watching that is nbc's tracie potts live in washington for us. does it look like then that john mccain and any others might be on board now? >> well, john mccain, lindsey graham say they're on board to push for this military action. but any others, that's still up in the air. we could find out more today at the senate foreign relations committee. secretary of state kerry, secretary of defense chuck hagel and martin dempsey all testifying their job is to go there and convince reluctant lawmakers that we are ready and that we should launch this strike on syria in retaliation for what the government says were chemical attacks on their own people. but is the evidence strong enough? there are still questions here about that. is this our war to fight? some lawmakers have issues with us getting involved at all at this point. and whether or not the u.s. -- whether or not that's our role. i should probably also mention new out of washington this morning, ayman was talking about that israeli missile test that was picked up by russia early this morning. res

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, good morning, is there any hope left that this can be avoided? >> well, there's hope, but there's just not a lot of it at this point. because as you said, we're now less than 24 hours away from this midnight deadline. listen to what democrats and republicans had to say over the weekend about all the finger pointing that's going on right now in washington. >> this is the old football strategy. when you get to where you want to be in a football game, you run out the clock. >> you may have strong views on obama care. and you may want to debate those. that's fair. that's what congress is all about. but don't hold people hostage. >> we are looking at about 40% of the federal workforce, 800,000 federal workers off the job. and here's what that means to you. things like national parks would be closed. the statue of liberty and other parts all over the country, the smithsonian museum and a lot of people are happy to hear this, the irs audit office closed as well. there would be limited

tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, good morning. this meeting would be the first of its kind in three decades. do we think it will happen? >> reporter: we think something will happen. it's certainly possible the two leaders, president obama, and president rouhani, new president of iran, may shake hands, have words in the hallway, have brief conversation. it won't be sort of a big sitdown, formal one-on-one with their teams. what we do know is president obama will be speaking in a couple of hours -- about three hours from now -- at the u.n. he will likely not talk only about the bigger situation in the middle east -- iran, nuclear weapons, and the threats there -- but the situation in syria. the u.s. and russia has brokered a deal for syria to turn over the chemical weapons, but the key for the u.s., and this is what we expect the president to say, how will the deal be enforced. with a u.n. resolution, possible military strike, still on the table for the u.s. he's also likely to talk about middle east peace with the israelis and pale

tracie potts joins us from washington. >> we're not seeing negotiations yet. we don't have a lot of time to work with. what we will see today, richard, is a vote on whether or not to pull the money out of president obama's health program to try to keep the government going until ten days before christmas. the latest budget battle puts paychecks, veterans benefits medicare, student loans and even food stamps at risk. >> beyond cataclysmic. >> reporter: they warn that those that could lose food stamps are jobless. >> this is cruel, even heartless. >> stripping the money out of the president's health program. >> i will do everything necessary and anything possible to defund obamacare. >> any bill that defunds obamacare is dead. dead. >> reporter: republicans are linking health care to passing a budget. if there is no budget in 11 days the government should shut down. coming next month, raising the debt limit to pay america's bills. republicans say not again. >> republicans have no interest on defaulting on our debt none. we just want to find a way to pay it off.

let's get straight to tracie potts in washington. what is expected today? >> we expect this to go on for a while. it's going for 16 hours. we also expect at some point that vote that had been scheduled for early. we'll see if it gets delayed as a result of this all-nighter they've been pulling. three of them now. the bottom line, there's a concern that delaying this vote could lead to a government shutdown. >> i intend to speak in support of defunding obama care until i am no longer able to stand. >> reporter: there he was, at 2:00 tuesday afternoon, at 8:00 last night, when he apparently ran out of things to say. >> do you like green eggs and ham? i do not like them, sam, i am. >> reporter: early this morning, his colleague, mike lee, of utah, took over. >> the american people have never been enthusiastic about om care. >> reporter: but by 3:00 this morning, cruz was back. he actually supports the plan up for a vote today, stripping the money from health care to avoid a government shutdown. but democrats in charge plan to change the bill and keep the healt

