of a virginia teenager gets a reprieve at least for now. good morning, everyone, i'm an andrea roane roane. howard bernstein is back with weather. angie goff is here with traffic. we begin with howard's forecast. it's been a great time while you were away. i hope you enjoyed as good weather as we did. i was in long island for a couple of weeks, in-laws. survived that. and survived record lows. it was down to low 50s there. they had two or three consecutive lows there, as well. had to shut the windows one night. as dry as it's been, wanted to share the allergy update. as we look at the numbers, the tree pollen is low, while the mold spores are low, the grass pollen -- the grass pollen sits in the moderate category. something still popping t there little . pr gtystetd ooretch. we've god temperatures in the 60s. upper 50s at the air park and winchester. angie goff, how's our traffic situation? no complaints early to kick us off this 5:00 hour.

we'll begin with a camera shot for you. 95 headed northbound in virginia. we are delay free past dumfries up to the mixing bowl. continuing to 395, the stretch between duke all the way to the 14th street bridge, early morning volume. still no significant slow-goes. through dc the trip on inbound new york avenue, things look fine at bladensburg road. we're also checking on the outer loop in maryland and finding drivers at speed past university. to wrap it up is route 4, route 5, and 301. this remains an accident and incident-free zone. ever to andrea. >> thank you. a virginia death row inmate styled to die today will -- scheduled to die today will instead wait for a ruling from the supreme court. the high court will consider whether paul warner powell's case is one of double jeopardy or being tried for the same crime twice. the 31-year-old was convicted and sentenced to life for stacy reed's murder. powell's original conviction was overturned because prosecutors couldn't prove rape

or robbery. after writing a letter describing how he raped and killed the 16-year-old manassas girl and tortured her sister, powell was tried and sentenced to die. in a 9news now exclusive digital, correspondent andrew stack spoke to the man who received the letter. if we can make it a murder case we test senility will. i believe if we can -- test we definitely will. i believe if we can do that we'll have the death penalty. >> reporter: that was the first case against paul warner powell in 2000. this is eletter today. >> that was a surprise. not uncommon but i was surprised in this case. the supreme court had already denied it twice on this case. >> reporter: ebert won a capital murder conviction against powell for the first time in 2000 for the murder of 16-year-old stacy reed and the abduction, rape, and attempted murder of her 14-year-old sister, kristi. powell was sentenced to death, but the virginia supreme court overturned that sentence in 2001 stating in order for the

charge to constitute capital murder it must have been proven powell had raped or robbed or attempted these before murdering stacy. >> he messed with the system all along. tormented the mother and took pleasure in what he done. >> reporter: if it weren't for a letter taunting ebert in 2001 there might not have been a second trial. powell bragged he attempted to rape stacy before killing her. the letter gave ebert the firepower he needed for a second trial. again powell was convicted and sentenced to death for capital murder. today a pig before the supreme court has garnered powell a last-minute stay. >> i do feel sorry for the victims in this case. those folks came a long way hoping they'd get some solace and closure. and now they're going to have to wait. >> reporter: andrew stack, 9news now and wusa9.com.

ncis is investigating the death of a sailor. her body was discovered inside her barracks inside formeyer in virginia. the navy will not -- fort myer in virginia. the navy will not release information except to the next of kin. 805,000 family members lives as well as retirees. southwest airlines has spent the night inspecting 200 of its aircraft. this after a 737 en route to bwi airport from nashville, tennessee, made an emergency landing in charleston, west virginia. the cabin lost pressure and passengers reported being able to see out through a hole about one-foot square. no one was injured. about 1/3 of southwest's fleet is comprised of 737s. nasa is taking a one-day break in its effort to launch the space shuttle endeavour. the astronauts were once again on board and the countdown underway last night when thunderstorms got too close to the kennedy space center.

nearly the exact same scenario had played out just 24 hours earlier. now endeavour is scheduled to blast off tomorrow around 6:00 p.m. if it doesn't go by thursday, the launch will be delayed until at least july 26. and wusa9.com is teaming up with historybeat.com -- it's five after the hour. digital correspondent jessica doyle has more on the big rally and what it means to wall street. >> reporter: good morning. obviously we saw a lot of optimism yesterday about today's earnings report for goldman sachs that powered that rally. this morning, investors want to see the proof in the pudding. the actual financial results, before they go on a buying spree again. we're also waiting on retail sales, the producer price index, and business inventories. overnight stocks in asia finished sharply higher.

