wow, you get to watch all your favorite stuff. it's to die for. now you won't miss a thing. this is the way. the xfinity 10g network. made for streaming. ♪ amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. on "the newshour" tonight... a newly unveiled report shows georgia prosecutors did not bring charges against senator lindsey graham and some of former president trump's other allies despite the grand jury's commendation. amna: president biden arrives in india for the g20 economic summit, looking to strengthen relations with the host nation as china flexes its power in the region and across the world. geoff: and... new york city struggles to keep up with an influx of migrants,

including thousands of children during the first days of a new school year. >> this crisis is going to harm migrants and it's going to harm long term new yorkers. we're all in this together. ♪ >> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions, and friends of "the newshour," including jim and nancy goldman and kathy and paul anderson. >> this is sam, how may i help you? >> this is pocket dial. >> i thought i would tell you you get nationwide coverage with no contract. that is kind of our thing. have a nice day.

>> the john s. and james l. knight foundation, fostering informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. ♪ >> and with ongoing support of these individuals and institutions -- and friends of "the newshour." ♪ this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and contributions to your pbs station by viewers like you. thank you. geoff: welcome to "the newshour." a newly-released report reveals a special grand jury in georgia recommended charges for twice as many people than the 19 ultimately indicted for efforts to overturn the 2020 election. amna: those 19, including former

president donald trump, all pleaded not guilty earlier this week. but the fulton county district attorney has not brought charges against the 21 others named in this report, including three u.s. senators and a former senior white house official. here to unpack the unsealed report and what it may reveal about the case is chris timmons, a former county prosecutor in georgia and law professor at georgia state university. welcome and thank you for joining us. before we get into the special grand jury report i want to ask you about news we just received this evening. a judge has ruled against the former white house chief of staff mike meadows request to move his case from georgia to a federal court. tell us your reaction, is that what we expected? chris: that's exactly what i expected. when you look at the case as far as the removal issue, what is important is whether mr. meadows was acting under color of his office.

was he acting as the chief of staff to the president of united states or part of the campaign? what the judge found in the opinion is this true meadows was acting as part of the campaign, not as the chief of staff of the president and it would not be proper to remove the case from federal -- to federal court. amna: i want to ask you about the special grand jury in the report that was released today. start with briefly explaining who the special grand jury is and how the fit into the process. chris: there are two types of grand jury's in georgia. one is a special purpose grand jury into the other is the grand jury that we think of, a regular grand jury. the specia purpose grand jury can be impaneled by the judges of any county when they decide an investigation needs to happen that will last longer than the term of court, and in fulton county that is more than two months. knowing it would be a wide-ranging investigation, massive in scope, they realized

the investigation was not going to be able to happen in the time allotted to a grand jury so they convened a special purpose grand jury. they don't have the power to indict like a regular grand jury does, they only have the power to issue a report. they did that when they concluded and the report was put under seal and the seal was broken today with the report released. amna: we know among those not charged despite that the grand jury recommended indictments are familiar names, including lindsey graham, david perdue, michael flynn, boris epstein. what are some of the name -- some of the reasons prosecutors might not charge someone even though grand jury recommends they do? chris: a couple of reasons. i think you will find with regard to some of the individuals listed in the special purpose grand jury report that they cut deals with the state. in other words, they flipped.

and they were offered immunity. some of it also is you have a wide-ranging indictment, about 98 pages long with 19 defendants. it's not uncommon when you have a massive criminal scheme to narrow it. i had a rico case that we started with 45 defendants and we whittled it down to 19 just to make it easier. the defendants left out of the indictment might be charged later down the road, but for ease of moving forward and if you've got deals cut, they won't appear within it. in order to move forward on a rico indictment you have to prove every person is in the rico indictment part of the conspiracy. if you don't have parts that neatly fit in the conspiracy you leave them out and i suspect that's what happened here. amna: can any of these individuals also be called to testify in the trials of the folks who were charged? chris: absolutely.

