geoff: good evening. i'm geoff bennett. amna: and i'm amna nawaz, on the "newshour" tonight at the end of donald trump's first month in office congress moves forward on his nominees and legislative priorities. geoff: the bodies of four israeli hostages are returned. including the youngest of those

taken captive as the tenuous cease-fire holds. amna: and conservative michael knowles on presidential power and democracy in trump's second term. >> we have a system of checks and balances. we to not -- do not have a system or should not have a system of judicial supremacy. announcer: major funding for the pbs notify has been provided by -- >> a proud supporter of public television. on a voyage with qnod, the world awaits. a world of flavor, diverse destinations, and immersive experiences. a world of leisure. and british style. all with the white star service.

>> somebody coming out of milking, it can be very -- >> coming out of college it can be very nerve-racking whether you'll make friends or fit in and here so welcoming and such an cluff place to work. you feel like you're valued. announcer: car kneelingi corporation of new york, working to reduce political polarization through philanthropic support for education, democracy and peace. more information at car new englandi.org and on-- carnegie and ongoing support with institutions.

this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. amna: welcome to the "newshour." president trump has been on the job one month, and the pace of his administration has been unrelenting. a federal judge this afternoon ruled the administration can continue firing federal workers by the thousands. geoff: and that's as a new trump hire became official today. the senate confirmed one of the president's most polarizing nominees to lead the f.b.i. lisa desjardins has the latest. >> the confirmation is confirmed. lisa: a matter of fact conclusion to a controversial nomination as the senate confirmed kash patel to run the f.b.i. installing a staunch trump loyalist to the top of the bureau. patel, a former federal public defender and counterterrorism

prosecutor, has consistently blasted the f.b.i. and department of justice as the so-called deep state, weaponized he says against president trump and conservatives. republicans call him a reformer. >> i look forward to working with mr. patel to restore the integrity of the f.b.i. and get it focused on its critical mission. lisa: but democrats say patel is dangerous. >> the only qualification kash patel has to be f.b.i. director is that when everyone else in the first trump administration said no, i won't do that, that crosses moral, ethical and legal lines, kash patel said, sign me up. lisa: this as trump's cabinet is nearly complete. only three nominees remain for the departments of education and labor, and the u.s. representative to the u.n. on the president's top legislative priority, the sailing is not quite as smooth. the house and senate are now in a staring contest over how to pass trump's tax cut and border

package. the senate moving ahead with its strategy which divides the president's wish list into two. while house speaker mike johnson is vowing to catch up next week bringing one large house framework to a vote. republicans in both chambers know the risks here. >> what i don't want to see happen is us get into a competition. it's not a competition. >> what are the prospects right now? >> i think -- i think they're good. we've got to get it done. if we don't, we will have forfeited people's trust. and they will be mad at us. lisa: a rising controversy has been potential cuts to major programs like medicaid to help pay for proposed tax cuts. the president seemed to take that off the table this week. pres. trump: medicare and medicaid, none of that stuff is going to be touched. lisa: also gaining complexity, u.s.-ukraine policy. trump's ukraine envoy, keith kellogg, was in kyiv today for talks. but a planned news conference was abruptly canceled as tensions remain high.

especially after president trump said this yesterday about ukrainian president volodmyr disonld ski. lisa: a dictator without elections, zoldnsky better move fast or will not have a country left. lisa: that critique of a u.s. ally at war has sharpened the spotlight on the administration including vice president j.d. vance. today, he defended trump's decision for talks with russia but without ukraine in the room. >> they say why are you talking to russia? well, how are you going to end the war unless you're talking to russia? i really believe that we're on the cusp of peace in europe for the first time in three years. lisa: meanwhile, one of ukraine's biggest republican backers made news. >> representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifet lifetime. i will not seek this honor an eighth time. lisa: kentucky senator and former senate leader mitch mcconnell, a sometimes critic of president trump, marked his 83rd birthday today by announcing he

will not run for senate again. but the longest serving senate party leader ever said his remaining two years ahead won't be quiet. >> if any of our colleagues doubt my intentions for the remainder of my term, i have some unfinished business to attend to. lisa: mcconnell today voted to confirm kash patel as f.b.i. director. two other republicans did break ranks, though, relative moderate susan collins and lisa murkowski both said patel appears to politically motivated to them for the job. geoff: and on that point, what's your reporting on how those in the agency view kash patel? lisa: there is a split. talking to some in and arnold the agency there are some who are trying to wait and see what happens. they are hopeful that perhaps there will be a focus on things like, for example, drug trafficking, which patel himself told senators he wants to be central. but the vast majority of those in and arnold the agency i talked to have a kind of pit in the stomach concern. they are worried that this is

