esponsible for the content of this advertising. captioning sponsored by cbs >> pelley: campaign 2016's biggest night, the candidates meet for their first debate. we'll talk to voters in one of the battleground states that will decide the election. >> we asked our panel to describe the campaign in one word. >> distasteful. >> messy. >> pelley: also tonight, what's driving a big jump in the crime rate? we'll remember a rising star in baseball. >> got him! >> pelley: jose fernandez killed in a tragic accident. >> you watch kids play little league, that's the joy that jose played with. >> pelley: and one of the legends of golf, arnold palmer. then we'll end tonight with first family ties.

this is the "cbs evening news" with scott pelley. reporting tonight from hofstra university in hempstead, new york. >> pelley: this is our western edition. in a race that is approaching a tie, tonight could be a decisive moment. hillary clinton's poll numbers peaked in mid-august, and ever since her lead has been slipping with donald trump rising. now, as they meet in the middle, they will meet on this stage to break the deadlock. they're playing to a tough crowd, millions of americans who say they don't trust either one. but with the mix of politics, celebrity and anything-can- happen unpredictability, the audience could set a record. we'll have the entire debate right here live on cbs tonight, but in the meantime, we have extensive coverage and we'll begin with nancy cordes covering hillary clinton. >> reporter: scott, clinton often says that she likes to do

her homework, and today she did it right up until it was due, with one more prep session at a hotel near her home. her campaign says it's worried that trump will be graded on a curve, rewarded just for keeping himself in check. >> i've given my answer, lying ted. >> reporter: clinton campaign aides tell cbs news they're increasingly convinced trump will be more measured than in previous primaries. >> don't worry, little marco. >> reporter: so they've adjusted their strategy, arguing that demeanor isn't trump's only achilles heel. >> we are concerned that donald trump may lie. >> politifact rated him the liar of the year last year. >> politico calculated he lies about every three minutes. >> reporter: in debates it helps to be an underdog. but that's not an option for clinton. >> this is a phony attack. >> reporter: she's participated in more debates than any other modern presidential candidate. polls show voters expect her to win, and she needs to a win to halt her recent slide. >> it's really close.

>> reporter: in florida, clinton's running mate tim kaine predicted the format will be trump's undoing. >> the thing about 90 minutes is you can't hide. donald trump likes to say, i'm going to build this wall, and clinto i'm not taking any questions. you have 90 minutes, and a moderator and two of you on stage. you can run but you can't hide. >> reporter: clinton's aides say she will be less focused on landing zingers than on describing her vision for the country. they say she'll never have an audience this large again, and she doesn't want to squander the opportunity to drum up some much-needed enthusiasm. >> reporter: i'm major garrett. donald trump arrived at hofstra university much like he prepared, nonchalant and upbeat. advisers said the g.o.p. nominee spent the day relaxing and holding short, informal sessions about the debate, no briefing books, no mock debate. thin preparation for the biggest moment of the general election campaign.

in new hampshire, running mate mike pence primed the audience for a trump victory. >> there is going to be a match that will make history in america. we're excited. tremendous momentum in this campaign. >> reporter: during the republican primary debates, trump's facial expressions often stole the show. >> yes, you did. >> totally false. >> reporter: possibly an advantage against many rivals, perhaps a disadvantage in a one- on-one format. trump also prided himself on his improvisation skills. >> excuse me. one second. >> no. >> jeb, more energy tonight. i like that. >> reporter: counter-punching and labeling opponents before they could label him. >> that's matter of principal. >> you are a liar. you probably are worse than jeb bush. you are the single biggest liar. >> reporter: and trump had no fear saying what had never been said before. >> he referred to my hands, if they're small, something else must be small. i guarantee you there's no problem, i guarantee you.

>> reporter: trump released more specifics on his economic plan today, calling for more protectionist trade policy, scott. republicans have not embraced that philosophy for decades, but it's part of the trump g.o.p. transformation that finds its biggest stage and biggest audience tonight. >> pelley: major garrett tonight at hofstra. major, thank you. joining us now is john dickerson, our cbs news political director and the anchor of "face the nation" and a moderator of two of the primary debates. john, millions, tens of millions of people are going to watch this debate, but the supporters of hillary clinton and donald trump are not likely to have their minds changed. what are the candidates trying to do here? >> so we talk about debates in terms of winners and losers, but the vast majority of people watching have their winners and losers. they pick them before the debate. they know who they will be. there are two audiences. one is the audience of enthusiasts. and both candidates want to make them more enthusiastic, that means getting them out to vote. there are a lot of people who are not sure whether they're going to vote at all.

