captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> woodruff: on this memorial day: gestures of remembrance, and ceremonies of reflection. as americans stop to praise those who served, and honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. good evening, i'm judy woodruff. gwen ifill is away. also ahead, the probe into friday night's killing spree in california. and new details on the growing worries about the 22-year-old's mental state in the weeks, and even mere minutes, before the attacks. plus, pope francis' historic visit to the mideast. and calls for cooperation in a region long divided by religion.

>> hopefully, it will lead to some sort of revival of peace talks here eventually. >> woodruff: those are just some of the stories we're covering on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> i've been around long enough to recognize the people who are out there owning it. the ones getting involved, staying engaged. they are not afraid to question the path they're on. because the one question they never want to ask is, "how did i end up here?" i started schwab with those people. people who want to take ownership of their investments, like they do in every other aspect of their lives. >> when i was pregnant, i got more advice than i knew what to do with. what i needed was information i could trust, on how to take care of me and my baby. united healthcare has a simple program that helps moms stay on

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>> woodruff: americans paused today to remember the men and women who gave their lives in service to the country. president obama marked the day with a visit to arlington national cemetery and the tomb of the unknowns, where he laid a wreath. memorial day falls in the midst of a widening scandal about the care of military veterans at v.a. hospitals. president obama said the u.s. owes its veterans the care they need. >> as we've been reminded in recent days we must do more to keep faith with our veterans and their families and ensure that they get the care and benefits and opportunities that they've earned and that they deserve. these americans have done their duty, they ask nothing more than that our country does ours. now and for decades to come. >> woodruff: we'll have more on memorial day celebrations around the country, as well as a closer look at one part of arlington cemetery, at the close of the program tonight. in india, narendra modi was sworn in today as that country's new prime minister.

modi took the oath of office at a ceremony at the presidential palace in new delhi. thousands were in attendance, including the prime minister of pakistan, nawaz sharif. it was an historic first for the two countries who have fought three wars since winning independence from britain in 1947. modi and sharif are scheduled to hold formal talks tomorrow. voters went to the polls across egypt today to elect a new president after years of political turmoil. they cast their ballots in an election that's expected to install former army chief abdel- fatah al-sisi as the country's next leader. voting continues tomorrow. so far, there's been a strong turnout among women. >> they are very, very, very active really and they've begun to feel how important their country is and this is totally new. we were never used to vote. and now we think of the best for our country and we try to read and understand and analyze.

>> woodruff: al-sisi ousted egypt's first freely-elected leader, mohammed morsi, whose muslim brotherhood supporters have urged their followers to boycott the vote. >> woodruff: the nigerian military says it knows where nearly 300 abducted school girls are being held, but won't use force to get them back, for fear the girls would be harmed. nigeria's state news agency quoted the chief of defense staff as saying they know where the islamist militant group boko haram is holding them. the girls were taken from their school seven weeks ago. since then, boko haram has killed nearly 500 other civilians in its fight to establish an islamic state in nigeria. in thailand, the nation's new military leader received the endorsement of the king today, and issued a warning to protesters. general prayuth chan-ocha said he would not hesitate to use force against political protesters if they caused

more trouble. chan-ocha knelt before a large picture of the king during the royal endorsement ceremony. the king's backing is significant because the monarchy is the most important institution in thailand. the 86-year old king was not present because he's in fragile health. >> woodruff: the white house has mistakenly disclosed the name of the c.i.a.'s top official in afghanistan. the officer's identity was revealed over the weekend in an email to thousands of journalists during the president's surprise trip to bagram air field. it was part of a list of 15 top u.s. officials who took part in a briefing with the esident during his visit. the c.i.a. and white house have yet to officially comment on the incident. >> woodruff: american drugmaker "pfizer" ended its bid to take over it's british rival "astrazeneca" and form the largest drug company in the world. last week, astrazeneca's board rejected a $119 billion buyout offer.