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, what do we know about what secretary kerry will be doing and saying? >> reporter: a senior department official is telling us that the secretary's goal is to share assessment of where the chemical weapons are and how many -- what the capacity is with russia. and then to come up with a plan and to see if the russian plan will actually work. monitoring and verifying those weapons. they need to talk about security in terms of bringing down the stash of chemical weapons in syria, and timelines. they won't be talking about any sort of u.n. resolution, we're told, and it he could be there through saturday, so they could take actually about three days. you mentioned sergei lavrov, the foreign minister for russia, who will be sitting down with secretary of state kerry. in an interview prior to that meeting, he says one big ground rule for sitting down with the u.s. was that we would hold off any sort of military strike. richard? >> tracie potts, thank you for the very latest on that. >>

tracie potts live in washington for us. good morning to you. what's the president hoping to accomplish here during his trip? >> beginning in sweden he's hoping to have serious discussions on climate change. he's got an energy event this afternoon and in about an hour and a half we'll hear from president obama and the prime minister of sweden in a joint news conference. of course, what's overshadowing this entire trip there and in st. petersburg is syria and whether the president can get more international support for strikes he wants to do. great britain has said no, but president obama is scheduled to sit down with the president of france on the sidelines of this meeting. now, we are also getting a look at what's happening here on capitol hill with the senate, now hearing from secretary of state john kerry, the house will also hear from him today. and it looks like the vote is breaking down more in favor in the senate. according to "the washington post", yes and no votes as they count them now are about even with the majority 60%, or 60, still

. >> tracie potts is live for us in washington with the latest. the clock is ticking. >> reporter: it certainly is. we're going to see some action today. the senate, as you noted, is set to vote on the budget bill, but it's a bill the house is sure to reject. democrats and republicans tried to early up today's budget vote to leave more time to negotiate, but two lawmakers objected. ted cruz, now famous for the 21-hour speech and his colleague mike lee. >> the american people are paying attention. the american people are watching this. a lot of them have expected this might occur friday or saturday. >> this is an effort to stall, and i don't know why. >> my two colleagues, who i respect, have sent out e-mails around the world and turned this into a show. >> across town president obama urged congress to avoid a shutdown. >> scientists, janitors, people who process new veterans and survivors benefits claims, they will stay home and not get paid. >> reporter: it it would keep the government running until mid-november and not touch health care. house r

tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, good morning. just how much traction does this possible solution have in washington? >> reporter: well, right now washington is on hold and there are a lot of questions about how this is going to play out, brand-new this morning, a united nations human rights report not the report on the chemical weapons attack, an earlier one, but this one talks about the government and crimes against humanity. it is one of the reasons why the u.s. is concerned about whether this political solution will work. president obama says he may still send missiles to destroy syria's chemical weapons capability if russia's plan to get rid of them doesn't work. >> sometimes resolutions and statements of condemnation are simply not enough. >> reporter: russia is blocking a united nations resolution that leaves open the possibility of a military strike. >> the russians and the syrians don't have a great track record with following through. >> we need to really make it happen. >> reporter: the president argues military force a

we have tracie potts. what is next for the ground work for approval to the split congress? >> reporter: sure, betty. you want to watch the senate foreign relations committee. they will hear from three relations committees. john kerry and chuck hagel and joint chiefs of staff member john dempsey. their job is to convince reluctant lawmakers that not only should we strike syria, we are ready to strike syria. we are going to take a look at whether or not these reluctant lawmakers to say they are not behind this idea. we hear from the state department that secretary of state kerry will talk about what happens if we don't essentially punish syria for what the u.s. believes was a government-led chemical weapons attack. if we don't, he will say, iran, hezbollah, al qaeda, elements are in syria, could see that as a green light against the united states and allies in the middle east region. not to act, he will say, is essentially not an option at this point. they have a hard sell to make. today is the hearing. next week when congress comes back in full, we expect the vote from the h

tracie potts, nbc news, washington. >>> the president may be putting what happens in syria to a vote, but he is getting mixed support from local lawmakers. south bay congresswoman on nah eshu says she does not doubt intelligence that assad carried out chemical attacks but wants more information before making a decision. jackie speier echoed the decision saying it should not be made in evidence. dufsh lynn representative eric swalwell says he doesn't want the u.s. drawn into another conflict to put troops on the ground. >> the president's resolution does not limit him from putting troops into syria. if that's the case, i can't support it. >> i have to tell you i am very reluctant as it relates to taking any military action that could lead to unintended consequences and also that would set us back from a negotiated settlement. >> meantime senator dianne feinstein says she agrees with the secretary of state's assessment that the u.s. cannot let syria's attack pass without a, quote, meaningful response. as for house minority leader nancy pelosi, she released this statement saying, quote,

