you know, the lincoln memorial. there are people here all the time in the middle of the night. >> the lincoln was busy with tourists today, mostly on the east side of the monument. we found the graffiti covered over with paper and architectural cleaning substance on the west side. >> disrespectful to all of american history. people worked hard to build the monument. >> it's not a new offense. >> there was spray paint on the memorial the night before dr. king's march on washington speech here. sam: there were no cameras in 1963 but there are cameras now and according to the spokesman video will be among the things used to try to find the culprit. in the green splatter case four years ago a chinese woman was arrested. she was later committed to a mental hospital.

memorial, i'm sam ford, abc7 news. alison: thank you. one more related note here. national park service still searching for the first of the people who wrote these messages on the lincoln, the world war ii and the d.c. world memorial in february. they were about j.f.k.'s assassination. they were found on the washington monument and the trail signs of virginia. right now there is no indication the cases are related to today's incident. larry: breaking news in the last hour, as president trump spoke about the backlash over the comment after the charlottesville attack. nancy chen at the "live desk" with some of what he had to say. he had quite a bit to say. naps he did, larry. this was supposed to be a press conference on infrastructure. be he opened it up to question and the flood gates over. he went back to the original statement from saturday and started to defend it. president trump: when you say, "alt-right" define it to me. define it for me. let's go.

>> excuse me. what about the alt-left that came charging as you say the alt-right? do they have any semblance of guilt? let me ask you this. what about the fact he came, they came charging with clubs in their hands swinging clubs? do they have any problem? i think they do. as far as i'm concerned that was a horrible day. wait a minute. i'm not finished. i'm not finished, fake news. that was a horrible day. i watched those closely. much more closely than you people watched it. and you have, you had a group on one side that was bad. you had a group on the other side that was also very violent. nobody wants to say that. i'll say it right now. you had a group, you had a group on the other side that came charging in without a permit.

>> the president going on to say he believes that the race relations have gotten better in the country and the new jobs he is bringing in will help further. you can see the remarks on the entirety on the website wjla.com. at the "live desk," nancy chen, abc7 news. larry: thank you for that. new developments tonight following violence in charlottesville after a man showed up at emanpation park today with a confederate flag and rifle. they made it clear the man said he came to protect the statue of robert e. lee was not welcome. jeff goldberg is live with the situation that is still tense this evening. jeff? jeff: well, larry, the city council plan to take down the statue of robert e. lee at emancipation park. it's what drew the white nationalists protesters here to town last weekend. this morning the statue attracted a man from north carolina and his presence resulted in anger and

emancipation park he was alone. quietly holding a confederate battle flag. >> this represents freedom from tyranny. >> with an a.r.-15 rifle around his shoulder. he drove seven hours from north carolina to honor the statue of robert e. lee. >> robert e. lee is probably the greatest american that ever lived. jeff: after a civil debate with local resident peter norton. >> i disagree with you. jeff: a crowd began to gather and tension began to rise. >> this is our town. stop it. leave us alone. go home. >> get out of here. >> we don't want you here. >> more and more charlottesville residents started confronting airman trout who would not budge. the group expressing furry with his presence here. following last weekend's white nationalist rally. and the death of heather heyer. >> you shouldn't be in this community right now. do you hear me? jeff eventually charlottesville o

to leave the park before escorting him away in a squad car. >> i hope he guess home and doesn't come back to charlottesville. >> this afternoon, offering hugs and a message to those promoting hate. >> you need to take your message somewhere else. it doesn't belong here in charlottesville. >> you see signs for heather heyer tomorrow a he moral service will be held for heather heyer. meanwhile, the dave matthew band at some point will likely play a concert to promote love and unity in charlottesville. live in charlottesville, jeff goldberg, abc7 news. larry: thanks.

