mclaughlin is the assistant administrative security operations at the transportation security administration. mr. steven sadler is the assistant administrator for intelligence analysis at the transportation security administration. mr. stephen lord is director for homeland security at the u.s. government accountability office, our wing, if you will. and rear admiral zukunft. an assistant commandant for marine safety and stewardship and i might mention without a doubt the best jewel ever give on the homeland security in my opinion and in the ranking member's opinion. pursuant to the rules of this committee, would you all please rise to take the oath? raise your right hands. do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony you're about to give will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? let the record indicate -- please have a seat -- all witnesses answered in the affirmative. now, my predecessor, whose face and portrait is up there, mr. towns, began a tradition of explaining the obvious. but he did it every time, and i appreciated it. your entire opening statements will be

steven sadler, the transportation security administration. mr. steven lord is the director for homeland security of the u.s. government accountability office. rear admiral is the u.s. coast guard and the assistant commandant a former marine safety security and stewardship. pursuant to the rules of this committee, would you all please rise to take the oath? raise your right hand. do you solemnly swear the testimony you're about to give is the truth and nothing but the truth? let the record indicate that all witnesses answered in the affirmative. my predecessor's face is up there. he began a tradition of explaining the obvious. he did it every time and i appreciated it. your entire opening statements will be placed in the record. in front of you, you have the countdown clock. like so many things that you looked at, doesn't really matter? the answer is please summarize if you run out of time. we would like to get through all of you out of here in a timely fashion. you have five minutes. >> good afternoon. thank you for the opportunity to testify toda

. >>> in washington transportation security administration will demonstrate the newest boarding pass and id authentication technology. the new high-tech passes are designed to identify altered or fraudulent documents at security checkpoints. >>> singer al green turns 66. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments and those stories and others as they break on msnbc. tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." finally here is a look at what's coming up later on the "today" show. a screen writer who worked with mel gibson speaks out against what he believes was anti-semitic behavior against the actor. >>> get an exclusive look at the life of robert duval when cameras take you inside his horse farm retreat. >>> keep it on this channel for news, weather, sports and more. i'm lynn berry, thanks for watching "early today." it's the first stop of the day today on your nbc station. it's the first stop of the day today on your nbc station. have a good one.

. >>> transportation security administration workers walked the picket line at sfo today. coming up, what they're protesting, and how it could affect air safety. it was a cold morning for april. steve will be along to tell us when the bay area will warm up again. and we just got video of an unmanned ship that made it across the ocean after the japanese tsunami. ahead, the coast guard plans for the ship that will end with a bang. [ female announcer ] there's surprising news about whole grain and the cereals your kids love. ♪ now all general mills big g kid cereals have more whole grain than any other ingredient. the same great taste they love in cereals like lucky charms and cinnamon toast crunch with whole grain that they need. just look for the white check, only on general mills big g kid cereals, the delicious way to help them grow up strong. now with more whole grain than any other ingredient. >>> an oakland market is now red tagged after a van crashed into it. the accident caused quite a lot of damage to the black and white liquor store. the driver first hit another ca

that's the word from the former evidence the national transportation security administration.hat would free up tsa workers to search for real threat explosives. kip holly wrote a he claims terrorist also never be able to hijack airplane like they did on 9/11 because cockpits are stronger. banned list of what not to use in their next attacks. lighters are banned. the next attack will use an electric trigger. we should mention hawley is also promoting a new book. president obama's plan to raise taxes on millionaires just went up for a vote in the democratic-controlled senate. we'll show you how it went there. plus the man accused of killing the unarmed central teenager wants a new job or i should say a new judge. details on the potential conflict of interest coming up as fox reports live tonight. ♪ [ acoustic guitar: upbeat ] [ dog ] it's our favorite. yours and mine. because we found it. together. on a walk, walk, walk. love to walk. a long walk. a walk with you. a walk i smelled squirrels on, but i stayed by your side because i could tell, could feel, that you had a bad day...

