judy: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight, pain at the pump. the president releases millions more barrels of oil from the strategic petroleum reserve to help lower gas prices. then, state elections. we examine the potential impact of several critical campaigns for governor and the contentious issues that could decide them. and, the cost of the invasion. russia's war in ukraine causes hunger and poverty across the world as food prices rise even as far away as central africa. >> in the past, prices increase after the rainy season. but these past few months, the ukraine-russia conflict made everything expensive.

judy: all 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. >> pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymondjames financial advisor

taylor's advice to help you live your life. life well planned. >> the walton family foundation. working for solutions to protect you during climate change so people in nature can thrive together. >> supported by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, committee to build a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. more information at macfound.org . and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. judy: russia is moving to impose martial law in 4 regions of

ukraine that it annexed illegally. president vladimir putin announced it today. he gave no details, but the move could allow new restrictions in those regions, and in parts of russia proper. it comes as ukrainian forces are gaining more ground a reality that russia's war commander acknowledged. >> overall, the situation regarding the special military operation can be described as tense. the enemy does not abandon attempts to attack russian troops' positions. we will act consciously, in a timely fashion, and will not rule out taking the most difficult decisions. judy: as ukrainian forces advance, the russians say they plan to evacuate up to 60,000 civilians from the kerson -- kherson region. some 5,000 have left already. for many, the only available exit routes are to russian-controlled areas. meanwhile,srael offered today to help ukraine develoair

attack alerts against the drones that russia is using. the kyiv government had asked for systems to shoot down the drones, but the israelis again refused to go that far. they have so far limited their assistance to humanitarian aid. president biden is trying again to bring down gas prices. today, he ordered the release of another 15 million barrels of oil from the u.s. strategic reserve. he also criticized oil companies again for not doing more to ease pain at the pump. pres. biden: the problem is these guys are asleep. i don't know where they have been. the price at the pump should reflect what the price of a barrel of oil costs. and it's not going down consistently. judy: the president denied his action is aimed at influencing the midterm elections, 3 weeks away. we'll return to this, after the news summary. new york city opened a new, temporary housing site for migrants today. texas and other border states have been busing thousands of

migrants to new york in recent months. the new shelter on randall's island on the east side of manhattan will house up to 500 people. it's intended as a waystation for single, adult men. in iran, competitive rock climber elnaz rekabi has returned home after competing abroad without a mandatory headscarf. that was widely viewed as a show of support for anti-government protests in iran. but after arriving at tehran's airport today, rekabi said again that it had all been unintentional. >> i was unexpectedly called and i had to compete. i was busy putting on my shoes and technical gear and that caused me to forget putting on the hijab i had to be wearing. then i went to compete. judy: outside the airport, hundreds of fans cheered her name, called her a hero as her

vehicle drove through the crowds. britain's prime minister liz truss apologized today for causing economic turmoil but she also lost a second cabinet minister. truss was forced to scrap proposed tax cuts after ey roiled financial markets. today, the leader of the opposition labour party lampooned her failings, but the prime minister insisted she's not quitting. >> i have made mistakes. but the right thing to do in those circumstances is to make changes which i've made and to get on with the job. >> i've got the list here. 45% tax cut, gone. corporation tax cut, gone. two-year energy freeze, gone. tax-free shopping coming on. economic credibility, gone. judy: later, home secretary sueella braverman stepped down after sending an official document by personal email. she called it a technical violation, but in a clear rebuke to truss, she said "i have made a mistake. i accept responsibility.

i resign." back in this country, the irs says taxpayers can expect a little relief next year to cushion the blow of inflation. the standard deduction is being raised by $900 for single taxpayers and ,800 for married couples filing jointly. and, income levels for all tax brackets will be revised upward. and on wall street, stocks slipped after a two day run up. the dow jones industrial average lost 100 points to close at 30,000 423. the nasdaq fell nearly 92 points. the s&p 500 slipped almost 25. still to come on the newshour, russians who fled their country to avoid fighting in ukraine reflect on their new lives. former israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu discusses the state of the middle east. a brooklyn artist gives his brief but spectacular take on painting the world around him.

