♪ amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff bennet is away. on "the newshour" tonight -- israeli forces continue operations in gaza and violence escalates in the occupied west bank as palestinian civilians remain cut off from critical aid. protests continue against a proposed police training facility in atlanta despite a crackdown on demonstrations. and major questions about water rights remain in maui as communities continue the long recovery from wildfires. >> in these incredibly isolated

island communities, water was and remains the source of all life. in many ways, i mean, this is a fight for the soul of hawaii. ♪ >> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions, and friends of the newshour, including jim and nancy goldman and kathy and paul anderson. >> it was like an a-ha moment, this is what i love doing.

people who know know bdo. >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation, fostering informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. ♪ >> and with ongoing support of these individuals and institutions -- and friends of "the newshour." ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station by viewers like you. thank you. amna: welcome to the newshour. united nations officials said today starvation was an increasing possibility in gaza,

as they were forced to stop food and aid deliveries due to a lack of fuel. the communications blackout continues, with no generator power. israel has now said it will allow two tankers a day to enter for u.n. operations, about half what they need, and that's just for the most vital operations. palestinian officials said today that the death toll has surpassed 12,000. leila molana-allen reports. leila: in central gaza's camp residents search the rubble , for the living and the dead. their bare hands their only tools, after an israeli airstrike reportedly killed at least 40 people. in southern gaza's khan younis, once a refuge for the abu zanad family, now smashed concrete. hani abu zanad has lost hope. hani: every second of every minute there's a massacre. what humanitarian ceasefires? they say the south is safe, what

safety? leila: just yesterday, israeli forces dropped leaflets warning khan younis residents to move elsewhere. many here were forced to leave their homes in north gaza. they came here because the idf told them the south is safe. alaa abu hasira has lost 11 members of her family, including both her children. alaa: we were in gaza city, and as a result of the conflict we moved to khan younis. all my sisters died, and my son and daughter also. i wish i had taken her in my arms, and my twin sister also died. leila: south gaza's nasser hospital is overwhelmed. streams of wounded are brought here, including children. two sharing a single bed, as doctors pump oxygen manually. babies injured by burning shrapnel and falling buildings. the grief is crippling.

in the north, idf troops occupied parts of gaza city's al-shifa hospital for a third day. yesterday the idf released this video of weapons they say were found on the hospital grounds. but so far, they have not shown evidence of their claim that hamas runs a command center underneath al-shifa. dr. ahmed el mokhallalati is a senior plastic surgeon inside al-shifa. dr. mokhallalati: they have found nothing. they have found no single resistance. no single gunshot against them, within the hospital area. it's totally aggressive. this attack on the hospital, which is totally full of civilian patients. leila: the hospital has been under siege for over a week. he described the terrifying conditions inside. dr. mokhallalati: the snipers have almost shot everyone who tried to move within that building. we can move only in the middle of the day. if i have any patient who needs help, i can't go there. there is no communication at all. it is totally scary. we can see them checking and searching this part of the

hospital -- [sound of gunshot] -- and no one is firing against them. they keep bombing all the areas around. they keep firing all over the areas. leila: palestinian health officials say more than 600 patients, including 36 premature babies, remain trapped inside the hospital. six babies have died. and thousands of displaced civilians are still taking shelter in the hospital complex in israel. -- complex. in israel, 65 year old yehudit weiss's family is in mourning. weiss was one of around 240 hostages kidnapped by hamas terrorists on oct 7. yesterday, the idf recovered her body from near al-shifa. her brother avishay kaminer feels betrayed. avishay: such tragedies could have been avoided if we only had someone who really cared about all those kidnapped, those

kidnapped. leila: in the occupied west bank's jenin refugee camp, hundreds gathered for the funeral of three men killed last night in israeli drone strikes. the idf said at least five militants were also killed in fighting. more than 200 palestinians have been killed by the idf since oct 7. israeli forces also raided hospitals in jenin. eyewitness video shows medical staff coming out of a hospital with their hands up. hospitals, protected by international law, are increasingly under attack in this war. palestinians, homeless and helpless, say they have no safe harbors left. for "the pbs newshour," i'm leila molana-allen. ♪ stephanie: i'm stephanie sy with "newshour west." here are the latest headlines.

