ceiling, it's the debt. >> reporter: some liberal house democrats will vote no. >> there's no balance. there are no revenues. god forbid, we would ask, as the republicans call them, the job creators, the millionaires and billionaires to pay anything. >> reporter: the compromised plan would cut about $1 trillion in spending right away, form a new bipartisan super committee to find another $1.5 trillion in savings by november. if congress fails to act on those recommendations this year, broad spending cuts are triggered. no follow-on deal by december would mean -- cuts in defense spending, opposed by conservatives, and cuts in social programs opposed by liberals. >> gives each party a strong incentive to get a balanced plan done before the end of the year. >> reporter: do many democrats now expect tax hikes on the well-off? >> the answer is not only yes, but hell yes. >> reporter: vice president biden came to the hill to lobby. >> i feel confident that this will pass. >> reporter: but both sides are still scrambling for support after the house votes, the senate could follow quickly. but no celebrating. washington is worn out. >> this was a mess. there is no question. it was a circus at times. but in the end, compromise won out. >> reporter: maybe. they still have to vote. so, again, a house vote tonight, maybe finished by 7:30. the senate votes probably tomorrow,ll be a signing ceremony, no doubt. down at the white house, all in advance of midnight tuesday, which is still the debt ceiling deadline. jim, back to you. >> steve handelsman. thanks steve. on wall street today, stocks saw minor losses ahead of the final vote on the debt deal. the dow jones dropped 11 points. nasdaq also down about 12. the s&p 500 ended this day about 5 points lower. we invite you to stay with news4. we'll have continuing coverage of this story. we will also monitor the developments in congress, and have a full report on the financial impact of this vote in our next half hour. we've been keeping an eye on severe storms that have moved through parts of our region. let's get the latest from doug. >> severe thoerm warnings in effect for prince george's county, anne arundel county, southern prince george's, charles county and the knewest warning now effects portions of west virginia including jefferson county around the martins berg area. and you're going to see very heavy rain from these storms and the potential for a lot of lightning and hail. i do think we have seen some pretty big hail producers, but also very heavy rain producers. you see some of the biggest storms in prince george's county along route 50 and 301. you're going to see that storm continuing to make its way to the south and east. another severe thunderstorm down around charles county, making its way toward la plata. you'll see that in the next 15 minutes to half hour moving towards triangle and now a new severe thunderstorm warning associated with that storm. that severe thunderstorm warning will go until 6:45. it now includes all of charles county, as well as down towards king george county and back toward the west. loudoun county getting hit very hard with 2 to 3 inches of rain. we have a flash flood warning that's now in effect there until 9:00 tonight. we'll continue to watch out for that, too. so if you're outside this afternoon, keep a watchful eye to the sky. and if you're in loudoun county see, a flooded roadway, don't drive through it, turn around, don't drown. we'll keep you updated as we move through the rest of the evening. thank you, doug. a new fight began over the maryland dream act. a lawsuit was filed by students and the advocacy group casa de maryland. they want a law granting in-state tuition for the children of illegal immigrants to take effect now. but some officials have put it on hold. chris gordon is here. >> reporter: the dream act was signed into law by governor o'malley and was supposed to begin july 1st. but opponents collected more than 130,000 signatures. that petition drive stopped the law from taking effect, and set the stage for a referendum to let voters decide whether they want the dream act. these students celebrated after the maryland general assembly passed the bill to grant in-state tuition to the children of illegal immigrants. but their victory was short-lived as a petition drive by opponents delivered almost twice the number of valid signatures required for a referendum to put the issue before the maryland voters. now the students are back in annapolis, filing a lawsuit in the anne arundel county circuit court, seeking to have petition signatures set aside. >> 44,000 of those were these computer-generated forms in which the voters' information was not filled in by the voter, which is what the law requires, but by a computer program. >> reporter: when this case goes to court, the people behind the petition drive will argue that the signatures are valid, and were legally obtained. brad bottomwin is the director of