thoughts on the seth macfarlane's pickup line with michelle? >> i don't know seth macfarlane and what he was thinking about. my good friend alan alda, had an electric car over 15 years ago before it was okay for everybody to get into this. so my experience has been that the people, most of the people i know are in favor of the pipeline because it's going to create jobs and if you don't do it here, it's going to go through canada and the chinese are going to get it. it's crazy. it's nuts. because nobody really analyzes it, just talks about it as an environmental thing and don't realize what they're saying. >> juan, seth macfarlane, his big beef, the gop was trying to push the keystone pipeline. we now know in hindsight the democrats actually got the senate to vote on the keystone pipeline. mary landrieu pushed that and got her vote. seth macfarlane, a little hypocritical in that respect, too. >> i think so. but first of all, we're missing the news here. seth mk faacfarlane has good ta >> she just said, keystone pipeline guys, don't bother. >> i

. >>> next, remarks by allison ma macf macfarlane. she spoke about the agency's mission and what lies ahead. this is an hour. >>> good afternoon and welcome. my name is myron belkind. the national press club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists committed to our profession's future through our programming with events such as this while fostering a free press worldwide. for more information about the national press club, please visit our website at press.org. on behalf of our members worldwide, i would like to welcome our speaker and those of you attending today's event. our head table includes guests of our speak r and working journalists who are club member. members of the general public are attending, so it's not necessarily evidence of a lack of journalistic objectivity. i would also like to welcome our c-span and public radio audiences and you can follow the action on twitter using the #npclunch. after our guest's speech concludes, we'll have a question and answer period. i'll ask as many questions as ti

. >> this week scott macfarlane reported an executive remains on the job despite barhopping in a government and getting behind the wheel before a colleague fell out and died. as scott reports tonight, top brass at the agency say the i-team's findings are disturbing. >> reporter: he admitted drinking and driving a government truck with two department of veterans' affairs colleagues in a business trip to dallas. one was annette berry's daughter, amy wheat, who fell from the truck and died. >> she was the love of my life, my only child. >> reporter: he was arrested but not prosecuted. police gave him a breathalyzer six hours after the incident. he would resign months later but the i-team found the v.a. soon rehired him to a six-figure job and the agency quickly realized it made a mistake in doing so. staging an emergency meeting in d.c. and eventually saying the process of rehiring wasn't thorough and deeply regrettable. in a draft memo from the meeting, it reveals he didn't check a key box asking if he ever resigned from the agency under unfavorable circumstances. we tracked down the agency's

scott macfarlane, news4 i-team. >> you can review the i-team's findings about concussions on our websiteashington.com. click on investigations. >>> johns hopkins university honored suzanne roberts today for her incredible donation to the school center for american indian health. suzanne roberts, wife of comcast cofounder, ralph roberts, donated $1 million to the center. it will establish the suzanne roberts native american dream fund. she has been recognized for her work with native american children and recalls volunteering with a navaho community as a defining point in her life. she said it's her goal that every child has a chance at the american dream. >>> he's doing more than just helping his team score baskets or points. we'll tell you why this basketball coach threw on an apron and started serving up pizza. >>> imagine your home and car gone in an instant. now the woman who experienced it is sharing her harrowing story. >>> storm team 4 is tracking a winter-like weekend. >> that's right. and in just about an hour or two, our temperatures will be back down into the 30s. how about 30

scott macfarlane has our report. >> the v.a.'p administrator stopped down this spring, you'll recall. our review of agency health records this veterans day finds wait times are stubborn and not yet dropping locally. for mental health care in particular. for new patients needing mental health appointments, the average wait time is still 37 days. same as it was in june. average wait time unchanged in maryland, too. and in martinsburg, west virginia, the i-team found the wait doubled since june. the v.a.'s new secretary today pledging a reorganization and new customer service employees to streamline how this massive agency handles veterans nationwide, including, among other things, wait times at hospitals. >> at v.a., we reorganizing for success in this effort, perhaps the largest restructuring in the history of the department. >> to be clear, wait times are a concern in private hospitals and privatedoctors' offices too. in fact, a private survey of d.c. medical specialists finds the wait times about a month. scott macfarlane, news4

