maryland has been that they big endorsement in his bid for the senate seat held by the retiring barbara mikulski. maryland bureau chief brad bell explains why prince george's county executive or sean baker is throwing her support behind him. >> i am supporting chris van hollen as the next senator for the state of maryland because he will fight for prince george's county. brad: baker without announcement surprise some, who thought he would support another person running for the seat from prince george's county for stop baker says he is and forcing the best candidate. >> i'm endorsing a person who understands prince george's county. : brad baker says that race is not his primary concern. >> i know it is in the best interest of the county and state. brad: ike leggett speaks of his history in the civil rights movement and says that van hollen shares his values. >>'s leadership on all these issues we fought for his impeccable. brad: van hollen already has a huge fundraising lead in this will make raising more campaign money easier. van hollen: i'm grateful for the incredible work these leaders do eve

barbara mikulski, maryland, 2013.politics is a noble profession. i am enormously mindful every day of my life at the greatest public honor of one's life is service in the senate. it is for me. i always think the greatest contribution i will have made will have been my children. the greatest public honor will be service in the senate representing massachusetts, the state i love, which is playing an extraordinary role in this nation. from the revolution of this country, to its members being involved in the constitutional convention, to the strong support by the abolitionists and lending slavery. the support for the suffragettes. by late leadership. by republicans and democrats. the people of massachusetts have a high standard for progress to be made by the representatives. it is one that challenges all of us each day. senator edward m kennedy. [applause] vice president biden: now that we have heard from our past let's make a pledge for our future. i invite everyone on the floor and in the gallery to please stand and joi

congressman van hollen hit the ground running just two days after senator barbara mikulski announced her retirement last month. the montgomery county democrat has raised more than $2.5 million so far in what is expected to be a hotly contested race in 2016. rushern baker's endorsement today significant. baker is one of the most high profile african-american leaders in maryland and his backing of van hollen follows another black county endorsement ike leggett. baker supports van hollen for what he's done for the community and no better example than this one here, this community center built solely because of the support of chris van hollen. what is more vanity is who rushern -- more significant is who rushern baker is not supporting. he's not supporting the hometown candidate donna edwards would lives in oxon hill. find out why at 6:30. back to you in the studio. >> all right, delia, thank you at colmar manor this morning. >>> one last chance to hear from the candidates running for the late marion barry's ward 8 council seat. the final forum takes place today at noon. it will be held

alison: van hollen is vying for the seat when barbara mikulski retires. brad bell shows us sch one is supporting van hollen. >> he's going to fight for prince george's county. brad: with that announcement, rushern baker surprised some who imagined his support would go to the fellow prince georgian donna edwards and her run to replace retiring senator barbara mikulski and not van hollen who is from montgomery county. baker says he's simply endorsing the best candidate. >> i'm endorsing a person that understands prince george's county. brad: as for the role race plays in his decision baker says it's not his primary concern. >> i know it's in the best interest of the county and the state. brad: montgomery county executive, a van hollen supporter as well on hand for today's announcement speaks of his history in the civil rights movement and he says van hollen shares his values. >> his leadership on all of the issues that we have fought for is impeccable. brad: for van hollen the value is immense. he has a huge fundraising lead and this will make raising more

she and van hollen are both running to replace barbara mikulski who is retiring the end of her term. >>> now to washington d.c. where the campaign 2015 special election is in the homestretch. the voters in wards 4 and 8 will cast their ballots to fill the seats once held by muriel bowser in 4 and the late marion barry in 8. the folks running for his seat took part in a forum sponsored by aarp. the candidates were asked to be ready to talk affordable housing, prescription drugs, long term and home healthcare. transportation solutions for ward 8 were on the table. special election day is april 28th. the early voting kicks in april 13th. to learn where and when to cast your ballots, you can go to our website www.wusa9.com. check out the voter guide. >>> there's new information related to the murder of a lawyer at the donovan house hotel in northwest d.c. d.c. police arrested 19-year-old domonique johnson in connection with the case charging her with conspiracy. this is their second arrest. last week they charged 21-year- old jamyra gallmon. she's seen on this surveillance footage. she t