plus much more. >> -- >> this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. judy: as we reported, president biden has authorized the release of more oil from the u.s. strategic reserve. geoff bennett digs deeper into what the administration is doing to reduce gas prices and the questions around its broader approach. geoff: president biden's announcement is aimed at easing the oil supply shortage and lowering gas prices, which have become a major concern for the white house just three weeks ahead of the november midterms. the release of 15 million barrels from the nation's stockpile, known as the strategic petroleum reserve, is the final tranche of the 180 million that president biden pledged this spring to release over six months. this is all unfolding as oil prices shot higher last week after opec announced a cut in

oil production by 2 million barrels a day. brian deese is white house director of the national economic council and joins me now. welcome back to the newshour. brian: happy to be here. geoff: the release of 15 million barrels from the nation's reserve, it is a small amount compared to how much oil is consumed daily in thisountry. what is the expectation for how effective this will be? brian: it is important we put this move in perspective. when putin invaded ukraine, that created a global supply challenge. it took russian barrels of oil off the market and meant we needed to stabilize supply. last spring, the president announced he would authorize a historic amount, 180 million barrels, of releases from our strategic petroleum reserve. we have been executing on that on a monthly basis and providing supply into the market. today's announcement is the last tranche of that.

many independent analysts that has looked at that announcement and effort in the aggregate agreed it has had a significant impact on moderating energy prices. if you step back, prices ran up in the wake of putin's invasion of ukraine. because of the actions we have taken, and other steps, we have seen prices come down by nearly 30% since midsummer. what that means is the price of a gallon of gas in this country is down by $1.15 from those highs in the summer. the president is making good on the commitment to release 180 million barrels, but he announced we will, as a government, repurchase oil when the price of oil falls to $70 a barrel so that we can refill that national stockpile, and provide the industry and the markets some certainty that there will be a buyer at those lower prices. that is something we have heard is important to providing an incentive to do more production today. geoff: we will talk more about that in a minute.

what is the right white house reaction to analysts who say the strategic petroleum reserve was created for unforeseen events? to be used in hurricanes, cyber attacks, if there are pipeline shutdowns. that they should not be used in times of a political crisis. there are voters who will see this happening weeks before the midterm election, and see politics at play with this decision. geoff: the use of -- brian: use of the reserve is fundamentally linked to putin's invasion of ukraine and the unprecedented crisis that created. president's announcement of 80 million barrels of release was made last spring. this last installment is making good on that commitment, and to do so in a way that is a responsible use of this national asset. 180 million barrels has represented about one million barrels a day in additional supply onto the market, less over this. it'. the goal of that waso provide a bridge so our u.s. domestic

producers could increase production without american consumers and the global economy paying the price and burying the brunt of putin's unexpected and unconscionable invasion of ukraine. this is a responsible use of the asset in the repurchase plan is a responsible use. geoff: there are analysts who say tapping the reserves has a small effect on the prices that can be seen at the pump. the consequences could be dire in the event of a national crisis. the president has laid out a plan to restock the reserves. that could take a while. brian: respectfully, serious analysts who have looked at the y number one, the strategic petreum reserve remains with over 400 million barrels in it. well enough to respond to additional contingencies and emergencies. and two, this action the president has taken across the set of months in response to putin's actions has had a impact on moderating increases in global oil prices.

one of the attendant -- the intended impacts is the price of a gallon of gas is down by $1.15. the price of a barrel of oil is down 30% over this period. this was an effort to create a bridge over an inner many -- many intermediate period of time. we have a strong petroleum reserve. we have a clear plan to provide the market certainty about how we will refill and replenish that asset. geoff: when opec plus announced it would defy the white house and cut its oil production, was the white house surprised by that announcement or the timing? brian: we were disappointed. we thought it was not justified, given the same dynamics we are talking about now. the dominant challenge in the global market is insufficient supply and security of supply, given putin's invasion of ukraine and that has taken oil of the market. insufficient supply used to be the dinant challenge in global oil markets.