they could be called by the state and also by the defense. i suspect, particularly with regard to senator lindsey graham based on the comments he made today, that the defense would call them. logistical issues with regard to subpoenaing him. i wouldn't expect the state to call him but he could be. certainly there are other individuals, if they cut deals with the state you can expect to see testimony from them as the case moves toward trial. amna: that is chris timmons joining us tonight, thank you. chris: thank you, i appreciate the opportunity. ♪ geoff: in the day's other headlines --

the summer's latest heat wave spread its sweltering grip across new england. boston declared a heat emergency and opened cooling centers. some schools with no air conditioning -- in massachusetts, connecticut and new hampshire -- closed or sent students home early. they also cut back after-school activities. earlier this week, the heat wave also disrupted schools from michigan to virginia. floodwaters began receding in parts of central greece today after three days of record downpours. dozens of villages have been inundated with at least 10 people killed and 2500 rescued so far. even today, there were new evacuations, and flood victims faced a new reality. >> tragic disaster, misery, pain, sorrow, such a tragedy. we'll suffer for a very long time. the damage to our homes is irreparable. a lifetime's worth of work was lost within two hours, it is completely destroyed. geoff: meantime, record rain in hong kong caused by a typhoon is blamed for two deaths, with hundreds of people forced to flee.

officials say a quarter of the city's average annual rainfall fell in a single hour, triggering severe flooding and landslides. hurricane lee has weakened slightly tonight after briefly becoming this year's first category five storm in the atlantic. it's still swirling over open waters off the northern leeward islands, on a track to pass north of the caribbean region this weekend. the storm's path after the middle of next week remains unclear. in ukraine, russian missiles rained down on multiple cities again overnight, killing at least four civilians and injuring dozens. the attacks badly damaged 10 the lings in a president floating near zelinski's hometown. officials said one person died and more than 70 were wounded. also today, voters in russian occupied regions of ukraine begin voting in local elections. they are meant to strengthen moscow's grip on regions it illegally annexed. the un children's agency is warning that record numbers of migrant children are trying to

cross latin america and the caribbean, headed for the u.s. unicef says the numbers making the dangerous trek have doubled this year. it says many are under 11 years old and often traveling alone from places in asia and africa. laurent: well unicef is extremely concerned because, in the first eight months of this year, over 60,000 children have crossed the darien jungle between colombia and panama. this is the highest number of migrant children crossing the darien jungle ever recorded. geoff: unicef attributes the spike to rising violence, climate change and increasing poverty in the home countries of migrant children. spanish prosecutors accused soccer executive luis rubiales today of sexual assault and coercion. they say he kissed spanish player jenni hermoso on the lips without her consent after the national team won the world cup. the incident has sparked protests across spain, and rubiales has been suspended. he could get up to four years in

prison if he's convicted. back in this country -- former house speaker nancy pelosi announced she will seek reelection to represent her san francisco district in 2024. in a social media post, the veteran democrat wrote, "now more than ever, our city needs us to advance san francisco values and further our recovery." pelosi is 83. she's been in congress since 1987 and stepped down as speaker last year. the irs is gearing up to go after 1600 millionaires who owe hundreds of millions of dollars in back taxes. the tax agency announced today it's targeting people who owe at least $250,000 dollars, and also looking at 75 large business partnerships. the push follows a mass hiring effort with new funding from the biden administration. and, on wall street -- stocks closed slightly higher despite renewed worries about interest rates. the dow jones industrial average gained 75 points to close at 34,576. the nasdaq rose 12 points.

the s&p 500 added 6. still to come on "the newshour"... mexico becomes the latest country in latin america to loosen restrictions on abortion... nursing homes push back on new federal staffing requirements... and david brooks and jonathan capehart weigh in on the week's political headlines. >> 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 mayor of new york is warning that the city could be destroyed if it doesn't get more help to cope with an influx of migrants. city officials describe a humanitarian crisis -- straining resources, filling up shelters and putting pressure on new york city schools. among the over 100,000 asylum-seekers in new york city are thousands of children going back to school this week. >> are you excited to be back in

school? geoff: it is the largest public school system in the country, now educating some 21,000 students living in temporary housing, a number that reflects the increase in migrant families arriving in the city. >> we are welcoming all of these new migrant children into our schools with open arms. geoff: open but strained arms. >> this issue will destroy new york city. destroy new york city. geoff: mayor eric adams has promised a humane response while stressing resources are overwhelmed. >> the real issue that we are seeing is not a resource issue it is actually making sure that , we're spending resources appropriately. geoff: murad awawdeh is the executive director of the new york immigration coalition, which has worked to help incoming migrant families prepare for the school year. >> one thing that we have been fighting for a number of years has been ensuring that we expand programs for english language learners as well as expanding

