judy: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, were in europe. russia closes in on kyiv. we speak to the head of nato. then the nominee, president biden chooses judge brown jackson as his supreme court nominee, the first black woman ever nominated. new cdc guidelines recommend americans and most part of the country can stay fairly -- safely stop wearing face covers. and david brooks and jonathan capehart way and on the president supreme court pick and the american response to the war

in ukraine. all of that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. ♪ >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by ♪ >> moving our economy for 160 years, bnsf, the engine that connects us. ♪

♪ >> consumer cellular. ♪ >> the john s and james l knight foundation fostering informed and engaged community is. more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions. and friends of the newshour. ♪ >> this program was made possible either corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you! judy: we have two major stories tonight. president biden has chosen

ketanji brown-jackson as his nominee for a seat on the u.s. supreme court. if confirmed she would be the first black woman to serve on the nation's highest court. we will delve into that later in the program. first, the war in ukraine. the battle over the capital city of kyiv appears to be underway with russian missile and air strikes on the city, reports of fighting on the outskirts. the ukrainian president zelensky told the people of kyiv to prepare for the stormin of the city by russian forces. this as fighting continues in the central, southern and eastern regions of the untry and this evening, president biden requested that congress fund $6.4 billion in humanitarian aid and defense aid for ukraine. nick schifrin begins our coverage. nick: it has been 81 years since the world witnessed this, kyiv,

under attack for the first time since it was sacked by nazi germany. hit noty a russian missile but the remains of a russian plane shot down by ukrainian defenses. as sirens blair above, exhausted families fill metro station's that double as bomb shelters. they fled homes with only with a could carry, including friends and prized possessions that help people under siege retain spirits. as is ukraine's military, they shot on this russian aircraft and a defense official says russia is not advancing as far or as fast as they believe they would be. the military command and control remains intact and let of -- president zelensky hit the streets and social media to urge defiance. >> we defend our independence, that's how it will go. lori to our defenders, glory to ukraine -- glory to our defenders, to ukraine. >> but all was not well.

russian soldiers pouring in, pot on this camera before they try to pull it down. troops in the south are dancing and splitting off. russian forces are battling for a dam and a power plant. russia continues it's a sort -- assault toward kyiv and kharkiv. for many ukrainians it has gotten too much. soldiers hado fire warning shots at this transition. thousands are trying to flee. families who make it to romania's border have to split up. ukraine blocked 18 to 60-year-old men fro leaving. she is from western ukraine. >> we have our daughter, we are afraid. nick: from kyiv. >> there are lots of fights. it's awful. there is nothing good there.

just blood, ruins and all of the wars. nick: war has also brought russia economic punishment. today the white house press secretary announced the u.s. is sanctioning president putin a their foreign minister. >> we are hoping the world takes away from this the unity through which the united states, president biden is working with our european partners and allies. nick: the european union and united kingdom did the same. the german foreign in his or. -- minister. >> we have clear message, this will drive russia to ruin. >> this is a full-fledged vasion of a partner, a country that borders nato countries. nick: this allows up to 40,000 nato troops to bolster the eastern flank. nato allies worry any conflict in ukraine could spread to the rest of europe. today american f-35's landed in

rumania and the first of more than 300 american soldiers landed in latvia. >> i would like to address the russian president. fighting is going on in the entire territory. let us sit down to talk and put a stop to people dying. nick: they were spotted with mixed messages but foreign minister says their goals are maximal. >> russia will provide the demilitarization of ukraine, the de-nazification of ukraine. nick: but they want nothing of the sort, thousands protested and police shut it down. authorities have detained hundreds and more than two dozen cities. in washington today, ukrainian ambassador to the u.s. urged the west to compose stronger sections and send more weapons. >> we would like together with our friends, allies and partners

and definitely together with all of our armed forces to get there faster so we are not losing the bravest and the best that we have. nick: some of ukraine's bravest of already fallen. this soldier live-streamed and attack. he and 12 fellow soldiers died guarding an island off ukraine's coast. back in the capital, at the epicenter of the destruction, kyiv residents cleaned up. this only day two and they fear what is to come. for now, they sing ukrainian national anthem, ending with " long live ukraine." judy: now to the secretary-general of nato, he was at nato headquarters in brussels when i spoke with him this afternoon. thank you very much for joining us. you have just completed a virtual summit with members of nato, their leaders.

