>> a member of president obama's cabinet is under investigation now for hit and run. after allegedly leaving the scene of one collision, then causing another. the white house says health issues were a factor. but there are so many unanswered questions. brian todd has been investigating the story for us. what are you finding out? >> there are a lot of unanswered questions, wolf. commerce secretary john bryson is now back in washington after the accident over the weekend. the information is still murky. we're told the secretary did have some kind of seizure at some point. the commerce secretary allegedly caused traffic accidents at two different scenes within about five minutes. the sequence started just north of los angeles. at 5:00 p.m. local time on saturday, police say he was driving his lexus southbound and rear ended a car waiting at a rail crossing. >> at some point after that he got out of the vehicle, made contact with the individuals. for some reason got back in the vehicle and left the scene. when he left the scene, he struck the vehicle a second time. at 5:10 p.m. local time, sheriff officials say he collided with a second car at san gabriel boulevard and hellman avenue. when police got to that scene -- >> they found him unconscious behind the wheel of his lexis. the spokesman said he suffered a see soour. he was taken to a hospital for observation overnight and then released. and he was given medication to treat the seizure. a washington hospital center doctor says seizure is an electrical storm in the brain. anyone can have one, he says, if they encounter periods of sleep deprivation or suffer head trauma. >> a seizure in this area, if it was close to the area would affect language and speech. >> for people who have history of these things. whether one occurrence or more than one, should they be driving? >> well, every state has different laws. and in general they agree that people with seizures are controlled should be able to drive. >> law enforcement officials in california say bryson has not been formally charged with anything yet. >> what about the people in other two cars? what is the status of them? >> two or three people were treated by paramedics for pain. in the second car, one of the two people complained of pain but declined medical treatment. >> thanks very much for that. let's dig a little bit deeper right now. we just received new information on his condition. let's go to brianna keilar. >> we learned today that secretary bryson was back at work today. we've also learned he has not had a history of seizures. he had not had a seizure before. there have been some questions about the timing of some of the events in relation to the seizure. and we can't really clear that up, wolf. according to this official the timing of the seizure, the cause of the seizure, the sequence of the events, hard to figure out because the secretary was driving alone and he has limited recall of the events. we heard about the limitations of the details they've given us. >> he was alone. he had a seizure. he was involved in an accident. i would refer you to the commerce department for more details. those circumstances, i think, speak to, you know, some of the difficulty in getting details. but beyond that, i just don't know. i would refer you to the congress. i'm certainly not a doctor. i was not a presiding doctor on the case. i would refer you to the department of commerce. >> if you take a wider look at the story and how it fits into the last week or so, this is another in a line of stories. that is convincing voters that he and the administration are doing what they need to on the economy. we saw bad jobs numbers more than a week ago. that's been an umbrella, a cloud, well over the last week. there's the bipartisan fear over leak of classified information. and the president's own gaffe on friday where he said the private sector is fine. we do know if a blood test comes back showing the secretary that no alcohol was involved in the preliminary, it's expected he wouldn't be charged with hit and run. still, this is a distraction from what the white house wants to focus on. >> what do we know about secretary bryson? most viewers never heard of him. rereplaced gary locke, now the u.s. ambassador in china. tell us about him. >> he's not really a high profile guy. not as high profile as gary lock. he said he's been an effective commerce secretary. even as he deals with trade and how american businesses relate to government, president obama, i wouldn't say he's one of the closest of the president's sourt of economic circle, and we do know from the white house, from jay carney, wolf, that president obama only learned about this this morning, and as of this afternoon had not spoken to bryson. his chief of staff was able to touch base with him. >> i'm surprised we haven't heard from secretary bryson himself. either going out, making a statement, reassuring the country he's okay or doing a television interview or something like that. i assume they're thinking of doing something that catches people to hold up in the department of congress. >> reporter: honestly, i don't know, wolf, if they are thinking of doing something. but i was interested to learn that he was at work today. we know he's been in touch with his doctors. just trying to make sure his held situation is okay. >> thanks very much. we'll stay on top of this story for the viewers. other important news, it's been america's secret eye in the sky over iraq and afghanistan. now a version of the giant unmanned global hawk has actually gone down in the state of maryland. our pentagon correspondent chris lawrence is joining us with more. the drones have gone down in other countries what's going on? >> on the eastern shore of maryland. apparently right now the coast guard is quarantining off the area, establishing an security zone and looking to make a secure zone before they can get in there and look at the wreckage. basically the drone was on a routine training flight when it lost contact with the navy operators on the ground. they scrambled a man aircraft able to put some eyes on that wreckage. he determined that it crashed and it did not hit anything on the ground. but this global hawk has really put in a lot here in the united states. it's done surveillance over some of if california wildfires. looked at damage