PBS News Hour - Full Show - April 20, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode

Episode Date: April 21, 2026

Monday on the News Hour, a second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran hangs in limbo after the U.S. attacked and boarded an Iranian ship as part of its naval blockade. Eight children are killed in a Louisiana shooting. Plus, we examine how a Virginia ballot measure aims to counter Republican redistricting efforts and shift the balance of power in Congress. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Good evening. I'm Jeff Bennett. And I'm Amna Nawaz on the news hour tonight. A second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran hangs in limbo after the U.S. attacked and boarded an Iranian ship as part of its naval blockade. Eight children are fatally shot in a domestic dispute. Now investigators in Shreveport, Louisiana are searching for answers. And we examine how a Virginia ballot measure aims to counter Republican redistricting efforts and shift the balance of the balance of. power in Congress. Where I'm standing would be the intersection of three congressional districts so that the apartment buildings over here would be in one congressional district, those over there would be in a second, and then right over here, these folks would be in a third congressional district. Welcome to the News Hour.

An American delegation led by Vice President J.D. Vance will soon leave for Pakistan to resume talks with Iran over the nearly two-month war. Iranian officials have been noncommittal about attending the next round of talks. President Trump also sent mixed signals, predicting success, even as he warned the war could drag on. It follows a tense weekend around the Strait of Hormuz. Our White House correspondent, Liz Landers, begins our coverage. Lado Vesotasotka. Vacate your engine. Vacate your engine.

We're prepared to subject you to disabling fire. Yesterday in contested waters, a show of U.S. force. Marines seized and disabled an Iranian cargo ship. U.S. officials alleged the vessel tried to evade its naval cordon. This is the first such interception of the U.S.'s over a week-long blockade of Iranian ports. Yet today, signs of renewed peace talks after a weekend of mixed signals. A source tells PBS NewsHour, a U.S. delegation led by Vice President J.D. Vance plans to travel to Pakistan soon. Iran has issued conflicting messages about its plans to attend.

The regime's foreign ministry said the U.S. lacks, quote, seriousness. We witnessed that the United States insisted on bad faith and violation of the ceasefire. We are still in a state of war. A ceasefire has been announced, but unfortunately it has been met from the very beginning with repeated violations. And the announcement that Iran's ports and vessels would be targeted by the United States has complicated the situation. Israel, the U.S.'s ally in the war, won't be participating in the talks. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu touted Israel. Israel's warfinding during a Memorial Day celebration today.

Our pilots control the skies of the region as irrefutable proof of our superiority over the Iranian axis. We have not yet finished the task, but the world already recognizes our determination to defend ourselves, not only to defend ourselves, but to defend humanity from barbaric fanaticism. Small Israel and our great friend of the United States carry the entire Western civilization on their shoulders. If you attempt to run the blockade, we will compel compliance. of course. The U.S. military released another video today showing their enforcement operations on Iranian ports. The blockade stretches from the eastern tip of Oman to Iran's border with Pakistan.

Meantime, rough sailing on global energy markets. Today's opening trades were a sharp turnaround from Friday when oil prices tumbled. Now climbing oil prices and slipping U.S. stock prices roiled global markets. China, a major importer of Iranian oil. urged U.S. restraint. China expresses concern over the United States' forced interception of relevant vessels and hopes that the parties concerned will act in a responsible manner and create the necessary conditions for the restoration of normal passage through the strait.

While the U.S. has maintained its blockade of Iranian ports, Iran lifted and then reimposed its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. This comes as two Indian ships were forced. Indian ships were forced to reverse course in the straight over the weekend following reports of Iranian gunfire. Sapa Navy, this is Motoring a Sunmar Herald. You gave me clearance to go. My name second on your list.