my question is, is there a consensus from nato whether there is any way to stop the russians from overtaking ukraine, its capital in the government? >> allies have expressed their strong support to ukraine and they called for them to cease the attacks on an independent nation, ukraine. what nato does is we impose severe costs on russia, economic sanctions and the u.s. is leading by imposing serious sanctions on ukraine. and also nato allies continue to provide support to ukraine, financial support to help with a dangerous situation. judy: does that mean there is no way to stop the russians from doing what they're supposed to do? >> we provide support.

they are a valued partner and we merge -- worked with them for many years. they are much better equipped, much bigger now than in 2014, not least because of the cigna can support from the united states and nato allies. but to have made it clear that we are not going to send in nato troops to fight on the ground. judy: is there anything more that nato and its members can do to help the ukrainian people? we know that ukraine is not a member, but you yourself have said the whole european security order is threatened. >> nato allies provide support and continue to support ukraine in many different ways, and nato allies, the united states and other allies, others in the european union have announced unprecedented sanctions to make sure there are costs to be paid by russia for this reckless

behavior. but if nato went into ukraine, there would be something worse than what we see today and that is a big, conflict involving many countries in europe. judy: you announced the nato response force, at least part of it is being deployed. in the near term, is that enough to make a difference? >> that excuse difference. we are sending a very clear message to russia that an attack on one ally will trigger a response from the whole alliance and to demonstrate the credibility of that we are increasing the presence of nato forces in the eastern part of the alliance, on land, at sea and in the air. judy: how concerned a you that if russia is able to take hold in ukraine, that the next stop maybe poland, the baltics, that this is what russia has in mind. what happens then? >> if there is an attack on any

nato country, the whole alliance would be there. that is the purpose of nato. one for all and all for one. to make sure there is no room for ms. copulation about that, we have increased nato troop presence in the borderlands so nato will be there from day one with significant capabilities. what has happened in ukraine has created a more lawful european security. this is changing the way we think about engaging with russia and we will have long-term consequences, both when it comes to deterrence posture, the need for forces, troops throughout the alliance, but also how to engage with russia in the future. because russia has proven that they are willing to use force to get their will, and that is undermining core principles of european security which has been of great importance for many decades. judy: if nato is not able to stop russia and ukraine, is it

going to be able to stop russia if it were to move on a nato country? >> absolutely. nato is the strongest military alliance in history and we will defend every ally against any threat and we will defend every inch of nato territory. but we are not deploying nato troops to ukraine. i understand the frustration and the suffering they are seeing in ukraine. but i think we need to understand also that nato has responsibilities up to them and nato allies are countries in the world that have helped ukraine the most. judy: you have stressed the unity of nato members and europe, we look at economic sections, several countries are opposed at least according to president biden, to moving ahead with putting restrictions on russia's access to the swift system, the global banking system. is that a mistake on the part of

europe right now and the united states that they are not able to move together to impose the sanction on russia? >> european allies, the european union and all of the nato allies as the united states, canada, norway, also the european union, they have been closely coordinated. they are now imposing unprecedented sanctions on russia, including the banking sector, which has the same consequences, vast consequences for the way they can conduct payments or finance russian debt. which has severe consequent as for the whole economy. you've seen that demonstrated in the russian stock market and the value of the russian ruble today. so this has severe consequences for the russian economy. it will have long-term consequences and it takes some time before we see the full consequences, but what is clear is that russia has to pay a high