it said the bid vastly undervalued the company. still to come on the newshour, the probe into last weekend's killing spree in california; the substance behind the symbolism of the pope's mideast visit; heavy fighting returns in an eastern region of ukraine; why anti-e.u. parties gained ground in european elections; and on this memorial day, a recap of the ceremonies honoring those who served and died. >> woodruff: the college town of isla vista, california, just outside santa barbara, remained in mourning on this holiday, after a troubled student went on a killing spree there friday night. officials have worked to piece together what happened. >> woodruff: the parents of elliot rodger called the police and rushed to isla vista desperate to stop their son, but

were too late. by the time they arrived on friday night, rodger had killed six people, injured 13 more and shot himself. rodger emailed a 140-page "manifesto" as he described it, to his parents shortly before the rampage. in it, he mapped out his troubled life and what he called a "day of retribution". he had been planning the attack for three years, according to what he wrote in the manifesto. he also posted multiple videos to you-tube. the most recent one was uploaded the day before the shooting. in these videos he swore to annihilate all the women who, he said, had rejected him. >> i've waited a long time for this. i'll give you exactly what you

deserve, all of you, all you girls who rejected me and looked down upon me and treated me like scum. >> woodruff: in late april deputies from the sheriff's office visited rodger at his apartment after worried calls from state mental health officials. on sunday county sheriff bill brown said at the time they were given no reason to search his apartment. >> he was able to make a very convincing story that there was no problem that he wasn't going to hurt himself or anyone else and he just didn't meet the criteria for any further intervention at that point. >> woodruff: if authorities had searched the apartment they would have found three semi- automatic hand guns and 400 rounds of ammunition, all legally purchased. all of those killed and nine of the injured were students at the university of california at santa barbara. the school is holding a memorial service on tuesday afternoon for the victims.

>> woodruff: to examine what's been learned over the weekend about the killer, his history and his motives we turn to adam nagourney, los angeles bureau chief for the new york times, who's been covering the story. welcome back to the "newshour." did the police now think that they know everything they need to confirm who was behind this? >> yeah. they know who he is. they know he acted alone. he left such an extensive record there's not that much history about why he did it. so i think the only loose end was they're not sure who the third victim was in terms of a -- why he was there in the apartment. but beyond that most of this has been wrapped up from the legal point of view. >> woodruff: apparently was a very troubled man, having mental health therapy for a lightning time. what's known about that? >> going back -- pretty much his whole life, i read through

the whole manifesto, which is actually even more disturbing than the video that you just showed, he's had psychological problems, anger problems his whole life. he's been in and out of therapy. his parents have been very concerned about him. he was going to a psychiatrist or psychologist right up until this point, and he's been very troubled. but -- the real question here is he was never sort of troubled enough or publicly troubled enough to trigger the kind of system in california where he might have been brought in for confinement or treatment or any kind of examination. that's part of the tragedy here. >> woodruff: and apparently, he was skillful in concealing what was going on because, as we reported, the sheriff's deputies came to his apartment, what, a month ago? and he persuaded them that everything was fine. >> right, but the deputies came to his apartment because his mother we believe saw some earlier videos, not the one we just saw but earl yes ones that

were also a little disturbing, to see how he was, and he just sort of like came across as the sheriff said calm, i think they said even a little bit timid. afterward went talked about how he was able to talk his way out of it by convincing them he was a little depressed but certainly very rational. it was a big deal because he wasty sitting there thinking, according to the document he wrote, oh, my god, this whole plan is finished because if they were to search my room in my apartment, they would find those three guns and they're going to find the manifesto and they're going to find all the weaponry. but he convinced them that he was okay. and under california law, deputies have some discretion, and it's ndable why they reached the decision that they did. >> woodruff: you mean because they couldn't -- they didn't have a threshold of reason enough to believe that he would commit a crime. >> that's right. he seemed by their account rational and calm and not psychologically disturbed enough to invoke the state law -- to

trigger the state law that would have allowed hem to take him in. it's one of those things -- the sheriff said over the weekend, in retrospect there might have been things differently, but it's easier second-guessing these kind of things. >> woodruff: and the weapons that he had, we know that he did stab his roommate and two other people to death, people who lived -- the person he lived with and some visitors. but the guns that he had, those were all obtained legally? >> all obtained legally. bought them at two separate shots, three separate handguns. he wrote that he made a point of getting three. this shows how much he planned this thing, just in case two of them jammed. he wanted to make sure that he could kill himself at the end. that's how much he was thinking about this. if the police had brought him in on -- for the kind of -- you know, psychiatric examination we were talking about, then he would not have been able to get a gun. but california has some of the toughest gun laws in the country. arguably the touchest gun laws

