Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour 20130729

Maverick taking on his own party. So now when we have a democrat in the white house and i take him on and obama care and other issues now hes the angry bitter old man. Neither is true. Woodruff pope francis remarks on gay priests today marked a striking shift from his predecessors. We look at what it all means, as he wrapped up his first foreign trip as head of the Catholic Church. Ifill the teen Unemployment Rate is almost double what it was just 13 years ago. Paul solman reports on new efforts to find jobs for younger workers. I think were in an uncorrected depression for teenage employment in america. The only thing we can do thats going to make a difference is mobilize the private sector to hire teenagers. Woodruff and with the motor city feeling the blues after filing for bankruptcy earlier this month, Jeffrey Brown takes a broader look at the Fiscal Health of americas cities. Ifill thats all ahead on tonights newshour. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by bnsf 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. 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 longfrozen israelipalestinian Peace Process may be showing faint signs of a thaw. The two sides were sitting down this evening at the u. S. State department, face to face, for the first time in years. Hours before israelis and palestinians met to relaunch rare, direct negotiations, secretary of state john kerry this morning called for reasonable compromise. Going forward, its no secret that this is a difficult process. If it were easy, it would have happened a long time ago. I know the negotiations are going to be tough, but i also know that the consequences of not trying could be worse. In an effort to jumpstart the stalled process, kerry has made six trips to the region since february. He was joined today by a former u. S. Ambassador to israel, martin indick named special envoy for the talks. Israels cabinet agreed to release 104 palestinian prisoners to clear the way for fresh negotiations. Prime minister benjamin netanyahu. This moment is is not easy for me. It is not easy for the cabinet ministers and its not easy especially for the bereaved families whose feelings i understand. But there are moments in which tough decisions must be made for the good of the nation. And this is is one of those moments. Ifill that decision quickly provoked protests by a number f israelis. Today in tel aviv reactions were still mixed. Its a good development. I believe that its the time to give this a chance and to try it again. I hope things are going to would. A terrible decision. It wont bring any good to the israeli nation. Ifill on the palestinian side, protesters on the west bank clashed with police on sunday. And today there was skepticism on the streets of ramallah. I think returning back to the negotiation again is a very big mistake from the senior leadership. Ifill that leadership, headed by president abbas does not govern gaza where hamas rules. The group never recognized israels right to exist and it condemned any plans for talks. Hamas reiterates its objection to the return to negotiations between the Palestinian Authority in ramallah and a Israeli Occupation and reminds us the only beneficiary is the Israeli Occupation. Ifill prospects for the new state department talks are anything but clear. The last significant direct negotiations broke down in 2008. And attempted revival in 2010 lasted just one day. Woodruff for more on the prospects for peace, opportunities, and stumbling blocks, im joined by David Makovsky, director of the project on the middle east Peace Process at the Washington Institute for near east policy. And hussein ibish, a senior fellow at the American Task force on palestine. Welcome back to the newshour. Thank you. Good to be back. Woodruff David Makovsky, let me start with you. Why are these talks happening now and do they have any better chance of success than what weve seen before . As we just heard in the setup piece they havent sat together for five years now. A lot has changed since then. Basically kerry comes in. Remember this is president obama who on the second day of his first term had put a middle east negotiator in place, george mitchell. Hes someone who clearly, this president , wants to do what he can to solve this tragic conflict which has gone on for decades. Hes made six trips out there, more than any secretary of state recently. He basically said, look, you want this administration in, this is your last chance. So i think theres a sense, certainly on the palestinian side, that if they dont try this, you know, that they could write off this administration because weve got a lot of other issues to deal with here in the United States. This was a moment that its unclear, people are hopeful that its going to work but i think its a window that could be lost if at least there isnt an effort. Netanyahu has been willing to negotiate with abbas. Woodruff how do you see the willingness of the two sides to do this right now . I think from a political point of view, the situation is difficult for both of them frankly. I think thats why it took some cajoling and some inducements and some persuasion and all those trips that david referred to by secretary kerry to get them to the table. But in the end at a minimum when the bilateral relationship is so important between israel and the United States and between israel and the palestinians, Neither Party wants to be seen internationally and particularly in washington as obstructionists a. The guys who say no. So in the end both of them came, i think, with some skepticism and with some suspicion of each other but also probably with some hope against hope that kerry is going to put together a formula and that they can find a formula to actually make progress both on the ground and at the table. David makovsky what is known about what theyre going to talk about and what theyre going to talk about first and then second and so on. I just will throw in one more thing of hope because everyone gets. Youve never gone broke being a pessimist about the middle east. Were not here to predict breakthroughs but i think something very interesting to listen for is netanyahu saying israel can not slide towards binationalism. Woodruff what does that mean . That means that if israel wants to be a democratic country, a jewish country with equal rights for all