amna nawaz reports. amna: most days, for dom mullins, start like this.e woods, workouts in his makeshift gym, and post-exercise plunges into a freezing cold pond. it's a grueling regimen, all to prepare to climb a mountain synonymous with the ultimate challenge, mount everest. >> to climb a mountain like everest, you need to have a lot of endurance. so that's what i'm doing, i'm building my endurance over time. amna: mullins, who has been climbing for more than a decade, is part of a group that aims to become the first all-black team to summit the world's highest mountain. lled full circle everest, the team of ten experienced mountaineers and climbers, from the united states and kenya, is set to climb everest next spring. >> two unassuming men have climbed the 29,000 foot monarch of the himalayas. amna: since tenzing norgay and edmund hillary first climbed everest in 1953, around 6,000 have followed in their footsteps. but, the team says, only 10 of those have been black. as you were making your way up through the years, did you see or know a lot of othe

amna nawaz has more.y, for decades there has been a debate among military experts and on capitol hill about how to improve the way the military investigates and prosecutes allegations of sexual assault in its ranks. one major issue is the role and influence of military commanders in deciding how cases are adjudicated. with me now is new york democratic senator kirsten gillibrand. welcome back to the newshour. a lot of folks have been hailing this new legislation as a seachange, a giant leap forward for sexual assault survivors. you have said it does have some major reforms, but it does not go far enough and you plan to vote against it. why? >> is a missed opportunity. we had such a ground well of support to creating an independent prosecutor that functioned outside the chain of command, one that was highly trained with no bias. unfortunately, the house in the conference committee chose to retain an enormous amount of authority within the chain of command. the commander is still the convening authority. at

amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight. the spread continues -- omicron appears in more states even as health officials battle a surge of delta covid cases. then. rising tensions -- the united states declares a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming winter olympics in china, inflaming a fraught relationship. and. veterans affairs secretary denis mcdonough on meeting the needs of former servicemembers, including those with toxic exposure and post-traumatic stress. all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. ♪ >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by -- >> it's the little things. the reminders of what is important. it's why fidelity dedicated advisors are here to help you create a wealth plan. a plan with tax sensitive investing strategies, planning focused on tomorrow, while you focus on today. that is the planning effect from fidelity. >> consumer cellular. johnson & johnson. bnsf railway. financial services firm raymond james. the william and flora hewlett foundation. advancing ideas and supporting instituti

amna nawaz previews tomorrow's session.ase is seen as one of the most aggressive challenges to date to roe v. wade, the landmark supreme court decision that legalized abortion in america. here, the justices will decide the constitutionality of mississippi's 2018 law banning most abortions beyond 15 weeks of pregnancy. if the court were to overturn roe, abortion bans pasd in a dozen states since the 1973 ruling would immediately go into effect. for more on these historic stakes, we get perspective from alexis mcgill johnson, president of the planned parenthood action fund, and marjorie dannenfelser, president of the susan b. anthony list. welcome to you both. thanks for being here. marjorie, is this the moment antiabortion activists have been waiting half a century for? what is the best outcome for you? >> after 50 years of not being able to allow the will of t people to make its way into law in the states, this seems like the best opportunity to overturn roe v. wade. the effect of that will be to return to the states their

amna: despite this, mitchell submits a list to the cia.ed techniques that they should be considering. that list includes things like slapping detainees, walling, which is basically shoving them up against a wall. stress positions, cramped confinement, sleep deprivation, waterboarding. to most of us laymen, it sounds like torture. but of course, the u.s. is a signatory to the geneva convention against torture. doj signs off on all of this. how does that happen? alex: well, that's part of the story of "the forever prisoner." it happens through a kind of excruciating legal exercise, in which they use the rationale, or the rationalization, that because we do these things to our own people, how bad could it be? because indeed, we do waterboard some of our soldiers, to show them what might be in store for them if they're captured by a terrible regime. but those are exercises, and furthermore, these techniques almost always result, not in people telling you what is the truth, but they tell you exactly what it is that they think you want to hear.

