b captioning sponsored newshour productions, llc enivasan: good evening, i'm hari sreenivasan. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight... >> we'll turn our grief into action. we have to have action. >> sreenivasan: ...president p trump pussure on congress for gun reform in the wake of the florida school shooting. then, power grab-- china's communist party moves to abolish term limits, allowing president xi jinping to stay in office for alfe. and, som struggles to its feet-- a surge in u.s. military presence pushes the militant group al-shabab out of the east african nation, but not without complications. >> the u.s. military's involvement in the war here in somalia happens in the shadows.s thatome people worried about accountability. >> sreenivan: all that and more on tonight's pbnewshour.

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>> and we 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. >> sreenivasan: from president trump today, more talk of gun ntrol in america, and of crossing the n.r.a.

he spoke amid calls for action at the federal and state levels, in the wake of the school shooting in florida. >> and we're going to do very strong background checks. if we see a sicko, i don't want him having a gun. >> sreenivasan: it was another listening session of sorts, this me, president trump with the nation's governors. he called again for banning bump stocks even if it means breaking with the national rifle association. >> don't worry about the n.r.a. they're on our side. you guys, half of you are so afraid of the n.r. there's nothing to be afraid of. and you know what?he ifre not with you, we have to fight them every once in a while. that's okay. i sreenivasan: the president also returned to ta of arming trained teachers in schools. but washington state's cratic governor jay insl challenged him. >> i have listened to the people who would be affected by that. i have listened to the biology ntteachers and they don't o do that at any percentage. i've listened to the first grade teachers that don't want to be pistol-packing teachers. i ust suggest we need a

little less tweeting here and a little more listening and lets just take that off the table and move forward. >> sreenivasan: several other governors, including texas rmpublican gregg abbott, spoke in favor of having people on school campuses. this as the gavel echoed in coress for the first time 10 days. west virginia democratic senato joe mancappealed to republicans to help pass something. >> it would be the president weighing in that would give them the comfort zone, i would think, the republicans in order for them to pport something that's reasonable. >> sreenivasan: lawmakers face a host of proposals.ix they include f to the instant criminal background system and raising the purchase age for long guns. but, it's not clear if anything can pass. on sunday, republican congressman brian mast, longtime n.r.a. member, called for a temporary ban on assault rifles. ke alongside democratic counterpart ted deutch. nd i think we can get the president on boardembers of congress onboard to say let's ert that same kind of pause on onboard right now we look at who's having access, what do they have access to. sreenivasan: the n.r.a.'s dana loesch said her

organization does not back any ban. >>e're talking about banni firearms and the discussion is about banning all semi-automatic firearms and that's really the discussion. can we actually look at what could have prevented this? that firearmid not walk itself into the school. >> sreenivasan: the n.r.a. also faces an economic backlash. starkey hearing technologies is the latest organization to drop its discount program for n.r.a. members. that makes nearly 20 companies who've cut ties with t since the florida shootings. the broward county sheriff's department faces its own backlash, amid reports that several deputies waited outsider mastoneman douglas high school in parkland, as 17 people were killed. president trump raised it again today. >> but i really believe i'd run in there even if i didn't have a weapon and i think most of the people would have done that too, because i know most of you. but they way they performed was really a disgre. >> sreenivasan: deputy scoton peteassigned to the

school, said through his attorney today that the allegations of cowardice are "patently untrue." and, broward countrasheriff scot said sunday he will not step down, despite criticism of his deputies and reports that his department ignored warnings cused gunman nikolas cruz. but florida governor rick scott has asked for a state investigation. meanwhile, a parkland survivor, maddy willford, spoke out.ve she despite being shot three times, and had a presidential visit at the hospital. today, shehanked those who ved her life.li >> i would jus to say that i'm so grateful to be here and it wouldn't be possible without those officers and first responders and these amazing doctors and especially all the >> sreenivasan: doctors say she still has llet fragments in her body and is lucky to be alive. yesterday, thousands of students and parents returned to douglas high to gaer their belongings.

>> it's not like you're going back just to see your friends. you're going back to see people that are traumatized for the rest of their lives. >> sreenivasan: the school is set to officially reopen on wednesday. we'll take a closer look at the lader of the n.r.a. in florida, after the news summary. in the day's other news, the u.s. supreme court heard a pivotal case for more than five- million americans in plic sector unions across 24 states. at issue: whether workers who are not union members should be required to pay dues to coverst the f collective bargaining. outside the court, the two sidew argued abother the ultimate decision will jeopardize unions-- or free speech. >> i think collective bargaining has its place, but let the individual worker choose what they want to do. don't force them to do something that they may disagreeayith or they m not want to be involved in. >> their purpose is clearly to hurt unions and it is to give ctgovernment free reign ton an authoritarian way with respect to the workplace. to set wages, tenss and conditithout input from workers.

