tracie potts joins us from london with all the royal wedding details. tracie, good morning to you or good afternoon. >> good morning, lynn. good morning, everyone. we expect to get a security briefing later on this morning. we expect on the wedding day there will be 5,000 officers on patrol by foot, by horse and by boat in and around central london. plus, 80 private firms, as well. and cameras all over central london. there are more cameras here than any other city in the world, i'm told. they claim to have a special team assigned to assess fans of william and kate on that day. meanwhile, at westminster abbey, the crowds starting to grow. people trying to get their last look at the venue before it's closed down prior to the wedding. we know of at least one camper who is there. the guest list has become part of a controversy because of some of the heads of state and royalty invited to the ceremony there that are from autocratic regimes. we're told there could be protests not at the site, but near the site on friday. speaking of friday, the royal couple, w

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> 4:36 now. now that baseball is cut from cuts, cal is turning to men's gymnastics. the program was told it needed $4 million over eight years to stay afloat. they are half way there with $2 million. cal will compete in the national championships this week. the third ranked bears hope a strong showing will garner more support. they announced last september they have to cut five teams because of severe budget issues. massive fund raising efforts saved four of the teams. >>> this omorning, contra costa commuters singing the blues. westbound highway 4 from hill crest avenue to somersville road is the most congested road. it often takes drivers 20 minutes to get three miles. six other bay area freeways cracked the nation's top 100 most congested roads. >>> people in east cocoa county is get a free ride. the agency is offering free passes to the first 1,000 people who accept the offer. new riders get four free one-day passes that have to be used four times in the month. the promotion runs from april 2

nbc's tracie potts joins us from washington with all the details. good morning to you. >> good morning, everyone. while the president is suggesting reducing the deficit, he's asking congress at the same time to raise the debt limit. that's not sitting with some lawmakers here on capitol hill or with standard & poors. the credit agency s&p for the first time ever has downgraded its long-term outlook on america's debt from stable to negative saying that america could lose its aaa credit rating in two years if this gridlock in washington over spending and the debt continues. as you mentioned, the president begins a series of town halls today in virginia. he's trying to sell his deficit reduction plan. the latest washington post/abc poll shows a 57% disapproval rating on the economy tied for his worst rating ever on that issue. by the way, the obamas aren't earning as much money as they used to. $1.8 million this past year compared to $5.5 million the year before, mainly because of a drop in the sale of his books. the president and mrs. obama paid $466,

for more on this, we go to nbc's tracie potts. good morning. >> lynn, good morning. as of this morning, they have missed the 72 hour deadline to get something in write, that something congress can work around, but the real challenge is there is no agreement to write down. >> applying that approach -- >> reporter: more negotiations it at the white house with a visibly frustrated president. >> we abilict like grown ups. we can't have a my way or the highway approach. >> reporter: he says democrats have agreed to $73 billion in budget cuts. >> the white house is proposing cuts that are far beyond things that we would imagine. >> reporter: but now they're back and forth over what to cut. >> there's only so much that we can do. we have bent over backwards to try to be fair and reasonable. >> if we don't get agreements in the intervening time because of politics or whatever, at least in 2012, they will have a real choice. >> reporter: the budget cuts over $4 trillion in spending but the budget office says we'll be upside down for almost 30 years. >> the poor get poorer, th

for more now, we go to nbc's tracie potts in washington. good morning. >> reporter: lynn, good morning. the shut down deadline is friday, but the deadline to get something on paper is tonight. president obama trying to bring together these both sides to get it done. right now it appears they are in a stalemate. the number $33 billion had been bandyed about in terms of how much democrats and republicans agree to cut. however, republican leader john boehner says it there is no agreement there. republicans had not agreed to that. it's half of what they wanted and not enough. reportedly there is still an $8 billion to $10 billion gap. harry reid said the other side is not being reasonable, democrats are concerned that any deeper cuts could really affect the poor and working families in this country. things like college loans and children's health insurance programs. president obama bringing the leaders to the white house hoping to hammer out a solution in what the white house says is not a line item discussion but a discussion about leadership.

>> all right, tracie potts there for us in london. thanks. for all of you at home a reminder nbc news live coverage of the royal wedding begins tomorrow 4:00 a.m. eastern, 1:00 a.m. pacific time right here on your local nbc station. >>> now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. it was bad business for a couple of stores in a houston strip mall after a car crashed through them. the vehicles barreled through a yogurt shop wiping out everything in its path before coming to a stop inside an adjacent store. no injuries were reported. >>> it was a busy day for a crew of army corps of engineers in pittsburgh. four barges broke loose on the ohio river. one contained benzene, causing officials to fear a potential explosion and dangerous fims traveling up river. the barge was towed away safely while others will be removed the next few weeks. >>> this is cute. a family of ducks has become a popular attraction at one new jersey fast food restaurant since she parked her nest near the drive-through weeks ago the mama duck

