hello, thank you for joining us, i'm j.c. hayward. we begin with breaking news about the ongoing investigation into the affairs of d. c. council member harry thomas. the fbi and irs searched the home of the ward 5 council member this morning. delia goncalves is on the scene in northeast washington with more information. delia? >> reporter: several hours into the raid so far this morning and take a look behind me. you can see there's a motorcycle and now fbi investigators are pulling up an suv, they're about to seize the two vehicles from council member harry thomas' garage. we're told the bike and the suv were recent purchases and have been the focus of this morning's search. we've seen agents carry trash bags from the suv to the house. and a whole lot of activity in and out of the front door but we have end indication there will be -- no indication there will be any arrests made today.

>> clearly we have solid evidence. >> do you think he's cheats the folks of ward 5. >> oh absolutely, he preyed on those and promised things and it was about instant gratification. >> the people downtown -- and you know, they don't want to take your money -- they're the ones taking your money. if he admits to paying it back. he's not taking it out of my pocket. >> reporter: there's a live look at the tow truck right now pulling occupy the two vehicle -- up the two vehicles on the flatbed. tom david is the whistle blower in the case. he alerted them that money meant for thomas' nonprofit team thomas was being used for personal items including vacations and luxury suvs. harry thomas jr. will pay the money back without admitting guilt or fault in the case. they're inside the house. we've seen the lawyer but noneducation that anyone is talk -- indication that anyone is talking so far. j. c., back to you. >> all right, thank you very

much. well, we received some encouraging news from the labor department today because the government says the unemployment rate dropped sharply to 8.6% last month. and that's the best showing in two and a half years. danielle nottingham has our report. >> reporter: the unemployment rate dropped to the low isollyl in more than two and a half years -- lowest level in more than two and a half years falling to 8.6% in november. a step in the right direction after being stuck near 9% for most of the year. but one reason for the drop? hundreds of thousands of people have simply given up looking for work and are no longer counted as unemployed. barry heir has not given up. >> you want to be out there being productive and producing and so you know, i have to kind of fight to keep my own -- my head straight. >> reporter: he lost his job at a pharmaceutical company in september. his third layoff in 10 years. >> when i went into the conference room, i said oh in,

this can't be happening. >> reporter: employers stepped up hiring last month but only added 120,000 new jobs. that number is just a drop in the bucket for the 13 million americans who are out of work and president obama knows these numbers are critical to his chances for re-election. nearly half of the new jobs created were in the retail industry as stores gear up for the holiday season. but wages edged slightly lower which could be a bad sign for consumer spending. barry is confident about finding work, but with christmas just a few weeks away, he says this will be a year to focus on the spiritual side of the holiday, not the material. danielle nottingham, cbs news, the white house. the unemployment report also included revised numbers for september and october. showing stronger job growth than first expected. and by the way, the dow is up

more than 20 points. a three month man hunt continues as al-qaeda now has taken responsibility for the kidnapping a rockville man. the state department says the fbi is working with pakistani and u.s. embassy officials investigating warren weinstein's kidnapping on august 13th. surae chinn reports. [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: al-qaeda leader confirms in an audiotape they have 71-year-old warren weinstein from rockville, maryland. they tell cbs news that three hostage takers went to the gate of the american compound in pakistan offering food to weinstein's security. the guards opened up the gate when five more hostage takers stormed in an unguarded entrance and came from behind with ak-47s. they used the driver to trick the rockville man into opening the door to his top floor residence.

back in weinstein's rockville neighborhood, people are stunned at what happened to the 70-year-old who was trying to improve the country's economy. >> anytime someone who like goes anywhere with good intentions so -- ends up in a compromising situation. it's a little unfortunate. >> reporter: neighbors say mrs. weinstein hasn't been home for awhile but there's a single yellow ribbon tied around a tree in their front yard. that a neighbor put here. >> it's gut-wrenching. i mean i can't imagine if it was you know, my -- my husband or son or you know captured -- the poor families that have to go through this. the unknown is so frightening. >> reporter: al-qaeda is making demands in exchange for weinstein's release. al-qaeda wants the u.s. to end air strikes in afghanistan, pakistan, somalia and yemen. all this when weinstein was supposed to return home today. in rockville, surae chinn, 9news now. >> al-qaeda has not shown

pictures of him or given proof they actually have the rockville man. he works as a business development consultant for the arlington based firm j. e. austin and associates. a virginia man is expected to enter a plea bargain today on charges he helped produce an internet video for a pakistani terrorist group. 24-year-old jabar akmed has been jailed since the september arrest. a plea hearing is set for today in alexandria. prosecutors say he produced and uploaded a propaganda video to youtube last year on behalf of the militant pakistani group. five people have been treated for exposure to carbon monoxide. emergency crews were called this morning to the 1700 block of s. street southeast. they were able to help two adults and three children, one adult woman was rushed to a nearby hospital listed in serious condition.

washington gas was called in to fix a faulty thermos. well, it is official -- virginia attorney general ken cuccinelli will run for governor in 2013. he has become a star in gop circles pursuing the white house over president obama's -- for suing the white house over president obama's health care law. he could face a contender in bill bowling. track work will close six stations this weekend on metro's red line. the transit agency says the brooklyn, tack ma, wheaton and glenmont stations will be closed beginning at 10:00 tonight until monday morning. buses will also replace trains between the deanwood and cheverly stations on the orange line. coming up on 9news now at noon, general motors announces plans to buy back chevy volts. we'll explain why.