alison: the violence in charlottesville has other cities considering what to do with the confederate statues and memorials. two hours ago maryland governor weighed in on a controversial statue of justice roger b. taney at the maryland statehouse. our maryland bureau chief brad bell picks up team coverage now live in acin his. what happens there now? brad: brad: this is what everybody is talking about. this is the roger b. taney just outside the old historic entrance to the state house. the governor offices have windows above it. two years ago the governor said it was political correctness run amok. now he says the time is right. roger b. taney was the fifth chief justice of the united states. dred scott was a slave who sued for his freedom and they became tied together in history in

ruled in dred scott's case saying african-american could not be considered citizens of the united states. ever since then the statue has been controversial since it went up in 1872. but never more so than now. >> it shouldn't be in a place of honor. it belongs in a museum. not the state house lawn. >> activists murray launched a petition drive to remove the statue on sunday. now it has nearly 800 signatures. yesterday another boost when they offered the quote, 100% support of social media. >> i don't want to erase history but we should put it in a museum for people to come. just like we read about the ku klux klan and the other people, read about that. it's history. >> others aren't s

>> to some people this man was evil. he did other things. he treated them other ways. >> so now we are on the other side of the statue. this is a placard put up explaining dred scott's life and what the decision meant to him. this is another one that gives historical perspective to roger b. taney himself. look at this. this afternoon after the governor put the decision, someone printed up framed and put this sign out here. now we have more on this story coming up at 6:00. at the statehouse, brad bell, abc7 news. alison: thank you very much. we should tell you there is just one statue of a confederate officer in the district. protesters descended on the monument. it's general albert pike in northwest. today the d.c. councilman tweeted once the council is back in session he will introduce resolution

that statue removed. >> the city of alexandria is can silling the public -- canceling the public hearing to rename jefferson davis highway to give people time to take part in a survey to identify new names of the road. public hearings will be held on september 25. october 5. you can get to the poll through a link at wjla.com. alison: 7 is on storm watch after a rainy morning across the area. it caught flash flooding in northwest d.c. that was the scene along nebraska avenue. look at this. so check in with doug hill in the weather center. are the showers all finished now, doug? doug: they are. most of it moved out. no you we wait for clearing. a live picture from the national harbor. there are breaks in the overcast. it will become partly cloudy heading through the evening hours. rainfall heavy in spots. baltimore, three quarters of an inch. we had several three-quarter

most moved out. through the evening and the skies are brightened and it will hold in 70's. we may wind up with nothing overnight. watch for -- fog overnight. burn off and a beautiful day. plenty of sun and highs of 88. west of the forecast coming up in a few minutes. larry: thanks. new information tonight after a 5-year-old girl was sexually assaulted in fairfax county. hours ago the police released this sketch of the man they are looking for. the police are canvassing the area hoping someone knows who he is. richard reeve is there live now in alexandria. rich? richard: behind me the playground which a lot of the kids use. this open area here. this is where the little girl went missing and later determined she was sexually assaulted an an ducted. -- abducted. playground. symbol of n

missing. a quiet sunday evening toned upside down. we don't know how long the girl returned and told the family a terrible story. >> the family members notice that a child missing. she had been taken somewhere and sexually assaulted. >> she is getting counseling and medical care. they used a child specialist to interview her and canvassed the neighborhood before coming up with the sketch of the suspect. so far no one including the 5-year-old have been able to identify him. >> the days later they are calling this a stranger case with no connection to the neighborhood. the attack changed behaviors. the parents keeping the kids close. >> we can't just let them play by themselves. that is it not okay. i don't know that. >> the police are not saying if the man used a car or walked over and grabbed the girl. tonight the officers will be back in the neighborhood again. >> someone may say

person walking. or i saw the person at this location. or he lives at this location. >> they will be canvassing the neighborhood and passioning -- passing these out in half an hour. richard reeve, >> was news. >> i never felt unsafe. this is the first time it happened. i don't think it's a coincidence. alison: coming up at 5:00, the attack on the flag that has a woman upset. >> waves off the coast of rhode island and why it could take longer to figure out what this is. alison: danger on the roads highlighted this time of year. find out how many people are not following the rules of the road when it comes to school buses. nathan: i'm nathan baca with the "7 on your side" call for action team.

