captioning sponsored by newshour productions, c >> woodruff: good evening.dr i'm judy wf. on the newshour tonight, hate turns to horror. john yang reportfrom pittsburgh where 11 people were targeted and murdered at a synagogue. and i am anchoring special coverage from florida-- a place sadly familiar with gun violence, home to the suspected pipe bomber and a state still recovering from devastating hurricane. plus, with just a were to go behe election we hear how all this weighs on the min of voters and affects the issues that matter most. >> nawaz: and i'm amna nawaz ina ington. with the day's other headlines bsand more on tonight's "p newshour."

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>> the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build 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 individuals. >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting.d contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> nawaz: the shock oftu ay's massacre at a pittsburgh synagogue is still sinking in tonight.

earlier, the man accused of killing 11 people had his first court appearanid an outpouring of grief and sympathy. john yang begins our coverage. >> reporter: today, the makeshift memorial outside the tree of life synagogue in pittsburgh grew larger. passersby placed flowers and paid their respects amid a still-heavy police presence.is fundg for survivors and victims' families has brought in more than $600,000. veturday's massacre is beld to be the deadliest attack on jews in american histo. 46-year-old robert bowers is charged with killing 11 worshippers during sabbath prayer services. seated in a wheelchair, he madep his firsarance in federal court in downtown pittsburgh today and was assigned a public defender. he is being held without bail. he faces 11 state counts of criminal homicide and a 29ount federal complaint, including hate crimes, which could bring the death penalty.

in the wake of a week of threats and violence, some have pointed to president trump's rhetoric, which they say has invoked anti- semitic themes and emboldened white nationalists. even as white house pres secretary sarah sanders condemned bigotry today, the >> we all have a duty tonf nt antisemitism in all its forms anywhere it appears. reporter: the president blamed the media. he said, "there is great anger in our country caused in part by inaccurate, and even fraudulent, reporting of the news. the fake news media, the true enemy of the people, must stop tye open and obvious hosti and report the news accurately and fairly." morrow, the president an first dy are to visit pittsburgh. among the dead: 97-year-old rose r, who had survived the holocaust. brothers cecil and david rosenthal, both in tir 50s, both with developmental disabilities, and father and grandfather melvin wax, whwas

88. this morning, authorities tookoo the accused r from allegheny general hospital, where he was treated for gunshot wounds. hospital president jy cohen lives across the streetof from the treife synagogue, where he is a member, was married and his children bar and bat mitzvahed. ki as i went outside there was a police officer w down the street and he was yellg at people to get in their houses-- there was an active shter at tree of life-- i'm going "this is odd," and as i stood there watching i saw the first wave of police come in and they were huddled behind a brick pillar. they were charging around the and i'm going, "this is across from my house, this is surreal." >> reporter: he quickly learned the shooter was being taken to his hospital. >> i talked to one of the nurses that took care of him and the nurse's father is a rabbi. he came inecause he was called

in. and he rolled up his sleeves and he took care of him like anybody else that comes here. and we have a really simple mission here, certainly as long as i'vbeen here, we're here to take care of sk people. >> reporter: yesterday, cohen felt the need to meet the man o who had brought violences doorstep. >> and he asked me who i was, i said "i'm dr. cohen, i'm the president of the hospital." and once again that ying-yan--of the univerere's the guy that's getting off an ambulance and saying "all jews have to h die" a emergency room physician, his nurse, president of the hospital are all jews. how's that for irony >> reporter: the bullets struck at the heart of the close-knit community inittsburgh's squirrel hill neighborhood. >> it's like tearing cloth so that the threads no longer join one to the other. >> reporter: james gibson is senior rabbi at temple sinai, just blocks from tree of life. >> we are deeply embedded in

each other's lives. >> reporter: although more diverse today, squirrel hill still has the feel of the jewish enclave it has been for more than a century. it's a place where synagogues are familiar landmarks, the grocery store posts thenn g of the weekly sabbath and they tell time in hebrew.ki cindy sk, a polish catholic, has lived here 18 years. she and her husband, david shribman, the executive editor of the "pittsburgh pos gazette," raised two daughters here. one is a year away from ordination as a rabbi. >> iwould have been very har for natalie and my older daughter to escape because of their fries. a lot of their friends were jewish. we lived in washgton a long time and i don't think we, outside of one or two people, really knew very many wish people. you become marinated here pretty fast. >> reporter: as authorities search for why this attack took place this partilar weekend in this particular place, dr. cohen sees symptoms in the coarsening

of public discourse. >> we need to take control of the debate and the civily of the discourse where it's okay to disagree with people, but you don't have to take it to the point where you shut the other guy up. we have to listen more. >> sunday evenin the monthly rehearsal of the pittsburgh cello studio ensemble became an impromptu commemoration. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ leaders nicole myers and simon cummings played the melody, kol nidre, which traditionally begins services on yom kippur, the jewish day of atonement. >> it's just so soulful and beautiful. and we debated whether or not we should have rehearsal tonight, the day after these events. we thought we didn't want to stop making music.

