case, because the case had been dismissed. >> but at the same time, can you understand what the police union is saying? they're saying that this police officer arrived on the scene, there had been a prior incident when professor gates was out of the country. he is told that there is -- that there are two men involved. whether or not there was any racism involved in his response, as a law enforcement officer, he's saying that he was trying to protect skip gates and anyone else who might be in the house from some other third or fourth parties. he did not know what the lay of the land was when he first walked into that house. >> no, that part is understandable. what is not understandable is then when he goes forward, makes an arrest, and makes charges that a prosecutor has said are unfounded or we don't feel we could substantiate them. let's no end writ where the uni has ended it. he made an arrest, he charged someone with a crime that the prosecutor has failed to go forward. and i think the media is not dealing with the fact that it is the prosecutor's officer that has refuted what the officer

the cambridge police in union announced -- to cambridge police union announced that it is standing firmlyehind the arresting officer. >> we expressed our support for sergeant crowley, clearing him of any wrongdoing. on behalf of the unions and the members, let me assure everyone that the officers of the cambridge police department are committed to the professional and non discriminatory enforcement of the law. they make hundreds of decisions each week and thousands of decisions each year in the preservation of the peace. race does not play a role of any kind in that decision making and played no role in the decision making in this case. >> president obama said that the actions of the cpd were stupid. the fact of this case suggest that the president used the right adjective but directed it to the wrong body. >> i think that the president should make an apology to all law enforcement personnel. >> our opinion is that we want all of the facts to be presented. the present and not have all of them. -- the president did not have all of them. greta: president obama tried to put out the fire. >>

. >> reporter: the local police unions demanded a presidential apology. a few hours later the president responded. >> i unfortunately, gave an impression, that i was maligning the cambridge police department or sergeant crowley specifically. and i could have calibrated those words differently.nsñ8rñ.9 >> reporter: the president made his remarks just after getting off the phone with sergeant crowley, a conversation the white house did not characterize as an apology. >> my impression of him was that he was an outstanding police officer and a good man and that was confirmed in the phone conversation. and i told him that. >> reporter: the president stood by some of his statement from wednesday but also cast some blame for the incident on gates whom he telephoned after he spoke with the press. >> i continue to believe, based on what i have heard, that there was an overreaction in pulling professor gates out of his home i also continue to believe based on what i heard that professor gates probably overreacted as well. >> reporter: the president then tried to ref

sense any bad feelings toward president obama for his remarks, because the police association, the police unions have called for an outright apology? what is the emotional sense that you have of what is happening with the cambridge police department right now? >> reporter: lou, there were absolutely some bad feelings. when i got here yesterday, you could feel it. the tension was in the air. the police commissioner told me that morale was very low. when i spoke to these guys today before the president called, they thought it was a rush to judgment and he should have waited for all the facts. one of the black police officer, a woman police officer, her name is kelly king, she said, i supported the president. i voted for him but i don't support him and i won't vote for him now. i think they may be reconsidering this because they feel that at least now there may be some resolution in all of this. yes, there were bad feelings towards the president. and they said, not only the president they feel in those initial remarks did he single out the sergeant, the officers here but police officers all across

bill: it will not be the final word but -- because we will hear a press conference from the police uniongyn: let me tell you why that is important. the president of the cambridge police patrol officers association, a police union -- they do not represent the sergeant in question -- but he says that there are audiotapes in the solicitor's office that will show the harvard professor it is the one that turn this into a racial incident. bill: state to inform more on that. in the meantime, this is a fox news alert. consumer confidence falling in july. the first drop in five months, unemployment and low wages run of in terms. consumers still unsure if the economy has hit rock bottom. that is a live look at the national debt clock in new york city. take a look at that monster number. it constantly updates to show each american family's share of the debt. that clock was created in 1989 by a new york real-estate developer. on the road to recovery, in the meantime, we are looking at a number of different industries and how their business is doing. this morning, we look at tully's coffee shop. they

