residents were hanging out of windows of that five-story building prepared to jump when they arrived. they rescued a number of people, including two children who were taken to the hospital for smoke inhalation. a u.s. park police officer executed a daring rescue of a woman clinging to life in the potomac river. during horse training this afternoon, officers spotted the woman who had fallen 30 feet onto the potomac near the kennedy center. an officer jumped in and helped her hang on to a root. the fire department arrived and got them both out. the woman is expected to be okay. mayor adrian fenty said there will no longer be go-go

events for youngsters. police say there's been too much crime and violence related to the events, including the shooting of a young person. they say there's also been significant increase in the number of complaints from neighbors in that area. we are just a couple of weeks into the school year, but the district is already facing budget cuts. school chancellor michelle reed says $30 million in budget cuts win force teacher lay-offs and increase class sizes. they did not say how many will lose their jobs. e budget comes as city council is trying to close a projected $66 million budget shortfall. with the race for governor tightening in virginia, creigh deeds and bob mcdonnell faced off this morning in their first debate. chamber of commerce sponsored this event held at the cooperate one complex in tysons corner. the candidates addressed a number of issues including health care, transportation, energy policy and immigration.

>> how in the the world can we afford to pay for virginia to do what the federal government has refused to do? what i support is coming up with a compromise at the federal level and a reform that makes sense. >> i think we ought to have some ability for safe police officers to get the training and assist the federal governor discharging their duties. >> the controversy over a thesis paper mcdonnell wrote 20 years ago came up in the debate today. deeds says issues raised in that paper show mcdonnell's ideas are out of step with most virginians such as whether women should be in the work place. mcdonnell says he supports women working and would fight for equal pay for women. the other governor's race getting a whole lot of attention in this offelection year is up in new jersey. incumbent democrat jon corzine is being opposed by christopher christi and independent chris daggett.

a rasmussen poll shows christi leading 46-36%. daggett with 10% of voters say they are undecided. christi is in the lead at the moment, but no republican has won a state-wide race in new jersey since 1997. it's the grand opening today of a farmer's market in downtown washington. that's been the subject of some controversy. the market near the white house opens with the support of first lady michelle obama whose office was instrumental in helping it get a permit, to close off a busy street at the height of the lunch hour. tom sherwood is there this afternoon checking out the impact on this first day. how is it going, tom? >> reporter: the market is great, but the vermont and h street area around here was horrible when michelle obama was here. people are happy to see this market. michelle obama was here to open the market. it's the first day. it will run through october every thursday.

hopefully there won't be metal detectors every thursday. this is the latest of several fresh farm markets in washington. they feature all local produce sold by local farmers. that's what first lady obama said is good for you. >> and i learned when my family eats fresh food, healthy food that it really affects how we feel, how we get through the day, and that's whether we are trying to get through math homework or whether there is a cabinet meet or whether we are just walking the dog. the kind of food we put into our body gives us the energy to get through the day. >> reporter: obama walked around some of the markets here and then went back to the white house, just a block away fm here. this will be open from 7:00 every thursday until the end of the october. since the obamas moved into the white house, they started a garden and hoped to be able to buy farmer market food near the white house and now they can. tom sherwood live down near the white house.

>> i have to ask you, what are show of those shoppers behind you saying? >> reporter: i haven't talked to a lot of them. one person bought one ear of corn and paid 75 cents for it. he bought two cookies and they were $3. i haven't checked out all the prices. i'm looking for something a lot cheaper than that. >> make sure you take your recyclable bag with you. a garden's got a big greener today. how long will we need the umbrella? veronica johnson has your forecast. >> showers have been light today. nothing too heavy across the area. we are going to need our rain gear, umbrellas for a little while longer. here is city cam as we pan across the area. we've got damp and cool conditions and a blanket of clouds across the aa as we take a look at digital doppler xt through the area there, most