its citizens, jewish and nonjewish, it needs a twostate solution. He has never framed peace in terms of israeli selfinterest. Hes doing it in the last three months. People who meet with them tell me hes doing it all the time with them. So again i dont want to hold. Say that there will be a breakthrough tomorrow. It wont be. But this is something new, a new motif. I would just say in terms of the talks themselves, it might be a little bit boring over the next day because theyre going to talk about what is a agenda, what is the frequency of the meetings . Theres the venue and published reports saying theyre going to move to the region. What is going to be the structure. Which issues do they tackle first. If its just about the process, how much does it really matter . It matters a great deal especially from the palestinian point of view because built into this relationship is a vast asymmetry of power. Its probably the single greatest in modern history between two negotiating groups. The power of the israelis and the relative disempowerment of the palestinians is enormous. So for the palestinians, to be trapped in an endless series of sort of an endless loop of conversations with the israelis about. That dont seem to go anywhere is a nightmare season air yoa particularly when they remember in the 1990s that the number of settlers doubled between 93 and 98 from 200,000 to 0,000. Now its over half a million. For them terms of reference very important. Agreeing to very specific framework about what it is theyre talking about and what role the United States is going to play in brokering, in holding the sides to meet their agreements, in bridging and all that stuff is really very, very significant. It sounds like Technical Details but it sets us up for failure or success. Woodruff how much does it matter, David Makovsky, how much the public are behind this, the israeli public, the palestinian public . How do you read that . I think its critical because were not in the era of the giants anymore. When you had guys like rab even and sadat or king hussein of jordan, these were leaders who really swept the public behind them. Even then there were problems. We shouldnt roman ties. We have two riskaverse leaders who dont want to get out ahead because theyre usually look overing their right shoulder not the left shoulder. If you have public that are skeptical and even outright cynical, then theyre not going to want to get out too much in front. For this to have any hope, these leaders, because they wont have a big breakthrough to announce immediately, they need to. Their tone has to change where they engage what i would call synchronized political messaging. Where they talk to each others public and let the public see why theres something in it for them. Woodruff is is there a sense, hussein, that theyre ready to do that . Well, i think its going to be slow. They may be willing to, but theyre going to be very cautious. I think theres another whole angle here which is especially on the palestinian side. There needs to be a lot of attention to improving daily living conditions, to provide a support, a bottomup support for this topdown diplomacy. They need to see economic benefits. They need to see greater access and mobility. They need to feel that this is bringing an improvement to weather daily lives. If they dont see that, its going to be much harder to sustain this because they cant live with the status co as easily as the israelis can. They live under military occupation. How quickly do they need to see that . Both of you are suggesting. Immediately. I think immediately. I think this should be put in place within days. I think if theres a package of economic aid, it needs to be tied to accountability, transparency and good governance. I think we need to help the palestinians continue on the institutionbuilding path and the reform path that theyve been on. And help them build their society at the same time that we pursue these negotiations so that it doesnt happen in a vacuum because for a while in the west bank, it will look like this is just some empty words in various farflung places. Woodruff this raises the he request, David Makovsky of how does one measure whether there is progress being made . Its going to be hard because theres going to be an effort to have a close hold. Because each side is afraid that if they announce their concession, theyre going to be susceptible back home you sold out. You gave it away for nothing. You didnt get anything reciprocal in response. Woodruff they have to trust each other. Right. They have to build that up. To pick up on what hussein said about economic development. That is not controversial on either side. I think both sides want it. Where israel thought it was a zero sum was what we saw in the setup piece was the release of 104 prisoners, progress, but involved in the murders of 55 civilians, mothers and their babies and things like that. In israel that is viewed as, well, abbas says he wants to show to his people that theres some changes on the ground but at whose expense . And thats a danger. We have to look for things that are not zero sum like economics. Or Security Cooperation which has to be maintained and improved. That should in turn lead to greater access and mobility for palestinians and real talks about what the p. A. Can do in area c which is the part that. Which is the part of the west bank theyve been barredded from operating in, 60 of it. All of that stuff. Woodruff all eyes on these talks starting tonight. Thank you both very mu ifill still to come on the newshour, senator mccain on the deeply divided congress; pope francis asks, who am i to judge . ; summer jobs for low income teenagers; and the Economic Health of American Cities. But first, with the other news of the day, heres kwame holman. Holman at least 58 people died in a wave of car bombings across iraq today. It was the latest in a wave of violence thats claimed nearly 700 lives this month alone. The 18 explosions rang out ato  rush hour, targeting mostly shiite districts in baghdad. Video from the scene showed the twisted remains of cars and debris in the streets. Egypt was rocked by new bloodshed over the weekend, and europes top diplomat arrived today, hoping to help calm things. Early on saturday, Security Forces killed at least 83 supporters of ousted president Mohammed Morsi at a cairo sit in. The interior ministry insisted its police fired only