judy: judy: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, chaos and consequences -- the house urges the vice president to invoke the 25th amendment, setting the stage for impeachment proceedings. we speak with leaders from both sides about this moment. then, getting the vaccine -- the glacial pace of the u.s. inoculation campaign raises questions about priorities and unrealistic expectations. and, rethinking college -- the many economic hardships wrought by the pandemic disproportionately affect students of color at colleges nationwide. >> anything that takes your attention away from going to class, studying, spending time with the material, ends up being a factor that could really impact your ability to continue

as a student. judy: all that and more on tonight's "pbs newshour." ♪ >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- >> architect, beekeeper, mentor. a raymondjames advisor taylor's advice to help you live your life. life well planned. >> for 25 years, consumer cellular's goal has been to provide wireless service to help people communicate and connec. to learn more, visit consumer cellular.tv. >> johnson & johnson.

bmsf railway. ♪ >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation. more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. judy: president trump is projecting defiance, as he faces his greatest political peril yet

-- an unprecedented second impeachment. he denied any responsibility today for the riot that engulfed the halls of congress last week. white house correspondent yamiche alcindor reports. yamiche: the nation still reeling. and president trump with no regrets. the president emerged in public for the first time since extremist supporters stormed the capitol. he rejected all talk of involuntary removal or a second impeachment. pres. trump: it's really a continuation of the greatest witch hunt in the history of politics. it's ridiculous. it's absolutely ridiculous. for nancy pelosi and chuck schumer to continue on this path, i think it's causing tremendous danger to our country and it's causing tremendous anger. i want no violence. yamiche: at his rally last wednesday, president trump urged the crowd to march to the capitol. he's since been denounced for inciting the mob. but today, he insisted his words have been "totally appropriate

rate that brought new condemnation from the senate's top democrat, chuck schumer. >> what trump did today -- blaming others for what he caused, is a pathological technique used by the worst of dictators. trump causes the anger, he causes the divisiveness, he foments the violence and blames others for it. that is despicable. donald trump should not hold office one day longer. yamiche: house democrats agree. tonight, they will vote on a resolution calling for vice president pence to invoke the 25th amendment and remove the president from office. the resolution states, "these insurrectionary protests were widely advertised and broadly encouraged by president trump." today, the house rules committee debated the measure. on full display, deep partisanship. maryland congressman jamie raskin and democrats demanded action. >> it's up to the vice predent and we're not trying to usurp his authority in any way.

we're trying to tell him that the time of the 25th emergency has arrived, it has come to our doorstep, it has invaded our chamber. they can help to lead us out of the nightmare we have been plunged into by this sequence of events. yamiche: but republicans, including ohio congressman jim jordan, echoed the president's claims of a witch hunt. >> let's be clear, democrats have been wanting to remove president trump from office since he won the election in 2016. they failed with the russia investigation, they failed with the mueller investigation, and they failed with their first peachment investigation. so, here we are again. yamiche: jordan also refused to say whether president-elect biden won the election fairly. for his part, vice president pence has signaled he is not open to using the 25th amendment. instead, last night, he and the president met after days of not speaking. they reportedly agreed to work together for the remainder of their term.

toda president trump said, "the 20 for the amendment is no risk to me." but, democrats said tomorrow they will vote on impeachment. at the same time, more details emerged about president trump's real-time response to the assault on the capitol. "the washington post" reported that the president ignored pleas for help from lawmakers. instead, he chose to watch the violence unfold on tv. and a report by "axios" said he blamed anti-fascists -- or antifa -- for the violence. there is no evidence to back up that claim. but defenders of the president keep repeating it. the hunt for those who assaulted the capitol is also in full swing. >> even if you have left d.c., agents from our local field offices could be knocking on your door if we find out you were part of the criminal activity at the capital. state capitals are bracing for

new violence. the fbi indicated that in the coming days there could nationwide protests by armed groups. in michigan, attorney general dana nessel says the state capitol is still "not safe." that comes despite a new rule banning the open carry of firearms. today, the fbi also met with other federal agencies and pentagon leadership on inauguration security. and, senators received a briefing from the secret service and the departments of defense and homeland security. back at the u.s. capitol, yet more fallout. three lawmakers have now tested positive for the coronavirus. they were part of a group hunkering down during the capitol siege with republicans who were not wearing masks. video shows some even refusing masks handed out during e lockdown. the president also faces fallout of a different kind, from big business.