You gave me clearance to go. You are fighting now. Let me turn back. Indian officials said today they have been in touch with Iranian counterparts. And since Saturday's incident, another ship has safely crossed the strait. The Gulf Arab energy producers lost at least 40% of their crude oil output in March, according to OPEC, roughly equivalent to the combined output of U.S. oil giants, ExxonMobil and Chevron. Yet U.S. officials say pressure, including financial sanctions and maritime enforcement,

is intended to bring Iran back to the negotiating table. Energy Secretary Chris Wright appeared on CNN yesterday. When will it be? I think after a deal is reached, after a deal is reached. It won't be in the too distant future. People are ready to go. Ships are there. The United States put through two warships through the straits.

We can open it one way or the other. But the best way to do it is to have an end of the conflict and it defanged and dearmed Iran. We're also going after their financial tentacles, which are spread all throughout the region and around the world. While ships at both ends of one of the world's most volatile maritime corridors wait for clearance, risking interception from U.S. or Iranian forces, the deadline of the temporary two-week ceasefire draws close. And even with the vice president heading to Islamabad, that ceasefire appears likely to expire overnight tomorrow. Amna. You spoke to President Trump directly this morning about the war in Iran and much more. Tell us about that. I called him around 8 a.m. We just had a few

minutes to speak on the phone. But I asked him first about this ceasefire, which is expected to expire tomorrow. evening. And I said, what happens if there is no deal that is reached by then? And he said, then lots of bombs start going off. Of course, the United States has not bombed Israel in the last few weeks since this ceasefire has held. Or sorry, yes, has not bombed Iran. Sorry about that. I also asked him about Iran participating in these peace talks in Islamabad and whether they would show up and be there. We have questions about that still. The president told me he didn't know if the Iranians were going to show up, but he did say that the United States agreed to be there. And he said, that's fine, too, if they don't show up. I asked about the key objective for these

talks in Islamabad. And he said, no nuclear weapons. It's very simple. Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. You also asked him this very important question about potential conflicts of interest about his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his diplomatic role, because he also has business interests in the Middle East. What did he say about that? Jared Kushner started a venture capital firm in 2021 after the end of the first Trump presidency. It's called affinity partners. And he has raised money from the Saudis, from their public investment fund and from other countries in the Middle East region. I asked the president if it was appropriate for Kushner to be negotiating about matters of war and peace in the Middle East while he has this investment fund that has raised money there.

He told me the first quote that he said to me as well, he was there before, a long time before, and he's purely negotiating for the fact that they're not going to have an nuclear weapon. Whether you have business or not, everyone knows that's the right thing. He's a very good negotiator. So then I started to ask a follow-up question. The president kept going and he said, I sent my A-team. I sent my A-team. He's done an excellent job. He doesn't participate with Saudi now. As you know, he's taken. He doesn't do that. He has a business, but he doesn't participate now. Kushner is not actively raising money from the Saudis right now. And we got a statement from his lawyer from Affinity Partners. The chief legal officer Ian Brecky told us that Affinity had early

conversations with its anchor investor and does not intend to take any additional capital while Jared is volunteering for the government. An SEC registered investment firm, Affinity has abided by all laws and regulations and will continue to do so. As a volunteer right now, he is not subject to financial disclosure forms. Meanwhile, we saw the Energy Secretary Chris Wright on CNN earlier, and he mentioned he doesn't foresee gas prices coming down to under $3 a gallon until next year. You asked the president about that. What did he say? This was the last question we got to. I asked if this was a concern for the upcoming midterm elections in November.

The president told me, I disagree with him totally, meaning Secretary Wright, I think it's going to come roaring down if it ends. If we end it, meaning the war, if Iran does what they should do, it will come roaring down. The president has said this a number of times, though I would say, Amna, he can. keep saying that gas prices are going to fall so far, we have not really seen that. Americans are still feeling the pain of the pump. Terrific reporting, as always. Our White House correspondent, Liz Landers, thank you. For more now on the U.S. enforcement of the Strait of Hormuz blockade, we turn to retired

Admiral Gary Roughhead. He was chief of naval operations from 2007 to 2011. He's now a distinguished military fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. Thank you for being with us. And I want to start with this. Your reaction when you learned the U.S. Navy fired on and seized an Iranian flagged cargo ship near the Strait of Hormuz as part of the American enforcement there? I was not surprised. The blockade had been put in place and as ships were moving in and out. If there was not enforcement of the blockade, it would be viewed as a paper tiger. So stopping a ship and boarding it was not unusual to me given the circumstances. Where does firing on a vessel rank in the U.S. toolkit for enforcing a blockade like this?

