1 00:00:01,366 --> 00:00:03,900 JUDY WOODRUFF: Good evening. I'm Judy Woodruff. 2 00:00:03,900 --> 00:00:07,966 On the "NewsHour" tonight: the wrath of winter. An unusually large storm causes freezing temperatures, 3 00:00:09,833 --> 00:00:14,300 power outages and extreme weather across the U.S. 4 00:00:14,300 --> 00:00:19,300 Then: getting to zero. We discuss General Motors' big push toward zero-emission vehicles 5 00:00:21,533 --> 00:00:25,133 with the company's head of sustainability. 6 00:00:25,133 --> 00:00:30,133 And the crackdown continues. The Chinese government uses the controversial national security law 7 00:00:32,233 --> 00:00:35,000 to overhaul Hong Kong's education system. 8 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:39,366 JOHN CLANCEY, Pro-Democracy Lawyer: The courts will have to decide whether this national 9 00:00:39,366 --> 00:00:42,066 security law trumps basic rights. 10 00:00:42,066 --> 00:00:46,266 JUDY WOODRUFF: All that and more on tonight's "PBS NewsHour." 11 00:00:46,266 --> 00:00:51,233 (BREAK) 12 00:02:49,666 --> 00:02:52,166 JUDY WOODRUFF: The winter of 2021 is 13 00:02:52,166 --> 00:02:56,900 writing itself into the record books tonight. Large swathes of the nation are seeing the 14 00:02:56,900 --> 00:03:01,866 coldest weather in memory, and many thousands of homes are enduring it without power. 15 00:03:03,100 --> 00:03:05,533 Amna Nawaz reports. 16 00:03:05,533 --> 00:03:10,466 AMNA NAWAZ: Over 150 million Americans under winter and ice storm warnings today, as historically 17 00:03:13,166 --> 00:03:18,166 low temperatures blanket much of the U.S., including areas not accustomed to extreme 18 00:03:18,766 --> 00:03:20,733 conditions. 19 00:03:20,733 --> 00:03:24,500 STEPHANIE, Washington Resident: Our bedroom measured at 42 degrees, so it's cold in our 20 00:03:24,500 --> 00:03:26,566 house 21 00:03:26,566 --> 00:03:29,733 AMNA NAWAZ: In Seattle this weekend, almost nine inches of snow in a city that hasn't 22 00:03:29,733 --> 00:03:34,733 seen that much snow since 1969. In Oklahoma, icy roads have led to fiery crashes. And, 23 00:03:36,866 --> 00:03:41,833 in Nashville, home security video captures a truck sliding sideways down a residential 24 00:03:41,833 --> 00:03:44,066 street. 25 00:03:44,066 --> 00:03:47,766 In Kentucky, Governor Andy Beshear advised residents to limit travel. 26 00:03:47,766 --> 00:03:52,300 GOV. ANDY BESHEAR (D-KY): We did not make it through almost a year of a pandemic to 27 00:03:52,300 --> 00:03:57,300 lose people to a snow or an ice storm. Please, don't let the next couple of days or this 28 00:03:58,933 --> 00:04:03,333 week be what injures you or ultimately causes the loss of a loved one. 29 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:08,400 AMNA NAWAZ: The winter and ice storm advisories stretch from America's Gulf Coast up to New 30 00:04:08,400 --> 00:04:12,900 England and span the country, and have also impacted parts of the Pacific Northwest. 31 00:04:12,900 --> 00:04:17,900 Among the hardest hit so far, the state of Texas, where President Biden approved an emergency 32 00:04:17,900 --> 00:04:22,900 declaration on Sunday. The deep freeze has led to ice-coated branches breaking and wreaking 33 00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:28,800 havoc. And dangerously low temperatures have triggered rotating blackouts, leaving more 34 00:04:28,800 --> 00:04:33,266 than two million people without power at a time. 35 00:04:33,266 --> 00:04:38,266 Amid the outages, the wholesale price of electricity surged today by more 10000 percent. 36 00:04:40,700 --> 00:04:43,733 SYLVESTER TURNER (D), Mayor of Houston, Texas: It is a systemwide failure across the state. 37 00:04:45,666 --> 00:04:48,933 AMNA NAWAZ: In Houston today, Mayor Sylvester Turner with a grim update: 38 00:04:48,933 --> 00:04:53,933 SYLVESTER TURNER: These are not rolling blackouts. These are power outages at a huge, unprecedented 39 00:04:55,466 --> 00:04:57,500 scale. 40 00:04:57,500 --> 00:05:01,600 If you are without power right now, it is very conceivable that you could be without 41 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:07,100 power throughout the rest of today and possibly even going into tomorrow. 42 00:05:09,366 --> 00:05:13,500 AMNA NAWAZ: Officials are warning of storm conditions, travel disruption and power outages 43 00:05:14,933 --> 00:05:18,100 continuing along the storm's path at least through Tuesday. 44 00:05:18,100 --> 00:05:23,100 So, is the country simply in the middle of a particularly severe phase of winter weather, 45 00:05:25,100 --> 00:05:28,433 or is there more to it than that? For those questions and more, we turn to Dev Niyogi. 46 00:05:28,433 --> 00:05:33,400 He's a professor of geosciences and engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. He is 47 00:05:33,400 --> 00:05:38,400 also a committee member of Planet Texas 2050, a research initiative on the state's environmental 48 00:05:39,666 --> 00:05:41,666 challenges. 49 00:05:41,666 --> 00:05:44,166 He joins us tonight from Indiana, where he is waiting out the storm before traveling 50 00:05:44,166 --> 00:05:46,266 back to Texas. 51 00:05:46,266 --> 00:05:49,733 Professor Niyogi, welcome to the "NewsHour." And thank you for making the time. I really 52 00:05:49,733 --> 00:05:51,766 appreciate it. 53 00:05:51,766 --> 00:05:54,266 I want to start with Texas. Even though you're not there, you know it well. We're hearing 54 00:05:54,266 --> 00:05:58,900 the phrase unprecedented a lot when people talk about this storm. Texas is no stranger 55 00:05:58,900 --> 00:06:02,666 to extreme weather in the form of hurricanes and tornadoes, but when it comes to this kind 56 00:06:02,666 --> 00:06:05,100 of extreme cold weather, how unusual is it? 57 00:06:05,100 --> 00:06:08,466 DEV NIYOGI, University of Texas at Austin: I will tell you, Amna, this is -- we're certainly 58 00:06:08,466 --> 00:06:13,466 into what you have been hearing, this word, uncharted territory again and again. 59 00:06:15,466 --> 00:06:18,933 The fact that we're getting snow and we're having some cold weather in Texas is not unusual. 60 00:06:20,866 --> 00:06:24,733 I mean, we have it perhaps every few years. What is really remarkable is the spread, the 61 00:06:28,033 --> 00:06:33,033 extent, the severity with which this is happening. And so, certainly, by that standard, it is 62 00:06:34,466 --> 00:06:38,466 an event that has been quite unprecedented in that regards. 63 00:06:38,466 --> 00:06:41,766 AMNA NAWAZ: So, why are we seeing those kind of severe temperatures now? 64 00:06:41,766 --> 00:06:46,766 DEV NIYOGI: Well, there are a number of theories and number of questions and options that will 65 00:06:47,366 --> 00:06:49,433 start emerging. 66 00:06:49,433 --> 00:06:52,900 And they will range from just being bad weather, this is what happens, to issues related to 67 00:06:55,266 --> 00:07:00,000 La Nina, which has been inactive, to also perhaps this is the harbinger of what we have 68 00:07:01,533 --> 00:07:04,566 all been talking about with regards to climate changes. 69 00:07:04,566 --> 00:07:09,566 And the answer is probably going to all of the above. We often always have combination 70 00:07:11,900 --> 00:07:16,900 of weather that is impacted by what is happening with the season. The season is being affected 71 00:07:18,866 --> 00:07:22,533 by what is happening with the ocean. And, of course, what is happening in the season 72 00:07:22,533 --> 00:07:26,100 is also a signature of what is happening in the long run. 73 00:07:26,100 --> 00:07:31,100 So, it is a combination of everything that we have to understand that is where our challenge, 74 00:07:33,066 --> 00:07:35,066 unfortunately, lies at this point. 75 00:07:35,066 --> 00:07:37,600 AMNA NAWAZ: One of the arguments about climate change, though, is, people will say, well, 76 00:07:37,600 --> 00:07:40,900 it's actually been making winters milder overall. Sol, how would it be leading to the severe 77 00:07:40,900 --> 00:07:42,900 cold temperatures? 78 00:07:42,900 --> 00:07:46,133 DEV NIYOGI: Great point on that. We talk about climate change and global warming sometimes 79 00:07:46,133 --> 00:07:50,233 with the thinking that it means our temperatures ought to be warmer and warmer. 80 00:07:50,233 --> 00:07:55,233 But one factor that we also highlight is what we will be seeing is these wild swings, both 81 00:07:57,233 --> 00:08:00,733 in terms of temperature, rainfall, also in terms of the manner in which storms are coming. 82 00:08:03,100 --> 00:08:06,633 So, this kind of weather event, which is unprecedented in the context of how things are being spanning, 83 00:08:08,666 --> 00:08:13,600 spatially, as well as in time, is exactly the kind of thing, unfortunately, that a change 84 00:08:14,766 --> 00:08:17,300 in climate has -- been predicted. 