morning, sunshine, it's time to bring it. [ gargling ] oo-ay-ow. savings. savings. savings? progressive was the first to offer online quoting. you can do better. first to show comparison rates. ding! the "name your price" tool. oh! gosh, don't mind if i do. who was the first to offer pet injury coverage? we were. and when did you know you wanted to sell insurance? i said i wouldn't cry. um... whee! it's flo time. now, that's progressive. call or click today. hello, thanks for joining us. i'm jc hayward. president obama just finished a speech in falls church, virginia in the last 30 minutes. he announced a new program which will allow more homeowners to refinance their loans. the president says the housing crisis is so personal because

it strikes at the heart of america's middle class. >> it affects so much of how people feel about their lives, about their communities, about the economy. we need to do everything in our power to repair the damage and make responsible families whole again. everything we can. >> the white house is proposing an update to current housing laws. it will allow almost all borrowers to refinance their mortgages, not just those with loans held by fannie mae or freddie mac, even those who owe more than their homes are worth. the republican presidential frontrunners are heading west today, following mitt romney's convincing florida primary win last night. romney has the momentum, but newt gingrich remains confident. randall pinkston has more. [ cheers and applause ] reporter: mitt romney is on a

roll, celebrating a double- digit win in florida. the former massachusetts governor says he's in a much better spot than he was 10 days ago. >> i have a good path ahead. i think if i can continue to connect with people, describing my message to get this country working again and to take it back from the big government folks that i think i become the nominee. >> gingrich resigned from congress in disgrace. reporter: romney and his supporters spent more than $16 million in negative ads after losing big to newt gingrich in south carolina. romney says his battle with the former house speaker is preparing him for a showdown with president obama. >> i know the president is going to want to talk about me and about somehow disqualifying me. i want to talk about his record. the truth is he has not done the job he was elected to do. >> the same people that said i was dead in june and july -- reporter: despite the blow in florida, gingrich has no intention of stepping aside. >> we are going to contest every place and we are going to win and we will be in tampa as the nominee in august. [ cheers and applause ]

reporter: but gingrich's path to the republican presidential nomination is likely to be difficult. romney has more money and better organization in the upcoming caucus states. and there's another potential hurdle for gingrich. florida exit polls show a widening gender gap, more than half of women voters supported romney, less than 1/3 backed gingrich. reporter: rick santorum and ron paul skipped florida to begin campaigning out west. both candidates called romney to congratulate him last night. >> thank you. reporter: gingrich did not. randall pinkston, cbs news, washington. on saturday republican voters in nevada will caucus. then next tuesday contests in colorado, minnesota and missouri. on february 11th, maine will hold its republican caucus. then it's nearly three weeks to republican primaries in arizona and michigan. maryland governor martin o'malley testified in annapolis yesterday in favor of a bill to

legalize same-sex marriage. well now he's appearing before state lawmakers to deliver the annual state of the state address. and the governor is expected to begin that speech in the next few minutes. by the way, if you'd like to watch the governor's state of the state address in its entirety, we are streaming it. you can go to our website, wusa9.com. d.c. was the first jurisdiction in the country to legalize online gambling within its borders. but the program may be repealed today before its even launched. some councilmembers admit they did not realize that they had approved online gambling because it was part of a contract renewal with the d.c. lottery. a legal victory for occupy protesters in mcpherson square. a judge says police must give 24 hours notice before evicting them. and the protesters must also get a chance to challenge the eviction in court. the national park service says

it is enforcing its ban on overnight camping in the park, but it doesn't look like it because the encampment is still there. police say they have a full concession from the man now charged in connection with the murder of alexandria activist lenny harris. prince george's county investigators say linwood johnson of oxen hills is not their only suspect. they expect to arrest more people. harris' body was recovered on saturday from a well in fort washington. he had been missing since september. police also recovered a gun that they believe is the murder weapon. prince george's county police are investigating a murder that occurred in adelphi, maryland. a man was shot last night along mancertificateot road. he later identify -- died at a nearby hospital. police have not identified the victim yet. fairfax county police are looking for vandals who trashed a mosque that was just weeks away from opening. every custom-made window at the

building in chantilly was damaged and the damage is estimated to be from $60,000 to $80,000. police say there was no sign that anyone entered the building, but they found discarded liquor bottles all around the grounds. coming up on 9 news now, we will mark the beginning of black history month by introducing you to an inventor who made our modern fast-paced lives much easier. reporter: crews here are getting into the nooks and crannies, weatherizing a home and saving the homeowner thousands of dollars on her energy bill. how you can take advantage of a free program here in prince george's county. that story is coming up on 9 news now.

