i'm steve handelsman, nbc news. back to you. >> steve, thanks. >>> president obama and romney will have their second debate tuesday in long island, new york. andrea mitchell led the truth squad with a fact check. she started with the deadly september 11th attack in benghazi. paul ryan accusing them of protecting u.s. personnel. >> what we should not be doing is rejecting claims for calls for more security in barracks and marines. we need marines in benghazi when the ambassador says we need them. the requests were not honored. >> biden called the deaths a tragedy. the obama administration did not know they had been asking for more security help. >> we weren't told they wanted more security. we did not know they wanted more security. by the way, at the time, we were told exactly, we said exactly what the intelligence community told us that they knew. that was the assessment. >> there was an assessment, but the state department did know from videos that requests had been made and were turned down. a state department of

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, denver. >>> all right. so how did the candidates do? well, post debate instant polls reveal that most voters believe mitt romney did better than president obama. a cnn orc poll shows that 67% of registered voters who watched the debate chose mr. romney as the winner while 25% chose mr. obama. a cbs snap poll showed that 45% identified mitt romney while 22% said barack obama won and 32% called it a tie. the candidates tangled over taxes and figures of cuts or increases. andrea mitchell looked into the truth behind the rhetoric of both candidates. >> let me repeat what i said. i'm not in favor of a $5 trillion tax cut. that's not my plan. my plan is not to put in place any tax cut that will add to the deficit. >> reporter: romney has proposed making the bush tax cuts permanent for all tax levels and then cutting all rates an additional 20%. he would repeal the alternative minimum tax and repeal the estate tax. they said mitt romney's tax plan would cost $4.8 trillion over ten years. he said his plan would be paid for but to pay for those

from the campus of hofstra university, i'm steve handelsman, nbcs news. lynn, back to you. >>> well, nbc's andrea mitchell has been leading our troop squad during these debates and last night she spoke with brian williams and they began with that disagreement you just heard over domestic energy and oil production. >> oil production did fall by 14% on federal lands on shore and offshore, brian. but that was only in one year from 2010 to 2011. and it was largely the result of fallout from the deepwater horizon oil spill in the gulf of mexico. but mr. obama is right that since he took office, oil production on federal lands is up. in both 2009 and 2010, oil production increased so even with the 14% drop last year, overall production on federal lands is still up. 10.6% since 2008. one other thing in terms of natural gas production, natural gas production on federal lands is down. and has been declining since 2003. according to the energy information administration. mainly because of a decline in offshore natural gas drilling. >> another topic early on, what d

for the very latest, let's check in with nbc's steve handelsman live at the university of denver. good evening, steve. >> reporter: janelle, thanks. good evening from a suddenly blustery cold denver, where the gold tonight is political substance. when this debate gets started in less than an hour here at the university of denver, moderator jim lehrer will demand the studio audience not boo or hiss or applaud. no distractions, he'll say. so the voters, many, many millions watching from home, will get to concentrate on what these political competitors have to say. more than 60 million americans could watch tonight's debate. >> i've made up my mind. but i'd still like to see both of the candidates sweat a little bit. >> reporter: president obama looked relaxed this week. mitt romney too, but he knows he has to change perceptions tonight. more voters now see romney negatively than see him positively. and that loses elections. >> only two presidential candidates in the last 20 years of "the wall street journal"/nbc polling have had a net negative image at this point and one of them los

nbc's steve handelsman reports from denver. >> reporter: the pressure is intense. president obama took time out for a visit to hoover dam. >> it's spectacular. i've never seen it before. >> reporter: mitt romney grabbed a burrito bowl. doug hudson, andrew lumpkin and chris conroy run bicycle companies in colorado. they took me out to red rocks. these guys will watch the debate. andrew hoping for a breakthrough by his candidate, mitt romney. >> i want him to talk about conservative values, especially economically. empowering small businesses. >> reporter: chris used to vote republican. not anymore. >> what really change my mind recently is it seems to have got an way from taking care of the little guy. >> reporter: doug is undecided. >> i'd like to see details both from romney and obama. mainly on tax policy. >> reporter: vice president biden charged team romney would hike middle-class taxes. >> how they can justify raising taxes in the middle class that has been buried the last four years. >> reporter: republicans jumped on that, buried by obama? >> vice president

