yamiche alcindor reports on mr.trump's efforts to reassure american farmers, amid rising concerns of the economic fallout of his ongoing trade war with china. >> china's doing a little number. they want to attack the farm vlt because they know those-- the farmers love moted for me. we won every one of the states. >> alcindor: in iowa and illinois today, mr. trump touted his support for american farmern a $12 billion farm aid package he announced yesterday. it's to offset tariffs he's put on chinada and mexico, three of the u.s. agriculture industry's largest trading dpartners. inuque, iowa, mr. trump brushed off critics of his trade and told farmers to be patient. they interview him on television. they see i know it will be tough for a while, but he's doing the right thing. >> our people feed the world.nt they don't wa bailouts, they want for trade. >> but the president's a >>lcindor: but the president's trade policy has come under fierceriticism by free-trade supporters in his own party. even missouri senator roy b

helsinki where they are preparing to cover tomorrow's events are newshour whuse correspondent yamiche alcindor and special correspondent ryan chilcote. >> sreenivasan: i want to start with the basic question for both oyou about what the parties want. at least let me start with you, yamiche. >> what does the president want from this conversation with vladimir putin? >> the president really hasn't given that much detail about what he wants from vladimir putin, what he said is that he wants to have this meeting, he likes having meetings, he wants toee around strong laders, he thinks it is important to have that communicating be good and uour relationship with thted states should be strong with russia. sources inside the white house te me theylso are waiting to hear what the president is going to do. s there are a lot of issey could talk about, among them are the situation in syria, theta mi situation. there is reporting that the u.s. has been offered the to possibly pull out troops if they can get a deal with russia to deal with other things. there is this idea the adaptation of crimea could be a

judy. >> woodruff: ryan chilcote, yamiche alcindor, not a sleepy day at this n.a.t.o. gathering. thank you both. >> thanks, judy. >> woodruff: we'll take a closer look at the president's criticisms of nato, after the news summary. in the day's other new a budding trade war between the u.s. and china escalated, after president trump ordered a possle second round of tariffs. these could include 10% levies on $200 billion in chinese imports to the u.s., from fish to furniture to vacuum cleaners. beijing vowed to retaliate, and in washington, house speaker paul ryan warned the president against going too far. >> i don't want to hamstring the president's negotiating tactics but i've lonid i don't think tariffs are the right way to go. china does steal intellectual property, they do engage in unfair trade practices, whiche violt just the spirit but the letter of w.t.o. standards that they agreed to play by years ago, so i ink we're right to point that out, i just don't think tariffs are right mechanisto do that. >> woodruff: last friday, the u.s. formally imposed $34 billion in tariffs

white correspondent yamiche alcindor is in helsinki. >> he just said it's not russia. i will say this: i don't see any reon why it would be. >> alcindor: with that, the president of the united states agn dismissed american intelligence findings that vladimir putin ordered russian meddling in the 2016lection. instead, mr. trump suggested he takes putin at his word. >> i will tell you that presid strong and powerful in his denial today. >> alcindor: mr. trump also bristled aany suggestion that russian actions contributed to his victory. >> there was no collusion. i didn't know the president. there was nobody to e with. there was no collusion at all. so far that i know, virtually none of it related to the campaign. and they're going tolyave to try reard to find somebody that did relate to the campaign. that was a clean campaign. i beat hillary clinton eily. >> alcindor: even as putin denied any ierference, he also acknowledged he wanted mr. trump to win in 2016. >): yes i did.d s i did. because he talked about bringing the u.s.-russia relationship back to normal. isn't it

for that, i'm joy our white house correspondent, yamiche alcindor. so, yamiche, we learnebolate thursday a decision by the u.s. military to discharge some of their recruits.at tell us about well, what we know is that the united states army has been secret by discharging or quietly discharging a number of immigrant recruits according tor recent r by the associated press in our own "newshour". the associated press isth reportine are immigrants who joined the army reserves or army and told they could have a path to citizenship if theliy ed. they tid that, now they are being told they have to go. out 40 people are impacted by this. an immigration attorney we talked to at "newshour" said she heard from dozens people who are impacted by this. these immigrants are being told either nothing about why this ip ing or they're being told they are security risks because they have family abroad or because th the department of defense could notmplete their background check. we talked to a dtepartm of defense person who said the government wants to fast track these p

