the very purpose of the senate, according to james madison. by empowering the majority leader at the expense of individual senators, the people of the 50 states lose their voice in the senate and party leaders get their way instead. the people of iowa sent me to the united states senate to represent them, not to simply vote up or down on a purely partisan agenda dictated by the majority leader. everyone complains about the lack of bipartisanship these days, but there is no opportunity for individual senators to work together across the aisle when legislation is drafted on a partisan basis and amendments are blocked. bipartisanship requires giving individual senators a voice, regardless of party. that's the only way to get things done in the united states senate. in the last decade, when i was chairman of the finance committee and republicans controlled the senate, we wanted to actually get things done. in order for that to happen, we knew that we had to accommodate the minority. we had to have patience and humility and respect for that minority, attributes that don't exist on the other side anymore. and we had some major bipartisan accomplishm

that report was commissioned by the state senate. it says an official overseeing, the project reportedly told an engineer not to document concerns, but to voice them instead. goes on to say the official did not want a traceable record. head of the state senate committee and a bay bridge spokesman are tight lipped about the report. >> there are large conditions about the integrity of the system, the transparency and the compliance with the spirit, if not the letter of the public records act. >> we are reviewing the findings in the report and we will respond to the findings in the report come friday. >> that response should come at the state senate committee hearing scheduled for friday. >>> cautious optimism today in governor brown's state of the state speech. while things have improved and california is expecked expectsed is expected to have a budget surplus. they owe workers for healthcare and no mood to go on a spending spree. >> a budgetary surplus in the billions. in the billions. [ applause ] but don't spend it, that's the point.

a half a year in the united states senate, four republican amendments voted on in the united states senate. in any institution where you have any form of open debate and open amendment process, you're going to have a lot more votes than that. and i think that's very telling about where we are. i was here as a young staffer back in 1985 and 1986. at that time senator bob dole was the majority leader in the united states senate, and it was a very different place. the boss i worked for, i worked on some issues for him, and he had his opportunities, as did other senators at that time, to come down here in the senate, offer amendments to be able to speak out on behalf of his constituents on issues that were important to them, important to him. and that's something that has become a bygone era. i also had the opportunity prior to being elected to the senate to serve in the other body, the house of representatives, where things are very structured. all of rules committee that basically regulates what legislation comes to the floor, what amendments will be made in order, how much time is allowed f

as the state senator says, it's like something out of the 1950s. if it was an online database, they could see instantly where a bed was available. the state senator was told there wasn't a bed available for his son. we've later learned it seems there were at least three beds available in the commonwealth of virginia that day. we'll be right back. ale announc] if you have yet to master the quiet sneeze... [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] you may be an allergy muddler. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. zyrtec®. love the air. [ sneezes ] ♪ yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah! ♪ we are one, under the sun ♪ under the sun... [ female announcer ] fiber and protein. together as one. introducing new fiber one protein cereal. for aveeno® positively radiant face moisturizer. [ female announcer ] aveeno® with soy helps reduce the look of brown spots in 4 weeks. for healthy radiant skin. aveeno®. naturally beautiful results. four hours on the slopes.urs on weights. ave

you have the state senate. that could produce on the surface, wow, you have two panels now. you have the state senate and state assembly looking at this double trouble for chris christie. for some very inside new jersey reasons that's maybe not the best situation and maybe not the best way to be pursuing. there are a lot of different agendas in a state senate where you have democrats who have been friendly and protective of chris christie. you talked to people in trenton. there's concern on the assembly side which is much more aggressive in bringing all of this to light in the first place. the assemblyman who chairs the transportation committee will be chairing this special committee. he's the guy who has kept this alive. there's some concern among democrats in trenton who want this thing to really keep going and to really have as many subpoenas as possible. the senate could end up mucking this up. so that's one thing to look at going forward. >> we would not be making a multiday, multiweek story out of this if this guy were not presidential timber. we didn't make a big story

is mostly recovered from his injuries show he is visibly scarred and returned to his seat at the state senate with a new purpose, mental health reform in virginia to fix the system that failed him and failed his son. >> that's the motivation for the state senator. and the need for reform extends far beyond virginia. there is so much stigma about mental illness in this country. tonight we want you to hear criegh deeds. we want you to hear about the son that he loved, the son he lost and the pain that too many families face often all alone. >> what do you want people to know about gus? >> gus, gus was a sensitive kid. he was sometimes overly sensitive and very -- he was the kind of kid that sometimes kept count of rights and wrongs and who got what. and he was very conscious of that growing up. but he blossomed as a teenager. and then he was 20 and the campaign didn't work out, gus was kind of just astray. he said i'll sit out a semester of school. his mother called me one morning and said i have nothing but a note on the table from gus saying i'm taking a ride and she got a text of a road sign

