the pbs newshour is a perfect example of a program - due to

weta and the pbs newshour depend on you to keep us on the air every day -- every year. it's no easy task, but we can do it with your help. go to your telephone and call the number on your screen to make your pledge, or pledge online at weta.org. >> when you watch pbs, the world comes to your doorstep. history comes to life, mysteries unfold and the arts come home. when you support pbs, your gift helps everyone from all walks of life explore the wonders of the world. simply call the number on your screen. you can give by check or credit card. it's that easy. please, support your pbs station today. thank you. >> we are so proud to be the place that helps you to explore and learn about the world. >> when you do make that call, we have some very special thank you gifts. >> when you pledge $75 or more, you can ask for the pbs newshour ceramic mug. again, it has a great new logo for the news hour. >> for a $100 donation, you can ask for the pbs newshour h2go stainless steel water bottle. it will last a great long time. >> with your pledge of $200, we'll send you an autogrpahe

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: the numbers out of the gulf of mexico painted an even darker picture of the oil disaster today. and they raised new questions about how large the cleanup job will have to be and how long it will take. the magnitude of new estimates on the spill spread new urgency along the gulf coast today. it now appears the flow of oil, before the damaged wellhead was capped, may have been twice as much as originally thought. in other words, since the "deepwater horizon" rig sank, more than 100 million gallons could have gushed into the gulf. what's more, the flow would have increased even more, at least for a time, when robot submersibles cut a damaged pipe last week. in washington, coast guard admiral thad allen acknowledged hard numbers are still hard to come by. >> we're going to be aggregating that, plus making

when you pledge $75 or more, you can ask for the "pbs newshour" ceramic mug. for a $100 donation you can ask for the "pbs newshour" h2go stainless steel water bottle. with your pledge of $200 we'll send you an autographed copy of hot, flat and crowded, 2.0 by thomas l. friedman. >> public television is a spot on the dial that you turn to when you want analysis, understanding and insight. weta represents quality, entertainment and news and public affairs and an education. the word "public" in public television defines how this institution is funded. the largest single source of operating funds is membership. a pool of individual viewers who took that action step to become a member. this kind of teamwork helps us pay for the quality programs you come to expect from weta. we are asking to you call the number on your screen with your contribution to weta today so that we can keep giving you quality music, drama, science, mystery. >> when you pledge $35 or more and become a new member of weta you'll receive five great gifts. a one year subscription to "newsweek" ma

. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by >> this is the engine that connects aabundant grain from the america heartland to aaron's best selling whole wheat while keeping 60 billion pounds of carbon out of the atmosphere every year. the engine that connects us. >> chevron. this is the power of human energy. >> pacific life. the power to help you succeed. >> and the national science foundation, supporting education and research across all fields of science and engineering. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station, from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: on this day 50 of the gulf disaster, officials still don't know how much oil is escaping from the damageded well or where it's headed. a mile deep a containment cap over the blown-out well head is now pumping even more of the leaky crude to the surface. at a news conference in washington, coast guard admiral thaad allen said the device captured more than 600,000 gallons yest

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> i want to know what the universe... >> looks like. >> feels like. >> from deep space. >> to a microbe. >> i can contribute to the world by pursuing my passion for science. >> it really is the key to the future. >> i want to design... >> a better solar cell. >> i want to know what's really possible. >> i want to be the first to cure cancer. >> people don't really understand why things work. >> i want to be that person that finds out why. >> innovative young minds taking on tomorrow's toughest challenges. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: on this day 44 of the oil spill disaster, there was new trouble a mile deep in the gulf of mexico , and on the surface along the coast. it began with yet anot

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: but the workings froze in the deep, cold waterafter that, a hose was inserted into the leaking pipe to siphon oil. it sucked up some of the oil, but not nearly all of it . the efforts to clog the crippled blowout preventer and plug the well. after three days, they were deemed a failure this past weekend. in today's "financial times," b.p.'s hayward conceded it was an entirely fair criticism to say the oil giant had been unprepared for this disaster. "what is undoubtedly true," he said "is that we did not have the tools you would want in your tool kit." through it all, oil has continued to gush, over 40 million gallons to date by some estimates and the oily mass is moving east and could reach the tourism-dependent tkaefps of the florida panhandle within hours. >> this will probably be the last time for a very long time i tkpw tote see and enjoy the beach. >> and a new worst-case scenario from the national center for atmospheric research showed where the oil could travel eventually. by the four-month mark after the spill began. back