we wanted to play for them to show them that we were going to persevere. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: for cummings, born and raised in the area, it had a special meaning: among the dead was dr. jerry rabinowitz, his doctor since childhood. >> just trying to meditate and think about his life and the other ten lives and feel like music is a big part of our lives and it helps us recover and heal. >> reporter: feelings that so many in this community are in searchf tonight. ♪ ♪ >> reporter: what happened here, so many that we talked tsay they, this neighborhood and this city are determined to come back strong. amna?

>> incredible resolve in that community, john. but tell me about the victims of this attack. when will we expect funerals to begin for them? >> the funerals will start tomorrow. jewish law generally fords autoautopsiys and encourages burial within 24 hours, but authorities went to the families and asked pemission to perform autopsies, presumably to help in the prosecution, and all theg familiesed. >> you mentioned the prosecution, john. what else do we know, i anything, about the shooter? >> not much. h he is a guy who apparently did not leave much of a footprint. reporters ve been talking neighbors, described him as dsolated, socially awkward. they say he li alone. told some of them he was a truck what footprints he did leave appear to be these virulent anti-semitic comments, most left on a web site called gab. gab is a sie crtics say is the

haven, the last refuge for extremists who have been kicked off other social media platforms like twitter and farcebook violating their norms.ed gab has rele statement condemning the attack, saying they are working with law enforcement authorities, investigating this. they also say, we have been smeared by the mainstream me rtr defending free expression and individual lifor all people. >> yang:, there fo us at the -- john yang at the site of the horrific synagogue shootg in pennsylvania. thank you, john. >> nawaz: in the d's other news, federal prosecutors asked a judge to deny bail for the man who allegedly sent package bombs to top democrats and critics of presidentrump. cesar sayoc appeared in federal court in miami. and, another pkage addressed

to cnn showed up in atlanta. the f.b.i .said it w "similar in appearance" to the others. the pentagon announced it is sending 5,200 active-duty troops to the mexican border this week. that comes as some 4,000 central american migrants are pushing northward through xico-- a movement that trump called an "invasion" today. thhead of the u.s. norther command said soldiers will back up customs and border agents. >> we know border security is national security and the u.s. military will advance c.b.p.'s capability to hardenhe border. the department of defense is already and ll continue to provide support to c.b.p. to secure the border. >> nawaz: federal police in mexico today blocked a new group of several hundred migrants, trying to enter the country from guatemala. in indonesia an airliner crashed into the java sea, off jakarta, today, killing all 189 people on board. the lion air boeing 737 plane went down 13 minutes after

taking off from jakarta on a domestic flight. rescue workers pulled human remains and wreckage from the ter through the evening. indonesia's president joko widodo asked grieving families to be patient. >> ( trslated ): i feel deep anxiety for all the families of the victims, but we hope that the fami be calm while they wait for the search and rescue teams who are working hard at the scene. we are making the best effortsim to find the vi >> nawaz: indonesian airlines were banned from flying europe and the u.s. for years because of their poor safety record. the u.s. lifted its ban in 2016, and the european union ban ended this past june. the u.s. navy says it will continue patrolling the disputed south china sea-- despite a near-collision with a chinese warship. last month, a chinese destroyer came within 45 yards of the u.s. navy destroyer "decaear gaven reef forcing it to veer off. the u.s. does not cognize china's claims in the area.

the chief of naval operations said today that "freedom of navigation" operations will go . the people of brazil began coming to grips today with a stunning political shift. far-right politician jair bolsonaro won sunday's presidential run-off, in latin america's largest nation. foreign affairs correspondent nick schifrin has our report. >> reporter: late into thels night, jair onaro's supporters celebrated what they called a fresh start-- and the end of a ruling party they label a failure. >> they are big liars and criminals hiding behind their rehesed speeches. bolsonaro is much more original, says things that many people don't want to hear, but i believe that he is honest and that he wants improvemor the country. >> reporter: 63-year-old bolsonaro is longtime lawmaker, former army captain, and proud populist who reflects widespread anger brazil is in its worst ever recession. prrmer president luiz inacio lula da silva is ion, his successor was impeached, and the current president's accused of