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington for us. what can you tell us about alexis. >> reporter: we can tell you that the fbi is and will be digging into his background. here's what we know based on what authorities told us of the he moved here about four months ago. apparently bought a handgun at a virginia store. brought that gun here yesterday along with other weapons they believe he may have cons sophisticated on the scene inside the navy yard. prior to that he was at ft. hood, texas, working as a contractor and prior to that he lived in washington tate in the washington and texas area he had run-ins with the law over guns. they're looking into his background to see what the motive is. also, when it comes to access he did have proper access to get in because he was a contractor, but that does not answer all of the questions. lawmakers here want a closer look at an investigation that was already ongoing by the pentagon inspector general. they were looking at access and risk at this facility, another nearby in virginia and norfolk

a >> nbc's tracie potts has the details from washington for us. and any indication congress will return early from their vacation, despite some commentary on the hill over the weekend? >> reporter: sure, well, some already have as you noted over the weekend. more than 100 members came in for that briefing, participated in that briefing. today on labor day, we're going to see senator john mccain and reportedly senator lindsey graham as well, two key republicans headed to the white house to sit down and talk about this. the game plan at the white house is this. spend this week trying to get key members of congress to agree to authorize this military action. and that starts today with mccain and we believe graham will be there as well. now next week we could actually see a vote and this comes as the administration says the evidence has never been stronger that sarin gas was used by the syrian government. over the weekend we heard secretary of state john kerry talk about that saying there are now hair and blood samples that support it. but new this mo

nbc's tracie potts joins us live from washington. this deadline is coming up quick. have negotiations even begun? >> reporter: not really. you can't really call them negotiations. they are talking at each other instead of to each other here on capitol hill. the vote that's happening today is going to affect so-called obama care trying to pull the money out of that to keep this government running until ten days before christmas. the latest budget battle puts soldiers' paychecks, medicare, student loans, even food stamps at risk. >> it's beyond cat ka liz mik. >> reporter: those who could lose food stamps are jobless. >> this bill is cruel, even heartless. >> reporter: today's battle, obama care, stripping the money out of the health program. >> i will do everything necessary and anything possible to defund obama care. >> any bill that defunds obama care is dead, dead. >> reporter: republicans are linking health care to passing a budget. if there's no budget in 11 days, the government could shut down. next month, raising the debt limit to pay american's bills. republic

tracie potts is live with the latest. just what are investigators learning? >> reporter: they will be learning a lot more today even as the navy yard reopens. part of it the gym is closed because the fbi is still on site. and we're learning more about the shotgun that was used, those inscriptions that you referred to, better off this way and my elf weapon. authorities don't quite know what that means. we're also learning that he created a website under the name mohammed salem but never used it. president obama and mrs. obama plan to attend the memorial for the victims. the suspect's mother apologized saying she would never be able to ask him about what happened. and we're getting more details, too, about aaron alexis and his medical treatment. the va says they treated him for insomnia, a but never treated him for paranoia or any of the other mental health problems we've been hearing about. but nm for paranoia or any of the other mental health problems we've been hearing about.but never tr for paranoia or any of the other mental health problems we've been hear

tracy potts is in washington with the latest on that. what can you tell us about alexis? >> reporter: he was a military veteran, a navy petty officer, and also a reservist. he was a contractor and that's how he got legitimate access to the navy yard. he moved to this area about four months ago. they searched his car and his hotel trying to get more clues into what his activities were. and the fbi is reaching out to the public trying to figure out who he contacted, what he was thinking about, what he was talking about in these last weeks and months. we also know that on at least two occasions, he had run in-s with the law over guns in texas when he apparently shot his gun in an apartment building, it went through to another apartment. police talked to him about that. in washington state, nine years ago when he was accused of shooting the tires of a contractor who was in the parking lot of his building. so this is an individual, his family says he may have been suffering from ptsd, obviously concerns that he was very disturbed prior to what happened here yesterday. >> traci

tracie potts is live in washington. good morning. what is the president hoping to accomplish on this trip? >> reporter: he's hoping in sweden to get some good discussion going on climate change. and security and trade. those are going to be the focus. and he did touchdown in sweden within the last hour. we watched high school president obama arrived in stockholm for those meetings and we'll hear from him in just a you few hours at a joint news conference with the prime minister. from there, he heads to russia to st. petersburg for the g-20 summit where the official topic will be the economy, you but unofficialubut unofficially, issues surrounding syria and whether the u.s. and other countries may strike regarding chemical weapons. that is really going to be the big issue. the president is going there to answer some questions and also trying to garner support especially from countries like france that have shown an interest in possibly joining the united states in this. another big question for the president from world leaders there,

nbc's tracie potts is in washington. good morning. >> reporter: veronica, good morning. it is possible but not probable we'll see this deal worked out by the end of the day. the senate's not even coming back to work until this afternoon. >> where's the senate? they're not here. >> reporter: they're back this afternoon likely to reject the offer on the table. republicans say they'll fund the government and prevent a shutdown only if the health law is delayed one year. >> there's a time and place to debate obama care. but not at a time when millions of innocent people are held hostage. >> simply delaying it for american families on the same terms as being done for big corporations, that's a compromise. >> reporter: some democrats say they'll consider the other string attached. getting rid of a tax on medical devices. >> but not with a gun to my head. not with the prospect of shutting down the government. >> reporter: who's to blame if there's a shutdown tonight? >> the president's the one saying, i will shut down government if you don't give me everything i want on obama c