85 00:08:17,300 --> 00:08:22,300 Whether this is just climate change, or whether this is seasonal interactions or weather event, 86 00:08:24,300 --> 00:08:27,966 that will be a topic that will be debated. But what is really important is to understand 87 00:08:28,833 --> 00:08:30,966 that this is happening now. 88 00:08:30,966 --> 00:08:33,033 AMNA NAWAZ: When you look at the resources, I want to ask you about what this has done 89 00:08:33,033 --> 00:08:37,666 to our energy resources, because you have seen massive outages across the Pacific Northwest, 90 00:08:37,666 --> 00:08:41,933 millions of people in Texas left without power as well. 91 00:08:41,933 --> 00:08:46,766 Can our energy infrastructure handle these kinds of extreme events, especially if we're 92 00:08:46,766 --> 00:08:48,266 to expect more of them? 93 00:08:48,266 --> 00:08:51,333 DEV NIYOGI: We have to think of this as a hammer and a chisel. 94 00:08:51,333 --> 00:08:56,333 And what I mean by that is that we cannot control the storms. We cannot control, whether 95 00:08:58,333 --> 00:09:01,733 it's a hurricane, whether it's a heat wave, or whether it's going to be a cold snap such 96 00:09:02,200 --> 00:09:04,233 as this. 97 00:09:04,233 --> 00:09:07,933 But what we can control is, what can we do in terms of the infrastructure resources, 98 00:09:09,933 --> 00:09:14,266 the planning, the tools that are available to the community and the cities that can take 99 00:09:15,566 --> 00:09:17,566 care of it? 100 00:09:17,566 --> 00:09:21,733 And that is where we are at this point, that translation into that last mile. And we are 101 00:09:24,133 --> 00:09:29,133 certainly seeing right now that the energy grid has been stretched to its limit. And, 102 00:09:31,133 --> 00:09:34,700 looking forward, I'm sure there's going to be tremendous opportunities to rethink what 103 00:09:34,700 --> 00:09:37,700 we can do to improve the elasticity in that. 104 00:09:37,700 --> 00:09:41,433 We have the science. Like, for instance, at University of Texas, we haven't doing this 105 00:09:41,433 --> 00:09:46,266 Planet Texas 2050. We are preparing the world that will go into the future. 106 00:09:46,266 --> 00:09:51,266 What we need is this last mile, that, what will be the tools, what could be the ways 107 00:09:53,733 --> 00:09:56,800 by which we can invest into now, such that we have a better future? And it is that investment, 108 00:09:59,500 --> 00:10:03,766 the manner in which we are going to look at things directly in the face and say, this 109 00:10:03,766 --> 00:10:08,266 is our priority, and this is how we are going to back science into our investment. 110 00:10:08,266 --> 00:10:10,333 That will be the option to go ahead now. 111 00:10:10,333 --> 00:10:14,400 AMNA NAWAZ: Professor Dev Niyogi from the University of Texas at Austin, thank you so 112 00:10:14,400 --> 00:10:18,633 much for your time. 113 00:10:18,633 --> 00:10:23,633 DEV NIYOGI: Thank you. It's a pleasure. 114 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:31,000 JUDY WOODRUFF: In the day's other news: Average daily COVID-19 infections in the U.S. have 115 00:10:33,033 --> 00:10:37,800 fallen below 100,000 for the first time since November. The number of average daily deaths 116 00:10:39,733 --> 00:10:44,333 is also dropping, even as the overall U.S. death toll nears 490,000. 117 00:10:46,633 --> 00:10:51,600 And in Europe today, Germany's new border controls triggered massive backups along the 118 00:10:53,600 --> 00:10:57,000 Austrian and Czech frontiers. The Germans are trying to slow the spread of variants 119 00:10:57,700 --> 00:10:59,800 of the virus. 120 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:04,566 Fallout is growing in Republican ranks after former President Trump was acquitted at his 121 00:11:04,566 --> 00:11:09,566 impeachment trial. Senator Richard Burr faces a censure by North Carolina party leaders 122 00:11:11,566 --> 00:11:15,133 tonight for voting to convict Mr. Trump. Senator Bill Cassidy also voted to convict, and he 123 00:11:16,566 --> 00:11:19,566 has already been censured by GOP leaders in Louisiana. 124 00:11:19,566 --> 00:11:24,566 Meanwhile, House speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that an independent commission will investigate 125 00:11:26,600 --> 00:11:30,633 the U.S. Capitol riot that led to the trial. We will be pursuing that later in the program. 126 00:11:33,100 --> 00:11:36,666 In Myanmar, pressure intensified on protesters against the military coup. Police and military 127 00:11:38,666 --> 00:11:43,033 trucks rolled down streets in Mandalay and Yangon in a show of force today, and troops 128 00:11:44,566 --> 00:11:47,966 confronted crowds with slingshots and rubber bullets. 129 00:11:47,966 --> 00:11:52,933 NAING HTOO, Bank Worker (through translator): The number of protesters reduced yesterday. 130 00:11:55,366 --> 00:11:58,033 So, the junta took advantage of that and brought military vehicles onto the streets to intimidate 131 00:11:58,033 --> 00:12:01,933 the people. We are taking serious care not to fall in those traps. 132 00:12:01,933 --> 00:12:06,933 JUDY WOODRUFF: Also today, the ruling junta extended the detention of ousted leader Aung 133 00:12:08,466 --> 00:12:12,200 San Suu Kyi until Wednesday, when she is to have a court hearing. 134 00:12:14,166 --> 00:12:17,533 The Russian government is playing down protests backing opposition leader Alexei Navalny. 135 00:12:19,533 --> 00:12:23,433 Last night, his supporters in various cities used cell phone flashlights and candles to 136 00:12:25,300 --> 00:12:28,966 light up the evening sky, in a display of unity. The Kremlin claimed today that only 137 00:12:29,700 --> 00:12:32,400 small numbers took part. 138 00:12:32,400 --> 00:12:37,400 And back in this country, the federal online insurance marketplace has reopened for a new 139 00:12:39,366 --> 00:12:42,600 enrollment period. Healthcare.gov will accept applications from uninsured people in most 140 00:12:44,633 --> 00:12:49,000 states Through May the 15th. President Biden ordered the market to reopen after the initial 141 00:12:50,233 --> 00:12:53,500 enrollment period ended in December. 142 00:12:53,500 --> 00:12:58,466 And rockets struck near a U.S. base in Northern Iraq, killing one U.S.-led coalition contractor. 143 00:13:01,266 --> 00:13:06,266 Five others were wounded, including one U.S. service member. They targeted an area outside 144 00:13:08,166 --> 00:13:12,133 Irbil International Airport. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. 145 00:13:14,066 --> 00:13:18,500 Still to come on the "NewsHour": General Motors on its big promises to transition to zero 146 00:13:20,466 --> 00:13:23,700 emissions vehicles; the Chinese government overhauls Hong Kong's education system; Tamara 147 00:13:25,666 --> 00:13:30,666 Keith and Amy Walter break down the aftermath of the impeachment vote; and much more. 148 00:13:50,566 --> 00:13:55,566 One of the main causes of the carbon emissions that drive climate change is automobiles. 149 00:13:57,566 --> 00:14:01,066 And General Motors made big waves in its industry recently by announcing a dramatic ramp-up 150 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:06,633 in electric vehicle production and plans to be carbon-neutral by 2040. 151 00:14:08,666 --> 00:14:12,566 William Brangham talks with a senior executive at the carmaker about the challenges of meeting 152 00:14:12,566 --> 00:14:13,800 those goals. 153 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:15,800 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That's right, Judy. 154 00:14:15,800 --> 00:14:20,166 To many, it was yet another signal that gas-powered vehicles are on their way out. 155 00:14:22,133 --> 00:14:24,133 WILL FERRELL, Actor: Did you know that Norway sells way more electric cars per capita than 156 00:14:24,133 --> 00:14:29,133 the U.S.? Norway. Well, I won't stand for it. 157 00:14:31,066 --> 00:14:35,466 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: In this Super Bowl ad, GM, one of the biggest automakers in the world, 158 00:14:37,400 --> 00:14:41,333 announced that, in just four years, it'll have 30 new electric car models for sale. 159 00:14:43,333 --> 00:14:46,133 But there are many hurdles ahead before we get can fully electrify our transportation. 160 00:14:46,133 --> 00:14:51,133 Joining me now is Dane Parker, chief sustainability officer for General Motors. 161 00:14:52,533 --> 00:14:54,600 Dane Parker, great to have you on the "NewsHour." 162 00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:58,866 Some of the initial press after this ad ran was that the GM is fully phasing out gas-powered 163 00:15:00,966 --> 00:15:04,466 vehicles. I mean, that's not totally the case. Can you just give us a sense, what are GM's 164 00:15:04,466 --> 00:15:06,466 plans for electric vehicles? 165 00:15:06,466 --> 00:15:09,100 DANE PARKER, Chief Sustainability Officer, General Motors: Sure. Thank you, William. 