good sunday morning, everybody. i'm angie goff. >> and i'm chris gordon. welcome to "news4 today" on sunday, february 26th. now, if the winds kept you up last night, you're certainly not alone. >> yeah, that's right. we had gusts last night that topped 30 miles per hour. the winds even knocked out the traffic lights near wisconsin avenue and brandywine street in northwest washington, this created a traffic nightmare. this morning, those winds have died down, but it remains quite chilly outside. >> some of the businesses in that area actually were operating without power. >> i know, and a lot of

people -- i witnessed the four-way stop, as you should, when the traffic lights are out. >> important to remember that. >> oh, absolutely, to avoid any accidents early. but meanwhile, today, like we said, the wind gusts are behind us, but the cold certainly is not. >> no, no, no. we're just now -- well, it kind of sort of is, but not untyrell. >> okay. >> it's cold outside, don't be fooled by that. a little chill this morning, but the winds are definitely becoming less and less of a factor, so that is definitely welcome news. temperatures, you know, by late february standards, it's really not all that super cold out there, but nonetheless, if you're on your way out the door early this morning, temperatures in the upper 20s to low and mid-30s, so a little bit of a winterlike chill out there, for sure. what little breeze we have left is lowering the windchills back into the low and mid-20s. so, even though the air temperatures aren't that bad, the winds are just high enough to keep a windchill factor out there a little bit here for the next couple of hours. storm 4 radar shows nothing showing up this morning. not even a little five-minute

blizzard like we had yesterday. the last of the snow showers fading away across parts of central pennsylvania. they will not be bothering us today. we'll be left with an abundance of sunshine. temperatures, because of our relatively cool start, i think we're going to hold into the mid-to-upper 40s today. a few folks down to the south of washington might touch 50 degrees for an hour or two, but most of us will hold in the mid-to-upper 40s today. but without the wind around, it's going to feel so much nicer than yesterday. yesterday, those windchills stayed in the 20s all day. so, today, if it feels like close to 50 instead of 25, that's a 25-degree improvement in how it feels. >> i mean, you felt like you were going into a wind tunnel. >> yeah. >> or at least against one, out in the reston area. >> pretty fierce yesterday afternoon, no doubt. >> thank you, chuck. >> you're welcome. well, the wind was to blame, in part at least, for spreading the fire inside a maryland home that burned seven firefighters. they were hurt while responding to a call on 57th avenue in riverdale friday night. two firefighters are still in

critical condition. and we're hearing more about what happened from two firefighters who returned to their fire house after their injuries. darcy spencer has this "news 4 exclusive" from riverdale. >> reporter: you just got released from the hospital today. tell us how you're feeling. how are you doing? >> still a little sore. i'm just glad to be out. thoughts and prayers with kevin, ethan. >> reporter: michael mcclary has burns to his hands and rib injuries after being hurt battling a blaze in riverdale friday night. the 19-year-old, one of seven prince george's county firefighters who were hurt, was visited at the hospital burn unit by the fire chief and county executive. have you ever been injured before like this? >> yeah, a year ago, i was shocked with a house fire, the same floor. so, hopefully, i don't go back. >> reporter: the firefighters were inside a vacant house on

57th avenue when there was a sudden rush of air, creating a fireball, engulfing the firefighters. lieutenant michael naples was also injured but helped pull some of his fellow firefighters to safety. >> i mean, i'm shooken up. it's definitely a call i'm not going to forget, you know. ethan and kevin are in my thoughts and prayers and i hope they make a full recovery soon. >> reporter: 911 calls came pouring in. residents were concerned the wind was fanning the flames. >> you might want to hurry. this house is next door. it's burning fast and the wind is blowing hard. >> i'm seeing flames coming out, like smoke everywhere. >> reporter: two firefighters from the bladensburg volunteer fire station remain in the burn unit, including ethan sorrell. two years ago, he was awarded for his role in saving a 4-year-old girl in a house fire in hayatsville. he and fellow firefighter kevin o'toole remain in critical condition. cheryl mcclary is the mother of michael mcclary. she was at the riverdale fire station when that call came in. >> i'm proud of him. our whole family's proud of him,

but you just want to look at him and shake him and say, "please change your profession." >> reporter: there is no change of profession in the works for these firefighters. they say they're hoping to get back to duty as soon as possible, possibly even in the next couple of weeks. in riverdale, darcy spencer, "news4 today." victims of a virginia tech campus shooting hope they can convince governor bob mcdonell not to sign a new gun bill. they held a conference call with him, urging the governor not to repeal a one gun a month law. virginia's house and senate already voted to repeal it. the law has been in place since the 1990s when federal investigators traced guns used in new york city crimes back to virginia. parents of survivors and victims from the 2007 campus shooting said the governor respected their opinions and said he'd have a response next week. a spokesman for mcdonell said the governor appreciated hearing directly from the families on

this issue. right now, two states are the focus of "decision 2012." both arizona and michigan hold primaries on tuesday. mitt romney spent saturday campaigning in troy, michigan, just miles from where he grew up. the republican spoke at the americans for prosperity forum, reminding the crowds of his hometown roots. romney also criticized his rival, rick santorum's record, saying it was time for a washington outsider to become president. >> when the senator mentioned that sometimes you have to take one for the team, what he was describing was the circumstances where he disagreed with something on principle, but he had to vote for it, because that was taking one for the team. we can't do that anymore. we can't continue to take one for the team. my team is the people of the united states of america, and i'm going to fight for that team, not for the partisans in washington. >> the latest nbc/marist poll

shows romney regaining a slight edge in michigan. gop candidate rick santorum called president obama, in his words, a snob, for wanting all americans to go to college. >> folks are gifted in the same way. some people have incredible gifts with their hands. some people have incredible gifts and use and want to work, out there making things. president obama wants -- said he wants everybody in america to go to college. what a snob. [ laughter and applause ] >> santorum made the comment while at the same forum as romney saturday in michigan. santorum was talking about the need to revive the economy's manufacturing sector and why he's the best candidate for the working class. today in syria, voters go to the polls with a chance to possibly open up the country's political system. but advocates say it's simply a

ploy by president bashar al assad's regime. the constitutional referendum would create a multiparty system, but opponents of assad says it's a way to quiet critics. they've called for a boycott of the vote, demanding that assad step down. since the uprising began last march, the united nations says more than 5,000 people have died from assad's government forces. the taliban is claiming responsibility for killing two high-ranking u.s. military officials in afghanistan. the shooting happened inside the country's interior ministry building. the attack is part of violent protests in response to the burning of korans at a u.s. military base. despite apologies from president obama and other military officials, demonstrators clashed with police, attacking shops and government buildings. in response, the top commander of u.s. and nato forces withdrew all nato advisers working at afghan ministries for safety purposes.

chris? pakistan is in the process of demolishing the compound where osama bin laden hid for six years before his death. a senior pakistani official says 80% of the compound has now been destroyed. last may, u.s. special forces raided the building, killing bin laden. crews started after dark tearing down the compound which was located in northern pakistan. they began the demolition without notifying nearby residents. angie? former south african president nelson mandela is expected to be released from the hospital today or tomorrow. the 93-year-old had a series of tests to determine the source of a stomach ailment. current south african president jacob zuma said mandela's hospital visit was planned for a longstanding issue. he also said doctors consider mandela's condition satisfactory, given his age. mandela spent 27 years in prison for fighting racist white rule. the nobel peace prize recipient became south africa's first black president in 1994 and

served one 5-year term. >> well, we wish him well. president obama's wife, michelle obama, visited with him in the past, not this recent illness, but we wish him well. i was in south africa this summer, visited his prison cell. >> you have extraordinary video from that. i remember. >> amazing. >> we wish him well. >> that you shot on your ipad. >> right on the ipad, exactly. >> how far we've come. >> yeah, no doubt. okay, so, talking about the weather today. >> yes. >> definitely going to be cold, but you said, you know, maybe we're in for maybe a rebound or something? >> i think you're going to like -- i think you're going to like today. wait until we go through all the details first, but so far, i am optimistic that you're going to optimistic that you're going to like it.

are made with sweet cherries and the crisp, clean taste of our cranberries. i cannot tell a lie. 'tis tasty. okay, george washington, did you take my truck out last night? 'tis tasty.

all right, well, you said it before we went to break, you're going to like this.