amna: biden hailed the dull as a man of integrity and quick wit.as asked why he bucked his party, casting the deciding vote to save amtrak. >> he says the best way to get joe biden the hell out of here at night. [laughter] excuse m language. amna: fellow kansan pat roberts, who followed dull in the senate, today recalled the deep connection he kept to his home state. >> whether we were in topeka, abilene, wichita, or dodge city, i saw bob dole connect with kansans always on a personal level. am: roberts, too, remembered dole's humor often used to break down political wills. >> it was embedded into his nature to deliver that punchline, deadpan, knowing, waiting for the room to light up, which it always did, for the barriers to come down, letting the air out of the partisan balloons. amna: former senate majority meet -- leader tom daschle, democrat, spoke of a bond born across party lines that only strengthen with time. >> i've always thought life has no blessing like that of a good friend. and to know bob was to know the truth of that statement. amn

amna: it's good advice.hat is david grabowski, professor of health care policy at harvard medical school. david, always good to see you. thank you. david: thanks. judy: it has been five months since gunmen assassinated haiti's president zhovenel moise. authorities have arrested 45 people, but have charged none of them with a crime. this weekend the new york times detailed a possible motive for the assassination. nick: jovenel moise was a political unknown before becoming haiti's president in 2017. but, in july, a hit squad walked into moise's house unchallenged by his security and assassinated him. he had been presiding over a country that's been compared to a narco-state, rampant with drug smuggling, corruption, and widespread impunity, from powerful gangs to oligarchs to the government itself. moise was a product of that world. but, as the new york times reports, he was also apparently taking major steps to reveal it. the article was written by maria abi-habib, who joins us now via skype. maria, welcome to

amna, a few minutes after the call ended, just before 7 p.m. eastern,-- 6 p.m., media routed a diplomat that president biden said not to send any o fennive weapons to ukraine, the white house has not responded to that claim but in general, amna, u.s. officials refer to the weapons they send to ukraine as defensive, not offensive. >> nawaz: the u.s. says to have progress they need deescalation from russia first, is there chance of that happening. >> there is not really a sign of that. u.s. officials admit there is troop movement but say those troops have not deescalated and have not re deployed back inward to russia, so as the u.s. tries to find a diplomatic off-ramp it is also trying to deter a russian invasion by threatening extensive u.s. and allied economic sanctions, more troops deemployed-- deployed to eastern eur pean nato allies and more weapons for ukraine, on top of 450 million worth of weapons it has already sent including antitank javelins, the u.s. is working to find steps ukraine can make to address russian concerns in eastern ukra

amna: for more, i'm joined by the former u.s.o bulgaria and now president of the american foreign service association. welcome to the newshour. to fill these ambassador posts, two things have to happen. the president has to nominate people, the senate has to confirm them. where is the backup? >> both of those problems are really real. the biggest backup is that we have blanket holds in the senate, that means that almost all of the nominees have been blocked from being considered on the floor of the senate. this has never happened before to anyone's knowledge. the administration has been slow to nominate candidates, so we still have about one third of the jobs without nominees. but that together and we have an astonishing number of vacant ambassadorial posts around the world. amna: let's start with the administration. why have they been so slow? >> it is a good question and we have been asking that question. part of it may be holding back nominees because they already have such a backlog in the senate that they don't want to add t

amna, i'm going to begin with you.iden administration, and an explanation this morning from joe manchin saying he's done with build back better. now we have omicron. when you think about the first six weeks of 2022, i don't know how the biden administration focuses on anything else. >> you're absolutely right, chuck. senator manchin, this latest statement is a massive blow. we know the president wanted build back better done as quickly as possible. we know the senate democrats have been saying we wanted it done by christmas. even if you look in the last few days, none of those self-imposed deadlines made a difference to senator nchin, not the holiday deadline, not the imminent expiration of the child tax credit even though some experts sai it could push children back into poverty. senator manchin's concerns, to be clear about this, have been consistent over time. it's the size of the package. it's inflation which has only gotten worse. the president has been clear, they wanted negotiations to continue, even as recently

amna: that is senator jack reed joining us tonight. mr. chairman, thank you for your time. >> thank you very much. judy: as congress is in its final weeks in session for this year, u.s. senators are deciding how they will vote on a deal to raise the debt ceiling after the house passed the first piece of the plan last night. leaders in both parties are projecting confidence, but the stakes are high. lisa helps us understand why the debt limit has become so political and what exactly it does. >> the debt part is easy. the u.s. government is the largest spender in the world. everything from the military and socal security benefits to school lunches and even feeding animals at the national zoo. but the u.s. spends more money than it takes in, a lot more.

