>> good evening and welcome to the newshour. we come on the air with breaking news tonight. former president trump has been indicted in a hush money case involving an alleged affair. >> an american reporter detained in russia for the first time since the cold war. amna: more uncertainty ahead for homeless people in washington dc as the hotel housing program is phased out. >> i've often said housing is health care, now i say housing with the appropriate supports and places healtcare. -- in place is health care. ♪

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this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. >> good evening and welcome to the newshour. former president donald trump has been indicted in a hush money case involving an alleged affair. a lawyer for mr. trump says he's been informed that a grand jury in new york returned the inctment. geoff: it's the first time any ex-president has been charged in a criminal case and it comes as mr. trump is running for president again, in 2024. we turn now to two former federal prosecutors, renato mariotti and jessica roth.

thank you both for being with us. i think it is fair to say we were not expecting an indictment today. a grand jury conducts its work in secret, but we knew the manhattan grand jury works on monday and wednesday and there was reporting the jury was planning to take off much of april for a preplanned break. walk us through how this jury would have arrived at an indictment today. >> we don't know if they voted on it today or on another day and it had remained under seal and it still does as we sit here. one of the extraordinary things about a grand jury is that it does its work in secrecy. we don't know one they voted on it precisely. presumably it was when they presented the last witnesses to shore up the testimony of mr. cohen and his credibility presumably after witness had been called to was requested by

former president trump to impugn his credibility. so sometime between when that happened and today, the grand jury indicted. amna: we have to underscore the unprecedentedature of this case. the first ex-president to be charged with a crime. what does this tell us about the case that was built by the manhattan district attorney and the kinds of evidence and witnesses that had to be presented to the grand jury? >> well, i will say alvin bragg, this is going to be his legacy one way or the other. i'm sure his office has handled many cases and he has obviously had a lengthy career, but the bottom line is that this is a case for the history books. regardless of what the end result is. he and his team must feel very confident that they have the goods. i will say that to an outside

observer who doesn't have access to the secret grand jury material that i think your other guest wisely mentioned a moment ago, it certainly looks like there are serious questions about this case. at this stage, i think we have to presume that prosecutors are confident in their evidence, otherwise they have certainly set themselves up for a difficult challenge ahead. geoff: tell us more about alan bragg, this prosecutor who has apparently brought an indictment against mr. trump. >> he is a former federal prosecutor and a former state prosecutor in the attorney general's office. he has shown himself i think since he took office to be very careful with respect to many things, but especially with respect to a potential prosecution of former president trump. you will recall he took a lot of heat for not moving forward with a prior indictment or a sel psers whoadnment tha

woing der alvin bragg's predecessor were prepared to submit to the grand jury that related to the trump organization and former president trump's inflation of assets for certain purposes and deflation of their value for other purposes. those two prominent prosecutors resigned when alvin bragg was not prepared to move forward. i think the history since he took officeuggests that he has en quite careful and deliberate in this regard. amna: there is a lot we don't know, we need to point that out. the indictment does remain under seal at this moment. walk us through what we could expect to happen next when we learn more about the details of the indictment, what happens on mr. trump's side? would he be expected to surrender at some point? >> what we would expect is that there would be a date that would

be set for an initial appearance and an arraignment. that is essentially a hearing where the charges -- traditionally formally read, not so much nowadays. and the defendant is advised of his rights and potential penalties. and then there would be a bond that would be set at that initial appearance. i would expect that trump's attorneys and the prosecutors would be in contact and when that date is set that there would be an understanding that he would appear at that initial appearance. one thing we don't know is whether that would be virtual or in person, but there have been reports that the former president that to be in person. regardless, i think the indictment would be unsealed. we would learn what the charges are. but we would not learn all of thet's evidence and jessicanm hasen madeer gov an et point, all of that is done in secret and we don't know all the details.

