so, the willamitte river system is a big river system in western oregon, and i think of it as oregon's big river, because it really flows through our biggest cities and our richest farmland. i think in oregon, and nationwide, there's still a question in people's mind, "what--what's the value of a river?" and we've just gone through a couple of centuries of kind of disconnecting ourselves from rivers, and we're in the process of sort of getting back to that. so, my main motivation for this film was to really shine a light on what's really a national movement to reconnect to our rivers, and to begin to restore them. i hope that people will see in this film, um, lots of examples of how you can sort of identify yourself as living in a watershed, and living in a community of people that are connected by water. the choices that we all make in our different parts of that watershed affect each and every person. >> we are so lucky in portland to have the willamitte river. i mean, we're the bridge city. there are so many bridges, and people cross them to go downtown, and, um, i bet a lot of peop

if you are a community partner of cover oregon, you are not allowed to say anything bad about cover oregon. if the state or cover oregon decided that you voided the agreement and say anything about them, the threat is we'll cut you off from money from cover oregon. it is one of the worst examples and a meltdown nationwide in obama care, but oregon got in early and spent $300 million on a state website that was supposed to launch two and half months ago. and as of today, they don't know when the site will work at all. and signed up 44 people. it is a meltdown. >> it sounds like the nondisclosure agreement that you found says that you are prohibited from saying anything false, misleading and deceptive or libellous. or obscene. and so basically it sounds like they are trying to protect against misinformation? >> that is on how you define misinformation. if you listen to obama administration it is working great and cover oregon, they say we switched to paper applications. but the way it is read by the health care institutions and the original tip when i got suspicious. we are not allowed to cr

number two, oregon at $8.95 where one in five households rely on food stamps. the third highest in the country. vermont rvermont recalculates cf living every month. and illinois minimum wage is $8.25 an hour but the strong union states will has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. how much of an impact does the higher minimum wage have on a state's economy. in oregon, a planned $0.15 increase on minimum wage will put an extra $234 a year in the pockets of employees working 30 hours a week. >> i don't see how that very small amount of money for a small proportion of the workforce could possibly spark economic growth. those funds are coming from someone else who now no longer has that money to spend. while the majority of minimum wage earners are young, many are struggle. many minority groups disproportionately depend on minimum wage. many mothers trying to raise a family on $15,000. but experts say there are better options out there. >> there are options like the earned income tax credit which maxed out for a family with children that are much m

it is very little. >> my biggest issue is long and oregon. it is oregon if you want to rhyme.g is supposed to do? >> that's a good point. you found the most important element of the story. >> that's really the only worth while thing to say. >> it is a real scandal. >> i am the closed caption guy and i am thinking about calling up that girl on "red eye." is that against company policy if i do that? i mean, will anybody find out? maybe if i lie. i mean after all i do steal from the company. i am going milk this joke until it is no longer funny the probably is already not funny. >> that was about 30 seconds. >> tom, is that like -- this is a magical achievement that you can spend this much money on so little. >> i thought you meant the commercial. that was magical. >> i was looking at him and said tom. all right, i will go to you and you answer the question. >> did you see the commercial? the rainbow was shooting out of the dark cloud. i thought that was disturbing and weird. yes, this is ridiculous. young people are not going to sign up for obamacare. it doesn't matter what stat

and the all-american family settled into a four bedroom house with a front porch tucked into oregon'se country. >> they both had great jobs. they both had great cars. they had the two kids. they had the dog. they did everything that -- you work so hard to do. >> reporter: money, family, love. scott and beth had everything until --beth was diagnosed with breast cancer when abby was just a baby. >> the only memory i have of my mom -- she was on a bright orange stretcher being carried down the stairs, and i remember her face. >> reporter: so your first memory of your mother, your only memory, is one of her being carried away on a stretcher? >> yeah, that's, that's all. but i, i hold onto it maybe as a good thing. >> reporter: because it would be the only thing she had. beth catt would die at the age of 32, leaving behind four-year-old hayden and 2-year-old abby. suddenly, scott catt was a widower, a single dad with toddlers. how did you deal with it personally? >> i didn't deal with it. >> reporter: you were in denial? >> completely. i was in denial about -- not needin' help. about griev

just plain no. >> vicky say republican member of the oregon house. she says as the state's residents buy even more efficient cars and less gas, the budget crunch is only going get worse. but she thinks there may be a solution. instead of having oregon motorists pay a 30 cent tax on every gallon of gas they buy, have them pay a fee of a pen or or two for every mile they drive. it's known as a vehicle miles traveled or vmt fee. oregon was the first state in the union to impose a gas tax nearly a century ago. and in 2006 it set up an experiment to see whether it might be able to lead the nation again. 300 volunteers let the state hook up computers and transmitters to their cars so that their mileage in, organize could be tracked with a gps, global positioning system. the technology worked just fine but the civil libertarians and privacy advocates thought the gps would give big brother a chance to snoop on drivers. legislators in oregon state house decided that the whole idea was political poison. and for the next five years it completely faded out of vi

