captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening. i'm judy woouff. on the newshour tonight: the candidates face off. fewer interruptions, but president trump and joe biden present starkly dis erent visionfor the future at their final debate. then, a demographic shift. considerable changes to the voting population in florida could prove critical to the outcome the election. plus, the pandemic worns. we discuss the latest wave of coad cases, and the hunt fo vaccine, with the director of the national institutes of health, dr. francis s. and, it's friday. okmark shields and david b break down the final debate and a potential shift in the balance

of power in the u.s. senate. all that and more, on tonit's pbs nehour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> bnsf railway.

>> the john s. and james l. knight foundation. communities.formed and engaged more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and friends of the newshr. and individuals. y this program was made possible be corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: the final debate is be thim, and now it is a sprint to election day for president trump and former vice president joe biden. they began today, trying to

build on debatmentum and to address some lingering questions. amna nawaz has our report. >> nawaz: president trump today rallied in florida, a last-minute effort to boost the senior vote. >> i'm always here to protect you, love, cherish, defend our nation's seniors. 11 days from now, wegoing to win the state of florida, we're going to winour more years in the white house. >> nawaz: vice president biden, meanwhile, focused on the pandemic, as coronavirus ces surge across the country. >> we're not "learning to live with i we're learning to die with it. this is a dark winter ahead. >> nawaz: it was the very first topic the candidates debated thursday night, in their second and final face-off. >> we're learning to live with it. we have no choice. i take full responsibility. it's not my fault that it came re. it's china's fault. folks, i will take care of this. i will end this. i will make sure we have a plan. >> nawaz: in stark contrast to their first debate, derailed by

the president's persistent interruptions... >> this is so unpresidential. >> he's ing to pack the courts. >> nawaz: ...last night was a tightly-moderated affair. >> all right, vice presint den, your response to that? and then i do have a question >> nawaz: featuring, for the first time, a mute button, granting each candidate two minutes of uninterrupted time bere the other couldin. >> well, i thinke have to respond, if i might? >> please, and then i have a follow up. >> thank y, and i appreciate that. >> nawaz: the candidates still found plenty of space to spar, with biden often appealing t rectly to voters... >> it's out his family and my family. it's about your family. and your family's hurting badly. >> nawaz: ...and trump dismissing him as a career litician. >> the family, around the table. just a typical politician, when i see that. i'm not a typical politician. >> nawaz: on health care, biden pledged to build on president's obama's affordable care act... >> what i'm going to do is pass obamaconare with a public op to become biden care. >> nawaz: ...while mr. trumpo again promisedd it-- though still no details for pre- existing conditions protections.

>> i'd like to termi obamacare, come up with a brand- new, beautiful health care. >> nawaz: the two clashed on climate change and renewable energy, arguing deeply divergent views... >> because the oil industry pollutes significantly-here's the deal-- because it has to be replaced by renewable energy over time-- over time-- and i'd stop giving to the oil industry. i'd stop giving them federal subsidies. >> basically, what he is saying is he's going to destroy the oil industry. will you remember that, texas? will you remember that, pennsylvania, oklahoma? >> nawaz: and bo faced toughmm questions onration. trump, for his policy separating thousands of migrant families... >> they said, "look at these cages. president trump built them." and then it was determined th were built in 2014. that was him. >> nawaz: ...and bidenfor record deportations when he was pass comprehensive reform...e to >> we made a mistake. it took too long to get it right. took too long to get it right. i'll be president, united states; not vice president,

united states. >> nawaz: on questions about race, again, two very different answers... >> and i never had to tell my daughter, if she's puld over, ke sure she puts-- for a top of the wheel and don't reach for the glove box, because someone may shoot you. >> nobody has done more formm the black ity than donald trump. and if you look-- with the exption of abraham lincoln,ti possible exc, but the exception of abraham lincoln-- odbody has done what i've done. >> nawaz: has analready voted? on issue after issue, even our post-debate panel, featuring voters from six different d states, remainided, on everything from pandemic... >> i think trump put it very well when he said we have to learn to adapt and learno live with covid-19. >> we should have a leader who is leading, and not ripping off a mask every time he turns around. >> nawaz: ...to racism in america. >> america is a systemic, racist country. it didn't start 50 years ago. >> well, who's been in charge of

