captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> ifill: good evening. i'm gwen ifill. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, the family of a fallen soldier, at the heart of a political firestorm. john mccain joins a chorus of republican leaders condemning donald trump's attacks on the muslim american parents of a u.s. army captain killed in iraq. we talk with the khans. >> him and i have same equal rights. in his eyes, he thinks that he can criticize people, but no one else can criticize. that is not the value of this country. >> ifill: also ahead this monday, we are off to the races. our politics monday team gets you up to speed as the campaign officially shifts to the general election. >> woodruff: plus, china's demographic faultlines. what the one-child policy really

means for the future of the population. >> china, the world's most populous country, 1.3, 1.4 billion people, will in the next decade or so, have to begin looking for people outside of china. >> ifill: all that and more, on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160

years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> ♪ love me tender ♪ love me true we can like many, but we can love only a precious few. because it is for those precious few that you have to be willing to do so very much. but you don't have to do it alone. lincoln financial helps you provide for and protect your financial future, because this is what you do for people you love. lincoln financial-- you're in charge. >> xq institute. >> md anderson cancer center. making cancer history. >> and the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build immeasurably better >> supported by the rockefeller

foundation. promoting the wellbeing of humanity around the world, by building resilience and inclusive economies. more at www.rockefellerfoundation.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: three months to go in the presidential campaign, and for a third straight day, the headline is donald trump's feud with the family of a soldier killed in iraq. the republican presidential nominee took heat today from his own party, but he showed no sign

of relenting. we'll have the story in full, right after the news summary. >> woodruff: warnings about the zika virus are intensifying in south florida. officials now say 14 cases were likely transmitted locally by mosquitoes, all within a neighborhood north of downtown miami. the centers for disease control and prevention today issued a new warning to pregnant women to avoid that area. >> ifill: main street in ellicott city, maryland was a muddy shambles after a flash flood that killed two people saturday night. it was triggered by a cloudburst of more than six inches of rain. cell phone video captured people linking up to reach a woman in a car that was being carried away. today, officials praised the rescuers. >> that human chain has gone around the world five or six times already. but people know that whatever people in a community would do that for their neighbors or even for strangers, they will not let this storm defeat us. we are going to make sure that

ellicott city rises up to be an even stronger, even more vibrant place than it is right now. >> ifill: officials say the damage will run into the hundreds of millions of dollars. >> woodruff: and, from flood to fire: cooler temperatures in central california today helped fire crews trying to corral a wildfire north of big sur. it has scorched more than 60 square miles since july 22, an area roughly the size of san francisco. the fire has destroyed 57 homes and still threatens 2,000 more structures. it is less than 20% contained. >> ifill: the united states launched multiple air strikes against the islamic state group in libya today. at the request of libya's u.s.-backed government, they targeted a tank and other vehicles in the coastal city of sirte. the strikes were the first by the u.s. since february. >> woodruff: in northern syria, a russian transport helicopter was shot down, leaving all five crew and officers on board dead. the m.i.-8 helicopter was shot down in idlib province, where

russian warplanes often target syrian rebels. moscow blamed a faction linked to al-qaeda. >> a terrorist act was committed today. the helicopter was coming back from a humanitarian mission, after having delivered food and medicine to the aleppo residents. it was shot down from the ground in the area controlled by the militant group nusra front and the troops of moderate opposition that joined them. >> woodruff: also today, rebels claimed early progress in a new attempt to break the siege of eastern aleppo, but the syrian military denied it. >> ifill: back in this country, for the first time, more than 60 groups affiliated with the "black lives matter" movement joined today to offer criminal justice and policing reforms. among other things, the groups are pushing for an end to police use of military-style gear and vehicles. they also urge de-criminalizing some offenses for drugs, sex work and youth crimes. >> woodruff: yet another voter i.d. law has been struck down.

