captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight: a tale of two presidents. as mr. trump says he wants the attorney general to investigate who is criticizing him from the inside, former presidentbama delivers a call to arms for democrats. then, the presidents of russia, turkey and iran gather to plot the future of the war in syria. plus, how access to abortion is shrinking in some parts of the country. there's a whole host of restrictions in south dakota, and then it's compounded by really, the lack of access, with teonly one clinic in the s >> woodruff: and it's friday. mark shields and david brooks tackle the week in news:

the kavanaugh confirmation hearing, the scathing anonymous editorial about president trump, anl more. alat and more, on tonight's pbs wshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> consumer cellular understands that not everyone needs an

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>> woodruff: the u.s. senate confirmation hearings for supreme court nominee brett kavanaugh are now over. the final day saw the american bar association give kavanaugh its highest rating. but former nixon white house counsel john dean warned that kavanaugh would fail to oppose presiden abuse of power. we will have a full report, after the news summary. the president today stepped up his attacks on an unsigned essay criticizing his leadership. he called for attorney general whjeff sessions to find ou wrote the piece in the "new york times," and he raised the possibility of legal action against the newspaper. ump spoke off-camera to reporters while traveling aboard sgr force one. >> i think it's a ce that somebody can do that. disgraceful that the "new york times" would do it. s but thebody is allowed to do that is, it's very sad

commentary.nv jeff should betigating who the author of that piece was because i really believe it's national security. >> woodruff: the "new york times" responded tha president's demand for an investigation would constituse "a blatant af government power." former trump campaign adviser george papadopoulos has been seenced to 14 days in pris for lying to the f.b.i. about his contacts with russians. prosecutors wanted a six-month sentence. papadopoulos was the first person to plead guiltye special counsel's russia probe. former president obama aimed sharp criticism at president trump today, as he called on democrats to vote in the midterm elections. he named his successor in a speech at the university of illinois, but said the trouble goes even deeper. >> in the end, the threat to our democracy doesn't just come from donald trump, or the current

batch of republicans in congress, or the koch brothers and their lobbyists, or, youmu know, to compromise from democrats, or russian hacking.at the biggest tho democracy is indifference. a >> woodrufa campaign stop in north dakota, president trump dismissed the criticism.d, he si watched it, but i fell asleep." we'll he remarks, later in the program. gethe anti-establishment sn democratic primaries has been stopped for the moment in delaware. veteran u.s. senator tom carper easily won re-nomination on thursday. he defeated first-time candidate kerri evelyn harris, who had tried to paint carper as out of touch. in jan, the death toll rose to 18, a day after an earthquake rocked the northern island o hokkaido. rescue workers searched homes destroyed by a landslide in the town of atsuma.

at least two dozen people were still missing. officials also say fully restoring power to the region will te at least a week. back in this country, part of a major west coast thoroughfare, interstate-5, remains closed in california, as a wildfire burns out of control. the delta fire broke out wednesday near the oregon state line. it's now spread across 38 square miles. officials say the section of i-5 will stay closed through the weekend.st the augu.s. jobs report is out, and it shows continued strong hiring. u.the labor department say employers added a net of 201,000 jobs last month. the same time, the unemployment rate held steady at 3.9%, that's near the lowest in 18 year average hourly wages were up nearly 3% from a year ago, just enough to ke pace with inflation. the good jobs news faid to

boost wall street. the dow jones industrial average lost 79 pointso close at 25,916. the nasdaq fell 20, and the s&p 500 slipped six. shares in automaker tesla fell 6%, after its c.e.o. elon musk smoked marijuana on a live, online show. and, the company's chief accounting officer resigned after just a month on the job. still to comon the newshour: we wrap up the week's coverage of judge brett kavanaugh's confirmation hearing. iran, russia, and turkey discuss what could be the last major offensive in syria's civil war. how laws in some u.s. states impede access to abortions. and much more. >> woodruff: the supreme court confirmation hearing for brett

kavanaugh has now wrapped up. president trump's nominee was not in the hot seat himself today. instead, witnesses werght in both to defend and to warnab t the kind of justice he'd be. the day began with tas american baciation giving judge qvanaugh its highest rating. it found him "welified," after consulting with more than 500 lawyers, judges anrs. >> ty said his integrity is absolutely unquestioned. he is a peon of the highest morality and the highest ethics. he is what he seems. very decent, humble and honest. >> woodruff: republicans called former students, colleagues and law clerks of kavana they depicted him as a thoughtful man and teacher, with a record of hiring women and minorities. >> i always knew judge kavanaugh came to his position honestly, based on a rigorous analysis ofh