tear gas. Today European Union foreign minister Catherine Ashton tried to mediate an end to the violence. She urged the interim government to reach out to the muslim brotherhood. In washington, meanwhile, a white house spokesman condemned the weekend violence. Its is view of the United States that egyptian authorities have a moral and legal obligation to respect the right of Peaceful Assembly and freedom of expression. And violence not only further sets back the process of reconciliation and democratization in egypt but will negatively impact regional stability. Holman the Obama Administration has so far stopped short of making any decision to suspend u. S. Military aid to egypt. In syria, state media reported Government Troops have captured a key rebel stronghold in the city of homs. In response, activists put out video showing scattered fighting is continuing. They denied the army had taken full control of the district. President assads forces launched an offensive in homs a month ago after capturing qusair, a strategic town near the border with lebanon. A major dragnet is under way in france, after a lone gunman stole 136 million worth of Diamond Jewelry on sunday. Police say the man held up three guards and vendors during a diamond show at a luxury hotel in cannes. He grabbed the jewels and ran out in less than a minute. Its the largest in a series of major robberies in france. James too maniy is the new director of the f. B. I. By a vote of 931. He served as Deputy Attorney general for a time under president george w. Bush. He will succeed Robert Mueller who became f. B. I. Director just before the 9 11 attack. On wall street today, the Dow Jones Industrial average lost nearly 37 points to close just below 15,522. The nasdaq fell 14 points to close at 3599. Those are some of the days major stories. Now, back to gwen. Ifill and to our newsmaker interview with arizona senator john mccain. I spoke with him on capitol hill earlier today. Senator mccain, thank you for joining us. You seem to be in the middle of everything right now immigration reform, Financial Regulation reform, the debt limit debate which is about to take off again. How did that happen . Well, ive been involved in these issues for a long time, as you know, gwen. But it seems that sometimes things sort of ripen and mature and are ready for action. Honestly, i think its the result of years of association with other members of the senate that are in the decisionmaking role. So, these issues come to fruition. If you were there when theyre ready to be acted on, thats sort of what happened. Ifill were you worried that someone like harry reid the democratic leader who once said i cant stand john mccain is praising you on the floor of the senate . He was praising you on the newshour last week. Is that good or bad for you . Im sure that in some parts of arizona maybe i hope they didnt hear it. But harry reid and i came to the house together. In the election in 1982. Then we came to the senate together in 19. The election of 1986. So we have a very long relationship. Of course we are of different philosophies and different parties. Weve had our collisions. But i think the fundamental aspect of our relationship is that i respect harry reid and i think he respects me. If you have that basis, then you can work together. Ifill if the senate is talking to each other a little bit more now, what about the house . Passed an immigration bill with a lot of effort here in the senate. Now it doesnt sound like the house is particularly interested in dealing with the senate version. All were asking is if they pass legislation when we go to conference, if we do not act on this issue, i think they are in fundamental agreement on one aspect of it. And that is you leave 11 Million People in a limbo status in one respect and you have defact owe amnesty in the other respect because were not going to round up 11 Million People and send them out of the country. Ifill what if these house members, many of whom are loyal to the Tea Party Wing of their party, go home and hear the opposite, dont you dare do that . Well, i think that the tea party is a very influential element of our party but i also think theyre going to go home and theyre going to hear from the evangelical community which is entirely supportive, the chamber of commerce, small business, large business, manufacturers. Theres the broadest coalition of support for this legislation than i have ever seen on any piece of legislation since ive been here. So i hope they hear from them as well. Ifill lets talk about the debt limit. Youve been through this before. You now are warning against shenanigans which might stop this from happening. What is your sense of where that stands right now . I think its obviously gridlocked right now. One of the reasons why we have such low approval is americans get tired of this bringsmanship of workers maybe being laid off and the grand canyon being shut down and all of the consequences of this as we near the edge again. I believe we will reach an agreement. I dont know exactly how now. Weve also got the sequestration which is devastating our military and other aspects, nonmilitary side. Could i just give you a small example. Ifill sure. We just had 19 brave firefighters die in arizona, as you know. And the budget next year, because of sequestration, is going to cut Fire Suppression by some 140 million. How can we justify that to the American People and the people in the west especially that are subject to these horrible forest fires . We need republicans and democrats. Theres a group of us that are meeting and working and talking with the white house. Its slow. My fear is but i have to give you some Straight Talk that we may go to the edge of the cliff again. And the American People are tired of that. Ifill you mentionedded that you had been talking to the white house about this. Youve been trying to find can we call it compromise . That word that is back again. How did that happen . Not long ago you said you and the president had no relationship whatsoever. What changed is. I think first of all the president and i have always had a relationship. Weve had several meetings, for example, after the tragedy of the shooting in dueson he came to arizona and gave a really wonderful statement and helped the healing. There have been areas where we have worked together. But its very clear to the president that he is in his legacy time. Hes not