susan candiotti has been working her sources. she joins us now so does fran townsend former homeland security advisor for george w. bush. on the phone, analyst peter berg again. last night we thought at least one person was a u.s. citizen of the three. now we're hearing two, fran. >> that's right. which adds to the amount of information we have on that. but the question is, how much more do we know? not that much. what we are hearing and continue to hear is that there is not very much specific information about these people. for example, their names said to be very common ones as we have learned, making it much more difficult to try to track them down. and as well, trying to find out more about what the plan was, where they intended to go, whether they came to the united states and then went overseas for training, possibly, only to come back here after getting some directions from whoever was telling them what to do. >> fran townsend, i understand you're also learning some new information. what are you hearing? >> >> anderson, th

susan candiotti, thanks so much. we'll be looking forward to than that's expected to happen an hour and a half or so from now. thanks so much. >>> also coming up, a facebook making changes that not everybody's really happy about. we'll have more on that in our next gaming and gadgets segment. first, which country uses the most social media? is its united states, japan, the united kingdom or germany? the answer after this. it feels like a short cut, even through customs. it feels like everything's gonna to be just fine. it feels like the experience of a lifetime. that's what it feels like to be a member. it's real milk full of calcium and vitamin d. and tastes simply delicious. for those of us with lactose intolerance... lactaid® milk. the original 100% lactose-free milk. [ cellphone rings ] cut! [ monica ] i have a small part in a big movie. i thought we'd be on location for 3 days, it's been 3 weeks. so, i used my citi simplicity card to pick up a few things. and i don't have to worry about a late fee. which is goo

susan candiotti has been working her sources. she joins us now so does fran townsend former homeland security advisor for george w. bush. on the phone, analyst peter berg again. last night we thought at least one person was a u.s. citizen of the three. now we're hearing two, fran. >> that's right. which adds to the amount of information we have on that. but the question is, how much more do we know? not that much. what we are hearing and continue to hear is that there is not very much specific information about these people. for example, their names said to be very common ones as we have learned, making it much more difficult to try to track them down. and as well, trying to find out more about what the plan was, where they intended to go, whether they came to the united states and then went overseas for training, possibly, only to come back here after getting some directions from whoever was telling them what to do. >> fran townsend, i understand you're also learning some new information. what are you hearing? >> >> anderson, th

susan candiotti is with me here at ground zero. athena jones is standing by at the mall in washington. also, in just a moment we'll check in with suzanne malveaux, she's in afghanistan for us this morning. spending the day with troops whose lives were changed because of what happened on this day ten years ago. they're having their own ceremony to remember 9/11. they'll be talking about their commitment to this country's security. let me begin here at ground zero, site of the attacks on the twin towers. it is an impressive and gorgeous memorial, footprints they call it, the foot prints of where the towers once stood, huge memorial pools. susan candiotti joins me now. good morning to you. help us set the scene for what we are seeing this morning and what we will see throughout the day. >> good morning to you, t.j. because of the ongoing terror threat there's still very tight security around the city through various checkpoints and the like. security is extra tight directly around here, around the memorial, around ground zero. as peop

assistant director tom fuentes joins me now along with susan candiotti. we heard from fran townsend earlier in the program. he believes that authorities believe one suspect is already in the united states. officials have announced a name. this is basically a man hunt going on right now? >> exactly, anderson. but the reporting is that it's a very common name and very difficult for the authorities to actually find the person, specifically identify him and track him down. >> were -- the -- the sourcing on this day is that it's only a partial identity. what does that mean? >> well, obviously, the first name or the last name and a very common name in the united states. so, it again makes it difficult. my understanding is that the sourcing of the information coming from pakistan also has been commonly intercept in the past and that's why they think it's credible information, but, again, they're putting the fact that the information coming in because it's this weekend, has heightened the alert even more. >> susan, is there any sense or any authorities possibly f

susan candiotti, thank you very much. we appreciate we apologize for the technical difficulties. >>> president obama is out west this hour speaking at a political fund-raiser in washington state. as you might imagine, he is getting a warm with welcome from the partisan audience. these are live pictures of the president speaking. he spent most of the speech promoting his jobs bill, a plan that is not popular among republicans and asked the crowd to help with his re-election. >> i've come because i need you to help finish what we started in 2008. back then we started this campaign not because we thought it would be a cake walk. after all you supported a candida candidat candidate named barack hussein omaum ma. >> president speaking right now. he is in seattle, washington, speaking at a democratic event here. it is a partisan event. he's among a crowd who is receptive. the president heads south to california for more fund-raisers later this evening. >>> in washington, lawmakers are at odds over the budget. this time it is a