for more, we go to tracie potts in washington. >> reporter: veronica, good morning. a hint from republicans that they may be much more flexible than originally thought when it comes to making these big cuts, $61 billion from the budget. house speaker john boehner telling reporters that we can't impose our will on democrats or the white house. he has denied that his party will scale back significantly on those cuts by half, but he did not say they're nonnegotiable. he said their goal is to get a budget and not to shut down the government. the republican party split, the republican leadership under pressure from tea party members and activists who have been demonstrating here saying they were sent to washington to make big changes and not to scale back. the new deadline, april 9th. that is the date that the current temporary funding runs out and both sides have been working to come up with a permanent budget for this year as opposed to yet another extension. democrats say their full list of cuts is not in yet, but they are looking at possibly cutting $3 billion from th

marla. >> tracie potts live in london this morning. thank you. >>> so at 5:45, you're asking yourself where do you get a hat? well, mrs. dusen's hats are selling fancy hats for all of the watch parties. the most popular is called harold and hart, that is a brand out of england. they're the topper. >> mrs. dusen says it's hatitude. you have to carry the hat, don't let the hat carry you. >> san francisco's palace hotel can't pass on the royal event as well. guests will be able to relive the magic at a royal viewing party at breakfast on friday and then they'll serve special drinks and food any brit would love. royal fans who do not want to get out early can enjoy the festivities from their own home with their own hat. the "today" show will have specials royal wedding coverage that starts at 1:00 in the morning friday morning. we'll have local news cut-ins starting at 4:00, a full hour of local news starting at 6:00. >>> on to other news now, a democratic congressman from chicago is in the bay area this morning calling for immigration ref

tracie potts there for us in london. tracie, thanks so much. just a reminder for those of you at home, nbc royal coverage begins at 4:00 a.m. eastern and 1:00 pacific time right here on your local nbc station. >>> now here's a look at other stories making news early today in america. surveillance video shows the dangers of clocking in for work inside an arizona prison when one inmate violently attacked a guard. the inmate's assault continued until he was restrained. he explained the unprovoked attack, saying that he wanted to stay in jail because he feared death threats from the mexican cartel. >>> a combination of heavy rain and a wet runway proved to be the ingredients for a rough landing in chicago. an inbound southwest airlines jet skidded off the runway after it touched down at midway airport. unlike a similar incident in 2005 when a 6-year-old boy was killed, there were no injuries on the plane or on the ground. >>> and we end with perhaps the nfl's top pick of the 2019 draft. this utah kid is amazing. take a look at this utah draft who h

tracie potts is live with the dish about the wedding prep. good morning, you arrived. when did you get there? >> reporter: we got here sunday morning. we left saturday. we got here sunday. now, we are on the air for now and throughout the rest of the week giving you an idea of what's going on. we are at buckingham palace. lots of visitors here. we expect a million of them throughout the course of the week. twice as many as normal for buckingham. what do you do if you are about to get married the weekend before your family? >> he spent it with her family. he's close to them. he calls her parents mom and dad. they went to church an had lunch together. he wants to be sure she gets to spend time with her family as well as his family after they are married. back here in london, lots of preparations. the royal calvary came by and they will be preparing all week at westminster abbey where it is to take place. a large open public area where people will gather on friday to watch the wedding on big screens. along the processional route, they have british flags. the people who ca

reporting live from washington, i'm tracie potts. >> it's certainly hurting all of us. thank you. >>> aviation officers say another air traffic controller has been suspended this time for watching a movie. a controller in cleveland was watching a dvd early sunday morning when he was supposed to be monitoring the landing of an incoming plane. the incident follows at least five other cases of controllers falling asleep on duty this month. the movie he was watching was the 2000 film -- 2007 film "the cleaner." he cleans up crime scenes then covers it up. there's a 17% rating on roton tomatoes. apparently it beats watching planes land. a girl that wasn't allowed to join a boy's basketball team. the city parks and recreation will discuss plans to allow up to two girls on any of the boys youth basketball teams. the shift comes after the parents said the policy violated the title ix federal law. by the way, she ended up playing in her school's basketball team. >>> the world's famous mavericks surf contest might be wiped out for good. the contests sponsor has pulled out. campbe

tracie potts is live in london all week talking to folks planning their own celebrations.morning. >> reporter: that's right, marla. good morning, everyone. it's the street events at the square, the parks, the camp outs that are really prompting extra security. so many people in this city. this morning, a briefing from scotland yard. they are prepared and will crack down on any criminal activity. they are asking for the public to help them, be the eyes and ears of this event and report activity. they will have 5,000 officers on patrol on horseback, by foot, by boat. they will have 80 private teams, we are told, patrolling the area. they will have special teams assigned to certain populations, people they are already aware of that they think could be in the crowd and cause trouble. speaking of the crowd, they are gathering at westminster abbey, the sight of the ceremony on friday. there's one person we know of that is camped out there. we are told it's starting to get tight in the area. the guest list a bit of a concern. there are possibly protests being planned. one at a ho