a federal judge ruled today that north dakota's statute is an undue burden on native americans. it requires a driver's license or other identify cards issued by state or tribal officials. similar laws in north carolina and wisconsin were struck down friday. >> ifill: and, on wall street, the dow jones industrial average lost 27 points to close at 18,404. the nasdaq rose 22 points, and the s&p 500 slipped two. still to come on the newshour: two gold star parents respond to criticism from donald trump; on politics monday, a look at the hyper-charged post-convention campaign; 50 years after a texas mass shooting that changed campus security, and much more. >> woodruff: the convention in philadelphia last week showcased

presidents past, present and possibly future. but one man, standing next to his wife, neither of them before in the national spotlight, delivered a speech that's reverberated across american politics. lisa desjardin wraps up today on the campaign trail. >> reporter: for donald trump, today was the day for a "rust belt" swing of battleground states. >> thank you! >> reporter: stopping this afternoon in ohio, and later, in pennsylvania. but on twitter this morning, the republican nominee stepped back into days-old questioning criticizing the gold star parents of a fallen army captain, humayun khan, who died in iraq in 2004. trump said khizr khan, the soldier's father, "viciously attacked me from the stage of the democratic national convention, and is now all over tv doing the same." that convention speech last thursday made headlines. >> have you even read the u.s. have you ever been to arlington

cemetery? go look at the graves of brave patriots who died defending the united states of america. you have sacrificed nothing and no one. >> reporter: trump first pushed back in an "abc news" interview that aired sunday, questioning >> i think i have made a lot of sacrifices. i've worked very, very hard. i've created thousands and thousands of jobs, tens of thousands of jobs, built great structures. >> reporter: reaction has been swift from both political parties. from president obama speaking to disabled veterans in atlanta today: >> no one has given more to our freedom than gold star families. we have grieved with them. >> reporter: ...to senate republicans mired in re-election fights.

arizona's john mccain-- a former white house hopeful himself. he said in a statement that trump's nomination does not give him "unfettered license to defame those who are the best among us." senator kelly ayotte of new hampshire wrote, "i am appalled that donald trump would disparage" the khan family. and there were more: missouri's roy blunt, ohio's rob portman, pennsylvania's pat toomey, and wisconsin's ron johnson, all today separated themselves from trump. and notably, a group usually far outside politics-- the "veterans of foreign wars" or "v.f.w."-- also weighed in, with a statement saying that "to ridicule a gold star mother," it said, "is out-of-bounds." trump himself had addressed his democratic counterpart, hillary clinton, is in nebraska today, but spoke about all this yesterday during her own "rust belt" tour: >> to launch an attack as he did on captain khan's mother, a gold

star mother, i don't know where the bounds are. i don't know where the bottom is. >> reporter: team trump, though, has a different take. trump's v.p. nominee, indiana governor mike pence, said in his own statement that the khan family "should be cherished by every american." but pence went on to attack someone else-- president obama and hillary clinton, whom he blames for the rise of isis and threat to the american military. trump campaign chairman paul manafort, also hit that theme on sunday's "face the nation": >> the issue is not mr. khan and donald trump. the issue really is radical jihad-- radical islamic jihad and the risk to the american homeland. that's the issue. >> reporter: even as the controversy continues, trump is scheduled to press on with his swing state tour, with stops in virginia and florida in the coming days. for the pbs newshour, i'm lisa desjardins. >> woodruff: and with me now are khizr and ghazala khan. thank you very much, eboth of you, for being here and condolences to both of you on

the loss of your son. >> thank you. >> woodruff: your lives have changed since thursday night, haven't they? >> yes, certainly, for the better. the love and support has just lessened our burdens so very much from all directions, from all levels. there has been just pouring of affection, pouring of condolences and support. it has just been amazing to all over again see the goodness of this society, goodness of this country. >> woodruff: donald trump tweeted this morning, "mr. khan, who does not know me, viciously attacked me from the stage of the d.n.c. and is now all over tv doing the same. nice ." he does seem irritated by your talking to the news media. what do you say to him about that? >> we are in the political process of the greatest democracy on the planet earth.

he is candidate for the highest office of this nation. he has to have the patience and tolerance for criticism. him and i have same equal rights. in his eyes, he thinks that he can criticize people, but no one else can criticize. that is not the value of this country. >> woodruff: mrs. khan, donald trump and his advisors are saying that what this is really is about is about radical islamic terrorism, and he says that's what everybody should be talking about. >> i think he doesn't know the islam. i actually don't want to talk about him or, if in my eyes the people who know islam, they won't say these things. islam is a peaceful religion, and i'm really proud of my religion. so i still don't understand why he's so upset about that i