help save maryland, a nonprofit organization that focuses on the cost of illegal immigration. >> they can say anything they want. when it goes to court, it will be thrown out, november 2012. the citizens of maryland will decide in-state tuition for illegal immigrants or not. >> reporter: but local students say putting the dream act on hold has hurt them. we were asked not to use their last names, because of the uncertain immigration status of their families. ricky dreams of becoming a doctor. dolce, a psychologist. >> reporter: can you afford college if the referendum passes? >> no way. it's triple than regular tuition. >> i believe this will have a happy end for us, and we will be able to pay, you know, in-state tuition. >> reporter: the students' court case is being expedited. that means put on the fast track. they hope to get a tuition break for the coming fall or winter semester. but opponents believe they will win in court, and that maryland voters will decide the future of the dream act in next year's election. wendy and jim, back to you. >> chris gordon. thanks, chris. a bad situation up on metro's red line. but things are improving just a bit. the friendship heights station has reopened now. earlier today, a person was hit by a train inside the station. the person was trapped under the train after the rescue, the victim was rushed to a hospital. trains are single-tracking in that area now. that's causing some delays. no word on the condition of the victim there. developer donald trump might have given up his bid for the white house, but he still might end up on pennsylvania avenue anyhow. federal officials are considering several proposals to redevelop the old post office building on pennsylvania avenue. trump's luxury hotel empire is one of the bidders. tom sherwood reports. >> reporter: with its tower soaring 270 feet into the air, a timeless treasure in downtown d.c., the old post office building dating back to 1894 lies just up the street from the united states' congress. but inside the atrium is a hodgepodge of fast-food eateries and tourist souvenir shops because previous efforts to redevelop the property have faltered over the last 20 years. >> the full-service restaurants didn't seem to do that well in the evenings. >> reporter: barry plot is general manager of a retail posted shop. the retired navy veteran has worked here 20 years. now the federal general services administration is considering new uses for the old property. including, as the "washington post" first reported, a bid from donald trump's business to open a 300-room, high-end luxury hotel. >> i heard that. >> reporter: your thoughts? >> well, i might have to look for another job. >> reporter: not everybody who loves the old building and access to it is happy it might become a luxury hotel. >> i would hate to see this building belong to not just mr. trump, but anybody in the private sector. because this building belongs to all of us, all americans. and i think there is a certain wonderful pride in that. we felt it today. >> reporter: a big appeal is a tower. now a free ride offered by the u.s. park service. with its extraordinary view of the capitol and washington monument and other parts of monumental downtown. the gsa is considering several bids from local and national developers. the downtown business improvement district says it would welcome the new use. >> anything that would bring additional activity, people milling about, a restaurant perhaps downstairs, whether it's trump or some other wonderful developer that's going to come into the downtown area, anything would be really great down here. >> reporter: tom sherwood, news4, washington. >> and a decision on all of this is expected by late in november. we have got a mess of storms out there. let's get the latest from doug as they move through our area. >> another severe thunderstorm warning out there. this one affecting montgomery county, prince george's county, western portions of an aare you positive dell, as well as southern portions of the howard county area. it's going to cross over i-95 in the next half hour or so. but this a very strong storm. right now the storm is right around the rocks bury mills area, moving southeast at 15 miles per hour. locations impacted will include olney, fairland, colesville, laurel and white oak. we'll zoom in on that storm, because we have had a number of storms out there. this storm right now along the river, the border between howard county and montgomery county, along the brookville area, moving south and east, as i mentioned, 15 miles per hour. this line also continues down to the south and east, another storm and another strong one also developing right now right around the -- this area, 295 around power mill road, south laurel and jericho park, making its way that way. and then you continue along 197, down through 301 and 50, and that's the storm we have been watching that had produced a lot of hail into portions of