the others who are enthusiastic already, get them out and volunteer. so it's going to be give people a reason to believe. there's a much smaller group, which is the swing voters or undecided. that's very small, people going back and forth, and those people are likely to keep going back and forth. >> pelley: now, the voters are likely to learn a great deal about the candidates tonight. this campaign seems to have been going on forever. what are we going to see tonight that we haven't seen before? >> voters can look up issues on web sites and things like that. atet you get to see in a debate are the habits of mind, not just what they believe but why they believe it, how the brain wiring works. the reason that's important is when you get into the white house, you're constantly surprised. it's those habits of mind, you're inquisitiveness, your adaptability, your ability to think about problems in a new way, your ability to communicate, take complicated problems, break them down, proble explain them. sidentsre the things presidents do, and you get to see some of that in a debate. >> pelley: tonight we'll get to see them think. john, thanks very much. john, nancy, major and bob

schieffer will join us here for cbs news live coverage of the debate beginning at 9:00 eastern. of course, that's 8:00 central and 6:00 in the west. and cbs news will be fact- checking during the debate on twitter @cbs news and at cbsnews.com/politics. we already know how most states are going to vote. their either reliably democratic or republican. the election will be decided by about a dozen states that could swing either way, including north carolina. manuel bojorquez is listening to voters there. >> reporter: anne soeder and stephen spaulding are friends on the court, but opponents in this election. spaulding is voting for clinton. soeder supports trump. we sat down with them and other north carolina voters this weekend. >> as far as national security, i don't feel safe. i think it's getting, our i think country, i think it's getting worse.

this whole isis thing, what donald offers is that he wants to put a hold on bringing people into the country until we can get a better handle on who we're letting in. >> reporter: but when it comes to defeating isis, he has not revealed a plan. >> i don't think anyone anywhere has. >> what's the most important issue for you? >> tone. it comes down to i believe the president is the chief setter of tone in america for race, for hope. >> reporter: race was a large part of our conversation. mariah hurt is undecided. >> we do not have the same type of privileges people who are white have. >> why do you feel in this day and age that you do not have the same opportunities as a white child? >> schools that my area, that we go to and schools that privileged children or white children would go to, there was a difference in what was being taught.

>> i wish we had better choices. >> reporter: shiloh bouldin is critical of donald trump's attempts to sway the black community. n you're tu're trying to win someone over, who starts with the line, "what do you have to lose?" >> trump. >> you're coming off gate the wrong way. >> reporter: for college student aspen turney, immigration is the top concern, she's voting trump, although she thinks building a border wall is going too far. >> i think that's too extreme, but i think we need more strict policies on who will come in and stronger border patrol. >> reporter: how many of you feel this is the most important election you will have voted in? all of you. we asked our panel to describe the campaign in one word. >> embarrassing. >> distasteful. >> dramatic. >> ugly. >> messy. >> disorienting. >> i would like to hear clear

answers to the questions, not avoid them and talk about other things. >> i would like to see two adults talking and not two children. >> reporter: substance? >> substance. >> reporter: polls indicate a tight race here in north carolina. scott, trump has visited the state seven times since accepting the nomination. clinton has visited twice as the nominee and is scheduled to be here in raleigh tomorrow. >> pelley: manuel bojorquez, thanks. in houston today, a man described as a disgruntled lawyer shot randomly at drivers outside a strip mall. six people were hit by bullets, one was critically wounded. three others were hit by flying glass. police shot and killed the lawyer, who was dressed in military clothing with old nazi emblems. this of course comes just days after a gunman opened fire at a shopping mall in burlington, washington. five people there were killed in about one minute.

the suspect was in court today. police say he has already confessed and mireya villarreal is following this. >> reporter: arcan cetin entered a packed courtroom filled with grieving family members. >> do you understand the charges? >> yes, sir. >> reporter: cetin, charged on five counts of premeditated murder, has still given no motive into friday night's attack. cetin is a naturalized u.s. citizen from turkey and has expressed an interest in guns through social media. his stepfather, david marshall, spoke after the hearing. >> our son has had mental health issues that we have been trying to work on with him. that's all i can say. >> reporter: just before 7:00 on friday night, 9-1-1 calls poured in from mall customers. they describe a man walking into macy's with a gun. court documents describe cetin's alleged attack. he initially shot a juvenile victim near clothing racks. he moved to the make-up counter

where he shot an adult male victim and then shot three adult female victims. the entire attack took one victims. 24 hours after the killings, police found cetin 30 miles from the crime scene. the victims included sarai lara, a 16-year-old cancer survivor, chuck eagan, a maintenance worker at boeing. belinda galde, a probation officer and her 95-year-old mother, beatrice dotson. this memorial continues to grow. some who have come here knew the victims, most are complete strangers, moved by the loss. scott, cetin's next court hearing is later in october. >> pelley: mireya villarreal for us tonight. mireya, thank you. in charlotte, north carolina, the midnight curfew has been lifted. the violence that broke out last week after police shot and killed a black man has died down. protest marches continue, however. 11 people were arrested overnight. the police say that keith scott was shot after he refused to