. >>> good evening, everyone, tonight my interview with the state senator from virginia whose son stabbed him multiple times and how the tragedy could have been prevented. >>> will tomorrow's state of the union address be president obama's last chance to shape his agenda? what is it like aboard the latest nightmare cruise ship where only the germs appear to be going first class. this afternoon, i was about two hours south of here in richmond, virgin virginia. the pain for this father is still raw. virginia state senator creed deed's was slashed and stabbed and almost killed by his mentally ill son gus who took his own life. he talked about it a little last night on 60 minutes, tonight we go indepth in a way he's never spoken about it before. >> people have been so kind to me, they reach out and they don't understand sometimes that i just have to be left alone, because i have to focus on the good things. these pictures and the facebook page set up for gus. there's so many good pictures and good memories, that's what i have to focused on. i'm determined that gus not be remembered just for h

and technically that balances the state senate exactly. 20 democrats and 20 republicans. in virginia the tie breaking vote in the senate goes to the lieutenant governor who is now the newly elected democratic lieutenant governor, ralph northum. that means that de facto control of the state senate has returned to the democratic party today by a grand total of 11 votes, which you should think about that next time you're weighing on election day whether or not it's worth it to go vote. if you're seeing spots before your eyes, it's time for aveeno® positively radiant face moisturizer. [ female announcer ] aveeno® with soy helps reduce the look of brown spots in 4 weeks. for healthy radiant skin. aveeno®. naturally beautiful results. i prefer today. [ female announcer ] new clairol age defy color collection. with our best breakthrough gray coverage. lustrous, radiant color that looks 10 years younger. today. [ female announcer ] new age defy color from clairol. >>> a few months after president obama was first sworn in as president, in may of 2009, he did something that almost n

and technically that balances the state senate exactly. 20 democrats and 20 republicans. e tie breaking vote in the senate goes to the lieutenant governor who is now the newly elected democratic lieutenant governor, ralph northum. that means that de facto control of the state senate has returned to the democratic party today by a grand total of 11 votes, which you should think about that next time you're weighing on election day whether or not it's worth it to go vote. in the nation, we reward safe driving. add vanishing deductible from nationwide insurance and get $100 off your deductible for every year of safe driving. which means you could save... a lot of benjamins. we put members first, because we don't have shareholders. join the nation. ♪ nationwide is on your side yeah... try new alka seltzer fruit chews. they work fast on heartburn and taste awesome. these are good. told ya! i'm feeling better already. [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. enjoy the relief! [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. (voseeker of the sublime.ro. you can separate

appeared on the verge of can training -- any control on the state senate. the seat mark haring gave up when he became attorney general. if a democrat survives, they will take control of the bridge in a state senate. -- the congressman says he will seek reelection to the house of representatives. he had been considering a run for governor for several months. if he had decided to run he will have gelling anthony brown, doug gansler, and heather mizer as to credit candidates. the forecast,n when we could see snow flowers -- snow showers. all therd sherman, and business of the cold. >> we continue our coverage of the deep freeze that has gripped the region. >> officials are taking steps to keep residents safe. sam ford is live in northwest to explain. >> the cities cold weather emergency, additional food and shelter for the homeless will continue through tomorrow. the city is trying to return to normal. >> a sound heard round the city as teams of workers tackle the snow and ice left over from the storm. folks like ron harris out clearing the sidewalk. >> its exe

the state. in a positive sense as opposed to the negative sense. i believe he represented the state pretty well in the senateas far as patronage which is what senators then did and not senators, i guess, now too. he never lost an election on a couple of indications he bowed out before he an opportunity to lose an election. he was elected governor. he fore went a run at governor in the 1850s because andrew was a stronger politically than he was. but slowly the conservative element in tennessee is the true across the south in that time period regained the senate seat, and he hadn't connections and had influence and he had press teeing as having been ultimate conservative governor because he had lead tennessee out of the union. in those days, the united states senators were elect bit state legislature. there weren't directly elected as they are today. he had his politics in order and was elected by the state legislature as united states senator in 1876 to take office in 1877. the thing he's most known for in tennessee history now is very famous quote that he issued or famous response that he issued to a call fo

