good morning, everyone and "news4 midday," i'm barbara harrison. it's thursday, june 7th, 2012. and we have breaking news off the top -- a driver and a truck hit two men working on the side of the road in montgomery county. here's a look from chopper 4. police on the scene in the 20600 block of in ashton. the they say the tree workers were directing traffic when the box truck plowed forward and knocked them 30 feet into the air. the workers were taken to the hospital with serious injuries. new hampshire avenue is shut in

both directions while police investigate. we're also on top of breaking news out of the district right now, where now, former d.c. council chairman, kwame brown is facing a new charge a day after he was charged with felony bank fraud, which led to his resignation, news4's megan mcgrath is live outside the wilson building with more. >> reporter: good morning, barbara that's right, we have just learned that kwame brown is now facing an additional charge, a misdemeanor, it was filed this morning in superior court. and it involves an illegal under-the-radar side account that was set up during brown's 2008 campaign. set up, according to prosecutors, with his knowledge. it would appear that kwame brown's legal problems are mounting. no time was wasted in removing kwame brown's name from the sign besigned the door. it reads chairman, a blank spot below the title. at 10:00 a.m., well into the start of business, the door was locked. no sign of activity, not this

morning. brown tried to brush past reporters gathered outside his office wednesday. in what was a chaotic scene. he said he would talk about his resignation sometime today. >> i'll have a comment tomorrow. thank you, no comment as of now. i appreciate you for waiting in the hallway all this time. i don't have a comment, i'll have a comment tomorrow. thank you. >> reporter: kwame brown has been charged with felony bank fraud. prosecutors say he falsified income statements by tens of thousands of dollars, so he could refinance his house, and buy a boat named bulletproof. he's expected to plead guilty on friday. councilwoman mary cha is president pro tem pore, will step in temporarily until the council elects a new chairman next week. michael brown says he has no interest in the position. like the rest of the council, he just wants to move forward with the city's business. >> you have things that happen, you have the issue isn't when bad things happen, the question is how do you move on. and in a positive way.

we still represent the district of columbia and the residents here and they want to make sure that the services are being done and the schools are moving forward and the potholes are being fixed. >> reporter: and so, yesterday kwame brown said that he would speak or at the very least, release a statement about the charges. and about his resignation. but so far, that hasn't happened. reporting live from the wilson building, megan mcgrath, news4. >> thank you, megan. and brown's resignation is just the latest in a series of scandals surrounding the d.c. government. right now, mayor vincent gray is under investigation for his 2010 mayoral campaign. two of his staffers from the campaign pled guilty in recent weeks to plotting to funnel money to another candidate, to go after then-mayor adrian fenty. earlier this year, former councilmember harry thomas junior was sentenced to three years in prison for stealing thousands of dollars in district money that was supposed to go to youth programs. those charges also cost thomas

his seat on the council. and moving onto the weather now, taking a look outside, beautiful day here. everything looks pretty nice. let's find out if we are any thundershowers in the offing out there. here's storm center 4 meteorologist tom kierein. >> it's a gorgeous morning. the air is soft and warm all around virginia, into maryland. now all of these areas in yellow on our temperature map are now climbing into the 70s. the areas in green, still in the 60s, much of the shenandoah valley, into themondens. but 75 at reagan national. ought to make it up to 80 by later this afternoon. and we do have lots of sunshine over the last 12 hours, we had just a few morning clouds coming through. but it's just a delightful day that is under way. but for the afternoon, we may see some clouds building like this. and there's a small chance of an isolated thundershower coming up. most areas should stay dry. but just a slight chance. highs reaching near 80. by sunset, we'll be back down to

the mid 70s, sunset today is at 8:30. we'll have winds out of the northwest around 5-15 through the afternoon. warming up into the weekend, still looking like a summer-like trend. we'll look at that, and next week as well, your seven-day outlook coming up in a couple of minutes, barbara? >> thank you, tom. and we're going to check midday traffic with danella sealock. how is it looking out there? >> a couple of things to look out for. let's first start with rockville pike. it's still closed right now, this is between pooks hill road and jones bridge road. there's a signal light there. actually it just looks like i lost my camera. a signal light is down and hanging low, that's where your closure is, so please avoid rockville pike in that area, heading over the 14th street bridge, right lane is blocked by bridge work again today, stick to the left as you're making your way into the city. you're under speed at about 39 miles per hour. back over to you. and right now, police in montgomery county are trying to find the person who killed a man