I would say it's ranked pretty high. Normally, and you heard in some of the videos that were released by Sentcom that there were verbal warnings to the ship to stop, whether or not there were some shots fired across the bow to signal intent to use some. hostile force, I don't know. I've not seen anything on that. But disabling fire is quite high up the ladder, but the fact remains that the blockade was enforced. The Marines boarded it, and my understanding now is that they're searching the containers that are on that ship. How operationally challenging is it to enforce a blockade and a body of water like that, given the size and the different entry points into it?

Right now, I'd say it's not very hard. I mean, the intelligence that we have, the ability to be able to track ships, knowing where they're coming from, where they're bound, and the limited number of ships, because what we're doing is we're stopping either ships that have called at an Iranian port or are bound to an Iranian port. So that number is fairly slow. The sea lanes that are fairly low, The sea lanes that they're traveling on are well established, and in my mind, it would not be a problem to be able to begin tracking that ship using aircraft, then passing that information to the ships that are in the region for an intercept to take place.

The volume is not high. The intelligence is good, so not that challenging. If the U.S. wanted to keep the Strait of Hormuz open by force, what would that require operationally? To keep it open by force under the current circumstances would require many more ships than are in place now. It would require continuous air coverage of the strait because not only are you defending against drones and missiles, but you also have to defend against small craft. To move a large volume of ships in and out means that you would also have to start protecting those ships at some distance from the strait proper. ships that would be entering into the Gulf, you'd have to pick them up and provide escort. And those that are leaving ports from the Arab Gulf states, you would most likely have to be able to provide protection for them moving through. So until there is a ceasefire, well-established ceasefire, an accepted ceasefire by countries that are engaged in commerce in the Gulf,

it would require quite a bit of assets. And the U.S. does not currently have those assets in place right now? No, they're not. All right, that is retired Admiral Gary Ruffhead. Thanks again for your insights and perspectives this evening. Thank you. Have a good evening. For additional perspective on the state of diplomacy with Iran, we turn now to our two Iran watchers.

Alan Ayers work at the State Department focused on Iran, and he was a senior member of the Obama administration's negotiating team for the Iran nuclear deal. He's now at the Middle East Institute. And Miyadh Maliki was born and raised in Iran, and until last year he was associate director for sanctioned targeting in the U.S. Treasury Department with a focus on Iran. He's now a senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. Welcome back to you both. Good to see you.

Mia, they'll begin with you. It looks like the U.S. delegation is set to go to Pakistan tomorrow to resume talks. The question is, will the Iranians be there? Will they show up? Well, based on reportings, I see Iranians are sending a delegation. That's the last reporting that I've seen coming out of Iran. You know, it's very obvious that they know they need a deal. I mean, they might still shout openly or through the press that they don't really need a deal.

But economically and politically, they really desperately need a deal right now. So they're going in search of a deal. You think they're motivated to do? They're definitely. I mean, their economy is on the, I mean, it's a collapsed, bankrupt economy. They're getting there. They have a few days before they run out of gasoline, between 12 to 20 days, if they can't import gasoline. And last time they had to change the price on gasoline, increase the price on gasoline.

They had one of the largest protests in Iran. So they know domestically they're going to have to address the state of economy. Alan, did the U.S. attacking and boarding that ship? Did it change, leverage at all for the U.S.? changed how these talks could go on? I don't think so. I mean, it possibly increased, it increased the possibility that the Iranians wouldn't go. But as Miyadh said, they have to show up at the table just to see what the U.S. is doing.

