Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Obama, Romney Set for Final Debate; Lance Armstrong Breaks Silence

Aired October 22, 2012 - 15:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: And we roll on, hour two. Good to be with you. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Politics. Tonight is the night for President Obama and Mitt Romney, one final chance to make a lasting impression on you, the voter, one final prime-time debate tonight. It is all centered on foreign policy. And with Election Day two weeks from tomorrow, it is all tied. Look at this, 47 and 47. This is the latest CNN poll of polls, five nonpartisan surveys, all averaged together, 47 percent for Romney, 47 percent for the president.

Both sides call Ohio a must-win. It is going tougher and tighter, too, Obama leading Romney just by three points. This is our new Ohio poll of polls, an average of three surveys taken since that second debate.

And that brings us to Florida, tonight's debate and our Dana Bash.

Dana, incumbent president, oftentimes, they have the advantage, they have sat in that office as commander in chief for four years when it comes to foreign policy debates. I understand Romney will be drawing on his experience as a CEO. How is that?

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brooke, One of the things I'm told he has been practicing is to try to not only draw on his experience as a CEO, but try to make a connection between being a commander in chief, being somebody who is responsible for very important issues around the globe, to what he has done as a CEO.

And I talked to Dan Senor, who is a foreign policy adviser and also somebody who has been in the room during debate prep, which has been virtually every day since the last debate. He said that he is somebody who has been involved in messy situations, run complicated organizations and that's not unlike what you have to do as commander in chief.

You might hear some of that tonight. You're also going to try to see Mitt Romney move the whole conversation about foreign policy to the economy, connect it not only because it is something that the American people care most about, but also it is because it is in his wheelhouse.

And no other issue on the international stage can he make that connection with more than China. Didn't necessarily have the best moment in the last debate on China, and I played that for Dan Senor and asked how he can maybe recover this time. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will crack down on China. President Bush didn't.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Governor, you're the last person who's going to get tough on China. And what we've done when it comes to trade is not only sign three trade deals to open up new markets, but we've also set up a task force for trade that goes after anybody who is taking advantage of American workers or businesses and not creating a level playing field.

BASH: He got him there.

Governor, you're the last person who can talk about China.

How are you preparing to have a better response?

DAN SENOR, ROMNEY CAMPAIGN ADVISER: There are many American companies that do business abroad, as Governor Romney pointed out, even companies that President Obama has a connection to, in terms of his own portfolio, but the fundamental issue is China is ascendant in every -- by every metric including economically.

They're not playing fair. Governor Romney travels around the country, goes to places like Ohio where he meets with companies that are being set back directly because of China's unfair trade practices and its currency manipulation. And he's a tough no-nonsense competent negotiator who is going to put an end to this, period.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: You mentioned how tight the polls are in that ever important state of Ohio, Brooke. This issue of China plays incredibly well in Ohio because so many people there feel they have lost their jobs, lost their businesses because of those unfair trade practices with the powerhouse that is China.

But it is going to have to be something that Mitt Romney does in a delicate way, because it could easily be an issue that the president comes back to him on and says, look, you talk tough, but I know what it is like to need nuance when you're dealing with a behemoth like China and a country that happens to effectively own us when it comes to our debt and the deficits in this country.

BALDWIN: Dana Bash, we appreciate it. We will look for you during the CNN pregame debate here.

But I do want to turn now to the Obama team on the day of this foreign policy debate. The president's campaign released a new TV ad touting the president's success in navigating foreign affairs. Here is just a quick look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NARRATOR: A decade of war that cost us dearly and now for president a clear choice. President Obama ended the Iraq war. Mitt Romney would have left 30,000 troops there and called bringing them home tragic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Here is that was a quick clip as the Obama campaign tries to get a jump on the foreign policy discussion that will happen in Boca Raton.

Our chief White House correspondent, Jessica Yellin, is there as well in the spin room.

Jessica, what is the strategy behind this new ad and how does team Obama feel going into this evening?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Brooke.

The strategy is twofold, one to make the case that the president has kept his promises on foreign policy, that he's gotten the troops out of Iraq and begun a timetable to withdraw from Afghanistan, to set up the commander in chief test with Mitt Romney, and then to make this case that if Romney doesn't -- that Mitt Romney really hasn't laid out his own foreign policy or distinguished how his policy would be different from the president's.