van hollen is running in the democratic primary to succeed the senator barbara mikulski. she's retiring after 40 years in congress. baker said he's known van hollen for decades and trusts his judgment and leadership. >> i'm endorsing a person that understands prince george's county. maureen: congresswoman donna edwards is the only other declared candidate in the democratic primary. other members of maryland's congressional delegation are also considering senate bids. a teachers union in maryland is urging lawmakers to reject a tax credit. the proposed credit backed by governor hogan would help businesses that support private school students. the president of the maryland senate -- rather the maryland state education association calls the break a vulture scheme. hogan initially pulled back on money for education and state employee pay to address a budget deficit. fairfax county residents got their first chance to comment on school funding at a public hearing today. supervisors are reviewing the 2016 budget passed by the school board in february. the $2.7 billion budget is

he is running for the senate seat now held by barbara mikulski who is retiring. he's raised more than a million dollars for that campaign. autria: firefighters are looking for what caused a massive fire at a six-story building in los angeles. 170 firefighters swarmed to the office building as flames engulfed the top floors. crews were able to rescue a couple that was trapped inside. one firefighter was treated for nonlife threatening injuries. still ahead here on abc 7 news at noon, poisoned while on vacation. why the e.p.a. now says a delaware family may not be the only victims. jummy: new parking rules in effect this year for nationals park. what you need to know how to avoid a ticket. autria: how students in d.c. can get college credit from howard university completely free! jummy: and doug hill tracking a few storms as we get closer to the weekend. when they'll get here and if they'll impact the cherry blossom festival. his forecast next. jummy: we are following new details about that family poisoned during the spring break in the caribbean. as the family's t

senate, barbara mikulski who served retirement a couple of months ago. consist executive baker was also joined by the county executive from montgomery county ike leggett, also an african-american man who said van hollen's record on racial and inclusion issues is, quote, impeccable. baker again underlined today his personal relationship with van hollen that goes all the way back to his days in the maryland general assembly for this endorsement today but it's definitely raised a lot of eyebrows here in prince george's county. reporting live in colmar manor, scott broom, wusa9. >> scott, thank you. >>> at this hour, a forum is getting under way between the ward 8 d.c. council candidates at covenant baptist church on south capitol street. they're running in a special election to replace the late marion barry. this is their final meeting before early voting begins next monday. you can check out profiles of the d.c. council candidates on our wusa9 news app. election day is april 28. >>> in less than an hour, emotions -- a motions hearing begins in the case of

van hollen is running for barbara mikulski's senate seat who is retiring. he's already raised more than $1 million for his campaign. >>> to the second city that voted for a second term and a second chance. >> that is chicago mayor rahm emanuel after winning a second term after an up expectedly tough campaign. he has faced several opposition from several unions and criticism over high school brash style. in the end, he brought in 55% of the vote p. >>> 4:31 our time. and a few sprinkles to deal with out there this morning. >> let's check in with chuck bell to find out if we'll have rain all day. chuck, good morning. >> won't be an all day rain event, but it will be an all day clouds and moisture kind of a thing. most of the rain has really stacked up here in the front part of the day between now and 9:00 this morning. that doesn't mean we'll have much improvement this morning. this little area of moderate rain this is the soggy wednesday morning commute that we'll be facing. already some briefly moderate rain out here new bluemont moving into far western lou

this is to fill the vacant senate seat by barbara mikulski. a lot of eyes and ears on this. van hollen and baker go back more than 20 years to the time that they had in the maryland houts house of delegates in the early 1990s. baker says those experiences weigh heavily in this decision. he had edwards has gained a lot of report from national log sieves. if edwards or any other affairen can american wins this race, they will make history in the state of maryland. baker says his decision is rooted in the best candidate that he feels can provide leadership and get things done specifically if folks in prince george's county. back to you in the studio. >> zachary, thank you. >>> if you live in prince george's county executive baker is also proposing several tax increases. according to the "washington post," county businesses are opposing the plan here. the paper says some business leaders are even going as far as writing up an alternative tax plan. property taxes are among the taxes that could increase by as much as 15% there. >>> 6:33 now. new information now. a federal judge is

they are both running to fill the seat left by retiring senator barbara mikulski. edwards represents a lot of prince george's county. >>> i'm angie goff at the live desk. an american soldier is dead after an afghan soldier opens fire on troops in afghanistan. now, the attacker was shot and killed but two other americans were also wounded. now, this happened in the city of jalalabad, as u.s. delegation that included the ambassador to afghanistan. michael mckinley were leaving the governor's compound. no one in that specific group was hurt knop word. no word on a motive. back to you. >> thanks angie. >>> today, transportation leaders from across the region will meet to set up a commission to oversee metro safety. this follows metro underground emergency that killed one woman at l'enfant plaza in january. representatives from the district maryland and virginia meet at noon. many called for an independent safety commission for several years. now the commission is a step closer to becoming reality. >>> and right now two unrelated power outage updates for you. the most r

