just take the ohio example.ver the past few years, premiums have risen nearly nine times faster than wages. as we meet today, we're seeing double digit race increases on insurance premiums all over america. there are reports of rates being raised by 28% in california. 23% in connecticut. proposing as much as 56% in michigan. if we don't act, these hikes will just be a preview of coming attractions. that's a future you can't afford. that is a future that america can't afford. we spend one of every six of our dollars on health care in america. and that's on track to double in the next three decades. the biggest driving force is the skyrocketing force of medicare and medicaid. large businesses struggle to cover workers while competing in the global economy and we'll never know the full costs of the dreams put on hold. the ideas allowed to languish because of the fear of being without insurance or having to pay for a policy on your own. so ohio, that's why we seek reform. and in pursuit of this reform, we forged a c

a w poll gifs obama only a a 49% apappralal ring in ohio. peperhs the most important s sng stste in the country. that's down frfrom 6 a arecently asas m.. threpublicans finally haveve a poll t ty y lo, but they're at an all-time low ininhehe pls thememlvlves we'll try toto maksesee of where thprpresent stands in just a moment. alalsowhat's next for sarara palin? she dedescbebed r decision to reresi being the best thing fof her family, her papartanand r alaska.. but might it simimply t t best ing for sarah? weave two guests with different t ewews what makes sarapapan tick? is there somethingng wro w wh popoticians or are they jujust reflecectinghahais really happening in modern n amican marriages?s? alal, , decrats risk getting ugug in the crossfire overer that congressional r resututio nonori michael jackson. and fifinay,y, wall remember sah h lin's little dust-up with david lettermrmanasasmonth. well, last nighthtetettean did e top ten messages on n pan'n's answering mamainine. we have the highlights i in e e "hardball sisi s sho" but t b b

that is true in ohio.rstand that i am concerned about deficits, too. before him to office, washington enacted two large cuttax cuts, added a prescription drug for medicare, all without paying for it -- and funded two bourse. they did not pay for it. the national debt doubled. we were handed a $1.3 trillion deficit when we walk to the door. one we necessarily have to add to the short term to deal with this financial crisis. i have to say that folks have a lot of nerve twho helped us get into this fiscal hole, and then start talking about is the responsibility. [applause] i am always a little surprised that people do not have a little more shame. about having treatecreated the e amount. 14 figures is another topic. -- pointing fingers is another topic through the truth is, i am now president. [applause] i am responsible. together, we have to restore a sense of responsibility. we have to do what businesses and families do. we have to cut all the things that we do not need in order to pay for the things that w

because here we are in ohio, northeast ohio, where we have all this manufacturing and it's been dead for 30 years. we've not had any opportunity that's coming down the pipe like clean energy in 30 years. and this is something that is so exciting for so many people because they recognize that, you know, i think it's 400 tons of steel that go into a windmill or 8,000 component parts that go into a windmill and the midwest being the saudi arabia wind and the southwest being the saudi arabia solar, my goodness gracious, what an opportunity. we can't let this slide by, we capture it. we take advantage of it. we make it work for us. and that's what we do as americans. and this is an opportunity for us to do that and grow all these companies. chavez be gone, middle east sheiks be gone. we're going to take care of our own business. mr. boccieri, let's revisited three pillars of the legislation. number one, create jobs that can't be outsourced. number two it's about national security moving away from our dependence on foreign oil and other energy sources and making sure we have those homegrow

ththe ohio mbers are asnapapsh.. ifhese jobs data--f this job datat does not improve,that numbmberilill more telling than any numb, deficitt number. >> henono that j job isthe numberernene issue, want t cut ckck n,, to chuck dd's inrvrvw with the pesident and listen to ee way he tks about bsbsnow. >>>>okay. t ts is my numbernene concern, is howrere we, a, gog to makesusure the peoeeare getting back wwork, but b, h h doe p the economy on a strong enonoug footing so t tt on wemerge out of thehe rereceion and the ecocomymy actually onhe uptick, t that itit's creatiti the kinds job d prosperity that we n nd.d. >> it seemsms like ohio i is sa, presidenent amama, you owow thi economomy,ndnd whatat i'm h heas he's saying this isy conomy. yo n't hear any r rereren there aut what he haireded, w wwere hearing whenhe came in. >> itt's clear thaha the americn people are holding him acaccounblbl but you getthis money into thee stetes,nd these states will use it toto retain their programsms and all this and that. itit dsn't create

