♪ geoff: good evening. i'm geoff bennett. amna nawaz is away. on "the newshour" tonight... the fate of abortion pill access in the hands of the supreme court. as allies ramp up military support, we speak with the head of ukraine's national security council about the recent u.s. intelligence leak. >> i will let you in on a little secret -- everyone is gathering intel on everyone. it's a different question when this data is made public. it must be uncomfortable for those who should have prevented that. geoff: and... david brooks and jonathan capehart join us to discuss this week's political headlines. ♪ >> major funding for "the pbs

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geoff: welcome to the newshour. he abortion pill mifepristone stay on the market for now after a highly anticipated supreme court decision 19th the status quo for the drug's access. the justices issued the decision late tonight as republican challenges to the pill continued. for more on what this means, we are joined by correspondent john yang. president biden released a statement moments ago welcoming this announcement. tell us what the court decided. john: essentially as you said that mifepristone will remain available while the challenge to the texas federal court ruling that invalidated the 2000 fda approval of mifepristone moves through the appeals process. there were two noted dissents, justice alito wrote a dissent and justice thomas dissented did not join that dissent.

we assume it was a 7-2 decision with justices amy coney barrett, neil gorsuch, and john roberts joining the liberal justice. geoff: tell us about the alito decision, it was vigorous. john: it was, he says they did not prove there would be any irreparable harm during this period. his concluding line was this stay refuses to take a step that has not been shown as necessary to avoid the threat of any real harm during the presumably short period. i think abortion rights advocates would point out this ignores the fact that one of the things the fifth circuit court of appeals did was change the effectiveness of mifepristone

from 10 weeks to seven weeks, a point at which some people might not be aware they are pregnant, and which pregnant people cannot freeze their pregnancy in the same way this is taking it off the market. geoff: what does this stay mean for access to mifepristone in the short-term? john: in the short-term, everything stays the same. after the supreme court overturned roe v. wade, 12 states have made total bans on abortion and seven more are trying to ban it but in blocked by the courts. five have severe restrictions. if this had succeeded, if they had blocked access mifepristone, even in the states where abortion is legal, it would have been hard to do. more than half of abortions in america are performed with medication. this would have severely restricted access to abortion across america even in states

where it is legal. the appeals process moves forward. there will be a hearing in the fifth circuit court of appeals in new orleans on wednesday, may 17. no matter who wins on that one, it's almost a virtually certain to the supreme court on appeal. geoff: i was going to ask you what happens next in the legal battle? john: this time they have to rule on the merits of the case, whether or not the fda's actions were valid or not. geoff: john yang, thank you. we will watch your coverage tomorrow on pbs news weekend. ♪ stephanie: i'm stephanie sy with "newshour west." here are the latest headlines. house republicans and the manhattan district attorney reach a deal to depose a former prosecutor inappropriate over

former president trump's historic indictment. the agreement delays the deposition until may 12. the das office said the resolution ensures the questioning of the former employee will take place in the presence of its general counsel on an agreed-upon timeframe. police in alabama have now charged a sixth person in last weekend's deadly birthday party shooting. the attack on a sweet 16 celebration in the town of dadeville killed four people -- ages 17 to 23 -- and injured dozens. the defendants are charged with reckless murder, but there's still no word on the motive. in sudan, the military and a rival paramilitary group announced a three-day ceasefire for the end of the muslim holy month of ramadan. but two earlier cease-fires failed, and heavy firing continued after this latest announcement. the military also released footage of soldiers in the capital, khartoum, as people cheered. but many were still scared after a week of fighting that's killed hundreds.

mutawkel: will we be able to leave the house or not? and if we leave, will we be safe? all these questions are on my mind and i have no answers. the future is dim for us, and we don't know how things will end. stephanie: meantime, the sudanese army's top general promised to transition to civilian rule. he gave no timetable. also today, the white house said it's watching the situation but has no plans for now to evacuate some 16,000 americans from sudan. u.s. troops are deploying in the region in case embassy staffers need to get out. the u.s. is ready to train ukraine's military on a major new battlefield weapon, in its war with russia. defense secretary lloyd austin said today the training on u.s. abrams tanks will begin soon in germany. austin met today with other defense ministers in ramstein air base in germany. he said the tanks mark a major step in arming kyiv.

