Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour 20170211

We were like brothers and sisters. We hung out. We have what we call the motown family, and weve always had that. Woodruff 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. Xq institute. 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 Trump now says that he may sign a brand new order on immigration, as early as monday or tuesday. But he also says he still figures to win the court battle over his initial attempt to bar travelers from seven mostly muslim nations. The federal court of appeals in the 9th circuit upheld a freeze on that ban, in a thursday ruling. John yang reports all of this unfolded as the Prime Minister of japan visited the white house. Reporter President Trump made clear today hes ready for the court fight over hiS Immigration order to end but hes not waiting for the final outcome. We had a decision well be successful with. It shouldnt have taken this much time, because safety is a primary reason, one of the reasons im standing here today is the security of our country. So well be doing something very rapidly, having to do with additional security for our country. Youll be seeing that some time next week. In addition, we will continue to go through the Court Process and ultimately i have no doubt well win that particular case. Reporter mr. Trump gave no details of just what that additional security will be, but said the dangers are clear though he wouldnt give specifics about them either. While ive been president , which is just for a very short period of time, ive learned tremendous things, that you could only learn, frankly, if you were in a certain position, namely president. And there are tremendous threats to our country. We will not allow that to happen, i can tell you that right now. We will not allow that to happen. Reporter this morning, the president took to twitter to label the Appeals Court decision not to reinstate his travel ban disgraceful. Three judges two named by democratic president s and one by a republican upheld a restraining order imposed by a federal judge in seattle, one week ago today. The Appeals Court said the government did not provide adequate due process to affected travelers, and provided no evidence that anyone from the seven countries in the order has been responsible for u. S. Terror attacks. The judges also concluded the administration is unlikely to prevail in a trial on the merits of the case. Within minutes of the decision, the president told reporters it was political and tweeted, see you in court. Washington states attorney general, who filed the suit, said, bring it on. Weve seen the president in court twice. And were two for two. Thats number one. And my view is, the future of the constitution is at stake. Reporter Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer tweeted that the president should see the writing on the wall and abandon the order. Hillary clinton tweeted simply 30, a reference to the unanimous decision. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi said he asked mr. Trump in a phone call to lift the travel ban for iraqis. Some have worked as translators for the u. S. Military and their lives might be in danger if they stay in iraq. For now, with the ban on hold, refugees and others from all of the seven affected nations are free to enter the United States. And in addition to the Appeals Court ruling, the administration faces dozens of other legal challenges around the country. For the pbs newshour, im john yang at the white house. Woodruff late today, there was word that the Trump Administration may be leaning against appealing the restraining order to the u. S. Supreme court. But it may still be possible. In the days other news, Ohio Governor john kasich delayed eight executions in the face of a court fight over the states lethal injection process. A federal judge found that process unconstitutional, but the state is appealing. The governors decision pushes back the executions to may, or later. From syrian president bashar al assad, an apparent gesture to President Trump. He has told yahoo news the u. S. Is welcome to send troops to syria, to battle those he called terrorists. But he also said in the interview, that his permission is contingent on washington respecting his governments sovereignty. If you want to start genuinely as the United States, to do so, it must be through the syrian government. We are here, we are the syrians, we own this country as syrians, nobody else, nobody would understand it like us. So you cannot defeat the terrorism without cooperation with the people and the government of any country. Woodruff assad said he shares the priority that President Trump places on fighting terrorism, but, he rejected the idea of establishing safe zones for refugees inside syria. In australia, temperatures soared to 117 degrees in and around sydney today, as an extreme heat wave grips the country. Major Industrial Energy users shut down to help prevent blackouts. Beaches were packed with people looking for relief, while zoo animals cooled off with a hose down and frozen treats. Forecasters expect saturday could be the hottest february day ever recorded in australia. Back in this country, education secretary betsy devos faced protesters in her first visit to a Public School since a bruising confirmation fight. Several dozen people tried to block her from entering a school in washington. She said later she respects peaceful protest, but will not be deterred from doing her job. Devos has drawn fire for her support of alternatives to Public Schools. Wall street finished this friday on a high note. Mining and Energy Stocks led the way, as prices for oil and copper jumped. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained nearly 97 points to close at 20,269. The nasdaq rose almost 19 points, and the s p 500 added eight. For the week, all three indexes gained about 1 . Still to come on the newshour President Trump shifts his approach to china; new revelations in National Security adviser Michael Flynns relationship with russia; changes the newly confirmed Health Secretary could make immediately, and much more. Woodruff as we mentioned earlier, the Prime Minister of japan was at the white house today the beginning of several days of talks with the president. The visit comes amid growing concerns in asia over trade, north koreas missile and nuclear programs, and china flexing its military muscle. The bond between our two nations and the friendship between our two peoples runs very, very deep. Woodruff the two leaders presented a united front, despite differences that have emerged in the early days of the trump presidency. Prime minister shinzo abe had pushed hard for the 12nation transpacific partnership, but President Trump has officially abandoned it. On the economy, we will seek a trading relationship that is free, fair, and reciprocal, benefiting both of our countries. translated i am quite optimistic that good results will be seen from the dialogue. Now, the free and fair common set of rules will be created for free trade in the region. That was the purpose of t. P. P. That importance has not changed. I, myself, believe that. Woodruff abe also talked up japanese industrys contributions to the u. S. Economy, after mr. Trump blasted toyota last month for planning a new plant in mexico. Defense is another potential flashpoint. During the campaign, candidate trump suggested japan and south korea could pay more for their own defense, up to and including nuclear weapons. North korea has nukes. Japan has a problem with that. I mean, they have a big problem with that. Maybe they would in fact be better off if they defend themselves from north korea. With nukes . Including with nukes, yes, including with nukes. Woodruff today, though, the president appeared to step back. It is important that both japan and the United States continue to invest very heavily in the alliance to build up our defense and our defensive capabilities. Woodruff some 50,000 u. S. Troops are stationed in japan, the largest american outpost in asia. Last week, secretary of Defense James Mattis made asia his first overseas visit. In japan, he reassured abe that the u. S. Will maintain its presence there. The u. S. Military also serves as the main counterweight to chinas increasing aggressiveness in the South China Sea. Today, abe said that must continue. translated everywhere, we need to maintain the freedom of navigation and rule of law. Such International Order there must be maintained. Woodruff hours earlier, President Trump spoke by phone for the first time with chinese president xi jinping. During the call, trump retreated from earlier talk of disregarding the one china policy, which officially treats taiwan as part of china. It was a very, very warm conversation. I think we are on the process of getting along very well, and i think well be very much of a benefit to japan. Woodruff abe did not comment on the trumpxi phone call. Later, the leaders flew to the president s Maralago Club in florida, where theyll spend the weekend, and play golf. We take a closer look now at the United States relationship with asia under the trump presidency, with evan medeiros. He served as senior director for Asian Affairs on the National Security Council Staff during the Obama Administration. He is now a managing director at eurasia group, a Business Consulting company. Evan medeiros, welcome back to the program. Thanks, great to be here. Woodruff lets start with china. The president telling president xi jinping at president xis request that the u. S. Does go along now with the want the continue the one china policy. Why is that so important to the chinese . Its important because the one china policy is at the heart of the u. S. China relationship. Its the issue kissinger first negotiated in the early 1970s. It goes to the status of taiwan and the u. S. Position that acknowledges chinas view that taiwan is part of china. So its sort of a foundational leg of the u. S. China relationship. Absent recognition of the one china policy, it would have been very difficult if not impossible for xi jinping or any chinese leader to do anything else in the u. S. China relationship. Woodruff how much of a concern was it to the china that President Trump stated this given what h he said during the campaign, a lot of antichina rhetoric coming from candidate donald trump, then the phone call he had earlier on after the election with the president of taiwan, how concerned were the chinese . The chinese were very concerned, recognizing, acknowledging the one china policy was essential for xi jinping. It was the primary concern of the chinese leadership, and they didnt want the talk about anything else. Trade and investment, north korea, the South China Sea until the Trump Administration reaffirmed the one china policy. So in many ways the phone call removed the course of immediate crisis in the relationship and now they can talk about and work on other issues. Issues. Woodruff one of the issues is chinas aggressive stance in that region, especially the South China Sea. Other countries in the region, in japan which ill ask about in a moment, have been increasingly concerned about what theyve seen china do. There is also concerned about whether chinas role if the North Koreans should try to do Something Else in a nuclear direction. So how worried should the u. S. And other countries in the region be about china . We should be worried because the chinese have been increasingly active in the maritime area, they have been more assertive in the economic area, they have been nationalists and mer can tilests, so there is a variety of chinese behaviors that we should be concerned about. The question for the Trump Administration is what are the policies theyre going to adopt to