today, deutsche bank -- the biggest lender to his companies -- said it will have no more dealings with him. judy: yamiche joins me now for more, along with our congressional correspondent, lisa desjardins. new developments now as the house moves closer to that send impeachment process. tell us what you are learning. >> the number three republican in the house, liz cheney, has announced e will vote for impeachment. she wrote, "the president of the united states summoned this mob, assembled of this mob, could have intervened, but did not." under the republican's voting for impeachment. he wrote, donald trump encouraged this insurrection. the new york times reporting that mitch mcconnell, the senate republican leader, is on board the idea of impeachment and does not want to speak to president trump anymore. that is major news. mitch mcconnell and some of the people around him are some of

the most disciplined in washington. for that to leak out is significant. the mood at the capital is very tense. those supporting the argument -- but it does seem this crack in the republican party is opening up to a chasm. some allies including republican leader kevin mccarthy, are now giving permission to members to vote their conscience on this issue. that is a very big deal. this vote could move along quickly. i am told house republicans do not have any plans to throw procedural hurdles in the way tomorrow. judy: these are gigantic political development. thank you very much. as we have said, we will be covering this all starting tomorrow morning. separately, to you, yamiche, the fbi did all that briefing today. tell us more about what they are

saying about what happened last week. yamiche: today, the fbi and federal authorities made it very clear that they are going to track down and charge anyone involved in the siege of the capital. they said they are treating this like an international terrorist connection. they said they are looking at so many different people, expecting that this will be hundreds of cases. right now, they have about 170 cases open. they say that the charges range from felony murder all the way down to simple trespassing. they also say they are looking at national security, male. they say they have already been in dallas, jacksonville, cleveland, rounding people up for this. they made it very clear that if people were involved in this, you could end will be charged. the people we were briefing

today, they were not the fbi director or head of homeland security. there is a big question as to whether the top officials will come before the public to speak out. judy: fascinating. we know that you are following what happened at the white house. you have been talking to people. what is he saying privately? what is he known to believe privately about how much responsibility he has for all of this? yamiche: despite a bipartisan push now to impeach president trump, he says he has no regrets. he is spreading disinformation and saying things that are false. the president believes that everything he said on wednesday before these people came and attacked the u.s. capitol was

totally appropriate. let's remind people he said the word fight or fighting in that speech more than 20 times. he told people to march to the capital. he is also spreading the disinformation that this was not his supporters, but this was antifa, anti-fascist, a group he has made up all sorts of information about. the fbi says there is no evidence this was antifa, in fact this was trump supporters at the capital. they were wearing his name am aware in his logo. what you see is president trump trying to deny and deflect that he has anything to do with this. today he said that the 20 for the amendment, he has no riskf being hurt by that. he feels that the only way he could be impoverished -- could be punished about this is through impeachment, not through vice president pence taking any action. judy: we thank both of you for

more excellent reporting. ♪ and now we'll hear from members on both sides of the aisle about the house plan to impeach president trump a second time. we start with representative val demings, a democrat and a member of the judiciary and homeland security committees. she joins us now. what is your understanding now on the disposition of the house when it comes to the impeachment vote? rep. demings: this past week has been an unbelievable week starting with what happened, the attack on the capital last

wednesday. it would be great if president who are vice president trump would invoke the 25th amendment where he can remove a president immediately. obviously, it does not appear he has an appetite for that, but the house is ready to move with impeachment. tonight, we will move on the resolution asking vice president pence to invoke the 25th amendment. judy: you were very involved in the first impeachment process against president trump a little over a year ago. how will this would be different? is it easier, is it harder? rep. demings: it is really about holding the president accountable. no one is above the law. we know how the impeachment hearing and trial went last year. the president should have been

held accountable, he was not. but let's fast-forward to last wednesday. we were engaged in certifying the electoral votes, which is part of the peaceful transition of power, and members were attacked by an angry mob that was incited by president trump. the president knew or he should have known that his actions and words, or the actions and words of his enablers, would have incited his followers to violence. what is the difference? five people died last wednesday, including a u.s. capitol police officer who was just trying to do his job to keep the capital safe and to keep us safe. judy: what do you say to the arguments out there among some republicans that he has only got 7, 8 days left in office as president, what good does it serve to make this move?