we talked to tracie potts out in washington, d.c.is saying it's possible an officer may be down, may be shot in both legs and also a potential report of one person away from the scene also injured but we again, this is very fluid and a lot of changing information so it's not confirmed but a lone shooter is loose on the naval base. a shelter in place order is in effect for all navy personnel. >> about 3,000 people are said to work in the naval systems command building where this is all taking place so this is affecting thousands of people potentially. military pleas are responding, u.s. capital police responding and washington city police on the scene. we're notified that the capitol has stepped up security efforts on the capitol grounds and i did a quick search and this is all about 3 1/2 miles from the white house, from pennsylvania avenue so very close to the white house. we can tell you that elementary schools in the area are on lockdown so a very scary scene for students. this all broke out about 8:20 this morning eastern time. i

tracie potts, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, jon and laura. good morning, everyone.s is what they do to remember the impact here in the nation's capital on september 11th, 2001. take a look at the live pictures. many people gathered on the south lawn of the white house awaiting president and mrs. obama to come out and observe that moment of silence precisely at 8:46 in about three minutes. that is when the first plane hit the first tower back on 9/11. it will be a pretty busy day for the president. from here, he heads to the pentagon for a ceremony there. they have unfurled a huge flag that will stay on the building from sunrise to sun set. later today, as part of the national day of of service, president and mrs. obama getting out in the community to encourage people to do service projects in their communities today in remembrance of those nearly 3,000 victims. also here on capitol hill, an observance later this morning on the capital steps. democrats and republicans getting together to remember that fateful day, a dark day in our nation's history. tracie potts, tha

tracie potts right now live in washington, d.c. this morning.e has the new details on the shooter and his mental health. good morning. >> reporter: hi, jon, good morning. the fbi tells us they will be on scene processing everything for about two days and we are learning new details about this shooter, this alleged shooter, aaron alexis. according to the associated press and law enforcement official who is have been talking to them, the veterans administration had been treating him, remember he was a former petty officer, former navy reservist so he was a military veteran and apparently the v.a. had been treating him for a number of disorders, sleep disorders, others, paranoia, there are reports he had been hearing voices according to the sources, his family had also mentioned that he had been under treatment and possibly was suffering from ptsd. here's what's interesting about that. his clearance, his access to get onto the navy yard had not been revoked because she had not been declared mentally unfit. had he been declared mentally unfit his cl

tracie potts, and bc news, washington -- nbc news, washington. fall is just around the corner. more than the leaves will be falling. right now now sunny skies, temperatures in the 70's at thurgood marshall airport. once upon a time, an insurance clerk stumbled upon a cottage. [knock] no one was at home, but on the kitchen table sat three insurance policies. the first had lots of coverage. the second, only a little. but the third was... just right! bear: hi! yeah, we love visitors. that's why we moved to a secluded house in the middle of the wilderness. just the right coverage at just the right price. coverage checker from progressive. >> runners with the streets of baltimore for the running festival. anyone participating in the race will still get under armour's popular t-shirts. toy signed off on a deal become the official partner of the running festival. the baltimore running festival will be saturday, october 12. is a proud sponsor. this is a look at the new football uniforms maryland will wear tomorrow when the terps take on west virginia. under armour updated the maryland

nbc's tracie potts is live on capitol hill with the fbi investigation. tgrai ssi, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, eun. u.s. officials are not confirming that any americans were involved. it's certainly possible because there have been a lot of americans recruited for this group, al isshabab, especially from minnesota. at the mall in nairobi, it is not confirmed. they need the names involved. until they get that from kenyan officials, they have no confirmation. there were names given earlier by a bogus twitter account for the group al shabab. those names didn't show up on any sort of terror watch list within the united states. officials are watching and waiting to see what happens as we hear more explosions over this morning, more gunfire overnight. that situation apparently still not under control. eun. >> tracie potts live on capitol hill for us, tracie, thank you. >>> there is new concern over mall security. a spokesman for the international council of shopping centers says the u.s. department of homeland security will likely connect with corp

. >> tracie potts is live in washington. good morning. lawmakers are certainly talking but are they talking to each other? >> reporter: not really. the only person doing a lot of talking was ted cruz, over 21 hours. when he finally sat down to vote it is moving the senate forward to a plan to pass a budget to avoid a government shut down but will include money for the affordable care act. so the ball bounces back to the house's court where republicans say they will likely attacattac attack something else. not a lot of people talking to each other in this point. we are four days away from monday's midnight deadline where the government will shut down if the house and senate can't work this out. >> has the president himself been impacted? >> reporter: his approval rating has taken a hit. this "new york times" cbs poll shows his approval rate at 43%, lower than his disapproval rating. on how the president looks at health care it is lower. on the deficit, 35% low with 54% disproval disapproval and we have the debt ceiling debate going on next