that's after the dow surged 185 points yesterday to close at 8,331. the nasdaq rose 37 points. the s&p 500 added nearly 22 points. now wall street is counting on goldman sachs to report its largest profit in two years. its second-quarter earnings expected to come in around $2.2 billion. traders hope there will also be strong news from the other major banks, jp morgan and citigroup releasing earnings this week. attention paws-engers. a new service launches out of bwi airport and has a special clientele. this is for pets only. pet airways will fly your pet in the secured carrier in the main cabin. planes will also fly out of new york, l.a., denver, and chicago. right now the airline is offering a special introductory fare beginning at $149 each way from new york to chicago or los angeles. i'll tell you, it's cheaper to fly as a human than it is pets.

>> yes. >> reporter: on this airline. >> unbelievable. at least if you love your pet, you know it will be secure not in that hot underbelly. >> special care bathroom breaks and the like. >> you're coming back in 30 minutes. what will you have? >> reporter: today's money- saving tip, we're saving you money on your water and power bill. >> good, as the temperatures creeps you up we'll need that information. today the questioning begins in the confirmation hearing of supreme court nominee sonia sotomayor. day one was confined to opening statements. when highway is got to speak the nominee -- when she got to speak the nominee told the committee the role of the court is to apply the law, not make law. one senator offered his prediction for the outcome of the hearing. >> many senators have asked me about my judicial philosophy. simple-- fidelity to the law. >> unless you have a complete meltdown, you're going to get confirmed. >> that was senator lindsay graham.

if there is a meltdown, it could happen today. that's when members of the judiciary committee will have their chance to grill the judge on her beliefs and past statements. outside the hearing, authorities hope for less commotion from people protesting judge sotomayor's nomination. >> and there is everything in your record -- [yelling ñ] >> to indicate -- [yelling ñ] >> the senate -- the police will remove that man. >> protesters were arrested for interrupting monday's confirmation hearing. one of them was norma mccovey. the original plaintiff in the roe vs. wade abortion case. antiabortion protesters have said they plan to demonstrate throughout the judge's confirmation. president obama has named his nominee for another key post. that of the u.s. surgeon general. his pick is dr. regina beveragemint. she runs -- benjamin. she runs a small shrimping company along the gulf coast.

the president said she spent her career doing all she can for her patient. mr.obama believes dr. benjamin will be an advocate for all americans who need medical care. the homeland security secretary watched traps in virginia demonstrate maritime counterterrorism. janet napolitano observed the response team practice handling a threat offshore. the department is examining its port security grant program to make sure moneys are going where they're most neated. authorities in part of britain are dealing with home- grown terrorism this morning. that story is coming up. plus, the dismissal of minority children from a philadelphia pool appears headed to court. and a little alcohol is good for your heart. find out how researchers say it could help your brain, as well.

in the news at 5:11, more than 20 police officers have been injured in northern ireland where protests against the orange order parade continued most of the night. the orange order day marks centuries old sick trees over protestant catholics. militants wearing hoods and masks hurled bombs and makeshift weapons at officers. a discrimination lawsuit has been filed against a suburban philadelphia swim club as protests continue. the suit claims the club discriminated against the children and canceled their memberships because they're black and hispanic. officials say the decision was based on safety because there were too many children in the pool. the los angeles county coroner says toxicology report on michael jackson could be finished later this week. and now the city's mayor is criticizing staffers for setting up a donation site to help cover the cost of last

week's memorial. antonio villaraigosa says the city is responsible for public safety and should pick up the tab. your favorite curse word could be your best weapon to withstand pain. that story's coming up. plus, a drought in part of the lone star state is claiming a popular business. howard? we've got a mini drought of our own going on for the month of july. we've got showers coming before the week's out. i'll detail that coming up. avoid dental problems my dentist gives me act restoring mouthwash. act kills germs, restores minerals strengthens enamel. act restoring-- for strong teeth act now. breakfast. it's kind of early, buddy. you've got to need to take some cholesterol off you. honey, have you been reading the cheerios box again? he got that off the box. (announcer) cheerios is made with 100% natural whole grain oats to help lower your cholesterol. that was very thoughtful of you.

