♪ judy: good evening, i am judy woodruff. on theew nour tonight, prison ti for roger stone. president trump'sim lonally sentenced to prison in a case roiling the justice department. >> if they wish to speak out and tell their sidethe story you, you are releasing them on television tonight? judy: a showdown in las vegas. the highs and lowsf last night's bruising presidential debate. ezand, insideuela. the impact of the coury's deteriorating economy amid a year-long political power struggle. >> i never imagined i would see my people eating from the that infuriates me.

ithuriates me because this is a rich country. judy: all that and more on tonight's "pbs newshour." ♪ en major funding for the "pbs newshour" has beroded by -- >> on a journey with crselines american, travelers enjoy the maritime heritage and culture of the maine coastisnd new england nds. ourcruise ships explore seaside villages and historic harbors where you can experiencanlocal custom cuisine. american cruiselines, proud sponsor of "pbs newshour." ♪ >> fidelity investments. >> colette, bnsf railway,

consumer cellular, carnegie corporation of new york supporting innovations in n, democratic engagement and the advancement of international peace and security at carnegie.org. and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. ♪ >> this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contritions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. judy: we have t lead story toght, the fallout from fiery democratic presidential

debate, which we will get to shortly, and the senteing of one of president trump's closest allies, roger stone. the u.s. district court judge in washington sentenced stone to 40 months i prison for witnessin tamperand lying to congress. he is the president's seventh associate to face jail time for crimes stemming fr the investigation into russian interference in the 2016 election. at an event in las vegas president trump said he would hold off on deciding whether to pard stone. president donald trump: roger has a veryood chance of exoneration, in my opinion. i'm going watch the process. i'm going to watch it very closely. and, at some point, i will make a determination. has to be treated . everybody and this has not been a fair process. judy woodruff: william brangham was in the courtroom today, and he joins me now. so, hello, william. u were there for this entire proceeding. first of all, remind us, what were the charges against roger

stone that he was found guilty of? william brangham: asou touched on briefly, he was charged with two things, lying to congress and witness tampering.s this gck to an investigation that the house intelligence committee was doins intoan meddling and whether what role wikileaks played in the release of those democratic e-mails dur campaign. stone was convicted of lying to those investigators for the house mmittee. he was also convicted of trying to get a witness to noify to those investigators. ed he was accf threatening that witness and threatening the witness' dog, even though that saying he didn'elte a letter threatened judgamy berman jackson, the judge who sentenced stone today, wasn't buying any of it. e id that this witness intimidation was quote "a corrupt and unlawful campaign to tamper with a witness." and, really, the judge all day today was very, verytical of

rosar stone. sh in parcular, she said stone took it upon himself to lie, to impede, and to obstruct. to the ausation that the esident and many of his supporters have made, that this was ala prosecution based on stone's allegiance to president trump, judge said that stone was not prosecuted for sg up for the president -- he was fprosecuted for covering or the president. judy woodruff: it sounds as if she had quite an extensive statement to make. so, willm, this sentencing comes in the middle of this unusual turmoil right now in the air between the white house, the president, the attorney general, the prosecutors. all that's in the background as this is happening. william brangham: right. it really is an almost an unpredented moment that we have happening.nd just to reiewers of what happened. the original prosecutors on this case recommended a seven-to-nine-year-long sentence r roger stone. president trump immediately protested, said that that was harsh and unfair.da the very nex attorney general william barr stepped in and overruled his prosecutors

and said, yes, it is too unfair and a harsh sentence. those four prosecutors then quit the case. ey idn't say publicly why, but everyone read it as a clear protest against this intervention. prosecution duriny, during the sentencing, you could see these four empty chairs at the prosecution's table where those gentlemen would have been u.s. attorney had to step in into their role. and the judge thied to get to bottom of this. she asked u.s. attorney john crabb several times -- who ordered you to write that memo? did you write that memo? did you sign that memo? she was seemingly trying to get to the bottom of all of this. crabb said: in the end, i can't discuss internal deliberations. all of that said, the judge still did decide to sentence stone to less than what those edprosecutors originally a judy woodruff: three years, a little more a little more than three years. so, finally, what happens now to roger stone?

william brangham: well, he's going to go possibly for three-and-a-half years in prison. ow we don't xactly when that might start. the looming question over all of this is whether president trump, as you mentioned, going to pardon him. the president has, we know, been toying with that idea. etweeting out fox news hosts calling him very specifically to do that. but we just don't know yet. judy woodruff: well, we will continue to watch it. william brangham, fascinatg story. thank you. ♪ judy: -- stephanie: good newshour west.ephanie sy at we will return to judy woodruff after these hdlines. there is word intelligence officials had a secret meeting week andold them russia isast trying to interfere in the 2020 election in a bid to get esident trump reelected. according to the washington post york times, t disclosure drove the president director of nationalcting