>> sreenivasan: seurrately, the declined to hear the trump s ministration's appeal to end the daca program march 5. it protects immigrants brought to t u.s. illegally as children. lower courts have blocked the president's attempt to abolish the program. he had wanted the supreme court to interve, without waiting for a federal appeals court to rule. in syria, a government air assat intensified outside damascus, despite the u.n. security council's call for a 30-day cease-fire. u.n. officials reported at least 30 people killedn the last 48 hours-- and more than 500 in the last week. today, rescue workers in eastern ghouta pulled injured from the rubble. o local healthicials say some were victims of a chemical attack. and, in geneva, the u.n. secretary general demanded action. >> eastern ghouta cannot wait, it is high time to stop this ll on earth. and i remind all parties of their absolute obligation under international humanitarian and

human rights law to protect civilianfrand civilian tructure at all times. >> sreenivasan: later, moscowno ced that russian president vladimir putin has ordered a daily five-hour humanitarian pause in the attacks. russia has been a key ally of syria. meanwhile, turkish president cep tayyip erdogan urged all sides in syria to honor a cease- fire in eastern ghouta, but he insisted idoes not apply to turkey's assault on syria's afrin region, where it's targeting u.s.-backed kurdish fighters.su president trumested today he would be open to talks with north korea. it came a day after ang said it is ready for such talks. e trump administration h said the north must first be ready to give up its nuclear and missile programs. today, at a meeting governors, the president said talks are possible "under the right conditions." >> talking about tremendous potential loss of lives, numbers nobody's ever contemplated, never thought of. so they want to talk, first

time, they want to talk. and 'll see what happens, that's my attitude, we'll see what happens. but something has to be done. >> sreenivasan: the president also lauded china for doing more to rein in north korea, but he called out russia for, "behaving badly." an arctic storm paralyzed parts of europe today with record cold. the frigid front blew out of siberia with driving snow and the lowest temperatures of the season. several inches of snow even reached rome-- a rarity that flights and covered roads. elsewhere, blizzard conditions dumped five feet of snow in the balkans. back in this country: the company co-founded by harvey weinstein said it will file for federal bankruptcy pion, after talks to sell the studio fell apart. weinstein was fired as chairman after he was accused of sexual harassment and abuse by dozens of women. he denies the allegations. the trump organization says it has donated s hotel profits from business with foreign governments to the u.s. treasury. the company said today it includes profits from all of last year. it would not say exactly how

much that was. watchdog groups saidlack of any details leaves key ethics quesons unanswered. and on wall street stocks surged as interest rates baown a bit from the four-yeighs stey set last week. the dow jones inal average gained nearly 400 points to close at 25,709. the nasdaq rose 84 points, and the s&p 500 picked up 32. still to come on the newshour: how the n.r.a. shaped florida's gun la. china moves to eliminate it's president's te limits. american forces aiding somalia's fight against the militant group al shabaab, and much more. >> sreenivasan: in florida, state legislators are about to begin the final weeks of their legislative session and several proposals on guns anons are on the table. republican governor rick scott has said he now backs raising the age to purchase a firearm

erom 18 to 21. state legislators considering a law that would require a new three-day waiting period for the purchase of firearms. but will these changes pass? the n.r. has been a powerful voice in that state. the latest issue of the new yorker foces on the n.r.a.'s past successes in florida, and the lobbyist behind it, marion hammer. she represents the n.r.a. there and is a past nationalresident of the n.r.a. mike sties wrote the piece and he joins me now. mike sties, why ascribe so much power to this one woman? tell us a little about her accomplishments. >> well, she's been around for nearly four decades in the florida legislator or tallahassee, rather, and has accomplished truly amazing things that have transformed not just floridaut the contry.

beginning in the 190s, she was responsible for pushing through the country's first conceal carry law which effectively allows people to carry concealed handguns in public if they can satisfy ac bariteria to get a permit, and that law has been replicated virtually in every state in some form. before that, it was very rare for someone to carry a concealed apon in public and it's nowno alized. 108 million concealed carriers in florida alone, by far thest n the country. going forward, her other major accomplishments, the creation and enactment of standard ground in 2005. people are familiarith that law because a lot of controversy susurrounding it in 2012 because of treyvon martin's death and an arrest delayed by the law and