you'd better deliver. >> i think so. i can't promise you're going to like it, but i think you're going to like it. i know you'll appreciate it. >> yes. >> because it won't be so bad. i know as a golfer, yesterday not the ultimate golfing day. >> three club wind yesterday. >> was it? >> near my house, there was a father and daughter playing softball, playing catch. but with the winds whirling around, i just didn't think it was an ideal day. >> but it depends how far you're throwing it. if you're just going to toss it, that's one thing. if you're trying to hit a golf ball 150 yards, it's a whole other ball of wax. ferocious winds yesterday afternoon, gusting between 40 and 50 miles per hour, and all three of the major airports from about 10:00 1:00 in the morning through 4:00 in the afternoon. so a horribly windy day yesterday. this morning we have managed to get rid of most of the wind and as the day continues, winds will become less of a factor. so, that is definitely welcome news. it is a bit on the chilly side first thing this morning. certainly not all that cold in

this winter without much in the way of cold air around. 34 now at national airport. winds out of the northwest at 13 miles per hour, so still a substantial breeze early today. but by 9:00, 10:010:00, 11:00, s will die down and we'll be let with a prettier afternoon to deal with. temperatures hovering right around the freezing mark just about everywhere. 32 frederick and hagerstown in maryland. winchester, just below freezing in the shenandoah valley this morning and upper 20s down across the piedmont of northern virginia. culpeper, stafford, spotsylvania, fredericksburg all just below freezing. not much of a wind gustiness left, generally in the 10 to 20-mile-per-hour gust range. so, windchills are in the low and mid-20s now, so there's your bundle-up factor first thing this morning. but on the whole, a nice-looking day coming our way. plenty of sunshine. temperatures jumping into the upper 40s to near 50, so not a whole lot warmer than thursday, technically speaking, from a temperature number. but without the wind, the

windchill factor will not be there, as a result, it will feel a lot nicer. two systems, one staying to our south and one to the north will put us in a pinch here. we'll be left with a nice day tomorrow, but i think late tomorrow afternoon into early tuesday, maybe a couple of clouds sneaking back into the area for our next rain chance showing up wednesday. so, cold start this morning but bright and sunny. more sunshine and less wind will make today a much nicer day. overnight tonight, seasonably chilly, lows back into the upper 20s and low 30s by early monday morning. then tomorrow, mild weather returns on your monday, and there's that little hint of some cloudiness staying just down to our south tomorrow and leaving us alone, i think, until probably wednesday for the rain drops. so, for today, mostly sunny, a light breeze outside this afternoon, seasonably cool is the way we'll describe it. but with it feeling more like 50 than 25, that's an improvement, no doubt. then for tomorrow, back to work and school, everybody. mostly sunny, high clouds coming in late in the day, but they're not going to bother us. highs tomorrow, how about upper 50s to near 60 degrees?

yeah. that's nice stuff for late february. and then tuesday, a couple more clouds and slightly cooler. next chance for rain drops, and it looks like it will be mostly, if not entirely in the form of rain, moving on n on wednesday, and that may linger into wednesday night, early thursday morning and then drying out once again for friday. as we head into next weekend, relatively mild, but it looks a little bit on the soggy side next weekend, but that's a long, long ways away. don't worry about those rain drops just yet. >> so, it looks like we're going to skate through february without a big snow? >> yes. we skated through this entire winter without a big snow. >> i'm sorry, chuck. >> i know. >> all right, thank you. >> okay. next up is "reporter's notebook," a look at some stories affecting our community. >> and we'll be back in 15 minutes with the morning's top stories and your sunday forecast. but for now, here's jim handly. good morning, and welcome to "reporter's notebook." a casino at national harbor, same-sex in maryland takes an important step forward last week, and virginia's governor drops his support of a

controversial abortion bill that has drawn attention all over the country. let's start, gentlemen, with that, governor bob mcdonell's reversal, now calling for an amended version of this abortion ultrasound bill that he himself called invasive, i think, last week. >> we were talking about this, leading up to this incredible situation, wondering what would happen because of the makeup of the senate, makeup of the house, the republican, you know, the republican power in virginia now. and sure enough, a lot of controversy over the possibility that governor mcdonnell would sign this into law. he even before said, he had indicated he supported this kind of thing. but boy, when women's groups and pro-choice groups and people in his own political area started saying you don't want to go that way, he didn't go that way, he backed off. the ultrasound proposal is now optional, and it's working its way through the legislature. i believe it's cleared the house

and is heading for the senate. >> well, one thing for sure, if you look at the long range of this whole thing, mr. mcdonnell wants to also look at some national interests. we've been talking on this show about the possibility of his teaming up on the gop ticket -- >> potential vp. >> -- for the presidential race. so, this became a national issue with women. and so, he was playing the safe game here. he backed off very quickly, and it's understandable. >> you had over 1,000 women, a few men, who showed up in the snow in richmond, in their silent protest, which obviously was extremely impressive. two, you had comedians on national television that were making -- >> "saturday night live," jon stewart -- >> that were making virginia the butt of their jokes. you're taking everything that dave and jerry have said. he did the politically expedient

thing. and this is, you know, this is -- women are really reacting to all of this invasive, these invasive sexual issues as it relates to contraceptive, as it relates to what they can and cannot do with their bodies. and you know what is really happening? it's young women who never thought that they would have to deal with this politically. i think it's primarily young women who are potential voters. >> and we saw on the hill last week, and i think that many women are very resentful when we saw this panel that did not include any women -- >> oh, absolutely. >> we were talking about it, and perhaps many are looking at people who are making these laws and wondering, these are men talking about my health care. >> i can update you on that, if i may. earlier, we had another hearing -- >> right. >> speaker pelosi and delegate norton and carolyn maloney, the ones who were outraged by the republicans' attempt to not

allow a young woman from georgetown testify as to her situation at georgetown. she did get that ability late this week, and it was another hearing, a packed hearing, and that will send out another message besides the one that was sent out with the one where the republicans were in control of. >> moving on to maryland real quick -- >> this should be a wake-up call. i just wanted to say that. because this is the third time. from susan g. komen to the women, that panel on the hill about contraception, to this recent thing turning a governor's decision around? hey, women won out. >> in maryland, a proposal for a new casino right at the national harbor there, supported by the county executive, rushern baker. this week we saw from state senator c. anthony muse, who happens to be the husband of our colleague, pat lawson muse, here at nbc, that he's going to do everything he can and his state legislators, to stop this from happening. this got a big splash last week,

the idea of what it could do to the economy, according to rushern baker, that it would be a big boost. >> well, critics have been quick to denounce any move by rushern baker to, a, go for gambling in this fashion, opening up this center to gambling, that it's not a good idea, it doesn't help people, all the arguments we've discussed on this program, in fact, "the washington post" editorialized against it. some people are surprised that he seems to be moving in a direction that they didn't think he would go in, and they don't think that it's really going to fill the revenue coffers in maryland the way they want it to, so there's beginning to be some opposition. >> well, i think that mr. baker is very concerned about where we're going to put this particular casino, whether it be close to the national harbor or the other one, rosecroft. >> rosecroft. >> so, there's that debate there, because there are those casino owners in anne arundel county who are very upset about

this because the fact this could take bucks from their till. then, of course, there are those on the other side of the fence that are saying, well, we need as much as we can in berlin because look at what delaware is doing, what west virginia is doing, taking monies from this metropolitan area for their tilz. so, there's going to be a lot of debate. i'm not sure this will pass through very quickly. >> don't we have casinos coming up in anne arundel county, which is right next to prince george's county. i tend to agree with bishop munis on this one. i'm from detroit. i spent many years in detroit, and we had this debate. and i must tell you, i've not seen any major improvement in the city, other than the casinos itself. and that's about it. it hasn't increased the economy of the city at all.

i think that, once again, he'll probably get the support of the religious community that will oppose this. so, it will be an uphill battle, and they're going to have to fight the religious community, and as jerry pointed out, the next county. >> exactly, neighboring. >> anne arundel county. and they're going to lobby against this. so, we'll see. >> that's going to be quite a debate. >> yes. >> because you're talking about national harbor against the waterfront, so -- >> and at national harbor, you have a lot of residential property there. >> exactly. >> those people are concerned, very concerned. >> oh, absolutely. >> but supporters say you wonderful high and mighty people, you're dplorli idemoralt we need the money. that's what they keep saying. >> let's stay in maryland. same-sex marriage got a surprising to some, a big boost, one in the house of delegates. now it goes to the senate and then if it wins there, it goes on to the governor for his signature. your thoughts on this? >> votes are there. the votes are clearly there.

they know the votes are there. the governor will sign it, and then the next step will be the referendum. and i'm certain as soon as it's signed, then the petition drive will start. >> how big a battle is that going to be in the fall election? >> huge. going to be a huge battle. >> huge. >> we've talked on this program often about the religious community that's going to definitely fight against this. i mean, they brought it to light in the very beginning. and now, it's not just a protestant issue, it's not just a catholic issue, but it's the whole church community that's out there fighting. >> all right. >> question is, though, new york has passed it, it's passed in other regions, and it's been rebuffed in some areas, too. the question is, have we reached a point where most people feel this is not, a, their biggest issue, they're focused on the economy, and b, from a standpoint of civil rights. and that's the issue, not a religious issue, perhaps, from their view, standpoint. they see it as a civil rights issue, and that will push it over. >> it's interesting you raise the bigger picture. new jersey governor chris

christie vetoed it in new jersey. >> exactly. >> that's right. >> he came out today saying, what would president obama do, who has voiced his opposition to same-sex marriage as well, and still holding that view in the other states. >> it's a very interesting discussion and a very interesting battleground. >> all right. we've got more to get to. district politics when we come back on "reporter's notebook."

