then we see some sunshine breaking out around noontime. by then temperatures should be into the upper 60s to near 70. ashburn, loudoun county, hometown forecast there by noontime should be near 70 and partly sunny. we'll take a look at the rest of your thursday. that's coming in about ten minutes. now a look at traffic with danella. good morning. good morning, tom. first alert traffic center checking local roads in the district, not seeing anything to warn you about. traveling over bridges in southeast, they all check out anyways and clear, easy commute. now let's shoot over to 395 folks traveling northbound 395 giving you a heads-up about a disabled vehicle. luckily it's just off to your right shoulder lane. police are on scene as well. your travel lanes north and south, they're open. southbound at edsall had an earlier work zone. that is clear. we'll head up to i-270. making their way to rockville. this is a look at hurley boulevard. very light volume here. i'm back in ten minutes. happening today, president obama makes a big speech at a local college. the president heads to prince george's community college to talk about the affordable care act that will happen in largo today. the new and controversial health care reform law goes into effect next week and he's expected to talk about what the new law means for the middle class. the event gets under way later this morning it at the school's fieldhouse. when the new health care system lawn ps next week, not everything may go according to plan. "the washington post" reports d.c. health link, the online marketplace for d.c. residents, will not be fully up and running by tuesday. while you will be able to go online and use the site, it won't be able to tell you what kind of coverage you are eligible for. colorado and oregon also say their online exchanges won't be ready in time for tuesday's launch. and another thing that may not be ready by tuesday is the nation's budget. this morning many lawmakers are trying to avoid that and avert a shutdown. last week the republican-controlled house passed a budget that virtually -- lawmakers have another deadline october 17. that's when the country could default on its loans. in just a few hours we'll feigned out more about a deadly police shooting in northern virginia. the alexandria police department had will release the results of its incertainly investigation of a shooting. seven officers fired more than 30 rounds at sellers in february even though sellers did not fire any shots. prosecutors say the officers acted in self-defense. it is now 4:34. let's check in with melissa mollet at the live desk. a comedian was arrested in d.c. for punching a reporter in the face. dan was approached by a daily beast reporter josh rogan -- or he approached him about some tweets, some wisecracks about his performance. witnesses say he then hit rogan several times. rogan then tweeted, dan nainan pun pd me in the face. not a joke. calling the police on dan nainan and police arrested dan nainan. physically i'm fine, just not used to getting attacked for tweets. at the live desk, melissa mollet, news 4. 4:35 is your time now. this morning ken cuccinelli and terry mcauliffe both say they won their debate in mclean, virginia. candidates for governor clashed on several issues. julie carey and i both on the panel for this debate. i asked mr. mcauliffe in particular if he would address virginia's ban on same-sex marriage. >> i will support legislation that allows equal rights for individuals for gay virginians. i've said that my opponent has continually attacked gay virginians. >> look, i understand and respect the fact that this is a sensitive issue to a lot of virginians. but i'm one of those who do believe that the institution of marriage should remain between one man and one woman. >> now the candidates will square off again next month in their third and final debate that will happen at virginia tech. the libertarian candidate was not a part of last night's debate, but our northern virginia bureau reporter david culver did speak to him after the debate. he was in the hall during the debate. he says they did little more than recite their talking points. he released a statement in which he said neither candidate offered any ideas or solutions to the challenges virginia faces. we have much more on last night's debate on nbcwashington.com. you can read exactly what the candidates said there. we've posted a complete transcript for you [ mom ] in my family, we're big cereal lovers. so we just look for this g. 'cause general mills makes over 40 yummy flavors that are 130 calories or less per serving. and they're packed with vitamins and minerals. from lucky charms to cheerios. over 40 cereals. 130 calories or less. [ laughs ] ♪ [ female announcer ] hey ladies. you love it. you've got to have it. cinnamon toast crunch, 'cause that cinnamon and sugar is so irresistible. everybody craves those crazy squares.