also figured in the jury instructions in zimmerman's trial. standard ground is a -- stand fense lawnd is the de in the country, saying you can engage in almost preemptive self-defense. >> sreenivasan: you looked through thousands oe-mails by request. what was the kind of influence she and by extension the n.r.a. had in the legislative process in florida? >> in every part of the process, she has a hand. she ultelim oversees the development legislation, creates it with her n.r.a. lawyers and shepherds it through that means there are government staffers who help make sure language an in bills chord withe constitution. she's ba lobyist. what winds up happening is legislators ultimately abdicate eir responsibility to her, so

she effectively acts as if she were a legislator, though she'sr more pl than they are, and then does things like, you know, as the peace detail does, sets up her own bi signing ceremonies once the bill gets to the government. >> sreenivasan: a quote in your article says if you're a governor and won by a handful o votes and have a shandful of ambitions yos take marioll in the middle of the night. if she needs something you do it and if you don't think you can do it you try anyway. given the florida leadership has been in the hands of one party at lest 20 yea and the influence of the n.r.a. has been fairly strong, what's theoll something changes, if it didn't change after treyvon martin or the orlando pulse shooting? >> this is a very rare moment and i sort of think we're uncharted territory right now. to be clear, what's being proposed right now, raising the age limit, buying rifles from 18

to 21, expanding the thr-d waiting period for all gun purchases made at priva dealers, these are still modest troposal despite the fact tha the n.r.a. proposes them. what happened recently, when there was a proposal to ban assault assault weapons florida, for instance, that does gotten anywhere. that's just a non-starter. in this case, it seems like there's wide republican support, not just with rick scott but across the legislature in bot chambers, and i think, in this case, there is some cover in numbers. marian is very good -- marion is very good at punishing people and getting retribution against those who violate her position, but in this case you can't likely punish everyonif everyone's going to go along with the proposals. so there is just not really any

precedent for this. that said, it still doesn't mea she's not going to be able to strip the provisions out of the bill or get at least one stripped out of the bill before it arrives on governor scott's desk. >> sreenivasan: we reached out marijuan marion hammer and shet cooperate in the profile. mike sties, thanks so much for joining us. >> thankfor having me. an >> sreenivchina's ruling communist party proposed sunday to remove term limits on thece off president. that means xi jinping, who heads the party and the military, may never have to leave office. as william brangham tells us no it sets xi up to be the most powerful leader of china since mao zedong. >> brangm: the surprise oposal to amend china's constitution would eliminate the

current limit of two-terms for china's presidents. that limit was digned to avoid a cult of personality developing, similar rew around mao zedong, the founder of the modern chinese state. with us now to unpack what this means for china, the u.s., and the wider world is christopher johnson. he served as a top china analyst w at the c.i.a., and he's e freeman chair in china studies at the center for rategic and international studies, a washington think tank. welcome. >> thankr good to be h >> brangham: how significant a move is this in china? >> i think it's very significant. rbasically, what we see his a bending of 30 years of practice in the chinese sstem and overturning really the legacy of the last great paramount leader aho was in charge of d constructing thengerous setup that happeder mao zedong. >> brangham: you were saying earlier this move confirms some of the worst fears we have about xi. what are the worst fears? h this?n we see wit

>> i think it confirms a lot of worst fears of people in the system which is h is a powlo meniac like mao and is not the pragmatist he said he was. i think the jury is still out on that. the key question is he has the power, so what is he going to do with it? on the economy, for example, he can taken to the tough reforms and make the economy more open, or he can move tward the status model that we've seen increasingly under his w leadershch has been a real problem especially in trade relations with thed uni states. >> brangham: which direction combining diewng? will we see more called liberal reformists or the opposite? >> my own sense is, in this case, probably the past will be prologue, and the last five years which has been towards a more repressive state oriented system will be the direction of travel. >> brangham: do you think the u.s. is ready and able to handle a surge in china economically,

politically? >> i think we certainly have the tools. one of the things that'sg interestinfor example is we're about to enter dicto terri with the chinese trade. i think there is a general view in the administration which agree with that we have a lot of lerage in this but what is it went from china out of this in irrm of free trade and fa environment for us? i'm not sure we have a plan and strategy for that. the real story is it's clear with xi jinping's latest move that he's going to be around for a while. he has plan.e we need tot a plan. >> brangham: we tend to think of china as atene-party st but there are some who are not xi-accolites in exine. >> true. >> brangham: are there is in chinwith authority to challenge this? >> since he came into power and started attacking people who put him in power, i think there is n general this is going to create an immune response of some sort. i thk what we've seen is through political shock and awe, he has so outmaneuvered these

