it's a new initiative by the va office. veterans who submit a fully developed claim are able to receive a decision under 125 days. and suring that the claims do not become backlogs. what more can congress and va did to ensure that veterans do get a fully develop the claim? >> i would make just a general comment before i turn this over to my staff. we believe that the reduction of the backlog is a combination of a claim process and dbqs and then also accountability that's passed onto the review officers. we think those three things are exactly the types of answers to not only reduce the claims but to a manageable level but then reduce the backlog entirely. >> let me -- if i can ask a follow-up question, i know they work hard to encourage veterans be served to file as complete a claim as possible, but i also recognize they need options to file any way they want. whether that is on that forum or perhaps on paper. is that accurate and can you explain why it's important that veterans still have the option to file a claim any way

it is time that the rest of va's discretionary budget be treated the same way. we owe it to america's veterans to provide certain and stable va budget funding. va is pursuing a wide range of initiatives from new methods of health care delivery to electronic benefit management. these investments will help bring thes department into the 21st century. working with you in the department of veterans affairsst we will make sure that these initiatives implemented fairly, transparently and in the best interests of the veterans and the american taxpayers. making sure that the department of veterans affairs can meet the challenges of the 21st century is a job of all of us. and i know the dav, your members across theha country, and your staff here in washington, are ready and eager for thatou challenge. so i look forward to your testimony today, commander. and again i want to thank you and dav's long history of distinguished service, for the men and women who wear the uniform andnd it is because of vsos because as yourself, the organization will give members about congress

it's a new initiative by the va office. veterans who submit a fully developed claim are able to receive a decision under 125 days. and suring that the claims do not become backlogs. what more can congress and va did to ensure that

we're pleased that the va is looking at alternative therapies. the -- not just stuck in the traditional therapy mode anymore. they are considering other types of theerpz. recently they just hired i believe 900 peer to peer counselors that we are very excited to see the results of that initiative. so we do believe they are starting to understand the need for alternative therapies. >> thank you, sir. thank you, mr. chair for your indulgen indulgence. >> thank you miss brownley. thank you members for hanging in there. commander, we appreciate your testimony, again, to each and every one of you, that have made the trip to your nation's capital, we thank you. we thank you for what you've done for this country. we thank you for what you continue to do for this country. i would ask that all members would have five legislative days with which to revise and extend their remarks or add any extraneous materials. without objection, so ordered. with that, commander, this hearing is adjourned. >> thank you, sir. [ applause ]rd to your questions. >> thank you ve

>> this better go through, the va opposing this. why? ld be difficult to recruit the best and brightest to work at the va. i find that argument lud krus. >> the american legion and iraq veterans of americaning. those are strong veterans group. >> the backlog is causing deaths. they are dying waiting for the claim. they have given 80,000 in bon us to va executive when there was four deaths directly accountable to his facility. they hold no one accountable. they transfer them to other facility. taxpayers should not pay for inadequate performance. the veterans must come first by the va. >> you think the republicans in the house pushed it forward? if that is the case does it pass in the senate? will the president sign a measure like this to help the veterans today? >> i will give the president huge bonus points if he signs off on this. it would be the first time government employees would be held responsible. va employees and over 300,000 that do their job. but the executives receiving bon us when there is backlogs and deaths. if you are not

the complete va statement is on msnbc.com. e's more to come on "taking the hill" including that exclusive video from the magic dragons. before that there's some incredible olympic fact to share with you about the men's bobsled team. you're watching "taking the hill" on msnbc. you want to save some time? the next time you rent a dvd don't bother rewinding it. the way i see it it's the next guy's problem. oh, larry. she thinks i'm crazy. mm-hmm. but would a crazy person save 15% on car insurance in just 15 minutes? [ chuckles ] [ male announcer ] 15 minutes for a quote is crazy. with esurance, 7½ minutes could save you on car insurance. welcome to the modern world. esurance. backed by allstate. click or call. my name is jenny and i quit smoking with chantix. before chantix, i tried to quit probably about five times. it was different than the other times i tried to quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix varenicline is proven to help people quit smoking. it's a non-nicotine pill. chantix reduced my urge to smoke. that

