judy: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, an alarming new record. more than 150,000 new covid cases in a single day as the pandemic's troubling resurgence continues. then moving forward, president-elect biden focuses on the transition as the dangers posed by president trump's denial become clearer. plus critical care. the coronavirus complicates efforts to counteract alarming child mortality ratesn pakistan. >> these children are not dying because of pneumonia or diarrhea. these children are dying because a society has yet to decide that their lives are worth saving.

judy: and it's friday, mark shields and david brooks analyze the president's refusal to concede. and what a joe biden administration could look like. all that and more on tonight's "pbs newshour." announcer: major funding for the "pbs newshour" has been provided by -- [music] moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf. the engine that connects us.

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judy: covid-19 set all kinds of recordin the u.s. this week and none was good. just days after passing 100,000 new cases a day, the u.s. reported 153,000 yesterday, more than 67,000 people are hospitalized. a record for a third raight day. the country has averaged nearly 1,000 deaths a day for the past week. the overall death toll so far at least 243,000. states are under huge pressure. in north dakota, hospitals are so busy the governor will allow health care workers who tested positive to treat some covid patients if the workers have no symptoms. minnesota, oregon, and other states issued new restrictions on bars, restaurants and social gatherings. new york city may stop in-person school classes on monday. sending students back to distance learning. the republican governors of

ohio and utah issued statewide mask mandates. this afternoon, president trump spoke about the larger swarings. -- larger situation. vaccines to come and weighed in again on the question of a national lockdown. president trump: ideally we won't go to a lockdown. i will not go -- this administration will not be going to a lockdown. hopefully the -- whatever happens in the future, who knows, which administration it will be, i guess time will tell. but i can tell you this administration will not go to a lockdown. there won't be a necessity. lockdowns cost lives. and they cause a lot of problems. the cure cannot -- you got to remember cannot be worse than the problem itself. and i've said it many times. judy: let's look more closely at the costly impact of this surge. and what the biden administration might do differently. amna nawaz begins with the latest in texas, home to one million cases to date.

amna: judy, texas is also struggling with a big surge. in particular, in the border city of el paso. home now to one out of every six cases in the state. hospitals there have added extra tents for a bed capacity. mobile morgs now sit outside the medical examiner's office which this week dealt with more than 150 deaths. and all this comes as a partial county lkdown has been extended. dr. joel hendricks is a chief medical officer at the university medical center there and joins me now. dr. hen ricks, welcome to the -- hendrix, welce to the "newshour" and thank you for taking the time. what steps have you had to take and what adjustments have you had to make there to meet that surge of patients come in? >> so within the city of el paso, and with all the other hospitals, we've created almost 600 new beds to be able to take care of this influx of new patients that we're taking care of. understand, we also take care of other patients. those who need other medical conditions and have to be in

our hospital as well as our covid population. amna: dr. hendrix, i recall an expert telling me weeks ago the problem wouldn't just be beds with the surge. it would also be staffing. you need doctors and nurses and support teams who have that expertise in intense care. how have you been able to meet that need, the staffing need? >> so you're right. and so we are isolated out here and there is a limited number of bodies if will you to take care of it. but we've been very fortunate. because the governor has sent extraordinary amount of resources to us as well as nurses, doctors, and it's been a process of integrating those within our systems, with all the hospitals. we have the military. they've embedded doctors into our hospital to help us meet the demands of taking care of these extraordinarily sick patients. amna: what about what's fueling the surge? we've heard so much about pandemic fatigue, about small gatherings of frien and family, from the cases and the patients you see, what's driving the surge in el paso? >> well, that's a good question.

and i don't think i have all the answers. i've heard some good explanations. certainly we talk about some of the younger population having the majority of the infections. and unfortunately passing it on, we talk about gatherings. we talk about restaurants. big box stores. these are different areas that they have talked to us about. and unsure if that's the exact number. we are lying just north of mexico. and we also lie underneath new mexico. so there's a lot of cross cultural traffic that continues. amna: we mentioned earlier the lockdown -- the partial lockdown has been extended. there's been some back and forth from county officials and the mayor and others about whether or not to have additional restrictions. in your view, medically speaking, would a lockdown help to curb the surge you're seeing now? >> i think it comes down to individual responsibility that they need to know that even with a lockdown you still have family gathering. those type of things. and it's a matter of preventing

