this morning on "early today," class be seated. schools prepare to tune into president obama's highly anticipated and highly criticized speech to the nation's students. too close for comfort, labor day spectators in utah become part of the show as an experimental aircraft slams into the crowd. and deadly demonstration. crowds in italy watch in horror as a small plane meets a doomed fate. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

hello, and good morning, everyone, i'm dan kloeffler, and today we begin with reading, writing, and a presidential speech. schools ross the natn will play host to a very unique guest speaker, the nation's command in chief. although president obama will highlight the importance of setting goals, not everyone is giving the move a passing grade. nbc's leanne gregg reports. >> so we've got to do a better job educating our sons and our daughters. >> reporter: president obama at a labor day afl cio picnic in cincinnati, a day before he plans to speak directly to the nation's school children, hoping to end controversy, the white house releaed the text s so schools and parents could decide for themselves if students should watch. >> and yes, i'm going to have something to say tomorrow to our children telling t stay in school and work hard.

because that's the right message to send. >> reporter: critics call it political indoctrination. some parents threatened to keep their kids home from school. >> i'm more afraid this is a socialistic idea. getting to kids when they're young. >> reporter: the speech now posted on the web is aimed at motivating children to do their best. schools can choose whether to air it. >> i think it's a sad, sad day. that the political back and forth has intruded on anyone speaking to school children and teachers and parents. >> reporter: the president will say even when you feel like other people have given up on you, don't ever give up on yourself. he'll tell students their goals can be as simple as doing homework, paying attention in class, or spending time each day reading a book. >> i'm a republican right conservative, but i think it's important that kids know about their president and when he speaks. i think they should have -- they should be exposed to that. >> reporter: the president says

a message of personal responsibility he hopes young people will hear. leanne gregg, nbc news. the white house is getting support in pushing back that controversy from a somewhat surprising source. fomer firstura bush tells cnn she backs the president's decision to speak to the nation's school kids. in her words it is "really important for everyone to respect the president of the united states." mrs. bush also expressed frustration with the sharp partisan divide in washington, indicating she feels it's unfair to label president obama as a socialist. still, the former first lady did not completely rule out concern over the speech. and urged parents to take the lead when it comes to encouraging their kids. former representative joseph p. kennedy ii announced he will not run for the senate seat held by his late uncle ted kennedy. that marks the end of nearly half a century of that family's hold on massachusetts polics.

sets the stage for a widening field of candidates. many of whom said they would not run against kennedy. kennedy himself says he'll remain focussed on his work for the needy. there was talk kennedy was concerned about tough questions he might face over that organization's close ties with outspoken u.s. venezuelan president hugo chavez. now, here's a look at other stories making news "early today." a labor day separation in utah took a terrifying turn when a motorized parachute crashed into the crowd. the aircraft was supposed to drop candy, but instead it lost lift and barrelled to the sip p parachute collided with spectators. two young girls were flown to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries. police in new jersey got help from toll booths. two suspects dodged cops for over an hour until arriving at a toll plaza. p lanes lanes and got

stuck behind another car. authorities swarmed and arrested both of those suspects who had thrown drugs out of the car during that chase. a toddler in new mexico is lucky to be alive after a car smashed into his bedroom. the 8-month-old was sleiing when the vehicle collided with his crib. the crib was destroyed, but the child only suffered scratches. some in florida didn't need a pole to catch fish. they were literally leaping out of the water. they were being chased to the surface by predators. as for any lucky fishermen around, they got to see their dream come true. that's a fish tale, you got on tape now. now here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the forecast. good morning. >> dan, i want to hear more about the superman baby. >> can you believe that? that is amazing. the kid's waking up from a nap saying, there's a car in my crib. >> good looking kid too.