prince george's county. that right now around the hall area, 214 and 301. so once again, some very strong storms out and across the area. another one down towards charles county, producing very strong winds. that has a severe thunderstorm warning until 6:45. more storms down through culpeper and orange and madison county. those, as well, very strong and continuing to intensify. and then more storms back towards loudoun county and back towards west virginia. once again, we're going to continue to watch all of these storms. the biggest threat will be very heavy rain. the possibility of some flooding. but also some nickel to quarter-size hail. we'll continue to watch as we move through the next hour. guys? >> thanks, doug. coming up, health insurance companies will have to offer free birth control for women, but not everybody will have to abide by that law. one family had an unforgettable road trip, and unexpected stowaway. the cemetery foreclosed. grieving families with some serious problems. and ford is expanding its investigation into wheels that could fall apart. dan, what you got? >> a local boy becomes a starter. wilmont come re wants to become a coach. and which nfl receiver retires after 13 seasons? i'm laura, and this is my cvs. i just transferred a prescription to cvs because they have care 1on1. it's where the pharmacist stops and talks to me about safety and saving money with generic prescriptions. laura, let's talk about possible side effects. it's all about me. love that. get care 1on1 and talk savings, safety, and side effects when you transfer or fill a new, ongoing prescription. i'm laura, and this is my cvs. it's all mine. what if sweet mocha wha fell from the sky?olate? or imagine catching icy caramel flakes as they drift down -- melting just as they touch your tongue or sliding down mounds of whipped cream right into a pile of rich chocolaty goodness. [ male announcer ] send your taste buds a sweet shiver with mcdonald's mccafé frappe. a creamy blend of ice, coffee and mha. or caramel. mmm. sweet. ♪ ba da ba ba ba hello, i'm meteorologist doug kammerer, another severe thunderstorm warning. and these storms really do mean business. we've gotten some reports out of college park of quarter-size hail around that area, and also some very heavy rain. that was from the storm that moved through about a half hour ago. the new severe thunderstorm warning includes loudoun county as well as frederick county, southern portions of washington county and berkeley and jefferson county towards west virginia. that severe thunderstorm warning going until 7:00 tonight. so once again, southern washington county, southwestern frederick, loudoun, jefferson, as well as berkeley county until 7:00 tonight. this storm right now is located 11 miles north of inwood or 5 miles northwest of martinsburg and moving southeast at 20 miles per hour. locations impacted could be shepherdstown, charlestown, nearsville and brunswick. once again, continuing to watch that storm, as well as numerous others. some areas have produced -- some storms have produced 2 to 3 inches of rain and a lot of hail. so once again, we'll continue to keep you posted as these storms continue to move on through the area, and continue to develop. one thing that we have been seeing, these storms are deve p developing very, very quickly, not moving like normal storms do. they're developing very quickly, moving over the same location producing rain. as i mentioned, we'll continue to keep you posted right here from the storm center. >> thank you, doug. new guidelines will require birth control be provided by insurance companies for free. the rules issued today by the department of health and human services mandating that insurance companies provide birth control and some other services to women without requiring a co-pay. erica edwards with that story. >> reporter: starting august 1st, 2012, insurance companies will be required to cover all fda-approved contraceptives for new plans, without a co-pay. this includes the pill, iuds and the so-called morning-after pill, a prescription drug that works by blocking or delaying ovulation. nearly half of all pregnancies in the u.s. are unplanned. >> women, when they have unintended pregnancies are less likely seek prenatal care. if they seek prenatal care, unlikely to get enough. >> reporter: the ability for women to plan pregnant naegs social security crucial. >> women who have pregnancies been within a year of their most previous delivery are at increased risk of other complications of pregnancy. >> reporter: and birth control isn't the only reason women use it. >> contraceptives are used to control irregular bleeding, skin conditions such as acne, endometriosis treatment. >> reporter: the guidelines allow religious institution to say opt out. coverage will also be entitled to an annual physical, screening, breast pumps and counseling on domestic violence. erica edwards, nbc news. the united nations says