the streand weaknesses of the arguments before him. there was no hidden agenda or partisan axe to grind, just the law, always the law. >> woodruff: democrats countered with former nixon white house counsel john dean, who famously cooperated with prosecutors during watergate.f >>dge kavanaugh joins the court, it will be the most presidential-powers-friendly court in the modern era. >> woodruff: dean voiced concerns about kavanaugh's expansive views of presidential power-- and whether he would ock any subpoena of president trump in the russia vestigation. >> the fact that we have ao president unchecked right y w by other branches makes it particularly tim be worried afresh, givethe kavanaugh positions on so many e cases that wouance presidential powers. >> woodruff: docrats also

called rochelle garza, the lawyer who represented "je doe," a migrant teenag in federal detention, who wanted an abortion. as a federal appeals judge, kavanaugh ruled against her, before the full court overturn him. >> throughout her ordeal, i saw her ffer. no politician or judge saw firsthand what she went through. as she later said, it had been incredibly difficult to wait in the shelter for news that the judges in washington, d.c. have given me permission to proceed with my decision. woodruff: this week, kavanaugh called "roe v. wade"-- the landmark supreme court abortion rights case-- an "important precedent." but melissa murray-- a new york university law professor-- saida naugh did not follow precedent in the "jane doe" case, or in another case denying birth control coverage because of an employer's religious r liefs. >> i think it's clom judge kavanaugh's judicial records,

senators, that he is not a jurist in the mold of justice w kenned frequently upheld these precedents. judge kavanaugh, in these a decisions, harrow understanding of the right to liberty. >>oodruff: disability righ advocates also criticized vanaugh for limiting the legal autonomy in a previous ruling, and refusing to say if he wou protect the affordable care act. >> i speak for every person with a disability who will never able to live independently. most importantly, i speak for every american whose life could change tomorrow with a new diagnosis. >> woodruff: witnesses supporting kavanaugh pushed back, defending him as a fair- minded and independent jurist. >> i understand the concerns, but the man i know is generous with his te and thought, and i love the discussion of process. he seeks to not be influenced by people outside ande is one of the most prepared, thoughtful people i know.

>> woodruff: the senate judiciary committee is expected to vote on the nomination as early as next week.a ll senate vote would follow, later this month. >> woodruff: theiaeaders of ruturkey and iran metr today gh stakes talks over syria, and the looming last major battle of that war, in idlib. idlib is the last remaining holdout of radic militants and more moderate armed opposition to the syrian regime. it is also home to hundreds of thousands of syrian civilians who have fled the war and sought refuge. but now russia, iran and the syrian regime are on the verge of launching a major assault. in a moment, nick schifrin will join us, but first, special correspondent reza sayah reports on the summit from tehran.

>> reporter: the summit brought together the thr presidents who'll help decide syria's fate. russia's vladimir putin and iran's hassan rouhani both support an assault on idlib province, the last rebel stronghold in syria. russia is the new regional power broker, and today, its war planes bombed idlib on behalf of bashar al assad, the syrian president whose government russia and iran helped save. russia says it wants to finish the job. >> ( translated ): the main task this stage is to banish militants from the province of idlib.op wethat the members of the terrorist organizations have enough common sense to resistance and to lay down their arms. >> reporter: iranian-backed hezbollah troops are fighting for syrian government. iran hopes to extend their presence in syria, ander israel. but, turkish president recep e tayyogan warned against an offensive into idlib.ew he fears alood of

refugees on top of the 3.5in million alreadis country. >> ( translated ): turkey does not have the resources or power to host a further the million people. we need to take a joint step to event migration from this area. >> reporter: iran and russia claim idlib is home to terrorists. rouhani said syria should root out militants in iib, and also force u.s. forces out. >> ( translated ): the illegal esence and interference america in syria, which has led to the continuation of insecurity in that country, must end quickly. >> reporter: about 2,000 u.s. troo are deployed across bas in northern syria, inside land largy controlled by kurds. their mission: fighting the last pockets of isis. they are far from the potential idlib battlefield. in the past, president trump wanted to withdraw u.s. troops from syria completely. but this week, top advisers say he reversed course and wants a u.s. military presence there "indefinitely."

