amanda knox leaves her prison cell to face charges. friday, october 1, 2010. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning, welcome to "today" on a friday morning. >> i'm actually surprised to see so many people out there because it's not just raining, it is pouring and it is windy too. >> we got to go out there and hand out gold stars or plastic bags, one of the two because it is a mess out there. this is just a taste of what they received down in north carolina. get this, 12 inches of rain in just six hours in the city of jacksonville, 22 in wilmington this week. that's the highest total in nearly 140 years and as we said, it's been a deadly storm, it's caused all kinds of problems including road closures and power outages as well. >> we're going to get to al's forecast in just a moment. but in new jersey a driving rain has been falling for much of the morning. mara, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredith, this monster storm is wreaking havoc on the east coast with torrential downpours bringing areas more rain in hours than they have seen in months causing traffic accidents, flooding, power outages and travel delays. the storm is already responsible for at least five deaths. in north carolina four members of one family will be killed the suv they were riding in skidded off the road and into a ditch. and in north carolina, a man apparently drowned when his pick-up truck fell into a raging ridge. now the rain has caused flooding all the way up and down the east coast from north carolina to new jersey, with new jersey seeing some of the worst of it. jacksonville getting a foot of rain, 12 inches in just six hours. that's a quarter of their annual rainfall and the tri-state area which is getting hammered right now is under a flood watch. we're also seeing power outages in several states. in maryland, reportedly 40,000 people are without power and travel delays are likely, am track will be affected by standing water and downed limbs and the roadways are treacherous during this morning commute. >> really a dangerous storm. al is upstairs with more on the flooding and a first look at the forecast. al, good morning to you. >> you can see that radar, the line of storms as a frontal system and the remnants of nicole push off the coast, heavy thunderstorms now moving through central long island, on into parts of the northeast, and new england. we are looking for this to all push through later tonight, but not before causing big problems. here's the future cast, starting this morning, moving on through the afternoon, the rain moves through, a second line comes in later on this afternoon and by tonight, it's in the northern parts of new england, we do have flood watches and flash flood watches and even flood warnings in new york, pennsylvania and connecticut as well. the flood watches extend all the way into new england. rainfall amounts, we're looking at one to two inches of rain, but there could be another three to four inches of rain especially in northern new england. obviously airports are a real mess here in the tri-state area, all the way up into boston. but they will start to calm down as we get later on in the afternoon. right now we go to washington and the shake-up within president obama's inner circle. the president will announce this morning that his chief of staff rahm emanuel will step down to run for the mayor's office in chicago. savannah guthrie is at the white house with details. >> reporter: rahm emanuel will be replaced on an interim base si by pete rouse who has been with the president since his senate days and for now the west wing is losing it's most colorful and controversial character. the white house press secretary tried in vain thursday to keep a lid on the worst kept secret in washington. >> we're not getting into what the announce will be. i'm not going to move a whole lot on what i just said. >> reporter: as expected, recah emanuel will step down as chief of staff to satisfy a lifetime goal of running for mayor of chicago. he'll be replaced by pete rouse, the president's senior advisor and long time confidant. the capital insider rouse is not one to hit the washington party circuit or woo the press. >> pete is a great strategist who doesn't blow his own horn, who doesn't step forward to take credit, but who at the end of the day i think many people feel outmaneuvered the republicans in the senate for the enyears. >> reporter: rouse is as low key as his predecessor was -- >> he lost part of his middle finger. as a result of this, this rendered him practically mute. >> reporter: a reputation parodied on "saturday night live." >> and john boehner? you seriously want to [ bleep ] with me? you're looking at seats in congress like it's a game of musical chairs and you issue a press release about me, you idiot? >> reporter: emanuel worked in the clinton white house in the '940s and once sent a dead fish to a pollster who delivered bad news. he was hired by president elect obama for the 2008 campaign for his inside washington game. he's been key to the health care law and financial regulatory reform. but with the president's approval rating now stuck at 46% and democrats likely to sustain big losses in the midterm, the white house opted not to bring in an outsider with fresh thinking. >> they would benefit probably from some new blood but it's not the best circumstances under which to bring in a fresh set of eyes and a new perspective. they're probably right to elevate from within in the current circumstances. >> reporter: well, pete rouse is here just temporarily for this chief of staff job, it's not a job that he wanted or lobbied for, so in the end, the president still has big shoes to fill. >> savannah, as always thanks very much. david gregory is moderator of "meet the press," good morning to you. >> good morning, matt. >> so this is not unexpected, we have been talking about this for days or weeks now, but how will it change the operation of the white house starting tomorrow? >> i think there's going to be a kind of return to the campaign landscape and the campaign architecture, some of those people like a pete rouse, a different kind of temperament, a lot like obama in some ways who deal with some of the dysfunction within the white house where that presents itself and starts to get the president into a mode where he's going to have to deal with a different kind of congress, or at least a congress. >> savannah says that pete rouse did not lobby for this job, would he take it if he were offered it? >> he would have to take a serious look at it especially if the president leaned on him and said we really need you right now. his strength in working with senator daschle, this may be the kind of give and take the president needs come november. >> a lot of departures recently. we have got christina romer, larry summers, david axelrod is taking off. peter orszag has already taken off, now rahm emanuel. is this common place for this stage of a presidency or are we seeing something else here? >> i do think it's common place for this stage in a presidency, but you see the president getting out in front to send a message to the public, to independent voters to his base to say we are going to make changes with how we deal with policy but also how we communicate policy as well. and the president has to make an important course correction toward the midterm race and beyond that the beginning of his re-elect campaign and some of these key figures were the very best when he was running for president. >> let's talk about the governor's race, we have got meg whitman answering allegations that she hired an illegal immigrant as a housekeeper years ago, she denies them vehemently saying she knew nothing bit and she has now offered to take a lie detector test to prove her innocence. i can't remember the last time i heard something like that in a major campaign. >> it's kind of a sign of what's going on this year, this has gotten very personal and very ugly in california, this is a tight race where there's a lot of money around that race and where meg whitman has raised -- it's a distraction, negative advertising like this, tends to bring both candidates down and in this case, this could be an ongoing story, and a very difficult one especially in a state like california. >> in one week, we have one candidate offering to take a lie detector test, another candidate for governor offering to take out a reporter. can't wait to see what happens next. >> three weeks to go. >> thanks very much. now let's get a check of the rest of the top stories, natalee morales is filling in for ann this morning. >> good morning, everyone. tensions escalated further in pakistan where 27 tankers carrying fuel for nato troops in afghanistan were attacked and set on fire. the attacks came the same day that pakistan closed a major border crossing. chaos thursday in ecuador where the president was roughed up in tear gas by police, angered over a cut in benefits there. later the president was trapped more than 12 hours inside a hospital and had to be rescued by soldiers firing concussion grenades. president obama met with sarah shourd the hiker freeded by iran last month. and he told her that his administration would do all it can to secure the release