the system, trump or biden? >> nawaz: despite some heated debate, civility reigned... >> i've joyed talking with everybody and hearing all your opinions. >> i am so thankful for each one ofanelists that are here, because i've learned so much from each and every one them. >> nawaz: ...and the voters largely ended up where they began. who changed their minds about anyone?y're voting for? in the coming days, these voters lloin the more than 51 million americans who have already cast their ballots in this presidential election. for the pbs newshour, i'm amna naw

sudan moved today to normalizize relations with irael, the third untry in recent months to do so. president trump announced it at the white house can the leaders of both countries on the phone. have a big reunion agoing toha. where everybody is here and everybody is going to be signed. >> woodruff: >> woodruff: earlier, sudan said it is compensating u.s. victims of al qaeda attacks, carried out while osama bin laden was living there. and, the u.s. removed sudan from a list of state sponss of terror.

the trump administration is also intervening to try to bring peac armenia.azerbaijan and tee two sides have been fighting over the disregion of nagorno-karabakh, and there was heavy new combat today. but in washington, secretary of state mike pompeo welcomed his azerand armenian counterpart russian attempts to mediate peace have so far failed. rival factions in libya signed a permanent cease-fire today, after years of fighting. the united nations bkered the deal, and it became official during a ceremony in geneva. there were no details on how it will be enforced. libya's conflict eruptedfter dictator moammar gadhafi was overthrown in 2011. in nigeria, major cities were relatively calm after days of protests over police brutality. but in lagos, men armed with metal bars and sticks blocked main roads.

and, many criticized the president for failing to condemn the killing ofrotesters by soldiers. back in this country, the u.s. senate formally took up the nomination of federal judge amy coney barrett fothe supreme court. the vote tbegin debate was 51 to 46, almost entirely down party lines. the republican majority is expect to confirm barrett on monday. hundreds of people in colorado are under evacuation orders after a new wildfire ignited ubis week. the east tsome fire hasrb joined the ncameron peak history, burning vreageate and an unknown number of homes. officials are struggling to keep up. an area we thought was good the other day, we're now seeing firen. and so, fires close to hous, fires close to our roadways. i reallyant to make that a primary message to our communities. we're not thholding

information; we're not trying to delay information out there. we don't know. >> woodruff: fire crews are hoping that snow and colder weather expected this weekend will help slow the fires. wall street finished this friday with mixed rests. the dow jones industrial average lost 28 points to close at 28,335. the nasdaq rose 42 points, and the s&p 500 added about 12. and, one absentee ballot in the interstellar journey.making an astronaut kate rubins cast her ballot from the international space station on thursday. many american astronauts live in vote from orbit, using a securem ectronic ballot. still to come on the newshour: major changes to florida's demogd raphics coove critical to the outcome of the mark shieldsavid brooks

key senate races to watch. how the performing arts arge taking the sn the pandemic. we discuss the lcoest wave of vid cases with the director of the national institutes of health. and, much more >> woodruff: early voting kicked off in florida this week, and president trump is set to cast his vote in his adopted home state tomorrow. in this perennial swing state, turnout makes all the difference. yamiche alcindor haseen in south florida taking a look at those groups, and what isss are top of mind. >> alcindor: florida-- often won by razor-thin margins-- is back

in the political spotlight. with less than two weeks until voting ends, organizers here are hitting the streets to rally the vote. there's leaflet-ing, to door- knocking, and all-out flag waving. ( car honking ) the sunshine state is home to a diverse set of nearly 22 million votertus, and higout is what could secure the election for either party. republicans democrats are laser focused on a few key groups: black voters, seniors and latinos. both president trump and former barnstorming the sithden are mult weeks of the race.inal they'r more than $120 million on ads. that's more than any other state. >> i could just sum it up in three words, it would be this: "managing the margins." >> alcindor: fernand amandi is a democratic pollster based in miami.

>> hillary clinton did a historically good job in south florhich is the base of the democratic constituency in the state. but she was then overrun, because her campaign didn't anticipate the managing of the margins in the northern part of the state where white voters came out in unprecedented and historic numbers for tru. th was the difference of t race right there. i think we're going to see the same dynamic potentially in play now in 2020. >> alcindor: presidential candidates have long had their eyes set on florida. it has a huge number of electoral college votes-- , in fact-- but messaging to this state's diverse voters can be challenging. joe biden is countinlack voters, and in poll after poll, the group overwhelmingly supports him. but, there is a gender gap. in the last presidential election, black women came out in conngsistently stumbers for the democratic party. but turnout among bln in florida was six points lower. in a close ra, biden needs to ince black men in particular to hit the polls in full force. >> i'm voting for jon. yeah, i'm not really the most enthusiastic.