and welcome back. before we leave maryland, frederick county, their board of supervisors has approved english only. english the official language in the county. and i think that their intent was to reduce the number of, or the influx of immigrants into the county, or illegal immigrants. your thoughts on this. >> well, the people who support this are concerned about the language barrier, and they think that not enough is being done to induce people who come to the country to start speaking

english, and then they point to all the signs that are in spanish or, you know, that kind of thing, and that seems to trouble them. and they figure that if they have an official language, then that will reduce it. and people on the other side of the argument say, you know, we're already speaking english. there are better ways to do this. you might be trampling on some rights here. you ought to be careful what you wish for. what you get may not be very good in the long run. so, the argument goes. >> this is another nick pick on immigration, because, number one, what they're passing or what they want to do with the official language is only for documentation in government. when it comes down to the public, such as health and public safety, they can use any language. but this is a sticker for government use of official, as english as an official language. but one could say this is no more than just another nitpicking barrier they're putting up for immigrants. >> it is an anti-immigration move, no ifs, and, buts about it.

primarily, conservatives play to this. you see a lot of it in arizona, this type of thing, and texas, make it the official language. and you're right, you could be trampling on people's rights. for example, the right to vote. should the ballot be in the language so that people who may be citizens, but they might not speak english fluently. they still have the right to vote. therefore, they have the right to know what they're voting for. i suspect that what you're going to see are pro immigration groups that will probably file a court case against this. >> yeah, yeah. >> okay, while we're talking language, let's move into the district and keep it clean. some new rules regarding council members when they hold public hearings or meetings to keep the language clean and not curse. >> the language really caused an uproar and embarrassnd angered a lot of people. let me just quote -- i have my glasses on -- >> wait, don't quote too much

there. >> a council member shall treat other council members with dignity and respect and abstain from abusive language. that's what they want to do. >> let's see if it works. >> well, if it doesn't work, you put them out. i mean, last week we made this point. >> that's right. >> and i think we ended the program talking about, you know, what kind of example does this set for children -- >> for children, right, sure. >> -- and for young people who want to get into politics? and you know, i think it's a good move, it's minimum. you don't have a sergeant at arms. >> right. >> so you can't put them out. but i think it sends the message. >> joe, what does this say about the council, though, and adults behaving in the room together and how this council does not get along? >> i think we said it last week, it's embarrassing. it's embarrassing. i mean, it's embarrassing to each council member, but it's embarrassing to the city. remember i talked about image and what this looks like on, not only on capitol hill, but for the rest of the nation. it's bad. >> you know, i think it's also a

reflection of our society in general. what really disturbs me is you can walk down a very busy street -- >> and hear people, oh, it's horrible. >> -- in washington, d.c. and i hear women, children, grown men using language that, you know, you just -- we just didn't do that when i was coming up. and then for it to spill over into something as refined as a council meeting. >> in a public meeting -- >> in a public meeting. >> let's end on a source of pride and a big week. you were at the white house after the groundbreaking that's been decades truly in the making, the museum of african-american history and culture. what a moment that was in our history in this city, and truly, as a country. >> can you imagine the stars aligning, that the groundbreaking of the african-american museum and overseeing this groundbreaking is the first african-american president of the united states.

>> right. >> i mean, the stars could not have aligned better. >> you're exactly right. you're exactly right. >> when you think about it. >> the mall is now finally complete. we have a complete mall, because it was not complete before because there was no african-american museum. >> every story is told. you're exactly right. >> but that was the big selling point here. >> that was the missing piece. >> and it's part of what? it's part of me, it's part of everybody. it's part of my life. >> you know what's interesting, what i think the president said was interesting, jerry, was it should be about ordinary people doing extraordinary things. >> exactly. >> yeah. >> mm-hmm. >> that's really what that mall should -- i mean, that museum should represent. and as he did say in the reception, the three things they need now more than anything is money, money and more money. >> you know what? they'll get it. >> yes. >> they have a ways to get. we'll have to leave it there. i want to start hanging with you. he gets to go to the white house all the time.

>> i want to be invited back. >> we'll see you next time on "viewpoint." now back to "news4 today." at 6:33 a.m., welcome to "news4 today." i'm chris gordon. >> and i'm angie goff. taking a look at some top stories this morning, two of seven prince george's county firefighters hurt battling a fire remain in critical but stable condition. fire investigators say the strong wind helped fuel the fire at a house on 57th avenue in rirdale friday night. there's still no word what sparked the fire. in syria, voters have the chance to create a multiparty system, giving them a voice against president bashir al assad. assad's opponents say this is simply a ploy to quiet critics and demand he resign.

the united nations says his government forces have killed more than 5,000 people since last march. former south african president nelson mandela is expected to get out of the hospital today or tomorrow. the 93-year-old had a series of tests to determine the source of a stomach ailment. current south african president jacob zuma said mandela's hospital visit was planned for an issue he's had for a while. and this week is special. you know what wednesday is? >> the last day of february. >> leap day! >> oh, yeah, leap year. >> february 29th. >> isn't that great? this is news! >> bonus territory. of all the days of the year i wish my birthday were on instead of may 9th was february 29th, only for that reason. >> it's not even a real day, though, right? >> of course it is! >> are you kidding me? i would only be 11 years old if my birthday was on the 29th of february. >> well, you look young. >> right. >> you're young at heart. >> right, exactly. outside we go, then, on your sunday morning. little bit of a chill waiting

for you on the other side of the door, but nothing too major, as we've been dealing with. really no super cold air this entire winter. we've really only had a couple of very cold days. temperatures this morning -- this is kind of only about half the story because we still have a bit of a breeze left out there this morning. temperatures are in the low and mid-30s, but just enough of a breeze left where windchill temperatures are in the low and mid-20s early this morning. so, a bit of a bundle-up factor if you're headed out to early-morning sunday services or the early-morning dog walk or the early-morning whatever it is that you need to do outside. nothing's showing up on storm4 radar. nearest snowflakes are still across central pennsylvania, but these are drying up fast. so, as a result, we'll be left with near 100% sunshine today. temperatures which are in the mid-30s now, should be into the low 40s by 10:00 this morning, mid-to-upper 40s, a few lucky spots might even touch 50 degrees later on this afternoon. but on the whole, without the wind, it's going to be a much milder feeling day today. then tomorrow, back to work and school, everybody. mostly sunny, high clouds coming in late tomorrow afternoon, but

near 50 today, near 60 tomorrow. outdoor recess emergency. >> all right, thank you, chuck. >> okay. well, we are learning more about a deadly hit and run in montgomery county. we first told you about the pedestrian accident yesterday morning. police identified the victim as 24-year-old alonzo rodriguez from bethesda. a driver on norbeck road spotted his body near westbury road around 3:30 a.m. two friends told police they were out with rodriguez late friday night. they said rodriguez got out of their car when it stopped on norbeck road. another vehicle later hit and killed him. police are now looking for that driver, and if you saw anything that night or anything that might help with this case, you're asked to call montgomery county police. alexandria's waterfront is inching closer to redevelopment. saturday, the city council voted 4-2 in favor of incorporating a previously approved plan into the city's master plan.

it calls for new parks, hotels and shops along the historic waterfront. but one more vote is needed before any construction happens. alexandria's board of zoning appeals must hear an appeal by critics who say the growth will cause traffic problems and take away from the city's unique character. a bald eagle is resting comfortably this morning after being found injured near a metro station. crews found the american icon trapped inside a fence near the van doran street station on the blue line it was taken to the raptor conservanceancy of virginia in falls church with a broken wing. no word how the bird was injured in the first place, but it's expected that it will be okay. an official toxicology report on an american tv producer confirms he had cocaine in his system when he died. jeff rice was found dead in his hotel room in uganda about a week ago. he was a producer for "the

amazing race." tests revealed he died from asphyxiation. a private investigator says rice died from contaminated cocaine and that police arrested a man who admitted to selling him the drugs. rice and his assistant, katherine fuller, were in uganda working on a documentary. she was found unconscious in the room but has recovered. well, the man who tried to kill president reagan says he wants to be known as something else. john hinckley says he'd rather be known for his artistic talents. according to court documents, he regrets not being able to show or sell his paintings or have others hear his music. in 1981, hinckley opened fire on president reagan, wounding him in an attempt to impress actress jodie foster. he says he's frustrated that he can't change the public's perception and will always be the man known as the guy who tried to kill the president. well, it is 6:38 right now. david gregory, moderator of "meet the press," will be joining us live right here on

set in our studio to preview the michigan and arizona primaries when we return. >> looking forward to that. and also ahead, controversial concoction. the ingredient in a new ice cream named for hoops hero jeremy lin that many people call insulting. and a record-setting year for adam sandler, and that's not necessarily a good thing. why the actor may not want to celebrate his latest award nominations. ♪