we'll have the state senator out here in a little bit. the next project is high speed rail. he's concerned about if the bridge had so many problems how is it going to do with other projects? a lot of weld concerns came from the fact that the bridge, much of the it was fabricated in china. there was a back and forth between the fabricator in china and officials about what constituted a proper weld. that's what the debate was. it also drove up the cost. >> we'll speak with the senator live in studio in a few minutes. >>> smith & wesson versus california. the major gun manufacturer is refusing to sell some pistols in the state. cbs reporter nick james with more. >> reporter: if you ask josh deetser, california's already too tough on guns. >> smith & wesson here. >> reporter: the sacramento gun shop owner says the state's newest regulation is more of the same. >> it creates problems for me, for the manufacturer. >> reporter: smith & wesson announced it will stop selling new handgun models in california, rather than comply with the controversial law. it requires new or redesigned

the 33rd district senate race. the winner will determine which party has control of the state senate. we will have results tonight coming up at 11:00. >> some of those voters are reacting to today's breaking news. stunning news in some quarters at virginia former governor and his wife have been indicted on federal charges. peggy fox who covers virginia, she's in leesburg with more. peggy. >> yeah, we have been talking to a number of voters and campaign workers and they were all stunned that these indictments came today. many people were hoping that he would not be indicted. two months ago, we heard there were indictments coming and bob mcdonnell's prosecutors asked them to wait. so that has happened. today, former governor, bob mcdonnell and his wife have both been indicted. it's a lengthy 43-page, 14 count indictment and some of the charges include wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, obtaining property while under the use of his office. and here, this investigation has been going on for a year now. according to the indictment, the mcdonald's participated in a scheme to enric

in virginia the tie breaking vote in the senate goat to the lieutenant governor who is now the newly elected democratic governor, ralph northum. that means that de facto control of the stateeturned to the democratic party today by a grand total of 11 votes, which you should think about that next time you're weighing on election day whether or not it's worth it to go vote. hey kevin...still eating chalk for heartburn? yeah... try new alka seltzer fruit chews. they work fast on heartburn and taste awesome. these are good. told ya! i'm feeling better already. [ male announcer ] new alka seltzer fruits chews. enjoy the relief! [ male announcer ] what kind of energy is so abundant, it can help provide the power for all this? natural gas. ♪ more than ever before, america's electricity is generated by it. exxonmobil uses advanced visualization and drilling technologies to produce natural gas... powering our lives... while reducing emissions by up to 60%. energy lives here. ♪ she'd just grab the bounty select-a-size. one select-a-size sheet of bounty is 50% more absorbent than a full size sheet of the leading ordinary brand. use less, with bounty select-a-size. afghanistan, in 20

they also want the person to appear before the state senate committee. same person, the same documents twice. some of these people may be represented at taxpayer expense, at public expense. it may give an opening to the governor's office to delay this thing by going to court and saying the legislature needs to get its act together, needs to act as one. and so part of it here is i think there is also a sense here -- >> that's already started. because nbc news has confirmed two subpoenas from the senate. >> right. >> egea and samson. >> regina egea and david samson. and the other question here, the other thing that there is some concern about is if the u.s. attorney himself, if paul fishman steps into this, essentially -- functionally that could k have the power of shutting down the state legislative. paul fishman is a democratic state appointed. when it comes to prosecuting public corruption, he has been nowhere near as chris christie was when chris christie was as a federal prosecutor. if you talk to democrats privately, they express lots of concerns abo

the state houses. we can control the majority of the state senate seats of the state house seats. i mean come you know, look what chris christie did in new jersey. look what is doing in wisconsin. these are people who are not just thriving in the deep south. you can look, and i talk about this, we have been trapped, the party of the deep south. basic all the places where i lived, that's for republicans do well, florida, mississippi, alabama, georgia. we kick ass there, okay? but if you live in new england, chances are pretty good you are being represented by democrats. >> we have started to break out of that sort of deep south southern strategy and to talk about how we can do that more in the book. >> you can watch this and other programs on line at tv.org. >> with a few weeks left in 2013, many publications are putting out their year end list of notable books. these titles were included in npr's guide the 2013 great reads. >> for an extended list and links to other publications 2013 notable book selections, visit booktv's website, booktv.or booktv.org. >> can you tell me essentia

the testimony we will hear friday contradicts at least that last part. >> reporter: the state senate transportation and housing committee released a scathing 41-page preliminary report. the allegations are familiar: cracks in parts from china, delays, and exponential cost overruns. but the report says, caltrans ignored the warnings and, worse, engineers were told to, quote, not find cracks and to not document problems in writing, just orally, so there will be no searchable public paper trail. >> what i have seen is consistent with what has frustrated me about this agency in particular, that they are not as transparent or forthcoming when either the public or the media outlets or the representatives of the public ask them for what they're doing. >> reporter: caltrans had this to say. >> the toll bridge program oversight committee is reviewing the report and looks forward to responding to the findings and answering the committee's questions on friday. >> reporter: the report was based largely on interviews with engineers who worked on the bay bridge. in addition to all of those accusati