susan candiotti, i appreciate your

susan candiotti in paterson, new jersey, a city flooded by hurricane irene last weekend. president obama toured that area today. but we want to begin with ed lavandera. he's in jean lafitte, louisiana, near new orleans. set the scene for us where you are. >> reporter: good afternoon, alina. jean lafitte is south of new orleans, on its way down to the gulf of mexico. if you look in the distance, you'll see an orange sheet on the horizon. on the other side of that, this that is the intercoastal waterway. to the left takes you down toward the gulf of mexico. to the right it winds back in towards the city of new orleans. the problem here isn't necessarily wind, which has been minimal or the rain. it's actually been tidal surge. as this storm slowly crept inland, the winds shoot out to the south. all this water is getting pushed up through here. this is already a low-lying area. the water is getting pushed out of the waterway into these neighborhoods around lafitte. mostly what we're seeing is homes where the water is threatening to go inside. and what they need here, accord t

one source telling our susan candiotti those reports were false. former white house homeland security adviser fran townsend joins us, peter bergen and also susan candiotti. peter is on the phone, author of "the longest war." fran, what's the latest you're hearing from sources on the threat? >> well, anderson, you know, it's interesting because as they begin to pull this thread, the more and more you hear is sort of words of caution. it is unconfirmed. the answer is they're looking for corroboration. they're clearly reaching out to allies around the world as well as looking inside existing databases to try and understand, is this really credible? somebody said to me, you know, it's a plausible threat but i'm not prepared yet to say, the s source said, it's actually credible. we need to act on it. we need more information, more corroboration. >> jessica, how seriously is the white house taking the threat? i talked to jay carney earlier. >> they're taking it quite seriously, anderson. the president was briefed by john brennan, his chief counterterrori

susan candiotti is here. you've been working your sources. so do we know anything more about these three men? >> no. we don't yet, but certainly that what they are actively trying to track down. serm they want to know names and one thing we are hearing is that they might have names that are so common that that might make it harder to track them down. >> one supposedly is an american and the other two pakistani, is that right? >> the thought is some of this information may be traced to the tribal border with afghanistan and pakistan and so therefore they might be coming from that area, but as we have seen in previous plots sometimes, if there is a u.s. citizen that is proven to be involved, sometimes people go there for training. all of this really, they are looking into trying to nail this down. so for now, the main idea, as you go about your business in new york and in washington, you may see more random searches. you might see more bags being inspected. more security around transportation hubs including train stations and subways, this kind

we want to check in on now, susan candiotti in new jersey, amber lyon in vermont. susan, we start about you. the president is going to be headed your way this weekend. what do the people want him to hear and see? >> reporter: i think the message very likely will be send us help and more likely than not send us money. of course this state has been declared a federal disaster area by president obama and so help is very likely to be on its way. we're standing in the middle of a parking lot and over here is a street. this street leads to a neighborhood, a neighborhood that obviously remains cut off, unless you can go in and out by boat. we had that chance yesterday, some people who live back there or know people back there gave us a ride. >> this is lake pasaeic. >> reporter: now called lake pasaeic. i'm seeing what it are probably the tops of the fences leading up to the front door. that is not a house on stilts, that's a garage underwater. they stayed around that house? of course lost the car. oh, a classic mustang lost. you've gone through this time and again. why d

one reporter telling our susan candiotti those reports were false. former white house security adviser fran townsend, susan candiotti and the author of "the long f-war" joins us as well. what's the latest you're hearing from sources on the threat? >> well, anderson, it's interesting because as they begin to pull this thread, the more and more you hear are words of caution. the answer is they are looking for corroboration. they are clearly reaching out to our ails around the world as well as looking inside existing databases to try to understand is this really credible? somebody said to me, you know, it's a plausible threat but i'm not prepared to say yet, the source said to me, that it's actually credible that we need to act on it. we take them all seriously, but we really need more information, more corroboration. >> jess characters how seriously is the white house taking the threat? i spoke to jay carney earlier? >> they are taking it quite seriously. the president was briefed by his chief counterterrorism adviser john brennan this morning and he's

cnn national correspondent susan candiotti in patterson, new jersey. i assume by now the water stopped rising but that doesn't mean they don't have a mess on their hands still? >> that's right, t.j. over my shoulder you can see the passaic river certainly the current remains very strong. the water level is coming down. no one better to talk to about the situation in patterson than mayor jeffrey jones. thanks for joining us. the president is coming here tomorrow to see personally what patterson looks like, what will you show him? >> we'll show him whatever the secret service allows us to show him. mainly the impacts that this flood has created to many of the residents in this area on both sides of the river, which is about 200 yard distance from the center of the flood to the next point. which is quite extreme for this area. >> now the waters are definitely going down. >> yes, they are. >> how much -- do you have any early damage assessments and what's the latest with how many people have been impacted with this, evacuated, the economic impact as well?

