that sponsored thousands of one day visits from around the nation. >> a beautiful tribute this is, that all these young people thought to do this. >> i think this is absolutely beautiful. i just can't get over it. >> reporter: the budget had the fountain turned off. no park rangers on hand for guided tours. the bathrooms were closed. the shutdown brought disgust from the warriors of the greatest generation. >> it's absurd. there's no compromise. it's ridiculous. >> reporter: what about the fact it was closed when you got here today? >> i didn't like that. it didn't make any sense to me. >> reporter: what is tougher, fighting world war ii or the beaurocracy of congress? >> fighting the beaurocracy of congress. >> reporter: well, the world war ii memorial is closed, again, to the public. the park service is trying to figure out what to do tomorrow

when another two, three, four or five honor flights are expected to arrive. on the national mall, tom sherwood, news 4. federal workers across the region left work early today because of the shutdown. tonight, many are starting to consider what it will mean for them and their households. tracee wilkins is in new carrollton where she caught up with the frustrated employees. >> reporter: i want to show you how serious this is. the th is the irs and the walkway that leads to metro. it's 5:00 p.m. you can count on one hand the number of folks leaving. these are the essential employees brought in today. some people left after four hours of work. all of this has folks taking a look at what the shutdown will mean. it's not good. alexander of new carrollton is not looking forward to his walk home today and the news for his

wife. >> i was hoping this wouldn't happen. it did. >> reporter: he's one of the thousands of federal workers sent home today due to the shut down. >> if they know something, they'll call us. get it to where maybe we can come back. we don't know what's going on. >> reporter: it's not the first time he lost pay unexpectedly. his patience is running thin. >> we were just furloughed in. six days, then they started this all over again, same process. >> i work for u.p.s. we already had furlough days, i worked 39 hours now this. >> reporter: she's in the same boat. >> i have two kids, two in college. it's going to put a dent in the household budget. i mean, there's no way it can't. >> reporter: she worked for the federal government for 30 years and experienced two other shutdowns. this one is particularly nasty. >> there's no promise. you see it on tv. you don't see anybody trying to make a concession.

no one wants to bend. no one. or meet half way. >> reporter: alexander agrees and hopes the call back to work is coming soon. >> i'm going to be short money to pay my bills and my rent. that's all i know. >> reporter: coming up on news 4 at 6:00, we bumped into two co-workers talking to one another. one on her way to work the other out of work. they tell us what they think about the shutdown and how they think it's going to impact them. i'm tracee wilkins, news 4. the d.c. council took a step to keep city workers on the job and stand behind the mayor's decision to keep them there. they approved paying workers from the city cash reserves. the funds could support government operations for a couple weeks, if necessary. it means, for now, employees should continue to report to work where usual. mayor gray designated 32,000

local workers as essential. no surprise, president obama blaming republicans tonight for the shutdown. today, he went further, accusing them of holding the nation's economy hostage. cristen joins us from news from the other end of pennsylvania avenue. >> you are right. president obama had incredibly sharp words for republicans this afternoon during an event in the rose garden. he called it the republican shutdown. basically, what you have where both sides digging in heels. president obama reiterating the fact he is not going to negotiate over the health care law, his signature piece of legislation that went into effect today, those exchanges opened up today. the white house touting the fact that they say more than 2 million people started to go online and sign up. there were glitches today as well. republicans seizing on to that fact. but, in terms of this government shutdown, when you talk to folks here at the white house, on

capitol hill, there's no clear idea about how they are going to end this government shutdown. as you pointed out, at the top of the broadcast, house republicans are going to introduce piecemeal measures to open parts of the government. the senate said that's a nonstarter. jay carney said it's not a serious proposal. what happens now? well, the white house senior administration officials believe republicans are going to blink. they think the public pressure is going to build up so much that republicans will have to act, will have to pass something. i have talked to folks on capitol hill who have a similar calculation, mod ral republicans who believe that is what's going to happen. the question is, when will it happen and will it happen. president obama has an event on thursday. he's going to speak at a construction company. again, will urge congressional republicans to act to pass the continuing resolution. it's the strategy you are going

