on the newshour tonight, the supreme court rejects a controversial legal theory that could have thrown the 2024 election into disarray a newly released audio recording further complicates former president trump's legal troubles and, russia drops charges against the mercenary group which rebelled against the kremlin as vladimir putin attempts to project order. >> it is a sign vladimir putin is in a deep shock because he hates to disclose these details.

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>> from contributions and viewers like you. >> the supreme court rejected a controversial legal theory the so-called independent state legislature theory regained attention after the presidential election when donald trump's allies raised it as part of an

effort to reverse the election out him. john roberts wrote the opinion. roberts was joined by sotomayor, kagan, brett kavanaugh, amy coney barrett and ketanji browna n.ck thank you for being with us. this case had to do with gerrymandering, but how does this ruling go beyond that and protect. it was the doctrine with

redistricting, polling place everything. they set us up to the state legislature. they said they would be no check on that. that is what we argued against, that is what the supreme court argued in a 6-3 decision worried about ordinary checks and balances. >> after the election, the trump lawsuit with more than 60 lawsuits at the state level aimed at overturning the election. had it been actionable, what would have been the impact? >> the 60 cases that were decided really to illustrate the dangers of the theory, it would have meant most cases would not

have been decided by boards, but raw political power. install your own folks. this was a radical theory, defendant by none other than john eastman who was the architect of the january 6 policies and i'm pleased to see the supreme or rejecting it 6-3. to me, it's a signal that six justices are going to stand against monkeying, games and shenanigans. >> what message does it send of the chief justice author the

opinion and two of the justices donald trump nominated joined with the majority in rejecting the theory? >> it's a thorough repudiation of the independent state legislature theory, and opinion offered by the chief justice who is no liberal joined by kavanaugh, amy coney barrett, again, it's a demonstration that law, history, the tradition of checks and balances still has residents and i think it will go down as one of his finest opinions if not his finest. >> the court in preserving the status quo, is that sufficient? guardrails? >> not at all. the court took a step by

preserving the 200 year tradition of checks and balances , but, it was 10 years ago this week that the supreme court struck down the key provisions of voting rights. gamesmanship at the state and local level. >> here are the latest headlines. you by the fbi and homeland security before the attack on

the u.s. capitol. they said the agency ignored tips and social media posts calling for violence. after the attack began, officials played down the threat. the report concludes the fbi and dhs could not conceive it would be overrun. warnings that blistering temperatures will invade the midwest and deep south through july 4. roughly 62 million americans from arizona to the panhandle were under he warnings today. dallas had a forecast tied of 110 degrees. meantime, smoke and haze from wildfires in canada covered canada and michigan, triggering air-quality alerts. >> it's burning the eyes and nose and i don't think the mask is strong enough. i have an n95 but i think i need

a better one. >> official sadie could linger for several days. the roman catholic bishop of knoxville has resigned over allegations he mishandled abuse claims. they said he abused his power and protected a seminarian accused of rape. in an interview today, stika denied covering up abuse. in germany, police and osecutors searched properties in a perjury probe. investigators went through church offices and his home, they are focused on allegations he lied in court. >> the main issue about allegations of abuse. >> the cardinals denied the

algations. >> police video showed squads of officers rating apartments and restraining suspects with handcuffs. it allegedly struggled 1000 migrants since 2021. the inspector general doubled the estimate of pandemic relief money stolen from two programs. the total could top $200 billion. it was meant to help businesses and workers. newly analyzed sales records show a surge of e-cigarette devices onto the u.s. market in the last three years. the associated press reports the number tripled to more than 9000. they were mostly -- mostly unauthorized despite the fda crackdown on flavors. two minors.

in at least culture minister says they found a fresco depicting a precursor to pizza. it appears on the wall of the house,. the death of british actor julian sands. he was an avid outdoorsman and he went missing. he acted in acclaimed films including a room with a view and he made regular guest appearances on television. he was 65 years old.

still to come on the newshour. an aging population poses challenges for the future. the weaponization of deepfake technology to target women. a new block this book for citizenship. >> this is the vta newshour. >> a newly leaked audio recording shows donald trump discussing sensitive documents with people who did not have security noises. in this audio he seemed to acknowledge he knowingly held onto a document about a potential attack on iran.