the virus spread. so individuals need to use their masks. they need to follow the recommendations that -- that are generally proposed to help slow down and stop this virus. these have been utilized throughout the world. and we want to make sure that our citizens, our individuals prevent that -- that transmission. that's our goal. how you do that, that is -- can be a political process. but from our point, we just -- if they don't get sick, they don't end up in our hospital. and, therefore, we will have the resources to take care of everybody. amna: if people don't take those steps what are you worried you'll see in the next weeks and months ahead? >> obviously there are limited resources. and anything that you do. and if we are able to get control of that, then we're able to handle what we have, take care of our other patients, and move forward. we have not gotten into the flu season yet. and certainly the resources we have now may not be here later because of other hotspots that

can occur either in our state or around the country. amna: that is dr. joel hendricks from the university medical center in el paso, texas, dr. , we thank you for your time and we wish you luck ahead. >> thank you very much. judy: the problems we're hearing about in texas and elsewhere are likely to be just as bad, possibly even worse, in a number of states this winter when president-elect biden takes office. this week, the president-elect announced a covid task force to prepare specific plans for the months ahead. and assess what can be done differently. dr. vivek murthy is a co-chair of that task force. he's a former u.s. surgeon general and he joins us now. dr. murthy, thank you very much for being with us. we have just heard about the stresses they are under in texas, extraordinary measures they're taking. what will president-elect biden be able to do as soon as he takes office to curb this surging pandemic? >> well, thanks, judy.

it's good to be with you. and the situation in the country is really dire right now. we have cases that are exploding. we have hospitals that are filling up. we have a death toll that's unfortunately marching upward. and it's -- imperative that we act immediately. president-elect biden has put together a series of plans when he was running for office, to lay out how he would respond. and part of the job of the committee, the group that he's put together on covid, that i'm a part of is to take these plans and put a finer point on them to in fact use the latest science and form them. and i can tell you what they'll generally center around. they'll center around some basic principles that involve stopping the spread of the virus. reopening safely and protecting the hardest hit populations. with an eye toward rebuilding public trust as a foundation for this approach. the way that we're going to do this is we're going to have to focus on a number of components including expansion testing

capacity so that we can do surveillance and diagnostic testing. we're going to have to manufacture enough p.p.e. or protective equipment so our nurses and doctors and hospitals don't run out of masks. we're going to need a solid plan for vaccine distributions. we're going to need to encourage the public to use masks because they work to prevent this spread. but above all, judy, we're going to have to rebuild public trust b communicating honestly by leading with science and by ultimately delivering results. judy: a number of things there i want to ask you about but first want to pose -- repeat what president trump said just moments ago at the white house. he said he has no plans while he's in office to impose a national shutdown. he said i don't know what the next president, whoever it is, suggesting it could be mr. biden, will do. can you rule out a national shutdown by the biden administration? >> i actually think that we should be thinking about this in a slightly different way than we did in the spring. in the spring, the talk was about shuttingown or not.

but we've learned a lot since the spring about how this virus spreads. and how to reduce spread. and what that's allowed us to do is really to imagine a model that's more like a dial that you turn upnd down in terms of increasing restrictions and decreasing restrictions based on how you're doing. and those measures need to be specific. but they also need to be targeted. and we see what's happening in new york city now is they're actually targeting down to the zip code level. then determining what measures need to be implented on that zip code level and instead of saying let's shut down everything in the city, and so that's the approach that we have to take. the goal here is to shut down the virus so that we can in fact open up society, especially our schools. because we know the cost of closing them down is extraordinarily high. judy: but how is that different from what's already been tried in this country where different cities, different states, have handled it locality by locality, it's the way europe has handled it. and now europe is having to go to a shutdown.

i mean, what gives you confidence that this approach will work? >> i'll say first that we have to appach this pandemic and all pandemics with humility. we are learng each and every day about this virus. so we can never say 100% something is going to work. but here's why i think that we can -- we can in fact do better down the line. one is because you do see localities and states actually developing their own alert systems that tell them when to pull the trigger if you will on different precautionary measures. but there is confusion that we're hearing often from governors and from mayors. what they want is actually a national system of alert levels that they can tinker with and tailor a bit on their own. but one that gives them guidance. but the other challenge we have, judy, is that it's been tough for a lot of people to stick to this guidance. and i understand why. judy: let me ask you about a vaccine. as you know, an announcement from fiers this week that they have something they think is very effective with f.d.a. approval. they are saying they can distribute millions of doses --

we were hearing it at the white house in december, more in january. do you have confidence that the trump administration will handle this vaccine distribution fairly and correctly? >> we certainly hope that they will do a good job in getting the vaccine out quickly, fairly, equitably. but the truth is this is going to take more than just a couple of months. first of all, we don't have a vaccine that is received -- has received authorization yet. we had data that was issued earlier this week from pfizer about their candidate showing that it was promising. we've got to still wait for them to submit a vaccine for authorization. we've got to wait for the f.d.a. to review the data and once that happens, then we can start down the process of actually distributing this vaccine. but that's a process that will take months and that's why it's going to be very important for president-elect biden and his team to do what we've been doing, which is to build those plans and to be ready to execute the distribution of the virus on day one.