And if he doesn't agree with the president, well, then, he's making a case for endless war. Would he leave troops in Afghanistan, would he put troops back in Iraq, would he commit U.S. resources to a war in Syria or in Iran? So either he's with the president or he's for endless war and trying to create that kind of a frame for the governor where the governor has to be for one or another.

As to how the president's team feels, they still insist that, look, the debate isn't the president's strongest format, but this is his most comfortable topic and one where they feel he does have an advantage on Governor Romney because he's been dealing with these issues for the last three-and-a-half years, Brooke.

BALDWIN: What about Libya? What about -- you know, presumably this time we just heard the interview with Dana Bash and Dan Senor that Romney will come prepared when it comes to the White House's changing story. What should we expect from the president?

YELLIN: You can bet, I'm sure, Governor Romney will be much more aggressive this time and with more data to go after the president.

And I think what you will hear from the president is an argument that he didn't change his story for any political reasons, that the story from the White House changed when his intelligence information changed. That's what they have been telling us all along, that the only reason the president, this is what they're saying, the only reason the president offered a different story was because that's what he was hearing from the intelligence reports.

And I believe that's what you can hear the president say later tonight as well.

BALDWIN: OK. And forgive me -- Dan Senor -- Senor.

What about Iran? We saw the article in "The Times" this weekend, reported the administration ready to hold these one-on-one talks with Iran after the election. The White House is now denying it. Iran denies it. But this issue could still come up tonight. How is the president prepared to handle it?

YELLIN: This could play into the larger strategy I was talking about earlier because the president could argue, look, he would prefer to hold one-on-one talks with Iran, rather than going into a war with Iran. And that could be the frame through which he approaches this discussion, Brooke.

BALDWIN: OK. Jessica Yellin, we appreciate it, and we will look for you tonight as well.

Reminding all of you, CNN's live debate coverage begins CNN, CNN.com 7:00 Eastern.

Coming up next, veteran newsman Dan Rather tells me what he would ask each presidential candidate tonight.

Plus, now that we know Ambassador Chris Stevens warned the State Department about security on the very day he was killed in Benghazi, how does President Obama defend that tonight? I will speak live with a former State Department official from both the Bush and Obama administrations next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Final debate of campaign 2012 less than six hours away, and CNN coverage begins at 7:00 tonight Eastern.

And in case you missed it, I talked last hour to really a veteran, veteran covering presidential campaigns, Dan Rather.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: If you were there in Boca Raton, what is the one foreign policy question you are absolutely dying to ask of the president?

DAN RATHER, NEWS ANCHOR: Well, I would think -- of the president or both candidates?

BALDWIN: Let's say the president.

RATHER: Well, OK, for the president.

It is one thing. What is in your opinion the single biggest threat to world peace and our own national security? And in a second term, if you're reelected, what would you do to alleviate that threat?

BALDWIN: What about to Governor Romney?

RATHER: It would be exactly the same question to him. If elected, what do you now consider the single biggest threat to world peace and our national security and, if elected, what would you do to diminish that threat?

BALDWIN: I have some sound, and I want to play some sound, this is Mitt Romney, this is from just last week, the last debate. And I have a feeling we might hear some version of this, this evening. Here he was.

ROMNEY: The president's policies throughout the Middle East began with an apology tour and -- and -- and pursue a strategy of leading from behind, and this strategy is unraveling before our very eyes.

BALDWIN: Unraveling before our very eyes. We have heard it from Romney. We have heard it from Paul Ryan. Dan Rather, would you press Mitt Romney for specifics on that? And I ask that question because it does, as you point out -- it doesn't seem to be, you know, not that much in terms of specifics or Obama and Romney when it comes to Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, and Iraq as well, what to do.

RATHER: Well, the question for Governor Romney -- and they're equally tough questions of other varieties for President Obama, but the question to Governor Romney is that he has talked tough about Russia, calling it in effect our number one enemy and opponent, he's talked tough about China, he's talked tough and threateningly about Iran, talked tougher about Syria.

So the question is, sir, do you think even though we're the world's ranking economic and military superpower, that we can afford to have confrontations with all of those countries with our military already stretched thin and our economy shaky? Does it make sense, does it really make sense to be in effect threatening Russia, China, Iran and Syria, to name just two? North Korea would be another.