corruption. and violence has increased so much, the mitary secures rio's massive slums. voters blamed the government. >> ( translated ): corruption, robbery, politics in the trash: that's why i want change. i prefer to risk something new. >> reporter: what they're ririsking is a candidate ctics call an extremist. in 2014, he argued with a lawmaker, and, after pushing her, yelled, "i would not rape you because you are not worthy of it." in a 2011 interview with "playboy," he said he would "rather his son die ar accident, than be gay." and ten days ago, when calling in to a rally, bolsonaro promised the rule of law would be become rule by law unleashed on his political opponents. >> ( translated ): these red outcasts will be banished from our homeland. w l be a cleansing never seen in brazilian history. s you wi proud armed forces, a civilian and a military police with legal bking to enforce e law against them. es the rhetoric that served him well to win the ency will

not serve him to govern. >> reporter: paulo sotero directs e wilson center's brazil institute. he says bolsonaro is part of a populist wave at includes president trump, and that he will have to reign in the rhetoric. he will have a congress that he will, i think, very rapidly, realize that he will have to negotiate certain things, tone down some of the rhetoric. >> reporter: last night, bolsonaro did just that and read from a script. >> ( translated ): i will be an advocate for defending the constitution, of democracy, of freedom. >> reporter: but a candidate who mimicked guns with his fingers, and whose supporters held dollsc of polns wearing prison uniforms, has a base with high expectations. and it remains a question whether a whether a man who campaigned in vicious poetry, can govern in reasonable prose. for the pbs newshour, i'm nick schifrin. >> nawaz: meanwhile, in germany: chancellor angela merkel announced she will step down as leaderr conservative

party. she also confirmed she will not run again, when her 4th term as chancellor expires in 2021.at her ent in berlin came after the ruling coalition suffered new losses, in a keyel stattion on sunday. >> ( translated ): with this decision i am trying to make a w contributich enables the german government to finally inncentrate its efforts on good governance, somepeople demand and rightly so. this step is also basehe clear intention of the german gok.rnment to evaluate its w >> nawaz: merkel has been chancellor since 2005, but she's faced hey criticism for admitting large numbers of asylum seekers in 2015. that decision helped fuel the rise of a far-right party. back in this country, formerid prt jimmy carter appealed or georgia's republican candidate for goveo step down from his post as secretary of state. brian kemp oversees state elections in that role, and he's facing allegations of voter suppression. in a letter to kemp,arter said stepping aside would foster

voter confidence. on wall street stocks started with a rally, then swooned amid talk of new tariffs on china. the dow jones industrial average lost 245 points to close below 24,443. it had been down more than 560 points earlier. the nasdaq fell 117 points and the s&p 500 slipped 17. and it's time for another party in boston after the red sox won the world series last night, for the fourth time in 15 years. boston beat the dodgers in los angeles 5-to-1, to te the series in five games. the city will honoththe winners parade on wednesday.ur we turn now topecial "newshour" coverage from florida and to judy woodruff.nk >> woodruff: tamna the swing state of florida is yet again proving to b battleground in this year's midterm elections. from a contentious race for governor to a neck and neck senate contest, key races up and

down the ballot could decide control of congress and be an indicator for the political direction of the country. we begin our special coverageth look at some of those important campaigns. >> higher taxes for you. benefits for him. i don't think so. >> we can do good by rowing together y'all. use)p >> woodruff: the florida governor's race pits a self- styled "conservative warrior" against a progressive. tallmassee mayor andrew gillu is vying to be the state's first democratic governor since 1992, and its first-ever black chief executive. he is also a fierce critic of president trump. >> your next governor ron ntsantis! >> woodruff: by cost, former republican congressman ron desant has fully embraced the president, who won florida by a razor-thin margin in 2016. >> i appreciate your support mr. president, but i appreciate more

the leadership you are showingr for ougreat country. >> woodruff: the contest has ife with allegations of racism. just after winning the republican nomination, desantis nid this about gillum: >> the last thing d to do is monkey this up by trying to .embrace a socialist agen >> woodruff: racist robo-calls by a supremacist group also targeted gillum. desantis denounced the calls, but when i caught up with gillum at a weekend rally at a tampa community center, he said desantis had stod racial tensions. >> i think certainly he used racial stereotypes in his caaigning all to make me l out of touch. so different than everybody else. i think he solely underestimates the voters by going so hard after superficial differences when what voters want to hear about is what we're going do. >> woodruff: meanwhile, gillum is facing a corruptionrobe into unreported gifts from lobbyists-- including a trip to