so they have no access to the va hospital yet because their claims haven't been processed. processing centers in my home town. those people are working like crazy to try to get those done. where is the enhancement of taking care of that problem? in other words, what we're trying is symptoms and not the real problem. >> what i was -- what i want to ask you about is, we've been covering on this program the backlog and how it's -- increased expo tent shally since the sequester, that the va is getting farther and farther behind instead of catching up, which it had been doing. i take your point about not expanding benefits and dealing with the backlog. i'm saying that congress has not made it easier to deal with the backlog. let me play a recent interview we did with paul rycroft and ask you to respond on the other side. >> we need congress to pick up this cause again, 400,000 vets shouldn't have to wait for paperwork. i think it underscores how far we have to go before we can honestly say we support the troops. when it comes to all of these political fights, veterans groups, an

the backlog. former marine and va employee says they get 3,000 requests every month. nths they have about 13,000 backlogged exam requests. the wait list accounted against their efficiency levels. so he alleges the hospital would cancel older requests, destroy the files and now the daily caller has obtained audio to back up that claim, listen. >> i'm still taking orders. >> should be cancelled? >> cancelled. >> it's just a matter of getting in there and cancelling them ourselves. >> the female voice goes on to say, those patients may have gotten treatment elsewhere. the ig sent the complaint back to the va hospital, he sent a letter to congress, and a few months later he was fired. leaders did purge some of those requests, but still were treating those who needed it, and the whistle-blower's contention is, you cannot treat those who need it because their files have been destroyed. we tried to contact the va several times today, they did not call us back. >>> joining me now with reaction, fox news contributor, and ceo of concerned veterans for america. i don't understand

>> well, i've been at the va for seven years and i have to tell you that the va is not very confidenting these projects. having these projects for many years and it doesn't have good staff and frankly it rushes this stuff out. we are making sure that it's beta tested and even the system. gerri: one of the most shocking stories that we alluded to is veterans are lobbying, they are seeing other people's personal information. so how can the government even say that that is the evitable? what are they doing to fix this? that seems to be a real problem. >> it is extremely troubling. no one is being demoted that we know a. and yes, it is not only health care information that other people can find out. but it is social security numbers and your financial data and your family information and they can be hacked into and that is not just the 3.2 million users by the family members. gerri: blasting the d.a. department, calling the backlog on the website a national embarrassment. we are spending all this money on i.t. we can't get it he benefits website right and we can't even get the va benefits

it couldn't come from me at the va. so i applied for this health policy fellowship to see if there was any way to influence thinking about disability benefits to people with mental illness and especially to people with addiction problems. c-span: now when did you get to san francisco? >> guest: i never was in san francisco. c-span: oh, i thought i read in your book that you were in--you did something out there. >> guest: no, i didn't. actually, a book reviewer--another reviewer misinterpreted that as well, so maybe it wasn't written that clearly in the book. what i was referring to--i never was in san francisco, but what i was referring to was actually one of my first encounters with what i call politically correct medicine. c-span: oh, ok. >> guest: and it was about something going on at san francisco general hospital. c-span: how did you find that--how did you come in contact with it? >> guest: i found out about it because a colleague of mine had been in a meeting sponsored by the american psychiatric association. and

. >> veterans stuck waiting months now for claims processed at the va because of thbacklog. they found a way to speed things up. destroy the documents. >> she tries to get to the hospital but her baby doesn't wait. we will show you how complete strangers helped one woman give birth right on the streets of new york city. >> it is tuesday february 25th. krip peming cuts a put american lives at risk. major cuts it our military spending. >> president obama continues to tout the obamacare numbers. can you believe everything that you hear? >> making stuff up in order to make the news. they have to say something. when you have the majority of the american people. >> why the numbers aren't adding up. >> we will tell you how two police officers saved a man's life on the side of the road. fox and friends first starts right now. ♪ >> good morning to you. it is tuesday december 25th. it is still dark out there. >> good morning to you. >> i am ainsley earhardt. >> i am heather nauert in for heather childers. we have a lot to talk about. deep budget cuts announced by defense secretary chuc