to see from this president going out and talking to people, talking publicly about this. i don't expect we are going to see a lot of back and forth between the white house and congressional leaders. what they want is the public pressure to build up and see action on capitol hill. jim? >> kristin welker at the white house. stay with news 4 for more. if you are on the go, you can get your latest updates and alerts from www.nbcwashington.com. despite lawmakers attempts to stop the affordable care act, it officially launched today but there were flaws. doreen gentzler is here to explain. >> today is day one. people have started signing um for health care using the health exchanges, the centerpiece of the affordable care act known as obama care. it wasn't the smooth start up that many were hoping for. instead, people trying to enroll found glitches that delayed the process. more than 1 million americans, 1,000 here in d.c. alone opened online accounts today, the first

day of open enrollment. they have until march 30th to sign up for one of three types of insurance plans that differ according to how much consumers want to pay up front or later on for health care. some complained about technical problems including overloaded servers and error messages. president obama hailed the program calling today an historic day. >> life of death stuff. tens of thousands of americans dai-ich year because they don't have health insurance. millions more live with the fear they'll go broke if they get sick. today, we begin to free millions of our fellow americans from that fear. >> this is day one but there is still plenty of time to sign up. if you are still having problems signing up or need assistance or have questions, there are call centers available. the toll free hot line number is

800-318-25 i 800-318-2596. i'm have what states are doing to teach people about the affordable care act. pat? >> thanks. we have a complete breakdown about the health care law on our website. you'll find tools to get the details you need on www.nbcwashington.com search affordable care act. new gun restrictions are officially under way tonight in maryland despite the effort to delay them. a federal judge ruled a lawsuit did not have legal standing. a group of gun rights advocates tried to get a temporary restraining order arguing the restrictions violate the second amendment. among the changes limiting magazines, ten rounds and banning dozens of assault weapons. a change that will impact thousands of students and families. the start time at montgomery county schools could mean more than just more sleep.

we just learned a motorcycle driver who beat a man in his suv has made a new move now. live on capitol hill, members of congress found a way to maintain some of their own perks despite the government shutdown. the news 4 i-team investigates. doug is watching the weather. >> another beautiful day. temperatures today, ten degrees above average. we are going to get

many bikers and runners learned the hard way today, there's no access to the canal locks along the parkway. the entrances are blocked by concrete barriers. >> and will be for as long as the government shutdown continues. no parking in the lots along the road and no biking on the tow path. >> we're not allowed to ride our bicycles on the path because the government is shut down. we can't park on the side of the road. we can't park on the grass. we can't park in the parking lot. >> parkway runs nearly seven miles along the potomac and allows access to glen echo. >> there may be an end to super early morning wake-up calls for high school students in montgomery county. >> the school's superintendent wants to push back the start time from 7:25 to 8:15. >> the same plan calls for a

longer school day for thousands of younger students. mark segraves reports. >> reporter: last year, school superintendent joshua star ordered a study of school start times to see if they could start high school later. it was prompted by the mother of two students who started an online petition that got more than 11,000 signatures. >> it affects the kids, doesn't cost too much but gives high schoolers much needed sleep. they are not sleeping through first period, they are going to be happier and more engaged. >> reporter: today, star released his investigations. >> anything we can do, we will promote. i don't want to suggest it's going to be a silver bullet. >> reporter: he is recommending three changes. high school starts 50 minutes later. middle school ten minutes earlier and elementary schools

stay in school an extra 30 minutes a day. >> it sounds great. i hate waking up early every day. >> reporter: high school students welcome a later start time. staying in school would make it harder for those on sports teams that practice after school. >> i think it will, but as a whole, it will be better for us because we will be more energetic, more prepared for class and perform better. >> most parents didn't see a downside. >> my high schooler would love more sleep. >> reporter: the public will have the opportunity to voice their opinions. the soonest the change would take effect is the 2015-2016 school year. the cost is $12 million a year. mark segraves, news 4. a scary incident in loudoun county for safety of students

walking to school. a driver hit a student in ash burn yesterday. the teenager was treated for minor injuries. the driver got a ticket for failing to yield the right of way. there is new help on hand for emergencies in fairfax county, virginia. the fire department's newest station wolftrap opened up today. it will house more emergency response units by next summer. residents can check out the station during an open house scheduled for saturday. they have big appetites. did you see the freezers and refrigerators? >> did you see the stove? >> they are feeding a lot of folks. you are feeding us with a lot of nice weather. >> 84 today. the average high is 74 and we are hitting 84 today. ten degrees above the average high. i think we are going to get warmer. quite a few of you out there on