going to run for office again. He is concerned about his legacy. Whether it be closing Guantanamo Bay or the grand bargain or whether it be immigration reform. Theres a number of issues that the president would like to see results on. A number of those i am in agreement with him. Ifill you think that he has changed, not you . I think obviously. Look, when i was railing against president bush and voting against his tax cuts and saying that rumsfeld ought to be fired, i was the brave maverick taking on his own party. Now when we have a democrat in the white house who i lost to and take him on and obama care and other issues, now hes the angry, bitter old man. Neither is true. Im just a person here carrying on a legacy that was handed down to me by a number of greater leaders than me, including bob dole. Looking for solutions to problems. And so i want to work with the president where i can. And there are many areas where we do not agree fundamentally. But that doesnt mean that you cant work with the president of the United States. And the American People want us to do that. Theres such a thing as compromise without betraying principle. Ifill how many times would you say you talk to the president or someone at the white house every week . It depends on whats going on. If theres nothing going on, i dont talk to him because i dont take their time. If its Something Like this thing we just went through on the filibuster, the nuclear option, sometimes three or four times a day. On immigration reform, there was frequent calls also. But most of the work know i do is with colleagues on the other side of the aisle. Ifill chuck sheumer. I dont know. Ive been watching the senate for a while. I never thought of you two as close friends. Well, weve worked together on a number of issues including previous reform on nominations, on immigration, on this and other issues. I think that chuck sheumer has reached out to try to work with republicans. And we have been receptive to that. And i must say, gwen, hes a very smart guy. Two, his word is is good. Gwen, that is a much rarer commodity around here than you would think. Ifill i think you used to say that about ted kennedy too. He is kennedyesque in those respects. Ifill as a former nominee of your party and having watched 2012 from the side lines as you look forward to 2016 do you think that the party survives or has another shot at the white house only if the kinds of things youre talking about really take root the return of the moderate, the reaching across aisles, the bipartisan cooperation . Yes, i think americans want that. From the Republican Party. But they also want results. You just cant go to the electorate and say, we blocked everything that president obama was trying to do. I think youve got to show them some positive results and some positive vision for the future. Ill say one other thing to you. If we dont enact immigration reform, lets say we enact it, comprehensive immigration reform. I dont think it gains a single hispanic voter. But what it does, it puts us on a Playing Field where we can compete for the hispanic voter. If we dont do that, frankly i dont see. I see further polarization of the hispanic voter. And the demographics are clear that are the Republican Party cannot win a national election. Thats just a fact. Ifill senator mccain, thank you so much for talking with us. Thanks for coming over today. Nice to have you here in my humble office. Ifill online, you can find our full interview with senator rgcluding his reflection on the passing of retired colonel george bud day, mccains cellmate when both were seriously injured prisoners of war in vietnam. Day died yesterday at age 88. Woodruff pope francis drew new attention today with some surprising remarks about gay catholics, as he wrapped up a trip to the americas that drew enormous crowds. For 82 minutes the pope fielded questions on his flight home from brazil. For the first time ever, there were no restrictions. Francis was asked directly about a socalled gay lobby within the vatican analogiedly powerful influence inside the church. He struck a conciliatory tone on homosexuality in general and within the priestly ranks. Everyone writes about the gay lobby. I still havent found anyone who gave me an Identity Card in the vatican with gay written on it. If someone is gay and he searches for the lord and has good will, who am i to judge . Woodruff the comments suggested a sift in acceptance but not in Roman Catholic policy which still holds that homosexual acts are disordered. At the same time, francis upheld the longstanding prohibition on women in the priesthood. But he did advocate an expanded role and cited an exalted role model. The madonna, maria was more important than the apostles, bishops, deacons and priests. Women are more important than bishops and priests. Woodruff the popes comments came as he returned from his first trip abroad since his march election. The 76yearold argentinean had attended world youth day events in brazil including two huge Outdoor Services in rio. On saturday he told young people in soccermad brazil, which hosts next years world cup, to set their eyes on a higher prize. Jesus offers us something more than the world cup. He offers us the possibility of a fruitful life without end. Woodruff he also exhorted brazillian bishops to get out of their parishes and spread more of their catholic faith which has seen many of the kateful leaving for evangelical protestant sects. Then on sunday in the shadow of rios famed christ the redeemer mountain top icon, an estimated three Million People gathered on the beach. For more i spoke with journalist john allen who traveled with the pope for cnn and the National Catholic reporter. John allen, thank you very much for talking with us. First of all, how significant were the popes remarks about gays . Well, judy, i would say they were extraordinarily significant at the level of tone but they do not represent a significant departure in terms of teaching. It was already on the books in terms of the official doctrine of the Catholic Church that homosexual persons are to be treated with what the catechism, the official code of teaching, what it describes as respect, compassion and sensitivity. So the churchs problem is with homosexual conduct not with homosexual persons. I think many gays and lesbians around the world are tell you that theyre more accustomed to hearing from the Catholic