Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour 20161216

Woodruff and its friday, mark shields and Ramesh Ponnuru analyze a full week of news. All that and more on tonights pbs newshour. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. Lincoln financial is committed to helping you take charge of your future. The ford foundation. Working with visionaries on the frontlines of social change worldwide. And with the ongoing support of these institutions and friends of the newshour. 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 president obama strongly suggested today that russian president Vladimir Putin was at the heart of the computer hacks on the democratic party. And he defended his administrations restrained response in his yearend News Conference. As expected, the issue of alleged russian hacking of the u. S. Election dominated president obamas last News Conference of the year. It came one day after president elect trump tweeted asked about that, mr. Obama pointed out the white house had told the public about russias role, and that he personally had told Vladimir Putin to cut it out, but added how we approach an appropriate response that increases costs for them for behavior like this in the future, but does not create problems for us is something thats worth taking the time to think about and figure out. And thats what weve done. Woodruff all this comes just days after reports emerged intelligence officials concluded russian president Vladimir Putin was directly involved in efforts to influence last months election in favor of mr. Trump. Not much happens in russia without Vladimir Putin. I will confirm that this happened at the highest levels of the russian government, and i will let you make that determination as to whether there are high level russian officials who go off rogue and decide to tamper with the u. S. Election process without Vladimir Putin knowing about it. Woodruff former democratic president ial candidate Hillary Clinton told supporters last night the hack was the result of putins personal beef with her and contributed to her stunning loss. The kremlin denied the accusations today, saying the u. S. Has yet to provide any proof of russian involvement. Back at the white house, president obama was careful when he was asked about president elect trumps perceived close relationship with russia. He was very complimentary of mr. Putin personally. That wasnt news the president elect during the Campaign Said so. And some folks who had made a career out of being antirussian didnt say anything it. Over a third of Republican Voters approve of Vladimir Putin, the former head of k. G. B. Ronald reagan would roll over in his grave. Woodruff turning to syria, the president spoke of the fall of aleppo and the ongoing humanitarian crisis there. He rejected criticism the administration failed to do enough to stop the civil war. I cannot claim that weve been successful. And so that is something as is true with a lot of issues and problems around the world i have to go to bed with every night. But i continue to believe that it was the right approach given what realistically we could get done. Absent a decision, as i said, to go into in a much more significant way. Woodruff and as for Hillary Clintons loss and the future of the democratic party, the president said she was treated unfairly, but he had a thinly veiled criticism of her campaign i can maybe can give counsel and advice to the democratic party. And the thing that we have to spend most time on because its the thing we have the most control over is how do we make sure that we are showing up in places where i think democratic policies are needed, where they are helping, where they are maing a difference. But where people feel as if theyre not being heard and where democrats are characterized as coastal, liberal, lattesipping, politically correct out of touch folks. We have to be in those communities. Thank you, everybody. Woodruff mr. Obama now heads to hawaii to spend the holidays with the first family. After a week filled with cabinet announcements from president elect trump, it came to a close with a controversial ambassadorial nominee, and the last few rallies for what hes calling his thank you tour. Hershey, pennsylvania was mr. Trumps latest stop last night, where he made a point of thanking africanamerican supporters, albeit in front of a largely white audience. I talk about crime, i talk about lack of education, talk about no jobs, and id say, what the hell do you have to lose, right . Its true. And theyre smart and they picked up on it like you wouldnt believe. And you know what else . They didnt come out to vote for hillary. They didnt come out. And that was big so thank you to the africanamerican community. Reporter but exit polls tell a different story. 