former president donald trump has fended off another legal attempt to keep him off the republican primary ballot. a colorado judge today found that trump engaged in insurrection during the january 6 attack on the capitol, but said it is not clear the 14th amendment bars insurrectionists from the presidency. courts in minesota and michigan have rejected similar efforts to keep trump off primary ballots. a government shutdown has been averted -- for now. president biden signed into law a temporary spending bill to maintain funding for at least two more months as congress negotiates a long-term package. the bill does not include a white house request for wartime aid to israel and ukraine. in ukraine, the country's military says it's making gains in the kherson region. the ukrainian marine corps claimed today more than 1200 russian troops have died in the operation, and that they've destroyed dozens of russian tanks, combat vehicles and artillery systems.

ukrainian troops aim to push russian forces from the eastern bank of the dnipro river. that could open a route to russian-annexed crimea. flooding in eastern africa has now claimed the lives of least 130 people. heavy rains since october have inundated parts of ethiopia, kenya and somalia, in what aid agencies have called a once-in-a-century event. people in kenya had to hold on to ropes to cross streets today, after downpours submerged parts of mombasa. residents are frustrated their government hasn't done more to help. joseph: as you can see, everything has been damaged. operations have stalled. many people have been affected, everywhere is flooded with water. we elected leaders but we can't see any help. we are asking the government to come and work on the drainage. stephanie: the deluge comes after parts of the region experienced their worst drought in four decades. back in this country -- former

first lady rosalynn carter is now in hospice care at her home in plains, georgia. the carter center said the 96-year-old -- who is suffering from dementia -- has been spending time with her family, including former president jimmy carter. mr. carter -- who is 99 -- has been in home hospice care since february. and, it's beginning to look a lot like christmas today in washington with the arrival of this year's capitol christmas tree. the 63-foot norway spruce made the journey all the way from west virginia's monongahela national forest. each year a different national forest provides the tree for the west lawn of the u.s. capitol. the holiday tradition dates all the way back to 1964. still to come on "the newshour" -- jonathan karl discusses his new book on donald trump's influence over the gop. how some arab and muslim americans view u.s. support for israel, and how it might affect their votes.

david brooks and jonathan capehart weigh in on the week's political headlines. and much more. >> this is "the pbs newshour" from weta studios in washington, and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. amna: dozens of people in atlanta are facing racketeering charges in connection with protests over what they call "cop city" -- a proposed training center for police and firefighters. william brangham has the story. protests against this proposed -- william: protests against this proposed 85 acre training center have been going on for more than two years. in january, protestor manuel terán was killed in a gunfight with police, as they were clearing out a site where activists were camped. this summer, the state's attorney general, chris carr, obtained a sweeping indictment using the state's anti-racketeering law, charging 61 protesters, characterizing

them as "militant anarchists." this week, hundreds of marchers were met with flash bangs and tear gas. and today, more crowds gathered near the proposed training site, again calling for a halt to the project. chamian cruz is a reporter for wabe who is covering it all. welcome back to the program. these protests have been going on a long time and there's only different for -- different groups. environmentalist, faith leaders, indigenous tribes. what is it they most object to about this facility? chamian: there are a lot of layers to this and people have been protesting this project for more than two years because it is an 85 acre facility estimated to cost about $90 million and it is going in an area where it is surrounded by low income, majority black neighborhoods.

people say it will disproportionately affect these people. a lot of people say they don't want to hear officers firing their guns and training in their backyards. william: what do police and city officials who approved the project say they need it for? chamian: the mayor has said the project is needed to have a well-trained police force and also firefighters, and it is needed for de-escalation training and to boost morale, to recruit more officers. william: the siting of a police training facility, do you have a sense of why this has set off a furor? chamian: protests of been going on within two years and i started covering it in january when state troopers shot and killed a protester at the site. that's when people around the country started paying more attention to what is going on

here. after that shooting happened, a special prosecutor investigated the case and in late august he determined the shooting was justified and he would not be pressing charges or bringing charges against the officers involved. that has only sparked even more protests. william: the attorney general is using rico laws, normally used against organized crime, to go after some protesters. what is he alleging they are doing that as part of this illegal conspiracy? chamian: he is alleging protesters are organizing around the country to raise funds and commit violent acts. earlier this year people in the city were marching and they started destroying several buildings and setting police cars on fire. they are calling this organized crime and that's why they are bringing racketeering charges. william: i see.

