♪ judy: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight... haiti in crisis -- new details raise more questions about the assassins who killed the country's president. then... the fight for syria -- a critical vote in the u.n. security council decides the fate of the country's last humanitarian lifeline. >> as aid workers, we demand the international community separate human rights work from politics, and to avoid attaching policy gains to the distribution of humanitarian aid. judy: and it's friday. david brooks and karen tumulty examine the withdrawal of u.s. troops from afghanistan and the latest on the new york city mayor's race. all that and more on tonight's

pbs newshour. ♪ >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- bnsf railway. consumer cellular. johnson & johnson. financial services firm raymond james. >> fostering informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing suppo of these institutions -- and friends of the newshour.

♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. stephanie: we will return to judy and the full program after the latest headlines. police and haiti have arrested 17 men in connection with wednesday's assassination of president jovenel moise. authorities say 2 are u.s.-haitian citizens, and 15 are colombian nationals. most of them former soldiers. 9 suspects are believed to still be at large. the haitian government announced it has asked the united states and united nations to deploy troops to help stabilize the country. the u.s. is sending federal law enforcement officers from the fbi and homeland security

department to aid in the investigation. we'll get the latest after the news summary. search crews have pulled the remains of 15 more victims from the rubble of a collapsed condominium tower inurfside, florida. that raised the confirmed death toll to 79. 61 people are ill unaccounted for. the miami-dade mayor said they're working as expeditiously as possible to locate more victims. >> this recovery is moving forward with great urgency as we work 24 hours a day on the pile to recover victims and bring closure to all of the families still waiting. we want to bring them news as quickly as we possibly can. stephanie: workers were also able to find a cat who had lived on the building's 9th floor and survived the collapse, and reunited it with its family. the centers for disease control and prevention today encouraged schools to reopen fully now that students as young as 12 are getting vaccinated and deaths are declining. it also said that fully-vaccinated teachers and

students do not need to wear masks while in school. tonight, california health officials said it will require masks when classrooms reopen this fall. meanwhile, the cdc and the food and drug administration said fully-immunized americans do not currently need a booster shot. this despite an announcement by pfizer that it is seeking approval for a third shot. tropical storm elsa triggered flood warnings across the northeastern u.s. today as it barreled into new england. in new haven, connecticut, water was seen spouting from manhole covers. and in the new york city region, downpours flooded subways and streets. president biden today pressed russia's president, vladimir putin, to take action to disrupt ransomware attacks emanating from russia. the leaders spoke for an hour by phone, in the wake of a string of cyberattacks linked to russian hackers that paralyzed u.s. businesses. mr. biden warned the u.s. will, quote, "defend its people and its critical infrastructure."

president biden also signed an executive order today aimed at curbing the anti-competitive practices of big businesses. it includes 72 actions and recommendations to boost wages and increase consumer protections. before a signing ceremony at the white house, the president said the order targets abusive actions by monopolies. pres. biden: capitalism without competition isn't capitalism, it's exploitation. without healthy competition, big players can change and charge whatever they want, and treat you however they want. and for too many americans, that means accepting a bad deal for things that can't go -- you can't go without. stephanie: the biden and industry should -- the biden administration also announced u.s. immigration authorities will no longer detain most migrants who are pregnant or recently gave birth, reversing another trump-era policy. immigration and customs enforcement officials said the decision reflects their

commitment to treating individuals with dignity, while still upholding the law. in bangladesh, at least 52 people are dead after a fire broke out in a food and beverage plant outside dhaka. first responders worked to put out the flames and recover bodies after the fire engulfed the five-story building thursday night. fire officials said the main exit door was locked, trapping many inside. e taliban now claims to control 85% of the territory in afghanistan. while that's impossible to verify, their fighters have made strategic gains in recent months, as american troops pull out of the country. taliban leaders have promised not to attack provincial capitals. president biden named eric garcetti to serve as ambassador to india today. if concerned, he would be dispatched to india during an overwhelming covid-19 infections and death. garcetti has championed climate

change globally, including in india. back in this country, the city of charlottesville, viinia announced plans to take down its controversial monument to confederate general robert e. lee tomorrow. the statue sparked a violent white supremacist rally in 2017 that left a woman dead. a nearby statue of another confederate general, thomas "stonewall" jackson, is also set to come down saturday. workers began removing the security fencing that remains around the u.s. capitol today. the 8-foot-high fence was erected after the january 6 insurrection, and has beenn place for six months. still succumb on the newshour -- still to come on the newshour... covid casecontinue to strain hospitals in areas of the u.s. with low vaccination rates. the u.n. security council decides the fate of ria's last humanitarian lifeline. new analysis shows climate change driving extreme heat and drought in the western u.s. plus much more.

