NYC ATTACK | Investigators scour driver's background

9:15 a.m.

NEW YORK (AP) — Investigators worked through the night to determine what led a truck driver to plow down people on a riverfront bike path near the World Trade Center, brandishing air guns and yelling "God is great" in Arabic as his deadly route of terror ended with a crash, authorities said.

Eight people were killed and 11 seriously injured in a Halloween afternoon attack the mayor called "a particularly cowardly act of terror." The driver – identified by officials as an immigrant from Uzbekistan – was in critical condition but expected to survive after a police officer shot him in the abdomen.

A roughly two-mile stretch of highway in downtown Manhattan was shut down for the investigation. Authorities also converged on a New Jersey apartment building and a van in a parking lot at a New Jersey Home Depot store.

Authorities were scrutinizing a note found inside the attacker's rented truck, according to two law enforcement officials who were not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation and spoke on the condition of anonymity. Gov. Andrew Cuomo said today on "CBS This Morning" the note made a reference to ISIS.

Police and the FBI urged members of the public to give them any photos or video that could help. The attack echoed a strategy that the Islamic State group has been suggesting to its followers.

While police didn't specifically blame any group for the strike, President Donald Trump railed against the Islamic State and declared "enough!" and "NOT IN THE U.S.A.!"

The victims reflected a city that is a melting pot and a magnet for visitors: One of the dead was from Belgium. Five were from Argentina and were celebrating the 30th anniversary of a school graduation, according to officials in those countries. The injured included students and staffers on a school bus the driver rammed.

8:40 a.m.

NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump is calling for "Merit Based immigration" after the deadly truck attack in New York City that killed eight people and injured 11.

Trump says on Twitter today the driver in Tuesday's attack "came into our country through what is called the 'Diversity Visa Lottery Program,' a Chuck Schumer beauty."

Officials said the attacker is an immigrant from Uzbekistan who came to the U.S. legally in 2010. They haven't said whether he came in through the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program, which covers immigrants from countries with low rates of immigration to the U.S.

Trump tweeted, "We are fighting hard for Merit Based immigration, no more Democrat Lottery Systems. We must get MUCH tougher (and smarter)."