>> absolutely, amna. testing has been something that alof us who advocate at the public health level have been asking for. in order to be able to really maximize and keep our population safe, we should have tests for any american, any household that requires them and especially for this leveof transition of guidelines, that would be the goal, and we've heard this from our leaders, we've heard this from dr. fauci, we've heard this across the line. in an ideal world that is where we would be. unfortunately, we don't have that. so, unfortunately, the buck stops at the local government level where we have to make decisions about what's safest until we no we have that at a reasonable capacity. >> nawaz: overall missouri vaccination rates ae row across the state, i think only 53% of the populaon is fully vaccinated, about 62% have one shot. how concerned are you about omicron? where are you seeing it show up in your community? >> right, so we are currently in the same position as most of the country now where w

i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight: grounded. thousands of flights cancelled this christmas eve, as the omicron variant leads to airline staffing shortages. then, new frontiers. nasa prepares to launch a telescope capable of seeing farther into the known universe than ever before. >> there's absolutely a lot riding on this telescope. the future of astronomy is riding on this telescope. and i think it's going to be a huge payoff, in terms of what we learn about the universe. >> nawaz: and, it's friday. david brooks and jonathan capehart weigh in on the democrats' legislative setbacks, and the president's pandemic response. all that and more, on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: ♪ ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> fidelity wealth management. >> johnson & johnson. >> financial services firm raymond james. >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation. fostering informed and engaged com

. ♪ da-da-da-duh-da-da-da♪ ♪ da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪ amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz.newshour tonight. the spread continues -- omicron appears in more states even as health officials battle a surge of delta covid cases. then. rising tensions -- the united states declares a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming winter olympics in china, inflaming a fraught relationship. and. veterans affairs secretary denis mcdonough on meeting the needs of former servicemembers, including those with toxic exposure and post-traumatic stress. all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. ♪ >>

. - [newton]: ju woodruff, yamiche alcindor, amna nawaz, jonathan capehart and the entire newshour teamn the trusted legacy of jim lehrer, robert macneil, gwen ifill, mark shields, and other journalists o define trustworthy reporting. you are the architect of this legacy that we can proudly pass on to future generations. if you're already a member, thank you for making the "pbs newshour" available to everyone in the community. if not, please make your contribution today to keep this essential service strong. all you have to do is visit us online, or call the number on your screen to give. - [smith]: i loved hearing judy woodruff talk about the "newshour" in the first part of the program. as she said, "it's the place that is not going to take any story at face value. it's the place that is always going to turn the story over and look at what's underneath, and what's on all sides." that is not the easy way to produce a program, but doing things the easy way is not what the "newshour" is about, it's not what pbs is about. we understand that our job is to serve you, so we work that much har

amna: the obvusio question is, hos w ith sisite even up?ne to great lengths poinrtg on the men who continue r tount. i how is it up r andunngni? >>h't's aat gre question. we want just pigecinog tetr hea long tra oilf deaths conednect toheit se, but we weskre aing that veryes wte.rn so many familiesef lt behind wanted desteperalyo tsee the sihute st down, and for the two showy figures to beel hd accountable. those two h menad gone tore gat thlengs to hide their ideientits and protect the website. theyed movir the sveerrsm fro country to country. utheysed cniompaesha tt allowed em to hide whois regtedre the domaines nam. thate mad iret ally hard otto n onlyet dect who they weret, bu to holemd th aouccntable. ere is a federal, law that idproveswe seping legal protections ebto wsite operators , e wvenhethn ete conntn o those sis teis dangerous or eniveng -- or even cnarimil. germany, aalustria, italy, these countries havkee tan tiacon and succee tdedo meso extent in restctriinges accs thwiinir the erbords to the website, but in thunedit states,

i'm amna nawaz. join us online and again here tomorrow evening. for all of us at the pbs newshour, thank you, stay safe, and we'll see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life, well-planned. >> the kendeda fund. committed to advancing restorative justice and meaningful work through investments in transformative leaders and ideas. more at kendedafund.org. >> supported by the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. more information at macfound.org >> and with the ongoing support of these 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. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org ♪ >>> hello, and welcome to "amanpour & company." here's what's coming up. >> it's now on russia to de-escalate the

i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight: new covid guidance. cases keep many at home, we explain the new c.d.c. recommendations around shorter isolation times. then, crackdown in russia. the government bans the most prominent human rights group, as the world marks 30 years since the dissolution of the soviet union. and, rising costs. how the roller coaster price of lumber might have predicted inflation and could signal where the economy goes from here. >> no one has ever seen $700. that was pretty astonishing. but then it went to $800, $900, and $1,000. >> nawaz: all that and more, on night's pbs newshour.