. >> big stories overseas >> and why would the va destroy patient records? here about the bombshell tape that might prove that. >> and eric holder saying cou count counterparts can ignore laws that they think discriminate >> and a treasure discovered and how one couple is about $10 million richer >> what is that shiny thing over there? >> pick it up and take it home. >> unbelievable. when you have diabetes like i do, you want a way to help minimize blood sugar spikes. support heart health. and your immune system. now there's new glucerna advance discripp discrim gnnature discriminate >> asian airlines hit with a fine for their deadly crash in san francisco saying it took up to five day for the airlines to contact passenger's families and provide other services required by law. the bowing 57 clipped the sea wall and slammed into the run way. the cause of the crash is still under investigation. >>> eric holder telling a gathering of state attorney generals they don't have to defend laws they think are wrong and that would include bans on gay marriage. holder's

there's tremendous pressure on the va right now. apses this department is making to try to cover up, you know, their gross incompetence. >> and this is out in los angeles. there's no idea if it's happening anywhere else. did you contact them to get their side of the story? >> i did. they declined to comment. since then, other outlets have contacted them. they still have not made any statement. a congressman has written them a letter and tried to get a statement. they still have not said anything. >> what is so ridiculously stupid and shows gross incompetence is it's not hike these people go away. they're going to say, where are my claim? then they're going to have to process the claims again. it's not like they're helping their cause. >> exactly. and these are veterans who still needed those exams. they still needed help from this medical center. but it didn't matter. the only thing that mattered was the politics of the situation and getting that backlog down to make the department look gad. >> this is out of control. as far as i can

the va in more hot water for using extreme tactics to try and fix the backlog. and next the turmoil at the world's biggest bonn fund putting your money at risk. should you still invest with pimco? we'll talk all about it. stay with us. ♪ in the new new york, we don't back down. we only ow one direction: up so we're up early. up late. thinking up game-cnging ideas, likehis: dozens of x free zones across nework stat move here. expand here. start a new business here... and pay no taxes for 10 years. with new jobs, w opportunities and a new tax free plan. ere's only one way for your business to go. up. find out if your business can qualify at start-upny.com gerri: the real reason behind the pimco ceo's resignation and what it means for your money, all coming up next in 603 seconds. gerri: now we wanted to bring you the latest developments on the story we broke here last night. things got heated today on capitol hill as senators lashed out at federal prosecutors for failing to go after swiss banks that helped americans dodge taxes. of the senate subcommittee. >> taxe

that have not been dealt with at the va.united states and 22 veterans commit suicide every day. what is the thinking right now on how much is being done to help veterans? are you satisfied with the direction the country is going? >> what we have to do collectively as a nation is to understand how to direct that attention and heart. how do we have this conversation that is difficult for our families to have? we can do a much better job. >> i would think more of a nuanced message would be a good place to start. >> absolutely. >> thank you both. >>> coming up, the home of scorpion eating governor. that's next. [ woman ] ring. ring. progresso. i just served my mother-in-law your chicken noodle soup but she loved it so much... i told her it was homemade. everyone tells a little white lie now and then. but now she wants my recipe [ clears his throat ] [ softly ] she's right behind me isn't she? [ male announcer ] progresso. you gotta taste this soup. there was a boy who traveled to a faraway place [ clears his throat ] [ softly ]

