the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy] amna: i'm amna nawaz. geoff: and i'm geoff bennett. they are dropping charges against new york city mayor and

ah accusations of a quid pro quo. >> if you are running in fear of your own voters, nothing that america can do for you. amna: j.d. vance lectures. geoff: and david brooks and jonathan capehart give their takes from elon musk's expanding influence to the white house targeting associated press. >> major funding for the pbs "newshour" has been provided by friends of the "newshour" including jim and nancy and robert shiller foundation, the judy and peter bloom upholding

freedom for deemses -- democracies at home and abroad. >> a proud supporter of public television on a voyage with cunard, the world awaits, diverse destinations and immerse and british style. all with cunard's white star service. >> fostering and informed engaged communities. >> 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. geoff: welcome to the "newshour," a wave of resignations is shaking up the u.s. justice department as president trump gave orders to drop the case. seven officials have quit and adams is facing calls to step down. amna: one of new york's top federal prosecutors and already being dubbed the thursday afternoon massacre recalling the saturday night massacre during the watergate scandal. >> throughout this entire --

>> today, mayor adams was playing defense. >> i didn't do anything wrong. >> including a p.r. blitz on fox news. all the while, the u.s. department of justice is in upheaval over the corruption case. yesterday, six d.o.j. officials resigned after refusing an order from washington to dismiss the case. acting u.s. attorney danielle sassoon, a republican clerk who clerked for justice. mr. scalise: lya. writing to pam bondi, sassoon accused adams what amounted to a quid pro quo. and adams would aid trump's immigration enforcement if the d.o.j. sassoon wrote, it is a

breathtaking and dangerous precedent to reward adams' shifting commitments on immigration with dismissal of a criminal indictment. yesterday, mayor adams sat beside homan as he denied. >> that is a crime. >> it took her three weeks to report in front of her a criminal action. come on, this is silly. >> homan replied -- >> where the hell -- >> acting u.s. deputy attorney general and former trump lawyer rejected the assertion there was any quid pro quo. he wrote, that she quote, lost sight of her oath and should not interpret the constitution in a manner inconsistent with the

policies of a democratically elected president. adams pleaded guilty of accepting bribes and illegal campaign contributions from turkish analysis. a entrepreneury of democrats are calling on adams to step down and calling on governor to remove him from office, which she would have the authority to do. for d.o.j. officials, the thursday afternoon massacre. hagan scotten, the prosecutor who handled the case quit with a message refusing his motion to dismiss the case. he wrote, i expect you will find someone who is enough of a fool or enough of a coward to file your motion but it was never going to be me. bof a found a d.o.j. lawyer to file file the motion this

afternoon. amna: to discuss the up heefl is jessica roth, former prosecutor for the district of new york. looks like the department of justice has found someone who is willing to move forward with dismissing the charges against mayor adams. what happens now? is the judge required to accept that dismissal? >> no. the judge is not required to dismiss the dismissal right away. they require leave of court to dismiss it. that suggests the court is not meant to be a rubber stamp. but there is limited authority for a court denying leave to dismiss and the court has the authority to inquire into the reasons for the dismissal to make sure they are not improper and in the public interest and given the records set forth in

the letter that the court would have a hearing here. but if the court were to find that the reasons were improper, it's really not clear what would happen then because if the court were to deny leave the d.o.j. doesn't want to move forward with the prosecution, who would prosecute the case, it's not clear that the court has the authority to appoint a special prosecutor or someone else to carry out the prosecution that d.o.j. says it does not want to carry forward. amna: let me ask you about the letter that mayor adams' lawyer is asking for essentially a quid pro quo and the case should be dropped. is that what it looked like to you a quid pro quo? where is the legal bar or burden of proof there? >> it looked like an extraordinary abuse of

prosecutorial power, whether it was a quid pro quo or not, what is very clear in the memo directing the dismissal is that the reason for the dismissal had nothing to do with the merits of the case and was intended to leave mayor adams to pursue the president's immigration agenda and it said that the charges could be reinstated at a future date, very clearly hanging over the mayor's head the threat of re-indictment if he did not comply with the president's agenda and fell out of favor. it is clearly improper and abuse. amna: we should point out we spoke to you just three days ago when it first came up that federal prosecutors may move to drop this case and we saw this wave of res ig naigs and refusals to dismiss the case and how quickly things escalated

here. have you ever seen anything like that in the department of justice? >> no. this is an absolutely unprecedented situation and i think what we have seen is an extraordinary display of integrity and courage from the prosecutors in the southern district of new york who refused to comply with the order and from the lawyers at the department of justice public integrity section in washington, d.c., who refused to sign the order when the attorney general exchanged it. this is an extraordinary movement and standoff between the new leadership and the professional ranks of a prosecutor who have been trained in prosecutorial norms. amna: thank you. always good to see you. thank you for your time.