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northrop grumman. well, we are just two days away from the michigan and arizona primaries, and mitt romney is holding on for dear life. >> yeah, he leads in most polls in arizona, but the race in michigan, the state where he was born, is still extremely tight between romney and rick

santorum. next tuesday, it's a do-or-die day for romney's campaign. joining us to break down the race is moderator of "meet the press," david gregory. >> and angie is letting -- >> good morning. >> good morning. angie is letting me ask the first question, okay? and i thank her. >> we tossed a coin. >> michigan, romney's home state. we have heard if he loses, it could be the end, or disaster. what if he wins? >> i think if he wins, it's going to be a good story for him. he will have come from behind. he'll still have to face, you know, the analysis that it should have never been that close for him, and it will still reveal a picture of this campaign where he's got a lot of room to travel. it's still going to be a long fight. we pick up reports today, romney's team telling donors and other supporters it could be may before this nomination is wrapped up. so, he's going to have a lot of work to do. that said, michigan is not wrapped up. people i'm talking to on the ground say that they feel like they're in better shape, pretty good shape, but they're not out of the woods yet. this is still a very tight

margin. you know, rick santorum is still really making a pitch to social conservatives in a way that's going to likely have them energized her. >> with romney being from michigan, it seems like a lot of attention has been focused on that primary, but we can't forget we've got arizona, and even recently, the gop chairman in arizona has said, look, if there is big voter turnout, i'm afraid santorum could pull this off. >> yeah, i think that's still more of a long-shot. we'll have arizona governor jan brewer on the program this morning, and it's our expectations she'll endorse someone in the race, and so, she may have some impact after this morning in the days leading up to the primary. but arizona looks to be a safer state right now for mitt romney, and certainly one that he'd like to have. >> now, is this one where we should be keeping our eyes on gingrich as well, to see whether or not his supporters stick with him or jump ship and -- >> you know, i would expect gingrich to fade in these two contests. it doesn't mean he's out. i think he's concentrating efforts when he gets to super tuesday, ten contests on march

6th. i think that's where he wants to take a stand, but i'd keep an eye to see which percentage he lands at. >> is it true he must win virginia, his home state? >> look, the question of his viability is going to keep being asked, but it's so difficult to write him off because he's come back twice before in this campaign. but just as we're asking those questions of michigan, you'd have to ask that of gingrich. if he wants to position himself as a southern conservative to romney, he'll have to do that. look, because this race is still wide open, even if romney were to win arizona and michigan, there is room for gingrich, for santorum to try to grind it out, to try to pick up delegates along the way. this is going to be a long contest. >> governor jan brewer, you mentioned, will be on the show, but you also have? >> rick santorum. >> yeah. >> that will be our lead guest this morning, talk to him about where things stand, some of his recent comments and how he sees the race going from here. also going to have jerry brown along with governor brewer, democratic governor of california, of course. so, a lot to get to and we'll break down the race in our

"political roundtable." >> that's followed by "press pass"? >> yeah, john lewis will join us to talk about the new civil rights african-american history museum that's going to be part of the smithsonian. so, a wonderful thing for washington and for the history of the movement. and i think it will be very interesting to hear from him. he also talked politics. he talks about rick santorum, who, by the way, was a co-sponsor of the legislation to get the museum funded in the first place! >> oh, wow. >> so, it's kind of interesting. >> an emotional interview there, i'm sure. oscar pick. we've got to get to the hard-hitting issues here. >> i feel like i'm at a little bit of a -- because i didn't see "the artist," i didn't see all of them. i am strongly behind george clooney for "the descendents." for best actor, i think he's terrific. >> but are you picking that for best picture. >> no, because i don't think i know the rest of the field. i loved "moneyball," but there were a couple standouts i didn't see. my mom is in town, though. she'll be watching with me. she'll help me fill out my ballot. she's from los angeles. >> she's part of the academy. >> exactly. >> david gregory, before you

leave, he asked a major question about the weather. what is our snow -- >> yeah, the snowfall total is just nowhere near where we should be. >> zilch. two inches for the whole winter. we're way behind. and march only averages about an inch and a half. >> wow. >> so, snow lovers, the 2013 winter may be the one we look to

well, you know you've made it when ben & jerry turn you into an ice cream, but the latest flavor honoring jeremy lin has gotten them into trouble. the ice cream company is preparing a new frozen yogurt called "taste the linsanity."

they wanted to use fortune cookie pieces in the flavor, but some called that move racist. ben & jerry's apologized on its facebook page and said they will instead use waffle cone pieces in the flavor. >> why don't they just ask jeremy lin what his favorite flavor of ice cream is and make that? >> that's a great idea! it really is. >> you know, i'm full of good ideas. >> i know. >> if only i could get this stuff out into the public. >> what flavor of the day when we're talking weather? >> this will be the wind-chilled mint would be yesterday, and today we'll call it some sort of warm berry thing, strawberry sunshine or something like that today, because it's going to be a far better day to be outside today, and we won't have that frosty-cold mint flavor left on our ears, either, by the time the afternoon rolls around. sunshine a plenty and wind going away. that's going to be the real key to how much better today will feel than yesterday. outside we go on your sunday

morning. sunrise is getting ever closer. have you noticed how much daylight we're picking up at the front and the back end of the days? sun is now up before 7:00 a.m., and starting tuesday, i think it is, sunset is after 6:00 p.m., and daylight savings is only i think two weeks away. that will move the sunset back another hour. of course, we'll lose our early-morning light when that happened. 34 right now at national airport, winds out of the northwest at 13 miles per hour, so there's still just enough of a breeze out there to have the windchills be a little bit of a factor early this morning. that will not be as much of a problem later on. right now, current temperatures, a few spots in the upper 20s with most everybody in the low to mid-30s right now. the current wind gusts are now into the 10 to 20 miles per hour range as opposed to yesterday when they were between 35 and 45 miles per hour. windchills, low to mid-20s. so again, there's a bundle-up factor first thing this morning, but once we get the sunshine out today, that will be nice. and as we go through the rest of the day, these northwesterly winds will fade away and we'll

get a little hit of a southwesterly breeze later on this afternoon into early this evening. no real big weather systems coming our way any time soon. these clouds and showers i think are going to be staying well down to our south. that being said, i think that that little clump of showers down there along the gulf coast, that will provide a little bit in the way of cloud cover here late tomorrow into the day tuesday, but i think rain chances will stay down to our south. for today, high pressure settling on in. that means plenty of sunshine and nowhere near the amount of wind that we had yesterday. clear skies overnight tonight, another chilly start tomorrow morning, upper 20s and low 30s. but on the whole, not too bad. then tomorrow, mild, indeed. out ahead of this weather front, we'll have a nice southwest breeze tomorrow, putting temperatures up near 60 degrees for a brief time. this moisture here is that little system right along the gulf coast which i think will provide cloud cover, but any rain drops i think will stay south of us through the day tuesday. our next chance for rain comes on wednesday. so, today, mostly sunny, a light breeze out there this morning, seasonably cool. our average high temperature now is 50 degrees, and we'll be

within a degree or two of average today, so pretty much typical late february weather. then tomorrow, plenty of sunshine, some mid and high-level clouds sneaking in late tomorrow afternoon, but a mild start to the week with highs up near 60 degrees. then as we go on down through the rest of the upcoming week, keep in mind now, our average high temperature 50, 51 degrees. every single one of those high temperature numbers, other than today, is at least above average all the way through the week. the next chance for rain around here looks like wednesday into early thursday. i know, we don't want it to be raining on leap day, but -- >> no. >> wearing blue and yellow, right? >> that's correct. blue and yellow on leap day. if you watch "30 rock," you know all this. >> i've got all -- >> you've had four years. >> but i've had 11 of these before and no one's ever told me about the blue and yellow rule. >> sorry. >> you should know. well, the stars will be out

tonight for the 84th annual academy awards, and as nbc's mark barger tells us, the oscars share some similarities to the political landscape this year. >> reporter: presidential candidates have primary season. >> martin scorsese -- >> reporter: oscar nominees have awards season. >> you have to deliver a great performance and then have to work it, too. >> big smile, everyone. >> reporter: the oscar campaign trail's more glamorous than the political one. instead of candidates hopping primaries, it's nominees traveling the road of awards shows on the way to tonight's big finale. >> us media types are fatigued. for the most joajority of ameri when they get that popcorn and turn it on to watch sunday night, it's new for them. ♪ >> reporter: a silent film homage comes in as tonight's big favorite, ten nominations overall. >> "the artist" is by far and away the movie in front. it's won almost all of the major guild awards leading up to the

oscars. >> reporter: but there is suspense about best actor. >> john due jarredan is the guy to beat. i think it's been neck and neck between him and george clooney. >> reporter: "the help's" viola davis and meryl streep are also seen as competition. >> best actress seems to be viola davis's award to win, but you can't count out an upset by meryl streep. >> reporter: not that it would be a surprise. after all, streep has earned two academy awards. >> but it's been almost 30 years since she's won an oscar. >> reporter: the final vote adds some drama to hollywood's version of election night. mark barger, nbc news. >> well, tonight celebrates the best in film, but what about the other end of the spectrum? adam sandler is the big winner, or loser, depending on how you look at it. he snagged a record 11 razzie nominations, including two "worst movie of the year" nominees for "jack and jill" and chuck bell's favorite "just go with it." >> yes, loved that one. >> he also has two worst actor

nominations. normally, the razzie nominations are announced right before the oscars, but this year, the winners will be appropriately named on april fools' day. there is still more "news 4 today" after the break. and also, news4's "viewpoint," so stay right here. i hate getting less. but i love getting more.