saying he was beaten and tortured and how is the government responding to all of this, daughtering the va didly of those claims? >> they are doubting the validity of those claims and have issued an arrest warrant against him. he's a prominent activist and leading the demonstrations and then disappeared ten days ago and found bloodied and beaten and said he was tortured by men he couldn't identify and saying they had russian accents. the opposition supporters are saying they are harassed here and around the country and the security forces, the ministry is saying they have to investigate the claims to make sure they are true and not, it wasn't made up designed to inflame the situation here and there is a standoff at the hospital there and ready to interrogate and arrest him and with his supporters protecting him. we have heard from german authorities that they are willing to take him to germany for treatment and calling it aridiculous for the government to arrest him. >> thank you, jennifer. >> and a gun battle between supporters and opponents of thailand's government wounded three people i

a simple phone call put them in touch with a trained professional from the va. of or are a veteran in need, make the call. >>> this guy decided a trip a ecuador was just what the doctor prescribed, not just that he got into one of the really cool zip line flights, a canopy flight and, of course, took his go pro with him to capture the magnificent view for that flight. >> like superman. i love it. >> it's different than a normal zip line because your legs are also back. >> or you are not hanging from this way so you are hanging like this. >> i love that he took the go pro but it's a tough call because i would feel like automatic, you want to go. >> yeah, it's a relatively short flight, but absolutely spectacular. you can tell he's having a great time. he gets to the end of the line very quickly and they slow him down, but, wow, what a phenomenal experience. ♪ >>> black bear cubs. ♪ ♪ >>> when you see what this little boy is doing, you won't be surprised why this video is going viral. he's standing behind this camel. the camel is urinating and the little boy is not

. >> a special early valentine's day at the va hospital. students sent 3,000 vat len tiens to veterans >> jackie speier says she was inspired by ann landers encouraging readers to send cars to veterans every valentine's day. that is a nice thing to do >> and valentine's day came early for penguin enclosure at golden gate park. >> biologists passed out heart-shaped valentines to the pengiuns, they seemed appreciative. >> they usually shred them, using sort materials to plump up the nest. >> that often encourages couples to breed. hidden agenda. >> who doesn't like a new bed. right? >> from all of us here, thanks >>> welcome to "world news," where right here tonight, millions of americans are battling the fast, furious and frozen finale of a record-breaking storm. ice falling like missiles. firefighters barely able to see the flames. drivers stranded in their cars. and 500,000 americans without power on a dark and stormy night. >>> american outrage. 65 of the most dangerous men in the world, freed from prison in afghanistan. why? >>> your cab

the ruling states the va must also respect same-sex marriages that took place on mother's day. >> a memo confirms that the unidentified. >> also keeping federal inspectors at the u.s.-mexico border on their toes. inspectors near san diego are making sure there are no pets along for the ride. they expect to review 19 million valentine's flowers. on the coast however the storm is causing some problems for flores. some flower shops are forced to close. others pushed back orders. industry experts say nearly 67 million flower orders are now at risk. do not dismay. >> in his study for asthma sufferers. the best way to safely reduce medication. big changes coming to outdoor clothing store at the dollar. the original winners of search for the next food network star >> we're learning about their new restaurant. >> bingo! >> it's a shame sadie isn't here today wins. she always coulda won the big prize. >> you know, that coulded her with some of jim's f have helps.uneral expense >> there wasn't any >>life insurance? no, there wasn't. i'd been trying to convince her to call penn progra about the col

. >> make sure that you are involved in the various pieces of it because the va gives you that oversight responsibility. >> sure and, we are hopeful that with these annual compliance checks that that will absolutely get tied in, that is where our role really is, solidified is making sure on an annual basis that they are in compliance and it is not the most sufficient use of our staff times and have the folks that are not experts in health involved in the day-to-day discussions with the health department for example, and the workforce piece but at a high level we are staying engaged in the city counter parts to make sure that all of the components are being met and all of the obligations. >> and it would be good to have the information about when that visioning process will start by cpmc and just to have more of this specifics of when it is supposed to start. >> okay. >> sure. >> those will be due in may or june of this year. >> so that sounds like it is really soon. and cpmc is responsible for that >> yeah. >> and then, planning overseas to make sure that they are doing that. >> we are n

