chad myers has been with me throughout the afternoon follow this death defying jump. among the records, he said including going the highest for any human in a manned balloon, that being confirmed. there was one he did not break? >> it appears, so fredericka. >> he may not have breaken the record for the longest free fall. that was one of the records he was trying to set. of course he did break other incredibly important records of the highest ever jump that anyone has ever undertaken. v he broke that record by more than 25,000 feet. that record had held for 52 years. he also went through the sound barrier. he did that going at least 704 miles an hour. we read one speedometer, we're trying to confirm the exact speechltd it looks like any way you cut it, he did break the sound barrier. two really important records, the highest jump, 128,000 feet. and going through the sound comparier, no one has ever done that outside of a vehicle. >> trying to get some updates on his exact condition. from what we have learned from mission control in the moments after, he was able to speak to the media in roswell this afternoon, so that is going on as scheduled as far as we know. so every indication is that felix baumgartner is doing just fine. you can see his landing there, he basically landed with his feet going, he landed running and then he stood up and put his fist to the sky in celebration. it appears that he's doing absolutely fine and we hope to hear from him soon. >> what a moment indeed. that jump was heart pounding for anyone who was watching it un230e8d right here on cnn. meteorologist chad myers who's joining me for our live coverage, this is not a thrillseeker kind of moment. but it is a big step forwards science. >> it's getting astronauts and cosmonauts down from a similar position in space. let's say one of these space tours things ten, 20 years from now, goes horribly wrong at 60 miles high, can those people be in a suit that could save them? and i think felix proved a lot of that today. and i'm in there watching the press conference that brian was talking about. he's doing absolutely fine, although one of the things he said in the beginning was i was in real trouble. when we talked got, he thought he was in real trouble. he fought that spin harder than he has ever fought a spin. he knows everything about how to use his hands how to stop the spin, he said he fought that for what seemed like minutes. we watched it on tape, and it really wasn't that long, but he thought he was in real trouble. his smile on that press conference, i have never seen anyone smile that big, it was so happy. >> there were moments of from the point when he left that capsule to about 5,000 just above ground where we ended up having to show people on tape, because in large part, we really could not tell what kind of demeanor he was in, what his situation was. we only learned later that there was that spin out of control and he's a able to explain it. but it was important to be very cautious about that moment and not be able to show that live as it was happening. >> i sat in a meeting on monday and another one on tuesday when this was supposed to happen the first time. and we talked it out and said which cannot show someone fall to their death. we can't do that. we have to put that -- >> potentially. >> what's the big deal if we wait five minutes to be sure that felix is talking. as soon as he yanked that cord and he was able to talk down to ground control, he knew he was going to make it and we went right back to it. i was a little bit concerneds when he was still in the capsule and not speaking very clearly. and i'm thinking, wow, maybe 20 second delay isn't enough becaus because--he wasn't responding and he goes please spongd, please respond and then finally he came out of what he was going through, maybe he was just mentally going through it, getting ready for it. but us on the ground didn't know what he was thinking, we thought he was in trouble, makes oxygen, whatever was going on there. did he let all the oxygen out of the capsule, did his suit pressurize? everything that could have gone wrong went right. >> it was good to see the live portion, the tape portion and it's wonderful to be able to learn from this mission. we're also looking at the space shuttle "endeavour" arriving at its new home, in it's kind of final lap closing in on that 12-mile journey that people have been riveted by over the last 24 to 48 hours. it took a little longer than expected by about 15 hours, but there were some tight squeezes along the way, even though so much preparation had been done prior to the shuttle's arrival in los angeles, now it's almost at that california science museum where it will rest in some finality for all to see the a- a turning point in a presidential race. a town hall style jshowdown tak place in new york. mark preston, before the first presidential debate, the conventional wisdom was that the debates really don't matter that much, but we saw mitt romney gain some ground in polls, so how much now is riding on this debate? >> well, i mean this is the most important day of the election season. we have been saying that, fred, ever since -- well, ever since the election start, we saw mitt romney come out in that first debate and he defied all the critics and all the skeptics and he put on quite a show. and president obama had a very bad debate. even one of his senior advisors said today that he needs to do better. let's hear what he told candy crowley on the state of the union, what we can expect from president obama tuesday night. >> he knew when he walked off stage and he also knew when he watched the tape of that debate, that he's got to be more energetic, i think you'll see somebody that's more passionate about the problems that face the american people. >> candy crowley also had ed gillesp gillesp gillespie, mitt romney's adviser. >> the president can change his style, he can change his rhetoric, but he can't change his policies so that's what this election is about. >> this is going to be hugely important especially coming on the heels of the vice presidential debate. a lot of people thought joe biden did a good enough job of setting the table for president obama tuesday night. >> mark this is a town hall style, it's the hottest ticket in town, there in hempstead new york. who's going to be in the audience? how do they get those tickets? >> if you're hoping to come here to the university to come to the debate on tuesday, i suggest you leave it on cnn because you won't be able to get in. the tickets are all