rep. demings: i go back to the vice president could remove him immediately, and a portion of the cabinet. they have chosen not to do that. us fulfilling our constitutional responsibility has nothing to do with the clock. the president incited a riot, he incited people to try and come to the capitol and overthrow the government to prevent us from doing our work. he has to be held accountable for that. this is about accountability. since the vice president will not invoke the 25th amendment, that leaves us with impeachment. we are going to live up to our constitutional responsibility and we will be having that vote tomorrow. judy: since democrats are in the majority, it sounds as if there

is nothing to stop the impeachment vote from passing. i want to ask you about what happened last week. do you now believe that there was inside help for the rioters, either from law enforcement or from members of congress? rep. demings: first of all, let me say that the united states capitol, those officers on the front lines, did an amazing job considering they were understaffed, did not have adequate resources or support from other agencies. however, once the capital was breached, it does appear that some of the rioters knew exactly where they were going. there were offices, as you heard earlier, that are unmarked. many members do not know where those offices are but rioters certainly knew where to go. we will be looking into everything. as you know, there are several

investigatns into who had a part in coordinating this vicious and violent attack. judy: for the members of congress who spoke at the rally, encouraging the crowd who showed up in washington last week? rep. demings: members who said things like taking names and kicking ass? i think if you look at statements that were made during the rally, and then immediately, the crowd marched down to the capital and tried to do just that, breaching the capital. you have heard the threats against the vice president and others. so, certainly, any member of congress who may have participated in this effort to overthrow the government, five

people dead, one of them a police officer, certainly must be held accountable along with the president of the united states. judy: what does that mean holding them accountable? rep. demings: the investigation has to move forward so we can understand exactly what role they played. we know there will be internal investigations from the committee on ethics. they will be criminal investigations that are ongoing. once testimony comes in, witnesses come forward watching the video, learning exactly what role any member of congress played, they should be held accountable to the fullest extent. judy: congresswoman val demings, we will certainly be watching very closely tomorrow as this historic second moved to impeach president trump takes place.

thank you very much. rep. demings: thank you. judy: as you just are hearing, democrats are nearly unanimous in their decision to impeach president trump a second time. the question is what about republicans. congressman tom reed of new york is, among other things, the co-chair of the problem solvers caucus and he joins me now. congressman, thank you very much for joining us. where do things stand right now? we are hearing that there are at least two house members who will vote to impeach, congressman cheney, congressman cans anger debt congressman -- congressman kinzinger. where do you stand? rep. reed: i am adamantly opposed to impeachment. this is a very concerning time

for our country. this is not just about the events of january 6. this is also about our constitution. and what impeachment means, with regards to when someone is impeached, what that means to the institution of congress, institution of the executive branch. we have constitutional speech issues here. we need those investigations. that an an is why i am offering an alternative path with regards to censure, then continue down this path to see whatever accountable measures need to be deployed if any. judy: what about the comments by other republicans in the house like congresswoman cheney, jose because of the president's direct role in encouraging and inciting what happened in the capitol, he should be removed? rep. reed: i respect my colleagues. i think i have demonstrated over

the years, being a proud republican button working with proud democrats and having those dialogues. i think my colleague, liz cheney , mentioned this is a vote of conscience, this is about the constitution, one of those deep votes we have to reflect upon. i respect her conclusion but i disagree with it. it is based on my read of the constitution, my oath to the constitution. but also the snap impeachment, what that will do to future impeachments, free speech rights. even deplorable comments have to be looked at for the protection it provides for free speech. judy: are you surprised with the reporting that senate majority leader mitch is now in favor of impeaching the president? rep. reed: i have seen these reports and i have not seen commentary directly from senator

