. tonight, senator dianne feinstein sits down to us to talk about the saudi crisis and kavanaugh and why she is srmking a fift. mail pipe bombs rock the world as mid termspproach and last-minute scramble for votes. one journalist scathing critique who changed the world while preserng the status quo. hello. welme. egin with the u.s. senate race. senator dianne feinstein is the longest female senator and seeking another term. an feinstent made headlines for hur role in the kavanaugh supreme court hearings. now in the wake of journalist

khashog khashoggi's death sheeeoins thr other senators in a letter to president trump on tuesday denouncing his handling of the saudi crisis. at 85 years old she says she has muchpl to accomsh with climate change and gun safety still on her agenda. as part of our election coverae, kqed politics scott dianner sat down with feinstein earlier and want to give full disclosure. senator feinstein and her husband are past donors to kqed. >> senator ffeinstein, thanks fr coming in. youare asking the voters for another six-year term. you like to do with your time? >> i want to be conservative and helpful to our state, to our nation and california, today, is either the fifth orsixth rgest economic power on earth. so i would like to see that economic power properly delivered to make the world a betterr place people.

are you on the intelligence committee. you're privy to all kinds ofti inform about things that are happening wour and our alli. i want to ask you about arabia, the apparent murder of khashoggi has put attention on saudi arabi what do you think the u.s. should do with regard to punishing or responding to what has happened? >> well, i can tell you what i won't do. i will not vote for saudi arm sales. i'm concerned about how they are conducting the war in yemen. school bus they have hit and children they have killed and i'm really surprised tt this was enabled by the monarchy to ake place and it had to have been that way. i think we all know enough of the story nown to that this just didn't happen. it was planned. people were sent to carry it out. this is not anyone's way, let alone the american way. >> so you don't buy the give ent's line we can't

up 110 billion dollar arms deal? >> no. that's not what we stand for. we are not a country that resolves around arm sales. we are a country that revolves around american values and human rights values. and that is what has made this country so desirable all over the world. it's not arm sales. 's what we are as a people and what we believe and it's our sense of what is right and what is wrong, and the ability to fight forht ri and right now, we have a fight for raht with saudi bia. >> i want to ask you about the brett kavanaugh hearings. you're the ranking dog and y ii you got aletterfrom christine blasey ford and criticism for holding onto it longer than the -- >> i would probably do it differently. he letter in three places said this is confirmation. when i talked to her, she was

not i shape to come forward. let me say that. that was my judgmenwa it not a short phone call. and i agreed to keep it confidential. she didn't want -- what all changed is when she came forward and when e agreed to testify and then i gave it to the committee. >> what would you do differently? >> well, it's a very hard question, scott. it took this woman a long time and this testimony was not easy for her. so terrible things happen ton wod this woman was 15 years old when it happened. >> do you have any regrets about the way it was handled? >> noo hi handle it that way. and i think i know how it came out and i learned a lesson there because i believe i came out from another colleague and that was a surprise. >> a coll another senator? >> yes. >> can you you say who? >> no. i would never dthat. i hope i'm wrong.

>> yeah. i want to ask you about your re-election. you're 85 years old and this week, joe biden, who i think is 75, said that i he ru for president in 2020, age i a irrelevant issue and bernie sanders said the same thing. i think he is 77 or will be soon. do you think it's a relnvant issuehis race? >> sure. it's a consideration. if people want somebody younger, they have somebody younger. i really believe that mize history has given me certain abiliti to do certain things and if people don't agree with tha then vote another way. but my health isgo d. i can go the stance. i enjoy it. and a good part of my life is wrapped around helping people. it's just for , there is satisfaction. and can i tell you individual stories, but it makes my life wortanhile too and i give to

people. >> you were mayor of san francisco for many years. >> yes, sir. >> and there is a measure on a san franciscoballot, measure c would tax the wealthiest companies in san francisco and generate about 350 million dollars a year for homelessness. the ceo of sales force is for it and the mayor and others are against. what is your position? >> i'm for . >> wh >> because we have to help. wedot have a choice. when you see someone lying, and i just do a sidewalk sleeping with nothing, that is not the united states of america. and particularly if they hpen to be an addict, an alcoholic or medical ill. >> the measure says it will cost jobs andt will influx too much money, that they don't have a plan for >> look. i'm going to vote for virtually almost any homeless plan. i just am.

