wow, you get to watch all your favorite stuff. it's to die for. now you won't miss a thing. this is the way. xfinity internet. made for streaming. amna: good evening. geoff: on the newshour tonight, more lawmakers and big-name donors call on president biden to exit the 2024 race as a new batch of polling raises questions about his ability to win critical swing states. amna: michigan governor gretchen whit witmer defends biden's

candidacy, dismissing the idea that she could be a potential replacement. >> a lot of people are playing fantasy football. they are coming up with i like this person, this person, this would be a great team. none of that is relevant because the only person that decides whether joe biden stays in the race is joe biden. geoff: and as nato leaders gather in washington, we speak with the president of the czech republic about ukraine's path forward and what a potential second trump presidency could mean for the alliance. >> major funding for the pbs news hour has been provided by -- >> consumer cellular, this is sam. this is a pocket dial. well, somebody's coverage with o contract. that's kind of our thing. have a nice day.

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by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. sixtieths -- thank you. geoff: there is growing pressure today from congressional democrats for president biden to step aside as the party's nominee. that's despite his repeated pledges to stay in the race. amna: earlier today, former house speaker nancy pelosi, a longtime biden ally, praised the president but stopped short of embracing his candidacy. >> does he have your support to be head of the democratic ticket? >> it's up to the president to decide if he is going to run. we are all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short. >> he has said firmly this week he is going to run. do you want him to run? >> i want him to do whatever he decides to do. geoff: george clooney, the actor

major democratic fundraiser, wrote an opinion column in the new york times calling for the president to end his reelection campaign. amna: lisa desjardins and laura baran lopez are here to discuss more. what exactly is pelosi saying and how much could it matter? lisa: this was a fireball when this first came out. i will tell you first of all from pelosi world they say she was trying to do. they say she wanted to send a message to the president and his team did not dismiss concerns that are real among democrats on capitol hill. two, a message for democrats on capitol hill to hold their fire until after nato is over, basically setting friday as a key day. the interpretation is different because pelosi is no is a master fetishist senate -- master strategist. folks say this was planned way in advance. she certainly knows the

pressures around the president this was interpreted as a deadline setting by pelosi and indication she could sometime call for the president to step aside. all that comes amid new calls for the president to step aside, just a handful still permits let's look at the folks on capitol hill who have said either biden cannot win or that he should step aside. now we have pat ryan in a very tough election battle who has joined that. at the same time three of the top campaign aides to talk to senators tomorrow in a private meeting. one of the senators who wants biden to step aside told me they think that's dismissive because it's not biden himself. amna: you have been talking to democratic donors. what are they saying about this george clooney op-ed? laura: multiple advisors said

they don't think the president's position right now is sustainable. when they looked at george clooney's op-ed, they said one line stood out and captured their unease. george clooney wrote, it's devastating to say it but the joe biden i was with three weeks ago at a fundraiser go was not the joe big effing deal of 2010, not even the joe of 2020. he was the same man we witnessed at the debate. that was a recent fundraiser in california that george clooney cohosted. rob reiner followed up saying he agreed with j -- with george clooney and joe biden needed to step aside. donors acknowledged this. the alternative is complicated but most of the ones i spoke to believe resident biden step aside. the campaign things that right now big donors are not as important. they are trying to put a focus

on small dollar donations. amna: lisa clooney said most worry that biden cannot be trump. if democrats are unhappy with biden as the nominee, why aren't more saying so publicly or forcefully? >> concerned that there is not a better option. others want to help him get out gracefully. overall, there is a lack of certainty and lack of political conviction by many of these members. on capitol hill, if they do not move soon, folks in the biden campaign say every day is a win for him. it helps him secure the nomination. amna: what is the biden team saying about this publicly and privately to democrats? >> biden campaign aides say they are not delusional. biden has been holding calls, even some we don't know about,