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good morning. i'm chris gordon. >> and i'm angie goff. thanks for joining us and welcome to "news4 today" on this sunday, february 26th. taking a look at this morning's top stories, two of seven prince george's county firefighters remain in critical but stable condition after getting hurt during a fire. strong wind helped fuel the fire at a house on 57th avenue in riverdale friday night. fire investigators still have no word on what started that fire. in syria, voters went to the polls to vote to create a multiparty system, giving them a

voice against president bashir al assad. assad's opponents say this is simply a ploy to quiet critics and demand he resign, saying he's responsible for thousands of deaths in his country. former south african president nelson mandela could be released from the hospital as early as today. the 93-year-old had a series of tests to determine the source of a stomach ailment. the current south african president said mandela's condition is long-standing and his hospital visit was planned. so, as we plan our day, we bring in chuck bell. >> yes, indeed. yesterday was on the breezy side. didn't care for that little nip at the bottom of your -- >> a little bit on the breezy side? it was blowing your head off! i mean, it was crazy. >> i'm the master of understatement sometimes. so, today we don't have to worry about it. that's most important of all. >> okay. >> we get the sunshine back this afternoon, and without the wind around, it will feel about 25 degrees warmer than it did yesterday afternoon, so, that is a true step in the right

direction. outside we look early on a sunday morning. sun's already up. it's been up for about four, five minutes now, and it's going to continue to rise higher into the sky here over the next few hours, and as a result, temperatures which are in the upper 20s and low 30s right now with windchills in the low and mid-20s right now, so a little cold start first this morning. nothing showing up on doppler, nothing even all that close to us other than a few fading snowflakes across southern p.a. sunday looks like a winner to me. mostly sunny all day long. highs today will climb into the upper 40s. i wouldn't be surprised to see a couple neighborhoods touch 50 degrees later this afternoon. on the whole, not a bad day. near 50 today, near 60 degrees tomorrow. unfortunately, we're wasting a 60-degree day on a monday, but you know, we'll take them as we can get them. >> exactly. >> we can't control what day the 60 shows up on. we just have to make the most of it when it gets here. >> what did we call this yesterday, the snowmasecond? that blazes through on saturday

and then we have 60 degrees to look forward to. this is bizarre. >> this winter has been caddywompus. >> word of the day. >> look it up on google. >> thanks, chuck. next is nbc's "viewpoint." >> then we'll be back in a few minutes with more of this. welcome to "viewpoint," everyone. i'm jim handly. our guest this morning, d.c. congresswoman eleanor holmes norton. welcome back to "viewpoint." always great to see you. >> thank you, jim. >> you've been busy. let's start out with something that was getting a whole lot of national attention, a meeting a little more than a week ago, a committee meeting on contraception. you've been very vocal about this meeting. who was on this panel of experts and who was not on this panel of experts, more importantly? you walked out of the meeting. message heard? >> well, i walked out of the meeting. i didn't mean for all democrats to walk out of the meeting, but i thought a statement had to be made. this wasn't simply a case, bad as it was, of not having any woman on the panel. the democrats asked for one

witness. they had five. as a minority, we are entitled, perhaps, to only one. they defined our witness out of the hearing. why did we have this hearing in the first place? because in the prior week, they had arisen a controversy about religiously affiliated institutions and contraceptives for their female employees. and lo and behold, the administration comes up with what is really a quite wonderful compromise that allows women to get their contraceptives through their insurance and says to the universities and the hospitals who serve the general public but are affiliated, perhaps, with a religious institution, you don't have any part in this. it will be paid for by the insurance companies and it doesn't even go through you. the women get it directly from the insurance companies. it was a classic win-win, and a better one than i've seen in over 20 years in the house. then lo and behold pops up a hearing the next week.

and the hearing tries to essentially take up one side of a two-sided issue two very -- >> the religious liberties side. >> religious liberty and the freedom of women to reproductive health, two very, very important issues about which accommodation had already been reached. well, when the rules were contorted so that we could not have our witness, i tried to get a court of order, i tried to get a vote. and when none of that worked and they proceeded to discuss this two-sided issue with a group of men, i thought that i should leave. i left. the hearing proceeded. but this stirred up such a ruckus that this last week, which was recess, we just had our own hearing. the speaker of -- the former

speaker of the house and the top democrat, speaker pelosi -- i call her top woman -- the top woman convened a hearing in order to let sandra flourk -- >> this georgetown university law student. >> -- testify. what a witness she was. she didn't testify in the way you might expect. it was about a colleague who had needed contraception pharmaceuticals because she had a kind of ovarian cystitis. had ran out of funds, lost an ovary. and what she managed to do was reveal to the public what i think most of them don't even think about when they think about contraceptives, and that is, reproductive health is what it says, reproductive health. and yes, it means protection from unplanned pregnancies, it means protection from what women, by the way, until about the middle of the 20th century encountered. if you went into the cemeteries of our country going back over

the centuries, including in the 20th century, you will find them full of the graves of fairly young women. men lived longer than women until recent decades because so many women died in childbirth or from complications of childbirth. when we say reproductive health, we are serious about it. so, a whole big -- there's a petition now that's already gotten 300,000 signatures. this means something to women and their families. >> this compromise that you mentioned with the president's policy, many people, some democrats, wish that it had been done from the get-go and we wouldn't have had to go down this road. do you see it that way as well? >> i do. >> and you're completely happy with the way it is now? >> i'm completely happy. i think most americans are, according to the polls. in our country, religion doesn't trump other constitutional rights. a woman has a constitutional

right to her reproductive health. you're supposed to try to accommodate it. yes, we wondered, why did we have to go through this instead of getting that from the beginning. i think what -- in fact, what the administration said was they wanted to put the regulation out there, work it through with all the groups and come to a position after hearing from everybody, but they said, well, now that we've got a whole big controversy, let's go where we think we would have wanted to come out. so, i regret that there was a big controversy, but i am very, very pleased with the accommodation that was reached. these are two very important rights. in our country, we respect religion. in our country, we respect women and their reproductive health as well. we can do both. >> i don't think we're going to look at a panel of experts on women's health care again and not see a woman up there. i think that's probably the takeaway for every member of congress right now. >> i should think that that was a lesson learned.

>> congresswoman, we'll be right back to talk about more and the president's budget and what it means for the district, too, right after this break. so stay with us on "viewpoint."

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and welcome back to "viewpoint." our guest this sunday morning, congresswoman eleanor holmes norton. we're talking about some wedge issues on the hill and a bill that you and mayor gray have both come out forcefully against, is this one that's been proposed by an arizona congressman which would place new restrictions on abortions only in d.c. we're talking about late-term abortions. i think there's some exceptions -- >> no, early-term abortions. >> okay, after 20 weeks? >> that's an early-term abortion. >> but in cases where i think there's one other provision where the woman's life is in danger, the mother's life is in danger. >> there are very limited exceptions. district residents have to really take note of what is a first of its kind, never in american history has any member

of congress suggested that the district of columbia was not covered by the same constitutional rights as everybody else. we know they cite a section of the constitution that gives the congress certain kinds of jurisdiction over the nation's capitol, but seldom is it mentioned that congress gave up its ability to govern the district of columbia except when it wants to, and it gave it up in the 1973 home rule act. so, we don't believe congress has the right to step in at all, and certainly not to step in when it wants to, and never to step in this way. this is a bill that would say, if you lived in the district of columbia, roe versus wade essentially would not apply to you. >> anywhere else in the country -- >> -- it would. >> -- it would. so, understand what they are trying to do. this is senator trent franks of arizona and mike lee, the representative, and senator mike lee of utah.

essentially, i think they're trying us out as guinea pigs, and that's what we most resent. we are accustom and resent very much keeping us from spending our own local funds on abortion services for low-income women, because hundreds of jurisdictions do. you can't spend federal money. this is not that, fellow citizens. this says, for every woman in the district of columbia, you could not have an abortion after 20 weeks. that is previability. roe versus wade leaves it to a doctor to determine when viability occurs, but 20 weeks is not when it occurs. it would mean that any woman who happened to live here would be treated under the constitution differently. not only is this a violation of our reproductive rights under the constitution, it is a violation of the 14th amendment.