drop a gun. but dash cam and body camera footage do not provide a clear image of the shooting. the f.b.i. reported today that violent crime went up last year and it included a sharp increase in murders. so we asked jeff pegues to look into this. >> reporter: police in los angeles are looking for whoever killed a man in a weekend burglary in the hollywood hills. across the country, the f.b.i. report shows a spike in violent crime, up nearly 4% in 2015 compared to 2014. murders and manslaughter increased nearly 11%. some studies pin the blame on poverty, fewer police officers and gang activity. >> i was a police officer for 34 years. >> repor >> reporter: ronald serpas, a police chief in new orleans, nashville, and washington state, says more high-powered weapons are also a factor. >> young men who choose a dangerous lifestyle are choosing more lethal weapons that deliver

more firepower. >> reporter: this year in louisville, kentucky, murders are up 50% from last year. and with just under three months to go, chicago already has 44 more homicides than it did all of last year. but some cities that saw an uptick in the murder rate last year are now experiencing a decrease. according to a brennan center study, in 2016, baltimore's murder rate is projected to decrease nearly 10%, washington, d.c.,'s nearly 13%. some in law enforcement attribute the spike in some cities to the so-called ferguson effect, where some police have been more cautious on patrol because of high-profile officer- involved shootings. scott, despite the recent spike, it is important to note that crime has been at a historic low. >> pelley: jeff pegues reporting ve major fashington newsroom. jeff, thank you.

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>> three hitters, three strikeouts. >> reporter: he was precise and powerful, pitch perfect. >> reporter: at 24, jose fernandez was electrifying, a two-time all-star who had quickly become one of the game's brightest stars. >> reporter: that light dimmed early sunday morning. the coast guard found this boat flipped upside down, crashed on a rock jetty. officials say fernandez and two friends died. authorities believe the driver was speeding. nobody was wearing a life jacket, and the cause of the accident is under investigation. inside the marlins' locker room, manager don mattingly was almost inconsolable. >> you watch kids play little league, something like that, that's the joy that jose played with. and the passion he felt about playing. >> reporter: in 2008 at 15, fernandez defected from cuba. he was shot at and jailed for trying to leave the communist country three different times. he finally succeeded on his fourth attempt. five years later he became a

baseball sensation, winning rookie of the year. the day before that announcement, major league baseball cameras recorded a surprise reunion with the grandmother who helped raise him and stayed behind when he fled. >> so help me god. >> reporter: last year, fernandez became a u.s. citizen. >> so achieving it, it's a really amazing thing. >> reporter: a week ago, jose fernandez announced he and his girlfriend were expecting their first child. scott, at tonight's marlins' game in miami, everyone on the team is going to wear number 16, fernandez's number. >> pelley: david begnaud, thanks. next, we'll remember one of golf's all-time greats. thinking about what to avoid, where to go... and how to deal with my uc. to me, that was normal. until i talked to my doctor. she told me that humira helps people like me

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a reason, though it went far beyond the company he kept on the course. he had a royal touch in business. >> pennzoil helps keep the equipment in shape. >> reporter: building a $700 million fortune. but that wasn't it either. nor was it the medals and trophies that made him a hero to his army of fans. >> and there goes the gallery. look at them race for position. >> reporter: the son of a greenskeeper from western pennsylvania, arnold palmer was a charismatic king with a common touch who never forgot where he came from. signing every autograph by hand, even when no one was looking. cigarette dangling and going for broke, palmer was the ultimate mid-20th century man. >> the line is perfect. >> reporter: but his class and grace were timeless. jim axelrod, cbs news, new york. ed many am the debate tonight has inspired many americans to join a party, a debate-watching party. bars all over the country are

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they do have a special bond, the democratic obamas and the republican bushes. we saw it at the memorial service for the fallen dallas officers when mr. bush and mrs. obama held hands and swayed to the music. and president obama has often expressed gratitude for the bush's kindness during the transition, including the advice the bush daughters gave his daughters. >> they told them to surround themselves with loyal friends, never stop doing what they love to, slide down the banisters occasionally. occasionally. >> pelley: by all accounts, the families have grown closer over the years. this picture went viral. we can only hope the sentiment is just as contagious. and that's the western edition of the "cbs evening news" for tonight. we'll be right back with the debate. for all of us at cbs news all around the world, i'm scott pelley in hempstead, new york. see you in a minute.,, ,,,,,,

captioning sponsored by cbs >> pelley: they finally meet, hillary clinton and donald trump. one will be the the next president of the united states, and they're about to debate for the first time here on cbs. >> we're going to make the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes. >> we're going to protect your jobs and your wages. >> he's talked about sending in american ground troops. not on my watch. >> law and order must be restored. >> campaign 2016, the first presidential debate from hofstra university in hempstead, new york, here are scot