judging justice. the senate votes today on confirming sonia sotomayor to the supreme court. caught on tape. a former congressman is convicted of bribery and money laundering. and homecoming hugs. an emotional family reunion for two american journalists held captive in north korea. captioning funded by cbs good morning, everyone. thanks for joining us. i'm karen brown in for michelle

guillen. the outcome is all but certain, but the vote is historic. this afternoon the senate votes on the confirmation of sonia sotomayor to the supreme court. she would be the first hispanic to sit on the nation's highest court. susan roberts is in washington with more. good morning, susan. >> reporter: karen, good morning to you. the federal judge gained even more momentum on wednesday, when she picked up two more republican senators who announced their support for her. her confirmation is how considered to be a certainty. the nation's highest court is on track to get its first hispanic justice. >> i'm confident that judge sotomayor will make an outstanding justice of the united states supreme court. >> reporter: the senate will vote this afternoon on judge sonia sotomayor's supreme court nomination. the 55-year-old bronx, new york native is almost certain to win confirmation. she has solid backing from the democratic majority, and a growing number of republicans now say they'll also vote for her. >> i'll support her. i'll be proud for her, the community she represents, and

the american dream she shows is possible. >> reporter: despite a handful of gop yes votes, nearly three-quarters of the senate republicans have come out against president obama's pick. >> there are aspects of judge sotomayor's record that make me uncomfortable. >> reporter: some republicans worry that judge sotomayor would bring bias to the bench and allow a liberal agenda to top the law. among their concerns, sotomayor's controversial speeches and her rulings on gun and property rights. >> i will cast a no vote. >> reporter: but outside the capitol on wednesday, dozens of supporters offered a loud reminder of what a no vote might mean, potential backlash from hiss upon i can voters. sill most conservatives admit that sotomayor has racked up more than enough votes to get confirmation. if she gets the all clear today, a swearing-in ceremony could take place before the end of the week. if confirmed, she'll be the 111th person to serve on the supreme court and the third woman justice. karen? >> susan roberts in washington,

thank you. we are learning more about the gunman who opened fire at a suburban pittsburgh health club. he didn't have a relationship with anyone at the club. >> reporter: police say 48-year-old george sodin fired four bullets into anaerobics dance class, killing three women before turning the gun on myself. >> it is easy to hide my emotions from myself one more day. there you go, one more day. and one more day turns into one more year. >> he had a lot of hatred in him, and he was hell bent on committing this act, and there was nobody going to stop him. >> reporter: the instructor of the class doesn't want her face shown on camera. she was ten weeks pregnant and shot twice. at first she was confused when sodini opened fire. >> at first i didn't realize

what the sound was, and then i saw people running and screaming, and then people fell to the floor. >> reporter: police described him as a lone shooter. he left a rambling message here at the gym claiming he hadn't spent a weekend with a girl and hadn't been sexually intimate in years. >> my objective is to learn to be real and to learn to be emotional and to be able to emotionally connect with people. >> reporter: he started an online diary last year, first planning the rampage for january. but then he changed his mind, writing "i chickened out. i brought the loaded guns, everything." his final entry was on monday when he wrote "tomorrow is the big day. last time i tried this in january, i chickened out. let's see how this new approach works." >> there was nobody who could physically stop this. >> reporter: sodini was a member of the nightclub but had no relationship with anyone in the all female class. he didn't say anything when he entered the room. just put down a duffel bag packed with four handguns, turned out the lights and

started shooting. >> i'm going to post this and see what comes back. >> reporter: whit johnson, cbs news, collier township, pennsylvania. on the "cbs money watch" most stocks traded higher in asia. claire leka is here with more. >> good morning to you, karen. asian stocks headed higher overnight. japan's benchmark nikkei rose 1.33%. hong kong stocks added 1%. back on wall street, investors took a breather from the market's recent run-up. the dow jones industrial average begins the day down 39 points. the tech heavy nasdaq fell 18. july sales figures from the nation's retailers are due out this morning. we also get the latest weekly jobless claims numbers. new reports show the job market isn't growing yet, but at least its decline is slowing. that's the message from payroll services form adp's report. the private employer slashed