senate seat vacated by the retiring barbara mikulski. >> or do i spend my time raising hell? >> reporter: the longest serving woman in u.s. congress history. lots of women here would like to see the arc of history continue with another woman in the senate. >> because females rule. >> i thought definitely he would go with edwards. >> reporter: many others would like to see more history with the first african american to be an american senator. that would make donna edwards the easy doris. for baker to make, but the county -- endorsement for baker to make, but the county executive specially close to van hollen. >> the ranking member on the budget committee is a very important thing for us in the state and county. i know he'll do the same thing on the senate side. it was an easy decision in this respect that i don't know him as a name, a congressman. i know him personally and i know the working relationship. >> reporter: montgomery county executive ike leggett backed baker up today saying van hollen's record on diversity is beyond question. the edwards campaign released a statem

he's weighing a run for senator barbara mikulski's seat. congressman chris van on hollen and congressman donna edwards have already declared for that race. >>> tim kaine will meet students on a robotics term in leesburg and the final stop at a bilingual culinary job training program in arlington. today's local events are part after five-day tour he's on to talk about trade and economic development. >>> it's 6:28. we want to take a look outside. it doesn't look so bad. allyson isn't sphon for the -- responsible for the rain. she's just accurate in forecasting. >> doesn't sound like a good one. >> it's not too bad. it's just hard to beat yesterday. yesterday was so great. >> those april showers bring? >> mayflowers. >> hopefully cherry blossoms. that's what my dad told me. >> we're still on target to get to the peak of cherry blossoms. good news for the weekend. we are going to see a lot of sunshine. it will be a little cooler than yesterday but we are in store for a good one. here's what we're looking at to start off your monday for your tue

today he endorsed congressman chris van hollen for senator barbara mikulski's seat.e upset that baker did not people a constituent interest his own county congresswoman donna edwards. baker and van holland served together in the maryland house of delegates in the 1990s. >> i regularly endorse people that i know personally that i trust personally, that i've work worked w. i think he's the type of person that's going to go in there and be the type of senator we've seen senator mikulski be. >> i've known donna edwards for over probably 15 years. i know she done a lot for the county. i would support her. i don't know why mr. baker doesn't feel he needs to support her. >> montgomery county supervisor isaiah leggitt has supported van holland. if elected edwards would be the first african-american senator from mare march. >>> a new call for help to catch the vandals who sprayed hate messages on a synagogue. >>> safety changes coming to metro a . >>> people who live in a montgomery county community are being asked to check their security cameras. detectives are hoping that s

the prince george's county county council are backing congresswoman donna edwards running for barbara mikulski's seat. congressman chris van hollen is also running for the seat. he's been endorsed by the entire county council and one prince george's county member. the biggest surprise was that prince george's county executive rushern baker also endorsed van hollen and not edwards who livers in the county. >>> the national park service has a new plan to get younger people to visit the jefferson memorial. you are looking live now at the jefferson this morning. a new interactive kiosk is being installed today where visitors can share their stories about their favorite national parks. it's part of the park service's find your park campaign. the goal is to encourage people to learn about the hundreds of national parks across the country. >>> 6:36. we want to congratulate roxann manley from bowie, maryland. you are our facebook fan of the day. she says, i can't start my day without wusa9 and i can't sleep when i've missed wusa9 at 11:00 p.m. >> that is impressive. roxonn, a little thank you there from

. >> when you think it was almost double away with, we have to thank maryland senator barbara mikulski for her love of space and keeping hub him alive as well. >>> -- hubble alive as well. >>> prince george's county recognizes its teacher of the year. >> why some n.f.l. players say the concussion settlement is not enough. >> we are starting off chilly. temperatures are into the 30s, near 40 as you head to college park and d.c. but factor in the wind, it feels below freezing. also i'm talking about rain for the weekend. keep it right here. your full fo >>> 6:17. we're talking about a double whammy, at least for part of the weekend. umbrella and jacket? >>it's not that bad. it will be cool. the sun returns so that will make it feel a little bit better. a little bit of patchy fog first thing tomorrow morning. not too widespread and we are tracking a little rain for saturday into sunday. we are looking at temperatures staying below average for a while. take a look at how we're starting off on your michael & son's camera. it is going to be a gorgeous looking day with the sun returning. anot