but there's also going to be one on the state senate side. e state senate side, i'll just say first of all, having these two sort of competing investigations, there could be some turf battles there. that's one thing. hey, we already called this witness, we already heard from this witness. it sets that possibility. to be perfectly blunt about it, one of the stories of chris christie's governorship that people did not get enough attention nationally are the alliances he has formed with powerful democrats in trenton, and that is particularly true on the state senate side. so the question to watch here, is who is he putting on his committee? >> steve, really quickly, ten seconds. why the two separate investigations? why not just one super legislative committee? >> i think there's a lack of trust between the assembly and the senate side. i think the assembly and senate side have not worked that well together, and i think if you talk to people, especially on the assembly side, they're happy that they got their own investigative committee, but they a

the state capital and around the bay area were at half-staff yesterday in honor of officer smith. and you can find all the latest developments on this story at our website, kpix.com. >>> the state senate transportation committee will hold a hearing tomorrow about the structural safety of the bay bridge's new eastern span. the committee released results of an investigation ahead of the hearing. as kpix 5's andria borba explains, the report contains allegations of coverups by caltrans. >>> reporter: once again the safety of the new eastern span of the bay bridge is being called into question. >> we were always told by caltrans we were getting what's called the lifeline bridge that it would be operational within 24 hours of a major earthquake and that it would last for 150 years. the testimony we will hear friday contradicts at least that last part. >> reporter: the state senate transportation and housing committee released a scathing 41-page preliminary report. the allegations are familiar: cracks in parts from china, delays, and exponential cost overruns. but the report says, caltrans ignored the warnings and, worse, engineers were told to, quote, not find cracks and to not document pr

richard codey served out the rest of jim mcgreevey's term and decided to return to the state senate. 011 once back in the state senate, richard codey got into a battle with the newly elected chris christie. he wanted to block two of governor christie's nominees. that caused the two of them to effectively go to political war. chris christie railed against richard codey for being, quote, combative and difficult. mr. codey called out governor christie for being childish. then things left the realm of that specific political fight. look at this. "days later, mr. codey was walking out of an event in newark, new jersey, when he got a call from the state of police superintendent informing him he'd no longer be afforded the state trooper who accompanied him to occasional public events, a courtesy granted to all former governors." richard codey, a former governor stripped of his security detail days after holding up a pair of chris christie nominees. that was just the start of it. "that same day mr. codey's cousin, appointed to the port authority of new york and new jersey was fired from his j

these are being blocked from votes in the united states senate. but what we're seeing are additional regulations coming out of this president that are making it harder and more expensive for the private sector to put people to work which is why the polling shows -- >> so what's wrong with america is president obama, is that right, senator cardin? >> and every opportunity you've had, the republicans have had, they've tried to block this administration from getting things done. they've tried to take the environmental protection agency, take the resources away from it, put restrictions on what they can do. there's a denial about climate change. there was a rider that said the administration couldn't regulate carbon even though the courts have already ruled on this issue. there's been the relitigation of the affordable care act even though it's the law of the land. there's been no -- >> the president doesn't act like it's the law of the land. >> there's been no cooperation whatsoever. let me just give you one example of a contrast here. when medicare p

trying to intimidate msnbc and has the official office calling for the ouster of the chair in the state senate who is running the investigation that he said he would cooperate with. i think this goes farther than the bridge. >> i agree with that. it is not just us saying this. also the polls reflect it. i want to show you these numbers and get your reaction, ken. you are seeing an implosion here. you mentioned hillary clinton was neck and neck with christie. he has dropped down eight points now. isn't this a big problem for him? from your point of view --f you are a political professional. when mcdonnell got in this much trouble he abandoned. should christie say i have a state to run and i have an investigation. should he give up on presidential aspirations and let people know whhe is focused on e home field. >> if the goal is to be the best governor you can be that is done better by setting everything else aaside. let me finish it out. he can do that, really sincerely do it and come back in a year and reassess whether he is in a position to step in -- >> would you advise him to do that? >> th

