romney's only description of his 47 percent remarks. We saw a similar trend on Bing and Yahoo! but to a lesser degree.

DANNY SULLIVAN, SEARCH ENGINE LAND: For a search engine, they really rely on what is around the image to learn what it is about. If you a picture of Mitt Romney next to words to say like completely wrong, then they think I guess it is relevant for completely wrong.

JONES: Still, sometimes it is intentional. These are called Google- bombs.

In the mid-2,000s, pranksters created links that caused a Google search for the words miserable failure to put President George W. Bush at the top of the results page. Google later tweet its analytics to limited the practice.

Intentional or not, a search for the phrase "debate fail," brings up images of President Obama, but also of people like Romney, Governor Rick Perry and one-time presidential hopeful, John Kerry, and one time presidential hopeful, John Kerry.

And speaking of Kerry, who was accused of flip-flopping on the issues, conservative bloggers managed to push his campaign Web site to the top of Google's searches for the word as "waffle."

Is this just part of modern reality, something that candidates are powerless to do anything about?

SULLIVAN: One thing they need to do to protect themselves, to make sure that they have multiple Web site that are about themselves officially.

JONES: The good news, the search words fade over time.

Athena Jones, CNN, Washington.

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WHITFIELD: And the presidential contenders will square off for a second time Tuesday night. Our special live coverage begins 7:00 eastern time. The debate will be moderated by our own Candy Crowley.

All right, many war veterans returning from war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan face challenges like readjusting to civilian life especially after suffering a battle field injury. Country super star Tim McGraw helped to give homes to veterans in need. I spoke to him over the about his mission to give them a welcome home. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Under his century black hat, he is one of country music's biggest stars. With more than 40 million albums sold and more than 30 number one singles, a hugely popular leading man on stage, and on the big screen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have seen that look many times. She is about to get her way.

WHITFIELD: And he is half of one of country music's most glamorous couples. All that, spanning a 20-year career, yet, when I caught up with Tim McGraw in Tampa over summer, he said a sense of purpose is just now really coming together.

TIM MCGRAW, COUNTRY SINGER: I feel like I'm just getting started, sort of learning what I'm doing now.

WHITFIELD: And learning more about so many of the concerns of people in his audience, including the veterans.

This summer, his "brothers of the sun" tour with good friend, Kenny Chesney, was unlike any other appearance.

MCGRAW: It is pretty cool deal.

WHITFIELD: In each of the 22 cities they performed, chase bank, along with three other nonprofit military support organizations gave away bank-owned homes to military families.

Why is it so important to you to help kick of your tour in 25 cities, 25 cities where mortgage-free homes would go to vets?

MCGRAW: For a soldier to have that, and to come back, being wounded and giving them everything they have, for us to get in our car, and to drive around to our jobs, and to have that sense of freedom and that sort of sense of security for their family, I can't think of anything better for a wounded vet to have.

WHITFIELD: Wounded vets like Domenic Delucia.

DOMENIC DELUCIA, IRAQ VETERAN: It is something I wanted to do my whole life. Ever since I was a little kid, every Halloween, I dressed up as marine.

WHITFIELD: Seven years ago, the marine staff sergeant was on personal security patrol in Iraq when his Humvee (ph) hit an explosive device.

DOMENIC DELUCIA: You know, flipped it up in the air. What happened was, the engine block came through the passenger compartment, so it was pinning my leg down so I couldn't get out.

WHITFIELD: The left side of his face had to be re-built with titanium plates. Other head injuries surfaced later. Now medically retired living off disability, it has been hard for the couple and their four children.

CHRISTINA DELUCIA, VETERAN WIFE: And you know, we were just really in an unsure phase of our life, trying to figure out what our next move would be.

WHITFIELD: Christina Delucia joined a wounded warrior wives page on facebook for support.

CHRISTINA DELUCIA: I said operation home front, homes on the homes program. They were giving away mortgage free homes to veterans and, you know, disabled veterans.

WHITFIELD: And what did you think what you saw that?

CHRISTINA DELUCIA: That it was too good to be true.

WHITFIELD: She applied anyway.

CHRISTINA DELUCIA: It was literally like a week later, they said you got the home. So --

WHITFIELD: What was the moment like for the both of you?

DOMENIC DELUCIA: She was in tears.

WHITFIELD: The Delucias moved into is their four-bedroom Orlando house in mid-June, but not before first getting over the shock of being selected and meeting the star who helped to make this thing happen.

MCGRAW: It is just one of those things, the American dream, and who deserves the American dream more than those guys? I can't imagine anybody that does. And I'm proud to be a part of it. And I hope we can do more of it.

WHITFIELD: And apparently, while it starts off with 25, the goal is maybe a thousand homes will be awarded?

MCGRAW: Yes. That is the talk I'm hearing. And we're excited about it. And I hope we can continue to work together.

WHITFIELD: Do you worry that the need will be much greater than the supply?

MCGRAW: Well, look, there is always a greater need you than you can supply, no matter what you do in life. But if you help one person, then you help one person, and I think that's the ultimate goal is just to help somebody and try to help as much as you can.

WHITFIELD: A goal that country music's Tim McGraw is making possible, one concert and one home at a time.

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WHITFIELD: And since the Delucias got that home from Tim McGraw and others, they have another big reason to celebrate. They're expecting their fifth child in April. Congratulations to them.

And we'll catch you up on the top stories straight ahead. Plus introduce you to a presidential candidate that you have likely actually never heard of. Some say he could change the outcome of the election in a battleground state.

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