about a disturbing discovery. when they got here, they found an adult male dead with no outward visible signs of his cause of death. >> we got a call just before 5:00 this morning for a person who had collapsed in the parking lot here of this facility. at this point, it is just a death investigation. we're awaiting the medical examiner's office to determine what the cause of death was. >> reporter: how the person got here, what he was doing in this area at that hour. this is an area that is pretty much shut down during the weekends and especially at night. more on this if it becomes available. we are now live in lanham. back to you. >> derrick ward reporting live. thank you for that update. another story that we're following is just this wonderful weather that we've seen over the last couple of days, and you say there's more ahead. >> yes, indeed, plenty more coming our way. today not going to be quite the sparkling blue sky and 75-degree

day that yesterday turned into, but it's still going to be a very usable outdoor weather day today. not much of a rain threat, even though as you look outside this morning, it looks kind of on the gloomy side due to all the low clouds and the fog that's hanging around the city, but there's still plenty of good visibility out there and temperatures are mild indeed. 53 now at national airport, 52 for waldorf and la plata, 55 in fredericksburg, stafford and culpeper, 54 hagerstown and gaithersburg is under a mile visibility. about a mile and a half in anapsion. another one showing up too close to us on radar. a few showers across the mountains of west virginia. those are mostly going to stay out on the west side of i-81 today. i don't think we have a huge threat for rain here in the washington area. a quick little sprinkle can't be completely ruled out, but i think 99% of your sunday will be rain-free around the area, and temperatures flirting with 70 degrees again today, even with the clouds. >> very nice. even with the clouds. all right, thank you so much, chuck. >> you're welcome.

>> appreciate it. speaking of good weather, it's two more days until the annual cherry blossom festival, and this one is going to be quite different than festivals in the past. and that's because the unseasonably warm weather, as chuck just described, has forced the national park service to revise its peak bloom estimates. the blossoms are now expected to reach peak bloom on tuesday, the opening day of the festival. tourists and residents alike took advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday to take in the beautiful sights on the tidal basin. >> i think it's wonderful and beautiful. we're actually fortunate to be here this week. normally, we miss all the cherry blossoms when we make trips to washington, d.c., so, it's very nice. >> you know, washington, d.c., is such a beautiful city, you know. it's all lit up. i mean, paris can have its eiffel tower, but we have these beautiful monuments and these beautiful cherry blossoms. it's a great place to be. >> the cherry blossom festival runs from this tuesday, march 20th, to april 27th. >> that guy also said it was a

cheap date. >> i know. all right, this morning, many of you are probably recovering from st. patrick's day celebrations. ♪ p.j. clarke's set the irish tone with bagpipes outside the famed downtown d.c. bar. inside, the day kicked off with kegs and eggs on the brunch menu, and of course, some corn beef and cabbage later. over in gaithersburg, people lined the streets for a parade and dozens of groups walked washingtonian boulevard, including some dancers, clowns and bagpipe bands. the city also hosted an after party at the nearby lakefront plaza. cheers from president obama. the president surprised revelers at the dubliner irish pub near union station. he even had a beer, as you can see, raised a glass there. a distant cousin from monegal,

ireland, joined him for the trip. outside of the white house, one of president obama's great, great, great grandfathers emigrated from ireland back in 1850. erika? >> thank you, angie. we move on to "decision 2012," where puerto rico's holding their primary. the tiny island offers 20 delegates to the republican candidates. and despite participating in this primary, the people of puerto rico cannot vote in the november general election. the country does, however, have a referendum on their ballot in november asking voters if they want to become a state. congress would have to approve that request, of course, if it passes. >> that's enough back there! that's enough! >> tempers flared in missouri as voters participated in their republican caucus yesterday. supporters of ron paul clashed with other voters. police arrested two people. yesterday's vote simply paired down the number of possible caucus members. missouri has a state convention in june, and that's when