mcconnell. that is also the frenzy. i try to be a recent member of congress, take a deep breath and only comment on things that i know firsthand. i think these reports are coming from aids and other folks. rather than comment on news reports, i let them speak for themselves and most importantly try to listen and talk to the american people. now is the time to night the country, calm the country, not respond to commentary that may be erroneous. judy: i know a lot of people certainly agree with you about uniting the country. there are reports that among house republicans, your leadership is not lobbying you

to impose -- to oppose impeachment. rep. reed: we had a lengthy conversation the other day. i think they recognize that this is a vote of consequence, a vote based on constitutional principles. the republican party that i believe in, we are proud republicans, proud of our belief structure, and we have the responsibility to respect our colleagues. for colleagues who may be thkinghow do i use this for political advantage, as i said on the issue of the electoral boat, if you are playing politics with this coming now is not the time for this. now is the time to rise and lead the american people, not with political calculations but what is right based on the constitution and your heart and your conscience. judy: i hear you speaking about

censure. what do you believe president trump's future should be in the republican party? rep. reed: i think a lot is going to depend on between now and january 20. i think we will have to keep a close eye on it. i think the future of the republican party with president trump, the ideas and policies that he has inspired, is something we will have a continuation of a debate and be part of. i think will really have to keep anye on is how we get between now and the 20th to see how that legacy goes. at the end of the day, i encourage the president. i was among the first eight to endorse him. i know him as an individual. i encourage him at this point in time, get us through a peaceful transition, no more violence. lower the temperature, not rise. judy:re you saying it is important to watch what happens between now and the 20th because

you are concerned that he may do something? rep. reed: he has the ability obviously to influence millions of americans. we are getting reports of additional violence coming out. public reports on that. it is important just to see how everyone reacts right now. that is why i am also opposed to snap impeachment because i think that will add to the potential incitement of violence, people respond to that because we are rushing to this judgment. i encourage people, both sides of the aisle, now is not the time to raise temperature, now is the time to lower temperature and try to unite the country. obviously what the president does between now and the 20th is a very important piece of time to judge what future role he will have in the republican party, if any. judy: in a quick sentence, what do you want the president to say

to the american people, if anything? rep. reed: i would like him to read issue his commitment to a peaceful transfer of power and to lower the temperature and not encourage any additional violence. judy: representative m reed of new york, thank you for joining us. stephanie: good evening. we will return to judy woodruff and the rest of the program after these headlines. updating our top story as the house of representatives considers a resolution calling for vice president mike pence to invoke the 20 for the amendment. pence himself made clear that he does not plan to do so.

he said, i do not believe such a course of action is in the best interest of our nation or consistent with our constitution. he said it is not intended to punish or usurp, and called for lowering the temperature. president trump traveled to texas to showcashis signature border wall 8 days before he is due to leave office. he stopped outside the city of alamo, touting the wall project. most of the construction replaced outdated barriers already in place along that stretch. on the pandemic, the trump administration now says it's releasing all available vaccine to speed up inoculations. president-elect biden had called for just that step. the secretary of health and human services -- alex azar -- said today that faster production guarantees enough vaccine for first and second doses. secretary azar: we can now ship all of the doses that had been held in physical reserve with second doses being supplied by doses coming off of manufacturing lines with quality control.

going forward, each week doses available will be released to first cover the needed second doses, and then cover the needed additional first vaccinations. stephanie: federal officials announced that as of january 26th, anyone flying to the u-s will have to have a negative "covid" test, within 3 days of flying. we'll focus on all of this after the news summary. two men on federal death row have tested positive for covid-19, and federal judge has halted their executions, set for this week. separately, another judge stopped the first federal execution of a woman in nearly 70 years. he ordered a competency hearing. federal executions resumed last year after 17 years without one. president-elect biden is expected to oppose them.

