captioning sponsored by wnet >> sreenivasan: on this edition for sunday, august 23: a look ahead as the republican national convention is set to get underway this week. more wildfires in california a wild weather in the gulf. and concerns over international aito beirut in the wake of the port explosion. next on "pbs newshour weeken" >> pbs newshour weekend is made possible by: sue and edgar wachenheim iii. the anderson family fund. bernard and denise schwartz. ls the cheryl and philip in family. ra hope zuckerberg. charles rosenblum.

we try to live in the moment, to not miss what's right in front of us. at mutual of america, we lieve taking care of tomorrow e most of you make today. mutual of america financial group, retirement serves and investments. >> for 25 years, consumer cellular's goal has been to provide wireless service that helps people communicate and our u.s.-based customer service team can help find a plan that fits you. to learn more, visitwww.consume. additional support has been provided by: and by the corporationor ic broadcasting, a priva corporation funded by the american people. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> sreenivasan: good evening and thank r joining us. the day before the republican national convention gets underway-- the president and many republicad they will not support legislation that reverses changes at the u.s. postal service andates $25 billion in additional

yesterday the hous representatives passed a bill democrats say will help the postal service handle mail-in balloting this fall. more than two dozen republicans also backed the bill, which passed 257-150. the republican-majority sete is not expected to consider the bill. president trump continued to attack mail in voting-- which caused twitter to flag one of his tweets wa warning. the president called drop boxes for ballots a "ter security disaster..." that "...make it possible for a person to vote there is no evidence of that. in new york city today, minority er democratic senator chuck schumer said a newly-created bipartisan election mail committee eport on election resources and hold postmaster general louis dejoy accountable. >> this report will serve as a check on mr. dejoy and we have asked this governor lee moak to deliver it in two weeks and

outline exactly how mail will be delivered on time and if not, what exactly should be done about it. what was tropical storm marco is w a hurricane in the gulf of mexico, headed for the louisiana coast. and right behind marco tropical storm laura is also headed tt way. marco passed the yucatan peninsula yesterday and gained strength to category one hurricane this aernoon as rewindhed 75 miles-per-hour. the national hurricane center is warning that marco could bring life-threatening storm surge and hurricane-force winds to louisiana by tomorrow night. yesterday tropical storm laura crossed puerto rico, where it downed power lines and trees with wind gusts of up to 70 miles per hour. overnight, the storm passed the dominin republic, where officials warned of flooding from four to eight inches of rainfall.laura may also become a hurricane as it crosses into the gu towards louisiana and mississippi. accord records kept since at least 1900, two hurricanes

have never ford in the gulf of mexico simultaneously. fire officials in northern california are bracingor more dry thunderstorms today, a week after lightning started some of the largest wildfires in the state's history. the three largest fire complexes, each consisting of multiple wildfires, have burned more than 1,100 square miles as of this morning. across the state there are now more than 13,000 firefighters working to contain the blazes. in northern california, tens of thousands of people have been evacuated, more than 700 structures have been burned, and at least five people are dead. on saturday, president trump issued a major disaster declaration to provide federal aid. activists in the louisiana cy lafayette say they will continue tnd racial justice in the wake of police shooting and killing a black man who had a knife on friday night. police used tear gasear protesters, after some set off fireworks and set fires in the street last night. protests started pcefully saturday afternoon, with activists calling for justice in

the killing of 3-old trayford pellerin. he was shot and killed by police he was trying to enter a convenience store with a knife. policeaid stununs failed to stop pellerin. in a statement, the louisiana state a.c.l.u. con the shooting, which was captured on cell phone video, saying erin was moving away from officers and that it was anoth"" horrific and deadly incident of police violence against a black person who was brutally killed in front of our eyes." more protests the planned for evening. new cases and deaths from covid-19 continue to decrease across the u.s., but some states are seeing new infectionsmidwest increase. "the new york times" database shows an average of 43,710 new cases per day. that's a decrease of 19% from the average two weeks earlier. as of this morning, the novel coronavirus has infected more u.s. and more than00 haven the died.