>> secretive? we will have to declassified it. this is classified. is not interesting? >> it could hold key evidence in the indictment over the handling of ossified information after he left the white house. an attorney and trial lawyer joins us now. on this recording, donald trump has been heard saying it is so cool and the information was classified and highly confidential. how might the special counsel leverage this as evidence? >> look at the recording as if

they are opening hs. it's quite a recording. it does two things. it helps proven overt act show documents to folks that did not have clearances and it speaks to a state of mind. it says he knew he should not be showing it. these are things that fly in the face of public statements including the one he made today that he did nothing wrong. >> the episode is referenced in the indictment, donald trump has pleaded not guilty. how might a jury react to hearing this audio as opposed to just reading the transcript? >> it's interesting.

having it here, i think the government will try to use his rings to hear his own voice and also not only does it bring more life to the court room but it's more cumbersome than having a transcript and having people read along, having a real-life voice. >> as you mentioned, donald trump reacted to the leaked recording. >> we did absolutely nothing wrong, it's called election interference. everything was fine, we did nothing wrong.

>> how has it complicated his legal case? >> two ways of looking at it. he is making a lot of statements that his defense lawyer would not like him to make because it flies in the face of the defense they would like him to construct. the other thing indicates he did know what he was doing. the other thing, the other way to look at it from his twisted prism is to think of it in terms of like he is crazy or dumb like a fox insofar as he really what he's doing was not wrong. the problem with that is that belief.

>> dexamethasone to interview brad raffensperger about the special counsel. they present to find the votes they needed. help us understand the value that he has in that case? >> first off, he's not someone who can be painted by the defense as having an act to grind. more importantly, whenever you have someone in relation to the conversation is important evidence. or so it would appear. >> thank you for your insights.

we appreciated. >> thank you. >> russia security services said they closed the criminal case for those responsible for the revolt over the weekend. the leader of the mutiny arrived in belarus and it continues. >> at the kremlin today, a grand ceremony as vladimir putin saw to recast the revolt as a moment of pride. among the hundreds in attendance a strained-looking defense minister sergei shoigu; his removal had been a key demand of

the mutineers. putin praised russian government troops as heroic. >> you defended the order, lives, freedom. you saved our motherland from turmoil. he stopped the civil war. you acted clearly and harmoniously. >> days earlier, the same voices allowed the mercenary group to seize the southern city of rostovcity of rostov and drive within 125 miles of moscow, with little resistance. the wagner group shot down 6 russian helicopters and an airplne, and reportedly killed at least dozen soldiers during the revolt. but today, putin's government dropped the charges against the rebels. that, in stark contrast to the heavy punishments last year for russians who protested the kremlin's ukraine war. a charge forrmed mutiny in russia could normally mean up to 20 years behind bars. we spoke to journalist andrey soldatov about the amnesty for thwagner group.

>> we see criminal charges were dropped which means he actually could get back to st. petersburg and >> more, as companies could authorize financial activities. >> today, putin announced his government paid the group over $1 billion, a first admission of the official relationship. >> it's a sign putin is in a deep shock. >> this as alexander lukashenko confirmed he had arrived there. he was last seen saturday in russia, saying goodbye to clearing crowds after he

brokered a deal to stand down. now, the group may be repositioning. >> there is much talk about taking a pragmatic approach for the commanders to help us. assault squads are at the forefront. >> that prospect raised alarm in neighboring countries, today both called for nato reinforcements on the borders. meanwhile in ukraine, more russian missiles tore into everyday life, this time hitting a shopping area in eastern ukraine has russia launches weapons, the u.s. is setting -- sending more help.

>> new numbers from the census bureau shows the u.s. population is older than it's ever been. we explain how an older america could pose significant challenges for the economy, workforce and social programs. >> between 2021 and 2022, nearly every state in the u.s. saw the population age go up. in one third, nearly have is over 30. maine had the highest. utah is the youngest date with a median age of 19. as it continues to rise, the need for benefits will grow and at the same time, an aging workforce can cause worker shortages.

joining us to discuss the implications is a national, must for the washington post. also joining us is the director of the hamilton project, a former chief economist for the congressional budget office. thank you for being here. jeff mentioned the median age was 30, what is the main reason why the drumlines is taking upwards? >> one, we have improvements and mortality rates, we're looking at older ages. countries are close -- across the globe have declining fertility rates.