Church what they perceive at least as judgment and a fairly negative judgment at that. To hear the pope of the Catholic Church openly saying when he meets a gay person he does not judge them, that is is at least in terms of the tonality and the symbolism, that is extraordinary. Woodruff so what about the tone . How much difference does it make that hes setting a different tone . Were going to have to see how this plays out, judy. All i can tell you is is that five months ago, those of us in the Media Business when we paid attention to the vatican, we were writing stories about the child sexual abuse scandals. They were writing about the vatican leaks mess, problems at the vatican bank and so on. While those stories have obviously not gone away, they are no longer the dominant narrative about the Catholic Church. The dominant narrative about the catholic hurch now is how a charismatic pope takes the world by storm. Start with the fact that francis just returned from a weeklong stay in brazil where he drew at the end of his trip an estimated three Million People or more to the beach twice, once on saturday night and again on saturday morning. The mayor actually renamed the beach for that week popeacabana in honor of the popes presence. He has revolutionized perceptions of the church and given it a new lease on life and i suppose for fourandahalf months in office one would have to say thats an impressive early run. Woodruff were you struck bi his use of words . He said who am i to judge when hes talking about someone who is gay. He is the pope, after all. He is the pope although . Yz t has been a signature aspect of his vocabulary since he was elected. He almost never refers to himself as the pope. Humble or a bishop of rome because of course the pope is also the bishop of the local diocese here in rome. But actually, judy, it was another bit i was more struck by. I have not done a formal key word search on this point but ive been paying attention to points for a long time. I cant recall a previous time a pope actually used the word gay. To be fair, this was because the question that was put to francis was about the socalled gay lobby in the vatican. So the vocabulary was already on the table. You very rarely hear that kind of street language, if you like, from a pope. Its on the indication that this is a man who has a lifelong experience of being in contact with ordinary people. He quite obviously speaks their lingo. Woodruff he spoke about wanting a greater role for women in the church. But he didnt give any ground on whether women could be priests. How do you read that . Was there an expectation that he might . No. Judy, i think its been very clear from the beginning that francis is not a radical in terms of overhauling church doctrine. I think he is is radical in the literal sense of the word meaninmeaning going back to thes in this case the roots of the faith being in the gospel, the bible stories of jesus. Hes trying to speak that very accessible, loving and positive gospel language. On women what he said was that women priests are off the table because john paul ii made that definitive. But he wants them to have much more important roles in the church. He also wants a deeper theology of women, that is, a kind of study and reflection on what their role is in terms of the spiritual message of the church. So again, i think the signature aspect of the francis revolution is that it is a remarkably new tone placed on top of what are basically the same teachings and the same doctrines the Catholic Church has always had. Woodruff john, you talked a minute ago about the impressive crowds he drew in brazil. Speak to us about the success of that trip and about his willingness to spend such a long time, over an hour, with the reporters on the airplane going back to rome. Yes, judy. I mean, what i can tell you about the experience on the papal plane is is this. I was aboard the papal plane did but i certainly was not bored on the papal plane. The idea of having an hour and 20 minutes with the pope to put any question you want, all those pentup curiosities youve always had and the hardhitting questions that popes rarely engage directly, you know, this was sort of a dream come true. And that experience for us, if you multiply that by what the local officials in rio say was 3. 2 Million People who came to his concluding mass on the beach on sunday morning, i suppose that would be. Lets be clear. Other popes have been great magnets for humanity. John paul ii routinely drew crowds on his 104 foreign trips, in excess of a million when he was in manila 95 he had somewhere between four and five million. Its not like this sort of thing is unprecedented but the turnout suggests that this simple, humble, accessible, closetothepeople style of pope francis is not just playing well in the media, judy. It is also playing very well on the streets too. Woodruff it looks to have been a remarkable trip and a remarkable interview. John allen, joining us from rome. Thank you. Woodruff online, were asking you, what do you think the pope meant with his comment about gays . Share your thoughts on our facebook page. Ifill summer has long been a time of the year when many teens can find temporary work. But those traditions have been upended of late, as newshour economics correspondent paul solman reports in the second of two stories hes done on this portion of the struggling job market. Its part of his ongoing reporting, making sense of financial news. Reporter after graduating from high school in a lowincome part of boston, yusuf sunun got a summer job at web retailer wayfair. I wanted to get work at a place that would help me in the long run. Reporter sunun heads to Centre College this fall on a full scholarship to study Computer Science and economics. Having moved here from ghana last year, he feels incredibly lucky to have a job, even if just for the summer. There are no jobs for students in ghana at all, because the adults are, like, competing for jobs. If you are in a different country and you look at america, its like this god or something. Reporter you mean its like heaven here. Yes, that is how you see it. Reporter without folks to find and prep students like him, however, sunun probably wouldnt have this job. Even in heavenly america, the teen Unemployment Rate is almost double what it was just 13 years ago. I think were in a uncorrected depression for teenage employment in america, and