Deadly Avalanche on Mount Manaslu; Libyan Army Threatens Militias; Pakistan PM Condemns Bounty; Candidates Brace for Busy Week; First Lady Defends Voting; New Laws Could Be Game Changers
SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN ANCHOR: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Susan Hendricks in today for Fredricka Whitfield. We start with this. An avalanche happens on Mount Manaslu today, the eighth highest mountain in the world. Now a rescue pilot says at least 11 people are dead as a desperate search for more people is happening right now. An entire camp reportedly swept away by that avalanche when it hit at over 21,000 feet in the air. It happened at 5:00 a.m. this morning. Now there are some survivors that have been airlifted to local hospitals. We are told over 204 mountaineers broke up into teams of 25. They were apparently attempting to climb the mountain. At least 38 people are believed to be still missing. We're going to follow that, of course. Libya's militias have 48 hours to leave Tripoli or else. That is the warning from the army. The military says it will use force if needed to push those militants out of bases, public buildings or property belonging to the former regime. Now the threat follows passionate anti-militia protests like this one in Benghazi. Libyans who are determined to show they are not standing for the violence that left four Americans dead. Pakistan is backing away from the bounty on the head of the filmmaker whose movie began this entire crisis. This man, a government minister said he will pay $100,000 for the death of Nakoula Basseley Nakoula. He even suggested that the Taliban or al Qaeda may want to take him up on that offer. Nakoula is said to be in hiding, but cooler heads like Egypt's grand mufti hoped to defuse this situation before it grows even worse. Take a listen.</s>ALI GOMAA, GRAND MUFTI OF EGYPT (through translation): I come from the corporation of laws and resisting the spread of hatred and to cooperate among each other against violence, against terrorism, against killings and against confrontations.</s>HENDRICKS: Now Pakistan's government is making it clear that the bounty is not an official position. President Obama arrives in New York to attend the U.N. General Assembly tomorrow. The president speaks to the assembly on Tuesday. Administration officials say that he will likely talk about the worldwide protests over an online film that insults the Islam religion. An official says the president is expected to restate his opposition on the movie and also denounce the violent acts of some protesters. Both President Obama and Republican rival Mitt Romney will talk policy and presidential politics during interviews tonight on "60 Minutes." Both candidates are bracing for a busy week on the campaign trail. Here's CNN's political editor, Paul Steinhauser.</s>PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Hi, Susan. Mitt Romney campaigns in the rocky mountain battleground in Colorado tonight and tomorrow. Our new CNN poll of polls indicates it's a close contest between the Republican nominee and President Barack Obama for the state's nine electoral votes. On Tuesday, both Romney and the president speak separately at former President Bill Clinton's Annual Global Initiative gathering in New York City. After that, Romney heads to Ohio for a bus tour through the crucial swing state.</s>MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I need Ohio to help me become the next president.</s>STEINHAUSER: Our poll of polls in Ohio indicates that right now Mr. Obama has the upper hand in the race for the state's 18 electoral votes. Both men have been frequent visitors to Ohio this year, and while Romney rolls through the state on Wednesday, the president stumps there as well.</s>BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: It is good to be in Ohio. It is great to be in this beautiful setting.</s>STEINHAUSER: Also this week, with the first presidential debate closing in, both men will continue their debate preps -- Susan.</s>HENDRICKS: All right, Paul, appreciate that. While the president and Mitt Romney are getting ready for the debates, First Lady Michelle Obama is speaking out on voting rights. She spoke at the Congressional Black Caucus gala last night about the importance of protecting the right to vote.</s>FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA: We all get a say in our democracy no matter who we are or where we're from or what we look like or who we love. So we cannot let anyone discourage us from casting our ballots. We cannot let anyone make us feel unwelcome in the voting booth.</s>HENDRICKS: Now, the first lady didn't specifically refer to it, but there is an election battle brewing right now over Americans' access to the voting booth. A lot of states have passed laws that many people say could make it harder to vote. Those laws could be game changers come November. Joe Johns shows us how.</s>JOE JOHNS, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: In the past two years, almost every state in the country has introduced or passed some type of change or restriction to the voting laws, 41 out of 50 states since the last mid-term election. We're talking about all kinds of changes to the voting laws here, for early voting, for voter registration, for absentee ballots, and some of the most controversial changes of all are to laws requiring voters to show photo identification. Eleven states have already gotten the photo I.D. laws in place. Another six states have photo I.D. laws that have now been challenged in the courts and are under review. This is going on mostly in Republican controlled states. We have to say here, again and again, polling shows voter I.D. laws are very popular and make sense to people. Republicans who tend to support these laws say they're needed to avoid voter fraud, but in previous elections and the primaries this year, we've not seen a significant number of people charged with voter fraud. Democrats who are fighting these laws from state to state say it doesn't have anything to do with fraud. They say it's just a plan to try to keep voters and especially minority voters, including blacks and Latinos, away from the polls on Election Day. As you might imagine, some of the biggest battles over these laws are being waged in some of the most important battleground states namely Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida where many people think the presidential election could be decided if it's a close race. The battle is over early voting in Ohio. The Obama campaign is fighting it out in appeals court with Ohio's Republican secretary of state over whether all voters will be allowed to go to the polls on Saturday, Sunday and Monday before Election Day. In Pennsylvania, we are waiting for a state judge to reconsider a ruling he made allowing a voter I.D. law to stay in place. The State Supreme Court told him he had to make sure there is enough time for voters to get I.D.s. And in Florida, it's been a bruising battle over voting rights for the better part of the year. Democrats won a few parts of this, Republicans have as well. Now it's coming down to a lawsuit filed by Democratic Congresswoman Corinne Brown over how many hours polls will be open for early voting. Why is all this important? Well, it's about electoral votes. Ohio has 18. Pennsylvania has 20 and Florida has 29. The candidate who wins or loses these states has a leg up in the race for the White House. Back to you.</s>HENDRICKS: Yes, that is key, Joe. Appreciate that. And if you would like to see more on the legal battle over voting rights in Florida, Joe Johns has an hour-long documentary premiering next month. Tune in to "Who Counts" on Sunday, October 14th at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time. You know that jailed Russian punk rock band, they got a piece of word from none other Yoko Ono. You see him there. We're going to talk to the husband of one of the band members just ahead.