ople in the system that there is nothing they can do about it and we don't see any visible signs ofblpposition and pro the key area we should see this is the taming of the mlitary which, of course, in the past has been a tool within the system for changing leaderships. >> brangham: taming of the military, meaning the completely responsive just to him and not independent on their own? >> historically the role in the military system has been to defend china and keep the party in power, and therefore have been a political actor in the system. through a vigorous anti-corruption campaign and changes to the forestructure he's brought them under his control. >> brangham: a lot of the talk about xi is his desire to return china to its greatness in the past. >> correct. >> brangham: in the 21s , what does that mean today? >> i think first and foremost o returnina to a position of

power in asia and whateverde brglobal power aspirations they have we'll have to see. but under xi jinping's leadership, it's a desire to show china has discovered what we call a third way between communism and capitalism, a state' led cpitalism that woks for them and delivers results. >> brangham: chris , thank you ver -- chrisnjohson, . >> thank you very much, nice to be here. >> sreenivasan: stay with us, coming up on the nashour: ratic memohe dem and what it means for the russia investigation. and the female direchind the hit tv drama "homeland."fi but, the last time most americans thought of the east african nation of somalia was a quarter century ago, when u.s. troo died fighting in the capital, mogadishu. now, after years of civil war and upheaval, the country is struggling to its feet. and the u.s. is back in somalia, with boots on the ground and

drones in the skies. just last week, the u.s. launched more air strikes against the islamist militant group, al shabab they then struck mogadishu friday night with suicide bombers and gunmen. p more than ple died in that attack. as special correspondent jane ferguson and videographer alessandro pavone found, the u.s. and african partner nations are helping somali forces fit that insurgency on a very complex battlefield. >> reporter: the soldiers patrolling this dangerous road e a long way from home. they are ugandans, stationedre hen somalia as part of an african union peacekeeping force. they look for bombs hidden under the dirt. somalia's powerf islamist militant group. allied with al qaeda, al shabab gunmen have enjoyed a freedom here few armed groups have had gywhere in the world, rul over swathes of this country for years,ttacking the central government's security forces, and even making videos to celebrate their attacks.

the african union troops have12 been here for ears, and aren't alone in this fight. they wormak alongside the national army, local militias, and increasingly, americans. the u. military began conducting drone strikes and special forces raids here under the obama administration. since president ump entered the white house, the drone strikes have more than doubled - from 14 in 2016 to at least 34 in 2017. last november december, u.s. boots on the ground officially increased from 50 to 500. american commanders say they want to prevent somalia frommi beco a hub for other groups like isis. in may 2017 us navy seal kyle milliken was killed during an operation against al shabab. his was the first u.s. military death in somalia since the black hawk down incident in 1993 where 18 us soldiers were killed in

clashes with local fighters. it is believed that at least hundreds of somalis died also that day. >> i started personally seeing them in and around june. were some special forces moving their vehicle. and these strikes we could hear, even beyd across river shabelle where we are not present, we cod hear bombs, during the day, during the night and reports come. >> reporter: do you feel in the field here that american drone strikes targeting their leadership, special forces raids, does that help weak them? have you seen a difference? >> absolutely. and that is what has caused a lot of fear in them these days. because at times we hear the drones moving around and we hear bombs. >> reporter: that fear has forced al shabab from an active army into shadow, from controlling towns and cities,

into an insurgency, hiding in rural areas. >> now every time they move from one ace to another they believe that we are doing an air strike so they are more cautious. >> reporter: somalia's information minister says his government has watched its enemy weaken under u.s. military pressure. >> we fully appreciate thet suppat we get from the americans in that otherwise we would not have enjoyed the peacn that we arying in mogadishu. ne>> reporter: you think t strikes have them on the run? >> absolutely, not only on the run but also they beliey cannot hide anymore. >> reporter: the capital city mogadishu, for decadessy nymous with war, is starting to know peace again.th on patrol african union soldiers, the daer of an ambush or hidden roadside bomb is always there, but so toare

surreal moments of calm. stop armored vehicles, we found a park. bno guns allowed here, jud eang and families enjoying the cooler, winter wther, and these teenagers hanging out. everyone we spoke with said they feel safe. "there are no pr here, the situation is very good," 19- year-old najma told me. down the road at liido beach, we alund joyful scenes, and s eager to chat with us. life seems to have improved here? >> yeah, a lot. a lot. it's like, the risk is minimized and the somali security apparatus can do their part. >> reporter: you are confident in that? >> yeah, yeah. we are confident in that. ter: although security has improved for some, somalis in the capital, al shabab are still able to strike weaker, softer targets through suide bombings. in october last year, a truck