♪ >> this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington, and the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. ♪ judy: as we reported, haiti is leading an international investigation into the assassinatioof president jovenel moise. john yang has the latest. john: judy, the investigation is generating as many questions as answers. the 15 colombian nationals under arrest are former members of that nation's armed forces. eleven of them were captured after breaking in to the taiwanese embassy in haiti. meanwhile, the political storm is intensifying with competing prime ministers claiming the right to run the country. afr moise was assassinated, prime minister claude joseph announced a fifteen day state of siege. but a new prime minister appointed by moise -- ariel henry -- was supposed to have taken over that very day and says he's the rightful ruler.

to help us try to sort through this, we are joined by pamela white, a former u.s. ambassador to haiti. and garry pierre pierre, the founder of the haitian times, a newspaper serving the haitian diaspora. thank you to both of you for joining us. garry, haitian officials have arrested these 17 men. they say they are responsible, but they say it is not important who pulls the trigger, it is who pays for the bullets. given the president's service in office, does that give you any clues as to who may have paid for the operation? gay: we don't have a clue right now because there are many people you would consider being involved in something like that, but one of the things i want to rule out is this was not political. it is not a political hit, it is a personal hit, akin to a mob hit. this was about business.

he had encroached on the interest of powerful forces in haiti, and i think that is what got us there. john: ambassador, there is a new presidential election, constitutional referendum scheduled for september. the u.s. position appears to be that it should go forward. is that a good idea? pamela: i don't. unfortunately for many years, many places around the world, u.s. government and election is the answer to a very complicated problem. this is very complicated in haiti. anyone who was not haitian who says they understand haitian politics probably lying, and even though i spent five years of my life as a junior officer and three as an ambassador, i don't claim to be an expert either. but i am pretty certain that free and fair elections are not going to be able to take place in the current atmosphere in haiti. it is too violent, too chaotic,

and there is not any support from the players that are integral to making it happen. i don't see it. john: garry, talking about chaos, competing prime ministers, and if there is no election, are we in for a prolonged period of unsettled political situation in haiti? garry: i don't think so, the u.n. has made it clear they are supporting joseph as prime minister, as they said yesterday, and it is up to him to build a government and try to move forward. the u.n. seems to be willing to work with him. i agree 100%, and it was refreshing to hear ambassador white make those comments. exactly, the u.s. has been forcing democracy on haiti. the institutions have been too weak.

we need to not push the same game. and really talk to the stakeholders in haiti, people who want to make this place truly a democracy. that's why we come back here, talking abouthe same thing. we want to force this democracy. i am a haitian-american and i love democracy, but we have to real. at what point are we in this process to make sure that when haiti truly becomes democratic, can function in a democracy? john: ambassador white, i want to continue on that. the u.s. seems to only pay attention to haiti in times of crisis. coups, earthquakes, this assassination. you have president trump deriding haiti as shall we say not a pleasant place to live. there are also comments from senator biden from 1994 circulating. let's take a listen. >> a god-awful thing to say, if haiti quietly sunk into the

caribbean or rows of 300 feet, it would not matter a lot. john: ambassador white, is this an opportunity for the united states to reassess its policy toward haiti, and what should that be? ms. white: i absolutely think it is, and every time we look at haiti and we see turmoil, in terms of future crisis, but the last three years have disaster. not one of my haitian friends has not had someone in their family or circle o friends be murdered in the last three years. not one of my haitian friends has not had when they know kid napped. -- kidnapped. the place has dissented into chaos. what are we going to do about that? the elephant is in the room in haiti right now. food security, a third of the country is starving. physical stability and security. you cannot have an election when people are bei murdered.