late today, the u.s. supreme court upheld a federal rule that women must visit doctors or clinics in person to get abortion pills during the pandemic. by 6 to 3, the justices granted a trump administration appeal to enforce the rule. it is another action that the incoming bided administration could reverse. the supreme court of india today halted the implementation of agricultural laws that prompted farmers to blockade new delhi. for weeks, thousands of farmers have camped on major highways, insisting the laws will cut their income. some said today's court action is not enough. >> all farmers and all farmer organizations respect the supreme court. but, i find the supreme court's policy wrong. they have put on hold the laws and they think the farmers will leave this protest site. this will never happen, because we demand the repeal of the laws. stephanie: the court today ordered that a committee of experts be created to negotiate a solution. back in this country, twitter has suspended more than

70,000 accounts linked to the far right q-anon conspiracy theory. that's in the wake of last week's assault on the u.s. capitol. the social media giant says it is acting against online behavior that "has the potential to lead to offline harm". casino magnate and republican mega-donor sheldon adelson has died after a long illness. he was a billionaire who gave hundreds of millions of dollars to republican politicians, including president trump. he was also a strong pro-israel voice, and pushed for relocating the u.s. embassy in israel to jerusalem, which president trumpeted in 2018. sheldon adelson was 87 years old. still to come, the glacial pace of the u.s. vaccine campaign raises questions. the leaders of unicef and the world food program discuss a challenging year ahead. and the economic hardships wrought by the pandemic disproportionately affect college students of color.

>> this is the pbs newshour from w eta studios in washington and from the west at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. judy: operation warp speed may have produced effective covid vaccines in record time, but administing them has been another matter. the cdc says only about 9 million of the more than 25 million doses distributed have actually been given. as john yang reports, the trump administration today made big changes to the program. john: judy, health and human services secretary alex azar announced the changes. the administration will begin to release all the doses of the vaccine. they began by holding back approximately half because these

are two-shot vaccines, but officials are now confident the supply is sufficient. it's urging states to vaccinate anyone 65 or older and anyone with an underlying medical condition that could threaten their life if they get covid. it will send more doses to states that are vaccinating people more efficiently and it will encourage states to set up more places to get the vaccine this comes ahead of an expected announcement from president-elect joe biden on his vaccination plans. jennifer nuzzo is an epidemiologist at the coronavirus resource center at johns hopkins university. she joins us now. thank you for being with us. why make these changes? or why was it necessary for officials to make these changes now? and were these the right changes to make? jennifer: i think these changes reflect the fact that people are frustrated that vaccines are not rolling out as quickly as promised. initially, we heard by the end of the year that 20 million

americans would be vaccinated, and we are very far away from having achieved that all. the approach taken to give the vaccine to the highest priority group, it is still a good goal but it is not a methodical goal and will not achieve the numbers people were expecting. john: is there a risk or potential downsides to this new strategy? jennifer: one of the risks is that we open it up, we lose the ability to target the still limited vaccine supplies we have for the people we think are at highest risk of exposure. there are still a lot of people, particularly those 65 and older, who are at greatest risk of becoming hospitalized. you can see the real tension and trade-offs. john: we are sort of at an

inflection point with the change of administrations, a chance to rethink this strategy and perhaps make an bigger changes. are there things in particular that you would urge the bided administration or his people coming in to think about, approaching this program differently? jennifer: up until now, give them some high-level guidance and basically say good luck. that has not achieved what we needed to achieve. there is an opportunity to achieve a national strategy. to help states with this very audacious goal to conduct the largest vaccination campaign this country has ever done in modern history. recognizing that the federal government can't just take a light touch on this issue and really needs to dig in and help states.