english language learner transfer schools in new york city. it's a huge need, it continues to be a huge need. geoff: housing migrant families is also an issue. >> every night we have to be creative to find places to allow people to stay. geoff: the city has opened 206 emergency shelters in hotels, parks and buildings. but still, migrants have lined the streets awaiting a bed, one the city government is required to provide to anyone in need under the city's long standing right to shelter mandate. the influx could cost the city more than $12 billion over three years. >> this crisis originated with the federal government. and it must be resolved through the federal government. geoff: governor kathy hochul took their cause directly to the white house in a meeting last week where she pushed for more , money and expanded pathways for migrants to legally work when they arrive. but meaningful solutions likely

need congressional approval, leaving an ever-growing number of migrants and their children waiting. new york city mayor eric adams joins us now. welcome back to the newshour. mayor adams: good to be here. geoff: let's focus on new york city public schools as classrooms work to accommodate newly arrived migrant children, many of whom speak little to no english and many of whom are living in shelters. first of all, how did the first couple of days of school go and then beyond that? how is the city aiming to meet the immense need of school aged migrant children in particular? mayor adams: it went well. there's always excitement at the beginning of the school year watching the optimism. some crying faces leaving mommy for the first time, but it was extremely, extremely smooth transition ending summer. when you talk to 20,000 unsheltered children, a large number of them are migrant asylum seekers. we already had 18,000 last year,

we've been clear on that. and we absorbed those 18,000 and we're continuing to do what's right and it is exciting when you see your child enter the school system at the beginning of the year, not speaking english at all. but leaving at the end of the year able to communicate in english learning new ways of , learning and interacting and embracing new friends. we're going to continue to do our job to educate the scholars and these young people. geoff: does the city have the capacity and resources to do what you say you want to do which is to help those young people? mayor adams: we need more. we have been extremely clear on this. the new york city has been carrying his burden for the most part on his own. we have a committed governor, in the billion dollars in the last budget that we have to spend down. when you look at what is costing the city and not only dollars and cents, but also in men and women power is an awesome responsibility. we were created this year to

allow teachers who are spanish speakers to do language to be able to leave and get their to leave their current assignment if they desire to do so and use their tenure. not lose their tenure. and this was a technical issue that we were able to overcome with the state's help. and so we're going to always need more to address this major issue that we're facing in new york city. geoff: let's talk a bit more about some of the short term solutions because new york is trying to unwind the right to shelter mandate in court citing the strain that the influx of migrants have put on that system. both you and the governor of new york want the federal government to expedite work permits so that migrants can support themselves and not be as dependent on the city and state for basic services. what more could the white house do unilaterally in your view help you deal with the pressure and the strain on public resources? mayor adams: we need to be extremely clear. this is unfair to migrants, it is unfair to new york city residents. it is unfair to the entire

country, when you're looking at what's happening in big cities across america. chicago just acknowledged they are moving migrants into tents out of police districts. the same thing in los angeles in other parts el paso, , brownsville. this is just wrong, and what we believe the federal government should do is have a real decompression strategy all over the entire country. so cities are not absorbing this issue. and particularly in those areas where you're having these major concerns there should be a state , of emergency that the federal government is calling to make sure we are getting the support to the cities right away. and this is within the control of the federal government. then we need to expedite this labor intensive process of allowing people to have the right to work. i believe we need to extend the tps status to give them the right to work so they can provide for their own kid. this is all they are asking.

migrants are asking to be able to work like every other american that came to this country. that is the precursor to the american dream. if we don't do that, we are harming not only the migrants, we're creating the black market of employees and workers that is extremely harmful and dangerous to the city and this country. geoff: you're facing some criticism for saying at that townhall this past week that the migrant crisis will "destroy new york city." there are democrats who accuse you of sounding like a republican. there are immigration advocates who say that those comments in many ways villainize migrants. what exactly did you mean with those remarks, and also by saying that the city we knew we are about to lose? mayor adams: well, let's be clear. i did not say migrants would destroy the city. this crisis is going to harm migrants, and it was going to harm long term new york. we're all in this together. and many of those who are criticizing, they did not spend the night in a migrant