trying to prove that his candidacy is still viable. they say that the voters they are talking to, their internal polling shows things have not changed since the debate. they say the polls we are seeing publicly are all wrong when you try to press them on that. this is going to be a big week for president biden the next two days. he is going to have a solo press conference on thursday. emma kratz say they are going to be watching that press conference very closely. could set up a big moment for the president on friday where we could see if he performs poorly, we could see more come out saying he should step aside. amna: thank you to you both. new data is now forecasting an electoral map meaning more heavily towards donald trump, adding to those concerns about guidance candidacy -- about biden's candidacy. geoff: to walk us through those

numbers, we are joined by amy walter of the cook political report with amy walter kammerer your organization is forecasting major changes in six key states. they are moving closer to donald trump, including three battleground states including arizona, georgia, and nevada. that leaves three concepts, michigan, wisconsin, and pennsylvania. help us understand how you arrived at this, especially given what laura reported what the biden campaign is saying, that the polls are wrong. amy: even if the polls are wrong, what we know before the debate is those three states that we moved from being passive, which means anybody can win, it is so close we can't put a thumb on the scale either way, is that biden was trailing by a significant amount in those three states. part of the reason we kept it in the tossup category is we know

how close the race had the potential to become, especially post debate. the debate was going to be the opportunity, which we heard again and again from the biden campaign, for them to make their case. once the voters who right now may be leaning toward trump, may thinking about voting third party, once they see the contrast and understand what's at stake, those voters are going to come home to joe biden. it's clear that those voters, at least at this moment, are probably at best stuck, and in some cases we are seeing moving a little further away from him. those holes states that were already problematic for biden pre-debate look a lot harder for him postdebate. the three states, wisconsin, michigan, and pennsylvania, that have always been critical for control of the white house, those also we are seeing again

trump has been ahead in some of those states, but by a closer margin. geoff: to further illustrate your point, if we look at the national polling average, so far the two candidates had been in that, you see the greatest difference after debate. still this is a contest that is on the margins. amy: our politics has been on the margins for some time, but only since 2016. when the biden campaign talks about the polls have barely budged, and it's true. if you look at the national polling averages, you will see that the race has moved just two points in trump's advantage at the national level. the last two elections have been decided at the electoral college level by less than a point in three states. 79,000 both 2016 and 40,000 votes in 2020 in the three

closest states. so two points is significant. the real question and what we are seeing right now -- there will be a lot more in the battleground states -- but in the national polling, good news for biden is what we are seeing is people moving off by them but not necessarily to trump. these are voters saying, if you ask them are you going to vote for biden today, they might be reticent to say they are voting for him, but they are not saying they are voting for trump. that's the group of voters that's going to be critical. geoff: our team heard from a group of undecided voters. this is an undecided voter who voted for trump in 2016 and biden in 2020 but has some reservations this time around. >> trump is way too control hungry and biden doesn't seem all the way there. mentally i don't think he can

deal with one more year. we watched the debates in my household, we are still undecided at this point. >> when the guy is basically brain-dead and the other one tried to take over the capital. it's not very good permit geoff: that is a fairly bleak assessment. how much does that reflect the electorate? amy: that is reflective of where e electorate is right now. going into next week, there were, can national convention. we talk a lot about biden and how he talked to those folks. i'm curious to see how donald trump talks to those voters. as you convince them that the things they just said about him, he is power-hungry, the capital january 6 event, does he convince them that's not as big as a problem as their worries about biden? or did they walk away thinking, i can't vote for either? geoff: here is one more voter

from that panel. a black voter from georgia who is supporting the president. she explains how she is thinking about the race. >> i don't consider a vote for biden? for change. i consider it a vote for continuity in the status quo, which is fine right now, because 2016 was just insane. i don't want to see that again so i am fine with if the next four years, absolutely nothing improves or changes, i wouldn't even care as long as it doesn't get worse. geoff: in some ways this illustrates why the biden campaign was trying to make this election that was an referendum on donald trump and how this debate performance complicated that. amy: exactly, made it much more about which is the riskier bet, going with biden, who looked shaky, or going with somebody who, as this woman says, has