That would be a question to ask him. I think Governor Romney has been -- he's seen some benefit of being on the offensive saying President Obama is weak. But it also leaves him vulnerable on, wow, is this a guy to keep the peace?

BALDWIN: Right, all the tough talk kind of makes you wonder what that then could lead to.

But, you know, we talked, Dan, we talk about politics being blood sport today. I want to go back to 1968, Democratic Convention in Chicago. Roll it.

RATHER: Take your hands off me. Unless you intend to arrest me, don't push me, please.

(CROSSTALK)

RATHER: But don't push me. Take your hands off of me, unless you plan to arrest me.

BALDWIN: Dan Rather getting roughed up. This is the floor of the DNC. I can't see you. But do you miss those days when politics -- there's the smile -- when politics was really rough?

RATHER: Well, politics is still rough. It is still very much a blood sport.

I do miss the conventions where things were decided. As you know so well, Brooke, that the modern political conventions of both parties, nothing is decided.

BALDWIN: Pep rallies.

RATHER: They're all pre-scripted.

In 1968, things were actually decided at both the Republican and Democratic Convention. I do miss that. I don't miss the punch in the stomach.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Dan Rather of Access TV. Dan, good to see you today.

Also this today. Just released, these cables show just hours before he was killed, U.S. Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens had a -- quote, unquote -- "growing frustration" that police in the country were too weak, and there is more. These cables show Stevens asked for more security staff at least three times in the months before he and three other Americans died on September 11 at after the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi was attacked.

And in one cable he writes, I'm quoting him, "Absence of significant deterrent has contributed to a security vacuum that is being exploited by independent actors. What we have seen are not random crimes of opportunity, but rather targeted and discriminate attacks" -- the words of Chris Stevens here.

The Republican chairman meantime of the government committee here looking into Benghazi released the documents Friday night.

And I want to bring in the former undersecretary of political affairs at the State Department, Nick Burns.

Nick, welcome.

NICHOLAS BURNS, FORMER UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE FOR POLITICAL AFFAIRS: Thank you.

BALDWIN: You were at the State Department for more than 10 years. Knowing about these cables now, can you just take me inside the State Department? You know, when you're hearing words like this, like security vacuum and you're getting these requests from an ambassador, what is the process like, how is it handled?

BURNS: Well, Brooke, I'm sure there will be lots of questions tonight about security posed to both President Obama and Governor Romney. It is a very important issue.

In the State Department, of course, security for our diplomats, for our people overseas in more than 275 embassies and consulates, that's job one, that's always been the priority. I know it has been for Secretary Clinton and for all of her predecessors.

I guess I would say this. I know there are documents being released. I haven't seen them. But we outside of government cannot possibly know all of the information and advice that went to the Obama administration from the various embassies and consulates.

As you know, Secretary Clinton has ordered a review and investigation of exactly what happened in Benghazi, and a lot of tough questions are going to be answered. I would think it would be wrong to rush to judgment, especially in the middle of a political campaign, and to start pointing fingers because that investigation itself should not be politicized and that investigation led by a very esteemed retired diplomat, Tom Pickering, ought to be able to go forward on its own.

I find the rush to judgment to be troubling. I hope tonight the two candidates can talk about two really important issues that seem to be lost here. How do we protect our diplomats and get full funding from the Congress because Congress cut funding for security for our diplomats? And how do we go after the terrorist group that killed Ambassador Stevens and his three colleagues?

To me, Brooke, it seems those are the two most important issues.

BALDWIN: Let me jump in on the vein of protecting our diplomats and you point out there are 275 consulates and embassies all around the world. Is a request like this fairly common for additional security? Are there certain hot spots around the world that let's say you at the State Department would have an extra eye on?

BURNS: Well, security is a problem in many embassies around the world and in nearly every part of the world there are embassies that have security challenges to them from one type or another.

So it is not uncommon in my experience to have requests for a third -- for further security and for further funding. Obviously, this was an extraordinary situation because Libya is right in the middle of the Arab revolutions in a country whose government had been overthrown. So it was obviously a high priority.

But I would say this. Part of the problem is the State Department has not received full funding. If it had full funding, it would be able to do more to ensure both the protection of our people as well as our facilities and that's why I think -- I hope that question is asked tonight. And I hope that both President Obama and Governor Romney will be given a chance to answer that question.