371,000 jobs last month, but that number was higher than expected. the losses are a clear improvement over earlier months. between april and june, monthly employment losses average near 500,000. but another report by an outplacement firm showed companies planned to hand out more pink slips in july for the first time in six months, putting investors on edge about the official government jobs report for july due out tomorrow morning. the senate will vote today on refueling the popular cash for clunkers program with $2 billion. senate majority leader harry reid said the democrats have enough votes to pass the bill, meaning consumers could take advantage of the rebates of up to $4,500 until labor day. at six miles an hour, you wouldn't think a tap to your bumper would be a big deal until you find out the cost to fix it. among the most popular

midsizeded cars from the insurance institute for highway safety, the mazda 6 was the only one to score an acceptable rating with the average cost to fix its bumper of nearly $900. the honda accord got a marginal rating with an average repair cost of a little more than $1,000. the ford fusion and the chevy malibu both got poor marks with an average cost of more than $2,000 for repairs. karen? >> claire leka here in new york. thank you. just ahead on the morning news, a tearful homecoming for two american journalists. plus massive storms bringing large hail clobber arkansas. first, katie couric has a preview of tonight's "cbs evening news." >> we'll have the remarkable story of how this baseball announcer calls the plays when he's never even seen a single game.

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a stormy day in arkansas. heavy rain, damaging winds, and large hail battered the state. huge trees fell in several communities, and hail caused widespread damage, especially to cars parked out in the open. in fayetteville, a lightning strike set fire to the attic of this house, but no one was hurt. two american journalists are home with their families in california this morning after months of detention in north korea. they flew home yesterday with former president bill clinton, who convinced the north koreans to free them. bill whitaker reports on their happy homecoming. >> reporter: while laura ling and euna lee are celebrating their first days of freedom, we are learning more about their life in captivity. although they appeared in good health, lee lost 15 pounds. ling suffers from ulcers. >> they actually were kept apart most of the time. on the day of their trial, they hugged each other, and that was it. >> reporter: their arrival was like a made for tv moment. the two journalists, isolated

for 140 days, suddenly thrust before a throng of cameras. >> 30 hours ago, euna lee and i were prisoners in north korea. we feared that at any moment we could be sent to a hard labor camp. >> reporter: which made them all the more anxious when they were suddenly called into a meeting by their captors, not knowing what to expect. >> and when we walked in through the doors, we saw standing before us president bill clinton. >> reporter: bill clinton said nothing he didn't have to. the journalists praised his deeds. with his help, they were pardoned of their conviction for illegally entering north korea and their sentence to 12 years hard labor. then bill clinton brought them home. former president clinton's trip was well orchestrated.

the north koreans told the prisoners they could be released if clinton came to pyongyang. the captive journalists passed the message to their families in phone calls. >> he was a safe choice, and what i mean by that is president clinton would not go off the s reservati reservation. >> reporter: after the emotional reunion, ling and lee left quickly with their families to follow government debriefings, including by the state department, and what the women say they long for most, some quiet time with their families. their families were grateful, relieved, overjoyed. >> i think the first thing i said was, you know, wow, i can't believe this -- this is -- i mean -- >> i think they saw each other very early on for a couple of days in the beginning, and then they were separated for the duration of the 4 1/2 months. >> reporter: as for euna lee and hannah. >> how does it feel to be home? >> thank you. it feels so good.

>> reporter: president barack obama said he too was relieved. >> we are very please with the outcome, and i'm hopeful the families will get good time together in the next few days. >> reporter: the white house did impose conditions, that clinton would travel as a private citizen and there would be no other negotiations. for 4 1/2 months the nation watched as the families walked a tight rope, trying to keep the journalists' plight before the public eye with candlelight vigils, trying not to say anything to inflame the north koreans. the women were captured on assignment for former vice president al gore's current tv. >> i want you all to know your families have been unbelievable. >> we could feel your love all the way in north korea. it is what kept us going in the darkest of hours. >> reporter: for euna lee, laura ling, and their families, this must surely be their brightest day.

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the mid-atlantic states. most of the northeast and great lakes waking to clear skies. thunderstorms are scattered across the rockies, and it's cool and dry across much of the northwest. later today, storms will flare up across much of the northwest. storms expected across the rockies and plains. beautiful day across the great lakes. most of the east will be sunny too. it will be cloudy and wet along the mid-atlantic coastline. in sports, the brewers looking for their first series win in over a month. ryan braun put milwaukee up by three with a two-run double, but craig counsell was out at the plate. l.a.'s manny ramirez had a chance for heroics but grounded to second. the brewers completed the sweep of the dodgers 4-1. but it's what happened after tuesday's game that has people talking. milwaukee's prince fielder tried to get into the dodgers locker room after being hit by a pitch. >> what is that about? [ bleep ].