susan candiotti, cnn news, new jersey. >>> then officials in the u.s. gulf coast region say lee is stubborn and slow moving. the storm has drenched new orleans with more than 25 centimeters of rain. the deluge that put the levee system to the test. a tornado watch is in effect. the rain is expected to last for another 24 to 36 hours as lee makes its way north. let's get the latest on lee with ivan at the world weather center. >> not only for the southeast, but it will head to the northeast. that was impacted by irene. two areas of the united states will be under the gun for heavy rainfall here. one of the pumps that the army corps of engineers put into place had to be used after this rain event. there is the low there. the depression that will essentially merge with the frontal boundary from the west. as that happens, look at the rain shield that extends from louisiana all the way into canada here. a lot of tropical moisture coming in from the south. flash flood watches in effect. flooding that is in effect in mississippi and eventually into alabama. he

let's get right to susan candiotti in new york. susan, you're getting important new details about what or who u.s. officials are looking for? >> reporter: that's right, fred. we're learning interesting new information about the timing of this possible conspiracy. at least two of the three men involved in this possible terror plot have traveled to the united states last week. of course it remains unconfirmed as does the plot as to whether these people arrived in the united states. the authorities are still working on the assumption that they may have already arrived in the united states. a third man that is believed to be part of this possible group was traveling in europee. now, two of the three men we've been telling you about have been described as u.s. citizens. we are also now learning that two of the three of them are also of arab descent. it's been difficult trying to track down these men because their names are very common in the mideast. however authorities are using flight manifests and logs to try to determine whether the

susan candiotti, cnn new york. >> he is an actor and activist. gary does all he can to support american military families while working on his hit television show. do you know the year he actually joined the csi new york cast. 2004, 2005, 2008 or perhaps even 2009? the answer when we come back. [ male announcer ] the 3.6-liter v6 engine of the jeep grand cherokee has a best-in-class driving range of over 500 miles per tank. so you can catch morning tee time in monterey and the afternoon meeting in los angeles all without running out of gas. just make sure you don't run out of gas. ♪ with $500 bonus cash during the jeep celebration event, there's never been a better time or reason to celebrate at your jeep dealer. what's vanishing deductible all about ? guys, it's demonstration time. let's blow carl's mind. okay, let's say i'm your insurance deductible. every year you don't have an accident, $100 vanishes. the next year, another $100. where am i going, carl ? the next year... that was weird. but awesome ! ♪ nationwide is on your side >>> he's

susan candiotti, ahead of the president's visit. susan, thank you very much. >>> sarah palin is taking on republican presidential candidate rick perry. we'll shell you what she said after the break. two of the most important are energy security and economic growth. north america actually has one of the largest oil reserves in the world. a large part of that is oil sands. this resource has the ability to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. at our kearl project in canada, we'll be able to produce these oil sands with the same emissions as many other oils and that's a huge breakthrough. that's good for our country's energy security and our economy. >>> sarah palin is grabbing the spotlight in the key presidential caucus state of iowa she just wrapped up her keynote speech at a tea party rally in a town of indianola. if she walks like a duck, talks like a duck, it is a duck, right? she hasn't announced a presidential bid. she sounded like a candidate today, though. >> she did sound a lot like a candidate. you're absolutely right. sara

thank you, susan candiotti. appreciate it. >>> a shoot-out in a small town. we have new information on the deadly shooting outside a youth football game in washington state. it's an incident that has left an entire community dazed and confused. it was no ordinary sunday in this new jersey church. the pastor said, please stand as we pass the offering plate, except, please take some cash instead of giving a little. hmm. it's what the pastor calls a spiritual stimulus. [ angela ] endless shrimp is our most popular promotion at red lobster. there's so many choices. the guests come in and they're like yeah i want to try this shrimp and i want to try this kind and this kind. they wait for this all year long. [ male announcer ] it's endless shrimp today at red lobster. your favorite shrimp entrees, like garlic shrimp scampi or new sweet and spicy shrimp. as much as you like any way you like for just $15.99. [ trapp ] creating an experience instead of just a meal that's endless shrimp. my name is angela trapp. i'm a server at red lobster and i sea food differently. â