And I think it is fair to say why haven't we received full funding from the Congress for our embassies and consulates until now?

BALDWIN: OK. So funding being a huge issue according to you.

I do want to turn to the crisis in Syria. You have served -- as I mentioned a moment ago, you served in the State Department under both President Bush, President Obama administrations. What do you think would have been the response to Syria under President Bush?

BURNS: Well, let me just say, Brooke, I served in every administration from the early '80s until President Bush. I did not have the privilege of serving for President Obama, just to set the record straight.

I think Syria is a very difficult case because, unlike Libya, this is urban warfare. And so any kind of intervention if it were to be planned by the United States and its allies would require a significant amount of troops. It would be very dangerous and probably very costly in human life.

The question is now, with 25,000 to 30,000 civilians dead in Syria, what can the U.S. and other like-minded countries do to diminish support for Bashar al-Assad, the dictator in Syria, to give further help to the rebels? Is a no-fly zone the right way to go? Should there be humanitarian corridors set up so that the thousands of people trying to come out, the women and children, can receive adequate humanitarian assistance?

I don't think we're looking realistically at a military intervention in Syria, not at all. But we're probably looking at a greater effort to put further pressure on the Assad regime and to help the refugees.

BALDWIN: OK. Nick Burns, former undersecretary of political affairs at the State Department, Nick, thank you.

BURNS: Thank you.

BALDWIN: He lost a major endorsement deal with Nike. Then he stepped down from the cancer charity he founded. Now the final career blow.

Lance Armstrong has been stripped of his seven Tour de France titles. Coming up next, Armstrong breaks his silence.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Lance Armstrong's world continues to unravel. As if being stripped of his seven Tour de France cycling titles isn't enough, a Texas insurance company says it wants millions in bonus money back.

This is all in response to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency releasing what it calls overwhelming evidence that Armstrong was involved in a doping program. And just over this weekend, Lance Armstrong gave nothing more than really an indirect comment while attending a LIVESTRONG anniversary event. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE ARMSTRONG, FORMER PROFESSIONAL CYCLIST: Obviously, it has been an interesting and as I said the other night at times very difficult few weeks. People ask me a lot, how are you doing? And I tell them, I say, well, I have been better. But I have also been worse.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: CNN's sports anchor Don Riddell is here.

You were in Austin over the weekend. You're rubbing shoulders with obviously I presume friends, family, supporters, Sean Penn. What were they saying?

DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, they won't hear a bad word said about him. You can almost see their point of view. They were attending the 15th anniversary gala dinner for what has been an incredible 15 years for a cancer foundation that has raised some half a billion dollars since 1997, helped 2.5 million people around the world.

To them, it almost doesn't really matter. I talked to Sean Penn about it, and I said, does he still inspire you? He said, absolutely he inspires me.

BALDWIN: Despite all of this?

RIDDELL: Yes. Well, he says, because just look around you. Look at all the people he's helped. You would be hypocrite to say that he wasn't inspirational. What he did on the bike and what he did in that time is a really different story.

BALDWIN: What about the money, the bonus money? Does he have to pay all of that back?

RIDDELL: Well, he might well have to.

BALDWIN: How much are we talking?

RIDDELL: Well, for winning seven Tour de Frances, he was paid $4 million in prize money. So they now want that back. But, I mean, that's pocket change when you think about all the money he was given in bonuses by his sponsors, endorsement deals and all the rest of that.

These companies could quite legitimately come after him and say you misled all of us and we paid all that money thinking we were getting for this, and actually were paying for that.

BALDWIN: What about those -- if they're taking his titles away from the Tour de France, what about those others who came in behind him? Would they then get the title or...

RIDDELL: Good question. The International Cycling Union, they will discuss that on Friday. They're going to have another meeting. The Tour de France who, perversely, don't actually get to decide who wins the title, it's still the International Cycling Union that will decide -- they said, look, just give them to nobody, just put a line through those years.

From 1999-2005, it as if the tour just didn't exist. It is like a George Orwell "1984" moment, pretend it never happened, because who do you give it to? Because doping was so widespread during that era, that they were all cheating. Many of them have been found guilty themselves or admitted since that they were doping. You can't really give it to anybody.