didn't say anything at that time. >> woodruff: ar you're referring to his comment about the fact that you didn't speak at the convention but have been speaking since. >> yes. >> woodruff: what do you make of his constant connection between islam the faith and what he calls radical islamic terrorism? he connects the two directly. >> i don't think he should do that, but it is his beliefs. i can take criticism from him. i can take it, but i believe that he should not do that. >> woodruff: mr. khan, what about that? because donald trump has quoted a poll last year that he said shows more than 50% of american muslims believe there should be sharia law which advocates violent acts against women and violent, effect, terrorism? >> sharia law cannot be

implemented in this united states because this distorted sharia law is against the basic principle of equal dignity, equal protection of law in the united states. what are we talking about? these are political statements to gather hatred and create dislike. i would like to sit down and talk about what sharia law are we talking about? there is no such thing. these are laws of these countries, hodgepodge of various british colonized time laws legal system. there is no such thing. the united states has the islamic law which is equal protection of law under the 14t14th amendment. therefore, there is no fear except fear mongers make it fear. unless we amend our constitution

and take out the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment, sure, we can talk about sharia law coming in and sneaking in here. otherwise, there is no place for that. >> woodruff: mrs. khan, donald trump on his web site refers to all muslims should be banned for a time in this country. he now says all muslims coming from countries where there is violent, as he puts it, islamic terrorism should be subject to additional scrutiny and background checks. do you think that's fair? does that make sense? >> i believe that we should be really -- our security should be really tight to let them in, but i do not believe they should be banned, because there are lots of innocent people in these countries. they want to come out for their children's life, for their life, show we should not ban anything

without looking into it because there are lots of people who want to come out of those countries, and they are innocent. they don't have to do anything with terrorism. >> woodruff: mr. khan, what about that? >> of course, we agree that there should be the strictest standards to scrutinize, make sure we only allow good people, we don't allow bad people. but then what? last few incidences have indicated these are home-grown, bad people. how do you deal with that? how would you scrutinize through immigration? they're born here. therefore, to deal with it is to join hands with the community, make it known that the community is part of the society, the community has an obligation to monitor themselves while they are in this community. terrorism, manners of terrorism cannot be defeated by army, by

military action. if it was possible, this would have already taken place. >> woodruff: two other quick things. mrs. khan, many americans say more american muslims need to speak out against terrorism. >> true. i believe that. we should all get together and speak that terrorism is not the answer. you always get respect and love when you love someone. >> woodruff: and finally, mr. khan, some of donald trump's supporters are saying you and mrs. khan were tricked into doing this by the clinton campaign. >> not at all. we were not district. we were given an option. she was the editor of my speech that was about six pages long. she kept editing and saying don't say this or this. i rely on her strength and support and guidance so that speech became three minutes long

speech, and the constitution came into play. i carry this in mpocket out of affection for this document. at home, we have a stack of it sitting. anytime a guest comes, we give them a copy of it. amazon says they have not sold that many constitutions ever. these are good civic lessons. anybody who picks up the constitution and reads it begins to realize the wonderful values that exist and begins to see the goodness of this country. the same thing is on registration of vote. it's a sacred right that democracy gives us. lots of us don't use it, but if somehow we were able to encourage, i think it was worth. >> woodruff: mr. khizr khan and gay salia

>> woodruff: and the trump campaign did not respond to repeated requests to provide a spokesperson for an interview today. >> ifill: for more on the fight between donald trump and the khan family; his recent comments on russia's intervention in the ukraine; and hillary clinton's weekend outreach to rustbelt voters, it's time for politics monday with tamara keith of npr, and amy walter of the cook political report. >> woodruff: you just heard ghaa to judy the response to donald trump's feud that, whatever it is, i can take it. we heard warren buffet on behalf of hillarylinton say have you no decency? you made no sacrifice. we heard john mccain cold but not withdraw his endorsement today of donald trump. i wonder starting with you amy whether it's ever a good thing to have to defend yourself by

tweet? >> no, but at the same time nothing about this campaign has seemed normal. the traditional candidate response to a speech like mr. khan gave would be to say, my condolences for your loss. here is my differences of opinion on the policy of it, right? i differed with hillary clinton and the obama administration on the war on terror, i disgreerd with mr. bush on the war in iraq in the first place. but that is the answer a traditional politician would give. i feel irked come out with a tape recorder and say nothing he does is like a traditional politician lever do. his supporters i think be will continue to rally around him, be but every day in campaign is about donald trump and his messaging, which is not -- which is about him and not about the bigger, broader issues, i don't think that's a good day for donald trump.