price when they violate or invade a country. judy: there are unconfirmed reports that president zelensky they be prepared to talk to president putin about having a nonaligned leadership. in other words, saying that ukraine would never, pledging never to join nato. they are unconfirmed but do you have a position on whether that is a good idea? >> my main position is it is for ukraine to decide its own future and choose his own path. should respect that decision and that is e case for all countries, they should decide themselves whether they want to belong to an alliance like nato or not. what we see now is we have a full-fledged invasion. we have people killed, the use of the russian armed forces to try to force their will on ukraine. that is the opposite of

respecting that free choice of a democratic country in ukraine. judy: last question. do you have a message for the people of ukraine and president putin? >> to president putin, the message is that russia should cease its aggression against ukraine immediately d withdraw all its forces and respect ukraine as an independent sovereign nation. to the people of ukraine, my message is that we stand in solidarity with them, we continue to provide support and i would like to pay my respect to the people of ukraine and the courage of the armed forces. judy: the nato secretary-general, thank you very much for talking with us. we appreciate it. thank you for having me -- >> thank you for having me. ♪ judy: today, president biden

delivered on his promise to nominate the first black woman to serve on the united states supreme court. after a month-long search to fill the seat of the retiring justice stephen breyer, biting selected a former briar -- breyer court clerk and city federal judge, ketanji brown-jackson. biden and jackson selig this at the white house. pres. biden: i'm pleased to announce judge jackson, who will bring external qualifications, deep intellect and a rigorous judicial record to the court. she deserves to be confirmed as an s justice of this report. >> if i'm fortunate enough to be confirmed as the next associate justice of the supreme court the united states, i can only hope that my life and career, my love of this country and the constitution, and my commitment to upholding the rule of law and

the sacred principles upon which this great nation was founded will inspire future generations of americans. judy: president biden called judge jackson last night to ask any offer. a nomination that has been decades in the making of the federal appellate judge. jeff bennett reports on how she got to this place. >> i am evenhandedly applying the law and every case. ketanji brown-jackson has a resume tailored for the moment, a harvard grad, supreme court clerk and a federal judge with a deep history in public service. >> there was a delectable -- direct line for my defender service to what i do >> on the bench. > d.c. born in miami raise, she stood up early, excelling as class president and on the debate team. then her goal was clear. she is quoted in her senior yearbook, saying i want to go into law and eventually have a judicial appointment.

her teenage years were key to a tv -- achieving that as she played in 2017. >> it was my high school experience as a competitive speakethe top how to lean in despite obstacles. >> with honors degrees from harvard and harvard law, she scored three federal clerkships, including one under the justice she may now replace. >> justice prior -- breyer plucked me from obscurity and gave me the opportunity of a lifetime. >> she was adored among their family. she is fearless and a real person. sometimes that is not always true with supremcourt justices , they live in an elite, rarefied atmosphere. but she is a judge who has never forgotten the human side of judging. >> she has seen that human side a close, with family on both sides of the justice system.

her brother working for the baltimore police department and her uncle serving a life sentence for a cocaine conviction. >> justice demands this result. >> she worked to understand and improve the system as a public defender and vice chair of the u.s. sentencing commission. >> that is an unusual division and i think a valuable perspective. >> a constant -- a constitutional law professor who says her back on sets her apart. >> any former prosecutors are on the bench, what what is interesting about a public defender and quite rare on the court, it is been a couple of decades, is that focus on someone who is lacking in opportunity, often despise, often overlooked. >> on the sentencing commission, jackson continued the work fighting for more equitable judge -- drug penalties. >> there is no federal sentencing provision that is

more closely identified with unwarranted disparity and perceived systemic unfairness than the 100 to one crack powder penalty distinction. >> that was the first of three senate confirmations for her. she was nominated to the federal bench in washington, d.c., introduced by then congressman paul ryan who is related to her by marriage. >> my praise for her intellect, for her character, for her integrity, it is unequivocal. she is an amazing person. >> she earned a reputation on the court for being thorough and methodical. >> you can tell she has a speech and debate background because she likes to engage with the parties. >> the two of them clerked for jackson and were struck by her work ethic. >> one thing she would tell us is you can't always expect to be the smartest person in the room, but you can promise to be the hardest working and she truly