. >>> a man's mother says she's lividded with the transportation security administration. tsa after what happened at the wichita airport. michelle braiden mire was taking her two children through security last week when she set off the alarm. while she was getting further screenings her 4-year-old daughter ran to her grandmother to get a hug. agented declared her little girl a high security threat and prevented her from getting close enough to comfort the child. she says agents ated down the girl and accused the grandmother of handing her a gun. the tsa says it's reviewing exactly what happened. >>> firefighters in prince george's county went door to door i should say in the oxon hill neighborhood today warning people about the dangers of carbon monoxide. that campaign comes just one day after five people died when carbon monoxide from a leaky  furnace built up in their home. and prince george's county is far from the only department trying to get the word out. >> i'm bruce leshan in fairfax county. a day after five people died from carbon monoxide poisoning in prince geo

that its the claim from former head of the transportation security administration.w book, kip holly says the tsa is too focused on that list of banned items. he says some things on that current list need to be allowed. so airport screeners can focus more on toxin as and explosives. holly says many practices put unplauin place after 9/11 may be updated and said that agents should focus on behavior instead of appearance when they profile travelers. a big drug bust at dulles, chocolate and juice boxes seized with a little something extra inside. security finding four pound of cocaine stuffed inside a woman's luggage at dulles tonight. they say she is a legitimate currier from guatemala, flew in from el salvador and was immediately deported. the estimated street value of the cocaine $130,000. >>> still trying to find the two dogs involved in a vicious attack in northeast d.c. it happened last friday on queen street. the trinidad area. it was recorded by a building surveillance camera. video ows two kids jumping on the roof of a car. trying to escape. the kids were not h

the complaint will be sent to the transportation security administration and the department of homeland security. >>> the bible is being read cover to cover today in the nation's capitol. international bible reading association is holding the annual bible reading marathon featuring 90 hours of continuing open reading of the bible. >>> fire ripped through mount vernon at the tavern five months ago. and since then, crews have been work toward rebuild the historic -- working towards rebuilding the historic landmark. you have the opportunity to get involved. charley crowson is here to tell us what's happening. >> reporter: thanks. it has been five months and halloween night, 2011, the mount washington tavern burn to the ground and now they are in the process of rebuilding. joining us now shannon maddox with the tavern. how are things going so -- so far. >> it's going great. they have the framing and roof and now they will work on the electrical and things like that on the inside. >> reporter: how are the spirits of the staff? >> so excited we can't wait for it to open. we will be back. char

that all results in the transportation security act of 2001 signed into law november 19th, 2001. that's the act that created the transportation security administration. here's what it said, the pilot of a passenger aircraft operated by an air carrier in air transportation or interstate air transportation is authorized to carry a firearm into the cockpit if the undersecretary, meaning the tsa approves. if the airline approves, if the firearm is approved by the tsa and if the pilot ef receives proper training for use of that firearm. we went to work. several meetings with the tsa and several letters to secretary of transportation norm ma net ta fell on deaf ears. they didn't want to have a thing to do with us. in fact, the administrator said i will not allow pilots to be armed. that required a ten-month extensive lobbying effort with congressional members and staff and although some in the alpa leadership leaned towards a limited program with 2% pilot cap and a two-year sunset provision, that would certainly have killed the program very early on. an amendment by representative defazio removed those limits and hr-3645 was passed 310-113 in the house of

while the transportation security administration has primary responsibility for the issuance of twics, the coast guard has primary responsibility for ensuring compliance with the twic regulations. all of the approximately 2,700 maritime facilities impacted by the twic regulations are and have been in compliance since the april 15th, 2009 implementation date. the coast guard continues to conduct both unannounced and announced inspections to ensure compliance. additionally, the coast guard has verified more than 213,000 twics through a combination of visual and electronic means. in accordance with the safe port act, a pilot program was conducted by tsa to evaluate the feasibility and technical and operational impacts of implementing a twic reader system. electronic readers add another layer of security associated with the twic by providing biometric confirmation of the twic holder's identity. tsa's report on the pilot program was delivered to congress on february 27th, and the coast guard is now incorporating the results of the pilot in our rule making for electronic readers in the mari