>> ifill: hillary clinton was asked about the benghazi mom who spoke at the republican convention, and what was her reaction? >> her reaction was more the typical politician answer -- thank you for your family service, i can't begin to understand your loss, that kind of thing -- and then she did get to the question of whether she remembered it the same way. but she remained respectful throughout, and you wouldn't call it a feud. that's the difference is in the way hillary clinton answered, it ended up. up -- it ended there. george w. bush, cindy sheehan was parked outside his ranch for a very long time protesting him -- >> ifill: 2008. t was earlier, i think it was maybe even 2004, and george w. bush said that is her right, that is her right to protest, that is her right to say anything she wants about me because this is america,

actually. >> ifill: that's what america allows for. let's move on to something else donald trump had to say this weekend. he was asked this week by george stephanopoulos about his views of ukraine and russia and relationship with vladimir putin and this was his response. >> he's not going to go into ukraine, all right? you can mark it down, you can put it down, take it anywhere you want. >> he's already there isn't he. there in a certain way. i'm not there. you have obama there. that part of the world is a mess under obama with all of the strength you're talk about and the power of n.a.t.o. and all of this, in the mean time, he's going away -- he takes crimea -- >> reporter: but you said you might recognize that. >> i'm going to take a look at it but, you know, the people of crimea from what i've heard would rather be with russia than where they were. >> ifill: he said two things that horrified foreign policy experts, one the fact that russia was not already in ukraine. the government we back in

ukraine disagrees with that. also somehow crimeansty it would be okay for russia to stay will after being a annexed. then he said that's not what i meant. >> he tweeted back, that's not what i meant, when i'm president. this is where hillary clinton's job is easier. you will see it i've write day for the next 99 days is saying he's temperamentally unfit to be president of the united states, he's going to be dangerous. if this happens day in and day out, this idea about his sympathies, whether it's sympathies to putin, whether the fight he's getting in with the khan family, in the minds of people who are not already in a camp polarized one way or the other, it sows enough doubt.

>> ifill: on the other hand, which is people are not going to decide who to vote for, or are they, based on whether donald trump is great friends with vladimir putin? >> i think the economy is far more of a factor for american voters than what happens in crimea. the sector of voters that are crimea voters is probably not very large. so going back to the khan family and the feud with the khan family, the question is whether this is the thing that pushes donald trump over the edge, whether this is the time -- >> ifill: we've said that before. >> we have been asked that many times like with john mccain and various other things. this seems more like the time he mocked a disabled reporter. because these are civilians, these aren't politicians he's going after. and we won't know for a while, but focus groups showed that mocking a disabled reporter was the most resonant thing, the

thing of why it's in an ad. i think we'll see this in an ad. >> ifill: we saw both of them in the rustbelt -- ohio, pennsylvania, you were on the big bus tour, which must have been exhausting -- bu but i wonr what the candidates are doing now out of the conventions, starting on the general election, what this tells us about what they received in the conventions and what they are doing next. >> this is another missed opportunity for the trump campaign. friday g.d.p. numbers were terrible, second worst recovery since 1949. you're supposed to go to the rustbelt and make the case. the economy is not doing well under obama, why would you bet hillary clinton do it. this weekend, tam was on the bus and saw this, but if you look at the cities she went, to she went right into trump country, not because she thinks she's going to win there, but campaigns are

as much as about winning over voters as it is not losing by a lot and she's trying to narrow the margins in those areas that obama lost, she can't lose by as were percentage. >> ifill: and i know it's too soon to talk about convention bumps even though there is a handful of polls out today showing she has some kind of a bump, but how is the campaign then positioning itself to take advantage of whatever positivity they can get out of this negativity? >> they're trying to hold their ground. no matter what the bump says, i get the feeling hillary clinton and the clinton campaign is going to keep plugging away. this is not a flashy campaign. this is the nitty gritty work. i mean, they're in omaha where there is one electoral vote she could possibly maybe one. >> ifill: where warren buffet is. >> where warren buffet happens to be and is introducing her. but they are doing the small ball, trying to win that way,

mean while, donald trump is going for the big splash, and this is a real test of which will work. >> ifill: ca tamera keith of np, amy walter of the "cook political report," thank you both. >> you're welcome. >> woodruff: stay with us. coming up on the newshour: china facing the biggest aging crisis the world has ever seen; plus, what, and who, to watch for in this year's olympics. >> ifill: but first, texas marks a somber anniversary today. 50 years after a shooting massacre-- then-unprecedented-- shook the campus of the state's flagship public university. but along with that anniversary, the university of texas at austin and the state's other schools marked another milestone-- the enactment of a new law that allows people to carry concealed guns on texas campuses. william brangham has the story.