20 americans fighting with them in somalia which has been a base for this terrorist group. >> tracie pottsthe hill. thank you, tracie. >>> a woman from north carolina who survived the shooting in kenya is returning to the united states. benedita malakia will arrive in dulles this morning. she saw the attackers going in and throwing grenades. we spoke to her via skype. >> you could hear them methodically going from store to store talking to people, asking questions, shooting, screams. then it would stop for a while, then it would go to another store. >>> american security forces and the kenyan army rescued her after four hours. the 30-year-old woman moved from north carolina to kenya for work. >>> new this morning, we're learning that u.n. chemical weapons inspectors are expected to return to syria tomorrow. that's according to russia's deputy foreign minister. the inspectors will be looking for evidence of chemical weapons used in several attacks. they already determined that sarin gas was used in late august that killed more than 1400 people. there is reason to be optimistic that we could

from washington, tracie potts, wbal-tv 11 news. >> still ahead on 11 news at noon, a new fbi thrillerill have you reaching for the popcorn. "usa today" is calling it a false best new drama. we will talk live with the new show the "blacklist." are you richer this afternoon? someone is. details of the newest powerball winner. >> unfortunately, you are probably not $400 million richer today, but we know a winning ticket for last night powerball drawing was sold in south carolina. no one in maryland one any of these second-tier prizes worth $1 million and $2 million, but you may have folded a nice chunk of change, so double check your tickets. the numbers are 7-10-22-32-35 and the powerball is 19. ♪ covering the nation now, oklahoma firefighters battled the blaze into the night after a chemical plant caught fire and exploded late wednesday night. the blast happened around 10:00, and about a dozen residents had to be evacuated. no one was at the plant at the time, and there were no reports of injuries. according to our tulsa affiliate, the plant supplies chemicals to the oil industry and e

veronica. >> tracie potts in washington. ou, thank you. >>> and taking you now to southern california many questions now after a fiery crash involving a small jet. it happened at the santa monica airport around 6:20 local last night. the twin cessna was landing when it ran off the runway and hit a hangar. it was on its way to hailey, idaho. flames were available for miles away. authorities are not saying how many people were on board or talking about their conditions. the santa monica fire department told local affiliate knbc is looked unsurvivable. >>> well the stage is set for what could be an intense encounter at the white house today. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu expected to deliver one message to president [, tonight be followed. he said he will tell the truth in the onslaught of smiles

tracie potts is live in washington. what is expected to happen today? >> he has been talking for over 12 hours now. if he continues what is supposed to happen today might not happen or might not happen in time. the senate is supposed to vote on the idea of pulling the money out of the affordable care act in order to exchange for funding the government for another year. what we have been seeing all night long from senator ted cruz is not a filibuster but effectively so. he does support the bill but he knows the democratic leadership wants to change it and put the money back into obama care. we will see how long he is on the floor. also, president obama in new york with president clinton were talking about health care at a forum trying to break down what is going on from now until next week. a lot of people according to the polls that we have seen don't understand how it works. that was part of what they were trying to do last night. >> a lot of us were trying to understand it all. thanks for breaking it down for us. during the all nighter with senator cr

. >> nbc's tracie potts is live in washington with the latest. tracie, good morning. the clock is ticking. do you expect to see progress today? >> we expect to see a vote today to fund if government through november. a clean bill has nothing to do with health care and it is something that the house is probably going to reject. democrats and republicans tried to early up today's budget vote to leave more time to negotiate but two lawmakers objected, ted cruz and his colleague mike lee. >> the american people are paying attention to this. a lot of people are watching this. >> this is an effort to stall and i don't know why. >> my two colleagues who i respect have sent out e-mails around the world and turned this into a show. >> reporter: across town president obama urged congress to avoid a shut down. >> scientists, janitors, they would all have to stay home and not get paid. >> reporter: what is likely to come out of the senate today would keep the government running until mid november and not touch health care. house republicans say they won't accept that but disagree

nbc's tracie potts is live in washington. tracie, good morning to you. a lot of good data in there. the question might be, how steep is the president's uphill battle now? >> reporter: well, it will be a tough battle for the president if, in fact, he pursuing military action. if the russian plan works out, it may become a moot point. we learned in our poll that 58% of americans do not want congress -- do not want their representatives -- to authorize military action. only 33% do. that goes up a bit, by the way, when it's specified missiles only. the president's own approval rating has taken a hit in all of this. 28% on syria. that's down 7 just since last month. the overall approval rating is 45%, up slightly since august. and then, finally, what about this big question of the president acting without congressional approval? the president said in his interview with nbc's savannah guthrie, he's still up in the air about that. he hasn't made a decision. the public isn't up in the air. 59% think he should not act if congress says no military action. only 36% think that's okay. richard?