sec. austin: all of this is huge progress, and i am confident that this equipment and the training that accompanies it will put ukraine's forces in a position to continue to succeed on the battlefield. stephanie: president biden signed an executive order today to make environmental justice a high priority. the white house rose garden ceremony created an office that will focus on protecting poor and minority communities from pollution and other environmental harm. the order also requires public warnings when a federal facility releases toxic substances. a commission that oversees how the rio grande is managed and shared among three western states voted unanimously today to give six neighboring pueblos a seat at the table. for years, tribal leaders in new mexico have been saying that their water rights have never been quantified despite agreements dating back a century. still to come on "the newshour"...

an oklahoma county commissioner resigns after being caught on tape making racist remarks... the rising cost of coal threatens britain's historic steam engines... and playwright suzan-lori parks explores the human-side of the pandemic. >> 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. geoff: the american and nato commitment to help ukraine defend itself was reinforced today with the announcement from secretary of defense lloyd austin of a timetable for training ukrainian troops with american tanks. but there is tension in the relationship, over the amount and kind of weapons supplied, and recent revelations of american spying. special correspondent volodymyr solohoob sat down this week with a top ukrainian security official for a candid conversation on these matters, and more.

volodymyr: today, another show of support for ukraine and its war against russia's invasion. defense officials from nearly 50 nations met in germany to step up weapons deliveries. secretary of defense lloyd austin said what kyiv needs most is ground-based air defense. sec. austin: you've heard us say that for the last several months. we will continue to say that. we have to make sure that ukrainians have the ability to protect infrastructure, protect citizens, but also protect troops. volodymyr: earlier this week ukraine received more u.s. air defense systems, or patriots, able to intercept russian missiles. but the u.s. is also helping ukrainian soldiers improve its ground defenses, and will begin training over 200 ukrainian troops on how to use abrams tanks. 31 of them will be delivered later this year. an additional $325 million u.s.

dollars in military aid also includes rockets for the lethal high mobility artillery rocket system, or himars. but at a nato briefing yesterday president zelenskyy asked for longer-range and more powerful weapons, including warplanes. pres. zelenskyy: i turned to mr. general secretary with a request to help us overcome the restraint of our partners in supplying certain types of weapons. slowing down such decisions means losing time for peace. volodymyr: in ukraine's east, the battle has no end in sight. ukrainian soldiers fire on russian positions near bakhmut where they have fought a months-long war of attrition. leading recent russian advances in bakhmut are wagner group mercenaries, many of them criminals recruited from prison and sent to the front. but ukrainian officials say their troops are holding out, and preparing for an impending counteroffensive.

olekisy danilov is the secretary of ukraine's national security and defense council. we spoke to him earlier this week, and i asked him about the situation in bakhmut. sec. danilov: for russians bakhmut has become very symbolic, because they haven't been able to get rid of our troops there for a long time. every inch of our land is our territory and we will be defending it. if we start giving up town after town, we can end up on our western borders. our military will not do this and is not planning to do this. volodymyr: both president zelenskyy and the minister of defense have been constantly asking for more and more weapons. what are the current needs for weaponry right now? sec. danilov: many countries are fulfilling their promises. unfortunately not all of them. they know our needs for our military. i can't specify what exactly we're talking about, because these negotiations happen behind the closed doors. volodymyr: what are the explanations that you're hearing from your western partners on why you're not getting western

weapons at the time when you're requesting them? sec. danilov: it's a complex question. we cannot push too hard here, because it's assistance. of course sometimes we have rather unpleasant conversations, but we're n seeing today that someone is not fulfilling their promises at all. we are getting help, but of course we wish it would happen faster. we proved and will keep proving that all of the plans that the russian federation had with respect to our country will be destroyed. they will be destroyed by our army and by our people. volodymyr: but a recent intelligence leak of pentagon documents show ukraine's prospects are dire, and detail a shortage of ukrainian equipment and weaponry. did this somehow affect ukrainian plans of counteroffensive? sec. danilov: we have a number of these plans and depending on the circumstances and situation that we will have at the time, when the decision on counteroffensive is made by the president of ukraine, by our military, we will implement this or another plan. volodymyr: these leaked documents they also showed that the u.s. government is clearly

spying on ukraine. sec. danilov: i will let you in on a little secret -- everyone is gathering intel on everyone. if you think that no one is gathering intelligence on the u.s. government, then you're mistaken. it's a different question when this data is made public. it must be uncomfortable for those who should have prevented that. volodymyr: what the leaks also revealed: that the u.s. has eyes on russia's military, including its planned attacks and an estimate of russian casualties since the war began. did this leak tell you something about russia and russian military that you didn't know before? sec. danilov: with respect to the state of the russian military, we know exactly what is happening. that's why we told that u.s. that we will win this war. i think the u.s. made a mistake when they thought they knew russia. and right now i want to say this -- russia is at the brink of disintegration. and many countries don't want to see this. russia is slowly disintegrating, and you should be ready for that. volodymyr: can you provide the