. >> hours before president obama's comments today, the cambridge police union stepped up presenting a united front, throwing support behind the police sergeant who arrested henry louis gates. >> we here to support him, to express to all of you that all of us collectively and individually believe that he acted appropriately as any police officer would in conducting a response to a break-in in progress call. >> gates had just returned from an overseas trip and tried to force his way into his house with the help of a driver a passer-by, concerned he was trying to break into the home alerted police. when officers arrived, they say gates became belligerent, at one point telling officers "this is what happens to a black man in america." the situation escalated where gates was arrested for disorderly conduct. sergeant james crowley, the officer at the center of what has been called a racially charged incident didn't speak attitude's news conference but earlier this week said he followed protocol. >> i acted appropriately and gave him plenty of opportunity to stop what he was doing. he acted

the cambridge police union says they want them released. sergeant crowley spoke on low cal news, geraldo, saying and he was clear that professor gates he explained exactly how the arrest went down and said professor gates was screaming, ranting, he would not calm down. you and i both know, black or white what happens is you get arrested for disorderly conduct, professor or not and professor gates is definitely turning this into a race issue. he is saying that obama said. >> geraldo: i have not heard ever, ever, the case where you get arrest the for disorderly conduct inside your own home and the professor alleges that sergeant crowley lured him outside specifically to get around that technicality you might call it in the law. and he was entrapped and that is why the cam bridge cops dropped it. i want to ask the governor a question. what if the tape says there is two black guys breaking into the house next door. is that good or bad for sergeant crowley? >> i don't think it matters what color they were. there were two people that appeared to

the police union, city officials, and alexandria residents still supported him to a certain extent. >> i remember he has had an unblemished record for several years. >> he stepped down. it is - it is with a great deal humility that i resign. >> [unintelligible] >> many resident of alexandria ultimately said it was the right decision even if they did not agree. >> i think it is a shame that this happened, but i think the best thing for him to do was to resign. >> some -- one person has stepped in as active chief for the interim. the former police chief could still face charges. he has no comment tonight. abc7 news. >> according to the city of alexandria's website, someone retired from the washington d.c. police department. he then joined the alexandria police department. we have details on the house's decision the house'svote of the health-care beer -- vptote to not -- decision to decisionvote on -- decision to notote on the recess. >> what job is in the hospital in china. we received word that the child has been released after several days in the hospital. this was supposed to be an e

. >> reporter: the police union supporting the officer say they aappreciate the president's mark. some influential members of the black community agree. >> this racially is something that need not take off and look and feel the way it is beginning to look and feel. >> reporter: according to his brother, officer crowley hopes to put this issue behind him and put life back to normal. >> lindsey mastis has been talking to people down at the mall. has this become a teaching moment? >> reporter: well, many have said there is a lot to be learned by this, and by having the officer and gates at the white house, is it going to resolve the issue? people along the national mall have mixed feelings. >> there are a lot of bigger issues to be worried about than something trivial like this. i would think we should get beyond it. >> i think it will let both sides to get to the understand how to get to the point. >> they don't really want to talk to each other. i think it was good for president obama to try to figure this whole thing out. >> i think it's bringing more attention to a story than it

the police union wants them released. it's up to the city solicitor. it remains to be seen if it will be made public. sergeant crowley said on the local news yesterday, nobody is speaking today, that during the arrest, gates was loud, ranting and he was refused to calm down. he said it was the professor was completely uncooperative and that's why he was arrested for disorderly conduct. the president called them and mr. gates said they would meet up for a beer. the president also said which race is still a sensitive issue in the nation and that's why this happened. but there are people here locally that said if he hadn't waited until a local issue, that he knew nothing about, it wouldn't become such a big deal. >> i read this morning in the newspaper that gates doesn't like beer. i guess he'll have to seek out another drink for him to have at the white house. thanks courtney. >> they talk about universal health care, the big debate. in massachusetts, it's turning out not to be so universal. they got a huge budget short fall and that's now forced big cut

i think that police union press conference gone differently or maybe this looked like it was going to start fizzling out, i don't know if we would have seen the president today. >> finally, my sources on capitol hill going to health care now, chuck, are telling me that in the senate, the public option is in serious trouble. are you hearing that? >> i've heard the same thing. in the finance committee, ken rod rad who's the guy that sort of created the idea for the co-op, what i would advise you ed is get to know what this co-op is going to do. i've talked to some who are big advocates of the public insurance option who believe they can do things within the framework of this co-op that will make folks who are supporters of the public overall big public option feel better about this. but the fact of the matter is, you're not going to get grassley. you might not get ben nelson. you might not get ken conrad. for anything that's called a public insurance option. and the co-op may be just better language to use and easier to sell in some of these places. so as somebody said, it can walk like