bomb killed over 500 civilians in mogadishu. it was one of the deadliest terrorist bombings anywhere, ever. despite this, everyone we spoke with in the city said life is much less dangerous than it has been in years. the newfound security is welcome here, even though some question the methods used to provide it. the u.s. military's involvement in the war here in somalia happens in the shadows. drone strikes and special forces operations take place inside al shabab territory. that has some people worried about accountability. >> the government officials do not have access to assess the damage and so on and so forth. so the public is not aware of the collateral damage. >> reporter: until last year, abdirizaq omar mohamed was somalia's internal security minister. he suspects that civilian deaths

in droikes are being kept a secret. >> basically we have to believe what the americans tell us, that they have shot and killed al shabab leaders, so that's where rn are. >> reporter: conces also growing over how the us decides who to hit with each attack. in targeting al shabab, the u.s. military is taking on a dangerous militant organization. the social landscape within which that fight takes place however is extremely a complicate avoiding getting involved in local armed disputes and rivalries very important. somalia's conflia is not simply tter of al shabab versus the government. at the same time, there are many clans-- somalia's versn of tribes-- fighting each other all across the country. in somalia, even farmery guns to protect their property, so american forces need local informants to identify who is al shabab and who inot.

the enemy. in august of last year, a joint u.s. special forces and somali forc raid on the town of bariire, killed eight people. outraged family membs took these pictures, insisting the victims were just farmers, including young boys. clan leader from the area abdal ilmi hassan spoke with the newshour about the incident. he says a rival clan trying to push them off their land lied to e american special forces, telling them his people were al shabab. >> ( translated ): some clan men called us and said, "we used th americainst you and will use them again, so leave the area." >> reporter: the u.s. military in africa would not speak to tha newshour ora, but have y sisted the men and boys killed that day were enmbatants. the bitterness left behind is clear. >> ( translated ): the americans came here to support the people the people ended up hati them because of that misinformation.

i wish they would be more careful abouany information they are given. they should not be drawn into a conflict among clans. i honestly don't think the americans have any interest in killing any clan or civilians, but the wrong information ing given to them causes this. >> reporter: somalia's future depends on reconciling thes. warring clan since the government collapsed in 1991, fighting between them has made building a functioning state near impossible. the current governmentoften ineffective as a result of in- fighting amongst the clans. it's those divisions that ab feeds off. we met with this defector from the group, who said the weaker clans are more likely to join with al shabab while there is no peace. >> ( translated ): the minority clans are oppressed by the main clans. their properties are taken and there is no justice for them. these people join voluntarily to get justice. al shabab are e only people who can give them that.>>

eporter: it's a cycle that has been going on here for decades. the lack of a state means people often turn to armed groups for protection, strengthening the militants, which makes building any state with the power to enforce law and order all the more difficult. every night in mogadishu now, african union troopsvise the somali police at checkpoints, looking out for al shabab bombs and fighters slipping into the city under darkness. these soldiers won't be here forever. they are planning to leave in 2020 and have already started a slow drawdown. when they are gone, the weak somali forces will be left to face al shabab by thes, with only their american partners fighting with them. for the pbs newshour, i'm jane ferguson, in mogadishu, somalia.

>> sreenivasan: we turn now to part two of the fight over a controversial, and once classified, memo. earlier this month house intelligence chairman devin nunes released a republican memo about the handling of one piece of the russia investigation. over the weekend, democrats served up their own version of the document. lisa desjardins takes a closer look. >> desjardins: this memo, ten pages-long and partially redacted, rebuts a key claim made by the previous one: that federal law enforcement abused its powers when it sought to so- called fisa wiretaps on former trump campaign aide carter page in late 2016. in a weekend tweet, the president called this latestar memo, pr by the top democrat on house intelligence, representative adam schiff, a "total political and legal bust." jamil jaffer was senior counsel for the use intelligence committee from 2011 to 2013. also served atrthe justice dent's national security division during the george w.

bush administration. thank you. there's much friendly here but let's cut to the main point. the original memo charged that theb.i. and d.o.j. put a hand on the scale early oin this russia investigation by not disclosing that one of their key sources had political motivation. what did this new democratic memo add to that? >> i think it's pretty clear noj that ttice department did in fact disclose to the court that there were politvaal moons behind the steele dossier. the only question now is did they use th words hillary clinton and democratic campaign? the answers no but they didu redact ous. persons and entities. should they sai have said more in that's the debate. we know they did tell the court there were political emotions behind it. >> desjardins: the steele dossier because it has scnt