of today has been quiet as well as prince george's and anne arundel county. you can zoom in on a few showers there in warrenton as well as off to the east heading toward bowie and mitchellville. temperatures right now are at 60 degrees. leesburg, virginia, with wand out of the north and northeast today. 63 in rockville. our temperatures will be dropping to the upper 50s by tomorrow morning. yes, there is going to be a little bit of sunshine coming our way tomorrow. >> we'll be waiting for it. thanks, veronica. more signs today that the recession may be winding down. the markets keep on soaring. earlier today, some encouraging reports were released on housing and unemploy the. jay gray has details. >> reporter: the building rhythm. it's the sound of a surging economy. new data released today shows

housing starts up 1.5%. new building permits climbed 2.7% over the last month, both indicators of an economic rebound. investors are taking notice the market has been on a steady upward march. the dow approaching the 10,000 point plateau many analysts consider an important benchmark. adding to the confidence on wall street, first-time claims for jobless benefits fell unexpectedly last week. a sign that the labor market is not crumbling as quickly as it once was. and while the numbers across the board are trending positive, there's also a painful reality, more than 6 million americans are still collecting unemployment benefits. >> i haven't had any leads, interviews or anything. >> reporter: for virginia wilson, the job search lasted more than a year. >> where i have asked for jobs, looked up on the computer mainly, there are no jobs available for me.

>> reporter: rolen hall understands that frustration. >> i had to receive food stamps first time in my life. >> reporter: he lost his auto industry job. since then he submitted 80 resumes, but still hasn't found his next job. >> it's been relatively dark and just really trying to hang in there. >> reporter: hanging on, and like so many, hoping to catch on with a new employer as the economy continues to slowly make its way out of the recession. jay gray, nbc news. nice while it lasted. this week's winning streak for the market is is over. stocks slipped. dow down six points. so is the nasdaq and the s&p fell just shy about three points. markets gave up gains from earlier in the day after traders found little insight on how the economy is doing based on weekly reports on housing, unemployment

and manufacturing. we were on quite a roll for a while. >> we were. hopefully, we'll get back. when news4 at 4:00 continues, in college park. president obama pushed health care reform. the event was not without protests. a teacher who paid students to clean her home is in trouble with the law now because of how she paid them. >> and "america's got talent" adds a british accent. susan boyle steals the show.

today president obama touted health care reform to thousands of college students. the president once again called for a public insurance option, a plan most republicans and some democrats oppose. his plea comes one day after the senate finance committee released its version for overhauling the system. tracy potts has more. >> reporter: reaching out to republicans today the white house announced grants for states to boost patient safety and reduce doctors' mal practice insurance. >> gting to a point where if an error occurs, there is just and rapid compensation and we move forward. >> reporter: appealing to democrats, president obama took his case for public health insurance to the university of maryland today. >> we've got public universities and private universities. nobody says we are taking over private colleges. what we are doing is giving

students a choice. >> reporter: it's a choice house democrats insist on including. >> a public option will be in the bill that passes the house of representatives. >> reporter: in the senate, the debate is ove whether it's fair for everyone to buy insurance and a tax on expensive health plans might affect working families. >> they can't be paying an unfair chunk of that total income to health care. >> reporter: the congressional budget office says senate finance chair max baucus's plan cost $800 billion. >> we ought to be honest about what it's going to cost. we all know when washington says it's only going to cost $5, you can count on it costing $10. >> reporter: baucus is optimistic these issues can be addressed. >> these are things we can work out. >> reporter: hearings to get ready for a vote begins next week. there is a kaiser family

foundation poll that finds while most of us are happy with our health insurance, a few groups are having trouble dealing with their health insurance companies or paying their bills, the young, the poor and the very sick. from capitol hill, tracie potts, news4 washington. the president did pump them up in college park today. it was exciting for students to see the president in person. some were closer than others. students started lining up in the wee hours this morning, four hours before the doors of the comcast center opened. some students used the wait time to catch up on homework. in the end, it was about president obama's message for the future. >> i feel like his health program is going to help everybody. i'm desperate to listen to him and see what he has to say. >> not all those in the crowd are in favor of the health care reform plans. protestors made their presence known this morning with messages opposing the president's plan. >> former vice president dick cheney is in the hospital today.