massachusetts police unions who yesterday publicly chastised the president for his criticism of the cambridge police department, are now pleased mr. obama has as he put it recalibrated those comments. the president inviting both sergeant jim crowley and professor henry gates to the white house for a beer and conversation hoping the incident becomes a lesson to improve race relations. we have been hearing a lot from you on how the week transpired. here is some of what you have been saying on my blog. steve says, it is amazing that we pat ourselves on our collective backs saying that we elected our country's first black president. however whenever the president speaks as a black man he is accused of race baiting or playing identity politics. jim m. says -- if this is a learning moment, as professor gates and president obama say, then let's talk about police procedure when called out to a possible burglary in progress. when an officer arrives he says, at a possible burglary, two men were reported, everybody in the house, around the house is a possible suspect and maybe even a threat. steven says

. >> reporter: another group lining up behind chief bake we shall the police union. the president tells me his board is hopeful baker can remain as chie i on spite of the dui arrest. >> thank you, julie. 'll ctinue following the story throueout t evening. stay tuned to news 4 for the very latest on the rest of the police chief, david baker. >>> commuters are soon going to have some relief from their recent traffic nmaigrehtn o the ting tarsd crews will eate l aep seat lane for vehiclesan turning right on to route 123 fro chain bridge. that way drivers who need to turn right won't get stuck behind the folks waiting to go straight. crews will add the new lane by repositioning construction barriers and restrapping the roadway. >>> it is coming down to the wire on capitol hill. time's running short for president obama's efforts to reform the nation's health care system. congress will be back at work tomorrow. bo sides say they want to improve the system and provide care for americans who don't have health insurance. but they remain deeply divided over just how to make th

now, coming up at noon eastern, cambridge police unions will hold a news conference. we will bring that to you live. the organizations are backing the police sergeant. >>> wellbeing. we're all striving for it. purina cat chow helps you nurture it in your cat... with a full family of excellent nutrition and helpful resources. purina cat chow. share a better life. >>> i'm just trying to figure out what -- oh, i'm sorry. so, here's the thing. we had an option. we could do weather with rob, or we could talk about the perfect game pitched yesterday. >> more important things this time of year, the boys of summer doing big things. >> big things. let's take you tochy. mark buehrle, left-handed pitcher. the ground ball to the shortstop, there it is. what do we have here, rob? >> perfection. no errors, no walks. >> yeah. >> no hits. >> but do we have the play from the top of the ninth that really saved -- oh, the catch. the center fielder. >> you mean the home run? >> yes, yes, yes. we don't have it? >> we don't have it. it was fantastic. >> it was masterful, i was trying to fig

now, the police unions, they are upset, and one can understand their point of view, but, chris, i know you have been talking about this, but just think about this for a second as it relates to race relations in our great country. a professor from harvard university, a man who walks with a cane in his mid-20s, in his own home who identifies himself. so then what can happen to the 16-year-old with his hat to the side and jeans perhaps hanging off his backside that hasn't done anything wrong? >> here's president obama late this afternoon about his invitation -- it was prompted by crowley, the cop, who had the -- what do you call it? he said, why don't you have us over for a drear beer? here he is responding to the propation. >> at the end of the conversation, there was a discussion about -- my conversation with sergeant crowley, there was discussion about he and i and professor gates having a beer here in the white house. we don't know if that's scheduled yet, but we may put that together. >> okay. here's the question to you. dominic, it is 11:00 tonight, we are in a saloon somewhere in n

police union officials declined to talk to us on camera but sent an e-mail saying they expect the department to follow the law. their lawyer he says speeding is a natural part of an officer's duty and they can't be expected to remember months later why they were speeding. >> i've been doing this for 20 years. doesn't hold water with me. >> reporter: the court record suggests that three of the officers offered no explanation for why they were speeding. the fourth was going 51 miles an hour in a 25 miles an hour zone. he said he was on his way to training. in rockville, bruce leshan, 9news now and wusa9.com. >> the police department says the vast majority of officers caught speeding simply pull out their check backs and pay up. they say the judge's ruling is not binding on other cases and it plans to keep on sending out those tickets to conditions and everybody else. county council president phil andrews is urging the county executive to appeal. >>> ped did i cabs, the cross between a bake and a taxi, are springing up all over downtown d.c. those human powered carriers have become very popular