So again, both sides, each side wants to enter with sort of the marginal additional leverage to increase its position. And the ship that was trying to run the blockade, I think, was testing U.S. resolve. But no, it didn't really move the dial either way in terms of what's going to happen at the table. Well, you saw Liz Landers reporting earlier. The president told her if there is no deal at the end of the ceasefire that the U.S. will resume bombing. What do you make of those threats? Do you think the U.S. will make good on them? And do they pressure Iranians to come to a deal?

I think empirically, I have learned not to put absolute credence into President Trump's statements. A lot of them are either to assuage the market or to terrify the Iranians. So it could well be the case that if there's not even an interim deal that allows them to extend the ceasefire, that there could be a resumption of hostilities. But I really do think that the United States is not looking to resume hostilities and start climbing up that escalation ladder with Iran again, because Iran will retaliate against regional energy. And there could just be, you know, painful consequences. Miat, is that how the Iranians see it? Do you think those threats carry weight with the leadership there? You know, if I'm in Tehran, if I'm a member of this regime, I would

consider President Trump's warning to be more of a real threat. I mean, historically, President Trump, you know, there are cases that, you know, he changed his mind, he gave Iranians more time, but there are a lot of cases that you can point to that President Trump actually went ahead and stuck to his threat. So in this case, I think Iranians know that it might end up being, things might end up getting worse for them on the, you know, on the Persian Gulf side. But, you know, what I disagree with Al-Anon is, you know, that the tanker that was targeted and stopped by U.S. it does send a very strong message to the Iranians that the blockade is serious and the implication of on an economic side of oil not being not leaving Persian Gulf and the imports fully is stopped through this blockade I think that's that's in a very strong message to Iranians that this is a real blockade

well the Americans also haven't changed any of the terms or anything they're trying to push for in this deal right and this was the same deal both sides walked away from last time what are the prospects that there's some kind of successful deal if the Americans haven't changed the things they're asking for, Alan? Well, we don't know for certainty, or at least I don't, that they haven't changed it. For example, President Trump at one point said, we do not want any indigenous enrichment on Iran. Now, that's modulated somewhat to a freeze on uranium enrichment for 20 years. The Iranians say, well, how about five years? Yeah, there's room to negotiate. A deal is doable, both on nuclear issues, on the strata foremost.

But the situation is this. It's like a scale. The more you put into the scale of what I want, the more you have to put in the scale of what I'm prepared to give. And I think this part of the scale is where the U.S. might have some problems. Where do you think the U.S. is on that part of the scale? What are they willing to give? I think it's possible that they're willing to unfreeze assets.

I think it's possible, maybe barely possible, They'd be willing to accept down blending of highly enriched uranium as opposed to getting rid of it all. But things like obviously what the Iranians want reparations, that's not going to happen. And quick and a full sanctions relief is not going to happen. How do you see it? What would the Iranians agree to? I think Iranians would agree to anything that would give them access to some cash. That's what they really need desperately.

The unfreezing of those funds would be key. I think that's what they brought in. If you look at the delegation, members of delegation that went to Islam, about last time around from Iran. They took the central bank governor with them, but they didn't take anyone from the atomic energy organization. And one of the demands was really access to those funds that are sitting in Oman, Qatar, and Iraq and elsewhere. And those are funds that they don't really need any kind of sanctions relieved to be available to the regime. They just really need some letters from the U.S. government or some message or signal from the U.S. government. So that's not

a really heavy lift for U.S. government. And Iranians know that, and they really need that cash right now. Meanwhile, we saw the strait declared open by Iranian officials, and the next day it suddenly was not. President Trump says the blockade will also continue. Alan, do you see another round of talks opening the straight and ending the blockade? No. This is their, again, pardon the pun, their Trump card is control of the strait. They never opened it. Even when Arachchi said, we're going to open it, if you had read the fine print, which wasn't in the social media post, it was, if you go through Iranian waters, if you coordinate with the IRGC Navy,

and if you pay a toll. So it was more a question of emphasis. And yes, the IRGC came back later and clamp that down. But, no, the Strait of Hormoz is their most effective leverage because every day it stays closed, its power increases. Yeah, how do you see it? This is a key point for President Trump. You know, I think this is not a Trump car.