lives by that philosophy. >> and by the warm welcome she extended. >> she can out of her office, huge smile, gave me a huge hug and told me how excited she was that i would be working with her and that set the tone for my experience. >> memory i have is this relay raceere several d.c. circuits and chambers participated and at the judge's suggestion we may matching t-shirts and set up a training schedule and lined up everyone in chambers tumor dissipate because she has so much spirit for everything that she does in her diligence is contagious. >> it was on the district court that jackson sentenced more than 100 people and penned some of her best-known opinions. in 2017, she provided over the so-called pizza gate conspiracy, delivering a prison sentence for a man who fired his gun in a d.c. pizza shop, wrongly believing it was home to a child

sex ring. she also ordered that a former trump staffer comply with a subpoena in the russian mitigation, she wrote presidents are not kings. >> the 120 page ruling had a purpose. >> it came up at her third senate appearance, this for the d.c. court of appeals, seen as a tryout for supreme court hearing. >> i'm humbled and very grateful to be here once again. >> publicans took aim at her public defender clients. >> have you ever represented a terrorist at guantanamo bay? >> about 16 years ago but i was a public defender. >> and her identity. >> what role does race play in the kind of judge you are and would be? >> i don't think it plays a role

in the kind of judge i have been or would be. >> behind her, her husbandnd one of her daughrs. they met in college and were an unlikely match at first. >> he and his twin brother are six generation harvard. i'm only second-generation in my family to go to any college and i'm fairly certain if you trace my family back past my grandparents, who were raised in georgia by the way, you would find that my ancestors were slaves on both sides. >> the yeas are 53, the nays 34, it is confirmed. >> all democrats plus republican senators put jackson, now 51 years old, in the seat formerly held by another to hopeful. >> i am nominating chief judge merrick ryan garland to join the supreme court. >> before then president obama

made that decision, jackson's 11-year-old daughter wrote in with her own suggestion. >> while you are considering judges to fill justice scalia seat on the supreme court, i would like to add my mother, ketanji brown-jackson of the district court to the west -- list. >> six years later, president biden honoring the request. i'm jeff bennett. judy: it is a landmark moment for black women across the legal field who throughout american history have made up less than 2% of the federal bench. more on the historical significance and how judge jackson should -- could reshape the nation's highest court. lisa: joining me to discuss the nomination is professor margaret russell of santa clara university school of law and longtime friend of the newshour, marcia coyle of the national law

journal. what do you think this means, how would judge jackson fit in with o change his current court question mark -- ? >> i have to realize she will not change the ideological divide on the court. it will still be 6-3, conservative majority. but that doesn't mean she can be influential in several ways. first, she is the only one on the court who has been a federal public defender. she has seen a side of the criminal justice system that none of the other justices have experienced. when they go into their private conferences, she can bring that to the table if the case before them is relevant. it not only is her experience, she can share that experience with the others and perhaps influence whathey decide in some way. the other way she can have influence is she is only the second justice on the current court to have been a trial judge.

justice soto mayor is the only other. and they bring a unique perspective, ty know how trials operate and what lawyers do in those trials. the court often has cases about trial practices and what lawyers do and don't do during those trials. finally, i think her descent can become majority opinions and they can be influential in lower courts as they try to decide cases and perhaps move cases up to the supreme court. i think she brings all of those qualities and life experiences to bear when she sits on the supreme court if she is confirmed. >> margaret russell, this is a historic nomination. what does this mean to you but what do you think this means for the supreme court? >> this is a tremendously historic and significant day, not just for me, but i see it as

in the history of this nation, the history of the supreme court , for african-american women in the legal profession, it has been a long uphill battle. that is also true ofther groups. but the significance of judge jackson's ascendancy to a court that, when it first sat in 1790, had all white men, six white men, and did not have a black member of the court until the 1960's and a female member of the court until the 1980's, should really be because for reflection, not just a recitation or regurgitation of facts. it means there is a history of exclusion in the legal profession and exclusion among people who actually decide the fate of millions of americans, including african-americans.