facebook telling me hey, a little too warm. where is the cool weather? where is the fall like weather we have had? temperatures outside sitting at 82 degrees. winds northwest at 7 miles per hour. plenty of sunshine once again. it is a very nice day across the region. 79 martinsburg. 82 in culpeper. a cool 73 along the river there. the river along the bay, it is cooler along the water. gaithersburg, 77. speaking of gaithersburg, i need to say hello. these are kindergarteners. take a look at them. you can see their smiling faces. the kids talking about the weather in our region, the kind of weather we get here all season long, fall, winter, summer, spring. they all want snow, hopefully we'll get snow soon later on this year. my winter forecast, about a month away. the storm team 4 radar looking

at dry conditions. we need to see rain. at least now we are starting to see where we could get into at least some rain as we move through the next seven days. not today. a few clouds going through. this is a frontal boundary going through the region. as a matter of fact it's not going to affect us much. 62 in d.c. 54 in leesburg or gaithersburg, rather. 52 in leesburg. culpeper, 52. not the 40s. temperatures are warming up, not just during the day, but at night. speaking of the warmer temperatures, this is where we should be in july and august. 86 in d.c. 87 in manassas. 82 in annapolis. 85 toward the baltimore area. frederick, 86. once again, plenty of sunshine. the next few days, 86 on wednesday. 85 degrees on thursday. 85 on friday. temperatures stay above ten

degrees above average for the next few days. back to 86 on saturday. saturday, another very warm day. then we start to see things get more unsettled here. there's potential monday and tuesday for tropical moisture to work our way. if it does so, we could get a lot of rain. however, some of the computer models backing that up. we have to wait and see what we get out of the next system. hopefully, we get much needed rainfall. it's not going to come during the weekend. we have saturday and sunday looking very nice. a great weekend looking dry for most. really, the only chance of a shower or thunderstorm would be toward the mountains. that would be on sunday. if you are thinking of doing camping, watch for that. that would be sunday afternoon. looking great. once again, the next seven days nice and warm. >> thank you, doug. it's happened again. people getting attacked and robbed. it's the crook's weapon of choice that is concerning to police. football is even getting the boot. we have details coming in about

a big match up in the area. a big match up in the area. it could be ca i was honored to serve as governor of virginia. we brought folks together in richmond to focus on creating jobs and getting results. that's the virginia way. and that's why i'm backing terry mcauliffe for governor. terry won't let ideological battles get in the way of making progress. terry will work with democrats, republicans, and independents to create jobs and move virginia forward. it's important for virginia that we elect terry mcauliffe as our governor.

i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad.

some disappointed visitors in virginia today. they got to the building to find the front gates locked. the museum is an an exof the air and space museum.

like those buildings and the national zoo, it's closed during the shutdown. ♪ god bless america, my home -- >> there are disappointed students, a concert from the air force strings and concert band has been canceled at west potomac high school in fairfax county. >> in addition, the defense department suspended all sports competitions during the shutdown. >> what does it mean for the navy/air force game this weekend? >> dianna russini is here with the answer. diana? >> we have been on top of this story all day amist lots of reports. the big football game has not been canceled, yet. other sporting events have started to get postponed. the navy men's soccer game is canceled. the big question is saturday's sold out navy football game against rival air force of

annapolis. itis more of an event than a game. it's something the entire city rallies around. according to the navy, a decision on whether they can play will be made thursday at noon. when i reached out to the air force's athletic department, this is the message i received. >> i am out of the office on government furlough due to mandatory shutdown. i'm not permitted access to e-mail, voice mail or cell phone until we are notified the government reopened. >> here we are trying to communicate with the departments but can't get in touch with them. fans will know by noon thursday if saturday's 11:30 a.m. showdown will be played. while the government is shutting down the nhl season is starting up. the capitals in chicago to face the stanley cup champs. tonight, they have to watch chicago raise the championship banner. they are thinking maybe it will provide a distraction.