the protesters that were charged, where do their cases stand? chamian: the 61 protesters were arraigned earlier this month. at that arraignment, we learned that state prosecutors collected about five terabytes of evidence and we expect the defense to take months to review all of this. at that hearing, a judge set a final plea hearing for june, next summer. we expect that to go on for months. william: i know you've been on the ground talking to some protesters themselves. do you have a sense of how long they are willing to keep the protest up? chamian: that's a question i've been asking people every time i am out there and they always tell me, we will not stop, that the racketeering charges, they see them as an attempt to silence people and stop them

from protesting. they always tell me we will keep going, even if the project is completed, we will be protesting. this is one of the largest facilities of this kind in the country. since the project has started construction, we've seen other cities also trying to build their own police training center. william: there is a public referendum that opponents have been gathering signatures for. they hope that we'll get to the ballot and be voted on. this is something that atlanta's mayor has dismissed. i wonder how the mayor has been navigating this entire crisis? chamian: when organizers began collecting signatures, he said he would stand back and allow the process to go through. but once the organizers submitted, 116,000 signatures, double the amount they needed to get on the ballot, now the case is in legal limbo.

he said it isn't valid and the city has refused to begin verifying these signatures. there is a hearing scheduled for next month where a judge will determine next steps. william: chamain, thank you for bringing us up to speed. ♪ amna: still a year to go before election day 2024, and the republican presidential field continues to shrink. so far, polls have shown that former president trump continues to lead the field, and could likely be the party's nominee to challenge president joe biden. jonathan karl is abc's chief washington correspondent and the author of "tired of winning: donald trump and the end of the grand old party." jon joins me now. jon karl, welcome to "the newshour." thanks for joining us. jonathan: thanks for having me, amna. amna: so you write that trump

today has remade the party in his own image. what does that mean? what are the key ways the party is different today than it was, say, back in 2015? jonathan: the party is largely driven around him. his personality. the image of trump as the guy that is the ultimate winner the , image that he's cultivated for himself. policy seems to have receded into the background. i mean, there are a few broad brush strokes on things like immigration, tariffs, largely a more isolationist approach to the world. it's very different on those policies from the party of reagan and mccain and bush and romney. it's a very, very different party. in fact, most of those figures, certainly the bushes, romney, you know, john mccain before his death, had essentially been banished from the party once trump came in. i think it's a very different party. amna: when you look at just some

of the events we've seen among republican lawmakers in the last few weeks, there was the chaos of electing a new speaker in the house. there was an alleged shove between the former speaker and one of the people who voted to oust him, a sitting senator threatening to fight a hearing witness. our -- are all of these sort of characteristics in that new party in the image of trump? jonathan: i mean, it's toughness, it's brashness. it's image over substance. i think a lot of that for sure. and it's interesting with, you know, mccarthy is one of the people that helped donald trump come back. you know, he left the white house in 2021 in disgrace. he was a defeated president and impeached president, a president that was facing all but certain legal process, criminal prosecutions. and kevin mccarthy went down to visit him eight days after he left the white house. i think largely the calculus he wanted to get trump's support,

at least not have trump working against him so he could become speaker of the house. but it followed a pattern. so many people who have come into contact with trump, whether it's his opponents or his allies or people who have worked for him, have had their lives turned upside down. kevin mccarthy did get elected speaker. it wasn't easy. and then he got unceremoniously pushed aside. amna: the party had chances to break with president trump. we thought january 6 might be one of those dates. and you include this remarkable photo from right after vice president pence was evacuated. his wife is literally closing curtains in their new secure room to try to hide them from view as protesters outside are chanting "hang mike pence." when you ask mr. trump about that, a few months later, he makes excuses for that. he defends those people. and you write this in the book. "i figured these words would surely be the last straw, driving top republicans to finally disavow the leader of their party once and for all. but that is not what happened." why not? jonathan: well, and the specific