® right now a diplomat is in the hospital. an accident at the intersection of 36th and garfield streets. the driver of the car stayed on the scene. so far no charges have been filed. secret service is investigating. we have a traffic alert if you're driving through loudoun county, virginia, this morning. stay away from waxpool road after this morning's rush. it will be closed in both directions twaen loudoun county and waxpool. it should be open again by about 10:00. our cameras will be there as an eyesore of d.c. education begins to come down. demolition begins at the old dunbar high school off criticized as prison like. it was remrplaced by a gleaming new dunbar high school next door. take a look. it features high-htech classroos and a new gymnasium. it pays tribute to the many black leaders who received their education there. beautiful new building. >> i've driven by and to see the two side-by-side, wow. >> stark contrast for sure. 4:41. we want to get you up to speed on the forecast. a live look over the district. let's see what is in store for us. tom? good morning. a chowloud cover like a blanket holding in some of the warmth from yesterday. not quite as chilly as it has been for the last several mornings. radar showing the cloud cover producing a few scattered sprinkles well south, parts of the northern neck and then west of fredericksburg. if you live in this area, you mate want to grab an umbrella. it will remain south of the metro area through the morning. we will stay cloudy through the morning and noontime we should be having a little sunshine breaking out around 70 degrees by then and partly cloudy during the afternoon. highs reaching mid-70s. sun rise 7:00. sun sets at 6:58. a look at your friday, your weekend, and into next week. the seven-day outlook in ten minutes. how is traffic, danella? still an easy commute for people ready to hit the roadway. the over to b.w. parkway for folks traveling in both directions your travel lanes are open. over to i-95 southbound in maryland at 32 had a work zone set up in both directions. you can see just the cones are up in the shoulder lanes and that's where the work zone was. looks like they're not working now. i-95 at 216 travel lanes are open. aaron and eun? danella, thank you. some encouging developments for area teenagers taking the . s.a.t. which students are seeing the most improvement on those tests. also ahead, the nightmare commute for tens of thousands of people trying to get into new york city this morning. 4:42 is your t i'm melissa mollet at the live desk. a capsule carrying three astronauts, there they are waving. they traveled six hours in the capsule from a russian launch pad in kazakhstan. six astronauts total are there. the six-month mission will include a space walk with the olympic torch, and they were able to video link chat with their families. at the live desk, melissa mollet, news 4. new this morning, the death toll from that massive earthquake in pakistan it continues to rise. tuesday's 7.7 magnitude quake is to blame for nearly 350 deaths. thousands of others are hurt. the quake leveled houses and buildings and has made rescue efforts difficult. military troops are helping crews search for survivors. 4:45 right now. this morning the group hyped that deadly attack in a nairobi mall says the people killed were a, quote, legitimate target. the group al shabaab defended its attack in an ehale to the associated press. that extremist group con 0 firmd the accounts the gunmen freed people who were muslim but took captive or killed others. the death toll in the attack stands at 67 now although some bodies have not been recovered as of yet. the u.s. state department renewed a worldwide travel alert for americans after the mad shooting at that mall in in kenya. there's no specific threat but there is mounting intelligence that terrorist groups may be planning attacks against western targets. americans are warned to remain vigilant in public places both here be a and abroad. >> we are expected to hear what a group of senators want to do to keep the nsa from spying on you. the senators introduced legislation yesterday to limit the agency's eavesdropping programs. they'll discuss them at a set of intelligence committee hearings. the legislation would cruiserweight what's being called a constitutional advocate to represent the public in the court that oversees the surveillance program. today family and friends will say good-bye to a woodbridge man murder ed -- who was murdered, 18-year-old kenny diaz was stabbed to death. seven teens are facing charges in connection with that death. they're all charged with abduction. one suspect, 19-year-old diandra samuals is charged with murder. they say she stabbed him after he confronted her about a friend being robbed. today's viewing will be held from 2:00 until 4:00 and 5:00 until 9:00. diaz will be laid to rest tomorrow. the prince george's county man who killed a mother and