the only thing we can do thats going to make a difference is mobilize the private sector to hire teenagers. Reporter as executive director of bostons nonprofit private industry council, or the pic, Neil Sullivan is trying to mobilize through his youth job program. Because youth jobs, including those once the staple of teenage summers, are now being taken by older workers. You have College Students pressing down into a labor market that used to be for High School Grads. You have High School Grads pressing down into a labor market that used to be for teenagers and dropouts. The geography of the labor market changed, and 16 to 19 yearolds fell out of the equation. The pics response is to prospect for ambitious urban teens like sunun, and then tout them to private firms like wayfair. We identify those teenagers who are ready to make a move you know, that spark of motivation. You have to get it at that moment. And then we market them to employers in the professional labor market. Reporter sunun is one of two teens wayfairs daniel jerrough hired through the pic this summer. Firms like his have become increasingly selective. We try to find people that are best in breed, if you will. Reporter best in breed . Yes. And it is a challenge to get folks, especially young folks, that do show an aptitude for learning and for understanding, and thats really whats most important to us. Its that we can find someone that says, i may not know how to do this technically, or i may not know how to run that sequel period, but i understand the concepts that youre talking about. And that is a definite challenge. Reporter thanks to a citywide effort, boston boasts more teen jobs per capita than any city in the country. This summer, the pic alone lined up 3,000. What do we want . Youth jobs when do we want it . Now reporter its taken strenuous politicking to gin up public funding, direct pleas from bostons mayor to recruit private employers. Hi, im mayor tom menino. Im asking you to hire a High School Student for the summer. Reporter but despite year round focus, there are still substantially fewer jobs in boston today than there were in the late 90s. Once january starts, my number one priority is, get summer jobs for young people. Reporter 18yearold john tabares has one of those jobs, in the mailroom of Financial Firm eaton vance. His family moved here from colombia when he was five. Its been very rough for us, but my parents never gave up. They kept working two jobs, three jobs. Reporter tabares graduated from one of bostons most competitive public high schools, and is headed to Northeastern University in the fall. But finding work still took a push from the pic and the power of positive thinking from his school. Before, when we were talking, you started to use the word hopefully about your future, and then you reworded the sentence. They kept telling us, never say hopefully. Always strive for what you want, because the people who succeed are the people that dont doubt themselves. Reporter and dont even say it out loud. Yes, dont even say it out loud. Just keep striving for whatever youre doing. Nothing is unreachable. Theres always a way. Reporter well, maybe. Tabares had a 3. 9 g. P. A. , but he says most of his friends are jobless. Its not because they dont want to. Its because they havent gotten the right help. If you give a helping hand to any kid, theyll take it, so. Reporter there arent enough helping hands. Yes, basically. They need people to guide them. They need someone. If its not there, nothings going to happen. Reporter thats why Neil Sullivan has been working for the pic for 20plus years, during which time teen summer jobs have inexorably shrunk jobs that are key, he says, to arming Young Americans for the future. Its not just about reading and writing and mathematics, you know, in terms of being a productive employee, a professional, a manager. Its about a set of skills that we learn experientially. We learn them on the workplace. So if half as many teenagers in america are getting those experiences, its going to have a profound impact on the work force thats transitioning to adulthood. Reporter wayfair pays yusuf sunun 10 an hour. Is that an okay wage . That is way okay, because i try to convert it to ghanaian money, and i see, like, how do you make this kind of money in an hour . And that is like someones pay for a month, who is a teacher or who has gone to graduate school. Reporter but thats not why he feels blessed to be working this summer. Right now, the most important thing is the experience and the knowledge that i get from the job. I got to make connections. I got to, like, know how to use, like, basic office tools, and how to like relate with coworkers. Reporter tabares is making 11 an hour. But hes not in it for the money either. Im doing it to gain things thats going to help me in the future, because i know that if in the future i graduate from my. When i graduate from college, ill look for something thats going to pay me more. And how did i get there . With the help of everyone, because of all the things im learning at every single job. Reporter and indeed, help from everyone may be necessary to put more of americas 16 to 19yearolds to work, since there are 17 million of them, and 12 million of them are jobless. Ifill online, we posted an extended conversation with Neil Sullivan. Woodruff next, we examine the Financial Health of our nations cities in the wake of detroits bankruptcy. Jeffrey brown is here with that discussion. Brown to what degree is detroit a special case . In what ways is it representative of problems in other cities . Those and other questions have been much in the air since the bankruptcy filing. For some answers, we turn to kathy wylde, president and c. E. O. Of the partnership for new york city, a nonprofit focused on the citys economy, infrastructure, and Education System. Author and urban studies theorist richard florida, director of the Martin Prosperity Institute at the university of toronto. His books include the rising of the Creative Class and the great reset. And bruce katz of the brookings institution, coauthor of the metropolitan revolution how cities and metros are fixing our broken politics and fragile economy. Welcome to all of answer those questions. To what degree is detroit special . In what says does it tell us something larger . I think detroit is special in the extent of the collapse. I mean this is a very large