i like him, but he's not-- heasn't my first choice. >> alcindor: lambert rowe is 28 old, and a reluctant bid supporter. since the pandemic, lambert and other members of this south florida community started a group called breaking the cycle. it meets thrghout the week in rimiami to ride bikes for s causes, including riding to the polls. what are the things that y think that make you kind of not as enthusiastic about joe biden? past, joe biden helped with prison reform, and it didn't help the black neighborhood at all. a lot of black fathers are in even black mother i'm hoping joe ben has changed. police, but the police are probably scared of us at the same time. so, what common ground can we get for both sides? >> alcindor: but despite his concerns about biden, voting for trump is not an option for him. comfort, before trump because trump, the things he say or do, doesn't make me feel safe at all. >> we just don't ve enough law

d order. >> alcindor: gary sisler, an 86- year-old republican, disagrees. at east ridge retirement community in south florida. supporter-- back in 2018. >> alcindor: he is part of another important mographic: senior citizens. theyake up 21% of florida'snd populationften vote republican. for gary, the black litter protests against police brutality have caused tension in his family >> i have found, personally, if i said i really like to say "all liv matter" instead of "black lives matter"--pl ion. that stopped communication in my family. that's tough. that's very tough. >> alcindor: top of mind for gary is president trump's response to the protests >> look at portland, oregon, over a hundred nights, still demonstrating and rioting just a couple of nights. they took off on the statu of teddy roosevelt. so that's a problem of law and order. >> alcindor: and what do you

make of the fact that portland, while it's had its struggles, is part of a movement that has been mostly peaceful? >> well, you say some pockets of violence, portland, and i don't think you could ca pockets of violence. so this is-- this is a terriblee effect of the thing. >> alcindor: while gary is driven in part by a fear of protests, fellow trump supporter daily salinas says it's the m that scaresmun her. about the democratic party.talk they talk about socialism, socialism and communism going in the same way. >> alcindor: she fled cuba for the united states when she was o 21 yea. as a cuban american, she is part of another constituency that's long supported republicans.y >> the reason came here, i'm here. i remember i w little and i say i need to live is too much oppression and the dictator. so i don't want this for my ds. i don't want-- i want my kids keep their freedom. >> alcindor: joe bident a socialist and has long supported capitalism.

but, she wores he will be influenced by socialists on the left. while cuban americans make up 30% of the stateti registered o voters, a growing number of puerto rica in florida could shake things up. judy ann santiago is a hairdresser in south florida. judy ann's family was impactedri by hcane maria in 2017. she recalled the moment president trump cameo the island and threw paper towels into a crowd of hurricane survivors. >> it really was an insult. and still, when you talk to people, they still have that in mind. and that's why puerto ricans ally are very upset with president trump. so i think that's why joe biden has to win their trust again and ensure that he really cares and he would do everything lcfferently. >> ador: but that isn't all that's driving her to vote for biden. the top issue for her in this election is the pandemic. >> i have a lot of friends and family that had and have the

pandemic, the coronavirus virus, and it is very sad because our president said to not worry.th i have a friend that was 57 days in coma and still having thme issues. so, yes, it's sog that when i vote, i going to have it in mind and i'm goivote according to that. and i will vote for our vice anesident biden. >> alcindor: js friends are just some of the seven million-plus americans infectedv with tus-- which is spiking across the country. and, h issues along with tmb concerns of t, gary and daily are mirrored in voters across the country. making florida-- which has backed the winning can in every election since 1996-- a key bellwether state. for the pbs newshour, i'm yamiche alcindor. >> woodruff: in these tumultuous times, it is reassuring to have some constants.

of shields and brooks.analysis that is syndicated columnist mark shields, and "new york times" columnist david brooks. hello to both of you on this friday evening let's start lking about yamiche's report. mark, what did you make of what some of thore fla voters had to say, and in particular i'm inking of lamert rowe, the young black man, who said he's not very enthusiastic about joe biden. >> no, i thought yamiche's piece captured the complexity of joe biden's problems as well as donald trump's in florida. florida is -- anybody who thinks they understand american politics, i challenge them to go to florida. judy, 50 million votes cast if flor92a since and the difference between the two parties, that's when florida really became a battleground state, 200 of one percent of democrats androoms.