>> brangham: this is the clock tower where horror rained down fifty years ago today. bells rang to remember the lives lost, and to honor the survivors of the shooting at the university of texas in austin. ( bagpipes "taps" ) the flags on the campus mall were lowered to half-staff. the clock tower was stopped for 24 hours. bagpipes led mourners to the tower's garden, where a new memorial was dedicated to victims of the horrific event. it was on a hot august day in 1966 that former marine and engineering student charles whitman climbed to the top of the clock tower and opened fire. whitman killed fourteen people on campus that day, and had also murdered his wife and mother before his shooting spree began. more than thirty people were wounded, and a 17th victim died decades later of wounds sustained that day. whitman's rampage fifty years ago lasted an hour and a half, and only ended after police stormed the tower and killed him. other students had also fired at whitman with their own rifles.

texas congressman lloyd doggett was a student on campus that day. >> this massacre, we need to remember, occurred before terms like gun violence, mass shooting or swat team were even a part of our regular vocabulary. this campus attack was unprecedented. i think it was as unexpected for us in the university community and for our police department as if some flying saucer had landed up there on top of the tower. >> brangham: as the community gathered to mark the anniversary of one of the nation's first campus mass shootings, today also marked the very first day that concealed firearms will be permitted inside university of texas buildings. last year, state legislators passed the s0-called "campus carry" law, arguing that armed students might be able to stop the next mass shooting from occurring. to talk about the university's commemoration, as well as how it's grappling with this new concealed carry law, i'm joined by gregory fenves. he is the president of the university of texas at austin.

he originally spoke out against the concealed weapon bill, but now that its law, he's implementing it on campus. president fevres, welcome. first off, let's talk about today's memorial and commemoration. why now? what is it that you're hoping to accomplish with this memorial? >> well, it's been 50 years since the tragedy of the tower shooting m. of the survivors are getting on in age, and as we were preparing for this anniversary -- sad anniversary of this tragic event -- we realized we had not adequately memorialized the 17 individuals that were killed on august 1, 1966, and we wanted to do two things. we first wanted to bring some measure of healing and closure to the survivors and the many law enforcement heros that came to the rescue that day, but we also wanted to heal the campus. i think the campus had not given enough recognition to this

tragedy. it is part of our history, it is a sad part of our history, so we wanted an appropriate memorial that would live on forever at the university of texas to remember the events of 1966. >> brangham: why do you think it has taken 50 years to do this? >> well, in the mid 1960s, this was the first mass shooting, sadly, the first mass shooting at an american campus. we, unfortunately, have had more of those in the past 50 years. i think the country and society and individuals felt the best way to cope with a tragedy is to move on, to not talk about it. we now know that that's not the best way for a community and for individuals to deal with tragedy and to try to learn from it and try to move on. so we wanted a public commemoration that would

recognize the fallen and thank the survivors and thank the heros. >> brangham: today's commemoration, as you well know, also marks the implementation of this concealed carry law which reporters say is a response to these types shootings. their belief is if we have more armed citizens in openlations and college campuses that they will be better able to respond to these types situation before police get there. what d do you make of that argument? >> i don't think there is much evidence that does help, but nevertheless it is the law in the state of texas. there is great opposition to it on our campus among faculty, students, parents of students. but we went through a year-long, thoughtful, engaging process with all members of our community to develop policies that promote campus safety but also follow the law, which i as president of the university are