costa rica and tickets to the broadway show "hamilton." >> i don't take free trips from anybody. >> woodruff: gillum has denied the charges, but subpoenaed text messages suggest he knowingly cepted the show tickets from an f.b.i. agent posing as a rear estate devel desantis calls it another example of "local corruption." >> andrew is the one who lied to the people of florida on sunday night about accepting a gift from an undercover f.b.i. agente he's tne who lied. >> woodruff: the governorship is up for grabs because republicank incumbent cott is term- limited. he is moving on to cenge three-term democratic u.s. senator bill nelson for his seat. >> he was there when his party was in power and he's absolutely done nothing. uff: the two have sparred on immigration, gun violence-- especially after the parkland, flora school shooting, and health care. polls indicate a majority of

floridians favor medicai expansion, and that they're more likely to vote for a candidate who will maintain the affordable care act's prolections for peith pre-existing conditions. >> florida has more on the a.c.a. than anybody else.li almost two m people who now have healthcare that never had healthca before. and for the seven years of the law, my opponent has wanted to kill it, to repeal it. >> woodruff: nelson has blasted scott for opposing medicaid expansion and "obamacare." the state is also suing to overturn federal protections for those with pre-existing conditions. scott says he didn't have anything to do with the suit. >> i support forcing insurance companies to cover pre-existing conditions. >> woodruff: but in a new ad, he said he now favors coverage ofti pre-exng conditions. and desantis has recently pledged to do the same. the flora ballot also features

close races in at least five congressional districts held by republicans, and for the republican-controlled e senate. also driving voters to the polls, a state constitutional amendment to restore votingll rights to 1.5-n former felons. i sat down this weekend with five voters in the tampa/saint petersburg area. and a note to viewers, we met before the magnitude of the terrible murders in pittsburgh ps clear. we gathered at aopular meeting place, the oxford exchange.ge the voters rin age from 27 to 75. icjake hoffman is a republan who owns a digital media company. trevor mallory is a democrat who works investing in affordable housing. sandy rief is a registered republican, but has been voting democratic lately. he's a tax attorney. liz gutierrez is a democrat who runs a non-profit. and cherie denham is a

republican who's employed by a law firm. >> this e2016 election cycle is just as important or more important than 2016. you know, songeone is cal this trump's reelection. >> woodruff: trevor, what about u? how important do you think it is? >> it's like cherie touched on, this has been called the trump reelection, and for those who don't want to hear that, now is the time to get up and make a difference. >> woodruff: let's talk about what is on your mind. what is it that is driving your vote this time? >> there ar a lot of issues. there are a lot of things at stake. we have two taxes on our ballot in hillsboro county. if those pass, we will be the highest taxed county in florida, so that's very important to me. with the unfortunate event inec parkland, thed amendment has become a huge issue here in florida and i don't believe we need more gun control rights. >> woodruff: why not? e need help people with

mental health issues. it's not gun control. we need to reshift the focus, helping people that need help. >> woodruff: what is it that is driving you to make sure to vote that makes you believe these elections matter? >> for me, i'm one of those silly people wh believe in peace and justice for all, not just for some. while it is important to keep our taxes, for example, in check, it is also very important to invest in the society and in our community. so if we don't educate our young children, if we don't create the best schools that we can, if folks don't have economic opportunity, then we're all in trouble. >> woodruff: what about youev ? what matters to you? >> number one is education. in pinellas county, the rate is overwhelming on how many c studenn't read and that needs to be changed. i think it has to do with the

pay to have the teachers. number two are the gun lawwes. ust have to change them, and i really commend those kids at stonemon douglas where they actually stepped up after the incident there and i believe they really are a key part of this excitement about this midterm election. number three is the restoratione thtoring of rights, no just people need to get more educated on whod shot their rights back and who should andn' shouget their rights back. >> woodruff: for felons. for felon. what's driving you in the governor's races? >> there is a lot. when i see something about the environment on there, i' excited about candidates that will talk about that. >> woodruff: sandy, you take an interest in politics. what matters most to you? >> right now, headolthcar. i'm medicare, you know, and we

don't have a good healthcare system in this country.ob acare was excellent, and it's been beaten down. other issues that i think are important, the envirment. sea level rise. climate change. that's important. people vf to realize that if we don't do something like that, u know, the state of florida will bete under >> woodruff: liz, what are you thinking when you're thinking about the governor's race between congressman desantis and the mayor of tallahassee, andrew gillum? >> the term that comes to me is fear. it's really a hostile environment where folks -- people don't feel comfortable taing to each oter because they're afraid of the differences in opinion might lead to something else. >> i kind of agree with what she said. people are afraid of one or the other. everybody's afraid of losing their rights, whether it' fs