we will have reports from italy and ohio, and are you ready for swine flu, the sequel? the government says it's coming. how many americans are infected already and what you need to know. all that plus the fox all-stars right here, right now. welcome to washington. i'm bret baier. allegations first made by house speaker nancy pelosi that members of the intelligence community have lied to members of congress have resurfaced, and this time, the current head of the c.i.a. is being dragged into it. correspondent james rosen has the story. >> the fact is that there is a briefing that is of serious concern to members of the committee, and they have their course of action to deal with it. >> and that course of action, for 7 democrats on the house intelligence committee, was to send a scathing letter on june 26 to c.i.a. director lee onpanetta, calling on panetta to retract his statement in may that it is neither the practice or policy of the c.i.a. to mislead the congress. the 7 lawmakers cited a closed-door briefing panetta gave the committee on june 24. the letter said "you t

. >> tonight, right to ohio. mommy leads a convict sex offender still in lockdown to take mommy on a camping trip. they took along water, provisions, and mommy's 4-year-old baby girl. that's right. the baby girl alone in the car with a sex predator. after leaving cops on a manhunt, they zero in on an isolated commune type retreat 2,000 mile away. san diego. there hidden amongst a peace loving group raising avocados, cops rescue baby haleigh. is the baby headed not to the arm of her own grandmother but to state foster care? why? >> little haleigh holding her teddy bear in one hand, she waves with the other. >> i know they would have been found. >> haylee will be brought back. >> police stay child was taken by a convicted sex offender, 27-year-old robin potter. the girl's mother, 24-year-old candice watson on may 31st. just a few days earlier, pot her escaped from a halfway house in mansfield, ohio. but the fugitive's flight ended when authorities caught up with him here in san diego county at a christian retreat i

ohio isne state, t poll i ohio i onepoll.o you don't want to rd too much into one poll in one paicular place. but we knowthat ohioas been both an econoc and a polical bellwether over t years and the ze of the drop in suppo for the esident or in h apoval ratings issignificant er the lastwo months there. so in that sense, it is certainly mething that if yore sitting in the white house and u're one ofhe present's political adsers, you are going ttake note of it. i think e other thing to rememb is that this is a group of people who have weaered some diffi times. certaiy ey did during the campaign. they are not inclined to be overly rattled by somef the atter that pops u as a result of a poll le this. so i think they arbo going to be responsive to it, witho assuming that the sky has fallen them >> are they having atle bit of, you know, sfunction inside this well-oiled team in that you had joe biden saying that they had misjudged the poor state of the economy, the president tn with chuck todd a day or so ter inoscow saying that he

new poll gifs oba only a 49% apprproval ratg in ohio. perhaps the most imimportanswing statate in theountry. thatat's down from 62% as receny as may. ththe republans finally have a poll theyey love, butut they're an allime low in the pollsls themems. we'll try to makake see of where the present stands in just a moment. alsoso, at's next for sarah palin? sheedescribed her d decision to resign being the best thing for her family, her part and for alaska. but mighght it simply be the b thing for sarah? we have two guests wh different t views wt makes sahhalin tick? is there somethingngrorong with politicians or are teyey just reflectingng whaisis really happening in mododn n amican marriaiages? also, democrats risk getting ught in the crsfsfirover atat congressional sosotion honoring michael j jacks.. and finalally all remember rah palin'sitite dudu-u-up with dviviletterman last month.. well, last nightht letterman di the top ten messagess o o papal swering machine. weave the highlights ininhehe "hdbdbl side show." bubut we begegin with the