geoff: as we wrap up our conversation, you are a student of the law and of history. characterize this historic moment for us. >> well, it is the first time a former president has been indicted. he has been indicted by a state prosecutor in the county where he used to live, but he has since left. the narrative is extraordinary. and i think it is going to be probably a prelude to other indictments to come, that this in a sense was the first step toward a number of crimes that the former president may have committed in the nature of obstructing justice and impairing our democracy. i think it is the first chapter. geoff: our thanks to you both. >> thank you. ♪ stephanie: i'm stephanie sy with newshour west. updating our top story. president trump responded this evening, condemning the

indictment. in a statement he said, this is political persecution and election interference at the highest level in history. he went on to blame democrats for the indictment. later on truth social, the former president said, this is an attack on our country the likes of which has never been seen before. the usa is now a third-world nation. he said he cannot get a fair trial in new york. the manhattan da's office said prosecutors are working to arrange trump's surrender. in the day's other headlines. the u.s. army was hit by tragedy -- 9 soldiers were killed in the crash of two black hawk helicopters, late wednesday. they belonged to the 101st airborne division, out of fort campbell, kentucky and were on a training mission. the army says they crashed about 30 miles northwest of fort campbell, near the kentucky-tennessee border. at a briefing today, the division's deputy commander sd it's not clear what went wrong. >> they do very, very detailed planning, very detailed rehearsals, depending on the

risk of the operation they're doing has different levels of approval from the command. so we will always relook our safety precautions and our measures. but this was, like all of these training events, safety is a primary focus for us. stephanie: the helicopters carry flight recorders that could carry critical information about the crash. federal regulators are investigating another fiery train derailment -- this time, in minnesota. it happened overnight near raymond, some 100 miles west of minneapolis. cars carrying ethanol caught fire. at daybreak, some of the 22 derailed cars were still burning, and nearby residents were evacuated for a time, then allowed back. the train's operator -- bnsf -- is a newshour funder. the nashville school shooting sent crowds of protesters into tennessee's state capitol today, demanding tougher gun laws. demonstrators filled hallways and shouted, six are dead! how

many more? republicans control the legislature and have backed greater gun access. also today, police released 911 recordings from the school shooting. callers appealed for help amid sounds of gun shots. doctors say pope francis is showing marked improvement at a rome hospital. he was admitted wednesday with bronchitis. the doctors say he rested well last night and is responding to antibiotics. well-wishers gathered outside gemelli hospital and left flows today. francis voiced his gratitude in a message posted on twitter. taiwan president tsai ing-wen spent this day in new york on a highly sensitive stopover. she arrived in manhattan on wednesday and today, held a series of closed events before heading on to central america, hoping to shore up support for taiwan. in washington, the state department counseled calm, despite heated complaints from mainland china -- also known as the people's republic of china. >> our message to the prc

continues to be that there is no reas to turn this transit, which is consistent with longstanding u.s. policy, into something that it's not or use it as an opportunity to overreact. stephanie: china considers taiwan a renegade province and has warned tsai not to meet with u.s. leaders. brazil's former president jair bolsonaro has returned home after a three-month stay in florida. the far-right populist said he wants a new role in litics. but he faces investigations that could prevent any comeback. supporters in yellow and green chased after him and swarmed party headquarters in brasilia today. bolsonaro predicted the leftist president lula da silva -- who ousted him -- will not last, or get much done. finland won admission to nato today, when turkey ratified its application. all 30 members of the alliance had to agree, and turkey was the last to do so. finland and sweden applied for nato membership after russia invaded ukraine.

sweden's application is still pending. a bill that criminalizes helping minors access abortions passed in the idaho legislature today. it would restrict travel for abortions and would bar adults from obtaining abortion pills for minors with a penalty of up to five years in prison. the bill is the first of its kind in the country and the republican governor is expected to sign it. republicans in the u.s. house of representatives pushed through a broad energy package today to undo most of president biden's climate priorities. it would ramp up u.s. production of fossil fuels and expedite approvals for pipelines. but democrats controlling the senate say the bill is dead on arrival there. still to come on the newshour. the debate over raising the federal debt lit heats up on capitol hill. a federal judge's decision puts the future of the affordable care act in doubt. detroit's arab american artists reflect on the invasion of iraq twenty years later.