in silver spring. officers found a 34-year-old man inside his apartment on east-west highway. they say he had been shot. no word on suspects at this point. the cash continues to flow in for president obama and democrats as they gear up for the november elections. the president's campaign announced this morning it's raised $60 million in may. the president was raising more money last night, too, during a gala for gay rights supporters in los angeles. followed by a private dinner with several celebrities. during the gala, the president told supporters not to tolerate any attempts to roll back rights they have gained under his administration. he also says the latest republican tax cut plan would be too expensive. >> it's not enough just to continue the bush tax cuts. we're going to tack on another $5 trillion worth of tax cuts. >> political analysts estimate

that the president raised at least $2.5 million last night. he's raised roughly $60 million overall in the state of california. first lady, michelle obama, will be doing her part to help her husband's campaign. she'll speak in about an hour to supporters and volunteers in prince william county, a likely swing county in virginia. today's event at the vfw post in dale city is the first public campaign trip for mrs. obama without her husband. mitt romney, meanwhile, will be taking jobs and the economy, that will be on his agenda as he makes a stop at an hispanic-owned business in st. louis today. romney's campaign reignited their push for latino support this week. releasing a spanish-language statement on tuesday, while he was in texas courting support. it's his third visit to missouri, since launching his campaign, it was just announced that romney and republican party together raised more than $76 million in may, topping president obama's $60 million.

federal reserve chairman, ben bernanke, is on capitol hill at this hour. briefing lawmakers on the state of the economy. investors are paying close attention to every word. he says the federal reserve is prepared to take further steps if the u.s. economy weakens. but he did not signal action is imminent. he acknowledged the european debt crisis is a significant concern. >> u.s. banks have greatly improved their financial strength in recent years, nevertheless, the situation in europe poses significant risks to the u.s. financial system and economy and must be monitored closely. as always, the federal reserve remains prepared to take action as needed to protect the u.s. financial system in an economy, in the event that financial stresses escalate. >> chairman bernanke also urged lawmakers to practice fiscal restraint. but cautioned against taking extreme steps in the near future that might restrain the recovery. eight minutes after 11:00 is the time. still ahead, why wire hangers

could raise the price of your dry cleaning. >> reporter: if there was any question about live would hit the jackpot, they reached capacity last night and had a line outside the door this morning. i'm tracee wilkins, coming up, we wrap up

the president of afghanistan

is lashing out at nato after a deadly air strike. president hamid karzai says 18 civilians were killed and called wednesday's predawn strike unacceptable. villagers say five women, seven children and six men were killed. nato says soldiers called in the strike after they came under fire. they're now sending a team to investigate the allegations. and the nato air strike is one of the issues defense secretary, leon panetta will have to deal with today during his visit to afghanistan. panetta arrived overnight to see how the war effort is going and discuss plans for the troop draw-down, his visit comes a day after a series of suicide bombings left 22 people dead. panetta admits the insurgents appear to be more organized but says overall, violence is down. and the white house is offering up money in hopes of stamping out islamic extremist groups in the war on terror. they're expected to detail a plan to offer up to $33 million in rewards for information about

top members of el shabab, a militia movement linked to al qaeda. a trade dispute would could end up costing you when you go to the dry cleaners. the u.s. department of commerce is considering slapping higher tariffs made on hangers in the vietnam, after accusations they're being sold in the u.s. for less than their value. wholesale prices are expected to jump from five cents to nine cents per hanger. a cost that will likely be passed on to customers. maryland live, the state's fifth and biggest casino is now open. thousands of people are pressing their luck today, after being turned away last night during the grand opening. because it was just too full. news4's tracee wilkins has the story. >> reporter: well we showed you the lines from last night and just how hard it was to actually get up on the casino, let alone inside. well, folks who didn't make it, they're back out here early this morning. because they want to get inside. and some people never left. >> i've been here all night