judy: rough timetable, though, do you think most americans will be able to get the vaccine in the spring? dr. fauci threw out late april the other day as a date. does that sound reasonable to you that more than frontline workers and more than the most vulnerable will be able to get it in the spring? >> well, i'll tell you this, judy. we don't know yet wt the exact time frame will be and part of the reason is it depends in part on when the vaccine is ultimately aroved. it depends in part on, you know, the logistics of distribution which means not just getting it to the states but all of the downstream processes after that of ensuring that the doctors' offices, hospitals, and other entities are ready to actually deliver that vaccine. our hope optimistically is that by the spring, we can start getting it beyond which would be melting care workers and people in settings like nursing homes. but that's a best estimate. i think we should be prepared

for the fact that it may take the better part of 2021 for us to get the vaccine to everyone in the country. and potentially beyond that depending on how this process goes. judy: and that's -- and i wanted to ask you about that because many americans are growing weary of this as you said a moment ago. how do you inspire and encourage, urge americans for their own sake, for their family members and loved ones' sake, to continue to take these measures that they should take for the health and safety of all of us? >> judy, i'm glad you asked that question. because look, i think all of us are having a hard time right now with where we are in this pammed. it doesn't matter -- pandemic. it doesn't matter whether you're a big part of a family or living on your own. it doesn't matter if you're wealthy or not so wealthy. all of us have had our lives turned upside down in some way and many of us have struggled more than others. and i think in this moment as hard and fatigued as people are , i think what's important for

us to realize is that there is hope around the corner. we do have good data from the first vaccine candidate and likely will have more vaccine candidates that turn up promising data in the months ahead. we have treatments that are starting to come on the scene which aren't game changers yet but they do help to reduce complications from thi virus. and we are getting better at figuring out how to prevent the spread of this virus. so we are learning more. we are going to be able to overcome this pandemic. but it's just going to take us a little bit more time. so we've got to lean o each other and support one another. there is no shame in feeling fatigued or feeling distraught about where we are. a lot of us are feeling that and we have to lean on and look out for each other during this very difficult time. judy: dr. vivek murth who is co-chair of president-elect biden's coronavirus task force. thank you. >> thanks so much, judy.

judy: as we heard earlier this afternoon, president trump made his first public statement since joe biden was declared president-elect. but -- but in the rose garden, mr. trump made no direct comments about the results. we turn now to "newshour's" yamiche alcindor who covers the white house and lisa desjardins for an update on the transition of power. yamiche, to you first. fill us in on what the president did have to say in the rose garden. yamiche: well, these were the first public remarks by president trump since he was declared loser of the 2020 election and came really close to acknowledging that there might be a biden administration. but stopped short of actually saying those two words together. we haven't heard him him acknowledge that at all and the president instead talked about the coronavirus vaccine and wanted to be congratulated by the fact that he believes 20 million americans ll be able to get the vaccine come this

december. he didn't acknowledge his own actions might be slowing down the coronavirus vaccine from getting to millions of americans because experts say his refusal to have official transition start is stopping the biden administration, biden transition team from going in and seeing exactly what needs to take place with that vaccine. another thing i've been talking to white house officials some of them on the coronavirus task force and they tell me that they don't want to get out ahead of the president. so as everyone is waiting for the president to process all sorts of things hang in the balance including the response to the coronavirus pandemic of this administration and of the next administration. judy: and lisa, we know that the biden team has been saying that it's so important for them to have the latest information on the vaccine. he's now been president-elect for a week. as of tomorrow, where do things stand? lisa: well, when you talk to the biden transition team, they tell you something that a lot of folks know, this is a man the president-elect who

literally knows his way around the situation room. he's very well equipped and has a large and long understanding of national security in general. but they really need those real-time threat assessments in order for them to plan out how to respond to them when biden takes over in january. they're not yet planning to sue or take legal action to get that transition authority talking to one senior advisor today, they told me, they think that the general services administration will come around and will ultimately give them that authority. there are others who are worried about it, though, like former white house trump chief of staff john kelly who said today that that lack of national security briefings for -- incoming president-elect biden is a real national security threat. judy, amid all this the biden transition is hiring. they are still holding interviews for top positions. we expect more announcements on personnel next week. i'm told not cabinet positions but other white house positions, a lot of us waiting