and much more. >> this is the pbs newshour from weta studios in washington and in theest from the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. geoff: for the first time in nearly 40 years, russian authorities have arrested an american journalist and charged him with espionage. evan gershkovichf the wall street journal was detained by intelligence agents yesterday while reporting in central russia. it is an escalation of a kremlin campaign that has targeted independent media, opposition politicians, and any critics of the full scale invasion of ukraine. nick schifrin begins our coverage. nick: it is a moment not seen since the cold war -- an american journalist accused of espionage, detained by russian police. russian intelligence agents arrested evan gershkovich as he reported 900 miles east of moscow. police took him into a closed

court hearing and the federal security service, or fsb, cuhi m abd oug t ctthone actiinvitief the enterprises of the russian military-industrial complex that constitutes a state secret. >> under the cover of journalist activity, this person has been involved in a completely different kind of activity. what he has been doing in yekaterinburg - i'm speaking about this case only for now - was not journalism. nick: in response, the wall street journal said it vehemently denies the allegations from the f.s.b. and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter. >> the charges against him are ridiculous. nick: in washington, the u.s. said it was trying to gain consular access, and warned americans living in russia, to leave. >> this is incredibly, sadly, and for russia toetain americans and that is why we've been very clear about americans

not going to russia. it inot safe for americans right now in russia. nick: today, russia holds another american -- former marine paul whelan, arrested in december 2018. a russian court convicted him on espionage charges that he and the u.s. call a sham. but in today's russia it is , russians who are most targeted. the committee to protect journalists says at least 7 russian journalists have been arrested and charged since the full scale invasion of ukraine, this week, single father aleksai moskalyov faced punishment for questioning the war on social media. russian authorities investigated him, after his daughter made this school drawing, glory, no to war. authorities separated them: she was forced to an orphanage, and he faces 2 years in prison. he fled, and was detained in belarus. but the daughter has been trying to comfort the father. she wrote a letter, please don't worry about me, please don't give up, i love you, you're my

hero. since the invasion, the human rights organisation ovd-info says police have detained nearly 20,000 for criticising the war. among them, opposition leader vladimir kara-murza. he is a long time kremlin critic and target. twice he has been poisoned. >> and i couldn't breathe. and at this stage, when you are lying there, trying to gasp for air, you know, i felt just life slowly going out of the whole body. nick: we interviewed him and his wife evgenia in 2017. and yet, after that, after the full scale invasion, he returned to russia to continue his work. last april, authorities arrested him. he is now on trial for high treason. have you ever asked him not to go back? >> it's terrifying. am not going to lie to you. but i want him to continue to do what he thinks is important, what he thinks is right. nick: and nowhe has continued his work.

she is tws tkeheep fighting for her husband, and for justice, for as long as it takes. for the pbs newshour, i'm nick schifrin. geoff: and with us once again is evgeniya kara-murza and andrew weiss joins us, vice president for studies at the carnegie endowment for international peace. he served in the george h w bush and clinton administrations. thank you for being here. russia begin the closed door trial of your husband. he faces more than two decades in prison on charges including treason for comments critical of the kremlin. how is he doing and how is his case unfolding? >> thank you very much for having me here. everything in my husband's case, as you said, is happening behind closed doors. the entire trial is happening behind closed doors because, of course, the russian authorities are afraid to give him a platform, even if it is a

court to speak. and he will continue to speak out. he will continue to oppose this regime, as he has been doing for all these years. and, yes, the accusations against him include the dissemination of knowingly false information about the war in ukraine or, in other words, denouncing the war crimes committed by the russian army on the territory of ukraine and calling for the creation of a tribunal, nuremberg style tribunal, to prosecute all those responsible and high treason, as you mentioned, for public speeches that he made on different international platforms in which he denounced the regime, talked about and the ever growing number ofa , political prisoners in the russian federation. [15:07:46]] geoff: how are detainees like your husband treated? >> well it really depends. i can tell you that the russian authorities are now using a