thank you so much tracie potts. have a good time out there. you can see the royal wedding here on nbc bay area on friday at 1:00 a.m. it's a special edition of the "today" show. stick around for today in the bay at 6:00 friday morning. it's when we'll have your local news and headlines. >>> meanwhile, an expert calling the royal wedding a super bowl of scams. 1 billion people will watch the wedding. millions are searching online for the royal couple. internet experts say scammers are trying to take advantage and launch harmful links. don't click on dumb links. have antivirus software. >>> seeing royal wedding related malware and spam is building. >> pick websites you know are reputable and type them in yourself. it's the only way to be safe the day of the wedding. >> 22 of the first 100 searches for royal wedding gown sketches are poisoned links. >>> classic cars hit the roadways today. vintage sports cars will drive-through san francisco in the north bay for the 21st california mille. the race that ran from russia to rome and back again in 19

tracie potts is live with more on the next big fight. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, everyone. one down, two to go when it comes to your tax money here in washington. we dealt with the 2011 budget that narrowly diverted a shutdown. it will get a vote midweek. now they have two other money issues. one, next year's budget already on the table. republicans are talking major changes to medicare. democrats fear that tax rates for the rich will have a disproportionate affect on the middle class. that comes up for discussion thursday or friday on the house floor. the big issue they have to deal with is the national debt. it's about to hit its limit. it's the e vif lent of maxing out a credit card and asking for more credit. republicans say no more credit until we make big spending cuts in this country. things like social security, medicare, medicaid. the biggest parts of the budget and the most unpopular to cut. wednesday, president obama is going to lay out his deficit reduction plan. republicans already talking about major cuts ques

we want to check in with tracie potts in washington, d.c., where both sides are struggling to reach aeal. i hear they are closer, but not close enough. >> reporter: apparently not. we are not getting great feedback today from either side about this possibly working out. a few minutes ago, an interview with harry reid on the senate side saying he's deeply disappointed. his aids here until 3:00 a.m. trying to work this out. they are back or will be back behind closed doors. democrats are saying the sticking point seems to be republicans who insist on restricting public funding for family planning, for places like planned parenthood. republicans are saying it's not about that at all. it's about the money and democrats who won't come off another $6.5 billion. that's where it stands as of this morning. the president saying he wants an update by noon. they have to notify 800,000 federal workers whether or not they are going to show up for work monday morning. >> perhaps new developments this morning. thanks. >>> the case against barry bonds is in the hands of the jury. closing arguments w

i'm tracie potts. >> see what kind of work they get done.the men accused of the 9/11 attacks are not tried in civilian courts. the obama administration has given up to try them in the u.s. they will be tried, instead, before military missions in guantanamo bay in cuba. congress had also blocked any detainee moves into the united states. >> it's 6:44. >>> the man accused of kidnapping and holding jaycee dugard for 18 years is expected to plead guilty. the attorney for his wife says her husband will enter a guilty plea on thursday. nancy will likely stand trial. she's pleaded not guilty. they are charged with 18 felony counts including false imprisonment and rape. they are accused of kidnapping dugard in tahoe in 1991. >>> the city attorney says a former narcotics test is not connected to a drug raid and property siezures. a city file accused the team of doing it. there's surveillance video given to the news last week. take a look, by the city's attorney. several antioch officers are accused of conducting illegal searches and not documenting c

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c. with a look at the budget battle and how it's going to impact the 2012 presidential campaign. >> reporter: the president laid out what he thinks will reduce the deficit over the next 12 years beginning with 2012. republicans say it's the beginnings of a campaign speech. he's kicking off the campaign. what the president plans to do is cut defense, save money on medicare by negotiating drugs and other initiatives. the most controversial part is his plan to raise taxes on the wealthiest 2% of americans. president obama saying the most fortunate among us can afford to pay more. republicans say this was a re-election speech and the tax increases are a non-starter. the people he's talking about are the job creators, the owners of small businesses trying to get america back to work. you mentioned this year's budget, the vote today on the deal over the weekend. it was supposed to save us $38 billion over 36 months. now, the congressional budget office says it's going to save less than 1% of t

that person's job is to be to protect him in the case of a terrorist or some other attack. >> tracie potts in london, thank you very much. we are less than 72 hours away from the royal wedding. live coverage at 1:00 a.m. our time on nbc bay area. stick around for today in the bay at 6:00. we'll have the local news, weather and traffic. >> we talk about the wedding a lot and we are going to talk more about it. we understand not everybody is interested. "the new york times" finds 42% of americans not paying any attention to the royal wedding. 30% say they will listen but they are not paying that much attention. 28% really care. of the women in this poll, 75% of them will get up early to watch the nuptials. >> surprising. >>> oil companies are reporting their profits this week as americans continue to reach deep into their pockets to pay for gas. experts say as gas prices rise, the public does not spend money elsewhere threatening the economy. every ten cents when a gallon goes up, it takes away $7 million a month out of the local economy. the justice department is looking at taking action on