of fellow hikers shane bauer and josh fattal. friends and family are hoping they'll be found okay. former president jimmy carter is out of the hospital just in time to celebrate his 86th birthday today. he left a cleveland hospital thursday after spending two nights recovering from stomach pains blamed on a viral infection. on thursday, the postal regulatory commission rejected the postal service's request to raise the cost of mailing a first class letter by two cents to 46 cents. it's now 7:11, back over to matt, meredith and al. it's getting tougher for the postal service to stay in business. >> thank you very much. mr. roker, you have a busy week. >> we have got some >> relatively mild. we are in the 60's. a couple of sprinkles and drizzle, nothing like yesterday. sunshine will eventually brea >> and that's your latest weather. amman do knox, the american college student accused or killing her roommate, appears in an italian court this morning to face slander charges. her parents are charged as well. keith miller is in italy with the latest. keith, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, meredi meredith, amanda knox was transported from prison to court but reporters will not be allowed inside. despite being locked up for almost three years, amanda knox remains a -- a convicted kill we are the all american look. "today" the prosecution pulled knox back in to court, charged with criminal slander claiming she falsely accused police of abuse during testimony. it was one of the highlights of the murder trial. the baby faced girl describing how police intimidated her and slapped her during a lengthy investigation. if convicted of slander, the judge could add another six years to her 26-year sentence for sexual assault and murder. knox and her former italian boyfriend were convicted last year of murdering knox's roommate meredith kercher, an exchange student from england, in what the prosecution called a sex game gone wrong. knox claimed she was innocent and she has an unlikely ally in former fbi special agent steve moore who went public with his belief that knox is not guilty. moore was fired this week from his security job at pepperdine university in california. pepperdine also has a campus not far from where the knox trial is taking place. >> i believe that their concern for retaliation against pepperdine's florence cam -- >> reporter: knox's parents have been charged with defamation and there's an appeal of the murder conviction. the defense team maintains knox will go free because the dna evidence used to convict her was flawed. >> we're feeling fairly confident, if not optimistic that a good result could likely occur pause of all the substantial issues that have been raised. >> reporter: the appeal is set to be heard in november. with such a sensational case, it couldn't be on before hollywood arrived. there's even talk of hayden pen terri playing the role of amanda. >> reporter: a movie director and script writer were scouting locations here, as the knox family say they're not happy about having their daughter's story put on the big screen. >> good morning to both of you, thank you for joining us this morning. if i can start with you, as we just heard amanda was in court this morning for a pretrial hearing on those slander charges, your husband, her stepdad was in court as well. have you heard anything about how those proceedings went? >> we heard that they were very short, the whole thing lasted about 20 minutes. chris was not even allowed in. he was there, he talked with her lawyers. all we have heard is that the number of police officers signing on to this complaint continues to drop and only eight actually signed on. >> so does that make you optimistic about the possible outcome here. >> it's interesting that 30-some-odd police officers signed her original arrest warrant and there were 12 that were supposed to go on to sign this complaint and that's dropped now to eight. you wonder why police officers are dropping out of that. >> kurt, you and edna are facing slander charges for repeating what amanda said about the police to a british newspaper. what could happen to you if you're found guilty of that charge? >> it is a slander charge, but it is a lower degree than what amanda is charged with. but as i understand it, the prison time is normally offset by a civil penalty. so at this stage of the game, that's where we are with that and we'll have our pretrial hearing in the latter portion of october. >> meaning you might have to pay a fine, in other words? >> potentially, yes. >> as keith just pointed out, amanda's appeal will begin, i guess it's in november. and her attorneys say they feel very optimistic, but are you worried that these slander charges might impact on that appeal? >> it's just kind of a detraction from the appeal and it really depends upon when they hear the merits of the slander case. so we just kind of have to wait and see how it coincides with her appeals trial. >> meanwhile amanda has been in prison for 2 1/2 years. a lot of people are wondering how she's doing, what she does day by day. >> she's doing the same thing that she does all day long. she does a lot of reading, at of writing, she writes all of us, she writes her friends. she continues to study, she tries to get in some exercise, she has to work every day to find a way to keep herself going and to try to stay upbeat. >> i read she also has a job in the prison now, is that correct. no, that is not correct. >> so she does not work -- >> full-time, no. >> before i let you go, keith mentioned there's a movie being made by lifetime and i think there's another one being made by producers at great britain, about her life and her story. he said that you all were upset about it. are you going to stop the movie from being made if you could? >> it's very premature to be making a movie related to this particular case with her appeals trial coming up and with us being optimistic, that if they really do a true review of the dna evidence, they're going to find that amanda and rafael had nothing to do with it. so making a movie at this point in time is really inappropriate. >> so would you move to try to prevent it from being made if you could? >> you know, as we understand it, if they're using general public information, we really don't have a choice in the matter. but it is a premature situation and we believe inappropriate at this point in time. >> kurt knox and edna ellis, thanks for your time, we really appreciate it. >> thank you for having us. it is 7:19 and once again here's matt. now to an unlikely theme park open by a more unlikely group, hezbollah. stephanie gosk is in by route. >> reporter: lebanon is a beautiful place, you have the met trainian sea, a great climate. the landmark for the resistance is an open air theme park dedicated to military victories against israel. three decades of destroyed israeli tanks, guns and spent mortar rounds carefully man cured and on permanent display for the first time. this family came for the day. his youngest son could barely contain his excitement. the $4 million complex complete with trails and music and life sized statues of guerrilla fighters was built by hezbollah. according to the u.s. state department, a terrorist organization largely funded and armed by iran. charges our tour guide, a self-described hezbollah supporter denies. >> we set aside ourselves. >> an american journalist just published a book on hezbollah, he says the park is a mix of both fact and propaganda. >> they worked very hard to convince the visitors that what they do is right and the fight they have against israel is justified. >> reporter: since the park opened in may, 1,000 visitors have poured in. hezbollah says they will soon expand, including a restaurant, a hotel and a cable car. it's an unlikely success. most other tourist attractions in the country have suffered because of the near constant threat of armed conflict. lebanon was home of some of the world's oldest civilizations, these ruins are thousands of years old. navigating through what used to be one of hezbollah's hidden bunkers, five of his friends have been killed in recent conflicts. >> reporter: how many wars have you lived through. >> i have lived through three wars, 1993, 1996 and 2006. we know that there's going to be a war. which is going to be most severe than the last one. >> reporter: a theme park built on hate relate of israel. the people that are visiting this theme park told us that should another war break out, they believe that hezbollah is still going to be their best protection. >> stephanie gosk in israel for us this morning. should the two college students who allegedly used a webcam to post another student's encounter on the internet face hate crime charges? we'll talk about that, but first this is "today" on nbc. just ahead, is there another earth out there? a newly discovered planet that could support life. plus calorie packed meals like a personal pizza that equals 51 cookies after your local news. happy birthday to you. happy birthday, happy birthday... happy birthday to you. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> we have closures that remain in effect. sinkholes in middle river. we are looking at closures in effect from northpoint and kane street. that is due to flooding-related cloture. another one being cleared it was the road. harrisburg expressway, timonium road, we had a center lane closure with an accident. west side is the heaviest spot at this time. closure due to a sinkhole at gambrills. let's give you a quick live a traffic and show you that traffic is in pretty good shape. all lanes are now open. we will switch to a live view of traffic on the harrisburg expressway. >> streets still like a little wet out there. we have a little drizzle and sprinkle activity. clouds are beginning to lighten up a little bit to the west of us. that bodes well for the forecast. humidity is still up in the barometer is still down. costs are up to 19 and stronger than that. clearing skies eventually. northwest winds at 10 to 20, with stronger gusts and eyes. -- and highs. >> check the bottom of your screen for updated news and traffic and there are school delays. back at 7:55 with another live update. two governors, two different approaches. even in good times bob ehrlich did not make education a priority. he increased college tuition by 40%, cut school construction by $200 million, and ehrlich voted to eliminate the department of education while serving in congress. but martin o'malley, even in the toughest of times, has made record investments in public schools, new school construction, and o'malley froze college tuition four years in a row. with martin o'malley, our children always come first. 7:30 now on this friday morning, october 1, 2010. plenty of rain came this morning. a waterlogged crowd out here on rockefeller plaza. just ahead, an eye opener on the amount of calories in your favorite restaurant meals. for instance a burger that has the same calories as 15 snickers flavored granola bars. we're going the have some health yir options straight ahead. also ahead, could it be our home away from home? coming up a discovery of so-called goldie locks planet that could be just right for life. are we alone? . plus a very touching story a mom hears the sound of her daughter's heart baek beat in another woman's chest. we're going to meet that woman's parent and the mother of two alive "today" because of their gift. let's begin this half hour with prosecutors now looking into filing more serious charges against the two rutgers university students who are accused of streaming video of another student's sexual encounter online. >> reporter: good morning, matt. there's a growing chorus that's saying that the incident that was involved wasn't just an act of video voyeurism or cyber bullying, but of cyber gay bashing, but one of the suspects reportedly says not so. it has now been confirmed that the body pulled from the hudson river was that of tyler clementi, who wrote on his facebook page, jumping off the gw bridge, sorry. this encounter was streamed live over the internet. two classmates have been charged with privacy law violations, but the count prosecutor says they'll be making every effort to assess whether bias played a role in the incident. >> privacy violations are -- >> meanwhile the respected rutgers college newspaper reports that unnamed students say on the night of the incident, a strange older male arrived at the room robby shared with clementi and that robby had no intention of witnessing any kind of intimate encounter. he just wanted to know what was going on in his room and quickly looked at the webcam that he had left on. but one of the suspects told nbds after listening to the reading of the account, that is basically the story robby is telling. but there's been no denial that robby tweeted that clementi was making out with a dude, yay. however this happened, the death of this gifted student has left fellow students to wonder how tech savvy students could still be confused about what technology can do and what it should not do. >> especially with the generation that has grown one the internet, they might not bay ware of the repercussions of their actions. >> reporter: the lawyers for the two suspects are not comments. but someone who appears to be clementi wrote several posts on a gay website who was wrestling with what to do about a roommate who was spying on him with a webcam. >> dan abrams is nbc's chief legal analyst, dan, good morning to you, we already know that they have been charged with a couple of counts of invasion of privacy. but now we're hearing more about hate crime charges. are these charges coming from a solid legal place or are they coming from an emotional place? >> it's going to depend on the facts, there's two types of charges, there's the fourth-degree felony which is for filming the activity without the consent of the person. the more serious one, the third-degree is for distributing it. so now some are saying the prosecutors should add something on to that third-degree felony. if they can determine it was a hate crime, meaning intended to intimidate the person based on sexual orientation, they could up the possible sentence here from up to five years to up to ten years. >> but it's a big if and how do they go about connecting those dots. >> they're going to need more than just the text that we just read about him, quote, being a gay -- about making out. they're going to need to know that the reason that he did it, that his intent here was to intimidate him based on sexual orientation. that's going to be tough legally in a case like this. a lot of people are going to say wait a second, what do you mean it's going to be tough? look at the facts of what happened. the facts are one thing, but as a legal matter, you're going to have to show the intent of the person who was doing it. >> let me ask you how this might play into all of this. according to a report in the new york times t roommate danger robby tweeted back in august, this is well in advance of this going on that he, quote, just found out my roommate is gay, end quote. so now he has information, he then subsequently goes out setting up this webcam to record or distribute this encounter, does that play into it? >> it will be part of the totality of the circumstances. but basically they're going to have to show this was more than just a prank, right? because if it's a prank, the charges that are out there are the right charges. if it's more than a prank, meaning the reason he's doing it is because of the sexuality of his roommate, then you've got the possibility of the elevateded charges. >> it would be the state of new jersey bringing the hate crime charges. >> that's right. >> if the state decides not to go further and file those charges, could a federal prosecutor come in? because that's happened in the past and say no, we believe this is a biassed crime. >> theoretically, but probably not in this case. but by definition, in the federal law for a hate crime there has to have been violence involved and that would be even tougher to prove in a case like this. remember, new jersey has a pretty tough hate crime law meaning the burden is lower than for the federal crime, if new jersey doesn't go for it, very unlikely that the feds will. >> dan abrams, it's 7:36, let's get a check of the weather now from al. >> let's take a look at your weekend, and see how things are shaping up. here in the east, dries out. mild conditions up and down the eastern seaboard, showers in the central great lakes. person third of the country going to be sunny and hot. sunday, sunday, we're going to be looking at a lot of rain in the ohio river valley, sunshine, and heat in the southwest with rain in the pac >> we still have clouds and drizzle, but eventually we have sunshine in the picture. sunshine breaking for an award >> and it's friday, and you know what that means. we have got sunday coming up. that's right, our favorite night of the week, with our favorite television program of all time, sunday night football night is america. it's at the meadowlands, the new meadowlands stadium. cloudy, cool as the bears come on to take on the giants. mid 50 to 60 degrees, it's america's game and america's network, sunday night, football night in america. >> all right, al, thank you very much. up next, some healthier options, to calorie overloaded restaurant meals, and one meal which is the same as eating 148 malted milk balls. right after this. [ male announcer ] the new subway $2.50 breakfast combo! best deal this side of sunrise, so come in and we'll make yours! get a western egg white muffin melt and a 16-ounce cup of freshly brewed seattle's best coffee. just $2.50. build your better breakfast today at subway! [ man ] ♪ today the world looks mighty fine ♪ [ women ] ♪ pop-tarts happy sunshine time! ♪ [ man ] ♪ grab a pop-tart and you might just start ♪ ♪ to sing songs like a meadow lark ♪ ♪ stretch and yawn ♪ blow a kiss to mom ♪ cause pop-tarts mornings are the bomb ♪ ♪ so, rise and shiiiiine ♪ cause pop-tarts mornings are the bomb ♪ in 2008 i quit venture capital to follow my passion for food. i saw a gap in the market for a fresh culinary brand and launched behindtheburner.com. we create and broadcast content and then distribute it across tv, the web, and via mobile. i even use the web to get paid. with acceptpay from american express open, we now invoice advertisers and receive payments digitally. and i get paid on average three weeks