vas. you say vase in a art museum. what is the most expensive thing that you have broken? inking about it. you have a lot of choices here. >> for a good one. >> i say vase and you say -- >> vas. vas. ♪ >>> all right, standing by is gretchen carlsson on the real story in a matter of the moments. and we'll give her another moment. that is!%n coming up from 15 minutes from nuchlt>>> in the meantime a new plan to create a national license plate database. allow immigration officials to snap a photo and see if they get a hit. cathrein is back with us today. >> this program came to light after a notice was posted seeking a government contractor to build a license plate database. the automated technology was developed to track stolen cars. the cameras simply take a photo of the vehicle plate and turn that image in data to be stored indefinitely. the homeland security program is being developed in secret. >> the dhs program is developed under the radar. we know incidentally through a purchasing request that dhs is intending to use the devices and the public doesn't have information

anybody who slips and falls on the ice in front of the va government can sue the government.should be allowed to get justice for their son. >> thank you for coming in today. >> thank you. >> only days ago, we saw unbelievable pictures out of a american major city shut down. this is atlanta then. >> now, conditions are ripe for another nasty storm. what many people can expect as officials are sounding the alarm earlier. i heard about progressive's "name your price" tool? i guess you can tell them how much you want to pay and it gives you a range of options to choose from. huh? i'm looking at it right now. oh, yeah? yeah. what's the... guest room situation? the "name your price" tool, making the world a little more progressive. >>> all right. fox's weather alert. the governor of georgia already declaring a state of emergency as the southeast gets ready for another round of winter weather. remember what two weeks ago looked like? they've been warned. >> yes. >> again. now what's the expectation? >> this one could be crippling. a way bigger event than what we saw two weeks ago. b

it's an expansion of the va caregiver program for at-home care for wounded veterans. it extends the eligibility for in-state tuition under the g.i. bill so that it loosens the in-state to residential requirements so veterans who are in a state going to a public college receives in-state tuition as long as they are living there and attending school. it authorizes i believe 27 medical facility in 18 states along with puerto rico and among the other things it does is it finishes off the repeal of the one percentage cost of living reduction that congress has been chipping away at over the last couple of months included in the ryan murray budget deal. >> it's a bill that's been on the senate floor for a couple of days so what was the roadblock that it hit? >> well there were a number of things and what eventually stopped it in its tracks was there was a budget point of order made by the jeff sessions on the budget committee and basically because fiscal year 2014 that we are in right now, it increased budget authority by 261 million. that's over the ryan murray budget that c

less isolated and sol dare confinement, the vas majority live in two man cells. avoiding a volatile mix of cell mates is a constant challenge. >> we tried to not put people doing life with people that go home next year or blacks with whites or white su premise with someone that might be a child molestation case. >> conflicts can still a rise among cell mates. >> there's an assault. a guy has received injuries to facial and head area. at this point he's saying he's had a seizurseizurizurseizure. we're going to talk to him and see what he can find out from him and if he's willing to talk at all. >> the victim is serving a 29 year sentence for burglary. >> what's up with you man? stay laying down if you want to. what happened to you, man? >> i fell. >> where? >> in my cell. >> did you get dizzy? >> yeah. >> did you have a seizure? >> i don't remember. >> have you fell like this before since you've been here? >> no. >> first time? >> yeah. >> have my medical conditions that would make you fall? >> no. >> did you trip over something? >> i don't remember. >> somebody h

she was a pain specialist at the va hospital in kansas city. >> veterans have their own set of issues they are given narcotics generously. and that's increasing and increasing and increasing. then we have a problem. >> reporter: the veteran's health administration said they are starting a program called the opiate safety initiative using many of the same recommendations pain experts have talked about for years. including acupuncture and yoga. those have had great success in treating pain. >> these are pretty new ideas. we owe it to them to find ways to treat their pain. i'm here it say we are working on that. >> all sides agree veterans paid a high price. their pain is real. the v.a. now insists they found a new pain management plan they say works. they point to the success of test sites in plaips, for -- minneapolis, for example, the v.a. says highly addictive pain killers dropped by more than 50%. we will see if that can work nationally. byron pitts, abc news, washington. >> part of the problem is that doctors in this piece say that if the patient continues to complain they are stil