address the challenges . Theyre not new challenges for the United States, but they are very difficult to shape chinas behavior. Chinas a big economy, leverage and influence is growing. We need chinese cooperation but that shouldnt be a barrier to pushing them on areas where we think they need to change their behavior and recognize u. S. Interests. Woodruff lets turn to japan. Of course, the president met today with the japanese Prime Minister, theyre going to be spending the weekend at President Trumps place in south florida. How would you describe, evan medeiros, the state of u. S. Japanese relations right now . The state of u. S. Japanese relations right now is great because trump is giving abe a very robust, you could even say lavish visit to the United States so early on in trumps Foreign Policy evolution. I mean, hes essentially putting japan at the center of his asia policy and putting alliances at the center of his asia policy, and hes doing it in such a robust way. I mean, not just the oval office meeting, the lunch, but this weekend in florida, thats normally something you would do after several years of developing a relationship after another leader has demonstrated their willingness to work with you, bring economic deliverables. So this is a big deal. Woodruff but it also comes after President Trump pulled out of the strands pacific trade deal, the t. P. P. , this is something the japanese, that Prime Minister abe put a lot overeffort into. How much of a complication is that going to be . Its a complication. I think p. M. Abe and many asian leaders are concerned about the withdrawal from t. P. P. , theyre concerned about trumps support for protectionism and the impact that might have on a lot of exportdependent economies. Theyre worried about trumps broader approach to asia, how engaged is he going to be in asia, is i. S. I. S. Going to get the priority . So the engagement early on addresses some of the issues but not all, and the big issue on the table is whether or not abe and trump will agree to eventually negotiate a bilateral free tradfree trade agreement, s what trump says will replace t. P. P. Woodruff is that something the japanese will find to their liking . I think it will be hard. The u. S. And japan have tried this in the past and it hasnt worked. I think its too politically sensitive for abe since he just got his legislature to ratify t. P. P. Last fall. Its probably too early for him to initiate bilateral negotiations now, but i could see in a year or so willing to go down that road. But the challenge is that a series of bilateral trade agreements doesnt replace the regionwide effect and the positive strategic effect of t. P. P. Because t. P. P. Was meant to change the rules of the game, potentially influence china as well. Woodruff and now its not happening. Thats right. Woodruff there is so much more to talk about. Big part of the world. Hugely important relationship. Evan medeiros, thank you very much. Thank you very much, great to be here. Woodruff now, new revelations about contacts between a top aide to President Trump and russia during the transition between administrations. Earlier this evening, Hari Sreenivasan recorded this conversation. Sreenivasan just after christmas, the Obama Administration levied new sanctions against russia for its alleged role in meddling with the 2016 election. In the days surrounding that move, michael flynn, the Incoming Trump white houses National Security adviser, spoke several times by phone with russias ambassador to the u. S. The trump team claimed, after this was first reported in january, that flynn was trying to arrange a phone call between mr. Trump and russian president putin. Now, the Washington Post reports there may have been other motives for the calls. For more on all of this we turn to greg miller, a National Security reporter at the post. First of all, what was said in these calls . We know now that these calls covered the subject of sanctions. We have multiple sources telling us that flynn actually conveyed a signal to the Russian Ambassador that the sanctions that the Obama Administration was imposing, that the russian government should not overreact to them, didnt need to worry about tell me, that there would be time soon when they would be able to revisit these policies. Sreenivasan you have nine different sources in your story. How do we know this is what took place on those phone calls . These are phone calls which involve the Russian Ambassador to the United States, u. S. Intelligence agencies monitor a lot of the communications of russian officials who are here in washington and in new york. So these are calls that were all picked up, collected. There are transcripts of these calls. They were recorded, and there are intelligence reports on these calls. Sreenivasan but the white house has said repeatedly that this is not what took place, that sanctions were not discussed. The Vice President even went out on tv and said, per his conversations with mr. Flynn, that this wasnt discussed. Thats right. You had several senior white house officials starting with Vice President pence who went out on a very big limb on this and that limb has been cut now. They insisted categorically the subject of sanctions had not been raised in these conversations, and thats not the case. Sreenivasan lets assume for an instant that mike flynn doesnt know this phone call is being listened to by himself and the other person hes talking to. Is there anything illegal he did in the phone call itself . Yes, possibly. The difficulty here is that the statute that applies in these cases dates to 1799, and in over 200 years has never been prosecuted. Its something that the f. B. I. Just does not really want to investigate or prosecute. Nevertheless, that statute exists and it bans unauthorized u. S. Citizens from negotiating with foreign governments when theyre not in power, when theyre