righ guns or their rights to a safe community. >> woodruff: tre how do you see the governor's race right now? >> well, i have to say, during the primaries, i did support mayor andrew gillum, and i have been actually still working to help support him. but once he won the nomination and then desantis came out withbhis commentut monkeying it up, i just think that line did not have to be crossed when you're talking about racism. it was racially pushed, but it just didn't need to happen. >> to the monkeying arnd mment, personally, when i heard that, i didn't take that as a racial issue. a lot of oher things i hear i can say, wow, that's e that is something i think is racially charged. we just had robo calls put out around the state that made loca and state ned they're

clearly racist. if you listen to them or see the transcripts, you can see that's racially charged. but you can't pull racism from one comment like that. >> woodruff: trevor, is it possible that there's been an overreaction from the people supporting andrew gillum? >> i don't i think it's an we took it, commented on it, dealt with it and now we're moving on. it actually ignited us in the c african-americmunity because i want to touch on what you said. you said you don't think it's racist comment, but, at the same time, the robo call was in effect to monkeying it upe becaere was monkeys in the background, and if you're going to deem that racial, then i think thatomment or slip of the tongue, however you want to label it, that also has to be deemed as a racial comment. >> woodruff: t me come to you, sandy, on some of ths. governor's race, what do you see unfolding here? >> it's the entire political spectrum. everybody's telling lies.

>> woodruff: everybody? both politicve parties? >>body is telling lies. it starts at the top, the president of the united states, and it goes all the wayw don. every one of the commercials that you see is a lie bcause they're trying to make their opponent look bad. we're not talking about the. issu the things that are important to the citizens of florida and thee ci of our country. >> woodruff: the governor's race, gillum, who are you for and why? >> of course, i have to support andrew gillum. i am not the problem in our society as a latina woman. i am part of the solution. i'm a cntributor. i'm a taxpayer. i'm a voter. i have everything to give, and if we dona have a society tht values my contribution as eal as it values that of anyone else, what kind of society do we have? >> woodruff: cherie, what about you? governor's rce, gillum, desantis?

>> i am a christain, a conservative and a republican, so i vote my values. my number one value is pro-life, so i vote fro pro-life viewpoint always. so, obviously, i'm going to go for desantis. i also voted for president trump. >> woodruff: jake, as involvedhe withoung republicans, you are supporting republicans. why ron desantis in this governor's race? >> because the alternative isve scary to me as far as an economic climate goes. hiring taxes all around worries me. >> woouff: i want to turn to president trump. how much does whatheays, what he's done, how much is that a factor in your -- the people you plan to vote for? >> what we're seeing and hemarig from is just not the typical role model i would want for my kids to look at. so, when he comes down toe

support thndidates and have these rallies, it just stays negative. p desantis was asked about whether or not tr a role model. the answer is no. that's not something we shouldsi te to say. again, as a republican, i take a hingsf flack for certain that i say, whether it comes from a moderate, reasonable hosition, but it's easy to see that the thingst he says that are not okay. it is okay to sayt. tha and we can do that at the same time as agreeing with some of the policies that heas. >> do you think he's an asset for republicans this year? >> yes. yeah, absolutely. he is going to do a great job at helping turn out tte for republicans, yeah. >> i believe he is a force for positive. i don't think we needed just a nice, normal politician. i think our country was in such a state that we neded a wrecking ball to go intoon washinnd wreck it. >> woodruff: how much do you feel the country is divided right now? what do you think about that,

jake? and does it matter? >> absolutely. the country is definitely divided. you see that at ralies and protests and counterprotests. we have parties that are sittin on very far sides of the political spectrum. woodruff: well, th president is blaming a lot of this, sherry, on the news med, saying the news immediatey is contributing to the division. >> there are a lot of things at we agree on. we need different roads and avenues to get to these solutione i agree theia leans toward more liberal. they have a very loud voice.yo know, a lot of my friends get put in facebook jail or shadow banned twitter because they tweet out a lot of conservative things, and this in sog that's really happening. but, honestly, at our core, i think we are more united than divided. >> i think we are very divided and the president is trying to keep us futher apart. you know, he refuses to take a

position on -- he haspent commented negatively and said bsat happened with the bom that have been sent out. you know, he's not condemned that like he shou have. his ambivalence towards saudiia arith khashoggi, that was something that should have been condemned right out. those are the types of things. hd he goes to te rallies, and ione of that is what's designed to br us together. you know, you can document lie after lie after lie that he tells when he's out there eaking. >> woodruff: as your candidate, your man goes to washington, what would you like to see him give a little on in order to reach some sort of resolution? >> well, i'm going to go in then opposite direcnd say to you that the thing that i have been disappointed about is, as democrats, we haven't been as strong.li i think repns have been very clear about their