lating information alleged t ainst the president, some debunked, and thformationas originallyathered by a conservative funding source. later democrats paid for that and endeup in the f.b.i. hands. you're saying this memo todteay us while the f.b.i. disclosed there was a political motivation but not exactly who it came from?ly >> exa it says people who want tom disthe trcampaign were gathering this information and paid the source for this , information. u know, from the context, it's fairly clear, i mean the court could esasily asume who was paying for this, but they weren't exactly trantnspa about that exact point as to which campaign it was and who was involved. e republican memo suggests they should have been. democratic memo says they told the court enough. the american people now have an honest debate between the two about who's got it right here.es >>rdins: help us what's normal procedure. you have been on the oversight side and the filing application side. is it normal to say there was someone iolitically motivated,

not saying from which party, involved here, or is it moee th common procedure to say democrats or republicans were doing this? >> well, it varies, when it comes to f.i.s.a.s. you want to give the couenrt gh information about the context and the information so the court can judge is oris reliable ition on which to depend when it's making its decision on wheer to grant the court order. now,ngt the same time, depen on which side of that debate you tall on, might want to give the court more or less information. the goal is to gev them enough to make a judgment. they were clear about the political motivations behind the memo but noclear about which side. that's because they take efforts to protect privacy of the persons invved and put.s. person one or u.s. entity one, that's nosut unu. >> desjardins: does today's memo shed any light on what we know about russian meddling and

whether any contacts orco usions between russian officials and th trump campaign or the trump white house? we know carter page, there were a lot of reasons to surveil him beyond the dossier. >> desjardins: he was a foreign policy advisor to the trump campaign for a few months. >> yes, and the f.i.s.a. took place after he left the campaigr but were good reasons to sur vairl carter page. looks like the investigation hasn't come to anything but there were good reasons to do that. what we eknow aboue larger context is there was a russian fort to influence our elections, and continues to inclunes the trust in our system. the information about carter page's memos is playing into the russians hands so we need to say this is a real threat and we need to respond >> desjardins: people trying to pay attentiono the

investigation, would you remmend what matters and wt is distraction? >> i think what matters is if you believe there is a p.boblem at the. or issues going on, what's the evidence of that and if it's there let's figure out how to fix it. but let's not t caught up between the fight between democrats and democrats and schiff and nunes, and o foc was there a problem or political influence here, if erwas let's fix it. if there wasn't, itopeaks the larger f.i.s.a. process because it's effecve at combating for us on nationalri se. and there is a real threat on national security which is the russian effort to influence. >> desjardins: thank you fo joining us. >> thanks for having me.th tamera kand amy walter, thank you very much. we just heard a lot, of course.

in terms of coverage and rhetoric, democrats on capitol hill says this kind of bill they were going to support, they say it's too watered dowthat it just supports the current background checks they want more. what can happen on guns in congress? t's a very good question and it's one that we don't fully have the answer to yet. there does seem to be some coalescing on the republican side around something related to scale safety but itnot clear what that would be exactly and this smaller more narrow fix nix bill which requires state, federal, local agencietout people into the background check system as they are currentlyo required, give incentives for that. that had been a problem in the

texas shooting, that church shooting several months ago.e >>ardins: in the midst of all this, as congress is returning to town, i think can hear their planes landing at washington international airplane, president trump has done something different and gotten outn front. he's had more republicaleaders on this. he tweeted last week he wanted an age limit, now 's not clear, today back and forth on the n.r.a. what does president trump want and how does that matter? exactly: what the president wants sun clear because, as we've seen on almost any major issue that hats gone in front of congress, whether it's healthcare or the daca issue or now on guns, the president takes multiple positions in twitter, in front of the press, privately to members of congress, itivately to cost, and then it leaves folks on c hill, especially republican allies on

capitol hilde really wonng what the marching orders are. what are we supposed to advocate for, because we don't quite know whersthe president and i think tam is exactly right. wh's clear that's hapening on capitol hill now is democrats feel emboldened by the energy and enhusiasm from more gun control folks, you know, people who are really energized and engaged in the way tven't before. there is a new polling out showing a new energy on thisis e. people like chuck schumer, the minority leader, think we need to go farther. we don't need just to ge half the loaf, we can get the full loaf. meanwhile, a bunch of republicans say, no, no, this goes much too far, that's neer going to fly in our red states. it's not just that much that the n.r.a. is popular but the issue of guns in red states even among democrats is still one that's very important. so i think you're going to see that getting something that's a compromise once again becifome verycult. >> here's a thought experiment,

than eleion year. november 2018, all of these republican congress people are f going to be r reelection.to they're goinun on the tax bill they passed last year. are they also gng to say, and we went up against the n.r.a., we went further nan the florida wanted us to go and further than, you know, our voters wanted us to go, and we did all of this stuff on gun contrar? it's to imagine republican elected officials running on gun control. >> but it is to imagine i think some democrats running on that. >> yes. and i kind of want to get beyond e politics here. it feels like a very us versus them momentum is building. almost reminds me of the abortion debate, the passion of the energy and the sharp divide. you wrote great piece last week saying it's not just abou the n.r.a. can you take us on what's going en with the motivation? >> yes, i think 's a cultural motivation.