he's also warning against any on idlib--saul specifically, the use of chemical weapons. >> there cannot be a slaughter. if it's a slaughter, the world is going to get very, very angry, and the united states is going to get very ano. >> reporter: in the security council today, u.s. ambassador the united nations nikk haley echoed that warning. >> the assad regime must halt its offensive. russia and iran, as countries with influence over the regime, must stop this catastrophe. >> reporter: meanwle, civilians in idlib are bracing for an assault. they even showed their children how to use improvised gas masks. and in a show of defiance, some protested theyrian government's looming military action. back in tehran, putin, erdogan and rouhani issued a statement that the syrian conflict can end only through a "negotiated political process," not through

the military. they also agreed to hold more talks-- soon-- in russia. despite the promise to hold more talks, bottom line, the three parties failed to agree on a peaceful solution in idlib. so does that make the battle for idlib more likely, and does that mean that iran gets what it wants? >> nick, there were three presidents. it's a summit today. two suggested an offensive is the ansr. president erdogan suggested it wasn't the answer. so if you go by the numbers, it seems that the idl battle is likely. when it comes to iran, they certainly asked for what they wanted toay. whether they will get what they want, we'll have to see in the coming days and weeks. it will have a lot to do with what happens in idlib. obviously, iran has spent a lot of blood and treasure in supporting the srian government, supporting their key ally prsident bashar al-assad, at a time when iran's economy is under tremendous pressure, now

under u.s. sanctions reimpose bid president trump, iran simply can't afford this conflict to go on forever. more bloodshed could cost an key support from europe that it's counting on to push bak against washington. so what iran wants is an end to h is conflict wit decisive battle, a strong, stable syria, a strong, stable president bashar al-assad. once that happens, iran leaves it can go into syria rebuild syria, prese itself to the world as a key player in stabilizing si i can' -- syria. that's what iran wants. getting what you want isn't easy in idlib especially with so many regional rivals that wa something very different. >> reza sayah, thank you very much. for more, i turn to andrew tabler joining me in the studio from the washington institute for near east policy. ngank you very much for bei here >> my pleasure. that's what iran wants. what does the u.s. want right >> first and foremost, the u.s.

wants to stop the assault. we have 3.5 million civilians inside idlib and president trump has been very front that he wants to avert that humanitarian disaster. behind that is the fact that, in idlib province is the largest pocket of al quaida affiliated fighters in the world and an assault on that poket could push not only civilians across the border into trkey but also these fighters as well, and they could go on to fight in europe, throughout the world and perhaps even the russian federation. so the u.s. wan totop this assault. second, i want to strengthen turkey. the point for agreement is clear, they wat h.t.s. to be disarmed, the al quaida link, they want these groups to be separated by pro turkish groups in the area, particularlyst n idlib, and then, at that point in time, negotiate and try to get these fighters away from the extremist groups for somert

fur perhaps future military operation. >> that's a lot to pull off the can turkey do that? >> it would be verfiy diflt. turkey has had some luck in organizing the more moderate groups but it has not happened fast if you have and the al qida affiliates have hed firm. now, will the supporters of these groups change their mind when faced with an imminent assault from russia and iran an the regime, ocould the united states step in and also could there be pipointed strikes in that area, which the u.s. has carried out strikes in idlibov ce in the past. >> in response to chemical weapons attacks. >> correct, mosto have the strikes inside syria have been for reasons of chemical wea attacks and that's what we could see, if this goes along and the united states as to get involved, there could be a couple of ways, one, if thene questions red is crossed, an established patton of the outside regime t they use questions, so the u.s. has drawa a line and t will be enforced

if chemical weapons are used and the prn sident's bery clear. there's another avenue. the u.s. could end up stiking against these extremist groups and could drive a process in favor of turkey. >> humanitarian impact of the asult on idlib? >> the impact would be massive. 3.5 million civilians, if they wod perhaps go into neighboring turkey, they could be overwhelmed. turkey openly said they tonight have the capacity or the wherewithal to take care of them and the question is where wou they go, and the answer is probably northward towards europe and a number of u.s. allies. >> andrew tabler, thank you very much. >> my pleasure. >> woodruff: stay with us. coming up on the newshour:rm president barack obama

s on his successor as he sends a message to democrats. and, the indelible legacy ofrt tennis giantr ashe. judge brett kavanaugh's nomination to the supreme courtt has many an rights advocates worried that the roe v. wade supreme court ruling is in peril. but in many states, the rollback of abortion access is alread steadily progressing.na awaz recently traveled to south dakota, one of four states with a so-called trigger law on the books that would immediately ban all abortions if were overturned. >> nawaz: every few weeks, dr. sarah traxler flies from her home in minneapolis to sioux falls, south dakota to work her shift at planned parenthood, the only abortion clinic in this sprawling state of 850,000 people. >> i have about 20 patients on the schedule today that i'll see. hopefully most of them will come. that's about the average we have on our schedule. >> nawaz: traxler is the medical

director for planned parenthood in minnesota, north dakota and here in south dakota. the organization has been flying in physicians since the 1990s, after the last remainingto abortion din the state retired. dr. traxler is one of fouro doctors tate in and out of the sioux falls clinic. she says that about a third of r patients travel more than 150 miles to get to her. >> there's no "typical" abortioi t. i see women from all over and from all walks of life come through these doors. >> nawaz: planned parenthood says about 17% of all theirso patients ih dakota are here for abortion-related hervices. under state law,provide abortions up until the gestational age of3 weeks and six days. lame year, the clinic perfor 525 abortions in all. planned parenthood requested that we not show the inside layout of their clinic, nor thet outside of dxler's car, nor the security that she travels with here in south dakota. theiconcerns, they say, is