quote from back then that i thought was so incredibly damning is that he was defending the people that were calling for pence's execution. he was saying, well, they were angry. and then he went further to say that how could you pass on a fraudulent vote? in other words, making the argument, making the case for those that were arguing, you know, chanting, hang mike pence . to this day he has never criticized those chants. he has never said anything remotely critical about that, about that whole effort. and in my interview, he was justifying it. look, i think that what happened is two very critical moments. one, as i mentioned, mccarthy going to see him just after he left the white house. the other, though, was ronna mcdaniel. trump threatened the day that he left the white house on january 20, 2021, he threatened to leave the republican party and start his own party. and ronna mcdaniel begged him to stay in. and then when that didn't work,

she threatened him -- her and the leadership of the rnc, made it clear they were going to stop paying his legal bills and they were going to make it virtually impossible for him to raise money the way he had been raising money using their mailing list. and trump relented and he stayed in the party. i mean, what if mccarthy had said good riddance? i'm not going to go back there and kiss the ring again. i am not going to -- trump's gone. we have to move forward. what if ronna mcdaniel said, go ahead. try it. try to make your own party. at that point, he you know, he was disgraced. his popularity was at an all time low. and they instead felt that they needed to bring him in to keep him in, because if he left the hardcore supporters, even if it wasn't a majority of the party at that point, would leave and they would have a hard time winning. well, guess what? he stayed and then they went and lost over and over and over again. amna: this is your third book

about trump. and after the second one, "the trail, -- "betrayal," you said that you felt a degree of optimism as you finished it because at the time mr. trump and others efforts to overturn the election didn't work and the system held. how do you feel now going into 2024? jonathan: well, i think it's an ominous time. this is this is actually a different trump. many of the characteristics are the same, but he is far more willing even than he was on january 6th, i think, to trash the norms of american democracy, the things that make american democracy work. and he has many fewer restraints, virtually no restraints. because on january 6th, my optimism was based on the fact that there were good people around him, people who supported him, who refused to do his will at the end when he tried to break the system. well, those people are gone now. i'm still optimistic by nature. i look at the way voters rejected in the midterm

elections, the efforts to, you know, the lies about the election being stolen. so i'm still ultimately optimistic about all of this. but the bottom line is the people that stood up to him have been exiled from the republican party. and this is going to be a tough battle. amna: jon karl is the chief washington correspondent for abc news and the author of the new book, "tired of winning: donald trump and the end of the grand old party." jon, thank you. good to talk to you. jonathan: thank you, amna. ♪ amna: president biden's response to the ongoing israeli and hamas war has angered muslim and arab americans. those voters represent a key voting block for democrats that helped biden win in the swing state of michigan in 2020. here's laura barron lopez with more. laura: amna, the biden administration has vowed

unequivocal support to israel and refuses to call for a cease-fire as more than a reported 11,000 palestinians have been killed. biden has repeatedly called for extended humanitarian pauses to aid civilians in gaza and recover hostages. but arab and muslim voters say it's not enough. >> i live in dearborn heights, michigan. i work in education. >> 31 years old, i was born and raised in dearborn michigan. >> i am a law student at the university of michigan. >> i am the founding director of health and chief public health officer for the city of dearborn. when you cast aside the numbers of palestinians that have been killed, in response to a question around the cease-fire, which in my view is the most bare minimum request that can be made at this point, and the response being none, no

possibility of a cease-fire, from the president of the united states, we have no choice but to think about reconsideration of our vote in 2024. >> a group of us have submitted hundreds of calls to state senators, u.s. house of representatives. we haven't received any call backs. >> they feel betrayed, dehumanized, demoralized by our administration. what we are witnessing is their loyalty to the air american community is dispensable. >> a lot of us come from backgrounds of war. my family is in southern syria. they know war far too well. a lot of folks in dearborn lived through war in lebanon, in yemen. palestinians themselves whose connection to gaza and west bank

is well documented. this community knows more all too well. >> i don't think our elected officials are doing enough to address the harm of the type of rhetoric they are using and we are seeing very real consequences even just within the united states. there was a six euro boy killed in chicago. there has been a rise in islamophobia. this hasn't been given nearly enough weight as it should be. >> i don't think there is any way to walk back from this, rolling out a strategy to combat islamophobia too late. >> they want to end islamic folio but then there is conflation of muslim activism with antisemitism and hate speech. the language used by the white house and democratic party is rooted in islamophobia. it is emblematic of the

censorship of muslim voices in america. >> there has always been a push post 9/11 to have sitting at the table so our voices were heard, but we are seeing today especially that all of those conversations and the opportunities we've had to have our voice heard has only fallen upon deaf ears. why are we even bothering to have a seat at the table and bothering to share our voices when no one is was ning to anything we have to say and then continue to misinterpret, misconstrue or miss use the words we do share? it is putting us in a position where you are dammed if you do and damned if you don't. >> the reality we are facing as voters is we are no longer voting for the lesser of two evils.