well in the year since that news4 i-team, scott macfarlane has been looking into that danger, sifting through reports and into where and when those accidents are m. he joins us with some of those details, especially important as those garages fill with holiday shoppers. >> reporter: our review of montgomery county's accident report shows nearly 500 pedestrians have been hit while walking in parking lots or parking garages in the past five years. the map you're about to see shows where these are most frequent, where the incidents and injuries are most frequent. at the shopping centers in major parking lots along the 270 corridor, just north of south of the beltway and along 355, north and south. we found the largest number of incidents happening in gaithersburg. n 60 in the past few years. you see wheaton and rockville also rather frequent. and the roadways in question, parking lots near a shady grove road nr the rockville pike and university boulevard, especially near georgia avenue. time of day most frequent, the lunch hour, between noon and 1:00 p.m. and just after work between 6:00

the news4's i-team scott macfarlane with late-breaking details. >> city correction officials tell the i-team the man who escaped, you said psychiatric evaluation after allegedly attacking a police officer was placed in a private room at a psychiatric facility off wisconsin avenue northwest. a room in which staff are not allowed to enter or even look inside. city officials tell us kenneth clayton got out by using a back door to that room and the i-team is told the back door leads directly to a stairwell, through which he escaped the facility. the city says a police task force is actively searching for clayton right now, and the rules require, they say, those facilities to have private rooms for medical checkups of its patients. kenneth clayton included. we asked if they're going to change some of their security protocols, because of this escape. we'll keep you posted when they answer. back to you. >> i-team also tracking voting problems tonight as the polls open this morning. one voter says this is what he experienced in virginia, pressing the name of one candidate only to see a check

as you know, allison macfarlane has led the nrc since 2012, is an expert on regulatory issues around safety of our nation's 100 nuclear reactors. she's a docker to rat in geology from m.i.t. focuses on nuclear waste issues throughout her professional and academic career. prior to taking on this position, she was -- she was the chairman and served as president obama's blue ribbon commission of american nuclear future from 2010 to 2012. what is clear to me is i have the lowest iq of anyone on this panel. so, it's a little -- it's a little intimidating. but since i get to ask the questions, we'll see how that all works. rose, help me think about russia. obviously all of us can pick up the newspapers and understand that president putin, ukraine, the complications with our bilateral relations, our sanctions that we are imposing on the government, there seems to be an international outcry for much of the activities. but at the same time as dr. blix mentioned we have work to do on their nuclear capabilities. not only to fulfill the obligation of the s.t.a.r.t. treaty, but we need move forwa

[applause] >> thank you so much, professor macfarlane.ueck -- do you think the united states nuclear energy industry will ever recover from fukushima and start growing again? what will make that happen? >> well, i think that i would separate that out. i wouldn't say that the nuclear industry is suffering necessarily because of fukushima. i think there are larger issues at play here, mostly economic issues. what would help that would probably be some price on carbon. my view. >> most u.s. nuclear facilities are more than 40 years old, and most want to extend their lives to 60 or even 80 years. how much confidence do you have that they can be extended to that extent and still operate safely? >> well, we've extended the licensed life of 74 reactors to 60 years, so -- already. so that's in progress, and we've seen a number of reactors go beyond their 40-year life. they have aging management programs in place, and we regulate that closely. the issue of going from 60 to 80 years is an issue that is under consideration at the nrc now, and you'll

navy officials tell the i-team's scott macfarlane contractors are nearly finished renovating the building'sthey are now working on a new cafeteria in addition to the reverance site which will honor the 12 victims. building 197 is set to reopen next february. >>> the department of veterans' affairs will undergo the largest restructuring in the agency's history. after the scandal that left thousands of veterans waiting for health care and cost secretary eric shinseki chisago job. when the problems came to light, congress passed a law called the choice act. it provides $5 billion to hire additional doctors and nurses and another $10 billion. >> the new law is extremely complex and we need to make sure we get things right. >> as for disciplinary measures in the wake of the scandal, mcdonnell says he has received a report that recommends the firing of 35 people and another report suggests 1,000 people lose their job. >>> he survived the war in afghanistan. only to be shot and killed during his homecoming party. what we're learning now about the murder of a young army veteran. >>> and a warning f

our scott macfarlane reports now, maryland's chief judge has officially notified the county now that only the state legislature can change the fines, and the courts will not do so. >>> next, get ready to pay more for your favorite cocktail. the reason behind the price hike and why officials hope it will pay off in the long run. >>> also, some considerable concern after a man shoved off a platform on to the path of an oncoming train. we'll tell you about some clues that police are trying to pull together to get their suspect. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] follow your joy to a celebration like no other. start your new orleans holiday at followyournola.com. >>> it's a crime that's rattled subway passengers. tot police in new york hope surveillance video will help them find a guy who they believe pushed a man to his death in the subway. he was standing on the platform with his wife yesterday when without warning the man shoved him on to the tracks just as the train was arriving. investigators say they still don't have a motive for the killing. >> everyone's fear. it's ridiculous. i'm shaken jus