daughter in their largo home will never get out of jail. jason scott accepted a plea deal yesterday. he will serve two life terms for the 2009 murders of delores and ebony dewitt. scott was already in jail for a series of home invasions. prosecutors say they tracked the victims through the computer at ups where he worked. they believe he would have killed again if he was not caught. prince george's county school administrators are learning a tough lesson. miss a deadline and pay a price. the county had to return $1.4 million to the state because it didn't approve school construction contracts on time. the money was supposed to pay for improvements at potomac and crossland high schools. they had two years to get everything lined up but missed the may 31st deadline. the county still plans on asking the state to help pay for upgrades. virginia's board of education is boasting about virginia high schoolers' performance on s.a.t.s. they received their highest scores ever on the new version of the exam. seniors who graduated last spring scored a 1528 out of 2400. that is 30 points above the national average. s.a.t. scores in the district were also up. students received a 1400 on average. that is below the national average but up 18 points from last year. maryland students' s.a.t. scores fell to 1483. maryland promising to shift the route of the proposed purple line to appease one of the project's biggest opponents. "the washington post" reports that the state signed an agreement with the columbia country club in chevy chase. the light rail line would be moved 12 feet to the north to better protect clubhouse views. it would also spare four holes that would have been impacted. the country club has long opposed the project. the state plans to use eminent domain to condemn 116 other homes and businesses along that 16-mile route between bethesda and montgomery county and new carrollton and prince george's county. right now a commuting nightmare. tens of thousands of people in new york city trying to figure out a different way to work a. power failure causing a big problem for a very busy rail line, that line runs from manhattan to stamford, connecticut. some passengers took substitute trains although they only hold 10% of the normal passenger load. connecticut's governor says the problem could last as long as three weeks. in just a tu hours we'll learn more about how bad the upcoming flu season could be. several federal agencies will hold a joint news conference at 10:00 this morning. representatives from the department of health and human services, the cdc and the u.s. surgeon general will be on hand for this event. the group will give an outlook for are what we can expect this year. get your flu shot soon. >> i've never had one. >> you haven't? >> never had one. never had the flu. got to find some wood to knock on. >> quickly. might try your head. >> oh, she's quick. let's go to tom kierein. i don't have a good comeback so we're going to the weather. i just heard the commercial for the ray charles forever stamp. i think we should have an aaron gilchrist forever stamp. he's been on forever, yesterday morning, last night -- >> a long day. >> way to go, aaron. great job last night. this morning we're starting off early and we're starting off with a lot of cloud cover around the region and the radar is showing a few sprinkles. you can see that rotating around. a weak disturbance that is passing well south of the metro area. and the nearest any sprinkles are just to the west of fredericksburg. otherwise should not have any trouble this morning. but if you live near charlottesville and know anyone, grab an umbrella. it will be a little wet. elsewhere a dry start. temperatures around the immediate area are generally in the low to mid-50s. nearby suburbs near the bay near 60 degrees. it's a rather chilly morning in the shenandoah valley. most locations there are in the upper 40s to near 50. upper 50s near 60, though, near the bay. the northern eastern shore, a few locations there might get a few sprinkles the next few hours. and hour by hour our temperatures rapidly warming. much of the region going partly cloudy by mid to late afternoon and then tonight we'll be clearing out. these temperatures dropping back down to the mid-50s by dawn. tomorrow should be a beautiful day. sunshine, afternoon highs, mid-70s. great weather for outdoor activities on the weekend. i know danella will be hang gliding. she may be barefoot waterskiing on sunday, into the upper 70s again. great weather for that. then as we get into next week, the seven-day outlook showing partly cloudy skies monday, tuesday, and wednesday. and morning lows and near 60, afternoon highs. a little touch of summer in the air. great for barefoot waterskiing as we get into next week. i'm back in ten minutes with a hometown forecast. danella is ready to go. i'm glad you are not planning my weekend, tom. barefoot waterskiing and hang gliding all sound dangerous. that guy is crazy. down to charles county, i'm checking your commute this morning. your local roads check out so early drivers getting up and taking local roadways traveling along 301. also 228. 