as you pointed out, i think abortion is a gooopposite of that, as you can think about it. but we talk so much about t n.r.a. when we talk about guns. we spend not as much time about people who are gun owners, may not be part of the n.r.a., or people who oive in arare a part of a cohort that believe guns are fundamental to their s safety anse of freedom. it's a core value set to them. tothink when it gets he debate about the florida is manipulating people ands all powerful and controlling the legislative agenda, it misses the fact that there arereal people out there who hold these views that are very passionate about these views and in fact the challenge for gun rights folks has been the intensity on gun issues -- has been on the gun ghts side no the gun control side almost by a two to one margin pew found in asking

people who own anndon't ow guns, have you ever contacted an official and talk to abouthis specifically, 21% of owners said yes and 1% of nongun owners said yes. is that number going to changebe use of what we saw in florida is the question. >> all this is happening in an election year. tamera keith, you just came back , from fresno, californere something interesting happened to the state's longest serng democratic official, dianne feinstein, her party voted not to endorse her. why is that? can we read anything more into this. >> it's that they couldn't coalce behind a cadidate. she has a challenger in the primary, kev in deleon, whois ilso a democrat, and he got more support than she from the state party at the state party convenon. he didn't get % e 60 get the

endorsement. but dianne feinstein has long had the issue in californi where she has been seen more moderate than her very bright-blue liberal state, and that energy is reflected in the activists that are part othe state democratic party. >> got it. amy, quickly, democrats say they're targeting 100 seats. is that realistic? >> they have intensity and they want to take advantage of that. intonsity is a terrible thin waste. democrats have it in fundraising, candidate recruigent and they're see it in the polls, so why not spread it as far and wide, if you're not going to win all the districts, you're prbably not going to be able to invest in all the districts, but you might get a surprise or two.we eed 24 seats. it's easier to get 24 seats out of 100 than trying to win 24 out of 40 seats. >> you can miss when you apple

wide. thank you both very much. >> you're welcome. >> sreenivasan: finally tonight, we continue our occasional series about women helping to bring equity and change to the workplace in this timee too and #times up. jeffrey brown paid a visit toet the set of aan director who's been hard at work at this for years. >> rolling, rollin >> brown: at a cemetery richmond, virginia, actors claire danes and mandy patinkino a scene at a funeral. we can't tell you who's died this time-- you'll have to wr t until late this 7th season of the acclaimed showtime series "homeland." behind the scenes, lesli linka glatter, one of television's most respected and prolific directors, who knows what it kes to do the job well.

>> certainly tenacity. it only takes one person to say... >> bro: tenacity, which means don't give up. >> don't give up, no matter how difficult it is. and wear comfortable shoes. >> brown: tenacity one, comfortable shoes two. >> yes, and don't pretend to know something you don't. because you will get caugh someone will know, and then you won't learn. and learn everyone's name on the first day of shooting, because >> brown: itth a philosophy 's taken linka-glatter, now 64, to the top of heron profes, directing more thans 100 hoof tv, including such shows as "e.r.," "the west wing," "d men," as well as "homeland," where she also serves as an executive producer. the show, created and led bysa alex gan, has been shot on locations around the world, as c.i.a. agent carrie mathison, played by danes, battles terrorists in the middle eas and europe. and, these days, dark forces rnwithin the american govent.

this season, much of the action is set in washington, >> welcome to our situation room. >> brown: but the shooting is being done in nearby ricond, indoors in a large warehouse transformed into the white house and other government settings. once again, "homeland's" plot has a ripped-from-the-headlines feel. >> we're in a very d, unstable world, you know. >> brown: imagine th. >> i know. we have a president of the united states, a president at odds with her intelligence community, in a world that's kind of a post-truth world. >> brown: but for linka-glatter, there's another pressing issue of the moment, in her own field. for while she's made it as a director, too many other women have not had the opportunity. >> you know, i started directing

a while ago, and if you would have asked me would we bedi ussing this in 2018. i would have said, "absolutely not, jeff. no way. this will be a non-issue,ss nothing to dis and the fact that we are still having to talk about that is very surprising to me. >> brown: she points to a survey by the directors guild of america showing just 21% of tv episodes in 2016 to '17 season w were directed en. >> i don't think anyone is sitting in an office andng twir moustache and going, "ehh, no women, let's not hire the women." i think it's deeper than that. i think it's, you know, in that land of unconscious bias, where women are still all lumped together, and i've had it said to me, you know, "we hired a woman once and it didn work." >> brown: you've literally had that said to you? >> oh yeah, multiple times.in >> brown: you about arguments you might hear, like a lack of qualified women. >> yes, that's so not true. >> brown: not true but you still hear that? >> you still hear that, because it's easy. the handful of women that are working all the time, okay yes,