the people of ohio knows it and the president knows it. we've got to figure out how to put people back to work and back to work fast. >> a backward indicator. >> the only indicator that matters in washington is the way voters look at it. >> exactly. >> public mood right now, and you've got bipartisan agreement against you here, public moods are driven by job creation and they're driven by cost of living. and americans just feel right now that the more important indicator right now is whether or not they have a job and whether their neighbor has a job. they have their own job, they are still nervous because people in their neighborhood and community are losing jobs. so, that's really the anxiety that's driving the public mood and then it's hurting consumer confidence. >> let's talk another source of anxiety and i wonder whether it isn't president obama. let's remember he served in the senate all of two years. he had never before done much of anything before joining the u.s. senate. he was a community organizer, so what, and his rock star pe

the cold front is in ohio and indiana moving east.has had a history of producing severe weather and it looks like that will be the case today, at least it is a possibility. that rain will cross the mountains and get into our area and there could be a few bumps and greendz with that, possibly some severe weather. we will keep you advised of that and i will bring you details in the forecast in a minute how today and the weekend will be. but we want to check the traffic situation with kim dacey. hope it is running smoothly. >> it is running pretty smoothly. good morning to everyone. the only thing we have going on is carroll county. we have an accident at route 140 and sandy mount road. the fire department is there so watch out for that.

since 1903 the ohio state fair commissioned a butter cow. this one pays contributory duty butte to the ones who make it possible, the dairy farmers. 1,800 pounds of farmer, a family of farmers, veterinarian and a prized cow standing ready for this year's fair. >>> this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station. [captioning made possible by constellation energy group] captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> it is very tropical outside. it feels very muggy. we may have some thunderstorms later on today. we are seeing some activity. some light rain on the eastern shore already. let me expand the view and you can see what is exactly behind all of that. there is some moisture that is infiltrating the mid-atlantic. it will be a wet day with intermittent showers this morning and possibly some strong storms this afternoon. same highest we had yesterday. high winds and hail is a possibility. let's see how warm we are. 78 degrees downtown. 75 degrees out of the airport. showers and storms,

but it comes on the hes of pretet b badumbers out in ohio.ows inayayhat 57% o ofhe pepelele apprprovedff howhehe presididt t wa h hdling the economy, thatt dropopped too a peenenge rate,, dd at 4848%, they say they disapprovov ofof w he's handling g thececony. jojoeiden hit the rdd to talk up the stimimulusacacge and hi back a aththe publican critics. >> what w wou they do? would they repee the tax c cut for 5% ofhehe american people ce again? give it to the wealthiesest americans? well, ladies and gentlememen, would they do nonothg?g? i hear nothing. other ththanhehe cticism. i hear noinin affirmatative. ladies andnd gtltlem, didn't take this jo back didn't tkeke this job to dodothing. wewe tk k th job to rebuild erica. th's's wt this is about. >> joioingng now on the phone isis oo congressman and formrme presidential candidatat dennis kucinich. good to have you wi us, i kow vos are going o onanan that's why you're on thephone onight. yoyou lklks e wowoining. but congressman, dodo you think the administration i doing everything it can inour

just a few days later, potter had escaped from a halfway house in mansfield, ohio. but the fugitive's flight ended when authorities caught up with them here at san diego county at a christian retreat in valley center. >> they were still surprisingly in the same truck. that was spotted out in that area. i cannot compliment the media enough here for getting the message out for us. i know the "nancy grace" show was out there for us. >> candace watson was escorted out. now off to jail. >> do you think she deserves anything show she did? >> i do. you know, it's hard. they were saying she dyed her hair. that's more evidence she was probably helping him. >> good evening. i'm nancy grace. i want to thank you for being with us. the mystery surrounding the sudden death of music superstar michael jackson intensifies. >> i got this chill through my body. and i said, "michael, if you take that medicine, you might not wake up." >> we have a personal doctor here with us, sir. >> you have a doctor there? >> yes, he's not responding to cpr or anything. >> michael jackson's dermatolo

