CARL AZUZ, CNN ANCHOR: It`s a new month, but millions of Americans are starting November in the same situation as how they ended October. In the aftermath of the so called Super storm Sandy. It leads off today`s program.
One meteorologist called Sandy a storm that will be talked about for generations. The numbers tell part of the story. At least 50 deaths in the U.S., millions of people still without power on Wednesday, 10 to $20 billion in estimated property damage and lost business. But the images, the snapshots of the devastation, that`s what really make it hit home. Head up to the Jersey shore to Seaside Heights, the boardwalk, the amusement pier. This is what it looks like now, the park still there. Some of the pier was washed out to sea, the rollercoaster is still standing, but now it`s out in the ocean. Getting around parts of New York and New Jersey means riding in a yellow cab, but these won`t be stopping to pick up passengers any time soon: Flooding caused damage to rail lines all across New Jersey as well.
Two airports in the New York area were planning to start limited service yesterday, but not LaGuardia Airport. It`s runways and concourses remained empty because of significant storm damage although it is scheduled to reopen today.
Getting around underground was limited, too. Most New York Subway tunnels were still flooded yesterday with no estimate for when they might reopen.
Of course, those aren`t the only images from the past few days, this was a massive storm, it brought scenes of disaster and it brought scenes of heroism, too.
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VOICE OF MAYOR BILL AKERS, SEASIDE HEIGHTS, NEW JERSEY: We`re riding around, it`s two o`clock in the morning, and we are pulling people out of the water. You see these people and these cars load down the street, and these guys do this -- they do this with no regards to anything other than they want to do the right thing and help. And you get inspired by things like that, and I just don`t know where it comes from in individuals like this.
VOICE OF SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ, NEW JERSEY: You have National Guard now, thank God, helping rescue people out of their homes, but there is nowhere to go. There is a very thick stench of gasoline in the water as well. So you have a real challenge to the (inaudible) here.
VOICE OF GOV. ANDREW CUOMO, NEW YORK: First, once again, I want to congratulate all the first responders who were still out there, and still doing a magnificent job under difficult circumstances. We should all be very proud.
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AZUZ: There are many ways you can help the victims of Super storm Sandy. Go to cnnstudentnews.com and click on the impact your world link in the spotlight section to find out how you can get involved in relief efforts.
That`s something the presidential candidates did as Governor Romney and President Obama stopped campaigning for a few days. Romney turned his campaign rallies in the storm relief events. And people were encouraged to bring canned goods to help victims.
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MITT ROMNEY, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have heavy hearts, as you know, with all the suffering going on in a major part of our country, a lot of people hurt in this morning, they were hurting last night, and the storm goes on.
I appreciate the fact that people right here in Dayton got up this morning, some went to the grocery store, I see and purchased some things that these families will need. And I appreciate you generosity.
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AZUZ: President Obama and Governor Romney have been encouraging donations to the Red Cross, and yesterday, the president went to New Jersey to see some of the damage caused by Sandy and to extend his thoughts to the families affected by the storm.
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BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Our hearts go out to the families who have lost loved ones. It`s true that because of some good preparation, the loss of life was kept lower than it might have been, but for those individual families, obviously, their world has been torn apart. The sooner we can get our kids back into school, the sooner they are back in the routine, that obviously helps the families and helps the kids as well.
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R ), NEW JERSEY: Right now, I`m much more concerned about preventing any other loss of life, getting people to safe places, and then we`ll worry about the election. The election will take care of itself.
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AZUZ: OK, Governor Christie understandably says he`s focused on people over politics now. But some folks are thinking about next Tuesday`s election, and one thing they`ve been wondering is whether Sandy will have an effect. Remember, power is out in parts of several states, places where people vote may had been flooded or damaged, but officials in most of these states still expect things to go smoothly on election day.
As for the candidates, they took a break for the campaign trail for a few days, but things started to pick up again on Wednesday.
Governor Romney was attending a campaign event in Florida, President Obama is scheduled to be out on the campaign trail again today. One difference, thought: the tone of the campaigns, which have gotten kind of harsh at times, is more positive.