our susan candiotti shows us the devastation in new jersey. >> susan, the great falls and paterson, new jersey are always a spectacular sight, but nothing like this, thanks to irene, the passaic river here has a very strong current causing the waters to gush over this water fall. and the passaic river to overflow it's banks. on this day nearly a week after the storm came through, many people remain evacuated from their homes in parts of the city. hundreds still have to boil their drinking water, many people still don't have electricity and some stores remain closed as well. this is the backdrop for president obama's visit on sunday. inspectors wearing protective suits are also looking forebusinesses and homes that have been damaged by the flood to make sure they're safe before people move back n i spoke with a lifelong resident of the city, a maim carrier about what he thinks about the president's visit on sunday and how he thinks residents have been affected by the storm. >> after the initial shock of everything, and it's like everything else, there's a grieving process that goes on wh

alina, back to you. >> susan candiotti, live for us in paterson. the president's visit giving people there a much-needed lift, at least in spirit. thank you very much for that report. meanwhile, so many people out of work right now, unemployment remaining at 9.1%. if you're one of those people or you know someone who is, i want to get you ready to take some notes. we have important information about how to get your resume in order. that is next. we're back after this. in here, inventory can be taught to learn. ♪ in here, machines have a voice... ♪ [ male announcer ] in here, medical history follows you... even when you're away from home. it's the at&t network -- a network of possibilities, creating and integrating solutions, helping business, and the world...work. rethink possible. sure, but let me get a little information first. for broccoli, say one. for toys, say two. toys ! the system can't process your response at this time. what ? please call back between 8 and 5 central standard time. he's in control. goodbye. even kids know it's wrong t

our susan candiotti talk good them earlier. susan, you know, the world's eyes are on really ground zero right now even, even more so than tomorrow. they're trying to make sure everything is safe and they heard about this credible but unsubstantiated terror threat that's going to be happening tomorrow. you can imagine all the security and people involved in this -- >> there has been questions, don, about whether they should alert the public. but officials say we want people to know because we want them to know if we see something to say something in that area. so i think it's a good thing to have people on high alert and they're doing a security sweep at ground zero. live pictures. >> yeah. looks like the traffic, susan, is starting to move. earlier it was just really a wall of red flashing lights there. and that's the west side high y highway, and then you have the hudson river which is close. and you see the buildings, where the buildings once stood. we don't have the control of pictures of photographers there. and they're zoo

thanks to susan candiotti for the report. irene is blamed for at least 43 deaths and total losses from the storm could reach $6 billion >>> turning to politics, mitt romney is looking for new friends in the tea party, you could say. until recently he hasn't spent a lot of time courting the big government activists. tonight, a different story. he spoke at a tea party rally in con ford, new hampshire. he played up his business background and said he is the candidate to unseat president obama and solve the nation's economic problems. >> we have zero confidence, zero faith in a president who creato. that's in my wheelhouse. i will get america working again. >> south carolina's jim demint isa -- is a powerhouse was on "state of the union" making his feelings known about the upcoming jobs speech to congress on thursday. >> i don't think those things will create jobs, candy. what the president appears to be doing, and i'm so tired of his speeches, it will be hard to watch. >> a lot of people feel the same way. whether senator demint

candiotti joins us now from little falls, new jersey, susan, just start with what you have seen today.l >> reporter: well, we've seen a lot of flooding in a lot of areas.l you mentioned the number 18,000 as the governor did.l 3,500 of those people live in this little falls, in this particular passaic county area.l i'm coming to you from the middle of a parking lot.l a parking lot for a car wash.l so, i guess you could argue that if you want on get your car washed, you wouldn't have to pull it through the scrubbers, you could just pull it right through here, because the current here, candy, is very strong.l you get a sense of how deep it is.l i'm five feet tall, and if you look over that way just a little bit, you can see a car, the water comes halfway up the waterline there, so you have a parking lot, a lot of businesses here are flooded out.l but i spent a large part of the day also looking at a lot of homes.l flood stage here earlier today was 14 feet above the flood stage, so it's more than twice what it should be.l and we went down that street down there, where a lot of people live

susan candiotti spoke with the three jurors in the case. >> reporter: they are three jurors who shared an experience that triggers haunting memories to this day. >> like a bad dream you can't wake up from and you can't control. >> reporter: serving on a jury who saw and heard painfully expliz it evidence that the murders were described as pure evil. >> you're capturing all of what's said and processing it. and a lot of it was painful stuff. >> especially now with seeing the new trial coming up and i see flashes of josh on the television. that's when some of the bad feelings do come up. >> reporter: feelings from powerful testimony. that mrs. hauck-petit was forced to withdraw money from a bank, taken home, raped and strangled and her daughters were tied to their beds and set afire. young makayla was sexually assaulted. mr. petit was severely beaten but escaped. some images are inescapable. >> when i look at fire now, it almost always comes to mind. >> reporter: what was the experience like for you? >> i can imagine makayla was the same way my daughter is, happy, had a good family. they