to see white house press secretary, things like that. judy: and meantime, yamiche, we know that the trump campaign is winding down. people starting to leave. any indication yet that the president may be getting closer to conceding? yamiche: well, president trump remains defiant. but we did get a little bit more information on what the time line could be of all of this. the president told "the washington examiner" newspaper that it could be two to three weeks of him continuing these legal battles. he said, quote, never bet against me. he also was talking about the legal battles there saying that he sees evidence but judy the judges that are seeing these cases have been throwing them out one after another. at least a dozen cases from the trump campaign have been dismissed. today, we saw pennsylvania and michigan, a number of lawsuits being thrown out. in michigan, in particular, a judge said there was no credibility. the trump campaign was not meeting their burden of proof. and that they were presenting geralized arguments. now, my sources and people that i've been talking to in the biten campaign and the trump campaign, they say this could

all be a head in december because that's when the electoral college votes and after that, that people on the biden campaign say things will be ratcheted up and there will be -- and legal squareoff then. judy: and back to you, lisa. on the biden transition, we have heard a little bit about appointments, the white house chief of staff. we learned the other day. but what are you learning in terms of what they'll do on day one? we just spoke with dr. vivek murthy who is working on the covid task force. but what else are we -- are you learning? lisa: for the biden transition these things are hand to hand and they're thinking about who can enact their policy more than necessarily the person's resume. so when you talk about those policies on day one, as we heard from, now newly appointed or newly named white house chief of staff, will be ron klain. he said last night, things that they will -- that they plan to do on day one are pretty big. things like re-entering the paris climate accord. rejoining the world health

organization. on immigration, we're talking about things like a status for daca. those dreamers who were brought here as children and perhaps even some orders about deportations, maybe freezing deportationshile they study the issue further. so this -- this operation is right now getting that paperwork ready even as it hires people to implement those policies at the same time. and that's my cat. judy: nothing slowing down. we heard that. good to know. lisa desjardins reporting on the biden camp. yamiche alcindor at the white house. thank you both. stephanie: i'm stephanie sy with "newshour" west. while -- we'll return to judy woodruff and the full program after the latest headlines. governor steve sisolak of nevada said today that he had

tested positive for covid-19. the 66-year-old democrat is the fifth governor to report a positive test this year. sisolak says he was not experiencing any symptoms. nevada today reported its hight single day total since the start of the pandemic. at least seven people have died in nor carolina, in flash flooding triggered by tropical storm eta. roads and bridges were swept away after some places were inundated with as much as 10 inches of rain. one person also died in florida. meanwhile, tropical storm iota has formed in the caribbean. it's expected to become a hurricane late sunday as it barrels toward central america. the death toll from the catastrophic typhoon in the philippines has now risen to at least 42 people. 20 others are still missing. more than 400,000 people were evacuated. cleanup efforts are now under way. floodwaters have started to recede. residents able to return to their homes found virtually

everything coated in mud. in ethiopia the united nations is warning of war crimes amid conflict between the central government and regional rebel leaders. hundreds of civilians have been killed in the northern tigre state this week in what amnesty international has called a massacre. the u.n. estimates more than 14,000 refugees have fled to nearby sudan. they spoke of the heartbreak of leaving their homeland. >> i left my mother in a church. she's an elderly woman. my brother is blind. we left him there as well. there's no food or water. everyone ran away and on the way, we found murdered people with weapons and axes and knives. that's why we ran. what were we to do? we want to save ourselves. judy: the ethiopian government insisted they're striking only military targets of tigre forces. seven pharmaceutical companies leading the worldwide search for a covid-19 vaccine have been targeted by cyber attacks.

microsoft said today it detected intrusion from stayed-backed russian and north korean hackers. most attempted to steal log-in credentials. microsoft was able to block a majority of the attacks but acknowledged some of the break-in efforts were successful. the targeted companies weren't identified. an historic first in major league baseball. and the entire u.s. sporting world. kim ng has become the first female general manager of an mlb franchise. after being tapped to lead the miami marlins. she is also believed to be the first female g.m. of a men's team in any of the major american sports leagues. the 351-year-old has spent her entire profession -- the 51-year-old has spent her entire profession with the mlb and has won three world series. and a passing to note, football legend paul hornung died in louisville, kentucky, after a battle with dementia. dubbed golden boy, the halfback led the green bay packers to four nfl chamonships in the early 1960's. he also won the 1956 heisman

troich in college at notre dame. and in 1986, he was inducted into the pro football hall of fame. hall hornung was 84 years old. still to come on the "newshour" th judy woodruff, the coronavirus complicates efforts to counteract alarming infant mortality rates in pakistan. mark shields and david broorks analyze the impact of the president's refusal to concede. we remember some of the many remarkable lives lost to covid-19. plus much more. announcer: this is the "pbs newshour." from weta studios in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. judy: a new study from the world health organization and the centers for disease control shows that measles cases in 2019 reached their highest number in 23 years.