BALDWIN: I was talking to Christine Brennan the other day, and she was saying, you know he did it when Nike pulls out. She said, look at Kobe Bryant, look at Ben Roethlisberger. She rattled off a number of athletes, Tiger Woods, who sort of have fallen off the tracks a little bit. They still stayed by them. Nike has not. Do you think Lance Armstrong will come forward and say, yes, I did it?

RIDDELL: I just can't see it happening. He's denied it for so long.

And the ways in which he's denied it make it so hard for him to do so. In 2005 in Paris, he stood on the podium and said, I feel sorry for you guys out there that can't believe in miracles. How do you go back on that?

I think it would sound ridiculous if he was to apologize and own up now. And in any case, I don't think he can because of all of these lawsuits that would be open against him from all these people wanting their money back. At least now he can say, well, I didn't definitely cheat. I would just rather not contest the allegations.

BALDWIN: Don Riddell, I'm sure we will see you again on the latest chapter of this. Don, thank you.

When it comes to foreign policy -- turn it back to politics here -- how is Mitt Romney different from former President George W. Bush, and how does Romney prove he's tougher than Obama without implying war? Margaret Hoover, John Avlon, they debate those topics next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Tonight's debate will give President Obama and Mitt Romney a chance to spell out their differences over foreign policy, but that might not be as easy as it sounds.

John Avlon and Margaret Hoover join me. John is in New York. He is a CNN contributor and senior political columnist for "Newsweek" and "The Daily Beast." Margaret is in Washington. She is a CNN political contributor and Republican consultant and, p.s., they're married, so that must make dinnertime conversation fun.

John Avalon, good to see you guys. John, let's just begin with you. We have 90 minutes here in this debate, Boca Raton, Florida, all on foreign policy. First, just as a neutral voice, how are their policies that different?

JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: Well, that is actually a perfectly reasonable question. What we know is the rhetoric is different. Mitt Romney has been very unsparing in saying what he's against, trying to characterize President Obama's foreign policy, which has been very popular with the American people, as apologizing for America. That kind of narrative riff which may be effective, but let's call it for what it is. It is not true. It is a lie.

But what he's got to do is not simply saber-rattle and try to attack the president. He's got to say what he's for and that's a major challenge because it is not -- this becomes a question not just of how he contrasts with President Obama, but how he contrasts with President Bush.

BALDWIN: That's exactly where I wanted to go next and I'm going to turn to your wife for that. Margaret, how does Governor Romney say, you know, we've heard the words "tougher" and "stronger" when it comes to Iran, when it comes to Syria, without sounding like he's ready to use force, without sounding like George W. Bush?

MARGARET HOOVER, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: So, I think that's a great question and therein lies exactly the fancy footwork that Mitt Romney's going to are to convey to the American people tonight.

Because you're right, we're in a different time. Americans are war-weary. We're not interested or eager to go off into other battlefields and to try to solve the world's problems.

On the other hand, what Mitt Romney continues to suggest and what Republicans continue to suggest is that the Americans are viewed with weakness in the Middle East now.

And, so, there actually is potentially a substantive policy difference in demonstrating posture, the posture of strength in the region, which actually -- posture can be policy. You want to communicate that you're willing to go to war with Iran, not that you're necessarily going to, but you have a credible ...

BALDWIN: So, you're saying if he says willingness, a willingness to go to war, you're saying that is him showing his posture?

HOOVER: So, what I'm suggesting is that, while some people say there is actually substantively no policy difference between what Mitt Romney would did and what Barack Obama would do, what I'm suggesting is the posture of projecting strength in the region actually amounts to a policy difference or could amount to a policy difference.

BALDWIN: Do you agree with your wife?

AVLON: I don't. Look, I think, no question, you know, politics is perception and that it applies to foreign affair affairs, as well, but let's be very clear about the differences between President Bush and President Obama.

The decision to focus on al Qaeda, resulting in the killing of Osama bin laden has been very effective for President Obama. The key difference is it hasn't been unilateral, military intervention. And I think the American people experienced that, saw a lot of unintended consequences it cost and want to turn the page on that era.

The question for Mitt Romney is, does he own that, does he own that and say, yes, I support the Bush doctrine or have a different vision?

And, if so, let's hear it because it's kind of late in the game to not know what the foreign policy philosophy a guy running for president's going to pursue.