whole spectrum of intimidating techniques and repressive mechanisms that include the use of punitive psychiatry, torture, sexual violence and all and prison terms that can go up to 15 years for just say no to the war, for protesting against it in any way, even by making a post on social media, put in a like under someone else's post , for reposting information. they called the dissemination of knowingly false information about the war, about the special operation. and for any kind of protest against the official narrative. the current russian regime wants to portray anyone who opposes the official narrative as either criminal, an insane person, or a traitor. this is what we have in russia today. geoff: vdimir putin is focused on suppressing dissent. but you, as i understand it, say it's a mistake to believe that he has

been successful in suffocating the resistance movement. >> absolutely. i believe that he very much depends on creating this image for the entire world, this image in which the entire russian population stands behind him in the war, the number of people detained over thlast year, and that's over 20,000 people for protesting against the war and against the official kremlin policies show that there are probably millions of people who are against what is happening but are afraid to speak up because they see what happens to those who do who dare to oppose the regime. geoff: andrew weiss, the biden white house today condemned the detention of the american wall street journal reporter evan kerkovich for what moscow described as espionage. the white house national security spokesperson, john kirby, said the administration had no advance awareness of a new russian effort to target

american journalists. does his detention read to you like a stepped up effort on the part of the russians to target americans with the end goal of a prisoner swap? >> it's really hard to speculate at this point given how few concrete facts have been released. and we always need to be really careful not to assume that what the russians are saying is true. in this instance, a small number of western journalists have gone back or gone in and out since the war began. at the beginning of the war, everyone left. and the message from the u.s. administration has been really clear no americans should be in russia right now due to the threat of arbitrary detention or worse. and now you have something tha looks much worse, which is espionage charges they carry with them rl potential for a very long prison sentence. geoff: the official russian line is that he is a spy. the white house today said that's completely unsubstantiated. if you look at his recent reporting, though, he was writinabout russia's economic struggles, its troubles on the

battlefield. the wagner group, a paramilitary force with ties to putin. does any of that suggest to you why height have been targeted? >> the western reporters who have gone back to russia for these short term reporting trips have really punctured the veil of lies. and they have been able to report and tell the world the truth about how russian society is reacting to the war, the problems in the economy, and the problems within the russian security establishment. russian government doesn't like criticism. it doesn't like scrutiny. and in a situation like this, i think they are trying to push western journalists back out of the country and make it clear that if mr. herskovitz can be targeted, so can you. geoff: we saw what it took to secure the release of brittney griner. paul whelan has been in russia, held captive for more than four years. what are the prospects facing mr. gshkovic.

>> it's a grim picture at the moment. no one has been formally accused of espionage or treason, has been acquitted in russia since the late 1990s. there wa one case in the cold war era in 1986 of the western journalist who was arrested on espionage charges. he was released in a complex maneuver involving the u.s. and soviet governments at the time. he wasn't convicted of espionage. so i think the focus right now has to be on not treating the russian assertions as accurate. it is on its face a laughable accusation but also being really , careful to do whatever we can to make sure that we don't endanger mr. gershkovich much more than he aeady is. geoff: would you make of that and what are we to make of this current moment? >> well, this is a regime that does not value human life, has never valued human life. you know that this is a regime that has been committing those kind of crimes, including war crimes, for years. this regime has already committed war crimes in chechnya and in syria. it has already carried out acts

of aggression against our neighbors in georgia and in ukraine in 2014 by annexing crimea. this is a regime that holds the longest serving russian political prisoner. he's been behind bars for 20 years, in violation of two decisions of the european court of human rights and several demands by the committee of ministers for his immediate release. this is a regime that held over 300 political prisoners even before the full scale invasion of ukraine. now the numbers are growing by the day. it will take hostages. it will try to erase ukraine from the face of the earth. it will accompany this war of aggression by genocide. it will do all the possible carry out all the possible crimes against its own population. this is why this regime has to come down. it has to be brought down. the only way for russia to stop being a threat to itself and to

its neighbors is for it to become a democracy. this regime cannot be transformed into a democracy. it has to stand trial for all the crimes committed against the russian people and against everyone else around. this is the only way. geoff: our thanks to you. our thoughts are with you, your family and your husband, vladimir. thank yo ♪ amna: a looming global financial crisis of congress's in making is still months away, but time is still running short on capitol hill. lisa caught up with lawmakers before they left town for the long easter break and joins me here. bring us up to speed. what happened and what does that mean? we are talking about the debt