long. since yesterday. i have not been home. >> you didn't leave? >> i have not left. >> did you get in yesterday? >> i didn't get in, there was 10,000 people ahead of me. >> reporter: this morning had was a line that formed around the outside of the casino, hours before the 8:00 a.m. opening. michelle sample was at the front of it. >> i'm going to be a winner. i stayed here all night long. >> reporter: amazing crowds last night kept thousands of would-be pate robbs from making it inside of live. casino managers say the facility reached capacity with 10,000 people inside, leaving thousands more outside. >> still at 1:00, people were still standing in line trying to get in, knowing they were going to close it. >> reporter: last night's lines stretched around the building and off the property. then traffic backed up down anne arundel mills boulevard on to the bw parkway. >> thousands and thousands of people. all at one place. you know what i mean? it was great, it was cool. but you couldn't get in the building, so it was no fun. >> reporter: this man and his wife say they gave up last night

and got a hotel room. but they came back at 7:00 a.m. to try it again. >> because we want to get in to see what was the big deal was about. >> we get here, people hollering out the cars, turn around, go back they're not letting nobody in. >> reporter: they came back this morning, too. >> here we are, we're going to try it again. >> when doors opened this morning, hundreds made their way in. they were not disappointed by what maryland's largest casino had to offer. managing partner, joe weinberg, says after $10 million in road improvements and more to come, last night's traffic jam should be a one-time deal. >> we had an overwhelming response for the opening. and that's really a one-time event when you have an opening and everybody is kind of showing up in one short period of time. >> the general manager says this can pretty much be the expectation for folks when they're visiting life. that's just a steady stream of people making their way into the building as opposed to one long

line. now the facility closes at 2:00 a.m. on weekdays and 4:00 a.m. on the weekends, due to maryland law. and in hanover, i'm tracee wilkins, news4. the charles county shefrts office is hitting the pavement today to raise money for a good cause. hundreds of walkers and runners are taking part in the torch run for special olympics maryland. marines from the naval surface warfare center in indianhead led the runners. this is ahead of the special olympics maryland summer games which begin tomorrow. storm center 4 meteorologist tom kierein joins us now. he loves this weather. i love it, too. can we keep it around a little while, tom? >> just perfect. not a lot of pollen around, not much humidity, warm, right in the comfort zone. i often ask you about sending in your photos. this is one of the best ones we've received. look at this mother duck with her duckling. and a few little eggs. but kbes where this is? this is in a flower garden in

foggy bottom. it's right down near the corner of 21st and k street in washington. and hopefully she's safe. but look at the high water. this was yesterday, right at haynes haynes point. send your photos to weather@nbcwashington.com. the reason we're having the high water, we're having some abnormal high tides due to a persistent onshore flow. but this will be diminishing as we get into today. we just had high tide about an hour ago at haines point. >> a blue sky, puffy clouds beginning to develop now. 75 at reagan national. perfect, dew point a comfortably dry 53. a light wind coming in out of the north. elsewhere we are into the 70s now from west virginia, the shenandoah valley, western maryland, all across virginia and maryland, around the bay, eastern shore and absolutely delightful day. here's the view from space over the last 12 hours. we've had just a few clouds

beginning to pop up. but overall, lots of sunshine pouring down on a satin blue sky. going forward into the afternoon hours, these areas of green are zones of potential showers and maybe a passing thundershower by mid to late afternoon. then this evening, things should settle down. by late evening, any shower activity threat is over. and then by midnight, we'll begin to clear out, during the day on friday, looking delight it wi ful with lots of sunshine and low humidity. for the rest of the afternoon, we could have the clouds building and producing a passing thundershower. it should get up to 80 before then. back down to the mid 70s by around sunset. which is at 88:32 today. for thursday evening into tomorrow, very early in the morning, we'll have a general clearing after midnight. we'll be down to the mid 60s by midnight. by dawn tomorrow, mid 50s. so another cool start. friday, and friday afternoon, lots of sunshine, highs low 80s with low humidity and a beautiful weekend coming up, too. warmer, into the upper 80s on saturday afternoon, maybe near