health officials blame the rise on a significant drop in vaccination rates. we may soon see other preventable diseases spike, too. childhood immunization rates have dropped sharply during the pandemic. special correspondent began reporting today's story early this year. focusing on one group working to improve child health in pakistan. it is part of fred's series, agents for change. and a warning, some viewers may find graphic images in this segment unsettling. reporter: we filmed these images just before the pandemic outside a karachi public hospital one typical morning where hundreds of people waited for hours just to see a doctor. months into the pandemic, the throngs are still lining up. many people not wearing masks. despite that, the virus seems to be under control in pakistan.

>> covid has not devastated like most countries. reporter: i reached asan rabani on his phone. back in january we visited a project he leads in hospitals across pakistan that's aimed at reducing the country's high infant mortality rate. after a spike in covid infections in june, public health experts credit targeted localized lockdowns and luck for helping flatten the curve in pakistan. crowded nation of 220 million. that's been a huge relief in an underfunded, overwhelmed public health system. rabani heads the child life foundation started seven years ago by a group of business leaders who stepped in to help the decrepit public hospitals deal with emergency care for young children. one out of every 20 pakistani children doesn't make it to age

5. the vast majority die before their first birthday. these children are not dying because of pneumonia or diarrhea. these children are dying because a societhas yet to decide that their lives are worth saving. reporter: he says pneumonia and diarrhea are treatable and preventable through better hygiene and immunization. but it's public indifference that allows them to claim hundreds of thousands of children's lives every year in pakistan. >> i'll tell you what's the most difficult part when i go to mothers. it shakes you when you see a mother in pain. reporter: on the front lines, our staff of the neonatal intensive care unit. the nurse who disconnects life support from an infant who didn't make it. the doctor who must disclose this to an exhausted mother. daunting as the images are, the recovery rate has greatly

improved since set up this pediatric emergency room particularly among the most critical patients. >> the survival rate was less than 20%. now it has quadrupled to 90% plus. and it happens because of training, availability of doctors, systems, medicines, and a second doctor's opinion through telemedicine. reporter: cameras in every resuscitation unit are connected to doctors in this virtual exam room. they work 24-7 with frontline providers across child life's network of hospitals. the pandemic has added stress and expense. things like personal protective gear and plexiglas separators in the cramped neonatal intensive care units. and child life staff had its own covid issues. >> 28 people on the staff who contracted covid. but it went on. reporter: fortunately all the

staffers recovered. while pakistan overall has been spared, there's fear the pandemic has made children more vulnerable to easily treatable infections that come from the conditions so many live in. immunization rates were already low in pakistan. and they've dropped 25% during the pandemic. >> that's a very real risk, especially for things like typhoid and measles and even polio. and the fear that is we may have gone back a couple of years to get back to the same level of immunizations. reporter: that could mean more patients like this 7-year-old boy brought in during our earlier visit. unconscious and shivering uncontrollably. dr. s suspected it was meningitis, something that's easily preventable with a vaccine that's recommended in infancy in developing countries. two injections in quick succession stabilized his condition. the doctors irene casmy, the next challenge was to coax his parents to consent to a spinal

tap, extracting a sample of spinal fluid to confirm the diagnosis and inform future treatments. they listen and ask to have a family consult. >> after 10 minutes, no. sorry. we are not allowing you. reporter: they had heard of a case where a spinal tap was fatal, they told her. their decision could put the boy at risk for a range of future complications. the problem is not just the parents' lack of education. >> basically it boils down to trust. >> exactly. >> and a lot of patients here don't trust the system. >> yes. reporter: child life tries to build that trust by building relationships beyond the emergency visit. parents' phone numbers are recorded when they come in so text reminders can be sent when the children need shots. but particularly important now with the pandemic. on our prepandemic visit, she

told us her four children are up to date on their shots and still recently had to rush her then 7 month old kadija into the emergency room with acute diarrhea and vomiting. the problem is not poor hygiene she said. but poverty itself. >> we have four families that share the space. it's hard to maintain cleanliness and hygiene. she's a child. she's small. e crawls around, picks up stuff, puts it in her mouth. life is very tough. we've got nothing. reporter: >> 20 houses and every third house had a child under 5 die, you believe that children die. so if you reduce ininfant mortality through preventative and curative measures people have fewer children. reporter: there's hardly a higher priority he says in what is already the world's fifth most populous nation.