BALDWIN: While I have you both, 60 seconds, you bring up bin Laden. Interestingly, I was talking to Jim Acosta who's been covering the Romney campaign and he was trying to get out of them, you know, will they bring up OBL?

Because, clearly, you know, that's a huge win for the president or does he wait for the president to bring it up? John, what do you think that Romney should do?

AVLON: I think he should acknowledge that success and then say, but there are other areas in the world, as well.

But, again, it is a question of not just saber-rattling. but specifics. If you're going to criticize, what would you do differently? And too often, we haven't seen that kind of specifics.

The president, as well, has got to lay out a clear, second-term agenda of how he's going to deal with the hot spots in the region.

BALDWIN: Margaret, finally here, Libya was sort of a missed opportunity in that last debate. It was great opening for Mitt Romney. How does he handle it tonight?

HOOVER: I mean, I think he has to say, you know, what did the president know? What did the administration know and when did they know it and why the missteps in communicating clearly to the American people from the beginning?

Because what the risk is is communicating a lack of uniformity or control over his administration, like he doesn't know where the ball is and who is saying what and this could be a damming narrative when you look at the entirety of his administration, from his energy policies, to his attorney general who's being held in contempt of Congress.

I think what he needs to do is to answer clearly why there were missteps from the administration in the beginning.

BALDWIN: Got to leave it there. Margaret Hoover, John Avalon, thanks, you too, appreciate it.

HOOVER: Thanks, Brooke.

BALDWIN: It has been called President Obama's "kill list," his use of drones to take out terrorists and it's rarely come up when you look at the campaign trail, the last two debates.

But, tonight, my next guest wrote a very stern piece in directly President Obama says it better come up and they better have answers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: It is the five-letter word both presidential candidates have declined to discuss on the trail or in a debate. That word being "drone."

And, yet, quote, "a drone is President Obama's weapon of choice." That's actually the title of this opinion piece from September in which CNN national security analyst, Peter Bergen, writes that the president has authorized, quote, "six times more strikes than the number during President George W. Bush's eight years in office."

And just earlier in the show, I spoke with the author of this article. This is from July's "Esquire" magazine. The title of the piece was "The Lethal Presidency of Barack Obama."

Tom Juneau spoke with me actually back in the summer on the president's kill list and how choosing who is on that list is still very much cloaked in secrecy, so Juneau told me, today, the question he would ask of the president tonight.

Here he was.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM JUNEAU, WRITER, "ESQUIRE" MAGAZINE: He has sort of relentlessly expanded the use of drones throughout his presidency. Would that expansion proceed unchecked through the second term or what would he do to limit this sort of ongoing expansion of the use of not just drones, but targeted killings, in general?

BALDWIN: You talked in your "Esquire" piece about collateral damage and a lot of the piece was about this 16-year old, Abdulrahman al-Awlaki, whose father, of course, we know was Anwar al-Awlaki who was taken out by a drone.

JUNEAU: Right.

BALDWIN: And his son was, as well, as this sort of accident.

JUNEAU: Two weeks later. They were not killed in the same strike. The son was 400 miles away from the father was. He was out looking for his father at the time and was killed ...

BALDWIN: Sitting with his friends.

JUNEAU: Right. We know so little about what happened to Abdulrahman al-Awlaki. He was 16-years old, he was an American citizen, and we know nothing.

BALDWIN: If our own technology is in the hands of other countries, does that worry you? JUNEAU: Well, it worries me because it is not just technology. The president has for the last two years or the administration has been making an argument in favor of drones.

It has been basically saying that we can use these virtually at any time and in any place to protect our interests. That has been a consistent argument on the part of the administration.

How can you make that argument and basically all of a sudden deny that to other countries. What if Russia does want to use drones?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Tom Juneau, thanks again for joining me.

By the way, go to Esquire.com. Just today, Tom posted a piece about the multiple questions he would ask of both the president and Governor Romney.

The rescue of six U.S. diplomats during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis now playing on the big screen and Alina Cho sits down with the real hostages and gets very candid details on how the conflict unfolded.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: In 1979, more than 60 Americans were taken captive at the U.S. embassy in Iran, but six were able to escape out a back door and that story of this radical CIA plan to get them home is now in movie theaters.

