allegations. >> senator al franken announced his resignation today on the floor. >> today i am announcing that in the coming weeks i will be resigning as a member of the united states senate. >> franken says he will serve for a few more weeks. he is expected to leave before the end of the year. >> we have team coverage for you tonight. news4's amee cho is getting reaction to franken's decision and she says people are really split on it. >> but we begin with blayne alexander on capitol hill. blayne? >> reporter: well, erika, leon, you know, this is something that happened very quickly actually. franken said just last week, you'll remember, that he's not stepping aside. he's not going anywhere. but now he says that the past 24 hours made it clear he cannot stay on capitol hill. with almost no support left in the united states senate, senator al franken anc

>> there is some irony in the fact that i am leaving while a man who has bragged on tape about his history of sexual assault sits in the oval office, and a man who has repeatedly preyed on young girls campaigns for the senate with the full support of his party. >> reporter: franken taking a swipe at president trump and alabama senate candidate roy moore, but notably not apologizing for any of his alleged behavior. >> some of the allegations against me are simply not true. others i remember very differently. >> reporter: one of his accusers calling that appalling. >> he just keeps passing the buck and making it out to be something that we took his behavior the wrong way. >> reporter: the pressure started mounting after a seventh woman came forward publicly alleging sexually inapprope

behavior. today's announcement coming after a 24-hour domino effect of colleagues pushing him to step aside. >> it's a very tough situation, but he did the right thing and i think we're at a very important moment in our history. >> reporter: now with his days as a senator numbered, al franken leaving the capital, walking into an uncertain future. and also speaking out today, franken's original accuser radio host lyanne tweeder said she never called for franken to resign and is surprised it has come to this. leon? >> thank you, blayne. here is a closer look at what happens to al franken's senate seat. he is expected to serve out the rest of this year. the democratic senate will appoint a replacement and that appointee will serve until next year's midterm elections in november and that's when the voters in minnesota can choose their own interim server to serve out the remainder

franken's term to 2021. this will not have an impact on the balance of power in the senate, but that could change if the voters choose a republican to fill franken's seat. >> we ask you, do you think al franken made the right call? most of you said yes, but that other politician should be held accountable. let's go live to amee cho on capitol hill. she has local reaction on the senator's resignation. amee? >> reporter: erika, we have a wide range of reaction out here. for the most part the people we talked to said they agree with the facebook poll, he did the right thing stepping down. however, we have also heard from a lot of people saying they thought al franken was a good senator and they're sad to see him go. we have people telling us al franken is stepping down while other politicians facing similar allegations are not. >> if he did those indiscretions, shame on him. but i think he's a good guy. >> myself as a wo

and their accusations and we should not be yelling them. we should be behind them and give them the power they need to speak. >> i thought he was a great, excellent senator. you know, i'm disappointed that he is stepping down. >> i think that's good. i don't think he deserves to have a right to be in congress or to even have that position to make rules on behalf of his constituents. >> reporter: now, franken still denies all the allegations against him. he hasn't said when he'll be stepping down. just it will be sometime in the coming weeks. erika? >> amee cho. we have more coverage on the nbc washington app including the response from democratic senator and a look at how republicans have responded to sex assault allegations. just search franken. breaking now, flames from the biggest and most devastating california wildfire is sweeping toward coastal and mountain communities northwest of l.a.. the fire is now disrupting travel on a major highway and sparking even more

at least four major southern california wildfires have destroyed structures and forced people out of their houses. thousands of homes remain threatened. nbc's jay gray is in the middle of all this and he's going to give us a live update on the situation at the bottom of the hour. stay with us for that. >> let's go now across the country to breaking news coming in from new york city. six people taken to the hospital after a town car hit some pedestrians this afternoon in southern manhattan. police say the car hit two other vehicles before jumping a sidewalk and hitting several pedestrians. police say the driver is in his 60s and is now being questioned and as of the moment they don't believe that this is terrorism. it appears to be an accident. but it brought back some disturbing memories for locals because it happened less than a mile away from that bike path where a man killed eight people with a reddit u-haul truck in october. now to a story you'll see only on news4. if you've ever walked along bethesda road, there is a good chance you've seen it and maybe didn't even rze