i think it is extremely significant. lisa: even before we knew who the nominee would be, republicans criticize how the president might about this. they criticized that he was pledging to nominate a black woman as something they said was not substantive and smacked of a quota system. i wonder what you make of that. >> i would say that talking about it is important to remember that there were no black members of the court until the late 1960's with thurgood marshall, and no female members. so criticizing him for making a point about race does not mean that all of those other decisions did not involve racial identity. they did. racial and gender identity. i hope it is seen as a step forward for the nation, not just based on political party. because what it means is that president biden, who previously part of the senate judiciary committee and is a lawyer

himself, knows his fact. and meant that when he made that promise, he knew there was already a pool of talent that could yield exceptionally well-qualified people to be on the supreme court. second, he became president, he made sure that there was an ample pool on the federal bench, beginning with the district court and the court of appeals, so that no one could say that it was non-substantive. it is a substantive decision to recognize that african-american women in the legal profession -- norma's leg. lisa: we are also -- lisa: we heard from the republican leader of the senate today, he said jackson is the choice of far left arc groups. that is political, not substantive, we're talking about what is and what is not. this comes after tense and

prickle -- political supreme court nomination fights. to wrap up, can you help what you think is ahead in this process, what dynamics you see? >> it is almost the flipside of a song with the last couple of republican nominations, certainly democrats accused republican nominees as being supported by dark money groups. and try to stay focused on joe jackson and what may be ahead, she was confirmed in june by the u.s. senate and she had three republican supports. it is true but confirmation to a federal appellate court is different than a confirmation to the supreme court, but there really was not a whole lot to try to block her with when she went before the senate in june. and she has been confirmed three times by the u.s. senate,

sentencing commission from a federal district court, the court of appeals. so far there has been nothing major to stop her from moving forward. what i'm saying is we will have to wait and see how the senator, who called it a kabuki dance, plays out in the next couple of weeks. lisa: next you weeks, democrat hoping to get this nomination through by the first weeks of april. marcia coyle and margaret russell, thank you very much. >> always a pleasure, lisa. ♪ judy: -- stephanie: i am stephanie sy the newshour west, we will return to the rest of the program after e headlines. the top story on ukraine, where in the predawn hours images are coming out of kyiv. frequent artillery lasts heard and seen in the capital.

ukraine is reporting its forces have downed another russian military trends -- transport planes out of the capital. or than 50,000 ukrainians are now considered refugees. they have fled into neighboring countries like poland. u.n. secretary general announced a scale of humanitarian efforts. the cdc loosened its covid-19 guidance on wearing masks in indore, public settings. the new standards as people don't have to mask up if case counts and hospitalizations are not especially high where they live. about 70% of the u.s. population would now qualify. details after the summary. johnson & johnson and three major u.s. drug distributors will pay $26 billion to settle opioid addiction claims. they stem from some 3000 lawsuits involving nearly every state and city, most of the money in the announcement goes to health care and drug treatment. longme oklahoma senator jim

has announced he will retire in january four years before his term ends. he is 87 and says he wants to spend more time with his wife. he has served since 1984 and is the top republican on the armed services committee -- committee. after sally kellerman has passed away los angeles after a tv and film career in 60 years. the highlight was a nomination for th1970 film mash. a moment when she stormed into the commander's quarters. >> this is not a hospital. it is an insane asylum and it's your fault. stephanie: she worked in her