there is no way to get to the polls or identify who should be going to the polls. this is craziness. the other one is covid. john: garry, the u.s. says the fbi is going to help investigate the assassination, they are also reports haiti wants u.s. troops for port security and other internal security. do you think that is a good idea? garry: i don't think so. i wrote a column this morning that asked for the biden administration to send in the fbi because i think that is a good thing, that are another thing. the haitiapolice force can provide such protection. there is no need for u.s. forces there. it evokes too many bad memories and people do not want that. it is not the thing to do. i do believe they need help. ambassador white knows this. the state department had a great

program with haitian-american police officers working in concert with haitian police. that program was working well until president trump dismantled that program. that was unfortunate. there are mechanisms in place at the state department, that they have in place to help. the defense department should not be the first move. i think state is a better place to handle the situation politically, and they can. we just have to make it a priority. john: garry pierre pierre and ambassador white, thank you. ms. white: thank you for having us. ♪ judy: the cdc's guidance for schools to fully reopen this fall -- and to allow fully vaccinated students to go without masks -- is yet another sign of how the u.s. is shifting its approach to the covid pandemic.

but even as the push for regular routines grow, the delta variant presents its own risks, especially to those who aren't vaccinated. some states in the south and midwest have low vaccination rates. stephanie sy looks at one dealing with a spike in cases -- missouri. stephanie: judy, missouri is one of those states where the delta strain is leading to a rise in cases. it's among the top five states when it comes to new cases and hospitalizations. missouri has reported nearly 7,600 newly confmed or probable cases in the past week. fortunately, the number of reported deaths remains low -- only seven confirmed in the past week. but there are regions, particularly in the southwest part of the state, where vaccination rates are well under 35% or 40%. hospitals in those areas are grappling with serious illness and a strain on sources. erik frederick is the chief administrative officer at mercy hospital in springfield, missouri.

thank you for beg on newshour. describe what you are seeing at your hospital and how it compares to the height of the pandemic last winter when many hospal were overwhelmed? erik: thank you for the opportunity. i was looking at the numbers earlier, and we had two surges, and we marked the current surges starting june 1, where our inpatients were 26 and now it is 128, the highest in the whole pandemic. last year, our peak started september 1 and it took us 150 days to make that same escalation. it is alarming to have your patient census with covid row that fast over such a short time. we have had plans in place the entire tim but the ability to deploy that plan has been the

strain on resources. stephanie: let's talk about that. what shortages if any have you experienced to care for these new patients? i understand that having enough ventilators has been an issue. erik: we certainly strained ventilator resources last week and pushed them to the edge. we have numbers we keep on hand , with additional resources like transport ventilators to move patients. we are able to reach out across our ministry, we have a system of multiple hospitals. we can lean on sister facilities for some resources. we saw a rapid escalation from thursday through saturday and it pushed up against our on hand inventory until we knewe would be utilizing the left ventilator, and we pulled that part of the plan out and rallied resources. they were delivered on time. the good news is we never had a gap where patients needed resources we did not have, but we had to act quickly. as of today, we have plenty on hand for the continued rise and

we can get to more if needed. stephanie: one about icu capacity, staffing shortages or those issues? erik: bed capacity, we have beds. we have stretched icus. last year we had one dedicated i see you for covid patients. now we have to stretch into a second. we have a third i seeou for non-covid patients. we just stood up a fourth i see you, a closed unit that had not been utilized in a while, so we stood that backup for flex capacity as well. it takes additional resources, equipment speared we have multiple -- equipment. we have multiple units for those that have covid but are less sex. ultimately is -- but are less sick. ultimately it is the staffing issue. people say, how can you be stressed when you have 800 beds? beds are not just beds, there is

specialized beds, and you get down to the number of beds you have to care for this type of patient, it is not all of the beds on the license on the wall. do you have the staff to put around that ed? you can have all of the beds in the world but if you don't have doctors and technicians and nurses, you are in a bad spot. stephanie: i am glad you have the staff. i saw you tweet that more than 80% of the patients in the icu are on ventilators. out of those cases and deaths, are those all unvaccinated people? erik: the percent of icu patients on ventilators is alarming my 80% is what i counter the other day. today we are a little lower, but still abov80%. last year, it was 40%. we keep a toll on who is vaccinated. less than 5% of our patients are

fully vaccinated. none of those patients to date have ended up in the icu at the highest level of care. even though some are vaccinated, they end up in the lower level of care, recovery and go home. i'm not aware of any that have died in our facility at this point. stephanie: erik frederick at mercy hospital in springfield, missouri, thank you. erik: thank you. ♪ judy: today the u.n. security council voted unanimously to extend a crucial aid operation for syria one day before it was set to close, after a deal between the u.s. and russia. the white house said presidents biden and vladimir putin discussed it on a phone call. but as nick schifrin reports, some humanitarian groups say the deal doesn't go far enough for the millions of syrians in desperate need.