someone who does, in fact, not want to reform the agency but rather slice it up without considering what needs to change or not. geoff: meantime a major court ruling regarding the trump administration's mass firing of government workers. tell us about that. lisa: right. this could apply to f.b.i. workers as well. judge christopher cooper ruled just a short time ago that he is not able to block the mass firings of the trump administration as put into place. he says instead, unions that have asked for that block have to appeal to a labor relations board. so he said it's not in my jurisdiction. what that means is those mass firings will go ahead and we know there have been hundreds just in the past couple of days at usaid, i.r.s. workers are waiting for notice even as we speak. so this was a major ruling. geoff: i know you're also tracking the developments on capitol hill that could determine the fate of president trump's agenda. what's the latest there? lisa: all right. now, this is something that we're going to make sure viewers pay a lot of attention to over the next couple of weeks. this is reminding people of what's happening. thises a key moment you look at

the house, the senate floor, excuse me, right now, there is senator bernie sanders speaking. this is a moment where senators are going -- are teeing up the first step in kind of launching the trump agenda in congress, how they could get a shortcut in the senate to have an easier 58-vote -- a 50 margin vote. now, the senate is starting on a smaller bill in the trump agenda. senate republicans focusing on immigration and border in this framework that we see on the senate floor tonight. they are not including tax cuts, why not? well, the senate doesn't think that the house can pass a huge bill all in one go. think of it sort of like an older sibling saying you are taking on too much. you're going to break something if you try to do this. the house disagrees. next week, the house will do a whole separate process, what's the takeaway here? they're having trouble getting out of the starting gate even though there is a lot of determination from republicans. geoff: what's the big picture challenge? lisa: this is important. i want to take people through here. it's simply the math. so looking at this, there are

four main prongs we talked about that republicans and trump want to do here in congress. one, extend the trump tax cuts, expand them, also fund border security, and cut the deficit. the total cost you see of those is estimated between $5 trillion and $11 million but how much the house republicans are budgeting right now just $4.5 trillion. to make up that difference, you can't just put employees and not going to save you remotely that kind of money. instead, you got to talk about entitlement programs, things like medicaid, that affect many -- many millions of americans. and trump saying medicaid is off the table, that's not where republicans are right now. so pay very clokes close attention to what happens with these programs a lot of people care about. geoff: one final question for you, lisa, on the topic of ukraine. we heard president trump call president zolonsky a dictator and president trump falsely stated that ukraine started the war. last night told reporters mr. trump did that he trusts the russians to negotiate in good faith. how are republicans republican supporters of ukraine reporting

to all of this? lisa: i spent a lot of time talking to those republican snores. some like thom tillis say putin is the aggressor here but most staying away from criticizing president trump. senator josh hawley said this is just a beginning approach. >> this is going to be a long process. ukraine will have to be involved. and europe is going to have to be involved because at the end of the day, europe is going to have to bear a greater share of responsibility for the defense of the continent. lisa: so pay attention to that. ukraine was not involved in these initial talks. but saying i -- hawley they should be engaged but they're not. another one, others are saying that zolonsky started things by criticizing trump saying that he was operating on disinformation. so that's a way of not talking about trump but z -- one interesting person i talked to ted cruz who himself used to be an opponent of trump. here's what he said. >> look, i think zolonsky has made a very serious mistake. he is running to the european press and just attacking president trump. and it's not complicated.

that is a strategy doomed to failure. and every time he attacks president trump, it is predictable that trump is going to punch back. lisa: so deep breath. this is a lot at that take in today but what the through line here while there is concern about very serious issues across government and across the world with what president trump is doing, senate republicans for now are either placing faith in him or they are not opposing him in public. geoff: lisa desjardins, covering it all. our thanks to you as always. lisa: you're welcome. geoff: in israel this evening, outside tel aviv, three buses exploded in a parking lot in a suspected militant attack. explosives were found on two other buses and neutralized. there were no reported injuries. that further rattled the nation after the return today of the remains of forehostages held by

hamas in gaza. the top u.n. human rights official called the taunting display during the handover abhorrent and cruel. and while the scene sparked outrage in israel and beyond, the emotions of many are tempered by the return of hostages still alive. as the "newshour" saw this past weekend in southern israel. in southern gaza today, before a crowd of hundreds, with music and fanfare, hamas held a grim and ghastly ceremony. releasing the remains of four israeli hostages killed in captivity. as the bodies returned home to israel, a palpable sense of grief and agony. >> we hope that there will come back alive all of them. they were murdered. geoff: they were the bodies of ariel and cafir bibas and their mother shiri bibas barely 9 months old on october 7, 2023,

kafir the youngest hostage who spent the majority of his short life in captivity. this video of shiri embracing her two boys as they were kidnapped from their home became a symbol of the brutality of the october 7 attacks. >> we remember the picture of her standing here under this bush. with the blanket. and crying. geoff: in december, the "newshour" visited the bibas home and saw evidence of the horrors that unfolded there. the only survivor, shiri's husband and the boys' father, yardin bibas, released two weeks ago. the hopes of another family also ending in tragedy. oded was kidnapped with his woof of more than 60 years. she was released in november of 2023. but today, anardist who worked for peace between palestinians and israelis, was returned in a coffin. israeli forensic officials said he was likely killed in captivity over a year ago.