. >> woodruff: and newshour white use correspondent yamich alcindor joins me now. yamiche, you've gone from thng president san helsinki that he was inclined to believe vladimir putin to thesaying he misspoke and then the back and forth today and now this comment that he holds vladimir putin personally responsible. atat do we understand at this point about wh the president believes? >> well, based on his conversation with cbs news, he's saying that he does hold president putin personally responsible for election interference but, at the same time, is contradicting the intelligence community who has said over and over again that russia meddled many if election and putin ordered it personally. he's saying i'm a bit reonsible for things tha happen in general in the united states much as putin is responsible in general for things that happen at russia. i would assume a lot of people woulsay he's not being as forthright at he should be. the president did not walk backe other thingsaid in the press conference. it's not just the would and hwouldn't, it's the factt he said t

yamiche alcindor joins me. e, the whole speech was surprising, although it is vintage donald trump when he's in a friendly crowd. but for a guy who has been subject to allegations which he he nie denies, by the way, of sexual harassment, i thought that was an unusual choice. >> i think that last night was really president trump on display, his brashness on display in a way that's really remarkable and shows that he can say things that obviously would sink other politicians. the fact that he talked about the me too movement as if it was a push for political correctness, as if throwing a dna kit, you had to be really gentle and the fact that he was mocking that movement on the same day that he hired bill shine stood out to me very quickly because yesterday was a big day. it was a big day because he was putting out there that he was going to hire another fox news personality and that this person specifically was someone is allegedly -- allegedly helped cover up sexual harassment claims at fox news. so it shows that

yamiche alcindor has been looking into this, and joins me now. so, yamiche, what did facebook say they did today? >> well, fake pages are leading tod real-action. that's why facebook took this really remarkable step to takes. down these pa they took down 32 fake accounts on both facebook d instagram. they also say that more than 290,0 accounts are being followed by at least one of those pages. they say 150 e ads wnnected to those fake accounts. it cost about $11,000 on facebook. so even though these 32 accounts might small like -- sound like small number, this is a big step. >> yang: what do we know about who is behind these fake accounts. led as you said, thi real actions. what real actions might have come? >> essentially this is about pushing on america on its weaknesses. it's all the things we art.gue ab many of these accounts were about race, about abolishing ice, immigration and customs enforcement. these are things that real-world democrats are pushing for. in this case there are sortme imt things i want to note. the first one is that their

we now turn to our two reporters who were there in helsinki: white house correspondent yamiche alcindor. and special correspondent ryan chilcote. hello to both of you. s miche, you were in the room during tnews conference. do you understand what it was that led the president to say he could not be sure of what his own intelligence community has found about the 2016 election? >> well, president trump equated itu.s. intelligence comms who have said over and over again that rust meddled in u.s. elections with the denial of president putin who says russia had nothing to do with this. th is a stunning moment because president trump was putting on equal playing fields russia saying they did not do anything and u.s. intelligenc agencies, the f.b.i., c.i.a., n.s.a. all sayng russia had something to do with russia meddling in our elections. after the press conference, president trump told cbs news he does not think russimeddled in our elections, he disagrees that russia could meddle in future elections. dan coates came out with a statement after the press conference saying he believes russia med

for e pbs newshour, i'm yamiche alcindor. the reporter who we heard just ask the president if he betrayed him was barred from the white house from attending an open press event in the rose garden. kaitlyn colin was told by the chief of staff and the secretary that her questions were "inappropriate." we take a closer look now at what we know about he president's former weather and his legal troubles with attorne. renato mario he's a former federal prosecutor. he currently works in private practice in chicago. renato mariotti, thank you forg join. what do you hear in that recording that's significant? >> well, one thing thy hear, judy, is asc dsion that makes it clear that the president is familiar wh this transaction, that heenes the circumstances of it. he does not seem surprised by the subject at all.ou that make it very difficult for the president or his legal team to say lat that e president had no knowledge of this matter. also, you know, the fact that he talks in the plural suggests that this isn't the first time that he