intelligence, joseph maguire, who was replacedesterday by a long tim trump ally. after several days of declining embers, china reported new cases , uptick from the previous days of reporting. all the country haseported more than 75,000 cases of coronavirus and more than 2200 deaths. meanwhile japan reported its firsteath from a quarantined cruise ship, an elderly japanese couple. while the number of cases outside china isstmall, it is l a concern. >> itma does not mean this number will stay the same. it is only a window of opportunity. whthat iwe say this is the time to attack t virus, why it is manageable. stephanie: south korea reported

its first death from the virus and has 156 cases. workers sprayed disinfectant in a city. 2.5 million residents were urged to stay home. in the u.s. fuor -- four americans have been sent to the hospital in spokane, washington for treatment. they had been passengers on the cruise ship. the hospital was chosen because of its secure isolation rooms for airborne illnesses. >> there are no risks to the residents of spokane county. in general the risk for the vegeneral public of the nol coronavirus, covid-19, remains low. stephanie: germany reeling after a shooting rampage left ne peopleead wednesday night. the gunman, suspected to have far right ties, opened fire on a hookah bar in an immigrant neighborhood near frankfurt area

he was found dead his apartment along with his mother. a surge ibeen extremism in germany. robert paulo has the report. llrobert: in a smaerman city, growing extremism rears its ugly face, nine people shot dead, all believed to be of a migrant background. the woman running the bar -- this man was running the bar close to the attack. >> i heard a gunman running and i was in shock. i heard many shots. >> the shootings took place 20 miles east of frankford. the gunman has been named, heed shis racist views on social media beforehand as welli a written manifesto of hate sayingertain pple should be exterminated. the authorities admit they didpe

not have the s on their radar. it is the most deadly of recent attacks here in germanand comes days before a plott to mosques around the country was blocked. chancellor merkel pledged to ght those who try to divide her country. racism is a poison, she said. this poison exis in our society and it is responsible r too many lives. the gunman killed himself and his mother in their as police closed in. the federal prosecutor is investigating if he had about his plan.if anyone knew the open-door policy on immigration is still fueling anger. tonight at the brandenburg gate in berlin, germans stand unified. stephanie: that report from robert paolo. turkey said syria killedwof

its soldiers in idlib province they say more than 50 soldier in retaliation. syrian forces backed by russia's air force are engaged in an offensive to recapture the region. thnsified fighting in syria's last rebel held bastion s displaced nearly one million syrians since early december. >> we suffered a lot the road because displacement was difficult and there are. proble we want the world to see about us and know our conditions, the children in these camps. turkey will either resolve situation or make us return to our land. it really is a diffic situation. stephanie: fresh clashes a day after president erdogan threaten to attack syrian forces if any more turkishdi ss were hur in south sudan rival leaders formed long-delayed coalition government. they met in the capital today to

discuss their power-sd ring deal ah a deadline saturday. it is a major breakthroughy as the coun recovers from a five year civil war that is claimed nearly 400,000 lives. in business news the investment bank morgan stanley is buying online discount broker e*trade biggest takeover by a major u.s. bank since the 2008 financial crisis. lyzing theome, a highs and lows of last nights's contentious democratic debate. examining the humanuffering called by economic and political chaos inside venezuela. california wrestles with its overwhelming homeless crisis, and much more. this is the "pbs newshour,p onom weta studios in washin and from the west, the walter cronkite university. judy: last night's democratic

presidential debate in las vegas waupthe most contentious mat yet for the party's leading contenders. as amna nawaz reports, it all came at a critical moment in the mpaign, with early votin just days to go behe starts, and of the nevada caucuses. michael bloomberg: s your night last night? [laughmir] amna nawazael bloomberg campaigning today in utah, just hours after his first democratic debate appearance in las vegas, where he was the center of his rivals' attention. sen. amy klobuchar: i think it is great you have got a lot of money, but i think you have got tato come forward with you returns. amna nawaz: the billionairesi ssman entered the race just three months ago, but his opponents made up for lost timeh sharpllenging bloomberg's record as a three-term mayor ofc new yorkity. sen. bernie sanders: mr. bloomberg had policies in new york city of stop and frisk, which went after african-american and l people in an outrageous way. michael bloomberg: id i go back anlook at my time in office,

the lye thing that i'm re worried about, embarrassed about, was how it turned outan with stod frisk. former vice president joseph biden: it's not whether he apologized or not. it's the policy. the policy was abhorrent. amna nawaz: massachusetts senator elizabeth warren repeatedly questioned bloomberg on allegat covered up reports of sexual misconduct. sen. elizabeth warren: so, mr. mayor, are you willing to release all of those women from tsose nondisclosure agreem so we can hear their side of the story? [laughter] -- [applause] michael bloomberg: we have a very few nondisclosure agreements. sen. elizabeth warren: how many is that? michael bloomberg: let me finish. sen. elizabeth wren: how many is that? michael bloomberg: none of them other than maybe they didn't like a joke i told, and let me just -- [booing] these would be agreementst me between two parties that wanted to keep it quiet, and that is up to them.

they signed those agre, and we will live with it. amna nawaz: warren continued her attacks at a campaign st today. sen. elizabeth warren: it was my job to make sure that america got a little closer look at mayor bloomberg, and came to understand that, of all the people standing on the stageishe he riskiest one for the democrats. amna nawaz: last night, others, sanders, confronted bloomberg on his estimated $60 billion personal fortune. sen. bernie sanders: mike bloomberg owns more wealth than the bottom 125 million ericans. that's wrong. that's azmoral. amna nbloomberg, a republican-turned-democrat who rs running as a moderate alternative to s, pushed back. michael bloomberg: what a wonderful country we have. the best-known socialist in the country happens to be ae millionath three houses. what did i miss here? amna nawaz: sanders and bloomberg are leading the field in the most recent "pbs newshour"/npr/marist poll. but both were accused by former south bend, indiana, mayor pete buttigieg of being too polarizing to win. pete buttigieg: let's put forward somebody who'actually a democrat.