at midday, a multiracial group of police union officials held a news conference to defend the cambridge, massachusetts, sergeant and demand an apology from the president. now, a short time after that, president obama made an extraordinary appearance in the white house briefing room where he made a surprise announcement. >> i actually just had a conversation with sergeant jim crowley the officer involved and i have to tell you that, as i said yesterday, my impression of him was that he was an outstanding police officer and a good man and that was confirmed in the phone conversation and i told him that. and i... because this has been ratcheting up and i obviously helped to contribute ratcheting it up, i want to make clear that in my choice of words, i think i unfortunately gave an impression that i was maligning the cambridge police department, sergeant crowley specifically. and i could have calibrated those words differently and i told this to sergeant crowley. i continue to believe based on what i have heard that there was an overreaction in pulling professor gates out of his home to th

we don't see the other members of the police union that we were told were going to be there. it's just the four guys. >> well, bret, the sergeant brought along family members. the president and attorney of the cambridge police officers union and members of their families. we are toal they are getting tours of the white house while the principles sit down and talk here for about an hour, and meanwhile, even if they were to say something, we couldn't hear it, the pool being kept some 40 feet away. you can tell it is quite a distance by the telephoto lens pushing in on the two. bret: i'm pretty unimpressed, wendell. i just don't have a lot to say about t >> i'm unimpressed, too, bret. we hoped for more. the president, as i said, had called this a teachable moment, but by many accounts over the two-week process of this controversy, lessons have already been learned. >> the cambridge policeq acted stupidly in arresting somebody when theres was already proof that they were in their own home. >> last week, the president came to the defense of his friend henry gates, admitting he didn

. >> reporter: the local police unions demanded a presidential apology. hours later, the president responded. >> i know fortunately, gave an impression that i was maligning the cambridge police department against sergeant crowley specifically. i could have calibrated those words differently. my impression of him was that he was an outstanding police officer, and a good man. and that was confirmed in the conversation and i told him that. >> reporter: the president stood by some of this statement from wednesday, but also cast some blame for the incident on gates, whom he telephoned after he spoke to the press. >> i continue to believe, based on what i have heard, that there was an overreaction in pulling professor gates out of his home to the station. i also continue to believe based on what i heard, that professor gates probably overreacted as well. >> reporter: the president then tried to refocus attention on the bigger issue of racial profiling. >> my hope is that as a consequence of this event, this endsp s up beingsy teachable moment. >> reporter: a mee

that is my friend and a black sergeant arrested him he would be doing traffic duty right now, the police union would not stand behind him and i think we would have a much more different understanding and interpretation so these hinges do make a difference, class makes a difference, race makes a difficult, testosterone and that class distinction needs to be talk about says do you know who i am, you have got a black intellectual saying to a working class white guy, i am more important than you are you are, that sets up a whole other set of sparks, but we were talking earlier and we decided that not only should we be invited to this white house encounter but what would be interesting, the way you get to the truth is you have the opposite side defend, you are. >> i will argue for the black intellectual and you argue for the cop. >> it took the president and a harvard professor to gin up enough pedestrian agree and social status to argue what is usually taken for a law of white policeman that is a class matter too that has to be dealt with. >> schieffer: i will speak for the timekeeper here, our ti

one of the key moments yesterday was a press conference by a united front of police officials representing various unionst they had to say in support of sergeant crowley. >> all of us collectively and individually believe he acted appropriately as any police officer would in conducting a response to a break-in progress call and processing that call and disposing of the case. >> reporter: they've also said that race played no role in this particular incident. they were very adamant about that. sergeant crowley has been cleared of any wrong doing by the department here and they say they just want to move forward and resolve this dispute. as for gates, he was in his vacation hom