for. the sustained glass window at the lululemon store, it's actually there in memory of an employee who was brutally beaten to death inside. now lululemon is moving down the block, but it's not taking that memorial with it. news4's chris gordon joins us now live with details. chris, what's this all about? what is going to happen to this tribute? >> reporter: well, let me tell you, leon, people who have lived in this area for six years or more probably remember the brutal murder that happened here at the yoga store in march of 2011. the store was closed for three months, and then it was reopened with a sign above that had a single word, the word love. the stained glass window above this lululemon store is a memorial to jana marie, the employee killed by a coworker who murray suspected was stealing from the store. the love window has become part of bethesda.

it is about everybody and everything. we all should find love, even in the hardest times. >> reporter: lululemon is closing this location, moving just a few doors away on bethesda row. a month ago, lululemon told jana marie's family it won't be taking the love window to its new location. it offered to send it to jana's brother hugh murray in richmond, virginia. i spoke to him today by face time. >> obviously it means a lot to us as it represents jana and that's the kind of the memorial that lululemon initially dedicated to jana when the store reopened after the murder. and so we definitely wanted to preserve that and have that in our -- >> reporter: bethesda shoppers say they will miss seeing the love window but they are happy to hear it's going to jana marie's family. >> i love that. i love that. we need more of that, don't we? really, especially it feels like this time of year,

to remember that we're all connected in some way and every life has so much meaning. so that's beautiful. >> reporter: lululemon is also asking the murray family for its ideas, how they can remember jana at their new location which opens tomorrow. that's the latest from bethesda, erika, back to you. >> chris gordon, thank you. first at 4:00 an important traffic alert connected to a police investigation we told you about yesterday. virginia state police say they will shut down a portion of the i-95 express lanes in stafford county tomorrow. the garrison ville road access point to the express lane will be closed at 10:00 a.m. so police can search for the remains of pamela butler. police believe butler's body is buried in the median of 95. she went missing from the district in 2009. earlier this year jose rodriguez cruz confessed to murdering her and said he buried her body along the hiwa

all right, now to an update to a story you saw first at 4:00 yesterday. it could be as long as two months before a bridge in frederick county reopens. chopper4 was over the river bridge. all traffic is being detoured to i-270 while critical repairs are being made. we are learning more about a three-car deadly accident? charles county. chopper4 was oerch the accident. police say a career ended two other cars in the area of kooksy road. one woman died and several others were injured. police say the man at fault for the accident is 22-year-old daniel butler. investigators believe speed and alcohol were factors in that crash. >> let's turn now to the forecast. folks, get the heavy coats out of the closets. cold weather, maybe even some snow on the way here. wt

meteorologist doug kammerer. he has the sight of festive holiday lights. where are you? >> leon, i am so excited. i am here in burke, right here off of marshall pond road in the oak pipe stem. that's what they call it here. [cheering and applauding] >> we chose this place. this place was submitted, this area was submitted. we called them within 12 hours. the reason, there are seven houses on this street that are all lit up for the holidays. take a look. we have a mass camera shot, a shot -- everybody wave. see the big mass? everybody wave at the mass camera. we are down here and we're taking a look right now temperature wise. it is on the cool side. temperature is only going down from here. take a look at the numbers. right now sitting in the 40s, 48 degrees in the city, 44 back towards hagerstown. only in the 30s to the west. that colder air moving in tomorrow. now, look at your headlines. this is important.

the chance for snow is increasing and it's increasing for most areas. some locations we now think will see accumulating snow fall and of course we're talking about winter sticking around for a while. you guys ready for a little snow? >> yes! >> all right, good. we're going to talk about that and we're going to do something we've never done on nbc4 coming up later on. it's not giveaway sunglasses. everybody has them on. we're going to send it back to you guys. we'll be back in about ten minutes. >> thank you, doug. first at 4:00 we are looking out for your bottom line and injure stress level, too. consumer reporter susan hogan shares the four travel apps that could save you big time this holiday season. >> new clues on the guest list for prince harry's wedding and who's got the song for their first dance? >> and we know you've got your eye on a possible government utdown. neshw