the transportation security administration will show off the new technology at dulles national airport this morning. >>> a large tribute in d.c. this weekend will mark 100 years since the "titanic" disaster. one event includes this annual toast at the southwest waterfront. a group of men solemnly gather at the "titanic" memorial there. they salute the men who gave up their lives to save women and children as the ship sank on april 15, 1912. this year the southwest heritage project willing mark the occasion with a large-stage projection, music and live performances. that's tomorrow at the southwest waterfront. >>> europe's most active volcano is rumbling again. mt. etna started spewing lava and ash into the air yesterday. it is third eruption in the past month and 24th of the year. so far there's been no danger to homes or people. the local airport stayed open. lava from mt. etna has done damage before, but the volcano has never caused any deaths. >>> they say everything's bigger in texas. look at this hailstorm there. a severe storm dumped four to five feet -- feet of hail. >> what? >>

the transportation security administration showed off some new technology which is being tested at dulles airport. the goal is to identify passenger documents which have been altered or are fraud lent. this includes boarding passes. the new tool passes a passenger's boarding pass and photo i.d. and automatically verifies the name on both documents. dulles airport is one of three airports across the country taking part in the pilot program. >>> dry, sunny days may be nice for picnics but for farmers in eastern maryland, it is causing problems already. the entire eastern shore except for cecil county is now in a drought. rainfall totals are several inches below normal for the year so far. now farmers are putting off planting their spring crops. instead they're drilling for water. >> we're right on the border line now. may need another well to boost the volume out of the system. >> never been this dry this early. >> maryland's department -- excuse me, maryland's department of environment is encouraging residents on the eastern shore to conserve water now and the water conditions are close to

out lately about unhappy americans who say their privacy has been violated by the transportation security administration and while most eight a airport patrons begrudgingly slip off their shoes and empty their pockets the question still remains is the t.s.a. really make us any safer or is it just another security apparatus another industry profiting off fear in a post nine eleven world since the naked body scanners have been rolled out and multiple airports across the country there's been a national outrage that the scanners are not only an extreme violation of privacy but are also reported to cause high doses of radiation meanwhile the company supplying the airports with body scanners are also lobbying millions of dollars to congress to ensure that legislation is implemented that will soon require the scanners nationwide luckily you can still opt out of them for now but even more controversial than the scanners are the t.s.a. is invasive pat down procedures that you have to endure with an opt out the pat downs of come under a barrage of scrutiny with stories coming out of children being sexually groped

the transportation security administration and immigration services among other divisions so exactly this is not the u.s. military this is the domestic law enforcement agency and the t.s.a. are basically glorified bag screeners and airport screeners that was that was their original congressional mandate was to screen passengers before they go on an airplane so the question the question really is why do they need four hundred fifty million rounds of ammunition and to be fair some people online who don't want to believe what's going on who said that this is just going to be used for target practice or also it could be that the government is simply stockpiling ammunition because they don't want to get into a situation where there's an ammo shortage and our law enforcement officers don't have any ammunition and those are both fair points but that kind of ammo that they purchased from eighty k. hollow point and you dish and as you explained it's designed to tear through human flesh and then expand it's designed to kill people this is not the optimal kind of ammo you would buy for target p

industrial complex that's really on everybody because the think about it compared to the transportation security administration example they take pictures of us you know is the we're all naked any cause you know you have no hero are saying your seat is that we want to fly an airplane and you know your daughter is ours at home used against american citizens us we're sitting with these the t.s.a. will strip searches empire of powers everywhere we want to do it abroad and you know we're taking our rights here at home and it's scary gentlemen thank you both for joining us thank you. sorry coming up i'll respond to yours instead of i read it and the a.p. is revealed crying a bit of questionable surveillance by the n.y.p.d. so tonight we'll speak to one of the individuals who is under the magnifying glass after the break. but it also gives you a story and it seems so please if you understand it and then something else you hear or see some other part of it and realize that everything is ok. i'm charging welcome to the big picture.

industrial complex that's really all they want is the think of that and compare it to the transportation security administration because now they take pictures of us you know is though we're all naked any cause you know get out there are saying i see it is that we want to fly an airplane now that you know these are your daughter powers at home used against american citizens that's what we're seeing with these t.s.a. the strip searches don't pair of powers everywhere we want to do a bride and you know they're taking our rights here at home and it's scary and i thank you both for joining us thank you. all right coming up i'll respond to viewers in the senate i read it and a.p. has revealed quite a bit of questionable surveillance by the n.y.p.d. so tonight we'll speak to one of the individuals who is on the path to find bust after the break.