♪ long live the oregon spirit ♪ ♪ long live the oregon way >> i am the closed caption guy and i hateexist. i don't know about you, but that is pretty sexist. joanne, that is like they should have given a million bucks to 300 people. >> i would gladly taken that money. i could have paid a lot of hospital bills for my friends, for drug addicts, whatever. >> i like the way you think. which is very little. >> my biggest issue is long -- oregon and long, isn't it supposed to rhyme? >> yeah. i think you found the most important element of the story. >> that's the only worth while thing to say. >> i am the closed caption guy and i am thinking about calling up that girl on "red eye." is that against company policy if i do that? i mean will anybody find out? maybe if i lie. after all i do steal from the company. i am going to milk this joke until it is no longer funny. problem -- probably is already not funny. this is like a magical achievement that you could spend this much money. >> oh i thought you meant the commercial. >> i was looking at him and said tom. i will go to you and then you an

>> the reverend is a -- >> and a man in oregon another bizarre story. university of oregon some of the players, all right. so this is on campus in eugene. this is where ducks live. oregon ducks the snow ball fight gets out of control. all right? because this guy in the car? he doesn't want to be stopped. he stopped because he doesn't want to run over anybody. they're stopping car asks doing this, now, the cops, police whom you're familiarwith, they may charge some of the guys oochl yes. you snow, i watched the whole videotape. and you know to me this is not the l.a. riots. i mean it's a bunch of kids getting overexcited over a bunch of snow. if i told you it's one of the liberal professors in the car you might change your mind. >> no. i'm equal opportunity protector. i want everybody to be protected from rowdy kids on campus. gutfeld there is a rumor you were involved in this >> this was a noble protest against the theory of fossil fuel. they said get them but -- >> how could there be global warming in oregon? >> i'm okay with this behavior kw f.adequat

smith and his family had just spent thanksgiving in oregon. he was just taking his son and daughter back to butte, montana and his daughter back to i'd. >> i where she goes to school. >> smith was going back to oregon to pick up his wife and other daughter and two younger sons and bring them back to san jose. so the search resumes tomorrow, of course, weather permitting. his wife says those aboard are wearing winter jackets and layered clothe soing that may help them survive freezing temperatures. vic lee, abc7 news. >>> in other news abc7 news learn aid motorcyclist killed in a crash was this man, co-host of the hgtv show curb appeal. the 38-year-old hit by a car around 8:30 last night. the driver is cooperating with the investigation. san francisco police are searching for the driver who took off after hitting a pedestrian not once, but twice in the soma neighborhood around 11:00 this morning at bran onand 7th street about a block from jewelry mart. police tell abc7 news the driver hit the person, moved the sxrik ran over the person's leg th

>> there will not be 44 people in the health insurance market in oregon.e in the current market will be rolled into more policies. you can't do the math based on the enrollments in october. this train is leaving the station, it's picking up steam. we're going to have more and more enrollments, and the administrative costs per person will come down dramatically. jenna: what about time? we have ten days until december 23rd. i know the administration has asked until the end of the month to get people signed up for january 1st, qualifying for insurance at that moment. but how much time are you giving this, especially for folks that, you know, are searching for insurance and may not be able to fully do it through the web site? >> sure. there may be a gap, and that would be veryunate. some folks may get enrolled for a february 1st effective date. we wish that this were going more quickly. in places like california, it really is. we signed up 50,000 people in the first week of december alope. it's important -- alone. it's important to emphasize oregon and even wa

he was flying from oregon to butte, montana. smith reported engine trouble and controllers helped him get to a strip called johnson creek air strip. that was the last contact. on board with smith, his daughter, amber and her fiancee. smith's son shown here on the left and his wife. smith and his family just spent thanksgiving in oregon. >> he was just taking his son and his daughter back to montana and idaho where she goes to school. >> after dropping them off, smith was going back to oregon to pick up his wife and his other daughter and two younger sons bringing them back to san jose the search resumes tomorrow, weather permitting. vic lee, abc7 news. >> a rally is happening now outside of a fund-raiser for sonoma county district attorney with protestors angry about the investigation into the shooting death of a boy by a sheriff deputy. proestors demanding an indictment in the case of 15-year-old andy lopez. he was carrying a pellet gun that looked like an ak 47. they're putting pressure on the district attorney to take action

