Enormous contributions to the United States. And we are grateful, not only for his service but for his familys service. The constitution is pretty clear about what is supposed to happen now. When there is a vacancy on the Supreme Court, the president of the United States is to nominate someone. The senate is to consider that nomination and either they disapprove of that nominee, or that nominee is elevated to the Supreme Court. Historically, this has not been viewed as a question. Theres no unwritten law that says that it can only be done on off years. Thats constitutional text. Im amused when i hear people who claim to be strict interpreters of the constitution suddenly reading into it a whole series of provisions that are not there. There is more than enough time for the senate to consider in a thoughtful way, the record of a nominee that i present and to make a decision. And with respect to our process, were going to do the same thing that we did with respect to justice kaigans nomination. And Justice Sotomayors nomination. Were going to find somebody who is an outstanding legal mind, somebody who cares deeply about our democracy and cares deeply about rule of law. Theres not going to be any particular position on any particular issue that determines whether or not i am going to nominate them. But i will pres is indisputably qualified for the seat. And any fairminded person, even somebody who disagreed with my politics would say would serve with honor and integrity on the court. Now part of the problem that we have here is, weve almost gotten accustomed to how obstructionists, the senate has become when it comes to nominations. I mean, ive got 14 nominations that have been pending that were unanimously approved by the judiciary committee. So republicans and democrats on the judiciary committee, all agreed that they were well qualified for the position. And yet, we cant get a vote on those individuals. So in some ways, this argument is just an extension of what weve seen in the senate generally. And not ju nominees. The basic function of government requires that the president of the United States, in his or her duties, has a team of people, cabinet secretaries, assistant secretaries, that can carry out the basic functions of government. It requires auto con the constitution requires that we carry out judges so they can carry out their functions as a separate branch of government. And the fact that weve almost grown acustommed accustomed to a situation that is almost unprecedented where every nomination is contested, everything is blocked, regardless of how qualified the person is, even when theres no ideological objection to them psi his most thorough comments yet on the passing of Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia, and the resulting vacancy now on the Supreme Court. The president saying that the constitution is absolutely clear what has to happen next. And until that happens, the court will continue to operate in that split mode there, until the vacancy is filled. And of course, that is why everybody wants to know, who is going to potentially feel phil that seat. This will fill that seat. This will play out over time. Weve heard about all the seasons in one day, here, topper. Really have. And look at this map. Look at the temperatures, ranging from the 50s, all the way to the 30s, back toward cumberland. You talk about the hard way to get the 3degree guarantee. Its 49 at waldorf. Still only 43 in frederick and fowtd in hagerstown. 40 in hagerstown. Winds will subside. Heres future cast. 10 00 tonight, everybody is still above freezing. Thats good. 38 downtown. And i think quite frankly, everybody inside the beltway will not make it be there will be clouds from time to time. A little disturbance passes to the south. A little sprinkle or flurry possible into the neck by tomorrow morning. Now we have temperatures in the burbs. Niter in gaithersburg. 30 in fairfax. And 32 inlies burg. . Leesburg. By 8 00, were still around freezing in frederick and manassas. And still clouds to the south. And by 10 00, everybody is back in the upper 30s to around 40. We will come back. We will talk about milder air over the weekend. But winter is still lurking. Well explain. All right, topper. Thank you. This teeter totter of temperatures, along with the rain, ice, snow. Contributing to more potholes. Youve seen them, youve hit them, you hate them. Making quick repairs. Of course that, caused some very serious backups. Wusa 9s out there. Heads up for tomorrow. Well show you the video in just a second. But there are two major potholes down here. Its an exit ramp from the beltway to river road. I got a look at all kinds of potholes today. And i can tell you, no one is safe. Reporter normally, they just sit there, waiting to get their tire. But mario said this tire actually exploded, it hit a pothole so hard. The tire is not in bad shape, actually. Its a mitch len, which is michelin, which is a good tire. He said hes never had anything like that happen to him. Thats right. The guy who fixes pothole wrecks. It was scary. Left to right. You cant tell, when its wet. Reporter thats why he tells me, he felt the teen bass passing by between connecticut and georgia like around 6 30, i saw four cars on the side. Reporter sorry for the shaking. But this is video of the quick repair the maryland Highway Administration made. Spokesperson said they couldnt do much more. The problem in that stretch is not exactly new. Google images from about four months ago, showed the same roadway already had significant pothole damage. Last nights weather didnt exactly help. You get to freeze. And moisture in there. And the traffic hits it. And it opens up in the hole. He said he is just grateful he only had to replace a tire. Others may not be as lucky. Just be very careful and slow down. Just Pay Attention to it. Hopefully, he learned his lesson there. I can tell you, we