ceiling debate. we need to watch house speaker kevin mccarthy, who governs house republicans, and of course president biden, who has to sign the new legislation. those two men have not spoken in two months. they have a lot of time and have a lot less time. we did see some engagement. they sent each other letters. outlining potential ideas essentially saying he would like spending cuts and maybe some tack scuds. president biden wrote a letter back to speaker mccarthy. i want to play what speaker mccarthy said. he said he wants to sit down with president biden as soon as possible. >> what we need to do is sit down like any household would happen and find places that we can eliminate waste, fraud, but

more importantly create a system that makes the energy in america stronger, lower-priced and make our economy even better. if the president doesn't act, we will. lisa: he means the republican conference, he is saying the house republican conference plans to pass something. what did the white house say? here is the white house spokesperson. >> what we really need from speaker mccarthy and house republicans is to see their budget. where is the budget? lisa: they have not passed a budget in the house. this is saying we won't meet with you until we have a plan, speaker mccarthy saying we want to meet with you first. they are starting to engage though. there is not progress, but there is a realization they have to figure something out in the coming weeks. amna: dueling letters and dueling press conferences. what is the short-term offramp? lisa: talking to conservative republicans driving the train in the house, it seems to be clear

that they are getting ready to accept a short-term deal to extend the debt ceiling for a couple of months. they are hopingn exchange for some easy to get compromises like there is some unspent covid relief money they think president biden would allowed to go back into the federal treasury. there's a problem for kevin mccarthy and those republicans. they don't necessarily have a majority for any idea yet. there is also a problem for president biden. some of his democrats have issues with him. we sell this op-ed from senator joe manchin come out today in which he said the biden administration is determined to pursue and ideological agenda rather than confront debts and deficits. he wants a part in negotiations going ahead. you see pressure on both sides. we think the debt ceiling right now, we will run out of money to spend sometime between june and september.

a very wide set of months. why don't we know? this is tax month. we should know april 18 how much revenue the government has brought in. amna: a lot important information coming soon. i want to ask you about another issue lawmakers are being asked about in the wake of another mass shooting in america. that is gun violence and where it stands. you have recorded a very unusual confrontation yesterday. >> standing outside the house chamber is a place where there are very hard rules and decorum is firm and important, but yesterday i witnessed coming out of the gun debate a democratic member starting to shout his frustration about what he sees as a lack of action on this issue. i want to play what happened next. jamaal bowman is a representative from new york, he is the african-american in the clip. he was raising the issue and republican tom massey came over to engage with him. >> i'm talking about gun violence.

i'm talking about gun violence. >> there has never been a school shooting in a school that allowed teachers to carry. >> more guns lead to more death. >> representative bowman is a former crisis intervention teacher and school principal in new york. he was talking about kids that he sees dying and he sees a lack of intervention on guns from lawmakers. representative massey was saying, i don't think that's the problem, we need to arm teachers. more guns is the answer, the other saying fewer guns is the answer. while it was shouting, it was clear there was substance to what they were saying. this comes not in isolation. today in nashville in the state capitol protests. look at this. hundreds of people coming out sparked by the death of those six people, including those 39-year-olds. this was the first time the

state legislature had met since the shooting. you see there is something happening in this moment, a real outcry for legislation. i asked speaker mccarthy today what specifically do you think should be done on this. he said there should be a national conversation. he didn't give me specifics. let's talk about that conversation right now. what we know is that according to the washington post there have been 17 school shootings this year and we know that gun violence is the leading cause of death among american children. amna: hard and true facts from lisa desjardins. thank you. a federal judge in texas has ruled that employers cannot be required to cover key preventive health care benefits under the affordable care act. it jeopardizes free coverage of a wide range of services for some 160 million americans. the biden administration is expected to request a stay on the ruling.