he's a former sufficient attorney in oregon, so that was one example. you mentioned the confidential in form a.m. or felon working for the a.t.f. that was in florida. what's interesting in that case is after he helped the a.t.f. bust these people, he himself was arrested for pointing a loaded gun at an individual outside a bar, which is arguably a more violent and serious act than the people whom he set up. that case ended up getting picked up in federal court and he ended up getting a nice deal, just six months and he's now on house arrest. >> that case always involved the 24-year-old in pensacola, jeremy norris who got caught up in that sting after getting a phone call of someone asking for a gun. he has an i.q. of 76. he ended up selling the gun to the fellow working for the a.t.f. this is what he had to say. >> this kid would come in and sometimes barely keep his eyes open, or barely stand, and he always talked with a slurred speech, because of either alcohol or drugs, so, you know, i personally couldn't tell, he might have some learning disability

out of oregon, another bizarre story. a university of oregon has a good football team.e of the playerses decided to have a snow ball fight. this is on campus in eugene where the ducks live. oregon ducks. [ honking ] >> the snowball fight gets out of control. the guy in a car doesn't want to be stopped. he stopped because he didn't want to run over anybody. they are stopping cars and doing all this. now the cops, the police whom you are familiar with with on a number of occasions may charge some of the guys. >> yeah. i watched the whole videotape. to me this is not the l.a. riots. >> no. >> it's kids getting overexcited over snow. if i told you it was one of the liberal professors in the car you may change your opinion. >> no. i'm an equal opportunity protector. i want everybody protected from rowdy kids on campus. gutfeld, there was a rumor you were involved. >> yes. this was a noble protest against the tyranny of fossil fuels. i saw the car and said get them. >> how can there be global warming with with snow in oregon where it never snows. >> you know, i'm okay with th

he was flying from oregon to butte, montana. smith reported engineouble and controllers helped him get to a strip called johnson creek air strip. that was the last contact. on board with smith, his daughter, amber and her fiancee. smith's son shown here on the left and his wife. smith and his family just spent thanksgiving in oregon. >> he was just taking his son and his daughter back to montana and idaho where she goes to school. >> after dropping them off, smith was going back to oregon to pick up his wife and his other daughter and two younger sons bringing them back to san jose the search resumes tomorrow, weather permitting. vic lee, abc7 news. >> a rally is happening now outside of a fund-raiser for sonoma county district attorney with protestors angry about the investigation into the shooting death of a boy by a sheriff deputy. proestors demanding an indictment in the case of 15-year-old andy lopez. he was carrying a pellet gun that looked like an ak 47. they're putting pressure on the district attorney to take action >>

oregon's story. not too dissimilar. as a leader by the obama administration so they got more money to set up the state exchange than any state in the union except new york and california. late this month, since they set up the exchange, people who signed up for the exchanges in oregon started getting robocalls. here's one. >> if you have not purchased insurance by december 23rd it unlikely your application can be processed for january 1st january 1st coverage. >> a lot of people cannot be assured they're going to have health coverage come january 1st. harold stanton is one of those people. listen up. >> the governor should have been apprised of the situation. if he wasn't apprised of the situation, then shame on his aides. and if he was, then shame on him for not listening to his aides. >> the web site in oregon has never worked. it has never worked. as a result of that people in oregon are forced to fill out, by hand, 19 pages of paperwork, and those -- you have just seen, still not guaranteed health care. back to you.

about 40 in seattle. 43 in portland, oregon, and 45 in medford, oregon.n you head a little further to the south, 82 degrees in los angeles with nothing but sunshine. the problem, though, is that we have this easterly component to the wind. and that's a very dry wind. and because of that, we do have red flag warnings in effect in and around los angeles. winds could gust up to about 35 to 45 miles per hour with those santa ana winds. humidity is down 5 to 15%. with highs in the lower 80s, it is certainly going to make things not ideal down in that area. we also have air stagnation alerts in the pacific northwest because winds are so light, that creates some low-level solution, and there could be some burn bans in your area. so keep that in mind. as for l.a., looking forward, we should start to see the winds ease by saturday. so that should help with the red flag warnings and temperatures will drop as well. about 72 degrees. heading a little further to the north and west, in alaska, things looking nice and quiet. we should see mostly sunny skies but very col

check out more baby pictures go to hashtag oregon room. you will see them all. >> we will be right back after local news and weather. >> first, kathie lee and hoda drinking up.