rooted in the recognition that they're working in hostile territor that's because in recent years, south dakota's abortion laws have become some of the most restrictive in the nation. >> south dakota is really a microcosm for what's happening around the rest of the country. >> nawaz: elizabeth nash is the senior state issues manager for the guttmacher institute, a research group that supports abortion rights. >> there's a whole host of restrictions in south dakota, and then it's compounded by, really, the lack of access, with only one clinic in the state. >> nawaz: in 2006, south dakota's legislature passed a law banning nearly all abortions.at aw was later overturned by voters. a 2011 law requiring women to first visit a state-regulated"" pregnalp center," where abortions are discouraged, is currently in litigation. likewise, a law passed earlier this year reiring the reading of a state-mandated script to patients that says abortions "terminate the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being," is also beingd ought by planrenthood. south dakota was also the first ryate to introduce a manda 72-hour waiting period, the

longest in the nation-- meaning a woman seeking anbortion must n,et with a doctor, in per for her fit visit. then return 72 hours later, to ret with the same doctor the actual procedure. holidays and weekends don't count. to comply with the law, dr. traxler flies in a out on one day, for patient consultations. after the mandatory waiting period, she repeats the trip to see those same patients for their abortion procedures. caitlin anderson was a patient at the sux falls clinic last year. already a mother of three, anderson became unexpectly pregnant. she says she and her husband discussed their options, and decided to abort the pregnancy. >> we knew immediately that was the best choice. i spent-- >> nawaz: you say immediately. you mean you found out you were prnant, then you knew? >> i knew. i took a couple days to sort of emotionally come to terms with it. i was sad. l i didne that i had to do it. my youngest was a year old. he just turned one. financially, we were still kinds uggling.

our marriage was sort of still recovering from pregnancy and, childbird all of that that goes along with it. and it just was not a good time. it was knowing that it would strain the limited resources we already had and make teven more nifficult. >>awaz: in south dakota, a little more than half of all women who have abortions are already mothers of at least one child. nationwide, that number is about 60%. anderson, a sioux falls resident, says she'sng to speak publicly about her decision to help fight the stigma she says many women in r conservative home stat face. >> i want to talk about it so i can be like, "i'm a stay-at-home mom. i have three kids. i'm not a dumbeenager. it's not just these imaginary immoral people that some people like to ke up. it's every type of person." >> nawaz: but anrson says it was the 72-hour waiting period that was the hardest part of the process for her. at any point in those 72 hours did you think, "maybe i don't want to do this?"

>> no. >> nawaz: not once? >> no. uh-uh. nawaz: did that surprise you? did you think, "maybe i'll use this time to mull my decision over?" >> no. i mean, that's... supposedly, that's the intention of it, but again, i feel like, why would you assume a woman hasn't thought about those things before making that call? >> i truly believe that for most women, once that pregnancy test turns positive, they're alreadyt startit decision making process. the 72-hour waiting period is simply a delay in women being able to access safe, legal healthcare. and that it is a part of the decision-making process that's unnecessary. >> i would say that i support a womes right to choose, but n to choose to murder her own unborn child. that's a horrific choice. it's a choice too far. >> nawaz: fred deutsch is the president of south dakota right to life. he ss the state's current restrictions have helped prevent

abortions, and he's hopeful that sueme court nominee judge brett kavanaugh will be the justice to help reverse roe v. wade. >> obviously, i'd like to see the supreme court revisit roe. i'm hopeful that if roe is potentially overturned, i hope that the decisiomaking can come back to the states, so each state can make their own decision. >> states started limiting access to abortion as soon as the k was dry on roe. >> nawaz: elizabeth nash says that while she's worried roe o might one day rturned, her bigger concern is that abortion access is already being restricted aggressively in many states across the nation. >> since january 2011, we've seen 423 abortion restrictions enacted in 33 states. from, you know, virginia to arizona to south dakota to georgia. it's everywhere. >> nawaz: soutdakota is one of just six states with only one abortion clinic currently open, men are often traveling nearby states in these areas to have abortions, according to