And CNN's Alina Cho sat down to speak with the real life stars of this incredible story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What happened?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Six of the hostages went out a back exit.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where are they?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Canadian ambassador's house.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the movie, "Argo," Ben Affleck plays Tony Mendez, a real life CIA operative who hatches a plan to rescue six Americans who eluded capture during the Iranian revolution.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've got an idea.

BEN AFFLECK, ACTOR: They're a Canadian film crew for a science fiction movie. I fly into Tehran. We all fly out together as a film crew.

CHO: That fake science fiction movie is called "Argo."

UNIDENTIFIED MALEL If I'm doing a fake movie, it is going to be a fake hit.

CHO: These are the real embassy workers on which the film is based.

What was your first thought when you saw it?

BOB ANDERS, FORMER CONSULAR OFFICER: It was more exciting than the real thing.

CHO: Bob Anders, Lee Schatz, Mark and Cora Lijek, Kathleen Stafford, five of the six. The first time they have all sat down together for a TV interview.

The only one who couldn't be with us is Kathleen's husband, Joe, currently working for the State Department in the Sudan.

CHO: These are the actors who played you. What do you think? Sure looks like Joe.

ANDERS: Yes.

KATHLEEN STAFFORD, FORMER CONSULAR ASSISTANT: Even got his little sweaters right. You know, he used to wear these little sleeveless sweater vests. That's him.

CHO: They took me back to the day, November 4th, 1979, when Iranian students climbed the wall and stormed the U.S. embassy.

What went through your mind?

LEE SCHATZ, FORMER AGRICULTURE ATTACHE: This will only last for a little while before the government will come and stop this and I just tried to keep my staff kind of calm and collected.

STAFFORD: I remember calling my mother after about the first 24, 48 hours and I said, don't worry, you're going to see some things on the news, but I'm safe and I'll call you in a few days and, of course, I didn't call back for three months.

CHO: Seventy-nine days, they hid from the Iranians in the homes of Canadian diplomats and came to be known as "the houseguests."

STAFFORD: People would come to the house. We would go upstairs and hide. At one point, there were Revolutionary Guards outside the door.

CHO: Then, on January 26th, 1980 ...

SCHATZ: There is a knock on the door. I open the door, and there's two guys standing there in trench coats. And I said, really? Trench coats?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you gotten people out this way before?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. This is what I do. And I've never left anyone behind. CORA LIJEK, DIPLOMAT: Tony is a very charming guy, very convincing.

CHO: Did you trust him?

MARK LIJEK, DIPLOMAT: we didn't have a whole lot of choice. I think if we said no thanks, send in another infiltration expert ....

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You really believe your little story is going to make a difference when there is a gun to our heads?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think my little story is the only thing between you and a gun to your head.

CHO: Movie spoiler, it worked. And once they cleared Iranian air space ...

SCHATZ: We all ordered drinks and I'm sure the people on the plane, if they wondered, wondered why there were these arms that went up, as we made eye contact because we were sitting in different places, but we knew why.

CHO: Alina Cho, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Got to go see that movie.

They can't vote but their parents will and some American kids are asking some pretty serious questions of both the president and Mitt Romney.

And Linda Ellerbee from Nickolodeon's "Nick News" joins me live on what surprised her the most after sitting down with them for a special.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: So the third and final presidential debate happening tonight. And we are watching both of the candidates very closely. So closely, in fact, we just wanted to turn around two of these photos.

You can see Mitt Romney -- this is a seated debate, by the way. This is the only presidential debate in which these two gentlemen will be seated at this table. It's moderated by CBS's Bob Schieffer.

So, these two photos, again, reminder, the debate starts at 7:00 Eastern. As far as topics here, immigration, the economy, national security, these are the issues that are front and center for American voters this election year.

But guess what? They're also on the minds of America's kids. Every four years, Nickelodeon's "Nick News" asks kids to send in their questions for the candidates.

So, this year, President Obama actually sat down to respond, but Mitt Romney did not, blaming his schedule. So, after hearing about the issues, these kids had a chance to vote for their next president all part of this online poll.

Joining me now is Linda Ellerbee, the host of "Nick News." Linda, a pleasure to have you on. Part of your election special showcased this one kid whose family was clearly going through some tough times financially and, from what I can tell, a number of these teenagers are very aware of what's happening with regard to the economy.