complex that's really on everybody just as the think of that and compare it to the transportation security administration because now they take pictures of us you know is though we're all naked any cause you know you know you have got here are saying i see it is that we want to fly an airplane outta you these are you know the water power is at home use against american citizens that's what we're seeing with these the t.s.a. the strip searches that importer of powers everywhere want to do the bride and you know they're taking our rights here at home and it's scary and i thank you both for joining us thank you. are coming out i'll respond to viewers and you said it i read it and the a.p. is revealed quite a bit of questionable surveillance by the n.y.p.d. so it's right we'll speak to one of the individuals who was under the magnifying glass after the break the celeb. let's not forget that we had in the park right we've seen britney on the. lead i think the rock the bombings the the and on the oil lead. we have the government says leave her keep you safe.

today the transportation security administration honored amtrak with its highest rating, the gold standard for security. the tsa says the award recognizes amtrak's dedication to building a strong security program. amtrak was recognized for its establishment of emergency awareness programs. >> coming up, the unexpected turn in the story of a dog protecting another dog that had been hit by a car on a busy street. >> i'm andrea mccarren with new information on the percentage of teenagers who say they get their alcohol from their parents. the story coming up. >> up next, we'll hear from a former nasa astronaut and kristin fisher's mom's reaction as she watches discovery land for the last time. if you have copd like i do, you know how hard it can be to breathe and what that feels like. copd includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. spiriva helps control my copd symptoms by keeping my airways open a full 24 hours. plus, it reduces copd flare-ups. spiriva is the only once-daily inhaled copd maintenance treatment that does both. and it's steroid-free. spiriva does not replace fast-acting inhalers

. >>> former head of transportation security administration is calling for changes to airport security. he said the current system is broken. kip holly, who ran the tsa from 2005-'09, tells abc news that he believes more officers should roam the airport asking questions, watching shady characters instead of screening passengers at checkpoints. he also believes that knives and sharp objects should be removed from the prohibited items list. the focus should be on explosives and toxins. >>> hello, a beautiful day outside today? >> absolutely gorgeous. and this keeps getting better, gary. what are we looking at for the evening. >> this evening is good. i like this evening. overnight tonight, that is when more -- . >> it goes downhill? >> we may have a rumble of thunder out there in places overnight tonight. in early -- and early tomorrow. not the case now, though, let's check in temperatures. you will like this. seventy right now in the city. fredericksburg, 71. a little cooler to the north- northwest. hagerstown, 65 frederick, 64. cumberland, 64 degrees. and again, just gorgeous out ahead

>>shepard: just in to fox, four former and current transportation security administration screeners in angeles international airport are under arrest. federal drug trafficking and bravery charges have now been leveled. the indictment is out. according to it, the current and former t.s.a. employees took payments up to $2,400 to allow suitcases filled with drugs to pass through x-ray machines and the t.s.a. screeners looked the other way. trace is like in our west coast news hub. do we know how long it has been going on. >> we are scanning through this indictment and it appears there were five incidents between february of last area and july of last year where they had suitcases filled with drugs, 60 pounds of cocaine, 60 pounds of marijuana, 10 pounds of meth, passed through the x-ray machine that the security agents turned the other way. they say the deal is, they had two agents working at each security check point and one would signal the other that the drugs were coming law and as the suitcases passed through, the other agent would simply town his back, but, during one of those attem

the transportation security administration released a statement that says in part, tsa has recently implementedied screening procedures of children 12 and under that will further reduce the need for a physical pat-down of kids. in this case, however, the child had completed screening but had contact with another member of her family who had not completed the screening process. tsa has reviewed the incident and determined that our officers followed proper current screening procedures in conducting a modified pat-down on the child. >>> a little boy in china is feeling better after doctors removed a screw from his stomach. the 16-month-old swallowed the three quarter inch long screw on tuesday. his grandfather says he was playing in his room at the time, and an x-ray showed no sign of damage to the baby's stomach. doctors went on with the surgery. the screw was removed without any complications and the boy is doing just fine. >>> coming up a news4 i-team exclusive tonight. renters breaking the law, too many people living in homes. it's a problem affecting fairfax county, tonight the news4 i-team w