>> you hope the amount of time that is going to take, they will probably be standing out on the ice and reliving all those terrible feelings they had from winning last year that their minds aren't going to be in the game, hopefully. hope you can jump on them. it's a stanley cup team over there. still a stanley cup team. it's going to be tough to get them off the game. >> good to have the season back. more coming up at 6:00. we were at navy's football practice today. you will hear from the guys getting caught up in the shutdown. >> thanks. d.c. isn't the only place shutting down tourist attractions. we have more. >> shuttered sightseeing spots, in st. louis, missouri, the arch was closed today. visitors hoping to take a tour were turned away. the entrance to the arch was barricaded. in south carolina, the

battlefield was closed due to the shutdown. national parks, all battlefields are closed. nasa feeling the pain due to the shutdown. marshall space center in huntsville, alabama forced to furlough thousands of employees. at the live desk, i'm barbara harrison. pat? >> right now at 5:00, new developments on a road rage attack. >> the case that's gone viral. >> a motorcycle driver attacks a man in front of his wife and kids. what sparked the violence? and what happened to the guy who punched in this window. >> hundreds of thousands of government workers are forced off the job. the i-team is working to see why some lawmakers are enjoying congressional perks. >> parks pa

it's now hour 17 of the federal government shut doudown. the impact is being felt. >> from children to cyclists cut off the paths. >> all this as federal workers wait to see how long they are going to be shutdown. government workers aren't the only ones impacted by the shutdown. >> hundreds of federal government contractors are

sending workers home early. julie carey joins us live from tyson's corner with their story. >> reporter: the ripple effect of the shutdown is beyond federal employees to though who are contractors doing business with the federal government. i found inside a virtual ghost town. normally a busy tech company that works as a government contractor, this is what you will find inside the office today. lots of empty desks. at least half of this award winning company's 400 employees have been told to stay at home. the government shutdown means stop work orders. >> this is impacting jobs. this is impacting people's lives, folks on the hill that turned it into a bargaining chip. jobs should never be about this is what i want and i'm going to twist everybody's arm until i get it. >> reporter: the employees told to stay home like the one

working inside this cubicle yesterday will be paid for the time being, but only until their vacation time runs out. after that, things worsen. >> a nagging word. >> reporter: he develops future projects. after finishing one final task, he's grabbing his backpack and heading home. for how long? he doesn't know. his son is a graduate. >> i have my children, my daughter works for a government contractor. she called last night worried like what am i supposed to do, dad? >> this co-worker is headed home to begin his paid time off worries most about the young employees. >> my heart goes out, really, to them. it's so much harder on them than it is, you know, on some of us that are more senior. >> reporter: the ceo says his company can weather about 21 shutdown days. after that -- >> what we are hoping is this will get resolved sooner rather

than later and we won't end up with something ugly where people aren't getting paid and small businesses start to go under. >> reporter: now coming up on news 4 at 6:00, the shutdown is having a big impact in the virginia governor's race. i'll look at which candidate could be hurt the most by it. reporting live from fairfax county, julie carey, news 4. the panda cam is currently off because of the shutdown. yesterday, it was up and rolling and running and feeding live pictures of the new panda cub. this morning, the camera was off. they tweeted cameras there were shut off because they require federal resources to run and the government deemed them unessenti unessential. a twist tonight, the visitor center at the u.s. capital is shut down. tours are suspended. usually, visitors get to see the

capital and rarely seen documents during that tour. but not now. congress is gridlocked. federal workers throughout the area are furloughed because of the gridlock. congress is still spending tax money on its own offices to keep their own operations running. the news 4 i-team spread out on capitol hill to look at the conveniences, the perks they are enjoying amid the shutdown. >> via twitter and facebook, people complaining members of congress are getting their $174,000 a year salary as so many government workers are furloughed without a paycheck. it's not just the pay. members of the house and senate receiving the conveniences, the subway system that spares them a walk from offices still operating. the graphics department that makes signs still operating, too. the privately run cafeteria and the banks that allow them to

grab a sandwich or book of stamps within steps of their office also still open. >> part of the frustration taxpayers have is when the government shuts down, congress doesn't. congress continues to get paid, a handsome sum and they get their perks and benefits. >> another controversy, the tv studio in the u.s. house. why it's so controversial to some and the leaders donating their paychecks during the shutdown on news 4 at 6:00. scott macfarlane, news 4 i-team. >> thank you, scott. the rescue mission is over. find out how a hiking trip ended in tragedy for one family. plus, they are using stun guns to rob people. still to come tonight on news 4 at 5:00, new details on the crime wave hitting d.c. we are talking about another beautiful day. temperatures today ten degrees above average. take a look at this shot from the reston camera as we look to

tyson's corner. it's nice if you are doing shopping today.