166 00:15:09,100 --> 00:15:14,100 So, we have an aspiration to eliminate tailpipe emissions from all of our light-duty vehicles 167 00:15:14,100 --> 00:15:19,100 by 2035, and to be fully carbon-neutral by 2040. So, it is a pretty aggressive plan to 168 00:15:21,000 --> 00:15:25,300 shift in all of our markets and all of our segments to electric vehicles. 169 00:15:25,300 --> 00:15:29,466 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: It is a very ambitious goal, if you can attain it. 170 00:15:29,466 --> 00:15:33,833 As you well know, there are certainly challenges ahead. Consumers don't seem to be there yet 171 00:15:33,833 --> 00:15:38,233 for electric vehicles. I think it's still just a percentage of the marketplace. 172 00:15:38,233 --> 00:15:43,233 And we also need a huge network of charging stations to basically take the role of gas 173 00:15:45,100 --> 00:15:48,600 stations for all those electric vehicles. How much of an impediment will those things 174 00:15:48,600 --> 00:15:50,100 be to this rollout? 175 00:15:50,100 --> 00:15:52,700 DANE PARKER: Well, those are two things that come up a lot. 176 00:15:52,700 --> 00:15:57,700 And on the consumer one, I think we will find that are getting close to a tipping point. 177 00:15:59,933 --> 00:16:02,900 And those who have experienced electric vehicles, almost to a person, say they wouldn't go back. 178 00:16:04,866 --> 00:16:09,000 The driving experience, the technology, how quiet they are, and the acceleration, all 179 00:16:11,000 --> 00:16:14,833 the elements of a great product in an electric vehicle, I think, are going to bring consumers 180 00:16:15,566 --> 00:16:17,666 increasingly rapidly. 181 00:16:17,666 --> 00:16:21,566 And we are reaching, really, I think that classic tipping point. And that's going to 182 00:16:21,566 --> 00:16:23,566 move quickly. 183 00:16:23,566 --> 00:16:26,166 Now, to your question about infrastructure, the current data that we have says more than 184 00:16:26,166 --> 00:16:30,833 80 percent of charging happens at home. And there's a large number of current consumers 185 00:16:30,833 --> 00:16:35,833 who are able to charge at home. And for them, this will be seamless, because the range of 186 00:16:37,800 --> 00:16:41,033 these electric vehicles is going to be sufficient for the vast majority of use cases. 187 00:16:43,066 --> 00:16:45,666 For those who can't is where we need help in developing that infrastructure. I think 188 00:16:45,666 --> 00:16:49,100 there's plenty of momentum we can build over the next several years with those who are 189 00:16:49,100 --> 00:16:53,733 able to charge easily, and give us time to build the infrastructure out for those who 190 00:16:53,733 --> 00:16:58,333 are in areas either where they can't charge in their housing or their work, so that we 191 00:16:58,333 --> 00:17:00,666 can get retail options available for them. 192 00:17:00,666 --> 00:17:03,566 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Let's talk a little bit about the challenge of battery technology. 193 00:17:03,566 --> 00:17:08,566 We have seen incredible growth so far. But we have got to improve their charging, how 194 00:17:10,566 --> 00:17:14,433 long they can drive these vehicles, and also securing enough lithium simply to put in all 195 00:17:15,166 --> 00:17:17,266 of those batteries. 196 00:17:17,266 --> 00:17:20,233 What role do you see for the federal government to help incentivize that technology? 197 00:17:20,233 --> 00:17:25,233 DANE PARKER: Sure. Yes, batteries are the critical component to this transition. 198 00:17:27,233 --> 00:17:30,800 And in whether it's mineral supply, like you mentioned, with lithium or cobalt, or the 199 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:35,800 production of those batteries, I think government will play an important role in incentivizing 200 00:17:37,800 --> 00:17:40,700 the research and development that's needed to remove things like lithium from batteries 201 00:17:40,700 --> 00:17:45,700 or like cobalt, come up with alternative technologies and alternative materials, but also to encourage 202 00:17:47,733 --> 00:17:52,200 the production of those batteries in the United States, which certainly is important from 203 00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:56,600 an energy security perspective and simply from a supply chain perspective. 204 00:17:56,600 --> 00:18:01,600 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: If GM is going to be continuing to sell, in part, gas-driven vehicles, how 205 00:18:03,933 --> 00:18:07,833 will you achieve carbon neutrality by 2040? 206 00:18:07,833 --> 00:18:12,000 DANE PARKER: Seventy-five percent of our footprint is tailpipe emissions. 207 00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:17,000 And so if we can eliminate those in all of our light-duty vehicles by 2035 and in our 208 00:18:18,966 --> 00:18:23,966 operations through the use of renewable energy and increasing energy efficiency, we get to 209 00:18:25,400 --> 00:18:29,500 a point by 2035 and beyond where we're pretty close on our own. 210 00:18:31,966 --> 00:18:34,566 And so the few -- the few remaining tons that we will have might relate to heating, industrial 211 00:18:36,566 --> 00:18:39,966 heating, things like that, we feel like we will be able to offset with carbon credits. 212 00:18:39,966 --> 00:18:44,966 But the vast majority of what we do, we will be doing by changing our products and changing 213 00:18:46,933 --> 00:18:50,400 the energy footprint used to charge those products, as well as run our own operations. 214 00:18:52,366 --> 00:18:54,866 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Certainly, this news has been cheered by many environmental groups. 215 00:18:54,866 --> 00:18:59,500 There's also been some skepticism, who point out that, for many years, GM was trying to 216 00:18:59,500 --> 00:19:04,366 get the Trump administration to dial back auto emissions rules, and that that makes 217 00:19:04,366 --> 00:19:08,500 them question whether or not that this -- this commitment on GM's part is for real. 218 00:19:08,500 --> 00:19:13,033 I want to read you a quote from Dan Becker. He's at the Center for Biological Diversity. 219 00:19:13,033 --> 00:19:15,700 This is about that carbon offset issue. 220 00:19:15,700 --> 00:19:20,700 He wrote -- quote -- "Given GM's polluting track record, their promise to arrange some 221 00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:26,100 offsets to sop up the pollution from gas-powered SUVs and pickups that they still plan to make 222 00:19:27,500 --> 00:19:29,666 is just smoke and mirrors." 223 00:19:29,666 --> 00:19:31,633 What is your reaction to that? 224 00:19:31,633 --> 00:19:35,766 DANE PARKER: You know, I think there's been in various comments questions about how we 225 00:19:35,766 --> 00:19:37,833 would use offsets. 226 00:19:37,833 --> 00:19:42,033 And part of what we set out with our 2040 commitment was to use a science-based target 227 00:19:44,000 --> 00:19:47,466 methodology to get there. That methodology doesn't allow you to use offsets in that. 228 00:19:49,333 --> 00:19:52,800 And so that methodology requires you to actually reduce your direct footprint. 229 00:19:54,700 --> 00:19:57,633 That's why, for us, this commitment to be carbon-neutral is a commitment to change our 230 00:19:57,633 --> 00:20:02,633 products and our operational footprint exclusive of carbon credits or carbon offsets, and why 231 00:20:05,133 --> 00:20:08,900 we're now spending $27 billion in these five years to do exactly that, roll out these products 232 00:20:10,966 --> 00:20:13,466 faster than we ever have before. 233 00:20:13,466 --> 00:20:17,400 WILLIAM BRANGHAM: All right, Dane Parker, chief sustainability officer for General Motors, 234 00:20:17,400 --> 00:20:18,633 thank you very much for joining us. 235 00:20:18,633 --> 00:20:23,566 DANE PARKER: Thank you, William, for the time. 236 00:20:25,533 --> 00:20:29,733 JUDY WOODRUFF: The lunar new year celebration has begun in China, but it comes as Hong Kong 237 00:20:39,933 --> 00:20:44,900 security forces continue to prosecute those it has swept up in a wave of arrests under 238 00:20:46,366 --> 00:20:50,900 the new national security law that mainland China imposed. 239 00:20:50,900 --> 00:20:55,866 Even as pro-democracy members of Hong Kong's legislative body were arrested last month 240 00:20:57,866 --> 00:21:01,033 when they held an informal primary election, the education curriculum is being overhauled, 241 00:21:02,933 --> 00:21:07,933 and judges are facing increasing pressure to issue harsher sentences on activists. 242 00:21:07,933 --> 00:21:12,466 "NewsHour" special correspondent Divya Gopalan reports. 