consistently votes republican than the country. african-american women are the most loyal and importat constituency in the democratic party and african-americanen are lagging in their support, and i think lamert expressed that and yamiche captured it yo woodruff: and, david, what did u take away from yamiche's reporting and what the voters said? >> well, the young woman from cuba, daily, expressedti the apocalfear i hear a lot especiallyfrom trump supporters, the idea if joe biden wins he will make a fundamental change in the country and the the people around him or there's a culture that will destroy the country, so i think that apocalyptic tone is part of why tis election particularly why trump mobilizes is fraught. when we get d,to novembe at night, lib looking at florida first and foremost becae

there's a lot of ways you can imagine joe biden winning if he doesn't win florida, it's super hard to imagine donald trump winning if he doesn't win florida. he loses that, maybe we'll know tha night, who knows, it's really harto see how he retains the white house. >> woodruff: so let's connect all this to last night's debate, mark. not as many fireworks. some sharp differences. what did you take away from it? >> no tantrum, no food fight, it's lincoln douglas.ho it's amazinw our expectation are lowered by the incumbent. a presidential campaign has been compared to parallel skiing s country. the two skiers go in different directions ansee different scenery and then intersect in a detote. they hadchange things for donald trump. by all the fundamentals of thisn elecamericans think the country is headed the wrong

direction. americans do not like donald trump personally. americans do not think donald trump is doing aood job. he had to change it, and i don't think it was t a nighat changed the election. i think they emerged where they came in, biden ahead, maybeht sl less, maybe some trump people energized, but i don't think it was a game changer that trump needed. >> david, what has stayed with you from nlaht? >> well, i think the attempt to bring biden down to hisch acter level by the attack on alleged business dgs with the foreign countries, i don't think that particularly landed and may have somewhat mobilize it did base. a lot of people like the policies b don't like theuy, so he needs to reduce the character gap between the two, so maybe he d that a little. i thought biden was best when something touched his moral core and he showed genuin moral outrage on the separation of the children and families. his summation at nd was good. underplaying whichd worry

me if i were on the biden team was the momensi trtioning away from oil and gas. hillary clinton said something like that transitioning away from coal last time anit hurt her. it's culture statement. a lot of people say, i work in manufacturing, industry. what, do we not exist for youle pe so that statement has a communities in a w frankly, aome lot of us in the media won't quite antieipate how people hearing that, hearing it as an insult. >> woodruff: mark, what aboutth ? pick up on that and then i want to ask you about the campaign ovakall. >> david a very good point there. i would just add, judy, that donald trump has a problem with women voters that is unprecedented in our country. you look at the years polling and by a 58% to 35% margin, women oppose donald trump, sup joe biden, and women are 52% of

the electo i don't know how you make it up, and the issues of most concern to women across the board are issues of climate, the issuesof healthcare. donald tmp doesn't even dress them, and i have to say, on the coronavirus, i mean, i don't know what galaxy he's living in. he's talking about turning the corner on the very day that more people are hospitalized under covid 19 than any day thus far this year, when hospitalization is up in 38 states. so, you know, i just thought -- i thought -- and the issue that is driving the country, concerning the country, worrying the country, killing the country, donald trump just failed the test. woodruff: david, put this in context. i mean, how do you see this race overall right now?yo >> i thinkknow, biden is nine points ahead.

this is not 2016. mark and i tked about that. he continues to get more popular, even more popular week by week. that's not 2016. hillary clinton was never this close to popular. i think joe biden understood the year. people generally want th opposite of what they had before. in 2016 the operative emotion was rae. in 2020, people are just raged out, and i think rahm emanuel coid the opposite of rage is assion and empathy and joe biden has certainly shown that, and decency. you can get a lot of policies wrong but if you get the emotions right you tend to do well in politics. trump unlike jeb bush and marco rubio in 2016 understood rage is what people want. but that's over no people want a different set of register and biden happens to inhabit those emotional regist >> woodruff: another big thing we'll be watching on election

night stis the unitedes senate. it's in republican hands by a surprising number of republican senators who are in tossup s ces. what are some rau are looking at? >> well,ening it's impossible not to look at the dwest and look at particularly in iowa where democrats are qubuite ish if they can capture that senate seat from jo ert and teresa greenfield. democrats are allf a sudden getting a little bit more encouraged and optistic about kansas. barbara, the former republican state senator, is ng a very, very strong campaign in a stat that has not elected ata demoo the senate since 1932. republicans are despairing and despondent about arizona and colos do. republicthat yo talked to today. mae remains a battleground. there's a bundle.