not yet in a position to do so in the United States. Every indication to us is that flynn did just that in this conversation. Sreenivasan is that the reason Vladimir Putin did not retaliate once the sanctions came out . There was a 24hour gap or so there. Yes, that was a huge source of concern and surprise and mystery. In the history of u. S. Russia relationships, there have been lots of retaliatory measures, diplomatic sngses, economic sanctions, expulsions of spies and so forth, almost always reciprocal but in this case putin surprised everyone saying were not going to do anything, were not going to respond and wait to see how this plays out and this led to suspicion in the government, was there a signal sent, which led to further investigation and scrutiny in the calls between flynn and the ambassador. Sreenivasan if congress or anyone decides to take actions against mike flynn, is there a possibility of a Chilling Effect . Diplomats talk to each other all the time, have relationships that span beyond administrations, meet each other in different conferences and so forth. Absolutely. That probably helps explain why this law that is never been prosecuted. U. S. Authorities do not really want to discourage people who are supposed to be communicating with officials overseas from doing so. However, youre not supposed to send signals like this that undermine the existing government, that are contrary to the u. S. Policy. And in this case, it was particularly egregious because this was at a moment when the United States was just coming to the grips with the fact that russia waged a Cyber Campaign to upend the 2016 election. Here his top National Security advisor is communicating with the Russian Ambassador in that very moment in time and apparently sending a signal wont worry about this. Sreenivasan greg miller of the washington woodruff after hari recorded post. Thanks so much. Thank you. Woodruff after hari recorded that conversation, President Trump was asked about the story while flying to florida. Mr. Trump said i dont know about it. I havent seen it. What report is that . Michael flynn was among the passengers on air force one. Woodruff stay with us. Coming up on the newshour mark shields and david brooks take on the weeks news; plus, Smokey Robinson reflects on his life long contribution to music. But first, the president gets a key member of his cabinet confirmed, a righthand man who will take aim at the Affordable Care act, and will serve as the countrys top health official. Lisa desjardins has the story. Place your left hand on the bible. Desjardins he is, after his swearing in today, the nations 23rd secretary of health and Human Services. I, tom price. Desjardins the u. S. Senate confirmed georgia congressman tom price in the wee hours this morning on a partyline vote of 52 to 47. Secretary price is a longtime opponent of the Affordable Care act. To democrats like Maria Cantwell of washington state, that is the problem. This is the first vote in the dismantling of the Affordable Care act. Desjardins but to republicans like tom cotton of arkansas, thats prices appeal. You could say his chief qualification for the job of replacing obamacare is, he had the good sense to oppose it in the first place. Desjardins price is also a retired doctor, the first physician to lead h. H. S. In nearly 25 years. But in confirmation hearings, he faced tough questions over his relationship with healthcare companies, and his investment in some which were affected by his actions in congress. Now, price is responsible for a more than a trillion Dollar Health agency budget; for a department that oversees food and drugs, biomedical research, Public Health threats; and, of course, a large portion of u. S. Healthcare. That includes medicaid, which covers more than 74 million people; and medicare, over 55 million. His theme a smaller role for the federal government. In congress, he backed a proposed cap on medicare spending per person. Price also supported giving states fixed amounts, in block grants, to cover lowincome people on medicaid. But his new boss, donald trump, said on the campaign trail he wouldnt touch medicare or medicaid save medicare, medicare without cuts. Save it desjardins mr. Trump has not commented since becoming president , but he has stressed an area of agreement with price repeal of the Affordable Care act. This was today at a joint press conference with japanese Prime Minister shinzo abe obamacare as you know, is a total and complete disaster. Going to have tremendous healthcare at lower price, going to be extremely happy. Desjardins while in congress, price wrote meantime, the Associated Press estimates 12 million americans have signed up for the Affordable Care act for the next year, and republicans are feeling the pressure from many concerned about a replacement. Last night at a townhall adverstised as focused as health care, utah congressman Jason Chaffetz was bombarded by angry constituents on a variety of issues. And in tennessee, a similar scene for representative diane black, as Health Care Policy and politics collide. Now that secretary price has been sworn in, lets take a closer look at what he may try to do, more quickly, and over the long term. Julie rovner covers this for Kaiser Health news and she joins me now. Thank you, julie. Reporter thank you. Lets talk about the Affordable Care act. A man authored a bill to repeal it. What is he likely to do on the Affordable Care act . Well, what he can actually do and what hell likely do are two different things. What he can actually do is quite a lot for as long as the Affordable Care act was, there are a whole lot of places that says the secretary shall or may, so he has a lot of power to determine the details around what happens to the law and he can take apart a lot of the details that the Obama Administration added to it. Now, what will he do . Theres an issue here with