globally, johns hopkins n confirmed cases as of 23 today and 805,000 deaths.et the stof minsk-- the capital of belarus-- were filled once again today with anti- government protesters. in the city's centrasquare, more than 100,000 people gathered to call for the resignation of the country's authoritarian leader, alexander lukashenko. belarus has seen massive protests in the two weeks since dekashenko claimed a lands victory, in a presidential election that many view as rigged. lukashenko has blamed western interference f the unrest and d nato of massing forces on the country's western border, which the alliance denies. as crowds gathered today, e defense ministry warned that any unrest around national monuments would be met with a military response. for more on the events and speakers at this week's republican national convention visit pbs.org/newshour. >> sreenivasan: last week, democrats wrapped up their

unconventional political convention without the traditional crowds and hoopla but with sharpks on the record and character of the sitting president. catomorrow, it's the repubs turn with some in-person events and a small group of g.p. delegates heading to charlotte, north carolina to rally their support for the president who evening.ke a speech each still, newevelations and allegations continue to confront him and his reco. special correspondent jeff greenfield joins us from santa ara. convention that just happened? >> i was truck by the degree to which the democrats were embracing the ea of ity. who theyhowed, and how owed them, una poll get c.e.o. in the streets, organizing, protesting, activism. and i think that is a consequence of numbers. the democratic party is far more diverse than it was say when bill clinton became presidet. 40% of registered democrats are

nonwhite. and when you add to tt the gender gap which is a chasm, leads by 13 points biden leads wome5, they were doubling down saying saying we need you. the core of our party, to getnd involvede're not going to make any apologies for it. we're not going to be hetant about it. this is who we are. >> sreen a bit like a pledge drive because there were so many calls to sign up to become a donor. and then there was also an incredibly consistent e to just get people to vote. and we're still a couple of months away. >> that's right. and it's kind , you know. will they love me in november as they do in august? but here's what researchers have known for decades. ere more you can ask the v to think about how she will vote: ma, in-person, what time, the more likely they are to vote. and there were painful memories of four years ago, some democrats said well, hillary is going to win we can not show up. maybe we'll vote third party. there was a fall off from the african-american vote in key cities that helped turn some of

the states in the upper midwest and when you add to that the fears of voter suppression of skullduggery, mae the mail screwing up, yeah, they want that message out early and often. gears to what's coming up this week. in true conventional form, the president islanning to address the nation every night of his convention. >> first of all, they' going to try to make it look a little more like a real convention. there are a fehundred delegates down in charlotte that will formally nominate. trump will be speaking to audiences. and you're right. is is unprecedented. presidents usually show up every night to just wave and say, hi, i'll see you thursday night. but apparently the president means to talk every night in pre. he appears to be convinced that re he is on television, whether in the coronavirus, better he will do.s or this, the ad we also know that speaking into a camera lioval

office address, that is not tryp's best format, to be v kind about it. so, yeah, we're going to hear fromim and his family. odalthough, well, not everin his family. that's going to be what we're going to hear for the next four nights. >> sreenivasan: based on the tapes that were madeublic through the "washington post" last night, i suspect the to have a marquee role. going >> yeah. td the amazing thing is that was that w end of a week any one story which would have in other times jown the whole political spectrum apart. you know, the post bster general ng called to congress and saying are you trying to mess with the mail for political reason the senate intelligence committee controlled by republics, says, you know, not only was russia trying to interfere, but a senior trump campaign oicial was sharing poll data with a russian intelligence official. then the president's former senior strategist, steve bannon, is arrested by postal ities. by the way, on a, on a huge yacht.

and then whave the tapes to the president's sister, the retired federal judge, who's basically saying hs a liar, he's unprincipled, and somebody else took his exam. an you have to realize, we've seen this now for five years, it's the sheer quantity of all these allegations that somehow almost cancel each other out. and his supporters are "eh, more fake news." >> sreenivasan: yeah, yeah. and this is just august. what kinds of october surprises or closer to the election could we possibly see? >> well, there's one that we just learned yesterday. nasa says an asteroid is headed earth and there is a 4/10ths of 1% chance, i'm not making this up, hari, that it will strike the earth the day fore the election. and if i'm a betting man, i'm going to take those odds given what we've lived thrgh so far. >> sreenivasan: jeff, that sounds like a grtet reason to arly. >> very good point, hari. >> sreenivasan: jeffinreenfield jous from santa barbara, california. thanks so much. >> okay.

