reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you, alison. >>> in their first debate aired live right here on ktvu, u.s. senate dits, barbara boxer and carly fiorina, did not mince words. >> i think the senator must run on her record and the truth is her record is long on talk and very short on achievement. >> when she was ceo of hewlett- packard before she was terminated, actually, she shipped 30,000 jobs overseas. >> the candidates expressed sharply different opinions on many issues. for example, boxer believes people on the no-fly list should not be able to obtain guns. but fiorina says the list is mismanaged and should not be used to take away gun rights. >> here's the truth -- we should not be taking constitutional rights away from citizens. and at the same time, giving constitutional rights to terrorists. and that's exactly what barbara boxer is in favor of doing. >> pi ms who are trained have a -- pilots who are trained have a right to carry the gun in the cockpit because there's so much concern by the pilots that they be able to take action.

of a book written an american who fought in afghanistan. >> reporter: i am alison burns in washington, d.c. i will thousand you why the obama administration wants new power to intercept e-mail communications coming up as the morning news continues. >> ...berber carpet. it was a whole bowl of stew. nooo. why? i could have saved this one. i could have saved this one. ♪ call 1-800-steemer >>> the 0 bam administration wants to make it easier for the government to eavesdrop on internet and e-mail communications alison burns joins us from our washington, d.c. news reasonable with the latest on the gift's efforts to keep up with technology, alison. >> reporter: well, good morning to you, pam. after the attempted -- the failed attempted bombing in times square this year the deposit learned the suspect had been communicating through a service they would have had trouble intercepting. it is just one example of how the government spies are struggling to keep up with the latest communications technology. and why the new york times reports the obama administration will ask congress to okay new e

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau with more on this. good morning, alison. >> reporter: well, good morning to you. that's right. the bottom line is that the country and democrats are split about whether there should be tax increases for wealthy americans. an a.p. poll shows that about 54% of americans agree with president obama on the issue. he wants to let the bush-era tax cuts expire this year for households making over $250,000, while keeping the tax cuts for everyone else. but the same poll shows the rest of the country agrees with republicans who say everyone should keep this tax cuts. >> higher taxes won't get anybody hired. raising taxes on job creators won't create jobs and house republicans will stand united. >> we should be able to extend right now middle-class tax relief of the first -- on the first $250,000 of income. which, by the way, 98% of americans make less than $250,000 a year. >> reporter: now, the democrats are breaking ranks. they've sent a letter to nancy pelosi saying they don't want any tax increases. so right n

alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you, alison. >>> 8:04. we're following new developments in last with week's deadly explosion and fire in san bruno. federal investigators are taking a close look now at a weld on a curved section of the pipe that blew up last thursday thursday night. last, the coroner will update the fatality numbers. the current death toll is at four. three people are list as missing. pg&e will spend up to $100 million to help the fire victims. where will the money come from. jade hernandez is in san bruno with the details of what pg&e is proposing. >> reporter: good morning. i want to show you the damage. it gets increasingly worse. you go from house to house and down to the burnt cars still on the street this morning. pg&e says the san juan know fire -- san bruno fire costs are covered. today puc will weigh whether homeowners should pay more after insurance. utilities commission can veto the request. that's why a pg&e spokesperson told me by phone a few hours ago this proposal, which was introduced last year, would only

reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you, alison. 8:18. this morning, the broken bp oil well in the gulf of mexico is a step closer to being permanently sealed. a deep relief well is now connected to the blownout well. the next step is to pump mud and cement down a relief -- the relief well to seal the well at its base. the final seal is expected to be completed by sunday. >>> captains in ships in bay area waters are being warned to be on the lookout for whales. that's after a dead whale arrived in the portland of oakland yesterday. scientists say it was a 20 to 30-foot minky whale. they think the whale was arrive when it was searching for fish. >> when they are searching for krill, they are oblivious of traffic and they are oblivious of each other. >> later today, the whale will be towed back. >>> we just received word that shareholders for continental airlines have just given their approval to combine with united airlines to create the world's largest airline. again, this is breaking news now, just in. shareholders for continental airlin