amna nawaz was there, and has this report. >> nawaz: the late bob dole arrived at the washington nationaldral today, his casket draped in the flag he had honored as a soldier and statesman. the first tribute, delivered by his former senate colleague, president joe biden: >> he came into the arena with certain guiding principles, that began with devotion to country, to fair play, to decency, to dignity, to honor, to literally attempting to find the common good. >> nawaz: those principles, biden said, led dole to deep concern in his final days about threats to american democracy. >> this soldier reminded us, and i quote: "too many of us have sacrificed too much in defending freedom from foreign adversaries, to allow our democracy to crumble under a state of infighting that grows more unacceptable day by day." >> nawaz: biden hailed dole as a man ofntegrity, and quick wit, on display when dole was asked why he bucked his party, casting the deciding vote to save amtrak: >> he said, "it's the best way to get joe biden the hell out of here at night, so he's not home in the morning." ( laughter

da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪ captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> nawaz: good evening, i'm amnaf is away on the newshour tonight, covid surge-- what you need to know about rising infection rates, and a spike in hospitalizations among children. and, a jury finds ghislaine maxwell guilty on five of the six counts she faced helping lure teenage girls into having sex with jeffrey epstein. then, remembering harry reid. looking back at thlife and political legacy of the former senate majority leader from nevada. and, tightening welfare rules-- 25 years after major changes, we examine how eligibility restrictions have failed americans in need. >> all the paperwork you have to fill out for the programs, you have to go to parenting classes,

amna nawaz has more on what this means for u.s.>> nawaz: of the 80 ambassadorial nominees president biden has put forward, the senate has so far confirmed just 12. secretary of state antony blinken this week blamed a slow senate confirmation process. >> as of last week, only 16% of our ambassadors have been confirmed. at this point in the last three administrations, the number was between 70% and 90%. >> nawaz: for more on all this, i'm joined by eric rubin. he is the former u.s. ambassador to bulgaria, and is now president of the american foreign service association. welcome to the "newshour". thanks for being here. to fill these ambassador posts to things have to happ, the president has to nominate people, the senate has to confirm them. where in the process is most of the backup right now? >> well, both of those problems are very real right now, the biggest backup is the fact we have blanket holes in the senate, that means almost all of the nominees have been blocked from being considered on the floor of the senate. this has nev

i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight: covid surge. new cases soar, breaking pandemic records across the u.s., as countries around the globe celebrate new year's eve. then, colorado's wildfires. fueled by hurricane-force winds, the blaze leaves thousands homeless, and could be the most destructive in the state's history. also, legendary actress and beloved comedian betty white has died, just weeks shy of her 100th birthday. and, it's friday. david brooks and jonathan capehart reflect on the year in politics, and democracy in america. all that and more, on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: ♪ ♪ ♪ moving our economy for 160 years. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> fidelity wealth management. >> johnson & johnson. >> financial services firm raymond james. >> the john s. and james l. knight foundation. fostering informed and engaged communities. more at kf.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions: and friends of the newshour. >> this program was made possible by the cor

i'm amna nawaz. join us online and again here tomorrow evening.ewshour, thank you, please stay safe, and we'll see you soon. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> for 25 years, consumer cellular has been offering no-contract wireless plans, designed to help people do more of what they like. our u.s.-based customer service team can help find a plan that fits you. to learn more, visit www.consumercellular.tv. >> fidelity investments. >> johnson & johnson. >> bnsf railway. >> financial services firm raymond james. >> the ford foundation. working with visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide. >> and with the ongoing support of these 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. captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org >> you're watching pbs. lidia: buongiorno! i'm lidia bastianich and teaching you about italian food has always be

da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪ captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> nawaz: good evening, i'm amnaf is away. on the newshour tonight, the pandemic persists-- amid holiday travel, hospitals battle a surge in omicron cases around the country. and, massacre in myanmar-- a christmas eve attack leaves dozens dead, with aid groups claiming government forces are to blame. then, the year in tv and movies. what to watch this holiday season with a look back at the best entertainment offers of 2021. >> the first series that comes to mind is "hacks." it's kind of a generational look at how women have been treated in the comedy world, in the entertainment world. >> nawaz: all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour.