8 of blacks voted for the president elect; 89 went for clinton. The latest Transition Team announcement was mr. Trumps pick for u. S. Ambassador to israel david friedman, who holds controversial positions on israel. A Trump Administration will never pressure israel into a twostate solution or any other solution that is against the wishes of the israeli people. Reporter friedman is a bankruptcy lawyer from new york who represented trump in the past. He rejects the twostate solution as a suicidal peace and says jews who do support it are worse than holocaust collaborators. And he says the u. S. State department where hell be an employee has a 100 year history of antisemitism. Friedman also supports the highly controversial idea of moving the American Embassy from tel aviv to jerusalem. Today, mr. Trump held meetings in new york, including with president obamas secretary of Homeland Security jeh johnson. While at the white house, future chief of staff Reince Priebus got advice from current chief of staff Denis Mcdonough and a host of other former chiefs of staff. For the pbs newshour, im william brangham. Woodruff thank you. Today, there were several late news reports president elect trump will nominate Nick Mulvaney to head the white House Management and budget. The official a2340u789 is expected monday. In the days other news bitter Winter Weather blasted the northeastern u. S. , closing schools and roadways amid perilous driving conditions. Boston recorded its coldest temperature on this day in over a century four degrees. Meanwhile, a blizzard warning was issued in upstate new york, with wind chills plunging 20 to 30 degrees below zero. And in new york city, residents shared their strategies for surviving the arctic blast. Ive heard it a good plan to put on layers, so i am layered up. I mean i look like one of those sandwiches that you know, three pieces of bread, lettuce and tomatoes. Got to keep moving around, or else your toes freeze up, your hands freeze up. Woodruff you got to hand it to them. Farther west, the Oklahoma City area had to contend with freezing rain. Slick roads were to blame for three deaths overnight and over 100 crashes. The pentagon says a chinese warship has seized a u. S. Navy underwater drone in the south china sea. It happened yesterday, northwest of the subic bay, off the philippines. It was believed to be the first such incident. Pentagon officials said the unmanned drone was collecting unclassified scientific data. The u. S. Has issued a formal diplomatic protest, demanding its return. North carolinas Republican Governor Pat Mccrory signed a law today stripping his democratic successor of some power. It merges the states boards of elections and ethics, and mandates an equal number of democrats and republicans. Governors used to pick a majority of members from their own party. Hundreds of protesters rallied inside north carolinas legislative building this week, accusing republicans of undermining democracy. Incoming governor roy cooper has threatened to sue. American Drugmaker Mylan has started selling a generic version of its epipen. The lifesaving allergy treatment will cost 300 for a pack of two. Thats half the price of its branded option. Earlier this year, high epipen costs triggered National Criticism and inquiries from congress. Stocks closed slightly lower on wall street today. The Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than eight points to close at 19,843. The nasdaq fell 19, and the s p 500 slipped nearly four. For the week, the dow gained nearly half a percent. Both the nasdaq and the s p 500 dropped a fraction of a percent. And mourners bid goodbye to a National Hero today, as john glenns casket lay in honor at ohios State Capitol in columbus. The First American astronaut to orbit the earth served more than two decades as a u. S. Senator from ohio. He died last week at 95. Hundreds of visitors paid their respects at the first of several events honoring glenn. A Memorial Service is being held tomorrow at ohio state university. Still to come on the newshour evacuations halted from the besieged syrian city of aleppo, deadly black lung disease being diagnosed in younger coal miners, the populist ideology thats sweeping through italy. And much more. Woodruff today brought renewed doubts about the durability of the plan to allow tens of thousands of civilians and fighters to leave syrias major eastern city, aleppo. Evacuations that began yesterday abruptly stopped amid renewed violence and recriminations. Meantime, the assad regime consolidated its hold on a sector of the city rebels held for more than four years. We have this report from dan rivers of independent television news, from aleppo. Reporter less than 24 hours after it started, the evacuation turned into a scramble for safety. Mortars had been fired and red crescent vehicles were forced to abandon the rescue of tens of thousands of civilians. Well as you can see, the buses and the red crescent vehicles are pulling out. Were hearing the sounds of mortars. Its a lot of chaos here, but whats clear is that there has been a breakdown of this ceasefire. Within minutes, syrian soldiers were reinforcing the front line as an Armored Vehicle ventured further toward rebel territory. After an hour, the breakdown in trust was total. Trucks dumping rubble to seal the escape route. A convoy, which had already left, was forced to turn around. Women and children waiting in the biting cold as negotiations failed. As this played out, we caught a rare glimpse of one of syrias allies, hezbollah soldiers from lebanon arriving to bolster the defenses along this key road. And then, the final confirmation, the plan to rescue civilians was failing. The convoy driving back into the ravaged enclave theyd only just left. For those on board, it mustve been as confusing as it was terrifying. These are the civilians that are turning back from the crossing point from the passage after it was closed. Reporter and where it was closed, officers were already consolidating their grip on the last checkpoint, leaving those looking on in no doubt which way the wind is blowing now. Any vestige of the rebels is rapidly being expunged. A revolution that has burnt out here in aleppo, leaving behind a legacy that horrifies many ordinary people. It really breaks my heart to see the city like