nbc's tracie potts is live on capitol hill with are more. tracie, good morning. >> reporter: the senate the voting on that budget with the money for so-called obama care, once they strip that provision out, that's something the house is likely to reject as we take a look at capitol hill. lots going on today. but not necessarily moving toward a resolution on this. the house has already decided to work overtime. john boehner saying democrats and republicans will be there saturday and sunday working over the weekend to try to work this out. they have a deep disagreement with the senate on how to fund the government. if they can't work it out by midnight monday, that is the deadline for the shutdown. now just over three days away as of tonight. overnight they actually, the senate, actually tried to early up this vote to provide more time for negotiating over the weekend, but two people objected. ted cruz and his colleague mike lee. they were criticized saying that they had people that were wanting to watch this on tv today, criticized by their ow

. >> nbc's tracy potts is live in washington with the latest. tracy, good morning. the clock is undoubtedly ticking. >> reporter: it absolutely is. we've just got three days until midnight monday, which is the deadline for this possible government shutdown. lawmakers say they're working on it. but what the senate is expected to pass today is something that the house will surely reject. democrats and republicans tried to early up today's budget vote to leave more time to negotiate, but two lawmakers objected. ted cruz, now famous for the 21-hour speech. and his colleague mike leigh. >> the american people are paying attention to this. the american people are watching this. a lot expected this might occur friday or saturday. >> this is an effort to stall and i don't know why. >> my two colleagues, who i respect, have sent out e-mails around the world and turned this into a show. >> reporter: across town, president obama urged congress to avoid a shutdown. >> scientists, janitors, people who process new veterans and survivors benefits claims, they don't like to stay ho

tracie potts joining us live from washington, d.c. right now. cie, what will happen if congress does not act by september 30? >> reporter: if this vote doesn't go through today, jon, and they can't come wake-up a way to come wake-up a budget or extend the current budget, past september 30, then the government goes into shutdown mode and it will go into that mode within a half a day, so by october 1 at noon, the government will be in shutdown mode. and here's what that means. there will be a delay in processing federal benefits. service cuts for military veterans. no processing passport applications. data delays for economic data, you know the jobless numbers and other things we bring to you on a monthly, sometimes weekly basis. national parks, they will get shut down f. you plan a vacation you might want to pay attention to what's going on. and several other things as well. like medicare, new applications, new applications for student loans, you won't see those get processed quickly. interestingly, there are some things that won't be affected. yo

nbc's tracie potts is live for us this morning in washington. good morning, tracie. is there any hope left that this can be avoided? >> reporter: well, there's always hope, and it's possible they can come up with something to prevent the shutdown, but it's not looking probable. we're not seeing the type of work behind the scenes that typically happens when there's some sort of compromise in place. and the senate, they're not even coming back to work until this afternoon. >> the senate? they're not here. >> reporter: they're back this afternoon likely to reject the offer on the table. republicans say they'll fund the government and prevent the shutdown only if the health law is delayed one year. >> there's a time and place to debate obamacare. but not at a time when millions of innocent people are held hostage. >> simply delaying it is done for a big corporation, that's a compromise. >> reporter: some democrats say they'll get rid of an attach on medical devices. >> not with a gun to my head or the risk of shutting down the government. >> reporter: who's to blame if t

>> tracie potts live on capitol hill for us.hank you. >>> right now trying to find out more about a soldier shot and killed in afghanistan. someone dressed as an afghan soldier shot and killed the service member in eastern afghanistan. the suspected gunman has been killed. the victim was a member of the international security assistance force. >>> this afternoon friends and family will say good-bye to a woodbridge man who was murdered. kenny diaz was stabbed to death over the weekend. eight people now facing charges in connection with his death. they are all charged with abduction. one suspect, 19 queer year diandra samuels is charged with murder. investigators say she stabbed diaz at marumsco acre lake after diaz confronted her about a friend being robbed. the viewing will be held 2-4 and 5-9. diaz will be laid to rest tomorrow. >>> it is sentencing day for a man who confessed to a string of robberies in the germantown area. ellwood martin will be sentenced in rockville. police arrested him earlier this year after the violent r