faster. booming is never looking for a check in the mail. because it's already in my email. back at 7:42, on east this not that, out of control calorie counts. how do you know what to avoid? the editor of the eat this not that series which is out with a new 2011 edition. i have to say at the outset that a lot of restaurant chains are trying to come up with healthier meals. >> they're coming one healthier meals but the mad food scientists are still trying to come out with these terrifying concoctions. >> let's start with the first one, you're going to tell us what's wrong with this, this is friendly's grilled cheeseburger melt. essentially it's two grilled cheese sandwiches with a burger in between. >> if you're expecting twins and you want to eat for three, because this is exactly what you get. it's 1,500 calories, it's the equivalent of these 15 kudos chocolate granola bars and two times the fat. if you don't want to have that dish, get the grilled cheese sandwich, 790 calories, or you can make it at home in two minutes and save another 450 calories. >> this is the new york cheese cake pancake. >> if you're going to start your day like this, just go back to bed and try again tomorrow. because cheese cake pancakes, they have managed to drop the word cake twice into your morning meal. what you're talking about is 1,300 calories, you got 75 grams of fat. it's the calorie equivalent of these 28 chicken mcnuggets. so it's not a great way to start your day, too much fat, too much salt, too many calories. >> but your alternative doesn't look too healthy. >> the point is if you insist on having dessert for breakfast, at least go and get the chocolate chip pancakes because you're going to be saving 600 calories. >> apple by's prove loan fete teeny. they weren't happy with just the ideas of meatballs so the mad food scientists decided to stuff cheese in them and put it over fettuccine and boiled butter and more cheese. so you've got the calorie equivalent of 148 malted milk balls. >> so what you can get on their menu. >> what you would get is the spicy shrimp. it's 500 calories, you're going to knock 1,000 calories off. if you do this twice a week, you're making a smarter choice, in a month you're going to lose 2 1/2 pounds. >> chicago lobster blt thin crust pizza. you know that's bad. >> imagine seven food trucks colliding in an intersection. if you're very indecisive, if you have no idea what to get, just get everything on the menu and this because it's the calorie equivalent of 1530 calories of these 51 ginger snaps cookies. it's tons of fat, it's two days worth of sodium, if you're going to be at unison's, you want to get something like this at 570 calories. it's the lobster wrap. >> thank you very much. up next the discovery of a new earth-like planet. could humans live there? we'll have more on that right after this. ♪ happy birthday to you. ♪ happy birthday, happy birthday... ...happy birthday to you. discover customersl are getting five percent cashback bonus at restaurants. it pays to switch, it pays to discover. ♪ i was young and i was stupid ♪ i had just turned 17 ♪ a harmonica and a box guitar ♪ ♪ in a canvas-covered wagon stuffed... ♪ [ male announcer ] while the world's been waiting on the electric car, maybe the whole time, the electric car has been waiting for this... the wattstation from ge. it's going to change the way we get to where we all want to go. ♪ i didn't think much of it till i took it apart ♪ now to the discovery that has the scientific community buzzing. a new planet is orbiting a star, some 20 light years away, at a distance that could allow it to have water and support life. doctor neil degrass tyson is an astro physicist at the museum of natural history here in new york. nice to see you. it seems to me the reason why scientists are so excited by this planet discovery is that it exists in a location called the goldie locks zone what is that? >> life on earth requires water. every place we have ever found liquid water on earth has had life. so the search for life in the universe, the commandment we follow is look for liquid water. and this planet is orbiting around a zone. >> so like goldie locks, if it's not too hot or not too cold, it's just right. >> it doesn't require that it has water, it means if there was water there, and it had an atmosphere -- >> we talk about supporting live, we're not talking about that there's restaurants and nightclubs there already but it could support live and it could be a single cell organism. >> life as we know it requires liquid water. this goldie locks planet, if life requireded liquid ammonia or liquid methane, it would be different zones. >> what fascinates me is that this planet orbits a star in somewhat the same way that earth orbits the sun, except that while it goes around it's star, it's not spinning at the same time. >> it's always showing the same face. very likely will only ever be showing the same face. >> so it's very cold on one side of this planet and it's very warm on the other. what's the temperature like in the middle region? >> it may be if there's a civilization there, they sort of hovered around the sun set zone, a band going pole to pole. >> temperatures like? >> 55 degrees, if it has a run away green house, it could be bad, depending on what their civilization is doing with their technology. >> scientists have not seen this planet, they only know it's there because of the wobbling of the star. >> we're looking at the response of the host star to the gravity of this planet. so the host star does this, that's what we see. the planet is too dense. but people say seeing is believing, we use gravitational influence as a means of seeing other objects. that's how we know it's there, that's how we know what it will look like. >> we're back at your local news. and all my investments, but it's not something that i want to do completely on my own -- i like to discuss my ideas with someone. that's what i like about fidelity. they talked with me one on one, so we could come up with a plan that's right for me, and they worked with me to help me stay on track -- or sometimes, help me get on an even better one. woman: there you go, brian. thanks, guys. man: see ya. fidelity investments. turn here. i drove the '92 camry. i drive a 2007 camry. i was expecting the 2005 camry, and my sister got it. i was driving the '94 toyota camry, and my dad surprised me with a 2005 toyota camry. [ julie sighs ] i drove all of them, but i drive the 2009. [ interviewer ] why camry? reliability. yeah. affordability. [ male announcer ] share your toyota story on facebook.com/toyota. ♪ that's not really my style honey. weird, i can't find it. ♪ [ female announcer ] new tide with...acti-lift technology helps remove...many dry stains as if they were fresh. hey! you found it. yeah, it must have been hiding in my closet. [ female announcer ] new tide with acti-lift. style is an option. clean is not. get acti-lift in these tide detergents. called the humana walmart- preferred prescription plan. it's a medicare prescription drug plan that saves you an average of over $450 a year, with monthly plan premiums less than $15 and copays as low as $2. with savings like these, you have more time to remember what it's really all about. enroll starting november 15. ♪ go to walmart.com for details. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> it is a busy start out there. we have weather-related issues and a couple of no accidents. southbound 295 in the area of the beltway. we are watching as delays form there. accident right at route 30 at reisterstown road. this one may be creating some delays. we're looking at the sinkhole still being worked on at middle river road. closures remain in effect at northpoint th. if you are going to travel on southbound 83, padonia to the beltway, smooth ride there. severn, watch for kosher at gambrills due to a big sinkhole. let's give you a live view at some of the problem spots. here is when just coming in to us at wilkens ave. two vehicles involved in this crash. bw parkway, southbound to order 95. accident taking up the right lane. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> this clouds are now east of the city -- thick clouds are east of the city. 61 degrees at the airport. barometers still down. gusting to 18 miles per hour. eventually we will get sunshine and the picture. 