republicans i've talked to today were concerned in comparing it to 1, that, if, in fact -- 1980, that if joe biden won by more than 8.5 points, which was bill clinton's margin in 1986 over bob dole, if he were to win by double digits, republicans could not only lose control but a nch of senate seats and all of a sudden places like alaska come into play as well as north carolina. so, you know, it's tough not to watch a bundle of these races because they are all ally within the margin of error or at least within the margin ifof siant change. >> woodruff: and, so, david, what about you?k what are you lg at in these senate races? >> yeah, i'm looking at georgia where there are two races because one is an appointee. so both of those are extrclemely e. there's the purde race, there's

a generational difference. they're running traditional campaigns. lhey're running on the norma healthcare issues. the kelly loofler seat. there's another repuican race manager.who is an impeachment hese are all tough races that are being run pretty much on party lines but what so interesting is the demosugraphi. rban college educated people flee from trump. he's got to make it up in the white working class and latinos and it's not clear he can do. th he's only in the game in georgia because southerners have stayed with him the way midwesterners have not. so he's in the game. but it could be finally the year georgia actually turns a little >> woodruff: mark, how much difference would it make? we don't know what's going to

ifpen on election day but joe biden does win this does it make fohis presidency whether or not there is a senate that's republican or democratic? >> oh, i think it makes enan mous amount of difference. one thi, power is the perception of power and if the democrats win the senawite joe biden at the head of the ticket, there's a percetion on the part of democrats that joe biden was a strong leader, that hisattails provide him help that he provided a favored win. plus joe biden, his great strength has been working leslatively, cooperatively, collegiately both across the aisle and within his own pa and, you know, i think, in that sense, it gives the biden administration a running head start that it won't have ifin fact, mitch mcconnell returns as the senate majority leader. >> woodruff: and david, how do you see the stakes if biden's

elected? >> huge, if they don't take the senate. and should we say the pollsters give them a three-to-one odds of taking the senate so 's good for democrats. this is mott the senate of 20 or even 15 years ago. imagine it's biden and 51 republican senators and mitch mcnnell decides to stonewall, stonewall confirming cabinet appointments, and it's entirely possible, and then suddenly we're in the mother of all gridlocks. maybe they can win over some republicn s but ithat circumstance probably susan collins is not around, soco it d be the fate of his presidency, depends on them getting the senate as well. >> woodruff: as ayyou, a majority isn't also necessarily a majority. we'll see. so much to keep an eye on. thank you both, david brooks, mark shields. thanks, judy, thanks.

>> woodruf how serious has the ndemic's impact been on the performing arts? there's plenty of data. third-quarter employment rates of 54% for dancers, and 52% for actors. a 33-fold decline in consumer spending on the performing arts. many companies have announced they will remain closed for he-person performances for foreseeable future. but, as jeffrey brown found, there are glimmers of hope, and pockets of movement, where the show-- even in new ways-- is going on. arre's a look, for our ongoing and culture series, "canvas." >> brown: on a recent indian summer evening, in an urban new york city field next to a

cemetery, the thrilling sound and movement of flamenco dancer li tirado performed for a small, socially-distanced audience. arts and dance, known as"f baad!", an organization that presents work al artists, especially women, people of color, and l.g.b.t.q. artists. dancer and choreographer arthur aviles is baad!'s co-founder and served as the evening's m.c. its theme?" staying alive." >> what's importt to us is to make sure that we keep in touch with who it ishat we are in these unfortunate time we want to create a platform for the community to be a st on. at's really what we say. >> brown: housed in a gothic revivalist churc with a black-box theater that seats just 50 people, this 21-year-old organzation has a seven-perso staff, and budget under a

foundations and government by grants. >> baad is one of the few theaters or presenting arts organizations in the bronx. and in this particularrea, there are none. and that's really sad for the bronx. >> brown: indoor performances aren't possible, but baad offers its space to local artists to create virtual events, and teachers to continue dance and other classes. in one, young students take esrns in-person, while the join via zoom. like all of us, baad is now stuck in a virtual box, but they're trying to think and act outside it. >> we could challenge the, medicause as you can see, this is about boxes, and where we are confined to that. you're used to having to do stripped-down things. you're usedo having to deal with difficult circues.

the simplicity of the body, of the simplicity of communicatione >> whaposecedes you to come down here? >> reporter: in portland, maine, another approach as we watched an indoor performance at the indoor stage. how can this show go on through a determined response to an existential threat. >> it's like >> it's like going on an expediti to the moon, in a way, jeff. it's a different way of doing something that i've been doing for years and years and years, and that seems so second-hand. >> brown: this is the kind of theater where the artistic director, anita stewart, pitches in to paint the sets. was closed, leading to a million-dollar loss in ticket revenues, a huge hit for a company with an overall budget of $2.5 million. was there ever any question for u that you would be doing this, presenting live theater? thisummer, it seemed like it was not going to be possible.