the transportation security administration showed off the new machines at dulles international airportdevices can verify a boarding pass. right now agents check each ticket to make sure it is valid. tsa says the new boarding pass and identification system should make it easier for them to spot fake documents. >>> that mild winter weather we just had helped air passengers get to their destinations on time. the largest airlines operated 86% of their flights on schedule in february. last year in february only 75% of flights were on time. virgin america had the highest rate of on time flights at 91%. frontier, express jet and united had the worst. >>> the mayor of the largest city is giving word. corey booker saved a neighbor from her burning home. and members of his security detail heard screams coming from the home thursday night. a woman was trapped in the back room of the home. one of his security detail tried to stop him from going inside but the mayor insisted. >> at this point i felt terror. it was a very scary moment. because i couldn't find her. looked like i couldn't get back thr

. >>> a woman says she's furious with the transportation security administration, after her daughter iven a patdown at a kansas airport. the woman says her mother set off the alarm, passing through security. she was told to sit and await a patdown. but when her daughter went to give her grandmother a hug, a security officer allegedly implied a handgun had been passed to the little girl. the t.s.a. says agents did follow procedure and never accused the girl of carrying a gun. >>> a 5-year-old boy in need of a heart transplant is found, safe, after being kidnapped from a st. louis hospital by his father, who does not have custody. police say porter was found. an amber alert was issued after the boy was taken from the hospital yesterday. jeffrey stone and his mother are both charged with kidnapping and other offenses. >>> the drama between pro football hall-of-famer deon sanders and his estranged wife pilar. today, deion is charged with misdemeanor assault, relating to a fight for which his wife was later arrested. >> not many are interested in what a house mother has to say. >> today, t

and a house oversight hearing on the transportation security administration. ♪ >> this week on "q&a,"erry ensminger and rachel libert talk about the documentary "semper fi: always faithful." >> rachel libert, why did you get involved with a film called "semper fi"? >> i was researching a completely different topic, and i met a woman. before she left the project, she let us know that her brother was involved in a fight exposing water contamination in the marine corps, and my co- director and i were a bit skeptical, but we agreed to meet her brother, which turned out to be jerry ensminger, and we were immediately taken with the subject, and i would say for two reasons. we had seen the evidence that jerry had amassed, so there really was substance to the story, and secondly, we were taken with him. we thought there was a powerful and charismatic story, in part mental story. >> where were you located when you started this? >> in new york. >> and what year did you start? >> 2007. >> how long did it take you to do it? >> a little over four years, and i do not know that we knew that going in

the app allows people to complain directly to the transportation security administration or to the department security using their iphone or android. the group wants to give people an easier way to register a complaint. the tsa currently allows travelers to file a complaint by downloading a pdf form via its website. >>> coming up on our broadcast at 11:00 tonight we'll tell you what one police chief said this morning that will have some people looking to the skies. also mitt romney's vice presidential short list that is not so short. and the danger of the latest trend in silicon injections which is leaving some people sick, disfigured. some are even killed by it. doreen's special report tonight at 11:00. >>> now let's get another check on the weather forecast. >> i think it is going to get better for a lot of people wanting that warm weather to come back. i think it is going to come back and may just come back in a big way. out there right now 79 degrees. that's what we're thinking for a high tomorrow. we will see a pretty good chance of showers. maybe a thunderstorm tomorrow. on thursday a f

>>> the transportation security administration showed off some new technology today that's being testedes airport. the goal is to identify passenger documents that have been altered or just outright fake and that includes boarding passes. the new tool scans your boarding pass and your photo id and then it automatically verifies the names on both documents. dulles airport is one of three airports across the country taking part in the pilot program. >>> pope benedict xvi celebrated his 85th birthday today. the celebration took place at the vatican. the pope was joined by his brother along with bavarian bishops and bandy from his native land. today's celebration -- a band from his native land. today's celebration is the start of a week long celebrations for this pope. on thursday he marks his seventh anniversary to election to that office. >>> this picture of pippa middleton is stirring up controversy tonight. prince william's sister-in-law was riding in a car in paris this weekend when another passenger in the vehicle pointed a gun at a passing photographer, no comment from buckingham pal