that is why the president continues to stay the course of the commitment he made this year to release 180 million barrels. we were disappointed. at the same time, if you look at what is happening in prices now, gas prices are coming down. they are coming down over the course of the last week. they have come down over the course of the last three months. there are lots of series analysts who have looked at this and have said the president's use of the strategic reserve in this context is one important factor in that trajectory. gef: does the white house have less influence now with the saudi's given that they rejected the white house's request to delay their announcement of this oil production cut? brian: i think we made our views clear to opec. and we have relationships with these countries that span a broad set of issues. what the president is doing is using the assets and tools he has available, both the reserve and assets, to represent what is

important for the american people and american economy. and the steps he has taken has been focused on this issue. in the face of an unprecedented supply shock to the global economy, whatan we do to stabilize supply and bring down prices? that is what we are seeing happen. we need to have more of that happen on behalf of the american people. geoff: in terms of domestic oil production, president biden has been consistt in calling on oil companies to lower the costs to consumers. the oil industry says look, there are bigger market factors at play here, they want the president to open up more federal lands for drilling, pipeline construction. the president has articulated, agreeing energy policy that does not really account for any of that. is there any room for compromise between the energy plan that president biden has aiculated and what these oil companies want to see? brian: today, u.s. oil production is at 12 million barrels a day. that is at near record highs. we are on path t hit record highs in terms of oil production

in 2023. one of the things the industry has raised is the concern that if prices fall, then they may not have sufficient certainty to invest in production today. that is why the president's announcement about refilling the strategic reserve is not only a good approach for taxpayers, but it is helpful in providing certainty to industry. the strategic petroleum reserve will be a buyer of oil into the market, when prices come down to $70 a barrel. for taxpayers, we have sold oil at a higher price and are buying for less price and we can refill more oil into the strategic petroleum reserve as a result. it also provides the industry certainty that there will be a buyer at that price. that is something a number of them have identified. geoff: brian deese, director of the economic council, thank you for being with us. brian: happy to. ♪

judy: control of congress is on the ballot in this year's midterm elections, but so is control of dozens of governor's seats. lisa desjardins has more. lisa: democrats and republicans alike are hoping to flip some governors mansions this year. 36 states and three territories have gubernatorial match-ups this midterm season . today, we will be diving into three tossup races, oregon, arizona, and wisconsin. to find out what issues are animating those races, i am joined by dirk vanderhart with oregon public broadcasting zac , schulz of pbs wisconsin, and yvonne win-jett sanchez with the washington post. i want to get to what is at stake here and i want to start in oregon with you, dirk. can you paint a picture of this season there a in particular,

how does the governor's race gloom, what is at stake in your state? dirk: it is very hot and smoky here right now. unseasonably hot. i would say voters are angst he. even upset. they are looking at rising rates, looking at increased melessness, particularly in portland. think they are reevaluatin whether this very traditionally democratic state needs to continue with the same leadership, or whether they should look to some other options. lisa: let's move over across the way to wisconsin, into you, zac. when i think of wisconsin, i think of your leg streams. trout season just ended. you have a hot governors race. what does the governors race mean and tell me about the spending. zac: the spending is astronomical. we have never seen anything like it. we are used too expensive, close elections over the last 20 years.

we have never seen this amount of money reported. people are seeing it on their televisions and on the internet. i am hearing from people saying, my kids can't watch youtube without seeing ads asking, who are these people? lisa: you heard dirk say in oregon it is unseasonably hot. i understand arizona is in the 90's or approaching the 90's this week. obviously, a lot of attention on your governors race. . my question is what does the governors mansion mean in that state? why is it so important? take us into the dynamics. yvonne: this race more than any other race on the ballot is a test of which direction we are going to go over the next four years. are we going to plunge further into this round of election to nihilism? -- election denialism? or are we going to settle that the 2020 election was fair and accurate, and we will move on to

-- on with an eye to 2022? lisa: nationally watched race for governor in arizona. i want to show some of the ads running, in particular on the republican side. kari lake, a former tv anchor. you see her there, throwing hammers and other things that televisions, saying she does not trust the media. for the docrats, they are running the secretary in arizona,, katie hobbs. she is less visible but has been going after kari lake in ads like this one, saying she is an extremist. can you take us into this race? where is it secretary of state hobbs and her campaign? why has she not been out more? and what exactly does kari lake, the republican, billy about elections -- believe in elections? yvonne: katie hobbs is doing these small conventional campaign meet and greets across metro phoenix where 60% of the state's voters live.

