in an exclusive interview with pbs "newshour's" spencer michels. >> it drives me crazy when people say, you haven't done anything. should we cut the colleges more and pump it into the prisons? >> our spotlight on politics coming up next. >>> good evening. welcome to "this week in northern california." with the presidential inauguration coming up on monday, and major developments this week on gun control and immigration reform, we focus tonight on politics from california to washington, d.c. we'll hear from governor jerry brown later in the program. and to help analyze it all, we're joined in studio by carla marinucci, "san francisco chronic chronicle" senior political reporter." debra saunders, "san francisco chronicle" conservative columnist. scott shafer, host of the "california report" joining us from washington, d.c. scott, let's start with you. you've been talking to our california lawmakers this week on the push for immigration reform. is there progress on comprehensive reform, and what are you hearing from our congressional officials? >> well, it seems like the stars are alignin

newshour correspondent spencer michels sat down with brown in san francisco. hiseport is a co-production th our colleagues at kqed-san francisco, and begins with some background on the fiscal troubles and the budget fix. >> reporter: california's sorry financial state and cuts made to health and welfare programs have prompted nearly nonstop demonstrations at the state capital in recent times. those protests got going four years ago when california and its then governor republican arnold schwarzenegger faced a staggering budget deficit of $42 billion. the recession, built-in spending, a large population in need of state services like health and welfare, a limit on property taxes, plus republican legislators' refusal to raise taxes created a dilemma in the world's ninth largest economy. with budget cuts coming like clock work, the state's college and university systems declined in offerings and in reputation. schools suffered cutbacks in personnel and programs. services for the poor were trimmed by $15 billion since 2008. state workers were furloughed. then in 2

. >> brown: then, spencer michels asks california governor jerry brown if his fiscal turnaround-- from a $27 billion deficit to a balanced budget-- offers a lesson for the nation. . >> you have to make tough choices. you have to live within your means. that means you have to not do everything you want to but you also have to raise more

. >> ifill: spencer michels reports on the boom in online teaching and its impact on traditional liberaleducation.

. >> sreenivasan: spencer michels has a story about trash and one city's crusade to eliminate all of it. >> reporter: san francisco boasts that it recycles 80% of all garbage, and is aiming for zero waste. but some skeptics don't believe it. >> brown: plus, mark shields and david brooks analyze the week's news. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by:

. >> ifill: spencer michels reports on the boom in online teaching and its impact on traditional liberal arts education. . >> woodruff: ray suarez looks into china's current crackdown on the internet and on its own news media, which is drawing protests. >> ifill: and we remember pulitzer prize-winning journalist richard ben cramer, whose work spanned presidential politics and the lives of superstar athletes. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: saving for the heart. you'll be able to get close to iconic landmarks. to cultural places. it's a feeling that you can only get. these are journeys that change your perspective on the world viking river cruises, explore the world >> 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 v

. >> sreenivasan: spencer michels has a story about trash and one city's crusade to eliminate all of it. >> reporter: san francisco boasts that it recycles 80% of all garbage, and is aiming for zero waste. but some skeptics don't believe it. >> brown: plus, mark shields and david brooks analyze the week's news. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> bnsf railway. >> support also comes from carnegie corporation of new york, a foundation created to do what andrew carnegie called "real and permanent good." celebrating 100 years of philanthropy at carnegie.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and friends of the newshour. 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. >> sreenivasan: a federal appeals court rejected several recess appointments made by president obama last year, saying the moves were unconstitutional. the president appointed three people to the national labo re

. >> sreenivasan: spencer michels has a story about trash and one city's crusade to eliminate all of it. >> reporter: san francisco boasts that it recycles 80% of all garbage, and is aiming for zero waste. but some skeptics don't believe it. >> brown: plus, mark shields and david brooks analyze the week's news. that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. >> major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> bnsf railway. >> support also comes from carnegie corporation of new york, a foundation created to do what andrew carnegie called "real and permanent good." celebrating 100 years of philanthropy at carnegie.org. >> and with the ongoing support of these institutions and foundations. and friends of the newshour. 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. >> sreenivasan: a federal appeals court rejected several recess appointments made by president obama last year saying the moves were unconstitutional. the president appointed three people to the national labor re

in an exclusive interview with pbs "newshour's" spencer michels. >> it drives me crazy when people say, you haven't done anything. should we cut the colleges more and pump it into the prisons? >> our spotlight on politics coming up next.

in an exclusive interview with pbs "newshour's" spencer michels. >> it drives me crazy when people say, you haven't done anything. should we cut the colleges more and pump it into the prisons? >> our spotlight on politics coming up next.