messaging. i don't know that we as democrats have that clear a sense of what the values are ane we haery strong values that i think ar beneficial to everyone, but i don't know that we speak of them very clnearly a way that everyone understands. >> as far as republicans go, again, we're going to need t pivot more on the environment because that used to be a birtisan issue, andducation. we used to be able to agree that -- if you walk outside, be able to ta s our kid tochool and breathe the air and go to the beach. you know, we just don'need to fight open some of these things. >> if that's what publicans have to do, democrats have their work cut out for them, too. democrats have their work cut out for them, too. among other things, they are going to need a big turnout from two groups of voters who are increasingly important here in florida-- puerto ricans and young people. yamiche alcindor has been in south florida taking a look at those key voting groups and how

they might sway the results. >> reporter: turnout, turnout, turnout.at the name of the game in florida. up and down the state, candidates and canvaers are working to get out the vote. r >>orter: that's because in the last two governors' and presidential races, the winners in this state have been determined by razor-thin margins.t, and as a resemocrats are trying to turn out two important groups that they hope will make the difference. >> florida is the classic referendum, lynchpin state in the country. it's almost perfectly divided in terms of its registration between republicans, democrats and independents, which in florida is a growing segment of the electorate. >> reporte fernand amandi is a democratic pollster based in miami. >> it's all about the base here. so, the base matters and turnout is what drives the base, so if the base is not turning out, someone is going to lose and that's why in florida, it's paramount. >> reporter: one key group: r pueran voters, especially those who have arrived since hurricane maria struck last september.

frederick velez is an ornizer with alianza. the group has spent months sending out mailers and registering people to vote. now, it's focused on making sure people show up.ad >> we'vever 26,000 conversations with people who are either puerto rican or who are latino. and those conversations are based on, focused on why it's important to vote. ve>> reporter: 47-year-olde alsina understands the value of voting. in june, t mother of three ved from puerto rico to this neighborhood outside kissimmee with her ss and grandson. >> i left my family, my house, my friends, my culture. everything stay there. >> reporter: and, like many puerto ricans, she was very disappointed by the trump administration's response to hurricane maria last september. there was not a lot of help for us. there are still people suffering over there. this people over there. the house-- they don't have a roof. d fema. they went there, but they didn't

help out a lot. >> reporter: the government of puerto rico says as a result of the storm, nearly 3,000 people died. president trump has rejected that number. he claims democrats inflated the death toll alsina was especially offended by this video of president trump throwing paperowels to hurricane survivors. it was on her mind when she voted early last week-- for democrats. she hopes they'll serve as a check on the president. >> that's why yesterday i went to vote. because i want my dignity andre ect back. we don't need paper towels. we need food. t we need hebuild our houses e ain. >> reporter: no ally knows how many puerto ricans have moved to florida since hurricane maria. estimates range fromh of 300,000 down to 50,000, but poster fernand amandi says even tens of thousands could still pre pivotal. >> 25,000 votes could very well decide who wins florida. so it could ve well be that

these puerto rican voters have 15 or 20,000 of them enter the electote and uniformly go from one side to the other could be determinative. >> reporter: young people are another greyp to watch. sually don't vote in high numbers, especially during midterms.th year, organizers are working hard to change that. on saturday, volunteers with nextgen america canvassed in north miami beach. the democratic political action reoup is funded by billion hedge fund investor tom steyer. it's been registering youngle pe to vote across florida, including at high schools and colleges in the wake of the school shooting in parkland. meanwhile, at a get-out-the-vote event in liberty city, miami, young people gathered to talk politics over food, football and music. it was sponsored by dream defender a group started in 2012 after the killing of trayvon martin. rodnika cockroft, an organizer,a 2016 was a wake up call for many. >> our generation is starting tt steptheir power because we

realize that those 70, 75-year-o old peoplee been in power for 30 years are fixated in thet mentality thy have already and it doesn't align with ours. we're going to be stuck when they're gone. we're going to be stuck with the issues that they left us with. >> reporter: dream defenders ran byshuttles to the polls ne early voting began last week. along the way, organizers tried lorida's 12 amendments on the ballot this year. >> i think the potential for young pele to make a dfference in the midterm election is definitely there. at the same time, i think the democratic candidates need to give young people something to vote for. >> reporter: marcus horton is a 28-year-old navy vet who just graduated from florida international university. horton does not identify as a republican or a democrat, but often votes withemocrats. he's supporting democrat andrew gillum for governor. the most important issues to him: restoring voting rights for felons, health insurance-- which

he doesn't have-- and thimpact of student loans. >> it means that when we 'taduate from college we c start businesses. we have too much debt. it means we can't buy homes, an so we're k finding ourselves in this position where we're limited in the choices that we can make. that could be a very powerful platform position. there's enough young people now to-- more young people than older people. >> reporter: still, horton isn't l sure that young people wke the difference this year. >> i do see a lot more peopleca who are poliy engaged and they seem to care about this, ret at the same time you know you can walk somewnd not hear anything about it at all. and so that's a little scary. >> reporter: despite the energy asurrounding puerto rican young voters, experts warn not to forget about one other population. senior citizens are a reliable block that leansepublican. we met one of them, ga sisler, at the east ridge retirement community in south miami.