We`ve been looking this week where President Obama and Governor Romney stand on some of the issues. Today, we are focusing on healthcare. For both candidates, a lot of the focus on this issue involves the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. A lot of political experts consider it President Obama`s biggest accomplishment. It says that insurance companies cannot deny someone coverage, if they have a preexisting condition. And it requires most Americans to have some kind of health insurance by 2014, or face a fine. There were some law suits about whether that requirement was constitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court eventually said" "Yes."
Governor Romney says, if he`s elected, he`ll work to get the health care law overturned. When he was governor of Massachusetts, Romney helped create a health care plan that was similar to President Obama`s. One difference, he says, is that it was limited to one state. Governor Romney says health care solutions should come from individual states rather than from the federal government.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Today`s "Shoutout" goes out to Mrs. Bowyer`s world history class at J.P. Knapp Early College High School in Currituck, North Carolina.
Which country has the largest population in the European Union? Here we go, is it Germany, France, United Kingdom or Spain? You`ve got three seconds, go!
With more than 80 million residents, Germany has the European Union`s largest population. That`s your answer and that`s your "Shoutout."
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AZUZ: Germany is also where you find the largest American military community outside of the United States. And part of the reason for that is what happened after World War II, Germany was divided into two countries, you had East Germany and West Germany. The West was established in part by the United States, the East was controlled by the Soviet Union, a rival of the U.S. And Germany reunified in 1990, near the end of the cold war. But George Howell shows us how history has a hold on those raised between different nations.
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RONALD REAGAN: Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!
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GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This year marched the 25th anniversary of that famous phrase, but the impact of the U.S. military build-up in Germany during the Cold War is still being felt today, in an unlikely place: the soccer field. A half dozen sons of American soldiers, stationed in Germany, born to German mothers, have elected to play for the U.S. national soccer team rather than Germany`s in the last few years.
For some, this decision relates to their racial identity: Danny Williams and the other five players all have African American fathers.
(on camera): What does it mean to be biracial in Germany versus being biracial here in the United States.
DANNY WILLIAMS, UNITED STATES MIDFIELDER: When people are looking at me in Germany, they know that I`m not 100 percent German. I told my parents that it isn`t -- I feel more American than German.
HOWELL (voice over): Jermaine Jones was the first of this recent wave from Germany to join the American soccer team.
JERMAINE JONES, UNITED STATES SOLDIER: I`m different, when you see me, to German people. I`m a different guy. I`m mixed.
HOWELL: Unlike Williams, whose American father raised him in Germany, Jones grew up in a single parent household.
JONES: My mom and him goes when I was young, separate ways, and for me it was hard, too, to grow up with no dad.
HOWELL: But since electing to play for the U.S., Jones had rekindled his relationship with his father. After scoring his first goal for the Starts and Stripes, Jones performed a simple, but poignant tribute to his soldier father.
(on camera): You gave a salute to your dad.
JONES: Yeah, he called me after game, he`s like -- God, thank you all, my mom, my brother, everybody sees it, and everybody`s proud of you.
HOWELL: A simple gesture of pride, but one rooted in history.
George Howell, CNN, Miami.
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AZUZ: Before we go, it`s all about some school spirit. HLN asked college marching bands to send an I-Report to their best work, and X marks the spot for Bethune Cookman (ph). Marching, playing and not running into each other -- truly extraordinarily.
Now, for the University of Iowa. They are paying tribute to an old school Michael Jackson hit, giving the hawk-eye audience a "Thriller." And while the term "horseplay: indicates you are not taking something seriously, look at this -- Ohio State`s band, seriously awesome. Some would say these buckeyes are nuts.
It`s amazing what can happen when people band together. They get so attuned to what`s playing out around them, that after getting their marching orders, the result is band to the trombone. All right. Saying a lot of puns a little bit at a time can leave me kind of winded. But take note -- we`ll be fielding more headlines tomorrow, on CNN STUDENT NEWS.
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