larry levitt is the executive vice president for health policy at the kaiser family foundation. welcome. thanks for joining us. just to set the table here, the ruling comes from christian in businesses and others who argue they shouldn't have to cover hiv prep, but what does this mean more broadly in terms of the implications? >> on the one hand, this decision is not as broad as some of the other legal challenges we have seen to the affordable care act. it does not threaten the existence of obamacare, the subsidies that may cover more affordable pre-existing conditions. but this is a significant decision. 100 million people in your typical year use the preventative services that the affordable care act requires and requires jurors to provide with no deductibles and co-pays.

the judges decision does not throw out all those preventive services, but it is very significant and it will affect millions of people. amna: when you are talking about those preventative services and screenings, what kind of things are we talking about? >> the kind of services the aca requires are very broad. it is cancer screenings, contraception, it is screenings for depression and anxiety. many of those will actually stay because what the ruling does is say that any preventive services that were added after 2010 when the passed are thrown out. the ones that could n io nclolub prep, as you mentioned, medication that prevents hiv, statins that lower cholesterol and help prevent heart disease, medications that help reduce the risk of breast cancer, lung cancer screening.

a narrower set of services than many people are getting, but still quite significant for many people's lives. amna: insurers can either drop coverage forhose kinds of services and screenings altogether or start charging enrollees for those. what do you expect to happen? >> first of all, i don't think anything will happen immediately beuse we are in the middle of the calendar year in many insurance contracts are still in place. come next year insurers will look at this ruling if it stands if the biden administration does not get a stay. insurers will make some decisions. i suspect they will cover these services. amna: the judge ruled the government cannot force e■mployersbecause itwa comprised of medical advisors. we mentioned they expected the

administration to appeal. what next? >> a stay. the judge in texas said it does not apply to these employers in texas, so the biden ministration will push for a stay and this will go to the court of appeals in that region which is a pretty conservative cord. and most likely to the supreme court. amna: i have to ask you more broadly, the white house was celebrating the affordable care act. it was a key provision of the aca. what does this tell you about the future of the affordable care act? >> this is an enormously popular

revision of the aca. this was extremely popular. the politics around the affordable care act have really changed. we are 13 years in. the biden administration has reinvigorated the affordable care act after the trump administration tried to weaken it. there is record enrollment. republicans really are not publicly talking about repealing the aca. but the ruling puts them in of hot seat. amna: we will watch them unfold. larry levitt, thank you for joining us. >> thanks for having me.

amna: at the start of the pandemic, we were all urged to stay at home and avoid crowds. but for homeless people, packed shelters made covid transmissi nearly unavoidable. and so, many cities, using federal covid money, housed people in vacant hotels to better protect them. this year, washington, d.c. announced it would phase out its program, following others like it across the nation -- leaving some unhoused people unsure where they will go next. william brangham has the story. william: at mcpherson square, once the largest homeless encampment in washington dc, the 70 or so people living here are losing the closest thing they have two home. daniel lived here for three years. he says life outside was much better than inside city shelters. >> i've heard people who go to the homeless shelters and they are more violence than the

streets are. >> this comes at a particularly bad time because a successful program is now ending in d.c. following other programs like it around the country. they brought people to hotels like this one in southwest d.c.. people like elliot clark who is diabetic. clark gets health care, meals, and privacy. >> if a person doesn't appreciate this, they don't appreciate nothing. when it is cold outside, it is warm in here. william: tiana williams who has an autoimmune disea had been living in the streets and in the woods for years.

>> i said, let me go in. that way i take a shower. i did take a little break for myself. >> i say housing with the appropriate supports in place is health care. william: dr. catherine crossland has treated residents in d.c. hotels since the program began. e says one of her patients saw a huge improvement after a week inside. >> he was not short of breath. the swelling was gone, the altars are healed. he had all his medicions lined up on his dresser. my medical intervention had not changed at all. what had changed was he had this stable place to care for himself. william: another hotel resident who asked we call him joe found the same effect.