243 00:21:12,466 --> 00:21:17,466 DIVYA GOPALAN: Praying for good fortune and better days. As Hong Kong people start their 244 00:21:19,533 --> 00:21:23,033 Chinese new year, many will be relieved to bid farewell to the punishing Year of the 245 00:21:23,033 --> 00:21:25,033 Rat. 246 00:21:25,033 --> 00:21:29,033 Like the rest of the world, the pandemic took away loved ones, jobs and businesses. But, 247 00:21:29,033 --> 00:21:34,033 for Hong Kong it also brought one of the biggest clampdowns on freedoms and rights, the national 248 00:21:36,066 --> 00:21:39,566 security law. The wide-ranging law imposed by Beijing opens the door for China's communist 249 00:21:41,433 --> 00:21:45,433 government to intervene in all aspects of the autonomous territory's affairs. 250 00:21:47,933 --> 00:21:50,733 The law criminalizes several categories of broadly defined offenses, which include secession, 251 00:21:52,700 --> 00:21:56,866 subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign or external forces. But there is one 252 00:21:58,900 --> 00:22:02,233 institution seen as the last holdout against Beijing's increasing assertive rule. 253 00:22:02,233 --> 00:22:07,233 ANDREW CHEUNG, Hong Kong Chief Justice: It is my mission, as I say, to do my utmost, 254 00:22:09,166 --> 00:22:12,400 to uphold the independence and impartiality of the Hong Kong judiciary. 255 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:21,200 DIVYA GOPALAN: In a ceremony in January, Andrew Cheung was sworn in as the city's top judge. 256 00:22:26,900 --> 00:22:31,500 Taking the helm in unprecedented times, he admitted he has his work cut out for him. 257 00:22:31,500 --> 00:22:36,500 ANDREW CHEUNG: Political pressure is just one form of pressure that judges face and 258 00:22:38,866 --> 00:22:43,866 have to deal with. So, we all do our best to deal with these pressures. 259 00:22:47,233 --> 00:22:52,233 DIVYA GOPALAN: It's a situation that American lawyer John Clancey is familiar with. On January 260 00:22:54,300 --> 00:22:57,200 6, he was caught up in the biggest sweep yet under the national security law. 261 00:22:57,200 --> 00:23:02,033 JOHN CLANCEY, Pro-Democracy Lawyer: We need to work for democracy and human rights in 262 00:23:02,033 --> 00:23:04,066 Hong Kong. 263 00:23:04,066 --> 00:23:08,000 DIVYA GOPALAN: Clancey was among 53 opposition activists and former lawmakers arrested for 264 00:23:08,000 --> 00:23:13,000 subversion for taking part in an unofficial primary poll to choose the best democratic 265 00:23:14,466 --> 00:23:18,466 candidate for the now delayed legislative council elections. 266 00:23:20,366 --> 00:23:23,733 The longtime Hong Kong resident, who speaks Cantonese fluently, came to the city in 1968 267 00:23:26,200 --> 00:23:29,233 as a Catholic priest when it was still a British colony. He later trained in law and is known 268 00:23:30,633 --> 00:23:32,666 for his work championing democracy and human rights. 269 00:23:32,666 --> 00:23:37,000 JOHN CLANCEY: There's going to be a need for the courts to deal with two conflictual things 270 00:23:40,700 --> 00:23:43,233 hitting at one another. 271 00:23:43,233 --> 00:23:47,233 On the one hand, we have, as I mentioned earlier, the basic law, which entrenches these basic 272 00:23:49,133 --> 00:23:54,133 human rights, freedom of speech, expression, voting, standing for election. On the other 273 00:23:56,166 --> 00:24:00,000 hand, there's a new national security law, which, unlike most other laws in Hong Kong, 274 00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:04,966 it was drafted in China. It's very vague. It seems to be having a lot of implications 275 00:24:06,066 --> 00:24:08,100 of what it could be. 276 00:24:08,100 --> 00:24:11,966 The courts will have to decide whether this national security law trumps basic rights. 277 00:24:11,966 --> 00:24:16,966 DIVYA GOPALAN: Beijing says the national security law is necessary to make scenes like this, 278 00:24:19,500 --> 00:24:21,966 the anti-government protests of 2019, a thing of the past. Almost 100 people have been arrested 279 00:24:23,933 --> 00:24:27,800 under the law since it took effect on July 1. 280 00:24:27,800 --> 00:24:32,800 While most of the focus is on high-profile national security law cases, the legal system 281 00:24:34,766 --> 00:24:37,966 here is being tested regularly. Almost every day, there are cases going through the city's 282 00:24:39,966 --> 00:24:43,266 courts related to the 2019 protests and other demonstrations calling for democracy. Those 283 00:24:45,166 --> 00:24:49,433 being prosecuted includes former protests, human rights and democracy activists and even 284 00:24:50,233 --> 00:24:52,333 journalists. 285 00:24:52,333 --> 00:24:56,233 According to official figures, around a fifth of the 10,200 people arrested in connection 286 00:24:58,800 --> 00:25:01,900 with the social unrest of 2019 have been prosecuted, and roughly 200 have been sentenced to prison. 287 00:25:03,900 --> 00:25:08,200 In November, one of the top Chinese officials in Hong Kong said reforms were needed for 288 00:25:10,166 --> 00:25:14,033 the city's judiciary, saying that the word patriotism needs to be included in the core 289 00:25:15,633 --> 00:25:19,066 values of Hong Kong society. The details of the reforms are unclear. 290 00:25:21,033 --> 00:25:23,866 But Holden Chow, a lawyer, legislative councillor and vice president of Hong Kong's biggest 291 00:25:23,866 --> 00:25:28,866 pro-Beijing political party, agrees that changes are needed. He is calling for the judiciary 292 00:25:29,733 --> 00:25:31,866 to set up a sentencing council. 293 00:25:31,866 --> 00:25:35,833 HOLDEN CHOW, Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong: Over the past two 294 00:25:35,833 --> 00:25:40,800 years, we have seen the violent protests in Hong Kong. And when the rioters are brought 295 00:25:40,800 --> 00:25:45,800 to the court, when their verdict is being handed down by the court, it seems that, on 296 00:25:47,933 --> 00:25:52,066 many occasion, the sentence is too lenient. 297 00:25:52,066 --> 00:25:57,066 I am very concerned about the impact of that is you are simply encouraging people to commit 298 00:25:58,566 --> 00:26:00,633 those sort of crimes. 299 00:26:00,633 --> 00:26:03,900 DIVYA GOPALAN: The majority of the front-line protesters were university and high school 300 00:26:03,900 --> 00:26:08,900 students. Pro-Beijing politicians and China's state media blamed teachers and the curriculum 301 00:26:09,633 --> 00:26:11,633 for the social unrest. 302 00:26:11,633 --> 00:26:15,633 And so, in the latest effort to tighten the leash on the younger generation, authorities 303 00:26:15,633 --> 00:26:19,500 have pushed through one of the biggest overhauls of the education system. 304 00:26:19,500 --> 00:26:22,433 WOMAN: Mr. Owl, what is national security? 305 00:26:22,433 --> 00:26:27,433 DIVYA GOPALAN: With teaching material that includes animation to help younger children, 306 00:26:29,933 --> 00:26:32,733 the new national education curriculum brings Hong Kong classrooms in line with the communist-controlled 307 00:26:35,233 --> 00:26:37,766 schools of mainland China. Teachers will be forced to warn students as young as 6 of secession, 308 00:26:39,233 --> 00:26:42,000 subversion and foreign interference. 309 00:26:42,000 --> 00:26:45,533 While many were expecting changes to certain subjects like liberal studies, it's come as 310 00:26:45,533 --> 00:26:49,966 a shock to students who have enjoyed an education system where free thinking and open discussions 311 00:26:49,966 --> 00:26:52,066 have been encouraged. 312 00:26:52,066 --> 00:26:55,966 ANGEL CHOI, Student: I am a Hong Konger. And I believe my identity as a Hong Konger, and 313 00:26:58,866 --> 00:27:03,866 this is very important for us to reveal the truth of what is happening in Hong Kong to 314 00:27:05,800 --> 00:27:10,400 the public, not the way that the central government wants to tighten its control over us. 315 00:27:13,133 --> 00:27:18,133 DIVYA GOPALAN: Regardless of which subject 16-year-old Angel and her classmates choose, 316 00:27:20,133 --> 00:27:23,166 they will be exposed to the new curriculum. Almost every subject, whether it's biology, 317 00:27:25,200 --> 00:27:28,266 geography, and even music, will need to incorporate the tenets of national security. 318 00:27:30,133 --> 00:27:33,733 But as Angel is due to graduate soon, she feels it's the next generation who will be 319 00:27:34,766 --> 00:27:37,200 most affected. 320 00:27:37,200 --> 00:27:40,500 ANGEL CHOI: If the curriculum has changed, they will just think in the way that the government 321 00:27:40,500 --> 00:27:44,633 wants them to think, because they will only possess the information that is given directly 322 00:27:44,633 --> 00:27:46,666 by the government. 323 00:27:46,666 --> 00:27:50,633 Also, they cannot voice their opinions freely. They cannot decide whether the news is right 324 00:27:52,633 --> 00:27:56,833 or wrong. And this definitely affects the future of the Hong Kong political movement. 