delegates will select their candidate. rick santorum won a nonbinding primary in the state last month. two days before the illinois primary, mitt romney picked up another key endorsement. "the chicago tribune" endorsed the former massachusetts governor, saying he's the best choice for the republican nomination. the state's largest newspaper said romney is most likely to help return the gop back towards its traditional values of financial responsibility and limited government. illinois's primary has 54 delegates up for grabs. meanwhile, rick santorum has got a bold prediction ahead of the illinois primary. he says that if he wins on tuesday, he'll go on and win the republican nomination. santorum says that while chicago will mostly support mitt romney, he's got the support of the more rural areas of the state. he added that romney and president obama are so similar, he feels like he's already participating in the general election. so, as the battle rages on

between rick santorum and mitt romney, which matters more, the delegate count or support from fellow republicans? "meet the press" moderator david gregory stopped by the set with his answer. >> the problem is, for romney to make a case about the delegate math only at this point misses the point that he has yet to really reach the party. you know, romney is not really winning the heart and soul of the party but is saying, you know, by the numbers, i should win this. >> be sure to tune in for more political coverage today at 10:30 on "meet the press." arizona senator and mitt romney supporter john mccain will be on the show. ladies, listen up, actor and director george clooney also stops by to talk about the crisis in sudan, and that's all on "meet the press" starting at 10:30 right here on nbc 4. new numbers reveal just how many people run red lights in alexandria. police told wtop they've sent

out nearly 9,400 tickets in less than a year. at $50 a pop, that amounts to $234,000 in fines. last july, alexandria installed the red light cameras at three intersections, duke and walker streets, gibbon and south patrick streets and franklin and south patrick streets. alexandria police say the number of tickets issued is disturbing. and if you think you've gotten a lot of driving tickets in the d.c. area, a new list may back you up. according to trapster.com, the distinct ranks fifth in the country with the most speed traps and red light cameras. the website lets users report police activity. the d.c. area has about 350 traffic enforcement cameras, according to another website called poi factory, which also tracks cameras. new york city ranked first with the most number of speed traps in the country. good morning, everyone. the time right now is 9:08. it's one of the most ambitious developments in recent fairfax county history.

why developers say merrifield will soon be unlike any other community in the entire country. and they've played the role of cinderella last year. did the clock strike midnight for vcu a little earlier this year? highlights from their march madness matchup with indiana, when we return.

fairfax county schools are investigating claims of a racial incident in a high school english class. a ninth grader said that he was reading a langston hughes poem when his teacher interrupted and told him to read it blacker. the 14-year-old was the only black student in the class, and when the student refused to continue, the teacher read it herself. the student's mother complained to school administrators. a shooting at a d.c.ihop has led antihate crime advocates to organize a rally. police say someone shot a man at

the restaurant in columbia heights last weekend. a march is scheduled for tuesday evening at that ihop. the event is also in support of a gay man and transgender woman who were also victims of hate crimes. organizers say money raised at the rally will help pay for hospital bills. hundreds are hoping to hit the jackpot when a new casino opens at arundel mills in june, and we're not talking about the gamblers. the maryland live casino held a job fair yesterday. they're looking to fill more than 900 positions, ranging from food service to slot attendants. the casino won't have any live table games, only electronic games. if you're interested in applying for the casino, we have a link on our website, nbcwashington.com. just search "as seen on nbc 4." more entertainment, shopping and living options are coming to merrifield, virginia. construction workers are transforming the area near the dunn loring metro station. news4's julie carey has a closer look at that development.