they're qualified because they work all the time, but there are so many women who are definitely qualified that are not, you know. so it's just not an equal playing field yet. it comes up often that a young director, a male director, will do a small indie film and the next movie they're doing is a huge, hundred million dollar movie. that has notd apper women. it would be said, oh, she doesn't have enough experience. but somehow a man has enoughpe ence. put in some sort of position where you can't quite believe this is appening now, there are levels to that. whether you're talking about sexual harassment or, you know, hstile work envmeir, you

know, there are degrees of all of that, but i think it's comins out because een unspoken, and the need to speak and feel that it's okay to finally speak is huge, and no one should ever be in a position where they're, you know, harassed or abused. it should never happen, and you shouldn't create an ene vironmet whhat can happen. >> brown: >> brown: back at the cemetery, mandy patinkin, who plays veran c.i.a. operative sau berenson, spoke of working with linka glatter. >> lesli wants as much input from the people that are there. and in my opinion, that's a smart director, because that's a collaborative effort, it's a collaborative game, and you're foolish not to ask thether people what they feel, what they would do. and to listen. and to be ruthless in terms of making sure that they arest telling thy. >> brown: why do you think there are so few women directors,

still?nk >> i there are so few women directors because the world has been run by men, and the world isn't doing so well. the world certainly is not doing very well now. >> brown: during a break at another site, claire danes shared her experience. >> our show is surprisingly diverse, and in no small part because of lesli's involvement. you know, she's our producing director a a priority to hire people who are not sufficiently represented. so we have more female directors than most productions. but it's still not enough. >> brown: it's not enough? has that been true for you in your career? something you notice? >> yes. i mean it's impossible not to. but i think it's starting to change. it's a powerful phenomenon that's occurring right now and it seems to be having a real impact and lasting consequences. >> brown: linka-glatter credits thher rise in large part t support she got from powerful

male mentors, including steven spielberg, for whom she worked during his 1980's tv series, "amazing stories." >> my first day of shooting on that "amazing story," i ended up doing three of them, sas my film school on every level. there were 200 guys storming a beach in world war ii, with 12 cameras, so you know, is that a gender thing? i don't know. f it was ailmmaking thing, it was a story thing. >> brown: she's made it her business to mentor women ever since, having them shadow her while she works. >> that's thrilling to me. >> brown: many she says, now with strong careers themselves. >> i should also say, jeff, i was told when i first started doing this, by other women, you know, "why are you doing this, going to make it harder for yourself." >> brown: really, you mean as in rocking the boat. >> no, notocking the boat, just like there's only room for one of us, and it better be me, and if you are bringing all these women in, it's going to affect your career. and i can tell you, categorically, that has never

happened. it certainly didn't, by heing other women direct, never hurt me as a director. i'm still here, you know, tough old broad. >> brown: now, she's involved in a new push aimed at gender parity: working withbc on the "female forward" initiative. begiening in the fall, ten wom will shadow directors on an nbc series, and then direct at least one episode themselves. "homeland" of course also features strong women in fro of the camera, including elizabeth marvel playing the president as well as danes. while the show continues to explore the shadowy world of secret intelligence, while lesli liota glatter and rs aim for more women in positions of power in their world. for the pbs newshour, i'm jeffrey brown on the set of "homeland" in richmond,

virginia. he sreenivasan: and that's newshour for tonight. i'm hari sreenivasan. join us online and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you and see u soon. or funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> 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 pofs >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbv station frwers like you.

thank you. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned bya mecess group at wgbh access.wgbh.org elyse: we're the history dectives,

and we're going to investigate some untold stories from america's past. ca this week, whathis twisted piece of metal tell us about one of aviatiolvs most famous un mysteries? as she approached, they got tenser and she got tenser, and then there was silence. tukufu: how does thist 19th-century docum de connect the presi of the united states to a native american accused of murder? if you get a pardon from the president in the 1850s, someone's probably fighting a tremendous battle for you behind the scenes. d gwendolyn: was a railway car built into the brbement of this su denver home? we'd like to know exactly what it is. elvis costello: ct ♪ watchin' the deteives ♪ i get so angry when the tedrops start ♪ ♪ but he can't be wounded 'cause he's got no heart ♪