city. 138 square miles. It has seen radical population loss from two million in 1950 down to less than 700,000. And the outmigration of jobs. A great portion of the jobs are located more than ten miles from the downtown. Unlike many other cities. But its similar to other cities. What were seeing is the emergence of a network of corporations and Civic Leaders, philanthropies and universities that are really coming together to build on the special assets and advantages that the city has in its downtown primarily and its midtown. Richard florida, same question to you. What does it tell us and what doesnt it tell us about the health of cities . Well, first off, detroit has declined e Civic Leaders and Business Leaders like dan gilbert are put ago lot of money into bringing jobs back downtown. Its interesting that bankruptcy has occurred at the acculumation of decades of disinvestment, movement of jobs out. The bankruptcies occurred just at the time the city is beginning to turn a corner. I do think detroit is unique in going through this bankruptcy. I dont think. You know, is this going to spread all over the United States . I dont think it will spread through the United States. I think detroit will ultimately come out stronger because of this. Kathryn wylde, what are the immediate lessons youre taking from detroit. New york has its own nearbankruptcy experience in the 1970s. That was an instance of a failure of public and private leadership. And the city did not live within its means. The same certainly is true of detroit. And its good to hear that there are efforts underway to do something about it. But i think we have to recognize cities dont print money. States dont print money. Thats really the province of the federal government. Cities have to live within their means. They have to have a very viable tax base. That has to be a top priority. Clearly that has not been the case historically in detroit over the last decade. Hope flil it will be going forward. Brown bruce katz, what. Where do you see the challenges for cities that are not doing well . What are the biggest factors . What are the biggest problems they face . I think for cities they need to understand what are those assets and advantages that you can build on . For pittsburgh after the steel crisis in the late 70s it was about diversifying their economy, building off the socalled eds and meds, the Research Institutions and the medical campus. Youve seen pittsburgh basically come back. For other cities, lets say, akron, to try to build off its special niche in the manufacturing economy, akron was the rubber capital of the world. Now it specializes in polymers and plastics and its still a manufacturing player in bioand clean energy. So cities have to understand, whats your niche . What is your function . What is your role and how do you build smartly, strategically through a network government, corporate, civic, university. Brown richard, do they all understand that because surely you and bruce especially started in a very positive note here. Yet we have detroit, we have a lot of problems still. Well, i think cities have realized theyre not going to grow their economies by bribing companies to come in. Just as bruce said theyre going to build on their own strategic assets and as specialized as they are and bruce knows this, they also to be diverse. In the United States the cities and regions that are having trouble are the manufacturing regions that have not revitalized and developed their knowledge assets. In those sun belt regions that are dependent on real estate and construction, our economy is being reshaped around knowledge centers, big and small. In ann arbor right outside of detroit is doing fabulously well and Energy Centers and those are becoming the powerhouses of the u. S. Regional economy but there are very real winners and losers in this economy. For those falling behind, they have to take steps to specialize, to focus on their niche but also to diversify their economy. Brown just to stay with you. How much is population growth a factor one way or the other . Zero. We have a pretty good analysis out of the Martin Prosperity Institute that finally breaks the notion that population growth is synonymous with economic growth. It is not associated with employment growth very strongly. It is not at all associated with productivity growth. Its not at all associated with wage growth. It is associated matter of factually with higher rates of unemployment. I think we have to get over the notion in america that population growth equals economic growth. In some cases it does but not very much. Brown Kathryn Wylde start there with the population growth issue. While growth of population may not be critical the quality of the talent pool is c. I. T. Critical. That depends on the Education System, partnerships and building up of your Higher Education systems. It depends on creating a place that is safe and livable, where people who have choices want to locate. Of course thats the big challenge that every city faces. Those cities that have been successful in attracting and maintaining top talent are the ones that are thriving. They are the centers of innovation in our economy. They are driving the national economy. Theyre with the study just produced by some Top Economists that came out last week, a study of equal opportunity around the country. Which cities provided the greatest opportunity for people to move out of the bottom rung of the economic ladder and up to the top . And those cities, its no accident detroit was in the bottom couple of those cities and cities like pittsburgh, seattle, boston, new york were in the top ten. You know, we did something on that study last week on the program. Let me just stay with you for that. When you look at the cities that are not allowing citizens to move up the ladder or that are not thriving, what do you see as the biggest single factors . Clearly their Education System is failing but also transportation infrastructure. Green cities that will attract people who are looking for healthy, attract tive environments and obviously safe cities. If the city isnt safe, as we found out in new york, went through a very difficult time in the 1980s. Today were proud to be the safest big city in america. Perhaps the world. That has a lot to do with what brings people here, what supports talent. Brown bruce katz, you wanted to jump in . I would just say we need to redefine