you cannot treat citizens differe differently under the constitution because of where they live. in fact, that was cleared up in the 19th century, where the supreme court said in no uncertain language that there is nothing in the constitution to suggest that the residents of the nation's capital are not entitled to every single constitutional rights as citizens elsewhere. >> let's take it a step further and this broader picture of wedge issues and the culture wars that we're hearing in politics, in the presidential race, certainly. do you think that this is something that would work in favor of democrats and your efforts to, i would assume, regain that 25 seats that you need for a majority again? >> oh, i think so. women and their families have come out of the woodworks because these social issues have come on the table. this is interesting, that the

republicans themselves have tried to quiet the social issues. they tried to make jobs and the economy the centerpiece, specifically when they took the house back. well, we haven't seen any jobs bill, and they seldom now talk about jobs. now they're talking about contraception and abortion. that's a real no-no for republicans because women vote. and on both of these issues, contraception and abortion, they have made it clear that this is a, these are matters of their own reproductive health and that they're constitutionally protected. so, i think what you are seeing, jim, is an attempt to appeal to the furthest right base of the republican party, forgetting that when the general election comes, there's all the rest, perhaps 80% of the country, that you have to appeal to. we particularly resent being used in this way. this bill could pass the house.

i kid you not, this bill could pass the house. it hasn't moved yet, but if it came to the floor, it would be designed to make some democrats take a tougher vote than they would like to take. they'd rather not vote on abortion. they come from more conservative districts. our caucus is very broad. but there's no question but that the democrats are a pro-choice caucus, and it cannot in the long run help republicans. >> quickly while we're talking about elections, something that you proposed having to do with special elections here in the district, received committee approval, and this goes back to the resignation in part, the resignation of harry thomas jr. from the council. we've got a special election set. it's really going to cost roughly, what, $300,000? >> right, needlessly. long before that resignation i put in a bill at the request of the district to allow them to shorten the amount of time for a special election. got it through even the republican house, just like

that. in the senate, it got held up not because it's controversial, but because in the senate, they hold things up. it had a "anonymous hold." those have since been removed. but it meant that, had that passed, then the district could have held this election on april 3rd when we were having the primary, as it is now, in a very tough economy. we've got to come up with $300,000 or so, some amount in that range, extra dollars to have a one special election. i'm taking a bill through again. i'm sure i'm going to get it out easily again, with the senate with no holds, at least not anonymously, perhaps i'll get it out again then. but what i'm really trying to do is i'm trying to take all these so-called charter matters -- why is it in the house at all? because structural matters, like how it's organized, what the procedures of the district are, were included in a special charter setting up the district of columbia.

these things are of no account to the congress. i have a bill now that would take all things of that kind, on elections, on how much time on what the council and the mayor does, and extract them altogether from the charter, and i think i might get someplace, given this snafu. >> all right. we've got a lot more to get to as we come back on "viewpoint" with congresswoman eleanor

good morning. i'm angie goff. here are some of the stories we're following this morning. two of seven prince george's county firefighters remain in critical but stable condition after getting hurt battling a fire. strong wind helped fuel the fire at a house on 57th avenue in riverdale friday night. in syria, voters went to the polls to vote to create a multiparty system, giving them a voice against president bashar al assad.

assad's opponents say this is simply a ploy to quiet critics and demand that he resign, saying he's responsible for thousands of deaths in his country. former south african president nelson mandela would be released from the hospital as early as today. the 93-year-old had a series of tests to determine the source of a stomach ailment. the current south african president said mandela's condition is long-standing and his hospital visit was planned. we'll have more news, plus your sunday forecast, in 15 minutes. and welcome back to "viewpoint." our guest this morning, congresswoman eleanor holmes norton. i want to ask you real quick before we move on to the president's budget proposals, which the district's going to see a big benefit from -- d.c. politics. you represent this city, the nation's capital. last week, they voted on, i guess a civility measure or rule, so that behind closed doors, when, actually, somebody, maybe a reporter could be in there, which is what happened last time, there's no cursing

between council members. your thoughts on that and the tone and how these men and women are getting along on the council. it seems to be a distraction. >> i'll tell you, we need some civility rules in the house. of course, if you even speak disrespectfully on the floor of someone, you have to kind of apologize. we're not used to some of these issues. i really have no idea what has promoted this, but i'm sure -- i'm glad that the council is taking care of it. >> it didn't surprise you, though? i mean, everybody's heard what was thrown about. >> i didn't know. no, only what i read in the newspaper. i don't have any inside information on what -- of course, people, we all have tempers that flair, so i can't imagine what would have brought it on, and i'm glad that at least the council has made it clear that it's not how we operate. >> it's not how you operate on the hill. >> on the hill, you can really be punished. >> but there's an apology and,

yeah, repercussions, i guess. you're right. >> yeah. >> all right, the president's budget proposals. your priorities, the city's priorities seem to be benefiting a lot from these. let's run through a few. education, for one. >> imagine that we keep one of the most popular bills, education bills ever. d.c. tang, which is allowing our kids to go to college, only bill of its kind, doubled college attendance. not only did we keep the amount, but the president raised it $5 million. so, we are assured that our youngsters in this tough economy will be able to go to college. >> homeland security project? >> slow down, but $100 million more this year. we know we can build until 2014 or so. people were moving into the first building, the coast guard building, in 2013, and really good news for d.c. there's money in it for infrastructure for the east side, owned by d.c., which will allow them to prepare for

finally making some real use that will bring revenue to the district of columbia. >> and jobs, jobs, jobs. >> jobs, jobs, jobs. >> quickly, something that's very important for you, funding for hiv/aids testing. >> yes. we get, of course, a fair amount of money through so-called ryan white, but we have had such a high aids rate that i've already requested extra money, $5 million extra for hiv prevention and treatment. and then i have a really top environmental priority that i'm sure will be funded by the president, and this is the anacostia river. and sure enough, he has funded the storm water overflow, so my four top priorities were funded. in the region, we will see that our federal employees have a freeze, that will have repercussions locally because they feed their local economies. we will see the federal

government not renting as much. real estate is very important here. i am a ranking member of that committee. and we will -- >> actually talk about the region, though. we were mentioning in the break before, virginia governor bob mcdonnell, budget autonomy. the president is keeping a promise that he personally made to you about budget autonomy for the district. now governor mcdonnell has jumped on board with his support for this. surprised you? >> surprised and very appreciative. had no idea this was coming, but just this past week, the governor came forward with a notion that i've never discussed with him, and i don't think anybody from the district has ever discussed with him, although i suspect that some of my good friends in virginia, like tom davis, may have had a word. >> in northern virginia, yeah, right. >> indeed. but he comes out for darrell

issa's budget autonomy bill. that in itself is very important. here we have the chairman of the committee with jurisdiction over the district who after hearing decided that he had to come out for budget autonomy. well, now comes forward the governor of virginia. and why does he do so? he has very good regional reasons for doing so. he speaks about, essentially, the interlocking relationships between the district and the rest of the region, about the metro, about 500,000 virginians who come in here every day to work, and about how this essentially -- i'm not queegt h quoting him, but he essentially says this is a region without borders. he also speaks as a executive, that he does not understand how you can run a city with the kind of doubt and -- >> restrictions -- >> and threats of shutdowns, eexsion that the district has -- we could not be more appreciative.

>> got to take a quick break. we've got another segment when we've got another segment when we jim wilson? here is the chase freedom 5% cash back you get on amazon.com purchases. wow! and your kindle fire. thank you. do you have any bubble wrap? activate your 5% cash back at chase.com/freedom i could use all the help i can get. like nutella, a delicious hazelnut spread that's perfect on multigrain toast,

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welcome back to "viewpoint." we saw this week shovels go into the ground for the museum of african-american history and culture. the president was on hand. congresswoman, you were there as well. the president called it, this is a mont in history that's long overdue, certainly, and a long time in the making. >> a moment in history of black history and during black history month. a long time coming, and it started right here in the city more than 100 years ago when african-american veterans of the civil war were kept from marching in that parade, and the notion came forward from then of some kind of museum, some kind of way to make it known that they, indeed, had fought, 100,000 of them fought in the civil war. and it was, yes, indeed, a historic occasion, but it was very meaningful to d.c. this city was in many ways the

vortex, is in many ways the vortex of african-american history. the freedoms bureau was here, howard university came out of it. we are a city that is full of black history. my own grandfather, great grandfather, was a runaway slave from virginia. that's how we got here. the city is full of people like me who have that history and for whom this museum will be nothing short of personal. >> and it's going to be a destination for people all over the country who, whether they've been to washington dozens of times or not, this will be a reason to come. >> if you come from anywhere in the world, you will want to come and see this museum. one of the speakers there was, of course, my good friend -- >> john lewis. >> -- john lewis, who co-sponsored -- he and i were co-sponsors of this bill. we had a very long road to go to get this bill out.

john is such a piece of living history in and of himself that on monday, at 8:30 at bus boys and poets -- >> he and julian bond are going to be part of this conversation that you're having in conjunction with black history month. >> indeed. i thought i'd do something about some living history here. julian bond, john lewis and i were all in the nonviolent coordinating committee together. they were lifers. i would come in the summer. and i'm going to talk to them about that experience and about experiences since, about whether or not they see, for example, occupy as an offshoot in its own way. >> do you? >> i do. >> do you. >> and it shows you how different generations express themselves differently. but in a real sense, that era was the first real era in the 20th century of mass, massive kind of protest.

and so, i'm going to ask them about their own lives since, about the lives of the civil rights movement since and about -- >> they have certainly walked the walk through history. >> each of them. i think this is going to be a wonderful evening. first come, first served. >> 8:30, bus boys and poets. >> monday night. >> northwest washington on 14th street. >> yes. >> all right, looking forward to that. congresswoman, always a pleasure. thanks for coming in. >> my pleasure, jim. thank you. >> thank you for watching us on "viewpoint" this sunday morning. enjoy the rest of your weekend, everybody. now back to "news4 today." we're looking at a live cam of a beautiful morning, blue skies. it is not going to be as windy as it was yesterday.