this is an area that decides major races. you cannot win arizona without winning maricopa. she has a much lower key presence, and she would argue that this is a more effective way of greeting voters and being able to delve into issues in a more traditional way, one on one. looking people in the eye. kari lake has taken it to hobbs for refusing to debate her. she is often seen as the leader in viral videos that highlight hobbs' refusal to meet her on the debate stage, to talk to her in a way or to voters in a way that we have done for decades on the debate stage. and though she is trying to soften some of her rhetoric around the 2020 election were recently, it is clear kari lake

is stuck on 2020. she has really de this election about an allegiance to donald trump or not. that is going to be the big thing that voters are going to decide on. and the polls suggest that kari lake could win. lisa: zac, you in wisconsin have an incumbent governor, tony evers, trying to decide -- trying to survive in a tossup race. you mentioned the issue of crime. i wanted to point to an exchange that happened in a debate that happened between the two candidates. >> i'm going to stand with law enforcement, because the taxpaying law-abiding citizens are fearful of the surge in crime that we have had in wisconsin over the last two years. >> it is not just about talking tough. believe me. it is about providing resources so those police officers can do the job, the training that may be needs to be happening. lisa: one thing i liked about

that debate as it was so substantive. you have not seen the fireworks we have seen in other debates. i want to ask about crime rate. that is a serious issue in wisconsin. how much of that is a factor for voters on what is changing? zac: the polling is showing voters, are concerned about crime especially in our largest city in milwaukee. we are seeing skyrocketing gun crimes and murder rates. there is crime on a daily basis that republicans are blasting out to the rest of the state. they think this is a winning issue that will override every other issue out there. democrats are trying to take a more nuanced approach on crime. they are talking about funding for local police departments. they are saying republicans that control the legislature have been given -- been given enough money and that is the reason why crime is up. and they are talking about covid rates and things like that. republicans think this is the winning issue.

this is what gets them home. lisa: how is that playing versus abortion, which democrats are raising? zac: democrats want to talk about that. it is being played because to michael's has had trouble staying on a consistent message on abortion. early on in the campaign, he was absolutely no exemptions for rape or incest in wisconsin, which is what the law currently says. later on, he said, if the republicans send me a bill that said that, i would do that. yesterday, he ran into a problem where he said, i will not trust doctors. current law does allow for doctors to be arrested for an abortion. is campaign had to -- his campaign had to clarify he would not be doing the arresting, it would be da's. lisa: in oregon, a dramatic race as well. among the issues, cost of living, particularly rend in oregon has been skyrocketing. can you talk about how that factors into the race?

and why are we talking about a tossup gubernatorial race in deep blue oregon anyway? dirk: oregon has been dealing with a housing crisis for years. it has only gotten worse after covid. cost of living consistently polls on the top of voters concerns. it also, as i mentioned, with the homelessness crisis that is continuing, and is often debated as one and the same with the candidates talking about increasing the amount of housing production as a means to lower rents and to address the homeless crisis. to the point of the competitive race, it has been fascinating. it has garnered far more national attention than oregon is used to. elizabeth warren be campaigning with the democrat. that is because we have three major well-funded candidates. we have the former house speaker, we have a former house republican leader in christine drazen, and then we have a former state senator, betsy johnson, who left the party last

year and is going for a run for governor where she is trying to paint both parties as people and wants to present herself as this unifier. lisa: a very interesting situation. also different among your states is who is voting. if you all could just say yours, do you think there will be an increase in turnout, or are you sensing lower turnout? dirk: a big turnout. this three-way race has people motivated. lisa: zach, what do you think? zac: we will be above 70 plus percent but probably mid 50's which is good for wisconsin. lisa: all of that heat in arizona, will that lead to more voters or not so many? yvonne: i think more voters. i think we could see records for a turnout race. lisa: we'll be watching along with all of you. we thank you so much for your reporting and time. dirk vander hart, zac schultz, and yvonne winjett, thank you to

all of you. ♪ judy: as part of vladimir putin's martial law declaration, he allowed for the restrictions of russian movements in and out of areas boarding ukraine. he has said his military mobilization, calling up soldiers to fight in ukraine, is nearing completion. hundreds of thousands of russians have fled the country, rather than be drafted. as nick schifrin reports, many have gone to istanbul, turkey, to escape a war they don't believe in. nick: victor is trying his best to make his new house feel like home. he has maintained his morning routine. squanchy the cat who fled with him, gets her breakfast. and he gets his coffee. surrounded by his children's cups in their prized possessions. but he is 1000 miles from his russian hometown.