this, the old city like this. Reporter do you think people in aleppo can forgive each other on each side of the front line . Of course, because if we couldnt we wouldnt have stayed here. Of course we can. Of course like the people, the people are strong. Reporter the ceasefire may have broken down for now. But theres no reversing president assads victory here. A position of strength, which seems unassailable. But one which has been achieved at the cost of this citys people and heritage. Woodruff black lung disease is well known for causing the deaths of thousands of coal miners over decades. Now, a new report finds miners may be suffering from the most advanced form of the disease at a rate ten times higher than what the government has reported. Hari sreenivasan in our new york studios has the story. Reporter for the past five years, the government has reported just under 100 cases of complicated black lung disease, which is also called progressive massive fibrosis. But a new npr investigation found nearly 1,000 cases in nearly the same time from clinic reports in four states virginia, west virginia, pennsylvania and ohio. The extent of the problem has stunned a number of researchers and experts who work with miners as well. One of the miners diagnosed with black lung and profiled in the npr stories Mackie Branham spoke of just how difficult it is for him to breathe and his ill health. But he said mining was in his blood. Takes a lot of pressure in my chest at all times. Ive never been scared to death. It dont bother me a bit. Its just i wont see my kids grow up. But if i had it to do over, i would do it again. If thats what it took to provide for my family. Reporter Howard Berkes has been uncovering this in a two part series that concludes tonight on all Things Considered and he joins me now from salt lake city. Howard, it is so difficult to hear that man struggling to breathe, and its also hard to reconcile how he says he would do this again because this is what he would do for his family, even though the Health Challenges that he and so many people in this community are facing. Its so common to hear that. Miners want to go back to work. Mackie branham told me if he could get a Lung Transplant tomorrow, he hopes he could go back to work, which is not going to happen. But mining, as he said, is in his blood. Its part of the local culture, local history. Generations of families mine and it really is about the only decent job in most parts of appalachia. Sreenivasan lets talk about the gap between the numbers here, the numbers the government documented and the numbers youre able to uncover in your investigation. What accounts for this . Well, first of all, its the limitations on government researchers. This is the nationa national ine for Occupational Safety and health, and they track black lung disease by bringing in miners for xrays. But theyre limited by law to only testing working miners, number one, and the xrays are voluntary, number two. So they miss nonworking miners, people whove retired, and theyre also missing a huge segment, most miners, really, who avoid getting tested because they fear if theres a positive test for black lung, somehow the Mining Company will figure out and they will lose their jobs. Sreenivasan but thats illegal. Its illegal but miners widely believe it. All miners ive talked to in appalachia in the last five years all say the same thing. They fear just going to the niosh vans that come into their community and seen going into the vans could cause the Mining Company to say this guy might have black lung. The last Mining Company you worked for is the Mining Company saddled with your black lung benefits and your healthcare, so you could have worked for another Mining Company for 20 years, but if you worked for the last one for a year, theyre the ones that pay, so miners believe that if the Mining Company finds out, theyll lose their jobs, so they dont get tested. Sreenivasan this is also one of the worst forms of black lung. Is there Something Different thats happening in the mining now thats increasing the the likelihood they get the worst form of it . Well, for at least a decade or so, the big coal mining scenes in appalachia have played out and there are thinner seams that have coal mixed in with rock that contains silica and they mine the rock and coal together so silica dust is mixed in with the coal dust and silica is especially toxic and that is believed to be the cause of this very more serious phases of disease that are affecting these minors, its also causing them to get black lung a lot younger than what was typically used to be when you would see miners in their 60s and 70s. Wie talked to miners in their 30s and 40s that are getting the most serious stage of black lung. Sreenivasan what happens to a miner with this serious of the disease . Who pays for it especially when so many small Coal Companies are going bankrupt because the Energy Companies are favoring natural gas now . Its also very large Coal Companies going bankrupt. If the coal company is selfinsured and they dont have enough assets, then theyre not going to have enough money to pay for the benefits, and the coal company is first in line to pay the benefits. If the coal company cant pay the benefits it shifts to the federal black lung trust fund, a federal program. The problem is if you have all the miners coming into the system requiring black lung benefits, Coal Companies are unable to pay, then that shifts to taxpayers. Sreenivasan and an Affordable Care act twist to this as well . These are