final is 30-7 oregon wins. >>> robin roberts ends her dramatic year with big news. she comes out on facebook, what we know about her girlfriend of ten years. >>> then, superstar beyonce under fire, she just used audio from the space shuttle disaster in her new song. >> obviously a major malfunction. >> now the victims' families are calling it inappropriate and insensitive. >>> plus, britney spears launches her big vegas show, did she lip sync? some fans left furious. >>> and, first video of embattled "duck dynasty" patriarch phil robertson, but the family is not talking about his suspension being lifted. >> don't worry about

if you can find any other county in oregon with a lower tax rate there are none. we are the bottom of the bottom. >> reporter: so volunteers created a community watch group to handle nonlife threatening calls. yes, they carry guns. listen. >> our members are armed. they are armed for self-protection and protection of the members. but the strategy is always to leave any intruder or anybody a way out. >> the county commissioner you heard earlier also carries a concealed weapon but says it is only a matter of time before one of the gun-toting volunteers gets too aggressive. listen again. >> trying to present a presence 57bd somebody gets turned on. there are many variables they do t t t not understand. that's one of the reasons why certified law enforcement officers have to go through all the training. >> here to arrest you or anything like that. it's more of the presence that we provide. a deterrent. >> everyone agrees that a fully staffed sheriff's department here would be the best scenario. in the meantime you have a little bit of a stand-off going in oregon about

oregon wins this, 30-7.ff the field for the final time as the texas coach. >>> nba now. the heat and the nuggets. lebron james, happy 29th for him. returning from the groin injury. scary moment here. dwyane wade pump fake and banged into. jordan hamilton ran into him. wade left the game with back spasms. lebron had 29. heat up 91-90. nuggets maybe can do something. except a giant beam from outer space came down. and they were unable to throw the ball in. you only have five seconds. lebron, 26 points, 10 assists. heat wins it, 97-94. >>> now, back to your national weather and news. and international stuff. that they do. it's way more serious than this. we're just doing sports. >> thank you, kenny. >>> up next, "the pulse." we'll look at what's being called the most annoying words of 2013. >>> and back to class. prince william is hitting the books and heading back to school. or giving the dog a workout, find your balance™. every delicious balance bar® has 40-30-30 balanced nutrition to give you energy that las

oregon is one of the top producers of christmas frees in the world. each year they put out about 7.3 million trees. now this video over a million halts. but we contacted noble tree farm. it's a process they go through every year and it's incredible to watch. >> this has got to the the worst text to receive this holiday season. a big van from merwin engineering, backing in to a job. i want you to pay attention to over here, that other blue vehicle gets up, starts walking up to the van. >> no. >> walks right up to the window. notices that the keys are in the ignition, hops in there and then flies out of there, the blue vehicle stole right behind. >> the guy who was driving the fan -- it's almost like they could be watching this guy. >> here's the worst part. there was a mobile phone inside the fan belonging to the managing director, tony anderton. the thief took tony's phones and started sending a text. one text he sent, "merry christmas, i just nicked your van." almost taunting the guy that he just says was worth about 48,000 in u.s. dollars and had 16

♪ long live our oregon spirit ♪ long live the oregon way ♪ to care for each one ♪ every daughter and >> that's designed to get millennials the to sign up for obamacare which they are not doing. tamara? >> i'm not going to defend that weird ad. it was creepy like child molester guitar -- >> oh -- >> it was. >> i agree it was creepy. >> who produced that song? do they have a studio like this that you try out? >> do you know why millennials -- they aren't stupid. the young and healthy are supposed to pay for the sick, elderly and uninsured and they are not doing it. >> it's hard to pick which ad is the worst. that was bad. i'm not sure if you saw organizing for action's ad y fr yesterday of the millennial in the hoodie footy, the onesie, the man at home curled up with with his coffee saying to get covered and talk about it during december. this is the definition -- >> there it is. >> that's not the worst one but it's bad. this is the definition of the adult child syndrome. >> probably the guy living in the basement. >> i agree but all of the jokes, making fun of him and he's obviously g

oregon's had problems from the start. the people that are in charge there should be just as, you know, embarrassed about it as the federal health care. >> here's the thing, david. i have a friend in connecticut. by all accounts, that state exchange is running relatively well. she signed up three weeks ago. and she's got no information on how to pay the premium. today is december 23rd. people go away for christmas and the new year. so she will be covered or january 1st or she won't. times her by the thousands of other people who don't know. >> what you're running into, what you're describing is a problem that's existed here all across the board. nobody has any sense of any real hard numbers. you know, for example, did 5 million people lose their insurance as a result of what occurred or, as the white house says, it's only a couple hundred thousand. how many people have actually signed up? your situation in oregon, people who thought they signed up suddenly getting this robocall that p perhaps they didn't. i have to say thi