laura: muslim and arab leaders are warning the party that if president biden doesn't change his approach, he may lose their support in 2024. a recent newshour/marist poll found that 34 percent of democrats disapprove of biden's handling of the conflict, up from 19% of democrats last month. joining me now to discuss the political ramifications is wa'el alzayat, ceo of the muslim advocacy group emgage. thank you for being here. what are you hearing from muslim and arab voters about president biden's handling of the israel-hamas conflict? wa'el: we are hearing a deep frustration, anger, sadness and a feeling of the trail. the muslim american community found that 85% of muslim voters, those who cast a ballot, said they voted for joe biden and many of them organized and contributed.

certainly in protection of our democracy and to get rid of donald trump. now they feel that but trail, having supported and administration that said they value a democracy, uphold human rights, essentially giving a carte blondish -- carte blance to someone like netanyahu. there are concerns that it will become uninhabitable and burden the region for generations to come. laura: the administration will say they try to stress to netanyahu to abide by the laws of war, but in a state like michigan and a population where there is a large population of muslim voters, president biden won by a margin of 154,000 votes. you think the president could lose that statement dear?

wa'el: absolutely, and given the polling we are seeing, the president behind in states like michigan, the election will probably be closer to what he 16 when donald trump won the state by 11,000 votes. according to the data of those registered in casting ballots, there are 205,000 gestured muslim -- registered muslim voters, it could have an impact. laura: will arab and muslim voters vote for the republican nominee, will they stay home or vote third-party? wa'el: we need understand that muslim american voters, like all american voters of different background, understand what is at stake next year. we have lived through maga republicans, muslim band, and the bigotry.

people of all backgrounds. we are way ahead of the elections next year, where today only 5% are telling us they will vote for joe biden, which is way down from the 5% i mentioned however, -- the 85% i mentioned. however right now we are focused on the cease-fire and getting humanitarian assistance. laura: you mentioned trumps muslim ban. he has said he would extend that if he wins reelection in 2024 and specifically said he would bar refugees from gaza. are the voters you are talking to aware of that potential consequence if they vote third-party or decide to stay home? wa'el: they absolutely are, which is what is so frustrating. as americans, look, joe biden and the democrats will tape the tent party -- democrats built a

big tent party. for people of decency who are not ok with israel bombing its way out of a problem it is partly responsible for, which is the occupation the last 17 years. this is being forced upon us. my feeling is this misguided policy, which takes us back to the ugly days of the war on terror, is factoring -- fracturing this coalition and could hand our future to the dark forces of maga republicans. it's not on muslim voters, it's on the administration. laura: the president doesn't think a cease-fire is realistic because he thinks hamas has to be vanquished because they've said they will continue to attack israel. because the president doesn't appear ready to support

cease-fire anytime soon, what do muslim and arab voters want to see from him? is or something else he can potentially do to win back their support? wa'el: call for a cease-fire, and not give $14 billion to netanyahu to spend as he pleads. -- as he pleases. we could make sure that u.s. money is not harming civilians. right now only a few trucks are getting in, including a lifting of the siege on the civilian population. laura: thank you for your time. wa'el: thank you so much. ♪ amna: the biden administration's foreign policy efforts are at center stage this week, while here at home, some compromise on capitol hill, but big funding

questions ahead. we turn now to the analysis of brooks and capehart. that's new york times columnist david brooks and jonathan capehart, associate editor for the washington post. welcome to you both, good to cup or let's jump into foreign policy. -- good to see you. let's jump into foreign policy. president biden and president xi , the bar for success in the summit was low. just to reset communications. did they meet the bar? jonathan: yes, the meeting was a year in the making, it was a meeting that had to happen and quite frankly the world was happy to see. you cannot have the two global superpowers at each other's throats as they have been the last year chinese military plane s buzzing u.s. military planes and other things happening. the fact that president xi came