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a followup to a story we brought you a few weeks ago. the drought in middle texas has forced a restaurant on lake travel toys close. johnny finns was closing on the lake near austin, but with the lake 28 feet below normal, a level not seen in new nearly a quarter century, is affecting many busy along the lake. welcome back. we welcome back howard bernstein. we've got a mini drought here now. >> yeah, .13 for the entire month at national. a number of lawns have turned in the past weeks. in texas and oklahoma, talking temperature in the 100, 105- degree range from oklahoma city down through central and southern texas. that's not going to help them. they may not get help probably

-- a tropical system with a drought like this. that has its own problems, as well. let's talk about a round chair. the next three days, not bad. mid-july, talking about temperatures which are seasonal. maybe slightly worse heading toward thursday. upper 80s by tomorrow. thursday is whether we have the chance of thunderstorms. this morning, a nice one. clear to partly cloudy, very nice. we'll be rising into the 60s and 70s. have a few 50s out there now. and then this afternoon, sunny and warm, but not humid. highs in the mid-80s, northwest winds around 10. sun setting at 8:33. tonight clear, comfy, 55, maybe low 50s far north and west. the mid-60s here in town to around 70 even in southern maryland. winds will be light. right now we've got the 71 from the naval air station at

patuxent river. not sure about a thermometer, poking 76, even 80. 70 on the bay to 51 in martinsburg. 57 winchester. manassas is 64. 67, also bill and ellen called in from the northern neck, 65 now at national. a north-northwest wind at 10. this is a dry, cool wind. look at the dew points, in the 40s. the humidity only 52%. very unjulylike. this northwesterly flow continues here. the ridge of heat and dryness still out across the southern plains. that's why we showed you the pictures from texas with their terrible drought. and for us, we continue quiet. northwesterly flow here, and a weak area of low pressure passing to the south. with high pressure across michigan, we'll continue with the northwesterly winds. hey, we are in really nice shape for this tuesday. here's your seven-day forecast. temperatures-- they're going up. mid-80s today. upper 80s tomorrow. thursday, a chance for thunderstorms.

really late wednesday night. 90 by friday and saturday, though, a few more storms, mid- 80s. cooling to the lower 80s sunday and monday. it is now 5:17. 65degrees. good morning, angie goff. good morning, hello everyone. 5:18. listen up on the beltway. on the inner loop at river road, we have the offramp right here. it is shut down due to a new accident. it is evident that we have crews on the scene. as we continue on the inner loop and take you to the maps, we'll show you at route 50 in maryland we have another accident. but this one's off to the right shoulder. so traffic is getting by. your outer loop looking just fine. moving right along, 395 in virginia, that northbound trip is clear from the beltway all the way to the 14th street bridge. going back to the maps, this time checking the beltway on the virginia side. it appears between 95 and 66, drivers on average are moving at a great pace. and finally to wrap it up, here is 66 headed eastbound. tracking those taillights past 28 into dc. we remain delay free.

andrea, over to you. >> thank you. and this morning's "living well" headlines, cursing may increase your tolerance for pain. british researchers had subjects put their hand in freezing water. one group was told to utter the curse word of their choice. others were told to repete a simple -- repeat a simple word that was not a curse. those who cursed kept their hand in for 40 seconds longer. scientist think swearing reduces the pain. and mort alcohol had been shown to reduce the chance of heart attacks. now it can lower heart disease in older adults. adults who consumed up to two glasses of wine a day reduced their risk of alzheimer's by 37%. however, those who drank more than that had double the risk of those who did not drink at all. it is 5:19. time to say good morning to kristin fisher. she's in the web center. what do you have their morning? >> reporter: we're talking about reality tv, andrea.