in the country and it just shows there's only so much they can do. he got the weapons totally legally and appropriately. >> woodruff: and adam, the manifesto, 140 pages, the video, those were not available until right before all this happened. >> so here's the thing. the video -- i think it's called the retribution i believe is the name and the manifesto -- the video was posted we think that day, on youtube, the one where he talked about slaughtering people. and the manifesto, he emailed out as best as we can tell, to parents, psychologists, maybe some friends, at some point friday evening. right before the attack began. by the time his mother saw it, according to a family friend, and called her ex-husband and called the police, the violence had already begun. now, here's the thing. there were other videos that he posted earlier on. he posted them on youtube. he posted them on his facebook

page. and he posted them on -- there's various social media sites for frustrated -- sexually frustrated young men that he was on. and you can find some of them there. after the police visited him in april for conversation -- what we were just talking. about, after the police visited him in april, he took those video downs. because those were the videos that alerted his mother that something was going wrong. >> woodruff: but as you said, police are saying they're not sure they could have done anything differently. if they had asked more questions, they didn't think they had the right to do anything more. >> right. under california law, they think they did everything they were supposed to do, and they didn't deem it necessary to go in and do any more examination of him or any search of the apartment. >> woodruff: well, we are going to leave it there. clearly, a she, very disturbing story. adam nagourney with "the new york times." >> heartbreaking. it's really heartbreaking. >> woodruff: thank you.

>> woodruff: pope francis capped his three-day middle east trip with stops at some of the holiest sites for jews and muslims today. coming weeks after u.s.-led talks collapsed between israeli and palestinian negotiators, the pope's visit mixed symbolism with calls for renewed peace talks. jeffrey brown has our report. >> brown: in jerusalem this morning, at the yad vashem holocaust memorial, pope francis laid a wreath of white and yellow flowers and kissed the hands of six holocaust survivors. >> ( translated ): remember us in your mercy. grant us the grace to be ashamed of what we men have done, to be ashamed of this massive idolatry, of having despised and destroyed our own flesh, which you formed from the earth, to which you gave life with your own breath of life.

never again, lord, never again! >> i thought i should kiss his hand, and he kissed my hand. >> brown: one survivor, joseph gottdenker, told the pope a catholic family had saved his life. >> i said i know that they are looking down from heaven and very proud that the person that they saved was in the presence of their pope. >> brown: earlier in the day, pope francis prayed at the western wall and left a hand- written note with the "our father" prayer amid the cracks of stone. at israel's request, the pope visited the "victims of acts of terror memorial", where he bowed his head and touched the stone. and also laid a wreath at the tomb of theodore herzl, the founder of zionism. later, francis exchanged gifts with israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. and in what the a.p. termed an "awkward" conversation, discussed the language used by jesus. "jesus was here, in this land. he spoke hebrew," netanyahu said. "aramaic," the pope interjected.

"he spoke aramaic, but he knew hebrew," netanyahu answered. the jerusalem portion of the trip included a visit to another holy shrine, the dome of the rock, where francis met with muslim leaders. >> ( translated ): following in the footsteps of my predecessors, i have greatly desired to come as a pilgrim to the places which witnessed the earthly presence of jesus christ. but my pilgrimage would not be complete if it did not also include a meeting with the people and the communities who live in this land. i am particularly happy, therefore, to be with you, dear muslim friends. >> brown: yesterday, the political symbolism was, if anything, even more charged, as the pope made history by flying directly to the west bank city of bethlehem, rather than through israel and became the first pontiff to refer to the area as the "state of

palestine." speaking in front of a mural of jesus wrapped in a kaffiya, the pope made a plea for peace. he then called on israeli and palestinian leaders to join him at the vatican. >> ( translated ): in this place where the prince of peace was born, i wish to direct an invitation to you mr president mahmound abbas and to mr. president shimon peres to hold together with me an intense prayer to invoke from god the gift of peace. i offer my house in the vatican to host this meeting of prayer. all of us desire peace. >> brown: both men accepted the invitation. in perhaps the most surprising, and apparently un-scripted moment of the trip, the pope later prayed at the controversial separation wall between israel and the palestinian territory. and at a palestinian refugee camp, francis spoke to young children. >> ( translated ): i would like to tell you something important, violence only begets violence.