>> sreenivasan: millions of dollars in international aid has been promised to help assist beirut lebanon in the wake of this month's port explosion which killed nearly 200, maimed thousands andisplaced hundreds of thousands. the country was alady reeling from a collapsing economy, civil unrest and claims of corruption. newshour weekend special correspondent leila molana-allen reports that trust in the government is waning and to help rebuild, some are taking matters into their own hands. >> the government is not here, s not anywhere, is not present. only lebanese people. students, elderly people, youth. we are building the try. >> reporter: the day after the blast, volunteers gathered in mar mikhae one of beirut's worst hit neighborhoods, to register victims' need distribute aid and plan how to rebuild. they're now getting three or four thoand volunteers daily, helping up to 15,000 people each

day. these young people are repurposing skills like party orginanizg to coordinate a widespread humanitarian 30old maroun lost his own home and office and three of hie closest s were killed. he's been working 20-hours days for more than two weeks. and you're getting no government funding? >> and we will notanything from them. we don't want them. , we just want them to lead we'll take care of the country. orter: for nearly a year activists like these have taken to the streets demanding the downfall of a political system they see as corrupt and self- serving. now, they're demanding that any aid coming into the country go directly to them and local n.g.o.s. it's the networks forged during the protest movement that have allowed them to respond so quickly and effectively to this crisis. they say they've learned they can't de other.anyone but each every single person in this government is a crook, they

destroyed r past, they destroyed our present and they're destroying our future. >> reporter: the grassroots effort extends beyond lebanon's borders. they've been working with lebanese expats around the world to get aid and medical supplies into the coury manually until the slow-moving wheels of n.g.o. bureaucracy turn. this is the aid. as you can see. this is from london. >> reporter: okay. s >> and you canee there's more aid coming. >> reporter: so a community fundraises locally, then one person buys a plane ticket, one person gets on the plane and brings as many suitcases as they can rry? >> yes. r >>orter: while we're there, representative from the us embassy turns up. give it to us.them the money, we're doing the distributing. >> don't bail them out! >> so this is why it's important for us to come down to the ground here. i reporter: the next day, avcomes clear why. undersecretary d hale has come from washington to look at how to get lebanon back on its feet. and ours after landing, it's not the government he's meetinwith.

>> we don't have any government, the government doesn't care, it's us. we're here for each other. ( applause ) >> that's why this is my first stop, for that very reason. >> reporter: the operation, dubbed "min taht il rudm," from beneath the rubble, is a tall order, and these young people may end up over-promising. while international aid organizations may be unwield and have to work aroundca policoncerns, they have experience managing big sums of money and mechanisms to gehard cash into the y quickly. these volunteers say foreign governments and n.g.o.s should be working with them. >> this is the first twe see these people comg and checking on organizations and walking around with people, meeting with the people, usually they only meet with the government. so maybe this wille. >> reporter: like many international donors the united states has takend li on aid to lebanon, saying they won't let any money fall into corrupt hands. but that's easier said than done.

and while they say they won't funn money through the government, they're still working with increasingly unpopular state institutions. to eat.ns of meals ready the army is helping us distribute them. >> reporter: across beirut, food has been the fastest response in the relief eort, with the w.f.p. and usaid working to get beirut port up and running enough to receive some deliveries. sent and we are repeating is that we will not accept for aid to be politicized. atnd of the day we are here to ensure that the people in need get the aid. >>eporter: but many of those people say the aid they're receiving isn't what ty need. they don't want bags of food- an easy win for n.g.cause it can be distributed fast and looks good to donors- but cash, to rebuild their homes and businesses. just a few streets away is karantina, o of beirut's poorest neighborhoods. the area was ravaged by the blast; residents say they've long been neglected and still aren't getting the hp they need.

>> ( tred ): every day they bring two boxes, three boxes. but we want food aid, a lot has been distributed and people a throwing it away. we need people to send money to rebuild the house. >> reporter: nabil's house used to have four walls. now it has just two, and those are cracked beyond repair. he tells us it's even worse upusairs, but it's too dange to take us up there. so nabil, this used to be your kitchen and the entire wal it collapsed and fell out into the street? >> yes. >> ( translated ): i was getting a half salary then it became a quter salary. one work, one day no work. and then this. we are roke. we have nothing. we can' t rebuild. we have money in the bank, but won't give it us. >> reporter: nabil's neighbours are refusing to move out, even as cranes come to what's left of the building's roof. they're scared to leave in case developers swoop in and level in this prime seafront location. unless this community gets a

cash injection, and soon, they're ouof options. a short walk away he deformed structure that's at the heart of this crisis. not just the explosion, but the years of mismanagement that allowed it to happen, and bled so much money to corruption thaa n was already on its knees when the disaster hit: beirut port. riad ki is a lebanese investigative journalist who's been digging into rruption at the port and airport for years. he's been arbitrarily arrested, repeatedly threatened, and beaten to a pulp for trying to reveal what goes on inhehe shadows of shipping crates. >> there's a famous slogan here at the port: whenever benjamin franklin is there, problems are solved. because this is not a government, this is a mafia. >> reporter: that's because the port is run just like anher public authority: the parliament. each position is reserved for a particular religious sect, and they're linked to political factions.