a number of buildings in and around the u.s. capital are closed right now because of the government shutdown. that includes the visitor center and the library of congress. people trying to get in found

roped off areas and signs saying the facilities are closed. some furloughed workers say the shutdown isn't only weighing on them, it's punishing their kids. >> take a look at this picture from a parent who brought her kid to the park to discover they were locked out. >> chris gordon is there with another look. a look at another side of the shutdown that's got residents angry. chris? >> reporter: i want to share a secret with you. the gate here at lincoln park at the playground is locked, but take a look at what's happening in the last hour or so. parents found a gate in the back, a second gate in the back and brought their kids on to the playground. it shows the frustration building over the federal government shutdown. karen is a furloughed federal employee. she brought her newborn and 2-year-old son martin here to lincoln park, a short walk from their home on capitol hill. >> my son is at day care at the

federal building, and that is also closed. we decided to come to the playground. it's a national park facility, so it's closed. we were disappointed. >> reporter: the playground is padlocked. parents taking photos in disbelief. her son, martin, like many kids, was locked out, looking in. >> for him to stand and look through the fence at the playground that is padlocked and he's not allowed to get in. for me, it's a meaningful moment. i wanted to remember this. i'm a government employee. i want to remember how important my work is. this is a clear demonstration of the work we do affected families. it's not just something that happens on capitol hill. >> reporter: she is just one of the parents frus raited. >> it's ridiculous. >> reporter: you brought how many youngsters? >> two. they need to run out energy. it's ridiculous. >> reporter: your message to congress would be -- >> for the love of god, figure

out out. >> reporter: now, here is the secret i want to share with you. as we look at the parents who snuck in the back gate, they are hoping, if the federal government remains shutdown tomorrow there will be nobody working to lock the back gate, so they are hoping to come back to lincoln park on the playground despite the padlock. that's the latest in northeast washington. chris gordon, live for news 4. planned parenthood is just a text message away. now we are learning how this high-tech connection is really working for women and counselors. >> going home early. the transportation impact from the transportation impact from the government shut "i'm terry mcauliffe, candidate for governor, and i sponsored this ad." these are birth control pills. more than half of american women use them at some point in their lives but ken cuccinelli sponsored a bill that could have made common forms of birth control illegal, including the pill.

cuccinelli was one of only five senators to support this "potentially radical intrusion into domestic, family and individual decision-making" why is ken cuccinelli interfering in our private lives? he's focused on his own agenda. not us.

the centers for disease control in atlanta works around the clock to find, stop and prevent disease outbreak. they say the government shutdown will impact it. the start of flu season will go unmonitored and no investigations into disease outbreaks in multiple states. tonight d.c. police are trying to figure out if a series of robberies are related. >> pat collins is live near one of the most recent scenes at 10th and v northwest.

pat? >> it's a disturbing trend, robbers using tasers to attack and intimidate their victims. it happened three times last week. but now the number is five. 300 tennessee avenue northeast. 6:00 a.m. sunday morning. a man is delivering newspapers in his toyota car. a guy approaches the delivery man. he's got a taser in his hand. he says give it up. he takes the delivery man's keys. he takes the delivery man's car. then the robber, he takes off. >> it's horrible that kind of thing still happens in that neighborhood. >> it's unfortunate, it is. >> a lot of desperate people out here right now. >> reporter: sunday night, about 8:30 p.m., the 2100 block of 10th street northwest, a man is walking down the alley, he's