violence can only be defeated through peace. and peace is achieved through hard work, and dignity on the path forward. >> brown: today, in front of the western wall, the leader of the catholic church embraced two argentine friends who'd accompanied him on the trip, one a rabbi, the other a muslim. >> brown: nicholas casey is the middle east correspondent for the wall street journal and covered the pope's trip.he joins us now from jerusalem. let me ask you first about the pope's invitation to mahmoud abbas and perez to come to rome. how much of a surprise is that, and how is it being seen by people that you're talking to there? >> reporter: well, it was a surprise to us, the reporters. both governments said this is an idea that was floated beforehand. now, what's happened diplomatically on the two sides is that they've both walked away from the table. this happened really acrimoniously last month. neither side has been talking to each other since. so the pope realized this was the situation here and tried to

get an olive branch circulating between both sides, which means sometime next month, the presidents of the two countries are going to be meeting, not clear what they're going to be talking about, how much politics will be on the table. officially, this is a meeting of talking, reflection and prayer. but hopefully, it will lead to some sort of revival of peace talks here eventually. >> that indication went to mahmoud as and a perez, not to benjamin netanyahu. it that make it seem -- does that have implications? does that make it more ceremonial in a sense? >> it does have big implications. and this is part of the reason why i think as someone looking at the middle east this might not go very far. shimon perez only has a little bit of time left until the beginning of the summer as the president of israel. the presidency is a pretty ceremonial role. one thing to keep in mind is that these talks fell apart after months of mediation by

john kerry with benjamin netanyahu and mahmoud abbas. you have to ask, well, if the invitation is now going to the ceremonial president of israel and mahmoud abbas with the pope, who has less leverage over israel or the palestinians, then even the americans -- than even the americans did, where this goes from here and whether this has much of a chance, it might not. >> well, so tell us a little bit about how the tripped played out on the ground. it's obviously a tense place were those tensions in the air? how was the pope received? >> well, it was received well. it's definitely a tense part of the world, but francis is also a pope that can kind of relax tensions in places that he goes to. he's also someone that has a lot of surprises. one of the important images that came out of the trip was him getting out of the popemobile and having a prayer in front of the separation barrier that divides bethlehem and jerusalem. i was actually back in bethlehem today trying to figure out how

that stop took place and who actually was the one that wrote the graffiti that was on the wall when he arrived there, which appeared to have just been written moments before he arrived. turned out it was a group of palestinian descendants of refugees who were living up the hill and spent the last week doing this kind of cat-and-mouse game with israeli authorities where the israeli authorities were white-washing the wall and they were writing messages back to pope francis, a classic example of the kind of tensions you see out in this part of the world. >> but then, of course, that was followed by -- and this is a sign of the balancing act that goes on there. that was followed today by the pope visiting a different memorial on the israeli side. so how much would people around the pope aware of their need to do that kind of balancing act? >> well, when the pope comes to places, i've been with him in brazil and with benedict xvi in cuba. one of the things that you see

is that everybody wants to put their political agenda in front of the pope. so when the pope got out of the car and prayed at the bethlehem wall, immediately, there were people crying foul saying he was taking the palestinian side. the israelis later extended an invitation for him to come to visit the site for the memorial of victims of terrorists, which he also took up, which put a matter that's very sensitive to them on the pope's agenda as well. so throughout this trip, you were seeing almost everybody that he was visiting trying to get his eyes in front of their issue and trying to get him to say something and, blor more or less, put his blessing onto it. >> what about the public reaction as much as you could tell? muslim, jewish and of course, christian. >> i think it was very positive. now, one thing that's different for the pope when he comes to the middle east, even though he's the head of the catholic church, there aren't many roman catholics here. he's not on his own turf when he comes to the middle east. and the christian population

which is here is dwindling. this was part of the reason for the visit as well. take bethlehem, which was about 70% christian about 50 years ago. it's now down to just about 15% of the city, this being the city where christians believe that christ was born. so while he was received very positively, one of his messages was to the remaining christians who are here was to keep up the hope and to stay, because one of the biggest problems facing christians here is that from syria to iraq to the palestinian territories, people are beginning to disappear in that community. >> all right, nicholas casey of the "washington journal" from jerusalem. thanks so much. >> thanks. >> woodruff: the winner of yesterday's ukrainian election had no time today to bask in the light of victory as heavy fighting broke out in the country's east. chief foreign affairs