alotted. they went to the students, they went to -- interestingly enough the audience was picked up by the gallup organization and they did a sample of uncommitted voters here in this area, these are voters who have not decided who they're absolutely going to vote for on election day. those will be the voter that will be in the audience and those will be the voters who will be asking the questions. >> of course we'll all be tuning in tuesday night, you can watch the second presidential debate live right here on cnn. our coverage starts at 7:00 p.m. eastern time. the debate of course moderated by our very own candy crowley. >> right now more on the death of former senator arlen specter, the veteran lawmaker died today over complications from nonhodgkin's lymphoma. specter was the longest serving u.s. senator from pennsylvania. he's being remembered as a fearless fighter who courageous youly backed cancer and stood up for the things he believed in. senator patrick leahy, thank you so much for joining us, our condolences to all those who loved, respected and knew arrest listen spector, what do you suppose his legacy will be? >> i think that in many ways he'll be remembered as being a senator's senator. and before that sounds like too much inside baseball, i was walking along the road by our home here in vermont today and i was thinking he was like the vermont republican senators we see, people who strongly believe in their party, but believe in their country first, and if it came to a question of following party orders or following what was best for the country, he always went with the country first, which is what senators are supposed to do. and i think that's why sometimes members of his own party consider him very unpredictable and he was unpredictable because he cared about the people more than his own party. >> he was both a republican and a democrat. he was part of a generation, it seems, of lawmakers willing to cross the aisle, work with the other side. as you compare sort of his generation of lawmakers to today's generation of lawmakers, what are the distinctive differences to say it's okay to cross the aisle. >> with arlen, we first met when we were young prosecutors back 40 years ago. morning 40 years ago. and when he came to the senate, you saw him as a person who trusted his own instinct, he would do his own home work, he would know what he thought was best. we have had people like that in both parties, i remember when republican bob dole and democrat pat moynihan came together to fix social security. they didn't go by party litmus test. they went by what was best for the country. arlen did that over and over again. we were close friends because we knew we could set aside party labels, we could sit down and try to work out things that were best. we have got to go back to those days. i think one of the reasons why the congress is held in such lowest steam today is because there's too much of doing party line, especially since the tea party came in, there's been too much party line sloganeering and not pundits. he's battled cancer before, he nearly died a couple of times before he was -- he was a fiblgter. i know he was in bad shape this last few weeks, i wasn't able to talk to him on the phone, i sent him a longhand written note that my wife and i had him in our prayers and thoughts. he was supposed to have died several times before from illnesses and he battled through him. >> senator leahy, thank you so much for your thoughts and remembering your friend arlen specter. >> thank you very much. the second presidential debate now just two days away, how do you prepare for 90 minutes of intense questions and answers? we'll talk with the debate moderator, our very own candy crowley. now, that's what i call a test drive. silverado! the most dependable, longest lasting, full-size pickups on the road. so, what do you think? 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[ male announcer ] it's chevy truck month. now during chevy truck month, get 0% apr financing for 60 months or trade up to get the 2012 chevy silverado all-star edition with a total value of $8,000. hurry in before they're all gone! with odor free aspercreme. powerful medicine relieves pain fast, with no odor. so all you notice is relief. aspercreme. america chooses a president in 23 days, but before that we have two more presidential debates, the next one tuesday night at hofstra university in new york moderate bid our own candy crowley. i talked with candy and asked her how this might influence the tone of the debate. >> i think it will in this way, it is very hard to be overheated when answering a question from a nice young woman, a nice old man, whatever, who asks a town hall question, which generally begins something like, you know, mr. president or governor, i lost my job, blah, blah, blah, blah. to then have the tools to engage in a knock down dragout tends to be something they don't do in a crowd that's that close to them. and you and i know that they would run over me in a second. you know, would really push the envelope with a member of the media, but it is very hard to do that to an uncommitted volter. >> our colleagues have given you some advise for these debates. >> i have noticed in these did baits when the candidate where is asked about a certain topic, they sometimes stray off of it. >> really hold the candidates' feet to the fire. >> what is the best thing you can say about the opposition party. >> what's been the happiest moment of your life and what's been the saddest moment of your life. >> i'm sure a lot of folks have tried to give you advise, not that you need any. but it sounds like a lot of folks are saying to have a sense of humor about it all too. >> lost you want to get to know a little bit. you want the kind of offbeat question that exposes something about the candidate that others might not know, that is at the same time relevant to who you might want in a president. that sort of reveals something about their character, but i don't lack as you may note from suggestions. and the sad thing is, that 90 minutes is not as long as you think it is. if you could see my inbox, i will tell you that people have questions about so many things and in the end, it has to be questions about things where, a, they have a difference of opinion, and b, where we have a chance of kind of opening up new territory. >> all right, thanks candy and of course you can see for yourself how it will all unfold, the second presidential debate, our coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. eastern on