325 00:27:58,800 --> 00:28:02,066 DIVYA GOPALAN: For many in Hong Kong, with no avenue for dissent anymore and no power 326 00:28:04,033 --> 00:28:07,433 to resist the changes imposed by Beijing, there is a sense that the writing is on the 327 00:28:07,900 --> 00:28:09,966 wall. 328 00:28:09,966 --> 00:28:13,500 Many feel, if they want a glimpse into what the Year of the Ox holds for the city, all 329 00:28:13,500 --> 00:28:16,900 they have to do is look across the border. 330 00:28:16,900 --> 00:28:21,900 For the "PBS NewsHour" in Hong Kong, I'm Divya Gopalan. 331 00:28:28,733 --> 00:28:33,733 JUDY WOODRUFF: Although former President Trump's second impeachment trial concluded over the 332 00:28:37,900 --> 00:28:42,900 weekend, many questions remain surrounding the events during and leading up to the deadly 333 00:28:44,233 --> 00:28:46,333 January 6 insurrection. 334 00:28:46,333 --> 00:28:51,266 And, as we reported earlier, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced her plans today to 335 00:28:53,233 --> 00:28:57,166 form an outside, independent 9/11-style commission to, as she says, get to the bottom of how 336 00:28:58,966 --> 00:29:01,000 this happened. 337 00:29:01,000 --> 00:29:05,466 Former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean chaired the 9/11 Commission, and he joins us now. 338 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,633 Governor Thomas Kean, welcome to the "NewsHour." Very good to see you. 339 00:29:10,633 --> 00:29:14,933 We know that you and your vice chair, former Congressman Lee Hamilton sent a letter to 340 00:29:14,933 --> 00:29:19,933 President Biden, to congressional leaders on Friday, urging them to consider the idea 341 00:29:21,966 --> 00:29:25,400 of a commission. Some people are going to look at this and say, great idea. Other people 342 00:29:25,400 --> 00:29:28,400 are going to say, oh, no, another commission. 343 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:30,466 Why is it a good idea? 344 00:29:30,466 --> 00:29:33,466 THOMAS KEAN, Former Co-Chairman, 9/11 Commission: Well, look, this is the first time anything 345 00:29:33,466 --> 00:29:37,933 like this has happened to our government, I suppose, since the British invaded the Capitol 346 00:29:37,933 --> 00:29:40,400 in 1812. 347 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:45,400 The idea of a mob invading the U.S. Capitol, which is the center of democracy, not only 348 00:29:47,400 --> 00:29:51,600 for us, but for the world, and doing it so publicly, is -- I was brought up to venerate 349 00:29:55,500 --> 00:29:57,466 the place. 350 00:29:57,466 --> 00:30:01,500 My father was elected to Congress when I was 3 years old. And in those days, the family 351 00:30:03,933 --> 00:30:07,433 moved down. So, I was taken down to the Capitol with my father, and so where Webster was, 352 00:30:09,366 --> 00:30:13,333 and where Clay sat, and where John Quincy Adams gave his favorite speech against slavery 353 00:30:14,466 --> 00:30:17,233 and then died minutes later, and so on. 354 00:30:17,233 --> 00:30:22,166 I knew Andrew Jackson, and I knew Sam Rayburn. I mean, people -- buildings were named after 355 00:30:22,166 --> 00:30:27,166 them. So, the idea that a mob could invade the center of democracy while the legislators 356 00:30:29,133 --> 00:30:33,366 were doing their job is so terrible, that I think, now it's behind us, we better find 357 00:30:36,300 --> 00:30:41,266 out why it happened, how it happened, how security was breached, so we can make recommendations 358 00:30:42,966 --> 00:30:46,200 to make sure it never, ever happens again. 359 00:30:46,200 --> 00:30:51,166 JUDY WOODRUFF: How do you assure the American people that a commission can get to the bottom 360 00:30:53,266 --> 00:30:58,233 of this, that a commission can come through with an accurate, truthful accounting of what 361 00:31:00,800 --> 00:31:02,933 happened? 362 00:31:02,933 --> 00:31:06,366 THOMAS KEAN: Well, I think we can do it because it has been done. The 9/11 Commission, our 363 00:31:06,366 --> 00:31:11,366 report has not yet been questioned, as far as to its accuracy goes, as far as its impartiality, 364 00:31:12,233 --> 00:31:14,333 as far as its bipartisanship. 365 00:31:14,333 --> 00:31:17,766 And if we have done it once, we can do it again. But it does depend -- it depends on 366 00:31:19,766 --> 00:31:23,033 the appointments. The people who are appointing, the people in the Congress have got to make 367 00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:28,766 sure this is people who have no ambitions, who are not overly partisan, who can reach 368 00:31:30,833 --> 00:31:34,233 across the aisle, who can work with each other, and who have the confidence, based on their 369 00:31:34,233 --> 00:31:39,233 own records, of the American people to come out with something that is useful, proper, 370 00:31:40,400 --> 00:31:42,833 and will prevent it ever happening again. 371 00:31:42,833 --> 00:31:47,800 JUDY WOODRUFF: And that's a question I have, Governor Kean, because we're in a much more 372 00:31:49,966 --> 00:31:54,933 politically polarized time, as you know, than it was even in 2000, after 2001 -- or 2002, 373 00:31:58,933 --> 00:32:02,166 when your commission got to work. 374 00:32:02,166 --> 00:32:06,966 How can -- how do we know that each side isn't going to be appointing or one side or the 375 00:32:06,966 --> 00:32:11,966 other people who are so set in their views that you can't come up with a unanimous view 376 00:32:17,400 --> 00:32:19,666 of what happened or reporting of what happened? 377 00:32:19,666 --> 00:32:24,533 THOMAS KEAN: I think it is -- again, we're going to be dependent on our elected officials. 378 00:32:24,533 --> 00:32:27,100 That's who we are in this democracy. 379 00:32:27,100 --> 00:32:31,633 And I think the idea of -- I have great confidence that Nancy Pelosi, Congressman McCarthy, that 380 00:32:33,933 --> 00:32:38,933 the leaders of the Senate know who these people are, because a lot of them have served within 381 00:32:39,533 --> 00:32:41,500 the Congress. 382 00:32:41,500 --> 00:32:46,233 When Lee Hamilton was appointed as my vice chair, nobody objected, because Lee Hamilton 383 00:32:46,233 --> 00:32:51,233 had a record of integrity and bipartisanship, and doing what was best for the country, rather 384 00:32:52,566 --> 00:32:55,266 than anything else, all his political life. 385 00:32:55,266 --> 00:33:00,300 That hasn't ended. There are people I know and people you know of right now, some of 386 00:33:02,333 --> 00:33:04,300 them serving in the Congress now, some of them retired from public service, some of 387 00:33:04,300 --> 00:33:08,200 whom have been governors. There are a number of these people whose only bottom line is 388 00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:13,200 service to the United States of America, country first, patriots. And those are the people 389 00:33:14,166 --> 00:33:16,200 who have got to be appointed. 390 00:33:16,200 --> 00:33:19,200 And I think we have got to call as hard as we can on the leaders of Congress to make 391 00:33:19,200 --> 00:33:22,233 sure those are the people who get on the commission. 392 00:33:22,233 --> 00:33:27,233 JUDY WOODRUFF: Does getting to the bottom of former President Trump's involvement in 393 00:33:28,900 --> 00:33:33,033 this, role in this, is that essential to the work of a commission? 394 00:33:35,033 --> 00:33:39,066 THOMAS KEAN: It's part of it, but it's not - - to me, it's not the bottom line. 395 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:44,466 You serve -- do a commission to find out the facts of how something happened. How did this 396 00:33:46,466 --> 00:33:50,133 mob get created? How was it -- I mean, we don't know still whether they planned it all 397 00:33:52,000 --> 00:33:55,433 ahead of time or whether some were incited on the spot. We don't know that yet. 398 00:33:55,433 --> 00:34:00,466 Find out how it happened, and find out the facts that everybody agrees on. Once you find 399 00:34:02,400 --> 00:34:06,033 out the facts, you can make the recommendations to ensure it never, ever, ever can happen 400 00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:11,533 again. But you have to have the facts first in order to make those kind of recommendations. 401 00:34:11,533 --> 00:34:16,533 JUDY WOODRUFF: We went back and looked at some of the reporting at the time your -- the 402 00:34:19,000 --> 00:34:21,800 9/11 Commission issued its report in 2004. 403 00:34:21,800 --> 00:34:26,800 And you are right. The vast majority of reaction was very positive, praised the work that you 404 00:34:28,800 --> 00:34:32,566 did. There were some who said the fact that you were trying to reach a unanimous view 405 00:34:34,166 --> 00:34:37,666 meant that you, in the end, had to soften the edges, in so many words. 406 00:34:38,766 --> 00:34:40,833 How do you see that? 407 00:34:40,833 --> 00:34:44,866 THOMAS KEAN: Well, we didn't. I don't think we softened it at all. We had a lot of debates. 