they choose who they want for each job and then those people take bribes both to smuggle in goods in and to avoid import taxes, draining vital state revenue. it's estimated up to $2lion a year are lost just to beirut rt. hundreds of millions of dollars in donations have poured in since the blast, b it caused an estimated $15 billion in damages to the city. and with political factions holding tight to their control of the only entry points for bringing in aid, each will likely take a cut of the pie. for nabil and others like him, despair is setting in as they realize they may not get the help they need. >> ( translat ): it's the first time i've cried. i've lived here through the bombardment, through 30 years of war. ed the house can't be repa what can i do? there's no future for us.

>> sreenivasan: the last two decades have seen an increase in the nuer and intensity of both wildfires--like those currently burning in california and tropical storms, with this to be one of the busiest onack record. i recently spoke with freedman, editor for the capital weather gang at "the washington post" about how climatge is contributing to this growth d what can be done about it. >> climate change is having a very clear and scant impact on wildfire size, wildfire patterns in california. and you're seeing more extreme fire behavior now than you did before. so we're seeing more unpredictable conditions on fire lines. it's more dangerous for firefighters. we're seeing more weird things fire, tornadoes, for example. all of this points in the direction of having more extreme fire days. enivasan: it's hard for

people to imagine that a half a degree or one degree change in thclimate makes these thin worse. how is it connected? >> when you look at what it does if you shift the probability distribution of extreme events, you are dramly increasing the odds of extreme heat events so heat waves being more fruent and more severe, longer some experts that i was speaking to about this event were saying that it kindf made eratures across california at least two to four degrees fahrenheit above wt it would have been without climate change. sohis is just tilting the od in favor of these types of events even more than you would expect from just a little over a one degree fahrenheit increase temperature. >> sreenivasan: taking that half degree or one degree and putting

all ofenergy, for example, into the ocean changes the potential for storms. and we're living through, at least this year, a very active tropical storm and hurricane season already. >> yeah, it's a reco season for tropical storm season in the atlantic already. and part of that is due to natural climate variability, which favors a multi-decade old string of active seasons, but not all of it. the atlantic sea surface temperatures are so much warmer than average right now. tht of that is due to climate change. so instead of giving just regular gasoline to these storms, you're essen giving them rocket fuel where if atmospheric conditions are right, they will rapidly intensify and potentially catch

coastal residents off guard. >> sreenivasan: it'sreat for swimmers to be able to get into warmer water, but pretty much otherwisentire ecosystem in the water changes. i mean, you've got kind of the surface lencern on the tropical storms and then you've got what's happening beneath that's also afnocted. >> you one of the things that's been happening is the of marine heat waves.nd severity so we think of heat waves on land, but that they're actually oc.rring in the water as we and we've been seeing that especially off the east coast of the us ts year, fish that normally you'd see, you know, off the coast florida are showing up in cape cod and fire island. >> sreenivasan: how much can we actually do to mitigate the changes that we are seeing and also living through? becauswe've seen these forecasts that there is a limited amount of time where we've crossed some sort of a g point where it doesn't

matter if we could possiblget it down to half a degree lower or one degree lower. >> climate change really isn't about some cliff that you fall off of. there's always choices that we can make. top scientists that i speak with e always saying, you kno it's really about what kind of consequences in terms of how severe we want them to be. that determines wh we start making the changes in terms of cutting greeouse gas emissions and how significantly we make those cuts. if we do it earlier, it's cheapeto do. and the consequences are less seveouple of decades down the road. >> sreenivasan: andrew freedman of the washington post, thanks nk much. >> tfor having me. >> sreenivasan: newshour's live coverage of the rean national convention will be on air and online, from 8:00 until

p.11:0 eastern time monday through thursday this week. that's all for this edition of" pbs newshour weekend." for the latest news updates visit pbs.org/newshour. for watching.ivasan. stay healthy and have a good night. captioning sponsored by wnet captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> pbs newshour weekend is made >> pbs newshour weekend is made possible by: sue and edgar wachenheim iii. the anderson family fund. bernard and denise schwartz. the cheryl and philip milstein family.

barbara hope zuckerberg. scharsenblum. we try to livethe moment, to not miss what's right in front of us. at mutual of america, we believe taking care of tomorrow can help you make the most of today. mutual of america financial group, retirement services and investments. additional support has been provided by: consumer cellur. and by: and by the corporation for puic broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the american people. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. you're watching pbs.

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