obligated to implement. >> brangham: supporters of this law point to what happened 50 years ago which is when whitman starts shooting from that tower that some students got rifles, were able to pin him down somewhat until police can get there. you don't believe that that is a good argument in support of this kind of a law? >> well, i think police tactics and police training have improved dramatically since 1966. there were no s.w.a.t. teams. police did not have the weapons they needed to deal with the shooting and, so, unfortunately, we have a need for very highly-trained law enforcement agencies who train regularly, are very rigorous in dealing with these situations as is our university of texas police department and local law enforcement agencies. >> so starting this fall, some slice of your population of

students could be carrying concealed weapons on campus. do you worry as president of the university that something could go wrong? college kids drink, tempers can flare. do you worry about some kind of a mishap? >> i worry every night about what could happen. that's my nature. we have 50,000 students, we're a campus community of almost 70,000 individuals and a very dynamic urban area and, so, as you've said, these situations can always develop, whether there is a concealed carry law or not. in texas, an individual licensed to carry has to be over age 21. many of our students are under age 21, has to undergo a criminal background check, has to go through training. less than 5% of the texas population has concealed permits to carry. >> brangham: you purchased today this event happened back

before we even had language to talk about mass shootings and gun violence in this country. do you feel the university is prepared for these types of events going forward? >> well, you can never truly be prepared for a tragedy of that magnitude, but our police force, uttpd and collaboration with the austin police department and the state department of public safety regularly train for what they call active shooter events. unfortunately, we had one a couple of years ago, and most people report the police responded almost instantaneously. so i have great confidence in our law enforcement agencies. but one of the outgrowths of the tower shooting in 1966 was the understanding of mental health counseling. the university was very proactive in that period to add mental health counselors to assist with students coping with

tragedy, and we've used that for a number of different incidents that have occurred over the years. >> brangham: president gregory fevres of university of texas at austin, thank you very much. >> thank you very much. >> woodruff: in southeast asia, tensions continue to simmer as china claims sovereignty over the south china sea, a busy international trade route. the united states and china have both beefed up naval presence there, leading to fears of a military confrontation. this is just one example of china flexing its military muscle in recent months, and it coincides with a slowdown in the nation's economy. writing in the atlantic, magazine, journalist howard french sees a connection between the two, pointing out that as

china's population ages, the country faces a huge demographic problem that will affect all aspects of its economic and military aspirations. >> reporter: china has its own baby boom generation. and china's baby boom generation, because of the size of china itself, is the world's largest baby boom generation. howard ofrench, a former shanghai bureau chief for the new york times, has written extensively about china, and he's photographed its people. >> this baby boom generation in china will start to hit retirement age in the very next few years, let's say by the end of this decade. and at that moment, extraordinary numbers of chinese people will exit the workforce, and the chinese workforce, which has already begun to shrink, will shrink in a vastly accelerated way. and so china's going to face huge retirement costs and social security costs, health care costs, related to this immense

aging of the population. >> woodruff: what are the implications for china as a country and for the chinese economy? >> china will have the biggest aging crisis that the world has ever seen, over the next generation, and this happens at a time when chinese ambitions, geo-politically speaking, are expanding. and at some point, these two phenomena will collide, and very tough decisions will have to be made about guns versus canes. how much can we afford to invest in our geopolitical ambitions, versus how much must we invest in terms of supporting our population? >> woodruff: the massive number of baby boomers would not be such a problem if china's younger generations were just as large. but they are not, mainly because of the one-child policy china imposed on all families beginning in 1978. >> the one-child policy was

based on some faulty science and had as an ambition, reigning in chinese population growth so as to enhance the per capita wealth of the country. because the chinese made a straight line prediction based on what the present fertility rate was in the late 1970s, they made some big errors in their projections. imposing the one-child policy meant that the fertility rate took additional hits. and the penalties of this decision are just now being borne. this is a mistake of extraordinary significance for china's place in the world, for chinese power, for chinese prosperity and for the chinese communist party to turn around all of a sudden and say, "hey, wait a minute, that big one- child policy thing was a huge mistake," is very difficult for them to do. >> woodruff: but you believe today, the chinese leadership understands what's happened and are trying to do something about it, they just don't want to be

so public with their acknowledgement. >> they've been very grudgingly, very gradually coming- publicly coming to terms with what people have known for quite some time was a big issue. and this came to a head in the last year when beijing decided to relax the one-child policy officially. >> woodruff: you of course were a new york times bureau chief in shanghai; you've lived in china; you know the country very well. what is that going to mean, in terms of the old china, the evolving china? >> when you arrive in china nowadays, one of the first things you note is the emphasis placed on you, a non-chinese person, being an outsider. sometimes this is done aggressively; sometimes this is done rudely, but most of the time it's just done routinely. it's just a normal thing in the course of your encounters with chinese people in every walk of life. >> woodruff: were you able to capture that in your photographs, do you think, the in and out?