>> in russia, in america or anywhere else, no one wants to fight, no one wants to kill, no one wants to die. nick: he arrived in turkiye in what is now called the first wave. russians who fled right after putin invaded ukraine in february. >> there was not panic, but nervousness. people were leaving, people were running away with their animals. they were flying one way. when i arrived here, i felt a little bit comber again. and then life just started, we started to get settled. nick: he works in fintech and helps russians abroad with financial transactions. he hopes russians back home, follow in his footsteps. >> one thing that i want is that people who still haven't woken up, and who have been told "go and kill," that they will ask themselves a question, why? what have people done to me that i need to kill them? nick: maxim is 33. >> i left because i met the

-- i am at the point where i need to trust only myself. in fact all men of russia have got to the point where our president decides whether you will live or will you die at the front. nick: he was part of the recent exodus. on september 27, he took a one way flight for 1400 dollars. that was 5 days after putin launched russia's largest mobilization since world war 2. -- world war ii. >> only military reservists, primarily those who served in the armed forces will be called up. i have already signed the executive order on partial mobilization. nick: but in istanbul, a city of 15 million, maxim does not doubt his decision. he is a tv graphics designer with no military experience. even he could have been drafted. >> the last four or five days when i was in russia i felt panic and shock. i slept for four hours. many who stayed there were still very nervous because you are a hostage of the situation. nick: maxim lives as a nomad.

he is still searching for an apartment and spends nights in a local hostel, missing the girlfriend he left behind. >> it is hard to leave family, your children, but as we say now in moscow, a father who is far away is better than a dead father. nick: that's the fate that befell yevgeny bizyaev. he deployed to ukraine in late september. today, they held his funeral in eastern russia, 1100 miles from where he died on the front lines. he about -- he volunteered to fight. and ended up making a sacrifice, that will last forever. and so other recruits have rushed to volunteer, a different kind of forever. in st. petersburg, they are holding fast-track marriages. vows of love, before being sworn into putin's war. some of those fighting that war, post videos saying they are being left to suffer biting cold, with nowhere to sleep. others complain of deploying with potempkin equipment. a bulletproof vest, without a

bulletproof plate. >> i hope the ukrainians are firing rubber bullets, he says. back in istanbul, 42 year old coast yet is relieved -- 42-year-old kostya is relieved he is not the one fighting or dying. he'd rather walk to an uncertain future. >> when i'm reading about news about what's going on there, i worry about friends. about everyone who has been touched by it. but i feel relief, that i am reading about it from here where i am safe. nick: back in february, he joined thousands of russiansho protested the war. and, alongside hundreds of others, was detained. he left for istanbul the very day that putin declared the mobilization. >> i don't want to fight against ukrainians because for me russia is the aggressor. i don't like to feel like i'm on the evil side. on the side who began this war. maybe in other cases we will need to protect our country, but not like this. nick: tens of thousands of russians have mobilized themselves from their homeland, to avoid being mobilized, into a war that has no end in sight.

for the pbs newshour, i am nick schifrin. judy: remarkable statements from these men. from europe to africa, russia's invasion of ukraine is having dire consequences around the globe. that includes in chad, where the war, thousands of miles away, combined with severe drought, is causing food prices to soar. chadians already suffer one of the world's highest levels of hunger, with more than 2 million people estimated to be hungry. special correspondent willem marx recently went to chad where he found entire famished communities struggling to survive. willem: a morning morsel of fried bread and sweet green tea, eaten at speed. use of abraham's father of nine and grandfather to several more. god will decide his family's fate, he insists, that he does

what he can to stave off their hunger. >> if you earn a living day by day, you eat whatever you get. sometimes you don't get anything to eat for a day. sometimes you are able to foot -- able to buy food for a whole day. . that is how it goes. willem: what we ask are the consequences for his young children? >> when it comes to the kids, you have to make do. what little food you have, you put it aside for them. you forget about yourself. when there is enough food, you eat together. otherwise you give it to them. willem: in recent months, food crisis has risen sharply in this town of 50,000, across the african nation of chad. >> everything is more expensive. prospect, flour, rice, millet. everything is more expensive. willem: he isresident of the