our susan candiotti is there now. what do we want the president to see, susan, and what do they want him to hear? >> reporter: well, he's going to see things like this. we're on a street called presidential boulevard. a lot of houses here, flooded. the water came up, filled the basement, at least, i would say, 12 feet, and another 4 or 5 inches inside the house. and people here are just looking back at their homes today and shaking their heads about what lies ahead for them. this is a business across the street. also starting its cleanup. this is the passaic river. this is how close they are to the waterfront. and the business operator here tells me that the water has overflowed at times, but never this high. it's receded now, but looking at that fence, debris is stuck nearly to the top. that's another indication of how high up the water was. and over here, this street is impassable. at one point, that car was submerged, no longer. so it's another sign that the water -- floodwaters are going down. we talked to a mail

our national correspondent susan candiotti is joining us now. she's in new york. susan, i assume you can see the precautions under way this weekend in new york city. >> reporter: oh, absolutely. of course, security was already at a heightened state because of the importance of the particular anniversary. and now it's ramped up even more. so, yes, you can easily see a bigger police presence at train stations, at tunnels, on the streets, with bags being checked, with cars, all kinds of vehicles being checked, for explosives, the possibility of radioactive bombs as well. and this is all part of the plan of ramped up plan to make sure they're not going to miss anything throughout this weekend. but you know, wolf, it's also interesting to look at the origin of this threat. and my colleague, pentagon correspondent barbara starr, has learned that this started on wednesday when some information was intercepted from an al qaeda operative, someone that authorities believe has been credible in the past that they've eavesdropped on in the past. they took that information, tha

thanks to susan candiotti for the report. irene is blamed for at least 43 deaths and total losses from the storm could reach $6 billion with a b. >>> turning to politics, mitt romney is looking for new friends in the tea party, you could say. until recently he hasn't spent a lot of time courting the big government activists. tonight, a different story. he spoke at a tea party rally in con ford, new hampshire. he played up his business background and said he is the president to unseat president obama and solve the nation's economic problems. >> we have zero confidence, zero faith in a president who created zero jobs. it's time for someone who knows how to create jobs and get the economy going. that's in my wheelhouse. i will get america working again. >> south carolina's jim demint was on "state of the union" making his feelings known about the upcoming jobs speech to congress on thursday. >> i don't think those things will create jobs, candy. what the president appears to be doing, and i'm so tired of his speeches, it will be

susan candiotti is standing by for us at ground zero. a short time ago, we saw police making a very public security sweep. you were standing above the highway overlooking the memorial when we saw you last time here on cnn. that sweep was happening live. you have since moved. why? >> well, they're conducting a security sweep from our position overlooking that memorial. right now we're down on the street and it's a completely different atmosphere. we can no longer look over the memorial, but here, different situation. this is mainly a commercial district, not residential. it's quiet anyway at night. taking a look now, we're in an area where our movements are restricted. as you can see, there's a bit of traffic now. and looking down the street as well, you can see the ground zero is just beyond there where all the lights are. you see the high rises. there you see looming ahead of you, this is one world trade center. it is the -- going to be the largest building they say in the country and possibly the western hemisphere. it's also going bei

susan candiotti, thanks very much. as we reported the rivers -- the passaic river in particular starting to -- it's crested and starting to recede. >>> drought in texas. texas and oklahoma starved for rain these days. right now they're dealing with wildfires that have burned dozens of homes. the biggest of the fires in north texas near dallas. it's 50% contained. authorities say some residents who were forced to leave their homes may be allowed to return today. and for that, they are certainly grateful. jim spellman is following developments live in the resort area of possum kingdom lake, texas. what will they find when they come home? >> well, the people who lost their homes, it's utter devastation. i mean there's sometimes just a chimney standing. these are large substantial brick resort homes. very nice places. those areas are devastated. a lot of the areas around this lake are fine, already yesterday some people were getting their boats into the water. overnight firefighters here got just the kind of conditions the

our susan candiotti for us in new jersey. thank you, this morning. >>> and as we're about eight minutes of the top of the hours, just an ugly scene at a football game. referees have to defend themselves against players and coaches. we've got the video for you and you will not believe the ages of the players. stay here. that works at the molecular level to help your engine run more smoothly by helping remove deposits and cleaning up intake valves. so when you fill up at an exxon or mobil station, you can rest assured we help your engine run more smoothly while leaving behind cleaner emissions. it's how we make gasoline work harder for you. exxon and mobil. >>> all right. joe carter from hln sports, a friend of our show here on cnn saturday morning, joining me again. and unfortunately, we shouldn't have to tell a story about referees having to defend themselves during a game. >> yeah, specifically in a story like this, because you've got 13 and 14-year-old kids involved. this is really the ugly part of sports, the disgusting pa