. the man who spent a few hundred dollars of his own money to create the legendary soul train television show has died. police found don cornelius dead this morning at his home in sherman oaks, california. "soul train" started in 1971 and the dance show ran until 2006. angeles police say it -- los angeles police say it appeared that cornelius died of a self- inflicted gunshot wound. cornelius was 75 years old.

the drug maker pfizer is recalling 1 million packets of birth control pills. a packaging error could leave women with an inadequate dose, raising the risk that they will get pregnant accidentally. a company spokeswoman says the problem was caused by both mechanical and visual inspection failures on the packaging line and it has been corrected. the pills were sold under at least two names. now, we have more information about which drug names and lot groups are affected right on our website, wusa9.com. it is one of our top stories at this hour. 9 wants you to know that each year 5,000 young people under the age of 21 die as a result of underaged drinking. thousands more are injured, most in alcohol-related car crashes. this is according to the united states department of health and human services. but where are minors getting the alcohol from?

our andrea mccarren has been investigating this and she has some answers. angela -- andrea. reporter: well, j.c., our colleague, dave satchel and i, a photographer has been looking at this crisis because you and i both over the years have been covering way too many tragedies involving children that are alcohol related. and what we found was alarming. children beginning to drink at a younger age and drinking such large quantities it is no longer unusual for them to be hospitalized with alcohol poisoning. take a look at an excerpt from our story coming up tonight at 11:00 in which we uncover one local store that has been openly selling to children. >> hey, what's up? reporter: night after night with the help of a 23-year-old 9 news now staff member, we interviewed the young buyers using a hidden microphone. >> i heard this is the place to go without an i.d. reporter: without one? >> i'm just looking for a place to buy. >> either way, you can get it in this shop. reporter: really?

>> we've been doing it for a couple of years. reporter: most told us they were 16 years old, some were even buying for their younger friends. >> the full report is coming up tonight at 11:00. for several weeks we watched and videotaped dozens of teenagers buying alcohol at this one local store, not a single teenager was ever asked for identification. j.c. >> i know you talked to the store owner. what was his reaction? reporter: good question. we did. it was actually a very heated confrontation. he denied selling to children, but as you will see tonight at 11:00, we have the videotape and the interviews, j.c., to prove that he did. >> were there any surprises you found besides this one? i bet there were a lot. reporter: that's a great question. there were so many surprises, but probably the most disturbing is how many parents condone underaged drinking and are actually hosting parties for their children, often the age of 16 and under where they can drink in their home. they feel as if they're in

their home, it's safe. one parent even told us that they're teaching their kid to drink responsibly before they get off to college. >> oh, my goodness. reporter: exactly. >> incredible series of reports. thank you very much. that's coming up tonight, andrea will start a rivetting series of reports about how young kids in our area are getting alcohol illegally. so be sure to watch her report tonight on 9 news now beginning at 11:00 p.m. it's unusually warm for the first day of february, but i'm not complaining. but, of course, heating our homes on cold winter nights can be a challenge for some families who are just struggling to pay their bills. well, now there is hope. dela gonzalez shows us a new program that is guaranteed to save money. reporter: this blower door is a major tool to help you save money on your energy bill. >> with all the windows and doors closed in the house -- reporter: carlton is a

weatherization auditor with prince george's county. his goal, insulate and fill the gaps in mary's home that are letting cold air in. it's a free income-based program and it can return thousands of dollars back to your pockets, money that is literally going out the window. >> that's money that you can have to put food on the table and do other things, that meet their particular needs. >> when we take advantage of what we can get to help us survive through the hard times. reporter: but believe it or not the county has had trouble getting folks to take advantage of the free service. >> they tell us our business and we're a little frightened about that. reporter: she says after a trusted church member showed her their savings, she was hooked. the crew will insulate your home from top to bottom, even install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. so if i haven't sold you on this program already, listen up, here's another added benefit, let the folks come to your house, find out you have an appliance that's 10 years or

older, they will replace it for free. mary is getting a brand new refrigerator. >> thank god that i got involved to use the service. reporter: in it capitol heights, deila gonezal, 9 news now. >> the program is funded through the department of energy and if you'd like to learn more about how you can qualify for this and other programs in our area, just go to our website, wusa9.com and click on local news. most of you probably haven't thought about a valentine's flowers or candy yet, but coming up one local bakery is combining the two for a beautiful and edible expression of love. howard. >> outside loving life. i don't want to come inside and do weather. it's so nice out here. some areas are going to make a run for 70. we'll take you to break with a look at some of these temps right now. 69 for vienna, 67 fairfax, only 57 on the water here in d.c.

i'll come back, the party is just about over as far as the spring preview. 9 news now at noon returns in just a moment.