preexisting conditions if they went to a different plan, but if the Affordable Care act is repealed, would these miners lose these benefits . Well, not only that, there is in the Affordable Care act a specific benefit for coal miners with black lung that makes it easier for them to get black lung benefits. So if the Affordable Care act is repealed, it will be back to the old days when it was much more difficult to get benefits in the first place. Sreenivasan all right, Howard Berkes joining us from salt lake npr. Thank you so much. Thank you. Woodruff stay with us. Coming up on the newshour mark shields and Ramesh Ponnuru take on the weeks news, a Small Publisher with a big impact on literature, and rethinking how we listen. But first, earlier this month, italian voters rejected a referendum to alter that nations constitution in what was a stern rebuke of Prime Minister matteo renzi, who resigned in the aftermath. The vote was seen as the latest instance of a rising tide of populism both in europe, and here, against elites and the perceived establishment. From rome, special correspondent Christopher Livesay explains reporter it started as just another protest movement. Now it could control the italian government. And many in europe are terrified. Its called the five Star Movement. A foulmouthed comedian named beppe grillo founded the group only seven years ago. Today, the five Star Movement is italys Fastest Growing party, picking off votes from both left and right, with a populist message skewering the political establishment amid the punishing economic fallout of the euro crisis. Crisis, crisis, crisis reporter the government has long dismissed them as antieuro nationalists done so at their nowclear, and great peril. This month, centerleft Prime Minister matteo renzi a staunch defender of the European Union was forced to resign when he failed in a referendum on constitutional reforms that would have weakened the powers of the senate, in order to streamline the legislative process. The five Star Movement campaigned hardest against renzi. New elections are expected early next year. And its the five Star Movement with the wind in its sails. Franco pavoncello is a professor of Political Science and the president of John Cabot University in rome. The five Star Movement is basically a rejectionist party that feels that the entire political spectrum has been disqualified by decades of bad management, corruption, economic decline, where the people are much poorer than their grandparents. And this is where we see a parallel with brexit and the United States. There is a sense of the dispossessed, of the disenfranchised, those who feel they dont really have a voice anymore. Reporter that voice is channeled in parliament by lawmakers like manlio di stefano, a leading figure in the movement. What will a five star government look like . How will we govern . How will people give us the numbers . People will give us the numbers. We are sure 100 that the next political election, people will realize that five Star Movement against the rest of the establishment. Reporter so its the five Star Movement against everyone else. I think, yes. Reporter at just 35years old, di stefano epitomizes the youthful rebellion at the heart of the movement, telling his parliamentary rivals theyd never worked a real job in their lives. Italians like Roberta Maggi who feel increasingly left behind are the core of the five Star Movements support. Last year, the landlord shut off the single mothers heat and hot water when she lost her job as a secretary, and could no longer afford rent. She heats up pots of water on the stove and she washes her children in the sink. translated you see what im going through . Sometimes i just break down. Reporter with christmas just around the corner, she faces eviction this very morning. Neighbors and friends have rallied to her side. Among them roberta lombardi, another member of parliament from the five Star Movement. We are here to try to stop this eviction. Reporter and stop it she did, at least for now. The Court Officials left when they saw the crowd. Have you ever seen another party ever done so much for you . translated no. Never. Its never happened before. Reporter stunts like these have made the five Star Movement vulnerable to charges of populism a charge they relish. So a lot of people say to us, this thing that you do makes you a populist. And we always say, okay, if you consider to be populist just taking care of people, we are proud to be populist but the truth is that everyone in this building, in parliament, should be a little bit populist, meaning they should consider the peoples needs. Otherwise you are doing your own interests. Reporter populism is thriving across europe, as economies in the Common Market struggle, and immigration booms. While less extreme than other european populists, five Star Movement leaders insist migrants denied asylum should be immediately deported. And, theyve been accused of circulating fake news about migrants to incite their followers. Patrizio nissirio is a Senior Editor at ansa, italys leading news agency. He says fake news is exploding across europe. Its such a danger that figures like pope francis warned the press not to spread. He actually made a strong parallel between feces and this kind of news. Reporter nissirio points to one fake news story accusing the government of stuffing ballot boxes. No, this is a completely bogus story. Theres no reality about it. But the reaction on the social network was impressive. Over 230,000 reacted to this on the social