whether or not the republicans want to make sure that there is still an individual Insurance Market next year in 2018 while theyre figuring out what to replace it with. Insurers really need to know that by later this spring. Some are expecting him to, on the one hand, try to take some things apart and, on the other hand, try to make sure that the Insurance Industry stays in to give them some security about what might be coming. Desjardins and as he has to deal with the Insurance Market, which is one issue, he has to deal with us and our healthcare, and obamacare had Preventative Service in it, included contraception, screenings. What kind of say does he have over whether those will continue to be costfree . He can change that if he wants to. Now some of it was done by regulation and in order to change regulations, there is a process that even departments have to go through of notice and Public Comment and it can take several, many months sometimes. There is also something thats a little less formal called guidance, and guidance he can undo pretty much whenever he wants heft has the power both ways, just whether some things will be faster or slower. Desjardins contraception, a lot of people at aing attention to that, that could still take a few months but he could still do it . Yes, well, he can make it easier for religious organizations and employers to opt out of contraception. Cost free, that would be changed through a regulation that take longer. Medicaid, republicans on the hill tell us that is one of the biggest puzzles for them. They have to deal with how to expand it or not expand it. Secretary price, you report that he can change requirements for the poor who receive medicaid . He cant change the law but he can change regulations about who gets it and how much. Congress is talking about turning medicaid into a block grant which would limit how much money states could get though have more flexibility. He could through his own power give states a lot more flexibility than they have now which is what many are expecting. So things like requiring people on medicaid to meet a work rierntle thats something the Obama Administration resisted but new secretary price might not. Old debate over well fair and work, republicans on one side and democrats on the other. These are major things weve touched on, but they barely describe the reach of this agency. Can you talk about the profound abilities or the profound area that now secretary price oversees . People forget how big the department of health and Human Services is. The budget over 1 trillion. It oversees not just medicare, and medicaid, but the National Institutes of health, the Indian Health service it touches almost one out of every two americans. It is a wide, sprawling agenty. The secretary has significant power to interpret how laws are implemented. Desjardins you have been covering healthcare 30 years. How important can this be in terms of American Healthcare . Well see. Not exactly which way the secretary will go. From his congressional career, hes been conservative, would like to remake medicare and medicaid and repeal the Affordable Care act. Thats not exactly what President Trump ran on. He said in his confirmation hearings hell do what the president wants. Well see. Desjardins julie rovner, Kaiser Health news. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. Woodruff now to the analysis of shields and brooks. Thats syndicated columnist mark shields and New York Times columnist david brooks, who joins us tonight from chicago. And we welcome both of you. So before we talk about the immigration, the president S Immigration order, mark, which the Court Appeals court rejected the Administration Argument on last night, we have a short clip of what President Trump just said a little while ago on air force one as he was flying from washington to south florida to maralago. Reporters were asking what he plans to do now. Heres that clip. Well win that battle, but we also have a lot of other options including just filing a brandnew order. inaudible . Could very well be but i like to surprise you. We need speed for reasons of security, so it could very well be that we do. Woodruff so he says i like to surprise you. How big a setback is this for the president . A significant setback, judy, in large part because it was selfinflicted. They made mistakes, including green card holders which weakened their argument completely, and made them vulnerable to the courts decision. And it reflected, more than anything else, a sense of chaos and a sense of incompleteness and a sense of lack of thoughtfulness in the administration on an enormously serious issue. Woodruff david, how do you see it . On the last clip of trump on the plane, his staff is briefing reporters in somewhat of a chaotic manner in last few minutes. People are saying they will just take it to the Supreme Court, will rewrite it, and the two different briefings are contradicting each other and thats something the times reporters have been tweeting about publicly which is some of the white house staff is in a high state of misery because to have the the general lack of chaos. On the larger issue, the travel ban, our friend at the Washington Post covered it pretty well, im not sure its illegal but extremely stupid, im uncomfortable with judges overruling president s on National Security matters. Nevertheless, whether its unconstitutional, i leave toout, but it has sucked the wind out of two or three weeks of this administration for no good reason. There is never been evidence people from these countries are disproportionately likely to commit terrorist acts. Weve offended the world, derailed the administration, the administration has done it in such an incompetent way that people with perfectly legal residence have been widely inconvenienced south been a screwup from beginning to end and been a running derailment. Woodruff mark, only