>> do you know why? >> the trend that goes along its absolutely true we are on track for slower growth, half the pace than in previous decades. we are also a country greatly valued by immigrants. there immigrants all over the world that want to come to the united states. we have a simple way of boosting our population growth if that becomes a priority. >> new mention in your book and column that this is not just all americans getting older, expressively white america. can you explain that? >> we had this massive surge of

births that we call the baby boom. this massive influx. the size has loosened, but this is a continuation where you have this big cluster of people that are reaching milestones. at 65 to the retirement age and you have the apex of the baby boomers retiring. the baby boom was a heavily white generation. it was restricted and not lifted until it was over which led to a white population. when you look at the population, older americans are disproportionately white. the youngest americans are half

nonwhite. older americans, simply not the case. >> a lot of potential implications. programs like medicare and socialistic 30 require a larger pool of the bottom. what does that mean policy wise? >> payroll taxes as a share of the whole economy is on track to remain flat. spending on social security, trust funds would get exhausted. social security benefits are expected to increase and

medicare spending is expected to double. we have significant increases in benefits on the horizon but we have plans for increases in taxes. >> hearing about that going up, what are the policies to address that? >> depends on a number of factors. reduce the amount of benefits, we've seen the strain on the number of people beg hired.

we're going to be gasping for jobs in short order. we are seeing the baby boom having to compete for power and resources. now we see there are additional political tensions for the baby boom generation where they have reached the stage that is foreseeable. >> the tensions are not easily remedied. addressing medicare and social media are third rails. immigration is right behind that. what do you see as the most likely thing policymakers will do? >> the way we organized social security and medicare as trust

funds, these will become politically salient over the next several years. they are spending on more than we are taking in. the trust fund for social security is expected to run out of money by 2031 and the medicare hospital insurance fund soon thereafter. under current law, social security benefits will be constrained by how many taxes, how big the tax revenues are that are coming in and i've only taken in 75% of taxes. without any change in law, you're talking about across-the-board cuts, talk about third rails. that will never happen.

i will be a strong impetus for policymakers to act. box one of the things you touched on is the idea of bringing in more immigrants. help fulfill those gaps. you cover national politics as closely as anyone. how likely do you think this issue will help? >> depends on what you mean. it is certainly the case that both artist have a vested interest in changing the system they might not of had previously. the republican is old. that muffles the long-standing effort to cut entitlements. there is no longer the push now that one third of the party is over the age of 65. these things are changing.

the competing instincts need to be resolved. this is a moment of flux because largely by baby boomers. >> such an important discussion, thank you for being here. >> fears and the rise of artificial intelligence. >> for years, women have faced sexual harassment online and

with the rise of artificial intelligence, it's only getting worse. deepfakes are routinely used against women. a 2019 study revealed staggering 96% of all deepfake women were nonconsensual pornography. our guest is a disinformation researcher and author of two books on the subject. she ran the biden administration disinformation -- she is the target of deepfake pornographic videos, and experience she wrote about it. you are now the target of the very thing you have researched and for more than one year you have been experiencing online harassment. what has that been like, to find yourself in multiple videos?

>> some people might be surprised to find out it did not shock me. i've written about online abuse for many years. they track news mentions, there was a deepfake form website. frankly it's not even in the top 10 worst things that have happened to me and that gives you a picture. >> what has been the impact? >> it's exhausting, don't speak out, don't stand up for the truth. that is something i have pushed back against. there are women that look up to me, women don't want to go

through this. whether it is deepfake born, these incessant harassment threats. a restraining order against a stalker. it's all taken a lot of time. frankly, taking away from the work i would like to be doing, i'm not going to give up or stay silent. >> women like hillary clinton have been subjects of these videos, when you recently researched one well-known website where people post these videos, you found there was only one video of former president donald trump, but pages of videos depicting his wife melania and daughter ivanka.