nash. >> if roe is furthermined or overturned, then the issues around travel will just grow, because you will be talking out more states that wil either ban abortion or all but ban abortion. >> nawaz: in minnesota, state figures suggest thatn- sidents comprise about 10% of all abortion patients, traveling mainly from wisconsin, iowa and north andouth dakota, states that have all movedo restrict abortion access in recent years. >> you'll be about 3.5 weeks pregnant at thtime of your abortion. >> nawaz: we wated dr. traxler meet with patients here at planned parenthood's st. paul clinic. a 24-hour waiting period has been othe books here since 2003, but patients are allowed to conduct their first consultaon over the phone. >> the state of minnesota requires that i give you certain information at least 24 hours prior to your abortion. >> nawaz: since the 1980s, minnesota has seen a steady dcline in the total number of

abortions. but over the last two years, the state had its first consecutive uptick in abortions since 2000. >> make them show you your ultrasound!u ve a right to see it! >> nawaz: the increase has causedoncern among anti- abortion activists here, like brian gibson, who stands sentry with his colleagues from pro-fe ministries every week outside planned parenthood. gibson says he's been advocating for a total ban on abortions since 1981. and even though he's been disappointed in the past by the s supreme court, he says hw cautiously optimistic that his movement is closer than ev to overturning roe. >> it feels like it may be really happening. and part of that is just, the whole political clate across the united states over the past five or six years has shifted dramaticly. a lot of states have passed pro-life legislation in large number >> nawaz: 72 hours after first seeing her patients, dr. aktraxler returns to southa. of the ten patients scheduled tn have an aborn this day,

all but one showed up for the procedure. there's been a lot of conversation about whether or not roe v. wade could be overturned. >> yes. >> nawaz: what do you think about that? is that something you worry about? >> yes, i truly worry about women livi in a world without roe. my fear, if roe were to be ever overturned, is that women would turn to unsafelaces to accomplish that. >> nawaz: dr. traxler says that's why she'll continue makis this trip for as long a she is legally allowed. for the pbs newshour, i'm amna nawaz in sioux falls, south dakota. o woodruff: we return now former president obama's remarks today to the students at theun ersity of illinois. from pointed criticism on thet currate of politics, to calling for more common ground,

one message was consistent: beng people to vote. >> i'm here todause this is one of those pivotal moments when every one of us, as citizens of the united states, need to determine just whot is that we are. just what it is that we stand for. and as a fellow citizen, not as an ex-president,ut as a fellow citizen, i'm here to deliver a simple message. and that is, that you need to vote, because our democracy depends on it. over the past few decades, the politics of division and resentment and paranoia has unfortunately found a home in the republican party. they're undermining our alliances, cozying up to russia. what happened to the republican party? its central organizing principle

in foreign policy was the fight against communism. and now they're cozying up tofo ther head of the k.g.b.! and by the way, the claim that everything will turn out okay because there are peopide the white house who secretly aren't following the president's orders? that is not a check. i'm being serious here. that's not demracy. they're not doing us a service by actively promoting 90% of the crazy stuff that's coming out of th white house, and then saying, don't worry, we're preventing the other 10%. it should not be a partisan issue toay that we do not pressure the attorney general, or the f.b.i., to use th criminal justice system as a cudgel to punish our political opponents. we're supposed to stanup to discrimination, and we're sure as heck supposed to stand up cleay and unequivocally to

nazi sympathizers. how hard can that be? saying that nazis are bad. you cannot sit back and wait for a savior. you can't opt out because you don't feel sufficiently inspired by this or that particular candidate. this is not a rock concert. this is not coachella.d we don't nmessiah. all we need are decent, honest, hard-working people who areco table and who have america's best interests at art. and they'll step up and they'll join our government, and they

will make things better, if they have support. one election will not fix everything that needs to be fixed. but, it will be a start. and you have to start it. >> woodruff: and that was just the latest of political news this week. there was also a bombshell op-ed; an eye-ening bob woodward book; a high-stakes confirmation hearing; and even a primary election upset. that's plenty this friday for shields and brooks. that is syndicated columnist mark shields, and "new york times" columnist david brooks. hello to both of you. happy fri by. where do wgin? i actually want to postpone 'sformer president oba comments, david, for just a moment andtart with brett kavanaugh because here is someone who could tilt the balance of the supreurt. he spent three days before the members of the seate judiciary committee. how did he do? >> he did what he was supposed

to do,hich is say nothing, and that's what all previou nominees in the last few years have done. so i think he's very much likely to be confirmed and, frankly, i think he should be. whether i agree or not, elections ve consequences. if a democrat or republican wins, they get to pick thet supreme costice in line with their party, and as long as the person is well qualified, which according to ane amer bar association brett kavanaugh is, then i think the senate should confirm that person. i guess what strikes me most of all is that senate democrats have had months and months to find something to mae him look bad going over the whole course ofis life, and they've come up nearly dry. a few episodes, there were a few questionable things having to do with stolen documents in the early 2000s he may have lied about, we'll see. other than that,e seemed to have led a remarkably upright life, no scandal or embarrassment. >> woodruff: t glove on him?a >> no, i thought he showed