. the powerful hurricane strength winds are causing some havoc out west. we'll have details on these stories and much more when we come back. [ screaming ] [ zapping ] there goes dwayne's car. oh, man. there goes dwayne's house. whoa! whoa! and there goes dwayne. man, that thing does not like dwayne. [ male announcer ] state farm's got you covered. nice landing. it was. [ male announcer ] get to a better state.

general motors is saying that it will buy back chevy volts from any owner who is afraid that the electric cars will catch fire. the ceo says the cars are safe,

but the company wants to keep customers happy. the government is investigating after tests showed that the vehicle batteries may have a tendency to catch fire after a crash. the western part of the country is being battered by powerful hurricane strength winds. the worst santa ana winds in years are packing gusts of more than 100 miles per hour. warnings and advisories are being placed in six states. bigad shaban has more now from pasadena. >> reporter: two days of wind blew apart this fence. toppled tractor-trailers, and left behind disruption in several western states. >> it's just insane, just trees down everywhere. >> reporter: gusts of more than 100 miles per hour sent a tree crashing into this northern california home. splitting it in half. the wind blew out the windows in a utah school bus. and ripped the roof off a colorado condominium. a couple was asleep when this tree smashed right into their

bedroom. they weren't hurt in pasadena. the winds have died down in so you were california but -- southern california but many are without power. ron and milli are relying on an old radio for news and have no idea. >> i have no idea, i guess it's up to the gods. >> reporter: here in downtown pasadena, searchry old trees are now piles of debris that stretch an entire block nearly. the trees were just decorated with holiday lights. >> we have nothing. >> reporter: it's going to be a difficult christmas for crystal waters. her neighbor's tree ripped the wall off her kitchen. >> i'm just trying not to cry but it's sad. >> reporter: the worst of the wind is gone. the gust warnings in several states are expected to be lifted by tonight. but the clean-up will continue for days. bigad shaban, cbs news, pasadena, california. when we come back, we're

going to talk to gospel great bebeand see see way mans, don't go away.

if you really want to get into the holiday spirit, you want to get tickets for the evangel cathedral christmas 2011 show. it is going to be fabulous, i have two of the stars who will be gracing the stage. so honored to introduce bebe and cece winans, they will be starring the weekend in the show and we are so excited about this particular production. and it a production isn't it? >> it is a production. >> a huge production. >> it is fabulous. there are live animals and there's dancing. >> but you are fabulous. >> are you -- [ laughter ] >> i'm going to be with you tomorrow. i'm coming out to see the show. last saturday and sunday -- it lasts standpoint and sunday from this saturday until december 18th. it's at the cathedral on central avenue and upper marlboro and it is the hottest thing on the east coast. not just in the washington area. people come from all over -- new york, virginia, north

carolina. >> yes. >> and they should. because not only is bebe and myself on there, we have beverly crew ford, marvin sapp and all the incredible cast that they have. people with incredible voices. >> over 200. >> it's pretty great. >> it's spectacular and with the live animals, it really gets into the holiday spirit. i'm going to give the phone number to call. call (301)249-9400. (301)249-9400 for tickets, this is a family affair, bring the kids. bring your neighbors. it's spectacular. but i'd like to just talk to you for a minute about how gospel music has evolved since -- the early days. it has changed. >> yeah. it has changed -- and i'm grateful for that because it has reached a lot more people. you know, sometimes people

thought gospel music should be in the four walls but we felt as if we should go out into the world and let the world know through song that there's hope and there is an answer to what people are facing. so i'm excited about how gospel music has evolved and it's not going to stop. i believe it's going to change with every change in time. >> that's a good thing. >> that's a great thing. >> especially with the economy and the way things are right now. we need something to kind of -- lift us up. >> you need good news and i'm sure you know about that. >> that's true. >> eternal -- they turn on the air and all you hear is all the bad news but it's good things happening and people need to hear like you said hope. to hold on, that things are going to get better. that we need one another or to make it through. you know? and so you get all of that through gospel music. >> and as we're entering the holiday season, it's so important for people to come out and see this very positive spectacular show at the cathedral central avenue upper marlboro. (301)249-9400. let me just and you very

quickly. how is it that you're able to protect your music? because with all the different venues and mediums that are out now, are you able to protect you music? >> you know, it's funny because we are older. >> yes, we're older. >> now and we're trying to catch on to all the different you know technical things that you know -- i'm used to just answering the phones. you know now i have to send this and that. so it's a beautiful thing. i think with anything you just need to educate yourself. educate yourself about the music industry and all the things that are happening. and you know, it's -- it's one thing to have your music on the ipod now. and used to cds, but there's a lot of things that are happening and just the way for music to get out there so it's a positive thing. >> we want to thank you for all the beautiful music that your family has brought to the world. >> thank you. >> we congratulate you and we salute and you we're going to be seeing you on the stage at the cathedral this weekend until december 18th. thank you for spending time