i hope everyone had a wonderful labor day weekend. a lot of teachers waking up blurry eyed and ready to go back to school for the first day. we are watching weather in the mid-atlantic region. yesterday it was not pretty, windy, rainy ugly day to kitty hawk, all the way eastern carolina, back up the coast to emerald isle. today the worst of the weather is going to shift to the north. we're going to watch a downpour of a day around norfolk, virginia beach, heading further to the north. ocean city, maryland, won't be pretty either. some of that rain's now moved back toward the d.c. area. some light shower activity with the heaviest rain will literally be right around the coastal areas near the chesapeake. we've also got showers near the upper level low from toledo to cleveland and rotating and spinning here near pittsburgh. a lot of unsettled weather out there. the best weather will be down here in the southeast, upper 80s to low 90s. wet weather here especially out

around norfolk. some locatio there could end up with a couple of inches of rain. that's your tuesday forecast. now a look at the weather outside your window. showers and storms possible any time thof the day, especially later this afternoon, columbus, ohio. only northern new england's going to hold on to that sunshine, portland, maine, 77 degrees, heck of a way to start your school year. well, dan, it's a tough day for a lot of teachers. i've got two or three in my family that were dreading today, but it's arrived. >> i think students take a little heart when they hear those stories because they think teachers are all excited to start the school year, but they're kind of trudging through the day just like the rest of them. >> good luck. >> we wish them all of the best of luck. gold marches upwards, sweets skyrocket, and a curry by any other name. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, you won't believe in the length tabloid snoops will go to get the scoop on what's

next for her "sex and the city" character. also chris carpenter cuts down the brewers, the rockies make the reds field of blues, and the seminoles tcaugleht u in a hurricane. you're watching "early today."

back to "early today," everyone, i'm dan kloeffler and here are your top headlines. milwaukee police arrested a suspected serial killer linked to the brutal slayings of nine women since 1986. the dna of walter ellis was found in the bodies of all victims ranging in ages from 16 to 41. so far the suspect has been charged with two counts of homicide. more charges, though, are expected later this week. a london court found three muslim men guilty of plotting to bomb with liquid explosives. prosecutors say that plot if

successful could've killed at least 1,500 people and come to ril the attacks of september 11th. four other alleged conspirators were acquitted of conspireing to blow up airplanes. the jury could not reach a verdict on an eighth defendant. oliver stone strolled down the venice film festival's red carpet monday with venezuela's controversial president hugo chavez. stone, who was premiering a documentary at the festival sympathetic to the south american strong man accused america's government of demonizing chavez. stone called quote a big phenomenon. a dramatic plane crash that killed a pilot and co-pilot over the weekend. theirplane was part of an air show when it crashed in front of hundreds of spectators. now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day after remaining closed for the labor day holiday. the dow will open up at 9,400.

the nasdaq rose 35 points. taking a look at overseas trading, the nikkei climbed 72 points, the hang seng was up 440 points. will wall street continue its trudge through september? will things pick up? or is there another major correction in the cads? these are just some of the questions that traders will be asking as they head back to work this morning after the long holiday weekend. overseas, asian markets were up again today following a promise from g-20 finance ministers that they plan to keep economic stimulus measures flowing, in order to prop up the global economy. in tokyo, toyota was down 1%, despite announcing it will hire 0 japanese workers to keep up with the steady demand for its popular hybrid prius. kraft is going to have to sweeten the deal to get cadbury, the british candy maker rejected a $16 billioned by from the american food maker.

that sent shares up 30%. gold futures hit the $1,000 mark on monday as investors looked for the safe haven afraid that the u.s. markets could see some sort of correction in the months to come. the news not so great on the jobs front. a global employment agency polled 28,000 u.s. employers and found of those who plan to hire versus those who plan to fire in the fourth quarter, jobs outlook is 1% worse than it was last quarter. education and health services, they continued to be the only sectors to project immediate growth. and finally, a fast food restaurant in malsia has won the right to call itself mccurry, that's after a federal court dismissed mcdonald's appeal. it's short for malaysian chicken curry. serving dishes including, of course, fish head curry. mcdonald's wants to battle for that for fish head curry. firing up the college

football season with a florida rivalry and the latest in baseball's red hot races. plus, she's the girl who's got everyone talking at the u.s. open. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. well, just because labor day weekend is over, doesn't mean the summer time weather's over. today looks like a nice tuesday. your regional forecast is comimg up. you're watching "early today."