correspondent margaret warner is in the capital, kiev, and filed this report. >> warner: ukraine's presumptive president-elect, billionaire businessman petro poroshenko, strode into a late morning press conference in kiev with a daunting lead in the partial vote count, and delivered twin but starkly-different messages for russia, and for the separatists in ukraine who claim allegiance to moscow. standing next to kiev's newly- elected mayor, a maidan uprising leader, and former prize-fighter vitaliy klitschko, poroshenko said his first trip as president would be to the east, seeking to reunite the badly-fractured country. yet he pledged to go after the armed separatist fighters who have taken over parts of the industrial region known as the "donbas," where intimidation and attacks on election sites kept turnout in the area below 20% yesterday. >> they just murderers, they're just bandits, they're just killer, they're just terrorists. >> warner: poroshenko, who isn't in charge yet, nonetheless vowed that the kiev security forces'

so-called "anti-terrorist" operations would be stepped up in the coming hours >> they don't have any interest to speak with nobody, the same way like somalian pirates. these people are representing nobody. these people just want everyone afraid of them, that's only way how they can survive. don't give them any chance. because we will fight, but for the trust of the the people of donbas. >> warner: as he spoke heavily- armed militia of the self- proclaimed "donetsk people's republic" had seized donetsk airport. pitched fighting continued throughout the afternoon. reports from the scene said ukrainian air force jets launched airstrikes, and the defense ministry said paratroopers had landed on the field. >> concerning the relationship with russia, please believe nothing changed during the night. >> warner: poroshenko's tone was a lot more measured when he spoke of relating to ukraine's largest and most-influential neighbor, saying he expects to

meet with russian president vladimir putin in the first half of june. >> me and mr. putin know each other quite well, i think that would be immediately from the very first meeting: very important results. people in the east are waiting for this results. >> warner: putin has recently toned down his rhetoric on ukraine, and said he would respect the outcome of country's vote. in moscow today, foreign minister sergei lavrov said much the same, but stopped short of withdrawing russian support for the separatists. >> ( translated ): as the president said a few times, we are ready for dialogue with kiev representatives, we are also ready for dialogue with petro poroshenko. we will respect the will of the ukrainian people. the most important thing for the current authorities is to treat their own citizens with respect. >> warner: among ukrainians today and yesterday at the polls, we found noticeable support for tougher action in the east, even if it means loss

of life. we spoke with danylo danielyko outside a kyiv polling place do you think he should use greatest military force to take back those areas in the east in which donetsk people's republic has occupied buildings and taken over territory? >> separatists should be eliminated. period. >> warner: even if they're ukrainian? >> ( translated ): it's hard to say, even if they're ukrainian citizens, they are not true ukrainians. >> warner: today, on the maidan first-time voter ivanna bober said poroshenko must follow words with action. >> ( translated ): i have gone voting and i really want for better changes to happen in ukraine, not with words and promises but with real active changes.

since young people have laid down their lives for this. >> warner: incoming mayor klitschko said today that while those killed here must be honored, the square needs to be cleared for normal life to return. that didn't sit well with aleksey sotnik. >> ( translated ): i will stand here till the end. for what did people die, for this new crowd to take their seats, and that's it? if they're starting to get rid of maidan, then they are very mistaken. >> warner: only one of many challenges this new team faces in the days to come. >> woodruff: i spoke to margaret a short time ago. welcome, marg ret. so tell us what the latest is on the situation in donetsk. you were there just until a few days ago. what do you know? >> judy, i've been able to text back and forth with the senior member of the government. and able to confirm some reports and knock down others. it is true that, in fact, since

that tape you just finished was filed, the authorities finally, the military has been able to reach the airport. the fact it took them an entire day is quite remarkable. this senior official also confirmed to me that it is true that the donetsk parliament sent out a tweet to all citizens of donet saying there's fighting in the streets, stay off the streets. there aren -- are unconfirmed reports that the train station has been set on fire. i have not been able to confirm that. it's clear it's very chaotic there. there were reports of between 30 and 200 dead. again, we're not going to have the full picture until tomorrow at least. but it's not only chaotic but the ukrainian military stepped up the pace. what's interesting is how much this has to do with the election of poroshenko who hasn't even been officially confirmed. he is not commander in chief. he is not president. but i am toll he is being

treated as one, and he was very, very tough this morning, as you saw in our tape piece, very tough on armed separatists and two people close to the situation told me today, look, the letter of the law, you're not commander in chief. in the spirit of the law, he already is. and the president of this country controls all of security from the army to the intelligence to the prosecutors. and it was clear to officials here in kiev elected to move on, for fear citizens would be hurt, took yesterday's vote as a clear endorsement by the people that they want this situation cleared up. >> woodruff: so margaret, you've covered a number of political leaders over the years, in the u.s., overseas. what are your impressions of poroshenko? >> well, interesting, judy, you and i both have done that. he came in on zero sleeve overnight and he gave this tour de force press conference this