you know, washington has become a real hot spot for reality tv shows in recent weeks. but without a doubt, the show that's creating the most buzz on the web now is mtv's "the real world." they started filming at the end of june, and ever sin the cast's every move has been heavily tracked on line. i want to show you right now. take a look. the washingtonian.com has just launched yesterday -- they launched this realworlddcwatchthemap. if you click on it, this is what pops up, a google map. what they do is they have readers send in emails of sightings of cast members and crews. and if you scroll down, you can get a list of just where the crew and the cast have been over the past week. you see this past weekend they were at the fly lounge on saturday night hanging in the vip lox. gazuza, somebody went to church, st. luke's episcopal church, at a rock climbing

wall. they are literally being tracked on a ma p prty much everywhere they go. if that's not enough they've got a real-world dc news twitter feed where you get real- time updates from anybody in the dc area that spots this cast or crew. so here's one from three hours ago. and what's really interesting is they posted a twit pick. if you click on that you can see a picture of the cast members. so andrea, why is this a big deal? >> yeah, why is this a big deal? >> reporter: i don't know if it's that important, but it's interesting for reality tv shows. with this kind of instant information, it's causing a slight problem for secrets on the shows that perhaps producers don't want revealed. andrea? >> it ups the cool factor of washington, dc. thank you. nationals' executives talk about their decision to fire manager manny acta. plus, we'll tell you which slugger hit the most out of the park to claim the home run derby title.

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welcome back. celebrating a birthday today -- happy birthday if it's your

day, as well the scrawl star game gets underway tonight in st. louis. last night, fan got to enjoy the annual home run derby. this year it would come down to nelson crews and prince fielder in the final round. cruz had five in the final but no extra points for distance. milwaukee sprint fielder didn't -- milwaukee's prince fielder didn't hit as far but clinched six for the title. the other big story is the firing of nationals' manager manny acta. with a league record of 26-61, acta's firing didn't come as a big surprise. team president stan casten said he informed acta after the decision after returning from sunday's loss in houston. in acta's 2 1/2 seasons at the helm the team was 94 details below .500 -- 94 games below .500. >> we're making this change in hopes that we can kickstart it in a way that makes the pieces

come together better than 26- 61. >> it: tough thing is to do what we did today. is to replace a very popular, very good baseball guy with the hopes of -- of jumpstarting an underachieving team into performing better in the second half. >> acta didn't go before the imrarms, but he did issue a statement through the team -- the nationals' bench coach, jim riggleman, will take over the club as interim manager. he has nine seasons as a major league manager with the cubs, padres, and mariners. he grew up in rockville, maryland, and graduated from richard montgomery high school. the wizs are in vegas -- wizards are in vegas to open a

five-game schedule with the cavaliers in sin city. nick young and juval mcgee are among those gearing up. nomination hearings continue for sonia sotomayer. and a packed house for lawmakers on the expansion plan for a controversial school. and a financial boost for the construction of a metro line out at dulles airport. 5:27, angie? >> we're traveling 50 westbound from the bay bridge to the capital beltway where it's accident free. /d

[ female announcer ] one size fits all. myth. ♪ head & shoulders is just for dandruff. myth. the fact is, head & shoulders does more than ordinary shampoos and conditioners. it gives you... seven scalp and hair benefits including relieving dryness, itch and irritation. fact. one size may not fit all, but beautiful, 100% flake-free hair does. head & shoulders. respect the scalp. love the hair. today judge sonia sotomayer will be the one in the witness chair answering questions at her senate confirmation hearing. welcome back, i'm andrea roane. thank you for joining us this tuesday morning.

angie goff is here. she'll have traffic in a moment. we say good morning to howard bernstein. welcome him back from vacation. >> thank you. >> weather's not been bad while you were away. no, it's been too dry, though. it has. we've had hardly any rain in the month of july. we'll see what we can do by the middle of the week. maybe by thursday because today it's going to be another beautiful day out there with low humidity levels and comfortable temperatures. we're not talking a lot of heat. in fact now, we can look at skies which are generally clear out there. we had a few thunderstorms down through the middle peninsula of virginia there yesterday. other than that, though, it is a fairly quiet morning. we've got 50s to the north and west. martinsburg, last time i checked, down to 51. we're down to 65. it's around 70 or so from the naval academy in annapolis and in southern maryland. look at ocean city, 72 degrees. for today, humidity stays low. going to see a lot of sunshine. high temperatures in the mid- 80s. right now 65. it is 5:30. time for traffic. here's angie. thank you. happily through the 5:00 hour and watching one serious tie-up out there. it's on our capital beltway.