>> today, 503 days after the october 7 massacre, the body of mr. lipshutz was murder mondayer more than a year ago in captivity has been identified. geoff: israel is a country in mourning. and for some, the day is marked with rage. >> we got up this morning with a very bad feeling. very broken trust with our country, with our government. i'm not ashamed to say it. geoff: but israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu vowed to avenge them. >> our hearts are broken. but our spirits are not broken. and with this spirit, we will return all our holstages, annihilate the murderers, wipe out hamas, and together, with god's help, secure our future. geoff: all that many hostage families want is for their loved ones home again and for three families, last weekend what was once imagined became real. the "newshour" was there as the

friends and family of israeli american hostage segi dekelhen watched and waited. for the moment he was released from captivity. >> we just saw him. he's fine. everything is fine. we just want everybody right now to come back. all families deserve this day that we are experiencing here. geoff: dekelhen was released by hamas last saturday. along with two other near residents, sasha trufono in red and yahir horn on the far left. back this israel, a tearful reunion for segi in the arms of his wife. embracing his mother and father. he learned the name of his third child for the first time. born two months after he was kidnapped. she's now just over a year old with her father finally home. another released hostage, sasha

trufno, returned to his mother and reunited with his father. >> an amazing guy. always i told him you're such a tall and big person. but inside, you're such an amazing boy. and also we love him so much. he's such a funny person. geoff: neighbors, family and friends gathered at horn's hub. it had been closed since the october 7 attack 16 months ago. it was reopening now for the first time. >> the king of this pub. he was in charge of it with his friend, martin. and we miss him so much and we're so happy that he's back. and i hope that he's going to come back and open his place again. geoff: of the nearly 500 residents in near oze, nearly a quarter were killed. or kidnapped into gaza. >> the families of the people who are alive and the families of those who are not alive, everybody needs to come back to

be again with the families or to be buried properly in israel. geoff: a community now anxiously awaiting their return. along with the rest of a rattled nation. stephanie: i'm stephanie sy with "newshour" west. we have an important update out of israel. the i.d.f. now claims hamas has violated its agreement and did not in fact return the body of shiri bibas, the mother of those children who died. instead, the remains they received in today's exchange are not of any hostage but of an anonymous person. the i.d.f. called for the immediate return of shiri bibas' body. they did confirm the other bodies returned were those of her two children. and they say ariel and kiefer bibas were brutally murdered while in captivity in november of 2023. the i.d.f. says it based that claim on intelligence and forensic findings. in other news, new york governor

kathy hochul has decided not to remove the mayor of new york city from office at least for now. however, hochul said she will push for increased oversight of mayor eric adams and his administration. the decision follows a fierce blow-back over the justice department's push to have the mayor's corruption case dropped so adams can focus on helping president trump's immigration agenda. the democratic gotch said today that new york is already facing a grave threat from washington and that the city's residents should be allowed to decide their own future. >> it is up to the voters of this great city to determine who they want to continue as their leader or bring in a new leader. it is up to them. that is a sacred right that they have and i will not deny them that. amna: adams a democrat was indicted last september on bribery and other charges. he has pleaded not guilty. staying in new york, six prison workers were indicted today for second degree murder in the fatal beating of a handcuffed

inmate. four others were charged with lesser crimes. body cameras caught multiple officers beating 43-year-old robert brooks hours after he was transferred to marcy correctional facility in december. he died the next day. the trump ghiks announced today it will rescind protections that had shielded some haitian migrants from deportation. roughly half a million haitians will lose temporary protected status on august 3 of this year. a federal judge said today the trump administration is refusing to comply with a court order to lift a freeze on nearly all foreign aid and that it must at least temporarily restore the funding. however, judge amir ali declined to hold trump administration officials in contempt. this comes after the administration said in court filings this week it was keeping thousands of u.s. a.i.d. and state department contracts and grants canceled or suspended. in south korea embattled president yoon suk yeol appeared in two different courts today

for hearings related to his imposition of martial law last year. in the first, his legal team contested his arrest on rebellion charges, the second was the latest hearing in his ongoing impeachment trial. yoon was greeted by a barrage of cameras and a silent but tense courtroom. the constitutional court is deciding whether to remove him from office. final arguments will be held next week with a possible decision sometime in march. in spain, the former head of the nation's soccer federation was found guilty of sexual assault today. luis rubiales kissed player jennie hermosillo on the mouth after her team won the world cup in to 23. rubiales resigned a few weeks later amid fierce criticism. hermosillo said in her testimony that the kiss, quote, stained one of the happiest days of her life. spaniards are divided over today's verdict.