408 00:34:46,433 --> 00:34:49,133 We met hours and hours and hours and hours. 409 00:34:49,133 --> 00:34:54,133 We got to know each other first, so Republicans and Democrats came to trust each other, had 410 00:34:56,066 --> 00:35:00,300 private dinners together, in some cases, met each other's families. And then, once we had 411 00:35:02,300 --> 00:35:06,433 agreed to trust each other and done the public hearings and all of that, the report came 412 00:35:07,300 --> 00:35:09,400 quite naturally after that. 413 00:35:09,400 --> 00:35:12,700 And we didn't -- honestly, we did not soften the edges. I mean, we said what we thought 414 00:35:12,700 --> 00:35:17,700 we had to say. And I was -- I didn't know until two days before we issued the report 415 00:35:18,900 --> 00:35:21,000 whether we had it unanimous or not. 416 00:35:21,000 --> 00:35:25,966 And one thing we found out, by the way, we took out of the adjectives. We found out that 417 00:35:28,033 --> 00:35:31,500 people were arguing not about the facts, but the adjectives. Once we removed the adjectives 418 00:35:31,500 --> 00:35:35,166 in the report, then a lot of people who had questions signed on. 419 00:35:35,166 --> 00:35:40,166 JUDY WOODRUFF: And in the end, Governor Kean, how much does a thorough report like this 420 00:35:42,200 --> 00:35:47,100 matter? How much difference does it make for our country, for our people, for our system 421 00:35:48,433 --> 00:35:50,500 of government? 422 00:35:50,500 --> 00:35:54,300 THOMAS KEAN: Look, the 41 recommendations we made in the 9/11 Commission were the basis 423 00:35:54,300 --> 00:35:58,033 for a whole redrafting of national security in this country. 424 00:35:58,033 --> 00:36:03,033 And we still have not had another attack comparable to 9/11. That has kept the people safer. If 425 00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:08,100 these commissions are done right, they can work. They can work for the people. And so 426 00:36:08,100 --> 00:36:13,100 my sense is, if we do this right, we can make the Congress stronger, we can make national 427 00:36:15,066 --> 00:36:19,433 security stronger, and we can make sure, as I say, that nobody in 10 or 20 years is saying, 428 00:36:20,733 --> 00:36:22,833 how did this happen again? 429 00:36:22,833 --> 00:36:24,833 It shouldn't happen. There shouldn't be a mob from the left or the right or anybody 430 00:36:24,833 --> 00:36:29,800 else to disrupt the best of this democracy, which is -- which should be occurring in the 431 00:36:30,700 --> 00:36:33,066 United States Congress. 432 00:36:33,066 --> 00:36:38,066 JUDY WOODRUFF: Former Governor Thomas Kean of New Jersey, who I gather Speaker Nancy 433 00:36:39,466 --> 00:36:42,100 Pelosi called you after she received that letter on Friday. 434 00:36:42,100 --> 00:36:46,333 So, it looks as if it certainly did play into the thinking here. 435 00:36:46,333 --> 00:36:49,266 THOMAS KEAN: We had a very nice call. 436 00:36:49,266 --> 00:36:52,933 JUDY WOODRUFF: We so appreciate your joining us. Thank you very much. 437 00:36:52,933 --> 00:36:55,566 THOMAS KEAN: Thank you for having me. 438 00:36:55,566 --> 00:37:00,600 JUDY WOODRUFF: And for the seven Republican senators who voted to convict former President 439 00:37:02,700 --> 00:37:07,700 Trump, the backlash from inside their own party has been swift and severe, as we reported, 440 00:37:10,133 --> 00:37:13,700 censures for two of those senators, Louisiana's Bill Cassidy and Pennsylvania's Pat Toomey, 441 00:37:15,000 --> 00:37:17,400 by state or local officials, party officials. 442 00:37:17,400 --> 00:37:22,233 Tonight, Senator Richard Burr of North Carolina may be the third to face that fate. 443 00:37:22,233 --> 00:37:27,000 Here now to analyze the fallout from the impeachment trial and where we go from here, Amy Walter 444 00:37:27,000 --> 00:37:30,666 of The Cook Political Report and Tamara Keith of NPR. 445 00:37:30,666 --> 00:37:35,266 Hello to both of you on this Monday night. It's so good to see you, 446 00:37:35,266 --> 00:37:40,266 Amy, we have now had, what, 46 presidents of the United States, and one only one of 447 00:37:42,233 --> 00:37:45,900 them has been impeached twice and only one of them had to go through a trial when he 448 00:37:48,033 --> 00:37:53,033 was out of office. So, Donald Trump has made history in every which way here. 449 00:37:54,933 --> 00:37:58,300 But in the end, after this trial that ended over the weekend in an acquittal, where are 450 00:37:59,533 --> 00:38:01,666 we? 451 00:38:01,666 --> 00:38:03,700 AMY WALTER, The Cook Political Report: Right, and where is the Republican Party, right? 452 00:38:03,700 --> 00:38:08,500 And this seems to be the question that we continue to grapple with or have been grappling 453 00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:13,633 with really since 2015, Judy, when it seemed that so many times during Trump's first campaign, 454 00:38:15,700 --> 00:38:20,700 during his time as president, that the party was going to break up over Donald Trump. 455 00:38:22,666 --> 00:38:26,400 And yet, when all is said and done, the party continues to rally around him. In this case, 456 00:38:28,266 --> 00:38:32,900 on the vote over the weekend to convict, the president was no different. 457 00:38:34,966 --> 00:38:38,066 In some ways, as you said, this was a historic moment. This was the most bipartisan impeachment 458 00:38:40,100 --> 00:38:43,100 ever in American history. So that's quite remarkable. And yet, at the same time, it 459 00:38:45,066 --> 00:38:49,100 doesn't tell us anything about Trump's inability to keep a hold of the party. In fact, what 460 00:38:52,100 --> 00:38:55,300 it tells us is that he still has a pretty good hold on the party. 461 00:38:55,300 --> 00:39:00,366 As you pointed out, a number of those senators who voted for conviction have since been censured. 462 00:39:03,100 --> 00:39:06,633 We know members of the House who voted for impeachment have also been censured, and they 463 00:39:06,633 --> 00:39:11,633 have been threatened with primary races. We know that, even in a bipartisan vote, it was 464 00:39:13,600 --> 00:39:17,500 still 10 votes short of a conviction. 465 00:39:17,500 --> 00:39:22,500 And we also know that the seven Republicans who voted -- these are not -- who voted for 466 00:39:24,533 --> 00:39:26,566 conviction -- these are not the rising stars in the party. These aren't folks who you're 467 00:39:26,566 --> 00:39:31,266 going to see on the ballot in 2024 running for president. Only one of them is up for 468 00:39:33,200 --> 00:39:36,700 reelection in 2022. That's Lisa Murkowski from Alaska. Two of them are retiring, Senator 469 00:39:39,233 --> 00:39:41,933 Burr and Senator Toomey, Burr from North Carolina, Toomey that you pointed out from Pennsylvania, 470 00:39:41,933 --> 00:39:43,966 also been censured. 471 00:39:43,966 --> 00:39:48,966 The rest are either up in 2026, so they were just recently elected, reelected, or one of 472 00:39:51,566 --> 00:39:56,566 them, Mitt Romney, up in 2024. So, there is no immediate repercussions for these -- most 473 00:39:58,000 --> 00:40:00,800 of these senators like, there is for members of the House. 474 00:40:00,800 --> 00:40:05,800 But, at the end of the day, I think what's been made very clear is that this is still 475 00:40:07,833 --> 00:40:10,966 the party of Donald Trump, the local grassroots activists who are censuring these members 476 00:40:13,000 --> 00:40:16,900 making it very clear where their loyalties lie and what they're expecting from other 477 00:40:18,333 --> 00:40:21,933 elected officials down the road in 2022 and beyond. 478 00:40:21,933 --> 00:40:26,933 JUDY WOODRUFF: And, Tam, pick up on that, I mean, how much does this trial verdict tell 479 00:40:28,566 --> 00:40:32,733 us about the hold that Donald Trump still has on his own party? 480 00:40:32,733 --> 00:40:37,733 TAMARA KEITH, National Public Radio: Well, as Amy mentioned, the local party apparatuses 481 00:40:39,700 --> 00:40:43,100 are very Trumpy, if you will. They were consolidated behind President Trump. 482 00:40:45,066 --> 00:40:49,266 His campaign was very concerned about a primary challenge, potentially, in 2020. So, they 483 00:40:51,300 --> 00:40:54,633 made sure that every state and local party operation all over the country was controlled 484 00:40:56,700 --> 00:40:59,733 by President Trump. And those loyalists are still in place. And that's why you're seeing 485 00:40:59,733 --> 00:41:04,700 these censures come so fast and so strongly. 486 00:41:06,700 --> 00:41:10,400 What does that mean in terms of primaries? What does that mean in terms of Senate races? 