network. Reporter rula jebreal is an International Affairs analyst. Oh, russia is the real winner of all of this. I mean, they kill the news itself by flooding the market with fake news. Look globally. We have a president elect who asked russia to hack the democratic committee. Marie le pen in france who asked the russians 7 million so she could run a campaign. And the five stars here are selecting these kinds of news. Its a National Security threat, what were seeing. Reporter the five Star Movement denies it has a pro russian agenda. But some of their policy proposals would benefit russia such as pushing for italy to leave nato, and for the e. U. To end sanctions on russia for annexing crimea in 2014. We want to cut these sanctions. Reporter you want to cut European Union sanctions against russia. Yes. The only ones that are losing money are the european people. They did something that was just a demonstration of power europe against russia. And russia is winning. Reporter indeed, its the five Star Movements euro skepticism thats shaken investors and much of europe. If elected, theyve promised to hold a referendum on abandoning the euro currency. As the eurozones thirdlargest economy, italys exit could be disastrous. The government is now in the hands of an interim cabinet, and new elections must be held. According to polls, the five Star Movement wont win an all out majority. But theyre confident that the polls are wrong just as they were for another political iconoclast donald trump. He made his campaign with the full establishment system against him. And everybody was really against him. We are facing the same thing in italy. And we will succeed like they did, but as i said, we will really do what we are promising now. Reporter for the pbs newshour, im Christopher Livesay, in rome. Woodruff and to the analysis of shields and ponnuru. Thats syndicated columnist mark shields and Ramesh Ponnuru of the national review. David brooks is away. Welcome to both of you. Lets start out, mark, by talking about this back and forth every day theres a new piece of information about it did between what donald trump is saying about whether the russians were involved in this hacking of the Democratic National convention and what the c. I. A. And now the f. B. I. , president obama weighed in today on this, what are we to make of all this . I think what were to make of it is, to me whats fascinating is not what donald trump is in no particular position to know, but whats most aparticularly large to me is donald trump will become president of the United States, he won the election. This is not about who won the election. He will become the 45t 45th president the 20th of january. It is about whether the sovereignty and selfdetermination of the United States was compromised by an organized at the highest russian levels, which means mr. Putin, espionage and sabotage of the American Democratic system, and there is an office in this country thats higher than that of president and its patriot, and john mccain is filling that now, and john mccain is saying these are questions that must be answered, these are questions that demand an answer, and the idea, as Mitch Mcconnell the Republican Senate majority leader says, sending it to the Intelligence Committee is a way of sending it to limbo. We spent 40 million in five years in the Intelligence Committee investigating torture at abu grab and have yet to get a report about it. I think the Armed Services committee with jack reed and tim kaine, i think you will get an honest hearing and we need it. The idea people are so concerned about a 500,000 contribution to the Clinton Foundation changing and influencing american policy somehow indirectly and incurious about russias involvement and sabotaging an American Election is unforgivable to me and irrational. Woodruff ramesh, do you think this will be investigated thoroughly . I think this controversy is expanding in all directions. Youre going to have an investigation. Youre going to have a report from the administration. During the a press conference, president obama said there would be a report tying loose ends all together before he leaves office, then you will have the hearings over the configuration of trump secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson which i believe the number one and two topics are going to be the administrations intentions toward russia. Trump will be our third president in a row coming into office wanting friendly relations with russia, and now this incredible backdrop will color everything. Woodruff getting to what you are both saying, this does leave a dark cloud hanging over the question of our democracy. I mean, if another nation, unfriendly, to put it, i guess in the best terms, can come in and leak and get information and have it leaked at will, what does that say about our system of government . It says that, a, were vulnerable to such attacks and, b, a that were manipulated and could be manipulated by russia. I mean, russia, this is not a oneoff for russia. Rusts done it already in germany and italy and democracies in western europe and eurasia, and theyre good at it. Lets be very blunt, its not a major investment of time or money. It is of talent and skill, and they have been very good at it. But, judy, i mean, the question is, obviously its on everybodys mind, is why did they just reveal John Podestas and the Democratic National convention and only attempts to get into one republican staffers email who had long since left the committee . Why wasnt that leaked . It raises questions