>> reporter: for years, fairfax county's merrifield area has been known for its sometimes gridlocked intersections and for its hundreds of small businesses and industrial-style warehouses. >> it's been an ugly duckling, let's put it like that, i'll say. it was an older industrial area here in the heart of the county. >> reporter: well, take a look at the merrifield makeover. the county approved a redevelopment plan for a town center back in 2002 to make better use of a location just blocks from the dunn loring metro. this is what's emerged. its developer, edens, has created what they call the mosaic urban district. >> when we started this process ten years ago, we visited 100 different places, and we determined we wanted to create a place unlike any other in the country. and to do that, we needed a merchandise mix that reflected that vision. >> reporter: under construction, a hotel and office space, a shopping area that will eventually have as many as 100 stores and restaurants. already on board there, target,

a nemen's studio concept store and anthropology. the angelica theater will bring arthouse movie fair. and new town homes are selling fast. developers say it will not be a mini tyson's. >> having uses here that are geared towards an experience that's really an exhale from the tyson's experience in that they're more intimate, they're local, they're artisanal. so, elevating the culinary experience, the entertainment experience and the shopping experience became part of the dna of what we were trying to create. >> reporter: and it won't be much longer before some of these buildings are completed. the theater opened in september. the target up here on the fourth floor slated to open in october. a few blocks away, more construction. at the dunn loring metro, a partnership between ramada and a different developer will bring in 628 high-end apartments, a harris teeter grocery and a new metro parking garage.

more new residential units are popping up along gallows road. improvements to both it and lee highway will also be completed soon to end the traffic jams. in merrifield, virginia, julie carey, news4. >> the entire development project in merrifield should be finished by the end of next year. >> i went to school out that way. >> did you? >> and it's so wonderful to see they have a plan in place for that area. there's a whole lot of real estate just waiting to be developed. >> you've got to love any time they put any development right near a metro stop. >> yes. >> that really eases up traffic so much around here. every little bit helps. >> all right, you're right about that. >> could be a lot of traffic. here's my prediction for traffic today -- anything near a blooming cherry tree is likely to have some sort of a traffic problem today. we'll give you all the ins and outs of your sunday forecast, next.

kudos to all of you who

finished the sun trust rock and roll marathon. i'd say about 21,000 people are waking up with some extra moans and groans this morning after finishing the 26.2-mile course. and a special congrats to michael wardian, who finished first with a time of, get this, 2 hours, 26 minutes, 35 seconds. only, you know. and the 37-year-old from arlington has won this marathon five times in a row. the first-place finisher for the women, this one hurts me just a little bit, megan bishop. the george washington medical student finished 3 hours, 1 minute and 32 seconds. get this, she said this was her first marathon! >> wow. >> and she's never ran more than ten miles before, and she finished first. >> good for her. >> gosh! >> are you kidding me? >> talk about exceeding expectations. and just for the record, michael wardian's 2 hours, 26 minutes, i'm not goig going to give you my personal record, but he could run at least two to make up for

my one time. >> i'm trying to win eight slots and demographics and trying to slice this pie -- >> i'm just trying to cross the finish line without passing out before, you know? >> absolutely. >> well, congratulations to everybody there. they certainly had nice weather to run in. >> absolutely right. >> you predicted it. >> yes, indeed, and i've got a new running shirt. friday evening i went out to the 4h club in aspen hill, maryland, and they gave me this new running shirt, st. patrick's day green. i could have worn it yesterday, but of course, it disappears against the wall. and i have all kinds of goodies and lolly pops. >> you're sharing. >> you're so generous. >> like i need all that sugar. you enjoy the lolly pops. the weather could not be any nicer for the month of march. yesterday, 75 degrees and sunshine. not going to be quite that pretty today, but if you like 70s in march, wait until you see the seven-day forecast. outside we go. it's a foggy and cloudy start this morning, but even with the clouds and the fog, you can

definitely make out the blooming blossoms over there on the other side of the potomac river. our city camera view is perched atop a hotel just on the north side of national airport. so, even the fact that you can see the cherry trees, that's about a mile and a half, two miles away, proves that the visibility isn't all that bad. but if you're planning on going out and about in downtown today anywhere near the tidal basin, ohio drive, haynes point, be on the lookout. a lot of people will be joining you. so enjoy a nice, slow, leisurely pace as you go around there today because of the traffic. temperatures are generally in the low to mid-50s right now. blossoms are going to be peaking earlier this year than we've seen in a while, the 20th to the 23rd. looks like that's going to be about the peak of the blossoms. peak is defined as 70% or more of the flowers in bloom at one time. and the blooming period i think is probably going to last about seven to maybe ten days. last year we had a blooming period that lasted forever because we had nice, cool mornings. that's not going to be the case this year.