help you. we will show you ho i am totally blind. and i live with non-24, a circadian rhythm disorder that can throw my days and nights out of sync, keeping me from the people, places, and things i love. the people i love have always been there for me. and now, i'm there for them, too. talk to your doctor, and call 844-214-2424 to learn more. your bbut as you get older,ing. it naturally begins to change, causing a lack of sharpness, or even trouble with recall. thankfully, the breakthrough in prevagen helps your brain and actually improves memory. the secret is an ingredient originally discovered... in jellyfish. in clinical trials, prevagen has been shown to improve short-term memory.

larry: a lot of local systems are putting cameras on buses to try to find drivers trying to scoot around them. we look at whether the cameras are working. >> it's alarming. the school buses. you can't miss them. >> dangerous driving around school buses is a real cause for concern. especially this time of year as the buses return to the region's roads. >> they put on the amber lights that start to flash to give you a warning they will come to a stop. >> in arlington county alone last school year 618 drivers were forced to pay the $250 fine for passing a stopped school bus. 180 drivers were cited this one month. watch this video from montgomery county where a car drives right by a bus seconds before a student crosses. a.a.a. says the number soared to 15,000 by the end of school year and starting this fall the fine in maryland doubles from $25

kids are unpredictable pedestrians. there is even more traffic trying to get to the swing of thing. >> the traffic patterns will change and that puts kids in the harm's way. >> a number of the jurisdictions plan to have extra officers on the road monitoring traffic and school zones. arlington, brianne carter, abc7 news. alison: cassini space probe sent back these stunning images. nasa describes 2 saturn clouds as strokes from a cosmic brush. cassini reaching the end of the 20-year mission and expected to burn up as it enters the atmosp

we are six days away from the eclipse across america. we will have a special for you starting monday. it will be so exciting. doug: next best thing to being there. alison: what is going on today? doug: it's clearing out slowly. a small rain area but it will improve tonight. it will stay muggy. fog. tomorrow is nice. summary toward the end of the week. a live look at the national harbor. you can see the patches of blue. that is the low arrival of the drier air after the rain moved out.

national airport. dew point is 74. so it feels like it's 85. that is why it feels so muggy because of the heavy moisture in the air. we had a partial eclipse just now i just think. but now back to the numbers on the weather bug network. 78 in columbia and washington. look at the rainfall totals. columbia had the highest total on the network locally. 1.6 inches of rain. nearly an inch in the district. at the ruth charter school. and .76 in falls church and half a .5 in chevy chase. rains came and went and are over now. first pitch at nationals park is 7:05. we will see sunshine for the early part of the game before the sun sets. it will dry out. for folks in the stands and playing on the field it will stay muggy.

there is a clearing line coming across the blue ridge. clearing skies and may be fog for late night and overnight. tomorrow after we burn off morning fog it will turn summy and warm. 88. hot and humid for thursday and friday. partly cloudy. chances of thunderstorms both days as we talk about the weather conditions locally throughout the region and the agricultural fair. eileen will be there thursday with the excitement of the monster truck madness an event they have every year. then friday is the demolition derby with veronica on friday. it's hot and good weather for the fair. but keep an eye on the sky for possible showers and storms. watch a 39-year career just melt down on tv live. so for the weekend we have sunshine, hot and humid weather upper 80's. does somebody have a chair for the old man?

this week. want to show you in the couple of seconds we have left to talk about the eclipse. in the washington area it begin at 1:17. partial eclipse. we hit the maximum of 2:42. at that point we have an eclipse that is 81% about. then go the other way until fully separated and exposed. this is a partial eclipse. i know the sun is larger than the moon so it's not totally in scale. the it was you wouldn't see anything. big yellow blur. that is it. it's always fun. larry: i'll give you a tether if you want. doug: i probably need one. alison: see you later. doug: appreciate it. larry: well, coming up next -- alison: we will talk about taylor swift and what she says she hopes wl

lawsuit against that d.j. who groped her. larry: that is on the way. then information about the search of two wedding crashers that became the life of the party. wait until you hear what they were doing. alison: but first a look at what is coming up tonight on abc.