if she wins tomorrow, democrats will likely gain control of the state senate and that is something she reminds voters whenever she has the chance. >> i want to bring the focus back where it belongs -- away from the extreme of the republicans. >> the seat was opened up which includes leesburg, sterling, and herndon. with another win will give governor mcauliffe a majority in the senate. has also brought more attention to the race. against theght hard party republicans -- tea party republicans. it backfired to get that shrill and angry with that ad. >> the republican candidate is campaigning against increased tolls on the dulles freeway. todoing everythg they can avoid talking about the issues and demonizing republicans. >> a former republican member of the house has ties with the parties and is running as an independent. >> it will give an alternative to other partisan politics. >> even after tomorrow, the election of 2013 is not done. a recount will be held in the special election held for the senate seat in the hampton roads area appeared the democratic candidate one that race by nine

it's to go out and win the winnable elections in the united states senate. if a year from now republicans hold the united states senate and the united states house, if at that point we can't get things done, then i think it is legitimate to hold people in our party accountable. there's some people in washington who want us to hold our breath until they take their other positions. we need to make sure we don't pass out and that we're through to fight. we need a game plan to win in the future. 2014 is that all important year. we get the senate back. two years later, we ought to get a republican president. it is about truly reforming the federal government, reigning in the debt, putting the power back in the hands of the people. >> great to have you here. thanks so much for joining us on this weekend. take care. we'll see you soon. >> thank you. >>> so what's your solution to fix the gop? some say quit the infighting. we're going to try to do just that when we return. stay with us. is it africa? the middle east? canada? or the u.s.? the answer is... the u.s. ♪ m

the state. the state senator from san antonio who's been in the state senate for quite a while. about a month ago i think. >> so what about women being activated by the abortion debate? do you see a lot of women being more interested in this race than they have been in the past? >> you know, i think so. it's an interesting issue. if you look at the bill itself, the components, and the regulations that have taken effect, some of the regulations you could find majority support for in texas, but there's an aspect in which process matters, right? this became a huge issue, a public issue, and it wasn't a pressing issue before the filibuster made it one. i think a lot of texans, women and men alike were put off by the fact that republicans advanced this issue for political purposes. >> erica from texas monthly. thank you very much for being with us today. >> thank you. >> and coming up, a look ahead at weekend weather, including the bitter nfl while card matchups with potential sub zero temperatures. and check out next week's new yorker coverage. at least the polar bears can enjoy the

northern virginia also had to go to the polls the today in a special election for a race that may end up determining which party controls the senate in that statecontrol of the senate will not be sure in virginia until one other race goes through a recount, but this one tonight is just as crucial to that outcome. polls closed at 7:00 p.m. in the special election for the 33rd senate district in northern virginia. and now with 100% of precincts reporting, the associated press has declared the democrat in the race, jennifer wexton, to be the winner, with 52.7% of the vote. she's a pro-choice, pro-gun democrat who defeated a republican in the race named john whitbeck, and a republican named joe may, who ran a strong race as an independent. jennifer wexton's win means that control over the virginia senate hinges now on the results of a recount that's going on in the other special senate election in virginia, virginia's district 6. the stakes on that recount are now officially very high. if the democrat wins that recount, democrats control the senate in virginia. if the republicans win that recount, they control the senate. big deal. watch this space

the daughter former vice president dick cheney ends her bid for the united states senate and why she needs to step aside the. >> putting high-speed rail on track and the idea to pay for it. >> the consumer electronics show will kickoff with new technology and gadgets to expect from

the nature of the senate to persuade the anti federalists to support the constitution. if we had direct election of senators there would not be an original constitution. the statesave ratified it. furthermore, who exactly did the senators represent? the most bizarre body that man has ever created. there are two for every state. but the direct election of senators, you have situations where senators voted for obamacare in states where the governor and attorney general fought obamacare in court and the state legislatures are trying to protect their citizens from obamacare when the senators voted for it. it is bizarre. the senate today really is and ought construct. so the purpose of the senate was to empower the state legislatures and the federal lawmaking process cannot to just have another ability to vote. >> for this month's book tv book club joined other readers. restoring the american republic. simply a to booktv.org and click on book club to enter the chat room. once there you can log in as a guest to post your thoughts. >> up next on book tv, after words with guest host stacey, and to make the director of the american society for muslim at advancements. her

and that tool is the united states senate. remember, i think we all know partisanship is not some recent innovation here, invention. american politics has always been more or less divided between two ideological camps. today that is reflected in the two major parties but is actually always been there. one side are those who proudly placed their trust in government and its agents to guide our institutions and direct our lives. on the other are those of us who put our trust in the wisdom and the creativity of private citizens working voluntarily with each other and through more local mediating institutions guided by their own sense of what is right, what is fair and what is good. now recent polling suggests by the way that most americans fall squarely into the latter camp. people are generally confident in their local governments but lacks confidence in washington. and yet despite, despite the political and ideological divides which have always existed in our country, we have almost always manage to work out our differences not b