There was a nuclear option for the Iranian regime, the closure of its trade of Hormos. They deployed it and it backlash economically. I think they're on the clock economically. If the blockade continues, if they keep straight of almost close, they're going to see the result underground in different provinces in Iran as far as, you know, gasoline prices, food prices. I think they're just trying to wait out a few days, maybe a couple of weeks to see if they can get a deal,

winning the war of narrative here in the U.S. and in the West. But at the end of the day, you know, every time there was a U.S. escalation with Iran, whether it was some airstrikes or killing up, Soleimani, you know, Argyzni commanders, Iranians always, Iranian regime, they always come back to the negotiations table because they need a deal. So they might play with the wards,

they might hear rhetoric coming out of Iran. They don't really make sense, but at the end of the day, they're desperately need a deal and they're gonna have to really give up some of those, you know, some of the principles they've been sticking to. Alan, I'll give you the last word here

in the few seconds we have left. If the Strait of Hormuz is the Iranians' Trump card, what's the best leverage for the US? Well, as Biyadh said, The great leverage is blockading Iran. The problem is you've got two clocks. And the Strait of Hormuz I'm giving pain clock is moving a lot more quickly than the naval blockade pain to Iran. Plus, Iran can take more pain.

Iran is not heading into an election year. Alan Eyre, Mia Malki. Great to see you both here. Thank you so much. Thanks. Thank you. In the day's other headlines, the White House says Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-Duremer is leaving her post. Communications Director Stephen Chung announced her departure.

on social media, saying she's done, quote, a phenomenal job and that she's taking a position in the private sector. Chung added that her deputy, Keith Sondering, will take over as acting secretary. Chavez-Duriemer had been under fire for months amid allegations that she abused her position. That included allegations of an affair involving a subordinate and drinking alcohol on the job. She's denied any wrongdoing. Chavez-Durremer is the third Trump cabinet member to leave after he fired Homeland Security Secretary, Dome in March and ousted Attorney General Pam Bondi earlier this month. Cash Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit today against the Atlantic magazine

over a story published on Friday titled, The FBI Director is MIA. It alleges, quote, episodes of excessive drinking and unexplained absences by Patel. His suit calls the article, quote, a sweeping, malicious and defamatory hit piece designed to destroy director Patel's reputation and drive him from office. Both the Justice Department and the White House have denied the story's claims. In response, a spokesperson for the Atlantic says it stands by its reporting, calling Patel's lawsuit meritless. Today, mark the first day the businesses can submit refund requests for tariffs paid before the Supreme Court ruled them unconstitutional two months ago. The website run by U.S. Customs and Border Protection allows the more than 330,000,

importers who paid about $166 billion in tariffs to file for refunds with interest. Approved refunds will take 60 to 90 days to be issued. But individual consumers who paid higher prices because of tariffs do not qualify to get their money back. Police in North Carolina say at least two people were shot and killed this morning in Winston-Salem when several juveniles agreed to meet in a park to fight. A total of seven people were shot, with injuries ranging from minor to critical. A 16-year-old and a 17-year-old were killed. Authorities say they're still trying to determine each person's role in the incident.

The police chief lamented yet another episode of gun violence among young people. First, I need to acknowledge the fear and frustration that our community must be experiencing right now. Firearms are the number one killer of kids 1 to 17. our nation now. It's also our 98th mass shooting in our country. So I share that fear and that frustration. A local middle school near the park briefly went into lockdown after the shooting. All students were later reported safe. The House Ethics Committee issued a rare statement today defending its handling of recent sexual harassment cases involving members of Congress. The committee, quote, strongly encouraged any victims of sexual

misconduct by a House member or staffer to come forward. The statement comes after the recent resignations of Democrat Eric Swalwell and Republican Tony Gonzalez and questions about how Congress investigates its own members. The House Ethics Committee largely operates behind closed doors and says little about its work. In Japan, officials are warning of a possible mega-quake that could hit the country's northeastern coast in the coming week. That follows a 7.7 magnitude FACACFELT Felt hundreds of miles away in Tokyo striking the region earlier today. Sirens blared in one coastal area, followed by tsunami warnings that were later downgraded. But officials say the threat of further quakes remains.