town's chamber of congress and has worked as a traitor for the past 40 years. we ask him the reasons for the recent price strikes -- spikes. >> in the past, prices increase after the rainy season, but these past few months, the ukraine-russian conflict mad everything expensive. willem: what he is saying that this entire room would normally be filled with flour or sugar. and because of the ukraine war, it is now completely empty. >> in facing great difficulties, particularly relating to food, despite the price increase, we have managed to import some. what is the point if people are not able to buy it? we will end up with stocks of unsold products and go out of business. willem: economic activity in remote communities centers on food. in this landlocked country, it

is not important -- imported. the journey across sahara relies on affordable fuel, also now in its apply. -- in short supply. the mayor tours the market where some food still sits in the stalls, but shoppers are scarce. at the bakery, bread believes the oven as reliably as the sun rises. there are fewer buyers for these to get, in business is suffering badly. mohammed and his friend start early each day, together with their team loads deep onto trucks piling bread high onto bikes. there flour costs have doubled, forcing their prices higher too. >> now we have fewer customers, we sell less than usual, sales have dropped hugely. we sell far less bread. >> the two men work morning to midnight, but mohammed says it is still not enough. >> it is not profitable for the

bakery. we are continuing to function just to avoid closing down. the company is not making any profit. willem: across town at a less commercial collective, establish with overseas help, local women grind nuts, corn and salt into an enriched flour that helps prevent malnutrition. >> malnutrition is not just affecting newborn babies. women as well. they are all malnourished. it is that reason we are making flour. willem: worker tells us hunger kills kids in chat, particularly -- chad, particularly in rural villages. a distribution center in one such community, there is no price put on life. just a limit based on food. as the 90 pounds of grain per

month for each of these 500 families from six surrounding settlements. they sit and wait for their rations among crops that cannot grow fast enough to meet their current desperate needs. mothers tested for fever that could indicate covid-19. their babies are measured for signs of malnutrition. in chad, the un's as 1.3 million -- price increases help push those numbers higher. >> this first quarter compared to the first quarter of 2021, if you look at millet, some areas, the price increased by 15%. when you look at beans, and some parts of the country, you have an increase of almost up to 96%. almost double. willem: enrico is the deputy country manager for the world's

food program and says it does not take much to devastate the population of a country, like chad. >> little shock can cause an incredible distress. be it economic or in terms of food security and malnutrition. willem: back here, the world food program's local partner is led by siddique mohammed rosie. charming, controlling -- >> it has been worsening since 2010. but now with the situation, it is getting even worse. each harvest, the crisis is increasing. the number of malnourished children is increasing. >> the worst drought in a decade meant last year's harvest failed for many. meaning months later, households have little left for this fallow period, known as the lien season. their annual struggle to survive made even worse by a distant

war. for the pbs newshour, i am willem, in chad. ♪ judy: as we reported, ukraine is asking the israeli government for air defense assistance to combat russia's campaign of drone strikes that are crippling critical infrastructure. that request comes as israelis are poised to head to the polls for the fifth time in the last several years to elect a new government. israel's longest-serving prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, is running to regain the post he lost last year. i spoke with him this afternoon about a host of issues facing israel and the world as well as his new memoir, "bibi: my story" which is out this week. prime minister netanyahu, thank you for talking with us. i want to tap -- want to ask you

about the book. but let me start with the news from ukraine. the russians are now under pressure, they are aiming indiscriminately at ukrainian civilians, using these drones, killing people after months of pounding civilians in that country. is there a good defense for what vladimir putin is doing? pm netanyahu: no. but i think beyond the tragedy and horrors of ukine, there is a larger issue of where this conflict is going. a year ago, it seemed it would be contained and resolved. within the confines of ukraine. i certainly hoped that would be the case. i no longer can say that this conflict will not spiral out of control, and have ominous global implications. the most common is one's, aside from a shortage of food, shortage of wheat, printing, and the other horrible things

happening that coulaffect countries around the world, i think the possibility of a nuclear exchange or the use of nuclear weapons is something that i would have discounted completely a year ago and i would not like -- and it would not be likely. it is no longer impossible. it is the greatest horror that we face after 77 years in which the world has not witnessed the use of these weapons. judy: in the meantime, this is a conventional war, we are seeing russia pound civilians and you said you feel israel's position on the war is mainly correct. largely staying out of it and denying repeated requests from ukraine for lethal weapons. today, there were reports that ukraine is asking israel for early morning -- warning defense equipment. why not make that available?