72 to 7 1/6 for the high. >> check the bottom of your >> check the bottom of your screen for updat bob ehrlich's real record on energy. lobbyists helped write utility regulations. we got stuck with a 72% rate hike. but martin o'malley got tough on bge, forcing them to pay back $2 billion to consumers. and what's bob ehrlich been doing the past four years? he got paid $2.5 million at a lobbying firm, a firm representing special interests and casinos right here in maryland. that's bob ehrlich-- a 72% increase for us and $2.5 million from special interests for himself. nice work, bob. we're back now, 8:00 on a foggy, soggy friday morning, it's the first day of october, 2010, raining sideways here in new york. this is all part of that nasty storm system that's made its way up the east coast. something that as al would say, copious amounts of rain. right now, out on the plaza, i'm matt lauer along with mr. roker and meredith and i guess the truth to be told, these three have been out here all morning long. >> i was the first one in my coat. the first one. >> coming up on a more serious note, we have got a remarkable story of life coming out of an unspeakable tragedy. >> a 13-year-old died in a tragic skiing accident. her parents decided to donate her organs. but her mom always wondered where taylor's heart went, who got it. "toda today you're going to meet that woman who did receive that heart and they're going to tell their remarkable story. also we're going to wrap up our week-long observation of education nation here on nbc news and we will do that with tom brokaw taking us back to college. and owe want to wish our wedding bride melissa happy birthday, just one day after she married the love of her life here on our plaza, followed by a fabulous reception overlooking the hudson river, complete with the traditional first dance and the cutting of the cake, it was really, really special. just a terrific group of people and their families, just lovely. >> and they're going to go to the turks and caicos for their honeymoon. >> she's going to finish school and they're going to go in november. natalee the standing by at the news desk with all the headlines while ann is on assignment. >> good morning, everyone, a powerful and deadly storm is flooding roads, splintering trees and knocking out power along the eastern seaboard. at least five traffic deaths are now blamed on the storm which has dumped heavy rain from the carolinas to new england. some areas got three months worth of rainfall in just a single day. president obama today is announcing the retirement of rahm emanuel. the president meantime raised about $2 million for the democratic party tuesday with a rally for young supporters and a private $35,000 a plate dinner. pakistan set fire to a convoy of nato tankers carrying fuel to troops in afghanistan. the trucks had been turned away thursday from a major border crossing in pakistan, apparently to protest a nato air strike that killed three pakistani soldiers. wall street is coming off it's best september in more than 30 years. erin, let's hope october is just as good. >> october and the final quarter of the year, certainly starting on a rainy note, but the mood here is anything but. three stats for you natalee. the dow gained nearly 8% in september. and when you look at the industries in the market, sick of ten of them had double digit gains or more. it was a stellar month. while gold is the rage right now, we see the ads on tv and a lot of investors have been putting their money into gold, 125 stocks are up more than 20% and that is better than gold. and so stocks have been rallying. can they get rolling? that's the big question. a hiker who spent six days locked in a california desert without food or water was rescued thursday after a police helicopter crew spotted him in joshua tree national park. edward rosenthal had even written letters to his family with instructions for his funeral on his hat. pretty remarkable. it's 8:04 right now, let's get another check of the weather from al who's still outside. >> we have got these folks who are here to tell us about this. >> it's a neurological disorder, it affects primarily girls, usually misdiagnosed, they responsibility de don't speak. most of them don't speak. we won the pepsi challenge, we won $250,000 which is being matched so now it's $500,000 and we're just happy to be here. >> for more information where do we go? >> that's terrific. let's check your weather, see what's happening. detroit, michigan. local 4, sunny and cool, 68 degrees, we're waiting for that weather to make its way here to the northeast. you can see a frontal system pulling away, much of the rest of the country is dry, northern minnesota and parts of southern california, those will burn off, record highs out west today, boise getting up to 90 degrees. showers in the big easy. high surf advisor >> drizzle and sprinkles will be moving out of the picture. moving out of the picture. when we come backs, a 13-year-old donated heart gives life to a mother of two. the parents of that donor share their story. one good decision... ♪ ...can lead to another. ♪ ♪ ...made with real fruit and now with more of the whole grains your body needs. nutri-grain can help you eat better all day. it's pretty cool. 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[ male announcer ] quick and easy deposits. with atms from bank of america. ♪ with atms from bank of america. words alone aren't enough. my job is to listen to the needs and frustrations of the shrimpers and fishermen, hotel or restaurant workers who lost their jobs to the spill. i'm iris cross. bp has taken full responsibility for the clean up in the gulf and that includes keeping you informed. our job is to listen and find ways to help. that means working with communities. restoring the jobs, tourist beaches, and businesses impacted by the spill. we've paid over $400 million in claims and set up a $20 billion independently-run claims fund to cover lost income until people impacted can get back to work. and our efforts aren't coming at tax-payer expense. i know people are wondering-- now that the well is capped, is bp gonna meet its commitments? i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. i'm gonna be here until we make this right. promising 25,000 miles a flight only to be told... there's nothing for 25. but they will let me give you the same seat for a big miles upcharge. how's that sound? for that many miles we'll be stuck taking a "staycation." 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[ male announcer ] don't pay miles upcharges. don't play games. get the flight you want with the venture card at capitalone.com. whoo-hoo! now this is a vacation. what's in your wallet? whoo-hoo! now this is a vacation. ♪ your favorites, in pieces. back at 8:09 with taylor's gift. she died in a skiing accident back in march. but her mother vowed to hear the sound of her daughter's heart again after being reunited with the one who received their organs. here's their touching story. >> reporter: the sound of life. how often do we really listen? patricia winters does, almost every day. that comforts rhythm all because of what happened to a 13-year-old she never met. taylor on the last day of a family ski vacation on the very last run. >> i saw taylor lose her balance a little bit. it didn't take a second to realize she was hurt. >> she never got up. in so many ways that tragic end is just -- >> reporter: taylor's parents decided to donate their daughter's organs. five straighters are alive "today" because of that gift. >> she was such a giving loving person and so this is really what she would have wanted. she just would continue to give. >> reporter: taylor gave her kidneys, eyes, liver, pancreas and heart. but it was that that her mother had such a hard time letting go. as vital as it was to someone else, she vowed to hear her daughter's heart again. >> since we lost taylor, i have been wanting to have that connection because she and i were extremely close and i wanted to know that she was still there. >> reporter: taylor's heart made quite a journey, all the way from the mountains of colorado here to the deserts of arizona. it arrived in the middle of the night to a recipient needed it. a mother was rushed into surgery that night and awoke with a strange new feeling. >> when i woke up, i kept saying, who is she? who is she? and then -- >> you knew right away it was a girl. >> it was very bizarre to me. >> organ donors are confidential. no one could tell her. but patricia's husband thought he knew. he had found reports of taylor's accident and surmised that the heart must be hers. >> at night, if i couldn't sleep, i would open up my lap top and then i would look and it was pretty dramatic. very dramatic. >> but nothing would be complete until the two families met. and finally, six months after taylor's accident, they did. >> it was a coming together of something so terrible and something so beautiful that words failed. the only sound that mattered was the sound that taylor's mother was so desperate to hear, taylor's and there it was. >> you can feel it. >> yes. >> two lives, two families, bound by one heart and one amazing gift. >> she's strong. >> for "today," lee cowan, nbc news, phoenix. >> tara and todd are here along with patricia winters and taylor is here as well. without her heart you would not have gotten a second chance at life. is there a day that goes by that you don't think about that little girl? >> not a moment. no, not at all. i'm here, i'm here raising my boys, i'm alive because of her. >> you made the decision, todd and tara in the hospital that day in march, your daughter had been declared brain dead and the hospital came to you and said she would be a great candidate to be a donor. and you said without even discussing it with your wife, yes, we should do this. what made you so sure that it was the right thing to do? >> it was a very easy choice. taylor was a giving, wonderful person and i looked at tara and we knew exactly -- we knew exactly that's what taylor would do, she was so giving and that choice was very, very easy. >> meanwhile at that point, patricia, you're