nick: for syrian children near the turkish border, the only way to survive, is to search through scraps. ten-year-old mohammad adi begins every day at dawn. if he finds enough pieces of steel, he can eat. >> i collect and sell steel i find here so that i can afford to buy a loaf of bread. there's no one that can afford to spend money on us. we have to work so that we can spend what we earn on ourselves. nick: the children live here, in the nearby al amal camp. in northwest syria, desperation is everywhere. thousands of syrians who have come here after fleeing their homes say all they have left is god -- and the united nations. for the weathered, and the weak, whose houses were destroyed by airstres, this arid camp is now home. fahmy al-saud says if the last humanitarian aid crossing had closed, everyone would have turned to the trash -- not to trade steel, but for food itself. >> if they close the border, where will people go? they'll go to the landfills.

if they find fruit scraps they will eat them. they will eat out of starvation, that level of starvation. nick: in 2014, the u.n. security council approved four humanitarian border crossings into syria. in january 2020, russia used a veto threat to close two crossings. seven months later under pressure from russia and china, the u.n. closed a third crossing, leaving only one: bab el hawa in the northwest. today's agreement extends the status quo for 6 months, with a six-month renewal that a senior administration official called "virtually automatic." the u.n. praised the deal, and u.s. ambassador to the u.n., linda thomas greenfield, said the unanimous vote saved lives. amb. greenfield: it's a moment for millions of syrians who will not have to worry about starving to death in the coming weeks. it's important that the united states and russia were able to come together on a humanitarian initiative that serves the interest of the syrian people.

nick: but humanitarian aid groups say authorizing a single aid crossing is not enough to meet the vast need, and russia's blocking another proposal that would have re-opened a second crossing, shows disregard for syrian lives. today, human rights watch said "russia has successfully blackmailed the international community," and amnesty international accused russia of "playing political games with the lives and welfare of millions of people." idlib is the final stronghold of the syrian opposition. humanitari workers in syria accuse russia and the syrian government of using humanitarian need for political gain. >> as aid workers, we demand the international community separate human rights work from politics, and to avoid attaching policy gains to the distribution of humanitarian aid. nick: but russia and the syrian government want the aid to pass through government-controlled areas. foreign minister sergey lavrov recently blamed syria's humanitarian crisis on the u.s. >> if we're all worried about the humanitarian proems of the

syrian people, we need to look at the full range of reasons , starting with sanctions, the illegal seizure of syrian assets in foreign banks at the request of washington, a total robbery. nick: 85% of idlib's four million people depend on the bab el-hawa crossing. and now it's also covid. this week, the world health organization said the u.n. is counting on the crossing to deliver more than 50,000 vaccines. last weekend, aid organizations demonstrated at the crossing, and accused the russians of killing them through bombing, and starvation. >> this decision would subject people to another form of killing like the bombardment we experience every day from russia and the regime. nick: despite today's agreement, that bombardment remains releless. last saturday, syrian government artillery and russian airstrikes destroyed this home, and an office of the syrian humanitarian rescue group, the white helmets. the airstrikes killed at least eight civilians. most of them were children. just steps from the border

crossing, syrians acknowledge their fate still rests on a vote from the same country that bombs them. for the pbs newshour, i'm nick schifrin. ♪ judy: stay with us. coming up on the newshour... why both parties are behind changing one of the ways congress spends money. david brooks and karen tumulty consider the u.s. role in afghanistan and the new york city mayor's race. and can you spell history? the remarkable new orleans teen who won the national spelling bee. extreme heat and drought are baking the western united states and canada again this week, following hundreds of heat-related deaths in the pacific northwest last week. record-breaking temperatures are

expected to return to california this coming weekend, including in the san joaquin valley, which is where william brangham is currently reporting. he joins me now from the city of visalia. you were telling us it is something like 109 degrees, another heat wave coming. tell us what it is like, and our officials there prepared? william: the technical term is it is unbelievably hot. the national weather service issued a warning that starting today through the weekend, there is an extreme heat alert and they are basically advising people that if you don't have to be outside, don't, and if you do, stay in the shade. be inside if you can and drink plenty of water. the concern, as with all of these heat waves is the illness and death. as you mentioned, i don't think people hava real appreciation of how much he waves cause death all over the world. -- heat waves cause of death all over the world. it is the number one killer when