we go to tracie potts in washington. >> reporter: word from the white house, no more temporary extensionsbut the president's also saying he's not wildly optimistic that democrats and republicans can work this out before the midnight deadline. after a second night of failed negotiations, president obama made it cheer. >> i expect an answer in the morning. >> reporter: just hours from now, he'll have to notify federal workers to stay home monday. the hang up we're told are republican demands to limit abortions, cut funding for public radio, and strip power from the environmental protection agency. >> the sad part about it, we keep never quite getting it to the finish line. >> our colleagues are using the defense department as hostage. >> reporter: americans are starting to fear the real impact. >> they don't have, you know, average joes' interest in mind. >> they're not looking out for the little man. >> reporter: national parks would close, 70% of yosemite's income is from tourists. this resort is already talking layoffs. >> shutting down the park exceptionally shuts everybody down. >> rep

tracie potts joins us with more. >> reporter: good morning. so many americans frustrated about these prices and now the president has asked the attorney general to pull together a task force to see if that's fraud or manipulation going on as these prices continue to rise. the national average for a balan gallon of gas is about 30 cents higher than a month ago. >> probably still not -- still not even full. >> reporter: americans are frustrated. >> i'm working for gas. >> they're going to have to start taking out a loan for gas now. >> i'm hoping it goes down. honestly, i really do, because i will have to get rid of one of our cars. >> reporter: but is it all about the market or is there price man inhags goi inlags going on? the justice department is putting together a task force to investigate. >> we'll make sure nonno one is taking advantage. >> reporter: the financial fraud enforcement working group will look at traders and speculate tore, although so far there is no evidence of wrongdoing. >> the bottom line is many of these speculative acti

tracie potts in washington.hank you. >>> and perhaps the most stunning result in our most recent nbc news/"wall street journal" poll comes from the potential lineup for republican contenders in the 2012 presidential election. the survey finds that donald trump is suddenly tied for second in the gop field, running behind front-runner mitt romney. trump now shares the number two spot with former arkansas governor mike huckabee. trump, who has received a considerable amount of attention recently for continuing to incorrectly insist that president obama wasn't born in the u.s. also surprisingly finishes first among tea party supporters. and don't miss meredith vieira's exclusive interview with donald trump, that's later this morning on "today," right here on your nbc station. >>> libyan leader moammar gadhafi is trying a rather unusual tactic trying to end the nato air strikes in his country. he sent a letter to president obama. in the letter, which includes numerous spelling and grammatical errors, he asks presiden

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c. tracie, our taxes and how the government spend that is money will be a big campaign issue. >> reporter: no doubt about that. we heard the opening round as the president opened his 2012 campaign up in chicago where he talked a bit about the 2012 budget situation and the fact that he wants to raise taxes on the wealthiest americans. he said that we can't afford $1 trillion in tax cuts for the rich while americans are struggling. republicans, of course, here have said these are the people creating jobs. it is not wise to raise taxes on them. what's happening here today? a vote on the republican version of next year's budget. this is the budget put forest by paul ryan. it's $6 billion less than what the president proposed in february. a lot of the savings come from social programs that democrats say americans desperately need right now, especially medicare. it would radically change medicare. they are looking at a voucher program where they give money to seniors and they shop for insurance

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c., with a look at what all this means. tracie. >> reporter: good morning. according to the stress meter, folks in the bay area are less stressed. the average score is 11. here is what they found. economic stress. things like not having a job, going bankrupt, losing your home. the stress level in the bay area, specific, a 10.40 on a scale of 11. a little bit less than average. it's down month over month and from a year earlier. part of the reason they say, employment in your area down. foreclosures down. bankruptcy level and even though those levels are high compared to the rest of the nation, the fact they are on a downward trend seems to be good news. next door, the most stressed area, nevada, they have extremely high unemployment, really difficult time they have had in a couple years with foreclosures. their stress level on that scale, 11 being the average, they are a 21. compare it to us here in washington, d.c. a 6.6. >> that is is lot of stress. thank you very much. >>> today is april 16th. today is emancipation day in

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c., where president obama will become the middleman of sorts todaytracie. >> reporter: good morning. that's why the president is inserting himself in the center of this capitol hill controversy. democrats and republicans disagree today. he's bringing congressional leaders from both sides of the senate and the house. both sides, democrats and republicans to the white house to talk about these issues to see if they can come up with an agreement before friday's deadline. republicans say that $33 billion compromise we have been hearing about isn't really a compromise. they never really signed on to it. democrats are concerned that deeper cuts could mean more difficult times for the poor, more difficulties for working families this this country. the tea party standing firm on what they believe should be deeper cuts to keep the budget balanced. the white house hosting the meeting isn't a line item veto, so to speak. they are looking more at a framework under which to come up with an agreement. if, for some reason they can't. two things. the white house bud