[laughter] pete buttigieg: look, we shouldn't have to choose between one candidatwho wants to burn this party down and another candidate who wants to buy this party out. amna nawaz: wednesday's debate was one of the last chances for trailing candidates to through before super tuesday on march 3, when a third of all democratic delegates are up for grabs.ic formerpresident joseph biden: i'm the only one on this stage that has actually got anything done on health care. amna nawaz: debate battle lines were drawn once again health care sen. elizabeth warren: it's not a plan. it's powerpoint. and amy's plan is even less. it is like a post-it note -- insert plan here. n amaz: and on immigration, of particular interest in nevada, where latinos make up one in every five democratic voters. here's mayor buttigieg addressing senator klobuchar.if pete buttigiegou are going to run based on your record of voting in washington, then you have to own those vo ws, especiallyn it comes to immigration. [applause] sen. amy klobuchar: i wish pete. ne was as perfecou,

you have memorized a bunch of talking points and a bunch of things, but i can tell you one thing. [alause] sen. amy klobuchar: what the people of this country wan grey want a leader that has the heart for the imts of this country. and that is me. amna nawaz: at the end of a bruising night, a clear sign that no one is ready yet to has. up their glo chuck todd: yes or no, leading person with the delegates, should they be the nominee or not? former vice presidt joseph biden: no, let the process work it amna nawaz: if no candidate has the majority of delegates by convention-time in july, only sanders said the delegate leader should become the nominee. after trading brutal blows in lastf ight's debate, somee candidates are back out today working the crowds, fighting for those last-minute caucus commitments, like senator elizabeth warren here. the democratic candidates willin face off an another debate next tuesday in south carolina. judy woodruff: thank you, amna. after last night drama filled debate in las vegas, where does this on pretty bold race for the nomination stand?

michael meehan worked on then senator john kerry's 20al presidenid. ian sams most recently served during this current election cycle as the campaign prese secretary for tor kamala harris. and matthew dowd, he was the chief strategist on president george w. bu's reelection campaign in 2004. he is now a political analyst for abc news. and we welcome all of you to the "newshour." thank you for being here. let's start out with considering this debate. w at we have had a day to let it sink in, how does it change the shape of this contest? ian sams? ian sams: i think that, first of all, the biggest answer the biggest question that was outstanding was, how many people watcd it? and we saw that it was upwds of 20 million americans. lo that's of people. so, there's no doubt that the debate will have some sort of lasting impact on this race. now, we are really close to voting, whici think is why you go after one another lastling night and reallyraw a stark contrast between each other, because the pressure is on.o

you haveke moves right now if you want to win, especially with bernie sanders having a pretty commanding position atop ofsohe field. an think what we saw last night was mayor bloomberg probably got brought down a peg by especially elizabeth warren't pretty searingks on his history and record. but whether or not all the r.nefit goes to her, i think, is still up in the judy woodruff: michael meehan, s at changes, if anything, result of last night, do you think? michael meehan: well, i think michael blooerg getting on a age was sort of the big news. and i think the fact iowa and new hampshire didn't actually do the winnowing process in the way that ty typically have done over the last 50 years, and so the pressure is high. rit now. e voting in nevada and then you have south carolina. but i think bloomberg is looking for a do-over, ford ure. he shos rust. he totally has another chance. the goodews for him, the calendar works its back on the debate stage tnosday. he doehave to simmer for weeks and weeks before he has to do better than he has done. :ju matthew dowd, how do you see the results of last night on

is race? matthew dowd: to me, it was the most significant debate we have had thus far becaumi of the that we're at and the number of viewers. if you think about thier the total nuf people that are going to vote in the democratic primaries and caucuses is right at around 20 million people, how many people watch that. so, to me, it's the most crucial yocally have one through five, the candidates that basically finished one through five in how well thegadid, the between them is much smaller than the gap between the number five candidate and the number six candidate, which was bloomberg. i think his performance were bad -- was bad for him. there's levels of bad. his was the worst level of bad in a debate for somebody that came from the mayor of new york. and so i tnk he finally came out from under the air cover of his and i think ters wanted to see television ads. and i think voters wanted to see what he was like. who said, i do not know where, if he falls from the polls fro' where he'at today, where that's going to go to. will it go to joe biden? i thought izabeth warren's performance was very well done.