it comes to climate events. the pacific northwest heatwave we just had killed hundreds of people. a couple of years ago in europe, tens of thousands of people died in a heatwave there. same thing in 2003. this is the ongoing concern, that we see more of these events and more people will lose their lives. it's not like the suffering is spread equally. the elderly, people with certain medical conditions are most likely to die, the homeless and people who cannot choose to work inside. people who don't have adequate housing and cannot afford to pay the high cost of running their electricity anair conditioning day after day. judy: william, we know there is a considerable amount of research being done about the role climate change is playing in all of this. what is known at this point about the connection between the heat and climate change? william: that's right, this field of research is known as attribution science, how much

can you attribute an event to something like climate change? scientists are getting better and better on zeroing in on which events are impacted heavily by climate change. there was a study out last week and a european agency that said the pacific northwest heatwave we all just experienced was almost certainly driven in large part by climate change, that it could not have happened and been as bad without climate change. june we know was the hottest june north america has ever seen on record. over the last 20 years, the earth has seen 19 of the warmest years on record. this is what the climate models have always predicted. climate change keeps going up as we pump more oil and gas and coal into the atmosphere. temperatures will go up and extreme events will go up. these he waves, they are more frequent now, starting earlier and lasting longer. it is a genuine concern. judy: william, given all of

this, what can local officials, what can residents do to stay safe? william: some of the things we talked about before, go to cooling centers like the one i am standing in front of here in visalia. the larger thing is we need to cut our admissions. on a more localized level, states and cies and counties, and research shows you can design cities better and build buildings smarter, using better materials, more reflective surfaces, and plant more trees. those things are crucial. one of the most important things researchers i've talked to have said is strengthening our electrical grid infrastructure is key. becae right now in visalia, there are maybe 100,000 people living around me who are protected by the electricity fueling their air-conditioners. if we had a massive lockout in

the middle of one of these massive he waves and all of a sudden, that is hundreds of thousands of people that would no longer have the protection of that air conditioning, and you could see a real tragic event occur. that is a fear, that as these he waves become more common, stresses on the electrical grid can cause serious problems. judy: it is such a big story and a serious concern. william, thank you. please stay safe and we hope everyone can stay safe. william: thank you. ♪ judy: congress may be on recess, but there's a long list of priorities on the agenda when they return to washington. as lisa desjardins reports, there's something else making a comeback, too -- the earmark, an object both relished and reviled that benefits constituents back home.

lisa: we start here. ansonia, connecticut. mayor david cassetti needs a new bridge. this outdated one is a literal roadblock to perhaps ansonia's greatest asset -- an abandoned copper and brass factory. 66 acres of rusting but prime real estate near major highways and waterways. a piece of history from a century ago, where now ansonia sees its future. >> we want to build it backup to an economic engine, where we can have jobs for our community as well as the surrounding community. i mean, thousands of jobs. lisa: a no-nonsense character, caetti helped muscle ansonia's main street back to life after years as a near ghost town. but unemployment is still above the national average. restaurants are hungry for more customers during the day, hoping for a new, large employer. >> maybe google or amazon, one of the big internet companies. lisa: but first, to get anyone

to this potential business site, the city needs a stronger bridge. and millions of dollars to build it. enter the congressional earmark. by definition, an earmark is congressional funding for a specific local project. as old as the nation itself, they've often been pet projects of powerful lawmakers. and at times, scandalous. >> an ohio congressman agreed to plead guilty today making false statements. lisa: 2006, bob ney pleaded to corruption, taking money from lobbyist jack abramoff in exchange for earmarks for his clients. one year before, earmarks for defense contractors brought down congressman duke cunningham, who pleaded guilty to bribery. some proposed earmarks, like alaska's so-called bridge to nowhere, added to the fury. >> the house has made clear, in our rules, that there will be no earmarks. lisa: in 2011, republicans running the house decided simply to stop using them. president obama pushed senate democrats to do the same.