are seeing a lot of potholes on overpasses. They obviously freeze a lot faster. So theyre going through the restall packet as well. The good news, im told it up for resurfacing this year. The bad news, its not expected to happen until spring or late spring. Still gotta watch it on the roadways. Back to you. And it will be slow when it does happen. Its ugly out there. We got all the information you need to report potholes. We also have how to make the best damage claims. Breaking news out of Fairfax County now. Thats where the search is under way for a possible rabid raccoon. A woman says she was bitten by an animal today, on katia lane in springfield. Happened this afternoon. And Fairfax County police are warning people in the area to be on the lookout for animals that may be acting strange. Two people are expected to be okay, after a car slammed by building here. It happened on rollins avenue in rockville. Crews have since hauled the vehicle away. But you can see the damage left behind. Broken glass, falling pictures and what appears to be parts from that car. A relative of the man charged in the disappearance of the lion sisters pled no contest today, to felony perjury charges. 69yearold Leslie Joseph ingle king of alexandria, entered that plea in a Bedford County courtroom. Sheila disappeared from a Shopping Mall 40 years ago. A felony perjury charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Ingleking is scheduled to be sentenced on the 7th. Were learning more about the Funeral Services for the late justice Antonin Scalia. His chair is draped in black. He will lie in repose at the solarium friday. And the public is invited to pay their respects from 10 00 in the morning until 8 30 at night. And as you just heard from president obama, the replacement for Justice Scalia has become a major talking point. A maryland swim coach is facing child pornography charges. Police have arrested 45year old andre. Investigators say a search of his home turned child pornography. Hes also facing one count of displaying obscene matter to a minor. Barbins was the head Swimming Coach at st. Marys college of maryland. The school said it is cooperating fully in the investigation. And an assistant coach is now in charge. [ no audio, please stand by ] ive ever had in my life. She worked on capitol hill and suffered in silence about her past. Tonight, for the first time on television, she shares her life as an escort who worked for a notorious d. C. Madame. Gop candidates using local landmarks to appeal to voters in South Carolina. A quick shot of cold. And then some great, warm weather is on the way. Toppers full forecast is coming up. And right after the break, it is neighbor versus neighbor, in a battle over dog droppings. Dripping onto a balcony. Want to win 1,000 . Watch wusa 9 tomorrow morning, starting at 6 00. Were back after this. I do everything on the internet. But, its kind of slow. My friends say i should get fios because its the fastest. 60 seconds. Thats seriously better. husband were out of 2 i wonder what else could be better around here . husband i heard that. Switching to Better Internet is now easier than ever. Only fios has the Fastest Internet available, with uploads up to 5x faster than cable. Get 100 meg upload and download speeds. Plus tv and phone for just 69. 99 a month online with no annual contract. Switch to better. Switch to fios. Today marks 20 years. A marc commuter train crashes headon into amtraks Capital Limited in 1986. All eight passengers were students at the Harpers Ferry job corps center. Investigators determined the marc engineers disregarded an approach signal and overran a stop signal just before the crash. Right now, it is a disgusting problem, plaguing community. Let me tell you something. If youre eating right now, slide on over to the mute button. Because this story is very nasty. Neighbors say dog feces and urine is dripping down onto their balconies from the neighbor upstairs. Ooh. Wusa 9 Stephanie Gailhard live in southeast d. C. , to explain this ridiculous situation. Steph . Guys, this is really disgusting. I want to show you, take a look. It starts up there. The dogs feces and urine drips down onto this balcony right here, youre looking at. And the person who lives here recorded it all as it was happening. Check it out. Neighbor is washing the dog excrement again on my balcony. If you think that looks gross, it smells worse. I smell the stench of urine and feces. Unbelievable. Reporter kita vanderpool says its ruined her quality of life. [000 16 00;00] to actually enjoy fresh air. I cant have my nieces and nephews come over to play. Because the balcony is always contaminated. Norma brooks says her balcony is contaminated, too. I dont want that. Oh, my god. Reporter so i went two floors up to talk to vander pool about the droppings. Is dad here, paul . He invited me in to talk. But didnt want to be on camera. He admitted to washing dog feces and urine, off of his balcony, at least once. Vander pool says the problem has been ongoing for the last six months. She even took her concerns to city officials. I present the information also to department of health, to dcra, to other authorities, does still, they said, we have to be out here when he does it to cite him. Reporter she says he pours animal feces and urine off of his balcony, around midnight, when authorities are off the clock and has something. They have this attitude of, well get to it when we get to it. Vander pool is taking travis to court next month. You need to stop. This is not right. You would not like someone pouring animal excrement onto you and causing you extra stress. Its just not right. Reporter i reached out to property management, as well as city officials about the neighbors concerns. But so far, no one has called me back. Reporting live in southeast, stephanie gale hart, wusa 9. Lets hope they get a resolution in that case very soon. Severe weather is under way in florida. Uprooted trees, downed power lines, ripped roofs off of buildings. Satellite video captured the mayhem in miami, where the National Weather service is trying to determine whether it was a tornado that ripped wind gusts were about 65 miles an hour. A tractortrailer overturned on i95. Tide up traffic for miles. And you can see what is left of a good year blimp hangar in pompano beach. They actually dont get that many tornadoes in south florida. They get more to the northern part of the state. Could have been. Could have been an ef zero. Possible. Were looking at winds that could die down. And really a fairly nice end of the week. Calm and quiet. Talk about a tough day. Temps range in the 50s to the 30s today. You can also track us by downloading our free app. It was a tough one today. No doubt about that. Live look outside. 