our scott macfarlane recently revealed potential dangers along the train tracks in prince george's countyand as he reports now, there are new efforts to keep people away from the trouble spots. scott? >> the investigation found more than 100 people hit by trains while illegally walking along d.c. area train tracks just in the past three years. those people either injured or killed. and our i-team cameras showed this train track trespassing happening frequently in hyattsville, riverdale and beltsville. and in each of the locations, people have recently been hit or hurt. after our report, csx police and safety groups dispatched patrols near the tracks in prince george's county, including at those locations ided by the i-team. >> we have signs you'll see, no trespassing signs, letting people know if you go beyond that point you are illegally trespassing on private property. >> tonight, why so many people are crossing those train tracks illegally in our area and do they turn away when they see those cops manning a post in the trespassing hot spots. our i-team camera is rolling. you'll see it

the agency tells our scott macfarlane, republican larry hogan was elected.he state's next governor earlier this month, of course. >>> it's a big night for a young man from northern virginia. ryan sill will be singing live in front of millions. the sterling native is in the top ten for "the voice." ryan has taken a career off from james madison to pursue a music career. he now has 31,000 followers on twitter. you can watch ryan perform on "the voice" tonight at 8:00 here on nbc 4. >>> major security breach. what's raising so many concerns at a busy airport, just as a lot of people are about to hit the skies for the holidays? >>> storm team 4 is tracking a change. veronica? >> yeah, it's a big storm system, and it will be having an impact on a lot of the major cities. boston, philadelphia, new york. of course, d.c. and baltimore. i'll tell you the impacts around here, and how much we're expecting right now. which areas will be the worst. when news4 at 4:00 returns. >>> it's crunch time. if you're the one cooking for your thanksgiving dinner. >> do you know you

but i would like to ask miss macfarlane, who will take the floor in a while, if she thinks that some type of reactors of generation three -- that's the reactor coming on the stage now -- and new regulatory requirements will be able to ensure against core melts with emissions into the environment. and is there an expectation that generation four, which is on the drawing board and in some experiments, can bring us unquestioned safety, easier operation, better use of energy of uranium and thorium fuel, and without waste. and if so, when do you think we can get it on the market? now i turn to the need for security against war in a world with nuclear weapons. i start not with the bible this time but with the united nations charter in 1945. it created a seemingly muscular system for collective security. and senator fulbright was very much behind it and encouraged the creation of the organization. it proclaimed the sovereign equality of states as a general principle but it was based on the practical knowledge that some animals aren't more equal than others. the central idea was the tooif gr

investigative reporter scott macfarlane tells us how he found that out in the full reviews by the newseam.he the starbucks in d.c., waldorf and a dozen other cities nationwide including $10,000 worth of purchases at the starbucks in alameda, california. all told, the employees at u.s. department of homeland security using taxpayer funded cards at starbucks. they will not tell us what they bought, why they bought it, nor are they required to release that information to the public. in fact, the public likely never would have known if the news 4 i team dug up the purchase records. we showed the information to the congressman who chair it is committee overseeing government spending. >> when you have $10,000 spent at one starbucks by dhs employees in one city in six months, somebody is abusing the purchasing permission. >> it took months and intervention by this congressman to find even some details. more on that in a moment. but first, we wanted to know how much taxpayer mon many the government spends on these mysterious micro purchases, so we found out. our review found out about $20 bill

[inaudible conversations] today a speech by nrc chair allison macfarlane on the safety of nuclear power plants in the u.s. at his life at 1 p.m. eastern on c-span2. after meeting with european union officials thursday, attorney general eric holder announced the justice department prosecutors have been deployed to the balkan states, the middle east and north africa. he said they were with local officials in those regions to pursue and prosecute foreign terrorist fighters. this is about 40 minutes. >> to the members of the doj press, with visitors from another country today so let's be nice, okay? [laughter] i got no response, okay. thank you all for being here. it has been a pleasure to welcome so many of my colleagues and counterparts to washington, d.c., for this week's important ministerial meeting. over the past two days, we have discussed the considerable work that's currently enabling the u.s. and the eu to coordinate on common threats, in addition to the steps that we can, and must, take together in the days ahead. in the last year alone, our nations have taken tough, coordinated