for iphones and an droids allows users to file complaints with the transportation security administrationn, fly right. advocacy group created the app. the program's director says it's for all people who feel they are victims of racial profiling or any harsh screening. texans cannot outlaw state funding for planned parenthood. that is the ruling now from a federal judge. last year texas banned state agencies from giving money to organizations with ties to abortion providers. 8 planned parenthood clinics that do not perform abortions sued the state. today the judge ruled the law is indeed unconstitutional. of course like so many things this is not the last word. the next step is a full trial and then possible appeals. a former top cia official is defending the so-called enhanced interrogation techniques that many including the president called torture. next why he says he ordered the destruction of nearly 100 audio recordings that showed those controversial measures in action. plus, a court hearing for the self-proclaimed mastermind of the attacks of 9/11 will be on television. and just not

. >>> the former head of the transportation security administration says that agency needs to focus more on toxins and explosives. in a new book, kip holly says the tsa is too focused on a list of banned items. he suggests agents focus more on behavior rather than appearance when profiling travelers. he says many of the practices put in place after 9/11 may be outdated. >>> today the senate expected to vote on a bill to help the financially strapped postal service. the bill under consideration would inject $11 billion into the agency to avert bankruptcy and pay off debt. it would offer retirement incentives to some 100,000 employees. the bill does not mention anything about the most controversial decision on closing post offices and stopping saturday mail. the agency says it needs to implement the cost-cutting measures before -- to become profitable again. >>> it seems apple is having a pretty good 2012. the company posted revenue of $39.2 billion in its fiscal second quarter yesterday. sales of iphones, ipads, and macs in asia helped apple surpass analysts' estimates. apple posted earni

the transportation security administration is going to be showing off new machines at dulles national that can electronically verify passenger boarding passes. right now tsa agents check each ticket to make sure it's valid. a process that is open to human error. the tsa says the new identification system should make it easier to spots fake documents. >>> today president obama will be flying on board air force one. the president is headed to colombia for the summit. americas. he will meet with 33 leaders from across the americas this weekend. don't expect to see cuban leader raul castro. he was not invited. that's causing controversy. the leaders are expected to focus on trade and immigration. the summit starts tomorrow and wraps up sunday. >>> in decision 2012, republican presidential candidate mitt romney is getting support from the man who will likely be his political rival this fall. president obama is sticking up for romney's wife. a democratic strategist criticized her for being a stay-at-home mom. >> guess what, his wife has actually never worked a day in her life. she's never r

the associated press is reported that transportation security administration has decided to give atlanta'susy airports permission to issue security i.d.s to workers before background checks are completed. now, they say it's because of extended delays in the process. keep in mind, hartsfield jackson atlanta is the busiest airport. once airline workers have been fingerprinted, they can receive a security pass, but they do not have to wait for the results of a security threat assessment. the question is, will this lead to other airports to ask for the same protocol? >>> well, now to syria, this video coming into our newsroom shows a massive explosion in the city wiped out parts of a residential area. at least 16 people killed. this is despite u.n. monitors on the ground tasked with overseeing that u.n. truth deal. >>> the associated press just releasing these photos of what appears to be a missile in north korea. these photos taken almost two weeks ago in pyongyang. analysts who have studied these photos say the authenticity of the missile is questionable. some even saying it is fake. now, jo

the transportation security administration is showing off some new machines at dulles international airportat can electrically verify passenger boarding passes. right now, tsa agents check each ticket to make sure it's valid. a process that's open to human error of course. the tsa says the new boarding pass and identification system should make it easier for them to spot fake documents. >>> metro fares are a step closer to going up by as early as this july. the transit system's finance committee approved a thik that will raise fares on the rails by about 5%. that means you could pay as much as $5.75 during peak hours. bus riders will see a ten-cent increase and you'll pay 25 cents more to park. the biggest change is for riders who use paper fare cards. they will now pay $1 surcharge for every trip that they take. there will be two new passes, a $14 all-day pass, that won't have any time restrictions. and for the first time, a 28-day pass that will run you about $230 a pass. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> that's debra cox, singing "same script, different cast" a due it she recorded with whitney houston a while