intrerpt it is positive that such sentences are being issued so that people know there are consequences to their actions. i don't think it's a crime. if that's considered a crime, then we have a problem in our country. because such things happen daily. stephanie: rubiales was ordered to pay a fine of more than $10,000. he plans to appeal. back in this country, one in 10 u.s. adults identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or something other than hetero sexual according to results of a 2024 gallup survey out today which says that share of the population is up by two thirds since 2020. the trend is driven mostly by generation z which gallup defines as 18 to 27-year-olds. nearly one in four identify as lgbtq. and 1.3% identify as transgender, more than twice the number in 2020. james bond fans may be shaken

and stirred by this news. amazon m.g.m. studios will take the creative reins of the 007 franchise after decades of stewardship by the broccoli family. >> bond. james bond. >> mr. bond -- stephanie: albert broccoli had the rights to the novels and made the first bond movie "dr. no" with sean connery. the current custodians decided it was time to step back after daniel craig's version of the character ended in 2021 with "no time to die." though they will retain intellectual property rights. over the years, the bond films have raked in more than $7 billion at the box office. and one of oklahoma's most influential politicians, david boren, has died. he made waves in his home state in 1974 when he became the youngest governor in the country at age 33. four years later, the democrat won a seat in the u.s. senate where he was instrumental in

shaping u.s. national intelligence. midway through his third term he resigned to become president of the university of oklahoma. boren appeared on this program in 2015 to address a racist incident on his campus saying ached institutions have a responsibility -- academic institutions have a responsibility to lead the nation by example. >> all of us as americans, not just on our campus but everywhere, when we hear racist jokes or offhand comments or even in social situations, we have to start standing up and saying no. we won't put up with that. stephanie: david boren retired in 2018 leaving the university after a sexual harassment probe. he denied wrongdoing and there were never any charges nor litigation. david boren was 83 years old. still to come on the "newshour," we explore how elon musk came to hold so much power in the trump administration. and a rising star of cuban music discusses his brending genres and being a global ambassador

for music. announcer: this is "the pbs newshour" from the david m. rubenstein studio at weta in washington and at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. geoff: president trump she's tarved elon musk with an enormous job to search across the federal government and root out inefficiencies and waste. but musk's initial often chaotic infiltration of various government departments has sparked lamar. it's also put the tech entrepreneur at center stage of the conservative movement. appearing today in front of an audience at c-pac, wielding a chainsaw, he said he would use to slash the federal brock ski. william brangham looks at the history of the man at the center of this effort. >> if the bureaucracy in charge, what meaning does democracy actually have? >> elon musk, the richest man in the world, now standing in the

most powerful office in the world. >> the people voted for major government reform. there should be no doubt about that. >> how did this visionary tech leader, a man who once championed clean energy to save the planet, and remained politically neutral for much of his career, end up working with president donald trump to dramatically scale back the size of the federal government? >> very rarely do you see a business leader essentially camping out on the white house trying to influence government spending, influence government regulations the way elon musk is doing. william: "the wall street journal's" tim higgins wrote a book called "power play" on musk and tesla. >> prove the world wrong mentality. he has a huge chip on his shoulder. for so long he's been told that what he was doing wasn't possible. that he was crazy. that he couldn't do it. and you -- when you talk to him, you realize he likes proving people wrong. >> he tends to think in terms of

missions for himself. so those usually revolve around making a big impact for humanity. william: kate conger covers musk for "the new york times" and co-authored the book "character limit," about musk's takeover of twitter which he renamed x. >> you see this with spacex where he's trying to extend the life of humanity by establishing colonies on mars. with tesla where he's trying to cut back on e.v. emissions and save the planet. and with x, too, he has given himself this mission of what he sees as protecting and saving online free speech. and his approach to the trump administration is the same. he views this as an opportunity to save america and save democracy. william: musk grew up in a wealth family in 1970 south africa and still in the midst of its racist apartheid regime. walter isaacson, who wrote a biography of musk back in 2023 that musk had a difficult childhood.