humanitarian relief center, they have not been down at the hotels , they have not communicated with family members who have lost loved ones. i see on the ground what is happening. this is going to be a $12 billion price tag over three years. this is going to have a major impact on migrants, the delivery of services to them, delivery of services to longtime new yorkers who are already struggling. we need to be clear on that. we already had a homeless population. we already had low income new yorkers that was struggling to feed themselves and stay into their homes. we are going to transform this city. if this is not under control for the price tag of $12 million during a time we're gonna we're gonna have a fiscal cliff of federal dollars running out and dealing with the financial challenges we are already facing. we don't get this right, it is going to destroy this city and it's going to harm them and i cannot sugarcoat this to the new york city public. they need to know what we are facing right now. geoff: let me ask you this,

because there are leaders of border states who say that if this migrant influx is a national crisis, as you say it is, why shouldn't new york, why shouldn't los angeles and chico have to help shoulder this burden? why should it all be the responsibility of texas alone? mayor adams: and they are right and i joined them. that's why i went down to el paso. i communicated with the mayor of brownsville. i have communicated with the mayor of houston. they are 100% correct. i share that with them. and that is why those republicans that have brought immigration reform for years and have gotten in the way of real immigration reform, we came close at one time -- yes, this is a problem that national government must resolve. i say this over and over again. no city should be carrying the weight of a national problem. so i agree 100% that no city should be going through this. when you look at the numbers that are coming here to new york city, over 110,000 into our

system. we're getting 10,000 a month. that's not sustainable, and it's unfair to those who came here to pursue the american dream. geoff: new york city mayor eric adams, we appreciate your time this evening. thank you. mayor adams: thank you, take care. ♪ amna: facing persistently weak poll numbers at home, president joe biden set off for a two-day gathering of the g20 in new delhi. the meeting between leaders of the world's largest economies comes at time of increasing geopolitical divisions. notably, both chinese president xi jinping and russian president vladimir putin are skipping this year's summit hosted by india. for president biden, the trip -- which includes a stop in vietnam -- is meant to position the u.s. as a more reliable partner to the global south. laura barron-lopez joins to discuss the significance the

president's travels in asia. good to see you. president biden has already met with the indian prime minister. what are we learning about that meeting? laura: white house officials were saying they were hopeful a potential deal could be struck on a railway info structure project. the deal would be between india, the united states, saudi arabia and the arab emirates. it would link the gulf and arab countries as well as linking them to india via seaports. one official described it intentionally as an earthshaking corridor. topics -- talks are still developing and they haven't come to a deal quite yet. beyond that, the prospect of real big developments out of the summit are slim. india doesn't want to alienate china or russia and waters are skeptical there will be any type

of supportive joint statement behind ukraine that comes out of this summit. critics also warning the administration that as biden tries to improve his elation ship with india, reminding him india is a human rights abuser and their democracy is backsliding. amna: india remains neutral when it comes to the war on ukraine. china was a big focus for this administration, both economic and security fronts. what is the white house saying about the fact that xi jinping is not at this summit? laura: publicly they are saying they are disappointed. but one of the big goals for the president at this summit is to bolster the ability for alternative lending to developing, middle income countries. it is specifically trying to improve institutions like the world bank and international monetary fund and the ability to provide lending to different countries. again, the ability for biden to

leverage a u.s. commitment in getting other western allies to do the same, waters are skeptical that much will materialize. amna: he goes to vietnam sunday. why vietnam and why now? laura: i spoke to john kirby and he said the president is excited about this trip, especially at a time when the countries's militaries are getting to know each other and they want to take relationship to the next level. again, the white house is trying to say this isn't about china, this visit is very much about china and trying to improve relationships with someone in china's backyard. amna: back home, tough polls for the biden reelection effort. does that raise the stakes for this trip abroad? laura: you are right, those polls not only showed low job approval ratings but also voters were concerned about bidens age. the white house -- i should say

bidens campaign -- put out an ad the same day the president left for this trip and it was focused on him traveling to ukraine, traveling to a war zone which he did earlier this year, and in it there were trying to show that these trips are not easy, he has the stamina to continue this job, he's trying to be presidential and bolster relationships with key allies on the world stage and defend democracy. it was no accident that ad was released on the same day the president left again for another foreign trip. amna: laura, covering a key summit for president biden. good to see you, thank you. laura: thank you. ♪ geoff: in a sweeping decision this week, mexico's supreme court broadened abortion rights in that country.