the transportation security administration will show off their new machine at dulles national airportt can electronically verify those passengers' boarding passes. tsa agents check your ticket to make sure it's valid, a process that is open to human error. the tsa says the boarding pass and identification system should make it easier for them to spot fake document. >>> everything's bigger in texas, including a hailstorm there that dumped four to five feet of hail, in some cases higher almost as -- as tall as a full-grown man. all the hail forced state troopers to shut down a highway -- state troops to shut down a highway near amarillo. there were flooding problems all over the area. nobody got hurt. >> all right. >>> meanwhile, we are in desperate need of rain. so far nothing on the horizon. >> tom kierein is here with -- still we can appreciate a really nice weekend ahead of us. >> here it comes. plan accordingly. starting off cold, though, this morning. thankfully for pollen sufferers, for allergy sufferers, i'm happy to report the latest pollen counts showing the tree pollen count

. >> it is the transportation security administration. have you ever been on an airplane?yes. >> they look like police. they take your id and your passport and put your things through the x-ray. >> yes. >> are you familiar with what a full body scanner is? >> yes. >> it is a machine and a random the selects people to go in and do a post and they can take an x-ray of you can see three or to pass through your clothes. out of the seven people, which person would you select and are most uncomfortable with passenger the airport? which person will have issues? >> #3. >> why? >> after conducting a survey with school students, it appears they had a bias towards 5. >> i think is video presents the facts well and i would like to make a ruling on this case. the tsa full body scanners have a direct purpose to protect the general public from potential terrorist threats. [inaudible] it does not protect the public from an impending danger and i find the defendant guilty as charged. >> thank you, thank you. >> will you please place the defendant in incarceration. >> how do you feel about

a former head of the transportation security administration saying that airport security is broken andow to fix it. in his new book, "permanent knowledge," he says embracing it is way to keep americans safe. our power panel is back. i'm going to start with you, ligs. the legal implications of this. they are talking about allowing a lot of banned products through. >> if we do have an attack or something terrible happens, huge implications. we could have done more. roller skates. >> roller skates. [ laughter ] >> you could. i'm not kidding. there are so many things, razors for example, all of those things. some of the ideas like get rid of the baggage fees because people are packing their bags and so heavily it's hard to see them. get rid of the fees. maybe we have some check-ons and you are right. >> and i was going to israel few years ago and they did something. they don't profile racially but what they do is interview you while you are in line, while you are awaiting. they will ask you where you are from. and adjudicate zwrous make sure my story added up. they are looking at more my b

>>darya: current and former transportation security administration workers are under arrest and los angelesused of allowing a large amounts of drugs to pass through security screenings at lax. investigators say that seven screeners face charges of looting receiving bribes by government officials. for one is accused of orchestrating '50s situations. screeners had agreed to waive a checkpoint in exchange for money. >>mark: a quick break as the kron4 news continues. here is a live look outside on this thursday morning. we're taking a look at san francisco, the questions fan of the bay bridge. we are seeing fog and low clouds the. the all >>darya: and a formal complaint has been filed with the government accountability office. officials accused the president of passing of campaign travel as official government business. texas gov. rick perry is now endorsing mitt romney on the republican ticket. . ended his own campaign in january >>mark: in the dry hunter has made the find of a lifetime sank that the articles he found predate the sun. this was found in a small northern california town of lotus

. >>> happening right now, workers with the transportation security administration are picketing outside san francisco international airport. these are live pictures from the scene. coming up in seven minutes, we'll let you know what they're protesting and how it's expected to affect air travel this morning. if it's not one thing, it's another. dallas, rain in san francisco, always something going on. air travel. >> all right. time is 7:08. sal is back. everybody basic on the roads? >> they are. and i just wrote a clever tease on our morning facebook page. >> okay. >> we just like yours. i took a cue from you. >> all right. i'll check it out. >> please check it out. let's go out and look at what we have now. yes, we're on twitter and facebook, on tv. and we're doing traffic. let's go to the live pictures. highway 4 westbound, traffic is busy, but it's not stop and testimony about we had some stop and go traffic in antioch. this is the time of year where spring break happens for some and it makes it just a little easier for the rest of us who go to work and school. this will belong to ano