tracie potts is live in london this morning. my goodness, you look smashing. very fitting with that bonnet. >> reporter: well, thank you. i'm in front of westminster abbey. of course, all the events are happening here tomorrow. today, we saw kate middle toton she was here for the last rehearsal. her mom was here getting one last look at the inside of westminster abbey before she's back tomorrow to be married. she hasn't had much luck escaping the cameras. we saw her leaving her home yesterday. she was driving with a body guard in the car. we saw her when she arrived here and came to westminster abbey for rehearsal with prince william and again this morning. plans for today. kate middleton and the middleton family are expected to spend the night in the luxurious hotel not far from buckingham palace. she has the royal suite there. prince william will be at prince charles' official residence, clarence house. we are told he's going to have a private dinner with his family there before heading to the church tomorrow. >> oh, get me to the church on time and get me o

tracie potts is live with a look at the hustle and bustle as folks here and across the pond prepare for the wedding of the century. >> reporter: hi there. this is the biggest event in london in 30 years. i will be honored to join them coming to you monday morning reporting from london about the activities leading up to this very big day. the event, the ceremony at westminster abbey, the processional and of course, what's really going to be a big part of this, they are calling it the people's wedding. all of the crowds. hundreds of thousands of people expected to gather outside with big screens watching this special event. thousands, literally thousands of street parties all over england have been planned to celebrate the marriage. we have had a look at the guest list, 400 friends of william and kate, dignitaries, vips, politicians, diplomats. for the first time since 30 years ago, when this was not available, they are trying to reach out via social media. you can watch this wedding live on youtube. there's a royal youtube channel set up. you can participate in this event on facebook. th

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c. with the rule changes. >> reporter: good morning. it happened again over the weekend in miami at a regional tower that controls air traffic for all of southern california or all of southern florida and the atlantic and caribbean. this time, the faa is taking additional action. they doubled up on the overnight shifts for the airports with only one air traffic controller. they will give air traffic controllers an extra hour of rest between shifts. they go from eight to nine hours. they put more managers on duty and prohibit shift swapping. the controllers will take a last minute midnight shift to have a longer weekend. that won't be allowed anymore. the secretary of transportation ray lahood said they are not going pay them to fall asleep on the job. the union is behind the rules. they are emphasizing personal responsibility saying when they give them more time between shifts, they have to make sure they get rest. while they interview the suspended controllers, in some cases they had time between shifts, but they were doing something e

tracie potts is live in washington with a look at the hot button battle and how it's going to impact the 2012 presidential campaign. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, everyone. let's start with the 2011 budget, the one for this year. the weekend deal that prevented the government shutdown. today it's up for a vote. the congressional budget office says they are likely to save 1% of the $38 billion promised in the compromise. moving forward, president obama says he's got a deficit reduction plan cutting spending at the pentagon, cutting medicare for savings there and raising taxes on the wealthiest 2% of americans. he says he will not extend the bush tax cuts again. the most fortunate among us can afford to pay more. republicans say they will not discuss tax cuts or tax hikes, i should say for any americans. they say we should be focusing on spending. this is a non-starter. if you raise taxes on this group, these are the people with the jobs, it's not going to be good for the economy. laura. >> it will be tough. >>> still to come, find out who is getting nearly $1 million to lea

tracie potts is live with the new rule changes. >> reporter: good morning. just another incident in miami over the weekend. early saturday morning at a regional tower that controls traffic over southern florida, the caribbean and atlantic. in addition to doubling up where there was one person on duty, they are going to give the controllers an extra hour for rest between shifts. they go from eight to nine hours. they put more managers on duty. they will no longer allow swift shopping. some controllers switch shifts. it makes for a tired controller on the job. the faa is not going to allow that anymore. the secretary of transportation is saying we are not going to pay them to fall asleep on the job. he is emphasizing personal responsible says when we give you extra time you need to get the rest. the union is backing the latest rules. by the way, there's a new study under way. they are looking at giving pilots an extra hour, too. brent. >> appreciate it. >>> it is 6:43 now. not only the rich and famous are going to the royal wedding. a special little girl that

live from capitol hill, i'm tracie potts, today in the bay. >> we don't need that, too.hanks. >>> it is 5:45 now. pg&e defending itsz in the accusations it failed during the days before the pipeline explosion. they say having the records on hand would not have changed their decision. they would have still pumped up pressure on the line even though they knew it had a welded seam. the p.u.c. is considering millions of dollars in fines against pg&e. >>> east bay police dogs have a little more protection for the next time they go out on the job. they are giving the canine unit custom made bullet proof jackets for the dogs. that move comes after a police dog was shot in the shoulder by a burglary suspect. >>> the bay area has some of the best food in the world. now, a british restaurant magazine is out with the list this year of the best restaurants in the world. a couple bay area spots made the cut. try to make a reservation at the french laundry, manresa took a spot at number 69 and coi in san francisco slipped in at 75. they poll more than 800 chefs, restaurants, journalis