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just over a day away from a potential government shutdown, that is unless the president and congressional leaders can agree on a deal to keep the government open. the president is meeting with democrats to hammer out that deal. house republicans say they are confident they can pass a short two week extension to work out the differences. democrats want to include protections for daca recipients and any spending

republicans are balking at that movement. president trump also pushing forltd border wall funding in any final version of the spending bill. >> if you are traveling for the holidays, we are working for you to take the stress out of what could be just, you know, a really crazy time of year. >> consumer reporter susan hogan has four of the best apps to help you survive the travel season. >> all of us aren't as lucky as santa and his sleigh. we have to endure all the airports. now all 42.5 million of our closest friends will be traveling during the holiday season so let's get flight delays and cancellations. so, service is an app that gets you money back when your flight is delayed or canceled. it scans your e-mail for delays or cancellations in the past year and then it actually files for compensation on your behalf. don't pay a penny more than you have to on airfare. hopper and life has billions of flights to help you find the best deal and the best times to f

should book your flight. i love this one. find out just how long the security line is. my flight, that's m-i, that gives you an estimate how long the tsa line is while you should give yourself plenty of time during the holidays, it is helpful to know if the line is one hour or two. and get through customs faster with mobile passport which is authorized by u.s. customs. it lets you speed through customs at 24 airports instead of filling out customs forms with paper and pen. you actually fill them out in the app and then you get to zip through shorter lines designated for mobile passport users. safe travels. back to you. >> thanks, susan. and doug is already in the holiday spirit. he joins us live from fairfax county. >> he's not the only one out there who is. okay, man, what's the update on our chances for snow? >> chances for snow increasing as we speak. and that's a very good news. a lot of people are ready for a little bit of snow fall.

holiday lights over the next couple weeks. i told you i was coming to one of my hometowns. i went to elementary school right over there. really, really cool. this is called the ponds area here in urk about. i lived in the oak section of burke. i went to my old mcdonald's today i used to ride my bike to. anybody ride the bike to mcdonald's? don't do that. they put this in not only for their house, but for all seven houses. this entire development goes all out for the holidays. this is something, holly, you said you've done the last few years but you keep getting bigger and bigger. and you submitted why? >> we just love this street and the people on it and everyone has the best holiday spirit and we wanted to share it with everybody else. >> that takes you time getting out there. you actually used a cherry picker this year. you guys are really going all out. >> we stepped it up this year. one of the neighbors decided he wanted to get a cherry picker so we threw in for it. that's why the lights are up at the top of the h.

the air, my friend. >> thank you. >> you're part of the air force. >> i am. >> you're used to high flying. i just threw that in there, i don't know why. i want to show you guys what's happening. you have your family here. introduce your family. >> this is caylee, thomas and patrick. these are our kids. >> let's meet everybody else. i'm just kidding. [ laughter ] >> i want to show you guys something really, really cool. we're going to go ahead and do the weather. we're going to do it differently than we've done in our region. the reason i say that we have our own green screen right here and we're going to show you what's going on weather wise. let's take a look and show you the weather now 0 round our area. this is what we're expecting, guys. first off, a beautiful shot around town here. really nice. 48 degrees downtown. winds out of the southwest at 8 miles per hour. so, yeah, it's cool, but not all that bad. not everybody here bundled up. 48 degrees d.c., 46 in frederick, 46 as well toward the loudoun county area and leesburg. that's about the temperature we have here in fairfax county. now, radar, no

it's going to stay that way through the next 24 hours or so. then we're going to see some changes. take a look at the wider picture. we already have some snow showers coming into parts of the mountains to the west. but back farther to the west, we're talking about back in minnesota, that storm is going to make its way down. as i told you yesterday, it's going to milk pickup a lot of t moisture to the south, move along the coast and as it does those two systems which i told you yesterday may not come together, they now look like they're going to come together enough to give us some snow fall and that is snow fall will be right along the i-95 corridor just to the west possibly, and, yes, we are now expecting some accumulating snow in parts of the area. we're going to have much more on this coming up throughout this hour and the 5:00 hour, too. let's show you what's going to happen tomorrow. first off tomorrow, definitely on the colder side. 42 for a high. most areas in the upper 30s and we're talking a little bit of a breeze tomorrow with more clouds. it's going to be a pretty chilly day. here's the next couple days. we're calling saturday