about where putins affections and loyalties lay in this election. Woodruff the president was very careful about the way he spoke about it today. He mentioned in his News Conference, but a lot of people are saying theyre now convinced the russias, Vladimir Putin was trying to hurt Hillary Clinton and hurt donald tru. Well, yeah, that does seem to be the view, at least based on the latest reporting of the u. S. Government. I think that one of the things that president obama was trying to do is to not allow that to be the conversation that consumes the democrats as they figure out what happened in this election. He also made a big point of talking about the mistakes the democrats made, although was careful about that, too, since he didnt want to personally criticize Hillary Clinton. If the democrats obsess about the russian role in this and they take their eye off the ball of some of the reforms they need to undertake themselves. Woodruff but as both of you were saying, the suggestion is if, indeed it is known, if they conclude at the end of the investigation the russians were behind this, something will have to be done. President obama said he told Vladimir Putin to cut it out, but beyond that we dont know. Something has to be done, no question, and whether its revealing putins own financial situation, his wheeling and dealing, embarrassing him, whatever form of retaliation. I thought what was most interesting, judy, is Donald Trumps official response which was an attack upon the c. I. A. Now, donald trump has never spent time in washington, so hes never been to langley, virginia, that hold the c. I. A. Headquarters. He would find on the wall of stars 113 names of american c. I. A. Operatives and employees who died defending this country, and one of them, hugh redman, was 19 years a prisoner in shanghai where he was tortured by the chinese communists. I should not get ahead of myself because donald trump doesnt like people who were captured, he likes people who werent captured. But these are patriots and people who work hard and no president whos coming in should ever disparage or demean or denigrate the heroic efforts these people go to to keep us safe. Ramesh, mark mentioned Rex Tillerson choice by donald trump to head the state department. They will be these confirmation hearings. What do you think is going to come out of that . Do you think hes going to sail through knowing what we know about his close connections with mr. Putin . My suspicion is he will not see this process as one of sailing through. I think there will be tough questioning. I think he comes with some real advantages. I think the republicans, who of course have a majority in the senate, tend to think well of successful businessmen which he certainly is. Hes got the support of some leading former republican establishment. Former Vice President dick cheney is saying things on his behalf. I was saying how trump will be te third president in a row coming in unfriendly friendly relations. It didnt work out for the previous two. One you have two to ask if this makes sense for our country now. Woodruff mr. Tillerson and the other prominent appointee this week is former Texas Governor rick perry to run the energy department. Were just about finished now filling out the trump cabinet, at least those hes nominating, to take these positions. Do you think we have a good sense of where donald trump wants to take the country from looking at it . I dont, judy. I think mr. Tillerson in all likelihood will be confirmed for all the reasons ramesh addressed. He has jim baker and condi rice weighing in and appears the republican establishment, certainly. He doesnt need dick cheneys support now as much as the gatesricebaker backing. But that aside, there is always the presumption of the cab feet. Unalike a judge thats abointd a life time. Rick perry, irony of ironies, whoblg forget 2011 in auburn hills, michigan, as every republican does in a president ial debate talked about all the agencies he was going to get rid of them, you recall there was education and commerce and that third one whoops energy. But here he is and instead of getting rid of it maybe hes going to get rid of it, but the irony, the man who called donald trump a cancer on the conservative movement, who had to be excised, is now nominated by donald trump showing what a big person donald trump is to be his secretary of energy. Woodruff the last thing i want to talk to you about is syria, president obama, ramesh, was asked about this today. We see aleppo finally all but completely falling to the assad regime. President obama says, yes, i take responsibility for everything that happens on my washington how do you read the Obama Administration and the the story of whats happened in syria . I dont see how this is anything other than a black mark on the Obama Administrations record. Of course, there is a temptation for americans to think that everything that happens in the world is somehow our responsibility, our fault or our credit, but here we have a situation where the administration pursued a policy that by his own admission today was ineffective and where his continual, even now he wants to work with the United Nations while admitting the russians are going to prevent the United Nations from doing anything. Woodruff mark . Assad remains, putin, iran, al quaida,i. S. I. S. But for the United States to be able to lead any kind of movement, to save the humanitarian tragedy, to avoid and rescue the innocent suffering there is a failure, is a real failure. I mean, aleppo will be in the