earmarks went on pause. until this year, when congress decided to bring them back. >> i call this meeting to the committee on appropriations to order. lisa: two house democrats -- appropriations chairwoman rosa delauro and transportation chairman peter defazio -- are leading the effort to put them in spending bills before congress now. tell me why bring back earmarks now? >> you know, because i think of what we're about here is the spending of federal dollars. and i don't believe that anyone knows better about what the the issues are in in a community than the member who represents that community. lisa: it's about who decides which parks, which roads and which local projects get federal funds. right now that's government agencies. earmarks would give individual lawmakers some of that power. earmarks amount to just a fraction of the federal budget. but even so, billions of dollars

are on the line. to shake earmarks' past, the appropriations committee has given them a new brand name -- community project funding -- and new rules. each earmark request must be public. they're posted online, a sea change from years where this was all in secret. each must show community support and they cannot directly benefit for-profit companies. >> we're all playing by the same rules. it's got to meet the guidelines. so for me, i will follow the same guidelines as everyone else. >> transparency is better, but not bringing them back at all would have been the best decision. lisa: tom schatz is president of citizens again government waste. he sees earmarks as a blight feeding corruption and runaway spending. >> there is nothing good about earmarks. it doesn't matter what the project is, the merits are not the issue. lisa: which is why 105 house members, mostly republicans, are not requesting any

-- any, boycotting the idea. among them, freshman byron donalds. >> we don't have any money. we are deficit spending in washington, d.c. lisa: donalds has stood his ground as more senior republicans have told him that earmarks have a long history and can do good. >> with all due respect to my colleagues who've been up there longer, i'm here now. and so my job isn't to look at what has always happened. lisa: in truth, many controversial earmarks die on the vine. the "bridge to nowhere" was withdrawn, a proposed rain forest in iowa neverappened. the lawrence welk you them, -- museum no earmark. , one of the few to make headlines and keep its funding was this bearded, iron statue in alabama -- vulcan. the century-old symbol of the city's strength and skill was crumbling in 2001, and got a notorious $3.5 million earmark. but one person's boondoggle is another's joy. the statue, which turned 117 in

may, and the park that blossomed around it, are significant draws in birmingham. 1000 miles away, that is the dream in ansonia, connecticut. >> i want to bring it back to the heyday it was with a twist of the 21st century. lisa: mayor cassetti has a vision. and luck. >> i stood mayor cassetti. lisa: his congress member is rosa delauro, the appropriations chair restarting earmarks. and ansonia's new bridge is on her list. the republican mayor defends the cross-party alliance. >> she knows that it's in need. i mean, we can't just let them sit idle like they have been for the last twenty years. something needs to happen. lisa: multiply ansonia's story by 5000. that's how many projects have been requested as earmarks so far. while critics grit their teeth, lawmakers are now deciding not if but which projects like this

make it into spending bills. for the pbs newshour, i'm lisa desjardins. ♪ judy: now, we turn to the analysis of brooks and tumulty. that's "new york times" columnist david brooks and karen tumulty, deputy opinion editor for "the washington post." jonathan capehart is away. it is so good to see both of you on this friday. let's pick up, david, with that wonderful report, a walk down memory lane in washington. earmarks coming back, a good thing or not? david: a good thing, they were so romantic. first, earmarks allow leadership to pass bills, because they can offer recalcitrant members this or that, so they paid passing bills.

they made congress less polarized because it comes -- becomes more transactional rather than just ideology. when we got rid of earmarks, they did not go away, they just went to the executive branch. so someone in the department of transportation made the decision , not congress, and it was more hidden. and earmarks had nothing to do with real spending, it is a tiny part of the budget, the money still went out the door. there was no decrease in federal deficit. on every measure, eang rid of earmarks was a mistake. -- itching rid of earmarks was a mistake. judy: a mistake, karen? karen: i thinko too. it was an underandable reaction to the jack abramoff scandal, but i think earmarks are also a way people feel connected to their government. they can point to tangible things in their community that

are there because they matter to people in that community. so that members of congress can say, this is why you sent me to washington. and yes, the appropriations committee where all of these deals were done, was one of the last bastian's of bipartisanship on capitol hill. judy: so the argument that this will bring back bipartisanship them aut the other side says it will bring back corruption and wheeling and dealing we don't need. david: they are both true. there is corruption involved and it is something that goes to powerful people. you can drive through west virginia, and you have the robert burn highway with robert burn exit. but you are measuring it by a system by a nine -- an objective