as ali rogin reports, it's part of a trend across parts of latin america. [chanting] ali: for mexico's abortion advocates, a victory. >> mexico has deeply rooted traditional ideals having a legal context that supports our decisions represents a big change. ali: the new ruling requires that abortion be removed from the federal penal code and that federal hospitals and clinics offer abortion to anyone who wants one. in 2021, the mexicans up in court ruled for the first time that punishing abortion was unconstitutional, but it only applied to a northern state. while 12 mexican states out of 32 had already decriminalized abortion, the new decision applies nationwide. >> the decision regarding the federal penal code is setting an enormous president. we hope the decriminalization

and the remaining states will speed up. ali: but the path to legalizing abortion has required years of activism, not only in mexico but across latin america, where the abortion rights movement became known as the green wave. it got its name in 2018 after more than a million argentinian activists wearing green scarfs took to the streets to demand abortion be legal. it was a movement decades in the making. it took hold in argentina in the 1980's but it wasn't until 2020 that country legalized the procedure up to the 14th week of pregnancy. other countries followed suit, including columbia and ecuador, where women can now seek an abortion in case of rape. latin america has historically had some of the world's most restrictive abortion policies but the recent regional trend toward legalization stands in contrast to the united states, where the supreme court overturned of roe v. wade ended a right that was upheld for

decades. but back in mexico, some continue to resist the changes. >> we are not going to stop until mexico guarantees the right to life from the moment of conception. ali: for the pbs newshour, i am allie rogan. geoff: for more on mexico's landmark ruling we turn to maria antonieta alcalde. she serves as the director of ipas latin america and the caribbean, a regional organization advocating for women and abortion rights. thank you for being with us. latin america is in the midst of a so-called green wave as countries like mexico, colombia and argentina have knocked down major abortion restrictions in recent years. what is behind the move to liberalize abortion access? because abortion laws have historically been strict across latin america, which is a predominantly catholic region. maria: it is still a predominately catholic region and i think one element has been the women's movement, the feminist movement. this has been part of the agenda

for a very long time. the region has been moving toward acknowledging that beyond the personal religious beliefs of the people, we need laws that serve everyone and putting women in jail for having an abortion is not the solution. the solution is also not forcing anyone to continue a pregnancy that does not want one or cannot continue. there is a cultural shift, most of all a strong civil society movement behind these. geoff: do you see mexico becoming a sanctuary for american women seeking abortion services? maria: mexico is already a sink sciorra for american women seeking services. more and more -- in the past, mexican women used to go to the u.s. looking for safe abortion services. but in texas and with the dubs

decision, -- dobbs decision, we are seeing more and more u.s. women seeking abortion in mexico, or networks of women supporting other women to have abortions at home. this decision with the court, that safety net that makes women feel safe when they come to mexico to look for an abortion, is growing even bigger. geoff: there are abortion rights advocates looking south to parts of latin america and the caribbean for guidance on how to win back reproductive rights after the u.s. supreme court overturned roe. what lessons might they learn? maria: in the past, u.s. movement was very isolated from the global movement. the green wave is not just let america, we've learned for other countries -- the u.s. was very isolated, and the roe v. wade

decision, and that prevented them from learning. in the u.s., the movement was in a way very branded by some of the bigger organizations that have done amazing work. in a way, the abortion agenda was kind of the same that some of those organizations. one of the lessons learned is the importance of a vibrant movement that is very organic and that's the lesson of the green when young people, who are in favor of the agenda, having a more organic, less branded and less controlled movement, that might be another one. and the third that i think is relevant, in the u.s., access to abortion is very linked with the idea that access has to be in a clinic. abortion is a service that can be very safely managed at home by the woman. those are three of the lessons i think we are sharing right now

with the american movement. geoff: when you refer to home management, you are referring to medication abortion? maria: absolutely, medication abortion using two medications. it is completely safe according to gdelines. geoff: we should also say they are antiabortion advocates of training their focus on mexico to restore some of those restrictions, as we talk about the broader effort to ease restrictions across latin america. maria, thank you for your time and insights. maria: thank you very much. ♪ amna: the biden administration has proposed new staffing standards to improve care for the 1.3 million americans living in nursing homes. and while it's the biggest change to regulations in three