struggling with autism spectrum disorder, being repeatedly bullied, and dealing with an allegedly emotionally abusive father. >> those demons, dark things about being bullied as a kid, having psychological problems with his father, turned into drives, too. drives to get him to be the only person who can get astronauts into orbit from the united states, or re-use rockets and land them or bring us into the era of electric vehicles and also makes him a dark andmer keller character and sometimes a crazed character at times. william: musk moved to the u.s. for college where he studied physics and economics. but building web-based products including an online banking service is what earned him his first real fortune. it was around this time that elon musk turned his sights to two very different fields. the nascent electric car industry and the decades-old competition to conquer space. musk quickly became a ground

breaking pioneer in both. >> and launch. of the spacex falcon nine rocket. william: musk founded the rocket company spacex in 2002 and quickly became a key partner with nasa on both manned and unmanned space flights. musk invested in tesla, then a fledgling electric car company and would eventually become its c.e.o. >> and an electric car can be the best car in the world. william: in a remarkably short span tesla became the world's most valuable auto company. >> time and time again, as you look out through kind of his career arc, it's his ability to build excitement around his vision that tends to help him win the day. it's tapping into this kind of primal idea, this excitement that people have about what is possible. william: another of his very tours is starlink a satellite internet broyer that's used in over 100 countries and has larnel u.s. government contracts.

as these various businesses have grown, so has his net worth. in 2021, he became the world's richest man. and yet, despite musk's power, he has spent most of his career avoiding politics. >> and i'm sort of moderate and half republican and half democrat if you will. but i'm somewhere in the middle. i'm sort of socially liberal and fiscally conservative. william: during the first trump administration musk quit a presidential advisory board in protest after trump withdrew from the paris climate accord. but during the pandemic, his politics began a right ward turn. he hated being ordered to lock down his tesla plants in california. >> he was also at the time going through some things in his personal life. he had a child who was coming out as trans and beginning a gender transition. william: musk often blamed his child's transition on so-called woke ideology. >> they call it dead naming for a reason. >> right. >> the reason it's called dead naming is because your son is

dead. killed by the woke mind virus. william: additionally, in 2021, musk was excluded from a biden administration summit on electric cars because tesla had blocked unionization at its facilities. >> that's something that musk has typically resisted in his factories. so tesla was excluded and that really bothered musk. william: over the years, musk spent increasing amounts of time on twitter, shooting out messages at all hours of the day and night. everything from vulgar jokes to business updates to memes that critics called racist and sexist. even his intention to buy the platform outright. he first tried to walk that back but then right field twitter for $44 billion in 2022. promising to create a digital town square but quickly taking actions that echo his work today in washington. >> musk's takeover of twitter was really chaotic by any

measure. he came into the company and very quickly wanted to slash its budget. and that meant getting rid of everything from a large number of workers to getting rid of real estate to firing the janitorial staff who were cleaning the offices. really no item in twitter's budget went untouched. william: musk changed the platform's policies on hate speech and when an analyst claimed that vitriol then flourished on the renamed x, advertisers balked and the company's value slid. in characteristic fashion, musk had no time for his critics. >> if somebody is going to try to blackmail me with advertising, blake mail me with money, go [beep] yourself. but go [beep] yourself. is that clear? william: meanwhile, colleagues and bored board members at his companies reported this he were increasingly concerned about musk's mental health and drug use. specifically the drug ketamine

which musk says he has descri describe -- prescribed to treat depressive episodes and leaned further into politics backing republican candidates during the 2022 midterms and labeling democrats the party of division and hate. and he shared extremist hard right views on x endorsing the so-called great replacement theory that argues democrats want open borders to replace white voters and he elevated anti-semitic conspiracy theories. though he initially didn't support temperature's re-election saying he was too old to return to the white houss assassination attempt, he changed his mind. >> the true test of someone's character is how they behave under fire. we had one president who couldn't climb a flight of stairs. and another who was fist pumping after getting shot. william: musk formed a super pac

to support trump's bid donating $200 million of his own money. >> this election i think is going to decide the fate of america. and along with the fate of america the fate of western civilization. william: trump in turn embraced trump on the trail and promised a role for him in a second administration. pres. trump: i will create a government efficiency commission tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government and making recommendations for drastic reforms. william: following trump's win, musk continued to turn heads by supporting a far right political party in germany that's been accused of resurrecting nazi era ideology and speaking to one of its rallies. now, as musk leads this effort to scrutinize and cut federal agencies from within, his own companies retain massive multibillion dollar government contracts. musk has resisted any financial disclosures and claims there's no conflict with his

cost-cutting efforts. and while there are numerous court challenges to his efforts, musk continues to enjoy the full support of president trump. pres. trump: the team we have is really unbelievable. but those executive orders, i sign them. and now they get passed on to him and his group and other people. and they're all getting done. we're getting them done. william: for the "pbs newshour," i'm william brangham. amna: during its first month the trump administration has brought dramatic proposals and unprecedented changes to the government including a sweeping effort to remake the executive branch. our new series on democracy is taking a step back to look at big questions about laws, institutions, and norms that have shaped america and the challenges they face today. conservative commentator michael knowles is the host of the michael noastles show on the

daily wire and he joins us now. welcome to the "newshour." thanks for being here. >> thank you so much for having me. it's an honor to be here. amna: you're in town to attend c-pac the largest conservative gathering in america. what are you hearing from people attending there, from people in your audience as well about this first month of the trump presidency? are people -- are they seeing what they voted for? >> very much so. this year it feels different even than it did in 2016 and 2017. and i think it's because this time trump won the popular vote. and i think it's because of this new voter coalition bringing over a lot of voters who previously had long voted for democrats. amna: yeah. >> it feels as though the realm of public discourse and the political imagination has really opened up. amna: when you look at the conservative parts of the party, conservative movement if you will, beyond donald trump, who is a rallying figure for everyone, what is it right now that's sort of -- what's the tie that binds? what does it mean to be a conservative today? >> if you get 100 conservatives into a room you'll get 100 different answers of what it means to be a conservative.