>> important point. these models are trained on women's bodies. even if you feed a male image into the face swap tools that exist, it's not going to work as well. they have been created by men for the purpose of demeaning women or pleasuring themselves and it does not work as well and that's why we see the 96% figure. >> ai has made these videos more convincing, but even poorly once the motive? f >> the motive is to demean and discredit. videos of me were posted on a website for deep fake corn. even so, the idea is to

humiliate me, show me an instance which is extremely private. this is the point. the cheap fix are meant to cast doubts. not fit for public office or public life. >> we spent time on these forums where you can see people interact. the men are concerned about their own privacy, they don't want to be found out for making these videos but they are not concerned. they said if you are a public figure, if your image is out there you have the right to make this art, i don't believe it's art. >> what recourse do women have who find themselves in these

videos? >> there is a patchwork of laws that hold distributors to account if you can find who they are. it's difficult to do. when a woman like me is you have to find a who would is, if you are in your state or jurisdiction, if they are out of your state or country you don't have any recourse. look at the threat that's facing us today. >> you were on the disinformation for the biden administration. survive three weeks to the

administration make a mistake? >> i believe the administration made a mistake. it was not republican outcry, it was lies and disinformation. people said i was going to be censoring american speech. i stood up my entire career. >> in this article, your addressing policymakers, using words, i begged them before acting greater threats posed by ai that they first off the men using it to discredit and

humiliate women. what do you think it will take? >> i wish i knew. i would ask lawmakers who are stalling on this and say it's just a women's issue, one we will deal with we talk about the broader ai threat. to think of your wife, your daughter, your sister, your mom. >> is a little bit trite. we should not have to ask for basic human rights to be respected by men thinkinof the women in their lives. if that's what it takes, i hope they do it. certainly, if they saw any of those in their lives in that private situation, for anyone on the internet to see, it is something i think we will see nations like russia, china, iran using against female officials in the united states because it works. >> thank you so much for joining

and sharing your personal experience. we often hear deep concerns about the state of american democracy but a new book provides some optimistic advice and answers. the bill of obligations argues democracy works best when citizens recognize not just rights but duties. we spoke with the author. >> welcome back to the newshour. new righ in this book, the greatest threat to america comes om within. you say from political divisions and only the second time in.s. history have raised doubts about the future of american democracy in the united states.

cite january 6 as proof of that. a lot of people said it was terrible but the system held. democracy survived. morbi word? >> does not mean we have the luxury of being sanguine. this is a country works to easy to imagine widespread violence. we are as polarized as we have ever been as a society and i'm not predicting the worst. we ought to be worried we got to do something about it. >> do you think the idea of american exceptionalism prevents most americans from seeing our democracy as vulnerable? >> it might be that or momentum. here we are. threes away from marking the

anniversary of the declaration of independence. we don't teach civics in schools. you can graduate from any college. you don't need to know what citizenship requires, but the country requires of its citizens. my sense is americans are not as alert as they could and should be to the danger we are in. >> you write about the idea of citizenship and say we have been -- live on these important? >> the rights of an abortion, the rights of the unborn. how do we navigate that?

i do we navigate that? rights alone are not enough. think about obligations. we need to reimagine citizenship . >> one of the obligations you layout to remain civil. >> persuade people. it's unlikely you and i will have a working relationship. this instantly for parents, teachers, what about religious authorities? people who stand up and preach to call for stability, it's not calling for policy, it is what we'll one another.

>> another obligation new layout is to be informed, in the current landscape, there are bad actors out there. leaders who are unable or unwilling to reign in those actors or stop the spread of bad information. how do you inform the citizenry with good information? >> it's essential. i think it's up to our schools to make public education better. needs to be the single highest priority. one thing i like, in new jersey, there was now a requirement to teach information literacy. the idea is not to teach young people what to think but have to be an informed sumer. head you know a fact when you

see one. with the difference between a fact in statement? that's the thing we can do much better. >> you talk about the shared national experience. much of the policymaking has shifted to states. does the amount of power take away the ability to have a shared national experience? >> this was a country founded on the idea of americanness, while we were founded, we were a country of 3 million people. now, we are more than 100 million people. there have to be certain protections.

florida can't have a foreign policy that's different from ohio's, or grounds. there ar this cann be ceain donr local level. >> that brings me to the last obligation. i will tell you, the people i talked to outside of the capital believed they were doing just that. many thought the violence was justified. are you worried we will see more? >> i am worried, i spent years as the on base to northern ireland, three decades of political violence there. we could have a version here. let me quote ronald reagan, i think it was his well address. he said we need informed the truth is. we need americans to understand.