correspondent spencer michels sat down with the governor earlier this week in an interview for the pbs "newshour." in this segment, they discuss whether california is really out of the woods and the governor's plans for the future. >> governor jerry brown, thanks very much for talking with us. >> sure. >> governor, proposition 30 in california was sold that it would help the schools and almost exclusively help the schools. are the california schools out of the woods? >> you say out of the woods. we live in the woods, so we don't get out of the woods. but the money is definitely going to the schools. it's very helpful. we're paying down the debt. the state took in borrowing $2.7 billion from the schools and over the next five years we're going to pay back our debts to the schools from the state and they're going to see per kid over about $2,300 per kid for all 6 million kids in california. it's going to help. >> oh, sure it's going to help, but we have to do other things. i have a formula to distribute the money if the legislation approves so that where there are more foster care kids,

newshour correspondent spencer michels reports. >> reporter: each year, americans throw away about 250 million tons of garbage. that's roughly four pounds per person per day. you can find all manner of trash in a landfill-- old music stands, plastic bags, and a lot of items that could have been recycled, like bottles and cardboard. beyond the obvious blight they cause, landfills create environmental damage, including carbon dioxide emissions. they are monuments to waste. those concerns have prompted san francisco and a handful of other cities to aim for a once- unthinkable goal-- zero waste. in 2009, san francisco became the first city in the country to require that residents and businesses separate compostable items, like food scraps, and recyclable goods, like paper, metals, and plastic, into separate bins from their trash. and that has led to a big reduction in the amount of garbage headed to the landfill, according to san francisco mayor ed lee. >> we're proud of the 80% diversion rate, the highest in the country, certainly of any city in north america. >> reporter: lee likes to ta

newshour corresondent spencer michels has our story. >> mark this with d and in a valueive the term you mark with e. >> reporter: tracy lippincott, who works in a san francisco bar, is taking a college course in her apartment, online, on how to reason and argue. the teacher is walter sinnott- armstrong, professor of ethics at duke university in north carolina, and the class is free. >> so how do you learn the technique? the answer is very simple. you practice, and then you practice again, and then you practice and practice and practice and practice. this class has these really short little lectures, which is great because you can kind of watch one, and then think about it and react, and then you don't have to watch another whole hour like you would in class. >> reporter: "think again" is a class presented by a one-year- old for-profit startup called coursera, currently the nation's largest provider of free online courses. 170,000 students from around the world have signed up for it. the classes are called moocs, or massive open online courses, and they may be revolutionizing higher educ

spencer, thank you. >> first lady michelle obama kept up with her husband in the inauguration. >> but she mate mai not have been entertain bid some of the events. during the lunchen the president leaned behind his wife to talk with house speaker john baneo, boehner replies it appears the first lady rolls her iz. there is no audio of the exchange but the internet is buzzing with speculation. >> i get the eye roll from you quite a bit, what does that mean right there? what do you think? >> i don't know. it's subtle. perhaps she's rolling her eyes at the president? >> no. [ laughter ] >> he's laughing. >> that is clearly intended for mr. boehner. moving on. first daughters are just a couple regular kids. look at the fun they're having. 11-year-old sasha trying to take an iphone photo of her parents kissing and 14-year-old malia photo bombs it. the girls were seen laughing and texting throughout the celebration. it reminds me of my kids. >> take a look at this one. it became a hit on twitter. former president bill clinton photo bombed kelly clarkson as she performed. stuck his head into the aisle to catch

michelle obama and dr. jill biden. it's going on right now. we'll be watching it over the next several hours. reporting live, darcy spencer news 4. >> love that guy with the bow tie and good grade point average g for him. our coverage of the inauguration weekend is just getting started. if you took part in any of today's day of service events, share your photos. we'll show them. and for all road closures and travel information, visit nbcwashington.com/inauguration and click on our locals guide. >>> baseball, remembering the earl of baltimore today. a look back at the fiery, irreverant career of an oriole legend. >> reporter: i'm jackie benson with so many inauguration visitors in town, there is concern about a homicide here in a well travelled section of georgia avenue. i'll have that story coming up. >> and we'll introduce you to two very special service members getting ready to >>> sad day for baseball fans, especially in baltimore. earl weaver died last night. jason pugh is here now with more on quite a character. >> yeah, this was a great man. not only on the field but also off the field. one of the legends of the spo

especially first lady, michelle obama's white house garden that inspires many people to cook with local foods. >>> that wasn't the only ball going on last night. >> darcy spenceras a look at one of the early inaugural balls. >> reporter: the stage was set with star performers at the kids' inaugural ball at the washington convention center, and usher kicked it off. ♪ >> reporter: the event hosted by first lady michelle obama and jill biden was a member of military and their families. >> when i think about what makes america great, i think about all of you, our men and women in uniform and our military spouses and our amazing military kids. >> the concert was one of several events held across the district two days before the second inauguration of president barack obama. and the illinois state society hosted a gala, and these women travelled from wisconsin to take in the events. >> it has been fantastic. a lot going on, different foods and activities, and it's been wonderful. >> reporter: and there was a gala in honor of the tuesday 63 tkpwae airman. >> it's indescribable, really. it sort of helps to look back to see where we came from, and we have come a long w