live from washington, i'm steve handelsman, nbc bay area news. >> thank you, steve. >>> different reports tonight on how the 9/11 benghazi attack developed. questions over whether the attack was spontaneous or planned in advance is under investigation, and has become a key issue in the presidential campaign. sources tell the associated press the cia station chief reported to washington within 24 hours of the attack that militants were responsible. however, the "washington post" quotes the cia, which describes the demonstration as, quote, spontaneously inspired by similar protests in cairo. the protests were over an anti-islamic video. the cia report adds that extremists likely participated in the benghazi attack in which four americans were killed. >>> the group common cause of california wants answers. it's calling on the state's political watchdog to order an out-of-state group to reveal its donors. that out-of-state group is called americans for responsible leadership. it raised eyebrows earlier this week when it contributed $11 million to the small business action committee. that's th

steve handelsman is live in washington with an update for us. good evening, steve. >> reporter: janelle, thanks. good evening to you. neck and neck means there are a whole lot of different combinations of wins. in the swing states like florida that could mean a victory on november 6th. and so these candidate are trying to hit all the battlegrounds. mitt romney and paul ryan's swing state tour started in colorado. they split up, romney going to nevada, where he trails by three points, but claimed he is closing on the president. >> he's out of ideas and out of excuses, and in november you're going to put him out of office. >> mitt romney and i believe in true compassion and upward mobility. >> colorado could be key. last night outside denver, thousands cheered the republican ticket. the obama lead in this state has disappeared. to slow the slide, barack obama will visit five swing states. >> we're going to pull an all-nighter. >> reporter: starting in iowa, where his lead is down to two points. >> iowa, you know me. you know -- you know that i say

steve handelsman showed us that headline. when does that translate, or does it translate in the polling? >> that's the great question. we haven't seen ygreat surveys. some folks believe this electorate is locked in there. then again, this could end up having some type of change. i would just warn people a little bit, that sometimes you end up having this one debate, we saw george w. bush lose his first debate in 2004. we saw ronald reagan lose his debate against walter mondale in 1984, and those two were able to win the election. >> was this as chris christie said today, a wipeout or give the president a new opening? >> it gives him a potential new opening. the biggest thing we're going to see, and we won't be sure about the poll numbers to reflect this, this allows mitt romney to go on the offensive. over the last month mitt romney has been on the defensive, whether the controversial 47% comment, clint eastwood's dialogue with the empty chair at the convention. these presidential races go up and down, up and down, and i thin

here is nbc's steve handelsman from washington. >> hello, everybody, hello, hello! >> reporter: president obama, whose last public break from debate camp was jed yed is being warned insiders say not to overcorrect and be too aggressive tomorrow night. at the town hall-style debate at hofstra university on long island -- >> yes, he needs to show he is tougher, yes, he needs to attack, but he doesn't want to come across as a bully. for mitt romney, the number one piece of advice that he is getting is to engage with these questioners. in town halls he has a tendency when he gets a tough question to back away. >> debate number one erased the president's lead in virginia and reduced it in other swing states. the race is tied nationally in two new polls. but mitt romney's likability has shot up after the denver debates. and romney's not mentioned in the new obama ad. >> stick with this guy. he will move us forward. >> reporter: the new romney poll ryan ad replayed the vp debate. >> did they come in a tough situation? absolutely. but we're going in the wrong direction. mak

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, cincinnati. >>> back here at home, fremont's solyndra may be bankrupt, but its lawyers are still fighting, suing the company's chinese competitors. solyndra's attorneys filed a lawsuit in san francisco federal court claiming the chinese companies conspired to create a monopoly in solar panel manufacturing, and they were supported by chinese banks which offered them below market loan rates. solyndra is seeking damages of at least $1.5 billion for the loss of its business. a director, though, for one of the chinese companies tells bloomberg the lawsuit is solyndra's way of making china a scapegoat for its failure. >>> a down day for stocks. the market closed today with its worst week since early june. now the day started with modest gains, but ended mixed after the first round of corporate earnings. okay. let the rumors begin. tech bloggers are now speculating that apple is set to release a mini ipad before the end of this month. reuters is reporting that apple will hold a special event on october 23rd. for month there's has been speculation that the comp

from denver, i'm steve handelsman, nbc bay area news. >> thank you steve. >>> how did the debate play in the bay area? and did voters here like what the candidates had to say? monte francis watched the debate with a group of political science students. the president's own staff tonight said romney won the debate when it came to style points gop the students there agree? >> for the most part, yes, they do agree. about 120 political sciences students came here to watch the debate along with some professors and some alumni. the general consensus was romney had a slight edge over the president in terms of his performance at the debate tonight. >> two rebuild america. >> more effective. more charismatic. >> i will lower taxes on middle income families. >> governor romney held his own. actually, i was surprised. >> reporter: after the debate was over, even some of the president's biggest supporters in the room felt that romney had won. >> romney did a great job in presenting himself in like a very positive way. even though, like, the answers that obama gave were very pro democratic, pro pub