>> sure, as i set out to begin photographing shanghai, i encountered this insider/outsider phenomena in the most personal of ways. you would walk into an old neighborhood in the center of city, and people would begin to point at you. people would begin to talk about you, spreading the word about the outsider who has wandered into their midst, look at him, he's got a camera, what's he doing, is this allowed, is this okay, how should be respond to him, etc., etc. >> woodruff: and what were you trying to capture? >> i was trying to capture a way of living in the city that was under immense pressure, that was being radically transformed right before my eyes. these neighborhoods were filled in a hugely disproportionate way with relatively old people, people who the chinese back then already were speaking of as a lost generation. people who, during the cultural revolution, had not gone to college, because chinese schools were closed, and who had often been sent to the countryside as a way of political training.

so when china opens up at the end of the 1970s and begins to reform its economy and to become quasi-capitalist, these people, just by virtue of their own timing in the last century, of their coming of age, they were not, most of them, eligible for these new competitive jobs that capitalism was providing to china. and so those were the left- behind people in those neighborhoods. >> woodruff: so what does that mean the options are for the chinese government and for the chinese people? how do they reach some sort of equilibrium in terms of having enough people to fill the jobs to keep the engine of their economy going? >> china, the world's most populous country, 1.3, 1.4 billion people, will, in the next decade or so, have to begin looking for people outside of china. what does this mean? china will have to become a much more welcoming society. it means that china will have to attract immigrants from other countries in order to slow the aging of the population.

the problem is, if you're 1.3, 1.4 billion people, where do you find enough immigrants in order to have a significant impact on a population of that size? there's no obvious candidate. >> woodruff: china's need for immigrants stands in stark contrast to the situation in the united states, which french finds ironic in light of the current political debate in the u.s. >> the reason the united states is not aging rapidly in terms of its demographics, is because we accept people as newcomers to this society in numbers that far surpass any of our major peers or rivals. and this is what replenishes the workforce, it reinvigorates the society, it underpins our tax base. and so it is this immigration, in a way, that has been largely unappreciated in our political debate, which really is a kind

of churn of our economy. >> reporter: until china finds a similar churn for its economy-- immigration, increased fertility or something else- french says its leaders are faced with some bleak decisions, starting with scaling back the military. >> since the first gulf war in 1991, the chinese have been increasing their military budget roughly by 11% a year on average. there's no way that china will be able to sustain that sort of military expenditure. and the most important reason is because of its population changes. >> woodruff: and that, says french, may well mean chinese leaders are eager to make aggressive military moves now, while they still can. >> this is the moment to go for the ring, if you will, to try to secure every gain that you can, before the huge costs come home. and therefore, we're seeing china push very hard in its immediate neighborhood, particularly in the maritime zone surrounding china, to kind

of create a security zone for itself, trying to lock in the territorial and maritime gains that it can now, before a period of much more difficult choices arises sometime in the 2020s. >> woodruff: and you can read howard french's full article online at our partner, the atlantic's website. that's www.theatlantic.com. >> ifill: four days out from the olympic opening ceremonies in rio, it's not a pretty picture. there are new warnings about the risks of contaminated waterways, and the dispute continues between anti-doping officials and the chief of the international olympic committee over russia's participation. that said, there's excitement around the actual competition.

jeffrey brown got a preview of u.s. medal hopes with christine brennan, sportswriter and columnist for usa today and abc news. >> brown: christine brennan, we can withum back. >> thanks. >> brown: let the games begin, right? >> exactly. >> brown: let's talk about athletics. summer olympics, americans, and we've talk about gymnastics and swimming. start with gymnastics. another big year. >> it may be the biggest year ever, especially the women's side, which is saying something because women have become the dominant gymnasts in the world. going back to mary lou retton and miller. in this list of names i mentioned, there is another one coming, maybe the best of all, simone biles. she has won the best of

everything. >> brown: she is already coming in as being talked about as bun of the west ever. >> she's so good, she's being anded the gold meddle everywhere around, team gold meddle, no problem at all. >> brown: no pressure, then. that's the great thing, she stumbled at the olympic trials, which was uncharacteristic. from watching spores, as everyone at home knows, just when you think you know it's solid and guaranteed, is there going to p be a crack here. i think she is so good and so strong and because she's won world title after world title, the top gymnast in the world in the last three or four years, i would be stunned if simone has a misstep. but that's a tall order and over a week and a half of events and we'll see how she handles that pressure. >> brown: swimming, return of michael phelps. it's hiss fifth olympics coming back.