da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪ captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> nawaz: good evening, i'm amnaon the newshour tonight, the spread continues-- omicron appears in more states even as health officials battle a surge of delta covid cases. then, rising tensions-- the united states declares a diplomatic boycott of the upcoming winter olympics in china, inflaming a fraught relationship. and, veterans affairs-- secretary denis mcdonough on meetinthe needs of former servicemembers, including addressing toxic exposure and post-traumatic stress. all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by:

as amna nawaz explains, the vast majority of those deaths are among the elderly, and there are concerns about their risks increasing once again >> nawaz: that's right judy. older americans have borne the brunt of the pandemic death toll. people 65 and up make up 75% of all covid deaths in the u.s., or 600,000 of those nearly 800,000 deaths. younger americans, 45 to 64, make-up 21%. those 45 and below are just 4% of all deaths. meanwhile, among some of the most vulnerable americans, nursing home residents, just 51% have gotten a booster shot. for more on this, i'm joined by david grabowski. he's a professor of health care policy at harvard medical school. david, welcome back to the newshour, thanks for making the time. that number is just staggering to think about. but there is a big range in that group, 65 and older, so who are we really talking about. who is making up the bulk of that death toll? >> absolutely, the individuals making up the bulk of the deaths among older adults are those oldest, individuals 85 and older, individuals with comorbiddities cardiovascular disease, obesity,

i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight: covid surge.aking pandemic records across the u.s., as countries around the globe celebrate new year's eve. then, colorado's wildfires. fueled by hurricane-force winds, the blaze leaves thousands homeless, and could be the most destructive in the state's history. also, legendary actress and beloved comedian betty white has died, just weeks shy of her 100th birthday. and, it's friday. david brooks and jonathan capehart reflect on the year in politics, and democracy in america. all that and more, on tonight's pbs newshour.

i'm amna nawaz. judy woodruff is away. on the newshour tonight: grounded.this christmas eve, as the omicron variant leads to airline staffing shortages. then, new frontiers. nasa prepares to launch a telescope capable of seeing farther into the known universe than ever before. >> there's absolutely a lot riding on this telescope. the future of astronomy is riding on this telescope. and i think it's going to be a huge payoff, in terms of what we learn about the universe. >> nawaz: and, it's friday. david brooks and jonathan capehart weigh in on the democrats' legislative setbacks, and the president's pandemic response. all that and more, on tonight's pbs newshour.

da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪ captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> nawaz: good evening, i'm amnaf is away. on the newshour tonight, presidents biden and putin hold a second call within the month, as russian troops amass on the ukrainian border. then, a texas law banning transgender athletes from playing sports goes into effect next month, adding to challenges trans kids already face growing up. and, a look america's broken foster care system and one former foster child's approach to fixing it. >> all the time we see these small barriers like a deposit for an apartment or the need for more food, being the barrier that actually blocks families from staying together. >> nawaz: all that and more on tonight's pbs newshour.

i'm amna nawaz. in this episode we examine how success is born from a combination of deep ambition,

i want to bring in amna nawaz. i'm very, very grateful for your time.ght now? >> jose, it is absolutely dire for millions and millions of people in afghanistan right now. you saw some of the headlines right there. but essentially, since the four months following the fall of kabul and the taliban re-takeover of the nation, things have gone from bad to worse to absolutely critical. over 20 million people in afghanistan right now are in need of food assistance, dire food assistance. about 9 million are facing starvation, including 1 million children, who are already in severe malnutrition and experts who are tracking this tell us those children could starve and die this coming winter. that would be many more children than died in the 20 years of war previous to where we are right now. and let's not forget, of course, millions of young girls are still kept out of school, millions of women are kept out of the workforce. there are a number of humanitarian aid organizations working on the ground. world food program among them. the leader of that, david beesley

amna nawaz recently sat down with the filmmaker, alex gibney. our arts and culture series, "canvas." >> nawaz: abu zubaydah was the first high-value detainee subjected to the c.i.a.'s program of enhanced interrogation techniques-- practices denounced as torture both here in the u.s. and around the world-- after being captured in a firefight in pakistan in 2002. zubaydah was shuttled among so-called black sites, secret prisons run by the c.i.a. all over the world. he has never been charged with a crime, but for the past 20 years has remained imprisoned, mostly at guantanamo bay. while a team of lawyers fights for his release. a new hbo documentary, called "the forever prisoner," explores the story of abu zubaydah and u.s. actions in the name of national security. the filmmaker behind it is academy award-winner alex gibney, and he joins me now. welcome to the newshour. thanks for being here. >> glad to be here. >> nawaz: abu zubaydah is considered a high value detainee to the u.s. tell us a little bit about him. what did the u.s. believe that he k