Moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. Xq institute. Lincoln financial committed to helping you take charge of your financial 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 elect donald trump has added two more names to his white house staff. The announcement came today from palm beach, florida, where mr. Trump is spending the holiday. Kathleen k. T. Mcfarland was appointed Deputy National security adviser. Shes worked in several republican administrations, and as a fox news analyst; and Donald Mcgahn will be white House Counsel. He served as the trump campaigns attorney. Neither appointment is subject to senate confirmation. In a separate development, Green Party Leader jill stein filed a petition formally requesting a president ial vote recount in wisconsin, to ensure the results were not manipulated. It is expected to begin late next week. Similar challenges are also being prepared in pennsylvania and michigan. In the days other news, the death toll from a massive truck bombing in southern iraq rose to at least 73. At least 40 of the dead were said to be shiite pilgrims from iran. The Islamic State claimed it carried out the Suicide Attack last night at a gas station near the city of hilla. It is the worst isis attack in iraq since july. A train collision in northern iran has killed at least 43 people, and injured 100 more. State tv reports a moving train derailed and caught fire after striking a parked train on a main rail line. Injured passengers flooded an area hospital in subzero temperatures. Firefighters in israel worked today to contain the worst of more than a dozen wildfires. The largest forced 60,000 people to evacuate around the city of haifa. Planes dumped retardant today, but it was too late to save hundreds of homes. Meanwhile, Police Arrested a dozen people, amid allegations of terrorism. translated there are elements of terror here, no doubt, elements with great hostility toward the state of israel. We cannot tell yet if this is organized, but we can see a number of cells operating. I dont know if there is a connection between them, and such a connection isnt even necessary. It could be a terror of knives, and it could be a terror of fires. Woodruff so far, there have been no reports of deaths or serious injuries. The president of turkey threatened today to reopen the flow of middle eastern and african migrants into europe. Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke a day after the European Parliament called for freezing talks to admit turkey to the european union. That Parliament Vote was aimed at erdogans political and news media crackdown since a failed coup in july. In bulgaria, violent clashes broke out between migrants and police last night, leading to some 400 arrests. Officials said more than 2,000 Asylum Seekers rioted after being confined to their camp over a health scare. Demonstrators threw rocks and set trash on fire. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. Bulgarias Prime Minister vowed today to punish those responsible. translated we have everything filmed, and all these acts of vandalism committed, all migrants who took part will be charged. A small group will be banned and can immediately be extradited. The others, who all behaved brutally and violated public order, will be relocated to closed doors refugee camps. Woodruff meanwhile in greece, two migrants, including a young boy, were killed in a fire at a camp on the island of lesbos. Police said it was sparked by a gas stove. Hurricane otto weakened to a Tropical Storm and headed into the pacific ocean, after crossing central america. The storm battered nicaragua and costa rica, and killed at least nine people. Otto was an unusually strong lateseason hurricane. In some places, as much rain fell in a few hours as normally falls in a month. Back in this country, a federal judge ruled the man accused of a massacre at a charleston, South Carolina church is competent to stand trial. Dylann roof allegedly killed nine black churchgoers in june of 2015. He faces federal counts of hate crimes and obstruction of religion. He will eventually face a separate trial on state murder charges. Wall street worked a halfday, but hit more record closes, as the postelection rally continued. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained nearly 69 points to finish at 19,152. The nasdaq rose 18 points, and the s p 500 added eight. It is up 4 this month. For the week, all three indexes gained about 1. 5 . And, one of televisions most beloved moms, florence henderson, has died in los angeles of heart failure. She gained enduring fame as carol brady on the 1970s sitcom the brady bunch, but she also had success on broadway. Her roles included the female lead in oklahoma, and the girl who came to supper. Florence henderson was 82 years old. Still to come on the newshour a look at the new legal landscape for marijuana; shields and brooks on the weeks news; and author Michael Chabon on his latest novel. Woodruff president elect donald trump continues to fill positions in his administration over this thanksgiving holiday weekend. John yang has more on one with added significance. Yang to examine the role of the white House Counsel and the challenges Donald Mcgahn will face tackling president elect trumps Business Holdings, were joined by jack quinn, who held