nbc's steve handelsman joins us live from the arena with the story. steve? >> reporter: thanks, good evening. i can tell you this, the guy who's going to run this debate for all of us to learn from, you won't hear that guy call this a rumble in the rockies, mark jim lehrer will order those in the audience not to boo or his or clap. we, americans, can concentrate on what these candidates have to say. more than 60 million americans could watch tonight's debate. >> i've made up my mind, but i'd still like to see both of the candidates sweat a little bit. >> reporter: president obama looked relaxed this week. mitt romney, too. but he knows he has to change perceptions tonight. more voters now see romney negatively than see him positively. and that loses elections. >>. >> reporter: in virginia, romney's down by just two. with a lot on the line in past debates, romney has done well. >> going against romney is not a fun thing. he has the facts. he drills you, stays, tenacious. >> reporter: and sometimes aggressive. >> the idea that i'm anti-immigrant is repulsive.

live from denver, i'm steve handelsman, news 4. >> thanks, steve. and a program note. nbc news will provide live coverage and analysis of the presidential debate. you can watch it here on nbc 4 starting at 9:00 tomorrow night. >>> meanwhile a judge in pennsylvania has postponed the commonwealth's tough new voter i.d. law. that law requires each voter to show a valid photo i.d. at the polls. supporters say it will prevent voter fraud. critics say there's not enough time for everyone to get the i.d.s and the law could deter some elderly and minority voters from going to the polls. today's decision blocks the i.d. requirement for now but allows it to go into effect next year. the ruling could be appealed, but analysts say it is unlikely to be overturned before the election. >>> she says a dollar makes her holler. coming up next, just how much money is honey boo boo making from being a reality star? here's a hint. her family is getting a big pay raise. >>> i'll bet. plus the problem with the iphone 5 that is leaving a lot of customers fearing bigger cell phone bills. >>> t

barry simms -- we began with steve handelsman in washington on how the presidential candidates are upping the ante when it comes to winning the race for the female vote. >> how to win women is complicated for both sides. it is about jobs and opportunities and respect and reproductive rights. president obama went to new hampshire, another swing states, where he has lost the lead, with time running out. the president's figures a key to a comeback as women. in the second day tuesday, mitt romney boasted he had asked the help of women's groups to staff his massachusetts governor's office. >> they brought us more -- hold binders full of women. >> that, said president obama today, is the difference between him and governor romney. >> we don't have to order of binders to find qualified, talented, driven young women. governor romney still won't say whether or not he supported the law to protect their rights. >> ann romney went on "the view ." >> inouye add targets women reject a new ad targets women and reproductive rights. >> bruce springsteen sanford president obama and ohio -- sang before pres

steve handelsman is in washington with more on how important the debate is for both candidates. >> it was mitt romney is numbers that moved the most after the last debate. the pressure this time is on the incumbent. president obama, whose last public break from the bait camp was yesterday, is being warned not to overcorrection be too aggressive tomorrow night. the town hall style debate -- yes, he needs to show he is tupper but he does not want to come across as a bully. for mitt romney, the advice he is getting is to engage with the questioner. he has a tendency to back away. >> the race is tight nationally in two new polls, but mitt romney is likability has shot up after the denver debate. romney is not mentioned in the d.w obama at perr >> did they inherit a tough situation? absolutely. >> you can vote early absentee to make sure to focus on making phone calls. we even need you to talk to your relatives. that is so important. next door to began early voting today. first lady michelle obama cast her ballot. >> every day, there are fewer voters left to win over and less time left to

steve handelsman joins us from capitol hill with the latest. >> reporter: thanks, pat. the debate, what's the fallout? in colorado, in nevada, in ohio, virginia, north carolina, florida. the battleground states. as the pollsters start to measure the candidates today headed out to try to move those numbers. the day after the debate, they went to swing states, still battling. former governor romney in virginia. >> i just think the american people had expected that the president of the united states would be able to describe what he's going to do in the next four years. but he can't. he spends most of his time trying to talk about how my plan won't work. >> his tax plan won't add up. his jobs plan doesn't create jobs. his deficit reduction plan adds to the deficit. >> reporter: president obama in iowa. >> mitt romney's trying to sell you a sketchy deal. we are not buying it. >> reporter: paul ryan was in ohio. >> didn't mitt romney do a great job for us last night? >> reporter: the debate was a brawl. >> one-point plan. that plan is to make sure that folks at the top play