judy: fred's reporting is a partnership with the undertold stories project of the university of st. thomas in minnesota. and now to the analysis of shields and brooks. that is syndicated columnist mark shields and "new york times" columnist david brooks. hello to both of you on this friday night. we haven't seen you since the election was declared. joe biden was declared the winner, mark. so what do you make? we have to ask you, what do you make of the result and how some of these final states went? arizona, georgia, and the others? mark: well, i think i predicted every one of them, judy. no. i guess i'm not surprised. surprised at the margin. and the margin -- that it was so close.

and i think that in retrospect, reflection, the campaign of donald trump deserves enormous credit for identifying and motivating and turning out voters who were not regular voters. and gave trump the number of votes he had. and probably made the difference almost surely in the republicans picking up house seats and retaining the senate. but the victory, it was rather remarkable to be here in washington at the time. it had a v.j. day quality to it. i mean, not that dimension. victory over japan in world war ii. but sort of a sense of public exhilaration. people smiling. just a good will which had to be -- rather unsettling to the president as he came back from the golf club because he had to go right by it in lafayette park. judy: right. mark: and to see this sense of

iety and new year's eve festivity that was felt. judy: david, what did you make of the result, of the call, the final call? how it ended? david: well, there was people playing glory days, spring steeng song, and so at least in urban america, there's a lot of joy. five points is a pretty good victory. bigger than he thought it would be on election night. or thereabouts. and so it's a good biden win. i happen to think joe biden was the only democratic nominee who could have won this election. there was a lot more pro-trump support than we thought. there was not a great pro-democratic patera nake support as much as we thought. i think the democrats need to get over this idea that they are the emerging majority idea that. idea has been around because of demographic things or other things. and there's been an assumption that demograhpy on our side and that's not going to happen. we are going to be a pretty 50-50 country. i believe the change when i see it.

and it's becoming more polarized on education with democrats becoming the party more and more of the college educated, the republicans becoming more and more the high school educated. and geography, the urban, rural divide is wider than ever. and so we are just locked in to some sort of either gridlock or compromise. we'll see. but it's 50-50 almost. judy: mark, what about that? you mentioned that the democrats didn't do as well as they thought they would in the senate or in the house. they lost in the house. mark: yeah, that's right, judy. and david makes a good point. this has been a year of expectations. if you recall, and raised expectations. donald trump raised the expectations going into the first debate that vice president biden was non-compassed and he couldn't finish a sentence and fall asleep on the stage. none of which of course happened. vice president biden handled

himself well, prevailed. and that may have been the defining event of the fall campaign. democrats had expectations, great expectations about winning the senate, about enlarging their house majority. all of which came - came up quite short. and i think the argument that one party control is strong, that there was a resistance to that, that the republicans made the case, and i think just language like defund the police really came back to haunt democrats. and hurt them in suburban and marginal districts. and i think you'll see a fractiousness and a division that's already there within the democratic houseaucus, within the demoatic party at large over ts. and there isn't a natural democratic majority that is

inevitable in the country. and i think that was a lesson to be learned on noach 3. -- november 3. judy: david, is there a way to put a finer point on? the country is divided you're saying and not a natural democratic majority so what do we have? david: well, we probably have gridlock. but i hope not. you know, i spent a bunch of this week calling around the senate speaking to senators like mitt romney and asking him is there any way to get 60 votes around some issues so we can pass some things and help some people? and romney came up with a whole bunch of topics that, you know, dreamers. the immigration. some budget stuf some immigration -- helt care stuff, prescription drugs and other aides came up with national service, infrastructure, and so there's at least an eagerness on the part of a lot of senators to actually vote for legislation. something they've not been allowed to do under mitch

mcconnell and pass things. will mcconnell allow votes to come to the floor? will he cooperate and play ball? nobody would bet on that. but i'm struck by a desire to get out of the stuckness that has marked legislative bodies for the past couple of years. judy: interesting about what romney said. but speaking of mitch mcconnell, mark, he is staying with president trump's insistence that he's not only within his rights to challenge the election. he's not conceding. that he needs to pursue every legal avenue. and in fact republicans are virtually in lock step. only a few of them don't support the president. what -- lasting impacts of that, is it just -- are we going to be over it soon? what do you see? mark: judy, donald trump is going out as a sore loser. i think he's making a serious