good morning to you. i'm joe krebs. >> and i'm eun yang. straight ahead on "news 4 today," thousands of students in our area are once again headed back to school, but it's a planned speech by president obama that's causing controversy in the classroom. >> plus, after the holiday weekend, closures, metro is back on track but now there's talk of a rate hike. >> a congressional professional to charge visitors to the u.s. a fee. what this might mean for u.s. travelers thneime txt the

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." ? sports the st. louis cardinals went wi their ace. here's an early look at all of your sports headlines. hey there, good morning, the cardinals running away with the nl central and their pitcher chris carpenter looks ready to begin the playoffs after dominating the brewers. carpenter pitching an absolute gem, retired the first 13 batters he faced and had a no-hitter going until the fifth inning. that's when there's a double in the corner, but that's it for the brewer bats, 10 for a one-hitter complete game shutout, cards win 3-0. to denver, rockies and reds pick it up in the seventh, tulowitzki, the comeback in the eighth, i stewart with his

23rd homer of the year putting colorado on top, they win it 4-3, with a w, they remain two games ahead of the giants for the national league wild card. college football, some good news for fans, oklahoma quarterback sam bradford will not require surgery on the rained right shoulder. he's expected to return in two to four weeks. great game in tallahassee, number 18, florida state, hosting miami. this was back and forth under two minutes to play, craig cooper punches it in fromhree yards out, hurricanes up 33-34. comes down to the last play of the game, florida state needing a touchdown, a catch, miami holds on for the upset. they win a barn burner 38-34. and finally it's the feel good story of the u.s. open. 17-year-old melanie oudin continues to play like a seasoned vet, takes the next two sets, advances to the quarter finals becoming the youngest american to do so in the last decade. that's your early look at sports

on "early today," i'm mario sol solis. who's number one on the charts right now? you wouldn't guess if i gave you a million tries. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, people are popped the question in countless ways, but one couple has no match when it comes to what happened after the proposal. you're watching "early today."

morning. here's a look at your forecast. you need the umbrella today. much of ohio, up into northern kentucky, cincinnati, louisville, lexington, columbus, detroit to cleveland and to buffalo, bring your umbrella, d.c., light rain, on and off all day long. and the delmarva region, into ocean beach, maryland, delaware, you're going to get a lot of rain today. be prepared for maybe some possible flooding. well, if you're watching us on whdh 7 nbc, gorgeous right on the water. enlighten yourself, learning about the world's largest energy resource. and summer time's favorite, of course we're all talking about the sun. this is all at the sun power exhibit at the museum of science. that's your eastern event of the day, dan. >> that's a very cool place, indeed. thank you, bill. now an early look at this morning's entertainment headlines. the box office tally for "final

destination" $15.4 million, the fourth chapter already earned $50 million in just two weekends. and an upset "inglorious bastards" took second on its way to becoming tarantino's best performer ever. not even able to make it past $14 million, sandra bullock's dud. and susan boyle's first album "i dream to dream" is at the top of the retail charts. people have boyle beating out whitney houston, even the beatles. finally, how far will some tabloids go for a scoop? england's mirror recently zoomed in on photos of kim cattrell

carrying a script of "sex and the city" to find out what they could about the plot. they did find something, appare apparently, but i'm not going to reveal it because i'm not going to have women throwing their stiletto heels at me. >> it's going to keep going. >> it's a phenomenon for certain. >> great falls, maryland, one woman took a plunge aft deciding to take the plunge. the woman's boyfriend popped the question while the two were hiking. but that romantic scene lasted only moments, she slipped and fell down a rock. fortunately, though, rescuers quickly reached the stranded bride to be, although they were kind of off to a rocky start, this shouldn't change their plans. the two shared a comforting kiss just before she was airlifted out. through thick and thin. good for them. i'm dan kloeffler, and this is "early