timeline or conditions on what needs to happen for this fragmentation? sec. danilov: 3 to 7 years maximum. the russian federation will not exist in the form it exists right now. period. volodymyr: but ukrainian cities that russia has occupied have nearly ceased to exist. the war has taken a punishing toll on civilians. thousands have been killed, and ukraine is investigating over 70,000 war crimes. last month the international criminal court indicted russian president vladimir putin, and presidential commissioner for children's rights maria lvova-belova, for the crime of stealing ukrainian children. >> a person that kills children, civilians, that destroys the territory of another country cannot be called otherwise than a terrorist. and if today someone thinks that we should sit at a negotiating table with a person that gives orders to kill children, then it's madness. we are not afraid of them and not going to be afraid. we will not give our country to anyone. volodymyr: to keep their

country, ukraine wants more western weapons to launch its long-promised counteroffensive. but the fighting in the east is ongoing, with a massive toll on the country and its people. for "the pbs newshour," i'm volodymyr solohub, in kyiv. ♪ geoff: calls for the resignation of county officials in southeastern oklahoma continued today after they were secretly recorded making racist remarks, including comments about killing reporters and lynching black residents. one county commissioner has already stepped down. stephanie sy has the story. stephanie: geoff, the recording was obtained by a local newspaper, "the mccurtain gazette-news." a reporter, who has spent months investigating corruption at the sheriff's office, left an audio recorder in the room after a county commissioner's meeting ended, suspecting the sheriff, the commissioner and others

would continue to conduct business. instead, he apparently captured a recording of top county officials allegedly discussing wanting to kill a mccurtain gazette reporter while waxing , nostalgic about the days when a sheriff could take a "black guy," throw him in a cell and beat him. we're going to play a snippet of the recording where the suggestions of murder continue, in -- we should warn you -- graphic detail. mark jennings: i know. take them down to mud creek and hang them up with a damn rope. but you can't do that anymore. they got more rights than we got. i know where two big deep holes are here if you ever need them. kevin clardy: i've got an excavator. jennings: well, these are already pre-dug. but the thing of it is, you know. alicia manning: we actually told the truth. jennings: i've known, i've known two or three hit men, they're very quiet guys. stephanie: for reaction, i want to bring in deon osborne, the managing editor for "the black wall street times." he's based in greenwood,

oklahoma. thank you for joining the newshour. as black journalist living in oklahoma, what was your reaction when you heard the full audio? deon: first of all, thank you for having me on and sharing our perspective. when i first heard the audio, my reaction, honestly, i was alarmed but not shocked. it is another day in oklahoma for us. we've covered so many stories about race and racism while state officials downplay the impact on communities. this is just evidence of how pervasive it still is in oklahoma. stephanie: the sheriff's office has shown no contrition and is saying the conversation was illegally recorded. they are even saying it is altered. what do you think of what the journalist did, planting that recording device in the room? deon: i am proud, i'm grateful that this journalist obviously

risked his own life so we could see the truth and hear the truth. oklahoma state law shows we are a one party consent state when it comes to recordings, so the sheriff is completely lying when it comes to accusing the journalist of breaking the law, he did not break the law. he did his duty as a journalist and i am proud of him. stephanie: the oklahoma governor kevin stitt seems to believe in the veracity of the recording because he has asked for four county officials, including the sheriff, to resign. what do you think of that response? what other accountability are you hearing oklahomans demand? deon: i'm glad to hear the governor call for the bare minimum. obviously these officials should all have been fired immediately. the governor has -- the florida governor has the power to fire a district attorney he doesn't like, i don't know why our governor can't immediately fire

these officials who are suggesting killing a journalist and lynching black people in 2023. what we've heard from people in our community is they want these officials fired and they want all cases they have overseen re-investigated. stephanie: journalists, even recently, have been killed for doing their jobs. it's not necessarily the case that this conversation was said jokingly and the fbi has opened an investigation, as you know. do you expect these officials to face criminal liability for the recorded conversation? deon: i don't know that i trust our legal system enough to go to the full extent of pressing criminal charges. i hope that is the case. because what you are seeing is elected officials feel free enough to make these kind of statements. what is it telling the people in oklahoma who may already have these ideas in their hearts? what is it telling them?