90 sunday. it looks like it won't be very humid over the weekend. but turning a little more humid first part of next week. on monday and tuesday. highs in the 80s. might get some more showers and thunder it looks like perhaps on tuesday afternoon and evening and into wednesday. some more showers. we need the rain. we've been running a deficit for 2012. still here right around washington, our rainfall deficit is about four to five inches. so i mean it seems like it's been wet. everything looks green. but we do need to catch up because we started off the year very dry. >> we did. well, we like it like it is. i know we need some more rain. >> it's delightful. >> give me another 24 hours of this. thank you. tom. >> let's check in with danella and see how things are moving on the roads. danella? >> well, barbara, let's start with the rails, because if you're taking the rails today. the red line, scheduled track work will slow you down. single-tracking between twinbrook metro station as well as shady grove. so expect delays in both directions. heading to route 355, rockville

pike, closure, all lanes block between pooks hill road and jones bridge road due to a low lane traffic signal in that area. so the road is blocked in both directions. barbara, back over to you. thank you. right now, the time is 20 minutes after 11:00. and coming up, some high-tech gifts. just in time for father's day. going to show you the latest gadgets your loved one may want to have. but first, a look at what's hot on nbcwashington.com. [ male announcer ] are you paying more

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a new multi-launch coaster coming to busch gardens. brave the black forest. check the calendar, father's day is less than two weeks away now and dad is often the hardest to buy for. steve greenberg, host of "invention hunters" and the author of "gadget nation" joins us with a few ideas. >> thanks for having me here. dad doesn't want a tie, this is a no-tie zone. >> that's the problem. you go to the store, you're looking at all the stuff and you're thinking, what can i get. and folks end up going to the tie. >> die likes practical. he wants a practical gadgety toy. i'm telling you right now. >> show us what you got. >> this is from fit bit.

this is the aria wi-fi smart scale. a bathroom scale. here it is in white, it comes in black. what's different about it, it takes the information you do on it, it gives you your weight, percent of body fat and bmi, it sends that information to a private website where you can access it where they chart it beautifully. from your smartphone or tablet or a computer you can see how you're doing. good for setting goals, tracking your progress and hopefully motivating dad to stay fit. >> do you have to buy one that connects to your smartphone? >> that's what this does. this one automatically, if you have wi-fi in your home, it finds the wi-fi, it loads it into the site. there's no set-up to speak of, you're able to chart it on your phone. >> it can calculate your body mass index? >> and your percent of body fat. it's amazing and it works flawlessly. it recognizes which member of the family is stepping on the scale. >> i need that, i don't know if my husband would. >> you get it for him and you use it, too. >> that's a good idea. what else do you have?

>> if the numbers are bad here, you might want to consider this. this is called i-bike power house, a complete fitness system for your bicycle. the way it works is your iphone goes into this phone booth they call it it does more than keep it water proof. it has a little thing to tell wind resistance, it tells which drerks going uphill or downhill. it calculate how much power you're using while you're biking. there's a weight loss program. i-slim. another one called cycle max. improves your cycling. you get tips from hunter allen. an olympic biking coach and all of that information is given to you in your ear. a great way to go. >> this is called nest. the first learning thermostat. let me put it over here. this one you put in as your thermostat. it keeps giving back money. it saves you money. you set it, you just use it for about a week. it learns your lifestyle and then it takes over after that it's an automatic thermostat. >> you wire it in? only about 11% of people who

have programmable thermostats control them. this one does it for you. and this is vtech, it lets you do landline and cell phone from the same device. if you put this where your signal is strongest in your home, it pulls the signal to the rest of your house. so it actually increasing your cell phone coverage inside your house, very smart from vtech. finally over here we've got the onstar fmv. now onstar, you know, gm cars have onstar, this great talking system for directions and what not. this can go into any car now, a ford, 0 honda. $100, includes installation, turn by turn guidance and crash response. >> your rear-view mirror. it's amazing. $100. >> you have a new show on. >> "invention hunters." mondays, 9:00 this episode is one of my favorites, if you haven't seen the show before, this is the week to watch.