with me. >> thank you for having us. >> let's get the forecast from howard. j. c., a gorgeous afternoon. a chilly start but we're looking at temps this afternoon into the mid 50s. winds turning to the northwest, 5, 10 miles an hourment really very, very comfortable. by this evening with clear skies, temperatures will be dropping quickly into the low 40s by 9:00. clearly a heavy jacket tonight and another cold midnight tonight. chilly saturday. going to philly for the game, upper 40s for a high. milder sunday, well up in the 50s and then showers by tuesday. maybe late monday but right now i think the showers are going to hold off until tuesday. had a few clouds north and west of us this morning. this afternoon, we're looking at clouds in pennsylvania and rain and snow showers new york state and moving to new england. that's all ahead of a front that's coming in our direction. look at the lows this morning. down to 201 in frederick -- 21 in frederick, 21 in manassas. we stayed in the 30th along with annapolis and just about everybody else was down well

into the 20s. but air heats up nicely. dry air cause that and the temperatures now up to 50s in winchester, salisbury, got 50 in la plata. 53 at the air park in montgomery county and here in washington, reagan national, sitting at 9-degree -- 49 degrees. slight on shore winds. south southeast at 6 under mostly sunny skies and dew points which are currently in the 30s. nationally we're watching a storm system in the southwest. same one that brought the damaging winds to california yesterday bringing rain and snow to arizona, new mexico, even parts of texas, western texas a wintry mix with some rain elsewhere. then in the great lakes to the northeast, that's the cold front that will be coming through. which will just cool us down a tad as we head into the day tomorrow. but not much more than that. expected to come through with very little fanfare later on this afternoon and this evening. high pressure build information behind it. so we'll -- builds in behind it. so we'll be in good shape. the next weather maker to the west on saturday through chicago, maybe headed to detroit by sunday. but around here, hey, we're

looking good for another maybe three, four days. so enjoy it. 56 today. 50 tomorrow. after starting in the 20s and 30s. winds won't be that strong although it will start to turn around more to the south late tomorrow. sunday milder and youer 50s -- milder and upper 50s after another cool start. weather should be great for the game on sunday. monday, mostly cloudy around 60 and then look at tuesday through thursday. increasing showers, decreasing temperatures but still relatively mild into the 50s. slight chance, one of the models is saying it will be chillier on that on wednesday but we'll look at it. hey, don't go away. 9news now at noon returns right after this. [ female announcer ] more people are using wireless devices...

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today, it's one-on-one with pamela hess and pamela is here to talk about a great magazine. it's relatively new. it's called "flavor magazine" and you know that i'm always supporting and pushing local farmers. well, now, there's a magazine called "flavor magazine" that takes an in-depth look at a new generation of farmers. farmers who are under 40. >> farmers under 40. >> and this has been out for long? >> it's been around since 2008. this is our brand new issue just off the presses, you're the first one to see it. >> what's featured in the magazine? >> it's a bimonthly magazine that's food and wine but really what we're doing is connecting our readers back to the sources of their food. we introduce them to the farmer who raise their vegetables or the livestock with the meat and

to the chefs that prepare it and the businesses that support them. we want people eating locally as much as possible. it's great for the environment and it's great for the local economy. farmers marks have contributed -- markets have contributed about $5 billion in the last year to our economy. going to go up to $7 billion, people are really starting to understand the pons of eating this day. it's -- importance of eating this way. it's really good for the local my. >> it really is and we cannot say it enough. we know the first lady has been pushing local farmers. >> right. >> we can't say it enough. some people don't get it. >> no. no and what we wanted to do, looking at what gets so much attention in our society. kim kardashian and lindsay lohan and her legal problems. what these families are doing are stewarding the earth and leaving it better than they found it and raising healthy animals. we based the young farmers issue on the annual -- we took the idea from "vanity fair." the foldout young hollywood issue. we pulled these guys all together in october.

it's certainly not everybody in our food shed which we consider between the blue ridge and chesapeake, but it's an amazing sample of the young people out there. the way they raise their food is sustainable. which is a word that gets tossed around a lot but it basically means the system generates itself. they don't need a lot of outside input to make good healthy food. they don't use antibiotics in there. >> what a fabulous new magazine. thank you pamela hess. come back and visit us at 5:00. bye bye. [ captions by: caption colorado, llc 800-775-7838 email: comments@captioncolorado.com ]

>> victoria: yes! i am the winner and still champion! (laughs) >> billy: yeah, yeah, yeah, for now. >> victoria: it's okay. we'll have a rematch when you get back from delia's. >> billy: hey, buddy, you mind going upstairs and putting on your coat for me? >> reed: i'm so glad dad said i could stay more. >> victoria: me, too. i love you. ooh! >> billy: (growls) heh. hmm. i done good? >> victoria: yeah... (sighs) you did-- goodest ever.