. >> reporter: the police union supports sargeant crawley said they appreciate the gesture by the president and is willingness to reconsider his initial remark. the president hopes the resolution of this incident can be a teachable mowment where everyone can stop pumping up the volume and take a moment to talk to each other. members of the black community agree. >> this, racially, is something that need not take off and look and feel the way it is beginning to look and feel. >> according to his brother, officer crawley hopes to put this issue behind him and get life back to normal. "wjz," eyewitness news. >>> after his arrest, professor gates hired a legal team and reportedly contemplated filing a lawsuit. >> the controversy is proving to be a big distraction from the president' he speaks to overhaul health care. coming up this week, he hopes to get back on the message. he has two more town hall meetings planned, one in north carolina, one in virginia. he juans lawmakers to rally around his proposal. is it a good idea? we'll have a full report coming up in 25 minutes. > >>> senator jeff ses

police union was ordered to turn in his badge and gun. union chief kristopher bowman failed to complete mandatory training, but he says he believes it is linked to lawsuits and complaints he has filed against the department. peter nickles says he is being treated like any member of the force who did not complete the training. >>> route 301 in la plata is reopened. an accident shut down the southbound lanes for hours and the northbound lanes two hours this morning. charles county sheriff's office had to clean up a fuel leak from the ups truck that overturned after crashing into a car at hawthorne road. both drivers are expected to survive. >>> two to children at a maryland camp are recovering from swine flu. health officials are warning others may have flu like symptoms at the overnight jewish camp in harford county. this is the second camp that has been affected by the swine flu. there are 166 new confirmed cases statewide, the highest weekly total since maryland's first case in may. >>> activists are worried about the cut to public fundi

at midday, a multiracial group of police union officials held a news conference to defend the cambridgetts, sergeant and demand an apology from the president. now, a short time

. >> reporter: police union spokesman says incidents like this one from last summer continue to happen every day. >> the amount of time that it happs on a daily basis is astounding to us. >> reporter: the dc firefighters union is especially frustrated about dispatchers giving wrong information. >> then you get there late and as you know, in our profession, every second counts. >> reporter: the recording fox 5 obtained has plenty of exams. >> 3027 street southeast. >> repeat the address. >> 320 seventh street southeast. >> are you saying 320 or 3020. >> 3020. >> the union filed formal complaints. in this case cited a lack of professionalism, out right hostility from the dispatchers. ouc responded saying although radio etiquette is open for discussion, at no time was the dispatcher negligent in her response. we tried several times to talk to janice about the concerns. finally meeting up with her at her office where security guards wouldn't let us get near her. >> we want to talk to you about the problems with ouc? we have been trying to talk to you about the problems. police officers say

this is from the police union in cambridge. take a look. >> the supervisors of the cambridge police department deeply resent the implication and reject any suggestion that in this case or any other case, they have allowed a person's race to direct their activities. however, we hope that they will reflect upon their past comments and apologize to the people of the cambridge police department. martha: they are requesting an apology for getting their feelings hurt. this is officer james crowley. you saw him standing in that huge group in that news conference. he is the officer who arrested renowned black harvard professor henry louis gates. the men have two very different stories about what happened that day. gates says that his arrest was racially motivated while crowley, who has come out subsequently -- he was handpicked by the police force to train other officers about how to avoid racial profiling -- he said that he had good reason to make the arrest and he will not apologize for doing his job. here is the very latest. what to

. >>> the boston police union condemns his e-mail. people shouldn't jump to cop collusions. if you want to hear more about what the officer says because basically i refuse to read it go to cnn.com/robin. >>> a racing legend is coming out of retirement to step in for a driver who was badly hurt in a car crash. here's rafer. how far into retiefrmt was he? >> three years into retirement. >> a little out of practice. >> you may remember the video. this is felipe massa hitting the wall at over 120 miles app hour. he's still in the hospital. so the michael jordan of f-1 racing, michael schumaker, is coming out of retirement. he's only 40 but he's a seven-time former championship and he'll race for massa as long as he's unavailable. his first race could come sunday. >>> racing for the tour de france shot up 100% from the previous year as people were clearly interested in watching lance arm strong's return versus which airs the telecast. 500,000 viewers up from 150 in '08. >>> vick topped the list of the most disliked athletes according to a magazine poll. among them was danny ramir

today, the heads of several massachusetts police unions made it abundantly clear they are standing behind such a crowley -- sgt crawly -- sergeant crowley. >> union representatives say the sergeant did not do anything wrong in this instance and the arrest was not racially motivated. they also defended themselves, their police department, and the police officer involved against what they felt were unfair comments made by president obama and also, they say, it's made by the governor here in massachusetts, saying, "this is every black man's nightmare." police say they resent the implication that racial bias played any part in this whatsoever. they have called on the president and governor to apologize. we do not know if they will consider what president obama said earlier today as enough of an apology or where things will move from here. there's still some key evidence out here that has yet to be released. the 91 call and police radio transmissions. still a few things left unfinished. -- the 911 call and police radio transmissions. gregg: this was a guy who was the symbol of racial harmony.