>> all about kitchen gadgets. >> our search for the next great kitchen gadget, we found some good ones this week, so i'm hoping people tune in. >> steve, thank you for joining us for great father's day ideas. coming up next half hour of "news4 midday." a new push to stop distracted driving. we break down the national initiative and the health benefits of exercising, what you can do to reduce the risk of cancer returning. plus tom is back with another look at the chance

more on the breaking news that we've been following this morning. new changes, new charges against former d.c. council chairman, kwame brown. he now face as misdemeanor campaign finance charge, this comes on top of the felony bank fraud charge that led to his resignation yesterday. he's expected to plead guilty to that charge tomorrow, we're

still awaiting an official statement from brown, the statement is expected sometime today. and we're going 0 check again with tom kierein now, on the possibility of showers. tom, are you there? >> yeah, it does look like we're beginning to see clouds building now. a live view if our hd city camera, looking at capitol hill. still a lot of sunshine, but clouds are beginning to build. another view of our sky looking off to the north. from our vantage point in upper northwest washington, some of the high rises in bethesda, you see in the distance of montgomery county. we're beginning to see cumulus clouds developing in a blue sky. temperatures right now just perfect. in the low to mid 70s. 75 at reagan national. we have low humidity in the air. and the low humidity will be with us here throughout the period, all the way into the weekend. but we'll have a warming trend. there's going to be a weak trough coming through later this afternoon. as it moves through, it may trigger a few isolated showers or thundershowers, as only a small chance about a 30% chance of that happening.

if they do get going they'll be ending later this evening. clearing out after midnight. another cool start. afternoon highs on friday into the low 80s. with lots of sunshine and low humidity. still not very humid for the weekend, but warming up. great beach and pool weather, highs near 80 saturday afternoon, near 90 sunday afternoon. warmer next week, maybe more humid, shower and thunder tuesday afternoon into wednesday. and we will check the midday traffic now. let's see what canala is looking at out there as she watches the roads, good morning. >> well, barbara i'm looking at delays on the inner loop of the beltway. from i-270 as you make your way towards connecticut avenue here. seeing red, look, just 13 miles per hour. as you make your way past the spur. once you pass connecticut avenue it looks good. i'll show you what it looks like, you can see they're sluggish as they pass i-270 and continue on the inner loop of the beltway. let's head over to i-666. the left lane is blocked at nutley as road work continues again today.

the cones are up and you are slow as you make your way towards the beltway. barbara, back to you. >> just minutes ago, transportation secretary ray lahood made a major announcement to help end distracted driving. news4's melissa mollett is live in the news room with details of the campaign. melissa, tell us about it. >> well, good morning. many of us are guilty of doing it at one point or another. getting distracted while driving, talking or texting. they're calling the new plan, the blueprint for end distracted driving. a national strategy that lahood announced this morning, building on the initiative he's been pushing for three years. the plan encourages the remaining 11 states without distracted driving laws to enact legislation, it challenges the auto industry to adopt new technology guidelines to reduce distractions inside vehicles and adds new material to drivers and curriculums. putting the phone in your glove compartment when you drive is the first step. >> we've come a long way, but we

still have a long way to go. nobody, nobody was talking about distracted driving before we started the discussion. three and a half years ago. and only 18 states have passed laws. so we feel like we've made progress, but we, we still have more to do. >> a 2.4 million dollar initiative called phone in one hand, ticket in the other will start in delaware and california. every year, about 3,000 people across the nation die because of distracted drivers texting on their phones. 39 states from the district have banned texting behind the wheel and ten states and d.c. ban hand-held phones while driving. barbara? >> thanks, melissa. right now, laumpls are holding a congressional hearing on the transportation security administration's customer relations. tsa administrator john pistoli is testifying. the agency has started a new risk-based screening procedure

for children and elderly passengers. the agency started a new toll-free information hotline for travelers with disabilities and medical conditions. the agency has been under fire for its invasive screening pat-downs. george zimmerman will be in jail at least three more weeks. a new bond hearing is now set for june 29th. zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder for the shooting death of unarmed florida teen, trayvon martin. zimmerman turned himself in to authorities on sunday. after his original $150,000 bond was revoked. the trial of dusk dufie jerry s set to begin next week. he's accused of sexually abusing ten boys on and off the penn state campus. the judge sat the jury yesterday, which surprised legal analysts, they expected a drawn-out selection process, as many potential jurors have connections to the university or to sandusky. but the judge says because it's a small town, such connections