he underwent elective back surgery this morning. cheney had surgery at george washington university hospital to help treat lumbar spinal stenosis, when the spinal cord narrows. it puts pressure on the cord and nerve roots which can cause pain, numbness or weakness in the legs. cheney has been treated for various health issues over the years. when you are online, spammers have a new way to get your attention and take over your computer. >> we'll check out a new vehicle that gets more than 100 miles to the gallon. you'll never guess what fuels it. spammers are on the atta

again. this time they are sending e-mails that create intense blasts of bogus messages. those e-mails overwhelm your spam filters. the malicious messages take over computers and generate more e-mails. experts warn to keep your anti-virus protection current and strong e-mail and spam filters.

>> better check ours. >> got to keep updating them repeatedly. >> it's one big headache. >> stay ahead of the criminals. a damp day out there, veronica. >> a damp day and cool day, too. we are still stuck with that northeasterly wind. if you look really hard, you may be able to see just a few drops on the lens of our city cam camera there. have to look hard. we are looking south toward the washington monument. we are still stuck under this northeasterly flow across the area. actually, i guess our weather computer is hung up right now. we'll see if we can get that advance to the next scene. a northeasterly wind through the area today. the weather front washed out south of the area. a few showers across the area. we've seen these drizzles and damp and cool there faulkier

county around gainesville. right in the district, off to mitchellville, these light showers are passing off to the east. anne arundel county, you'll be getting wet weather. meanwhile, temperatures through the area 64 degrees at rockville with .29 inch of rain. other locations, too, picking up similar, about .25 inch of rain. front royal down south, a little bit of heat. memphis at 80 degrees. so for tomorrow, we are not going to see the high heat up to 80. i think we'll at least get into the 70s for tomorrow. it's going to be warmer and we'll start to dry out. there you see down south that bigelow pressure system that's been slow-moving, pushing showers toward areas of the carolinas. here is your pattern next week. we get a chance to warm up and a chance to dry out. next we, back to a potentially wet pattern for us on monday, tuesday and wednesday. we've got a chance for showers

posted. let me take you through the next 48 hours here. cloud cover still around. as a matter of fact, by tomorrow morning, still think we'll be under mostly cloudy skies. winds overnight are going to start veering from the east to southeast by evening. south by morning and southwest by the afternoon. it's that southwesterly wind more dry coming into the area that will hopefully give us a little bit of sunshine by late afternoon tomorrow. your saturday right now with high pressure moving in. looks like we will have sunny skies across the area saturday should get up to 75 degrees. mostly sunny right now for the first half of the weekend. we'll see clouds, just a few clouds moving in. by the second half of the weekend. right now it is looking dry again with that potentially next wet pattern setting up for the beginning of next week. jim, pat, back to you. >> veronica, check your computer for spammers up there, too. >> the gremlins are out today. thanks.

>> thanks. >> we've got a whole lot more to come. did you ever wonder what you are getting for those fees and taxes you pay on your airline ticket? tom costello joins us in the studio to answer your questions, some that have people outraged. >> a man who died while trying to save a fellow soldier is awarded the highest honor.

welcome back to news4 at 4:00. it's 4:30 now. i'm pat lawson muse. >> i'm jim handly. a yale lab technician has been charged today in the murder of 24-year-old grad student annie le. raymond clark didn't enter any plea during his arraignme today. he worked at the research building with le's body was found sunday. he is being held tonight on a $3 million bond. democratic creigh deeds and republican bob mcdonnell faced off this morning in their first debate in northern virginia. the candidates for governor offer differing opinions on several issues. one they agree on, both say they are against raising taxes. first lady michelle obama helped open up a farmer's market near the white house today. the market is on vermont avenue between h and i streets. while the atmosphere today was celebratory there was controversy as the first lady's office helped people running t t market to get the permit that