>> you know where salem, ohio, is in northeastern ohio.n july 4, they had in this tiny town 80 party. 1700 people showed up. in columbus there were 7000. a movement is gathering inside the country where people are saying, we're heading in the wrong direction. people understand. they want to give this guy a chance. the problem is they are beginning to realize that we are going in the wrong direction. when you are doing that, you do not step on the gas pedal and go faster. you stop and turn around. sean: jim pinkerton, who are like a lot, writes on foxnews.com. he is very tall. "obama's katrina." it is the failing economy. will the american people view it as his dead, his deficits, his botched economy, his broken promises on spending? are they not going to blame him? is he not going to take responsibility? how long does he get away with saying, this is bush's economy? >> i think those days are coming to an end. in ohio, his approval rating has fallen under 50%. it was in the middle-60's and plummeted. i think republicans are very energized.

they are going to give some attention to ohio.ndependents, there seems to be a swaying among independents to look at republicans who have, of course, been highly critical of this stimulus plan and some of the big spending programs that we've seen. >> david, early on the folks out there could blame the bush administration but at some point they are going to start blaming president obama for losing, what, three million jobs so far this year. this is a huge potential nightmare unless he can really turn things around. >> it is, wolf. and ohio in the may report had an unemployment rate of 10.8%. that's one of the highest in the nation. and that clearly is starting to be a drag in ohio on the president and there are those in the white house, as you know, who are worried now that the stubbornly high unemployment prospects that we face could begin to drag the poll numbers down nationwide over the next few months and it could come just as he's trying to secure his health care reform in the fall and just as there may be a big debate about a

in dayton, ohio, the st. mary's neighborhood development corporation has been attempting for several years to construct senior housing on the campus of the dayton v.a. medical center. st. mary's was able to obtain an enhanced use lease from the v.a. to construct the housing on the dayton v.a. campus. they were also able to obtain h.u.d. section 202 funding that would allow for the financing of the construction for low-income senior housing. so we have v.a. providing the land, h.u.d. providing funding, both v.a. and h.u.d. agreeing that this would be an excellent project to help us respond to homeless veterans, to provide low-income housing for veterans and also to respond to the needs of seniors in the community. however, h.u.d. has previously asserted that st. mary's may not be able to use these critical dollars if the v.a. lease requires a specific preference for veterans to occupy the proposed facility on the v.a. grounds. h.u.d. has prohibited a preference given to veterans housing in this facility on the

let's take the ohio example.the past few years, premiums have risen nearly nine times faster than wages. that's something that rick and his wife understand very well. as we meet today, we are seeing double digit rate increases on insurance premiums all over america. there are reports of insurers raising rates by 28% in california. speaking of 23% in connecticut. proposing as much as a 56% increase in michigan. if we don't act, these preef yum hikes will just be a preview of coming attractions. that's a future that you can't afford. that's a future that america can't afford. we spend one of every six of our dollars on health care in america. that's on track to double in the next three decades. the biggest driving force behind our federal deficit is the skyrocketing cost of medicare and medicaid. small businesses struggle to cover workers while competing with large businesses. large businesses struggle to cover workers while competing in the global economy and we will never know the full cost of the dreams put on h

straight out to michael nolting, director with wmrn-am, joining us from ohio.ichael, why is the little girl -- i get why she's not going with the mom. mommy's facing felony charges. why not the grandmother? >> right now we can tell you there's going to be a jurisdictional hearing in san diego county that will send haylee back to ohio. word from the richland county children's services department is very, very vague. and they already have a foster home set up for her here. and they do have a visitation schedule set up for haylee's grandmother. as for the reason why, we can only take a look at the family and some of the surroundings that she's been put in and speculate. >> to heather cockley, attorney for mary watson, that is the grandmother. why? >> you're specifically asking why she continues to be in shelter care? >> why isn't she coming home to the grandmother? >> i don't know what's taking so long to get them from -- to get her from san diego home. i know that there's children's services investigations going on. and grabbed mother certainly hopes that haylee

