Felix Baumgartner takes Anderson Cooper through the experience of breaking the sound barrier during his historic jump. "Until I opened my parachute I did not know if I broke the speed of sound or not. So when I touched the ground with my parachute, I have been told by a lot of people on the ground they heard the super sonic boom. It's the first and only super sonic boom created by a human," said Baumgartner. The skydiver said he was worried about nailing the perfect landing without falling because "the whole world was watching."
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: 360° Interview |
Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, said on CNN on Wednesday that his support for Richard Mourdock was dependent on an apology from the Republican Senate candidate for his remarks that pregnancies caused by rape are intended by God.
"It depends on what he does," McCain said on AC360°. He was answering Anderson's question about whether he still considered himself in Mourdock's corner after the comments on rape and pregnancy, which came at a debate Tuesday.
"If he apologizes and says he misspoke and he was wrong and asks the people to forgive him, I would be the first," the 2008 presidential nominee said, adding that he had made mistakes and asked for people's forgiveness after owning up to his transgressions.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper, Kevin Liptak Filed under: Senator John McCain |
U.S. intelligence believes that assailants connected to al Qaeda in Iraq were among the core group that attacked the diplomatic mission in Benghazi, a U.S. government official told CNN.
That would represent the second al Qaeda affiliate associated with the deadly September 11 attack that killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.
Previously, intelligence officials said there were signs of connections to al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, the North African wing of the terror group.
The revelation that members of al Qaeda in Iraq are suspected of involvement in the Libya attack comes at a time when there is a growing number of fighters from that group also taking part in the Syrian civil war.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper, Elise Labott, Suzanne Kelly Filed under: al Qaeda • Libya |
Reporters find out what it's like to encounter aggressive carp and other wildlife while on the job.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: The RidicuList |
On AC360 Wednesday, Sen. John McCain responds to Hillary Clinton telling reporters that an accountability review board will look at all aspects of the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya. She made a point of saying that they won't be "cherry-picking" stories and documents about the incident. Clinton was referring to e-mails sent on the day of the assault to the White House, State Department and FBI identifying an Islamist group as taking credit, which they later denied.
"I'm all for a thorough and complete investigation, but certain facts are known and there continues to be contradictions within the government. And we now find out, we members of Congress, rather than being briefed, we find out from the news media," said McCain. He told Anderson he doesn't expect that the results of the review board will be made public until after the November 6 election.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: Hillary Clinton • Libya • Senator John McCain |
Reporter's Note: President Obama is attempting to win re-election. I’m attempting to write a letter to him for every single day of his first term. I guess it’s good for both of us so far.
Dear Mr. President,
You’ve made a few extra headlines with this whole marathon campaigning stint you’re conducting right now, and I want to weigh in on this idea. Do I understand this correctly: You’re going on a 48 hour “extravaganza” of campaigning, during which time you will not sleep?
Two things.
First, I’m not sure your team should be calling it an “extravaganza.” That sounds way more fun than anything connected to politics these days. I think I would have gone with something like “forced march,” or “tour of hellishness.”
Second, you really need to speak to your schedule planners. There is no reason that any president, barring a national disaster, should be up for 48 straight hours. I suppose some people see it as a measure of commitment, but it strikes me as more of a David Blaine stunt. “I’ll spend a whole week frozen in a block of ice with a dozen sockeye salmon if you’ll only vote for me in November!” You get the picture, and you ought to get some rest. Imagine what would happen if an actual calamity came our way just as you burned into hour 48! “Mr. President, war has erupted in the Middle East…we’re mobilizing troops, and enemy gunships have appeared off the coast…by the way, alien space ships are landing!” “Uh, yeah. Can you guys handle that while I catch a few Z’s?”
I hope the trip goes well, of course. I’m sure you and Mr. Romney both have had more than your share of road time lately, and I think you should both be careful out there. Take frequent rest breaks. Walk around a bit. And if you feel yourself nodding off, for heaven’s sake pull into a rest stop and catch a little sleep.
And call if you can. You know how I worry.
Regards,
Tom
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Filed under: Letters to the President • Opinion • President Barack Obama • T1 • Tom Foreman |
By now many people around the world have watched in awe as skydiver Felix Baumgartner took a step out of a balloon-lifted capsule that sent him traveling 24 miles, at speeds over 830 mph, to earth. What's unknown during those goosebump-inducing moments is what "Fearless Felix" was thinking, dreading and seeing during his descent. Anderson sat down with him to find out what it's like to be the first person to create a supersonic boom, and what he hopes to accomplish next.
Baumgartner calls the view from near space "beautiful," but the surroundings "hostile." That's because he only had 10 minutes worth of oxygen to get him through the jump he had spent five years training to do. Anyone fearing heights would think the look down is the toughest part, but he sees the fall as "the fastest way home in case something goes wrong," and the quickest way toward medical care.
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Post by: Ella Chick Filed under: 360° Interview |
Ryan Andresen says his Scout troop knew he was gay, but a policy prevented him from getting the certification he earned. Anderson Cooper talked with Ryan and his mom about his fight for equality.
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Post by: Anderson Cooper Filed under: Gay & Lesbian Issues |
CNN's Gary Tuchman talks with a body language expert about what the candidates' gestures and expressions revealed in the final debate.
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Post by: Gary Tuchman Filed under: 2012 Election • Mitt Romney • President Barack Obama |
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