that may give her another set of oxygen in this race to hine her do welevada and south carolina. this race is still full of manyd twistsurns. judy: i was hoping all three of you would tell me exactly where this stood, but it sounds like it is still very much in flux. my question, ian, how much in flux is it? bernie sanders is leading in a suggested, but you do have this bunching of other candidates and this big question mark, mike bloomberg and all of his money. so, some people are already asking, does bernie sanders could he possibly be so far s ead at this point,t'rd to catch up with him? ian sams:he lead-in package before we started having th conversation hit the nail on the head when they showed vice president biden's comment, whicd was mirry every other candidate on stage last night, besides bernie sanders, that they may be willing to go all se way to the convention, long as there are delegates coming into their campaigns, and as long as their campaigns have enough cash to stay afloat, and not fold, whally changes the ga in this. bernie at this point is probabl on p get somewhere between

30% and 40% of the delegates, which is not a majority, over the next littl if nothing changes. bernie is ahead right now. candidates are poc awayher some number of delegates, and not getting blown out completely, we could be in a situation where they're all willing to go to the canvention try to fight it out there. judy: michael meehan, are am i hearing some of you say that literally any one of these six nomination?could make it michael meehan first sure. while bernie sanders has a lead, the lead is one delegag . the buttigmpaign would say, we're tied with you in delegates as we sit here this far out. i think any one of the six, for various reasons. bloomberg didn't have a great performance, but he doesn't lose money d these he does not n money.warren had a good night, e will raise a lot of money today. sanders has a huge ability to continue to fund himself all the way through to milwa those kinds of dynamics mean that the caucuses there's more people who already voted in this

caucus than voted last te in 2016. and we have not even reached the date of the caucus yet. the is a high level of energy and everybody is bunched in beeen 25% and 15%. it is a small amount of delegates they get determined. dy matthew dowd, wide open, to an extent, and yet a lot of angst in the among ats about bernie sanders and the fact that he's shown the strength that he has. matthew dowd: yes, it is fascinating to me. there is angst about bernie sanders, but there's angst about joe biden, and there's angst about elizabeth warren. there is angst about almost every candidate in this race. ru have gone from weak one froner, jobiden, to no front-runner, to another weak front-runner in this. i'm not a person that buys into this idea -- the idea of electability, i think, is very if cereal. it moves and shapes in the race.

i remember bill clinton in 1992 was not electable. barack obama wn't the most electable candidate in 200 donald trump was certainly not the most electable candi16te in i think deciding today who's the most electable or who's got the greatest vulnerabilities i think everybody thought, wow, michael bloomberg is to be powerful. then he ows up and does awful. everybody is questioning the vulnerabilities that bernieau sanders has, b of his self-label, his own labels on himself, but i don't think we ally know where this race is going to go and who ishe best candidate yet to beat donald trump. judy:ar you do lot of discussion, ian sams, about the so-called divide amo democrats over the more liberal democrats are in the bernie sanders camp, or they were in elizabeth warren, or maybe they still are, and then the more moderate democrats. what extent is each side saying, i am not going to support your guy? if i am moderate, i amot going

support bernie. and, vice versa, if i'm a bernie supporter, i'm not going to support anybody else out there. ian sams: i don't think there's that high level of division in the party. i think that all the candidates specifically are saying, well, we will support the nominee no matter what, we have to. donald trump is an existential threat to the covetry, and we o get him out of there. the longer this goes on, it just depends on the tone and tenor of the race. i think last night was sharp, but i don't think that it was catastrophic. i think it was people pointing out differences with each other and why certain opponents might not make the best nominee. right now you see more unity among the party and among the hacandidatesyou do division. you think back to 2008 or 2004, which matt and michael were both a part of that contest. primaries were tough and sharp, but came together at the end of thday. judy: but, michael meehan, you d hear michael bloomberg say last night, if bernie sanders is the nominee, he's going to lose to donald trump. that was pretty denitive.

michael meehan: i think we all run the last campaign ov again, and donald trump won by 77,000 votes in three states. so people make the premises of their campaigns on their ability to talk to those midwestern states, pennsylvania, michigan, wisconsin. you flip 80,000 votes, someone else is in the white house. donald trump is running the same inplay a he has not changed his strategy. the question is who can turn , those 80,000 people in thoseat three ? that is why we're fighting over such a narrow sliver here. judy:lo we aring at the polls from those three states and seeing some interesting numbers right now. matthew dowd, as somebody who has been has been at the center of a campaign, in e other party, but watching the democrats very closely, how do you see th party coming together eventually, or do you see this as something that could be really ugly right up until the end? matthew dowd: i remember very well when i was involved in 2000 when bush and mccain ran against

each other. talk about a bitter race. the party came together because they had a principle that they waoed to get done, which is win the race. i think one of the benefits thea democrats havethey have not had in a long time is, there is a unifying principle in the demoatic party today among a voters, every single voter, they do not want donald trump to be president for another four years. so i think, by theime the conventions comes, they're going to have to iron some things out, they're going to whve to work ou's the best way to go in this, because i think for sure we're going to go into th convention where nobody nus the totaer of delegates when they walk in, but i think donald party.will help them unify the judy: it's every reporter's dream to get to a convention where the results are a surprise. operative's niare.d every [laughter] judy: what a story we have and so important to pay close attention. ian sams, michael meehan, matthew dowd, thank you all. ♪ judy: tonight we begin a