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. newsroom with the political fallout from this latest incident. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning. yesterday's oil rig fire was obviously much different than the bp disaster five months ago. it's raising a lot of questions about how oil rigs operate in the gulf. already some environmental groups and some members of congress say this latest scene it proof that offshore drilling is just too dangerous. they are urging president obama to expand a temporary ban on deepwater drilling to more shallow water. the oil industry and officials in louisiana are rejecting those calls. >> what we continue to believe is that energy exploration can and should be done safely. we've always said that instead of a one-size-fits-all moratorium, we want the federal government to listen to the contract experts. >> reporter: and a bizarre threat from bp "the new york times" reports that bp is warning congress that its lawmakers passed legislation that bars the company from getting new offshore per

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. newsroom with how this could affect the obama administration. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning. the departure of his chief of staff comes at a critical moment for president obama. democrats could be on the verge of losing congress. his poll numbers are dropping but the word is that rahm emanuel has long wanted to run for mayor of chicago and with that job open now, he's reportedly preparing to announce his departure from the white house as early as this friday. emanuel had had be tough to replace. he's considered the president's guard dog, widely thought to be one of the most powerful in recent history. as for who will replace him? there are several reports this morning that another top advisers will at least temporarily fill the position. reporting live from washington, d.c., allison bushes, alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you. >>> it's being called the legal victory that could help close the achievement gap among california students. a lawsuit was filed cl

alison burns is live with the church's responses. good morning, alison. >> reporter: well, good morning to you, tori. in just the last couple of hours, the head of the small gainesville, florida church went on tv and said he's concerned about putting the lives of u.s. soldiers at risk but will burn the koran on 9/11. now, the church with just 50 members has sparked an interstable uproar. it -- independent national uproar. general david petraeus and others say the act would hurt the u.s. mission and put other troops in danger. past i jones says it woulding tragic if crews lost their lives but he believes it's important to stand up to them. >> i believe we're dealing with an element that you cannot talk to, an element that needs to be stopped. >> reporter: if the church goes with the plans to burn the korans this weekend, it will be violating local laws. the church has twice applied for permits to build a bonfire but has been denied. reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> 8:17. we're finding out th

we have alison burns live in the washington d.c. newsroom with that story. >> reporter: good morning. i just got a partial list from a white house official of the top 100 stimulus projects that are changing the country and number five is the tunnel expansion. the feds have given the state $200 million for the project. it expected to alleviate traffic. california has been awarded $20 billion in recovery money. the white house is touting stimulus successes today as republicans step up the election season criticism of the spending. >> let's cut spending rather than continuing. >> reporter: the white house says the stimulus has created 750,000 jobs so far. the white house is going to be releasing the full list of the top stimulus projects in 45 minutes. i'll have it for you in the next update. reporting live from washington d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> we are following developing news from london where men were threatening the pope. the pope is on a four day visit to the u.k. today, he is in london. the pope was informed

alison burns is live with the political fallout from the latest incident. >> reporter: good morning. you know, some environmental groups and members of congress are saying that the fire on the mariner platform is more proof that off shore drilling is too dangerous. they are urging president barack obama to expand the temporary ban on deep water drilling to more shallow we are. the oil industry and the officials in louisiana are rejecting those calls while mariner energy says there was no danger of a spill. >> there were no drilling activities. this is not a blowout. a fire that is contained on the fa -- facility. >> reporter: the new york times reports that bp is warning congress if lawmakers pass legislation that bars the company from getting new off shore permits, it may not have the money to pay for damages from the oil spill. george miller wants to bar any company if more than 10 fatal -- fatalities happened at the facilities. alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> governor arnold schwarzenegger has a new bill on his desk by putting new restrictions by shipping companies. it requ

., alison burns, ktvu, ktvu -- alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> governor arnold schwarzenegger has a new bill on his desk over shipping companies. the bill requires ships to be surrounded by floating booms when they transfer water. the measure says the state can raise the fees on oil shipped into california. still no word on whether the governor will sign it. >>> yesterday, the governor thanked steve jobs. the ceo of apple as he signed the organ donation bill. this bill requires the dmv to ask people if they want to be organ donors. steve jobs actually pushed for the change after getting a liver transplant last year. jobs says he was able to go to tennessee for his transplant because the waiting list here in california was so long. but, he understands a lot of people don't have the money to do that. this new bill also creates the first living donor registry for kidney transplants in the country. >>> robert gates is getting a firsthand look at military operations in afghanistan. gates is in afghanistan to meet with the country's leaders and check on the progress of the troops ag