>> my pleasure. geoff: courtrooms across the country are hearing challenges to president trump and elon musk's intentions to shrunk the federal government. laura, bring us up to speed and how did the courts rule? laura: there were nonstop. to start off, one federal judge extended a restraining order against doge, the department of government efficiency led by elon musk barring them from accessing treasury payment systems. another lawsuit where the financial bureau was told that they don't have to delete -- trying to fall-on dismantling by

elon musk and the judge said no cfpb employees could be fired. and another case, the judge said they would not issue any emergency action to reinstate those inspectors general and that case is going to be scron going. in a case challenging elon musk operation, another federal judge asked for more specifics. all of that is happening as doge is growing its numbers. i was told by a source that billionaire at the airbnb is joining the efforts and he was at the office of personnel management today. geoff: the administration is going forward with the firings. how expansive is this? laura: we saw an increase in the

number of firings that are coming and targeting probationary employees people working in government less than one to two years. 200,000 employees could be impacted. more than 5,000 at the national institutes of health and the centers of disease control and veterans affairs and energy department and 3,000 at the u.s. forest service. and when it comes to those being terminated at the c.d. c.d.c. one of our sources said at least 100 members of the epidemic intelligent service are expected to be terminated. if you watch kaitlin was a member of that service and when it comes to the energy department cuts, some of those are within the nuclear security administration. a number of people are considered risky and across the

board. geoff: thanks for that update. laura: thank you. amna: "newshour" west, an update. the justice department formally asked a court to dismiss corruption charges against new york city city mayor adams. the judge must determine the request. there is new information on the deadly collision between american airlines jet and army helicopter in washington, d.c., last month. federal investigators say the black hawk crew may have missed a key control. the plane was coming in for a landing when the collision occurred. 67 people on board both aircraft were killed.

ntsb chairwoman said f.a.a. said to pass behind the jet. >> the portion of the transmission that stated pass behind the -- may not have been received by the black hawk crew. transmission was stepped on by a .8 second. the black black hawk was keying the mic to communicate. >> investigators believe the crew were wearing night vision goggles and looking to see readings inside the helicopters' cockpit were inaccurate. the trump administration has to lift its funding freeze and given officials a five-day deadline. the order late last night said the. mr. finstad: shal impact is happening worldwide. president trump ordered the

90-day freeze to determine which groups would keep getting federal funds. the judge said officials have not offered any explanation for why a blanket suspension was a rational precursor to reviewing. abortions in missouri are said to resume after a judge blocked a licensing requirement. the judge ruled the requirement which mandated fa sielt for size requirements for haul ways and doors were discriminatory. they will begin offering abortion care. hamas announced the names of the three israeli hostages it intends to release tomorrow in the latest exchange. they are israeli american dekel-chen and horn and

troufanov. they are expected to be exchanged. hamas threatened to delay the hostage release saying israel had violated terms of the ceasefire. california's strongest storm season dropped up to six inches of rain and sent floods and mud down the hill sides of los angeles. cascades of muddy water rushed across roads leaving behind debris and sludge and swept a vehicle into the ocean. one person was in the car who escaped with minor injuries. in missouri, an 86-year-old man pleaded guilty who pled guilty. lester had been due to stand trial of first degree assault

and armed criminal action. he pleaded guilty to second degree assault and faces up to 7 years in prison. yarl was 16 and ended up at lester's house. a day of brotherly love for the philadelphia eagles. tens of thousands of fans lined the streets to cheer on the beloved birds as they paraded across the city hoisting the lombardi trophy. the future of ukraine among shifting u.s. support. constitutional scholar shapiro considers president trump's expanded view of executive authority. and jane austen honor the legacy of her 250 years after her

birth. >> this is the pbs "newshour" at weta in washington and in the west from the walter cronkite school of jowrnallism at arizona state university. vice president vance met with president zelenskyy. geoff: vance spoke at the munich security conference and focused on adversaries and nick is in munich for us tonight. >> in front of a mostly european audience, today vice president vance delivered a scoalding. >> i worry about the threat from within. the retreat of europe from some of its most fundamental values. >> world leaders were hoping.