today marks the beginning of black history month, and we are profiling some african- americans whose names you may not know, even though they helped change the way we live. for example, fredrick mckinley jones. in 1935 he invented the first

automatic refrigeration system for long-haul trucks. it allows your favorite perishable foods to be shipped long distances and it's also used in ships and trains. jones' invention subsequently led to the creation of frozen foods and fast foods. you can read more about fredrick jones and many other african-americans who made history by going to our website, wusa9.com, just click the black history month box on the right side of our home page. >> might not have orange juice if it wasn't for that. >> that's right. >> so many things. >> great stuff. howard, i'm just lovin' it, that's all i can say. i am lovin' it, i'm not complaining. >> i'm a snow fan and i'd love to see some snow, but it is really nice again this afternoon out there. yesterday afternoon took an hourlong walk with the dog outside. it was nice. do it again today. i know folks who went golfing today, convertible tops are down, it's a nice afternoon. our day planner, we're going to hold on to it for a few more hours and then a front is going to slip through this evening,

turning the winds from southwesterly to northwesterly. that'll knock us down into the 50s tomorrow. but by 3:00 66. now, these are temperatures in washington. reagan national, other areas south and west of town will make a run towards 70. culpepper already at 70 degrees. we'll have 50s by 7:00, a few more clouds and by 9:00 mid- 50s. we drop into the 40s tonight and we will see some showers returning probably toward midnight or shortly thereafter. one batch of showers this morning pushed through. you can see the sunny breaks that have developed. still, though, we've got clouds out of the mountains and occasional clouds are going to pass, but we'll call it partly to maybe mostly sunny at times this afternoon. it was a cold morning in spots. leesburg 41, fredrick 47, but gaithersburg 50. we got down to 48 at national. the normal low is 44 for february 1st. we got down to 48. temperatures are incredible for this time of year. already 70, as i said, in culpepper, orange and fredricksburg are 68. low 60s in the shenandoah valley. upper 50s in easton and

cambridge, even at the navel academy. it's an offshore breeze, so they're not influenced by the cooler rivers, and same with the navel air station, 64. michael and son weather camera, bright sunshine, just a few clouds out there and a gorgeous noon hour, 57 degrees. south winds at nine. that's coming in off the water, that's why we're still holding onto the 50s at national. dewpoints upper 30s and humidity, excuse me, 49%. across the country storm system out west. a little rain and snow here. denver is going to get clocked tomorrow night and into friday. near blizzard conditions, a little wintery weather for them. we're watching the raining in areas in the -- watching the rain falling in the deep south. this morning we had the showers, they were there and kind of fell apart. not much left to them and some rain and snow showers pushing across areas in maine. we'll put the futurecast in motion. clouds trying to thicken up this evening. tonight by midnight, notice the green showing up here by 12:00 a.m., especially south of washington. the heavier showers there and

points south into tomorrow morning. but by noon those showers are pulling away and in the afternoon, well, hire comes more sunshine and some chillier air moving in tonight and it'll get a little colder. not a lot, but a little colder over the next few days. 66 at national, some areas near 70. 54 tomorrow with morning showers. tonight and tomorrow best chance of showers will be from d.c. and points south of town. friday we start in the 30s, we finish in the low 50s. the weekend features temperatures near 50 with a chance of showers saturday night and again monday night may see some showers into tuesday morning and we'll find out early tomorrow whether phil sees his shadow or not. we're going to the kitchen. stick around, 9 news now returns right after this.

be sure to go to jchayward.com if you think that you have an incredible chocolate layer cake recipe. today is the last day to get your applications in for make me want to shout cake contest. so you'll want to enter that. it's a $500 prize and lots of other things. your cake will be featured in etanville restaurants in northwest washington, so if you have a great chocolate layer cake, you want to go to jchayward.com and get that application, make sure you get it in today, today is the deadline. but right now some people send flowers for valentine's day, some send chocolate, but there is a baker in gaiftersburg, maryland. she's here with me now. ro saro gamboa.

>> hello. >> well, hello. her bakery is the canela backery in gaitherringburg. these are absolutely incredible. i hope we'll be able to see them because they are so pretty. they're called gelitinas and she's making it now. if you look at it very closely, i hope you can see, they are just works of art. this is gelitin but inside it looks like real-life -- i'm going to try and show you, real- life flowers, isn't that beautiful? i want you to see this one, this is my favorite right here. look at this. it looks like a real flower. she creates them and she's going to show me how she does it right now. >> this is how we use it. >> and thank you for coming. >> you're welcome. we make our sunflowers which is one of my favorites. >> what is this right here? this is the base. >> i see, you put the gelitin in the cup, turn it upside

down. >> yes. >> and use a little hyperdermic needle. oh, look at that. see, now you're an artist. thank you. >> you are an artist because that -- and let me tell you about these gelitinas, they are all over in mexico. if you go to a celebration, you'll find them in -- you'll find them in people's homes because they serve them and they're just wonderful. they are just wonderful, and you actually did not know about them until, what, not too long ago? >> two years ago. >> is that so? >> yes. i went to mexico, i fell in love with them, and i figured it out. >> you keep doing that. these are absolutely beautiful. by the way, you can get them if you go to the montgomery farm womens co-op on wednesdays, on fridays, on saturdays, you'll be able to pick these up. and, of course, at her bakery,

the canela bakery in gaithersburg. she's an artist. not only is she a baker, she's an artist. look at the breads she brought and the desserts she brought. fabulous. that's gorgeous. thanks for being with us. please come back and visit us at 5:00.