since 1903 the ohio state fair commissioned a butter cow. this one pays contributory duty butte to the ones who make it possible, the dairy farmers. 1,800 pounds of farmer, a family of farmers, veterinarian and a prized cow standing ready for this year's fair. >>> this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station., >>> all right. good morning. our time right now is 4:54. 81 degrees outside. welcome to "news4 today." i'm joe krebs. >> i'm barbara harrison. we want to start things off with a look at weather and traffic. we'll begin with weather. we have chuck bell in for tom y,ein.ir hey, chuck. ll heheo. good morning to both of yoheyo weesday is off to atstos aarscrt aroscrhe the urerat emperaturf8 inwa.gtshon washington. 75 degrees down theoa idoan richmond 77 on the eastern shore in maryland. 66 degrees in el kins, west virginia. there's rain on theway. ac fusin jt, n.ayt ow comingac d cgin dowown66tenua ta th in about readyrso on nde on the western side of the tatabeltway, we have raindrops for your morning c

thunderstorms later today in norfolk virginia, columbus, ohio, best chance for storms around mid-day or so. sarasota, warm at 90 but look at the cool air in grand rapids, michigan, only 66. and that was a rare event, dan, for upstate new york to get hail that large. i've never seen anything like that. >> usually they get feet upon feet of snow in the winter time, but pretty amazing. thank you, bill. >>> dr. doom speaks out. big blue rides high, and a red-hot wall street nervously awaits reports. business headlines straight ahead. >>> plus, what she had to admit to in divorce proceedings is going to cost this hard-living singer big bucks. >>> also, beckham is back in the states. ryan howard makes baseball history, and tom watson turns back the clock. you're watching "early today." >>> good morning, everyone. and welcome back to "early today." i'm dan kloeffler. the senate has improved a major expansion of the 1968 federal hate crimes law. the legislation would cover those physically attacked because of gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. ted kennedy is now being

an ohio restaurant owner wins >>> and dummy up. an ohio restaurant owner wins his fight for mannequin rights. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >>> hello and good morning. i'm christina brown. >>> today we begin with the final bow. nearly two weeks after his death, michael jackson was remembered in ace public memorial service by his friends, family, and countless fans. nbc's jay grey jones us from the staples center in los angeles. >> reporter: good morning, christina. it was an amazing collection of entertainment superstars. they gathered with thousands of fans to say good-bye to michael jackson. but it was someone who took the stage for the first time here who ultimately made the most emotional and lasting impression at the memorial. ♪ it was a memorial that was part church service -- ♪ -- part concert --. ♪ and all michael jackson. >> he is the greatest entertainer that ever lived. >> reporter: an amazing group of all-stars that gathered to honor him. >> we need to look up where he is undoubtedly perched in a crescen

i'm starting with scott in ohio. scott. >> boo-yah, jim, from wilmington, ohio.hanks for taking my call. >> my pleasure. what's up? >> i read your book earlier this year. like it said, i did my homework and picked a stock called novan pharmaceuticals. >> you got a take-over, didn't you? >> yes, sir. that's what i'm talking about. it's been hovering on decent valium for a couple of days. what do you do when an offer has been made to buy-out a company? >> you sell, sell, sell. i do not want you to give back that gain. sell it tomorrow morning. do not mess with me. i know what i'm doing. let's go to james in california. james. >> jim, a big boo-yah from southern california. how are you doing, man? >> good regional boo-yah back to you. what's on your mind? >> thank you so much for your great insight on aig. you said drop that limp stock. >> yeah. that thing was a lizard, man. >> i got out and -- >> that thing was a monster. go ahead. >> quick question. energy stocks have taken a big hit. what do you think? >> aci just had a big run. well, yes. i mean, year over year.

and the rest of appalachia, ohio . this is really going to really put a cloud across our economic security and our national security and our nation. the department of energy can go back. they can look at the technical data which they didn't do when they issued their de significance. they can go back and look at what they are asking usac to cough up and recognize what they have already put on the table. and they can go back and understand that the president made this promise to our vernor on september 2 and they can go back and they can do the right thing because it's not just the right thing for my community or mr. space's community or ohio, it's not just the right thing because our president made a pledge to our governor. it's the right thing for our nation. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. does the gentlewoman have a motion? mrs. schmidt: yes, i have a motion. that the house should adjourn. the speaker pro tempore: without objection -- the question is on the mo