to theapec conference and met with the president of the united states, had what seems like good meetings, it is all for the good. china and the united states need to talk to each other. even if they are in competition with each other, they still need to talk to each other. amna: david, your key takeaways? david: i found it quite heartening. like so many people i have been alarmed by the intense military buildup china has been doing. there military spending has been expanding at an explosive pace. because of their superior manufacturing base, they can outdo us good they can produce 21 nuclear subs per year and we struggle to get one or two. you don't spend that much money unless you are thinking of doing it and xi wants to take over taiwan at some point in his reign. i was looking at possibly another war in the world

sometime next year. that looks less likely in part because xi projected there has been a shift in the balance of power. the chinese economy is suffering . for the first time in 40 years, the u.s. economy is growing faster than the chinese economy. the chinese economy has the real estate crash. it needs investment and things they can export. he seemed to project the idea that he understands his vulnerability. it doesn't mean he has changed his goals but there seems to be a sense of triumph that could lead him to hubris and invasion of taiwan, seems less likely. amna: we know among the topics they discussed were the wars in ukraine and gaza. i want to ask you both about growing concern we've been seeing in the u.s. with the last conversation with laura and her guest. we should be clear, overall

american support for israel remains high, but as the war goes on and we have seen the gazan death toll sore, we are seeing a shift. here are some poll numbers from earlier this week, when people are asked about the israeli response, about 30% say it is about right and about 38% also say it is too much. the second 38% is worth noting because it is up 12 points in the last month. is the white house doing enough to message to those folks, whose concerns are growing? jonathan: clearly not, because as we saw in lauren's peace, whatever the administration is doing, it is not getting through, or folks feel israel, in responding to the terrorist attacks against it, is going so far. we knew this was going to

happen. i remember in the aftermath of october 7, the conversation moved quickly to, from israel has a right to defend itself, to how long will that window stay open? because past practice has been if israel gets attacked, it responds with overwhelming force. as the death toll goes up, the destruction goes up and the heartrending pictures go into american homes, we will see that too much goes up. which goes back to the bigger question, it is not so much the messaging of the white house and where the -- and whether the american people here, it is the white house to prime minister netanyahu to remember he is a small-d democratic country and he must abide by the rules of war. that to me is the bigger question. amna: the further we move away

from the horrors, and we have seen videos israeli officials shared, it is horrific. u.s. lawmakers are seeing some videos of the terrorist attack. the further we get from that day, concern grows. what we make of the concern from americans watching the war unfold? david: i think the big story is there is a rupture between what -- between liberals and progressives. you look at joe biden, hakeem jeffries, barack obama, hillary clinton, people you would call liberals, they argue we've had multiple cease-fires with hamas and every time they use cease-fire as an excuse to reload and then you break the cease-fire and there is more bloodshed. the argument they make is we can't go through this cease-fire rhythm over and over again, we have to solve the problem, the

old strategy was failing. more on the progressive side, they have adopted a policy that has not been a traditional democratic policy, of more or less one state from the river to the sea. it's not clear what they think that looks like but is not the traditional policy we associate with the democratic party, that has been very supportive of israel. in the middle east and other issues, you are seeing a rupture between aggressive's, who tend to be younger, and liberals, who tend to be older. we are seeing it in the case of israel and gaza. amna: we have a little bit of good news and i like to be able to say that. some compromise among lawmakers. with help from democrats, the speaker of the house was able to pass a spending bill. tell me about speaker johnson's approach to bring the hardliners and address them, get democratic help to get the temporary bill across the line. jonathan: i was a big skeptic,

very skeptical of the new speaker's ability to avert government shutdown, i was preparing for government shutdown. instead, he came up with this audit, l -- odd, laddered resolution. the first one ending january 19 and the second one on february 2. he did it overwhelming democratic votes. basically he did the statesman thing, he kept the government open. he also did the exact same thing that former speaker kevin mccarthy did that got him booted and made him former speaker. there are rumblings from the house that they don't like this. i see the speaker as being in the middle of a vise. motion to vacate on one side and on the others bunch of democrats willing to help him govern the

country and keep government open as long as he keeps doing the right thing. i don't know how long speaker johnson lasts but i'm happy he has given us good news to talk about. amna: how long will the house freedom caucus members grant him a grace period? david: this is one case where my completely unrealistic optimism paid off. [laughter] i think a couple things happened. the first, what you believe depends on where you said and when you become speaker, you have responsibility. power tends to make people more sober. not in the case of donald trump. jonathan: glad you said that. [laughter] david: i think that happened. last time democrats did not help and they wound up with a more conservative speaker, so why continue that process? i think at the end of the day, people decided we cannot have yet another catastrophe on our watch that is self-inflicted.