we have alison burns live in the washington d.c. newsroom with that story. >> reporter: good morning. there is nothing that makes the folks at the white house more frustrated than when critics say the stimulus is a waste. they are releasing the list that they say are changing america. they are touting $175 million spent at the staten island ferry terminal that are used to replace dangerous bridges. $36 million for the clean up of a toxic industrial park in new jersey. the white house is releasing the list of stimulus successes as republicans step up the criticism of the spending. >> i don't like the president and the economic team giveth. all of the spending is one of the reasons why. >> reporter: the white house will release the full list of stimulus successes later today. we will look for local projects. so far, the feds awarded california $23 billion in stimulus money. that has created 76,000 jobs. reporting live from washington d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> a san francisco man has admitted to making threatening ph

ktvu's alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau. she has all the details. good morning. >> good morning, dave. president obama is holding an event today to mark the six month anniversary of the new health reform law. but he's getting upstaged by these eye opening revelations in the new book. it's called obama's war. it's about the war in afghanistan and the war within the obama administration about how to manage it. woodward reveals that president obama urgently looked for a way out of the war last year. repeatedly pressing his national security team for an exit plan and that he ordered the surge in troops as a compromise. he is quoted as telling top white house aids, this needs to be a plan about how we are going to hand it off and get out of afghanistan. and when he rejected the military's request for 40,000 more troops, he rejected the idea of long-term nation building, saying i'm not doing ten years. now even though this book reveals a lot of discord in the obama administration. the white house this morning is trying to put a positive spin on it, saying

. >>> ktvu's alison burns joins us now from our washington, d.c. newsroom with more on the story. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning, pam. and this is an historic moment in the u.s. war in iraq. let's get right away now to a live look at the official change of command ceremony for u.s. forces in iraq. this is in baghdad. right now marks the end of combat operations for u.s. troops and the beginning of the civilian lead operation, new dawn. vice-president joe biden and defense secretary bob gates are in iraq for the ceremony. earlier gates expressed optimism about iraq's ability to form a functioning democratic governnt. >> -- optimistic that these guys will get a coalition government and continue to make progress. this is going to be a work in progress for a long time. this is a new thing in the several thousand year history of iraq. >> reporter: now we are back to a life look and the handover ceremony. gates said earlier this morning that this changeover means the u.s. is no longer at war in iraq, even though 50,000 u.s. troops will remain. they are there to advise a

alison burns joins us from our washington, d.c. newsroom with the latest on the government's efforts to keep up with technology. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, pam. that's right. the bottom line here is that communications technology is getting so sophisticated government spies are struggling to keep up. as more people communicate on line instead of by phone the feds say their ability to wiretap criminal and terrorism suspects is going dark. so the new york times reports today that the obama administration is going to ask congress to okay legislation that will make it easier for the government to eavesdrop on internet and e-mail communications like social networking sites and blackberries. it wants all on line services technically equipped to comply with a wiretap order. now internet privacy groups say the legislation would have huge implication but the feds are pointing to a he cent high profile terror attempt they say could have been stopped much sooner. i will have more on that during my next update in a

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau with all the details. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, dave. >>> president obama was not there for the speech but he is calling it outrageous. members of the delegations walked out of his address yesterday as he says the u.s. orchestrated the september 11th attacks to assure israel's survival. >> some segments within the u.s. government orchestrate the attack to reverse the declining american economy and its grips on the middle east, in order to save the zionist regime. >> reporter: the protests against the iranian leader continued outside the u.n. where demonstrators carry idea pictures of an iranian resistance leader and called him a terrorist. now the british deputy prime minister is expected to use his address at the u.n. today to condemn his claims, meanwhile president obama is still in new york, attending a special u.n. meeting on sudan. reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> 5:14. the fbi is helping new york city police investigate the appa