the only way that you can get kennedy democrats and one in five black male voters and 46% of hispanics and even 40% of women under the age of 30, to come over and vote for trump, to even just join a coalition altogether, is to appeal to something that is deeper than political ideology. and i think that's what trump has done. amna: what is that? what's he appealing to? >> president trump comes out and says we're going to take care of americans first and enforce the law, kick out the gangsters, classify the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations which allows us to take them on more directly. this is basic stuff. but you don't need to be some bow tie wearing conservative to agree with. you know, that cuts across party lines. amna: low immigration is one of the -- >> nothing against the immigrants. we have the highest foreign born percentage of the population ever. and americans of all races and geographies and all backgrounds seem to think it's time to assimilate people and to reduce that. or you notice on the lgbt issues in november, i think a lot of

people, no animus, no -- you know, desire to offend or exclude anybody, but they think this ideology has gone a bit too far. amna: i want to ask you about president trump's first month in office and some of the behavior we've seen from him. he did recently quote napoleon which raised some eyebrows, right? he said he who saves his country does not violate any law. he compared himself to a monarch saying long live the king. does that worry you that kind of language? do you want to see a king-like president? >> it doesn't worry me at all. to make a comparison with napoleon i think there's a little wink and a nod here from trump. he makes plenty of jokes. but the broader -- amna: this is a joke or serious? >> i think he's -- he uses winsome and whimsical language but this line from pa foalian which is a rearticulation of cicero and john locke important for the american founders and framers a basic point about the country which is that in times of great national crisis and

distress, extraordinary measures can be taken. you saw this with abraham linken and franklin roosevelt and with plenty of american presidents. george washington for that matter. amna: extraordinary measures meaning a stronger executive? >> well, an executive that wields power in a just and effective way. amna: what about this idea of checks and balances the other two branches of government seem to have been weakened under president trump and usurped constitutional congress -- congressional authority -- kyrie: york he has. amna: by blocking funds appropriated by congress and essentially said that they don't have to comply by judicial rulings that they disagree with. i mean, how is that a democracy? >> well, first of all, the majority of americans voted for trump. so that would seem to be in itself a good expression of democracy. amna: most people voted for him but he didn't win a majority. i take your point. >> he won the majority of voters. when we're talking about executive funding, the president has a large prerogative to

control that kind of funding. some people are suggesting that trump's cleanup of the executive branch is unprecedented. that is simply not true. this is more than 100-year-old precedent. woodrow wilson established by executive action the bureau of efficiency. it's almost the same name as elon musk's doge. amna: to bring it back to 2025, there are rulings that say he needs to unblock some of the funds that he frozen and the administration has not complied. does it worry you if he's ignoring judicial rulings? >> well, as you just say, we have a system of checks and balances. we do not have a system or at least we should not have a system of judicial supremacy. the judiciary is a co-equal branch of government. with the legislature and with the executive branch. amna: so the executive has the right to ignore judicial rulings? >> the executive has the right to fight judicial rulings when they are overstepping and in this case the notion that the judiciary can by fiat undermine the president's legitimate authority to control the executive branch to me is crazy. i mean, even when you think about some of that executive authority, how much of that authority was usurped? certainly not by trump.

but even by recent presidents many of whom were democrats and how much of that authority was delegated by the congress to the executive branch? one might argue that that was not a good idea. that congress should do more law making and not give it away to democrats. but the congress certainly has done that. so i don't know. to argue that trump is an authoritarian because he's trying to reduce the size and scope of the executive branch in the federal government to me is crazy. amna: you mentioned you think there was a lot of progressive overreach that helped propel president trump back into the white house. and specific you called transgenderrism one of those issues that moved people and moved the needle. you also said previously that it should be eradicated from public life entirely. and when you were asked about that, you said that you were calling for an end to the ideology, not for an end to the people. if you have changed your view at all, please let me know. but i will -- i will confess i don't know what the difference is when articulated like that so could you explain it. >> sure. if i say that i want to

eradicate poverty, i'm not saying that i want to eradicate all the poor people. quite the opposite. i would like to help the poor people by eradicating poverty. when i made my comments at c-pac a couple of years ago, i've now repeated it so many times i think i have it memorized. i said for the good of society and especially for the good of the poor people who have fallen prey to this confusion, transgenderrism must be eradicated from public life entirely. the whole o russ ideology at every level. and the reason for this, the reason why i would say in particular for those who have fallen prey to the ideology, that we ought to do that, is because men can't really become women. that's not how human nature works. i have a great deal of sympathy for people who are confused about their sex but i don't think it helps people to lie to them. so just as a matter of public life i think we need to respect reality. amna: i will say as you're saying that it's reality, a belief system that you hold. transgenderrism is something that has been be a nodged by medical professionals, there is an entire -- >> and rejected by medical professionals.