. >>> breaking news, a 9/11 terror news, susan candiotti is on top of the breaking story. susan, what is the latest information you have? >> reporter: the latest information, piers, is that three people might possibly be involved and the authorities are trying to track down this information. the latest ihave, according to a u.s. government source, that the names of the people who might be involved are rather common, which might make it it that much harder to try to track down the specificity of this information that they've been looking into, piers. >> obviously there's a fine balance to be struck between not wanting to alarm people but also wanting to be aware if it is a credible threat. it seems from all the way the people in official places are behaving they are taking this pretty seriously. >> reporter: oh, absolutely. and this information was available, let's say, as of early this morning so certainly came to authorities within the last 24 hours, i am told. so that's why you heard authorities say at this press briefing that they are taking steps above and beyond, for

susan candiotti. >> so far, so good. >> thank you, susan. >>> let's head to atlanta and check in with rob. what is interesting the waters have receded in vermont but not in new jersey. why is that? >> rougher terrain. deeper mountains and bigger valleys and the water drains much more fastly. you get the torrential force behind the rivers and why we saw the structural damage across vermont. the river valley takes 24 hours to completely drain so it moves quickly. jersey, it's a little bit flatter so it rises and recedes more slowly and down towards places like north carolina, it rises much more slowly but takes days, if not weeks to recede. >>> more rain in the northeast? hurricane katia, a 1 overnight moving to the west at 19 miles an hour. here is the forecast track. bring it to category 3 status by the weekend. moving it closer to the u.s. that is the trajectory right now. . only five days out. it does miss the caribbean. we are hoping it misses the u.s. too early to call that yet but there are stronger cold fronts i see down the pipe and hoping pushes this thing out to sea. can't ma

susan candiotti is standing by for us at ground zero. a short time ago, we saw police making a very public security sweep. you were standing above the west side highway overlooking the memorial when we saw you last time on cnn, that sweep was happening live. you have since moved. why? >> well, they are conducting a security sweep from our position overlooking that memorial. right now we're down on the street and it's a completely different atmosphere. we can no longer look over the memorial, but here, different situation. this is mainly a commercial district, not residential. it's quiet anyway at night. taking a look now, we're in an area where our movements are restricted. as you can see, there's a bit of traffic now. and looking down the street as well, you can see the ground zero is just beyond there where all the lights are. you see the high rises. there you see looming ahead of you, this is one world trade center. it is the -- going to be the largest building they say in the country and possibly the western hemisphere. it's also goi

that is coming in from susan candiotti. when you hear the president speak about this threat, is this current threat based on what you know the wolf type of operation the president was concerned about or something more significant? >> it's certainly sounding more significant. it's a vehicle with improvised explosives and a car bomb. three operatives and potentially two target sets of d.c. or new york. this is not a lone wolf. it's understandable that that is what the president was focused on at the time because it was after norway, this is more of an al qaeda central. let's be clear. he thought a large scale attack was unlikely. i will tell you if you compare even the outlines that we have, three people and a car bomb is a much less significant event if it were to happen than a 9/11. three planes and 3,000 people dead. that's not to minimize the threat. they are running that to ground right now. this is not large scale on the skile scale of a 9/11 even though it is significant. >> nick robert in kabul, what does it say to yo

>> susan candiotti at jfk where shane bauer, josh fattal, and their families have touched down, very long trip from oman to jfk. they, of course, had been imprisoned in iran for more than two years. i want to bring in elise labbot, producer at the state department, and ask you why now. it's been more than two years since they were hitchhiking along the iraq/iran border. they along with sarah shourd were detained by the iranys, put on trials. she was released on humanitarian reasons. now after two years, suddenly they're out. why is that? >> reporter: i think that they -- iranians came to the conclusion that they weren't really getting the bang for their buck anymore with these hikers. this was really becoming an international incident. they had hoped maybe they could get some leverage with the united states, maybe make a trade for some iranian detainees that they felt were unjustly detained in u.s. jails. that wasn't happening. and as i said, this became an internal incident because the u.s. and iran don't have relations, the swiss were getting involved, the omanis, and international