vance had support for right wing parties whose leader he met this afternoon. >> if american democracy can survive, you can survive a few months of elon musk. what no democracy, american, german or european will survive is telling millions of voters their thoughts and concerns, aspirations, pleas of relief are invalid i had. >> he including by throwing out remaining he elections over russian misinformation. >> if you are running in fear of your own voters. nothing america can do for you. >> in a new "wall street journal" interview said that the west could could increase sanctions on moscow to reach

peace. and hours later he met with ukraine's delegation that an official described as very good. >> we want to achieve a very deurable lasting peace not the peace that is going to have conflicts down the road. >> european leaders tell pbs "newshour" they are confused about mixed messages on ukraine including those repeated today by secretary of defense pete hegseth. >> returning to 2014 as part of the setment. the reality of ukraine membership in nato as a part of negotiated setment unlikely. >> german defense minister. >> i think this was careless and it was a mistake. in my view, it would have been

better to talk about ukraine's nato membership at the negotiating table first and ukraine present and not having putin's price. >> and european leaders continue to doubt that peace with putin is possible. >> he said he is willing to meetd but on what terms? >> i had good meeting with president trump and he had phone call with putin and he said to me that he, putin, he wants to stop the war and i said he is a liar. >> zelenskyy said he would need guarantees and said the u.s. needed to be part of those. but a state department spokes man said they needed partners to secure a framework and look forward to their proposals.

amna: what was the mood in the room and what you are hearing from attendees. >> he called his speech brilliant but it was a lead ball ann. they have been dealing with mixed messages and hoping that the trump administration treats ukraine as partners in trying to pursue peace rather than going above europe and above their head. two senior european officials told me that the speech was better, that they preferred a scoalding over a negative speech about ukraine or that the u.s. was talking about a troop withdrawal. europeans are not just worried about it. the senate armed services committee roger wicker who is here called hegseth's speech a quote rookie mistake, the kind

of thing that tucker carlson could have written and he is a fool. and they have a case in point today that a russian drone hit a radiation shield that protects the chernobyl nuclear plant. europe's top diplomat. >> last week european officials came to washington and were told by senior officials about ukraine. earlier this week you and other senior officials met with vice president vance and were reassured about the administration's focus on ukraine and this week we heard from pete hegseth whether ukraine could get back territory and taking nato. what are the mix messages?

>> the new administration is starting and building a relationship with the new administration. we have had calls with marco rubio and was very reassuring on ukraine. of course we have to figure out the messages what is right. but this conference is a good place. we have a lot of meetings with representatives to understand what are the ideas really of the united states regarding ukraine. >> can europe make plans for ukraine? can you work on a strategy for ukraine? >> we have the strategy in place. for us, it's very clear. it is to put the pressure on russia to stop this war. when president trump says i just want the killing to stop, it's easy. putin would stop bombing ukraine. this night they were bombing the nuclear station. clearly putin doesn't want

peace. the political pressure should be on him so he realizes that he can't win and realizes it's a mistake. >> president trump said this yesterday in the oval office, yes, i believe putin wants peace and quote, i trust him on that subject. what is your response? >> maybe he doesn't know putin as well as we do. putin is not really keeping his promises. we have had such quick fixes and he is like minx -- previous ceasefire agreements that were only necessary for putin and russia to get their act together and attack on a bigger stage. the history proves that. they only understand the language of strength and we have

to be strong and firm that you can't win here. if the united states is worried about china, if we can't get russia right or china right either because they are watching how this goes. >> one of the possibilities when it comes to a ceasefire in ukraine would be for european troops to deploy inside ukraine. in your conversations with european leaders are they willing to consider that even if hegseth said that the united states wouldn't protect them under article? 5? >> in order to have peacekeeping troops you have to have peace. putin doesn't want peace and that is the big problem. if there is a peace, we need to discuss what are the security guarantees. yesterday we heard the defense secretary of ukraine saying u.s. gave us promises, give up your nuclear weapons and we will