487 00:41:12,400 --> 00:41:15,966 I think that we can look at what Kevin McCarthy, the Republican leader in the House, and Mitch 488 00:41:17,933 --> 00:41:21,900 McConnell, the Republican leader in the Senate, how they are charting their path, trying to 489 00:41:21,900 --> 00:41:26,900 sort of have it both ways, wanting the Trump base, but also trying to figure out how to 490 00:41:29,333 --> 00:41:33,100 keep Republicans who were completely and totally outraged by what happened on January 6, and 491 00:41:34,533 --> 00:41:39,233 didn't see that violent mob as being part of their party. 492 00:41:39,233 --> 00:41:44,233 And so you had McConnell give this absolutely scorching floor speech about President Trump, 493 00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:49,766 after, of course, voting to acquit and saying that it wasn't constitutional, they should 494 00:41:49,766 --> 00:41:53,566 have done the trial before he left office, but, also, he held up and prevented the trial 495 00:41:53,566 --> 00:41:55,666 from happening before he left office. 496 00:41:55,666 --> 00:42:00,233 And with McCarthy, he was very critical of President Trump in the immediate aftermath. 497 00:42:00,233 --> 00:42:05,133 But, before long, he was down at Mar-a-Lago kissing President Trump's ring, not technically, 498 00:42:07,133 --> 00:42:10,733 but trying to get Trump's support to -- in primaries to get Republicans who can win in 499 00:42:12,100 --> 00:42:14,066 2022. 500 00:42:14,066 --> 00:42:18,100 JUDY WOODRUFF: And, Amy, is there anybody in the Republican Party -- clearly, there's 501 00:42:20,266 --> 00:42:25,266 somebody -- but who has enough influence in the Republican Party to counter what's going 502 00:42:28,066 --> 00:42:32,133 on with those who are so loyal to Donald Trump? 503 00:42:32,133 --> 00:42:37,133 AMY WALTER: Yes, we're going to learn a lot, I think, in these next couple of years, as 504 00:42:39,066 --> 00:42:43,266 we watch these primaries unfold and Senate races and others. 505 00:42:43,266 --> 00:42:48,266 We're going to see, for example, even this year, in a state like Virginia, where you 506 00:42:50,766 --> 00:42:52,933 have a governor's race, what kind of candidate comes out of their process there. They actually 507 00:42:52,933 --> 00:42:57,033 have a convention, not a primary. And what are the issues that they run on? 508 00:42:57,033 --> 00:43:02,000 And Virginia is a place where,normally, historically, whichever party is in the White House at that 509 00:43:04,000 --> 00:43:08,366 time loses the governor's race in Virginia. But Virginia has also gotten a lot bluer in 510 00:43:10,000 --> 00:43:15,000 the last few years, and the backlash to Trump was pretty significant. 511 00:43:17,033 --> 00:43:20,033 I think we're also going to have to see just how invested Donald Trump is in being with 512 00:43:23,733 --> 00:43:28,733 the party in terms of its daily dealings, right? Is he really going to take all this 513 00:43:30,666 --> 00:43:33,833 money that he's raised, and plow it into the local parties, plow into helping candidates 514 00:43:35,266 --> 00:43:37,266 up and down the ballot? 515 00:43:37,266 --> 00:43:42,133 Or is he going to use it as a way to punish those Republicans who he thinks have wronged 516 00:43:44,100 --> 00:43:47,400 him, like Representative Liz Cheney from Wyoming? Or maybe he sits on it and doesn't use any 517 00:43:49,266 --> 00:43:52,166 of it for any other candidate? So, there's still a lot of unknowns there. 518 00:43:52,166 --> 00:43:55,533 And most important, Judy, we don't know what we're talking about in terms of the political 519 00:43:55,533 --> 00:44:00,566 environment a year or two from now. I think that sets the tone more than anything else, 520 00:44:02,566 --> 00:44:06,633 in terms of the kinds of candidates that become successful are the candidates that fit that 521 00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:10,066 moment. 522 00:44:10,066 --> 00:44:12,933 JUDY WOODRUFF: Well, we'd like you both to know exactly what's going to happen a year 523 00:44:12,933 --> 00:44:13,933 or two in advance. 524 00:44:13,933 --> 00:44:14,933 AMY WALTER: That's right. 525 00:44:14,933 --> 00:44:17,033 (LAUGHTER) 526 00:44:17,033 --> 00:44:19,066 JUDY WOODRUFF: But we will wait until next week. We will wait until next week. 527 00:44:19,066 --> 00:44:22,266 But, Tam, I do want to turn you both here in the minutes we have left to what's happening 528 00:44:24,266 --> 00:44:27,466 with COVID relief. While the trial was going on in the Senate, the House was moving ahead 529 00:44:28,866 --> 00:44:33,066 with some of President Biden's proposal on COVID relief. 530 00:44:33,066 --> 00:44:37,733 How much does it matter whether he is able to get Republican votes or not, whether this 531 00:44:37,733 --> 00:44:39,966 ends up being an all-Democratic measure? 532 00:44:39,966 --> 00:44:44,966 TAMARA KEITH: I'm not quite sure how much it ultimately does matter. 533 00:44:47,500 --> 00:44:52,100 And I -- will voters hold it against him that they didn't get Republicans, if their unemployment 534 00:44:54,166 --> 00:44:58,866 benefits last, or if the COVID vaccine rollout goes well, or if their kids are actually in 535 00:45:00,133 --> 00:45:02,133 school? 536 00:45:02,133 --> 00:45:06,066 I think that the big test for Biden is -- and he and his administration believe that they 537 00:45:08,066 --> 00:45:12,266 need this COVID package to make this happen - - but come 2022, the question is, do you 538 00:45:14,266 --> 00:45:18,400 feel better today than you did two years ago, when people are going to vote? And that's 539 00:45:18,400 --> 00:45:22,900 going to depend on how they handle the pandemic. 540 00:45:22,900 --> 00:45:27,733 And I think a lot is going to depend on whether people feel like their lives are back to normal. 541 00:45:27,733 --> 00:45:30,533 And a big part of that is going to be the schools. 542 00:45:30,533 --> 00:45:35,533 JUDY WOODRUFF: And, Amy, I mean, pick up on that from there, because there are those who 543 00:45:39,500 --> 00:45:44,500 are saying he needs to show early on that he is going to live up to this unity promise 544 00:45:46,933 --> 00:45:48,700 that he campaigned on. 545 00:45:48,700 --> 00:45:50,733 AMY WALTER: Right. 546 00:45:50,733 --> 00:45:52,766 JUDY WOODRUFF: And others are saying, look, that's -- that was never going to happen. 547 00:45:52,766 --> 00:45:55,300 It's going to have to be Democrats all the way. 548 00:45:55,300 --> 00:45:59,100 AMY WALTER: Well, there's another unity challenge he may have. And that's keeping Democrats 549 00:45:59,100 --> 00:46:01,200 unified. 550 00:46:01,200 --> 00:46:05,100 We have been spending these last few weeks focused on the divisions within the Republican 551 00:46:07,066 --> 00:46:10,700 Party. But Democrats, in order to get this package through, they can't afford to lose 552 00:46:12,700 --> 00:46:16,533 any senator. We have already seen some splits on issue -- within the Democratic Party on 553 00:46:18,966 --> 00:46:21,800 issues like including the $15-an-hour minimum wage in this COVID package, some consternation 554 00:46:23,833 --> 00:46:27,400 about the price tag on certain things. 555 00:46:27,400 --> 00:46:32,400 And Pelosi in the House, Speaker Pelosi, can only afford to lose four or five votes there. 556 00:46:34,366 --> 00:46:38,500 So, keeping the party united on the same page, again, it's a lot easier when you're the one 557 00:46:38,500 --> 00:46:43,500 in charge, and you know that, ultimately, this is going to define your party. 558 00:46:45,600 --> 00:46:50,233 At the same time, it's a real test for team Biden and Democrats in leadership to be able 559 00:46:52,766 --> 00:46:57,766 to get this through. And the clock is ticking. These unemployment benefits that Tam pointed 560 00:46:59,800 --> 00:47:01,933 to, this is the beginning of March, where they're really going to need to make sure 561 00:47:01,933 --> 00:47:06,133 that this money is going out the door and that people are getting these checks. 562 00:47:06,133 --> 00:47:11,133 JUDY WOODRUFF: And in many ways, the calendar is flying along, no question about it. That's 563 00:47:12,566 --> 00:47:15,700 the serious -- that's the most serious deadline out there. 564 00:47:15,700 --> 00:47:20,366 Amy Walter, Tamara Keith, next week, we will ask you about 2024, 2028. 565 00:47:20,366 --> 00:47:21,366 (LAUGHTER) 566 00:47:21,366 --> 00:47:22,366 AMY WALTER: We're going to... 567 00:47:22,366 --> 00:47:23,600 (CROSSTALK) 568 00:47:23,600 --> 00:47:24,366 JUDY WOODRUFF: We won't let you off the hook. 569 00:47:24,366 --> 00:47:25,366 (LAUGHTER) 570 00:47:25,366 --> 00:47:26,366 TAMARA KEITH: Too soon. 571 00:47:26,366 --> 00:47:27,833 (LAUGHTER) 572 00:47:27,833 --> 00:47:32,366 JUDY WOODRUFF: Thank you both, Amy Walter, Tamara Keith. 573 00:47:45,200 --> 00:47:50,200 Finally tonight, a new four-part series, "The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our 574 00:47:51,400 --> 00:47:54,233 Song," premieres on PBS tomorrow night. 575 00:47:54,233 --> 00:47:58,500 It's a sweeping history of religion, politics, and culture. 