this is a state that 102 years ago orchestrated one of the most severe domestic terrorism attacks on the black community with the tulsa race massacre. we are seeing the mentality that led to that attack is still alive in the hearts and minds of some of these oklahomans. stephanie: do you have hope that anything will change as a result of this conversation coming to light? deon: i do hope journalists, elected officials from oklahoma to florida, across the nation, become less worried, less afraid to call racism out. we've got to start calling out when we see it. we are in a state where our officials don't even want us to have the words of diversity, equity and inclusion taught in public schools. i was a little bit saddened that most of our state officials did not use the word racism when they condemned these officials.

they need to be able to call it out explicitly because the only way we will eradicate this is for us to address it head on. stephanie: deon osborne from the black wall street times, joining us from oklahoma. thank you. deon: thank you for having me. ♪ geoff: all eyes on the u.s. supreme court as a nation awaits a ruling from the court on whether to ban mifepristone, the medication used in more than half of abortions in the u.s.. we turn to the analysis of rooks and capehart. it's always great to see you. jonathan, if the court is even weighing the question of national access to mifepristone, it reflects the ways in which the post roe antiabortion movement has escalated the effort to eradicate abortion

rights everywhere. jonathan: yeah, this is -- this is not surprising. when the leak of alito's dobbs draft, which was the final decision, the alarm bells started going off immediately about what this would mean for abortion rights but also what it would mean for other rights. there were conversations about if they do this, what then does that mean? will they go after medication abortion? with the overturning of roe, this is a pattern. the dog catches the car, it goes to the states and the states go hogwild and pushing the envelope. we saw that after shall be beholder -- shelby v holder, when states have the right to change voting laws, they did and went the extra mile. we see states doing the same thing. the danger here is the supreme

court is going to allow them to do it. geoff: how do you see it? dobbs, republicans and said, was about states rights. david: it was supposed to be about getting the courts out of the abortion business, so the logic is we will throw it back into the democratic process, so the idea that they would have the scientific knowledge to overrule the fda strikes me as pretty audacious for a set of judges. the fact that this is even a tough call for the supreme court is mystifying to me. as to whether the antiabortion movement ups their demands, if you are an activist and you believe it is the killing of the most vulnerable people, i don't blame them. the question for republicans is how to handle it politically. you see in the u.s. senate, most of the leaders, establishment types, john thune, john cornyn, all of the johns, i guess, they don't want a national policy. they want to let the states --

and personally i think that is right for the stability of our country. people in different states have radically different views. that's not satisfying to a lot of people who want a national policy. i would say for those who have proposed a national policy like lindsey graham, they've got relatively few cosponsors. it seems there isn't a lot of support to do this nationally and most of the republican party to do it state-by-state. geoff: as we await this ruling, let's shift focus to next week, as president biden is expecting to launch his reelection campaign with a video message as early as tuesday, what a couple of sources have told me. he is eyeing april 25th, the anniversary of his 2020 campaign announcement, which stood as an informal target among his team. we should say that nothing is official until it is official. how does an official announcement change the contours of the race, if at all? jonathan: suddenly everything he

says, everything he does, everywhere he goes, is not just viewed through the lens of it is the president saying and going to these places, it is the candidate who is also saying these things, doing these things, going to these places. it also allows him to start raising money. more importantly, it allows him to start really making the contrast between himself and the number one person in the republican field, and that is donald trump. president biden like to say don't compare me to the almighty, compare me to the alternative. by officially announcing his campaign, he can start showing people how he is the alternative to the person he beat in 2020, and his bumper sticker mantra, let's finish the job. he can start telling the american people about the other things he wants to do with four more years. geoff: president biden's allies say the fact he's only facing

token primary opposition really is a show of strength for him. david: for sure. in the polling a lot of democrats think he should not run, but that's mostly an age issue, not ideology. the midterm elections sort of silence that. he's been looking strong, he gave a strong state of the union , no obvious gaffes or big scandals. even ideologically over the two years so far, he has pretty well massaged the central left fights in the democratic party doing things some people that are centrist like, some things that some people on the left like. there's not really any opposition and everyone on the right is united behind donald trump. he's been sounding pretty candidate-y for six months, saying he wants to go after trump and he is doing it. i think what has to concern the white house a little is they've