motives alone are not enough. >> as we speak, you are stepping down as president on the council of foreign relations after 20 years at the helm. you have seen democracies rise and fall. are you optimistic? >> i am optimistic. we need to worry. right now, we live in a world where one democracy is being threatened by invasion. much bigger threat is corrosion from within. as big, russia are, we are the biggest threat to ourselves. >> the book is the bill of obligations, the 10 habits of

good citizens. good to speak with you. >> a public art exhibition explores art as a way of uncovering hidden history and addressing contemporary urban life. >> we should probably stand in someone's living room. we are in the neighborhood, you have to use your imagination. >> not far from st. louis, the old buildings are gone, this was the site of a historic black neighborhood. razed in the late 1950's. now, it is memorialized.

each pillar holds an hourglass shape signifying the passage of time and people. >> pillage of the community. >> with inscribed quotations. the names and occupations nearby. it's the work of an artist. >> i've been in this area my entire life. i've never heard about this. i thought i had a good grasp of black history. >> you are thinking why don't i know about this? >> weeks earlier it was the site of a public art exhibition in which the pillars are part. 30 artists were commissioned to create works. much of it runs along jefferson avenue. there are small pieces at the

museum of african-american history. very large works including -- with sound inspired by scott joplin who lived and worked in the city for several years. video by an artist projected on the bluff of an industrial zone. windchimes hung in benton park. a merrill titled justice and much more. quotes we talk about this as a civic exhibition because we are to think of where art connects with social change. this was a moment where across the country my humans were being taken down and this question of

how we are telling history was on people's minds. we took that as our mission. >> as a starting point, he writes st. louis is at the crux of american history, the gateway to the west based on ideas of manifest destiny and realities of indian removal, a long history of discrimination and violence up to the killing of michael brown and ferguson protest that followed. >> divisions continue, just a few days after our visit a shooting that left 10 injured in one day. >> art can exist in a silo in a city it's very clear where you are talking about public safety, land ownership and gentrification, the changes of the city become part of the art

and we want to be intentional and say we think we can do this better. >> one example was the designer of the national museum for african-american history in washington is erecting a sculpture that will enhance the north of the city. another theme, uncovering past history capturing the oldest structure in st. louis, the last remnant of a once thriving indigenous culture. above, billboards created by artists, below, and insulation. >> they are used -- the soundtrack by the sun. it yields as a member of the nation whose people once used in the area before being removed to

oklahoma. >> if it's a complex history we have in the area of removal, erasure, the ideas behind manifest destiny and western movement and how it affected us, all aspects. >> the response, colorful plot arms. structures she remembers for family and ceremonial gatherings. >> i thought, why not initiate platforms where we could put them in a situation where people in the area can come, sit here and enjoy and think about the history of this phase. >> doesn't reclaim that history? >> yes. that's my hope. we are making our way back. there is a double meaning there.

by having these installations, we are making our way back to part of our ancestral homeland. >> a way back, buta wals forwaea some artwork is ephemeral. others remain, pillars of the valley will continue to grow as new sculptures stretch along a mile-long weight. it's also a statement to the local art scene. >> people consider a safe layover spot but we don't get the type of respect many other coastal cities get when it comes to art in creation so i like the idea of people able to stay at home and the idea of public art and what he can do to change the makeup of the city in a positive way. i have not heard anything like that.

>> now, it is. for the pbs newshour, i am in st. louis. >> that is the newshour for tonight. don't forget, this more online. we get a sweet peak ahead of the world cup and catch up with the members of the team, a behind-the-scenes look is on our instagram account. i am geoff bennett, thank you for spending parts of your evening with us. >> major funding has been provided by >>. consumer cellular has been off ring wireless plans to help you do more of what you like. the customer service team can help fund the plan that it's you. to learn more, visit consumer cellular.tv. >> carnegie corporation of new york. supporting education and the advancement of peace and

security. carnegie.org. with the ongoing support of these institutions. this program was made possible by the corporation public webcasting and by contributions by viewers like you. thank you. >> this is pbs newshour west from washington and the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. >>

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