80's, earning a daytime emmy nomination. she was 84 years old. stay with us, next, analysis from david brooks and jonathan capehart on president biden supreme court pick and the american response to the war in ukraine. ♪ >> this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington, and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state uni y. judy: the cdc has now changed its recommendations about when and where americans should be wearing masks to protect against the coronavirus. william brangham looks intthe details. >> instead of using just case counts, the cdc's mass guidance will not be based on local cases, hospital capacity and rates of severe disease. based on those metrics, communities will be rated low, medium or high ris universal masking, iluding in

schools, will be recommended only in the high-risk account -- counties. the cdc emphasize anyone with symptoms or known covert exposures should still wear a mask and especially the immunocompromised and medically vulnerable. i'm joined by epidemiologist jennifer from the johns hopkins bloomberg school of public health. eat to have you back on the newshour. i want to ask you about the cdc guidance. the cdc essay that 70% of americans live in counties where the risk is so low that they don't need to wear a mask indoors. where -- what do you make of that? >> what we are hearing is not that they he loosened their recommendations, but they have changed how they calculate who is at risk. they are using new data and that is reflective of a few important changes. the virus is not the change, -- the same. we had surge that was challenging but the percentage of cases that went to the

hospital was lower so it is a different virus than we had to deal with at earlier points. the other thing is that the data we use to track the virus have changed and with the increasing use of home tests, metrics like case numbers, test positivity was what the cdc used to rely on to make those risk maps, they are no longer as reliable or meaningful. they have brought in other datasets to construct the risk maps and i think it is a bit more of an accurate flexion of goat is going on at the community level. >> i know there are a lot of places that really do lie on the cdc guidance on how to make decisions about their own places. but do you think in the end that this will, two plus years into the pandemic, that this will chge people's behavior? >> i think the place it is likely to have the most impact is probably for employers who look to official guidance to set

company workplace policies, and also likely schools that very much want an official metric in order to make decisions about what mitigation measures they should use. but for the average person, i have never met somebody who has looked at the cdc map to decide whether or not a mask is required. i think they go by what their local governments tell them to do and what their personal risk tolerae is above all. >> in this discussion about the change in guidance, you have referenced two examples, texas, which dropped its mass mandates and did not see a huge surge, and hong kong which has very high levels of masking and is still experiencing a severe omicron surge. put those examples into context for us. >> the take away from those examples is that what impact changing mask policies will have is complicated and we should not automatically assume one way or the other is going to happen

that will have a huge surge or we won't. i don't anybody taken those examples that lifting mass mandates spared texas and having masks condemned hong kong to have a surge. just to say that sometimes when you lift a mask mandate or mask guidance, people may continue to wear masks regardless so we don't really know what the impact in the changing guidance is going to be. it is something we have to look for and if we see it has done harm and there is a rise in cases again, of course we have to change our approach. that is something the cdc director said clearly, this is a dynamic situation. we will continue to look at the data and assess. some people have argued that changing masking guidance right now may make it harder to put masking back into place when it is needed. i'm not sure i agree with that. people tend to look at what is happening and if they do not see real risks in their communities they are going to adjust their behavior regardless. >> what do you make of the

criticism leveled about this that this puts immunocompromised people and kids who have not been able to receive the vaccine at real risk and this is more about politics rather th public health? >> i don't forget about politics. i do think it is about public health and recognizing the limitations of our previous approaches and trying to update them with chan -- changes in the data we have. but what i do think is that we as individual humans have to continue to care for our neighbors and classmates and coworkers, and certainly cisions about wearing masks are not just about individual protections, but also thinking about what it may do to others. i encourage people to inquire if people that you are around our comfortable without you wearing a mask or if they would prefer you wear one. that is one reason why i choose to continue to wear a mk when i go into indoor environments despite the fact i live in an area where masking is not required, because i don't know who is around me and i want to

be mindful of the fact that i could be potentially exposing somebody. >> from the johns hopkins school of public health, thank you for being here. >> thanks for having me. ♪ judy: with the world's eyes on ukraine and president biden moving forward on his pk for the u.s. supreme court, we turn to the analysis of brooks and capehart. new york times columnist david brooks and jonathan capehart colonist dust cumnist from the washington post. think you for being here right and i. we will talk about ukraine but i want to start with president biden's choice of judge ketanji brown-jackson for the court. what did you make of his choice of her? david: she seems great. what you want in the court is someone with a lot of