are unavoidable. so, how do we get americans to drink fewer sodas as other sugary drinks? a primary question being asked at the so-called soda summit going on here in washington. as we speak, doctors, nutritionists and politicians from across the country are at the hyatt regency downtown for the two-day conference. many health experts say sodas and sugar-based drinks are a major cause of obesity, diabetes and tooth decay in the country. the beverage industry claims the drinks are a small part of most people's diets. the summit comes a week after new york city mayor michael bloomberg announced his intention to ban large sodas and sosts drinks in the big apple. well this week, we recognize cancer survivor day. and today, our fitness expert, steve hayes, is chairing with us how physical exercise can make a real difference in managing and reducing the effects and the recurrence of cancer. so good morning and welcome. >> good morning, barbara. >> and do you want to introduce

your guest? >> this is myra soccer. i met myra five years ago at the gym with her trainer, mike miller. and we carried on a nice conversation and i didn't see her again for about two years. and when i saw her again, she told me she was a cancer survivor. you know we have over 11 million people with cancer and she is one of the survivors. >> well, welcome, myra, good to have you with us. i guess what we're learning is exercise was a major part in your survival and continual survival. tell us about that? >> it definitely was. because my cancer started with an auto-immune disease, my body telling me that i had something going on. and for six months they couldn't find out what it was. and then they discovered i had a lesion on my right lung. so i had to deal with sore joints and everything else before they actually found the cancer. >> and so they treated the cancer, but then they said, you got to exercise. >> exactly. to keep those joints going, exactly.

>> so dell us about your workout, let's have look at it. >> as a matter of fact when we're in the gym, we do a lot of machine work and one thing about machines, is that when you are starting coming back from cancer, they're very easy to use. number one thing, they don't put any stress on the joints, so it allows you to use the tendons and strend strengthens the tendons. myra is working her legs, she was explaining she has a lot of problems with her legs and it's user-friendly and it allows her to strengthen the tendons. >> myra, why did the doctors tell you it makes a difference, exercising to prevent cancer and prevent its recurrence. >> what happens is the joints get damaged and in order to stop the damage in going on for a longer time, you build it up again and are able to function. >> and that's damage from the chemotherapy? >> no, more from the auto-immune disease and the cancer itself. >> that's quite a wonderful exercise routine you have there. tell us a little bit more about

some of the stretching exercises we have? >> myra, let's go, do a couple of stretching exercises. >> it takes a while to get down. >> for all of us. a combination of cancer and being older. >> a lot of times she'll do a couple exercises. one where i'll assist her is where she straightens this leg out and bring this one up and she stretches the hip. >> can we see her, stretches the hip and then the next one i'll have the leg up like this and it stretches the hamstring. say for instance if she's doing it by herself she has some exercises that she does on her own. >> the ones i could on my own are the hip raise that releases the hip, a i lous her to work the lower back and those abdominals and then she does the one she is bringing the knees to her stomach. >> how many repetitions? >> ten to 15 repetitions. >> how often should she be

working out to absolutely prevent the cancer from returning? >> well myra does this, i think every day, don't you? you're doing something every day. let me help you up. she does something every day. as a matter of fact, her son, raul works out. he's an avid workout. she walks her dogs and rides her bike. she does everything. >> has it made a difference to you, being more fit? and cancer-free? >> it's helped, it really has helped. when you lose half your lung, it's hard to breathe, so working out has really helped that. >> that's fantastic. >> and steve, do you have a wellness tip for us? >> the tip today is that anti-oxidant fruits and vegetables that you can eat to help prevent cancer. your berries, your broccoli, cherries and apples and oranges, great anti-oxidants that help support your immune system. >> are you eating all of those, too? >> the cherries. >> they're out right now, too.