>>: instead, they're aiming for an october 29 opening but with a play-- lanfor wilson's "tally's folly", directed by sally wood-- with just two actors. and kathy mccafferty and david mason are married-- no fears abt social distancing. rtla stage installed equipment in its h-vac system similar to those being used in hospitals and airports, which can eliminate any covid virus in the air. and provides it's complying with actos equity and state protocols, including regacar testing fors, crew and staff. the audience will be limited to w st 50, in a 288-seat theater. even 50-- you convince people to come in? >> it is a challenge. and i think a big part of it is doing the work that wee doing to make sure people know that we are taking safety precautions that are going to make this experience as safe as it possibly can be. >> brown: that's helped by being in a state with relatively few covid cases. still, going forward is fraught. is this a viable financial model for you, though? this isn't going to bring in

much money. >>is long-term, s not viable. this is about providing a service right now. and it's a service of the heart. it's a service of the soul. em's a service for the artists that we caoy. and it's a service for the small number of people that will be able to come in and see the work. ♪ ♪ >> brown: at the atlanta opera, innovative new production and ial models are also bein tested, including scaling down the "grand" in opera to something more intimate, and even colorful-- in an outdoor circus tent on a baseball field. >> you know, they say "never waste a crisis." and i think this crieated two sort of business models that could be with us f, years to cod that's the people and the lotion. artistic director tomer zvulun is still working with internationacalibeers, but all are atlantbased, and now comprise the atlanta

company players, a kind of hometown all-star team that they were all grounded anyy, with lost bookings and income. and as soprano jasmine habersham told us, there's now an added and unexpected benefit. >> it changes thdynamic of, u know, you can have a family and you can be secure and you can even, you know, just have that availability to be by the ones that you love and do what you love as well. >> this exposed theie vulnerabilitof nprofits with a very high trcost sucture. we have to make sure the cos structure is nimble enough to pivot when times get rough. during the some of the darkest timen humanity, artists found ways to connect through

performance. is very commitd to.his company ♪ ♪ >> reporter: the lessons here won't apply to >> brown: the lessons here won't apply to all performing arts osurganizations, aness for any of these groups is hardly guaranteed, wi winter bringing new challenges. still, in some places, in shnew forms and spaces, th goes on. for the pbs newshour, i'm jeffrey brown. >> woodruff: as businesses, cities and states grapple with decisions over restrictions and how to stay open, the virus is hitting across the u.s.mo widely now than in previous surges. hospitalizations rose 40% in the

past month, and increased across 38 states during the past week. more than 41,000 people are in n e hospital with covid, and more t,000 new cases were raported yesterday. thankfully, deats are much lower than they once were. but there has been an average of k.re than 775 deaths a day for the past w this makes it a good moment to national institutes of health, dr. francis collins. and dr. collins, we welcome you back to the "newe our". so thembers don't look good, they don't sound good. rw do you describe what's going ht now? >> it's very significant and veryserious, and goodness knows our country has suffered, our rld has suffered already a great deal from this virus with the loss of lifeand economic distress and, yet, if anybody tries to say wre done with it, it's certainly,ight now, looks quite the opposite.io

you med yesterday, in the united states, over 75,000 cases in a single day, tha's the second highest ever since this started, and i'll be surpsed if it doesn't go higher than that when you look at the shape of the curve and this trye much in the midwest, the rocky mountain areas, this is a different kind of spread because it's not just the cities, it's the rural areas as well. and the best chance we have while we're waiting for the vaccine -- and it ma come in a few more weeks or months -- but mean time, it's kind of up to all of us to to do what we can to try limit the spread. and if there was ever a time fr people to take responsibility and do so it's right >>now. oodruff: you said for anybody to say it's behind us, i'm just looking atwhat the president said last night. he said we're rounding the corner. es that sound realistic? >> well, if you look at the maps of the u.s. and see where the