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. newsroom with what this could mean for knee november elections. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, dave. some republicans are so frustrated by last night's tea party victories they might not even support last night's big winners. tea party favorite christine o'donnell staged a sting upset over nine term republican congressman mike castle in the delaware republican primary, now there are questions about whether the national gop fund- raising machine will back her. she says it just doesn't matter. >> i would love their support but they are the same so-called experts who said i could not win the primary. >> the tea party candidate also upset a more established republican in new york, democrats say it is good news in their fight to control congress because they believe independents will break their way in november rather than support extreme tea party candidates, live from washington, d.c. alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> this is day 77 of california without a bu

the koran on saturday, the anniversary of the september 11th attacks, alison burns is live with how the church is responding. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, dave. and in just the last hour the head of a small gainesville, florida church went on live tv and said while he is concerned bought putting u.s. soldier's lives at risk his church will likely still go ahead with plans to burn the koran on september 11th. the church with just 50 members has sparked an international uproar, it wants to burn the core rashes to draw attention to what it calls radical islam but in afghanistan the top u.s. commander general david petraeus and others say the act would hurt the u.s. mission and put u.s. troops in danger. pastor terry jones said it would be tragic if troops lost their lives but he wants to stand up to islam. >> overseas we see they have no problem burning our flag, they have no problem calming for the death of america or for the death of our president so we feel it is time to stand up. >> reporter: now, if the church goes ahead with its plans to push the koran this wee

live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> 5:12. president obama's special mid- east envoy flies to the middle east trying to keep the peace talks from falling apart after israel rejected pleas to renew a moratorium on building in the west bank. construction started up again, as soon as the moratorium expired earlier this week. the palestinians threaten to walk out of the peace talks if the construction is not stopped. >> this morning president obama will be in des moines, i way for another backyard discussion with voters. he is trying to rally the democrats to vote in the upcoming elections. yesterday he spoke at a rally in wisconsin. >> we cannot sit this one out. we cannot let this country fall backwards because the rest of us didn't care enough to fight. >> the president will wrap up a 94 state tour this afternoon with a meeting with voters in richmond, virginia. >>> a new field poll shows in california voters give president obama higher marks than voters nationwide. the poll shows 53% of likely california voters think the presi

alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> thank you, alison. >>> 7:15. well, the group that's overseeing the parliamentary elections in afghanistan over the weekend says it has serious concerns about the voting's legitimacy. complaints are coming in about voter fraud and ballot stuffing. more than 2,000 candidates campaigned for 250 seats. the first vote counts are due to be made public in a couple of days, with full preliminary results expected in el early october. >>> it's been confirmed france is on heightened alert following a new but unnamed threat. france's interior minister is not revealing what the threat is but the main mosque has been given armed guards. it's reported that authorities are searching for a woman who could be plotting an attack on paris. >>> police say a woman, armed with weapons, was seen running from a burning building toward the hospital. once inside, police say she killed a male nurse and shot an officer before being shot and killed by police. two bodies were found inside the burnt apartment building. they interest the woman's

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. newsroom with what this could mean for the november elections. >> reporter: the tea party showed its movement and showed upset. the biggest upset was in delaware for the fight for the seat christine o'donnell is fighting for. there was also a big win in new york. >> i want everybody in the republican party who opposed me to know this -- you are welcome to join the people's crusade. >> reporter: the counting is still on in the new hampshire primary. the tea party candidate lost in maryland. in all eight republican candidates outside of the so- called republican establishment have won in primaries in what is being called a very turbulent season. democrats say these tea party wins are good news for them in november. reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> okay. thank you. >>> 7:16. well, former president, bill clinton, has thrown his support behind fellow democrat, jerry brown, for governor. just two days ago, brown apologized for making a joke about t

alison burns joins us now from our washington, d.c. news reasonable with more on that story. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, pam. and i have president obama's schedule here for the day. he has five meetings with world leaders but it is the comments from iran's president still dominating the headlines. you can see here the empty seats during his address yesterday. the delegation from the united states and 27 other countries walked out of his speech as he claimed the american government staged the september 11th attacks and he called for an investigation. >> it is proposed that the united nations set up an independent fact-finding group for the events of september 11th. >>> president obama was not there for the address but called the comments outrageous and offensive. the british deputy prim minister is expected to use his speech today to condemn the claims. all of this is a distraction from the real concerns about iran's nuclear program. live from washington, d.c. alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> the fbi is helping new york city police investigate

alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> time now 5:13. >>> several arrests overnight in los angeles during a violent protest. demonstrators confronted police late last night. some throwing bottles and setting trash cans on fire. the protest stemmed from sunday's shooting death of a caught maland man who police say was armed with a knife. police fired at him when he would not drop the knife. protesters say police should have used a none lee that will weapon to restrain that suspect. >>> more complaints this morning about pg&e's smart meeters, according to the san jose mercury news dozens of their readers have complained that the smart meeters are interfering with various households appliances. for example, some of the complaints say chordless phones, baby monitors and patio speakers started emitting static after smart meters were installed. the paper says pg&e's response has been that the problem is with those household devices not with the smart smeerters. >> today san francisco supervise crores will vote on whether to add a new stax to alcoholic drinks served in the city. the alcohol cost