amna: by a view. >> who pioneered -- amna: that backs this up and that's what gender affirming care has been based on. >> not really. amna: i will just ask you this. we are talking about what 1 3erz of the u.s. adult population here. >> 30% of gen-z self-identifies as lgbtq. amna: because more experts say are comfortable coming out. >> or a social contagion. amna: you believe transgender people make other people transgender? is that what you're saying? >> this is also backed up in the medical literature. there was a study in 2018 that showed that schoolchildren who are socializing with people who identify as transgender are much more likely to identify as transgender themselves. amna: you realize this is the same argument people made about gay people. right? >> i'm talking about the whole lgbtq ideology in some ways i'm making that argument myself -- amna: you don't believe gay people exist? >> people have same sex attractions and all of that but the question i would have to ask is -- amna: but -- in answer to my question. do you believe that gay people exist? >> i think some people are attracted to members of the same

sex. amna: those would be guy people, correct? >> i don't think that one's sexual desires necessarily identify one's identity. amna: without getting into a semantic barring and -- back and forth about it in clarifying what you have said, when you use words like eradicate i'm asking about in terms. language. when you use words like eradicate -- >> you know what the -- amna: you worry that puts a target on people's backs? >> certainly not. in fact, the only targets that i've had on my own back are -- when i question these kinds of ideologies that have been so terrible for people. the only times i've ever been attacked in public in one case of someone who is in federal prison for trying to blow me up at a speech in pittsburgh is because i dared to question the trans ideology. people are being introduced to this ideology at younger and younger ages. it can lead to shore irving outcomes, especially for younger people put on puberty blockers which often cannot be reversed. it leads to cast racial, bone problems and early death. these are not the sort of things a that we should wish for people if we wish for their own good. and what it really comes down to

is whether or not a man can become a woman or a man can secretly be a woman if he appears to be a man. and my contention is that just isn't how human nailt works. amna: i'm going to clarify you did say it's your contention. i would encourage people to check out the research and studies on their own. i do want to ask you about this political moment we're in now though. when you look at our democratic system there is undoubtedly an ascendant conservative movement right now. it's worth pointing out, though, that the party tends to push out anyone who disagrees with president trump. mitch mcconnell seems to be the latest example now, right? and really speaking out against president trump when he says that he's not running for re-election. does it worry you about the future of the party that the coalition doesn't seem to hold without donald trump? >> trump is the unifying figure right now. there's no question about it. now, what's unusual about it is to say that people are kicked out of the party when they disagree with trump makes it sound like the party is shrinking. but what we sawah 2024 is the party is growing. it's just taking in new people and losing some of figures who have been members in the past.

like liz cheney or adam kinzinger or those kind of figures. amna: people who disagreed with president trump? >> that means a new coalition that's formed. trump is the singular figure. he is a magnetic personality and an american original. and i think he's a genius level politician. amna: so does the coalition hold without him? >> that remains to be seen. i don't think there's really -- going back to bushism. and if anyone can pick up the standard of trump afterwards we'll have to wait and see. but the republican party is a different and stronger thing now because of donald trump. amna: michael knowles, host of the michael knowles show on the daily wire. thank you for being here. appreciate your time. >> thank you for having me. geoff: latin rock, afro cuban funk and many other names have been applied to the music of ce

many. a funk. the 35-year-old star is now making waves around the world. earning grammy nominations three years in a row and being called a global ambassador for cuban music. in the final piece in their series from havana, senior arts correspondent jeffrey brown, and senior arts producer show how cema funk is blending genres to produce his own sound. it's part of our arts and culture series canvas. >> he's a man of many moves. and dynamic on-stage presence. a performer on the move for a frenetic crowd at the historic in havana. at his cima fist, an annual dance party held in miami and new orleans. mixing it up with the crowd at austin city limits. everywhere he goes, cimafunk is bringing his own special mix of

afro cuban sounds and rhythms and african-american funk and soul. >> i say that i'm mixing it because i tried to put more and more funk in the afro cuban music i make. >> 1970's soul and 1970's funk. and you put it together with afro cuban. >> yes. the kushon feeling in terms of expression and medical disand way to say. >> cimafunk was important eric iglesias rodriguez into a family he describes as very poor two hours from havana. if his music is a blend, so is his stage name. cima comes from the term cimarones, the cubans of african descent who escaped slavery from the 16th century on. and established their own communities. learning that history he says opened up his world. and his path to music. >> whatever they were creating was original. because it was freedom expression. it was dealing with the things that we are free here and that