i'll steve handelsman. news4. >>> more reaction to the third and final debate still pouring in this afternoon. our political reporter joins us. it has been debated whether the president really won or anybody won last night. >> i think it is pretty clear when you look at the instant poll and the polls out today that people think the president won that debate. i think on substance you would say definitely the president probably scored a victory there but i think that tactically as we saw in steve's piece, that the romney people went into this thinking, we don't want to sound too bellicose. let's make sure that he doesn't sound too dangerous. that it doesn't sound like sabre rattling iran. has the war weary nation. they understand that. and they put their candidate in what they think is position where with the momentum on their side, they feel that this will be something that can help close the deal. i'm not sure that's the case. specially next day when people are looking at mitt romney's record, and the numbe

steve handelsman is on thrill now with more on this. steve? >> thanks. good evening, jim. it was mitt romney's numbers that moved the most since the debate. not barack obama's. so the pressure tomorrow night is on the incumbent. >> hello, everybody! >> reporter: president obama, whose last public outing not too overcorrect. don't be too aggressive tomorrow night. at the town hall style debate -- >> yes, he needs to show he's tougher and push back more. he doesn't want to come across as a bully. mitt romney, the advice he's getting is to engage with these questioners. in town halls he has a tendency to back away. >> reporter: debate number one, erase the president's lead in virginia, and reduced it in other swing states. the race is tied nationally in two new polls. mitt romney's likability has shot up after the denver debate. and romney's not mentioned in the new obama ad. >> stick with this guy. he will move us forward. >> reporter: the new romney/paul ryan ad replayed the vp debate. >> absolutely. we're going in the wrong direction. >> reporter: in wisconsin today, ryan

i'm steve handelsman. news4, hempstead long island. >>> paul ryan continues to look for undecided voters' votes in virginia. he is scheduled to speak in fredericksburg in less than 30 minutes. julie carey will have a live report coming up. >>> a family argument has led to murder in fairfax county. police there say a man shot his sister, killed her right in front of their 91-year-old mother. >> reporter: a brother kills his sister. at the murder scene, their mother, they say it was the mother who called 911 for help. the victim, dr. ruth hamilton allen. a life coach pictured here on the website for the achievement, excellence and health institute. dr. ruth hamilton allen. ph.d. from yale. masters, johns hopkins. assistant professor american university. ajupgt professor, yale. dr. ruth hamilton allen. killed this morning in reston. she was 68 years old. it happened at her mother's house here on geddys court where they say a family meeting turned into a case of murder. police say the victim's brother, charles

steve handelsman, thanks so much. >>> baker is campaigning for question 7 in maryland. it would expand gambling in the state. and baker has a message for people who think it's a bad bill. during a taping of viewpoint this morning, baker said the initiative would create 12,000 jobs in the state and 6,000 jobs in the county and raise much-needed revenue. baker is also behind the push to build a new casino at national harbor. he responded to critics' concerns. >> what do you say to your constituents who have a moral dilemma with this, in terms of addiction, concerns about crime and things of that nature? >> what i say to folks is, because maryland's already passed a gaming bill, we are currently -- it's legal to gamble in maryland. there are five sites they do it. and right now, people from prince george's county are going to other sites. the problem is, those issues that are very real come back to prince george's county without the revenues to deal with it. what we want to makeure is we can bring in enough revenue that we can target job creation, we can target health bene

i'm steve handelsman, news4. >> so far the federal response to sandy has been widely praised. >>> veronica joins us now with numbers on the wind and rain. how much we got. >> that's right. how much we got and the issues we're seeing today which is really some of the tributaries off the potomac, we're continuing to see those swollen, rivers, creeks, streams. the concern is frederick, maryland. we saw flooding in patuxent. for frederick county and for loudoun county, 19.6 feet and it is cresting at around flood stage. now some of the numbers with sandy again as it made its landfall late yesterday slamming into the southern portions of new jersey around atlantic city, la laytonsville. annapolis, maryland, close to 70. ballinger creek at 66-mile-per-hour wind gusts. gaithersburg coming in at 65. ellicott city at 63 miles per hour. of course, we did have a lot of rain. some neighborhoods had a little more than others. some neighborhoods had a lot more than others. look at green belt, maryland. that's over nine inches of rain. reagan nat picking up the daily national record. i believe it may hav

steve handelsman joins us now from the hill with more on a shift in strategy for romney. steve? >> reporter: thanks, jim. just a few weeks ago, mitt romney had all but written ohio off. now in that critical swing state in florida and virginia, in iowa, he is pushing back hard. mitt romney came to dusty iowa on his way to ohio with new confidence that he can win those battleground states. and a new willingness to open up personally. today about glen dougherty, a navy s.e.a.l. romney met at a party. >> you can imagine how i felt when i found out he was one of the two form he s.e.a.l.s killed in bell gazay on september 11th. and it touched me, obviously. >> reporter: after the debate in denver, romney soared to a lead over president obama nationally among likely voters. in the pugh poll and the gallup survey. but they are seeing his numbers go down. >> definitely he got a bump but as we track it friday, saturday, sunday, we think some of that is dissipati dissipating. >> reporter: today as president obama traveled to ohio, gallup put him behind by just two points. last night in san