had improving inflation, a lot of good domestic policy achievements. republicans have staked out some extreme ground on a lot of issues. the polls are still reasonably close, his approvals still in the 46's. it could be we are still a very divided and cynical country where on the national level, nobody -- and this is global -- no national leader gets popular anymore. no national leader gets to 55%. there's so much cynicism in the western world. geoff: i remember covering then candidate joe biden in 2019 and there was a moment he suggested that he would be a one term president, he would be a transitional figure. the fact that hasn't happened -- and objectively there is a deep democratic bench with a lot of talent -- but the fact this hasn't happened, and feel free to push back on the premise of this question, i see you getting

ready -- how is it four years later joeiden is still the only democrat that can put together a wide and winning coalition? jonathan: when joe biden said -- i don't know what his people were saying behind the scenes. he did say he would be a transitional figure. but transitional doesn't translate automatically to one term. you can get your two terms and be transitional and the next person is a generation or two behind you. i see him in that regard. also, for guy has got a record. he's got a record of achievement that is startling for a lot of people who have been watching this a long time. a guy whose approval ratings are below 50%, hovering in the high 30's. everyone feeling there will be a red wave because the president is so unpopular and unfocused on

inflation, talking too much about threats to democracy, and yet that guy has his finger on the pulse of the country, as we learned through exit polls. that guy just put his head down and went about the work of giving democrats, his administration but also running around the country, something to run on. so of course the party -- yeah. it is democrats. they are never happy with the person they have an office. [laughter] when push comes to shove and they start looking at the alternative, fingers crossed, the democrats will come home and americans will come home because the alternative -- we have been through it and don't need to do that again. geoff: on the republican side, allies of ron desantis insist he still making up his mind on whether to run. donald trump is treating him as if he has already thrown his hat in the ring. it trump aligned pac's bending

millions on attack ads, donald trump has openly mocked ron desantis on social media come at rallies and the whole thing. it seems to be working. a new poll out today says in a head-to-head matchup, trump has 51% support among republican primary voters compared with 38% for desantis. does desantis find a way back? david: it's possible but i would not say he should continue his career that way. the dominant idea in the republican party is the old party were getting beaten by the left every day of the week and we need a tough guy. so they are looking for somebody who is a tough guy, and donald trump proved he could be a tough guy. if ron desantis is going to take on donald trump, he has to prove he is at least as tough as trump. to do that, he asked go after trump. it is a battle for who is the dominant alpha male. ron desantis has painted himself in a position where he won't

criticize trump because he's afraid of losing pro-trump people. he is caught in a trap in its been an interesting foil to watch chris christie run against trump. he has run against trump and desantis the way normal people campaign, take down the other side. desantis is not taking down the other side. it strikes me as a hard way to campaign. geoff: there are desantis allies that are frustrated he's not fighting back. jonathan: does he want to run? that's been my perennial question -- does he really want to run? does he have what it takes to do the retail politics involved in iowa, in new hampshire? we keep reading stories about how he does a speeches and then runs off, doesn't glad hand or engage or do the rope lines. i also wonder, to david's point, i don't think he has the guts to go after donald trump. donald trump has no floor musso if you attacked donald trump,

you have to be prepared -- floor, so if you attacked donald trump, you have to be prepared for belittling nonsense. with donald trump standing right here on that stage, will ron desantis look him in the and attack him? that is one, and two, how will he respond when the dragon fires back? i have no confidence ron desantis will do any of those things. none. geoff: lastly, let's talk about the fox news and dominion settlement, which i forgot was this week. it happened tuesday. the 780 $7.5 million settlement narrowly heading off the trial, after the jury was sworn in. no public apology. the dominion attorney said the colossal dara -- dollar figure was the apology.

the fact that there was no contrition shown by the fox news primetime personalities, who knowingly, according to all of the discovery in the case, spread lies about the 2020 election -- what is the effect of that? david: that's a lot of money. fox has taken a big hit. if you are running fox and you realize having lou dobbs on your staff can be very expensive, it's got to change some of the internal calculus. the thing that strikes me about the coverage this week, a lot of people have set over the years that fox has ruined the republican party, that tucker and all of those people took over the minds of republicans and went crazy. i think what the trial shows is wasn't fox overrunning the party, the party was overrunning fox. what they believed was not was they set on the air, because the audience was already there. the lesson for me from this trial is it is a bottom up

thing, not a top-down thing. geoff: one wonders if an on air retraction would even matter at this point, given the election lie has taken hold, it is the bedrock of donald trump's 2024 reelection campaign. he is miles ahead of any other republican. jonathan: i also question whether a public apology is even necessary. an apology will only work if the viewers see it. they are not covering the trial, they did not cover the january 6 hearings. the hope is because of the discovery and all of the text messages and emails we have learned where we know they were telling lies, that it somehow trickles down and gets to that audience so they finally start to see how they have been lied to. geoff: jonathan capehart and david brooks, thank you so much. have a great weekend. ♪