on the firearm of aaron alexis and found a website he created under a different name and nbc's tracie pottss live for us in washington. good morning to you, tracie. can you tell us more about the inscriptions and what you found. >> reporter: according to authorities, richard, the shotgun he used had two things inscribed into that weapon. better off this way and my elf weapon. e-l-f. they don't know what it means but one of the things the fbi continues to look into. they're still on site even as employees come back to the navy yard today and also looking into this website that he apparently set up eight years ago under the name mohamed saline but never used all part of the investigation into the alleged shooter. meantime, the president and mrs. obama are headed to a memorial service to honor the victims. an apology to the victims' family from aaron alexis' mother, the first we've heard from her in an audio interview and finally the v.a., the veterans administration say they treated him for insomnia but not as widely reported for paranow ya. apparently those reports police reports and others

tracie potts on capitol hill right now with more on what we might hear today. go good morning to you. >> reporter: the day enroll opens but a lot of people don't get it. they don't understand them. they don't even know if they're eligible. the president's task today is to try to in a very simple way at pg community college explain what these exchanges are and how they can benefit people. this was a big part of the health care law that states would offer, exchanges so people who don't have insurance, if your employer doesn't offer it, if you are in the marketplace buying it on your own, people could come to a central place. and because so many people would be buying through these exchanges the prices would be lower. that's what the president needs to try to explain today. he also needs to explain the process. he talked a little bit about that in new york with president clinton the other day saying essentially you could shop around for health insurance just like you shop around for a cheap plane ticket online. so that's what we expect to hear from the president i

we have team coverage with nbc's tracie potts in washington and nbc's jim maceda in turkey. we begin with tracie. lawmakers facing a momentous vote there in washington. what do you know about that. >> reporter: that process starts this afternoon, betty, good morning, everyone. that's why the obama administration's making the hard sell. lawmakers have got to figure out where is the u.s. more vulnerable here. getting involved in the civil war and maybe encouraging iran or al qaeda or making a promise for action and then doing nothing. with protests across the country, president obama is pushing for it at a dinner with republicans last night. and in a nationwide television appearance tomorrow. especially in the house where lawmakers seem reluctant to antagonize bashar al assad. >> i think there's a chance that he is more emboldened if we do attack him. >> reporter: the white house is using these videos not confirmed by nbc as proof the assad regime used chemical weapons. >> nobody is rebutting the intelligence but i would say the evidence is not as strong as the public statement

>> tracie potts, we'll see how long this lasts.nks. >>> learning of new claims of spying by the usa against u.s. allies. a report the nsa bugged the indian embassy in d.c. and the u.n. office in new york with sophisticated equipment. the report cites documents obtained by edward snowden. they also list india on a list of countries chosen for intensive spying. india defended nsa spying programs in the past saying they prevented terrorist attacks. >>> we are following a developing story in syria as well. a team of u.n. chemical weapons inspectors is heading back to syria. the team will look for more evidence that chemical weapons used in syria's civil war. a report after the inspectors' last visit claim that troops there used sarin gas in an attack near damascus. >>> secretary of state john kerry will discuss the crisis in syria with foreign diplomats. he met with russia's foreign minister yesterday in knock. the white house says they discussed a possible u.n. security council resolution that would demand syria destroy its chemical w

>>> all right, tracie potts live on capitol hill for us. thank you. >>> the year long 150th anniversary festivities. will see a surprising demonstration. the national park service has given a permit for a maryland-based ku klux klan group to hold af event at the national. they have a responsibility to make that land available for any citizen to express their right to freedom of speech. it will be held in the afternoon october 5. >>> a group of teens from hyattsville is recovering after a car driven by one of their classmates hit them in a parking lot near the school. >>> yesterday afternoon we showed you the dramatic scene outside northwestern high school in prince george's county. eight junior rotc students were practicing formation when the car plowed into them. the driver of the car was a 19-year-old classmate. the driver stayed on the scene and was charged with negligent driving and driving without required supervision. he doesn't have his license is yet, just a learner's permit. this morning a prince george's county mother is demanding

nbc's tracie potts has been keeping an eye overnight. joins us live. >> reporter: good morning, everyone. between the three of them, they have been talking for over 15 hours, going on 16 hours now, trying to prevent or delay this vote. the vote is scheduled to happen about an hour after the senate gets into session, so later this morning and that vote would include two things, a budget so we don't have a government shutdown, but it would also take all the money away from the affordable health care act. known here as obama care. they want to see that but they know democrats are not going to let that be part of the final vote and so they're trying to prevent that change from happening. they want to see the money go away. as a result we're seeing this marathon talk-a-thon all night long on capitol hill. is it going to work? will it delay the vote? that we don't know. but the republican party is concerned. republican leaders warned them against this because they think if the vote is delayed, it will simply shorten the time to get something d