texting on his cell phone, when he gets to the mouth of the alley, he's approached by four men. two here, two there. one of the men says good evening. after that, things break bad. he gets tased in his back. he falls to the ground. the robbers take his cell phone, then they take off. david evans, a neighbor, came to the aid of the victim. >> the four sort of joined around him and one tasered him and he went down and he hurt his back pretty bad when he went down. >> reporter: what did they take? >> took his iphone. >> reporter: that's it? >> his iphone. they weren't interested in anything else. >> they are wanted in connection with three taser attacks and robberies last week along n street and northwest near the convention center. police are looking into the possibility all five taser incidents may be related. now it's against the law to carry a taser in the streets of

washington. use it to commit a crime and the penalty goes up. live in northwest, pat collins, news 4. new developments in that case of road rage involving a group of bikers and the driver of an suv. our sister station, wnbc reports a biker wanted for questioning turned himself in this afternoon. he's accused of assaulting the driver following a dispute and the high speed chase on the highway. the suv driver was pulled out of the car and beaten in front of his wife and 2-year-old daughter. another biker is still being sought in this attack. a third biker was arrested this morning. late word from colorado that the bodies of five hikers have been recovered from a mountainside. the victims are believed to be members of one family. officials say they were caught in a rock slide along a popular trail. some of the boulders were as

large as a car, weighing more than a ton. one lone survivor, a 13-year-old girl was pulled from the rubble. she says she survived because at the last minute, her father shielded her body as the rocks roared down. in news 4 your health, an effort to make planned parentho parenthood. you can chat if you have questions or need advice. it was launched three years ago. they have reached more than 250,000 people through texts or live chats. it's according to "the new york times." the discussions are all anonymous. the new health care law can be confusing the terms like health exchange, medicaid expansion and government subsidies. it's no wonder a lot of folks don't understand how the affordable care act works. that's where the assisters or navigators come in. doreen gentzler has more on the

people whose job it is to help others learn about health care. >> instead of being angry or sue for money, do something to help my community. >> reporter: when this 28-year-old's grandmother passed away, she decided she didn't want to see anyone else suffer because they couldn't get the best health care. >> i lost my grandmother due to inadequate health care. she didn't have the proper information to help her. >> reporter: she's learning how to educate others on the affordable care act. it gives more people access to health insurance. she's one of d.c.s assisters, a group of 150 people whose job is to spread the word and teach people about the nation's new health care laws. >> basically be able to walk them through the process of being able to get health insurance, which is something everybody should have. >> aaron is the director of public benefits for whitman walker health. she's helping train the districts assisters who all work

for different community based organizations including immigrant and faith based groups. >> they go out into the community and talk through the trusted networks, people they are used to serving about the new options available. >> reporter: it's an effort to educate people about a law many admit they don't understand. according to one study out monday, only two in five americans were aware of the new state run health insurance marketplaces called exchanges. and there are government subsidies to help people pay the premiums. >> i think our population isn't well informed on health care. >> reporter: jose works at mary's center. he's training to be an assister. he says many clients are unaware they will soon be able to purchase their own health insurance. >> there's a lot of hearsay.

>> reporter: they start their new roles today, the first day people can sign up to buy individual insurance plans through the health exchanges. carter says she wishes her grandmother was still alive so she could see how she's helping her community. >> she would be proud. >> reporter: doreen gentzler, news 4. >> the assister program in d.c. is similar to the navigators in maryland and virginia. all the jobs were created through federal grants built into the affordable care act. you can access them online and by phone. go to www.nbcwashington.com and search aca. >> let's get the latest on the weather. doug, what is the night looking like? >> probably one of the best evenings we have seen. tonight is looking nice. take a look outside right now. this sets the scene here. plenty of blue skies. one little sailboat out there on the potomac. temperatures across the area, 82

degrees, mostly sunny skies, plenty of sunshine. temperatures dropping to 79 by 7:00. 75 by 9:00. 72 by 11:00. i don't think we'll need the jackets if you are stepping out. that's good news, too. i want to show you about october. october highlights, this is what we start as we look at the month of october. october 1st, 74. it's the average high. by the end of the month, 64. the average low goes from 56 to 46 degrees. we go from a sunset of 6:50 today to 6:08 by the end of the month. we lose close to 1:15 of sunlight between now and the end of the month of october. we have a lot going on over the next 30 days or so. 80 degrees in rockville. camp springs 81 degrees. as we move through the next couple days, we are going to stay on the warm side. average high is 74. we are going to be well above that by about 12 degrees to 86 wednesday. 85 thursday. 85 on friday.