49 now. Thats good. Dew points in the low 30s, but above freezing. Winds are still gusting to 23 miles an hour. But they will subside. Weve got winds gusting to 30 in martinsburg. They these are actual observations. Wind gusts to 30 in manassas. So some refreezing is possible in the suburbs tonight. Not a widespread problem. Just take it easy. Especially walking on the driveway. Bus stop temperatures, 28 to 40. But dry tomorrow. What a mess it was this morning at the bus stop. Cold to chilly through the week. Temps in the 40s. And milder and very nice over the weekend. I think the 50s are going to return. I know i had 60 yesterday. Still in the 50s on saturday and sunday, with sunshine. 10 00 tonight. Upper 30s downtown. Were knocking on the door of 32 in frederick and martinsburg. 33 there. 34 also in silver spring. 35 in fairfax. Now be a few clouds rolled through, from time to time. Especially down to the south. But by 6 00 a. M. In the morning. Now we are 30 in gaithersburg and 31 in frederick. 28 in manassas, and 30 in fairfax, and 31 this dale city as well. So there will be some areas below freezing, briefly. Much above freezing. Maybe youre hanging around hagerstown. But for the most part, mid30s am by lunchtime, kind of a chilly day. A few clouds from time to time. By 6 00 p. M. , were generally back in the 30s, north and west of town. And still 41 downtown. 41 in fredericksburg. And 41 also in laplate a. And 40 at andrews. By tonight, temperatures again, sneaking below freezing. Not everywhere. But 31 in frederick, 31 also in uluny. Aluny. Wind gust tracker. By the time we get into the afternoon, winds will not be a factor at all. So for tonight, partly cloudy to mostly cloudy. Cold. Just a few spots north and west. So inside the beltway, i think youll stay above freezing tonight. Day planner. Notice the downtown temps above freezing to start. 34. 42 by 11 00. 44 by 1 00. D clouds and sun. So well say partly sunny. Next three days, cold on thursday. 41. And then were looking at 46, with chilly skies on friday. So next seven days, kept the 50s in. Still a pretty good weekend. 56 on saturdayment 58 on sunday. Saturday. Mid50s monday and heres what i mean. Rain is lurking. Rain or snow possible tuesday and wednesday. All right, top. Thank you. Flying to cuba is about to get a little easier. And how these smart shoes can help your fitness routine. I do everything on the internet. But its kind of slow. My friends say i should get fios because its the fastest. I just downloaded 600 photos in 60 seconds. Thats seriously better. Were out of 2 i wonder what else could be better around here . I heard that. Switching to Better Internet is now easier than ever. Only fios has the Fastest Internet available, with uploads up to 5x faster than cable. Get 100 meg upload and download speeds plus tv and phone for just 69. 99 a month online with no annual contract. Switch to better. Switch to fios. Turning to campaign 2016 now. Where republican president ial candidates use landmarks to appeal to South Carolina voters. Donald trump, making a Campaign Stop at a restaurant that has been a bather Gathering Place for if decades. Senator cruz making his proposal to expand the military, aboard a world war ii aircraft carrier. The nation must be ready for the possibility of multiple, near simultaneous conflicts. Reporter former president bill clinton, stumping for his wife. Lets talk consumer news now. The u. S. And cuba, sign off on a pact to restore commercial Airlines Service between the two countries for the First Time Since the cuban revolution. Now, this deal allows more than 100 daily flights to the caribbean island. U. S. Airlines are required to get permission from regulators to fly specific routes. And u. S. Travelers have to certify that their trip is for one of 12 purposes, other than tourism. Oil prices ticked up as saudi arabia, russia, and two other Oil Producers agreed to freeze production. A glut of crude, combined with less global demand, has sent oil prices much lower. And that sparked a massive sell off in stock markets. The deal does not include iran the good news here is prices at the pump are at decade lows, at least for now. Stir a startup out of samsungs creative i. O. Smart footwear. It detects your balance and posture. That information is sent to apps that offers ways to imbrew your workout. Even golf spring. Priced at 150 and 200. New developments for the Maryland College president who dismissed two president s after his controversial comments on underperforming students. A musical protest in fairfax, as parents, students and teachers, demand full funding for the schools budget. And she once worked as an escort for the d. C. Madame. Right after the break, the secrets in shame for a former call girl, who worked her way to capitol hill. Only on wusa 9 tonight, a former Capitol Hills staffer is sharing the secret she kept from her friends and colleagues for years. Natasha gwynns was a paid escort, working for the woman who later became famous as the d. C. Madam. Wusa 9s Andrea Mccarren<