tallen. We look at the stem economy, science, technology, engineering, math. About a fifth of the american economy. A good portion of these jobs can actually be filled by people with high schoolplus. Right . Remember shop, remember trade, remember voced . We have to bring that back to the United States and have the special high schools and also Community Colleges customized. Brown when you think about americans, we still love our cars. Absolutely. Brown many people still seem very willing to live far away from where they work or where they play. Do you see the character of American Cities changing fundamentally . This is changing. Because actually weve seen driving taper off. Weve seen transit going up like a rocket. We see people choosing particularly millen yells but also empty nesters beginning to choose communities where they can walk, where they can bike, where they have options around transportation to get to work or to the necessities of daily life. The economies of cities are being shaped, as rich has said, but also our communities are being reshaped. To fit very different demographic preferences in this country. In this regard the path of sprawl is not necessarily prologued. As urban growth is tapered off, city growth is coming up. This is a different american landscape than weve seen in the past. Brown this comes with winners and losers, not just cities winners and losers but populations within cities. Yeah, were seeing incredible levels of unequal economic opportunity. Rates of income and socioeconomic inequality in our cities. Its no longer. As many of bruces own studies, the brookings studies have shown its no longer just the poor in the city and the rich in the suburb. We have a fragmented and fractured metropolis with areas of concentrated advantage right in the center of the city alongside areas of concentrated disadvantages and poverty growing in our suburbs right next to affluence. This whole idea that its the city that dilapidated and the suburb thats booming is changing as our economies are changing. We have two migrations in this country. Those with high educations, college degrees, advanced degrees in the professional and knowledge sector have a great deal of mobility. Those dont have those kinds of degrees whether in pittsburgh, detroit or even new york, and prospects are better in new york, theyre finding themselves stuck in place. So i think were dealing with two very different sorts of situations. In fact when we look at this, our spatial segregation is even worse than our economic unevenness. Brown very briefly, 30 seconds we have, your city not that long ago was in deep now. Now we have detroit. Is there a lesson for how one revital. One city revitalizes itself . Certainly there is. I think that the key in new york was Public Sector business, organized labor came together and really identified what our common interest is in making sure new york was both a great platform for International Business but also a city of opportunity where all people could rise up. So i think that detroit can do the same thing. Clearly i think bruce katz would say in a moat row poll tan context i think theyre going to need a lot of support from their larger region but i would say that certainly an American City has every opportunity. Brown richard florida, bruce katz, Kathryn Wylde, thank you all three. Thanks for having me. Woodruff before we go, a word about a woman of firsts who died over the weekend. Former congresswoman lindy boggs led an improbable life born marie clay burn she was raised on louisiana sugar and cotton plantation. She married a young lawyer who became a democratic powerhouse in washington. He disappeared in an alaska plane crash in 1972. A year after she ran for his seat, became the first woman elected to congress from louisiana. She also became an outspoken advocate for equal rights for women and africanamericans. She was the first woman to chair a National Democratic convention. Served as ambassador to the vatican. She was a mother to three including n. P. R. , a. B. C. And former newshour Congressional Correspondent cokey roberts. Lindy boggs was 97. Ifill again, the major developments of the day. A renewed bid for peace in the mideast gained momentum, with israeli and palestinian negotiators meeting facetoface tonight in washington. And pope francis said he will not try to judge priests who are gay. He spoke in a wideranging News Conference as he flew home from brazil. Woodruff online, capturing america from the car window. Kwame holman has more. Holman inspired by Jack Kerouacs on the road, bob dylan folk songs, and the evolving american landscape, three artists photographed the open road. See their take on americana on art beat. All that and more is on our web site, newshour. Pbs. Org. Gwen . Ifill and thats the newshour for tonight. On tuesday, well talk with new york senator Kirsten Gillibrand about ending sexual assaults in the military, and well report on the verdict in the Bradley Manning trial. Im gwen ifill. Woodruff and im judy woodruff. Well see you online, and again here tomorrow evening. Thank you, and good night. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. 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 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. Captioning sponsored by Macneil Lehrer productions captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org this is bbc world news. Funding of this presentation is made possible by the Freeman Foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newmans own foundation, giving all profits to charity and pursuing the common good for over 30 years, and union bank. At union bank, our relationship managers use their expertise in Global Finance to guide you through the Business Strategies and opportunities of we offerional commerce. Tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. What can we do for you . And now bbc world news. This is bbc world news america, reporting from washington. Makes comments on homosexuality which catches many by surprise not to do the change in policy, but in the change in tone. Talking middle east cease as discussions get underway in washington. The u. S. Secretary of state lays out what is at stake. I know negotiations will be tough, but i also know the consequences of not trying will be worse. Two industries go head to head in alaska where plans to mind the rich resources have many fishermen wary of the fallout