tracie potts is in washington for us this morning. good morning to you. how much fraction does this possible solution have right now in washington? >> well, it's actually, richard, raising a lot of questions here in washington, including with president obama who addressed this in his speech last night, saying that while there's promise here, and there's hope, there's also a track record with both syria and russia and that our military needs to stay ready while we wait to see if this solution will work. president obama says he may still send missiles to destroy syria's chemical weapon capability if russia's plan to get rid of them doesn't work. >> sometimes resolutions and statements of condemnation are simply not enough. >> reporter: russia is blocking a united nations resolution that leaves open the possibility of a military strike. >> the russians and the syrians don't have a great track record with following through. >> we need to really make it happen. >> reporter: the president argues military force affects our own security because chemical weapons n

tracie potts live on capitol hill for us.nk you. >>> and the obama administration will decide the impact a shutdown would have on city workers. d.c. mayor vin vent gray designated all employees as essential to try to keep they will on the job. the white house budget office has the final say on that issue, though. d.c.'s attorney general says the mayor could be arrested for spending any money congress has not authorized even local tax dollars. >>> we are work to go cover every angle of the shutdown showdown as that deadline approaches including how it could affect your commute. we'll have more on that coming up today. plus, find the latest anytime at nbcwashington.com. >>> 5:34 is your time now. let's check in with molette green with breaking news. >>> eun, d.c. water crews on the scene of an eight-inch water main break between cathedral avenue and woodley road. if you live or work in that area, your water service may be disrupted until crews finish their work. traffic not expected to be impacted by all of this. back to you. >

tracie potts is live for us in washington. good morning to you. we see all these lawmakers talking, but they need to be talking to each other to get something done. is that happening? >> reporter: not really, alex. we see them talking at each other, throwing ideas back and forth, but none of those ideas seem to be locking in as we move ever closer to this monday deadli deadline. ted cruz, who you just referred to, spent a lot of time talking. afterwards, the vote he was trying to prevent happened anyway. democrats and republicans were still far apart. ted cruz finally sat down after 21 hours. >> this was all about elevating the debate in the public. >> there's been a big waste of time. >> reporter: now the senate's on track to pass a budget that'll likely include money for the affordable care act. that's sure to go nowhere in the house. democrats say they'll fight for it. >> anything that diminishes the affordable care act is not anything we're going to support. >> we cannot rely on the commander in chief to negotiate. >> reporter: republicans are

tracie potts is monitoring the situation live in washington, d.c.ome of the militants involved are actually americans. what can you tell us? >> reporter: they don't have a lot of information yet because these hostage takers, these militants have yet to be identified. and u.s. officials say until they have i.d. they can't determine one way or another. it would not, however, be unusual. this terrorist group al shabaab has been recruiting heavily especially in the large somalian community around minneapolis in the last seven years about 50 americans have joined this organization. they think that has dwindled down to about 20 but certainly nearly two dos americans they believe are fighting with this organization. the mall shooting that happened in nairobi separate but involving the same group. officials simply don't know if any americans were involved. however, the government of kenya, the foreign minister says they believe at least two or three young men, americans around ages 18 or 19 were involved and this morning they are saying they had the upper h

nbc's tracie potts is live on capitol hill now. >> reporter: good morning.d have a huge impact on where we live. national parks here and all over the country are going to be closed. now what that means is park rangers and other employees will have to sit at home without paychecks, essential employees like firefighters in the parks, for example, would stay on duty because that could be an emergency situation. but the parks are going to be closed to visitors. the last time this happened in the mid-'90s, 9 million visitors were turned away from our national parks in the d.c. area and it also means the smithsonian will be closed, the national zoo will be closed. nih researchers will be off the job, clinical trials may not happen. the pentagon is taking a huge hit. one of the things they're looking at later today hae on capitol hill, pay for the military. nearly 1.5 million workers who have to go to work whether or not there's a shutdown. courts, federal courts, may or may not be open. some should have enough money, we're told, to stay open for about ten days, an

senator cruz started this just before 3:00 on tuesday afternoon and to tracie potts live in washington. what's expected to happen today. >> reporter: what was expected to happen was this vote about an hour after the senate goes into session. these two are trying to prevent that from happening. this all-night talk-a-thon could end up leading to a government shutdown. >> i intend to speak till i'm no longer able to stand. >> reporter: at 8:00 last night when he apparently ran out of things to say. >> do you like green eggs and h ham? >> reporter: earlier mike lee took over. >> the american people have never been enthusiastic about obama care. >> reporter: but he was back and supports the plan up for a vote today stripping the money from health care to avoid a government shutdown but democrats in charge plan to change the bill and keep the health care funding. if cruz keeps talking, they may never get to vote and the government could shut down. he's not the only one talking. >>> it's just to get people enrolled in this. >> reporter: president obama and clinton broke it down last night in