it barely got out of the state senate floor. i think that's saying a lot. that the opinions have changed. certainly amongst the voters, we have to put the state legislature in a figurative headlock to get them to think about it. i hope the assemblyman is successful in this measure because it would be proper to put this back in front of the voters and ask them again, would you rather have this or water projects, highway projects, school projects, any number of things that could be done to help move california forward instead of this boonedoingle that has no way of pie -- boondoggle that has no way of paying for itself or sustaining itself. so we see that, again, with the court handsing down a ruling -- handing down a ruling that the plan has diverged so far from what was initially voted on and approved by the voters, that it's now illegal. why should state government be doing things that are illegal? because they're right now in such a hurry to get the money spent, the federal money. if the federal money was to stop , the state money also has -- they both hav

democrat jennifer watson is the winner in a special election for a state senate seat in virginia. she top favor broken and the independent candidates to replace former state senator mark herring at the is now the attorney general. if the democratic candidate surprise the recount, democrats will take the role of the state senate in virginia. even the animals at the national zoo got a snow day. you can tell by some of these photos be giant pandas felt right at home yesterday. in fact, even the red pandas ventured out into the snow to explore just a little bit despite the cold weather. they are made for this stuff. the auditors assumed to be having the most fun, rolling around on the white blanket of snow. for aave at that for reason. obviously they love to get out there. >> we do not have that so much. love it.d i do not >> it is brutally cold will stop the windchill the extended into the afternoon now, north and west of d.c. we have got the snow that will stick on the ground for quite a while now. see from the satellite. it is like taking a snapshot in space. everything white reflec

after he leaves office, miller said he will continue to work on the same core issues but in a venue outside of congress. now state senatorord, he is the first bay area politician and he intends to enter the race to replace mill they are congress. 61-year-old manhasset been in the state senate and before that he served in the assembly and on the contra costa board of super -- contra costa board of supervisors. he wants to end the gridlock in washington. he is leading the nation when it comes to the number of health insurance enrollments. according to the new numbers, almost 500 californians have been enrolled and an additional 64,000 are signing up for medical. and they will have the least expensive of the four tier plans. >>> it began against the seahawks and the 9ers will head back where they have outscored them during their last two games and they will be dealing with a lot of noise and the latest weather forecast calls for low clouds and sun and 50 degrees is expected for the 3:30 kickoff. >>> here is a surprising view, seahawks have angered many fans for the championship game and the policy makes it tough for 9 is fa

the state senate transportation hearing is underway at capital this morning at 9:00. >> at the center of the advance placing fiasco gets help to prevent future students from face the same. 300 students who attended millbrae school had their tests invalidated by the check board last year because the school did not follow proper tote call. today, the peninsula state senator jerry hill will introduce new bills to require immediate retesting, seating charts and let colleges decide whether to count the scores. >> california could be following the lead of bay area communities in banning plastic bags. key lawmakers reached the deal that could noon a statewide ban by 2016. the agreement includes $2 million for listens and grantses to help companies that make plastic shopping bags, retrain their workers and convert factories to make reusable bags. the ban applies to super markets and pharmacies and liquor stores. >> the first heat of the surf competition is 3 1/2 hours away and surfers were relaxed and ready to go. today they will face waves up to 50' high. organizers urge the finances to watc

the presiding officer: the senate will be in order. the senate will be in order. the senator from oklahoma. mr. coburn: all the states and everybody wants to do the narab bill. i agree, we should do it. but if all the states really want to do it, my amendment has no effect whatsoever because it allows an opt-out for a state that they want to dpoivment either it's true they all want to do it or it's not true they all want to do it and we're going to force some state not to do it. an opt-out keeping the 10th amendment privileges of the state is highly required to make sure we do not go outside the bounds of our legal obligations and i reserve the balance of my time. a senator: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from montana. mr. tester: mr. president, we've been here before. gram-leech-bliley 15 years ago offered what the good senator from oklahoma is offering and it's why narab has never been successful. this empowers state regulators. that's why they support this bill. notice you haven't heard from states taking away the rights here because it does not. it empowers them, creates more competition in the