alison burns joins us with what this could mean to the general election in november. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. that's right. the tea party movement still relatively new staged big upsets last night, defeating more established republican candidates in some very surprising primaries. the biggest upset was out of delaware in the fight for joe biden's senate seat, conservative tea party favorite christine o'donnell pulled off a stunning upset over mike castle. the grass roots tea party caned date also claimd a big win in new york. >> i want everyone in the republican party to oppose me to know this, you are welcome to join the people's crusade. >> reporter: the counting is still on in the new hampshire republican primary. the tea party candidate lost in maryland. here in dc political analysts are working overtime trying to figure out what these wins mean for november and if it helps or hurts democrats fighting to keep control of congress. i will take a closer look at that during the next update. for now live in washington, d.c. alison burns ktvu channel 2 n

alison burns joins us from our washington, d.c. newsroom with more. >> reporter: good morning to you, pam. i will have more on that celebrity supporter in just a moment but first the senate comes into session in just about 45 minutes. and arizona republican john mccain is vowing to filibuster a major defense bill that includes a repeal of don't ask- don't tell. >> we are in two wars. we are in two wars. shouldn't we assess the impact on the readiness, the morale and effectiveness of the men and women who are in harm's way, who are -- would be effected by the repeal? >> reporter: it is unclear if democrats have the 60 votes to overcome the opposition and they are facing pressure from way outside the capitol, pop star lady gaga held a rally in maine calling on maine's two republican senators to okay the repeal. >> i am here because don't ask- don't tell, is wrong. it is unjust. [ cheers ] >> and fundamentally it is against all that we stand for as americans. >> reporter: now lady gaga is not alone. recent polls show that most america

., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> thank you, alison. 7:16. last night president obama spoke to the nation about the end of u.s. combat operations in iraq, saying the u.s. has paid a huge price to give iraqis the chance to shape their future. >> tonight i encourage iraq's leaders to move forward with a sense of urgency, to form an inclusive government that's just representative and accountable to the iraqi people. >> we talked to people in the bay area to get their reaction to the end of the air combat operations in iraq. >> it's always good to get the troops home, yeah. >> there still needs to be a lot of cleanup and some support of the new -- you know, just trying to help the iraqi government take control of themselves. >> if you missed it, you can watch president obama's entire speech marking the end of u.s. combat operations in iraq at ktvu.com. you will also find a survey looking for your reaction. >>> today, tomorrow is focused on peace in the middle east. the president will hold separate oval office meetings with benjamin netanyahu and

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau with the latest on that. good morning alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, dave. it is still unclear here on capitol hill this morning if democrats have the 60 votes they need to pass a major defense bill. it includes a repeal of the controversial don't ask-don't tell policy banning gays in the military. republicans are furious that democrats are moving ahead with the vote before the pentagon's assessment later this year of what a repeal will mean for morale and readiness. >> it is railroading it through without a proper assessment on the morale and effectiveness of our military. >> reporter: pop star lady gaga is getting involved. she held a rally in maine yesterday targeting their two republican senators urging them to vote for the repeal. >> i thought equality was none negotiatable. >> reporter: an estimated 13,000 people have been discharged from the military since a don't ask-don't tell became law in 1993, including many war vets and military translatedders. reporting live from washington, d.c., ali

alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau with the details. good morning, alison. >> reporter: good morning to you, tori. it's a plan that will give democrats something new to run on ahead of the november elections and president obama says it will bring relief to american businesses. today, in cleveland, the president will announce a $200 billion package of tax cuts and investments, including the proposal to allow companies to write off 100% of the funds they spend investing in facilities and equipment between now and the end of 2011. >> this isn't about the next 60 days or the next 90 days. this is about how do we get our economy fully back on track? >> now, the president wants to spend $50 billion on projects to improve the nation's roads, rails and runways. he says he can do it without increasing the deficit. president obama will also make very clear today that he wants to let the bush tax cuts expire for households making more than $250,000 a year. that is an idea that's very unpopular with republicans here on capitol hill. reporting live