more than 11.5 million people desperately need help in the horn of africa. it's because of widespread drought there. that drought has created famine conditions in parts of somalia. tens of thousands of people are making the dangerous walk into kenya, looking for some help. kate snow has our report from dadaab in kenya. >> reporter: the line starts at dawn. single men on the left, women and children to the right, families with the most need in front. raha and her four kids arrived yesterday. her baby like an infant, but he's a year old. she says they went through hell to get here, gunshots, fighting, but most of all, the constant hunger. the gela family walked for 14 days. it's been two months since their 3-year-old had a really good meal. how many people a day? >> on average, 6 to 700 people per day. >> reporter: 6 to 700 people a day. we followed through the process, fingerprints and a yellow band will get them enough food for three weeks. corn flour, oil, bedding, just the basics. the kids are measured and given vaccines. look one direction here, and you see so many children in need. look the other way, and there's a pickup game. kids happy to talk about their favorite soccer clubs. it's not all misery and despair here, but certainly enough to go around. the u.n. world food program tells us they're spending some 9 to $10 million a month to feed everyone living here. kate snow, nbc news, dadaab, kenya. >> the holy month of ramadan began today for more than 1 billion muslims around the world. during the month, muslims will fast and reflect during the daytime hours. it's believed that 1,400 years ago, the koran was revealed to mohammed. president obama and the first lady extended their best wishes to muslim communities here and abroad. in a statement, they said, quote, times like this remind us the lessons of all great faiths, including islam, that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. doug is in the weather center. i guess when you get temperatures near 100 degrees, you get storms popping up all over the place in the late afternoon. >> sometimes the storms become severe. and jim, we have a lot of them. i keep coming with more severe thunderstorm warnings. now we have another severe thunderstorm warning for loudoun county and fairfax county until 7:00 tonight. this is going to continue to make its way -- this storm making its way to the south and east about 20 miles per hour. right now it's near the broadlands area, near arrest coala, and eventually towards dulles airport, the herndon and sterling area. so we'll go ahead and put this into motion and show you where these storms are right now. severe thunderstorm warnings currently in effect. we have one which is up here towards prince george's county and also montgomery county. this storm right here, severe thunderstorm warning here until 6:45. another one down toward the south until 6:45 for charles county. this moving towards the allenes fresh area. this is a pretty big storm. we'll have the potential for strong winds as well as a lot of lightning. we'll go ahead and put the lightning on with this storm. you can see what i'm talking about here. just a ton of lightning just to the south of la plata already moved through and furthered here to show you the towns affected around the don caster area and potomac shores region, north of riverside. so if you're down towards riverside and charles county, watch out, you are going to see this storm move through your area. here's the other storm just now been warned upon. this is in loudoun county around leesburg, right around sterling and right now coming up along the dulles international airport, making its way down to the south and east, as i mentioned, at about 20 miles per hour. and then yet another storm up here towards the north. this one affecting the martinsburg area. this one affecting jefferson and berkeley county into west virginia and then southern washington county into maryland, as well as frederick county and then another severe thunderstorm warning in effect towards northern loudoun county. loudoun county really getting hit hard. the other thing that loudoun county is seeing, a flash flood warning. that flash flood warning until k4r9 tonight. so we're going to continue to watch. 9:00. right here at the airport, 85 degrees. how about that after a high today of 98 degrees? we are actually seeing a cooldown as we have seen cooler air move in because of the storms. we are looking at partly to mostly cloudy skies right now. we did hit 98 degrees today yet again. 93 degrees or higher, we have been there for 15 straight days. 93 degrees or better. that is a new record. that's the first time that has ever happened. and that really, i don't think, is going to happen again any time soon for sure. current temperatures around the region, 85 in washington, 80 in laplate skra and 73 in leesburg, all temperatures cooled down. fredericksbu fredericksburg, the warm spot at 95. but frederick