after hurricane ike. it's also deployed overseas because it can fly 11 mooils high. well above the weather line. and if you go from about 30 hours at a time we're told it was a routine training mission. right now they're trying to determine if any pollutants in the water might cause trouble for the folks who have to come in and retrieve it. wolf? >> did you mention -- and pardon me if you did, where the drone was based? >> it was based at aifl air station pax river. they have about five of them. the other four go through routine training. this one was on the routine training when something happened. and it lost contact with the operators on the ground. the drone costs $175 million. >> for one drone? wow. thanks very much for that. chris lawrence, from the pentagon. al qaeda's affiliate in yemen is seeking recruits to carry out attacks on the united states. we have details of the new troubling developments. plus the battle for the white house becomes a battle of verbal gaffes. whose slip-ups are more damaging? president obama's slip-ups? mitt romney's slip-ups? ♪ [ acoustic guitar: slow ] [ barks ] ♪ [ upbeat ] [ barks ] beneful playful life is made with energy-packed wholesome grains... and real beef and egg. to help you put more play in your day. ♪ ( whirring and crackling sounds ) man: assembly lines that fix themselves. the most innovative companies are doing things they never could before, by building on the cisco intelligent network. jack cafferty is here with the cafferty file. jack? >> the next congress will be one of the least experienced in decades. it might be more polarized than the current congress if that's possible. politico reports the house and senate will be filled with rookies and sophomores, unbound by the institution's traditions, that's a quote, who have virtually no experience doing serious legislative work. which means it will be hard to tell them from the current congress. the 2010 elections brought in new lawmakers. mostly republicans. remember the tea parties? then dozens of retirements were announced this year, plus the normal expected election turnover come november. all of which means the new congress could add more than 155 members with less than four years experience. some suggest it's a good thing. tim thw the out. i tend to agree, and the turnover will bring fresh blood into an unpopular constitution. and for good reason. the current congress is more partisan and less willing to compromise than ever. it could be argued a lot of them don't know what they're doing. one democratic congressman told politico there are chairman of s s subcommittees who don't know which end of gavel to use. and the makeup of the new congress that will be elected in november is very much a wild card. we are running out of room to either make mistakes or do nothing. house speaker john boehner insists all the fresh faces have had a positive impact. bringing what he calls energy, enthusiasm and real world experience to washington. but what have they done for us lately? nothing. and it could get worse. here's the question. go to cnn.com/caffertyfile. post a comment on my blog. or go to "the situation room's" fa facebook page. >> the lame duck session will be incredibly important. a lot of action. people think we're going to be able to relax after the election. think again. lit be a crazy period. >> and if they get it wrong, we were in huge trouble. >> yeah. thank you, jack. >> sure. there are also chilling new signs that al qaeda in yemen is aiming directly at the united states of america. a public appeal for attacks inside the u.s. our pentagon correspondent barbara star is looking into the story. what you finding out? >> well, wolf, i want you to have a look at what people are saying about al qaeda in yemen. the obama administration now starts every day worried that al qaeda in yemen is trying to attack the u.s. an administration official tells cnn there's plenty of reason to worry. al qaeda's english language magazine just issued a call for fighters in yemen who have u.s. passpor passports, visas or anyone who can legally enter the use to attack vendors. the magazine details how to make explosives but then goes further. they have instructions on how to communicate with the commanders who approve attack plans. >> if they continue to target the u.s., and we see all indicates that it is, getting somebody with a u.s. passport or the ability to get inside is the best way to do it. many experts say it's now a bigger threat than the decimated ranks of the al qaeda organization, still hiding in pakistan. with political unrest still weakening the government. al qaeda has already influx of fighters from saudi arabia, somalia and the united em rats. the fighters now 1,000 strong, triple the size of the group two years ago. operate in strongholds across southern yemen. it's a group with growing influence. >> providing water. hooking up houses to the electricity. sfwl the u.s. identified four core leaders. including the master bomb maker. said to be responsible for the failed effort to put an explosive device on a u.s. bound airliner several weeks ago. that failed because the alleged bomber was working for saudi intelligence. since then the u.s. believes al qaeda has taken steps to approve the security inside yemen. now air strikes using the drones have been the major u.s. tool so far to go after al qaeda in yemen. but the group appears to still be flourishing. more fighters, more territory, and the u.s. believes they are coming out of yemen, directed for the united states. wolf? >> i know the u.s. ha had drone strikes targeting the al qaeda operatives. but is there any serious consideration of deploying special operations forces? commandos in yemen to try to get the guys? >> right now we know the special operation forces are working to help train yemeni forces to go after al qaeda operatives and strongholds. if they had a lead on one of those top four leaders on the ground, and they couldn't get a drone in, for some reason, would they send u.s. troops? so far they haven't done it. the u.s. intelligence community believes remaining in afghanistan. still 90,000 u.s. troops there. more than 1,000 in yemen. and no u.s. troops in yemen. it's a little strange. but we're going to be following up on this story as well. barbara, thanks very much. disturbing video that has