>> a beautiful skyline is what we're waking up to on this sunday morning. the wind has settled down since, which is great news. >> no kidding. yesterday -- see, if you had worn those dangly earrings yesterday, they would have been gone by this morning, no doubt about it. >> i have a question. >> sure. >> you used the word caddywompus last hour. can you use it in a sentence? >> if you have a wagon and the wheels are not going correctly, it's caddywompus, and the winter has also been caddywompus. [ inaudible ] >> all right. >> right now, chris gordon is a bit caddywompus. didn't turn his microphone back on. we've got it all straightened out now. a good looking day outside today. temperatures a little on the cold side this morning, but certainly not all that bitter cold like we could have had for a february morning. temperatures in the upper 20s and low 30s. 24 at the national airport, 37 at the state house and the naval

academy. 28 in fredericksburg and stafford. 30 degrees in manassas. 28 degrees right now for a windchill in culpeper. a little hint of a breeze still left out there first thing this morning, but the breeze will be laying down with each and every passing hour. so, nowhere near as much wind around later on this afternoon as what we had to endure yesterday, and those snowflakes in pennsylvania are drying up fast. so, we have a 100% dry forecast for your sunday. mostly sunny today, temperatures should climb into the low 40s by mid to late morning. and in the mid-to-upper 40s for high temperatures today. i wouldn't even be surprised to see a few places make it all the way to the 50-degree mark. so, a good-looking day today. cool, but not so bad. it will feel a lot milder than yesterday because the wind will be gone. then tomorrow, it's just going to flat out be mild with highs back up near 60 degrees on your monday. >> at least gives us something to look forward to for the start of the workweek. >> absolutely. it's one reason to look forward to monday. >> all right. thank you, chuck. >> okay. well, fire investigators say that wind created a blow

torch-like effect as flames spread through a house in prince george's county. seven firefighters were hurt after responding to the burning house on 57th avenue in riverdale. two of those firefighters are still in the hospital in critical condition. two others who got hurt are now back at their fire house, and news4's darcy spencer has their exclusive interviews. >> reporter: you just got released from the hospital today. tell us how you're feeling. how are you doing? >> still a little sore. i'm just glad to be out. thoughts and prayers with kevin and ethan. >> reporter: michael mcclary has burns to his hands and rib injuries after being hurt battling a blaze in riverdale friday night. the 19-year-old, one of seven prince george's county firefighters who were hurt, was visited at the hospital burn unit by the fire chief and county executive. have you ever been injured before like this? >> yeah. a year ago, i was shocked in a

house fire, put on the same floor. so, hopefully, i don't go back. >> reporter: the firefighters were inside a vacant house on 57th avenue when there was a sudden rush of air, creating a fireball, engulfing the firefighters. lieutenant michael naples was also injured but helped pull some of his fellow firefighters to safety. >> i mean, i'm shooken up. it's definitely a call i'm not going to forget, you know. ethan and kevin are in my thoughts and prayers and i hope they make a full recovery soon. >> reporter: 911 calls came pouring in. residents were concerned the wind was fanning the flames. >> you might want to hurry up. there's houses next door. this is burning fast. the wind is blowing hard. i'm seeing flames coming out of there like smoking everywhere. >> reporter: two firefighters from the bladensburg volunteer fire station remain in the burn unit, including ethan sorrell. two years ago, he was awarded for his role in saving the life of a 4-year-old girl in a house fire in hyattsville. he and fellow bladensburg firefighter kevin o'toole remain in critical condition. cheryl mcclary is the mother of

michael mcclary. she was at the riverdale fire station when that call came in. >> i'm proud of him. our whole family's proud of him, but you just want to look at him and shake him and say, "please change your profession." >> reporter: there's no change of profession in the works for these firefighters. they say they're hoping to get back to duty as soon as possible, possibly even in the next couple of weeks. in riverdale, darcy spencer, "news4 today." virginia governor bob mcdonnell is considering the view of victims of the virginia tech campus shootings on a bill that could repeal a gun law. parents of survivors and victims from the 2007 killings held a conference call with the governor yesterday. they urged him not to sign legislation that would allow virginians to buy more than one gun a month. the law has been in place since the 1990s, when federal investigators traced guns used in new york city crimes back to virginia. virginia tech victims said the

governor told them he'd have a response to their opinions next week. we're just days away from the next contest in "decision 2012." both arizona and michigan hold primaries on tuesday. mitt romney spent saturday campaigning in troy, michigan, just miles from where he grew up. the republican presidential candidate spoke at americans for prosperity forum, reminding the crowds of his hometown roots. romney also criticized his rival, rick santorum's record, saying it was time for a washington outsider to become president. >> when the senator mentioned that sometimes you have to take one for the team, what he was describing was the circumstances where he disagreed with something on principle, but he had to vote for it because that was taking one for the team. we can't do that anymore. we can't continue to take one for the team. my team is the people of the united states of america, and i'm going to fight for that team, not for the partisans in

washington. >> the latest nbc/marist poll shows romney regaining a slight edge in michigan. gop candidate rick santorum is talking political jobs and taking jabs at president obama while campaigning in michigan. >> some people have incredible gifts and use and want to work out there making things. president obama wants to -- said he wants everybody in america to go to college. what a snob. [ laughter and applause ] well, i understand why he wants you to go to college. he wants to remake you in his image. >> santorum made the comments while at the same forum as romney saturday in michigan. he was talking about the need to revive the economy's manufacturing sector and why he's the best candidate for the

working class. today in syria, voters have the chance to possibly open up the country's political system. the constitutional referendum would create a multiparty system, but critics of president bashar al assad say it's simply a ploy to quiet critics. they've called for a boycott of the vote, demanding that assad step down. since the uprising began last march, the united nations says more than 5,000 people have died from assad's government forces. in afghanistan, the taliban is claiming responsibility for shooting and killing two u.s. military advisers. the attack is part of a violent protest in response to the burning of korans at a u.s. military base. despite apologies from president obama and other military officials, demonstrators have clashed with police for close to a week, vandalizing shops and government buildings. in response to the attacks, the top commander of u.s. and nato forces withdrew all nato advisers working at afghan

ministries for safety purposes. pakistan is in the process of demolishing the compound where osama bin laden hid for six years before his death. a senior pakistani official says 80% of the compound is now destroyed. last may, u.s. special forces raided the building, killing bin laden. crews started after dark tearing down the compound, which was located in northern pakistan. they began the demolition without notifying nearby residents. former south african president nelson mandela is expected to be released from the hospital today or tomorrow. the 93-year-old had a series of tests to determine the source of a stomach ailment. current south african president jacob zuma said mandela's hospital visit was for a long-standing issue and that doctors consider mandela's condition satisfactory, given his age. mandela spent 27 years in prison for fighting racist white rule. the mobile peace prize recipient became south africa's first

black president in 1994 and served one 5-year term. >> from prison to president. it is 7:40 right now. controversial concoction. the ingredient in a new ice cream named for hoops hero jeremy lin that some people may call insulting. and a record-setting year for adam sandler, but that's not necessarily a good thing. why the actor may not want to celebrate his latest award nominations. [ dog barking in distance ]

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welcome back, everybody. the "today" show is next on nbc 4. it starts at 8:00. >> let's get a preview now. lester holt joins us live from new york. hi, lester. >> chris and angie, good morning. coming up on "today," the latest from afghanistan. police there are searching for an afghan intelligence official suspected of killing two u.s. officers. it comes as the country's president urges his people to stay calm. then, more on the legal trouble facing robert kennedy's son. douglas kennedy accused of having a violent confrontation with nurses at a new york hospital as they try to stop him from taking his newborn son out for a walk.

we'll talk to the attorney representing the nurses who were involved. plus, we'll look ahead to tonight's academy awards and what to expect for the red carpet to the night's potential big winners, and billy crystal back as host. country music star taylor swift sure knows how to turn a guy down. the compromise she made to make one fan's dream come true. we'll explain when jenna and i join you on "today." >> that is indeed a great story. looking forward to that. but we can't let you go without asking your oscar pick for tonight. who's going to be the big winner? >> i like "the help." i really liked that movie. >> i want to read the book before i see it. >> i didn't read the book, but i really liked the film. so that's my pick. >> all right. thank you very much. >> okay. >> see you. montgomery county police need your help, need your help finding the driver responsible for a deadly hit-and-run. now, we first told you about the pedestrian accident yesterday morning. police identify the victim as 24-year-old alonzo rodriguez

from bethesda, maryland. a driver on norbeck road spotted his body near westbury road around 3:30 a.m. two friends told police they were out with rodriguez late friday night. they said rodriguez got out of the car when it stopped on norbeck road. another vehicle later hit and killed him. police are now looking for that driver. so, if you saw anything that might help in this case, you're being asked to call the montgomery county police. alexandria is closer to giving the go-ahead for redevelopment along its waterfront. the city council voted in favor of incorporating a previously approved plan into its master plan. it calls for new parks, hotels and shops along the historic waterfront. the ordinance is one of two that must be passed before any construction can happen. the other would implement waterfront zoning changes. it can't move forward until an appeal is heard. critics say waterfront development will cause traffic problems and take away from the city's unique character.