steve handelsman joins us from capitol hill with the latest from the campaign trail. tough to top the boss, but give it a try, steve. >> reporter: let's talk about women, jim. i'm sure pat could educate both of us on this. but how do win over women is tough. but critical now for both campaigns. they figure it's about jobs and opportunity. equality, respect, and reproductive rights. focusing on women, president obama went to new hampshire, another swing state where he's lost the lead with time running out. >> 19 days, new hampshire. >> reporter: the president figures a key to a comeback is women. he lost his big advantage with women nationally after the first debate. in the second debate tuesday, mitt romney boasted he asked the help of women's groups to staff his massachusetts governors office. >> they brought us binders full of women. mine had more women in senior leadership positions than any state in america. >> reporter: that, said mr. obama today, is the difference between him and mr. romney. >> we don't have to order up some binders to find qualified, driven you

steve handelsman joins us live from capitol hill with the latest. steve? >> reporter: pat, thanks, good evening. a reminder, no republican has ever won the white house without winning ohio. and this year's nominees campaigning like he thinks that's still the rule. mitt romney took a break from his ohio marathon and went to iowa. >> we're going to create 12 million new jobs in just four years. we'll see rising take-home pay. and we'll get america's economy growing at 4% a year, more than double this year's rate. >> reporter: the former governor has improved his poll numbers because, since the first debate, more voters like him. >> mitt romney used to be upside down in terms of his likability. that's no longer the case. >> reporter: back in lebanon, ohio, a pretty town in the key swing state -- >> that's true. >> reporter: -- these sisters sell furniture. kathy voted for barack obama in '08 but decided to switch after she went to see mitt romney. >> i believed his promises, and that he would do his best. i think it's time for a change. >> reporter: the presi

steve handelsman has the latest from danville. >> reporter: hi, doreen, thanks. danville, kentucky, there's more pressure on joe biden. a lot of democrats hoping he can get their campaign back on track. in danville, a college town that hosts tonight's debate, local voters say they'll tune in. >> i want ryan to be able to express what we want for our country. like romney did in the presidential debate. >> i think it will help obama if joe biden does well. >> reporter: with the debate hall at center call, paul ryan arrived, a 42-year-old republican whiz kid set to face a 69-year-old democratic debate veteran. >> joe biden's been on this stage before. this is my first time. but what he can't run from is president obama's indefensible record. >> reporter: the vice president sometimes hurts team obama with gaffes, with trademark bravado, that he won't dodge. >> looking forward to it. >> reporter: the stakes in danville look higher after last week's debate in denver. >> the reason is that mitt romney's developed significant momentum from his debate performance against

i'm steve handelsman. news4. >> thank you. nbc news will have full coverage of the debate and expert analysis. live coverage starts at 9:00 tonight. >>> as we saw in the last two debates, voters are going online in record numbers with their opinions. >> angie joins with us more on how you can be part of our social media coverage. angie? >> that's right. the first presidential debate proved to be the most tweeted political event in history. tonight we know many of you will be watching with your second screen, meaning you'll be on social media. check out our facebook page to leave comments during the hour and a half match-up. after the debate we'll have poll on who you think the winner was. we want to know what questions of yours went unanswer. tweet me at nbc washington using the hash tag dc talks. coming up at 11:00 p.m., we'll have the highs and lows as seen through you. the debate starts at 9:00 a.m. see you on air and online. jim? >> all right. we'll be doing it. angie, thank you so much. there is a new twist today. an upda

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, denver, colorado. >>> of course tonight nbc is going to have complete coverage of this first presidential debate. it will be anchored by brian williams along with the best political team in the business. it all starts at 9:00 p.m. eastern, 6:00 p.m. pacific. >>> elsewhere, a judge in pennsylvania has blocked the state's stricter voter i.d. law from taking effect this november. after weeks of protests, the ruling means voters in pennsylvania will not have to show a state approved i.d. to cast ballots on election day. the judge said he was concerned that the law could prevent some people from voting. stricter voter i.d. laws in four states remain, but tougher laws in at least six other states were either shelved or watt terd down. florida, ohio and of course now pennsylvania. >>> american airlines now says it knows why passenger seats broke loose causing a pair of emergency landings. the airline originally called for eight of its planes to be inspected but later ordered 47 of its aircraft to be checked. american blames the problem on clamps that were supp