you can see a line of snow showers at the california- oregon border. we'll have cloud cover ever night but no rain or snow. here's the look with the temperatures out the door. 33 in livermore. 31 in napa and fairfield. in the south, 36 in san jose, so warmer than today. 37 in san mateo. 45 in san francisco, all warmer than today's readings. our afternoon high temperatures, making it to the 60s in portions of the south bay. 59 in santa clara. for the east bay, we'll be in the upper 50s but 60 in pittsburgh. downtown san francisco is getting to 58 degrees for your friday afternoon. the north bay, 60s in santa rosa and napa. if you are planning on heading to the sierra, we'll have chili chilly mornings and temperatures in the 40s. no snow. you can see temperatures turning upward all the way through tuesday of next week. it looks like we'll cool down into wednesday and thursday, but no sight of rain >>> in sports, the 49ers talk about taking on an old friend this sunday and the sharks try to snap their four-game losing streak. gary has the highlights highl

we are looking at a state of oregon. if they with more than 150,000 cancellations.s been broken since day one. he says oregon citizens for him to the curb can even get back on the curb if they wanted to. and that is the ironing there. good luck getting something, anything. >> the good news for some of those consumers is that belief is state insurance commissioner is allowing this to be continued through next year. but they still rely on that some white. neil: at this point in the health care law, they're about 5 million fewer that have insurance and we have a lot of ground to have this run more smoothly and i would imagine that the indication of it will take a while. >> absolutely. one of the core goals of this is to expand that more americans could access a form of insurance company. including what kind of insurance coverage and we will get to that later. and you've mentioned many of these are facing a confusing situation in states like oregon and so people have to figure out if with her insurance company and commissioner are cooperating. neil: so the president mig

oregon at $8.95, where one in five households rely on food stamps. vermont with the third highest, recalculates the wage every year taking inflation into act. at $8.25, connecticut has the fourth highest minimum wage. it has the fourth-highest cost of groceries and is one of the expensive. >> illinois $8.25. the strong union state has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. how much of an impact does a higher minimum wage have on the economy. in oregon, a planned $0.15 increase in minimum wage on 1 january 2014 puts $2,034 in the pot. >> i don't see a way in which that small amount of money for a small proportion of the workforce could spark economic growth. the funds are coming from someone else who no longer has the money to spend. >> the majority of minimum wage earners are young, there are those who are struggling. many minority groups, disproportionally depend on the minimum wage. single mothers trying to raise a family on $15,000 a year. experts say there are better options than increasing income. >> there are options like the ear

the presiding officer: the senator from oregon. mr. merkley: madam president, i ask unanimous consent the senate recess from 12. a 45:00 p.m. until 2:15 p.m., that the time in recess count postcloture. further, that the time until 2:15 p.m. until 2:35 p.m. be controlled by the majority leader or his designee, the time from 2:35 p.m. until 3:15 p.m. be controlled by the republican leader or his designee. the presiding officer: without objection. mr. merkley: thank you, madam president. my voice is a little weaker than usual, thanks to a winter cold, but i come to the floor today nevertheless because there is an issue on which it is important not to remain silent, and that is just a few days from today, more than a million people across america are going to lose their unemployment benefits. those benefits are a bridge to the next job. those benefits are a foundation for a family during a rough time while searching for that next job. those benefits ensure that the stability of the family, provides a solid foundation for the children durin

by this afternoon, we tap out at 39 in medford, oregon. 48 in seattle, increasing clouds. it looks nice and warm. 60 in san francisco, 80 degrees in los angeles. that's about 12 degrees above normal for this time of year. it should stay in the upper 7 >> so ever since christmas, it really has been a nice stretch of weather through the the west coast. it will continue through the weekend. >> 80 degrees in the mid-west. thanks. >>> business headlines straight ahead how retailers faired this holiday season. >>> a sliver nightmare, carnivorous fish attacked unsuspected beach-goers. you are watching "early today." >> good morning, welcome back. the u.s. sent air to ground missiles for use in the ongoing campaign against al qaeda forces. iraqi intelligence says the missiles have destroyed four militant camps. >>> the man accused of the november 1st shootings pence an lax terminal pleaded not guilty tuesday. he is accused of killing a cia agent and wounding and killing other people. >>> people were attacked by biting fish in argentina while some children lost parts or all of a fi