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: the national science foundation. supporting education and research across all fields of science and engineering. 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 macneil/lehrer productions captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> suarez: b.p. worked today to cut back how much oil is still escaping from that well in the gulf of mexico. it also came under growing pressure to set aside huge sums for damages claims-- all of this, as president obama was back at the scene of the spill. the president's arrival in mississippi marked the start of a two-day visit to the gulf region to inspect response efforts firsthand. three earlier trips were to louisiana. his latest tour focused on mississippi, alabama and florida. the first stop was gulfport, mississippi, for a briefing by coast guard admiral thaad allen and local officials. the president acknowledgeded complaints of disorganized efforts to keep the

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> brown: the jobs numbers for may fell well short of expectations today, and that raised questions about the direction of the economy. but the direction on wall street was clear-- a sharp spiral down, fueled by renewed doubts about the recovery. on the surface, at least, the american work force made gains in the may jobs report. the labor department reported the economy added a net of 431,000 jobs for the month, and the unemployment rate dipped two-tenths of a point to 9.7%. but the drop in the rate came mostly from people who gave up looking for work. and nearly all of the new jobs were temporary census workers, 411,000 of them. private sector hiring slowed sharply, making for the smallest monthly increase since january. president obama acknowledged all of that,

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: this is the engine that connects zero emission technologies to breathing a little easier, while taking 4.6 million truckloads off the road every year. bnsf, the engine that connects us. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. substantial insurance the claims business and people have will be honored. it is important to emphasize this is not a cap. the people of the gulf have my commitment that b.p. will meet its obligations to them. >> kenneth feinberg will oversee the payments. he ran the 9/11 victims' compensation fund and is currently the government's pay-czar, setting salary limits for bailedded out companies. in addition, b.p. upon contribute $100 million to help oil industry workers who have been i

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> will your savings be enough to fund your retirement? what will happen if your spouse outlives you by many years? what will happen if you outlive your savings? pacific life knows that tomorrow's questions require planning today. with financial solutions and strength, pacific life can help you and your financial professional develop a plan. pacific life-- the power to help you succeed. and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: the amount of oil being captured in the gulf of mexico kept growing today, but there was also growing frustration in the u.s. congress about the spill, its consequences, and b.p.'s overall effort. out on the gulf, "discoverer enterprise" was filling up today. it pumpe

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> this is the engine that connects abundant grain from the american heartland to haran's best selling whole wheat, while keeping 60 billion pounds of carbon out of the atmosphere every year. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> brown: there were some signs of progress today in the battle to contain or stop the river of oil flowing into the gulf of mexico. and there were changes in b.p.'s handling of the cleanup. from the gulf came word b.p. crews are now collecting or burning off a million gallons a day. that's a substantial increase from earlier totals. to put that in context, the government's point-man, coast guard admiral thad allen, said the most probable daily fl

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> this is the engine that connects abundant grain from the american heartland to haran's best selling whole wheat, while keeping 60 billion pounds of carbon out of the atmosphere every year. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> woodruff: reaction rolled in today after the abrupt change of u.s. commanders in afghanistan. american and afghan leaders promised the new commander general david petraeus would represent a change in personnel, not war policy. from the commander-in-chief on down, the refrain was the same-- president obama spoke after meeting with his russian counterpart. >> we are in the mid-point of implementing the strategy that we came up with last year. we'

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: gun rights advocates won a far-reaching victory today before the u.s. supreme court. that led the list of several major decisions handed down on the busy final day of the court's term. >> ifill: the gun rights decision came on a 5-4 vote with the high court's conservatives in the majority. in ruling against the chicago handgun ban, the decision expanded the reach of the second amendment, the right to keep and bear arms. writing for the majority justice samuel alito said the second amendment applies equally to the federal government and the states. two years ago the court struck down washington d.c.'s handgun ban, but the nation's capital is a federal city so that decision applied only to federal law. today's decision applies nationwide. one of the plaintiffs who challengeded the chicago law said the ruli

. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by >> this is the engine that connects zero emission technologies to breathing a little easier while taking 4.6 million truck loads off the road every year. bnsf, the engine that connects us. >> chevron. this is the power of human energy. >> the william and flora hulett foundation, working to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> lehrer: general mcchrystal, commander of forces in afghanistan, faced removal after he and his aides were quoted mocking president obama and his top advisors in a magazine article. mr. obama called the general to a meeting at the white house tomorrow and he had this to say after meeting his cabinet late today. >> general mcchrystal is on his way here, and i am going to meet with him, secretary gates will be meeting with him as well. i think it's cl

. >> major fundor funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by. >> i want to know what the universe looked like, feels like. >> i can contribute to the world by pursuing my passion for science. >> it is really the key to the future. >> i want to design a better solution. i want to know what is is really possible. >> i want to be the first to cure cancer. people don't really understand why things work. i want to be that person who finds out why. >> innovative young minds taking on tomorrow's toughest challenges. >> chevron. this is the power of human nerg. >> bank of america. continuing to help fuel our nation's economic growth. >> pacific life. the power to help you succeed. >> bmsf railway. >> and by the alfred p. sloan foundation supporting science, technology and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. >> ifill: israel continued today to deitself against charges it mishandled a commando mission off the coast of gas a. the incident also led to the easing of gaza's isolation, at

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: and by the alfred p. sloan foundation. supporting science, technology, and improved economic performance and financial literacy in the 21st century. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: command of the war in afghanistan will pass into new hands after u.s. general stanley mcchrystal was abruptly relieved of command. general mcchrystal left the white house this morning before a scheduled strategy meeting on the war in afghanistan even began. that was the first sign that he would not have his job by the end of the day. and he didn't. >> today, i accepted general stanley mcchrystal's resignation as commander of the international security assistance force in afghanistan." i did so with considerable regret, but also with certainty that it is the right thing for our mission in afghanistan, for our military, and for our country. >> ifil

. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by chevron. this is the power of human energy. bnsf railway. and by the bill and melinda gates foundation, dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: in her second day before the senate judiciary committee, supreme court nominee elena kagan was challenge on her beliefs for academic track record and the major legal issues of the day. newshour correspondent kwame holman begins our coverage. >> reporter: the nominee took her seat at 9:00 a.m. on day two of the hearings and in short order she was being pressed by alabama republican jeff sessions. he attacked kagan's decision as dean of harvard law school to block military recruiters. she had objected to the military's don't ask don't tell policy against gays in the military

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: this is the engine that connects zero emission technologies to breathing a little easier, while taking 4.6 million truckloads off the road every year. bnsf, the engine that connects us. and the william and flora hewlett foundation, working to solve social and environmental problems at home and around the world. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> brown: the first hurricane of the atlantic season bore down today on the texas/mexico border region. it was far from the scene of the huge oil spill in the gulf of mexico, but it still disrupted containment and cleanup efforts. hurricane alex whipped up waves today from tampico, mexico-- 200 miles south of the border-- all the way up to port isabel, texas and beyond. >> most of the island is evacuated now. >> brown: as the center of the storm approached, business owners stocked up on plywood, making

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> will your savings be enough to fund your retirement? what will happen if your spouse outlives you by many years? what will happen if you outlive your savings? pacific life knows that tomorrow's questions require planning today. with financial solutions and strength, pacific life can help you and your financial professional develop a plan. pacific life-- the power to help you succeed. >> chevron. this is the power of human energy. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation. dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: the gulf oil slick extended its reach today, staining beaches from louisiana to florida. officials said cleaning up the spill will take months and years. >> ifill: oil continues to lap at the shores of the gulf coast today as b.p.

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> chevron. this is the power of human energy. >> bnsf railway. >> and by the bill and melinda gates foundation, dedicated to the idea that all people deserve the chance to live a healthy, productive life. and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and... this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >> ifill: a dramatic appearance in a new york courtroom late this afternoon and a gilly plea by a pakistani born american. judy woodruff starts our coverage. >> woodruff: seven weeks after an s.u.v. packed with crude explosives failed to blow up in the heart of times square, suspect pleaded guilty in federal court today for attempting to carry out the attack. he told the judge that unless the u.s. stops attacking muslim countries, quote, we will be attacking u.s. when asked if he wanted to plead guilty he said he wanted, quote, to plead guilty and 100 times more. the indict

major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: captioning sponsored by 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 macneil/lehrer productions captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org