same category as dresden. It will be remembered as a humanitarian disaster. But the president gets responsibility, the congress are the cowardly lions in this. They talk a big game and none of them steps up. Very few. I mean, there was jeff flake and tim kaine who were willing to lead an authorization of military force, but the others talk a good game and as far as the no fly zone, there wasnt the will to impose it, and there was opportunity leadership. Woodruff i was struck the president thinks every day what more he could have done and particularly i was struck by he spoke about the children who have died in syria. Well, its great to have both of you here, Ramesh Ponnuru and mark shields, friday night. Thank you. Thank you. Woodruff now, the story of a small, but influential publisher thats succeeding at making poetry ever more relevant to the problems and dynamics of our time. Jeffrey brown reports from minnesota. Brown rejection. Reporter jeff shotts clearly loves his job. But one part of it sorting through thousands of poetry manuscripts every year and rejecting 99 of them thats not his favorite. I dont want to be the rejection guy, jeffrey, but rejection is part of the equation of being an artist and not just a poet. But were receiving thousands of poetry submissions. Reporter literally. Literally. And were publishing about ten to 12 poetry books in a year. And the math of that is very difficult for poets probably to hear. Reporter i think i saw your shoulders just slump as you said it. A little bit, yes, yes. Reporter shotts is executive editor at Graywolf Press in minneapolis. A small but prominent literary publisher. What time was that . Reporter one of the hundreds of sometimes tiny cogs that keep the world of poetry alive and thriving. And those Books Graywolf has been publishing of many poetic styles and subjects are getting a lot of attention these days. Volumes like claudia rankines citizen, examining overt and subtle racism, which has won numerous prizes and garnered huge sales. And more recently, solmaz sharifs look about war and violence was on the short list for the National Book award. Two other graywolf collections made the long list. We want our poetry books to be challenging. Challenging the way that these are poets who are engaging with important social issues in many cases. Reporter do you think this accounts in part for the recent success youve had with these books . I think there is something about the fact that so many of us in American Culture are saturated with media, saturated with social media maybe in particular. But the idea of being able to hold an object in your hand, it is an engagement, an individual engagement with an individual voice that i dont think any other art form than poetry can provide in the same way. Reporter graywolf was started 42 years ago in washington state. Ten years in, the press came to minnesota, where it found a welcoming home. Books that are relevant to what people are thinking about. Reporter the twin cities have developed a reputation as a small press mecca and big book town. We visited during its annual festival of books where indie locals, who punch well above their weight, sold their wares coffee house press, rain taxi review, milkweed editions, and more. Graywolfs jeff shotts says theres never been a better time for poetry publishing. The vitality of poetry right now i think is at a pitch high. And i think there are more people reading it, engaging with it, performing it, saying it out loud, saying it in an interior way and making it part of their daily lives. Reporter and a lot of people writing it which brings us back to that rejection business. This past summer, when graywolf put out a call for manuscripts, nearly 2,000 were sent in. Its cruel, but you like to see the number go down. Yeah. Reporter shotts and colleagues read every work submitted, sorted them into yes and, mostly, no categories, but also drew careful distinctions between no, not ever and a no, but maybe someday. You know, there was something in this that was exciting. It didnt quite hit for us here, but lets keep in touch and is there a conversation that can happen . Thats something im excited about having as an ongoing out here conversation with poets all over the world. Reporter you would reject people several times, but keep talking. Absolutely. Reporter and then eventually something would come. This has certainly happened and weve had marvelous books as a result of it. Reporter and his advice to those who dont make the cut . I dont think it makes someone less of a poet not to be published. They are still a poet. Theres publishing and then theres poetry. Yes, those things can go hand in hand in a way to present particular kinds of poetry. But more often than not, poetry is also meant to be performed or spoken or shared intimately. That is absolutely the place where poetry is inside our lives. Reporter from minneapolis, im Jeffrey Brown for the pbs newshour. Woodruff this fall, tensions around free speech and political sensitivities have erupted on several college campuses. New yorker writer Nathan Heller wonders if listening differently might need to be required study. Tonight nathan brings us the latest installment in our series i. M. H. O. In my humble opinion. Weve been hearing a lot about free speech on campus, yet the crucial challenge now isnt what were free to express. Its how we listen. Solving colleges problems today, i believe, paradoxically means listening less like wise scholars and more like travelers. Americans who got out of town this summer might