larry: this just in the newsroom. arresting this man, the 22-year-old who has been charged with assault and attempted rain of 24-year-old woman. he attacked a woman sunday morning while she was walking her dog on a trail. the police say the victim broke free and called 911. when officers responded she pointed the man out to them and he was arrested. alison: meanwhile, new developments after a jury ruled in favor of taylor swift at her groping trial. danya bacchus reports that the radio d.j. is speaking out with his version of events. danya: it took a jury four hours to ethe side former d.j. mueller assaulted taylor swift in 2013. >> this has turned my entire world upside down. danya: now one day after the verdict he is speaking exclusively to abc news. >> i didn't do it. it means a lot to me that people know i didn't do it. >> muell

innocence. this t.m.z photo swift says shows the moment the assault tack place. >> i wasn't ready. i wasn't invited to be in the photo. so i moved into the shot the best i could. >> in the trial swift said at first she thought the alleged grope was a mistake but when she lurched away there him, he didn't let go. at the end of the meet and greet she reported the incident and he was filed. initially he wasn't looking to sue. >> i'm willing to get something in writing that says it was a misunderstanding or some sort of mistake. >> but when that didn't happen he sued swift for $3 million in damages claiming that she falsely accused him and caused him to lose his job. she was awarded $1 in damages and a countersuit. mueller says he will fight to clear his name. >> i never grabbed her. i never had my hand under her skirt. i can pass a

>> he says he has passed two polygraphexamination and could appeal the court ruling. larry: bill cosby could lose a second attorney less than three months before the retrial on sexual assault charges. one of the attorneys told the judge she wants off the case. the lead attorney made the same request a few weeks ago. the previous trial ended in a mistrial. alison: shopping with a sheriff. where some students were getting a boost before heading back to school. larry: plus, why crews are setting up at a popular memorial that will make it harder to get to for a few months. q: the metropolitan police department is investigating a hate crime here in northeast d.c. as they search for the suspect, the victim has been hard at work. i'm q mccray. the stor

no, please, please, oh! ♪

(heavy breathing and snorting) no, no. the running of the bulldogs? surprising. what's not surprising? how much money aleia saved by switching to geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more. larry: she says she came home from a long day's work to find a pride flag outside her house burned. q mccray live in northeast tonight and she has to put it back up, right? q: it is already back up. she wasted no time. she has a message for the vandals who try to hurt her pride. this rainbow flag had been flying

gale street northeast until sunday. >> i came home and the neighbor knocked on the door and tipped me off it was burned and on the sidewalk. q: you can see the melted burn mark. her first reaction? >> i was sad and heart broken at first. i don't understand that kind of hate. >> show where the flag once was. what she has been able to gather, whoever did it tore the flag down but didn't torch it in front of her house. they torched it five homes down the street. >> you can still see the residue on the concrete here. my neighbors were nice enough to get me my flag back. found it and immediately put it back up. >> it's now screwed to a second floor win doe. she put up a message. to whoever tore down and burned my gay pride flag i hung it higher and prouder than before. it was a little low. a long with the quote, "our live bess gin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." martin luther king junior.

a place here. i want my neighbors and whoever did this to know i'm not afraid. you fight hate with love. q: i have the incident report. the metropolitan police department is camming it a suspected hate crime. they had the lgbtq liaison unit out here earlier today to investigate. at this point they say that none of the surveillance cameras caught two pulled it off but they are looking. that is the latest live from northeast. q mccray, abc7 news. larry: thank you. we have new information. funeral arrangements have been announced for the two virginia state police troopers killed in the helicopter crash over the weekend. jay cullen and pilot berke bates died when the helicopter crashed outside of charlottesville. they were working on security over the charlottesville