himself to be more thanby qualifiexperience, temperament and brain power, and, at the same time -- and i am one to ssalute hi political experience, i think it's important. we've had enough judges who lived this monastic separation. but the stunning hyprisy of the republicans in not being forthcoming about the paps of his -- the work within the admistration that he did honorably for president busi' i think, i not mistaken, these are the same folks who are quite set about secretary clinton in her own emails and, you know, at the same time, they're being monitored and vet bid a republican lawyer, nothe archives, not the archives of the united states in this rush to confirmation, bu, instead, by a republican lawyer who's a personal frid of

judge kavanaugh's. so i do thnk that he was less forthcoming, quite frankly, than even neil goresful was on the question of the president's intemperate outburst and criticism and condemnation of judges. you could call it demoralizing and disheartening. i think david's right, i think he's absolutely confirmable.th i didn't thinre was a glove laid on him. i think, at the same time, he could be them deocrat's worst nightmare when with it comes to voting rights, when it comes t affirmative action, when it comes to access to abortion, when it comes to, you know, the agenda that democrats look to the court for support. >> woodruff: do you he could be that? i mean, he was trying very hard for that not to come across, if that's the case. >> i just don't know. i think there is great repect for precedent. i think john roberts certainly phas great respect forecedent

and if something lik roe v. wade was likely to be overturned, maybe he would flip out respect for that precedent. i'm not sure how that's going to be. i join mark in thinking the political process arthese nominations gets worse and worse every ngle time, just about. the republicans as mark said why not release the dcuments and the democrats were overwrought througho and turned it into argumes about paperease and it was supposed to be about a supreme court nominee. so i think we had a pretty bad process. that's why none of the nominees speak. it's not a conversation. it's a period of people whose minds are made up and scream at each other and the nominee plays possum to get through it. >> the pyrotechnics were anything if unconvincing. anator booker offered toe himself into a political martyr, risk the wrath of all the

institution, then senator cornyn respiding by comparing to benedict arnold, when, in fact,t ns out the papers had been made available hours before soap opera went on. so that was not confidence building. >> woodruff: and sayinhe could be removed from the senate. >> yes. >> woodruff: and they don't seem to be going anywhere on that. >> no. >> woodruff: and a one-two bunch directed at president trump in the book by bob woodward, painting a picture of a president unfit for office, sround bid people trying to keep him from his worst instincts followed by an anonymous op-ed, opinion piece in the "new york times," painting an equally damning portrait of the president. what do we take away from all this? >> that we're in a state of permanent crisis, that we've got an age of incanompetenc instability in the oval office, and that people around him are trying to do wat they can.

i wish they wouldn't write about it. d the questions, to me, is, hey, will this spin out of ntrol into something truly horrific? will trump take some action in a waat really does endanger the nation? e is he in a state where he can corrode-the norms,n corrode the republican party, he can coroad the government, but we're just going to be for the next two years or so in a state of just this instability and, crisd the argument is he's too ignorant and incomtent to do too much damage. i don't know which track we're on, whether a trajectory toward disaster or continuing depressing erosion of standards. >> woodruff: how serio do we take this, mark. >> quite seriously, judy,e becais wasn't a partisan attack. this wasn't from democrats. first of all, bob woodward, i thought the most telling response of bob woodward was

made by ari fleischer, president bush jam brown's white house secretary, a frequent poll gist and defenderl of dtrump, he said, i have been on the receiving end of awo bodward piece and there were goats i did not like but never did think bob woodward made it up, woodward always playtraight. argue that nody who's ever done business with could make a silar statement about hi honesty and integrity. so i think that comes with it. the sources are all people elevated to positions of high importance and significance in the united states of america by one person, donald trump, and they are the ones. it's not easy toake on a president. it's not easy to criticize -- >> woodruff: but it's anonymous. >> rob porter, gary cohen, ie mean, there ople in the

woodward book that's correctmony, are pretty damn clear where they stand, in spite of disclaimers and so forth. i mean, his reputation, i thinku stanassailed. so i think that's important. the anonymous thing, i disagree with my of any coeagues, i think maybe even david, in the sense that, when they first ran political campaigns, an oldna r said to me never have anybody sign a memo. just give them the meo and l them read it. i said why? because you want to look athe substance and not the source. you don't want to be deferenti because of who's writing it or dismissive because they're yog and experienced. and if the person had been -- if the person's name had been on the piece, they would have gone after the writer, an he's had a d.w.i. charge in 1983 or something of thert and try to