our mild weather continues, in the 50s in morning, up to near 70 degrees this afternoon, even with the cloud cover around. not much in the way of a rain threat around town today. there are showers out across the mountains of west virginia here, moving into the far western maryland, southern pennsylvania. the bulk of this rain way out here, though, is not going to make it in our area for today. so, we don't need to worry about those drops, but there may be a few showers out in the mountains of west virginia. then really, not a whole lot of big storms downstream from there. so, shower chances are back in the forecast for tomorrow and maybe into tuesday as well, but no washouts, no blossom-rinsing showers, that's for sure. temperatures are going to be well above average as high pressure's in charge. a little area of storminess down off the virginia coastline will mean another foggy start first thing tomorrow morning, and i think we'll have a little more sun tomorrow afternoon than today. but with the daytime heating, shower chances will increase once again. so, for today, thick fog around for the front half of the day, then partly sunny with a few showers, mainly west of i-81 today. not in town.

highs today upper 60s and low 70s. then for tomorrow, mostly sunny, better chances for a few showers tomorrow, but still, doesn't look like any heavy downpours of rain, not that you can have a light downpour. but nonetheless, no real gully-washers, and that's what we need to avoid. now that we've got the blossoms out, we need to stay away from heavy rain and high winds. and if we can avoid it, scorching high temperatures. these aren't scorchers, but the fact that they're in the 70s i think is going to cook the blossoms up pretty quickly. so, not the 14, 17-day stretch that we had last year, more like the seven to ten days. >> okay. >> all right? >> thank you, chuck. >> okay. all right, aaron gilchrist, if you're watching, we are so sorry. vcu's final four dreams have been dashed. >> that's right. hakeem dermish has highlights from their matchup with indiana in this morning's "sports minute." >> good morning, everyone. your "sports minute" begins with nfl news. quarterback rex grossman has reportedly agreed to a one-year deal with the redskins.

grossman threw 16 touchdowns and 20 interceptions last season. now to the ncaa tournament. today, georgetown matches up against 11-seed nc state. the hoyas are coming off a 15-point win against belmont. now georgetown trying to earn a spot in the sweet 16 for the first time since 2007. the hoyas and wolfpack scheduled to tip off this afternoon at 12:15. in portland, oregon, vcu taking on four seed indiana. 20 seconds to go, game tied at 61. will sheehey knocks down the jumper, part of a 15-4 hoosiers run. last chance for the rams. rob brandenburg for the win. no good. indiana edges vcu and the hoosiers will play kentucky in the sweet 16. the wildcats' only loss in the regular season was to the hoosiers. women's ncaa tournament. number two seed maryland hosting 15th-seed navy. alyssa thomas, acc player of the year, finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. thomas also scored her 1,000th

career point. the terps beat the midshipmen 59-44. maryland will play louisville on monday night. and later today, the georgetown women play fresno state in the first round. tip-off scheduled for 12:20. that's your "sports minute." i'm hakeem dermish. have a great day. >> thank you, hakeem. the time right now 9:25. new details about the u.s. soldier accused of killing more than a dozen afghani civilians. what his attorney says happened right before the deadly ram pain that might have made him snap. that's right. and also ahead today, more chaos in zuccotti square. the protests that led to several arrests in the birthplace of the occupy wall street movement. how's it playing in peoria? michelle obama and ron paul hit the late-night talk shows. and vice president biden goes to florida. on sunday, david gregory's guests on "meet the press" are john mccain and george clooney. also sunday, president obama will deliver an opening message before the debut of "speak up,"

a cartoon network documentary about bullying. on monday, first lady michelle obama will hit the late-night circuit. she'll be on "the late show with david letterman." on tuesday, republican voters in illinois get to vote for their choice for president. mitt romney needs to do well in the land of lincoln, but if rick santorum has hopes of beating romney, he has to win in a place like illinois also. that night, ron paul will be on nbc's "the tonight show with jay leno." on friday, vice president joe biden continues his swing state campaign with a stop in south florida. that's it for me.