tuesday night, moderated by candy crowley. a brave 14-year-old girl dares to speak out against the taliban and now she gets shot for it. now we have new updates. when you take a closer look... ...at the best schools in the world... ...you see they all have something very interesting in common. they have teachers... ...with a deeper knowledge of their subjects. as a result, their students achieve at a higher level. let's develop more stars in education. let's invest in our teachers... ...so they can inspire our students. let's solve this. in pakistan, thousands of mourners gatt tore pray for a 14-year-old who was killed by the taliban. she's still unconscious but making slow and steady progress. the taliban shot the girl for speaking out about her right to go to school. >> i have the right to sing, i have the right to talk, i have the right to go to market. i have a right to speak. >> so huge outpouring of support for the little girl. is there any hope for her recovery? >> yesterday they took her off the ventilator for a little bit. but she remains unconscious. the doctors say it's a miracle that she has survived. it's very rare that anyone can even get to the place where she is right now on a vent late for, unconscious, being shotpoint blank in the head. >> she's been moved from one facility to the next, security reasons in large part, but also just better medical equipment available? >> there has been an offer from the ua, they have a plane with doctors, if they want to move her. but she has to stay put because she's so severely wounded in the head. >> people in country were already riveted by this little girl who just seems to have kind of an old soul about her, a sense of maturity and poise that is just markable. then after she was shot it just timed to multiply in terms of her power, even though she is recovering from this gunshot wound. she really has become a symbol, push for women's rights in the middle east. >> when we think of the valley where she lived, this is a hot bed of militancy and she still dared to speak her mind, to talk to other girls in her school and tell them do not stay home, do not be intimidated by the taliban which is opposed to girls' education. the government went in and managed to clear out the taliban but obviously they pose a big danger. and they have said if she survived, we are going to kill her. even her family is afraid, her father was a principal, one of the last schools to close for girls when the taliban took over in 2007, he held out until the last moment, and they closed the school in 2009. it's close to the afghan border very heavy with militancy and the taliban and nthey managed t push them out and reopen the schools, but we see that it's still not safe, but the girls in her class, the whole region, they say we are going to get educated. they see this outpouring of support. but the taliban says nobody goes against us and survives. >> thank you for that update. right now to this political news here in the u.s., former u.s. senator arlen specter died at the age of 82 this morning. he played key roles in critical senate battles, the senator angered colleagues by switching from republican to democrat. he lost his last bid for re-election. those who knew arlen specter well, senator bob casey joining us now by phone. thanks for joining us and our hearts go out to the family mourning the passing of arlen specter. you described senator, as, quote, a statesman and a problem solver. what in your kept in this fight as a lawmaker for 30 years. >> he tried to work with people in both parties and was very successful in those efforts, but he became as many of us do became increasingly frustrated with the partisanship in washington. but he never stopped fighting, he never stopped working on behalf of the people of our commonwealth and we benefitted tremendously from his work and there's a lot of legacies and a lot of results that we can point to, but one of them is focus on research, the national institutes of health, it's a great testament to his work. >> how does he inspire you? earlier i spoke with patrick leahy about what almost seems to be a distongue shung of generations, that arlen specter and many other veterans on capitol hill are willing to work on both sides of the ail, but kind of the younger generations of lawmakers, they are reticent to do so, you are one of those younger generations of lawmakers on the hill. does he inspire you to want to cross the aisle and work things out? >> no question about it, i think he was an inspiration to a lot of us. when i got there, he was in his 25th year. one of the first things he said to me was literally on the way to lunch, he said it's important for to us work together as democrats an republicans it's also important for people to see us working together. he knew at the time and he would say today, once people see that and they see evidence of it, it's not enough just to make the attempt. and at that time it didn't mean as much to me as it does now. and now probably more so because of the nature of our politics in washington. his suggestions and his advice have even more meaning now. >> pennsylvania senator bob casey, thanks so much for your thoughts. a university admits to flunking students just because they were jewish. we'll talk with the man who tracked down the students and revealed those stories, a business report comes out this week that could show how americans are feeling about the future of the economy ♪ well, he ♪ to look at [ sighs ] ♪ oh, he's shaggy ♪ and he eats like a hog [ male announcer ] the volkswagen jetta. available with advanced keyless technology. control everything from your pocket, purse, or wherever. that's the power of german engineering. ♪ that dirty, old egg-suckin' dog ♪ is the same frequent heartburn treatment as prilosec otc. now with a fancy coating that gives you a burst of wildberry flavor. now why make a flavored heartburn pill? 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[ male announcer ] one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. satisfaction guaranteed or your money back. . wall street is looking for a big economic number. retail sales numbers for september are expected to come out in the monk. and they're expected to show we're getting in a spending mood. todd, good to see you. why is this such a critical number. >> well, it is because it can show actually how the u.s. economy is doing, but also how american congress assumers are feeling and we are expected, like you said, to see an increase in september, close to 1% and this would be great because i