sabotage that. as a consequence, it forced us to look at the substance of what was written. and they come from republicans, from people who work in them trump istration. the significance of it demands our attention. >> woodruff: so what do we do out it? we've had this gripping week of criticism of the president. a lot of people say, well, we've heard this before, but it'stt g there. what happens now? ' well, you know, its partially up to republicans, if he does something truly ngerous -- i mean, it should be said, you know, we probably have the best economy of ourgh lifetimes now. >> woodruff: new numbers out today. >> they're fantastic. >> woodruff: yeah. but there comes a moment where something scary could happen, and n't expect republicans to actually take some action but, you know, the invocation of the 25th -- i forget -- the ameundment,

know, i just think we watch, as we have been for two and thee years, with sort of shocked horror, and then i think w rebuild for the long term, which is how do we rebuild norms of morality, how do we build norms of behav we can have functioning, civil government in the future. >> woodruff: andhat's what, in part, mark, former president obama was saying today. >> he was. >> woodruff: he was cal democrats to get in the arena. >> absolutely, and republicans as wel quickly on david, the republicans have been neutered. they sand mute. i mean, the only people who have had the courage to speak are people who lead with perhaps th exception of ben sasse of nebraska. lamar alerxander, a geat public servant, mute, rob portman, acclaimed, respected, mute on .he subject of donald tru i think there was a challenge b

president ob him but primarily it was directed at t millennialose who go to coachella, the rock concert. i went there a couple of times, i didn't leave the program last night. but was obama reminding us former presidents are regarded quite positively by americans, 63% favorably at this point. you know, just behindreagan and jack kennedy in that pantheon. and i think he's been mute himself fothe past 20 months, and i think it was a call to ms, i really do. >> woodruff: and now we're told he will be out on the campaign trail. will i make a difference, david? is this a message that sticks? h

>> chu paclograms at coachella. we have to go back to midterms in 2004, he lost them. one of the interesting things i agree, mobilizing millennials is a big thing. the second thing is how areat demoactually going to frame the argument against trump? there are a lot of arg make against trump and they made a lot of them in 2016 and barack obama sort of spread the field with a lot of fferent arguments, but which is the one that actually turns voters minds? i personally tnk it's the >> woodruff: the clock is ticking. they better make up their minds. it's almost november. >> trump is the issue. >> woodruff: mark shields, david brooks, thank you.

>> woodruff: the u.s. open tennis tournament continues this week to celebrate its 50th anniversary, and the "open era" which markedhe beginning of players winning prize money. jeffrey brown lookat the legacy of the first men's champion there, arthur ashe, and the lessons his career and life still serve up. >> brown: when the world'ste gr tennis players compete at the u.s. open in flushing meadows, new york, this is the mecca: the huge stadium where championships are won and lost. it's named for a tennis great who transcended the court and sport itself: arthur ashe. h said it over and over again: "if the tennis championship are all that i leave, i've left nothing." thwanted to leave a legacy and he wanted other athletes to take it as an example.>> rown: the story is now told in a new biography,

"arthur ashe: a life," by raymond arsenault. >> i know how difficult it was to do justice to him because his life was scomplicated. so many layers. >> brown: arsenault, an historian at the university of south florida and author of numerous books on the american south, joined us at this year's open, with reminders of ashe all around-- from a photograic exhibit to a virtual reality film and display about his rich life. >> this is my first sports book. i'm an avid sports nut all my life. >> brown: a sports nut, but a historian. why is this a good subject for a historian? >> well, for me, it was the connection between race and sports. i've always been struck by that. race was alws at the center, i think, of his sense that he, he really had to change the world. >> brown: born in 1943, ashe grew up in segregated richmond, virginia, next to the city's largest blacks-only park, which was managed by his father, arthur sr. it was here the young arthur first hit tennis balls. >> he never could play at bird

park, which was the major white park where the good tennis courts were. in fact, nothing galled him more. he was not a man to have grudge, or to get angry, but he said the thing that stuck in his craw is he'd be somewhere in the world, later in life when he was famous, and someone richmond would come up to him and say, "oh, arthur, we're so d.oud of you back in richm i can remember seeing you play at bird park when you were a y." d of course, he knew he had never played at bird park. yo>> brown: the pencil-thig ashe was accepted and tutored bs robert j, whose tennis camp in lynchburg, virginia helped open the sport to many african americans. but there, the lessons in race relations continued. j nson always said, you know, if you see the ball, and your opponent hits it, and it's just "out," you call it n." >> brown: you call it "in?" >> "we can't afford an incident. you're the first black to play in these mixed race tournaments. if you screw it up, there will probably never be another." and so, he grew up with at.