i was shocked to find out how many couples don't sleep in the same bedroom. but in the sleep number store, we hear it all the time. yeah, nine out of ten couples disagree on the firmness they want in a mattress. i sleep on the couch. with our bed, the sleep number setting represents the firmness that you like on your half of the mattress. don't mess with my side because i'm comfortable. i can adjust mine to my liking and she can do the same. go ahead and switch sides so you can feel what the other side feels like. you're on his side. how does that feel? it's hard. i like my side i like my better, too. side better. this is this is too soft. too hard. why don't we switch back to where you were. i am so glad to be back. oh, yeah. you can have comfort and you can be in the same bed. there's no debate because you can have it your way and i'll have it mine.

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stories today. in just a few hours, puerto rico will open its polls for their republican primary. rick santorum and mitt romney spent a few days campaigning in the country, which has 20 delegates up for grabs. despite having a primary, voters in puerto rico can't vote in the november election. police in riverdale, maryland, say a drunk driver caused a train accident. a viewer sent us pictures from the scene. a lexus got stuck on the tracks. the train hit the car and a tow truck before crews could get the car off the tracks. no one was hurt. and despite the calendar saying mid-march, yeah, the cherry blossoms, yeah, they're already blooming. take a look. residents and tourists alike enjoyed the beautiful weather on st. patrick's day. the cherry blossom festival starts on tuesday with peak bloom happening just a few days later. and new this morning, the occupy wall street movement reaches a major milestone. this weekend marks six months since the beginning of the protests, but not everyone was

celebrating with police arresting dozens of demonstrators. it started out peacefully with protesters gathering at the park for a march through lower manhattan, but hundreds of protesters returning to zuccotti park were arresteded late last night. police swept through the camp, clearing out sleeping bags and tents, leading many protesters away in handcuffs. a d.c. bar is the scene of a deadly stabbing investigation this morning. police were called to the library bar and grill on 12th street in northeast washington. that's in the brook lind area. officers are trying to determine if the stabbing happened inside or outside the bar. no word from police on an arrest in this case. this morning, a man faces drunk driving charges after his car got hit by a tow truck. a viewer sent us pictures from the scene. a lexus got stuck on the tracks in riverdale, maryland. police showed up and called in a tow truck so the car didn't actually get hit by the tow truck. unfortunately, the train hit

both vehicles before the tow truck could pull the car off the tracks. no one was hurt. a woman is recovering this morning after falling from a virginia parking garage. it happened at the ballston commons mall in arlington. police have not released details on how far she fell or her condition. they're still investigating whether she actually fell off the garage or she jumped. this morning, we're getting more insight into the american soldier accused of going on a shooting rampage and killing 16 afghan villagers. staff sergeant robert bales is in solitary confinement at ft. leavenworth, kansas, as his family tries to ce to terms with the allegations. here's nbc's brian mooar. >> reporter: these photos show staff sergeant robert bales, the decorated war veteran, the devoted family man. but those who love him are struggling to reconcile the man they knew with this grisly scene in afghanistan, where bales is accused of killing 16 civilians

in a cold-blooded rampage. >> they're suffering a lot, they're confused a lot. everybody's very concerned. they're scratching their heads more than anything else. >> reporter: bales has been transferred to ft. leavenworth, kansas, to await formal charges, but his attorney is already laying the groundwork for his defense. >> he was told he would not be going back to the middle east. he was training to be a military recruiter, and then overnight, he was told he was going back. >> reporter: bales served three tours in iraq, where he suffered a head injury and lost part of a foot. he'd only been in afghanistan a few months. >> there was an incident right before these allegations where one of his fellow soldiers was mortally wounded. >> reporter: experts say the insanity defense is rarely used and rarely successful in the military court system. >> i think you would have to assume that that's going to be an uphill battle, just on general principles. >> reporter: staff sergeant robert bales, back on american soil but far from home.