mistake. and is -- his future obviously is not bright. he can talk about 2024 but an awful lot of investigations and judicial action between now and 2024. but mitch mcconnell is kind of fascinating. if you go back to december of 2008, which i did, and free to look at it, the senate had a sendoff for joe biden who had just been elected vice president and senators made their statements. mitch mcconnell wrote his own statement. it was quite moving. and quite personal. about joe biden and that joe biden was a rare creature who could reach across the aisle to jesse helms, strom thurmond or to me and became my friend. i think this will be tested. i really do. i think he'swfully -- he's key. he's important in this. and one thing that was lost in the campaign is that joe biden is one of the great retail

politicians inform generation. he is wonderful with people. people of all sorts. he was deprived of that -- we never saw it. we never saw him with people in the campaign. they ran a good campaign, a disciplined campaign. but i think when you get joe biden in the white house, as president, and bring in those personal skills together, i think the chances are improved and i'm more optimistic, i guess, maybe than david is. judy: and david, i want to ask you about the biden prospects. but just quickly, on the president's refusal to concede, is this something that leaves a lasting scar or or does it go away quickly or what do you see? david: i think trump has left a lasting scar the whole entirety of the presence of trump has left a lasting scar on the norms of the way we kneel about each other and dictators around the world are happy to see an american president denying election results that. gives them encouragement and

gives them a set of norms they can hue to. you know, i expect him to go. you can feel the air coming out of the balloon, the stages of grief, what is it, denial, then rage, and then acceptance, with trump there's more rage and more denial. but you feel the republicans walking away rightly or wrongly just not wanting to get in front of the train and push him out. that's the wrong metaphor. but you feel him losing -- losing momentum. and i do think he will eventually whimper out. probably without ever admitting defeat. and probably without attending joe biden's inauguration. but that is the way the man is. judy: wondering about that. and david -- i just wanted to ask david on biden's prospects. to respond to mark what you said a moment ago. david: i maintain my posture of

unrealistic optimism and i do think there is some chance of working together. you look at the people joe biden is hiring. they're experienced. ron klain is chief of sta. experienced at pandemic fighting. experienced at washington. and you look at the people running the task -- the covid task force, vivek murthy, the former surgeon general, on that task force. we're just getting an a-team. with trump, we never got the republican a-team. with biden, it looks like we're going to get the democratic a-team so that mass to make you feel -- that has to make you feel good. judy: dr. murthy, used the term humility several times. mark, i interrupted you. go ahead. mark: just following up on the point of president trump, here in washington, judy, power is the perception of power. i think you got power, and david thinks you got power, people -- you have power. and that -- that -- that's the reality now.

you can feel the power has moved from donald trump to joe biden. and the world has called. ered juan has -- erdawan has called. kim jong-un is on the line. and writing a letter to joe biden. but he and putin are the holdouts. the bitter enders. but that's the reality. that the power has left donald trump. and so the question, when does that reality set in with him? judy: and david, to put a punctuation mark, you see it coming. david: yeah. i don't think -- i don't know if it will be before inauguration day. but republicans are beginning to urge trump to give biden the intelligence briefings and as they begin to do that, that's just part of a process of withdrawal. judy: and we will see about the

inauguration. david brooks, mark shields, on this friday night. we thank you both so much. david: thank you. judy: as covid-19 continues to take a heavy toll on our communities, we again take a moment to honor those who lost their lives to this deadly virus. >> mario aranda's life was to empower people his family said raised more -- mormon in chihuahua, mexico, mario emigrated to utah in 1959 where he met his wife of three decades. his work in ling guys particulars then took him to chicago -- ling guys particulars -- linguistics took him to chicago. his marriage ended in the 1990's and in berkeley,

california, mario found love a second time. he and his partner had 20 years together. the spiritual father of seven enjoyed hiking, swimming, meditating, and like his mom, he was a voracious reader. mario was 79. those who knew 69-year-old david d. swart sr. described him as a simple man who worked hard every day for his family and friends. a lifelong resident of upstate new york, he served as a lieutenant and 30-year veteran of the amsterdam fire department. when he wasn't putting out fires, he was making hotdogs at his restaurant. dave's dogs. and devoting time to his family. his son said dave loved big and was a first responder in both work and spirit. always showing up for those in need.