pm netanyahu: the government has decided -- they are going to elections in two weeks. they have decided to basically limit support to substantial humanitarian aid. we have taken in more ukrainian refugees, jews and non-jews, more than any other countries. judy: i'm asking because as you know, the question is out there, at what point does it make sense to respond to these humanitarian needs rather than worrying or being mainly focused on placating vladimir putin because of syria? pm netanyahu: it is not placating. russia and israeli planes are flying next to each other, and could bump into each other. could provoke a russian-israeli war. that is the region -- reason there is caution. you could ask the same question, why doesn't nato intervene?

because it is complicated. and even though there are unquestionable horrors being perpetrated against the ukrainian people, the ukrainian civilians, there is the larger question of what happens when one side has nuclear weapons? i think that leads to the point i have been trying to make for decades. it is bad enough that you have these nuclear weapons. do you want iran to have nuclear weapons? and threatened the entire world, chanting death to america, and america the great satan? not a good idea. judy: i want to ask you about iran. in documents recently released, former president obama is described as putting you in the camp of world leaders who subscribe to what he called putinism. we were reminded that there were billboards in israel and an election in 2019 that showed you with vladimir putin. is he still your friend, your ally? pm netanyahu: i don't know if he was my ally, but we had a common

interest in syria and avoiding an israeli war. i worked that corridor because i thought it was in the interests of my country. it was not a love affair, as people describe it. i also disagreed with president obama, not for the first time, one. erdogan was one of his closest friends. and i have had a running feud with erdogan. i suppose our relations with turkey have improved because he called me hitler's not every six hours, but every 12 hours. heard about the category of president obama described him then. he was also very friendly to the regime in tehran. you can see what that regime and mounts two. it is murdering its citizens. it's brave women were coming out and fighting for their freedom. i'm sorry. no, i am not an authoritarian.

judy: when it comes to iran, you have argued all along that the iran nuclear deal was a mistake. former president trump agreed with you. he saw that the u.s. pulled out of that deal. it is now in great jeopardy whether that deal will ever be revived. in the meantime, iran has built up its nuclear capacity. is closer than ever to having a bomb. how is israel safer as a result of what you advocated? pm netanyahu: the deal does not stop it. i described this imy book, i sent assad to the heart of tehran to build -- to pilfer the atomic archives of iran. hi we would not could even begin to describe -- hollywood will not even begin to describe the streets of tehran. and they brought the archive of

iran to israel. when we looked at it, we could see that they were cheating. as early as 2003, they had a secret plan to build five atomic bombs, hiroshima style bombs, and then they hid this program under civilian guys. iran cheats. there is no way to stop them. you can sign 100 degree -- 100 agreements with them. around is the worst of all because it is a radical islamic regime that is fundamentally opposed to our free way of life, our free societies, and chance "death to america." that is only going to be stopped, not by any agreement, it is going to be stopped by a combination of crippling economic sanctions, and a credible military option. if you are not paired to do that, don't hide behind the agreements. they merrily pave iran's path through the bomb with gold, with

hundreds of billions of dollars that they use both to accelerate their nuclear program, and also to get aggression throughout middle east and the world. you want to stop iran? stop it now. stop it before they have nuclear weapons. once they do, you are not good to be able to. judy: in the book, i want to fos on that, you detail your relationships with a number of american presidents and succession going back to president reagan, president bush, both presidents bush. when it comes to president trump, it looked too many of us things to say about what he did for israel, what his posture was towards israel. yet, prime minister netanyahu, it is within the last few days that there are questions being raised about whether former president trump has made anti-semitic remarks. you saw it. he said american jews should support israel "before it's too late." what do you make of that? pm netanyahu: i don't think he is anti-semitic.