morning. english, russian and ukrainian languages. he had a very tough message for the domestic audience for cleaning up the separatists and we're also going to join the e.u. and get the e.u. agreement going. but when he switched to talk about the russians, he was much more measured. people close to him explained it to this way. this is a successful businessman with business in russia and europe. he's been financed -- finance official. he's been a foreign minister. he understands a diplomatic talk is very different from talking to a domestic audience, and he's comfortable doing all of that. and so that is both his strength, potentially an achilles' heel that he's going to be able to navigate through these difficult waters. but he was very blund. he was very direct given -- didn't mince his words. in english, i think you would see and hear someone that can speak to the world. and the -- excuse me the americans, margaret, and

ukrainian and orthses, what do you think his biggest challenges are? >> they think his biggest challenges are -- his strength is his achilles' heel. he has to balance constituencies. he's one of this ala gart class that benefited from sweetheart deals inclusion with corrupt officials. so -- and they're relying a lot on the oligarchs now to help turn this country toward europe. on the other hand, he's got this system behind me, independent square, where you've got a newly empowered civic society, civil society, 30-something-year-old business people who are seasoned, who have some experience, who have seen this movie before and been disappointed and they're going to hold him to a account. the other big he has is of course, balancing the interests of dealing with the russians, which ukraine does -- for dealing with crimea.

with his promises to the public here that he's going to move them toward europe and he's going to get tough on the separatists. so -- his two biggest challenges as officials here see it. >> woodruff: margaret, you've also been talking to some american observers there. what are they saying about poroshenko? >> some of them -- this was former secretary of state madeleine albright, current senators and others. they were most impressed with poroshenko because he seemed actually to have plans for doing some the things he wants and he seemed to know exactly hea wanted from americans but not just military help but cleaning up the corruption angle, that is helping building a judiciary that doesn't depend and rely on bribery and helping develop software -- financial software. the thing that worries the american officials is ukraine will revert to what it's always been doing for the last 23

years, only 23 years of independence, which is the people attracted to government as a former state official said to me here are really motivated by the desire for power, money, or if they've already got money, then ego. and they quickly fall to squabbling among themselves and power grabbing between the president and prime minister. so the question is whether the threat from russia and the sort of sense of urgency here is going to make it different this time. >> woodruff: margaret warner reporting from ukraine. thank you, margaret. >> thanks, judy. >> woodruff: an anti-european union tide swept through the european parliamentary elections this weekend. in great britain, the united kingdom independence party shocked the labour and conservative parties with a surprise victory. and there were more anti- establishment wins on the continent. matt frei of independent television news is in paris and filed this report.

reporter: a draping flag under skies with the promise of more rain. but that just about sums up the mood in paris this morning. the tourists are doing what tourists do, and the traffic on is still terrible. but the political landscape here has changed, perhaps forever. it's all nice to them. once they were shunned by the political establishment as a freak show on the fringes of national politics. now they're guzzling the bubbly with a giddiness of freshly mde history. champagne, what else? they're anti-europe, anti-immigrant message has struck a chord and this morning -- [ speaking foreign language ] >> they cannot ignore the lessons of this ballot and its incredible objection of the socialist party in power. but also of the entire so-called traditional political class.

>> reporter: at about the same time in copenhagen, the danish people and their star candidate, the unforgettably named mortar also celebrating some historic numbers on the back of an anti-immigrant, anti-e.u. message. they are on the far left. the road to victory was on an anti-austerian call. summed up as we dent quantity to become german's colony. >> this is a historic day for our people. they have made a clear and brave verdict. despite the pro propaganda, they condemn the government and the policies and for the first time in history, they've raised the left to first place and what a significant difference. >> reporter: the swings were mostly to the right and nowhere did they help more in paris, the spiritual home of the usuallyine union and here at the home of a president heenjoyed the approval

rate things consistently below 20%. of course, the success of the national fund is very much the failure of the man presiding current any that building behind me. now, he's not only failed. he's also managed to have two groups of people. the rich who feel overtaxed and the poor who continue to feel underemployed. this morning he called an emergency meeting with his cabinet. the prime minister newly appointed to stop the hemorrhaging o of support called it a political earthquake. >> woodruff: jeff picks up the european election story from here. >> brown: how strong a protest? what does it mean for european integration and relations with the u.s.? we're joined by antoine ripoll, director of the european parliament liaison office with the u.s. congress. and charles kupchan, senior fellow at the council on foreign relations and professor of international relations at georgetown university. he was director for european