moment i had to get more -- of my roots. looking where i came from. and linebacker more about that. and what africa brings here is most of the great things that we have today in music and food ane country and i believe i found my identity. and i love it. and super -- i want more and more and more. >> though he sang in church as a child, his original path following other family members was medicine. he attended medical school for two years. but music he says called. he -- stevie wonder, michael jackson, and the biggest bang of all, seeing video of james brown performing. >> ♪ i feel good >> that ended his medical career. >> ♪ i feel good like yo. what's this?

because it blew my mind. >> blew your mind? >> i hear the song before but i never imagined and never saw that was -- with this type of style and groove. and then i get obsessed with music. and like i got to do this. >> using your body as well as your voice? >> definitely. everything. everything is part of the rhythm. everything is an instrument. >> he also heard how the influence has flowed the other way. afro cuban sounds of his youth impacting american music. >> i can hear it in punk music of james brown. i can hear it in the music of and i can feel that groove from cuba. >> in connection of grooves has brought cimafunk three grammy nominations and one latin grammy nomination. including this year for his album, "for your body," a joyous example of his brand of empowerment through music. it also fueled his leadership in a very direct project of connection called "getting funky

in havana." and recently brought together music students from havana and new orleans. cimafunk worked alongside his friend, jazz great trombone shorty. and entering and playing with the stars of tomorrow. including at a music school and own social kind of mash-up. >> he's one of the greats, cimafunk. and he's incorporating american funk with the kushon style. and he's creating a whole new genre of music and the kids that's here they love him. i just walk around town with him and see that. >> overlooking havana, cimafunk told us that this work is giving young cubans a sense of the influence and power of their music in the wider world. >> everybody know what music you do and everybody appreciate and respect cuban music. and you're part of that cuban music. those kids didn't know neither. he didn't know how important cuban music was for the music in the world. how much cuban music influenced all the music in the world. so when i knew that, i was like

oh, everybody should -- so key to start to know that, like yeah. i don't have a trumpet but i got the feeling. >> after getting funky festival the feeling for cimafunk extended beyond the stage. to a fashion show where he swaggered on a runway. and a panel discussion including musical inspirations, taj mahal, and george clinton. >> all the sound every day at the house. everybody singing. and we grew up with that type of behavior. >> also made a music video appearance with fellow cuban star pedrito martinez with up and comer 21-year-old wompy. and on this night, at a free concert under the stars, cimafunk lit up the stage as part of a superjam for the getting funky fans and cuban fans alike. the havana new orleans

connection is an extra strong one now for cimafunk. while he returns home to visit his extended family, new orleans is where he mostly lives and makes his music. it's part of the reality of cuba today. a depressed economy with few opportunities. >> many of your friends have left? >> yeah. most of them. most of them. spain. nicaragua or u.s. everywhere. >> because they know -- no opportunity here? >> yeah. when things get bad, you move to another place. or you try. >> so for you, being out of the country is a necessity? or a choice? >> i leave bases i could. but i keep working out of cuba because i want to. because it's better for my career. in the united states, europe, our big market for my music. so even if -- even if i could stay being -- some good here, for my career, it's not there. the best option. so i choose to improve. >> in december, cimafunk joined trombone shorty at the kennedy

center honors in celebration of cuban-american music icon arturo sandoval. but he also knows that his island is again in many ways isolated from the u.s. and other parts of the world. with recent political changes and continued travel restrictions. of the future, he says -- >> i don't know what -- i would love to be better and love people have more. and i would love that people -- especially people -- people that have needs. that's what we hope. and that's what we wish. that's my dream. get connected with the world. red wings. >> now doing his part through music. through "the pbs newshour" i'm jeffrey brown in havana, cuba.

amna: remember, there is a lot more online including what experts say buyers and renters can expect in the u.s. housing market in 2025. that is at pbs.org/newshour. geoff: that is the "newshour" for tonight. i'm geoff bennett. amna: i'm amna nawaz. on behalf of the entire "newshour" team, thank you for joining us. >> major funding for "the pbs newshour" has been provided by -- >> on an american cruise line journey, along the columbia and snake rivers, travelers retrace the root forged by lewis and clark more than 200 years ago. american cruise lines fleet of modern river boats travel through american landscapes to historic landmarks. where you can experience local customs and cuisine. america cruise lines. proud sponsor of "pbs newshour."

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newshour" west from the david m. rubenstein studio at wetta in washington and our bureau at the walter cronkite school of journalism at arizona state university. [captioning performed by thenat, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.]

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