cullen's funeral is saturday and bates is on friday and both will be private. alison: the events in charlottesville are drawing attention to the tension and the hate in this country. abc7's senior investigative reporter lisa fletcher at the live desk with a look at how son of the groups are tracked. lisa: the southern poverty law center is a non-profit advocacy organizations. it monitors hate groups and other extremists across the u.s. they say there are 917 hate groups operating in our country. they develop this map. in d.c. they identified 21 different groups from anti-immigration and white nationalists to multiple anti-muslim and anti-lgbt groups. in maryland, there are 18 groups on their list. including neo nazis. a group dedicated to holocaust denying. and at least three black separatists organizations. in virginia the numbers escalate to 42 known hate groups. that include racist

the nation of islam and anti-lgbt. while there are none based in charlottesville the southern not pover -- southern poverty center has found identified some of the groups. go to wjla.com and we'll link you to the map to track activity in your area. alison: dit you see this tweet from barack obama? he quoted nelson mandella. it's been retweeted more than a million times and loved more than 2.5 million. larry: new information on explosion that happened at the flower branch apartment

a cause not known preliminary report blames buildup of natural gas. alison: "7 on your side" tonight with a call for action. nathan baca at the call for action call center in rockville. with the whole team assembled to help. >> the call for action team going for hours and they have been getting calls for the past while. gary, tell me about calls you are getting. what is it like to volunteer? >> we are getting phone calls about airlines, jewelry stores. government problems, mattress companies, automobile issues. i love working here. with need volunteers.

it requires four to six hours a week. >> or callforaction.org. call 301-652-help. 301-652-help. the call for action squad are working to answer your questions. nathan baca, abc7 news. larry: thank you. larry: we told you about a couple crashing a wedding. tonight we learned that the crashing couple was on a first date. carly and richie planned the outfit and created a back story that included a phony engagement ring. >> no, there is no place for us at the table. >> thigh became the lif

floor. they left behind a clue. a note that said sorry for crashing your wedding. best of luck with a buck. they gave them one dollar. >> the bride said she may have to crash their wedding if they get married. alison: return the favor. larry: i love it. life of the party. >> okay. >> sat at the best man's table. >> who are they? >> ahead at 5:00, the mystery in the sand. why plans to solve it are on hold. >> the transportation mastermind elon musk wants to create a train to get us from new york to d.c. in 29 minutes. could it be a scale model of the pod we could one day be in? i will introduce you to the team created here at the university of maryland coming up. larry: new at 6:00, another legal battle over violence of the presidential inauguration. this t

refusing to turn over information to investigators. the reasoning ahead.

doug: skies will slowly clear through this tuesday evening. but in the process we may wind up with fog in area. tomorrow we start with fog and be muggy. at least we get sunshine. 88 in the afternoon. hot and humid thursday and friday. partly sunny, near 90 both days. thinking about the weekend. here is what we have for you. forecast that has august written all over it. pretty good for the outdoor activities. partly to mostly sunny but then late day thunderstorms saturday and a slight chance of a stray storm on sunday. weather looks good at the beaches as well. stay with us. "abc7 news at 5:00" returns

alison: a six-month long restoration began on the marine corps war memorial in arlington. the philanthropist david rubenstein doe naughted $5 million to restore the iconic iowa jima memorial. another larry: people living near a rhode island beach have to wait longer to find out what in the world is in the water. mo

seeing the odd object off the beach before summer. the tree removal company was supposed to dig it up in 20 minutes but canceled because of the deteriorating cons on the beach. it hasn't stopped people guessing what it actually is. >> it looks like a metal star fish. >> some scientists think it's a see floor mount for acoustic doppler imaging application. >> some people believe it's equipment used by aliens. there is no word when the removal rescheduled. alison: that is where they are watching us from. kirk cousins makes the most

staying in washington. we'll hear more about that in sports. >> 200 backpacks given out as part of stuff the bus event.