i'm steve handelsman, news4. >>> the big day is almost here. the nationals' first game of the playoff season is tomorrow afternoon at nationals park against the cardinals by this time tomorrow, the game will probably be over. and thousands of baseball fans will converge with rush hour traffic. news4 transportation reporter adam joins us from the navy yard metro with a look at the traffic preparations. >> reporter: rush hour meets the first nats playoff game and it could make a mess of your commute. a 1:00 start time at the ballpark and win or lose, the game and the 40,000 plus fans will likely be letting out right into the heart of rush hour. metro has been getting ready. >> we are going to be running extra trains on the green line as we do for most nationals games. we'll be running them several hours in advance of the game. >> reporter: and on the roads. >> everybody i think needs to have a game plan whether they're going to the game or not. they need to know how they're going to get home. and if there is any way to avoid this area. that's wha

steve handelsman on capitol hill now with more on this. >> reporter: jim, thanks, good evening. both these candidates are looking at the polls, mostly in the battleground states. and they're all eyeing this debate, both eyeing this debate on wednesday. picture it, mitt romney side by side with barack obama. this is what challengers want, to be literally on an even keel with the incumbent president and 60 million americans could tune in. prominent republicans said today, it's huge. they're setting up for the debate in denver. one of mitt romney's biggest backers sounds upbeat. >> every time he's been challenged, in one of these situations, and had a debate, he's come forward with an outstanding performance. listen, i plead guilty to having confidence in the guy on wednesday night. >> reporter: but romney trails in every battleground state. >> he's got to redefine himself as someone who cares about the average american. he's got to show how his policies connect to that caring. and he has to show how president obama's policies have not produced a better result than his policies wil

steve handelsman is following both sides on this busy day and joins us from capitol hill with the latest. >> reporter: jim, thanks. it's tough and exhausting, and it's continuing at this hour. mitt romney soldiering through, buoyed up by his rise in the polls. barack obama is making his marathon effort part of his message. president obama started the day hoarse. he's been in iowa, on the "tonight show" in l.a., in nevada for a late rally, then to air force one, a call to colin powell after the general endorsed the president on cbs. >> i think we ought to keep on the track that we are on. >> reporter: at 9:00 a.m. florida, the biggest swing state where the president trails by two points -- >> i've got a plan that will actually create jobs. and unlike mitt romney, i'm proud to talk about that plan. >> reporter: the race in virginia is still tied. nationwide, the obama lead with women has disappeared. he's reminding them that a republican senate candidate tuesday said if a woman gets pregnant after being raped, it's god's will. >> i don't think any male politician should be making health ca

at the university of denver, i'm steve handelsman, news4. now back to you. >>> you can watch tonight's debate here on nbc 4, live coverage at 9:00. and you can find a watch party by going to our home page on nbc washington.com. >>> a 15-year-old girl groped while walking down the street. the fifth reported incident of an assault in springfield in the past month. pat collins explains why the recent attacks have the people there on edge. pat? >> reporter: jim, now it appears there may be a fifth victim in this string of fondling attacks. police out in springfield investigating a series of fondling attacks on young women here. today a detective talking to yet another victim. we call her rosa. she says she was attacked on september 19th as she was coming home with her daughter. she spoke through an interpreter. >> translator: we were walking down the sidewalk, when all of a sudden i felt somebody walking behind me. once i turned around, he started touching me. touching me around my breasts. and then i started screaming and my daughter started sc

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, washington. >>> now here's stories that are making news. we begin in california. a view owe rent scuffle broke out between opposing coaches after the game ended. it's unclear what started the may lay but it was stopped before any of the children or adults were injured. >>> two florida construction workers were killed in a parking garage collapse. one witness said the five story lot was under construction when it just fell like a house of cards. rescuers pulled one survivor from the rubble 13 hours after the collapse. crews will continue searching for the lone unaccounted for worker this morning. >>> there goes the bride in new jersey. this woman swiped a $5,000 wedding dress right in broad daylight. she just walked off with it. she apparently had a small group of friends and a small child to distract the shop owners while she escaped. police are still looking for the woman. >>> finally, a group of detroit residents helped a raccoon out of a very bizarre situation. poor little guy. the good samaritans freed the an ma's head from a jar when i