affairs on the national security council staff during the clinton administration. >> woodruff: antoine ripoll, let me ask you, what's the message that comes from this election? what are the specific targets of protest? >> i would say two issues. the first one is there's a real -- during the crisis of the debt and the euro crisis people call it. people have the feeling that tomorrow will be worse than yesterday. and they are worried and they see this and the impact on their lives and their children's life. and they are worried. so i think the result expressed yesterday is a vote of worriness and tension. what's going to happen tomorrow? >> what do you have to add to that? >> beyond the economic problems of the moment. i think what's happened is for the last six, seven decades,

europe sort of flew beneath the radar screen, starting with the early years after world war ii. people didn't vote for or against. they were worried about other things. about ten years ago, people started paying attention because of immigration, because of the economic downturn, because of the enlargement to a union that now has 28 if you go to a pub in pretty britain or you go to a cafe in france, people are actually talking about europe but they're not saying nice things about it. as antoine was saying they should have lost a certain nt of control over their destiny. so what we saw over the last four days of voting is that far right and far left parties, even though they didn't win because the center left and center right are so in control of national parliaments and the european parliaments, they keep gaining and gaining ground. so that sends a message to those in brussels and the national capitals, we're not convinced that we like this whole thing. we're asking hard questions about whether european immigration benefits us, and i

wouldn't say go so far as to say the project has hit a wall or is going to go backwards but for the first time since world war ii, we're asking questions about is this perhaps the high water mark of the project? >> and as you said far left and far right. in front the protests come from both sides. and they don't necessarily agree with each other. >> right. they believe it's a scapegoat. >> scapegoat. absolutely. when you look at the country where like in france where the most -- extreme are more powerful. why did it happen? it happened because these countries have not done the reforms that they should have done. germany's doing quite well because they have done the reforms and they're well off. certain countries didn't do the job and now they are facing very big difficulties and they are turning to europe. so speaking of scapegoat, when

something is wrong, it's always the fault of washington. there's also a lot of -- by the national elite and the media. there is no european media in europe. our people are informed only through the prism of national media and it's difficult to form european public opinion. so all this together explains largely what happened yesterday. >> but if you say france, u.k., greece, and the list goes on, is it a common thread? is that the way to think of it? and because it is far left, there are some cases left, some cases right. >> i think there is a common thread, and that is this sense of loss of control. as antoine was saying, dwis comfort about whether the future is going to be better than the past, but one that i think is important is these various people who have just been elected to the old european parliament node to form groups

to exercise voice, to get funding to get the right to speak in the parliament, and given that they're divided, some are anti-immigrant, some are anti-e.u., some are anti-free trade, they aren't necessarily going to come together in a way that lets them push back in a powerful way. >> let me ask you about greece in particular, because just today the head of the -- it's the sigh reada -- sighriesa parliamentary. does that suggest these e.u. elections have immediate impact on national governments? >> well, there are sort of two layers to that. one is it's conceivable that one could see in one of these countries like greece a rejectionist party actually win a national election. then we're in a very different game. then we're talking about countries possibly leaving the european union. the other problem is in a place like greece, the government has

no choice but to listen to what the voters said. and that may mean they back away from austerity. it may mean, for example, in the european parliament, they go slow on the kinds of reforms that they need to do. for example, fiscal union and banking, they need to push forward on immigration so they get out of the air zone crisis but voters have just said we're not sure we want more brussels. so that says will the mainstream party even though they're in control back away from pushing on that door? >> i introduced you in your job as liaison to the u.s. congress. what do you say to them now about this vote? and particularly, is there an element or to what degree is there an element of anti-americanism in some these votes? >> yeah, it's very much at the heart of the debate before the election. so when i tell my friends and partners here is this parliament is going -- could be more difficult in the relation with the u.s. in the sense that own the trade issue or on the

privacy. this parliament could be more vocal. this parliament could be more visible. at the same time i tell them there is still very strong majority, probably 70% or 75% of this parliament, which is very much -- which defends or which agrees that this trade agreement is a chance for our country, we desperately need open jobs exactly like the u.s. and we believe -- the mainstream of this parliament remain convinced that we need to make it happen. at the same time we have some worries on the environmental or labor standards and these will be expressed maybe more strongly in this new parliament. >> just in our last minute, where do you see the implications for the u.s.? >> twofold. one is that americans would like to have on the other side of the atlantic, a more capable partner, to do things in the middle east, to help in iran. this result says that we may not get that europe anytime soon, that there's more collective