his daughter-in-law -- his daughter married his son-in-law who is jewish. his grandchildren are jewish. as far as israel is concerned, he did do great things for israel and i appreciate it. i appreciate the fact that he recognized jerusalem as our capital, which is common sense and common history. the fact that he moved the american embassy there. that he recognized our sovereignty in golan heights from which we were attacked repeatedly by syria. and you pulled out of the iran deal. i am appreciative of that. it does not get me into the thick of american politics which is thick and deep. i have enough of my own politics here. i'm thick and it right now, as you can imagine, because i have taken a break to have this conversation in the midst of campaigning. judy: and we appreciate it. speaking of politics i want to ask you quickly about something big. not only where do the palestinians go from here, what

sort of life do you foresee for them in the years, generations to come, but in the selection at a time when your country is so divided, and you are seeing as a divisive figure, how do you bring your country together? pm netanyahu: first of all, and a lot of israelis prefer me to be prime minister. my party is well ahead in the polls at any other party. and they recognize too that if we let the palestinians, whose leads still cling to the fantasy of destroying israel, if we let them veto the peace agreements that we would have with the arab world, they are going to let the 1% or 2% of the arab world, the tailwagging, the arab body, and iaid enough of that. we have four peace treaties in four months. something we did not have 472 years, or 25 years since the peace treaties. that has created a wonderful change. judy: can you see a home for the palestinians in years to come? pm netanyahu: yes.

i think they can live a life of dignity and a life of freedom. but security under any peace agreement will remain in our hands. if not, you will see iran overtaking them and threatening us. that will not be good for peace and will not be good for anyone. judy: former prime minister benjamin netanyahu, thank you very much. pm netanyahu: thank you, judy. good talking to you. ♪ judy: whether on stage or in front of a canvas, multidisciplinary artist patrick dougher sees the importance of celebrating the world around him. dougher, who was found through thbrief but spectacular "open call" tonight offers his take on his native brooklyn, art, and magic, as part of our arts and culture series, canvas.

patrick: i was born and raised in brooklyn. i still live here. i can't imagine living anywhere else. to me, nothing compares to the spirit, the soul, the diversity, the creativity. brooklyn is just, you know, we used to say it's the planet and it still feels like that to me. coming of age in new york and in brooklyn and particularly from a dysfunctional, financially disadvantaged family, it was tough. but it was also incredibly vibrant. punk rock was happening, hip hop was just happening, graffiti was becoming accepted. i grew up walking distance from the brooklyn museum. i had a great love for art and a great interest in art as a kid. and i had enough of an understanding to realize that the art depicted in a museum wasn't really for me. when i did finally go to the brooklyn museum, i just didn't see brown people on the walls. having my art shown in venues like the brooklyn museum and high end galleries feels like

redemption. it feels like the full circle. i am a multidisciplinary artist. i may -- i am a self-taught musician and fine artist, a writer, a poet. being self-taught is being open. i never knew what i couldn't do. no one ever told me the limitations, so i enter into every project with a newness, with a willingness to learn. i think if i had access to art and to art instruction as a child, it would have made the process of creation maybe a little smoother, but maybe not as fun. there's an excitement about learning something for yourself and by yourself. i paint people of color and because of that, i'm pigeonholed as a black artist. i don't think white artists have that same stigma. i paint people that are in my environment. i paint people that i find beautiful. i don't necessarily think that i'm painting black people as a statement. it just feels natural.

my experiences and my culture influence every aspect of my life. my views on spirituality and social justice come directly from where i was raised and how i was raised. there's no separation between that perspective and my work. my name is patrick dougher and this is my brief but spectacular take on brooklyn, art and magic. judy: so good to highlight that talent that he has. you can watch more brief but spectacular videos online at pbs.org/newshour/brief. online right now, people with criminal histories are often barred from working in jobs that require licensing. we take a look at growing push to remove those barriers in louisiana. that is on our website, pbs.org/newshour. and that's the newshour for

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. hello, everyone. welcome to kwl"amanpour and company." here is what is coming up. >> iranian women stepping up in northern iraq. >> we reck nognized we made mis stakes. i fixed them. > . >> will that apology be enough to save her. calling for liz truss to design. fighting for hearts, mind and democracy. a journalissp