an elected official possibly facing child abuse charges. new developments in this shocking case. look what 22 inches of rain did in florida. epic flooding and a state of emergency. at liberty mutual, we know how much you count on your car, and how much the people in your life count on you. that's why we offer accident forgiveness, where your price won't increase due to your first accident. we also offer a hassle-free lifetime repair guarantee, where the repairs made on your car are guaranteed for life, or they're on us. these are just two of the valuable features you can expect from liberty mutual. plus, when you insure both your home and car with us, it could save you time and money. at liberty mutual, we help you move on with your life, so get the insurance responsible drivers like you deserve. call us at... or visit your local liberty mutual office, where an agent can help you find the policy that's right for you. liberty mutual insurance, responsibility -- what's your policy? at least 93 people are killed in a fresh wave of violence in syria. lisa sylvester is monitoring that. what's going on? >> the number comes from syrian activists. they report fresh shelling in the battered city of holmes. and they accuse the government of using helicopters to fire indiscriminantly on a town in northwest syria. the u.s. state department calls it a serious escalation and a desperate move. cnn cannot verify the reports of fighting in syria. and day two of the man hunt for the suspect in a shooting that killed two former auburn university football players and wounded a current player. police believe 22-year-old killed three people in all and wounded three more at an off campus apartment. two other men who fled with leonard are also being caught. police say they believe the gunfire broke out during a fight at a party. and this next video shows a man beating his stepson with a belt allegedly because the boy wasn't throwing a ball well enough. a neighbor recorded it and eventually yelled at the man to stop. well, it turns out, he's an elected official named anthony sanchez who oversaw a powerful southern california water agency. he's now facing felon child abuse charges. and take a look at pensacola, florida, underwater after 22 inches of rain fell in the florida panhandle and parts of alabama. floodwaters inundated neighborhoods. officials are putting the damage at more than $20 million in pensacola alone. look at those pictures, wolf. >> pretty bad. lisa, thank you. they've been trading jabs and gaffes. the obama and romney campaigns carrying on a public spat over public spending. and it's getting nastier. and jeb bush suspects his father and ronald reagan would both have a hard time fitting into today's republican party. that's coming up in our strategy session. the medicare debate continues in washington... ...more talk on social security... ...but washington isn't talking to the american people. 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[ all chuckling ] all right, look busy, the manager is coming. @@ @ playing sports is just my whole life. looking back if it wasn't for shriners hospital, things would just be really, really different. i lost my leg when i was a kid. there was a time when i felt like i wasn't going to be able to walk again... it was a pretty bad accident but shriners showed me who i could be again. they turned my whole life around. hunter's life is one of nearly a million changed by donations from people like you. send your love to the rescue. donate today. they're jabbing. they're punching. they're stumbling. the obama and romney campaigns are in a public spat over public spending, and it's going global right now. our national political correspondent jim acosta is watching all this unfolding. >> it's a nasty fight, but it's an important fight. look past the web videos under way between the obama and romney campaigns, and there's a real debate going on. not just in the u.s., but around the world, on how to get the economy moving again. mitt romney's campaign can't get enough of it, churning out another web video linking president obama's gaffe on the private sector to the weak u.s. recovery. >> the private sector is doing fine. where we're seeing weaknesses in the economy have to do with state and local government. >> the president' re-election team is fighting back by trying to turn romney's initial reaction against the gop contender. >> we need more firemen, more teachers, the american people got the message. it's time to cut back and help the american people. >> cue the mayor in massachusetts on romney's record. >> local government was cut dramatically. >> at the heart of the back and forth might be the key question of the election. how far should the u.s. go to jump start the economy? revising the private sector comments, the obama campaign strategist argued on cnn's state of the union, public sector spending is critical. >> so bottom line, is the private sector doing fine? >> the private sector, we need to accelerate job creation in the private sector. >> right. >> one way to do that is putting teachers and firefighters and police back to work. >> that's the public sector. >> that will help accelerate the recovery. >> the romney campaign responded with this video, showing the president touting his restraint on government spending. >> the only time government employment has gone down has been under me. >> the obama campaign notes the president did call for more teachers in the same speech, and even pointed to wisconsin's recalled surviving governor, scott walker, who stressed caution and slashing public spending. >> i know in my state our reforms allowed us to protect firefighters, police officers and teachers. that's not what i think of when i think of big government. >> the debate is playing out on the world stage. germany is arguing for more austerity and leaders in countries like spain backing president obama's call for more spending. >> we won't get there. >> in a german business journal, rom niece top economiced advise said it sets a dangerous precedent, aimed at undermining u.s. foreign policy. romney is facing what could be a big test on his comments on teachers and firefighter. and the next week he is planning a six-day bus tour focused on small towns, where as you know, wolf, public sector workers wield a lot of influence. they