entity is probably not within grasp while this parliament is sitting. who knows what will come next. and then the second is on specific policies, the free-trade area, the whole msa scandal, general protectionism versus free trade. this is probably a parliament that is going to be a tougher customer for the united states. >> and do you see an anti-americanism in parts of this vote? >> no question about it. coming partly from the nsa scandal, partly from the whole question of privacy, google is the united states penetrating too much into europe. that's part of this whole narrative that you see in europe about wanting to bring back the nation-state to keep outsiders at bay. >> and basically part of that has shown up in support of the -- the ukraine. >> there is a social, cultural tie, the antigay, the anti-immigrant narrative that putin has been propagating has been picked up by the far right in europe. >> all right, charles kupchan,

antoine ripoll, thank you both so much. >> thank you. >> woodruff: on this memorial day, we remember those who served, and died, fighting for this country, with a look at how americans celebrated the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform. >> woodruff: from minot, north dakota, where war veterans scattered flower petals into a river to remember those who died at sea. to a memorial parade on the neighborhood streets of this chicago suburb. to the national d-day memorial in bedford, virginia. americans around the country today honored the men and women who fought and died for their country. president obama was back on american soil this morning after making a surprise weekend trip to visit service members in afghanistan. at a rally at bagram air field, he thanked some of the almost 33,000 american troops stationed

there. and today, under bright sunny skies, the president crossed the potomac river to arlington national cemetery along with the first lady, vice president biden and his wife, and secretary of defense chuck hagel. in a solemn, time-honored tradition, the president laid a wreath at the tomb of the unknowns. he then spoke before the crowd gathered at the cemetery's amphitheater, leading the nation in commemorating its war dead. >> our hearts ache in their absence. but our hearts are also full, full in knowing that their legacy shines bright in the people that they loved the most. through almost unimaginable loss, these families of the fallen have tapped a courage and resolve that many of us will

never know. and we draw comfort and strength from their example. >> woodruff: today's remembrances come as the u.s. prepares to withdraw most of its forces from afghanistan by year's end. >> woodruff: decorating the graves of family members buried at arlington national cemetery is a memorial day tradition. so is picnicking there. the families of those who died fighting in afghanistan and iraq gather in the newest part, known as "section 60." they are the focus of this excerpt from a documentary about the historic cemetery produced by washington's pbs station, w.e.t.a. it is narrated by david churchwell. reporter: i way from the pomp and circumstance, families and friends gather in section 60 to remember those they have lost. >> to be here any day but this

is a reminder that memorial day really is. >> you can connect with the other families. there was a bond that we share. >> loss truly is a public loss. it's very helpful. our son was buried right here, section 60. he was killed on a battle on fallujah. he was 22 when he died. today is kyle's death. today is memorial day. and this is where we are every year since kyle was buried here.

the emotions tend to be raw, especially -- these guys were enter entered recently. >> he has deployed twice in support of operation iraqi freedom. and one time in support of operation enduring freedom, afghanistan. >> we made a determination as family that every memorial day we'll be here where he is, and that's the best way to. for us it will never be the same again because we want to honor him and all the veterans.

>> woodruff: you can watch the entire w.e.t.a. documentary, "arlington national cemetary," on our website. also there, learn about one historian's painstaking efforts to count, catalog and map the locations of american war dead buried outside formal memorial cemeteries. >> woodruff: again, the major developments of the day. pope francis visited the key holy sites for both muslims and jews in jerusalem. narendra modi was sworn in as

india's new prime minister at a ceremony in new delhi. and nigeria's military says it now knows where nearly 300 abducted school girls are being held. but it fears the girls might be harmed if they use force to rescue them. boko haram militants kidnapped the girls in april. on the newshour online right now, social security expert larry kotlikoff answers a question about how to strategize when faced with a low-ball estimate of benefits. find his "ask larry" column on our making sense page. all that and more is on our web site, newshour.pbs.org. and that's the newshour for tonight. on tuesday, we'll look at the fight to save louisiana's coast, as towns and cities crumble with wetlands eroding at an alarming rate. i'm judy woodruff. we'll see you on-line, and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us here at the pbs newshour, thank you and good night.

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