oregon is now the 13th state in the nation to legalize medicinal marijuana. if you smoke cigarettes in a car where there's a child as a passenger, that's now against the law, and in oregon, if you're on the cell phone, the cell phone fines have now doubled to $500 while driving, but there is some good news in oregon because now new moms can bring home their placenta from the hospital. experts say it's very nutritious if you ingest it. in illinois if someone sells you a lemon pet that is unhealthy, you can bring it back to the owner or seller or have the seller foot the veterinarian bill. illinois also says if your pet's leash is not long enough, you could spend six months in jail. and lawmakers in illinois clearly have been watching way too much breaking bad because now mobile home owners in illinois now have to notify any potential buyer if the place might have been used to cook methamphetamine. and here in california, students can now sign up for whatever sport is consistent with their gender identity. that's regardless of what sex they were been, they can

look to oregon to go next, maybe alaska, california maybe.t the big news is outside the country where uruguay will be the first country to legalize marijuana and follow in the footsteps of colorado and washington. but when 58% of americans say theyry "r" in favor of legally regulating marijuana like alcohol. and when that support is coming from people who don't use marijuana and worry about their kids i think it's just a matter of time before we see marijuana become legally regulated around the country and in many parts of the world. >> neil, do you agree with ethan it will be legalized? many people think in 10 or 15 years many states will be similar to colorado especially with the support we are seeing with the recent poll? >> i agree with ethan, 100 percent. not just in states with a referendum. but in pennsylvania where the legislators have to move the policy, we are seeing the policymakers realizing it's a safe place now to talk about regulation and control, tax and regulating marijuana. so we're going to see it across the country and mov

oregon quarterback marcus announce he will return to the duck next season. up a top 5 opportunity in the upcoming nfl draft red shirt sophomore unfinished business left in college. leaving stanford. thrown for over 3000 yards. 30 touch down just 4 interception so. >> good for the duck absolutely by the way war quarters gym a football. come back with 27 point deficit and they beat toronto. good stuff. >> thanks very much larry. >> has this edition of 7 news hear on coffee tv 20. here's hear on coffee tv 20. here's all of us i'm dan ashley thanks pelton [over pa]: it's hard to believe finals are here. and i know during this stressful time, my voice blaring over a pa can't help. which is why, for the next three days, you'll hear nothing but soothing sounds of nature.

aaron glance begins his record in oregon. >> reporter: u.s. army specialist jeffrey wagoner received a funeral with full military honors. he was medically evacuated out of afghanistan in 2007 after he sustained a groin injury when a rocket propelled grenade exploded. but that's not what killed him. wagoner survived his deployment. he died in this hotel hours after being discharged in oregon. while recovering from his wounds his mental state deteriorated. he became addicted to painkillers and the army sent him to the detox center at this va hospital to get clean. but the hospital continued to give him narcotics and after two months they released him with a massive cocktail of drugs including 12 tablets of oxycodone. since jeff's death his father greg has been trying to piece together what happened. >> i couldn't believe the amount of medications prescribed to him. >> after he left the hospital, jeff went to a nearby motel. >> he picked up a six-pack of beer, he checked into a room. has a couple of beers, decides he's hungry and goes next door t

watch out for freezing fog in oregon. we go from 70 today, starting to warm things up a hill bit. even as we go toward tomorrow, we should be better. all the koelcold air, richard, leaving the west. >> what do you think of the new graphics at "early today"? >> i like it. like the music i wrote for the show? >> i do. quite a conductor. good stuff. bill karins, you didn't know that about him, did you? >>> the american film institute has released the list of the top movies of the year. how many have you seen? the best of the best includes "12 years a slave," "gravity" >> that's your favorite, right, "gravity"? >> i'll take "gravity" or "12 years a slave." and "wolf of wall street." >>> metallica played in all continents, after playing in antarctica. the crowd listened through headphones and not amps for fear of causing an avalanche. yeah, i would rather do it that way, too. >>> congratulations to kate winslet, who gave birth to a baby boy. >>> a trailer for the upcoming "godzilla" has been released. take a look. >> your courage will never be more needed than it is today. >> "godzilla

oregon is pretty much similar story. oregon was tabbed as a leader by the obama administration.ceived more federal grant money than any other state except for new york and california. late this month, started getting robocalls. listen to the robocalls. >> if you have not heard from us by december 23rd it is unlikely you can have timely press for january 1stle coverage. >> harold received one of those robocalls and thought he was all covered starting january 1st. listen to what he sass to say about that. >> the governor should have been apprised of the situation. if he wasn't apprised of the situation, then shame on his aides. and if he was, then shame on him for not listening to his aides. >> since the october 1st october 1st rollout in oregon, the web site has never worked. instead people are forced to sign up -- fill out 19 pages of forms and there's been lots of problem with the forms. >> i understand in some very blue states, there are some kind of intraparty shots being tan at the rollout, i'm thinking specific live of maryland where there's a split among the democrats and