series inside venezuela, a country with political, economic and humanitarian isis. venezuela wancone of the wealthiest countries in the world in large part due toss its e oil reserves. in 1999 ho chavez became president and used that oil wealth to create a socialist state, but since his death in 2013, under his successor, president nicolas maduro venezuela'coeconomy has apsed. with support from the pulitzer marcia biggs reporrrespondent marcia biggs: this is you when you were little. ohmy gosh. 53-year-old nelly larco remembers a venezuela of an earlier time, one filled with birthday parties, confirmations, and christmas presents.

girl: wow. nelly larco (through translator): w. [laughter] rcia biggs: it was a land of opportunity for an immigrant like her. she moved to venezuela from her native ecuador when she was still a teenager, and worked as a housekeeper. nelly larco (through translator): i say this with huge pride, because i came here woeaing, and that's how ed a living, and i found a way to improve myself. i' a'm so attached to ando thankful to venezuela. marcia biggs: this country gave her a life and a family. nelly's three able to go to school, and her eldest, marielena, became a lawyer and a professor. bu for years, they have been struggling to get by, living in one ofsuhe many slums ounding the sprawling capital of caracas. do you have running water? nelly larco (through translator): no. marcia biggs: there's never enorgh water, enough propane cooking, enough food to eat. for more than two decades, nelly has watched her adopted country slip away, and, with it, her herm of a better life f family.nelly larco (through translator): i'm veryrustrated

and very angry to think that, because of a few people, we have lostenezuela. marcia biggs: for her, the decline began with hugo chavez, the former soldier who in 1999 became president, and it has continued under hicosuccessor, nis maduro. since 2013, the country has en in freall by nearly every available metric, a cratering economy, skyrocketing taolence, ing oil production, a crippling gas shortage. millions have already fled the country, creating the second largest refugee crisis in the world. and fothe millions who remain, including many children, hunger has made them desperate. nelly larco (through translator): what i never imagined is that we'd reach this extent. i never imagined that i'd see my people in venezuela eating f m the garbag that infuriates me. that infuriates me, because this is a rich country. marcia biggs: this time last m year, nelly,ielena and many others thought that ela was on the precipice of change. in january, then-34-year-old juan guaido, a civil engineer

too'd just been electeead the country's parliament, was declared interim president by members of the opposition, after president maduro won a second term in an election widely criticized as ilgitimate. guaido promised new elections, and nearly 60 countries ounc the world, iding the u.s., threw their support behind him, as did thousands of protesters in the streets of venezuela, including nelly and marielena. nelly larco (through translator): we're the majority, and that's why i keep fighting. the truth is that my hopes are actually more in g than guaido but we have to help him. i feel that he's like an angel that god put here to get out of marcia biggs: marisays she thought the protests would force marielena caraball(through translator): i sincerely thought that taking to the streets would put pressure on maduro to leave the presidency, and we would elections, which is what we want. marcia biggs: then on april 30 came a critical moment. c guaidoalled on the military to

help him overthrow mad a coup. juan guaido (through translator): we're speaking to the armed forces, and, today, it is clear tt the armed forces are with the people of venezuela and not the dictator. marcia biggs: that was the call both nelly and marielena had been waienng for. maricaraballo (through translator): my mother woke me up and said: "dear, the soldiers have risen up." suddenly, i was totally awake, and i thought, the moment has come. s finally, the military haund the necessary courage and it is with the people. marcia biggs: but guaido had miscalculated. the vast majority ed loyal him. to maduro, and then the protests turned violent. national guard troops moved on protesters, ramming them with armored vehicles and opening fire. a young woman from marielena's d schoolied. another friend from her ighborhood was wounded. for marielena and for thousands of others who had spent years waiting for this moment, it was a bitter disappointment and a stark reminder of at they could lose. marielena caraballo (through translator): then i said, that's it. what are you waiting for? to be killed yourself and leave your family without any help because they killed you?

marcia biggs: so, you had all of this hope that things would change. id did juan gfail you? marielena caraballo (through translator): yes, i do think juan guaido failed. and i'm not sure whether it was intentional, or it was because maybe, well, he's a human being, too. but the truth is that all venezuelans have put our faith in him. marcia biggs: i met juan guaido at his office in caracas, and i put that question to him. we have spoken to some opposition supporters, people who came out to prryest, who are very frustrated by the process and by you and the progress. do you think you promised too much, too soon? translator): certathe management of expectations is something important to manage in venezuela, especially when we have no water, no electricit starvation.are dying of so it's natural that we feel reustrated for not having achieved change y, when we feel that we have the strength, that we have the majority, that we count on international support. so, the first thing, as a at this time, is to understandt