here is your inner loop at river road. a crash scene here has the offramp currently closed. moving into 270, that's the next shot headed southbound. no problems to report past 121 down to i-370. we're looking at route 4, route 5, and 301. this is incident and accident free right now. good news there. and finally to wrap it up, 95 northbound in virginia. we're tracking taillights -- actually the headlights i should say past dumfries. no delays up to the mixing bowl. now over to andrea. >> thank you. after seven weeks of preparations, judge sonia sotomayer's supreme court nomnation hearings are underway. she tells a senate judiciary committee on monday that the law not her personal and professional experiences has driven her rulings as a judge. lawmakers begin their questions later today. many expect plenty of fireworks. susan roberts has the latest. >> reporter: judge sonia sotomayer is certain to face some tough questions from republicans on day two of her

confirmation hearings. >> i want to be clear. i will not be vote for and no senator should vote for an individual nominated by any president who is not fully committed to fairness and impartiality. >> reporter: barring a meltdown the 55-year-old federal judge will be confirmed as the nation's first hispanic u.s. supreme court justice. before any votes are cast, gop senators are determined to make sotomayor defend her record and past speeches, especially the now-famous remark that a wise latina woman would reach a better conclusion than a white male. she tackled that during her five-minute opening statement. >> my personal and professional experiences help me to listen and understand with the law always commanding the result in every case. >> reporter: democrats are clearly focused on sotomayor's 17-year judicial record. they call her a pioneer who has been a judge for all americans.

>> i will trust that all members will reject the efforts of partisans and outside pressure groups to sought to create a characature of sonia sotomayer to limit her achievements and intelligence. >> reporter: the record outlines her achievements, and she paid tribute to her mother. >> i am here, as many of you have noted, because of her aspirations and sacrifices. >> reporter: sotomayor described the progression of her life as uniquely american. susan roberts, cbs, washington. a dc judge is considering whether or not to admit a police interrogation as evidence in the murder trial of banita jacks. she's the woman accused of killing her four young daughters. u.s. marshals found the decomposing bodies inside the home in january of 2008 while serving an eviction notice. a contract awarded by marion barey to a former girlfriend will be part of the dc council meeting.

chairman vincent gray will introduce a resolution to officially open an investigation into the matter. barry was dating donna brighthof when she was awarded a $5,000-a-month contract which was funded by dc taxpayer money. dc attorney robert bennett will lead the council's investigation. what should have been a routine land zoning hearing turned into a battle of philosophy and milk last night in fairfax. -- and politics last night in fairfax. the board of supervisors was considering a petition filed by the international academy to expand its campus by 111,000 square feet. the petition was met with opposition from a group calling itself the antisharia task force. they say the school is teaching hate. parent and students disagree. parents and students disagree. >> we believe that tradition is being taught in this school. it is not a typical school like a public school, parochial school, private, evangelical

school. [ indiscernible ] >> work at lockheed martin, they work for government. they work in every big country -- [ indiscernible ] >> what these people are trying to focus on are things which doesn't exist. >> the fairfax board of supervisors says the matter will be decided on land use and zoning issues exclusively and not anything related to the school's curriculum. amtrak has unveiled the first of 81 passenger train cars bought with money from the federal stimulus package. the rail system has received $1.3 billion in federal funding. amtrak ridership has increased about 25% over the past three years. today metro general manager john catoe and national transportation safety board member debbie hersman will appear before a house subcommittee to discuss last month's deadly metro crash. yesterday the ntsb urged metro to upgrade its train control system with continuous backup protections. right now, cato says the agency

is monitoring its computerized train control system daily but not constantly. the dallas rail project just got -- dulles rail project just got an $89 million boost. the house transportation subcommittee approved the funds last night. this is the first payment since the u.s. department of transportation signed the full funding grant agreement in march. so far the government has pumped $440 million into the project. it's time for another "living smart" report. our digital reporter is back with late-breaking news about bernie madoff's new home at least for now. >> reporter: that's right. good morning. there's been a lot of news out about this location. what we know is bernie madoff is going to spend some time after being sentenced to 150 years in a $65 billion ponzi scheme. originally he asked for prison placement close to his home in new york. instead, he's being moved to a federal prison in atlanta according to an update on the bureau of prison's web site