growing up in the philippines, want g to go into medicine. in 1993, salud or sally moved to california to work in nursing. for more than two decades, sally was a bedside nurse at st. mary medical center where her husband also worked. the two were high school friends in the philippines and married in 2000. described by her husband as sweet and laid back, sally was 51 years old. born and raised in brownsville, texas, 60-year-old juan carlos wanhel was known as the fixer. juan who went by charlie fixed cars for a living. neighbors and family called him the honest mechanic. and said he never overcharged for the job. he shared his passion for machinery with his four daughters, teaching them about engines and welding. one of them went on to become a mechanical engineer.

jim goulding served as a united methodist chaplain, professor and dean over his three decades at mackmurrya college in jacksonville, illinois. he continued teaching in retirement of after the 9-11 attacks he created courses on islam to foster dialogue and understanding of the religion in madison, wisconsin. jim also led sunday school classes and enjoyed traveling with his wife of 51 years. a beloved father and grandfather, jim was 83 years old. thank you to the family members who shared these stories, so important as we tell the lives of your loved ones. our heart goes out to you as they do to all tse who've lost loved ones in this pandemic.

judy: no matter what age you are, it has undeniably been a year of many firsts. between covid and the election of the first woman vice president, 2020 will be a year for historians to examine and dissect for decades to come. tonight, biographer and historian janice nimora shares her humble opinion on how we can all help shape the story that's taught to future generations. this essay is part o our ongoing arts and culture series, canvas. >> i started keeping a journal in 11th grade. it was an assignment for english class but once i got going i discovered what all writers know. most of the time you write not to set down you what think, but to figure out what you have to say. what you've written becomes part of your personal history. i can go back to that green notebook and remember what it felt like to be 16. i've been keeping a journal

ever since. you see, the rhetoric of powerful people can persist for millennia. but that kind of writing is a polished mask for an audience. journals on the other hand are scribbled in private and full of naked feelings. they preserve the voices we don't usually hear, very young, the elderly, the powerless. for biographers like me who seek treasure in archives, those are the most precious finds. and this is a critical moment to keep one. 2020 is a year none of us will forget. filled with grief, rage, confusion, and also termination, generosity, and hope. we have a lot to process. and what we write in this moment will capture it. we may not ever forget 2020. but our written voices will tell our great grandchildren the story of right now. and possibly help them face the crises of the future. so keep a journal. find a notebook or jot notes on your phone. write about what you had for

dinner. write about what makes you angry. write about what you want. or if you don't feel like writing, draw. paste in a photo of your cousins on zoom or of a protest or your best friend wearing a mask. on the first page of my 11th grade journal, i wrote, this is just for me. write like no one is watching. that is, write like no one is watching right now. someday, an historian or your own great grandchild may lift your notebook from a dusty shelf or open a file on a forgotten hard drive and read your words with growing excitement. they will hear your voice, reacting to the turmoil of 2020. figuring out what to feel. and they will learn something from it. just as you learned something about yourself when you wrote it. judy: such good advice from janice nimura. we thank you. and before we go, tonight, i want to take a moment to remember my dear friend and co-anchor gwen ifel.

it's hard to believe tomorrow marks four years since she passed. because there have been so many days when we ask, what would gwen do? she has inspired countless young journalists to keep up her legacy and we are grateful many of them are today part of our "newshour" family. as we come close to the end of a busy year of news, we like to think that she's looking over our shoulder and smile. -- smiling. thankfully that smile remains on a u.s. postage stamp that we expect to see a lot of over the holidays. find it and put it on your notes and letters this christmas. and that's the "newshour" for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. have a great weekend. thank you. please stay se. and good night. announcer: major funding for the "pbs newshour" has bee provided by -- >> when the world gets complicated, a lot goes through your mind. with fidelity wealth management, a dedicated advisor can tailor advice and

recommendations to your life. that's fidelity wealth management. announcer: consumer cellular. johnson & johnson. financial services firm raymond james. bnsf railway. >> the william and flora hewlett foundation. for more than 50 years, advancing ideas and supporting institutions to promote a better world. at hewlett.org. >> supporting social entrepreneurs and their solutions to the world's most pressing problems. skolfoundation.org. announcer: and with the ongoing support of these institutions. and friends of the "newshour."

and by contribution to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. this is "pbs newshour" west. from weta studios in washington and from our bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.]

tonight on kqed newsroom. we speak with california lieutenant governor about the rise of women in politics. and the state's response to the coronavirus pandemic. and we dig into the latest on the covid vaccine hunt. when one would be available in california and who would be first in line. plus a look at something beautiful. we take in the major red retrospective of a pioneering artist. welcome to kqed newsroom. president trump continues his sa