most of this comes early. 38 degrees on your saturday, 39 on sunday and sunday is breezy and cold. wind chills in the 20s all day, another chance for snow coming up during the day on tuesday. let me get out of the way here. you can see a lot of temperatures in the 30s. so cool, i absolutely love this. love the fact we can now do the weather live when we're out in people's front yards, people's back yards. we do backyard weather in the summer, front yard weather in the winter. how cool is this? [cheering and applauding] >> this is the best yet. i told them not to look at themselves on 0 tv. go ahead, see what happens right over there. now you're back with me, thank you, thank you. we're going to talk about getting to you guys. we're going to be here three hours. you can tell some people are excited about it. >> i think it may be the glasses that's making them go bonkers. they're cool. >> they're all out of control. can't wait till it gets dark so we can see the lights. >> thank you, doug. >> a

west. new cities in the line of dangerous wildfires. the families now in the path of these blazes and why fire fighters are having such a hard time putting them out. >> it's what so many look forward to and relax to at the end of the day. but there is concern about how much wine women drink. the new anonymous way that you can see where you stack up. >> i'm tommy mcfly with your celebrity 60. p. diddy named the highest musician paid because of the tour. selling off a third of the clothing line. he made pretax $130 million. beyonce and drake round out the top three. hugh jackman says while filming x men ii, he was

daniel craig is 007. the installment of that franchise is due out on november 19th. and lindsay lohan tells entertainment tonight that she still has hope of a mean girls sequel. that 2004 block buster movie, the broadway adaptation just left d.c. and she says she knows where lauren michaels' desk is. in new york from abu dhabi she's going to try to talk to him and tina fey about getting things going. i can't imagine they're going to let her do security. i could be wrong. i'm tommy mcfly wi

the little blue pill will soon face some competition. starting on monday, pfizer will start selling a generic version of viagra and cutting the price in half from $65 to 32 bucks per pill. the generic pill will be white instead of blue. pfizer's patent will end son, that will likely give rise to generics on the market. so rather than give up sales to the generic drug makers pfizer decided to sell its own version. stressed out women, stressed out moms often cope with life by pouring a glass of wine or two or, we often see jok

media about mommy juice, right? >> that's right. but with the number of women abusing alcohol rising dramatically, some are trying to put a cork in it. dr. john kelly of the center for addiction medicine is an expert on alcohol abuse and he says that in the last 15 years, heavy use or addiction has increased 60% among women. he recommends self-semt throuas from the national institutes of health. >> that is anonymous, don't have to worry about talking to anybody. just get some feedback. >> women who have taken the self-assessment say it takes the stigma or the shame out of trying to figure out if you have an addiction. >> first at 4:00, the british favorite who could perform at prince harry's wedding? and why the gig is far from booked? >> multi-million dollar mansions reduced to rubble. the wild pack of wildfires racing through neighborhoods out west and we're live with where they are heading next. >> what about your weather

now outside your door, but doug says it's about to get really cold. we're going to time-out the big osill and th

now at 4:30, the big breaking story of the day, the latest fall from grace after sexual misconduct allegations,

senate. the minnesota senator is expected to step down in a few weeks. minnesota's governor will choose an interim senator to serve until the election. >> also the ranling wildfires in southern california, you're seeing new video of burning structures out there. for the fourth consecutive day, strike teams are fighting off these flames. but mother nature still has the upper hand. nbc's jay gray joins us from ventura with how the situation is shaping up there this evening. jay? >> reporter: yeah, and leon, the situation obviously is not good and getting worse right now. the winds picking up and pushing the flames, threatening new neighborhoods. this one as you can see already hit by the fire storm, little left but rubble and ash. the fight against the flames is hand to hand combat along the front lines right now. at least four major wildfires continue to burn out of control across