>> a little on the fattening side. >> but they taste so good. >> that's why you take a walk. >> well so nice to have you with us, myra. thank you for coming and steve, thank you for bringing her along and encouraging everyone out there. whether they're sick or well, exercise can make a real difference in our lives. thank you for coming. >> thank you so much, barbara. it is 11:41 now. coming up on "news4 midday," the new car that gets great mileage comes with a hefty price. we're going to sh

county leaders are working to find another company it take over the exxonmobil site in fairfax county. the oil and gas company is shutting down its office there and moving employees to houston, texas. all 2100 employees will move beginning the year 2014 to a new facility under construction. now, this car is going to save you money at the pump. we understand the epa gave the honda fit electric car, the

highest fuel efficiency rating ever with 118 miles her gallon. 118 miles per gallon. butted mileage is not cheap. the electric fit is nearly twice the cost of its gas-powered version which starts about $15,400. analysts say it would take 11 years before the owner makes up the difference and begins saving on fuel. well all eyes are on capitol hill as the fed chairman continues to testify before congress today. we're going to check in with cnbc's hampton pearson who joins us with more on that and the rest of the day's business headlines. as a matter of fact, it has been a kind of waiting for ben bernanke day on wall street. markets in positive territory right from the opening bell. ahead of the fed chairman testifying on capitol hill. but off the highs of the day. right now. we see the dow up about 84 points, the nasdaq up six and the s&p up six. the federal reserve chairman testifying before lawmakers on the joint economic committee.

he was less bullish than other fed members as far as talking about the central bank taking additional steps to help the economy. meanwhile, first time unemployment claims fell for the first time in more than a month last week. initial jobless claims falling by 12,000, according to the labor department, to 377,000 on a seasonally adjusted, ending four straight weeks of increases. other global news, china's central bank cut interest rates by a quarter percentage point. the latest move by that country to keep its economy growing. the china is the world's second-largest economy, the first rate cut in four years, good news for global investors. part of the reaction to china's news included a 2% jump in the price of crude oil. back above $86 a barrel. faster economic growth in china, would mean more demand for energy. meanwhile, at the nation's third-largest airlines, americans, they're reducing its july flights. american airlines says it will make a 1% reduction to july

schedule, due to a shortage of pilots. more and more it seems are calling in sick. the airline also cut back flights in june's schedule, which was blamed partly on sick leave by pilots, no matter what the airline, we want healthy pilots in the cockpit. barbara? >> that's for sure, thank you so much. enjoy this beautiful day. are you going out to lunch today? >> i think i'll do that. >> okay. >> i'll tell them you said it was okay. >> all right. talk to you later. have a good one. this morning's wednesday's child had to overcome much more than most kids his age. he's been in foster care since he was an infant and is even a cancer survivor. but the experiences have given him annual some stories to tell. >> so he's coming this way. i'm coming over a curve. >> poet and professional story-teller derek weston brown showed off his talents at this restaurant in washington. 13-year-old emanuel said he would love to someday be able to be as good as this at telling

stories about his life experiences. >> it was my first time catching a fast football. and i scored a touchdown and i was excited. >> and he has some real stories of courage to tell. when he's not being shy. >> emanuel is a cancer survivor. >> while he has stories to tell about all of his heroic experiences, he has ambition to help take care of the medical needs of others. what do you want to be when you grow up? >> i want to be a doctor. >> and do you know what kind of doctor you would like to be? taking care of children or adults or everybody? >> everybody. >> emanuel got some pointers on speaking, then tried telling a story himself on the stage. >> my first story about football -- >> you come through bus boys and poets, then i don't want do you leave empty-handed. >> derek weston brown gave emanuel a copy of a book he wrote.

he hoped to inspire emanuel to start writing down his stories. >> if you have room in your home and your heart for emanuel, please call our adoption hotline. the number is 1-888-to adopt me. or log on to our home page at nbcwashington.com. 11:49 is the time right now. a popular parade rolls into the nation's capital. plus, going to check out what's happening around town in the weekend scene from the

well it may be even tougher than normal to drive through dupont circle this saturday. thousands of people plan on packing the area for the annual capital pride parade this was the scene at the parade a few years ago. this year's parade kicks off at 4:30 and winds down 17th street to logan's circle. there will be plenty of food and entertainment leading up to the parade. and one week from today, what's being called a sail-abration kicks off. we have more on the weekend scene. what is this, the sail-abration, it has to do with boats? >> the maritime celebration of the 200th anniversary of the war