decades, many patient advocates say it still falls short of what's needed. stephanie sy has the details. stephanie: the covid pandemic spotlighted how understaffing and low pay in nursing homes led to many tragic outcomes, with a disproportionate number of nursing home residents and workers dying. the new proposed rule calls for more nursing care -- the equivalent of about 3 hours of care per day per resident, with 33 minutes of that care being delivered by a registered nurse and the rest by nurses' aides. currently, three-quarters of nursing homes do not have enough staff to meet these minimums. david grabowski is a health care policy expert and professor at harvard medical school. he joins me now to share his reaction. david, thank you for being on the newshour again. there are currently from what i understand, no enforceable standards for nursing home staffing. is it widely agreed that this was needed and do you think it's

enough to address the problem? david: i think it was absolutely needed. we've been talking about this as far back as the 1986 institute of medicine report. this has been a long time coming. we've had a number of u.s. nursing homes understaffed, too much turnover, low safety and poor quality. is it enough? i don't think so. you said the numbers, three hours per resident per day. these individuals are medically complex, they have a lot of functional limitations and needs. three hours is a great start and the administration deserves a ton of credit for putting this rule forward. it's probably the biggest reform in nursing homes in decades but we still have a ways to go. stephanie: but the reality is the nursing home industry is already having a hard time attracting and retaining staff as it is without the standard. even with this rule, can it be implemented?

david: timing is everything and we are in the middle of a staffing shortage so this is a terrible time to implement a staffing standard in u.s. nursing homes. that said, it's never been more needed than today, so that is the balancing act the administration is facing. i think the administration built and a lot of measures in this policy to help out nursing homes suffering from staffing shortages in local markets. they have given any facility that can't find staff at the prevailing wages and meeting criteria, they have an exemption. they also have a long implementation period, three to five years. finally the administration has put $75 million into this growing of the next generation of nursing home caregivers. is that enough? no, we need to figure out ways to grow this workforce, but i think these measures are a way

to help nursing homes that are early facing an unprecedented workforce shortage. stephanie: part of the problem, biden administration officials appointed to, is private equity firm buyouts of private nursing homes. they say it is contributing to the staffing shortages because they imply those firms put profit over patient care. have you seen evidence of that, is it a big factor here? david: i think that's a big part of the story. ownership, we don't have a lot of those mom-and-pop owned nursing homes we had 20 or 30 years ago. these are corporations, often very complex corporations with many layers. it's hard for policymakers to follow the dollars. many of those dollars don't end up in direct resident care or in the pockets of staff. they unfortunately end up in other parts of the organizations through what are called related

party transactions. private equity, estate investment trusts and lots of other complicated ownership structures have emerged in the industry and really i think helped push along the kinds of reforms we are thinking about like a minimum staffing standard where i think 20 or 30 years ago , we were talking about this policy but it wasn't as needed as it is today because we didn't have the same set of owners as we do today. stephanie: should the government be ponying up more money to pay nursing come staff? david: if you talk to individuals in the industry it is a billion-dollar question. some nursing homes have not put enough dollars back into direct resident care. this policy will help discipline those nursing homes. they can no longer siphon dollars from direct resident care. the private equity groups we were just talking about will have to put the dollars back into direct resident care.

other nursing homes may struggle. hopefully the policy is a start, not just with staffing, but toward a more comprehensive set of reforms. stephanie: we will see. david grabowski, at harvard medical school, thank you for sharing your expertise. david: thank you, stephanie. ♪ amna: it's been a busy week in politics in washington and across the country. to delve deeper into it all, we turn to the analysis of brooks and capehart. that's "new york times" columnist david brooks and jonathan capehart, associate editor for "the washington post." welcome to you both, great to see you. david, let's start with the news we learned about the report from the special grand jury in georgia that basically shows there were 21 other people they recommend be indicted, the da

decided not to indict. the fact that 21 fulton county residents looked at this for four months, and yes, we think that these should be indicted. what is it say about the strengthen scope of the case? david: i imagine it's a strong case, but back many years ago when rudy giuliani was still a seminormal person, he was indicting people on wall street in use the ricoh statute and critics said ricoh is badly structured and you can roll up masses of people whether they are involved in the core conspiracy or not. i worry that rico was again brought it out to anybody who supported donald trump. we just don't need to be rolling up anybody who supports donald trump, it weakens the case against those who were part of the conspiracy. amna: jonathan, what'd you