allowed for the closure of vermont avenue during the busy rush hour. have you ever thought you found a great deal on an airline ticket only to watch the price jump dramatically when the taxes and fees are all added? nbc news teamed up with "usa today" toook at where your money is going. interesting questions and interesting answers. tom costello joins us now. i know some of the money goes to fuel taxes. >> reporter: and the tsa and to keep the airports operating well, but guess what? some of it doesn't. the airlines say about 30% of your airline ticket, about 30% more or less, will go to taxes and fees, but you probably don't know you are also paying for airports that only service private planes. airports you and i will probably never see or use. it doesn't matter where you are flying. those bargain airline tickets have a way of getting pricey. a $300 ticket can jump to $365

once you add in federal and local taxes and fees a chunk of that money goes to build and maintain commercial airports, but also airport for private planes. a "usa today" review finds $1 billion in airport tict taxes this year will go to nearly 2,000 little-used airports that offer no commercial service. airports most of us never use. >> it's outrageous to think the customers on our flights are being asked to support general aviation airports that will never see a commercial flight. it is tax policy gone awry. >> reporter: like williamsburg, kentucky, which just got a new 5,500 foot runway for its two or three flights a today, but not a single commercial flight. stafford county, virginia, an hour from d.c. and its regional airports with about 55 private flights a day, no commercial service. and queen city airport in allentown, pennsylvania, where just a handful of small planes come and go every day, many

practicing touch-and-goes at a controversial air field. more than 200 acres of prime real estate near downtown allentown. the city said if it were sold off it could generate millions of dollars of tax revenue and millions more for the school district. >> for this land to sit here for the benefit of 40 individuals, 40 private plane owners, i think is an outrage. >> reporter: an outrage says the mayor because just five miles away is lehigh valley international airport. which offers both commercial and general aviation. so would it make sense to consolidate both airports? no says the airport authority. allentown needs both airports and even a third not far away. >> it's about maintaining balance in the system. in order to do that, you literally have to have facilities tha a spread out over a certain geographic region. >> reporter: should airline passengers pay for thousands of small underused airports that

don't offer commercial service? private pilots say yes, whether a person flies or not, it is in everyone's interest to see all airports are safely and adequately maintained. >> the reality is these small airports don't have the money. they can't generate the money because they don't have enough traffic. a lot of them are in small cities that themselves don't have the money. >> reporter: the government says we need a national system of airports, both general aviation and commercial. the question is whether airline passengers should be singled out to foot the entire bill? that's up to congress and almost every member of congress has at least one of these small airports or strips in their backyard. this was, as we said, a joint operation or joint investigation with "usa today." much more on usatoday.com. >> the question is who should pay for it? >> reporter: that's exactly right. small airports provide services to businesses, medevac operations. farmers depend on supplies.

the issue is should airline passengers pay for that or should all of us pay for it? why single out airline passengers? >> any indication congress will look at this? >> i don't think so. not e time soon. >> thank you, tom. president obama announced plans today to scrap a missile defense system in eastern europe. the plan was tfled under the bush administration and to build a shield system in poland and the czech republic today obama said the shield is unnecessary. the president says the new approach will deploy technology that is proven and cost-effective. republican leaders called the president's decision short-sighted and dangerous. day president obama presented the nation's highest military award to the parents of a fallen soldier. sergeant first class jared monte received the medicine ideal of honor today.

his 16-man patrol was ambushed by the taliban in 2006. one of his men was shot and went down in a line of fire. sergeant monte ran out into the open under intense enemy fire to retrieve the wounded private. on his third attempt he was killed by gun fire and a rocket-propelled grenade. he said his heroism inspired the rest of the patrol to fight on against a larger force. president obama said he did something no amount of training can instill. he was from massachusetts and 30 years old. an update on breaking news that we told you about earlier this hour. metro says that a person who had been hit by a train at the columbia heights station has now died. metrofficials say this happened around 2:00 this afternoon. d.c. fire department spokesman said crews rescued a boy who was

hit at the station and took the boy to a hospital suffering serious and life-threatening injuries. the columbia high station was closed during the rescue, but has since reopened. there had been some earlier speculation that perhaps the boy may have intentionally put himself in the path of that train. again this afternoon, he has died. we'll have more on this story coming up. when we come right back on news4 at 4:00 this afternoon, no smoking takes on a whole new meaning for tourists in one european vacation spot.