disease is and whereit's going even more rapidly, it would be very hard to say tt we're not in a tough spot, and if you look at the curves, we're on this third slope that's headed upward. i don't know wisther to call he third wave or whether we're basically still in the first wave, because we nevever really down to the baseline after what happened back in march, april and may. but no question about it, this cold weather that we werewo concerned lead to greater spread does seem to be happening, and wehave some tough weeks ahead. >> wthdruff: interestin it's not even clear which surge we're in. you know, separatelyast night former vice president biden took a very tack. he talked about wee heading into a very dark winter does th sound -- i mean, is that too pessimistic or does that sound boutght to you? >> clearly, the next few weeks are going to be rough and,

again, we have something we can do about it. i don't want to sound so fatalistic like, okay, we're just in for it and there's nothing we can do. we know that this is a disease th b spreaween people because of close proximity without maswes. now that 40% of the people who get this are not aware that they're infected and, so, they may be spreading it without knowledge. that's why we ask everybody to put a mask on. if you're the young person who thinks it doesn't apply to you, well, you might be the superspreader 's infecting your neighbors or your grandparents. we've seen in other instances, it han ppenede southeast, we had this big outbreak, and then it was possible to kind of bring it down this time, i think, because it's so widespread in the country, it kind needs to be everybody. so it's the tee ws, wear your mask, watch your distance, wash your hands. late.n all do this, it's not too i know people are tired of theut pandemiche virus is not tired of us. it is out there having a great

old party and we need tshut it down. >> woodruff: dr. collins, i know you and dr. fauci who is head of the infectious diseases at the n.i.h., both of you said president to discuss the covid directly in several months. callpresident has dr. fauci, just in the last few disaster, he said he and other a scientists working on this are idiots. is that anything close to your perception? >> i have the greatest respect for anthony fauci. he's probably the mod wide i respecteectious disease experts in the world. i have the privilege of talking tm virtually every at a and many times in the evening as well. in his experience serving six presidents and having goneth ugh many previous pandemics is of incredible value and heis an incredible communicator.

he is one of those people who tells you what the facts are. sometimes that gets him in a little bit o trouble. it is unfortunate that somehow telling facts can tbe sohing that will cause people to resent you. i worry very much that now tony has some fairly serious threats being levied at him but he is a treasure and i'm proud to be his colleague and eased at the moment that he at n.i.h. is try to keep our eyes focused on the science and move this agenda forward. >> woodruff: what about the the fact that the person the president does listen to on a regular basis, his chief advisor, dr. scott at las, is not an infectious disease expert at all, he's a radiologcht. with so at stake, does that worry you? >> i haven't had a lot of opportunities to talk with dr. at las.ce ainly, i would want the president always to have the most accurate advlece posst a critical time like this, and, again, i think there is a lot of information right now that can

be kind of encouraging but also thgs where we need to ta action. the tasks force, ably led by the vice president, continues to meet regularly, but we have not as a task for been aed to meet with the president recently. >> woodruff: well, i want to ask you about the course of vaccines, but also, you know, we know that there are human trials underway, you and others have spoken about when those may produce a vaccine, but in the meantime, you have many states that have relaxed standards, whether it comes to mask whether it comes to indoor gaering. i think the wionsin state legislature right now is considering doing away with the mask mandate. can this virus, dr. collins, be brought under control unless there's some kind of national n asure, steps ta the national level, or does it have to be left up to the sn waits. l, i hope it's being left up to every american to look a

the evidence. frankly, folks who are listening, masks are the way in which this virus can have its spread stopped. this inot a matter of scientific debate. the need for masks for all of us, not because we're so much protecting ourself, but we're protecting other people from us if we happen to be that unwitting infected rson. is is just so straightforward. to argue against that must be eind of like the same thing lik arguing against seatabilities. it's good common sense to save lives. i'm troubled that that psalic health m has not been able to take root across this country at a time when people are dying and this is such a simple thing we could do. yes, it would probably be a good thing if this was required, but even if it's not required, hey, we're americans, we're not stupt, we can figure out w the evidence shows and actgl accord come on, people, we can do this. >> woodruff: but when you have state legislative bodies saying,

you know, masks can't be required, we're heading in another direction. i do want to ask you about a vaccine. you and dr. fauci have made these trials may produce early results by the end of this year anntline workers, healthre workers may have access to the vaccine but it may be many more months before liericans broadly, before hundreds of mins of americans have access. people do want life to get back to a smblance of normal. when could that be? i mean, are we talking the suof 2021, fall-winter of 2021? what do you think? >> well, first of all, let me say the profres vaccines is simply breatreathtaking. to be where we are in october when we first knewbout the virus in january is moving faster than ever before in terms of vaccine development. you may have heard two of the