defend you when russia attacks. and where are you now. he was vocal in saying you have not kept the proposal hises you gave us. so right now if you talk about security guarantees they need to be credible. what are the security guarantees that would deter russia from attacking again. >> you have underlined the president of the european commission have said that any kind of tariffs would essentially create conflict between the united states and europe and that is unnecessary. do you think the united states imposing tariffs would prevent europe working with the united states? >> we have different cooperation points. it's clear there are no winners in trade wars. the consumers are the biggest losers because the prices are

going to rise. i hope these things are settled between the united states and europe. if there is trade imbalance we can see what we can do about this. but starting a trade war i don't think it is a good thing. who is laughing is china. >> we have been talking about the security conference is focused on this but the vice president gave a speech today in which he said the greatest threat that europe faces is from within and he said there is no security if you are afraid of the voices and opinions and conscience that guide your own people. if you are running in fear there is nothing that united states can do for you. is europe afraid? >> this is one of the values. and as you see, we have a lot of elections going on all the time,

a lot of different groups and very vocal and i don't agree with that criticism. and i think we deal with our domestic problems on our own, but we need to cooperate on the big international worries that we have. for example, the war in ukraine. >> thank you very much. geoff: first weeks of the trump administration have brought dramatic changes to the scope of the federal government. our new series on democracy is looking at big questions of the institutions, norms and laws that have shaped the country and the challenges they face today. ilya shapiro is from the manhattan institute.

thanks for being here. as we sit here and speak, we have another think about raising. seven prosecutors and officials have stepped down over the d.o.j. order to dismiss charges against new york mayor adams. danielle sassoon describes a quid pro quo where the d.o.j. would dismiss the charges against adams in support of president trump's agenda. what questions does this raise for you? >> i think this is a disagreement between prosecutors. the u.s. attorney disagrees what are your superiors are saying. and eric adams for the last year or so has been moving in the direction to crack down on illegal immigration any way. i don't know if he would be behaving differently in the

first place. but this is a judgment call and u.s. attorney whether in the southern district of new york thinks of itself as a sovereign district as they call it, doesn't get to make that call. if the superiors decide that the underlying evidence is interimsy or the prosecution itself was politically motivated, that's their call to make. geoff: the deputy ag cited the need for adams to help with donald trump's immigration policy and adams and immigration czar said if he doesn't come through i will be up his butt where the hell is the agreement? this isn't subtle -- >> i don't know if that agreement means the dropping of a prosecution. here's how we can help new york.

there is a law and order crisis in new york and adams wants to prolong his political career. primary is coming up and wants to clean it up. it may involve the quid pro quo but it could mean here's what i will do and open up likers and send you more law enforcement -- i don't know what the agreement might be. but adams wants to work with this administration on the illegal immigration problem. geoff: in your view this is not a fundamental breach of justice? there is no evidence a prosecutor would say that. there are allegations and you could make a case, but on the face of what has come out, deuling letters and what have you, this is a disagreement on prosecutorial discretion. geoff: the trump administration may have frozen aid without

congressional approval and dismantled usaid and the education department. there are observers who say this is textbook executive overreach, how do you see it? >> executive overreach is when you are creating new programs out of thin air like obama or president biden forgiving student loans and said i will do it another way or vaccine mandates, these things that are creating new authorities. they are pausing a pause on spending. geoff: why not go through congress. he has a republican majority. senate majority as well. if you legislate this, the impact would be enduring, why not? >> i don't know what this is. i hope the administration asks

for restructuring of these various agencies because if it is done by executive action, the next democratic president will reverse it. it will take an executive action. but reorganizing things and shifting things and the finances and things like that is within the per vai and including of doge. geoff: trump has given doge and the fact that he is in many ways the arbiter of conflicts of interest given his contracts. >> it is a political story. if the administration takes political hits and that is a judgment call for the voters to

make in the mid-terms coming up. musk is a special government employee which means he has authority -- he has tech gurus and green eye shades and whatever else identifying money that is mismanaged or misspent. congress has spent on this but we are not going to do that. whether it is discretion by the agency and looking at things that this administration might have a different priority. geoff: there are different arts that we are in or approaching a constitutional crisis, i would imagine you would disagree. what would signal a constitutional crisis and this democratic experiment is in peril? >> it's interesting that you say democratic experiment because when the bureaucracy does not implement the directives of the political leadership that is