>> he was a 15-year-old in 2000, in sydney. he's 31 years old now, a dad, an says he cleaned up his act. he's had issues with drunk driving and other things. this is it. >> brown: he says this is really it. >> as opposed to the other time when he was retiring last time. but fellups is still the best in the united states, the 100 butterfly and 200 butterfly. the question is whether he's the best in the world. in omaha, his olympic trials were not the best in the world or his best. the question is can he get better and faster. otherwise, while we expect him to win everything, it might be a little surprise. maybe he'll win the is hundred fly, incredible cleavement, 200 fly, but there is a lot of competition from around the world and the guys would love to beat michael fellups. >> brown: katy ladecky is gold. >> she is. what would be most surprising is

katy not winning. >> brown: really? she should be 5, 6 seconds ahead in the 400, 11 seconds ahead in the 800 free style, she has the 200 free and the four by 200 relay. if everything goes well for her, four gold medals, most for any american in terms of swimming, and she'll come out of the olympics as the swimming star of the games. >> brown: so now i want to switch to track and field, and there the doping scandal has an impact. but start first with usane bolt. >> he is back, trying to do a triple double. it's winning the men's 100 and the men's 200 in three consecutive olympics. beijing, he did it. people remembers how he finches by turning around, jumping up and down, looking at his competitors, dancing while he's still running, has these incredible times, and did it again in london.

he will be 30 years old on the day the games end. that's not exactly a spring chicken. >> brown: had injuries. a hamstring pull a few weeks ago. he says he's healthy. we'll see. >> brown: the russian doping scandal has an impact in the track and field already, right? >> we do. >> brown: what impact? i think it's a big one. here's the reality. the russian track and field team is banned except for one lone long jumper. the fact they were second in the medal count in london in track and field, they had won seven gold and 16 medals overall, and those medals are now gone, they won't be able to win them. while i believe russia, the entire team, should have been banned for state sponsored, government sponsored systemic doping, the likes we've not seen since east germany, 40, 50 years ago, the realtime is russia? the game. the track and field is where the federation said, no, we're our .

the track and field federation kicked out the russians and you will see a lack of impact with the medals with russia and the other countries will benefit from that. >> brown: more women competing and medal count. give me a look at the big picture when you watch the games. >> we called the 2012 team title nine, and we can call this team title nine as well. the most women being sent by the u.s., sending 292 women out of a team of 555. that is all about watching that law title nine sinned in 1972 by richard nixon work its way through our culture. the power of women will be extraordinary team sports, dominating basketball, soccer, water poll lo, the rolling 80s. >> brown: you were telling me

the basketball team hasn't lost since. >> women's basketball team hasn't lost since 1992. >> brown: yeah. one of the reasons people don't know is they're so dominant the media tends to go, oh, give them the gold medal and tends to move on. women's soccer will be a big deal as well. the medal count will do the same as summary games and dominate, especially with russia being down, correctly, so the u.s. will do well. china will be there. will be interesting to see if great britain can keep their winning up and win meddles when they go to rio in 2016. >> brown: crist teen brennan. enjoy yourself down there. >> i will, thanks. >> woodruff: now to our >> ifill: on the newshour online right now, a syrian woman living abroad was inspired to help when the revolution began. concerned for the women in her

country, she has helped organize literacy classes, create women's centers and more. learn how her organization strives to give women a safe place, on our web site, www.pbs.org/newshour. >> woodruff: and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. >> ifill: and i'm gwen ifill. join us online, and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you and good night. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> xq institute. >> lincoln financial-- committed to helping you take charge of your financial future. >> bnsf railway. >> md anderson cancer center. making cancer history. >> and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic

performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. >> supported by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. more information at macfound.org >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

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