he's an 84-year-old former exxon employee who spent years loring abroad bmoving to miami. sisler thinks people who disagree aren't talking to each other enough. >> in my case, i have two college educated daughters. i know they're both liberal. we can't talk politics and i've overheard them say to my ten- year old grandson "don't discuss politics with grand pop." that hurts. >> rorter: among the issues that he's concerned about? immigration. >> i think that we are bringing far too many unskilled peoe uneducated people that don't speak any english. that creates a social obligation on our part. >> reporter: he's also worried about the federal debt. >> both sides seem to be scaredd th to even discuss it.bo i blam sides equally. come on, get off your fanny. this is an issue. >> reporter: in 2016sisler started a monthly political discussion group called "jib jab." he introduced us to a few of his

friends-- all republicans who strongly support president trump.ac >> he hahed out to groups of people who were forgotten before. >> immigration is a big problem rit now. this bothers me-- not just the >> the puerto ricans of aturse they autally can vote coming in. i'm kind of bothered by that. thinkorter: what do y of democrats looking at young people and people of color as the way to get this blue wave in florida? >> i don't like it. to me that's what's happening. >> reporter: three groups... retirees, young voters, and an influx of puerto ricans... all could have a major ion election night, one week away. ju? >> woodruff: yamiche alcindor in miami for us, thank you. on the wescoast of florida this week toxic algae have started to appear again. l a desjardin reports, it has again shed a spotlight on the environment as a political issue.

rob spent as much time as he can on the beach if south florida's coast. he likes to say the pieis his home office. in recent months, he was forced off the water, this piece of paradise where he moved to enjoy life has been plagued by wavironmental problems. he showed us theer today. >> this is not what it wou look like normally.ld it we more of a bright green when it's churned up with the sand. this is bad. >> and his pictures of itst year. in florida, a host of emwater proare rising as election issues. the toxic res tide alae spread from the gulf coast toheim, burning beachgoers eyes and lungs and kilng fish, dolphins, sea turtles and manatees by the dozen. "pbs newshour" reported on this crisis earlier this fall. in other areas of the state,

lake okeechobee and on the atlantic coast slimy rancid blooms of green blue algae spurred health warnings, and in south orida there are rising concerns and rising sea levels and climate change. and this year the envntiron has become a political force, especially in florida's u.ste. seace. the republican candidate governor rick scott saw hi polling numbers go south as red tide algae blooms. scott's opponent says he cut budgets for the programs and workers were told not to use th term "climathange." this is why scott lost libertarian and republican voter who can't believe he's heang for bill nelson. >> i won't vote for rick scott.s he h been overtly hafu i will choose ineffective over

harmful every day. need to make sure what goes in the drain doesn't go in the gulf. >> they were labeling storm drains to prevent chemicali dumpling wch exacerbates red tide. >> weather is probably the most important issue. >> tampa real estate agents and lifelong real estate agent deb has beenuilt her life around the water and outdoors and believes rick scott will help. saying he only cut environmental funding during lean years and increased it recently. she believes voting a straigh republican ticket would mean more help from washington and the trump administration at a pivotal time. >> we have a rare opportunity to elect ron desantis aour governor, rick scott as our senator, as long as trump is int the whe house, this is a try faketa for the environment, this is a win for the environment.

>> clean water! >> reporter: meantime, some floridians are organizing and rallying in reaction to theag growin ji poblems. this is part of a group called hands on the water. thing do you think the environmental vowpr groups could swing the elections? >> yes, i'm talking to long-time republicans and they're voting democrat because of water. we're not going red or blue or purple or green, we're going water. >> reporter: these rallies got smaller after red tide subside a few weeks ago but the winds ofgu th of mexico are shifting back, again pushing red tide waters towarde usually arome of the most beautiful beaches in the world and, paloten, again, shifting the political tides in a major election year. for the "pbs newshour," lisa desjardins, in venice, florida. >> wdruff: nw