think, the decision not to indict people like senator graham, david perdue, michael flynn? jonathan: my reaction was one, the restraint of the prosecution, to david's point, but also the fact that -- it was a footnote, i can't remember which page, that is footnote number six and leaned why one of the people on the grand jury voted against indicting them. they thought what they did was political and not part of the conspiracy. when i read the footnote, it made me think, hmm, is this the avenue donald trump will be able

to use to get out from under his indictment, to get a jury to find him not guilty or to say he wasn't part of this conspiracy? i don't know, but the overall thing i take away from this is a lot of attention has been focused on the da and her motivations and skill. what we are seeing with every release, with every document, it is that she is more than up to th task of earning this case and she is running a well oiled, very smart shop. amna: leave it to jonathan capehart to be digging into the footnotes. take you for that. david: i read the bibliography. amna: thank you for that. [laughter] we learned federal prosecutors will be moving ahead with indictment against hunter biden, expected by the end of the month. david, those questions behind

hunter biden continued republican threats to impeach president biden. is this becoming a liability for the president? david: it is certainly a liability and feeds into the narrative that he's part of the washington establishment and everyone is self dealing. the gun charge -- he was a sick man, frankly, who had some drug issues and the gun charge is an ancillary issue. he was clearly trying to peddle influence but was he successful? was there any change to joe biden's policies? i doubt it on all counts. i do think i've underestimated the hunter biden story and i think it's probably worth a look if there was actual influence peddling. for the republicans talking about impeachment, you have to have a crime. you have to have an accusation they can make and they don't have anything right now. it's worth looking into but they are way premature. amna: jonathan, is it worth a

look by the department of justice and house republicans? jonathan: it is worth a look by the department of justice because they are already looking. with the special counsel having already been appointed, there apparently is a reason to look. the one thing i want folks to remember and always remember, the legal predicament surrounding hunter biden, the son of the president, it is nowhere near and not the same as what is facing the former president, twice impeached, four times indicted on 91 counts in four different jurisdictions. republicans -- especially congressional republicans -- have been spending a lot of time trying to focus attention on hunter biden and to the "weaponization of the justice department" because of what's happening to donald trump as opposed to focusing on the fact that the guy has got four

indictments, 91 counts, for some very serious crimes. also affronts to american democracy. that is nowhere near what hunter biden may or may not have done, does not even come close to the level of legal drama facing the former president of the united states. amna: does this fuel political what about is him? david: what aboutism is never a great thing. i agree that what trump has admitted doing is way worse than what hunter biden has denied doing. but he got lots of money from ukrainians and chinese, and there is a reason, is not because of his skills, it's because his last name is biden. when you get a case like that, set aside what needs to be done to donald trump, it is worth answering the fears a lot of people have, which is they are focusing on the gun issues, which is trivial so they don't

focus on the influence peddling. amna: i want to ask about the interview earlier with new york city mayor eric adams, his city is one of many under pressure as you have more numbers of migrants arriving from the southern border and making their way into different cities across the country and he's among the many democratic leaders criticizing the president saying you need to do more. we need more help. is that criticism fair? jonathan: the criticism is fair if you also keep in mind he is focusing on the president because he's the president, but also in his criticism he talked about congress. talked about the federal government, talked about washington. that is an acknowledgment of the fact that yeah, he can yell at the president because the president is a member of his own party and someone who will listen to him. but if there is ever going to be anything done about what is happening at the border, what is happening about the migrants the republican governors are using as human pawns, sending them

to democratically run cities and states, you're going to need democrats and republicans in congress to sit down like adults and come up with a comprehensive immigration plan that can pass both chambers and get the president's signature. it is a federal issue, and not just the presidents. congress has to give the president something to sign. i understand the mayor's frustration and governor pritzker's frustration in illinois, governor hochul frustration in new york. at some point the focus has to shift from president biden to congress and particularly republicans on capitol hill. i'm old enough to remember when senator john mccain was working real hard with senator lindsey graham to come up with the constant -- copperheads of immigration -- comprehensive

immigration bill and it failed. amna: are there republicans that want to see that comprehensive immigration reform? david: yes, but they are all hiding in the closet. first, jonathan is right, we need to fix the immigration system. republicans need to understand we need immigrants, and democrats need to understand we need to close our borders. they can avoid the word walls if they want to but we need to control the borders. if you're going to have a sanctuary city or whatever and say welcome, people can come here, when people are allowed to come in through our dysfunctional system, it will cost her city a lot of money. democrats have to understand, my colleague puts it well, we need a big wall with a big gate. both sides have to give a little. the final thing for democrats, it's becoming a problem for the democratic party, which is that a lot of the most seemingly dysfunctional cities are now the