>> brewers management called fielder's actions regrettable. back on the field, murphy put the rangers up 3-2. but chad pennington's first major league blast put oakland up 5-3, and they beat texas 7-5. in toronto, the yankees nick swisher tied the game with a solo home run. johnny damon's single put the yankees up as they swept toronto 6-4. and caught with a suitcase full of money. >> yes, you can keep it in there if you like. would you like to take a peek or whatever. >> former congressman william jefferson convicted in a bribery scheme. his box is what i need to control my diabetes, to stay healthy - and get on with my life. it comes from liberty medical. and now, it's not only where i get my diabetes

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on the "cbs morning news," here's a look at today's

weather. thunderstorms will be rumbling across much of the northwest and plains. a beautiful day for the midwest and great lakes. and the south will stay steamy and, yes, hot. here's another look at this morning's top stories. today the senate votes on the confirmation of sonia sotomayor as the first hispanic justice on the united states supreme court. with strong support from democrats, she easily has enough votes to be confirmed. and the senate has reached a deal to extend the popular cash for clunkers program. a vote is expected today to add $2 billion to the program. rock star stephen tyler was taken to a hospital in rapid city, south dakota, early this morning after falling off the stage during a concert. tyler was injured while performing at aero-smith at the sturges motorcycle rally about 25 miles southwest of rapid city. a lawyer for congressman

william jefferson says he'll appeal jefferson's conviction on bribery, racketeering, and money laundering charges. he was convicted by a federal jury yesterday, accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes. susan roberts joins us again from washington. good morning, susan. >> reporter: good morning to you. prosecutors say the case was simple, a violation of public trust driven by money, power, and greed. >> congressman, can you tell us how you're holding up at this point. would that be all right? >> i'm holding pup >> reporter: jefferson's trial last six weeks. >> he used his power to enrich himself and his family. >> reporter: prosecutors say the former congressman accepted more than $400,000 in bribes from a dozen companies in exchange for brokering deals, mostly in africa. >> do we have a deal with the vp? >> yes, we do have a deal with them. >> reporter: jefferson's former

aides and business associates agreed to testify against him. in 2005, the fbi found $90,000 hidden in jefferson's freezer, money prosecutors say jefferson planned to use to bribe the then vice president of nigeria. one disgruntled business associate agreed to wear a wire. the surveillance video shows her handing jefferson a suitcase filled with $100,000. >> would you like to take a peek at it or whatever? >> no, i would not. >> reporter: jefferson served in the house for 18 years. his lawyers argue he was acting as a private citizen brokering deals. they raid the jefferson's private office in 2006, the first time the bureau searched a public office. in the end, the jury agreed the 62-year-old former congressman used his influence to enrich himself and his family. >> this case, i think, once again shows us that we're a nation of laws and no person, not even a congressman, is above the law. >> reporter: now, it took the jury five days to convict

jefferson on 11 of the 16 counts against him. he does remain free on bail. he will be sentenced on october 30th and faces more than 20 years behind bars. karen, back to you. >> susan roberts in washington, thank you. this morning on "the early show," the latest on the health club shooting in pennsylvania. and we'll talk to a neighbor of the gunman. i'm karen brown. this is the "cbs morning news." doctors have authorized their patients to receive their diabetic supplies through liberty medical. and that begins with the one touch®ultra2 meter. easy to use, fast results... at no additional cost! liberty helps keep you on track by delivering diabetic supplies to your door... and filing your claims. i never feel i'm going to run out of anything. with liberty i always have someone to talk to and now they refill all my prescriptions. call now to receive a diabetic cookbook free. call to receive the one touch®ultra2 meter at no additional cost and find out why 230,000 u.s.

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bernedette,. >> marty is in the first warning. >> reporter: yesterday afternoon we are waiting for r thunder showers, for thunderstorms last evening, absolutely gorgeous up to the bedtime hour, no rain. you knew there had to be a cause. we have a come front coming our way. here it is, it took a while but we have showers in the area, and if you look over there on the eastern shore, over the past hour, hour and a half, pretty good thunderstorms have rumbled across. a rain here for a while for sure, temperatures in the mid-

80s today. thank you. in the news speak now or forever hold to your peace, ways to close the multimillion dollar budget short fall but time is running out for those looking to give their 2-cent. >> >> what may have led him to pull the trigger that night. will she become the next supreme court justice, sotomayor, and more in a couple of minutes.

. this is wjz, wjz-dt and wjz.com baltimore. >> good morning, maryland. now, don scott, marty bass, breaking news with