vaccines that were in pause because of coerns have been activated. we have four vaccines going forward in large scale trials, their enrollment r and finished looking to see for effect cassie of the vaccine to protect people against getting sick. it does look fairly apt mystic that one or more of these will ach the point of being judged safe and effective, assuming ndat they are, by theof this year, and there will be tens of millions of doses of f theyaccine ready to go are at that point to the most vulnerable people. but let's be honest, it's going to take quite a few months to manufacture doses for additional americans, for those at lower risk, and until we get to the point where maybe 70% or 80% of e population is immune, we will still need to practice this good public health measures to f keep the virusm coming back. so let's be prepared for the fact life is nt going to feel >> woodruff: another year from

now. so we're looking at october, the fall, of next year. >> let nobody tell you that th can say precisely how this timetable will play out, b b that wousort of the generally estimate -- general estimate of what it's going to take if you wantto get everything to where it's going to be completely okay to go back to the kind of life we had pre-covid 19. >> woodruff: and then the reluctance of many to even outhk taking the vaccine. that's another mountain to climb. >> a big mountain. getting back to normal a year from now will not happen if half the population refuses the vaccine because the immunity is not there and then this virus could go on for years. >> woodruff: and that's sobering. >> yes. >> woodruff: dr. francis us this friday night.r joining we appreciate it. >> judy, always good to talk to you. ad to come anytime. i hope it doesn't sound that grim. we are making great progress and

we are going to get through this, i am absolutely sure of that. >> woodruff: we're hearing your message. thank you. >> woodruff: and now, a moment to share the stories of just some of the more than 223,000 individuals who have fallen vto covid-19 in glr country. jimmy enn's first love was axing. he startan amateur fighter, then went on to train and manage boxers for decades. jimmy's own times square boxing gym also welcomed some of the , like his friend muhammad ali. in 1969, jimmy met his wife at a

bar they would go on to buy, and aptly name "jimmy's corner." a caregiver and mejimmy's son said his dad helped kids better their lspes through the t. jimmy was 89. arthuro bori enjoyed his hobbies-- jumping out of planes as a competitive skydiver, and photographing wildlife on adventures with his wife. together, they traveled from british columbia to the falkland islands. born on a u.s. military base in okinawa, japan, arthuro-- or art-- went on to become a software engineer in the seattle area. in retirement, he took on one more hobby, woodworking.ai art's wifethe 65-year-old had a gentle, giving nature, and a great sense of humor. for momare than a decadein addison advocated for his patients as a speech pathologist

st. joseph's medical center in paterson, new jersey. the 44-year-old lovets and music. described by his wife as lorkable-- adorable and dorky-- martin wasing father to his son and daughter, who was a daddy's girl. martin and his wife would have celebrated six years of marrge this week. k 74-year-old charlene strs resilient the face of struggle. bornnd raised in taos, new mexico, charlene started college in 1963, but was unable to finish due to fincial burdens. soon after, she went through several surgeries to treat chronic pain that left h despite these chal, charlene was determined to get a degree, and she did so in 2003 at the age of 58. she spent her life dedicated to the care of others, especially

her daughter and three granddaughters. a lifelong resident of aapolis maryland, 63-year-old robert eades was a fierce advocate for the city's black community. known for speaking his mind freely, robert wasn't afraid to admonish officials in his demands for better public housing in his neighborhood. robert was a father of seven. his son said robert fought hard to create a better world for his ch. it makes so much difference that familieshare these stories with us. we thank you for that. our hearts go out to you and to all those who'vogs lovedones in this pandemic. and that's the and that's the newshour for night. i'm judy goodruff. haveat weekend. thank yo please stay safe, and good night. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> when the world gets

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hello, everyone and welcome to amanpour & company. here's what's coming up. >> teammates. >> the nigerian governmentalm amid a shooting that shocked the worldnd a crackdown on peaceful protests. then -- >> we've got to vote like never before and leave no doubt. >> you can go ahead and vote today they say, today, go out and vo. >> 12 days to go. 40 million votes alreadyas the president has a mountain to climb. can he do it? rnc spokesm liz harrington join>> me. plus, hari sreenivasan talks