well, blue line trains experienced delays yesterday, but not because of track work but because of an injured bald eagle. crews found the american icon trapped inside a fence near the van doran street station. it was taken to the raptor conservancy of virginia located in falls church. it had a broken wing. no word on how the bird was injured in the first place, but it's expected to be okay. a toxicology report shows an american tv producer had cocaine in his system when he died. jeff rice was found dead in his hotel room in uganda about a week ago. he was a producer for the show "the amazing race." tests reveal he died from asphyxiation. a private investigator says rice died from contaminated cocaine and that police arrested a man who admitted to selling him the drugs. rice and his assistant, katherine fuller, were in uganda working on a documentary. she was found unconscious in the room but has recovered.

well, the man who tried to kill president reagan says he'd rather be known for his artistic talents. john hinckley says he's frustrated he's only known as a would-be assassin. according to court documents, he regrets not being able to show or sell his paintings or play his music. in 1981, hinckley opened fire on president reagan, wounding him in an attempt to impress actress jodie foster. he says he's angry he can't change the public's perception and will always be known as the man who tried to kill the president. rupert murdoch released his british tabloid today, the first since the phone-hacking scandal shut down his old "sunday edition" newspaper. the media mogul was there as his new sun went to press. "news ts of the world" stopped production after news that it hacked into phone calls of crime

victims and celebrities. this is to feature more fashion and sports stories. murdoch's new company hopes to sell more than 200,000 copies of "sun" on sunday. for veterans and their spouses, it's sometimes hard to find work when they return to the states, but a unique event helped them not only find opportunities but immediate employment. it wasn't a job fair, but a hiring event at the bethesda naval base. it's part of the first lady's joining forces initiative to reduce veteran and military spouse unemployment. president obama's challenge to the private sector is to employ 100,000 of them by the end of the year 2013. veterans had a chance to preregister for the event to learn about the 29 different companies taking part and the jobs being offered. >> we preprospect our soldiers, sailors and marines. if they're not a good fit for our company, we exchange that

talent with another company. >> we appreciate the sacrifice, the training and the experience that they bring. we know they're very motivated. >> more than 1,000 veterans and military families attended the event, and so far, the companies involved have hired more than 6,600 veterans as part of the initiative. >> that's so wonderful! so, so wonderful. speaking of the weather, let's turn our eyes over to chuck. >> yes, indeed, a very fine-looking sunday coming your way. you won't have to deal with those ferocious winds that we had around the area yesterday, so that is step one in the right direction, and we'll talk about warmer temperatures. that will be step two. next. ♪

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of season two tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m. right here on nbc 4 and watch it with your computer on hand because i will be web chatting live throughout the entire show along with radio personality big tigger, "big tigger show." it will be like i'm right there in your living room critiquing all the performances. we also talk about other things, like what christina aguilera's wearing and is not wearing, i guess, is more like it. >> also very important. >> exactly, but it's a whole lot of fun. we'll be on the news at 4:00 p.m. tomorrow to really break down what's ahead. and there's a local person that's going to be on the show. that's going to be performing. >> this won't be your first web chat thing. >> no, no. >> do you get a lot of response, good feedback? >> oh, we do. some people can't even get into the chat room. they say they're bounced back out. >> like the stock ticker on cnbc going across. she keeps up with it all. >> it's like our own little viewing party. it's really fun. >> and you're a fast typer. me, there's only so fast i can do with two index fingers. >> oh, you've got more than that. >> there's a lot of clicking here.

she tweets out during the show as well. >> but i can't work a weather computer. >> well, fair enough. both of our jobs are safe, at least from each other. outside we go on your sunday morning. bright and sunny. most important of all, nowhere near as windy. there's still a bit of a breeze blowing first thing this morning, but these breezes are gradually diminishing, and that is welcome news. a cold start, seasonably cold. temperature now 34 at national airport. dew points are back into the teens, so it's real dry air. indoor humidity levels are around 20%, so still dangerous, static electricity. winds out of the northwest at 9, gusting up to 18 miles per hour, but nowhere near as bad as the 40 to 45-mile-per-hour wind gusts that we had to endure yesterday. temperatures uniformly now low to mid-30s pretty much everywhere. not much of a gusty wind left. most of our wind gusts now are between 10 and 20 miles per hour. that does have a little bit of a windchill factor. windchills this morning mid-to-upper 20s, where the air temperatures are in the low and mid-30s. as you make your plans to get

outside and enjoy all of the bright sunshine coming your way today, temperatures should be in the low 40s this morning, upper 40s to flirting with 50 degrees coming up later on this afternoon. nothing going on on doppler around here and no big storm coming our way. this one's going to stay to our north and this one's going to stay to our south. we're going to sort of getting little pinney play from those two systems and i think we'll have some increasing clouds late tomorrow into the day on tuesday, but i think our next chance for any rain drops doesn't arrive until wednesday of this upcoming week. so, plenty of sunshine today, nowhere near as windy, a much nicer, much more useable outdoor weather day coming your way today. seasonably chilly again tonight into early tomorrow morning, wake-up temperatures generally around the freezing mark. then tomorrow, mild out ahead of this little weather front. we'll have a nice southwesterly breeze tomorrow. that will put temperatures up near 60 degrees. and there's that little area of storminess staying, i think, well down to our south tomorrow. so, here's your forecast for today. almost all sunshine all the time. a light breeze out there this morning. winds will be coming around from

the southwest later on today and that will be ushering in the milder air that we get to enjoy tomorrow. so, near 50 today, near 60 on your monday. that will be probably one of the warmer days of the week and probably one of the prettier ones as well as clouds start to sneak back into our sky on tuesday. wednesday, wednesday night into the first half of the day thursday is i think when we have our next really good rain chance. then staying kind of on the unsettled side as we get into the end of the weekend into next weekend as well. but that's still seven days away. we have time to tweak the rain drops out of there. stay ahead of the forecast by following me on twitte twitter, @chuckbell4. >> thanks, chuck. >> you're welcome. we have breaking news out of south africa to pass on to you. former president nelson mandela is out of the hospital. the nobel laureate was released today. he had been receiving treatment for a stomach ailment. the 93-year-old mandela underwent a minor procedure but is said to be doing just fine. well, tonight, the oscars celebrate the best in film, but what about the other end of the spectrum? adam sandler is the winner, or

loser, depending on how you look at it. he snagged a record 11 razzie nominations, including two worst movie of the year nominations, "ja "jack & jill" and "just go with it" and even has a worst actor and actress nomination for "jack & jill." normally, the razzies are announced the night before the oscars, but this year they will appropriately be named on april fools' day. ben & jerry's ice cream is succumbing to linsanity, but some feel the company has gone a little too far. the ice cream company is preparing a new frozen yogurt called taste the linsanity. they wanted to use fortune cookie pieces in the flavor, but some called that move racist. ben&jerry's apologized on its facebook page and said they're using waffle cone pieces in the flavor instead. well, you can find pretty much anything you want on ebay. >> and now that includes a

chicken mcnugget that looks like george washington. >> what? >> there's the nugget to compare to washington. a woman found it and posted it to try to raise money for a church summer camp. ebay originally pulled it because the mcnugget was expired, but then it changed its mind, saying it would make an exception because of the charity case. there's eight days left and bidding is at $3,500. >> what? >> mm-mmm, looks good. >> and there is a good jaw line there. you can see the nose and i can absolutely see george washington in that. >> i need all the arrows pointing at it. my imagination's not that good. >> i don't know. what i think is funny is you know how people always post these things on ebay and everything. they've actually come out with a toaster that makes the imprint of jesus's face on the toast, so you can put the toast in there and do it. >> i remember when i was a kid, one of my favorite "tonight show with johnny carson" moments, he had somebody on with potato chips that looked like celebrities and johnny had

another stash of chips behind the desk. so when the guy turned around to get another one, he heard a huge crunching noise and they were like, oh! thought he had eaten one of the chips that looked like a celebrity. hilarious. >> a class act. >> how about a quick update on the weather? >> all right, sunny and nice today. nowhere near as much wind to worry about on your sunday, so that is welcome news. it will feel 20 to 25 degrees warmer than yesterday. >> that sounds great. and did you mention something about 60s coming up? >> yes, indeed. tomorrow -- we're wasting it on a monday, but sunny and 60 in february? we'll take it. >> make monday all that much better. thanks, everybody, for joining us for "news4 today." we're back in 25 minutes with a news update. >> and join us again at 9:00 a.m. for a full hour of news.