576 00:47:58,500 --> 00:48:02,666 Jeffrey Brown has a preview for our arts and culture series, Canvas. 577 00:48:02,666 --> 00:48:07,666 JEFFREY BROWN: In the time of slavery, it was a source of strength and survival. In 578 00:48:09,766 --> 00:48:14,766 the 20th century, it would spearhead a drive toward political and economic equality. 579 00:48:16,800 --> 00:48:19,533 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR., Harvard University: The church is the oldest, the most continuous 580 00:48:19,533 --> 00:48:24,533 and most important institution ever created by the African American people. 581 00:48:26,933 --> 00:48:31,400 JEFFREY BROWN: Henry Louis Gates Jr., the noted Harvard scholar and host of PBS' "Finding 582 00:48:33,300 --> 00:48:36,900 Your Roots," has been telling aspects of the African American story for decades. 583 00:48:36,900 --> 00:48:41,900 This, he says in his new series and companion book, may be the most important of all. 584 00:48:43,866 --> 00:48:47,700 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: It was a laboratory for the formation both of the identity of 585 00:48:49,700 --> 00:48:54,066 a New World African people. After all, there were 50 ethnic groups represented in the slave 586 00:48:56,066 --> 00:48:59,366 trade from Africa to North America, and they had to forge and form into one new people, 587 00:49:02,500 --> 00:49:04,800 the first truly Pan-African people. 588 00:49:04,800 --> 00:49:09,800 And, secondly, it was a laboratory for the creation of Black culture. It's where people 589 00:49:12,333 --> 00:49:16,800 learned to read and write, because it was illegal to read and write. So, through the 590 00:49:16,800 --> 00:49:21,800 King James Bible, people would memorize passages and repeat those passages. 591 00:49:23,833 --> 00:49:26,266 JEFFREY BROWN: There's a kind of tension from the beginning in the story you're telling 592 00:49:26,266 --> 00:49:31,200 about -- around Christianity being the religion of the enslavers and then becoming the religion 593 00:49:33,166 --> 00:49:36,766 of the enslaved, but also a means towards their liberation. 594 00:49:36,766 --> 00:49:41,766 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: Absolutely. African Americans created a form of Christianity with 595 00:49:43,666 --> 00:49:46,866 a liberating God and its center, a redemptive force for a nation whose original sin was 596 00:49:50,333 --> 00:49:52,333 slavery. 597 00:49:52,333 --> 00:49:56,333 What Black people did was take the forms of Christianity available to them and refashion 598 00:49:59,000 --> 00:50:01,466 them in their own image. 599 00:50:01,466 --> 00:50:06,333 JEFFREY BROWN: The story, through several centuries, is told by leading cultural figures, 600 00:50:07,300 --> 00:50:09,366 pastors and historians. 601 00:50:09,366 --> 00:50:13,300 WOMAN: What enslaved people did in this new context where they attempted to merge and 602 00:50:14,666 --> 00:50:19,033 fuse these different worlds that they lived in. 603 00:50:20,966 --> 00:50:24,100 JEFFREY BROWN: At every point, the sacred mixes with the secular. You can see it in 604 00:50:24,100 --> 00:50:29,100 the struggle for legal rights and political power, from Richard Allen, founder of the 605 00:50:31,566 --> 00:50:34,566 African Methodist Episcopal Church, the country's first independent Black denomination, to Reverend 606 00:50:35,766 --> 00:50:37,933 Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s. 607 00:50:37,933 --> 00:50:41,700 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR., Civil Rights Leader: Nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon. 608 00:50:41,700 --> 00:50:46,666 JEFFREY BROWN: And, today, Pastor Raphael Warnock, now a U.S. senator from Georgia. 609 00:50:48,700 --> 00:50:51,933 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: He is the most recent example. Politics and religion have inextricably 610 00:50:53,366 --> 00:50:56,566 been intertwined in the history of the Black church. 611 00:50:56,566 --> 00:51:01,533 I think that they internalized and fashioned a form of Christianity that allowed them to 612 00:51:03,500 --> 00:51:07,900 believe that, by and by, as Black people say, by and by, we would be free and we would be 613 00:51:09,800 --> 00:51:14,800 able to progress within American society. 614 00:51:16,800 --> 00:51:21,433 JEFFREY BROWN: Central to that experience, music, from early spirituals to the popularization 615 00:51:26,133 --> 00:51:31,133 of gospel and its influence on so many Black musicians, like Aretha Franklin, who started 616 00:51:32,133 --> 00:51:34,233 out in the church. 617 00:51:34,233 --> 00:51:38,133 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: The body of the spirituals is one of the great gifts to the collective 618 00:51:39,533 --> 00:51:42,766 corpus of world literature. You can't beat it. 619 00:51:42,766 --> 00:51:47,766 I mean, I'm old-school. I like the new church music. I do my best to appreciate it. But 620 00:51:48,966 --> 00:51:51,133 I -- you can't beat the spirituals. 621 00:51:51,133 --> 00:51:56,100 (singing): Ezekiel saw the wheel way up the middle of the air. Ezekiel saw the wheel way 622 00:51:57,866 --> 00:51:59,266 in the middle of the air. 623 00:51:59,266 --> 00:52:01,866 They did that over and over. 624 00:52:01,866 --> 00:52:05,800 JEFFREY BROWN: Gates doesn't shy from pointing to the Black church's own failures and discrimination, 625 00:52:07,733 --> 00:52:11,100 including homophobia and sexism. The series highlights the critical, often undertold role 626 00:52:11,700 --> 00:52:13,666 of women. 627 00:52:13,666 --> 00:52:17,600 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: The backbone of the church has been Black women almost from the 628 00:52:17,600 --> 00:52:21,033 very beginning. But their role has been suppressed. 629 00:52:21,033 --> 00:52:24,933 One of my favorite examples in the story we tell us of 630 00:52:24,933 --> 00:52:29,933 Jarena Lee. And Jarena Lee goes to Richard Allen and says: "I have been called to preach." 631 00:52:30,800 --> 00:52:33,033 And he says: "I don't think so." 632 00:52:33,033 --> 00:52:35,100 (LAUGHTER) 633 00:52:35,100 --> 00:52:37,200 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: He says: "There's no role for women in the pulpit." 634 00:52:37,200 --> 00:52:41,166 She just stands up in her pew and delivers a sermon. And it blows everybody's mind. And 635 00:52:43,100 --> 00:52:47,666 Richard Allen says: "You know what, I guess maybe you were called to preach." 636 00:52:47,666 --> 00:52:52,666 JEFFREY BROWN: In our time, as many young people move away from organized religion and 637 00:52:54,666 --> 00:52:59,033 protesters again demand justice, the church faces a new challenge of relevance and vitality. 638 00:53:01,066 --> 00:53:05,500 There was a very moving moment in there to me when Reverend Traci Blackmon is telling 639 00:53:07,500 --> 00:53:10,900 you about going into the streets in Ferguson during the protests, and she talks about holding 640 00:53:12,933 --> 00:53:16,533 a prayer vigil. And she says that, halfway through, some of the young people said, "That's 641 00:53:18,300 --> 00:53:19,533 enough praying." 642 00:53:19,533 --> 00:53:21,500 HENRY LOUIS GATES JR.: Well, I love that story. 643 00:53:21,500 --> 00:53:25,966 This is what she said in response -- and I quote -- "The Ferguson uprising was church." 644 00:53:27,933 --> 00:53:31,633 And I think that what we're seeing is that, in each historical period in Black history, 645 00:53:33,533 --> 00:53:38,100 the church has been refashioned not only in the broader image of Black people, but in 646 00:53:40,166 --> 00:53:44,666 the image of Black people at that specific time and place across generations. 647 00:53:46,633 --> 00:53:51,466 And despite all the trials and tribulations that Black people have had to suffer, the 648 00:53:53,833 --> 00:53:58,200 church has survived, it's grown, it's morphed, it's transformed, and we're still here. 649 00:54:00,366 --> 00:54:04,766 JEFFREY BROWN: "The Black Church: This Is Our Story, This Is Our Song." 650 00:54:04,766 --> 00:54:09,700 For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Jeffrey Brown. 651 00:54:09,700 --> 00:54:14,000 JUDY WOODRUFF: So looking forward to watching that. 652 00:54:14,000 --> 00:54:18,833 And we have more online, where you can find the stories of two more women who played vital 653 00:54:18,833 --> 00:54:23,833 roles in both the Black church, as well as the fight for civil rights in America. 654 00:54:24,933 --> 00:54:29,366 That's on our Web site, PBS.org/NewsHour. 655 00:54:29,366 --> 00:54:31,900 And that's the "NewsHour" for tonight. I'm Judy Woodruff. 656 00:54:31,900 --> 00:54:34,366 Join us online and again here tomorrow evening. 657 00:54:34,366 --> 00:54:39,366 For all of us at the "PBS NewsHour," thank you, please stay safe, and we'll see you soon.