Japan's Prime Minister urged local residents to take precautions. In response to the aftershock advisory, which is expected to remain in effect for about a week, Please ensure you are prepared to evacuate immediately and always carry your emergency supplies with you. Today's advisory was the second such warning for the region in recent months. The meantime authorities are still assessing the damage from today's shocks. At least two people were injured and some rail service was temporarily suspended. The head of Apple, Tim Cook, is stepping down as CEO but staying on as executive chairman. John Turnus, Apple's hardware boss, will take over a CEO in September.

It's Apple's first CEO changed since 2011 when Cook took over from founder Steve Jobs. In the meantime, on Wall Street today, stocks cooled off a bit after their recent record-setting rally. The Dow Jones Industrial average lost less than five points, so basically flat. The NASDAQ slipped about 60 points to start the week. The S&P 500 gave back about a quarter of a percent. And a pair of defending champions won the Boston Marathon today. On the men's side, John Carrere of Kenya finished in two hours, one minute, and 52 seconds, breaking the course record and running the fifth fastest marathon of all time. And Sharon Loughkeety also of Kenya won the women's race in just under two hours and 19 minutes.

In the meantime, in China, it wasn't a human, but a humanoid setting the pace. This Android from smartphone brand Honor set a new world record for a half marathon, finishing in 50s. 50 minutes and 26 seconds. That is 7 minutes faster than the human record and also way better than my all-time best. Still to come on the News Hour. The National Redistricting Fight comes to Virginia. Tamara Keith and Amy Walter break down the latest political headlines and why some cities are turning their streetlights red. This is the PBS News Hour from the David M. Rubenstein studio at WETA and Washington headquarters of BBS News. Another deadly shooting has torn apart another American community.

Yesterday morning in Shreveport, Louisiana, a man shot and killed eight children and gravely wounded two adults. He was killed during a confrontation with police after fleeing the scene. William Brangham has more. Jeff, police said the children ranged in age from three to 11 years old. The killer was reportedly the father to seven of the eight children. that he killed. The two adult victims were the suspect's wife and another woman. This was the deadliest shooting in America in over two years, and it sent shockwaves throughout Shreveport. City officials today said the shooting underscores a broader problem.

I would like to also remind everyone that in the city of Shreveport, we have a true epidemic of domestic violence. And that is something that should be a top priority of the the city's administration, the city council, and law enforcement. For more on this tragedy and the broader issue of gun violence, we are joined again by April Zioly. She's the director of the Michigan Firearm Law Implementation Program at the University of Michigan. April, thank you so much for being here again. Your research studies the intersection of domestic violence and firearms. So given that people might just be taking on board what this tragedy is all about. What was your initial reaction to this? My initial reaction was,

unfortunately, that this has happened again. We know from research that there are often opportunities to intervene and to stop this kind of violence from happening, but the opportunities were missed and were left with a tragedy. And what does the research show us about that? And what does the research show us about that the overlap between domestic violence and firearm ownership? It shows that when a violent, male, intimate partner has access to a gun, the chance that he'll kill the female partner goes up five times. It is much greater. We also know that there is more likely to be other victims as well. So in this case, we saw it. an intimate partner, another adult, and eight children.

This comports with what we know about domestic violence shootings, unfortunately. And this also seems to fly in the face of the way guns are marketed and sold as a defensive weapon, that you bring a gun into your home to defend yourself, not that that gun then becomes a tool used against you. Correct. The reason guns are pitched and sold as defensive weapons and people want them as defensive weapons are exactly the reasons that they are so deadly. Guns are incredibly lethal and they're a range weapons so you can injure somebody from far away. You can't do that with a knife. You can't do that with a blunt instrument. And that gives firearms. more lethality. And if you're hit by a bullet, you're much more likely to die than if, say, you were stabbed. So in an already violent situation, firearms just make the problem worse.