but it was his way. he was a paragon of sportsmanship, of civility. however, as i did my research, discovered over and over again that there was a kind of tumultuous inside. that, in many ways, he was a driven man. >> brown: he would win a tennis scholarshito attend u.c.l.a., and became the first african- american to represent the u.s. on the davis cup team, an international tennis competition. in 1968, at age 25-- and still in the u.s. army as a second lieutenant-- ashe won the first u.s. open. ashe was the first and still only african american man to win the tournament. it would change his life forever. >> as he sai it gave him a platform. "people now will listen to me." and so, a week after... >> brown: you mean he realized that, then? >> absolutely. a week after he won, he was thel first e ever invited on "face the nation." so there he was, little arthur gashe, 25 years old, hold forth on questions of education and race, and he was very

poised. >> if you happen to be black in these times, 1968, it's really a mandhie you do som. it's a must. there are other athletes and mack leaders, period, tt are using their positions of power and influence to wield some practical progress. so i was just simply saying to myself, arthur, you must do something, you can just not sit by and let the world go by. >> brown: he did write, and you go into this, of feeling shame, really, that while others were fighting injustice and socl causes, he was playing tennis. >> yeah, he said, "as my fame increased, so did my anguish." and i think a lot of what he did, why he was so driven, was making up for lost time. >> brown: two other grand slam titles followed: the australian open in 1970, and a 1975 upset over jimmy connors at wimbledon. but now it was ashe, the civil rights activist and public

intellectual, who more and more galvanized the public's attention, and fully took overea when heart d-- and quadruple bypass surgery-- forced him to retire at age 36. he was active in the fight against apartheid in south, afrid in this country, worked to bring better athletic facilities td black youth. he protested on behalf of haitian immigrants trying to enter the u.s.at he was criticihe time by some african american leaders for not being more militant and aggressive enough in his stance. but, says arsenault: >> he took the weight of the world on his shoulders, even though he knew there were certain things he couldn't do. he had to do it his way, his calm, deliberative style, never losing his cool, never raising his voice. that was who he wa >> brown: ashe would also write a three-volume history of african american athletes, titled "a hard road to glory;" plus regular newspaper columns;

and memoirs of his own experience. in 1988, ashe was diagnosed with h.i.v.-aids, a result of two blood transfusions during one of his heart operations. he and his wife, jeannie, chose to keep it quiet, not speaking publicly until 1992, to head off a news report. >> it put me in the unenviable position of having to lie if i wanted to protect our privacy. no one should have to make that choice. >> brown: asheadecame an amba for aids awarenessco anassion. >> there's a tremendous amount of work to be done with the public to assure them that ordinary contact with peoele like mysf poses absolutely no dang tohem. >> brown: arthur ashe died in 1993 at 49 of aids-related pneumonia. leray arsenault has no tro imagining the man who would be

75 today. >> tod, obviously, he'd be taking a knee for justice with colin kaeperck and the others, because he felt so-- >> brown: you think he would be? >> i have no doubthatsoever, because the one thing-- he never complained about much of anything, but one thing he did complain about was the way thatl es were treated as sort of court jesters, that they were entertainers. and he resented that. i mean, he had a mind. he wanted to be taken seriously as a citizen, a kind of acve citizenship. his favorite t-shirt was "citizen of the world." that's what he was, from this little boy in jim crow richmond, owwho kind of became, you the quintessential citizen of the world. >> brown: for the pbs newshour, eam jeffrey brown at the u.s. open in flushingws, new york. >> woodruff: what a great. memo tune in later tonight. on "washington week," tracking thspotentially pivotal mome in the trump presidency this week.on bs newshour weekend sunday, the first of a two-part series tracking the resurgence of isis

in iraq. and that's the newshour for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. have a great weekend. thank you, and good night. >> major funding for the pbs newshour haseen provided by: >> kevin.in >> k >> kevin? >> advice for li. life well-planned. .clearn more at raymondjam. >> bnsf railway. >> consumecellular. >> supporting social entrepreneurs and their solutions to the world's most pressing problems-- skollfoundation.org. >> the william and flora hewlett fountion. for more than 50 years, advancing ideas and supporting institutions to promote a better world. at www.hewlett.org. >> and with the ongoing support

of these institutions and friends of the newshour. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by g media acceup at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> you're watching s.

♪ ♪ [music] this monument put a new face on the civil war, is monument propelled us , and this monument all of these made the list of 10 monu that changed america. i'm geoffrur baer, and i'll b guide. as we discover the hidden meaning behind the statue of liberty and the real reason they built mount rushmore. david: they've have to see ime as they tourca. it's a bucket list item. geoffrey: we'll explore the basement oone monument and the attic of another. so why are there stairs inside e monument? because there were no elevators, geoffrey, in 1825. ge: and we consider a type of monument, that's touched off a heated debate. find out which monuments made the list