Morning Edition

For Jennifer Kaye, Hurricane Sandy is a threat to her livelihood. Kaye is General Manager and Captain of the Schooner Woodwind, a family-owned business based in Annapolis, Maryland. She and her crew are riding out the storm on board a 74-foot sailboat. Kaye explains how being on the boat is key to protecting it.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

And let's get another glimpse, as we are all morning, of New York City in the aftermath of what was Hurricane Sandy. We saw, overnight, dramatic video of around 50 homes burning in Queens. There was massive flooding in lower Manhattan.

NPR's Robert Smith is there. Robert, we saw a video of water that was going up to the door handles of cars. I trust that the waters receded somewhat at this point.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And let's move back to the presidential campaign. Mitt Romney has been criticized for being on many sides of many issues, but there's one where he's been pretty consistent: He wants to repeal the federal health care law. The question is: Can Romney actually keep that promise?

Here's NPR's Julie Rovner.

JULIE ROVNER, BYLINE: You can barely listen to Mitt Romney make a speech or give an interview without hearing some variation of this vow...

(SOUNDBITE OF SPEECH)

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Good morning. I'm Renee Montagne. In the midst of a monster storm, let's take a moment to contemplate a monster pumpkin. Out in California, John Sach grew a pumpkin weighing just under 1,000 pounds. He calls it Sally, and it won Orange County's annual Pumpkinmania contest. Sach's pumpkin outgrew the runner-up, named Gourdita, which was downright slim at 795 pounds. According to the O.C. Register, Sally's secret is simple - a lot of food and water. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright National Public Radio.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

It's MORNING EDITION, from NPR News. Good morning. I'm Steve Inskeep.

RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

And I'm Renee Montagne.

As Hurricane Sandy, or whether - at this point in time, it's Superstorm Sandy, when it did thunder ashore as a hurricane, Tamara Brownstein(ph) was assessing the damage. She was working for the Red Cross in Sea Bright, New Jersey.

Renee Montagne and Steve Inskeep speak with NPR reporters Jon Hamilton in Washington, Larry Abramson in Ocean City, Md., and Joel Rose in Point Pleasant, N.J., for an update on Hurricane Sandy's impact on the Eastern Coast of the U.S.

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STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

President Obama canceled his campaign events that were scheduled for today in Colorado and Wisconsin. He's staying in Washington to oversee the federal response to what is now described as a post-tropical storm, Sandy. Republican challenger Mitt Romney has also scaled back his events.

Now, as NPR's Scott Horsley reports, this gigantic storm has introduced a new and unpredictable element into the presidential race just one week before Election Day.

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RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST:

Cue the cancellations. Our last word in business today is: live audience.

With most of the East Coast shut down and all public transit halted in New York City, many of the major TV talk shows based in the Big Apple have gone dark this week.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

"The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report," scrapped their live shows Monday and have yet to decide about tonight. Katie Couric's show and "Live with Kelly and Michael," were also suspended and Jimmy Kimmel canceled a planned show from his hometown, Brooklyn.