the legitimate claim of our people and do what's necessary to address those just claims ofl venes who need change in venezuela today. achieves that chanemainsaido unclear. we were there last month when national guard troops blocke him from entering the onal assembly to be reelected speaker, while maduro susiorters elected their own speaker without a formal vote. guaido came back two days later, broke through and was sworn in but, since then, he's been physically blocked from entering the assembly to carry out parliament's business. two weeks later, he snuck out of the country, embarking on a world tour to shore up support abroad. president donald trump: joining us in the gally is the true and legitimate president of venezuela, juan guaido.rc ia biggs: he even attended the state of the union address. bun,after that warm receptio he returned home to a cold reality. at the airport, he was mobbed by president maduro's supporters, a reminder of who remains in the presidential palace and inro

l of the military. and in the past few months, maduro has shown he's willing to adapt to keep it that way. he's announced new parliamentary elections this year,n an attempt to consolidate his hold on the legislature. inonhe wake of u.s. sanction his government, including on the struggling state-run oil industry, he's invited russian o and chinese companies inlp ramp up production. in another major departure from hugo chavez, he's also relaxed strict import and export controls, and even allowed u.she dollars intoountry. that's d to a small boom among some restaurants and stores in cities like caracas. a year ago, you would't have seen in a shop like this prices listed in dollars. they were officially prohibited. but, here, you're seeing 75 cents for a bag of rice. you're also seeing a lot more imported food, for those who can afford it. and yet many cannot. at this neighborhood in caracas, where residents typically support the vernment, we found people fed up with the economic situation. woman (through translator): venezuela was a blessed country

that nowadays is terribly managed. the people in charge say they love us. that'eys a lie. th don't love the people. man (through translator): it's not like before. that was beautiful. there was enough money. but now imagine how hard the situation it is. marcia biggs: there, i met william yaguaran, a political orgazer at a university in caracas and a true believer in chavez's socialist revolution. at his home, he showed me the free box of food that comes monthly from the government. corn flour. for william, social programs like this one were of the many reasons he was first drawn to chavez so many years ago. hwilliam yaguaran (throug translator): he did what he said he was going to do, and that's what made him connect with the population andhe youth at that me. and that hooked me too. marcia biggs: is maduro doing what he said he would do? william yaguaran (through translator): he tries, but the imructure doesn't help the people around him aren't helping him. marcia biggs: but isn't he in control of the structure? william yaguaran (through 'anslator): well, now youre asking a very difficult question.

he's in power, but the problem is, his decisions don't get executed.in marcia big additioto corruption and mismanagement, william also blames u.s. sanctions for hurting the economy, and says that, regardless of who's at fault, he could never bring himself to support the opposition do you think the opposition cares about the poor people? william yagutran (through slator): no, they have never cared. they have never cared for us at all. marcia biggs: back at enlly and mar's, there's debate over how to move forward. marielena is tired of hearing the same things from guaido about how they're making progress, despe what she sees.en maricaraballo (through translator): time has passed, and nothing's happened. we're still waiting, and we're still hearing, we' doing well. marcia biggs: millions have given up and already left venezuela, but marieays she'd mi her family too much, especially her niece. and she's afraid of having to start over from scratch in a new country.

her mother, nelly, knows t well how hard that can be. so, for her, the choice is simple, if not easy. nelly larco (through translator): i'm indebted to lavenezuela, because venez gave me everything. it's given me it all -- a fami, my daughters. it's the least i can do. staying at home, watching what's happening and blaming e because he tried but couldn't do it? no. i prefer to go out and fight by the side of the person trying to do somethi. and every time guaido calls me, or whoever is there at t time, they can call me to go out to the streets to support democracy. i' 'm going to be there. i'm going to go out. marcia biggs: for the "pbs newshour," i'm marcia biggs in caracas. ♪ judy: stay with us. still to come on the "newshour," too young to retire but too old to find well-paying job.

workforce.e more than half a millionom americans areess on any given night, but on the west coast, thewnroblem has g worse in recent years. as john yang explains, that is especially pronounced in california. john yang: judy, theal government says more than a quarter of america's homeless fe in california. while homelessnel in most states last year, in the golden state, it rose 16%. the issue was e sole topic of democratic governor'vin newsom'state of the state address. gov. gavin newsom: let's call it what it is. it's a disgrace that the richest state in the richestation, cceeding across so many sectors, is falling so f behind to properly house, heal, and humanely treat so many of its own people. the state of california can no longer treat homelessness and housing insecuty as someone' e's problem, buried below other priorities that are much sier to win or better suited for sound bites.