the va funding that's been in place for the last few years?hope congress quite frankly learned a lesson. >> people are bringing it to everyone's attention. you know what a passionate cause the death benefit issue was during the shutdown, we had five or six troops killed on one weekend and they were not given the death benefit. we turned that around. the next question, what about the backlog? the sequester has cut every department across the board and now the progress that was being made on that ridiculous backlog on claims has just gone back in the other direction. >> that's right, it's stalled since november. you have been great in covering this and we appreciate that. we need everybody to refocus on it. it's stalled. 400,000 vets still stuck in the backlog and washington is not getting it done. the president briefly mentioned it in the state of the union but that wasn't enough. we need concrete action and him personally focused on it and congress to pick up the cause again, 400,000 vets shouldn't have to wait for paperwork. it underscores ho

i told the va i just go off like that. >> i found myself not being able to leave the house, just screamingt, not knowing why and then actually that stays with you, that stress level and then back in the u.s., back in your house, your body is here but your mind is still over there doing missions. >> this is the world war i plaque and world war i soldiers and those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and he is an iraq veteran and taking care of this world war i monument and this is very important because me and bob were vietnam veterans and these guys will be taking care of our monuments when we are gone and it's a brotherhood and the largest fraternity in the world and cannot forget those who came before us. >> what happened over time is they put a layer of paint and have not treated the rust before they put the paint down. it's a just cause we have here, general gentlemen and we it will cost a lot of money and we need lots of meetings but we want to educate other people to pass the torch because we cannot do this forever. >> today i got my first experience and it definitely hit me at a level i

so, using the sour va that is a follow-up to the census, the questions that are used were pretty much right on par as what has been used in the past, the trending is very different in san francisco compared to other communities. >> supervisor mar? >> yes, i nowakly years ago supervisor tom ammiano when he was a supervisor and s-r-o organizations had an s-r-o census, and i'm wondering is that a part of your surveys and your counts as well? >> no, s-r-os are not included. supported inclusive housing is not included in a time count, nor is section 8 part of a point in time count ~. >> thank you for representing. it would be helpful if you don't mind whatever you are presenting on or even follow-up questions, if you wouldn't mind sending that data over, that would be helpful. you can send it to my office. i'll distribute it to my colleague on the board of supervisors. >> great, i'll get together a little abstract for you. >> thank you. colleagues, any further questions at this time? okay, thank you very much. much appreciated. at this point i know [speaker not understood], bash garcia, di

couldn't face join the free fancy free to catch the eye of japanese can see him as that of the pasta company va is the fish are available in sushi restaurants and supermarkets. more than ten kinds of fried fish and now available including them and yellowtail and come close to stitch as front page and industry expats as the new prius could get a boost to japan's fifth comments to a struggling in an overcrowded domestic market. choice among the couple knew the japanese producers are sophisticated when it comes to identifying consumers' needs and takes a lot they're good at developing and supplying the products that best fit the fruit fish is a great example of this the new style fish comments to face such challenges as their relatively high prices and convincing show isn't the ideal of that cried out such obstacles can be overcome. the future notes the state. now i check doesn't know whether people are in southern austria time dealing with heavy snow my show she tells us the latest in a world like that the lining it is our winter wonderland in parts of the year at the bus the straight into a pict

organization is located in san francisco and works directly with grassroots organizations in the philippines. john ail vapeople died, the devastation was incredible. there is a lot of rebuilding to do. the government is slow to react. this is money that will help rebuild the country and get to people, not the government. >> the donations from three days of profits will be an estimated $30,000. >>> well, coming up, we fielded a call that a sane glassed window is missing from a church in san francisco. that church in the tenderloin says it wants to create an oasis and retch fuge in the -- refuge in the crime-ridden area. more at 5:00. >>> thank you for joining us. we're always here for you at ktvu.com. you can also follow us on facebook and twitter. have a good tuesday. elizabeth: medieval adventures featuring knights on horseback, spanish royalty, and fierce competition. that's me, elizabeth. and today i've discovered an awesome medieval adventure with my friends jennifer veal and lucas cruikshank. we're taking a step back in time to the middle ages, where we'll be trained in battle by a fearless knight,