>> the fire blew threw here. there was nothing anyone could do. >> reporter: the rolling flames racing through more than 100,000 acres taking with them hundreds of homes, cars, power lines, everything in their path. pushed by severe winds, gusting at times to hurricane strength. >> there is just a point where you have to pack up and go. >> reporter: more than 200,000 families have been evacuated. >> we need to get out of here. >> reporter: scrambling to safety. >> you can see the flames coming up. that was it. we were out of here. we didn't take anything. >> reporter: now, though, as some return to their burned out neighborhoods. >> i ran out of here. >> reporter: for so many, there is nothing left. >> that is just pure devastation to see your family's home just gone. just gone. everything that they have is there and it's just gone. >> reporter: while the flames at this point refuse to go away.

fire fighters warn, they won't go away until they get some kind of break, leon, from the weather out here. back to you. >> jay, we've been seeing the fires engulfing the interstate systems. are people able to get out of there? >> reporter: it's amazing. no, it's been a very difficult task especially along the 405. neighborhoods are packed there and police have said repeatedly it's been tough to get them out and to safety. it is something they are continuing to warn everyone across the region about. be ready to go when your time comes, and imagine that it will come because this wind is whipping and picking up and jumping into different pockets of different neighborhoods. a lot more people are going to have to evacuate. >> that is just absolutely terrifying. jay gray reporting from ventura, california. thank you. be safe out there. erika, over to you. >> we're going to continue to talk about something jay mentioned. i'm in the storm center with amelia draper to talk about the video we've all seen. youea

>> chilling. >> it is chilling. and the winds really are what is the driving force here and there is not a lot of room for fire fighters to get out there and do their job. >> right. absolutely, and especially this afternoon, erika, we're talking about the gusts potentially near hurricane force winds at times. so, the latest gusts i've seen this afternoon, up to 50 miles an hour so the dust and combination of dry air that is making these wildfires so difficult to contain. there are four major wildfires right now in southern california. the thomas fire, the largest of them, only about 15% containment in total and the winds are going to be the strongest this afternoon. now, the good news is as we look to friday and saturday, the winds do come down a little bit. so fire fighters should be able to get a better handle on the fires. you can see here the winds pick back up on sunday. so, take a look. 80 mile an hour gusts are possible this afternoon. here's los angeles. here's the ventura area and these are the two areas we're really keeping a close eye on with winds coming out of the north, northeast. these are the santa ana ws.

bring you updates as we have them available. >> boy, what a mess. >> i know. >> i feel for those folks out there. thanks, amelia. a developing story that we are following first at 4:00 here now, two students are dead after another student opened fire inside a new mexico high school. aztec high school was a small school of about 900 students in the northwest corner of the state near the border of colorado. state police did not release any details about the shooter, but they did confirm that he was also dead. all the other students there have been cleared out of the building and taken to another area where parents can pick them up. we'll stay on top of that story and bring you any new details as we get them here. it's cold here, but we don't have to deal with this just yet. heavy snow falling in parts of western new york. that is creating whiteout conditions there. and snow plows are out trying to get ahead of it before the snow piles up. the perfect combination of cold air and warm moisture over the great lakes is going to lead to about 2 feet of snow piling up there. well, as oure

broken water mark haines increas -- water mains dramatically. we are preparing for whatever winter brings this way and they want you to do your part, too. news4's megan mcgrath has what it takes to patch those mains. >> make sure both sides are clear. >> reporter: fixing a broken water main, it's hands on time consuming work. and you never know what you're going to find until you actually get a look at the pipe. >> we don't know what we get when we come across until we get down to the bottom of the ground, till we hit the main. sometimes it's fast, sometimes it's a few hours. >> reporter: with winter upon us and the region's typical swings in temperature we are at the height of the water main break season. the area averages 1800 a year with the vast majority happening between november and february. and there's no magic that alerts wssc when the pipe breaks. they need people to