responsible to the voters that's a problem. constitutional crisis is like one branch going and doing things that are not within its authority that the courts are telling what to do. trump has not said he will not obey. some things he might win or lose on. the american people are not buying this language that there is language from the left that they don't like the new priorities. fair enough. that is a political argument to be had and not any sort of constitutional crisis. geoff: thanks for coming in. amna: more on the ongoing challenge to constitutional

guardrails and united states position on the global stage and we turn to brooks and capehart and david brooks and jonathan capehart. nice to see you both. let's start overseas. the first major international summit in which the secretary of defense reversed u.s. policy on ukraine before walking it back and vice president vance circle scoalding european allies. >> america's place is shake shaky. from the eyes of allies, america can no longer be depended on, they saw what america was under trump first term. trump in the second term is

trump one but on steroids in the way he is operating around the world. and i think for europeans especially at the munich security conference, the global order that we have lived under for more than 70 years, the united states was an architect of it and the united states has been a guarantor of it and it has led to, generally speaking, peace and prosperity to the world we live in now. the united states look to the united states as an alley. and the speeches from the defense secretary that is not the america they are seeing in munich. amna: if you are a nato ally, do you see the u.s. as a reliable ally? >> giving the american and western position before we sit down with putin, that is not an

ideology but incompetence. if you are a european, you would be alarmed. we have friends. like any human being, countries have friends. america was there for world war i. winston churchill leaned on roosevelt. we have friendships. 9/11 happened, europeans helped. and for j.d. vance to meet not with the prime minister is appalling. americans -- so they have every right to be upset. amna: we saw a remarkable scene in the oval office in which a private citizen, elon musk held

court in the oval office while president trump sat silently by and we seen musk buying. and lawsuits challenging his actions and executive aks of the president and vice president vance said he is not sure that the united states has to comply with the court order. senator kim said we are close to a constitutional crisis. do you agree with that? >> yes. when the vice president put that social media post on it last sunday it was breathtaking what he was saying. we should go back to schoolhouse rock and tell us how government works. the judiciary is not a disary -- subsidiary. if the judges come out and say what you are doing is illegal or

unconstitutional, there are other ways to get around that. but what the president is doing and what musk is doing -- what the vice president is doing and challenging the authority of the judiciary, that is what makes this, the border line constitution. judges are putting injunctions and holds on things. but what happens if there is a ruling and trump just decides, i don't care, then we will be in a crisis. right now we are edging there quickly. amna: david, what do you make of that? >> i think the supreme court will rule it. i think it is a constitutional state failure. i have a lot of friends who serve in government and some of them serve in national security and i think about nuclear code and some of them try to boost

democracy in africa and some of them do biomedical research and i can't tell you about people who are traumatized in their agencies. if you are around nuclear codes you take this stuff seriously and 23-year-old kids from harvard and nobody knows what information they have access to or background checks to and you see the sacred values, you see that trampled and to me what's going on is not so much -- an institutional failure. you want a government that renews your passport. but it is psychological intimidation ta is sweeping through agency after agency and making a government that is semi-functional. amna: can i get you to weigh in on this. is it clear to you where the

guardrailsr jonathan? >> no. no. in a perfect world, republicans would be the guardrails. they would do things like i don't know maybe not approve some of these unqualified people to the cab fet but haven't done it. in the case of speaker johnson, he is an enabler and true believer. without that true resistance, the executive is running rough showed. amna: do you agree with that? >> i think the courts will stand up. they have firm opinions about executive power. they believe in the independent judiciary. those guardrails will be there. donald trump is elected by working class people who have real problems, they have educational disparities, they live in communities where social

capital is low. donald trump was elected by them, you think he would care about those people. he is going after usaid and any place he thinks liberal people have college degrees. what we are seeing is right wing and that is so shocking and so appalling that you can't serve the legitimate needs of the people who put you in power. they are totally off the board. amna: the associated press, which is one of the largest and oldest most trusted news gathering being barred from the oval office and air force one for continuing to call the gulf of mexico and not the gulf of america.