a fire destroyed the building and only the ell va or the shaft is still standing. nobody was hurt.he building was not quite finished when it caught fire, because it was designed to be a senior facility, and the fire investigators say it will be a few days before they know what sparked that fire. >> and when a deck collapsed in southern indiana days before christmas, a family was gather ing for a photo at the party clubhouse and the deck gave way and ip juring several people, and now the family is going to the sue the deck maker who denies liability, because of the age of the deck, and the company has not responded to calls for comments. >>> well, shot three times and stabbed. yesterday, we brought you this story of a bus driver in ohio who is alive of what some may call divine intervention, a nd his life is saved by a pocket-sized devotional. and mark allen has more on the new video now being released. >> dispatch? >> yes. somebody is trying to call me from the sheriff's, and i'm a bus driver on the rpi and i have been stabbed and shot. >> reporter: ricky was shot and stabbed by th

he then diverted the plane from its intended destination of rome to geneva where he claims he was seeking asylum. once landing in jen knee va, the passengers were escorted out with their hands on their heads for security measures. they made a reaching stop in sudan before being diverted to its final destination from rome to switzerland. he surrendered himself to police on landing, lowered himself down from the cockpit by a rope. anne-marie? >> charlie d'agata in london. thank you, charlie. >>> this morning the upper mist is getting whacked with snow from "eye opener" to ohio, snow and freezing rain. winter storm warnings and advisories are posted from da coy ta to michigan. up to six inches of know snu is expected in chicago today. thousands lost power. parts of massachusetts got as much as 15 inches of snow. meteorologists say the unending stream of storms is tied to extreme weather in other parts of the country. >> we've been stuck in pattern that's stuck. if you think of a see saw, one part is up, the other part is up. >>> at the augusta international golf club, one of the iconic trees fell victim to a snowstorm. it was

i have spent the last 20 years trying to get my disability through the va for ptsd. even though it wasn't as severe as it is today, i still have the nightmares and i lost four marriages because of it. when the shoulder injury got so bad that i could no longer be a registered nurse, it was like eating raped over again. -- it was like being raped all over again. now both of my dreams are gone. and i became a shell. to the gentleman -- gentlemen that were sitting at the table before us, i want to tell them that every blind eye they developed, and every death eater they turned -- death eater they turned, they raped me as much as the drill sergeant did that night. to me, being silent isn't enough anymore. in president reagan's words, they counted on the to be passive. they counted wrong. you raped me. and it's time to change. the military has had their time. thank you. >> thank you very much, ms. lee. thank you very much. appreciated hearing from you. >> some of the things that i want you all to take into consideration -- >> sorry, time is up. >> just a few statistics. all

the weekend storm. except t waterfalls are rushing two away from a home in mill va. the homeowner says he was a nervous... when they mov >>> the fresh water falls are among the surprises caused by the weekend storm except these water falls are rushing two feet from way from the home in mill valley, the homeowner said he was a bit nervous when he moved in last year because he didn't know how close they could get and fortunately the rain let up and the water went down. >> and she joins us where people are happy about the flooding and the rain too, right? >> absolutely, and before begin the weather report i want you to listen to this. okay. can you hear it? oh, yeah, that is the sound of water flowing here in the bay area and we have not heard that anytime this winter season. good afternoon, everybody, currently 77 degrees right here at the creek in the north bay where over the past 3 days this area has been smacked with 5 full inches of rain. it was a delunch so i walked and and talked to some of the locals and asked them what they think of it and this is what a couple