this morning. this security houses medium security inmate and has a medium security camp as well. earlier it had been reported that he left lockup bounds for a north carolina facility. that may still be his final destination. we'll keep one this. later this morning a coalition of car dealers will converge on capitol hill. they want congress to pass a bill aimed at saving their dealerships that are being closed because of the gm and chrysler restructuring. the committee's co-chairs include tammy davrvvish and jack fitzgerald of the fitzgerald auto malls located in three states. time for your money-saving tip of the day. low flow shower heads are good because they use less water. did you know they're also good for your budget, too? low flows can cut your water usage by 2/3. and you're -- if you're using less hot water that means you'll use less power to heat it up in the first place. some low-flow models even feature a shutoff valve allowing you to turn the water off while soaping up, then you can turn it on instantly

without having to readjust the temperature. also be sure to check with your utility company to see if they're giving away the showerheads for free. for an investment of $10 or less you can save $50 to $75 a year on your water bill and $20 to $50 or more a year on energy bills. and as also, for more money- saving tips check out my blog on wusa9.com. >> lots of good advice. the national zoo experienced a baby boom last week at its conservation and research center in front royal, virginia. keepers found a red panda cub in the nest box friday morning and they're monitoring in case they need to hand-rear it. hours earlier, two other babies were born including a female clouded leopard cub. staff had been on the lookout for a birth for several days. the same mother gave birth to two cubs in march. meanwhile, the female horse brandi is responding with her new offspring. this species hails from china and mongolia but is also but ex-

stink in the wild. the babies won't be on display for a wild but we have more photos at wusa9.com. look under our "pet" section on the home page. eager college students enter a lottery for a chance to meet the president. that story's coming up. plus, the latest in nasa's unsuccessful fight against mother nature and now father time. it's 5:39. angie? traveling the dulles toll road eastbound right before the beltway, you're going to find lanes wide open. more coming up.

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in the news, this morning the fbi and local police will start an inch-by-inch search of a cemetery. four employees are accused of digging up hundreds of bodies and dumping them in a mass grave to resell the plots and pocket the money in illinois. tomorrow night, nasa will try again to get the space shuttle underground. thunderstorms moved in too close to the kennedy space center before the scheduled launch. when endeavour does lift off, it will dock with the international space station. astronauts will offload and install the final piece of a giant space slab. president obama makes a trip to michigan. a small college in warren is posting a town hall meeting.

and some students won tickets to see the president through a lottery. many hope to hear about new employment opportunities because of the massive job losses in the auto industry. we'll have some of the side stories from the first day of judge sotomayor's confirmation hearing coming up in "what's on the web." plus, after a death on the west coast, we go on the search for who's in charge of safety in the district. howard? andrea, what a beautiful morning outside here on the weather terrace. skies are clear, the moon is still out. got a nice day ahead. maybe, maybe some much-needed rain also in the future. there are moments in time

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pedi-cabs, a cross between a bicycle and taxi, are springing up all over downtown washington. the human carriers have become popular among tourists and workers moving between the monuments and government offices. how safe are they, and what are the rules and regulations? bruce johnson investigates. >> reporter: there is no set fare, no apparent seat belts and no con sense us on whether this pedi-cab should be considered a taxi or bike for hire. do you follow bike rules or follow taxicab rules? >> that's a good question. there's rules -- basically we're a taxicab -- >> reporter: this driver has been riding a cab throughout

downtown washington. seems perfect for the job. >> basically our company line is that we don't work for a fee. we work for tips. >> reporter: by far the most lucrative day was this past 4th of july. he made about $500. in one case, one fare, $100. what appears to be a fun ride can prove dangerous in traffic. the death of a passenger in the san diego pedi-cab is raising new questions. sharon miller, a retired school teacher, was riding in the three wheeler with her husband on july 3 4á when the driver suddenly swerved, causing miller to fall out. she hit her head and eventually died as a result of her injuries. in light of that tragic incident in san diego, we wanted to know who what are the rules and regulations governing them in the capital. we found out there are no rules and regulations. we were directed to the dc taxicab commission, the department of consumer and regulatory affairs, the mayor's office, the dc council, but though one seems to know of any rules and regulations for the city's pedi-cabs. >> we follow the cab rules.