brian mooar, nbc news. >> as bales waits to be charged, his family is living in protective custody on a u.s. base in washington state. an afghan community in california paid tribute to the 16 civilians in afghanistan who were killed. the vigil was held in a neighborhood nicknamed little kabul. people carried signs calling for peace, justice and an end to the war in their native country. a susan g. komen chapter is seeing a major drop in donations just weeks before its biggest fund-raiser of the year. the southern arizona chapter says contributions have only reached $200,000 instead of its $700,000 goal. the komen race for the cure in that area is less than two weeks away and the drop comes after komen's national organization got backlash when it announced that it pulled funding to planned parenthood's breast cancer screenings. komen officials said a government investigation was the reason for the funding cut. komen later apologized and planned parenthood could apply

for future grants. the time right now is 9:35. he oversees one of the most provocative websites on the internet. now julian assange is taking on a new venture. >> the job the wick leaks founder is seeking that would give

welcome back, everyone. our wednesday's child is a young man who has really grown up so much since we last saw him. >> that's right, angie. his name is tony and he's been in foster care a really long time and is still in need of a permanent, loving home. barbara harrison recently caught up with him at the home where he lives. >> reporter: hi, tony! how are you?

it's been about eight years since we last saw tony. he was only 8 years old then and he's grown now into a wonderful young man who has an easy smile that he doesn't mind sharing. look at, you've got a smile for me. good to see you again, tony! great to see you! should we go over and see your teacher? let's go see her. >> hi, tony, good morning! >> tiawanda booker is one of tony's social workers at the pediatric center, formerly the hospital for sick children. it's a residential facility, and where tony has called home for the last few years. what's he been doing lately? >> tony is the life of the unit. he really is. he's doing well here. he's been here for a while now, and typically, he goes out to school in the daytime. >> reporter: tony has a particular fondness for this toy school bus because it reminds him of the one that picks him up for school each day. he's also learning to use color

markers at school and we tried to help him with a picture of the school bus, the one he looks so forward to seeing each day. tony's school bus. those who know tony say he's making significant progress at school, although he doesn't speak. he vocalizes his happiness in many ways. >> tony is a very happy young man. he is able to let you know that by smiling, clapping, making different sorts of vocalizations. >> reporter: in fact, everyone who works at the center loves tony, and he's quick to respond to their affection, often clapping or waving or smiling to show his happiness. tony apparently really likes music and the sound of bells was just what he needed to get the giggles. and before long, he was ready to dance. his adoption recruiter says she's hoping to find a family to appreciate what tony can offer. >> i'm really looking for a family of any configuration that

can bring a lot of love and support to tony. he is a person who loves to go out and be in the community. >> reporter: tony seemed to enjoy entertaining us with his enthusiasm, and he was obviously pleased to see us all so happy barbara harrison, news4 for "wednesday's child." >> if you have room in your home and your heart for tony or another child who is waiting, please call our special adoption hotline. the number is 1-88-to-adopt-me. or you can logon to our home page at nbcwashington.com. beautiful temperatures, a little foggy out there this morning but still going to make for a great day, right? >> no complaints. you're not going to get any complaints about a day like this in the month of march. a little foggy, yes, indeed, but even the fog won't last forever. >> where's the sun? >> where's the sun? it's above the car. your complete forecast is coming back.