>> anything we need to know, the sooner that we know, the faster we can actually get out and fix it. >> reporter: and it doesn't have to be a gusher to make a report. sometimes a water main is just leaking and the problem spot could be some distance away. the reports of even minor pooling can be important. >> this is what we call a correlater. >> reporter: using microphones, crews can then listen for the sound of trickling water and find the leak. >> we might have three or four crews out in several weeks of each other and nobody found a leak. we use this equipment to pinpoint it because they're two blocks away. >> reporter: and a great way to report a problem is download the wssc app, and through the app you send the picture. they'll know what you're looking at and take the exact location from your gps so they know where to send the crew. in hyattsville, megan mcgrath, news4. >> the news4 consumer team looking out for your safety behind the wheel. susan hogan breaks down new

of 2018. it's all-new at 5:00. and doug is out at fairfax county where it is about to get really chilly. >> that's right, guys. it is definitely going to get cold here. this neighborhood, they've got santa claus, they've got rudolph the red nose reindeer, abominable snowman and we brought the peacock and they're ready to have more fun. [cheering and applauding] ( ♪ ) as a person who loves the finer things, this holiday season, i've asked for a luxurious new buick suv. ( ♪ ) fingers crossed. ( ♪ ) ring in the holidays with buick. get up to 20% below msrp on most 2017 luxury suv models.

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♪ ♪ ed sheeran, yes, please. he says that he'd sing at the wedding of prince harry and meghan if only they'd ask him to. the grammy award winner tells people magazine he's got the resume. he's a member of the most excellent order of the british empire in recognition of his services to music and charity. and the experience, he has sung at weddings before, okay, two years ago he crashed

australia and sang thanking out loud for the surprised couple. meanwhile, a new detail about the wedding, the cake will include bananas. >> okay. that works for them. >> i know, i guess, sure. any kind of cake. >> go for it, knock yourself out. many towns decorate themselves for the holidays, bull but we don't know any that do it like perciville. each one is unique, created and done by local artists. it was done at no cost to the town. the material came from the town council. >> we are a small town. part of what makes us special is being a small town and that you have all these artists together that volunteer their time and talent. >> i chose this design because i wanted to do a retro christmas. this is actually from the 1940s. >> the decorations are up in time for the town's christmas paradth

saturday at noon. first at 4:00, the president taking aim. who he is now challenging on capitol hill and why he says it's justified. >> and then take a look at the destruction after a fire at a local house. the reason investigators think som eb

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t savings. and a whole lot more. investigators in montgomery county are looking into a fire they say appears to be a case of arson. officers out on patrol overnight heard a blast and quickly responded to a burning town house just off old georgetown road. they helped a woman get out of the home. news4's jis tin finch has the details. >> reporter: from the front this town home appears to stand sturdy, excepting the blown out windows and curtains quietly catching the wind. but this morning some neighbors off cedar wood drive had no idea how this all happened. >> i'm just surprised. i

scary. >> police officers on patrol actually heard the explosion. they got here so quickly, in fact, the two people were still in the house. >> reporter: those alert officers charging into action calling montgomery county fire crews to the scene. >> about 2:30 this morning the whole street was lined with fire fighting equipment. there was even some out in old georgetown. >> reporter: one person in the home escaped unharmed. 45 fire fighters got the fire under control and made a rescue. the victim, a woman, who was detained and taken to the hospital, now a person of interest in what's being investigated as arson. >> they're looking at the possibility of maybe some ignitable liquids being involved. there was something created an explosion. they called it incendiary in nature. >> reporter: a motive is still unclear. many neighbors didn't want to speak on camera, but tell us the family in this corner home is quiet and keeps to themselves. and as you heard, that woman who was rescued is

she is being treated for burns and related injuries. her condition described as serious, but she is expected to recover. now, this arson investigation is continuing and charges could come for her. meantime, damage to this home expected to total close to $50,000. in north bethesda, i'm justin finch, news4. >> continuing coverage of today's breaking news, al franken's senate career comes to an end over sexual misconduct claims. we are working all the angles for you. doreen gentzler joins us with a look at what's ahead at 5:00. doreen? >> hi there, erika. a lot of people were expecting al franken's announcement today that he's going to resign from the senate. but what was not quite so expected is the way that he called out what he said is hypocrisy by republicans on this whole issue. we'll break it all down and we'll take a look at what comes next for al franken and what's going to happen with his senate seat, too. that's coming up on news4 at