i know -- we're not allowed to ride on the sidewalks at all. >> reporter: there is a business license and fee. outside of that, it appears the pedi-cab operators and passengers are coming up with their own rules out here on the streets. >> bye-bye. >> reporter: bruce johnson, 9news now, and wusa9.com. >> national pedi-cabs appears to be the largest company in dc. national has 20 carriers on the streets. time to say good morning again to howard. it's a nice day for a bike ride or walking or anything. >> beautiful. absolutely beautiful outside. we've been talking about how nice it is in the chat room. you can get a link at the web site, wusa9.com. go to the blog, and we're here every morning starting around 4:00 a.m. weatherwise, getting back to that. absolutely gorgeous, too nice and too dry. we need some rain. not going to see any today, though. let's talk about the next three days. 85 today. the average high is 88. the average low is 70 now. tomorrow, right where we should be. upper 80s. by thursday we'll have a couple

of showers and storms around. much-needed showers and thunderstorms. this morning clear to partly cloudy. temperatures in spots in the 50s north and west. we'll see 60s and 70s here shortly. the northwest winds five to 10. a very nice start to the day. then this afternoon, sunny and warm, but not humid. really going to be very comfortable out there. high temperatures in the middle 80s. northwesterly winds at 10. tonight, clear, comfortable again, mid-50s to mid-60s. winds will be on the light side. this morning, we've got the 50s, lower 50s from martinsburg at 51 to 55 in winchester. and also the air park, 59 in hagerstown, 66 from quantico in fredericksburg, and at the naval air station, pax river, 70. here it's a tad humid but 40s. many areas with dry air especially for july. we normally don't see this. enjoy it because this is,

again, a tip -- atypical. with the clear skies, it's a beautiful morning out there. check out the time lapse here this morning. just a few clouds over toward the horizon. temperature running at 65 at national with a north- northwesterly wind at 10. the dew point 47 degrees. barometer now rising at 30.03. high pressure building in. up across the tbreax. a few showers and storms here -- the great lakes. a few showers and storms here. on the edge of high pressure very warm here. temperatures well over 100 degrees from oklahoma through texas. drought conditions in parts of texas now. but there are the big storms this morning across the northern plains. for us, we sit high and dry, but thankfully with the northerly-northwesterly flow, comfortable. temperatures and dew points will be held in check. stow's going to be a great afternoon. here the seven-day forecast. 85 this afternoon. sunshine, a low humidity level, 88 tomorrow. by thursday, a few thunderstorms, 90. i'll have a couple of storms possible again late friday into saturday. sunday and monday, looking almost cool and dryer.

highs only in the low 80s. we sit at 65 degrees at 5:49. let's get a traffic update. angie? hey, howard, hey, everyone. thanks for joining us so early on this touhy to. here the situation. we continue to track on the inner loop at river road, the offramp remains closed because this accident. we have crews on the scene blocking that ramp. moving the shot over to the maps and showing you i-270 headed southbound between 109 and 121, we have some more crash activity to watch out for. this is adding to a slow go for that stretch of the drive. over to inbound newark avenue. what's happening, there is northeast dc, volume building between the "times" building and bladensburg road. no on ins or accidents. on 395 headed -- no incidents or accidents. on 395 headed northbound, drivers are okay acrossing the 14th street bridge. finally 95 in virginia, a slow ride on our hands from the prince william parkway up to lorton. drives here tacking on an extra

five to 10 minutes. i'll send it over to kristin fisher in the web center. >> reporter: thanks. good morning, everyone. it is day two of confirmation hearings for supreme court nominee judge sonia sotomayor. and it's been the big news on the hill of course. but it's also been big news on the web. a lot of people want to follow these hearings, bro it's during the day, they're -- but it's during the day, they're at work. i'll show you a few sites to get the latest on the hearings as they progress the next few days. let's start with "the huffington post." they have the big sonia sotomayor web page. it's a special page that they have set up just for @@these gs. a lot of news web sites you will see have done that. cnn, "usa today," those are site where you can find sonia sotomayor-specific web sites. now the other thing i like about this site, the "huffington post, "is you can get a lot of offbeat news in

addition to the hard news of the day. you can get some more of the side stories. here's one -- sotomayor's nephews fall asleep at the hearing. this one generated a ton of comments. and here's why -- look at these cute little guys. they're adorable. but they are sound asleep at her confirmation hearing. so definitely something that was talked about on the web. long day, though. and another thing you can do on this site, this is where you can get your live blog on the sotomayor confirmation hearing. the thing i like is if you're at work and want to catch up and see what you've missed in the past hour, you've got a time here. you can read and see exactly what you've missed out on. and finally, i would recommend some of the twitter feeds, specifically cbs andrew cohen for your instant updates. i will have a link on this all of those sites on my blog, gofish@wusa9.com. >> thank you. the host of "american idol" needs a bigger bank vault. that's coming up in "the buzz."