larry: we are shining a spotlight on education in fairfax county. they paired up with the sheriff for the 25th year of shop with a sheriff. each child gets to spend $250 on new clothes and supplies for upcoming school year. director of the program says it gives them dignity on the first day of school. >> they have new stuff, new shoes and new clothes. >> perhaps they have had bad experiences by virtue of seeing what the parents or the care-givers or the loved ones have been through. larry: amazing event. all the money spent was donated by the community. alison: they have a new friend. hopefully for life. that is great. larry: last week you and i got a chance, it was so much fun to stuff the bus full of supplies for kids around the area. alison: we did. today amy aubert and larry were there when the notebooks,

were handed out to the students that need them. >> no matter the color, on the inside these backpacks are stuffed full. >> the folders are in here. >> she works with the united way and says in two days they collected more than 3,000 school supplies. >> it makes me excited about what is to come. >> inside each of the backpacks given out today note of encouragement, saying things like you got this. >> i feel good for my mom. she won't have to stress over school supplies now. >> how many of you are excited to start school? >> abc7 and newschannel8 joined united way and d.c. united to help fill the backpacks. >> what was your favorite part of school and why? >> today our own larry smith chatting with the students taking questions for d.c. united player patrick mullens about when he hit the books. >> to be here just to see what

to have the school supplies to go into the year and have a vision. >> vision and a reminder to start the school year out right. >> i like to see that the village come full circle and wrap around services provided to the families who truly need it. >> amy aubert, abc7 news. alison: one more time we want to give a big thanks to united way, d.c. united and safeway for all of your help. what a fantastic program. larry: it was so neat over there in riverdale. standing room only. they had to bring in extra chairs. the kids as i was up there speaking patrick mullens of d.c. united. they were out in the hall. there were not enough seats for all of them. you wonder what your donations and the impact it makes. everyone was smiling having a great time. alison: fantastic. larry: all right. share your back to school photos with us. we would love to see them. upload them at burst.com/wjla. nathan: i'm nathan baca liv

action center right here. the phones are ringing. call 301-652-help. again, 301-652-help. if you think you are getting scammed these people can help you out. if you think you have a consumer problem, these people can help you out. 301-652-help. reporting live in rockville, nathan baca, abc7 news. larry: developing now an island in portugal undergoing a mourning period after 12 people for crushed to death by a tree at a popular religious festival in port gal. accident happened in the island of madera biggest annual festival. more than 50 others were hurt. the island government declared three days of mourning for the victim. alison: a similar scene in new york after a tree fell in central park injuring a woman and three children. witnesses say they heard a cracking sound. the tree came crashing down seconds later. two of the kids were in a stroller. one was in a baby carrier. the woman briefly lost consciousness but all of their injuries are con

larry: overcast day today but doug is telling us it will start warming up. that is on the way quickly. alison: what is next? doug: we see sunshine break out in the local area. sunshine streaming in the windows here for the first time in arlington and down the river at national harbor. a lot of blue skies and the sunshine. with that, even though it is late in the afternoon, the temperatures will climb a few more degrees. it will feel august like. it didn't feel like that most of the day. it will brighten up. low 80's to 80 in the next few hours for planning. tonight temperature wise is a slow drop to the mid-70's from the upper 70's with continuation of slowly clearing skies. the high moisture content, the area has rain. good bet we have patchy fog and the overhead clear. ground fog is an issue through the overnight and through the early morning as you wake up with temperatures between 67 and 73 degrees. tomorrow fog will burn off. hazy to start the day. becoming sunny. 88 for a high in the