intellectual fire part without intellectual arrogance and she seems to have that as others mentioned before, she has the defender, she was a regular judge with real trials come ou not just a fancy appellate judge. she has been in the trenches. she seems like a wonderful person. i read a good story today about four friends, three friends she had starting freshman year at harvard, four black women that entered harvard together, they roomed together, they all went to harvard law together, they have been at each other's weddings and childbirths and what they describe, her friends describe about her, as someone who is a social organizer, some one who early on said i'm going to take up a lot of space, make my point of view known. i think one of them early in college said you're going to be on the supreme court one day. if she could see it that early, maybe she is fit to be there. judy: jonathan,hat is your take? jonathan: she's deathly fit to be there, i do not read the

story you read, i read a big profile of her online in the washington post. the four women were also featured in that profile. but what i got from that was a woman and a lawyer and now a judge who is and has been pragmatic on the bench. she follows the law, and she is grounded in her belief in the law and believe that the law should be meted out equally. throughout her career at harvard, undergrad and in law school when there were moments when other black students were looking to protest x y or z, sometimes she participated, other times she did not and the reason why she did not is because she thought it was more important that she be in class and prove folks wrong. i'm thinking about a situation where at harvard someone in her dorm unfurled a confederate battle flag out the window and

initially she protested, she told her friends, one of the things they want us to do is not focus on our classes. and if we don't focus on our classes we flunk out. thereby we proved to them that we don't belong here. so what president biden has done is nominate someone who is coming to the bench as david said with intellectual firepower but also someone who is going to be somebody who tries to bring the liberal and the overwhelming conservative majority together on some of the key issues that are coming up before the court even after she is confirmed. judy: how do you see her potential effect on the court? we are starting to see some republicans raise objections and questions, mitch mcconnell is one of them. what do you think lies ahead if she is confirmed? david: you know, there are nine

personalities on the court. so each personality adds something to the family drama there. they have -- my impression of the court as they find ways to get along, bringing a new personality will widen the >> bringing in a new personality will widen the perspective of the court in a new set of experiences. i can't help but have a humanizing aspect. there always these systems without conservative they are. she is pretty much in the mainstream of democratic nominees. one of the reigning systems i saw put her slightly to the right of kagan. she is very much in the mainstream. she's obviously replacing a democratic nominee. as marshall said earlier today, it will not alter the balance. >> jonathan, how do you see her fit?

>> i think she will fit in just fine considering she has been on the bench for a few years now and folks lover. when it comes to the republican opposition, the idea, i can't remember which republican member of congress said this. she is a left-wing radical. that would have been branded onto whoever the president named . it just now happens to be judge jackson. if republicans stick to substantive criticism of judge jackson, either her record or rulings or cases, they will be fine. the moment they stray into the territory that senator kennedy of louisiana dead wife and he hoped the president would choose someone who could tell the difference between a j.crew catalog and a law book or another member of congress who said, no matter what the

president was making an affirmative action hire. if they go down that route, they should be prepared for criticism. also those who say they are republican leaders should be prepared to condemn those folks. there's no question that judge ketanji brown jackson is qualified to be in the court and should be on the court and is not some radical. she is in the mainstream of american political thought in life. >> so, now we turn to the thing that we have all been fixated on for the last several days for the last time i talked to the two of you last friday, the russians had not begun their attack mother assault on ukraine. david, now they have. i think this is the first time in modern memory that we have been able to watch a war unfold. one country attacking another,

in real time, on television and in social media. what you make of what russia has done and is doing so far? >> i'm just impressed by the ukrainian people. they seem to be facing these odds with heroic self- sacrifice. my hats off. i think we are in for another era. we were blessed to live for many years in this era of rules. we may be ending that era and reentering a great era of power and rivalry. it is just not pleasant to live there because no one is secure. putin only tries in areas where no one is secure. we may be with russia, china, defending, we may be one great power forever after or a long