three weeks in and its already in. David referred to mixed signals from the white house about whether they will repeal and what theyre going to do going forward. I want to ask you about what the president said about the judiciary, calling arguments before the Appellate Court disgraceful, saying the country will be put at risk by the decision. What should we think about that . Its a real surprise, judy. Judge gorsuch, the nominee for the Supreme Court said its disheartening and discouraging to have judgments attacked for their independence and integrity. This is not an abberation on the part of donald trump. He did it to judge curiel, the judge in the Trump University charge case, because his parents were born in mexico and because im going to build a wall. He manages to personalize everything he felt brings chaos. He will not admit that hes ever made a mistake, that hes ever been wrong. Thats what this whole thing is about whether theyre going to have a new order. A new executive order would be an admission that the first order had been flawed, imperfect, illegal, unconstitutional and rejected, so he cant have that, so youre going to kind of do a double to me, it is reflective of this administration, its three weeks in. People in the white house work hard in every administration. They get rewarded in psychic income, a sense they are involved in something bigger than themselves, that its important, and the people in the Trump White House now are just fighting basically to stay above water. Woodruff and there is a sense of conflict, david, virtually every day. What about, is there a strategy to criticize the judiciary, the judges, the courts over this . No, i dont think there is a strategy. There is world view and Donald Trumps world view is that its a dangerous, miserable place, people are out to get them and he needs to strike them first. Thats been the world view from the beginning and its the world view. To me the big event of the week is the whole conglomeration of things. Its the rising tide of enmity in the country. Donald trump attack judges, john mccain, senator blumenthal, the town halls, riots in berkeley, instability on the floor of the United States senate, you have a rising tide. Every time Kellyanne Conway goes on tv, another fight with whoevers interviewing her that particular day. So what you have is this just succession and a rising tide of conflict and incivility and breakdown in the moral norms that usually govern how we talk to each other. Marco rubio gave a good speech on the floor of the senate this week acknowledging this fact. Its not one thing. Its every day. Its the barrage of hostility that seems to mark our politics emanating from the white house but not only in the white house, from his opponents as well. Woodruff which raises a question, mark, in my mind, is there any historical precedent for Something Like this and what do the democrats do . Because they are getting a lot of a lot of republicans are saying the democrats are holding up President Trumps nominees for the cabinet. A number of them have been confirmed but a number are still waiting to be confirmed, that they are accusing the democrats of creating a log jam. I mean, conflict at the white house, conflict on the hill. Who comes out on top of all this . Judy, its a cabinet that wasnt vetted, that wasnt prepared, that the papers werent prepared for. Democrats have to make the fight. If you only make fights that youre going to win, there would be no womens vote in the country, there would be no civil rights laws in the country. So they came within one vote of denying the confirmation to betsy devos as secretary of education. She was unprepared, and so unprepared was she that, when the chairman of the committee, the former president of the university of tennessee, the former secretary of education, limited questioning of her to five minutes to deny exposure to what she didnt know. So are you going to vote for her or against her . Two republicans crossed ranks, lisa mer cowski and Susan Collins to join the democrat. The secretary of labor, a multimillionaire who eight weeks after he was nominated discovers that we, my wife and i, had for years somebody working on an undocumented in our home who we didnt pay taxes for. Baird, nominee for attorney general, nomination founded on this. Kim wood withdraw nomination on a far less charges. So did chaffetz. Is there a different standard in men and women . Working at reduced wages . I think these are fights worth making. Woodruff what about that . Some people are looking at washington and saying its more of the same, the wheels are not turning if the Nations Capital . Thats patently true. On the various nominees, i generally think the president should get his cabinet picks unless theyre egregiously out of the range of whats acceptable. I have to say a lot of these nominees are not necessarily my cup of tea, but i think theyre clearly within the range. Jeff sessions has some problematic spots on his history, but he has been a pretty normal, respectable senator , more conservative than a lot of us but respectable senator for a long period of time. I think the democrats have a right to protest but i dont think hes so far outside the range of normalcy he shouldnt be confirmed. Betsy devos is not the most informed on education policy but she presents as an intelligent person who cares about education and Charter Schools. The Teachers Union may not like her but shes clearly within the range of republican policy makers. A lot of us hope to be a multimillionaire, again spotty records, but not without the range. I dont believe the democrats, there is a lot to complain about in the nominees, but i think if you turn someone down from the president s own cabinet, it better be more egregious than what weve seen. Woodruff thats my question, where draw the line . Theyre not going to fight ben carson, backed mattis. I agree with david that a president is entitled to a cabinet but its not a rubber stamp, and i dont think anybody could watch the confirmation hearings of betsy devos and say this is somebody qualified to be secretary of education. 