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♪ those are some of the highlights from last week's episode of "the voice." round three of the battles continues tomorrow night at 8:00 p.m. join big tigger and myself from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. on nbcwashington.com. we're going to be co-hosting a live chat. we're also going to have some of the contestants on this year's show who are from our area in the live chat with us as well. and this is an episode you won't want to miss. i guarantee, there's going to be a lot of emotion because there is one person from our area that's going to be -- >> i was going to say, let's get the 411 from them. >> this show's really taken off. and people tell me when they tune in for the first time, they're hooked. they're hooked. >> really? >> yeah, so give it a shot. if you haven't seen it, you'll

surely be entertained. >> well, and your web chats, that's always fun, too, interaction. a little give-and-take. >> it's crazy. it gets crazy in there. >> is big tigger a crazy tweeter? >> you know, he's actually very observant. >> okay. >> he helps drive the conversation and he cracks a few jokes here and there. you know, that big tigger, he has some wit. >> excellent. >> he'll be joining us tomorrow at 4:00. >> log-in. i'll be here at 4:00. i'll just talk to him then. for us, we have fog to deal with first thing this morning, so today won't be quite the five-star kind of an afternoon to be outside that yesterday was, but still, not a bad day to be outside at all today. even with some fogginess around this morning and i think more clouds than sunshine later on this afternoon, temperatures are still going to be quite a bargain by march standards, up near 70 degrees for a time this afternoon. and if you like the mild weather, don't go anywhere. don't move a muscle! great weather will continue to come right to your front door here over the next couple of weeks. temperatures outside generally in the 50s. and you can see there on our

city camera view looking back over the river towards the cherry trees near the tidal basin there, definitely some lower visibilities and some lower cloud ceilings early this morning. 53 now at national airport. a very light breeze out of the south averaging only 3 miles per hour. and once we can start to break away some of these fog deck out there, temperatures will respond nicely. still kind of socked in a little bit here this morning. 54 already, though, in winchester. breaks of sunshine pushing 60 in stanton, virginia, now, 54 in charlottesville, 51 in annapolis and 48 in easton. that little hint of an influence, that easterly wind is going to keep temperatures a little cooler today than it did yesterday. so, 50s in the morning, mid-to-upper 60s this afternoon with i think a little sunshine breaking out from time to time. but obviously, we've started out with an awful lot of cloud cover to get our way through. even with the clouds, though, no rain across the region for now. shower chances today i think confined to the west side of interstate 81, up into the mountains of west virginia, western maryland, southwestern parts of pennsylvania. and these showers down across

south-central west virginia, they're inching their way eastbound, but inching is the operative word there. i don't think they're going to make it here today. so, today, no concerns. tomorrow, with all that energy and moisture just a little bit closer, i think we might have a little better chance for some showers around tomorrow afternoon. but again, no major storms in the immediate forecast, so that is welcome news. cherry blossoms will be very close to peak, really starting today and tomorrow and then through the rest of the week. so, now the goal is to keep the blossoms there as long as we can. and we do that with cool mornings, which we won't have, or not a whole lot of wind and not a whole lot of heavy rain, and i don't see a lot of heavy rain in the forecast, and more importantly, i don't see any really strong wind in the forecast for the next five to seven days. so, plenty of clouds and fog around today, breaks of sunshine. then the same story repeats again tomorrow, fog and clouds in the morning and then breaks of sunshine in the afternoon. but again, with a little increased chance of a shower by tomorrow in the afternoon hours.

today, fog giving way to a mix of clouds and sunshine, showers staying well west. then for tomorrow, a little better chance of a shower, even in downtown, but still no washout in store. and like i said, if you like the mild weather, don't move, it's coming right back to you. this has been the spring that started early and is probably going to stay late. temperatures, again, flirting with 80 degrees by the second half of the upcoming workweek. so, don't do anything if you like the weather. just let it come to you. >> flirting, i like that. >> flirting, yes. >> that weather getting frisky. >> a little pinch every now and then. >> whatever it is, it sure does sound nice. thank you, chuck. well, the time right now just 11 minutes away from the 10:00 hour. a historic moment for maryland senator barbara mikulski. >> the honor she's about to receive for her time in office. ♪