you can see washed in oregon california will see the snow. highway 1 will have a dangerous situation. nevada and idaho to the south-eastern parts of oregon, that's where the majority of snow will be. in seattle look at the mourning temperatures. we'll stay into the 20s, 18 degrees on sunday. not breaking out of the i 20s or 30s until we get to the end of the week. here in california, notice the snow coming towards the valley. well, north of los angeles, you will be seeing snow in the higher elevations there. the skiers could be opening up. temperatures for los angeles look like this. 58 degrees with rain. lookout shelter elevations there. monday 60 degrees. overnight lows of 39. this is where the problems were in texas. overnight lows will be below freezing. >> coming up - an update about the stolen radioactive containers in mexico. >> as leaders from 48 afghan r can countries meantime, the death toll climbs. >> now to a tragedy unfolding in africa, out of the central african republic. 300 are dead after fighting broke out in the capital. naz

joining me now, senator jeff merkley, democrat from oregon. senator, you'll go back to oregon, shortly, i imagine, for the recess. what are you going to tell the people in oregon who are long-term unemployed? what is your explanation about why they were cut off from benefits three days after christmas? >> well, i still have this very slim hope that the senate and house will come to their sense, because delivering 1.3 million lumps of coal across the country, kicking people when they're down, is certainly absolutely wrong. but barring that, i'm going to have to explain to people that there is a caucus in the united states senate and in the u.s. house, that kick them when they're down has become their official motto. and we're going to keep fighting against it in every way we can, but it's a difficult battle. >> should democrats have gone to war over this? should patty murray and the rest of your caucus said, no. no, no, no. no deal, no deal unless these people are included? >> well, do understand that the budget control act creates a default po

favorite sites. >> ecola state park is a very popular spot on the oregon coast. of the top three or four places to visit because it does have such a spectacular view. there's kids and tourists, a lot of people. >> pitten, her husband scott and little elena or laney are joined by relatives visiting from iowa. scott's cousin, craig's wife karen and their children. >> it was a gorgeous day. we were having a great day, we were excited that the sun was shining because on the oregon coast, you never know what the weather's going to be like. >> the children have never seen the ocean so the group heads to one of the most popular overlooks along the shoreline. >> we wanted to show craig and karen and the kids the beautiful view. and i wanted them to experience the beautiful oregon coast with the sun shining. >> from a high cliff, the families enjoy spectacular scenery that stretches for miles. >> the cliff is about 150 feet. at first it kind of goes like this and then after that it goes sheer right down to the ocean and the rocks. >> i want my picture taken. >> and i'm re

oregon, $8.95, where one in five households rely on food stamps, the highest in the country. vermont, number three, recalculates the wage every year, taking inflation into account, and connecticut has the fourth highest, but also the fourth highest cost of groceries, and one of the most expensive state to live n illinois, $8.25 an hour, blue the strong union state has one of the highest unemployment rates in the country. how much of an impact does a higher minimum wage have on a country in in oregon, a planned increase in 2014 will put an extra $234 a year in the pockets of employees working 30 hours a week. >> i don't see any way in which that very small amount of money for a very small portion of the workforce can possibly spark economic growth. and again, those funds are come frag someone else. >> while the majority of those earning minimum wage can move up the income ladder, minority groups, single mothers, among the minimum wage earners, trying to raise a family on what amounts to $15,000 a year. but many experts say that there are better options out there. >> there are

. >> reporter: the 15 counties from the oregon border to the county will be able to utilize this website. >>> president obama stirs up the fire storm. what he did at the memorial for nelson mandela that shocked the world. >>> i'm juliette goodrich in pleasanton where there is a tree brewing. the owner of this lot and that lot is not becoming a good neighbor. the trio of two tree lines. ,,,,,,,,,,,, with cuban leader raul castt the memo >>> you can call it the handshake that is seen around the world. president obama locking hands with the cuban leader raul castro at the memorial for nelson mandela. >> cbs4 reporter elliott rodriguez why the handshake has so many people shaken up. >> reporter: the president was making waves with the soccer stadium when the first person he greets is the cuban leader. then kisses him on both cheeks before moving on and greeting other dig nay -- dignitaries. the handshake with castro did not go down well with cubans. >> we are still upset with the reconciliation between the agreement and the pressing of the united states. >> reporter: the handshake was critic

oregon is one of the top producers of christmas trees in the world.year they put out about 7.3 million trees. pretty cool. this video over a million hits, trending, going viral, but we contacted noble mountain tree farm, this is a process they go through every year and it's incredible to watch. >>> hey, everybody. just in time for the holidays we're giving an ipad mini. >> all you need is today's buzzword, be a u.s. resident and 18 years of age or older to enter. >> the buzzword is coming up. your chance to win an ipad mini. >> good luck, everybody. >>> this has got to be the worst text to receive this holiday season. watch this. surveillance video showing a big van from merlin engineering backing into a job. now when he jumpsps out, pay attention to over here on the other side of the street. the other sort of blue vehicle pulls up, somebody gets out of the blue vehicle, starts walking up to the van. >> no. >> walks right up to the window, knows tises that skis are in the ignition, pops in there and then flies out of there. the blue vehicle following