and i just want to get your take on this, jonathan. this isn't the first attack we see. but what should journalists being do. >> the president is bullying the press corps and there is one profession that is protected in the constitution and that is the press and the press is vitally important for a democracy because an informed citizenry is what the foundation of our system of government, democracy. if the press doesn't stand up to the president, who will. amna: david, what's your take? >> i'm little harsh. i lived through the end of the biden administration where there was no press access to the guy. if they don't want to talk to the ap, fine. and so i lined through all these and the i hate to comment on the

media we have a lot of voices over the last 40 years. and so if we had done that, maybe some of the hostility that has come our way wouldn't have been there. i am appalled by trump but i understand what he is doing it. amna: thank you to you both. geoff: if you are looking for love, go dancing. as british novelist jane austen wrote in "pryde and prejudice" a certain step. jane austen fans are celebrating 250 years since her birth and in england they are expecting a

tourist boom. >> allow me to present this young lady to you. >> she is the most beautiful creature i have ever held. >> expect a resurgence of "pride and prejudice." >> she is standing shoulder to shoulder to shakespeare. >> i should never see a man that i could truly love. >> the world is packed with truly intelligence. >> you are the luckiest girl i ever set eyes on. >> she also was a pioneer of the novel and developed the psychological novel. >> this woman is a professor and leading authority on jane austen. >> she brought women into the

novel. her achievements were huge. >> she wasn't recognized until long after her death. >> her six novels earned her between 70 to 80,000 in today's money. >> look at them. what becomes of them. >> her characters were consumed with the need to achieve financial security yet she died in relative poverty and spawned an industry worth hundreds of millions of dollars. visitors are expected to flock to this house where she died at the age of 41. >> three days before her death, she dictated a poem to her sister and she carried on writing and it is funny. >> despite being impoverished.

she was buried in one of europe's cathedrals. >> you wouldn't expect that to happen. but she is here and a focus of an amazing worldwide devotion to her and her writings and all she has left us. >> the vice dean of winchester cathedral. >> when we had her last book, they wrote pages how much jane had changed their lives that made to their outlook. >> jane austen's house is hugely significant. >> 30 miles is this village and haven for the young writer. this 19th century time capsule. >> a huge period of intense creativity and made possible by the security that this house

gives. it has that literary significance. >> and it's in the dining room that austen's dissiep himself gaze upon her writing table. >> it comes from this from the nursery and cradle and now etched. [indiscernible] >> another stop where actress portrays the here o'ine in pride and prejudice. >> and bennett is a head strong girl and she was very subtle trying to make changes for women in her time period. >> each summer, thousands flock

to bath for the annual jane austen festival. this year's event will be spectacular. >> this is an opportunity for people to dress up and feel they are part of history and with a backdrop like this. >> actor williamson understands why austen fans seek to escape. >> a much gentler and not as complicated and strict social structure. if you were born at the bottom of the pile, no way you could ascend like today in places like the united states. you could make it. you are encouraged. >> the jubilee festival will be the highlight. >> you read her books and you recognize people in your lives.

>> you can see people that you know. i can see myself in these characters. i am a testament. >> the enthusiasm is shared in oxford university's august library where katherine exps the manuscripts of the novel she never finished. >> she writes on to small pieces of paper and writes to the very limits of that paper and leaves very little space and says this is a draft that is going to work the first time. >> for over a million to preserve. >> it's magical. absolutely magical just to think that jane austen touched this and jane austen worked on this.

a manuscript is a writer's fingerprint or getting inside the laboratory. [indiscernible] >> collins at your service. >> given ahead of her time, how would have jane austen navigating the minefields? >> i think sometimes it could seem like it is much more complicated. >> here's to you -- [indiscernible] >> jane austen celebrates and the freedom when it comes to her and look how we want to. >> after all, the lesson that austen imparts that true love means overcoming "pride and

prejudice." >> be sure to watch "washington week." moderator jeffrey discuss president trump's plans for ending the war in you contain and the new power to elon musk. amna: and one women's quest to explore slave ships. geoff: for all of us, thanks for spending part of your evening with us. >> major funding has been provided by the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions and friends of the "newshour" including kathy and paul anderson and camilla and george smith, the walton family

foundation working for solutions to protect water during climate change so people and nature can thrive foundation. for more than 50 years and supporting institutions to promote at hollywood it dog -- hewlitt. org. and with the ongoing support of these individuals and institutions. and friends of the "newshour". this program was made possible by the corporation tore public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you.

this is pbs "newshour" west from the david m. rubenstein studio in washington and our bureau from the walter kon kite school of journalism at arizona state university.

jeff: everything seems like chaos in washington, but president trump actually provided us with some clarity this week. his administration's latest declarations about ukraine show that trump sees the war at least in part the way vladimir putin sees it. and at home, trump's decision to