been more about chaos. geoff: thank you so much, amy walter. stephanie: here are the latest headlines. israel is ordering all palestinians to leave gaza city in the north as it steps up airstrikes. dozens have died in a wave of israeli attacks even as u.s., egyptians, and qatari negotiators meet with officials for cease-fire talks. john yang has the story. john: across gaza today, morning for loved ones. community members praying. and a father weeps and trembles while holding the lifeless body of his son. how many have gone, he says. how many have died? odai was killed yesterday in an israeli airstrike on a refugee

camp, one of several during a deadly 20 four hours in gaza. on eyewitness video, another attack late yesterday outside of a school where displaced people were sheltering. one moment, boys play soccer in the schoolyard. the next, they are running for their lives. at the scene today, a witness said the attack came without warning. >> [translated] everything was normal. people were playing. suddenly a rocket fell. everyone started running. i witnessed this, people thrown around and body parts scattered, blood. john: hospital officials say at least 29 people were killed, most of them women and children. the idf says they were targeting a member of hamas who took part in the october 7 attacks on israel. it comes amid the ongoing push by several nations for cease-fire deal. today in jerusalem, a u.s.

mideast envoy met with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. and in qatar, cia director bill burns met with egyptian, qatari, and israeli negotiators. in gaza, fighting goes on. today israel ordered all palestinians in gaza city to move south, perhaps in preparation for a renewed offensive against hamas. it all adds uncertainty to the prospect of reaching a cease-fire agreement. earlier this week, hamas said that new israeli escalations could have disastrous repercussions on negotiations. stephanie: antony blinken z f-16 jets will be flying in ukraine this summer. this comes after a joint statement from the u.s., dutch, and danish governments saying the transfer of jets to kyiv is underway. meantime, ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy has been making the rounds on capitol hill, drumming up support for his country's military defense.

he is in town for the nato summit. he used his daily video address to say more announcements are on the way. >> [translated] there will be two new security agreements. these include support for sanctions against russia, support for our accession to the eu and nato, support for our soldiers, and reconstruction. all of this is taken into account in the security agreements. stephanie: as nato leaders gathered in washington to mark the 75th anniversary of the alliance, officials said ukraine is on an irreversible path to membership. stoltenberg added it is too early to say exactly when that will happen. back in this country, what's left of hurricane beryl is pushing further north, bringing severe thunderstorms across the midwest and at least one tornado. the storm tore down trees and

ripped off roofs in indiana and drenched places like east lansing, michigan with heavy rains and floods. in texas, nearly one point 4 million homes and businesses are still without electricity. no power means no air conditioning and refrigeration, and with heat and humidity near houston hitting 106 degrees, some residents are growing desperate. >> i'm about to lose everything

i have and i'm about to lose the energy i have trying to survive. stephanie: dangerous heat spans the country, especially out west. high temperatures are responsible for eight deaths in oregon. in las vegas, temperatures posted a record fifth straight day above one hundred 15

degrees. the senate unanimously passed legislation today overhauling oversight of the federal prison system. the bill forces the justest event to conduct comprehensive inspections of all 100 20 two prison facilities, provide recommendations, and assign a

risk score. it also establishes an ombudsman to investigate complaints related to sexual abuse and other criminal misconduct by staff. the legislation heads to president biden's desk. the house of representatives passed a bill that would ban noncitizens from voting in

federal elections. that's already illegal. today's measure would make states require that people present documents in person to prove they are a u.s. citizen ring voter registration. it also calls for states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls. the bill passed with almost entirely republican support. it comes amid unsubstantiated claims from president trump that

people across the border illegally could cast ballots. likely a dead-end in the democrat-controlled senate. two astronauts who should have returned to earth weeks ago expressed optimism that boeing and nasa will bring them back safely.

sonny williams and butch wilmore were first to ride the starliner capsule to the space station earlier this month. the test flight was supposed to last eight days but issues delayed their trip home. engineers are still testing the spacecraft. >> i feel confident if we had to

>> you write personally about the time you chose to share on the state house floor your own story about being raped in college and repealing that built 10 years later as governor.