210 as well. nice and clear for you as you continue the commute. and even as you continue to the beltway, no issues to report there. so far pretty clear. i'm back in ten minutes with another look at your travel. aaron and eun, over to you. parking in some d.c. neighborhoods is a few days away from changing. last month we told you how vdot is planning to simplify the process in neighborhoods where nonr nonresidents can only park on the streets for a few hours. instead of getting a visitor's pass from the police station, every household would get its own pass instead. vdot says current passes will still be honored through the end of the year. the plan goes into effect on tuesday. we are getting our first look at the design for a proposed casino at national har are bore. it's an $800 million design developed by mgm. spired by d.c.'s monuments. the entire complex more than 1 million square feet features an 18 story 400 room hotel. mgm is competing with penn national and greenwood racing are for the right to build. the state hopes to pick a winning design by the end of the year. national harbor could be home to a new had metro station. the attorney general made that pledge in a campaign speech in prince george's county according to "the washington post." gansler spoke to about 200 people in hyattsville. he says he wants to establish a law school at bowie state university. he announced his bid for governor. he's competing with anthony brown and delegate messier for the democratic nomination. another warning for parents about the amount of caffeine their children are consuming. coming up at 5:00, why too much caffeine could be stunt you ing your child's mental development. but first, a new business deal that's making it easier to access the thankful envelonfl o. >> the nine-month journey coming to an end here in the district. the cause t if you missed the redskins game, you'll soon be able to watch the highlights on twitter, they will be able to show highlights from games. still not clear when you'll be able to start using that service. >> highlights may be a stretch. i'm just saying. electric cars are working their way into the rebt rental car police. bloomberg says hertz says it is adding tesla cars. hertz has been adding ferrari and lamborghinis. renting the rechargeable cars would cost about $500 a day. >> a day? who can afford that? >> i'll take my corolla. >> thank you. this morning the retired marine who spent the last nine months running across america to raise funds for returning v veterans will finish his journey here in washington. sergeant o'toole's facebook page, he started in november in oceanside,c california. he's run almost 4,000 miles through 11 states and raised over $200,000 for three veteran organizations. this morning he will run from arlington national cemetery to the east steps of the u.s. capitol. an amazing journey and what an incredible show of strength and support for our troops. >> an awesome effort:hopefully we can catch up with him. stay with us. "news 4 today" continues right now at 5:00 a.m. i'm the only candidate in this race who won't need on the job training. >> my opponent has spent most of his career in a social agenda. >> some heated exchanges between the two men who want to be virginia's next governor. >> also ahead, president obama is spending time at a local college today as he tries to convince americans to support his health care law. good morning to you. i'm eun yang. >> and i'm aaron gilchrist. it is thursday, september 26. i want to show you a live picture of the nation's capital this morning. 61 degrees outside our studios in upper northwest d.c. >> tom kierein joins us live with a look at your forecast. good morning. a cloud cover over the nation's capital on this thursday morning. the 26th day of september starting off with the clouds producing a few sprinkles just north of charlottesville and that will had be slowly tracking east so around fredericksburg and southern maryland, the lower neck, and the eastern shore through the morning you might have a passing light shower or sprinkle so grab an umbrella if you live that way and further north, we'll stay dry and right now we're in the low to mid-50s with that cloud cover holding in some of the warmth from yesterday. here is how we're looking through the morning, cloudy skies through 10:00. sun rises at 7:00. then by noon for your lunch hour, sunshine should be breaking out. temperatures near 70 degrees. haymarket, prince william county there. the low 70s and partly sunny. a look at how warm it's going to get this afternoon. i'll show that you in ten minutes. now a look at our traffic with danella. first alert traffic center, we'll head down to haymarket and let you know how you