90 of children in america go to Public Schools. She knows nothing about Public Schools an and apparently cares less. And her position on guns in schools for potential grizzlies, we should have guns available in schools . And andrew puzder, this is somebody who basically has just broken the law and hes going to be held to no standard at all, whereas women nominees have been rejected in the past. Woodruff even republicans are saying puzder may have a problem. David, what about the point mark is making . Well, in some cases, i agree. On the puzder point, i agree there has been a double standard. On the devoss case, i agree her gun position is kind of weird, kind of crazy, but i do think she knows about Public Schools. The reason the betsy devos case was the centerpiece case for the democrats was not about her weakness as a knowledgeable person and educational policy. She cares about Charter Schools which are public, and choice which is a perfectly legitimate thing to care about. Its one issue where the Democratic Base was energized which is the Teachers Unions. People ask why not devoss and others, it has to do with special Interest Groups that run out of washington. Would she be my first pick . No. Is she someone who dedicated her life to education policy . Yes, she has. Ive seen her present on education policy a few times, and shes not a stupid person. Shes quite a smart person, capable, pretty sophisticated in subtle thought and to me that puts her in the realm of policy. But were in a climate where today she tries to visit a school and she cant because protesters are blocking that. Thats what i mean about the rising tide of incivility thats sweeping over politics. That was wrong. She should have been allowed to go into a Public School, it would have been a novel experience for her. This is not about the Teachers Union alone. Thats a very convenient punching bag to say democrats are jumping at strings. Yes, the Teachers Unions opposed her and for good reason. They dont think her commitment to Public Education exists so, you know, but theyre not simply responding. They have confirmed all sorts of republican secretaries of education in the past who favored choice including lamar alexander. Woodruff david, you want a final 20 seconds sneer. Sneer here . No, im willing to respect marks disagreement. Were not going to be like the rest of the country. Woodruff all right, well, we have a little bit of comedy in the United States tonight right here on the newshour. What is donald trump going to give president putin for valentines day . Maybe davids got an idea. Woodruff well know by next friday because valentines day is tuesday in case the two of you have forgotten. Mark shields, david brooks, thank you. Woodruff finally tonight, motown legend Smokey Robinson and the music hes made popular for decades. He is the focus of a special tonight on pbs. Jeffrey brown sat down with him on the eve of getting a major honor, to see how he continues to make what is old, new again. Oh but if you feel like lovin me if you got the notion i second that emotion brown he was a huge hitmaker. 26 top 40 songs in the 1960s, at one of the great hit machines in pop music history. Smokey robinson; his group, the miracles; motown, and a string of classics, like you really got a hold on me. Youve really got a hold on me youve really got a hold on me, baby decades later, the 76yearold robinson was feted at a concert of his music at washingtons dar constitution hall, as the winner of the library of congress prestigious gershwin award, for lifetime contributions to popular song. Its been, robinson told me, a long and amazing journey. From the time i was probably six or so, i wanted to be a singer. Brown six, huh . Yeah, i did. I always imagined myself, id stand in the mirror, hairbrush and i always wanted to do that. I always watched all the variety shows that had entertainment. So, it was always there for me, i just didnt think it would be possible. I never dared to from where i grew up, i just didnt think that this life, for me, would be possible. Brown at the library of congress, he toured an exhibit of motown memorabilia, and the place where hed come from detroits north end, where, quite literally, the stars aligned. Diana ross grew up four doors down the street from me, Aretha Franklin right around the corner, you know, and the temptations right across the area, right across the avenue, and the four tops. We had berry gordy. We had a guy who had the dream. Brown gordy, still a friend all these years later, founded motown, where robinson served as singer and leader of the miracles; songwriter and producer for other top acts, including the temptations and marvin gaye; and, as a record executive. I read about how you were a precocious songwriter, and you brought 100 or more songs to berry gordy, and he rejected almost all of them, right . Yes. Brown but somehow that worked for you. Somehow that didnt discourage you. No, it didnt discourage me whatsoever, because berry gordy, see, especially back then but and Jackie Wilson was my number one singing idol as a kid growing up in detroit. Jackie wilson was from detroit. And all of his songs were written by berry gordy. And he listened to my music and critiqued it for me, and started to mentor me on how to write songs and make them songs. Brown and what was like in those early days of motown . It was highly energetic. It was so energetic and competitive and loving and wonderful at the same time. It was all that, because we were not just stablemates. We were not just some artists who recorded for the same label. We were actually friends. We were like brothers and sisters. We hung out. We have what we call the motown