white house correspondent yamiche alcindor begins our covera. >> alcindor:or president vladimir putin, a warm reception from russian lawmakers today, as he celebrated the helsinki suit results. >> ( translated ):inally, the full formal meeting happened which allowed me to talk it was successful generally, led to useful arrangements. >> alcindor: there's been no dformal announcement of als the leaders may have made. putin said they worked out a range of agreements involving international security. but the u.s. director of national intelligence, dan ats, said today at an aspen institute forum, he's not sure iat was agreed to. >> well you're rigon't know what happened in that meeting. but that is the president's prerogative. if he had asked he how that ought to be conducted, i would've suggested a different way but that's not my role, s what not my job, so it it i >> alcindor: this morning, president trump tweeted saying: "the summit with russia was a e great succesept with the real enemy of the people, the ke news media." went on to say he looks forward to a second meeting with putin, "

white house correspondent yamiche alcindor begins our coverage, from brussels. >> germany is totally controlled by russia. >> alcindor: with those striking words, president trump blasted his way into the brussels summit with an attack on nato ally germany. >> they will be getting from 60 to 70% of their energy from russia and a new pipeline. and you tell me if that's appropriate, because i think it's not, and i think it's a >> alcindor: mr. trump spoke at a breakfast with nato secretary general jens stoltenberg. it was supposed to bght meet and greet. instead, the president criticized a pipelinect called nord stream 2 that would bring russian natural gas across the baic sea to germany. >> so we're supposed to protect germany, but they'reng their energy from russia. explain that. >> alcindor: stoltenberg, who is imalso a former norwegian minister, pushed back but was careful to moderate his tone. >> well, i think that ev during the cold war, nato allies were trading with russia. >> aindor: german chancellor angela merkel, who grew up in what was then communist east germany, quickly is

andainly, the day-to-day actions of both countries in the near fute. >> woodruff: nick schifrin, yamiche alcindor thank you th. >> thank you. >> woodruff: in the day's other news, president trump criticized the federal reserve for raising interest rates. he spoke to cnbc, and suggested higher rates aren't helping efforts to boost the economy. >> i'm not thrilled, because we go up, and every time you go up, they want to raise rates again. and i don't really, uh... i am not happy about it, but at the same time, i'm letting them do what they feel is best. >> woodruff: later, a white house president respects the independence of the fed.ai fed an jerome powell has said he does not expect to face white house pressure.mp he was mr. t choice for the job. re than 7,000 civilians in syria were evacuated from pro- government villages in the north. 'd been under rebel sieg for three years. s eir release was in exchange for militald in government jails. buses took the villagers to government-held territory in laeppo. it's one of the est population transfers in the seven-year-long conf meanwhile, in southwest

yamiche alcindor and phil rubbing kerr, th rucker, thanks very much. it's time for your business of the week. this plant-based burger looks, feels and on tastes like its beef-made twin. and it's taking the culinary world by store. impossible foods is changing the way carnivores thinking. for more, watch "your business" sunday morning at 7:30 on msnbc. 'a . . the world is full of more possibilities than ever before. and american express has your back every step of the way- whether it's the comfort of knowing help is just a call away with global assist. or getting financing to fund your business. no one has your back like american express. so where ever you go. we're right there with you. the powerful backing of american express. don't do business without it. don't live life without it. today's senior living communities have never been better, with amazing amenities like movie theaters, exercise rooms and swimming pools, public cafes, bars and bistros even pet care services. and there's never been an easier way to get great advice. a place for mom is a f