the sooner our lives can get back to normal. john: you work with health-care workers at johns hopkins. i wonder if you can help lay people like myself understand what could be an oddity. the fact that there are at least anecdotally a large number of health care workers reluctant to take this vaccine. help us understand that. j■ennifer: this issomething we see every year. healthcare workers work in facilities surrounded by science. they are regular people and subjected to the same disinformation campaigns waging against the american public to discourage them from getting vaccinated. it is something we should have anticipated and should have planned on how to boost confidence and educate, and encourage people, the safety and benefits of being vaccinated but also again the threat that this

virus poses. that is another dimension seasonal influenza is not typically politicized at the same level covid-19 has. you have people who just openly denied the existence of the virus and deny it is a threat to them. john: how concerned are you that almost a year into this, this nation still has not been able to stem the roller coaster effect of new cases? jennifer: we are at the worst place we have ever been. the u.s. adds about a million cases at least every four days. you would think by this point we would have a better strategy for trying to control the virus. it is great that we have vaccines. it is a scientific gift that we have a vaccine now. but as you see, they are rolling out slowly.

we have to increase testing, make sure everyone who test positive are able to stay home so they don't infect others, we have to do more contact tracing so we understand in what environments this virus is transmitting, and we need to understand that anyone who is in contact with the cases can stay home. those efforts have really ground to a halt as of late. that is a dangerous place to be given the fact that we have not yet seen the full effects of what holiday gatherings will likely do to our case numbers. john: jennifer, an epidemiologist, thank you very much. ♪ judy: now, as the u.s. endures the rage of the post-election, and the ravages of the pandemic, we turn our sights overseas and to the ongoing calamities of

covid-19, hunger, privation, and the plights of children. here is amna nawaz with two leaders working to solve these crises. amna: even before the pandemic, feeding the world's hungry and helping children in need were enormous tasks. the coronavirus made those groups even more vulnerable. global conflicts have driven millions from their homes, spreading illness and famine in their wake. and impoverished nations are finding themselves at the mercy of wealthy ones, as the world works to find its way out of the pandemic. joining me now arewo heads of united nations agencies who dedicate their work to addressing those challenges. david beasley is the executive director of the world food programme, and henrietta fore is the executive director of unicef, the u.n.'s children's fund. thank you. david, when we last spoke, you were warning that the number of people on the brink of

starvation worldwide had risen to 270 alien -- 270 million during the pandemic. you have called on the world's wealthiest to step up and show they care. has it gotten better or worse? david: it has gotten worse in so many ways. the bad news is that the number of people including children, the number on the starvation is rising to 270 million people. the sad fact is that there is $400 trillion worth of wealth. during the pandemic, billionaires made 5.2 again dollars in increased wealth per day. all we are asking for is $5 billion to avert famine around the world. i don't think that is too much to ask. amna: henrietta, you have been issuing warning flags about what

children have gone through. a lost generation of children worldwide. what did you mean by that? henrietta: we have rising inequality, a distressing amount of new families falling into poverty. because of that, we worry a great deal about children. children are missing out on education, they are often going hungry. it means that many children will be losing out on the futures w had anticipated. if you lose the children, you lose your future in the world. there e many, many children right now that are suffering and we can do something about it. amna: one of the alarming stats from that report, at the end of last year, almost 600 million students were affected, the equivalent of one third of enrolled students on the planet.

some of those gaps that existed before are getting wider. can they be closed? henrietta: we think they can be. but you are right, this is a part of history we have never seen before with 1.6 billion children out of school during the pandemic. many schools have not reopened. what this means for a child as they miss the future, they miss the ability to learn, their friends, a safe place from violence. we have now is a world is enough technologies and enough understanding that we need remote in distance learning that we can do something about it. we have a once in a generation opportunity to connect every school and learner in the world to education. we could get this done in the next 3-4 years. we do not have to deal with this

as a world. we can overcome it. it is a real opportunity for us. amna: david, you mentioned getting the call out to the world's richest. what would it take in the coming days and months to meet the need? david: governments are really spread thin right now. we are not asking the billionaires to step up every year. but this year is truly a hunger pandemic with a covid pandemic. if the billionaires could step up, we will avert famine, avert destabization, and mass migration. that would cost illions of dollars. we are really asking the world's billionaires, just this one time, step up and show the world you care and you know that we are truly in this together and we can get through it together. amna: you and david have both

seen this on the front lines. you were actually in syria together, i understand, last year. but there is this crisis we are all dealing with. i want to ask you about these plans that unicef has outlined to transport 850 tons of covid vaccines per mth on behalf of covax. that is the global initiative to ensure vaccine delivery, goes to all of those with the greatest need. that has to be a massive logistical operation. henrietta: it is. we currently have about 2 billion vaccines that go through our doors. this is just for regular childhood immunizations. important immunizations against, let's say, measles and polio. we are anticipating another 2 billion vaccines will come through our doors for 2021.