the further we move from row , do you think that issue

>> definitely. i think we all recognize it is

common as we get older. that can be particularly evident when -- not i don't think we need to read too much into isolated incidents. it was also very common for fatigue and other things that make us all feel a little under the weather. they both held trump for four years, died in for many years before that. i'm sure you have seen the previous performance in previous years. because i think they are changed. previous to the baselines.

it was a bit out of character for both of them in some ways. there we might see from any unit. of course, in many business sectors. the candidates for ceo, they are assessed for a variety of issues. they point to the accomplishment in their first terms. the argument i've heard is what will president biden be like in 2026 or drop in 2026? is there a specific cognitive test both men could help to elucidate that for boaters? >> yes. the cognitive test people talk about a lot is the contrail -- module cognitive assessment.

there three point cognitive screening tests that are often performed by primary care doctors. to screen for a decline in thinking abilities. it is important to keep in mind that these tests need to be considered in all -- it is also common for patients who have an occupational team to pass these tests. even if they only have symptoms of cognitive decline. >> when we talk about cognitive decline, i'm reminded of the voices we heard earlier that he knows that biden is slowing down. all these lapses publicly necessarily indicative of one's cognitive abilities? >> i think speech and language

is becoming a market where investigating is an indicator of early cognitive impairment. all with what we call age matched control. people of similar age that we might be studying. i think there are lots of variability in people speaking abilities. i think it is very difficult to separate simply on the basis of speech online which alone. >> dr. brad dickerson with massachusetts general hospital, thank you so much for your opinion. >> my pleasure. thank you for the end -- invitation. >> it's the second day of the

nato summit in washington dc. where leaders from around the world have gathered to address pressing international challenges. but at the top of the agenda is how to sustain western military support for ukraine and perhaps few leaders understand ukrainian challenges in the native plants as deeply as the czech president. he previously served as chairman of nato's military committee and rose to the presidency earlier last year. i spoke with him in washington earlier today and began by asking him whether he thinks ukraine can expel russia from the ukrainian territories and now occupies. >> we all understand that everything on the battlefield is different from our wishes. we hope that ukraine with all their assistance will be able to liberate them in a short time.

it will most probably take time. >> when you say it will most take time, how long should ukraine expect to have russia occupy some 20% of his country? >> i think we need to stop the war. at this moment, russia has little interest in stopping it. they believe they can succeed in the battlefield. they will only be losing manpower. we can provide ukrainian support that they cannot get and move them onto an understanding that they need to get on the negotiating table.

the result of the negotiation will depend on which position in which they find themselves. >> long-range missiles allowed them to fire on russian forces in crimea. should the u.s. allow ukraine to use those same weapons to fire deeply into russia? >> there was such an authorization. ukrainians may target military targets in russia. i think it is natural.

>> it is hard to inspect that ukraine will be a full member in a short amount of time. the integration of ukraine into nato is a singular process. that will continue through by lateral cooperations. once this conflict is over, we should proceed as soon as possible. >> is native supported ukraine interview customer vaccinator has been supporting increasingly.

i cannot get a full guarantee as a nato member for ukraine. the number is growing day by day. i think raising expectations that ukraine may become a member of this is unrealistic. >> the czech republic is sung. what does that mean for your leadership and how do you fend off these populist trends? >> we are trying to be as open as possible.

it's not the case in slovakia. they will restore good relations with russia. until then, it is hard to have a meaningful leadership with russia. >> how closely are you following the u.s. election to >> with great interest of course. they are always looking for someone in a time of crisis.

the united states are leading the democratic world. it doesn't mean we should be dependent on the united states. europe should be able to provide much more. >> why hasn't it been able to? >> european countries. they are so much closer to zero. roughly 5050.

only 25 for europe. >> this should be a reasonable share. >> in our view, with donald trump winning back the white house, the future of the nato alliance -- >> i believe from 2016 to 2020. he pushed the alliance in the right direction. it was the fair share of our responsibility. at least 2%.

i think his message came through. if donald trump gets elected again, i don't think it will be a disaster. they need europe the same way europe needs the united states. >> is that the view shared among other nato countries? >> nothing so. a number of countries understand his calls on the european allies. we are truly spending much less. without any strong calls from the united states.