that job under president bill clinton. Jack quinn, welcome. Thank you, john. Yang when a white House Counsel approaches an issue like figuring out what to do with a president s Business Holdings, is the client, the president as a individual, or the presidency as an institution . Its definitely the latter. As white House Counsel, you remember the office of the president of united states, not the individual, whether its bill clinton or donald trump. Yang so in this case the counsel may be having to tell the president as an individual that maybe he want do what he wants or what he wants to do isnt a good idea . Thats right. The white House Counsel is in a position to invoke executive privilege, for example. A white House Counsel cannot participate in a private litigation involving a president in his individual capacity and move that power to influence the outcome of the litigation. That would be inappropriate. While its true that the president is exempt in certain senses from the conflict of interest rules, as are other federal officials, for good reason, that is not bank check, so to speak. There are other governors on the conduct of the presidency. The president may not accept economic benefits from foreign powers, still has to file disclosure of his financial information, and most importantly, ultimately, is governed by the impeachment provisions which enable the congress to remove a president if he commits high crimes and misdemeanor, which is generally understood to mean an abuse of power. Yang so the standard is more than just the letter of the law . Is there something broader that a counsel looks at when advising the president on Something Like the Business Holdings . Sure. Well, the white House Counsel and others need to look not just at the letter of the law, but also at the power of the congress, which was equally broad to invoke the impeachment provision, for example, if the president does abuse the power. Remember, the conflict of interest provision says you cant participate in a decision that would affect you or a member of you family financially. It doesnt mean that you can use the power of government to influence this to create decisions that would benefit you. Were really in unchartered territory when it comes to that. Thats not to presume that anything of this kind will take place, but this is, as i say, not a blank check. I think its an appropriate metaphor in this case. Yang so in addition to the ethics questions that the counsel looks at, what other areas in sort of representing the institutional interests of the presidency, what other areas is the white House Counsel looking at . Well, look, ultimately what one wants to do is ensure that the American People have faith in their government, in their president , and everyone who works for their president. So it is awfully important that the white House Counsel this the white House Counsel do Everything Possible to make sure the appearance of conflict, the appearance of selfdealing is avoided. Thats critically important. As i say, other officials, the white House Counsel and the president himself need to provide that assurance to the American People, as well. Yang you have been, before you held the office, you had been counsel to Vice President al gore at the time. You had experience on the hill, political campaigns. Is there anything that really can prepare anyone for becoming white House Counsel . No. There are so many things that come up in a job like that that, you know, when i walked into the office the first time, i thought there would be volumes on the shelves of prior decisions. Its in the like that at all. You do have the office of Legal Counsel over at the Justice Department that is helpful, and you have a large staff of lawyers who help you do the research necessary to make good decisions, but decisions come up all the time that are novel, that have never come up before, and, you know, you have to exercise good judgment. Again, remembering all the time that youre in a position of sacred trust, as are the other people around you, and ultimately youve got to make a judgment that is in the interest of the American People and the conduct of good government. Yang and there is no manual, no handbook. There is not. Yang jack quinn, thank you so much for joining us. Youre welcome. Woodruff lost amid novembers Election Results was the large number of states that legalized the use of marijuana for either recreational or medical purposes. The results spell one of the biggest shifts in u. S. Drug policy in decades, but significant questions remain. William brangham has the story. Brangham legalizing marijuana was on the ballot in nine different states in this past election. Except in alz ads, they all passed. Four states, montana, north dakota, arkansas, and florida, voted to legaltize use of marijuana for certain medical conditions. And four other states, maine, nevada, massachusetts, and california legalized marijuana for anyone 21 years and over. This means that millions more people will be able to purchase marijuana in sanctioned, stateapproved shops, but, according to federal law, the drug is still illegal, and the Trump Administration could choose on day one to start enforcing that law. To help us understand the complexity of all, this im joined now by taylor west, 2 Deputy Director of the National Cannabis