there was enough sanity to do the right thing. amna: jonathan, i have to ask about the latest in the george santos saga. a quick look at the ethics committee report, how he misused campaign funds. we can leave that up while we talk. they try to expel him before, moving to expel him again, he says he will not run for reelection. will he get expelled this time? jonathan: yes, you have new york republicans who desperately want him out, they've been trying to get him out before this report came out, and do yourself a favor and read the ethics report. i've been in washington a long time and have read some ethics report but this one is breathtaking. the guy, it is like a pyramid scheme, he is robbing here and paying himself there, and the stuff he spent money on, thousands of dollars at hermes and ferragamo, purchases at only

fans -- it is not a furniture store. he is out, i will leave it at that. amna: david? david: he doesn't look like he wears hermes, so i don't know where that is going to. there's an argument to be made, you shouldn't expel summary that hasn't been convicted of a crime because it is political temptation but he deserves to be expelled and i agree he will be expelled. amna: i am grateful for you both. think you so much and good to see you viewed -- see you. ♪ the deadly wildfires that tore through maui just over three months ago destroyed thousands of structures and killed 100 people.

but they also reignited a long-simmering concern among native hawaiians over who controls one of their most precious natural resources -- water. here now is william brangham again, who was in maui to report this story recently. william: this modest little stream, trickling through the waikapu valley in central maui, represents one small victory in a generations-long struggle. because for years, there was no water. hokuao: these streams dried up overnight and not by mother nature, but by the hands of men. william: but now, fresh water from the mountains freely flows down to hokuao pellegrino's ancestral farm. with that water, he can now grow taro, or kalo, a crop with deep cultural and historical meaning on these islands. hokuao: we believe that we come from this plant, that it is our elder brother.

we will do anything and everything in our power to protect it. william: for more than a hundred years, growing kalo here was nearly impossible because in the 19th century, sugar plantations, founded by americans and europeans, diverted streams across the island to irrigate their fields. hokuao: when the streams were diverted by the sugar plantations, the traditional irrigation systems went dry and the land, cracked, literally, you know. william: from dryness. hokuao: from dryness. yeah. and those plants died. narrator: sugarcane needs water. it's a thirsty crop. the planters' solution? burrow tunnels through the mountains, build siphons, raise flumes, and dig ditches, miles of them. william: what did that do to the native people who were living here? hokuao: besides taking away their food source, it was our livelihood. it was their practice, their traditions, their language.

william: in a matter of decades, to feed the booming sugar industry, much of maui was transformed, including the town of lahaina. it was once known as the venice of the pacific with lush forests, wetlands and ponds -- a vision that's hard to imagine now, after this summer's inferno burned so much. i'm standing in one of the many fields in lahaina that burned. and in addition to the historic water diversions that went on here, the fight over water is now also complicated by climate change and reduced rainfall and increased drought. kapua'ala: an area that was already water scarce, over a century of plantation mismanagement has really created a tinderbox. william: university of hawaii law professor kapua'ala sproat has helped native hawaiians reclaim some legal control of the islands' precious freshwater. kapua'ala: in these incredibly isolated island communities, water was and remains the source of all life. in many ways, i mean, this is a fight for the soul of hawaii. william: hawaii's constitution protects water as a public trust

-- but today, some of maui's systems, including three quarters of west maui's, remain under control of water and development companies, some of which are direct descendants of plantations. kapua'ala: these plantations are no longer the backbone of the economy. but at the same time, they continue to take almost all of the water resources from our streams and communities for their private commercial gain. hokuao: sugar plantation is gone, right? but it's only been replaced with lawns and golf courses and, you know, hotels and large water users. william: sproat helped successfully represent pellegrino and other native hawaiians in part of an almost twenty-year legal fight to restore water to four historic streams in central maui. hokuao: taking on that was really, truly a david versus goliath. for me personally, i, i really just wanted to grow kalo and feed my family. william: as simple as that. hokuao: very simple. but we knew it was going to take time.