at home in arizona, you're very sick, can barely get out of bed on a daily basis to take care of your little boys. had been a candidate for a heart transplant but it had fallen through, you get the call and you go. it's a good match. and you wake up and you said, you knew immediately it was the heart of a female. how did you trace it to this family and find out that it was this little girl's heart? >> actually my husband did while i was in surgery, a friend of his had sent over the article from colorado, their news bulletin stating that a 13-year-old girl had died in a ski accident and a 39-year-old arizona woman received her heart. so -- >> he put two and two together. >> exactly. >> and then when you saw that child's face, what was that like for you? >> i saw her face within 24 hours of my transplant and when my husband showed me on the lap top, i told him that he needed to put it away, i was not ready to look at her picture, picture equals reality. so it was just too much for me at the time. it wasn't until i was alone and could really just look at this, the pictures myself. >> how did you all end up reuniting here, tara? how did that come about. >> we had a neighbor who knew from the very beginning i wanted to connect with her heart and it was just a pull that i needed. i needed that connection and a neighbor of mine went on the internet and searched and searched and searched and found an article written about someone in arizona who received a heart transplant. and found someone that had commented on an online article and she responded and it happened to be patricia's connection. >> and there was a moment when you all met where the two of you were sitting on a couch, two moms and you shared something very touching. you leaned your head on to patricia's chest. >> that was the most precious time i had with her. because todd and her husband joe had gone to get something to eat and so patricia and i were there alone and i said can i just lay my head on your chest and listen? because taylor and i were very close and we would lay in bed and snuggle. i got to lay on her chest and hear her. while i was doing that, her heart had this huge kick and patricia goes did you hear this? and it happened again, this huge kick. i looked at patricia and said that i was praying that taylor would give you a sign. i will never forget that. it was truly the gift of taylor letting me know that she's here. >> and taylor continues to give her gift through this organization, the foundation you have started, todd taylor's gift.org. what have you learned about organ donations in your community? >> the message is easy, this is a simple choice, most people want to become organ donors and are not quite sure how to become, and we're trying to make that very, very easy for them. all the states are listed. what i have learned ultimately is that there's a lot of new things that are happening with the different databases and we just want to make one single place to make it easy for everyone to become an organ donor because the statistics show that most everybody wants to and we want to help them. >> we so appreciate you being here, todd and tara, patricia, thank you so much, and taylor as well. to learn more about taylor's gift, head to our website todayshow.com. we are back right after this. maybe you want to rebuild homes for those in need? or, maybe you want to help improve our schools? whatever you want to do, members project from american express can help you take the first step. vote, volunteer or donate for the causes you believe in at membersproject.com. take charge of making a difference. [ woman #2 ] i'd like to enjoy things again. [ woman #3 ] i feel these aches and pains. [ woman #4 ] the guilt. [ man ] my sleep just isn't right. [ woman #5 ] i'm so anxious. [ man #2 ] i need to focus. [ female announcer ] depression hurts. cymbalta can help with many symptoms of depression. tell your doctor right away if your depression worsens, you have unusual changes in behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled glaucoma should not take cymbalta. taking it with nsaid pain relievers, aspirin, or blood thinners may increase bleeding risk. severe liver problems, some fatal, were reported. signs include abdominal pain and yellowing of the skin or eyes. talk with your doctor about your medicines, including those for migraine, or if you have high fever, confusion and stiff muscles, to address a possible life-threatening condition. tell your doctor about alcohol use, liver disease, and before you reduce or stop taking cymbalta. dizziness or fainting may occur upon standing. side effects include nausea, dry mouth, and constipation. talk to your doctor and go to cymbalta.com to learn about an offer to help you get started. depression hurts. cymbalta can help. education nation "today" is brought to you by university of phoenix, an educated world is a better world. this morning on our special education series, education nation "today," the college years, meredith, ann, al, were not the only ones to head back to school. tom brokaw made a trip back to the university of south dakota. that must have been fun. >> it was a good time. and my story is one that a lot of people may not have expected. it resolves around a very special professor who changed the course of a lot of lives including mine. he believed that anything was possible. he also believed in a young man who initially showed great promise and then went off the tracks. >> reporter: this is a story of my sophomore year at the university of south dakota in three short acts. act one, this was the library, i didn't spend a lot of time here. this is the varsity, it was the most popular pub on campus. i did spend a lot of time here, and this is the man who straightened me out. bill "doc" farber. the professor of the political science department was on this campus for 40 years. he mentored future governors, senators, rhodes scholars and journalists. we were the ferber boys. dr. richardson, is the spirit of bill farber still present on this campus? >> still very much present. we have 125 students per year who partake of funding assistance from what he started. it's a marvelous legacy that will continue for generations beyond what doc himself probably ever imagined. >> reporter: doc's how was home away from home for the farber boys. dick brown is one of the many who lived there serves as part-time chauffeur, part-time bartender and full-time baggage handler. >> what i remember about this house is when we would come back for any occasion, this is where we would gather and you would have people of all political strife, and farber would be in there lighting the fuse, trying to get us to talk about what was going on in the world and what we could do about it. >> this is a man who's tolerant and wanted critical thinking to take place. >> reporter: was he the last man in america to say egads? >> i think he was absolutely the last man in america. you have to see this sort of a portly fellow that is so full of energy, like a stick of dynamite. >> most university of south dakota students come from small towns and small cities, ranches and farms of the great plains. doc farber considered it mission to consider the possibilities. >> the keys to a happy and worthwhile life are participation, a concern for others, and a goal of making this world a better place in which to live. think of the possibilities of your contribution. >> reporter: when you look back, you think the legacy of bill farber at the university? >> i think it's his students. dr. farber had a way of connecting and he had a way of choosing students he thought could do great things and then he pushed them, whether they liked it or not. well, exactly, i was going to be polite and not say that. >> reporter: here's a story about how doc farber straightened out that -- i had 50 crepts and a cowboy hat to my name. dr. farber invited me to dinner and said very cheerfully, he had a plan, he told me to drop out and get all the wine, women and song out of my system. six months later, i came crawling back, dr. farber filled out my class schedule and told me what grade point he expected. it was the beginning of a recovery. and an old friend who had given up on me begin to take notice. 48 years later, that turned out pretty well. through the years, whatever success i enjoyed, bill farber always kept me humble. bill and i stayed in close touch until he died at the age of 96 in 2007. he would often call and comment on my work, complements me most times, critical other times and he liked to tell incoming freshman here in the university if tom brokaw can make it, anyone can. he was also right on that count. >> that's amazing. >> matt, when he died at the age of 96 in 2007, he was so beloved and so important in the state, they lowered the flags across south dakota to half staff for several days. he had that much impact over the course of the 70 years he was at the university. >> appreciate you bringing up this story. later in the show you're going to join hoda and kathy lee and talk about those years of wine, women and song. which should be a lot of fun. >> the problem is the statute of limitations has not run out on some of them. >> you let me know when it does. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. that's that a final check on the morning commute with sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> we are recovering from the storm. we have closures in effect but we have produced on the outer loop of wilkens ave. it starting to flow much better on the west side. route 30 and reisterstown road, accident clearing. closures remain in effect with the sinkhole at middle river road. flooding-related closures at middle river. watch for that. we are looking at some slow spots on the north west. nothing to bat out of the northeast. you are looking at some slow going. gambrills road, we still have closures in effect. let's give you a live view of traffic at wilkens ave. things are flowing better. live view of traffic on the bw parkway. all lanes open after an earlier accident atmosphere road. >> the patient looks and dryer. there are still a few sprinkles. a round out. and west, a couple of sprinkles. -- a route now. and the west, a couple sprinkles. gusty, up to about 18 miles per hour. we are not adding any rate to the picture. 72 to 76 with a high. >> thank you for joining us. we will have another update at 8:55. my dad is the supervisor of a train station and my mom's a teacher. my dad's an auto technician. my mom's a receptionist. i'm not sure i would have been able to afford college without the tuition freeze. while tuition in other states is rising out of reach... governor o'malley made the tough choice to freeze tuition. he made my dream of going to college into a reality. i'm the first in my family to go to college. my brother and i never would have been able to afford college. even though times were tough... governor o'malley kept his promise. there's never a doubt... there's never a doubt whose side he's on. martin o'malley... moving maryland forward. 89 8:30 now on this friday morning. we should line up two by two and head for the ark here, it's wet. this morning we're getting a glimpse inside our offices, which one is packed with memorabilia, who's the neat freak? does meredith even know that she has an office? all will be revealed just ahead. >> it's not that bad. and we're going to be heading into the kitchen to make a classic italian meal, linguini with clams. plus the cheapest family in america are back with us this morning to answer your budgeting and money saving questions. but first let's see hello to a long friend of the the show. this year, the program is expanding to seven schools, tony, good morning to you. congratulations. >> thank you for having me on the show. >> not at all. let's start with the franke sinatra school of the arts that you started in your hometown queens back in 1999. that was the idea of starting the school? >> too many people drop out of school before college and my wife and i wanted to encourage students to stay in school and go into college. so the best way is through the arts because the students participate, they don't just get advice from the teachers and they have to memorize things. they actually perform also. so they feel that -- what happens is they don't drop out of school. they get to learn how to write essays and get them ready for college. at the sinatra school, 97% graduate every year. they don't drop out of school. >> that's an extraordinary record. what is it like to watch young performers in action or budding performers? >> i can't believe it, that's how good they are. it's a beautiful school, you know, it's elevated and with great comfort and beautiful pianos and all. it's all of the arts and they're so fantastic. so watch them perform is thrilling for me, i told them to go on television and tell all the producers on television to step aside. >> now six more public schools here in new york city are going to be benefitting from the program as well? >> right now there's seven in all theboroughs. now let's get a check of the weather from mr. roker. al? >> let's see what's happening as far as your weekend is concerned. we're looking for a beautiful weekend up and down the eastern seaboard, the heat is going to continue, in fact the western third of the states and then as we move on into sunday, we're getting some rain in the mid-atlantic states, some showers along the southeast atlantic coast, otherwise most of the country looking pretty good on sund >> we still have clouds and drizzle, but eventually we have sunshine in the picture. sunshine breaking for an award >> and don't forget, you can keep track of your weather all day long, go to the weather channel on cable or click weather.com. natalee? fortune magazine is out with the 50 most powerful women in business. before we get to some of the names on the list, tell us a little bit about the criteria that fortune uses to establish who these women are? >> we use the size of the woman's business, the health and direction of the business. the arc of the woman's career and then this thing called social and cultural influence which this year puts oprah number 6 on the list. >> she's really the only standout and pop culture figure on the list, but it's mostly women in business that you're seeing topping the list, right at the top there, you have indra nulie. >> she's been ceo of pepsico for five years. it's the biggest food company in the country and she talks about performance with purpose. and you can laugh about that when they're producing soda and doritos. she really has brought the company in sort of a responsible and healthy direction in terms of healthy foods. >> and given the economic downturn, how she's and a ha e' the country through that, is that how she's maintained that role? >> she made a big acquisition this year, kraft, which is the biggest kaebd company in the world. now imagine that, you thought it was a cheese company, right? it's a $48 billion company. >> and oprah by the way coming in at 6 on the list, when you talk about her, you say that really her own cable network is going to be a big gamble for her. do you think she's still going to maintain or perhaps even move upward on that list? >> i spent about 2 1/2 hours with her and she says she's had this idea to start her own cable network. >> you can see the list of the 50 top women in business. still ahead, is the secrets to saving big, america's cheapest family is going to answer your questions. first this is "today" on nbc. ea. i think we need tax breaks to send kids to college. ea. so i worked for a $2,500 tax credit to help pay for college. fought to get pell grants expanded and insisted that college loans go directly to kids instead of through banks. i'm barbara mikulski. i approve this message. because it's not about the next election, it's about the next generation. right? yeah!!! four years ago, bob ehrlich got fired as governor of maryland. for good reason. first, he protected tax loopholes for giant cable cable companies. then, he let utilities jack up our rates 72%. and for the last four years, he worked as a hired gun for big corporations, even a bank that took billions from a taxpayer funded bailout. ehrlich sides with corporate executives again and again and again tell bob ehrlich big banks and billionares don't need help. middle class marylanders do. it is now 8:39, a confession typically closes a criminal investigation. but in the case of a brutal murder of a nebraska couple, it was only the beginning. keith morrison explains. >> reporter: in a corner of nebraska just south of omaha, where rolling hills and rich topsoils and lasting faith have given roots to generations. farmer wayne stock and his wife charmin. >> i remember both of them just always say live life to the fullest and they did,er day. >> it was either monday 2006 when andy discovered his parents shot to death in cold blood in their own home. daughter tammy. >> never in a million years would you think that you would see your parents' house taped off with that yellow tape. >> reporter: within a few days a nephew of the stocks confessed he did it. and he named an accomplice, his own cousin, amazing how everything fell neatly into place. except it was strange, this one little thing that just didn't fit. a gold ring which turned up in the farmhouse kitchen. who would have imagined that little band of gold actually belonged way up here, 500 miles away in wisconsin, in this pick-up truck to be specific. how the ring got to the stock farmhouse in nebraska had to do with this young woman, here groping for a way to explain. >> i'm not kidding, i did not kill anybody, i promise you guys this. >> reporter: of course she was just trying to please her boyfriend, she said, but was this the truth? or was this what really happened? >> i was just making things up to satisfy you guys. >> reporter: before long the two teens would be convicted and sent to prison for life and the original suspects freed. >> reporter: a lot of the audience watching will say come on, nobody's going to confess to something they didn't do? >> i thought if i told them what they wanted to hear, i could go home. >> you can see more of keith's report on a special "dateline" in the dead of night, that's 8:00, 7:00 central time right here on nbc. up next, what our offices here at "today" say about us. you'll find out, but first this is "today" on nbc. i'm frank kratovil and i approve this message. the real andy harris. buried