time after, engaged in constant struggles to head off authoritarian tyranny. that will involve electing different sorts of people to be our leaders. it will involve a much more bloody and much less pleasant way to live in a set of democracies. >> it is hard to watch, isn't it? >> it is. the first major land war on the european continent, more than 70 years. this is now a battle of ideas. as hillary clinton right in the atlantic today, this is what is happening now in ukraine is much bigger than that. ukraine is one flashpoint in the larger global struggle between democracy and autocracy. they point out the day that the chinese president and the russian president met in beijing, february 4th, it is the same day that the

republicans said the january 6 insurrection was political discourse. the battle between autocracy and democracy was a factor in president biden's presidential campaign. on the streets in ukraine in terms of the war that russia is waging, we are seeing right there the battle between democracy and autocracy. the fact that the united states and president biden is leading the alliance to defend the nato alliance and also help the people. it shows that everybody takes it seriously. there is a lot of talk about whether the alliance would wither on the vine and whether it could hold together. in the face of this war, before the impending war with putin, they have rallied and they are

stronger. that battle between democracy and autocracy and having democracy win is not assured. democracy in the united states is the weakest it has been in memory. >> a lot of people are watching biden closely because of what has happened in afghanistan. what is your assessment of how he has managed this so far? >> i think quite well. for once we won the information war. he really leaked all of the intelligence and it was all vindicated. our intelligence community was excellent for predicting what russia would do. he did that part well. he is playing with extremely weak hand. putin will put troops where he wants.

to do this right, we have to go after the russian economy. we are not going to do that because the american economy does not want to impose on himself. i think the alliance between russia and china, which seems to be strong, is extremely troubling. the hope i have, and i think the place to focus our attention, is on the ukrainian resistance. with the help of the west, if it can make the occupation very costly, this whole thing doesn't backfire. i would focus on that rather than save the sanctions which have been symbolic and not nothing but clearly not strong enough to impose any real cost on the russians. >> jonathan, how do you size of the reaction here and in europe? >> i would say that late this afternoon the united states, and the european union announced sanctions on putin and his foreign minister

personally. that is a ratcheting up the pressure on putin, on russia. i think the second round of sanctions. there are plenty more things the united states can do. i think one thing that everyone should do is remind ourselves that in a culture we have everything is instantaneous, you order something online and you know which service to use it could be at your house in a few hours but definitely by the next day. we are talking about a war. we are talking about responding to war. some of the things that have to be done and should be done, the impacts they have, they don't reveal themselves in an hour or 10 hours or in a day. they take time.

the more that people reorient themselves and realize that some of the things united states and the west are doing to put pressure on putin and to bring this war to a close, this takes time and the better off we will be. >> we are going to have a lot of painful scenes as we watch the ukrainian people deal with this in the hours and days to come. as we think them, don't forget to watch washington week tonight. her panel will have more of russia's invasion of the ukraine and on president biden's supreme court pick. that is tonight on pbs. turn into our weekend for the latest from ukraine and the international response to russia's invasion. that is the news hour for tonight, join us online and

here on monday evening. for all of us, thank you and please stay safe and have a good weekend. bnsf railway. the william and flora hewlett foundation, supporting institutions to promote a battle -- better world at hewlett.org. >> supporting social entrepreneurs and their solutions to the world's most pressing problems, skoll foundation.org. >> and with the support of these institutions.

and friends of the newshour. this program was made possible the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions 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. ♪

tonight on kqed newsroom. as russian troops advanced into the ukraine, we get reaction from former ambassador to russia and congress members. also, how the conflict is affecting bay area residents with ties to that region. an update unmask mandates with her panel of reporters. stunts in san jose as we look at some the beautiful. coming from kqed headquarters in services go. it is friday, there were 25th ,