set of judges, that doesn't exist. we have a democratic process and this is a reasonably demo attic way to go about -- a democratic way to go about this. judy: decision-making is less hyper ideological. politics has become so nationalized. i think that is one of the problems with our system now. judy: it is fascinating to watch it come back and we will see where it goes. i also want to bring up with both of you what president trump spent a good bit of time talking about this week -- did i say president? president biden, thank you. he talked about pulling u.s. troops out of afghanistan now. he made the argument again, this is the right thing to do, the afghan leaders ought to be able to run their own country. is it the right decision? david: i think he is making a mistake. it has become obvio in record

time it is a mistake. when he announced initially, he said he had faith in the afghan government to hold afghanistan together against the taliban, and that has followed -- has fallen apart, and it seems apparent they will take over. malala won the nobel prize and she was shot in the head by the taliban. we were moved into some of the eyes and thought it was an important cause, that young women in this part of the world should be able to get an education, and we are walking away from that and the idea that afghanistan will stay one country, and that we can keep al qaeda out of afghanistan again. you can get incredible turmoil, refugees flooding into pakistan and destabilizing pakistan. to me, what we were doing the last year, 25 hundred troops and

relatively low casualties, was a prize worth paying. i think it is a mistake. judy: how do you see it? karen: i think president biden is very much where the american people are here. democrats, republicans, independents, as testy as the exchange got with reporters yesterday, the fact is joe biden was a skeptic of a broader mission in afghanistan when he was vice president. he was sort of a lone voice in the obama white house on this. he believes this is one of the things he was elected to do, and it is where he has been for over a decade. increasingly, it is absolutely where the american people are. judy: david, the argument that the president has made repeatedly, that is how many more young american women and men is the u.s. going to send

there to die, be wounded, or just to experience a tour of duty after tour of duty. david: everybody honors those who served and nobody takes their sacrifice lightly. but they are not in combat roles primarily, we haven't had many casualties in the last year, they are mainly in training and support roles. even in those roles, they seem to have enough influence, along with other nato troops, to keep the country relatively stable. to me, it is a trade-off worth making, like any other use of force america has ever done, we weigh the benefits and costs. but what karen says is true, the country is sick about this. i worry about that a little, i understand the exhaustion of the forever or. but america has been in the postwar era the superpower and we have stabilized places, and we have made horrible mistakes in vietnam and iraq obviously,

but we kept troops in germany and korea for a reason. will we continue to play that role or not? clearly we will scale back how much. even the story earlier on haiti, if they want us to help stabilize haiti, is that our role anymore? it used to be where america's posture is. i don't think i have a sense of where america's posture is now. karen: as much as president biden says he doesn't want to be in the business of nationbuilding, you look at what is going on in haiti, you look at central america, strengthening these countries is the administration's strategy to getting control of the border. the fact is, every president says they don't want to get into nationbuilding and every president ends up having to do it. judy: a lot of lives lost, lives changed, money spent in that country. bringing it home, new york city had its primary elections a

couple of weeks ago and we now know who the democratic winner is, eric adams. former police captain. not the most progressive or liberal in the race. he only won by one percentage point. what does it say that he won, given his background? david: it used to be you could tell how somewhat he was going to vote by their income vel. that is less predictable now, it is education levels. the democratic party, we have three wings of the democratic party, it showed up in the presidential and it showed up in new york. you have more moderate, african-american, latino, some moderate whites, they go for the joe biden, eric adams candidate who is more moderate. then you have the young, college-educated professionals that go for the left, they went to mya wiley. in the upscale professionals go for the candidates the new york

times endorses, kathryn garcia. it is interesting these three demographic groups picked tee different candidates, it happened in the presidential race and it is happening in new york. ren: this is a good news, bad news thing for eric adams -- congratulations, you won, now you have to be mayor of new york. [laughter] i think this is the biggest experiment we have seen yet in ranked choice voting where you don't just take a candidate, you can express your preferences. as much as the new york city board of elections tried to screw this up, it works the way it was supposed to, which was the coalition building candidate who can reach beyond a narrow slice of the electorate won. now he has to deal with what appears to be the primary iss on people's minds in new york city, which is crime. judy: and is this sending a