steve handelsman was at the debate and joins us now from deerfield beach, florida. steve? >> reporter: hi, jim. thank you from deerfield beach in this biggest of the battleground states. last night's debate made up some minds and it motivated the followers of both of these candidates. president obama tried out his closing campaign argument in del rey beach. charging mitt romney cannot be trusted. >> everything he is doing right now is to hide his real positions and try to win this election. and florida, you know me. you can trust that i say what i mean. >> attacking me is not an agenda. >> reporter: but at the debate, the president did. >> both at home and abroad, he has proposed wrong and reckless policies. every mocked mitt romney's concerns about a shrinking u.s. navy. >> governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets. >> that angered the previous opponents. >> he seemed to take these cheap shots. >> reporter: but he health his ground. >> i don't see our influence growing around the world. i see our influence receding. >> reporter: and republicans in florida today wer

steve handelsman joins us from capitol hill with just two weeks to go now. >> reporter: good evening, jim. so many combinations of wins in the various battleground states could lead to a victory for the obama side or the romney side, that both those guys, and their running mates today are visiting all the battleground states they can. mitt romney and paul ryan swing state tours started in colorado. they split up. romney going to nevada. where he trails by three points. but claimed he's closing in on the president. >> he's out of ideas. and out of excuses. and in november you'll put him out of office. >> reporter: ryan went to ohio, where he and romney closed a five-point gap to one. >> mitt romney and i believe in true compassion in upward mobility. >> reporter: colorado could be key. last night outside denver thousands cheered the republican ticket. the obama lead in this state has disappeared. to slow the slide, barack obama will visit five swing states. >> we're going to pull an allnighter. >> reporter: starting in iowa, where his lead is down to two points. >> iowa, you know me. y

steve handelsman has the latest from capitol hill. steve? >> jim, thanks. how did last night play in virginia, for example, ohio, the rest of the battleground states? that's what matters most. pollsters try to figure out the answer, the candidates headed out to try to move those numbers. the day after the debate, they went to swing states, still battling. former governor romney in virginia. >> i just think the american people had expected that the president of the united states would be able to describe what he's going to do in the next four years. he can't. he spent most of his time trying to talk about how my plan won't work. >> his tax plan doesn't add up. his jobs plan doesn't create jobs. his deficit reduction plan adds to the deficit. >> reporter: president obama in iowa. >> mitt romney's trying to sell you a sketchy deal. we are not buying it. >> reporter: paul ryan was in ohio. >> didn't mitt romney do a great job for us last night? >> not true, governor romney. >> reporter: the debate was a brawl. >> one-point plan. and that plan is to make sure th

well, for a look at some of the highlights from last night's debate we go now to nbc's steve handelsman. he is at the debate site in danville, kentucky. steve, good morning. >> reporter: lynn, thanks. good morning from danville, kentucky, where they differed sharply on practically all the big issues, but these are smart, well-informed politicians. paul ryan and joe biden both had reason to feel good about how that came across here last night. a long-time democratic insider versus a republican young gun whose ticket has new momentum. mitt romney was watching. barack obama too. moderator martha raddatz of abc. they tangled on iran. >> we're moving faster toward a nuclear weapon. it's because this administration has no credibility on this issue. >> we will not allow the iranians to get a nuclear weapon. you're going to go to war, is that what you want to do now? >> we want to prevent war. >> reporter: on the middle class what about mitt romney saying 47% of americans feel entitled to government benefits? >> i think the vice president very well knows that sometimes the words don't come out

. >>> steve handelsman is on capitol hill with more on how both candidates are hoping the frenzied pace will pay off on election day. >> reporter: sure they do. it's not just because they'll cover a lot of ground. these candidates figure a major effort, a marathon effort like today communicates to voters they've got energy and they've got commitment. mitt romney soldiered on today, apparently buoyed up by his rise in the polls. barack obama's making his marathon effort part of his message. president obama started the day hoarse. >> i've just got to keep on keeping on. >> reporter: he had been in iowa, on the "tonight show" in l.a., in nevada for a late rally, on air force one a call to colin powell after the general endorsed the president on cbs. >> i think we ought to keep on the track we're . >> reporter: at 9:00 a.m. florida, the biggest swing state where the president trails by two points. >> i've got a plan that will actually create jobs. and unlike mitt romney, i'm proud to talk about that plan. >> reporter: on to richmond, the race in virginia is still tied. nationwide, the obama

steve handelsman is joining us from capitol hill tonight. >> reporter: good evening. doreen knows this at gut level, but winning the votes of women is complicated for both political campaigns. they figure it involves jobs, and then equality in the workplace. respect, and reproductive rights. focusing on women, president obama went to new hampshire, another swing state where he's lost the lead with time running out. >> 19 days, new hampshire. >> reporter: the president figures a key to a comeback is women. he lost his big advantage with women nationally after the first debate. in the second debate, tuesday, mitt romney boasted he'd ask the help of women's groups to staff his massachusetts governor's office. >> they brought us whole binders full of women. mine had more women and senior leadership positions than any state in america. >> reporter: that, said mr. obama today, is a difference between him and mr. romney. >> we don't have to order up some binders to find qualified, talented, driven young women. >> reporter: what about equal pay for women? >> governor romney s