our susan candiotti was there >> reporter: back on u.s. soil, freed hikers josh fattal and shane bauer came out swinging at iran, calling themselves political pawns and iran's officials liars for calling them spies. >> they do not deserve undue credit for ending what they had no right and no justification to start in the first place. the only reason we have been held hostage is because we are american. >> reporter: and they disclose how they found out their two-year ordeal was over. last wednesday, in prison, they were inexplicably given street clothes, and fingerprinted and taken to meet an envoy from oman and -- >> he said, let's go home. >> reporter: within hours they ran off a plane in oman and into the arms of their families. including the mother of josh fattal. what was that like for you? >> well, we were hooting and hollering and we were waving our scarves and we just couldn't wait till they got down to us. i couldn't have asked for anything better. >> reporter: in prison, spending months in isolation, with no diplomatic visits and

susan candiotti spoke to three of the jur mors the hayes trial. they say they are still haunted by the images they saw in the courtroom. >> they're three jurors who shared an experience that at times triggers haunting memories to this day. >> it's like a bad dream you can't wake up from and you can't control. >> reporter: serving on a jury who saw and heard painfully explicit evidence that steven hayes helped carry out the murder of jennifer hawke-petit, her 17-year-old daughter hayley and 11-year-old michaela. murders described as pure evil. >> you are capturing all of what's said and processing it. and a lot of that was painful stuff. >> especially now with seeing the new trial coming up and i see flashes of josh on the television. that's when some of the bad feelings do come up. >> reporter: feelings from powerful testimony that mrs. hawke-petit was forced to withdraw money from a bank, take it home, raped and strangled. her daughters were tied to their beds and set afire. young michaela was sexually assaulted. mr. petit was severely beaten but

let's turn now to susan candiotti live outside the courthouse in new haven, connecticut. you talked to the jurors in the trial of steven hayes, and what did they tell you? >> reporter: you know, they talked about trauma that some of them still feel, and little things that trigger bad memories, like seeing the same model of the getaway car, or passing by the police station. they talked about painful memories that they share. they are three jurors who shared an experience that at times triggers haunting memories to this day. >> it's like a bad dream you can't wake up from and you can't control? >> reporter: serving on a jury who saw and heard painfully explicit evidence that steven hayes helped carry out the murder of jennifer hawke-petit, her 17-year-old daughter, hal hayley, and their other daughter, micaelmicaela. >> especially now seeing with new trial coming up, and i see flashes of josh on the television, that's when some of the bad feelings do come up. >> feelings from powerful testimony that mrs. hawke-petit was forced to withdraw money from a bank, taken home, rape

susan candiotti was there. >> reporter: back on u.s. soil, freed hikers josh fattal and shane bauer came out swinging at iran calling themselves political pawns and iran's officials liars for calling them spies. >> they do not deserve undue credit for ending what they had no right and no justification to start in the first place. the only reason we have been held hostage is because we are american. >> reporter: and they disclosed how they found out their two-year ordeal was over. last wednesday in prison, they were inexplicably given street clothes, fingerprinted and taken to meet an envoy from oman who told them -- >> he looked at us and he said, let's go home. >> within hours, they ran off a plane in oman and into the arms of their families, including the mother of josh fattal. >> what was that like for you? >> we were hooting and hollering and we were waving our scarves and we just couldn't wait until they got down to us. i couldn't have asked for anything better. >> reporter: in prison, spending months in isolation with no diplomati

we'll have to see. >> susan candiotti, thanks for that great piece and great reporting. lisa sylvester is monitoring some of the other top stories in "the situation room" now. testimony in the trial for michael jackson's personal doctor suggests that conrad murray looked like he didn't know how to give cpr. >> yeah, this was very bizarre, joe. one of michael jackson's bodyguards, he is telling the jury he didn't see any medical monitors in the room and the third day of the trial against jackson's physician, conrad murray, alberto alvarez testified, the doctor told him to scoop up all the drug vials by the bed before they called 911. murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's death in 2009. >>> rapper t.i. is out of an atlanta halfway house. the road to freedom begins now as the performer whose name is actually clifford harris jr., serves a year long probation. he was given an 11-month prison sentence on a parole violation. >>> if you ever wondered what happened to the little boy in the movie "the shining," steven king sure did and he's now working