our time right now is 4:54, six minutes until 5:00 in the morning. kind of hazy out there this morning because those are raindrops i suspect on the camera's lens. it is raining around the region. 66 degrees on this day after labor day, the 8th day of september. good morning. i'm joe krebs. >> i'm eun yang in for barbara harrison today. we want to start things off, as we always do, with a look at weather and traffic. meteorologist tom kierein is here in the studio with -- kind of a dreary forecast for back to school. >> back to school and work and ov, and, yes, an have had rain moving in overnight. look at radar. where you see the blue is light rain across montgomery, fairfax detrict. d cst ofrie 's pgentorou dry now, but the roads are wet al e er swhuheyo teneere g tgion. where you see the green is more moderate rain down interstate 95 toward fsb fckriurg from de ck city all then way t dowo ts northernerse'ome moderate

neck of virginia. southern maryland get ago few sri.nkle now temperatures in the 60s around the region. more on the way. coastal low pressure system will pump in more rain all the way into early afternoon. after that, we ought to dry out a bit this afternoon, into tonight. i'll have the forecast for the rest of the week coming up in a couple of minutes. >> see you then. thank you, tom. >> thank you very much. let's go to jerry edwards now and the news 4 traffic thet work. this is terrible traffic tuesday, isn't it, jerry? >> indeed. good morning. good morning, everyone. yeah, look out. could be a tough morning out there. we'll have to watch i very, very carefully. stt on the beltway north of town. the inner loop of the capital beltway, well, okay, then i'll do the radar. had an earlier accident. that has been cleared out of the roadway. there we go. lanes are open, but look for the slick roadways. you can see a lot of road spray there. at the bay bridge, no worries. south of town, wilson bridge off to a quiet start. back to you. >> thank you, jerry. >> jerry, thanks a lot. here's a look at some of the top stories that are happening today. president obama will deliver

a highly anticipated speech to school children in northern virginia this morning. he will urge them to stay in school and work hard. the speech begins at noon at wakefield high school. it will be broadcast live on the white house website and on cspan. >> back to school for thousands of students in virginia this morning. many students in fairfax county will also be adjusting to new bus stops. the school system eliminated nearly 100 bus runs, saving about $4.5 million. >> it is also back to work for members of congress today after a rather tumultuous summer break. legislators return to capitol hill at 2:00 this afternoon with a full slate of issues including, of course, health care reform and budget appropriations. president obama will address a joint session of congress tomorrow night. >> and astronauts aboard shuttle "discovery" are preparing to return to earth. the shuttle is scheduled to undock from the international spas station around 3:30 this afternoon. the astronauts spent labor day

packing a moving van with trash and extra equipment from the space station. "discovery" is scheduled to land thursday night at kennedy space center in florida. >> well, the holiday weekend is over with no shortage of celebrating. >> cloudy weather didn't put a damper on yesterday's labor day festivities. chris gordon reports. >> reporter: this is the 71st annual gaithersburg labor day parade. the tradition began in 1938 when city leaders and the fire department decided to celebrate the holiday by marching down east diamond and frederick avenue. it's still the place for politicians to be seen. there were marching bands from high schools representing gaithersburg, rockville, d damascus and clarksburg. there were giant air-filled balloons and so many sights to delight. >> i like the queen. >> reporter: the queen? you mean miss montgomery county?

it was cloudy when this parade began, but halfway through the sun came out, which is kind of a history and tradition of this gaithersburg labor day parade because for 71 years it has never rained on the parade. >> i've been coming here since i was about 2 or 3, and i brought my daughter, my son, my grandmother and my father-in-law. >> reporter: in kensington, maryland, some residents say the parade is their favorite part of labor day. >> it's a great community feel. it's fun to come out and see the bands, support the local organizations. >> reporter: in greenbelt, maryland, bagpipers represented the prince george's county police department. what is so wonderful here is the hometown feel that this parade has. it's filled with children who get a chance to show off their talent and march before their neighbors on the labor day they'll never forget. chris gordon, news 4.