and local universities form ranks with the veterans' administration to help those who have been to war go to college. my grandkids are a great reason

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get gold bond pain relieving foot cream. maximum strength medicine stops pain fast. gold bond pain relieving foot cream. finally fast relief for painful feet. this morning in "the examiner," investigators seize 12,000 marlboro cigarettes from a shed. the congressional delegation is looking into creating federal safety standard for subways. and fairfax county moves forward with plans for affordable housing near the government center. read these stories and more in today's "examiner." a college education is getting more affordable for the nation's veterans. the yellow ribbon program will fund twigg, housing, and subpoena -- fund tuition, housing, and supplies.

as audrey barnes tells us, 11 dc colleges and universities have agreed to welcome the vets on their campuses this fall. >> reporter: it's the most extensive education assistance program since the g.i. bill was signed into law in 1944. the veterans' administration is partnering with 11 dc colleges and universities to share the cost of higher education. >> we'll give the veterans $18,000, the veteransstration will match that and the g.i. bill will take care of the rest. that's a fantastic benefit for undergraduate veterans. graduates will go for about a 60% discount. >> reporter: veterans who have served at least 36 months or 30 continuous days and were discharged due to a service- related injury are eligible for the yellow ribbon program. a godsend for vets like staff sergeant brian hawthorne who served one tour and had just been accepted at gw when he got orders to go back for a second tour. >> i would like to go into politics and work for the fbi. >> reporter: he's back at george washington university now as director of the students

veteran of america. he's also working with student vets and universities to make the transition from soldier to student a smooth one. >> they're sitting in iraq and afghanistan applying to college. they're going to get home and get out 30 days later, they could be in a college classroom. >> reporter: gag debt and american university are a -- gallaudet and american university are a few colleges participating. american university's yellow ribbon program will start this fall. during the first year they'll support 18 veterans. after four years that number will climb to 40. >> a great program. also the right thing to do. >> reporter: audrey barnes, 9news now, wusa9.com. 56 schools in virginia and 27 in maryland are also taking part in the program. we're putting a link with much more information on our web site at wusa9.com. just click on "district news." what are we buzzing about this morning? >> well, ryan seacrest, it looks like -- yeah. once again, $45 million to host

"american idol." >> unbelievable. >> who to host -- >> what does he do? >> for the next three years. it's going to be $10 million annually, about $30 million, and the other $15 million gives his company, the entertainment company, exclusive rights to his image and merchandising related to "american idol." and what they're saying is this is going to raise the contractural demand of the other judges or people on the show. you know, paula abdul and cara, both of their contract were up this last year. and word has it paula wants $2 million more. simon cowell is locked in for another year -- >> he's got more money than anybody. >> yeah, he didn't need anything else. he makes about $30 million alone in one year between his contract and other -- >> wow. >> all right. this is a big story you've got. come on. >> yes. >> he was just in -- i was in town at the golf, tiger woods' tournament. on the eve of her 29th birthday, bye-bye. happy birthday. i don't want to date you

anymore -- he dumped her. >> come on. >> she had to cancel -- she canceled a birthday party, too. >> had no idea. >> yeah. >> flabbergasted, totally didn't see it coming. >> it was a barbie-themed party. >> unbelievable. >> maybe it was good. >> yesterday we said borat's movie "brawn oh" was in first place. won't be there for long. we're certain. there were midnight screenings including at the uptown of the new "harry potter half blood prince." the reviews on great. "usa today" writes "it's captivating from the first frame. more epic than previous potter movies. this one is going to be the summer blockbuster," and -- >> i'm looking forward to it. and this afternoon also. the weather is going to grea we've had a great stre h of weather. we do need rain. one against it is a cool, dry morning. it's july, and we've got atte impere uresthn 50s th in . spotin low 50s w in spots. but mid-50s here in winchester. you do see the 65 here in town. just got off the phone with n in reede.