ohio happens to be where we stopped tonight on our trip along highway 50.om brokaw's series of reports for us and the usa network on cacharn " for e thlks tom met in hillsboro, ohio where unemployment and health care aren't just an argument going on in washington. >> reporter: dan and april looper never ask for much, just the chance to be good parents. >> entertainment is taking the kids outside and watching them run. >> giving them markers and watching them color on each other. >> reporter: with four energetic little ones, 28-year-old dan thought he had the means to make it happen with relativease. he and april met on the job at the shipping company, airborne. >> airborne was the one place that if anybody ever needed a job they could always go there. >> reporter: hillsboro, ohio, as close as it gets to a company town. when airborne and dhl merged in 2003, the future seemed secure. it turned out to be anything but. last november, as the economy cratered, dhl announced it was cutting back on its u.s. operations and moving out of state, eliminating a staggeri

i was on the floor today, ed, talking about some people from summit county, ohio, and from bryant, ohioand other places and how it really does ruin lives when they've got to make a choice between taking their medicine. one gentleman wrote me they don't have enough money and good enough insurance for both of them. they both have serious medical problems husband and wife and they might have to lose. what health care system allows that in a country this rich? >> max bachas told president obama, given him a timetable but won't tell the media what that timetable is. what have you heard and what does that signal that kind of language is being used. what do you think? >> well, we may not have -- we may not vote on the bill. the health committee is done. we were done two weeks ago. the finance committee has to move, too. they haven't yet. we may not vote on it through the first week of august -- >> are you for stay heerg? >> of course i am. i've been in politics for a long time. 14 years in the house, three years in the senate. except for my vote against the iraq war, nothing is as important as

he did not pick ohio by accident.ling shows the obama administration is losing support among voters in ohio. what might this mean for the president's agenda? heather: you may not be able to afford a ritzy resort in phoenix, so here's a question. by were 700 government employees at a fancy resort in arizona. william la jeunesse is crashing the party to try to get the answer. jon: nowhere to hide from brian wilson. he has new, exclusive information about the altercation between a police officer and an amt. it has become an internet sensation. the most meritorious terrorist organization on earth is publishing a new book -- the most notorious terrorist organization on earth is publishing a new book. it even includes an introduction by one of the most wanted men in the world. the book also highlights al- qaeda's struggles. catherine herridge is live in washington. i understand you have a copy of this book. how did you get this? >> this surfaced on the internet within the last few weeks. it was brought to our attention by o

the ohio manufacturer abides minimum wage. the ohio manufacture areer abides by clean air, helping to keep his or her workers healthy and productive and to keep customers, consumers, safe. the chinese manufacturer has no minimum wage to maintain. the chinese manufacturer is allowed to pollute the environment, allowed to force workers to use dangerous and faulty machinery. food safety, product safety are not a must for the chinese manufacturer. hra*bgz enforcement -- lax enforcement makes it look like an option. the ohio manufacturers pays health benefits and security. typically allows family leave and gives notice when there's going to be a plant closing. the chinese manufacturer often allows child labor. the ohio manufacturer receives no government subsidies. the chinese manufacturer receives subsidies often for the development of new technologies or for export assistance. the chinese manufacturer benefits from china's manipulation of its currency which gives, many kpheuftsz think, a 40 -- many kpheuftsz think, a 40% cost adv

he falsely claimed no projects had been awarded in ohio.e opposed the recovery act but then took credit for a project in his district. and he led the fight against the recovery act that is boosting kentucky's economy. they supported the bush policies that sank our economy into recession. they broke it. now they refuse to fix it. tell republican leaders to stop playing politics with our economy. the democratic national committee is responsible for the content of this advertising. >> congressman boehner's office responded, saying, quote, democrats can't run away from the fact that the stimulus has failed to provide the immediate jolt to the economy and prevent unemployment from climbing above 8% as the administration promised. this is the moral equivalent of an abusive guy who puts his wife in the hospital and then gets mad at the doctors who can't send her home as soon as they had hoped. joining me now is laura flanders author of "blue grip" and host of grit tv at grit tv.org. thanks so much for your time tonight. >> it's great to be with yo