because this is my country, this is my city. i grew up in san francisco. people weren't homeless. a lot of people loked at it, well, this will last for five years and then it willpass. it hasn't. it's gotten worse. it's involved more families, more youngsters. >> i think it's been about my math is right, 30 years since you've been mayor of san francisco. >> that's about right. >> i'm wondering the city now is so different. nd especially the economy. the technstry is to prevalent now. i'm wondering like what do you e as theupside and the downside of those changes? >> the upside is jobs. and the upside is producing a whole new generational competitive work force based on new instruments, whi technology, which didn't exist those 30 years ago and it kind of fascinating to watch.

history is going to show us whether i's worthwhile o not. >> what do you see as the down side? >> to be very candid, i don't see tech as very civically involved and i think they have to be. and i think the ceos, like, en i was mayor, the ceos of the big and ask could go in them to help with any civic cause. cross my heart, iever got a no. >> why do you think ceos today are in the tech i less receptive to that? >> i can't -- i don't understand it, to be honest with you. it'su a more reserved world, sort of a world apart to some extent to meet witht some of th h leaders and i guess they are like any other group of pl pe there's some that want to be helpful and there's some that >> senator dianne feinstein, thank you so much for coming in. >> thank you, scott. >> thank you. >> thank you.

now continuing with politics.o more than an pipe bombs were mailed to prominent democrats and critics of president trump, including several california recipients. today, suspicious packages were found in sacramento and burlingame addressed to harr and tom stier. a florida suspect is now in custody. president trump iseportedly considering shutting down the u.s./mexico border in response to the caravan from honduras. more on y house races with bay area volunteers campaigning in the central valley.oi ng us to discuss all of these issues is hoover institution fellow lonnien che and shawn walsh, aic repu strategy gift. nice to hell of you back. we learning more about the pipe bomb scare and the suspect. many targets arend democrats some of them the sharpest critics of president trump and in california as we are learning

today. how is this affecting the tone on capitol hill? >> to the extent it's making the tone more civil it's a temporary ange. i think our politics have become very coarse and the level of discourse is not what it's been at points in the past. obviously, in this situation a few issues to highlight. one is how remarkably quickly law enforcement was able to figure out what was going on and a lot of this capacity was developed post-9/11 our ability to get to the bottom of these sorts of things has improved dramatically the last several years. ihink politicians have tried to stay above this and try to take the tone and elevate it. but holitics in the u.s. become such that it's very difficult to stay there. i think, unfortunately, see this last a few days and then it's as usual. iness >> the fact we are still seeing inflammatory language in response to the bombs the president about call for unity but then shortly thereafter he he mediaeets attacking bld saying the pipe bombs are

slowing down rean momentum so republicans get out and vote. what impact will this have on the run-up to the midterm election? >> i don't know the impact on he elections but as lonni said, where this will be a temporary break. remember after the shooting on the baseball field year ago it was like this is horrible, people opening fire on members of s.congr we all -- everybody is like this is terrible for about, what? a week? so i don't know how it affects the mid terms. i think that,t this point of the game, around a weekn efore electy everybody is locked in their positions' most of races own a few percentage points of people wh are undecided or in the middle so i don't know if affects that at all. >> looking ahead, shawn, what will it take te press reset button and bring the hostile its down and stop this inflammatory language and diciveness? >> what they did is criticize president trump and a lot of

republicans just roheir eyes. nearly a dozen fire bombings and republican campaffices across the country, graffiti, including the mr. mccarthhas own office had stones thrn through there. it's an ugly period and continue to be. democrats are really across the board doing the same thing and everybody nee to grow up, they really do. >> i think the president should be held to a higher stands d. hee president. he is representing all of us. i think he should be representing us at the hhest vel possible. he should be setting the tone here. >> i agree, joe. i condemn the president's rhetoric but when the democratic establishment says it's a resistance movement, get their face and ti-maxy or care a se kerosene maxine. things todo bad administration staff and members of the congress on both sides of the ais ie.