we need to get those approved, allocated out to the country, get them into the countries, and make sure that the countries have ways to train health-care workers, that they have good allocation systems, and that they have good education, public awareness about what vaccines are, with a are for, what order, and where you get one. this is a massive undertaking we are taking as a world. the covax facility is looking after countries that are low or low and middle income. it is very important at this light at the end of the tunnel is a light that shines on everyone so we have to be able to allocate to all countries. amna: i understand you're both here in your capacity as united nations officials. but i would like to hear briefly from you on this moment of rest -- moment of unrest we have experienced back home.

david, as you are out on the front lines serving the world's neediest and trying to bring them back from the brink, what has it been like to witness the political violence back here? david: we see a lot of destabilization. when you see that on your own home front, it is heartbreaking. i think the american people need to settle down a little bit. we have so much to be thankful for. love your neighbor as yourself, as your equal. america is such an amazing nation. it gives us 3.75 dollars to help feed people around the world. america is great because america is good. if america ever ceases to be good, america will cease to be great. i am one of those that believes that the sun is rising and we have a great day and future ahead of us.

people need to come together. henrietta and i will do everything we can to make sure that happens. henrietta: one of the things i hope for in the future is that we really use american know-how. many of us come from the business sector and realize the strength in technology and people, ideas, and services in america. the world has a crisis before it. if there is anybody who is good at that, it is american industry and american know-how. if we can peer that with american ideas and ideals, it will help everyone. it means that we can bring a new era of how to look at humanity and how to look at civilization. amna: messages of optimism i think we could use right now.

that is the executive director of unicef, and the executive director of the world food program. thank you both. judy: let us turn to a different impact of covid -- on higher education. pically during a recession, community college enrollment goes up as unemployed workers start looking for new skills. but that is not happening now. it could mean trouble for the economy going forward, particularly for low-income students. hari sreenivasan has our story, part of our ongoing series, "rethinking college." >> erybody goes through those days where they just feel like, well, maybe i should just stop. maybe i ould just give up. maybe i should just say it's not even worth it. hari: it's been one of those days for andrew crowley, one of

those years. he's been trying to focus on his studies at columbus state community college, but his mom died of cancer recently. he hoped to make more time for schoolwork by reducing his hours at wal-mart. >> i tried to explain to them, well, i need to cut back some of my time so i'll be able to study. and they didn't really agree with me on that. hari: so, he says, they let him go. >> which kind of led me to be homeless. hari: crowley doesn't want you to feel sorry for him. he stuck it out, en says he maintained a's and b's while living in a shelter during a pandemic. but he came close to being part of a troubling statistic this fall. community colleges have seen enrollment plummet 10.1 percent compared to last year, nearly 21 percent among freshman, and almost a 30 percent drop for freshm who are either black, hispanic, or native american, in each group. the total loss at public two-year schools? more than 540,000 fewer students compared to last fall. put another way, more than the population of atlanta.

>> our students have life. hari: desiree polk-bland, columbus state's vice president for student affairs, says some of her colleagues took it as a red flag when crowley began to participate less in his classes. they persuaded him to share his troubles, then they got him a job at this campus-based food pantry and found him permanent housing. >> all of these factors interfere with being a successful student. anything that takes your attention away from going to class, studying, spending time with the material, ends up being a factor that could really impact your ability to continue as a student. hari: 56% of black and hispanic students have reported that covid-19 is very likely or likely to force them out of school, compared to 44 percent of whites. the national student clearinghouse research center, which tracks college enrollment, says the drop among freshman students in particular this fall was unprecedented. doug shapiro is the executive research director.