. >>> maryland senator barbara mikulski and local baltimore leaders say they welcome the justice department opening a criminal investigation into the death of 25-year-old freddie gray. he's the man who suffered a fatal spinal injury while in baltimore city police custody. >> they're opening that investigation into whether police violated freddie gray's civil rights back on april 12 during his arrest. delia goncalves has been following this all morning long. where do we stand in this case? >> reporter: folks in west baltimore and beyond are demanding answers and the d.o.j. promises to deliver those answers in their investigation. they officially announced just yesterday. but they have been looking into police policy in baltimore city since october. residents telling them this is a state of emergency. >> reporter: like all of america, the justice department was watching this disturbing cell phone video and now the d.o.j. is investigating the arrest and death of baltimore's freddie gray. >> we want answers, justice. we want them to be charged. >> reporter: police released the names of the offi

the nine members of the prince george's county council say they support her as she runs for barbara mikulski's seat. edwards represents parts of prince george's and anne arundel counties. she and representative chris van holland are both vying for the democratic nomination. >>> a judge is refusing to stop a virginia woman's college from closing the doors. sweet briar announced it was closing last month. yesterday, a judge refused to stand in the way but he did issue an injunction. it forbids the college from spending charitable contributions on the closure for 60 days an appeal is expected by opponents. >>> you may soon be able to buy a beer at the university of maryland during sporting events. the university is considering allowing alcohol during football season. the idea stemmed from the student proposal. under the plan only a certain number of drinks could be purchased at a time and sales would stop before the end of the football or the basketball game. the university preside has the final say on whether or not to allow the plan. >>> if you're planning to go to nats games tonight, it's blac

and i've said when i came to the senate it was barbara mikulski, she was it.m maryland. but now we have lots of senators and i've said and i repeat here on your show, the senate is a better place because of women. men and women are different. >> i'm so happy, gratified that we have women who lead the committees. i mean we had feinstein, head of intelligence works for environment public works. patty murray budget. she's going to label hhs. maria cantwell, small business. on and on with the women who are just so dynamic and prior to mikulski, and i can be here they weren't around. so the answer is yes. the country is ready for a woman to be president of the united states and of course the senate's ready for a woman being -- it's just a question of time until they will replace reid and schumer, there will be leaders that come from the ranks of women who serve so adequately here in the senate. >> in terms of -- i guess in terms of women and men being different and female and male Ñbsh senators vrg having different styles, you said something to my colleague john ha

when the prince georges county executivendorsed the montgomery county candidate for senator barbara mikulski'seat congressman chris van hollen. a blackout that kind of made us realize something in charles county controls downtown d.c. which is interesting. teachers in fairfax county say i should move over to arlington and make another $20,000. i can't afford to teach the wealthiest counties. baker endorsing van hollen. throw it out there on the table. >> i throughout it mattered. and in terms of what it looked like they hold a press conference where sharon baker is standing there, county chair council executive from montgomery county is standing there. he's got two of the big counties right there saying we're behind him. now, i do understand it's early, and we do know front-runners can stumble along the way. but van hollen is building up backers. he's building up a war chest, and he definitely at this point looks like the candidate to beat. will voters follow baker? don't know. for van hollen looks good. >> some people are critical that you're supporting the white guy and not supporting donna

he is currently in the process for running for barbara mikulski's seat.ndpoint, what's happening here in baltimore. >> thomas first and foremost our hearts and prayers have gone out to the people of baltimore during this very difficult time. i've been in touch to let them know we stand with them in the quest for justice and in the quest for peace and stand by and ready to provide any help and assistance that we can at this time and then as you've indicated we also need to use this as a moment. once we get to the bottom of what happened in a transparent way and hold people accountable, we need to have a conversation and we need to have action to begin to address the underlying issues here that led to the tragedy in baltimore city but also tragedies we've seen elsewhere around the country. >> this is a coast to coast issue and this morning in new york hillary clinton gave a speech on criminal justice reform in america and certainly condemned the violence in baltimore and called for the use of body cameras. take a listen. >> there's something wrong when a th