this stu out of control and i think because of the social media dynamic. people just can't turn it off. all day long,te it's hate, hate. >> we are seeing that some of that around the caravan, rig there has been social media comments how maybe george soros backed it and claim that middle easte easterners are part of the pact. the white house is also planning send additional u.s. troops to assist in border scurity operations. lonnie, does this amount to stoking an anxieties about immigration? something we saw woed to his advantage, president trump's advantage in 2016. is that strategy now working for him also heading into the midterms? >> immigration has been an issue

that voters in california and around the country cared about a number of years. the underlying dynamic where america, a lot of america feels that immigration is aneissue thatesents a feeling of uneasiness. so i think he is anneling that. i think certainly there is no question that motivati ahead of the midterm election is crucially important for both parties. immigration is an issue that motivatesepublicans and always has been. and to the extent that the president is using it in that way, i think he sees asan opportunity to boost republican n turnout for the electis november. we can talk about the long-term implications of using immigration in that way but fundamentally, we can't forget wh are in the election cycle and this is an issue that gets people to the polls. >> how is itlaying out in the central valley? joe, you were there and talking to people. jeff bennett the incumbent from the modesto area and hisoc

dtic challenger josh harter. here aren't tuned into the stuff that is going on in washington or even the caravan for that . immigration there is very personal issue. everybody knows somebody who is affected by it. even the farmers who may not have a relatively who facing some sort of immigration issue, that is labor. it's a labor issue, too. ander it's much -- that issue -- that race down there is playi out in the bay area. jeff denham is running and calls josh carter who spent a few years in the bay area an a venture capitalist bay area harder. if he wins he will support bay area values to the central valley. harter says that deadham has not represented the valley well enoughn issues like impra immigration and health care. he is getting a lot of money from the bay area. he has a million dollars from

bay area peoplend hundreds have donated thousands of hours campaign. last weekend when i was there, 369 people coming to canvass for josh harter and many of them were from the bay area because there is no race here. they have all of this energy as you pointed out. going?are they barbara lee's district is not in jeopardy. >> what is interesting to me about that race deadham is moderate on immigration issues. ere that feeling trump is so unpopular in california? that that is eventually wh is going to kill him? >> yes and no. popular is unpopular in california but more popular in that district where 43% of the po people approve of what he has beeing. they say deadham tried on issues but failed. he tried last year again. he supported a pathway to legalization before.

and sha and citizenship and he has failed. >> if voters are more enthusiastic than usual, is it showing up in early voting, shawn? >> it is. it is showing up in early voting not just in california but across the country. just entering the studio i talked to the chairmor of the cala republican party and he said if the vote was held today, the california delegation would retain 13 of the 14 seats and that is early. we will see. >>o earlyrs are usually white and republican and older. >> there are 3% to 4% higher in their turnout than what they anticipate will be in this turnout. i think the republicans have a strong tail wind. tep care they have a strong economy. we had some mistakes again with hillaryon coming out and floating a trial balloon and people say should it matter? it does to a lot of republicans.

it's motivating republican voters in these sdricketdistric come out and also in michigan and new hampshire. >> i think the shape of the election has altered fundamentally the past several weeks. i think republicans were facing serious head winds into the kavanaugh hrings and i think the last couple of weeks changed it to where the republicans, barring a change are going to have control of the u.s. senate and may pick your missouri and montana and north dakota where ehe president performed very well so sen candidates are running ahead. they are defending seats in nevada and arizona where they are doing very well. on the house side i think a lot of people would be surprised the democrats won net of more than 30 seats if even capturing the majoritythow. i think is in question. republicans have definitely come back fromat from the last couple of weeks. >> 15 seconds. >> it's not goingl to be a wave. there may be blue tornadoes that hit a few district but the

dynamic has changed. >> all right. we are going to leave it there. i know joe is looking like he disagrees. we willave to -- >> i will oppose my feelings on twitter! r>> we will look for y tweet! thank you. thank you all for joining us. >> thank you. >> now a critics view of fill an thop philanthropic. author andurnalist contends the rich and powerful are willing to fight for justice and equality but only if it doesn't threaten their positions at the top of the social order. his latest book is winners take all. the charade ofchanging the ward. pleasure to have you in the studio. >> great to be here. >> in your book you tackle the inrld of philanthropy.