most progressive cities, seattle, portland, san francisco, new york, chicago. the democrats have to take a look at the programs that have led them to this spot and say how do we rethink urban governance so it doesn't look like we have a lot of cities that are ungovernable? amna: thank you both so much, always great to see you. david: great to see you. jonathan: thank you. ♪ amna: the u.s. open has been heating up with surprising upsets heading to the finals, as well as the soaring temperatures across the east coast, prompting officials to partially close the stadium roof in new york. and while european players have

dominated the top spots in years past, this year, it's the americans who've taken the courts by storm -- specifically black american players who are making history. to talk about this continental and cultural shift in tennis, i'm joined by ava wallace, who covers tennis for the washington post. she joins me now from the u.s. open in new york. it is great to see you. i have to start with the name everyone is talking about, coco gauff. 19 years old and she has made it to the u.s. open finals, it is being called the summer of coco . what is behind her incredible success? ava: that something that coco gauff doesn't have an answer to herself, she had a loss at wimbledon and she was telling us she had to go back to the drawing board. she brought into new coaches, worked on a forehand and had an attitude shift where she says she's having more fun on court,

taking some pressure off herself. she has won two tournaments heading into the u.s. open and on fire, thinking her way through matches, using her athleticism, which is among the best on the women's tour, and she finds herself in her first u.s. open final. amna: also the first american woman to make it to the finals since serena williams can she win it all? ava: i think she has a chance based on how she's playing, she has a tough competitor, maybe her toughest yet, aryna sabalenka has 11 titles on hard courts already. she is a hard hitter and will challenge coco. amna: coco also part of the foursome that made history for u.s. tennis earlier this week, four american black players, they reached the quarterfinals, the first time in the sport's

open era. how big a milestone is that? ava: it felt like a really big moment. i waon arthur ashe stadium for frances tiafoe playing shelton. it felt a little different than things usually do at the u.s. open, a lot of rap and hip-hop music that you usually do not here at tennis tournaments. they took the moment and ran with it. razzing up the crowd, they played with so much fight and heart and it was excellent to see. these late-night matches on arthur ashe stadium tend to get loud. amna: loud and it's been hot, we've been reporting on the high temperatures and high humidity. how is that having an impact on the players and matches? ava: it's made for dramatic matches and getting everyone a little more stressed out.

technically it hurts players's serves, they talk about how it is physically harder to grip a rocket when you are dripping in sweat. and it tires players out. coco gauff, it was incredibly tiring to watch one rally. she was saying i knew i had to win it right there. amna: less than a minute left but i have to ask because you are there, there's a lot of conversation about the new generation of fans now following tennis because of this new generation of players. how have you seen that show up at the open? ava: you see it in the celebrities. there's always people in the stands, anna wintour and spike lee. there are a ton of nba players, demi butler is here pretty much every day. it's interesting to see a different kind of celebrity, a new generation of celebrity that generation z and millennials

know. amna: ava wallace covers tennis for the washington post, joining us from the u.s. open in new york. thank you for your time. ava: thank you for having me. geoff: much more online, including our own laura barron lopez with a rare look inside the newly renovated white house situation room where some of the most consequential u.s. military decisions are made. later tonight on washington week with the atlantic, moderator jeffrey goldberg and his panel take stock of the biden presidency so far, and the challenges he faces as he seeks re-election. amna: tune into pbs news weekend tomorrow. a new united nations report sheds light on the environmental and financial cost of invasive species. that is the newshour tonight. geoff: thank you for spending part of your evening with us. have a great weekend. >> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by -- ♪

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wow, you get to watch all your favorite stuff. it's to die for. now you won't miss a thing. this is the way. the xfinity 10g network. made for streaming. hello, everyone, and welcome to "amanpour & co.", here is what is coming up. >> every time everybody writes them off, he somehow manages to find a way to arrive at his greatest successes. >> a fly on the wall account of joe biden's triumphs and failures. author franklin ford joins me with his all access book on the u.s. president's first two years. then, why this cctv footage could help bring isis members to justice.