of 1812. it's also the 200th anniversary of the writing of "the star-spangled banner." there's a lot to celebrate in baltimore. there's six days of events. there's actually a lot that's happening and you want to get sort of ahead on the game and find out what's going on. >> lots of boats are going to be here? >> there will be a lot of boats, you'll be able to tour with your families and children, it's going to be a lot of fun. >> you can go on the tour and you can have free tours of the boats. there are about 40 of them parked in neighborhoods in baltimore. >> there's an air show too, is that right? >> the navy's blue angels will be flying above baltimore on june 16 and 17, you want to mark your calendar, we've got a great guide in the weekend section on friday. >> moving on to a chance to volunteer if our area. that's always a good thing to do. >> it's tourist season. you want to interact with the tourists at the museum. a great way to meet people from around the world. lots of people can do it. you can actually just commit for

a six-month period of doing it every other weekend. a lot of fun and in exchange you get tickets to the museum. about 12 to hand off to family and friends. >> how do you sign up for that? >> you have to go to nuseum.org/volunteers. >> we've got it up on the screen for you now. blvg. >> work in the nuseum? >> you guide visitors, who don't nor know where exhibits are, you work the front desk. it's fun. and tell us about the english sisters coming to the rock and roll hotel. >> 254 is a band of sisters from britain. inspired by bands like pearl jam and metallica. they're coming to rock and roll hotel in d.c. on sunday. it will be it's an up-and-coming

band. >> sounds like lots of good stuff going on. thank you so much, lavonnia. good to see you. for more ideas for your weekend, log on to nbcwashington.com, or the going out guide at washingtonpost.com. let's take a look now at some of the stories we're going to be following on news4 this afternoon. pat lawson muse joins us with a preview of things to come. hey, pat. >> coming up this afternoon on news4 at 4:00. question, are those missing child posters worth the effort? nbc news used hidden cameras to test what people would do if the missing child were right next to them. the results are startling and they are eye-opening, you'll want to watch the report. also this afternoon, a call for change at the region's largest school system. tonight at 5:00, why administrators may have to get consent from mom and dad before disciplining a student. we'll have that story at 5:00 and all your latest news starting on news4 at 4:00 this

afternoon. >> okay, pat, thank you. time for a final check on the forecast. >> we have a beautiful day under way. we've got some clouds that are beginning to built now. here's a live view if our sky watcher camera overlooking washington. you can see the cloud cover beginning to build a bit. some of these might turn into some isolated thundershowers later this afternoon. right now as we approach the noon hour, reagan national is at 78 degrees. not very humid. just a wonderful spring day under way. and it's well into the 70s across the entire region. from the mountains all the way to the atlantic beaches. just a beautiful day. charlottesville up to 80 degrees, may hit the low to mid 80s through central virginia. closer to the metro area, it ought to be peaking near 80 degrees. late afternoon into the evening, we could get passing showers and thundershowers, there's a small chance of that. otherwise, just the clouds floating through a blue sky. and then overnight, the cloud cover breaking up after midnight. by dawn on friday, down to the mid 50s.

and looks like a delightful day to end the work week on friday, with lots of sunshine. highs reaching locate 80s tomorrow afternoon. and then over the weekend, great beach and pool weather. we should be making it into the 80s on saturday afternoon. and still not very humid for the weekend. and lots of sunshine around on sunday. you'll definitely need to keep the sunscreen handy. beginning tomorrow, through the weekend. highs near 90 on sunday afternoon. but it does look like it may get a little more humid as we get into next week. might get some showers, some needed rain, perhaps on tuesday afternoon and evening and into wednesday. have a great afternoon, we'll see you tomorrow morning. >> you, too, tom. thank you. [ whistle ] earlier this morning, kids and parents of north chevy chase thanked montgomery county lawmakers for keeping them safe on the streets. recently, lawmakers helped install islands, crosswalks and flashing caution lights near chevy chase elementary school. parents say there's more and more traffic from the brac and the safety measures make sure

kids can cross the street without railroadrying about oncoming cars. we're happy to see that. we thank you for joining us and invite you to tune in for more news. and we have a programming note tomorrow, we will broadcast the french open from paris, coverage begins at 11:00 a.m. tomorrow, which means there will not be a midday newscast. but we'll see you on monday, we've got a lot of great things planned so plan to join us for that. have a terrific day, a great weekend. see you monday morning. i was paying too much with cable.

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