>> thank you so much for your time. >> they have competed in a contest called natural history day using arch to portray their research stories. we have the finalists at the university of maryland in college park to see how they defined the turning point in history. this is part of our new service, art in action. an her ongoing canvas covers. >> welcome to the national research institute. >> it was history run alive.

the performance such as this one called turning the tide of hatred. two documentary films. and with eye-catching exhibits on the widest range of topics including the birth of children's television workshop, of the dustbowl revolutionized agriculture, the manhattan project. some 3000 students from around the country presenting work based on research topics that have taken the better part of a year to complete. >> the most important reason why we teach history and we believe it is absolutely crucial. it helps build quality, engaged citizens. they want to do something a little bit different. that's part of the fun. it is fun.

>> kathy goren, executive director of national history day since 1982 has developed the organization into an acclaimed international economic program. throughout the year, students met with advisors and honed their skills and competed in local and state contests. where the competition and energy was most intense. and they practiced their lines. and judges scored the displays.

the u.s. government conducted research on nearly 400 african-american with the disease. more than 100 died could have been saved. >> mistrust in black americans and marginalized communities in general. there is to this idea that vaccines for example -- that there are nefarious things behind it. a lot of the images -- the doctors handwriting. it's it was really eerie and uncomfortable and uncomfortable c.

>> you are all growing about a time of credible divisions in the country. the future of democracy. i wonder how this project didn't offer you any special insights into that. >> looking at what happened in the past and just applying it to what's happening today to avoid making the same mistakes. that is one of the main points of studying history. knowing that we as high school sophomores can just do that and make an impact on people's lives -- i think it brings me hope knowing that. >> that is music to their ears. ordinary people can find triumph out of tragedy. they'll look for compromise as we learn we are all in this together and that is what democracy is about and what history teaches.

right now, we need a lot of empathy. >> the 13-year-old is part of the indians. it tells of the founding of the american indian in 1968 to address poverty against american indians. this is performing as a tool. >> i think it can be more powerful because it changes every time. i can walk around, i can change it all based on how i fit the room and i felt this performance gives away more powerful way of showing that.

you see those light bulbs go up. >> they show its connection to other social and politial causes. that allows them to learn about other parts of history, different parts of the world. >> in history we say is what happened. tell me what happened. these kids are digging for sources. this is the tool -- these are all skills were going to be using the matter what path they take. >> you will represent a kind of frontline in all of the work we are doing. >> also one hand, filmmaker ken burns.

>> we are trying to tell a true, honest, complicated past. an abiding faith in the human spirit. >> how do you research? >> i asked kathy if the study of history can bring us together, why is it so under attack today? >> why is that happening now? we are not teaching enough about how we overcome our issues and our problems. we think there are solutions that are so easy and there are single answers to things. citizens informed patriots. not blind patriots.

>> in the end, there are winners in every category. >> from st. paul, minnesota. that is the students -- and for the pbs news hour, i'm jeffrey brown in the university of maryland. >> that is the newshour for tonight. >> i am jeff bennett. thank you for spending time with us. >> major funding for the pbs news hour is provided by the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of the newshour including jim and nancy will never. the ford foundation, working with vision -- visionaries on the frontline of social change.

and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions from the pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. this is pbs news hour was from wpt's studios in washington and

the walter cronkite bureau of journalism school at arizona state university.

wow, you get to watch all your favorite stuff.

it's to die fo now you won't miss a thing. this is the way. xfiny internet. made for streaming. (inspirational music) - cooking is really at its best when it's shared. wow. so i'm off to visit inspiring communities across the country to see how food brings them together. that's a bit of all righty. - yeah. - [mary] exploring some exciting places. it's extraordinary, it's huge, isn't it? - look at that, beautiful. - i can think of no better place to be while sharing mouthwatering recipes of my own. that looks amazing.