89 on thursday. 90 on friday. tomorrow is rain free. increasing chances of the afternoon showers and thunderstorms on thursday and friday. quick look at the weekend. can't rule out thunderstorms isolated on saturday. most of the area is rain free. good outdoor weather. sunday is more so even though we can't rule out a stray storm. good late summer weather here and the beaches. it's time to talk sports. erin? erin: we can never get enough of you, doug. thank you. one of his most definitive statements kirk cousins says he wants to play for the redskins for his entire career. cousins is set to become a free agent in seven months. he told espn that he loves playing where he is. and he is not looking to sign with another team. now the question here remains will washington give cousins that long-term deal that he wants? >> i would love to be, if we

redskin for the rest of my career. the best of best quarterbacks played with one team. my desire is to stay with one career for the entire career. and that's washington. erin: good point. leesburg native is one of the top ranked junior tennis players in country. how homeschool allows the 15-year-old to focus on his goals. scott abraham introduces us to the rising star. scott: the hunger of an up-and-coming athlete. >> i love competing. i love running for every ball and not knowing if i open going to win or lose. >> 15-year-old andrew dale wins a lot in tennis. the leesburg native is ranked third in the nation for boys 16 and under singles in the u.s.t.a. standings. >> i love the accountable of the pressure. it's all on me. scott: humble and driven. andrew is not the average teenager. >> part of drew's success has been his m

he is a very smart kid. he knows what he wants. scott: this was a game a poker, andrew is going all in. instead of public school he is home schooled to allow more practice time on the court. andrew has dedicated his life to become the best possible tennis player he can be. >> i'm playing four or five hours a tennis a day. but the things that push me to the top have not been tennis itself. it's been the stretching. the routine, the protein shakes after the matches. scott: practicing hard and dreaming big. >> the sky is the limit for me. i know if i keep working my tail off i know there is no limit where i can be. >> serving notice to the rest of the tennis world. i'm scott abraham with our rising star. erin: i love his dedication. we will keep an eye out for him as the career progresses. larry: absolutely. thanks a lot. the key to out future could be developed in our backyard. alison: when we come back how local stunt

build the hyper loop between d.c. and new york.

larry: imagine traveling from d.c. to new york in less than 30 minutes. elon musk says he can make it happen. now they are meeting to shape the future of america. >> they are trying to revolutionize transportation. >> it's been growing since the originator of the hyper loop concept got thumbs up to attempt to create transportation system to get you from new york to d.c. in 29 minutes. the university of maryland created nemesis, scaled down version of the pod that could potentially be what we use one day. >> this mode of transportation. he opened it up to the universities and engineers from all over the world. >> they will compete in

nationwide space hyper-x hyper loop competition to advance the concept that is already on paper. >> we have passive magnetic levitation. we have the permanent mack net on the -- magnet on the bottom of the pod. once they break a certain speed they allow us to levitate. >> it will start in california and the 24 teams are expected top five. realistically when can we see ourselves riding in one of these like the jetsons? >> 10 to 20 to get a solid infrastructure going. >> 30 to 40 years we'll have tunnels going. it might be an expensive ticket at first but eventually it will be feasible mode of transportation. >> the hope is to one day send back magnetic type of pods full of cargo or people from city to city at the speeds of 700 miles per hour. that design is the fastest pod wins. >> it's got a magnet, the strongest permanent magnet on the park. >> john gonzalez, ab

announcer: from abc7 news, this is a breaking news alert. president trump: let me ask you this. what about the fact they came charging with clubs in their hands swinging clubs? do they have any problem? i think they do. >> as far as i'm concerned that was a horrible day. wait, i'm not finished. michelle: the president fires back at what he dubbed the alt-left in a news conference another trump tower. the president again emphasizing blame for both sides of saturday's deadly white nationalist rally. a counterrally in charlottesville. the confrontational back and forth even included references to george washington and thomas jefferson. abc7 chief political correspondent scott thuman following this breaking news for us. this was a side of the president we haven't seen often since the inauguration. doubling down on what was his initial statemen

scott: he was firm and attempted to explain the viewpoint. he was heavily criticized for the first comments saying many sides were to blame. then yesterday he gave a much more careful, scripted response. that was better received. today a much more free wheeling president trump who lashed out at those who criticized him. here is a snippet from his back-and-forth. president trump: what about the alt-left that came charging at the as you said alt-right? do they have any semblance of guilt? let me ask you this. what about the fact they came charging with clubs in their hands, swinging clubs? do they have any