in his website - a promise to replace the tax code with a 23% sales tax and eliminate the mortgage interest deduction. a bush tax panel said families would pay $6,000 more a year. a reagan tax advisor calls it a very dumb idea. but that's not his only bad idea. harris was the only senator to vote against expanding the child care tax credit and against the state's cancer treatment program. andy harris' extreme ideas will cost us. back now as we look at what your office space says about you. >> jenna wolf says it's time for her office to get a fresh look. so she barged in on me and al. >> i found some inspiration. i stole only tips and the gifts. definitely the gift you guys gave me were helpful. and i have never said this before, my designer really made it happen. >> reporter: if you have to work at your desk, you want to make it your own, or whether you go green or goofy, or chalk full of personality, what you put in your work space says a lot about you. so i enlisted a designer from hgtv to help me transform my unfinished digs into a home away from home. >> what does your office say about you? >> reporter: it's a little empty and lonely. it's not very inviting. >> for me, it says you just moved in here. >> which i did. >> reporter: well sort of. in the five months i have had this space, i did bring in some furniture and a few must-have items. i also had the walls painted my favorite color. >> what does the wall say about me. >> it's kind of a dull color with no vie brabrancy to it. this desk isn't necessarily a bad choice, but it's already clutter. and you know clutter is something people look at first when they come into an office. it shows somebody that's out of control. the best way to show that you've got it all together is clean surfaces and zero clutter. >> so i decided to visit matt, meredith and al for a little bit of inspiration. >> how would you describe your office here? >> it is a product of my anal retentive mind. i like order, i don't want people to mess with my stuff. clutter and disarray make me feel uncomfortable physically, so i like it the way it is. >> reporter: let's go back even further, kindergarten? >> i got a little picked on. >> reporter: how did that make you feel? >> take meredith's office, she doesn't even use it. have you seen it? it's like a storeroom. >> reporter: yeah, she hasn't been here in ages. it's meredith's i.d. she's never been in this building. >> this is your dressing room not your office? >> it is my office because i really don't go to my office. >> are there any items in here that hold true special meaning to you, if there's something you have to grab, you can grab it right away? >> how can i be influenceded in this office/dressing room that could come into my office? how can we do that. >> oh, i have more wine. >> reporter: thank you so much ch. >> thank you jenna. you can use my office. >> reporter: one more time, say it louder. >> i think that's enough. >> reporter: next stop, ann's office, with an old world feel, not to mention her incredible personal photography. >> my advice is make a room that makes you comfortable, because in the chaos of this work, you want to find someplace where you can actually find refuge. >> i was grateful for the advice and her generous gift. >> i think you wear this color very well. >> you do? >> yes. >> last stop, al's office. a colorful collection of memorabilia, photographs, photographs, a unique standing desk and some award winning -- >> how did you get those? because i was kind of looking for something shiny in my office. >> this is what you're giving me? are you really giving it to me for real? >> i am. >> thank you. >> good luck. >> close your eyes, hold your breath. here we go. go. >> oh, get out! >> you like it? >> this is an entirely different place. first of all, there's so much storage. >> there is. >> there's no longer any junk anywhere. >> this table is great, it's low, it's not intrusive. i can talk to somebody right cross from me. what a great idea. look at that, john, i can't begin to tell you how happy i am. >> good luck. >> i'm not leaving, so you'll always know where to find me. >> he made it nice. >> much nicer than i deserve, trurs me. john did a great job, all his tips and everything he got was inspired by and put into my office, you can see everything he did to it piece by piece. >> so you're finally going to get out of meredith's office? >> you say finally, it's only been three weeks. thank you so much for letting me borrow/steal things from your office. up next -- >> can we come visit? >> you know where i'm at? this morning on "today's" kitchen, back to basics, an italian favorite, linguini with clams. full disclosure, win of my favorite restaurants, and when i go there, this is probably my favorite dish. this is a very traditional dish, you try and shake it up a little bit? >> we do shake it up a little bit. we add a little bit of chile and it gives a little bit of richness to the sauce. >> you're using mahogany clams? >> it has a more variety, salty flavor, we take our garlic and we sweat it out good. >> you've just washed these clams, explain what personalipu for the uninitiated? >> it's purging of the sediments. they just exudeded a little bit of their own juice and there is a little bit of sediment in that. >> you put the whole clams in there, you have your olive oil in there, your chili's. >> we're going to add some white wine, because these clams give off a lot of liquid. a little bit of clam stock and we're going to steam them just until they barely open. >> when you say clam stock, what exactly is in slam stock. >> we take chowder clams, a little bit of garlic, white wine. >> steam them open and by the way, if one of them dipt open after the steaming process. >> bye-bye. >> because we don't know what's going to happen with that clam. >> we don't want to get anybody sick. >> how long does that take? >> it generally takes about three to five minutes. >> this is what they should look like. >> is there a mistake that people tend to make when they make pasta with clam sauce. >> they overcook the clams and they get chewy and then they don't cook the pasta long enough. >> so that's the trick at the end? >> or they overcook the pasta to begin with and then it gets mushy. >> a good thing is read the package and cook the pasta at least one minute less than what it says on the package. >> this is a little al dente. >> absolutely. of course. >> you put it in there, the finishing cooking goes with the clams. >> with the clams. and then what we're going to do, we're going to combine it so it cooks into the sauce. so the pasta absorbs all the flavor of the sauce. >> how long would that take? >> usually we do like a minute or two. we're going to add the addition of parsley at the end. if it's a little bit dry, i would take a little bit of the pasta water. >> it just adds to the broth that way. >> adds to the broth? >> so is it possible that that will soak up all the liquids? >> it can. it may even happen "today." >> as a matter of fact, as he heads for the ladle and the juice. >> you just have to be careful because this water is salty. >> all right, cool. so that would cook up, we let it absorb, we plate that and come around here with me, because going along with this, you're going to also make some garlic bread. but this is the ordinary garlic bread. >> what do you put on that. >> we make a little bit of innewsed garlic. >> basically just take the garlic. >> heat it in olive oil. and we're going to remove a little bit of the inside just because of calories. you take a bit of oregano, so we put that on the bread like that. and then we use a little bit of cheese. >> a little bit of cheese? >> a little bit of cheese. >> look at this, you've got three different kinds of cheese there. >> i heard you love cheese. >> if this were my last maeal, would be a happy woman. >> here's what it looks like. david, thank you very much. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. as the area begins to dry out from the remnants of tropical storm, crews are dealing with the aftermath. heavy rain and flood waters created a massive sinkhole, forcing a shutdown of roads. crews in anne arundel county had been working nonstop to repair, the largest >> now let's look at the forecast with john collins. >> still some drizzle in the area but the water is going down. things are straightening out as the storm system starts to pull away. drier air and eventually sunshine to return to the picture. showers to the east of us. 72 to 76 thought. -- the high. >> we will have another weather update at 9:25. i think we need tax breaks to send kids to college. so i worked for a $2,500 tax credit to help pay for college. fought to get pell grants expanded and insisted that college loans go directly to kids instead of through banks. i'm barbara mikulski. i approve this message. because it's not about the next election, it's about the next generation. right? yeah!!! two governors, two different approaches. even in good times bob ehrlich did not make education a priority. he increased college tuition by 40%, cut school construction by $200 million, and ehrlich voted to eliminate the department of education while serving in congress. but martin o'malley, even in the toughest of times,