the warmth continues into the weekend. talking 86 on saturday. 85 on sunday. then the potential is there for heavy rain monday and tuesday. this is a system we are going to have to watch closely. some of the computer models not giving us much at all. we continue to watch this one. if you have been watering your lawn, hopefully mother nature will help out next week. the white house is responding to house republicans latest funding effort. barbara harrison is at the live desk with the reaction. barbara? >> the white house is responding to the house republicans vote that is under way right now. a white house spokesperson says the president will veto any piecemeal efforts to extend government funding. house republicans debating three bills and are expected to send something to the senate later tonight. the president shot down that effort saying they need to pass a clean bill. we'll update you on this. at the live desk, i'm barbara harrison. an early rush hour today

thanks to the government shutdown. find out how it's impacting the way we get around whether or not you are a federal worker. >> reporter: two federal workers impacted by the shutdown, one on her way into work, the other on her way out. they work for the same agency but looking at different situations. i'm tracee wilkins. coming up on

let's check out what stories are trending online. a local police department is concerned about your iphone and ipad updates. they want everyone to install the latest operating system because the new operating system has an activation lock feature that makes devices harder to use or wipe clean if they are stolen. online video sensations are about to get new reck nation. youtube is holding the first ever awards show. it's coming up november 3rd. the site now owned by google is helping launch careers like just tin bieber and gangnam style. the 90 minute award show will hand out seven awards. >> googles home page is paying tribute to yosemite national park. unfortunately, for people trying to visit the landmark, it's

closed, until further notice. it's among 59 national parks impacted by the government shutdown. from the parks to the roads to the rails, the impact of the government shutdown is noticeable today. >> adam tuss is live in vienna where he caught up with metro liders as they arrive from work earlier than usual. >> reporter: lots of metro riders sent home early. the government workers getting an early release. the impact, the transportation impact not just felt on the rails but the roads. even for cyclists. >> we were just told no work as of today. no work, just close down your office and stay home. >> reporter: these two furloughed federal employees were out on a bike ride along beach drive in rock creek park, which, ironically was closed because of the government shutdown. for them, cycling a distraction.

>> we are not being paid as of today. we are doing the best we can. we are making lemons out of lemons. >> reporter: they found certain parts closed because of the shutdown. >> i have to turn around and go the other way. we can't go through because of the furlough? that's crazy. >> reporter: on metro, more ridesers during the afternoon hours. some federal workers upset by it all. a lot of uncertainty about what's going to happen. >> reporter: others trying to make sense. >> it's silly. i don't understand. >> reporter: she says the shutdown won't be easy. >> 800,000 employees, yeah. i have some reserves. some people are going to find it very, very hard. >> reporter: metro could be hit hard. 40% of rush hour riders are federal employees. metro says if they start to notice fewer riders throughout the week, it will make adjustments and send shorter

trains on to the tracks. back here now at the metro station, many federal workers trying to put the best face possible on the entire situation. reporting live, adam tuss, news 4. here is what's happening right now. the house is in the middle of the first and only votes of the night. a bill that partially opens parts of the federal government. today, president obama blamed the republicans for the shutdown while workers, he said, just want to get a paycheck. >> nobody gets to hurt our economy and millions of hard working families over a law you don't like. >> they should get their act together and fix the problem. >> people who work their behinds off to go to work every day to find out they are going to be cut. >> one congressman couldn't take it. what he did to allow world war ii veterans to get a look at the memorial that was supposed to be off limits.

>> good evening, i'm doreen gentzler. >> i'm jim vance. 800,000 federal workers were told they are out of work for the shutdown. no paychecks coming. how long it will last, nobody knows. national landmarks closed. children locked out of parks. the house is voting on three bills to give veterans access to the v.a. and helping the d.c. government stay open and pay workers. however, senate democrats are not interested in voting on things like that. steve handelsman has the report. >> reporter: thanks, good evening. here on capitol hill, house republicans are considering three bills to partly reopen government, but they have already been rejected by senate democrats. that's how intense this fight is over obama care. that's what it's about. so intense that neither side wants to guess how long government will stay partly shut down. mall closed and the