you know the site and the sound, a sleek steam engine coming to rest at a station in an old film. you might be wondering how the connection between that technology and the war in ukraine. it is the price of coal. it is jeopardizing the future of some of britain's living and breathing museums, the country's heritage railway lines. from south western england, special correspondent malcolm brabant reports. malcolm: they're burning through money at the swanage railway, as is every historic line in the land which gave birth to steam trains. the locomotive hauling today's service is a 1940's vintage express, back to robust health after a $400,000 refit. in total there are 150 heritage railway lines in britain and all of them are facing the same problems.

this is the start of the new season and they're all banking on good visitor numbers to help them survive. gavin: we've had to work very hard to address the impacts of the pandemic and coming out of that, we've still got major challenges ahead of us. malcolm: leading the effort to keep this living museum on the right track is gavin johns, who has more than 30 years experience with britain's modern rail network. gavin: we've got two challenges. one, rising costs and the impacts of those rising costs on our customers. so our own costs are going up significantly, most notably coal. malcolm: three years ago, the daily spend on coal was $670. today, it is $1600. gavin: coal is a major issue for us because before the war in ukraine, we were sourcing our coal from russia. so we very quickly had to work with our supplier to switch the source of the coal. malcolm: can you ever go back to russian coal? gavin: i think it's very unlikely that we will go back to russian coal supplies.

we've been working hard to find new sources. i think for the time being that we'll stick with the. -- stick with those sources. malcolm: johns says that ethical considerations and not just sanctions dictate the railways stance. although costs have more than doubled, it'll try to absorb the hit and not raise ticket prices because visitors are also struggling financially. the hope is that more passengers like matt collins will turn up for a steam fix. matt: marvel at what steam engines were at the time. basically, controlled explosions. a real lesson in engineering. and it's really evocative. the smells, the sights and the sounds as you travel on these trains. and it just gives you an insight into what the victorians did for us. malcolm: while steam engines pump out carbon dioxide along with water vapour, the biggest environmental impact of the locomotive age was to encourage air pollution by other heavy industries.

[engine chugging] today the influence of heritage lines on climate change is negligible. the railways insist they're using cleaner coal where possible and are trying to reduce their carbon footprint elsewhere. in swanage, aficionados like suzanne wiseman have no qualms about keeping steam alive. suzanne: it means a lot to me because i was brought up in the steam railway era and we were just saying, actually, i remember standing on the railway bridge just watching them go under, and the driver used to always give us a peep and wave and it's just nice just keeping a bit of the british heritage going. i think people all over the world love us for our history and this is a big part of it. malcolm: this heritage line benefits from being in a region that's popular with vacationers and day trippers. nevertheless, it's laid off a handful of permanent staff. other railways have been harder hit and have been forced to make more drastic cuts. steve: railways have been using timber, steel for all the repairs, track renewals, locomotive and carriage renewals

and so on. so the cost of these sorts of commodities have all shot up. so yeah, there are some railways at risk. absolutely. malcolm: as chief executive of the heritage railway association, steve oates has an overview of the sector's myriad problems. so how would you categorize it? steve: it's tough. it's looking tricky because the economic challenges that everybody is facing and the cost of living crisis, which is affecting potential visitors, it's almost like a double or triple whammy. malcolm: third class travel is a concept that many british people can now grasp as their living standards decline and they cut back on luxuries. but oates hopes that the allure of steam will prevail. steve: i think people will reluctantly put hands in pockets as they did during covid. but it is a risk. there's no question about it that there is a risk. and railways do need to be really careful about this. malcolm: even the popular bluebell line 130 miles east of swanage is not immune. it relies on volunteers like patricia beale, who spent a lifetime working on modern railways.