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a very bizarre story to report out of iraq this morning. an american citizen who appears to be a missing contractor is free more than nine months after he says he was taken hostage by shiite militia. the man hasn't identified himself, but iraqi lawmakers claim he is randy michael holtz. he says he was kidnapped inside baghdad by a branch of the mahdi army, controlled by the anti-american cleric muqtada al sadr. he says he was released as a gift to his family and to the american people who oppose the war. we're working to bring you more details about this story and we'll have those available in a few minutes. stay with us for that. wikileaks founder julian assange could soon be an australian senator. wikileaks tweeted that the 40-year-old plans to run for the elected office next year, despite facing criminal charges in sweden. assange from australia and on house arrest in britain while he fights extradition to sweden.

that's where he's wanted over sex crime allegations. assange has challenged his case with britain's supreme court. senator barbara mikulski from maryland has reached a major milestone. she is now the longest serving woman in congress. the 75-year-old has spent more than 35 years in the house of representatives and the senate. the democrat will be formally honored on the senate floor on wednesday. nbc 4 is your place for politics on sundays. "the chris matthews show" follows us right after this show this morning. then it's "meet the press" with david gregory. let's check in with chris and david to see what they're working on for this week's shows. good morning, washington. coming up at 10:00 on "the chris matthews show," president obama's in good shape in the polls, but the massacre in afghanistan has given him a new front-burner issue. most people want him to lead the country out of afghanistan soon. what's his best course? are there bigger risks in taking troops out too soon or in keeping the exhausted troops there? perhaps risking more horrific

incidents. plus, it's really a two-man republican race, romney and rick santorum. for the first time, it looks more likely than not that this goes all the way to the convention. and then what? join me and david ignatius, candy kay, and more for a great roundtable. now for what's coming up on "meet the press," here's david gregory. >> thanks, chris. good morning, angie and erika. coming up, the latest on the race for the white house. plus, what's next for u.s. troops in afghanistan? we're learning more about the soldier allegedly behind the massacre of 16 afghan civilians. all of this has kicked off a new debate over when to withdraw u.s. forces from what's become the longest war in u.s. history. this morning i'll talk about it with ranking member of the armed services committee, john mccain. we'll talk politics as well. then, a special roundtable discussion about the war and the cost it's taking on our troops after multiple deployments to war zones. finally, this morning, our conversation with george clooney on the crisis in sudan, politics and his views of president obama, coming up this morning on

"meet the press." you can watch the entire interview after the program with george clooney, including what got him so focused about this crisis in sudan and the mistakes he's made as an advocate along the way. that's only here. it's "press pass" on nbc 4. all right, we might have to wrap up the show early and head over to studio a. >> i was going to say, i heard something brief about politics and george clooney. that's all i heard. >> they may need help over there. >> we might need to go. >> we'll ask david. president obama celebrated st. patrick's day by enjoying a drink himself in d.c. >> but erika, somehow, he was spotted down in colombia at the same time. that's because the country was holding an obama look-alike contest. the 18 contestants stepped out of a vehicle, they gave their best presidential wave to the crowd. and the winner said his co-workers pushed him to enter this contest. he hopes to meet the real president obama next month when the president visits colombia for the summit of the americas. >> you know what, they should have called that contest?

>> what's that? >> pseudobama. >> ah! >> chuck bell, ladies and gentlemen. >> you are so clever. >> well, you know, i do what i can. >> well, we're in for another warm day, so that's good news. >> yeah. not quite as pretty as it was outside yesterday. the other thing i liked about that, did you notice that all 18 of them came out of the same door, the same car at one time? how did all the guys get in there? >> like barnum and bailey. >> all right, well, weatherwise, it's going to be warm. >> yes. >> thanks so much, everybody, for joining us. that's "news4 today" this morning. >> wake up with us tomorrow morning starting at 4:30.