industry association, and. Jonathan and john hiram. Taylor, do you think of this as a Tipping PointGoing Forward . Absolutely. This was a watershed day for the industry of cannabis but also for cannabis policy in the u. S. We saw eight states vote for some form of legal regulated marijuana program. We now have 20 of the Country Living in a state that has access to Legal Marijuana and more than 60 of the Country Living in a state that has legal access to medical marijuana. This is in line with what weve seen from Public Opinion polls, so it really does reflect the direction that the country is moving on these issues. Brangham john, do you think this is the inevitable role of this policy going on throughout the country . This is the biggest day of the Marijuana Reform hands down. In terms of it being a tipping int, its a bit hard to tell. In the short term, were not going to see Much Movement at the federal level. What happened in this election is big for marijuana. What also happened is the status quo in congress. The same leadership in congress who frankly is opposed to reform. But what this change in the landscape of Marijuana Policy can do is to start to embolden the industry, to start to get the industry having a stronger voice, a more powerful voice, and a more powerful Economic Voice to eventually move policy in the right direction toward their interests in reform. Brangham john, staying with you, as i mentioned in the introduction, this is still illegal as far as the federal government is concerned. The Obama Administration put out a memo saying to states, if you run a tight ship, were not going to interfere in what youre doing. Now, the Trump Administration could come and undo that memo in an instant. Do you think were going to see that . What do you imagine when trump takes over that that administration is going to do with regard to marijuana . President elect trump has voiced some interest in keeping the status quo when it comes to medical marijuana. His words around Recreational Marijuana have been less firm. Right now we dont know for sure what donald trump will do on marijuana. I think thats true on a lot of policy areas, but its true with marijuana. I think his attorney general pick is one that worries industries. Hes a vowed prohibitionist. Black brang this is jeff sessions. This is jeff sessions. Hes subjected selective judgment on the marijuana and the marijuana user. So however much leash donald trump gives his attorney general will determine whether the Obama Doctrine on marijuana holds the day or whether we see a real transformation back the years past. Brangham taylor, as john points out, jeff session, who likely will be the attorney general, has been very clear he does not like what states all over the country are doing with regards to Recreational Marijuana. Does your industry worry come january you might all of a sudden face federal enforcement . It is certainly something were keeping an eye on. The fact is that during the campaign, as john mentioned, president elect trump said on multiple occasions that he really did see this as a state issue, and that programs in the states that have been chosen by the voters should be allowed to move forward. Certainly senator sessions has expressed his personal opinion on issues around marijuana, but the reality is that senator sessions has also on many occasions been a strong advocate of state sovereignty and that the concept of federalism. So i think there really is a nexus of agreement there on the idea that a program chosen by the voters of the state working in the way its meant to ought to be respected. Now, as john said, theres still some uncertainty about exactly which direction any of these policies will go, but we do see that sort of path forward. Brangham john, lets take taylors point. Lets assume that the federal government does not interfere. Arent we still going to see conflict, though, between federal law and state law . There are still other problems. I mean, banks, for instance, cant take marijuana money. That causes a huge problem for the industry. Those things have to get worked out eventually. The reforms that have happened during the Obama Administration have allowed the industry to really get up and running and have cover, feel safe that what they are going to do will be protected from federal intervention. But at 2 same time, the memos which have really take than Enforcement Discretion to a formal stance from the Obama Administration policy does create these unintended consequences around taxes, around banking, around interstate access, around a variety of issues that can be very challenging for the industry. Those are going to need to be addressed eventually. We just dont know when that will happen. Brangham taylor, weve seen already colorado and washington have had a period of time where their legalization infrastructure has been built, their licensing, their taxing, their selling. Do those states experiences over the last several years or so give us any sense of how this will go forward for other states trying this out . I think there are a couple important lessons to take from what weve seen in places like colorado and washington. The biggest one is that by in large this works. These programs have been implemented successfully. We havent seen the major issues that opponents were concerne