he takes his psychiatric medicine regularly. >> it helps me hold any jobs down. william: having a steady place to stay. >> yes. william: how were you able to do that living in a tent? >> i wasn't able to. i wasn't able to hold down very much. william: this hotel is one of three remaining housing people in washington, d.c. as federal funds disappear, the people who remain face an uncertain future. city officials say the program was never intended to be a permanent solution. >> continuing and as designed is ill-timed. it was launched during a global pandemic. as we are phasing out the pet program we will make sure they

are linked to the services they are eligible for. william: as of the endf february, 60% of all residents have been matched to a housing subsidy that would cover the cost of their rent. around 50 people will have to return to shelters. >> i'm worried they will face it out without a plan b. william: the executive director of the washington legal clinic for the homeless. >> now that the federal money for these hotel programs is lapsing in may, it's going to be a real test for local governments as to how hive a political priority it is to actually provide a program they know is saving people's lives. and improving their health in many ways. william: the idea of sending her

patients vector shelters is the worst outcome. >> seeing people together other -- under one roof with end-stage renal disease, metastatic cancer, contested -- congestive heart failure, these are folks who should never be in a shelter let alone in an outside encampment. it has really highlighted the need of the place for this vulnerable population to be while they are experiencing homelessness. william: this offers a blueprint for temporary housing across the country, but i long-term solution should be the end goal. some points to california's project home key program were local entities are provided grants to purchase vacant hotels and convert them into permanent housing for the homeless. >> no shelter solution via congregant or non-congregant

shelter will be successful without having a housing exit strategy for the people staying there temporarily. william: a principal research associate at the urban institute -- >> the most important thing we can do is re-house people as quickly as possible. that is making sure that every shelter that you have is oriented toward minimizing the time spent in it. william: while d.c.'s program is ending. they say they will continue to improve housing options for unhoused residents. do you worry that there might be some people that might fall through the cracks? >> what we are committed to is making sure the lessons we have learned from this crisis are implemented and integrated into the long-standing services and supports for our residents. william: after just over a year and hotel, tea anna secured a

subsidized apartment. >> yesterday i was with my worker and she took me to this apartment complex. i want to take my grandkids to the zoo. i'm waiting on my inspection. william: it is a happending for her, but one that not everyone will perience. for the pbs newshour, i'm william brangham in washington, d.c. geoff: 20 years ago after the u.s. invaded iraq, and iraqi playwright starred in an acclaimed play title ix parts of desire about the lives of iraqi women. now she has returned to the subject on film and on a distinctly american land -- lens, setting a new version of the work in michigan.

jeffrey brown went there to see how this work "lands" for our arts and culture series, canvas ♪ >> the setting, a church on the flint river in michigan. >> he spent 80 years carrying and six years fgetting. >> in the midst of the pandemic, a woman mourning the loss of her father is visited by a series of women. >> we didn't know if our neighbor was sunni or shiite, but here people demand to know what i am. >> many lives, many stories. all played and told by writer and actor heather rafa. >> my son said, where they really there or where they all in her head? >> i was thinking the same thing. >> did it happen or didn't it?

well, that is just up to you, how do you feel about that? that is how i often felt during the pandemic. mi connected to my ancestors? am i connected in my grief to all of the things that have happened throughout time or am i just isolated and alone? i think it is both. there is a whole generation that wants to think for themselves. >> at detroit public theater, she screened her new film nine parts for family, friends, and community members. >> this is absolutely meant to be in michigan. > it was a homecoming on several counts. >> adapting it was wanting to be in conversation with my dad and in conversation with my country. >> she lives in new york, but was raised in this area amid the largest arab-american population in the country and this was also chance to mourn her own iraqi

born father, a member of its minority christian born community who died during the pandemic when his family could not hold a public funeral. in the film itself, it is a kind of return to her critically acclaimed 2003 play nine parts of desire which explored the lives of iraqi women through a decade of war and up people. >> the original impetus for nine parts of desire the play was to reach americans with the humanity of iraqis. >> which meant what? >> which meant they are real people, they have deep and complicated feelings, both politically and personally, and that can't pigeonhole them to one side of an issue, and of course once the civil strife started happening, it was just showing the huge diversity and depth of their thinking. >> 20 years later, the impact of

to be felt in iraq, a country still torn by sectarian divisions, beset by economic woes and political corruption. nine million iraqis are internally displaced or live abroad. many left when isis took over in 2014 and targeted iraqi christians. >> i had 100 family members living in iraq and now i have one cousin left in the country. that is a thousands of years old family and community that has been displaced in less than 10. >> the reverberations also continue to be felt in the iraqi american community. among those attending the detroit screening -- >> watching the film brought up so much emotion.