. >> tracie potts was there for the event. you look splendid. what did you see? >> reporter: well, it was an amazing day, i can tell you that. it still is. you can probably hear behind me there were 20,000 people here at the square watching the ceremony. now they have entertainment. the city of london created several gathering places to make the wedding an all-day celebration for the thousands of people who came out. let's go back a bit and take a look at the actual ceremony itself. kate middleton, many here cheered. they thought she was stunning when she walked into westminster abbey in this gorgeous ivory silk gown with lace overlay designed by alexander mcqueen. she chose a british designer to go along with a tiara she wore that was borrowed from queen elizabeth. they said their vows. prince william joked yesterday as he greeted people camped out near his home, he was afraid of flubing his lines. he didn't. everything wint swimmingly, as they say here. they ended up in an open carriage. there were concerns of rain. we have seen no rain so far in the area. they

tracie potts is live in washington to see how the bay area stacks up. i don't know how they looked in the past, but the past few days, my car hood is green. >> reporter: you know what, brent? everyone i talked to said we have to be near the top of that list. there's pollen everywhere. they looked at more than that. they looked at how many people are taking prescriptions for allergies and how many specialists in the area dealing with that. when they added the pollen counts, they came up with a number. you are number 60 on the list. there are 59 other big cities in america with worse allergy problems than you have. one thing they noticed, this is a ranking by the allergy foundation of america. one thing they noticed is fewer people are taking prescription medications. it averages just under one per patient. it used to be higher. you can get stuff over the counter now. things that used to be prescriptions are now prescription strength over the counter. it is a problem that affects 50 million people in this country. number one in this country, knoxville. sa

. >> tracie potts, live in washington. thank you much. good luck. >>> toyota expects production to continue as normal by november or december. they apologized for the delays. they will start developing technology to make the plug-in hybrids become electric generators during emergencies. the earthquake, tsunami and damaged nuclear reactors caused a production loss of 260,000 cars. setbacks could cause them to lose the top position in the global industry. >>> the u.s. is using armed drones against troops in libya. the president authorized use of predator drones. they have been a potent weapon in pakistan and other areas where u.s. forces do not have troops on the ground. >>> iraq's prime minister says iraqi forces can handle security from here on out. he told that to mike mullen, the chairman of the u.s. joints chief of staff. he's in meetings to decide if u.s. forces should stay in iraq past this year. all american forces are supposed to be out of iraq by december 31st. >>> meanwhile, an update to a story we brought you earlier in the week

tracie potts is live with a look at that, plus what president obama will say about reducing the nationalrter: good morning. good morning, everyone. the e.p.a. took a big hit in the budget deal over the weekend. 61% of the cuts we are told came from the e.p.a. the pentagon got a raise. $5 billion, a number of other programs saved or cut. obama administration initiatives in education and health care were saved. summer college grants and d.c. programs that were controversial on the hill were cut along with other programs where there were left over funds. tomorrow, president obama is going to talk about deficit reduction, how to get things in balance. analysts are saying the debt commission recommended spending cuts and one-third tax increases. we are waiting to hear if he will mention that tomorrow. here on capitol hill, debate on whether to raise the debt limit, it's $14.3 trillion. we are expected to hit it sometime in may. president obama is asking congress to make it. when he was a senator here in 2006, he voted against that. >> we will see what happens. thanks, tracie. >>> the city of

tracie potts is live in washington, d.c., where there's a friday night midnight deadline. >> reporter: that's right. they are hoping to not have another temporary extension. it's not clear how close to a deal they are. republicans wanted $61 billion in cuts. democrats wanted much less than that. now they report they have come to the middle with $33 billion in cuts on the table. but republicans aren't confirming they have actually given up that much. it's kind of unclear as to how close they may be and what they have agreed on so far. democrats concerns they want to protect a number of social programs, education, things like head start, environmental programs, health care for seniors. republicans say we are more than half way into the fiscal year. we don't have a budget, yet. we have to cut something. yes, it's going to hurt somewhere but we have to do it. the big question, how, if at all, will they cut into the big entitlement programs, social security, medicare, medicaid, defense. will the pentagon get out without cuts in this? finally, the tea party. they are pushing to stick to the

today in the bay's tracie potts is live where it's another late night for lawmakers and staff workingut the details on a budget this year. >> reporter: this is interesting. i just got brand-new information. we had been told they were 70% close when it came to the numbers, the actual amount to cut out of the budget. what was holding them up were the republican requests. some call them demand policy writers like restricting abortions, public radio, rolling back powers of e.p.a. as of this morning, one republican aid says they have had problems within birth control and environmental protection. from their point of view, they are at odds over the spending cuts, the actual amount. democrats won't consider increasing the size of spending cuts which is a huge problem. we enter this last day less than 24 hours before the shutdown with major differences. >> we'll see what happens. of course, midnight tonight is the deadline. we want to check the forecast. christina is out there with the crew at at&t park. it's opening day. for some it feels more like football weather today. >> yeah, especially