the newest cars to the test in dramatic form. we'll tell you if experts think the newest cars are safe enough for you and your family. and imagine this. a classroom where you could learn a fraction by writing a poem or study science by painting. it's a new program in local schools. it's taking art class to a whole new level. i'm looking forward to seeing this one. erika, i'm headed to the studio now and i'll join you there in just a few minutes. >> all right, doreen, we'll see you in a few. thank you. >> in the meantime, let's get a check the forecast now. >> the sun is setting over the city, 4:45 to be exact. as we take this real pretty live picture out side. storm team meteorologist amelia draper will take you zone by zone. >> doug still has a crowd with him. >> the crowd continues to get bigger. we are in burke. this is called the pond section

the oaks section of burke. everybody comes over. this is one of those streets where people park their cars and walk through the houses -- around the houses, not through the houses. we talked about that a minute ago. everybody on this street decorates the houses. they call this the pipe. on the pipe. this is one of them right here. you can see the seven houses that we've got right here. i have kathy with me right here and, kathy, and your brother? >> stevie. >> stevie, all right. you guys actually help do this. you moved in about five years ago and you say this gets bigger every single year. >> yep, we've grown so much. it's honestly the biggest it's been this year. >> you help your parents decorate? >> definitely. >> was it mostly you? >> probably. >> that's what i thought. and there's mom right there. there's movement. she said don't put me on camera. [ laughter ] >> you can never say don't put me on camera because then that happens. legalities' take a look and show you what's happening weather wise. i'm doing the weather live from here. we broug

we'll show you the weather, show you what we're dealing with the next couple days. temperature wise we're at 48 degrees in d.c., 44 in gaithersburg. here in fairfax county, west in reston, sitting at 45 degrees. tomorrow take a look at these numbers. it's going to be chilly. 48 gaithersburg, 43 down towards manassas, fredericksburg 43. we're expecting more cloud cover tomorrow. that is going to help keep temperatures down. it's going to be a cold one. now, the other thing we're watching, we're watching a storm out to the west and watching moisture down to the south. coming together right around the mid-atlantic, and that will produce some snow for parts of our area. but where you live has everything to do what you're going to get. some areas have much more snow in the forecast than others. let's get to that right now. at least a better chance of snow than others. amelia, taking a look at your four zone forecast. >> exactly, doug. i want to start with an overview on saturday. so, rain and snow is in the forecast, but especially east of

look at our high temperature, only 38 degrees. our four zone forecast today, i'm going to do two zones in the 4:00 hour and two zones in the 5:00 hour. so everybody in our area is covered. i'm starting off in the eastern zone and this is where rain and snow is highly likely during your day on saturday. you can see this is all of southern maryland down through the northern neck. king george and stafford counties as well. we could see some accumulations in our eastern zone, especially on the grass as far as the mountains. 2 inches or less. i said this earlier. again, the snow lovers start doing your dance but you don't need to run to the grocery store just yet based on the forecast. as we head to the d.c. metro area, this is where most of us live in our region, we're talking about washington, prince george's county, montgomery county, fairfax, where doug is in burke. up through howard county. we're going to include bowie and camp springs, college park in our d.c. metro area. there is a chance for rain and snow, and the timing in the d.c. metro area would be saturday morning through the midday hours. but based on temperatures, li

just too warm here on the ground for anything to stick. we'll kind of ease into the wintry weather. but saturday is going to be a storm team4 weather alert day based on the forecast. this forecast can and will change so stick with storm team4 as we continue to update it. i am more on the forecast on my facebook and twitter pages as well as nbcwashington.com somara theodore updating the forecast there. sunday is breezy, doug. talking about wind chill temperatures in the 20s and low 30s on sunday. and i have to say, loving the ho l day spirit out there. also absolutely loving the green. looks awesome out there. >> we're having so much fun out here. this is so great. they've been so ready to do this as well. you can see i can barely make my way through. guys, you saw the chances for snow. let me tell you right now, no school on saturday from the snow, yes. [cheering and applauding] >> yes. >> doug, doug. either way, there won't be school because it's saturday. >> you're right, you're rit.