is expected to speak at a news conference, long with officials of his police union.erview with whdh's kim kazee, crowley said he wasn't a bigot, he isn't a bigot and he told his version of what happened to him when he got to gates' cambridge home. >> first of all, there were reports that there was two individuals. i see one, and it could be him, so where's the second person? or there's two people in the residence that he doesn't know are there. either way, i wasn't expecting his response, which was, "that's none of your business." >> that's the interview with kim kazee in boston, a reporter. now our reporter, ron allen. i understand the president has come out and backed off of his comments he made the other night during his press conference. can you give me an update after we take a look at this one bite. ron? >> reporter: i'm sorry, i thought you were going to -- >> ron allen? >> reporter: can you hear me? >> i sure can. can you give me an update on whether the president has backed off? >> reporter: i'm not sure the president is the correct

. >> neither sergeant crowley or the police union representing him could be reached for comment on the tapes. at least five police officers responded to the 911 calls. harvard university police also responded. >>> coming up next in sports, see what one washington national did last night. it had only been done 12 times before in bubble history. >>> but first it is the signs of now. >>> today is a sweet day. july 28th is a national holiday celebrating chocolate. not just any kind but a specific chocolate, which one, is it milk chocolate, dark chocolate or white chocolate? think you know the answer? find out if you are correct when we come back. fab@b@fab@ >>> back with the signs of now. the answer is milk chocolate. it was invented in the 1870s in switzerland. >>> in sports after a rough first half off and on the field, josh willingham is looking like a star for the nationals. tied at two last night and bases loaded and willingham blasts a grand slam to left. washington takes the 6-2 lead. but then more excitement in the sixth. >> willingham goes to left center again. this is two grand s

police coalition. i'm speaking in one unified voice on behalf of the union presidents and their memberships. we completely support sergeant crowley and the fine men and women of the cambridge police department. we want the viewers to know that our website is being inundated wither, e-mails from law enforcement officers and ordinary citizens from across the united states expressing their support for sergeant crowley in the cambridge police department. and we'd like to thank everybody for that support. on behalf of the entire membership of the mmpc, we'd just like to say that we have sergeant crowley and his family in our thoughts. thank you. this. >> we'll open the floor for questions. right here. >> if you say that you support officer crowley fully, does that mean you regret charges being brought? >> i think that was a decision made without our input. we think in retrospect, given the publicity that has transpired, it would have been better to let the matt gore forward to a trial of fact so that the truth could have been disclosed by means other than debates and media that we've seen over the

. >> reporter: the police union representing sergeant james crowley rallied to his defense. ley himself did not speak, but told whgh-tv about the arrest. >> i'm sergeant crowley from the cambridge police department. >> reporter: he insists professor gates provoked the confrontation, the moment the officer explained he was responding to a 911 call to a possible break in. >> he said, why, because i'm a black man? >> reporter: crowley spoke out because he was tired of being called a racist. he is an 11-year veteran, father of three, and has trained officers on how to avoid racial profiling. >> this wasn't a back and forth exchange of banter or arguing. this was one-sided. >> reporter: an african-american sergeant seen in the foreground, defended crowley saying he never heard the professor call anyone a racist. >> i support what he did 100%. >> it's over. >> reporter: professor gates remains on his vacation home on martha's vineyard. speaking out. >> just because a black man answers the door and you're responding to a 911 charge, treat him or in the case of an african-american wo

mike, the police union says it wants an apology. are we going to see apologies? >> reporter: they're not requesting an apology, but what the association said was that if professor gates chose to apologize, that would be quote, an excellent outcome. they certainly have dug in their heels, another line in the sand on both sides. when you think that on monday, this was a two-paragraph story in the student newspaper, tuesday we did the story on "nightly news" as a short piece -- that should not demean professor gates or the police department. it almost ended and then language started to get ratcheted up. the president's comment that police acted stupidly in arresting gates. gates himself tells cnn that surely it was a rogue cop that made the arrest. today's press conference, several police association standing four square behind 42-year-old sergeant, james crowley. crowley himself didn't speak today, but yesterday, he said again that he did nothing wrong, that it was professor gates who controlled the situation. so both sides right now, narrow descriptions of what ha