transportation security administration says that the system at dulles checks id and boarding passes bysa hopes it will weed out fraudulent documents and get passengers to the planes quicker. houston and san juan, puerto rico's, airports will also test those machines. >>> party isn't the first word you think of when you hear general services administration. that's probably how it should be. straight ahead, more fallout from a gsa junket in vegas that you paid for. >>> first, our political junky question of the day. who's the richest person to ever run for president? tweet me@kyracnn if you know the answer. i'll give you a shout out right after the break. on our car insurance. great! at progressive, you can compare rates side by side, so you get the same coverage, often for less. wow! that is huge! [ disco playing ] and this is to remind you that you could save hundreds! yeah, that'll certainly stick with me. we'll take it. go, big money! i mean, go. it's your break, honey. same coverage, more savings. now, that's progressive. call or click today. i'm a wife, i'm a mom... and chantix wor

ceding authority to the department of homeland security which can't even manage the transportation security administration. washington always wants more power and control. congressmen rogers and ruppers -- ruppersberger have worked together to articulate the need for cyberintelligence, our sharing and protection. the cyberintelligence sharing and protection act will help us fight against cyberattackers and hackers that want to steal our private or our government information. it also maintains protections for individuals' privacy. the bill's language is specific. it doesn't allow the government to use shared information for noncybersecurity purposes. it requires an independent inspector general to audit volunteer information shared with the government. the voluntary information sharing framework is preferable because incentive-base security works better than heavy handnd mandates but the white house and senate democrats disdepre with the technology experts. -- disagree with the technology experts. they think there is a cookie cutter way of addressing cybersecurity challenges. we shouldn't pretend we have a

served as a transportation secretary of administration for west michigan from november 2007 to july 2011 and she was the primary point of coordination and oversight transportation security matters in west michigan including implementation of all tsa security compliance programs in that region. mr. david wulf joined the department of homeland security in july of 2011 as the deputy director of the infrastructure security compliance division. within the office of infrastructure protection. he leads the national implementation of the chemical facility antiterrorism standards program to assess high risk chemical facilities, promote collaborative security planning and ensure that covered facilities meet risk based performance standards. mr. wulf also manages the efforts to implement a regulatory regime for immonium nitrate projects. serving among other rules as chief bureau of affairs and national explosives training and research. thank you all for being here. your full, written testimony will be made a part of the record. we would ask you for a summary of five minutes. we'll start from my left to right with secretary beers first. >> thank you, chairman and ranking member cla

supported development of the next generation air transportation system in partnership with d.o.d., homeland security and the federal aviation administration or faa through the joint planning and development office or jdpo. next gen will be much more scale al and flexible than today's system. this means improved and increased network communications among the various peoples and machines, aircraft and computers involved in the air transportation system. autonomy will also play a much greater role in next gen, especially the use of unmanned aircraft systems or uas. there's an increasing need to fly uas in the airspace system, to perform missions of vital importance to national security and defense, emergency management and science, and to enable commercial applications. nasa is working with the same partners, d.o.d., dhs and faa to iron out operational issues for easier access today of uas to the airspace for public use missions. for the longer term, we are evaluating key technologies and concepts needed to integrate uas in civil airspace and generating data for regulators to support development of stringent uas air worthiness certification

security. he is now referring the matter to an independent government investigator. >>> the hearings into wasteful spending at the general services administration move to the senate today. at yesterday's hearing, lawmakers on the house transportationmittee were told the questionable spending went way beyond the $820,000 vegas conference. >>> a surprise announcement from warren buffett. the 81-year-old ceo of berk share hathaway has early stage prostate cancer. he said his condition is quote, not remotely life-threatening and that, quote, he feels great as if he was in normal lent health. the diagnosis is likely to ramp up speculation over whom he has picked to be the successor at the company. >>> moving on, president obama making more efforts to tackle high gas prices. >> up next, the president's big question to congress and why republicans say it is just a political gimmick. >> lots of clouds on the horizon and the possibility of even a few showers in the forecast. today, i'll have the details of the weather and julie wright has a look at the traffic after the break. >>> welcome back. let's take a pan around d.c., shall we, and see what it looks like outside. we can see the lights out there and fairly clear out there and a nice s