tracie potts is live in washington with a preview of the report. good morning. >> reporter: good morning laura. good morning, everyone. for the 39 million people that travel, this is good information. it's the governments idea of not only how well the airlines are doing in terms of online service, lots of criteria they look at, denied boardings, mishandled bags, whether they show up when you show up and consumer complaints mixed in also. when you look at the final rankings, delta is on top. southwest is at the bottom despite the recent problems with the fewest complaints. most complaints are about problems with the flight. in fact, they also ranked airlines specifically in terms of certain criteria. if you want to get there on time, hawaiian airlines has the best record. 92.5% of flights are on time. the entire industry improved, the average is 80%. if you don't want to get bumped off a flight, try jetblue, they were at the top of the list. airtran is the best with getting bags there on time. >> looks like i'm going to hawaii. >> yeah. >>> the owne

tracie potts is live this morning. no deal yet, but leaders think they are close? they think they are making progre progress. they were all up late last night trying to work this out. they let the staffers up later trying to work out details. the sense is number one they have the willingness to negotiate. they are making progress. they came out calling the meeting honest, productive, constructive but no deal. they are narrowed down the issues of concern. no specific amount that both sides are willing to cut from this budget and call it a day. according to boehner there are deep cuts there. president obama reminded them it is urgent to get this done. if not, we could have a government shutdown that has real consequences for real people. we are talking 800,000 government workers all over the country, defense contractors other contractors and businesses that rely on the government being open. all of whom could lose their paychecks if they don't get something done in the next 48 hours. now the house side is working on somewhat of a compromise. we could see it come up f

tracie potts is live in london this morning. oh, holding on to the bonnet. she has look at the hustle and bustle before the big day. >> reporter: yes. >> good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning from windy westminster abbey. let me show you what's going on below. i'm five stories up. traffic is slowed to a crawl. there are crowds everywhere, people camped out, we know kate middleton is here for a final rehearsal. tonight, she's expected to stay at the hotel with her family in the royal suite the night before her wedding. we also know the official program is out. the song to which she will walk down the aisle, a three and a half minute walk, by the way. it was composed by prince william's great, great, great grandfath grandfather. the prince is going to spend his night at the official residence of prince charles before the big day tomorrow. >> i'm jealous to you. what a great assignment you got. >> reporter: it is a lot of fun. >> she laughs and rubs it in a bit. have a great time covering it. i know you will. we'll have a great time watching it from he

tracie potts is live in washington with a look at the choices the president and congress now face. good morning. >> reporter: laura, good morning. good morning, everyone. one down and two to go in washington. when it comes to your tax money, they narrowly avoided a government shutdown. that vote on this year's budget, that last minute deal will take place sometime during the middle of the week. now, they have to deal with next year's budget and the national debt. this is the accumulation of the red ink year after year afterier. it's about to hit a limit. congress has to decide whether to raise the limit to borrow the money to pay bills. republicans are saying no compromise this time. no raising the limit without serious budget cutting. we are talking medicare, medicaid, social security that make up big chunks of budget. it's very unpopular when talking cuts in the budget. president obama expected to speak on wednesday about the latest deficit reduction plan. is it enough to get republicans to go along? look for that. the budget vote for this year and later in the week, a budget vot

tracie potts is live in london. good morning, tracie. >> reporter: hey, guys, good morning, everyone. it was very early this morning, but that did not stop people from lining up along the processional route watching this predawn full dress rehearsal by members of the military. also today, they're sprucing up the grounds here at buckingham palace. we've seen them working in the gardens and do all sorts of things making sure everything is perfect on friday. over at westminster abbey where the service will take place, lots of flowers and plants and trees being delivered today. it is now closed to visitors officially until after the service, but we do understand that prince william and kate middleton are or will be in town today at some foint their own rehearsals. they are separating temporarily before the wedding. he'll be at his official residence and she will be with her family and later here at the hotel where she and her family and the wedding party will be before the ceremony on friday. back to you in the studio. >

tracie potts is live on the hill this morning. no deal yet. leaders think they are close? >> reporter: they say they are making progress. after working all night, staffers admitted they have not reached an agreement. president obama, some key lawmakers were at the white house last night working late into the evening trying to get this wrapped up. trying to come up with a number to agree on to cut from the budget to get a current budget for the current year. the president says this is urgent. it's affecting real people having real consequences. john boehner says they have a deep divide over some of the issues. as a result, they can't come to an agreement. what is going to happen today? more negotiations. possibly more meetings at the white house. clearly more staffers working on the details from the inside. also, republicans have a one week extension that will likely come up for a vote today and if they don't come up with a deal, that could go into effect today or tomorrow. back to you. >> something to watch. thank you very much. >>> time now is 6:43. disease carrying ticks