>> woodruff: now, for a special florida edition of politics monday, he with me in tampa are tamara keith of npr and susan macmanus, a longtime political analyst in this state. great to have you he. tam, you have been looking at the national map in this election season. put florida in context why does this state matter so much? >> it does matter so much because it's not just about 2018, it's also about 2020, and there are -- there is very competitive governor's race that matters a lot to president trump because who the governor of florida is in 2020 will matter for that election. of course, there's this veryte competitive seace and a number of competitive house races as well because rida is ais battleground. >> woodruff: it battleground, susan macmanus, and as you know from watching elections here, it's a statee where ions are close. tell us about that. >> the last four bigections, two governor's races ad two

presidential, the margin of victory is 1%. no other state is that competitive. >> woodruff: you were telling me this morning the changing demographics, the makeup of the voting electorate here is what's making the outcome here uncertain. efinitely. so many people still think of florida as a retiree only state, but the reahl news is te rise of the younger electorate. 52% of our current registered voters are from the three youngest generation -- generation x, thile lennials and generation z. they are not particularly interested in registering with either party. a lot of them are registering as no party affiliation, and they are just up for grabs. they are very energize bidd somewo who can talk to them about their issues and communicate and inspire. i like to sa they are looking for new faces in high places, k and they ard of a wildcard. if they show up, one candidate is going to win, if they don't, the other. that's whowch clout they have

this election cycle. >> woodruff: and much more diverse than the older generations. >> the oder generations are largely white, the younger is on-whitey >> woodruff: you and i were talking about the divided messages they're sending. >> president trump has twora moe ies between now and election day, one in fort myers and one in peacola l.a. thesee solid red republican districts where he is going to hold a typical trump rally that is designed to fire up the base where he tal about the caravan and he talks about how terrible mocrats are. then you have the trump campaign announcing today, releasing this ad it's going to run.en prestrump isn't in the ad at all, and the ad is really aimed at the suburban white women who have become a central focus of the mid transportation

and, you know, soft focus and there's a woman with her family, and president trump is simply not presents at that. in the rallies he says i'm on the ballot, even if'm not on the ball lat, i'm on the ball lat, vote for me. >> woruff: we heard voters saying the president is -- people have strong feelings about him onway or the other usm. how much of a factor do you think he is. >> he's in practically every ad. everyone knows this is sort of a referendum on the president. it's hardened republican support for him. some who are wavering. it hardened democratic opposition, too. he is a big factor and his favorabilitys higher in thi state than other places, so, surely, his hast-nute pearances are designed to turn out the votes, but particularly in fort myers becaut' tha aniary where the environmental issues have been so bad that some of te republicans voted for his opponent in the primary, so he's got to pulthose people

back on board. >> woodruff: getting closer to election day, so much of the news and our attention are focused on the terrible events of the last several days, tam, the horrible shooting in pittsburgh, a pipe bomb, ooting in a grocery store store against two black americans. as you talk to the voters and the candidates, how much of that division is showing up? >> the division is absolutely there. voters -- basically, democrats ethingthat there is som wrong with republicans, and republicans think that there is something wrong with democrats. it is not just about policy anymore. it's very personal in the way ne.t our politics have go you know, usually, after an election, you move on. 2016 isn't over yet. those fights are still beng fought. >> woodruff: and, susan, again, you and werhaving a conversation about how for all the cri

president trump, the reaction even to these terrible crimes, hate crimes is divided here. >> iwas very divided. i think what i'm hearing from a lot of people i've spoken to is a sadness, a sadness about the direction the country is in andw itrrisome, and it is true that each side sees the other as more vitriolic than their own, t everyone is grasping for some kind of reality and some kind of civility and politics. what we'ring here is this -- what we're watching is this turn of events, this violent waygo we'rng, keeps voters from voting at all. we don't know that, or will we energize. one thing i hear is we're sad about america's direction. one thing i'm looking for is how does this avblght the president's approval rating, which is oten tied to mid outcomes.

his approval rating has been ticking up but ater charlotte's last year, his approval rating .ook a real hit it's not clear whether response to these events, he has said antisemitism is wrong and needs to be condemned, then at the same time going to la raly and saying hillary clinton's name in a which and the crowd starts chanting "lock her up," is he going to be rewarded or punished by voters for that? >> today we had a shooting into republican headquarters in volusia count>> t cast as shadow getting close to onelecay. thank you both so much. >> you're welcome.nd >> woodruff:hat's the newshour for tonight. from tampa, i'm judy woodruff. join us on-line and again here tomorrow ening. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you and see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by:

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> hello, everyone and welcome to amanpour and company. here is wt's coming up. my exclusive interview with tim cook, ceo of apple the world's first trillion dollar company, in a candid and wide ranging conversati we talk about his surprising support of privacy laws around therl the responsibility he feels as an openly gay leader, and the pdangered by what he calls d tha industrial complex. also tonight a deep difficult into the devastating opioid crisis. our michelle martin talks to beth macy author of dope sick, dealers, doctors and the drug companies that addicted america.