message came up to come back to the question of he is not the most regressive candidate, he is not for defunding the police, does it send a message to democrats more broadly? david: the most vocal part of the democratic party is the college-educated younger people who are more left-wing than the party. if you go on my twitter feed with my progressive friends, there are nomany pro widen -- biden people, they are further left. the democratic party has to remember that basically america and even the democratic party is not the upper west side or the west village, it is canarsie, that sty -- bed sty and the south bronx. those are places where they are sending their kids to public schools, so they care a lot, and it is not a save as the upper west side. they are dealing with crime. the party has to remember

real life is not twitter in the activist base. the selection is a reminder of that. judy: wait a minute, i have to wre this down. karen, is this just a new york city unique story or does it send a message of some kind? karen: normally i would say be very careful about taking anything from new york city politics and trying to apply it nationwide. in this case, you talk to democratic leaders all over the country and they are very, very neous about how the issue of a violent crime is going to play for their party and it was already shaping up to be an incredibly difficult midterm election season. judy: we see president biden wrestling with that. he's had a couple of conversations about it and we understand he will have more to say about it next week. david: yeah, and he has along a

controversial past with that. judy: for sure. we are so glad to see the two of you, thank you very much. david: thank you. karen: great to be here. ♪ judy: finally tonight, we could not finish this week without recognizing history made at the national spelling bee last night. the impressive young teenager who won i. lisa desjardins is back her story. lisa: a genius -- genus of trees, that sealed her victory last night. >> that is correct! david: a 14-year-old from louisiana -- lisa: a 14-year-old from louisiana became the first african-american towin the

scripps national spelling bee. >> i've been working on it for two years, and to have the best possible outcome was really good. lisa: the only previous black ampion was an international student from jamaica in 1998. >> i hope that in a few years, i will see a lot more african-american females and males doing well in the spelling bee, because it is a really good thing. it is a gate opener to being interested in education. lisa: competitive spelling came relatively late in her life, only two years ago, with daily study sessions about seven hours long, reviewing nearly 13,000 words per day. >> i just study it. getting ready for scripps. lisa: she emerged from more than 200 contestants and rees past 10 other --breezed past 10 other

competitors. a stark contrast when eight people took home the prize. but winning is just one of her passions. she is also an avid basketball player. and the owner of the three guinness world records for her amazing dribbling skills. with her basketball talent and now the spelling bee under her belt, she says she has her eyes set on a ambitious goals, from playing in the wnba to maybe one day coaching in the nba. judy: all we can say is wow. this young woman is headed to the olympics and white house. on the newshour online right now, our friday five stories tell youbout a sports car that can fry. why four day work weeks work, and other stories you may have missed. you can find that on our youtube channel or website.

stay with pbs. we have a wide report from haiti in this moment of crisis. the panel dissects the latest on the generous six interaction on washington week. -- january 6 insurrection. and, a vibrant arts world in mexico. >> on beyond the canvas, how mexico is having an arts renaissance. >> it is a country of contrasts. >> art is above reality. it is good for us to think about doing films in mexico. >> for me, it means i'm giving a voice to visibility. i enjoy fighting for my indigenous community because i am proud of who i am. judy that tonight at 10:30 p.m., please check your local

listings. and you won't want to miss our five-part series, raising the future. each night next week, we explore one of the most critical issues facing families -- childcare. >> essential for families everywhere, but for many out of reach. >> our childcare landscape is broken. >> one major issue, cost. >> if i worked, it would be to pay childcare. >> a fragile system laid bare by the pandemic. >> what happens when there's not enough childcare? >> a moment of reckoning. >> sparking a national debate that will impact families for generations to come. raising the future: america's childcare dilemma, starting monday night on the pbs newshour. judy: the issues do not get any more important than that one. that is the newshour for tonight. please stay safe and have a good weekend. >> major funding for the pbs

newshour has been provided by -- consumer cellular. johnson & johnson. bnsf railway. financial services firm raymond james. 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. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions -- and friends of the newshour.

♪ thisrogram was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. this is pbs newshour west from weta studios in washington, and the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. ♪

>> the final frontier, this week on "firing le." america has always had . >> the final frontier, this week on firing line. >> america has always had a frontier now it is up and out in the cosmos. >> a child of the florida space coast in he came to the second sitting member of congress in orbit. now, phil nelson asked to lead nasa into the future. the agenda is ambitious, and expensive. put an american moon by 2024. then, on to mars. >> mars is the goal in the decade of the 2030. >> competition from china and russia, and the space race among billionaires to be the first. there is also a brand-new government report about unexplained sightings in the