in the end, rand paul didn't go to the united states senate floor to speak about this until after the vote had concluded. >> thanks a lot, eamon. eamon javers reporting from washington. >>> well, our next guest says that janet yellin's biggest challenge will be how to unwind the fed's stimulus without derailing economic growth. he's the chief economist at ihf. thanks for joining us. tell us what janet yellin should or shouldn't do so that she's successful in unwinding the stimulus out of the economy. >> well, i think first and foremost what she provides is some continuity in terms of what the fed is doing. but very importantly, i think the key goal here is flexibility in terms of gauging where the economy tis, gauging how much t proceed with this tapering of the bond purchases, and do it in a way that obviously gets rid of that program, let's say, by the end of this year without derailing the economy. that's the key challenge i think over the next year. so flexibility is key. making sure the economy is on track, you know, not doing things too soon, not doing things too late. so it's a

at the state capital over a report accusing caltran of ignoring safety experts would brought up safety issues with the new eastern span of the bay bridge and was commissionened by the state senator from concord and found that the caltran engineer and outside consultant say caltran disregarded warnings that a chinese company working on a huge section of the bridge was turning out wells with cracks and the company said do not put the concerns in writing. the caltran disputes those allegations. >> this is what commuters saw this morning along 580 in san rafael. firefighters say it took 45 minutes to knock down the fire that break out in a mashy area around 4:00 a.m. and contained it to three abeers. drivers could see the flames from the richmond-san rafael bridge. >> firefighters responding to a fire found a familiar site: a large pot grow inside. the roof of the home collapsed as the crews tried to put it out and protect the homes on both sides. illegal wiring used to power the grow is believed the cause. >>> >> the shooting death of a bart liver is prompting new questions of the cameras the officers wear. the shooting was not captured by the cameras because they were not wearing

. >>> this time the control of the virginia state senate is it hanging in the balance. the special election was held today and with every precinct reporting in, democratic state delegate linwood lewis holds a slim 22 vote lead over republican businessman wayne coleman. this contest is very important because it's one of two special elections that could determine which party controls the state senate because it is evenly divided between republicans and democrats now. democrats need to win this race and another special election january 21st in northern virginia to succeed attorney general elect mark herring to maintain the 20/20 split in the senate. as lieutenant governor democrat northrup would cast the tiebreaking vote. >>> a u.s. congressman who pleaded guilty to cocaine possession is back at work. florida republican trey radel is back at work. he said he'll work hard to earn back the trust of colleagues, constituents and family and said he's in a treatment program and while he was busted for drugs his biggest struggle is with alcohol. >>> the congressman is far from alo

general counsel to the governor to my attorney for general of the state of new and you jersey, and is now the are at former united states senator for the state of new jersey. it is my honor to introduce our master of ceremonies today, the honorable jeff. [applause] >> good morning, everybody, and thank you, bill, but you did not beat me by much. ladies and gentlemen, thank you for being here today. it is my honor to look at new to the inauguration of governor chris christie and the lieutenant governor, kim guidano. it is my pleasure to introduce to the state, lieutenant governor and his family. [applause] [applause] and now, ladies and gentlemen, before you sit down -- [laughter] would you please join me in welcoming governor chris christie and the christie family? [applause] [cheers and applause] >> to introduce the pledge of allegiance, it is my pleasure to welcome the president of the new jersey state senate, senate president, steve swinney. [applause] >> governor, a heartfelt congratulations and i get the honor of calling up the governor's youngest daughter bridget to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. bridget? [applause]

to the senate: under the provisions of rule 1, paragraph 3, of the standing rules of the senate, i hereby appoint the honorable brian e. schatz, a senator from the state of hawaii, to perform the duties of the chair. signed: patrick j. leahy, president pro tempore. mr. reid: mr. president? the presiding officer: majority leader. mr. reid: following my remarks and those of the republican leader we'll be in a period of morning business with the time until noon divided equally. the republicans will control the first 30 minutes and we'll control the second 30 minutes. at none all postcloture time on the motion to proceed to the unemployment insurance extension will expire and the senate will begin consideration of the bill. senators will be notified when votes are scheduled. mr. president, another day has passed and we still have a vast majority of republicans standing in the way of extension of unemployment benefits. some republican senators are having conversations about possible offsets for a full year extension. i've said a number of times i think we would be ill-advised to have another short-term. if we're going to have an extension they're talking a

the democrats will effectively take control of the state senate. we mentioned that the snowstorm caused headaches for people all over the country. 1500 flightsng, were canceled nationwide for today. here's a look at what the snow looks like when it was coming down at reagan national. the snow stopped and john gonzalez is tracking the travel woes. this is brutal out here morning at reagan international airport. if you are flying or taking a train, this will affect your travels. here areagan national, there is a good amount of snow on the reallyand the wind is picking up in priority for the ground crews this morning. they are pushing all the snow off of the tarmac. there is a lot of piling going on around the airport. the roads are still a bit of a mess this morning. around thee and country are being canceled and delayed. more than 1500 flights have been canceled nationally and 2000 have been delayed at last check yesterday. they are on par to match that or go. if you are looking at a plan b, a friend of mine's flight was canceled and she booked a tic