we hear win make a difference spot leaders yet you say that instead of making the world better, they are enabling inequality how so? >> it's an amazing thing that we do live in this age where billionairese aving money away in the city right now. two billionaires are having an argument the best way to help ymeless people and ev time you go to mall is there a tote bags that will change the worldo everyg person i meet on campus has a social mediat prise idea about recycling poop in rwanda. the most unequal time in america the last hundred years. last year the top 4% of the salaries grew faster in the bottom 98% andall new wealth e very same people who talk about giving back and talk in

silicon valley about disruption and starting companies th are going to save the world, those very sameeople are monopolizing progress in america. >> they are arguing for fixesi buts within the current broken system as opposed to trying to fix the system totally. >> when the winners of our age get interest and involved in social change, they change change. they are rarely content to write a check and support an or nization they think ising good work. they shape the narrative. they write books about their tho theorys of change. silicon valley disrupchon becomesge and higher taxes, not change. >> that doesn't benthit ? >> it hurts them. a charter school they can get involved on and put their name on and mento a few black kids and boast they got them into stanford is the change they like. equally funded public schools oor all and palo alto doesn't

get better sc they are not interested in. telling women to lean in you can do that for free. they like that. >> is it a matter of cognitive dissidence or a moral lapse or evil ntent? >> it a mix. i found this wonderful email from 2007 among the goldman sachs they say in the email we got to pitch thiser repoon our gs gives i think they are wanting to make the world aer be place. who, therefore, are totally blind to which what is good for them

actually gerdiverges from what goo for the world. facebook is the first company in american history to perhaps compromise nd tip a federal idection, presidential election. there is no at as far as i see it that these very companies that are so idealistic and talking about making the world better is building a winner take allh economy works for very few people -- them. >> youie don't b market base philanthropy works. are you arguing for higher taxes? >> yes, among other things. and we should stop being so sh ed of those things. taxes is the price of civilization. i think rich people in this country probably need to pay ao ore than they are saying to get into line with most of the other rich countries. apple has b285lion dollars

offshore while we have 74999 homeless people in the city of san francisco. the city of san eancisco, we county. five county area around san francisco, we are a country. you have t ninth highest population of billionaires among countries. and, haet, it's to walk down the street without encountering homeless people. >> talk about an issue front a center for the trump administration and alleged killing of jam khashoggi and put the attention on silicon money. how is thiswh like you talk about in your book? >> i have spent the last few years trying to report on the phony idealism of rich people and silicon valley is the epi center of that. never did i come upon a clear example of that phoniness than the fact thela reon recently that billions of dollars in saudi government money has found itsway into silicon valley. they have becomeone of the

biggest players in the valley. they own a huge stakeof uber and in wag and door dash and slack where everybody has boring chats all day long. it's hard to think about something that is so quickly pierces the illusion that silicon valley is anything other than a money making it doesn't mean it's horrible. it just means that the specialness that ied to cull vat for itself. this notion it's here to make the werld bend idealism is phony. this regime in saudi arabia is among the worse on earth. that money is among the dirtiest on earth and it is money causing climate hange anded to force degradation of women and what is in saudarabia a kingdom what isis looks like if it had conquered a nation >>state. t's noted for human rights abuses. >> 48 beheadingshe inomuf mont

first couple of months of this year. >> do you think they see it as something else? >> if tey don't reverse course, silicon valley will known as riyadhest soon. they cannot detect incoming information about their hypocrisy and so impervious to criticism. the reality this khashoggi thing has shined a light on frankly a relationship americahould have changed a long time ago. i don't mean to put it only onn silialley. washington has a corrupt relationship with them and citigroup had a big saudi stake but silicon valley claims it's different. >> is this a case a mome of reckoning for silicon valley? some people questioning this retionship between what they are trying to do, innovate and where they are getting that money from? >> a lot of the youngerho folks ork in these countries and a lot of women and people of colorth work ine companies and people have a different take

than theicon valley bro thing are come up with a awareness of power in the world that a lot of that founding generation didn't and i think they will change thesefo compans the better. >> very interesting. thank you for joining us. your new ok is t winners take all the elite charade of changing the world. pleasure to have you. >> thank you so much for having me. > that will do for us. as always, for more of our coverage, go to kqed.org/newsroom. thank you for joining us.

robert: terror by mail in fear on the campaign trail. i'm robert costa. president trump's sharp words are under scrutiny as the mid terms near tonight on "washington week." >> this is a different definition of terrorism.ol this is pical terrorism. >> suspected mail bomb sent to political figures, c and others. >> this is a multiple investigation involving multiple people coast t coast. president trump: i'm here to inform you that law enforcent as apprehended the suspect and taken him into custody. these terrorizing acts are spicable and have no place in our country. robert: but a president also critical of the press. president trump:ia the med also has a responsibility to set a