it comes several hours after representatives from the police union came to the officer's defense. >> my hope is that as a conseqnce of this event, this ends up being what's called a teachable moment. where all of us, instead of pumping up the volume, spend a little more time listening to each other. >> autumn of us collectively and individually, believe that he acted appropriately. as any police officer would. in conducting aes rnse ro t a o break-in progress call. >> the disorderly conduct charge against professor gates was later dropped. >>> the president is hoping his remarks today might put an end to this controversy. joining us now is nbc news correspondent, mike tiabbi with more. make, what's the pulse? you think this is going to be winding down? >> reporter: well, it's going to be winding down at some point, wendy. because all stories do. but right now, the temperature is pretty stoked. it's reignited an angry conversation between race and law enforcement. i heard it on the talk shows in town, all over the newspapers here and the conversation continues in that vein. but some w

. >>> the head of the dc police union has been ordered to turn in his badge and gun. the washington examiner reports the move is in the middle of a labor-management dispute. they claim christopher baumann failed to complete his training. a federal judge denied his motion to stop an internal police investigation. >>> president obama says the work of the civil rights advocates in the 1950s helped him to get where he is today. he spoke last night to the naacp, which is celebrating the 100th anniversary. he said while discrimination is fading it is still being felt. >> by african-american women paid less than someone of a different color and gender. by latinos made to feel unwelcome in their own country. but muslim americans viewed with suspicion simply because they kneel down to pray to their god. by our gay brothers and sisters still taunted and attacked and still denied their rights. >> reporter: the speech marked the 45th anniversary of the civil rights act. >>> still ahead, landing a job in our area without working for uncle sam. advice on getting that private sector

. >> reporter: police union spokesman chris baumann says incidents like this one from last summer continuepen every day. >> the amount of times that happens on a daily basis is just astunnedding to us. >> some are especially frustrated about dispatchers ging wrong information. >> you get tre late and as you know, every second counts. reported rotorring fox 5 obtained has plenty of examples. >> 0 27th street southeast. >> the address. >> 30 seventh street southeast. >> are you saying 30 or 30? >> 3020 seventh street southeast. >> the union has filed formal complaints, in this case citing a lack of professionalism, and outright hostility from the dispatchers. ouc responded saying, although radioette can radio etiquette is open for discussion. >> reporter: we want to talk to you about the problems with ouc. we've been trying to talk to you about the problems. police officers say your dispatchers are putting them in tian tianer. >> shutting the media out. when you are shutting the city council out. when you are shutting the police out, people should be larged. this means there is though way to

. >>> the head of the dc police union has been ordered to turn in his badge. gton examiner reports the move comes in the middle of a labor management mispout. the police department claims that he failed to complete his annual mandatory training. a couple of days ago a federal judge denied the motion to stop an internal police investigation. >>> time for a "living $mart" report. that's going to make your stomach grumble. we say good morning to jessica. what are you talking about. >> our favorite foods and a new place is saying move over five guys and raise hell burger with have another gourmet burger joint making its mark in the region. it is big on customization. >> you pick your protein. you pick what toppings you want, what cheeses you want, what sauces you want. there's over a million possible combinations of picking your own burger. >> a lot of burgers. the couldn'ter has a huge following in southern california and on monday i will have the story on why the couldn'ter wants to make a big splash in the washington region. >>> you want deals on desserts we hav

police department deeply resent the implication and reject any suggestion that in this case or any other case they have allowed a person's race to direct their activities. >> do you agree with the union head there, that his police department doesn't put race into how it performs? >> well, i think the fact they came together to stand with sergeant james crowley was an important step in responsibility of the union. but the president has also called sergeant james crowley and talked to him, invited him to come to the white house where both of them can get together and talk. >> and when the president disclosed to the american people he placed that phone call, it was friday in the white house, when clearly americans felt he had only made the situation worse, not better, and the president came in to try to ratchet it back. let's listen to a snippet of what the president said on friday. >> because this has been ratcheting up, and i obviously helped to contribute ratcheting it up, i want to make clear that in my choice of words, i think i unfortunately gave an impression that i was maligning with the cambridge police department and sergeant crowley specifically. i could have calibrated those