ktvu's alison burns is live in our washington, d.c. bureau with why the government wants new technology to allow online wiretap. good morning, allison. >> well good morning to you, tori. after the failed bombing attempt in times square, federal investigators learned that the suspect, faisal shahzad had been communicating through a service they could not wiretap. the government's spies are struggling to keep up with the latest technology and why the new york times reports the obama administration will ask congress to okay new eves dropping rules next year. they want all communication services like skype to be technically capable of complying with a wiretap order. critics say it will change the future of invasion. >> it would make it very difficult for the small innovator to come up with that exciting new application that we all like to use. they would have to comply with an fbi mandate that they probably wouldn't understand if they knew about it. >> but the feds say national security is at stake. it's a debate that will likely play out

alison burns was in virginia to a company. she says she's had to cut her staff and pay. >> the hardest part for me is not knowing what the effects of the legislation that they are looking at now and that has been passed will have down the road. >> warner said she hopes unemployment will soon ease so people will begin spending money more freely again. >>> on wall street, concerns eased over the health of banks in europe. [ closing bell ] >> stocks lost some of their gains earlier in the day. the federal reserved the u.s. economy is slowing. the dow closed up at 10,387. the mac ended the day -- nasdaq ended the day at 20 points higher. for more financial and consumer news go to ktvu.com and click on the business tab. >>> well, the weather a few days ago gave way to wet weather in parts of the bay area. drivers in fremont had to turn on their windshield wipers for a time today. it wasn't enough to register a rain total. >>> bill, i know we were calling for some drizzle. did some spots get it? >> yes, frank. we saw some in the coa

ktvu's alison burns is live in the newsroom. >> reporter: good morning to you, dave. the senate came into session about 20 minutes ago and we are expecting to get an earful today as democrats fight to get 60 votes to move ahead with a major defense bill. this bill includes a repeal of the controversial don't ask, don't tell policy, banning gays in the military. republicans are furious that democrats are moving ahead with the vote before the pentagon's assessment later this year of what a repeal will mean for america's fighting forces. >> it's railroading it through without a proper assessment on the morale and effectiveness of our military. >> reporter: and get this, pop star lady gaga is getting involved. she held a rally in maine targeting maine's two republican senators urging them to vote for the repeal. >> i thought equality was non negotiablable. >> reporter: another hurdle for democrats. they have attached a controversial immigration provision to this defense bill and republicans are vowing to oppose that too. reporting live from washington, d.c., alison burns,

., alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >> all right. lyson. and we talked with people right here in the bay area about their reaction to the end of the u.s. combat mission in iraq. >> it is good that the war is over and our combat operations are done. it is always good to get the troops home, yeah. >> there still needs to be a lot of cleanup and some support of the new, you know, just trying to help the iraqi government take control themselves. >> now you can watch president obama's spire speech marking the end of the u.s. combat operations in iraq at our channel 2 website. you will also find a survey there asking for your reaction. just look for the u.s. news tab. >> today president obama is focused on mild east peace talks. the president is holding separate oval office meetings with is really prime minister benjamin netanyahu and the palestinian president ahead of a joint meeting with them tomorrow. the leaders of egypt and jordan are also participating. >>> as expected statute law u makers voted down two proposals. democrats voted against t

reporting live, alison burns, ktvu channel 2 news. >>> it is 7:17. we're now hearing more about sarah shourd's 10 days in an iranian prison. she said when she was first taken to the prison, she was interrogated several times a day. she was told to write down the answers. and if her questioners didn't like what she wrote, they would tear it up and tell her to write it again. she said in the course of a couple of months, she wrote hundreds of pages. she said she was not physically abused. >> it's all psychological. and the hardest part, of course, is being so alienated from your fami. i begged and cried for a phone call. and i didn't get it until, i think, the 7th mont. >> shoure -- she said the bright spot was when joshua proposed to her. she says she is desperate to win the release of bower and fatal, who remain in prison. >>> a federal judge in san diego may decide today whether to issue an injunction against the military's don't ask, don't tell policy on gays in the military. earlier this month, the same judge ruled that not allowing gays to serve

we'll burn off the morning fog. we'll lift the fog deck and break it up. i have the relative humidity placed on there. that means the air temperature equals the lowering temperature, and the air is fully saturated. in the district, bethesda, stafford, temperatures in the 50's for the most part. mostly sunny,