an ohio boy has decided to help his fwam family out by doing something selfless. zach maguire recently helped to sell off his open collection of toys. zach's father says he is just overwhelmed by his son's generosity. >> i have prayed to god, let me win the lottery as i'm sure, a lot of people do. this is better that the lottery. >> zach's selfless actions have inspired oh people to help the maguire family. people who heard of the sale, they have sent in cash donations. walter cronkite will be laid to rest next to his wife of nearly 65 years. remembering one of the most influential men of the 20th century. >>> 40 years ago tomorrow the world watched a grainy black and white television and echoed words were heard. >> it is one small step for man, one feat for mankind. >> this is july 20, 169. 1969. he left the first footprint on the moon. he was followed by buzz aldrin while michael collins orbited above this the command module to be their ride home. 15 hours was spent on the moon's surface. this happened eight years after americans were challenged to reach the moo

liz from ohio is a director of a breast cancer advocacy group in northern ohio and wrote to me many of her members an clients face impossible financial barriers after being diagnosed with breast cancer and they're being treated. she has patients who face excessive he could payments for prescription drugs often with 10-year preexisting condition pretrickses. that's why we must provide broader access to generic drugs to lower prescription drug costs for millions of americans. this isn't a debate between biologics an prescription drugs and generics and interesting for the textbooks and interesting for economists. this is about people's lives that simply can't afford $4,000 for a cancer drug. can't afford $1,500 a month for a drug if they're dealing with rheumatoid arthritis. ensuring a pathway for generic drugs, by setting a reasonable period of exclusivity for many brand name drugs will speed up generic approval process, speed up cost savings for families in toledo and lima and canton and youngstown and cincinnati, ohio. it's estimated that biologic drugs, again, those drugs that increas

it'll be a gray and foggy day around the eastern great lakes and ohio valleys.mble across the south. the southwest will be stormy and the northwest stays hot. >>> here's another look at this morning's top stories. the longest solar eclipse of the 21st century darkened a large part of asia this morning. the sun was blocked by the moon in six minutes in some cases. many gathered to watch. >> reporter: we're an hour and a half southeast of shanghai beside a lake with a bunch of americans led by scientists from m.i.t. hoping beyond hope that the sun is going to show through the clouds here. we've seen the first contact, which was about an hour ago. we're about five minutes away from totality. we can see sometimes a little -- looks like a shaving of a thumbnail through the clouds. it's trying hard. we're hopeful we'll see the totality. >> 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 -- whoo. >> reporter: we have totality. you can see the corona. >> and president obama is pushing his case for health care reform. he's expected to discuss his plans during a news conference tonight. mr. obama told kat

. >> reporter: at a town hall meeting in ohio, he admitted it won't happen as fast as he wants it to. >> we may not be able to get the bill out of the senate by the end of august or the beginning of august. that's okay. i just want people to keep on working. >> reporter: while lawmakers worked in washington -- >> i want to promise you this, ohio. >> reporter: -- the president worked the crowd in ohio, hoping to win back the growing number of americans skeptical about his healthcare overhaul plan. >> as badly as i think it's necessary, i won't sign it if that reform adds even one dime to our deficit over the next decade, and i mean what i say. >> reporter: the white house wanted congress to pass a healthcare bill before its august recess. that's growing less likely by the day. the senate's top democrat announced the president's deadline simply can't be met. >> it's better to have a product that is one that's based on quality and thoughtfulness rather than trying to jam something through. >> reporter: while the senate aims to return to healthcare in the fall, conservative democrats have

storm system in the tennessee and ohio valley will slide through the east coast today. early morning rain in the great lakes region and it should push into the east. very heavy rain is likely this afternoon from boston to new york city. washout type rain. one to two inches possible. washington, d.c., same for you. even the southeast. on saturday, the northeast gets better but still stormy down here in the south. well, if you're watching us on wxia 11 alive, atlanta, georgia, mellow out with smooth jazz tunes as you take in some of the nature's most alluring aquatic animals at jazz journeys at the georgia aquarium. and that's your eastern event of the day, christina. jazz and dolphins, not bad. >> that's an interesting combination. thanks so much, bill. >>> now, here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. this year's box offices audiences have really constantly made the experts look silly. when it comes to the winner, the so-called experts are really scratching their heads. first, the easy stuff. research shows the family adventure fant say aliens