tracie potts is live in washington now with the details. tracie, good or bad news?er: good news. actually better than economists predicted. the jobless rate down ever so slightly from last month, only about .10 a point that i felt didn't predict a shift there because of more people coming into the job market, but here's the big news. 216,000 new jobs created last month. more than economists said even predicted. that is more than we saw in february. so now we have two straight months of robust growth. the jobless rate is actually the lowest in two years. this is the most jobs that we have actually seen created since last may. so this is good news. also, some revisions in january. another 5,000 jobs more than previously reported. so all of this on an upward trend. it looks like businesses are higher more. in fact, earlier this month the business roundtable did a survey to find more than half of the large company that is are their members will hire more this year. bottom line, 2.5 million new jobs by the end of the year possibly. >> that could be a good turn-around for

tracie potts is doing the math and she joins us live from washington, d.c., with a look at the funding crisis and how much students in california owe. >> reporter: brent, it's the math that a lot of families have already done. we are closing in on a trillion dollars worth of student loan debt in this country. about two-thirds of students now graduate with an undergraduate degree and tens of thousands of dollars in debt. actually the average anount california quite a bit less than many other states. $17,000 in debt. just under half of california students graduate with some degree of debt. one of the challenges is unemployment. 9% of college graduates are unemployed, a little bit higher than the national average. what that means is when they graduate, they don't have jobs to pay back all of this debt. we are seeing default rates on the rise, but interestingly, there are many students who graduate with no debt at all, about four out of ten at public universities come out owing nothing. back to you. >> thanks a lot. >>> the body of a man killed by last month's tsunami in california has bee

tracie potts is live in washington to explain what, if anything, will be different today. good morning. >> reporter: laura, good morning. questionable at this point as to whether they'll all be back at the white house. we're just getting word that an aide from speaker john boehner's office says he has no meetings scheduled at the white house with the president today and the president later this afternoon is headed to philadelphia and new york so we'll have to watch for more developments on that. bottom line here, they have yet to come up with a budget deal for this year. the president visibly frustrated after yesterday's meeting when he called democrats and republicans together saying that americans want you to act like grown-ups and no attitudes of my way or the highway. the sticking point seems to be how much and what they're going to cut from this current year's budget. democrats have reported low agreed to $73 billion, that according to the president, but the sticking point is where are those cuts coming from. the tea party pushing their mainstream republican leaders n

tracie potts is live in washington this morning to explain what, if anything, will be different today reporter: good morning. first of all, unclear if they'll meet again at the white house today. the president wanted that, but he's leaving for philadelphia this afternoon and new york. the house speaker says an -- an aide for him says it's not on his agenda yet. so that could get worked out in the next few hours or so. but what is not getting worked out here is a final budget, a permanent budget for this country for this year. the negotiations yesterday left the president apparently frustrated during his question and answer with reporters he says that americans want these lawmakers to act like grown-ups, get something done, and not take the position of it's my way or the highway. the sticking point now, where to cut. he says that the democrats have offered $73 billion in cuts but not necessarily in areas where republicans agree and they have only got a couple of days before this possible government shutdown friday at midnight. still gridlock here. unclear if there will be a meeting tod

live from capitol hill, tracie potts for "today in the bay." >> thank you, tracie. >> now if we can onlyin f a .recu early detection is so important. 6:43. we'll be right back. i'.j.maxx e. i get this season's designer clothes and i still get to eat. fashion direct from designers. savings direct to you. t.j.maxx. let us make a maxxinista out of you. baby. [sensuously] i'm going to cut to the chase. i'm grade a. lean as can be. and clearly well done. and you. you're not like the others. you're farmer-owned. all natural. so, what do you say we get together? bring a little taste to this shindig. ahem. (burger) oh. these are my friends. (plate of burgers) hello baby. hello baby. pleasure. ancr: burgers love tillamook. voted the world's best medium cheddar cheese. >>> libyan leader moammar gadhafi is lashing out at his critics saying he should not resign by western leaders should. he made the statement by using a scroll across the bottom of state television. ga day foo himself was not on screen. the white house says that it could be a sign that his inner circle is crumbling. >>> new concerns th

tracie potts is live in washington where republicans are already pouncing on that idea.ood morning. >> reporter: good morning, everyone. yeah, republicans say it is unacceptable to raise taxes until we cut more out of the federal budget, but this afternoon here in washington president obama after meeting with some congressional leaders will deliver a speech talking about ways he thinks we should reduce the deficit. reducing medicare expenses, medicaid expenses, defense spending and, yes, taxing -- higher taxes on the wealthiest americans. republicans are calling that a non-starter. they are also saying that they don't want to raise the nation's debt limit so we can get more credit to pay off our current debts until we cut more out of the budget. they're looking for much larger cuts than what we saw in that deal last weekend. in fact now they're saying they'll push a decision on the debt limit into july that would be after we've already hit the limit, but before any bills become overtu. laura. >> tough pill to swallow for a lot of folks., thank you very much. 6:43 right n