for e pbs newshour, i'm yamiche alcindor. >> woodruff: pakistan has officially elected a new prime minister. the country's election commission declared populist imran khan the winner, after two days of ballot counting and allegations of vote rigging. khan's party must now seek partners in order to form a governing coalition. a european monitoring team deemed the elections credible, but said the campaign was teddled with intimidation. the u.s. separtment also cited "flaws" in the process. on wall street today, markets were down after more signs of trouble at tech companies likean twitter d intel overshadowed proming economic growth. the dow jones industrial average lost 75 pots to close at 25,451. the nasdaq fell 114 points, and the s&p 500 dropped 18. still to come on the newshour: the strong u.s. economic growth over the past three months. we break down these latest numbers. what president trump says he knew about his son's meeting pwih west. and, much more. >> woodrf: today, the commerce department released its latest snapshot of the american econy. as amna nawaz explains, the report show

yamiche alcindor is in brusselsv and begins ourage >> i believe in nato. >> alcindor: the presidetu capped a tums two-day summit with that pledge, after at a surprise news conference, he claimed victory in his campaign to make nato allies spend mo on defense. he would not say directly if he had threatened to abandon the alliance. did you ever at any point say that the u.s. though might stop engaging with nato? and do you think that your rhetoric helps nato cohesion or are you worried that people might think that the u.s. is going to not be as committed to nato >> well, they were probably worried, because the united states was not being tread fairly, but now we are because the commitment has been upped so much. but i can you tell you that nato now is a really a fine-tuned machine.re peopleaying money that they never paid before. >> alcindor: mr. trump was also asked about whether he even co without congressional approval. >> i think i probably can. but that's unnecessary and the people have stepped up today like they've never stepped up before. >> alcindor: but other leaders disagreed about

yamiche alcindor begins our coverage. >> well, thank you very much. >> alcindor: the big topic at the white house today was supposed to be trade, but when president trump and european commission president jeaclaude juncker ended the public portion of the meeting, they were sprayed with questions about something entirely different: >> did michael cohen betray you? >> thank you very much. >> alcindor: this new talk about the presidens former personal lawyer, michael cohen, comes as a new recording has been made public: ioa september 2016 convers between cohen and then-candidate donald trump. tn, the first news outlet obtain the tape, reported thatit ot the recording from cohen's legal team. in the recording, cohen seems to be discussing a possible way to send payments to "david"-- davio pecker, chairmamerican media inc., which owns the "national enquirer" tabloid. >> i need to open up a company for the transfer of all of that info regarding our friend david, you know, so t dt. i'm going that right away. when it comes time for the financing, which will be-- >> what financing? >> we'll ha

ru giuliani, on of the president's personal aorneys, told our colleague yamiche alcindor he thought it would be hardeman bid quickly he didn't know for sure. we will know the presionnt's choice and then it will be up to the senate to advice and consent. >> woodruff: lisa, that brings it to you, codong to senate confirmation. what are you hearing from senate republicans? >> for senate republicans, this is actually a joyous day, its as if they just have to figure out which of the players from their team gets promoted to the n.f.l. they all have their favorite choices but from this viewpoihe inenate, they believe the easiest choices to go through here would be judges hardeman and kethledge. judge ka v.r. anaugh has a long record that there's cocern there may bish shoes that would cause problems especially in a senate very gnar lowe roy divide butorenccain is still battling cancer in arizona so still 50 republicans to 49 democrats. can't lose angle member. >> woodruff: so a close vote, clearly democrats havtoe somethg ay, what are they saying now? >> well, for drnlings they're placing for

yamiche alcindor explores this issue further in this race matters report. >> alcindor: several of the latest conontations havete involved whi citizens calling police on african-americans engaged in typical, everyday activities. including a 12 year-old mowing lawns ne cleveland, ohio, two men barbecuing at a public park in oakland, california, or this eight-year-old girl selling bottled water without a permit, outsidthe san francisco giants' ballpark. the woman who called police here nebeing captured on cell p video posted by the girl's mother. >> you can hide all you want, the whole world gonna see you, boo. >> yeah, illegally selling water without a permit. >> omy property. >> it's not your property. >> alcindor: the woman who made the call later apologized, and redenied that her actions racially motivated. most of these incidents took place outside and in public and were caught on video that often went viral. while none of those incidents resulted in rests or charges being filed, they followed other high profile confrontations, including one in may that took a much more violent turn