LINDA ELLERBEE, HOST, NICKELODEON "NICK NEWS": Well, I think it's hard to avoid now when you consider the technology and the prevalence of it.

Kids today simply know more, they're aware of more and, hopefully, they're getting more involved in the political process.

We look at what we do not as -- we're not supporting one candidate or another. For me, it's not important who wins. It's important that the kids get out there and practice voting. We're the practice field.

BALDWIN: The practice round before the real deal happens when they turn 18.

I understand this is the big CNN exclusive here, Linda. You're going to give us the results of the voting.

ELLERBEE: I am indeed and let me just preface it by saying that we've been doing this since 1988 and that's 24 years and in five of the last six elections, the kids' vote has correctly predicted the grown-ups' vote and they have been right five out of the last six presidential elections.

The winner is Barack Obama with a huge margin, 65 percent to Romney's 35 percent.

BALDWIN: So the president gets another four years, according to middle school, teenagers ...

ELLERBEE: Middle school kids, mostly. And it's not just because -- I don't think it's because Romney did not answer their questions because the only other time we had a candidate refuse, it was John Kerry in 2004. He's a Democrat.

BALDWIN: Why was it? Why do you think they picked the president?

ELLERBEE: The kids picked him for president incorrectly, as it turned out. But it didn't matter to them that he had refused.

So, I don't think this time that the kids made their choice based on, well, Romney didn't answer our questions. How they made their choices is something you would have to ask them.

BALDWIN: Let's hear from one of these kids because as we mentioned, they're very aware. They know what's happening in the economy, but some of the questions were lighthearted as well, like this one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm 15. I've been heartbroken before. Have you ever been? And what did you learn about yourself from it?

OBAMA: I promise you that happens to all of us. That happened to me, where you get a girlfriend or a boyfriend and somehow it didn't turn out that well.

You know, I think the main thing you learn is that life goes on and, you know ...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Somehow we manage through heartbreak. It's happened to all of us.

ELLERBEE: You know, the reason that we put those questions in, because most of the questions are about the major issues ...

BALDWIN: Right.

ELLERBEE: ... but the candidates are so used to answering -- you say jobs, the stump speech comes out. You say Iran, the stump speech comes out.

BALDWIN: But heartbreak.

ELLERBEE: A kid suddenly saying, have you ever had your heartbroken? You get a chance to kind of se through the Teflon that coats the candidates and get a little glimpse of the person inside.

BALDWIN: So, of all the questions you heard this go-round, what's the question, what's the one moment that surprised you the most?

ELLERBEE: One kid asked the question, how do you know when you're right or when you're wrong? Do you always know? And what if other people don't agree with you?

You know, I heard that question and I thought, why aren't we grown-up journalists smart enough to ask a question like that?

BALDWIN: And to admit when we're wrong, we're wrong and say it. Linda, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

ELLERBEE: My pleasure.

BALDWIN: We will be hearing from both candidates tonight, the big presidential debate, Boca Raton, Florida, watch starting at 7:00 Eastern only here on CNN.

New information now about Cuba's Fidel Castro. We'll show you a newly released picture that perhaps will end speculation about his health.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The names of the three victims of a shooting rampage at a Wisconsin beauty salon have been revealed. One of them, the suspected gunman's estranged wife.

Police say that after gunning down the three victims and wounding four others, 45-year-old Radcliffe Haughton killed himself.

After a tense manhunt, his body was found hours later in a back room of the spa. Just days before his wife had filed a restring order against him. A judge ordered him to stay away from her.

And Cuba's former leader wants all to know he is alive and well. In fact, Fidel Castro says he doesn't, quote, "even remember what a headache is." At least this is according to an article published under his name on a state-run website today.

And you see these pictures showing Castro strolling in a garden? They were posted on that same website, as well.

Cuban state media outlets have been trying to refute speculation that castor is close to death. He hasn't been seen in public since March.

And, again, quick reminder, big final presidential debate tonight, 9:00 is when it begins, Eastern time in Boca Raton, Florida. We have our A-team there on the ground and in Washington ready to get you ready for it beginning at 7:00 Eastern, including my colleague, Wolf Blitzer.

So, that's it for me. Thanks so much for being with me. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Let's send things to Washington to Wolf Blitzer. Your "Situation Room" begins right now.