news4's steve handelsman is live on capitol hill with the latest from the campaign trail. hey, steve. >> reporter: hi, pat. thanks, good evening. you've got to believe behind closed doors, neither of these presidential candidates is doing a lot of laughing. the race is so close, it's agonizing. but george mason, the president was cracking up. in northern virginia, president obama joked his opponent has a condition. >> i think it's called romnesia. >> reporter: accusing mitt romney of swerving to the middle to trick women. >> if you say you're for equal pay for equal work, but you keep refusing to say whether you would sign a bill to protect equal pay for equal work, you might have romnesia. i don't know about cutting taxes for rich folks. take your temperature, because you've probably got romnesia. here's good news, obama care covers preexisting conditions. >> reporter: he got big laughs. but obama's support in this battleground state has dropped. he's tied here with romney. two new polls show former governor romney ahead nationally. two show ties. the nbc marrist survey s

i'm steve handelsman, news4, capitol hill. >>> now to the presidential race. mitt romney is campaigning with new jersey governor chris christie in ohio for a second straight day. they attended a townhall style meeting today with employees with a company that makes natural gas compressors. romney will spend two of the next three days in ohio and will appear at a rally tonight with his son josh. first lady michelle obama is hitting the campaign trail in president obama's place. there are two more campaign events on her schedule. she's spending her days with supporters at stops in colorado. >>> the supreme court took up affirmative action today. the justices heard arguments about a case involving a 22-year-old from texas who claims she was denied admission to the university of texas in austin because she was white. the school says it uses race as one of many factors to fill roughly 25% of its class. and they say they do it to help promote diversity on campus. the student and her legal team says race should not be used at all. the ruling could change admissions po

steve handelsmans on capitol hill now with more on the candidates' travels. >> reporter: jim, thanks, good evening. the polls are so close now, that all kinds of combinations of wins in the swing states, like virginia, could produce a victory. and so the candidates are trying to hit all the battlegrounds. mitt romney and paul ryan swing state tours started in colorado. they split up. romney going to nevada. where he trails by three points. but claimed he's closing on the president. >> he's out of ideas, and out of excuses, and in november you'll put him out of office. >> reporter: ryan went to ohio, where he and romney closed a five-point gap to one. >> mitt romney and i believe in true compassion in upward mobility. >> reporter: colorado could be key. last night outside denver, thousands cheered the republican ticket. the obama lead in this state has disappeared. to slow the slide, barack obama will visit five swing states. >> we're going to pull an all-nighter. >> reporter: starting in iowa, where his lead is down to two points. >> iowa, you know me. you know that i say what i peen.

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news at hofstra university, hempstead, new york. >> thank you so much, steve. and you can watch the debate live from hofstra university right here on nbc bay area. coverage begins at 6:00 p.m. and coming up in a few minutes, our political analyst larry gerston will break down what to watch for in tonight's debate. >>> the recent terrorist attack in libya is of special significance here in the bay area. as we speak, thousands of people are coming together to remember the life of bay area native chris stevens. he was the ambassador who was killed in that attack. we have been streaming this memorial service on our website since it began at 4:30. this is a live look now inside san francisco's city hall. jodi hernandez is also there, outside of city hall. i know you spent time with steven's parents. they must be so proud today, but also proud of his accomplishments. >> they certainly are. the memorial is taking place inside city hall. stevens' sisters and his brother are sharing memories of their childhood, growing up with christopher stevens. his sister remembered

i'm steve handelsman, nbc news, washington. >>> now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. we are going to begin in california with a parents' nightmare at a youth football game. a violent scuffle broke out between opposing coaches after the game ended. it's still unclear what started the melee, but it did stop before any of the children or adults were injured. >>> two florida construction workers were killed in a parking garage collapse. one witness said the five-story lot was under construction when it just fell like a house of cards. rescuers pulled one survivor from the rubble 13 hours after the collapse. crews will continue searching for the lone, unaccounted for worker this morning. >>> and finally, there goes the bride in new jersey. look at that woman right there. she swiped a $5,000 wedding dress right in broad daylight. she apparently had a small group of friends and a small child to distract the shop owners while she escaped. police are still looking for the woman. >>> now for a look at your national and regional weather, meteorologist bil