william: his group's victory was part of a steady progress made by native hawaiians over the years. but when the wildfires swept through lahaina, killing 100 people, and destroying thousands of buildings, some raised questions about whether those legal fights over water made this disaster worse. during the fire, the administration of hawaii's democratic governor josh green suspended the state's water code, and with it, protections for native farmers' water rights. the next day, a major real estate developer -- the west maui land company -- asked state officials if it could permanently reduce the amount of water it had to provide those farmers. west maui made the request for "fire suppression in our community." soon after, governor green seemed to echo those concerns. gov. green: there has been a great deal of water conflict on maui for many years. it's important that we're honest about this. people have been fighting against the release of water to

fight fires. william: advocates say they've never opposed diverting water needed to fight fires, and argue they're not to blame for this tragedy. hokuao: this idea that we're pinning one side against the other is just a continued false narrative. putting water in the stream ensures that we have water in our tap. by protecting this resource, it would protect all of us, not just hawaiians. kekai: almost arrogantly, they refused to listen to the law. william: kekai keahi, a native hawaiian farmer and leader has long-advocated for increased oversight of the west maui land company. the company and its subsidiaries have been fined repeatedly for breaching water laws, including taking too much out of a stream. kekai: i think west maui land

company use this tragic time and people's hurt and pain thinking that we'll be distracted to try and push their agenda of trying to regain this water that they lost and josh green helped them out. william: the west maui land company rejects those assertions. in a statement to the newshour, it said it simply wants to guarantee that enough water is available to fight fires when needed. several weeks after the fires, officials reinstated the state's water code. but many in lahaina, and across maui, remain outraged. >> water is life. life comes from water but what when the sources and threat? william: water rights have become a rallying cry for some locals and native hawaiians as the state continues the rebuilding process. last month, hundreds attendea state water commission meeting demanding an overhaul of how water is managed in lahaina. liko: i truly believe the homes of my ohana and all of us who

have lost would still be there if there was responsible management of our water resources. william: back in central maui, past his kalo patch, in the stream that his legal battle helped restore -- hokuao: let's see how lucky we are. william: -- hokuao pellegrino says bringing water back to lahaina's streams will not only revive traditional farms, it could also help heal long-damaged ecosystems. hokuao: and here it is. there it is. william: it did just that in his own backyard. these native freshwater snails, now common here, could not survive without this water. hokuao: we never imagined that we would have native aquatic species come back to life here. when you start to see things like this, then, you know, it makes it all worthwhile because these guys don't have a voice. they require us to speak up for them. william: in the wake of those

devastating fires, a growing chorus of native hawaiians seem to be doing just that. for "the pbs newshour," i'm william brangham on maui, hawaii. ♪ amna: be sure to tune into "washington week with the atlantic" tonight on pbs. jeffrey goldberg and his panel will discuss former president trump's echoing of authoritarian dictators and the decline of civility in the gop. and tomorrow on "pbs news weekend," hw nurse practitioners are filling a much-need healthcare gap, and the fight to allow them to provide more care for patients independently. and that's "the newshour" for tonight. i'm amna nawaz. on behalf of the entire newshour team, thank you for joining us. have a great weekend. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- ♪

>> moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. ♪ >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions, and friends of the newshour, including kathy and paul anderson and camilla and george smith. the walton family foundation, working for solutions to protect water during climate change so people and nature can thrive together. the william and flora hewlett foundation. for more than 50 years, advancing ideas and supporting institutions to promote a better world. at hewlett.org.

and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions -- ♪ and friends of the newshour. ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ >> this is pbs newshour west from weta studios in washington and our bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.]

jeffrey: former president donald trump's rhetoric gets more extreme with each passing week. >> we will root out the communist, marxist fascist thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country. jeffrey: and he's not the only angry republican. on the hill this week -- >> the house republican civil war ridges on including apparently acts of physical violence. >> there are dumb days on capitol hill and there are dumber days and this is one of the dumbest i've seen. jeffrey: next.