patricia: it's something that gets in your blood. i mean, i love railways and steam engines, the smell and just the general ambiance. steam engines are living creatures. or they appear to be living creatures. they breathe. malcolm: love and tender care have helped this terrier class locomotive survive its contemporaries. now, 150 years old, this is the little engine that could help pull the blue bell over the economic mountain. the railway's chairman is paul churchman. paul: morning. everything okay? ready for a busy day? >> hopefully, yes. weather's not looking too bad at the minute. paul: we're working very hard, but we have to be realistic in that it's going to be very challenging. malcolm: the bluebell's costs have also doubled because of the war in ukraine. even though this coal doesn't come from russia. paul: last year wasn't that good because of the rising costs and the softening of revenue. we expect to post a loss for

last year. this year we probably will post a loss again, but we are taking actions to get our business to breakeven for 2024. malcolm: the bluebell and other lines can no longer rely on pure nostalgia as a crowd puller. they need to wrench young people away from the screens of their devices. 19-year-old luke hopgood, no longer volunteers, but keeps coming back. [train whistle] luke: there's just old fashioned stations and it's just very traditional and it's just a very authentic feel about it. malcolm: this station is a favorite with film producers. it featured in the downton abbey series, but the bluebell can't rest on its laurels. paul: people don't want to just come for a train ride anymore. it needs to be so much more than that. you need to have the added value

to the day out in the visitor experience. gavin: we've got a sitting gala coming up in a few weeks with some great engines coming, which we know will attract enthusiasts. malcolm: the swanage line was axed from the british network in 1972. gavin johns has no intention of letting it die a second time. gavin: we've got a great set of volunteers who help the railway out. we've got a great set of staff that work really hard to keep things moving. and i think that with our special events and with the determination, we've got a really good chance of surviving. malcolm: this summer in a new initiative, this heritage diesel train will connect to mainline services for the first time in 50 years. the message from all 150 historic railways is the same. paul: come here. spend your money. [laughter] help us survive. enjoy the experience we have. it is unique. malcolm: can they make it? they think they can. they think they can. for the pbs newshour, i'm malcolm brabant in southern

england. [train whistle] geoff: is it too soon to explore the pandemic through art? not if you're suzan-lorparks, who wrote a short play a day while sitting at home for 13 months and has now turned those into a full-length performance suzan lori parks wrote a short play a day, and has turned that into a full length performance at new york's public theater. it's part of a very big year for one of the most acclaimed playwrights in the country. jeffrey brown has the arts and culture series, canvas.>> i'll play the hubby. >> i play the kid. >> suzan lori parks plays and is the writer. >> i play the stocker. >> a series of songs and scenes. >> sit down and catch a breath. small, personal moments.

and big collective trauma.>> i wanted to alert people, because i am a doctor, a medical doctor.>> the first year of the covid pandemic. >> then i got sick from the virus.>> it's based on an assignment parks gave herself in real time. being present, observe, and to write every day. >> it's a way to keep watch, if you will, it's a way to bear witness, it's a way to say yes this happened. yes, i'm watching. and i'm going to write it down. >> it really is a new rule.

>> did you have any fear, trepidation going into a story like this?>> i have so much trepidation. a lot of us realize during the first year of the pandemic, there were things we were afraid of, and we really had to look at those things. i'm putting myself in the story.>> i'm getting too old to be sleeping in that chair. >> it's my place, you ain't got no place.>> she's best known for top dog underdog, in which a pair of brothers are bound by family ties, and the burden of american history.>> 100 for the rent, 100 per week for four weeks makes the rent.>> it was the winner of the 2019 pulitzer prize for drama, making parks that first african-american woman to receive that honor, and last fall it had an

anniversary revival on broadway. it was part of a busy and attention-getting year for parks, which included her theater adaptation of the 1972 hit like a film the harder they come. and a new play commute in guthrie theater, titled sally and tom. that's sally hemmings and thomas jefferson. it includes experiences at home with her real-life husband christian, and there 11-year- old son. >> it's close, it's super close. >> he suddenly as tall as his mother. they and many other actual people are portrayed on stage by a group of actors who take a variety of roles in short plays.>> i'm scared, i'm sorry. >> they unfold chronologically.

>> it's really a celebration of everyday things. >> i was writing at one end of the table. at the other end of the table was our eight-year-old son, doing remote schooling like so many kids, and he was having his remote schooling happening with the screen glitching and all this stuff and trying to get used to it, the play might be about that.>> i don't have time to be dead, i have important work to be doing.>> given voice on stage, number of those lost during the pandemic. parks has honored them with their own short scene.>> i am very example. i can't let them down.>> the social justice protests after the killings of breonna taylor and george floyd.>> you see

that the on my neck? >> i see it, it's real. >> a lot of people in this country especially, we think that to grieve, bad things have happened, they bring us down. the opposite is true, when we look with love, and with interest, and with curiosity toward something that is difficult that happens, we are released from its power to weigh us down.>> one way to do that as a playwright is to write them into the play. >> yes, that's the way the world works. >> the theater world? >> all the world is a stage. the writer puts them in the play. isn't it fun?>> this is a play, right? >> sure.>> is this the way you think about life? >> yes, that's what really is going on, we've been written into a series of plays, that's