. >> police union officials declined to talk to us on camera, but sent an e-mail saying they suspect the department to follow the law. their lawyer says speeding is a natural parted of an officer's duty and they can't be expected to remember months later why they were speeding. >> i have been doing this for twenty years. it doesn't hold water with me. >> the court reports suggest that three of the four officers offered no explanation for why they were speeding. the fourth was going 51 miles an hour in a 25-mile an hour zone. he said he was on his way to training. in rockville, bruce leshan, 9news now and wusa9.com. >> the police department says the vast majority of officers caught speeding pull out their checkbooks and pay up. the judges ruling is not binding on other cases and plans to keep sending cops those tickets. phil andrews is urging the county executive to appeal. >> police believe a man they found lying overnight in the road might be a victim of a hit and run. officers responding spotted the victim at the intersection in upper marlboro. this was about 12:15 this morning. po

though not the most clever politics in the country where police unions demand loyalty from politicians the president's words were exactly right. the beer summit of professor gates and sergeant james crowley is likely to occur within the next several days. according to the white house press secretary robert gibbs. a footnote. professor gates doesn't actually drink beer. but that probably will not hamper these three men, the president included, from moving forward. not something we could easily ascribe to those republicans who want to juice this for maximum political profit. like congressman thaddaeus mccotter, the michigan republican who evidently doesn't have enough to do what with his home state suffering a 15% unemployment rate. the congressman has introduced a resolution calling on president obama to formally apologize to cambridge police sergeant james crowley. meantime, the cambridge police department has released the 911 call that led to the arrest of professor gates. in this excerpt, the caller suggests that the people going into the house might actually live there. >> and they

the legal counsel for the police union spoke today as well, trying to make us better understand what is disorderly conduct to begin with. when can a police officer use it, what is the threshold, for example, have to be. let's learn more about this before we get into the debate. here it is. >> you could find hundreds of lawyers who would debate the ups and downs and the merits and demerits of any disorderly person arrest. the police officer on the ground, if you will, on the spot of making those decisions, does not have that luxury or ability. if you review sergeant crowley's report, i think you would find many lawyers who would agree that the evidence presented therein would be sufficient to make an arrest. >> let's talk about don lemon. he was there today for the press. he has been talking to many so of the players involved in this case. you know what this is coming down to, don? this is an interesting question. all of us as americans, hispanic, black, white, no matter where we come from, need to ask ourselves these questions. is this a case about a white police officer prejudging a

clearly officers here in massachusetts, t.j., want to move on in a statement in a police union saying sergeant crowley is pro foundly grateful the president tried to resolve the situation and went on to say it's clear the president respects police officers. t.j.? >> ate of people want to move on and still before we move on, elaine quijano in cambridge, thank you so much. >>> in our next hour, next half hour, we'll hear from gates' attorney and also speaking live with the daughter. >>> a bank, a military hospital and a police center all of them targets in a series of suicide attacks near afghanistan's border with pakistan. one afghan official saying at least five, that's the number we're hearing now, five taliban members carried out these bombings in the city of khost. >>> and the couple of the month, sarah palin has been a lightning rod for opponents. champion for her conservative supporters in 2006 has been the governor of alaska. as are tomorrow palin walks away from the governor's job and into an unknown political future. a chat with an anchor with our affiliate state ktva joining

the police union president says that the rank and file are saddened but support the chief's decision. >> i have spoken with him and i know it wasn't easy for him. i know -- at the end of the day it is what he and his family decided what was best for them and i know that the chief wanted, what was best for the police department. >> reporter: dave baker still faces the drunk driving charges pending in arlington. a hearing originally scheduled for tomorrow has been postponed to mid august. reporting live from election yeah, julie carey, back to you. >> thank you, julie. >>> judge sotomayor is now a step closer to becoming the first latina on the u.s. supreme court. today she was approved by the senate judiciary committee. one republican supports sotomayor. tracie potts has more on the story. >> reporter: it is no surprise that the yishy committee approved her with interesting today is who voted for her and didn't who didn't. >> the nominee has been approved by the committee. >> reporter: every democrat voted for judge sotomayor and so did one republican, south carolina's lindsey graham.