>> either way because it's a weekend, yo. >> the weekend you wouldn't have school. you hear that, guys? you heard it from him, school canceled on saturday. >> doug, it's a weekend, yo. come on. >> the code of the day. -- quote of the day. >> i love it. you give a kid a microphone. there you go. >> man, we'll see you. >> thanks, doug. >> breaking news, you heard by now, senator al franken is stepping down. we're covering all the angles from the impact to local reaction ahead here at 5:00. >> new voices, coming out against those tolls on i-66. how they could change prices in the fure.ut

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it feels good to be back. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ their future is in doubt. so-called dreamers made holiday deliveries to lawmakers on capitol hill this morning. a group of children including some from our area here went there to share their dream for the holidays. permanent protection for

congress leaves for its holiday break. they delivered holiday letters to the lawmakers they believe to be nice and dropped off coal for those they call naughty. right now the house and senate are working to avoid a government shutdown. investigation into russian meddling enters a new phase, one closer to the president himself. nbc news correspondent edward lawrence digs deeper into all of this. >> reporter: from the white house no comment about a 2016 phone call between president trump and his son donald trump, jr., about russia and dirt on hillary clinton. spokeswoman sarah sanders backing trump junior's claim of attorney/client privilege. on wednesday during a marathon grilling by congressional investigators. >> we believe that his lawyers had a legitimate reason and basis for not answering those questions. >> reporter: they want to know what the son told the future president about his meeting with a lawyer who has russian government ties. the president's party and supporters are trying to discredit the whole russia investigation, especially the team headed by

robert mueller. the president himself criticized the fbi whose director spoke out today in a hearing on capitol hill. >> there is no scenario under which i would have taken the president's nomination if i were not committed to the kind of independent impartial objective and professional pursuit of the facts. >> reporter: all of this plays out as congressional leaders worked on a deal to avoid a government shutdown tomorrow night. >> nobody wants to see a shut down. we democrats are not interested in one. >> reporter: while lawmakers lined up to have a deal to keep government open until december 22, they are digging in for a christmas fight on a long term spending plan. edward lawrence, nbc news, washington. >> now at 5:00, franken fallout. >> in the coming weeks, i will be resigning as a member of the united states senate. >> a moment of political and social change in washington and an embattled sena

hypocrisy. >> i may be resigning my seat, but i am not giving up my voice. >> now on news4 at 5:00, unpacking the big stories. what's next for the comedian turned senator? what's next for his senate seat? and what does it all say about our changing world? >> i feel that i support their complaints and their accusations. >> i think that's good. i don't think he deserves to have a right to be in congress. >> we begin tonight with that big news on the hill. a man who some viewed as a potential presidential contender stepping down from the u.s. senate. good evening, i'm doreen gentzler. >> and i'm erika gonzalez. jim and wendy are off. three weeks ago today, a woman accused al franken of forcibly kissing her. at least half a dozen other allegations of inappropriate contact followed. >> and yesterday more than two dozen of his senate colleagues called on franken to resign. >> we have team coverage with reaction, but l

senator had to say today. leon? >> erika, al franken says our country has reached a long-overdue moment. the conversation about how men's actions impact women in the spotlight. last month that conversation shifted to him. franken accused by more than half a dozen women of inappropriate physical contact. in his resignation today, franken denied some of the allegations against him but said he believes all women deserve to be heard and their experiences taken seriously. >> during my time in the senate, i have used my power to be a champion of women, and that i have earned a reputation as someone who respects the women i work alongside every day. i know there's been a very different picture of me painted over the last few weeks, but i know who i really am. >> this was a resignation with a little bit of edge to it. during his speech franken also went on to talk about what he views as hypocrisy t