if you wondered where the flags from va come from, this is the place. 150 people with vocational disabilitiesg sil wilson. >> gives you lots of money. i feel like $100. >> 15 years ago robert learned not all flags are created equally. those the department of defense used to cover caskets of americans often had imported cotton. >> it's a huge deal least we can do is give them $100 home processed flag. >> last year robert told the congressman passing legislation making american sourcing a requirement. for that reason, the congressman visited today you know how if something bothers you make it an act of congress? sheer man who did. thanks for joining us for abc7 news at 4:00 >> 15 years a sex slave in richmond. >> we started talking. who should pay more in san francisco? >> they sdeefsh to be charged more. >> live on the roof we have drizzle and a warm up in the forecast. detail coming up. >>> a police officer could tell something wasn't right ask tells how he broke the case sim tloor what happened to jaycee dugard. thanks for joining us tonight. high praise for a police officer >> a police offi

found that the numbers of folks who were ill were really kind of getting so large that both the pentagon and vaere having trouble staying ahead of it. the pentagon asked for this report. we've got prevention programs out there, why aren't they working? essentially what this panel at institute of medicine found was that while some of these ideas in theory made a lot of sense, when they were introduced earlier in the war, that there really hadn't been a strong effort by the pentagon and some of the branches to try to understand whether to do some real strong scientific research, whether the programs worked. they found that in fact they hadn't. >> which ideas were they focusing on in their report? >> they looked at kind of -- they built on a rand study that identified about 94 of these programs out there, and they -- from that they kind of focused on some of the key ones. and i think at the top of the list was really kind of the granddaddy of all the programs. that's an army one called comprehensive soldier fitness. it's now called comprehensive soldier and family fitness. it costs quite a lot of

so what -- the american legion goes around to the various va's to make sure the benefits are being receivedat happened in seattle? >> correct, they went to seattle to review the benefits process, something they have been doing for 15 years, they were are obstructed. we were not able to do the work they have been doing for a long time. now, seattle, the department has had problems. they have a wait time over 300 days just to get a response, there is 2500 veterans in seattle just waiting. and the department is overwhelmed, their backs are against the wall. they're pushing back trying to expose anybody to the fact that the back log is not getting better and they're still failing veterans. >> there was an e-mail from the department. from the under-secretary, saying i can't support these trips from the american legion into the seattle office. she didn't let them come in. the american legion that services vets says this is outrageous. now congress is saying we'll have a member of our team go with the american legion to make sure the vets are protected. what is the administration doing to make sur

i went to the head of the women's department at the houston va because i was having depression, nightmares. i can't even begin to describe the things. i was informed there were no programs to help me. she recommended i go to aa meetings. i do not drink. i did not drink. but that was the help of that was offered, a a meeting this. i did not speak again until september of 2012 when i was sitting in my room with a gun to my head. i couldn't take the pain anymore. my husband cannot walk up behind me and hugged me without giving me whining because i startle. he is currently a contractor in afghanistan. when he is gone i sleep with a loaded gun on the pillow next to me. i spent three years in my home. i could not leave. i had a teenage son who became my chauffeur when my husband was gone. this child spent his young adult day is driving me back and forth to doctors' appointments, psychiatrists, grocery shopping because i couldn't be out in public. for the panel that said before me a few minutes ago i would like to say is this. there is one major factor that has been overlooked. from the very day

and it could be the health care law, it could be the va, it could be the department of agriculture, it could be a whole host of things. what mandate do we have on the federal government that is my information at whatever department has been compromised somebody will let me note that? >> you mean, what laws govern the federal government's collection of information? >> yes. >> there are a number of laws that require data security among federal government agencies, as well as breach notification. i'm not completely familiar with the details of all of those, but i know that if any breach happens in my bureau, that, who we are supposed to report your. >> do you know of any breach notification requirements in the health care won't? >> are not familiar with all the details of health care law, but i did want to add on the point you were making about eastern europe, because there's always going to be criminals and they may be coming from countries where there's very difficult to trace, that's one this partnership is a joint effort among different approaches and different agencies, we can't disc