well, ohio is the quintessential swing state. and today, that is where president obama is taking his plea for health care reform. >> the visit comes in the wake of a primetime news conference, devoted almost entirely to the topic. abc's diana alvear, is in chicago with the latest. >> reporter: the president continues his full-court press for health care reform today, through a town hall meeting. it's the latest of his several efforts to get something passed by the august recess. president obama will touch down in shaker heights, ohio, today, to take questions on health care, at a town hall meeting. and neighbors are ready. >> my mother is of -- 80 years old. and she's on a fixed income. and she's always complaining about purchasing medicine. it's an extreme cost. >> reporter: the cost of prescription drugs, just one of several issues the president says cannot wait when it comes to health care reform. >> i'm rushed because i get letters every day from families that are being clobbered by health care costs. and they ask me, can you

he will be heading to ohio today. diana alvear has the details. president obama will touch down in shaker heights today at a town hall meeting. but my mother is 80 years old and on a fixed income. she is always medicine. >> the cost of prescription drugs are one issue that cannot wait. >> i get letters every day from families that are getting clobbered by health care costs. they asked me, can you help? but the president renewed his pledge to provide a new option for the uninsured. he said he would not support a an primarily funded by the middle class. >> it will prevent insurance companies from dropping your coverage. you get to sit. -- it you get to sit. " the president may not have a bill to sign. experts do not expect congress to buy the august recess. >> dick durbin said it is not possible to get this through the senate. >> that looks like the president is more willing to be flexible about its august deadline. he said he just wants to get things done right. diana alvear, abc news. >>> american apparel will keep crow te teachers on display desp

there is a new plan for the way we tax people and ohio. -- tax people in ohio and how we educate them. been a lot of things we can do to really turn our state around and make it and really attractive place. >> [inaudible] would be even worse [inaudible] >> the way we have used tarp funds, i've been very critical. i think there has been a very large lack of transparency in terms of how the money was spent. it is hard to gauge it this time whether the money was well spent or not it is unfortunate that it does not appear that they will make it. >> [inaudible] >> i talked to the speaker yesterday about our willingness to work with their democratic colleagues. we need to come to agreement on how these separations are being considered. they have moved more than half of these bills through the house of record spade to spend huge sums of money, above what was spent last year. they appear so they will continue to spend through the house before anyone has a clear idea what it is. i am hopeful the speaker will get back to me soon on our conversation and a way to work through this process in a mo

and the ohio country was essentially what we think of today, as ohio and indiana and illinois. and so there was a struggle going on between those two countries, they had actually fought three wars since the late 17th century with parts of america being an aspect, in those wars, and so, virginia sent an army out to the ohio country, it was actually an army that was to build a for fiction at the head of the ohio river, which is pittsburgh today, and when the army was created, washington was named the number 2 man in the arm, joshua frye, was the initial colonel, and frey died in an accident and fell off his horse and was killed in the accident and washington was elevated at the age of 22, to be the commander of the virginia army. and he took the army out and ran into a force of french soldiers, as he was advancing on pittsburgh, he was still quite a ways away. 25 miles or so from the head of the ohio, and washington made a decision, i think probably a flawed decision, but he made a decision to try to ambush that french party. and he succeeded. in the ambush and ten or 11 french s

this is out toward indiana and ohio. we're showing you this because that is going to become our problem tomorrow. all that rain you are seeing in the west will be cunling to our back -- coming to our back yard today. 69 in downtown baltimore. 72 in annapolis. 72 in ocean city. it is a nice start to a beach day out there. we will start with mostly sunny conditions once the sun comes up. a few pop-up clouds will start to move in. whenever we have too much heat and humidity we have to talk about the possibility of pop-up thunderstorms. i don't think that will affect us today. it will feel july like today. we have to talk about rain on sunday, and another stormy pattern is on the way. details coming up in just a bit. >> we are learning more about what may have led to a helicopter crash that killed four people on interstate 70 thursday night. >> the group was returning from a charity event to raise money for troubled youth when the chopper went down. it seems the crash could be the result of pilot error. >> there were four so