recall the feeling. Around the house, we know what were listening for. An early clap on the porch means that the newspaper has arrived. The dishwasher making that weird sound again calls for the usual repair. We tune out the announcements on the subway. When we travel, however, we listen differently. We process everything with fresh ears. There are no expectations, no old scripts to follow. Part of the problem is language. Many people get behind the same abstract words, and yetheir meanings diverge and harden. What about that wornout word diversity, which recently emerged in a dispute about an old mural at oberlin college. The painting, a tableau of several cultures, including a black man playing the saxophone and a south asian man charming a snake, had been created to celebrate diversity. But some current students thought these caricatures stood for the opposite of diversity. They made variety exotic. The mural was eventually painted over to the alarm of others, who worried about censorship of art. If all sides listened to the debate like strangers in a strange land, what might they have heard . They might have noticed that the murals right to exist as art as a Creative Work reflecting its moment had never been in question. Instead one side thought the mural was racist. Another saw it as merely an artifact of the past. Diversity, as a concept, had been tossed around so vaguely that it was unclear which was the case. Travelers listening for the first time might not be so sure. We expect new students to have disorienting experiences when they arrive on campus. Yet if Higher Education is really going to be worth the name, the listening needs to happen on a broader institutional level, too. Education, its sometimes said, is a journey. Lets all make sure we hear enough to make the trip worthwhile. Woodruff listening, good advice for all of us. And finally to our newshour shares, something that caught the u. S. Transportation Security Administration or t. S. A. Is making its mark on social media with a surprisingly popular instagram account. More than 600,000 people follow its posts of prohibited items agents deem unfit to fly. The newshours Julia Griffin met the man behind the account. Reporter guns, knives, and holiday pies. When it comes to air travel this month, only two of those three will land you on santas naughty list, but they all could land on t. S. A. s instagram feed. A clickbait worthy mix of confiscated security items and explosivedetecting dogs, Rolling Stone magazine has rated t. S. A. s instagram as the apps fourth best right between pop stars rihanna and beyonce. As a former musician, i always wanted to make Rolling Stone, and i never imagined that i would make it through social media with t. S. A. Reporter social media specialist bob burns runs the agencys feed. I think that people find that fascinating. Reporter some of the bizarre highlights include a homemade avalanche charger, this bag of live eels, a human skull hidden in a clay souvenir pot, and, of course, canines at work and at play. You can never go wrong with the dogs. Reporter but the mostliked post . This fullsized dummy corpse from the film the texas chainsaw massacre. I dont know how they worked it out, if they had a ticket for him with the airline, but we had to screen through the xray. Reporter t. S. A. s images mainly come from Security Check incident reports. And while the stream of explosives and weapons might trigger alarm, burns contends it shows the oftencriticized agency is getting the job done. I think it acts as a deterrent. It shows that were finding these things, and if anyone was thinking about sneaking something through, theyre going to say, well, maybe i shouldnt, because theyre probably going to find it. Reporter but the t. S. As posts also provide travel tips. Really need that fiveblade mace on your vacation . Put it in your checked bag. Want to know if you can carryon that mini Alligator Head . Tweet asktsa. And need to make sure that laptop you left at Newark Airport last month gets returned . Returned . We recommend people place their Business Card or their Contact Information on their laptop. Reporter for the pbs newshour, im Julia Griffin at Ronald Reagan National Airport in washington, d. C. Woodruff im just glad theyre going through it so carefully. And well be back, right here, on monday, with a rare look inside Bruce Springsteens home studio, where the rock legend opens up about his music and battles with depression. Thats the newshour for tonight. Im judy woodruff. Have a great weekend. Thank you and good night. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by lincoln financial is committed to helping you take charge of your future. Supporting social entrepreneurs and their solutions to the worlds most pressing problems skollfoundation. Org. And the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build immeasurably better lives. And with the ongoing support of these institutions this program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org this is bbc world news america. Funding of this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation. Newmans own foundation, giving all profits from newmans own to charity and pursuing the common good. Kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. And aruba tourism authority. Planning a vacation escape that is relaxing, inviting, and exciting is a lot easier than you think. You can find it here in aruba. Families, couples, and friends can all find their escape on the island with warm, sunny days, cooling trade winds, and the