it is our responsibility. and it must be at the top of our agenda. [applause] john yang: the governor laid out a series of proposals and asked lawmakers to work with him. anita chabria covers california state politics and policy for the los angeles times. she's based in sacramento, which is where she is right now. anita, thanks so much for joining us. this is not a few issue for california. with this when he was mayor of san francisco. why now? why is he saying this is at the top of the agenda for the next year? anita chabria: think there's a couple of reasons you're seeing it happen so visibly right now. one is not just that we have the largest homeless population in the country. unsheltered populathe largest so we have more than 100,000ll people actliving on our sidewalks, on our street corners, in our parks, in places where they are visible to our voters andur residents every day. it's a problem that's in the rural areas, it's in the suburbs, it's in front of our schools and our libraries and

our grocery stores. and so, really, you're seeing a governor and a legislature that can't ignore it because it is visible every day. john yang: and he's getting pressure on this from the president, the president saying, ifthalifornia can't solv, the federal government will. anita chaba: absolutely. he's getting political pressure from multiple angles. so president trump has been very vocal about the fact that some federal ac of details on that, could happen if the state doesn't make progress. and he's facing it newsom is cing pressurfrom his o constituents. more than about a third of thes state considis their top priority as an issue. and, interestingly, a poll that just came out showed that almost 40 percent of californians fear that they or someone they coow d fall into homelessness. so, it's a real fear here that the economic inequality, the rising housing prices, the systemic racism that we'reou addressing tout the country are all things that are increasing homelessness for

average people. john yang: you have talked aboul you just nowd about some of the pressures that are adding to this problem. th what igovernor proposing? anita chabria: the governor is proposin most recently, he came up with $750 million that he'd like to put towards it as one-time funding kind of immediately. he's asking the legislature to fast-tck that money. it would go towards rental assistance. it would go towards stabilizing board-and-care homes, which are help people with disabilities or mental illness have shelter and care. it would go towards some affordable housing things. he's also asking the ate to streamline how we can place we can force people to have mental alth treatment, how we can place them in conservatorships. and he's asking for some money for affordable housing as well. one of the most interesting that is the big topic i the state right now is accountability.

the governor is asking for accountability. we have spent $1.5 billionr allocated $1.5 billion over the past couple years to address homelessness, where we haven't really tracked that money very well oseen what the results are from it. so there's a real big push now to make sure that we keep track of the money we're spending and make sure it shows results. john yang: you talked about talking about orney, the govealled for a dedicated, sustained revenue stream. it sounds like a new tax. it could be. concern in califorath big people will support new taxes to address it? anita chabria: i think that's going to be the big question. so, originally, the governor didn't want to have ongoing funding, precisely fto that reasonot put another burden on the general fund and to not have to go after taxes. so, he had originally pushed for one-time funding of $750 million.

and you saw a lot of pushback from the groups that are letually doing homeless work and from a lot of thslators, saying, no, we simply can't fix this with one shot of money. and so now the question does become, what is the appetite for people to be taxed on one idea that has been floated is, we have a millionaires tax here that pays for mental health services, and perhaps extending thatax, increasing it on our wealthiest residents. but, really, that's going to be the debate coming up for the next couple of months is, if you pay for it ongoing, hoou pay for it? john yang: how much su tort is there legislaturehow much support is there among the voters for the other things he talked about in his speech? anita chabria: there is tremendous sport for action. so what that action is, i think people just want to see resultsp another recel that came out said that more than 50% of people are in support of h

removieless encampments from public space. th, there's real desire to see people moved fro unsheltered situation into shelters and permanent housing. i just think it's how we do that. the devil is going to be in thet details ms of public support. the fact is, is, we don't have enough shelters. we have don't have enough affordable housing. so there is nothing we can do in the very, very immediate sense to get people into permanent housing, because iisdoesn't so we're at this strange point where we have to make sure that we're doing something in the short term, while really looking toward those lonterm lutions, because it's a problem that ultimately you need a house to solve. and we don't have the houses. john yang: anita chabria of the thank you very mucin sacramento, anita chabria: thank you. ♪ judy: manyay americans they

focus on saving for retirement when they reached their 50's, but at happens if you lose your job at that age? our economics correspondent, paul solman, and his producer, diane lincoln estes, look at that challenge as part of ouen making series unfinished business. paul solman: every morning, 59-year-old jaye crist leaves his home in lancaster county, pennsylvania, and drives to work at a local print shop. jaye crist: i'm a fulfillment associate fulfilling individual orders, and then making sure that all the protect that is prand needs to be distributed locally is delivered, so, like delivery driver. paul solman: crist spent his career in a higher echelon of the printing industry than this. for almost 30 years, crist was a manager at printing giant rr donnelle jaye crist: i have always supervised, always managed. and there was part of me, like, this i will be one of those paul solman: no such luck. he was laid off in 2016, his plans derailed when the firm reorganized.

economist richard johnson's work has shown th crist is far from alone. riard johnson: we found th more than half, 56%, of workers experience an involuntary employer-related job separation after age 50. paul solman: crist, who'd made $100,000 a year, began looking for a comparable job. but he soon realized -- jaye crist: where i habeen after all those years, with salary and benefits and things, was not what i was going to get if i stayed here. but also, at the same time, i'mt lookini still had kids in school. i had bought a house, all the things that kind of hold you to a place. paul solman: crist is a case in point of what, in our ostensibly booming economy, so many workers in their 50's and der face these days, says professor teresa ghi grducci. terelarducci: they're less mobile. older workers are sticky to their geographical place.