. >> the furs delivered from oregon. here temperatures bottomed out at 32. frost covered everything but it is not all bad. zach found the bright side. >>the first time he has seen frost and we got to touch the frost. it is very cold. there was frost on the fence. this was frost on the cars. this was frost on the roofs across the street. it looked like snow. he hasn't been in the snow yet so he thought it looked like snow. >> few people told me they are covering their plants just to be safe as the cold weather is expected to last several more difficulties. >> now is a if time to download the weather yap giving you severe weather alert and hourly temperature forecasts which is free at abc7news.com/app. >> the latest in the search for a missing bay area family whose plane is lost in the idaho wilderness. >> what president obama is calling the twin challenge of our time and what needs to be done. >> the core for releases the autopsy results for paul walker and what really killed the beloved movie [[man] it's nothing but tape... [woman] it's a block. we're havin'

three class-action suits have been filed in california and oregon and target is contacting customers who paid in stores with cards from thanksgiving to december 15th. >> the last minute blitz has many calling this manic monday, just two days are left in the shortest christmas shopping season in 11 years and stores offering deeper discounts than on black friday and many stores like macy and toys 'r us are open 24 hours to attract last minute buyers. the holidays make up 40 percent of the annual sales and commerce department reported today that the consumer spending rose half a percent in november, the healthiest showing since june. >> if you get a smartphone for christmas, install the new smartphone app that will keep you on top of the latest breaking news, weather and traffic, and we have a section for all the stories you will want to share on facebook and twitter@abcnews.com/apps for all the details. >> we need an app for a fireplace because at least it can burn this, safely, since we can not see that if a couple of days. >> or the biggest fan in the galaxy to blow the bad air away.

and don't even think about lighting one in a car with a child in oregon.art of the restaurant? then we said, can you smoke outside? then we said, can you smoke down the street. then we said, can you move to another state? we do not like regular smokers. meanwhile, when it comes to maurn, it's fast becoming a legal substance in the united states. >> reporter: but now moms in oregon can get away with this. taking their placentas home from the hospital. if you're wondering why do that in the first place. some experts think eating it has positive health benefits. >> as long as they're not giving it to other people to eat. i suppose it's okay. >> reporter: and talking about health, no more tanning beds for some teens in illinois and oregon. you'll have to be 18 to tan in a salon in those places. >>> but you don't have to keep your new pet if it's sick. illinois's new pet lemon law allows people to return a pet if an illness was not disclosed by the seller. in california, gender will no longer determine what bathroom children can usa. >> the student who ideas as

the coldest air still up in oregon or near the oregon border., some of this light rain, not too much but boy is it moving quick from mount view to fremont south. there's not a lot left. a little bit maybe during the altamonte pass as well and also some wrapping back around: 40s and 50s, if it wasn't for the cloud cover and breeze we'd be much colder. blue canyon says light rain. our system will continue to move south, cloudy in the morning, then clearing this afternoon. that's when the cold air starts to move in. the coldest air will be with us later today and tonight. cloudy, windy, showers developing. again, they're really fast movers. watch for highs today, mainly only be in the 50s. >>> we are looking at the commute. it's not all that bad. you'll see that traffic is moving along pretty well in many areas. i want to mention the bridge because we had an earlier crash on the span that was blocking a lane. that crash has been removed and traffic is recovering. it never really did become so slow at the toll plaza. and that's because it was so ear

organization whose mission is to encourage charit charitable giving and he joins us from portland, oregon. jason, what is your sense that americans are pulling back on charitable giving this year? >> it's great to be here, thanks, great question. i don't think actually people are pulling back on the charities they're supporting. they're pulling back on the amount of money they're giving away. it's based on uncertainty of the future. those who gave 100 dollars may give $50 to $75 to hedge their bets of what their income will look like going into 2014. >> how do you convince people in this type of economy? it's a split economy. some people do very well. we look at the housing numbers, but some people really feel like they're not out of the recession. how do you make people feel better about giving? are there techniques to make them feel they're getting greater value or the need is greater? >> it's how much they can give. we have seen with too many people that giving decision is an impulsive one. you ask me if i'll make a gift to the cancer society. how am i feeling today? it's tuesday, yes.