>> susan candiotti there out of new york for us. susan, thanks. >>> and one hour from now, president obama faces a high-stakes test of diplomacy. he's going to stand before the united nations and face two very different audiences. one, the international community on edge over u.s. efforts to block palestinian membership. the other, his republican challengers ready to pounce on any hint he's backing away from israel. brianna keilar live at the white house. how careful do you think the administration is being in trying to achieve the right balance here? >> overall in the actions the administrations have taken over months, you could argue that they tried to have a balance there. but if you look, kyra, at the president's actions in new york, what we're expecting him to say before the u.n. general assembly today, if you look at those things in isolation, this is not walking a very fine line. this is the president coming down firmly on the side of israel to say that this is not the venue for the palestinians to seek statehood and it's als

susan candiotti has his amazing story. >> reporter: the river is right in your backyard. aerowatching the water go up and see your kids' play set in the back of the tree. what are you thinking? >> i'm thinking that it's very dangerous and time to leave this place. >> reporter: as you're looking outside, what is the storm looking like? what is going on in your head? >> the house is surrounded by water. i thought about eventually leaving 3:30 to 4:00 in the afternoon on sunday. i grab my credit card and my keys. i literally open the door, the water rushed in. i started walking down here. i did one of these. i finally got here and the water is up to here. i walked, i walked. literally the water is splashing in my face. i walk up here. this is the lowest point to come up. i literally walk up and it goes higher ground. i literally grab on to the railing here and my neighbor is pumping the water out. i said i've got to get the heck out of here. i said i'm swimming out of here. >> reporter: are you walking or swimming? >> i hold ton to branches and get pushed here. i grab on to

susan candiotti is live in new york with the latest. susan, so now they've been released. where do they believe they go now? where are they headed? when do they reunite with their families? >> the last word we have from iran's state news agency is that they are wheels up, they're on their way to oman where their families are known to be anxiously awaiting what is sure to be a very emotional reunion after not having seen them, remember, only once they were allowed a visit on mother's day one year after they were imprisoned. so waiting for them, the families of josh fattal, shane bauer and sarah shourd is also there. remember, she's engaged to shane bauer. we recall she said when she was released, she said back in january of 2010, shane got down on a bended knee and had fashioned an engagement ring out of a thread from the shirt he'd worn to present that to her. so she will be there also. we are told. we're waiting for a statement from the family at any time, presumably it will be when the plane touches down. they're being escorted by a representative of oman. that country e

we want to get straight to susan candiotti who is there and joins us live. susan, have you seen the president? tell us what's happening. >> reporter: not from our perspective but he is certainly being seen by a lot of people. we all know his title as commander in chief. today he is also playing off his title as comforter in chief. he's already visited two communities from new jersey, wayne new jersey and right now in paterson, new jersey and he has been meeting and greeting with residents and getting out of the motorcade and telling them that the united states is there to help them with federal disaster relief. he also stopped briefly and made a statement in which he said that he wants people to know that america is behind them and that everyone women support them. that there is federal money, enough to meet its obligations to help people recover from hurricane irene. we're also going to show you know where we are in paterson, new jersey, this is a command post where they are setting up. 600 people in the city of paterson remain without power and don't have

susan candiotti is in cranford, for us. >> reporter: here in cranford, new jersey, take a look at the river looking more normal but did it wreak havoc in hurricane irene. it overflowed its banks big time. one neighborhood still don't have their electricity turned on and many residents are telling us they would give anything for a hot shower after nearly a week without power. this is what a lot of the neighborhoods look like. debris all over the place. they have a lot of cleaning up to do here. they have got all kinds of furniture, personal belongings, chairs, washing machines all left to be picked up. in fact, some homes even had to be condemned because either trees have fallen down on them or their foundations have washed away. here in union county, they are still waiting for a declaration of disaster. the police chief tells me they hope to get it once they get the proper paper work filed with fe fema. t.j., back to you. >> three weather situations we are continuing to keep an eye on. >>> 10 minutes past the hour now. turn to a disturbing string of deaths in hockey. three current or

susan candiotti covering both angles of the story for us at ground zero tonight for us. susan, what are people talking about? i'm wondering, are more people visiting today with the anniversary tomorrow? >> reporter: there have been a lot of crowds, particularly here at ground zero, looking over the memorial from a distance. some people have had advanced tours. but in addition to thinking about what will happen here tomorrow morning in a wonderful ceremony, everyone is also talking about the possibility of that threat, a possible attack on new york city still unconfirmed, that threat is yet. but when you talk to people on the streets, they're also not overly concerned or worried about all the increased security around the city. they're putting up with it. take a look. >> i think new yorkers who went through the aftermath just got a little bit tougher. you almost accept the fact if you're going to live in new york, that threat's going to be here perennially. >> we hear that all the time. it's hard for that to -- it doesn't necessarily seem like a reality. >> there's always