the head of the state transportation committee looking into what went wrong during construction of the new bay bridge. and now word that the bridge will end up costing even more. the senator has noing faith in the state agency, he says, has a pattern of untruths. >> reporter: the state senator did not mince words on kpix5 sunday morning calling the caltrans official who's tried to defend their work on the bay bridge at a senate hearing on friday, liars. that hearing came after a caltrans engineer blew the whistle on shoty work on the span. he says they ignored warnings about broken bolts and bad welds that engineers were told to quote not find cracks and not to document problems about in writing just orally so there would be no paper trail. >> after the problems were discovered the problem was not being fixed. >> reporter: the director of cal trans on friday denied that. >> i have no evidence or reason to believe that there was anything like that going on. >> reporter: he is not buying it. >> pretty cheer to me they were lying. >> reporter: he says caltranses has a pattern of it. >> they have a person who say lawyer telling an expeter in the field what is accurate and not

attorney general of the state of new jersey, partner in one of the most powerful and connected law firms in the state of new jersey, he's being subpoenaed tonight from the new jersey state senate. that's one. the second one of their subpoenas is going to regina egea, who was chris christie's director overseeing authorities, like the port authority, at the time of the bridge shutdown. the morning that the lanes were opening up again, she got sent the angry letter from the port authority executive director that said he was going to get the lanes opened up again. and that this hasty decision violates federal laws and the laws of both states. regina egea was sent that letter marked high importance on the last morning of the shutdown. she too has just been subpoenaed by the new jersey state senate. that's two of the three. but then there's the third one which, as far as i'm concerned, before tonight, before i started figuring it out, seemed to be the total wild card. it's this guy, who before this, was an unfamiliar character in this play. his name is pat schuber -- william pat schuber, one of the commissioners that chris christie appointed to the port authority. he's not been high

, we get that, that was to balance the large states and the small states, but you have situations now where senators voted for, say, obamacare in states where the governor and the attorney general fought obamacare in court. and the state legislatures are trying to protect their citizens from obama. it's very bizarre. the senate today really is an odd construct. so the purpose of the senate was to empower the state legislatures and the federal law making process, not to have another ability to vote. >> host: recent rule changes in the senate to limit the filibuster, do you agree with those? >> guest: no. i think in the case of harry reid and the democrats in the senate, they abuse the rules, whatever the rules are. i'll give you an example. they were using the filibuster to block judicial nominees under george w. bush like no senate in american history. period. then they complain when they're in power and they can have the majority about the republicans not confirming executive officials quickly enough and not pushing through obama's legislation fast enough. and the very people who abused the filibus

. >> reporter: the state senate is investigating. the attorney general and the fair political practices commission. why did quackenbush ignore his own leadership's recommendations. why would he donate a small portion of the fund to nonprofit groups having nothing to do with the earthquake. to a black film group, and to a sacramento football catch attempted by chuck quackenbush's children and other children. >> it's just part of the work we do. >> what would you say for those who say you're furthering your political career. >> those children cannot vote. >> reporter: but their parents can. >> quacken bush says that he was doing it to bring more spanish speakers into the insurance -- and they ignored by the man elected to protect them, insurance commissioner quackenbush. >>> the plan to investigate the insurance commissioner and the area lawmaker who was at the center of the probe. >>> we continue our second look at the north ridge earthquake. pressure was growing on california insurance commissioner quackenbush. the officials believed

the bill passed in the state senate. it now goes to the assembly. >>> silicon valley home launched its challenge to inventers to come up with new high-tech ways to secure guns. grants will be given to the best ideas, organizers say nearly two dozen children are hospitalized every day from gun injuries. one inventor has created and submitted a biometric trigger lock that would only be activated by a correct fingerprint scam. they will award $1 million worth of grants and prizes to the people with the best ideas for reducing gun violence. inventers have until march 31st to submit their ideas. >>> the winter olympics in sochi, now nine days away. the final preparations are underway for what's expected to be the biggest olympic security operation in history. russian terrorist groups have publicly threatened. they will target the winter games. more than 50,000 police and soldiers are on duty. some u.s. lawmakers are wondering if the russian government is doing enough to prevent a terrorist attack. >> they have called for incre