the struggles and the hardships. it is something that isn't talked about quite often. >> it isn't talked about even in your community? you and your friends and family? >> it is talked about, but i think with big traumas like that , things tend to be buried deep. >> she came to the u.s. as an infant in the period just before the war. many relatives remain in ira she now straddles these worlds in part in her work as a public programming coordinator at the arab-american national museum in dearborn. including showcasing the work of contemporary artists. what is your sense of your friends and other people in your generation? how important are the traditions and the history? >> because for the most part we are raised in america, we try to

keep in touch with our heritage even further than hearing the stories of our parents. we want to define being arab-american and what that means to us. i think the museum is a place that allows us to do that by uplifting arab-american stories, encouraging convertions through art. >> now artist in residence at the museum, heather is adopting a new play that demands -- expands her canvas looking a migration around the world and featuring musicians and actors from a variety of countries. ♪ >> i very much feel this void. i have no peace. >> but it is this country that seems most on her mind, especially by setting the new film version of nine parts here in michigan in 2020.

sectarian division and anger all around reminding her of iraq's plht. now the flint river and the ongoing water crisis stood in for the tigris. the pandemic brought epic loss of life on a scale of war. >> from a michigan point of view, there were armed militias in the govnment will dings -- buildings. the way the government -- country was increasingly tense, it is something that every iraqi american goes, o warning signs are really clear. >> you see that happening in the u.s. those kind of divisions. >> how are you going to talk to your family member over thanksgiving? what are you going to say? it is hostile. it is hot. as an artist, we go toward the heat. >> i always land on my feet. >> iraq she says could be a bellwether for the u.s. >> everything bounces back.

>> unless we address where we are 20 years later. >> money doesn't move, it bounces. >> will iraq bounceback? >> for the pbs newshour, i'm jeffrebrown in detroit. geoff: the new play tomorrow will be sunday opens at washinon dc's kennedy center on april 13. amna: there's a sad passing note tonight -- a member of the larger pbs family satirist mark russell who poked fun at america's political elite for more than half a century died today. with his fingers on the piano keys, he blended biting parody with song. geoff: he was best known for his pbs comedy specials that aired from 1975 to 2004. he went on to serve as a host of the popular nbc reality program

real people in the late 1970's and early 1980's. russell died at his home in washington, d.c. of complications from prostate cancer, his wife told the washington post. here is mark russell at his finest. ♪ ♪ ♪ [applause] amna: mark russell was 90 years old. our thoughts are with his friends and family. remember there is more online -- including a look into how a possible ban on the social media app tiktok may fail to address some data privacy concerns. geoff: and join us again here tomorrow night, where we will have a look at the music and activism of annie lennox. that is the newshour for tonight.

i'm geoff bennett. amna: and i'm amna nawaz. on behalf of the entire newshour team, thank you for joining us. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- >> for 25 years, consumer cellular has been offering no contract wireless plans to help people do more of what they like. our u.s.-based customer service team can help find a plan that fits you. ♪ >> the ford foundation, working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide. and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of the newshour. and with the ongoing support of these institutions.

and friends of the newshour. this program was made possible by 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. ♪ ♪ >>

♪♪ -"cook's country" is about more than just getting dinner on the table. we're also fascinated by the people and stories behind the dishes. we go inside kitchens in every corner of the country to learn how real people cook, and we look back through time to see how history influences the way we eat today. we bring that inspiration back to our test kitchen so we can share it with you. this is "cook's country." ♪ today on "cook's country," bridget makes julia a midwestern classic, tater tot hotdish, i tell the backstory of hoish, adam explores the wacky world of corn strippers, and ashley makes wisconsin butter burgers.

that's all right here on "cook's country."