really what this is looking at, how reality is made. so that feels like a good definition of all parks, exploring individual and collective reality. one guide in shaping that approach is none other than james baldwin, who first suggested to parks that she try to write a play.>> i never would have gotten into it if not for mr. baldwin. so that is a high-level mandate.>> he suggested that i might be good at what i do, and i didn't have the heart to prove him wrong. someone has faith in me, it means a lot to me.>> she's the daughter of a college professor and army officer. her parents came to see her work. see my parents used to tell me you are an ambassador of your race, we travel a lot places where people had met black people before, as an adult, now

i realize i'm one of the ambassadors of the human race, and i will take that on. >> one thing i was wondering about with this play, is it too soon?>> may be it is too soon. i don't think so. the reaction from the audience feels like it's time. why shove it down and not think about it? that's one of the reasons i'm on stage. i'm not seeing go reflect on the pandemic, no, i'm here with you.>> and so, with you, the audience members are invited to reflect on their experiences and fill out cards about what they want to remember or forget. for the pbs news hour, i'm jeffrey brown at the theater in

new york. >> heading into the weekend we want you with an incredible sign of spring, the heavy rain that hit california earlier this year has created an ideal environment for wildflowers to spring up. in the antelope valley north of los angeles, carpets of vibrant words poppies are bringing a host of visitors to the picturesque landscape. >> it has been so beautiful, the yellow and orange patches, and first drove seven or 8 miles, it was extremely beautiful, i mean it's really a great experience.>> there is a debate over whether this year technically qualifies as a super bloom, but that doesn't make it any less splendid.>> we do think the amount of rain that we saw does allow for a

ride variety of flowers to be present at this moment. that is unique to this year, certainly in the time that i have seen, it is exciting, it has been really neat to witness it. >> swaths of flowers are blooming from semper cisco bay to the mexican border and parts of arizona, and as shown in satellite images, some can even be seen from space. that's incredible. there's a lot more online, including a story about a new missouri law that criminalizes sleeping outdoors. be sure to tune in for the latest on the intensifying debt ceiling debate, and resident bidens expected reelection announcement. that's on pbs. watch tomorrow for a look at what scientists are doing to rescue disappearing plant life. that's the newshour for tonight, i'm jeff bennett, have a great weekend.>> major funding for the pbs news has been provided by the following. years.

bnsf, the engine that connects us. ♪ >> and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions, and friends of the newshour, incl >> friends of the newshour kathy and paul anderson, camilla and george smith. the walton family foundation is working for solutions to protect water during climate change, so people and nature can thrive together.>> the william and flora hewlett foundation, for more than 50 years, advancing ideas and supporting institutions to promote a better world.

and with the ongoing support of these individuals and 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 news hour west, from wta studios in washington, and from the bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. >> you are watching pbs.

>> on the verge of death, transplant was his only option. >> with cystic fibrosis i felt and drowning in music and mucus.>> his case was as bad as it gets, he had an infection, it was very difficult to treat. >> my doctor called several other transplant centers and then of them wanted to take on my case, so she made one more call, the university of california san francisco.>> we've been having better than expected outcomes in the country, word gets around, and we get all kinds of challenging cases, like brad's case. he came out of the operating room, and he did great.>> before my transplant i didn't dare to dream, after i thought it was maybe okay to dream.>> ucsf health, redefining possible.>> season five is filled with intimate

conversations that prove that our lives defy reduction.>> i would hitchhike across the country.>> i decided to learn guitar.>> life without stage is not life for me.>> come on my tour.>> this is a person. if the character is just leaving spaces to walk into and understand, it's magical.>> the season five premiere of tell me more, tonight. here is a classic movie quiz, the suite smell of success.>> you've got to know what is involved. >> a powerful newspaper columnist. walter windchill.> you do me a favor.>> you provide the popcorn, the couch, the tv. we will provide great movies, like the sweets well smell of success.>> mark your calendars

for the all day open house and community block party on saturday, april 29. activities include live music, studio tours, and food trucks. >> here is tonight's lineup, made possible by your support.

>> tonight on newsroom, we have an earth day special episode. according to a report by the environmental integrity project, thousands of pounds of chemicals are flush out of will refineries directly into the san francisco bay. advocates say the pollution is deforming fish and harming communities and the ecosystem. we considered the applications. plus california and mexico city are signing a historic sustainability agreement. the secetary of the environmental protection agency tells us what it means for our future. and for tonight's