>> these are truly staggering drops just in terms of the quantities, the size of the declines. college enrollments generally have been slowly shrinking every year pretty much since the end of the great recession, but it's never been more than one or two percentage points. we've never seen anything like this, that is so large, and so -- anything like this. hari: only 13 percent of students who drop out return to college, according to the group >> these are often the most vulnerable and disadvantaged students who will have real difficulties ever getting back on track educationally. hari: there are the logistical challenges, like what liliana palafox faces. homeschooling and caring for her six-year-old daughter, without so much as a quiet space to study, that is when the internet connection actually works. >> the internet dropping, not connecting right away, having to move around the house to be able to get signal. and then also like my daughter or my husband sometimes using the hot spot, we share it. hari: then there are the deeper

inequalities the pandemic laid bare. >> my father passed away due to covid-19, while he was in the -- due to covid 19. >> tyler lopez's father was already in the hospital with multiple sclerosis when the pandemic struck. he died of covid-19 in the spring. lopez tried to channel his grief into schoolwork. he'a sophomore studying jazz drumming at new jersey city university. >> multiple times i thought about quitting, i thought about just, forget it all. hari: music kept him moving forward. >> the drums, that's what prevented it. my love for music. it is hard, but the lo outweighs the stress. hari: schools are doing what they can to keep students enrolled. lopez's school, new jersey city university, is a campus where the majority of students are minorities and many are from the lowest income bracket. the school provided loaner laptops and wifi hotspots for home-bound studies, in-person

classes for visual or high-touch programs, open dorms and libraries for those who need them, and socially distanced sports teams operating on a limited basis. but in a year like this, it hasn't always been enough, says jodi bailey, the school's associate vice president of student affairs. some students have simply disappeared. >> i worry about them because of rent, and i worry about them because of food. and i worry about them because of the medical issues that their milies have. we know that low-income and minority families in general don't seek out medical assistance as quickly as they should for a variety of reasons. covid could tear their families apart. i worry for them. >> then we should all take a break together. hari: melanie alvarez, a senior at california state university at northridge has felt nearly all of the pressure points, and one more. she was the first to graduate high school in her family, the first to go to college. all eyes have been on her.

>> when the pandemic happened, i think my brother and msister were all looking to me, like, okay, what is she going to do? is she going to drop out, is she going to stay in college? and it was hard to tell my brother, you know, you have to push through, because i also felt at one point that i didn't want to continue anymore. hari: alvarez says close friends and study partners have taken a break in recent months, but she decided to continue. the stakes seemed too high. >> my parents have always told me there's nothing that we can inherit to you, other than the education, other than motivation there's nothing that we can give to you. so, my parents' motivation to go to school was always number one, and i'm always looking out for my younger siblings. they are definitely following in my footsteps. hari: her brother recently enrolled in community college. so for now, alvarez says, she'll keep moving. the question is how many others will get stopped in their tracks. for the pbs newshour, i'm hari sreenivasan. judy: 75% of traditional college-age students report poor mental health tied to the pandemic. we'll examine the impact in our "rethinking college" series,

next tuesday. that is the pbs newshour test -- that is the "newshour" for tonight. i'm judy woodruff. join us on-line and starting at 9:00 a.m. eastern for our special live coverage of the second impeachment vote in the u.s. house for president trump. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you, please stay safe and see you soon. >> major funding has been provided by consumer cellular. bnsf railway, financial services firm raymond james. carnegie of new york, supporting education, democratic engagement, and international

peace and security. and with the ongoing support of these institutions. this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions from viewers like you. thank you. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.] >> this is pbs newshour west, from w eta studios in washington and from our bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university.

rrrrates: there's a lot of talk about borders these days. the city of tijuana sits right on the border of the united states. the only thing that separates it from san diego is this wall. with over 10,000 people going both ways everyday, this is one of the busiest border crossings in the world. people come from all over mexico and latin america in search of something new, something better. some cross the border, but others find opportunity right here in tijuana. and when people move, they bring their food, and that's the beginning to my favorite kind of story. in my kitchen, the border experience is an inspiration. first i'm going to recreate one of mexico's most popular tortas, sweet and succulent carnitas piled high on a crusty bread,