they have relationships with people in the community. they have a house, for all the reasons that we all know. and so they can't o get a better job. paul solman: crist also faced another hurdle shared with americans turning his age, 59, 400 of us every single minute. jayerist: a lot of companies don't want to hire somebody who's 50-plus and needs know, has a salary expectation that's above what they're willing to pay. so they can easily say it's because of salary or wage. paul solman: crist only foundjo the at local h&h printin after about a year of looking. jaye crist: had to take a heck of a cut in pay, but i was happy about it. it's hourly. it's about $40,000 a year. paul solman: that's not unusual, says richard johon. richard johnson: almost all workers who lose a job at older ages end up making much less onh new job than they did on the old job. we found that only 10% of people earned as much on the new job as on the old job, and, on average, they tended to earn only about half as much. paul solman: crist's printing job doesn't y enough, so he also works nights, from 7:30 to

2:00 a.m., at planet fitness for jaye crist: if it's your front counter service, and you're checking people in, and you're them with their memberships. ng so it's about four-and-a-half-hours of sleep during the week that i'm getting. paul solman: half-a-night's sleep, and then back to h&h printing. jaye crist: if i wanted to lay down right now and fall asleep,a it would b. paul solman: but he can't, not even on sundays, when crist heads to a third job at a local brewery. you know, a little bit of cash for tips, because it's just a minimum wage job otherwise, because then you have a little extra money, and you're not waiting, you know, between paychecks, and having to manage all of that. paul solman: with three jobs, plus a $14,000-a-year pension from rr donnelly, crist still brings in barely 70% of s previous income. jaye crist: can i manage to continue to work this ny hours, these many this many jobs?

my mind says i can, i will, i have to. if i start thinking i't or it's too hard, then, mentally, i don'n' i wouldn't you wo't be able to manage it. so, so long as i'm, you know stay healthy and can m wage it, and l have to. paul solman: crist's younger daughter is in college. his wife's depression and anxiety have worsened since his layoff, preventing her from jaye crist: i see my wife and her you know, the depressional and the physhings that she's gone through. so there's thatart of it, too, just the economics of, you know, care, medicine these days is just it's outrageous. it's like we're you so, i try that almost would put you overse the edge. you just do whatever you got to do to keep everything else afloat. m paul solman: sy older

workers are struggling to do just that, says ghilarducci. resa ghilarducci: when y look at real lives, and you see the turmoil in between, let's say, 59 to 63, and their health, there's a lot of shocks that are going on with their spouse and with themselves, because they're interdependent paul solman: which raises the stakes for workers like jaye crist to stay healthy. jaye crist: i was unloading off of one of the trucks and fell onto my shoulder and back. thank god i didn't break anything, i didn't, you know, tet anything, i didn't anything. i didn't lose any days of work. and it wasn't you know it was i was just lucky as hell. and then i thought, man, that's all it would've taken. paul solman: traditional retirement, as for so many once-secure older americans, is out of the question.ye rist: i pretty much blew through all of the 401(k) stuff i had. so, at this point, here's, there's like really no savings.

i mean, this the house, and still paying a mortgage on it is that's what i have. it's frustrating you know, the things you kind of were told up you needed to d know, growing stay at a job, work, learn, you know, be helpful, get pr.otions, do right by peop and then you find yourself at th point in your career, like, going, tt doesn't mean [beep]. paul solman: crist now understands what he didn't when he was in nager's seat. jaye crist: i had to lay off an entire family, a husband, and wife and daughter. and i prior to that, i keyo telling themguys need to try to do something. you need to try to find something. now i find myself in that situation, like, going, atat's asn't really helpful to be able to say those things, because you can't just go out, find another job. off. was the guy who laid them and at least i'm not that [beep] anymore. paul solman: no, he's not.

jaye crist works more, is paid less. and now that a third of the work force is 50-plus, there figure m to be mae like him. for the "pbs newshour," this is paul solman. ♪ judy: a lot to think about. thats the "newshour" for tonight. i am judy woodruff. join us tomorrow night and online witlianalysis on cs. for all of us at "pbs newshour," thank you and we will see you soon. >> major funding for the "pbs newshour" has been provided by -- >> before we talk about your investments, what is new? >> audrey is expecting. >> twins. >> grandparents. >>e want to put money aside from them. change in plans. >> let's see what we can adjust. >> change in plans. >> could be closer to the twins.

>> cnge in plans. >> momre you painting again? , if you could sell these. let me guess, change in plans? >> at fidelity a change in plans is always the plan. >> american cruiselines. bnsf railway. consumer cellular, colette, the ford corration. working with visionaries on the front lines of sociale.hange worldw and by the alfred p. sloan foundation supporting science, technology and improved performance. and financial literacy in the 21st century. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions.nd >>riends of the newshour.

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♪ ♪ - if you're lucky enough to go to oaxaca ci in southern mexico, you will find, well, it looks like a hollywood set-- cobblestone streets, one- and two-story buildings, parrot greens, cornflower blue. it's absolutely wonderful, are the people. but you're gonna get some surprises as well. ee the mole is bright with cilantro and mint, the black beans are one of those universal recipes that a absolutely stunning. the blackand, finally,e of those uyou can throw together a pozole, simple ste