family, and weve always had that, okay. Brown some songs come quickly, robinson says, written at the piano in 25 minutes. My mama told me you better shop around others, like the 1979 hit, cruisin have to simmer. I love it when were cruisin together took five years. Im not exaggerating this. It took five years. Brown so if i say the difference between 25 minutes and five years i mean, what does a song have to have; what does a Smokey Robinson song have to have for you to feel youve got it . It has to be a song. Brown which means . It has to be a song. I mean, if i just gave you a piece of paper with the lyrics written down on it, it would mean something to you. It would tell you a story. Without you hearing a melody or music or anything like that, it would Say Something to you. Thats what a song is to me. Now you have a lot of songs that come out and the beat carries them over there, because of the beat, and because of some other factors and so on and so forth. But i want mine to be a song if you read it, its going to mean something to you. Brown at one point in the late 70s, robinson took a break from singing, even thinking he might retire. It didnt last. And through the years, hes continued to record and collaborate with a variety of artists. But the music business he was such a part of has changed dramatically. I asked if he looked back with a certain nostalgia. Yeah, i look back on it all the time. I looked back on it a few minutes ago. I look back on it because its a whole nother game now. The music business has made a 360. Its a whole nother game. Its not nearly what it was. And i fear for it because, you know, with the advent of the computer and online and downloading and all these things, they have destroyed that stuff has destroyed the record business. Not the music business, but the record business. But the music business is well, its alive and thriving. Brown and the songwriting business, i guess. The songwriting business is alive and thriving, man. You got some wonderful young kids out there, writing some great songs. So its alive and thriving. Now i hope something happens to turn it back around to the point where youre earning a living from writing your songs, from your work. You know, because its not like that anymore. Brown and you just told me that youre going from here, youre going back out on the road to perform tomorrow night. Youre still doing this. And people want to hear those classic songs, right . Does it ever get old for you . I still perform because its a necessity for my innards, you know what i mean . And those songs, some of those songs i have sung, i dont know how many thousands of times, and i promise you, every single solitary night theyre new to me. They are brand new to me that night. And it kills me to see people think that, you know, show business is sex, drugs and rock and roll. And i have what you call a meet and greet, i do it before the show. But when i was doing it after, especially, there would be people who came back and said, okay, smoke, wheres the party . I just had the party, man. I just had the party for two and a half hours, or however long. I was partying. I said, now my party is, im going back to my hotel room, and watch me some tv until i fall asleep, because i just had the party. And it is, every single night. Brown and for the happy crowd at the gershwin award concert, Smokey Robinson performed several of his hits. Havent they noted the changes in you oh, could it be that like love i was blind in washington, d. C. , im Jeffrey Brown for the pbs newshour. One thing i note for sure is really, really real ive never woodruff Smokey Robinson the library of Congress Gershwin Prize for popular song airs tonight on most pbs stations. Woodruff on the newshour online right now, a look at a different major music event this weekend the grammy awards. Each year the awards ceremony remembers legendary musicians who have died how do they pick which artists to honor . We take a closer look. Plus, one way of measuring advances in Artificial Intelligence is through games, like when a computer beat a World Champion at chess. You can read a short history on our website, www. Pbs. Org newshour. And tune in later tonight on washington week, a reporters roundtable examines critical tests President Trump is facing over immigration policy and white house personnel. On pbs newshour saturday, the battle between states to lure companies and create jobs. Heres a preview. Reporter in a june 2015 email to staff, g. E. C. E. O. Jeff immelt had complained about connecticut raising its taxes five times since 2011. Immelt told employees, the company had formed an Exploratory Team to look into the companys options to relocate corporate h. Q. To another state, with a more probusiness environment. Massachusetts offered g. E. 145 million in incentives to move. Were in a competition, and we know that, with lots of other folks. I mean, weve had governors come up to massachusetts to make a pitch to companies here about why they should be in their states. Woodruff thats tomorrow night, on pbs newshour weekend. And 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 bnsf railway. Xq institute. 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 youre watching pbs. Hello and welcome to kqed newsroom. Im thuy vu. Coming up, california schools face teacher short ans and the new priorities in the Trump Administration. And San Franciscos plan to offer free tuition at city college. And the new cabinet and security challenges. First as part of our continuing coverage of the first 100 days of the new administration, we examine a major legal setback to President Trumps executive order banning refugees and visitors from seven predominantly muslim nations or thursday three judges at the ninth Circuit Court of appeals in San Francisco unanimously refused to reinstate the controversial ban after it was blocked by a federal judge last we