And you touched on this before, but when we think about children in America being shot, we tend to think of school shootings. How does the data on school shootings compare to violence in the home, shootings in the home? School shootings are tragedies, and we should do everything we can to prevent them. But if we're concerned about children dying, then we have to look at domestic violence and events that happen in the home. Because kids are much safer at schools than they are in the home. When they're dying in mass shootings, these are domestic violence events. We heard public officials in Shreveport today repeatedly saying to the general public that if you see something, say something.

They're basically saying if you know that someone is troubled and may have access to a gun, that they have to speak up. I mean, is that the message to people that that's the best way to prevent this? Do we have other ways of intervening that are useful? Oh, there are many ways to intervene. In this particular case, it's been reported that the wife of the shooter was leaving. They were getting divorced. And just that one fact raises the risk of homicide and severe violence. Separation is the most deadly time when it comes to domestic violence.

So this is a time for people to gather resources for, courts and domestic violence agencies to come into play and help somebody's safety plan. Safety plans can really help. Restraining orders can sometimes help. There are other things people can do if no action is taken. If firearms aren't removed, if they're still available, if somebody who says that they're suicidal doesn't get any attention, then we're really not going to solve this problem. That is April Ziole of the University of Michigan. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us.

Thank you. In Virginia, voters are heading to the polls Tuesday to weigh in on a ballot measure that could reshape the state's congressional map and potentially shift the balance of power in Washington. Supporters say it's a necessary response to aggressive Republican-led redistricting in other states. Opponents call it blatant partisanship. Lisa Desjardin reports. In Virginia, a divide over ideas that once unified the state, democracy and fair play. With Democrats focusing on suburban Northern Virginia, arguing this balances out Republican power grabs in other states. But with Republicans arguing, Virginia Democrats are doing the power grabbing.

This purple state has a near even split in Congress now, but a referendum would change that. A yes vote would redraw the map so Democrats could pick up four seats, leaving just one, clearly Republican district. Help put our elections back on a level playing field. Big stakes have brought big names, like former President Barack Obama, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. There is a barrage of spending, nearly $100 million in all. The national redistricting war started by Texas Republicans at President Trump's urging, then volleyed through several other states. But Virginia is likely Democrats' last chance to gain seats by remapping this year.

Very simple. We have the opportunity to level that playing field. Which is why freshman congressman and Democrat James Watkinshaw is at this event in his district in Fairfax County outside of Washington, along with many volunteers. The effort is well-funded and focused. They believe Trump's actions are particularly driving backlash here. I think Doge, the Doge chainsaw that slashed through not just Northern Virginia, but all of Virginia, right? There's a lot of federal workers and now, unfortunately, former federal workers who live in every corner of the Commonwealth.

Like volunteer Jillian Sullivan. So I'm out here doing this because I was terminated as a probationary employee. And I... By Doge? Yes, by Doge. She was fired, rehired, and then faced another... possible federal layoff, so she reluctantly took the Doge buyout. That pushed Sullivan to volunteer for political campaigns. Hi, I'm Jillian. I'm here on behalf of Virginians for fair elections.

She says this battle is about democracy and a fair shot to check President Trump. This is a very pivotal moment, and it's now or never. With election day, I think we're going to come out on top. But Republicans are betting on rural Virginia, like Congressman Ben Klein in front of an overflowing crowd in Culpeper. His district currently runs along the state's Blue Ridge Mountains, but under the proposed map, it is broken up entirely into five other districts. His job would be in jeopardy, and he thinks his area would lose power. They're really just tilting the scales and removing rural voices from the legislative process, and that's something we have to say no to. I used to teach preschool, and it sounds like managing a preschool classroom, because

First of all, two wrongs don't make a right. Jody Nicholson simply can't stomach the remapping. She's not a shatter, sitting in the back at the rally. She voted for Obama and then Trump. But Nicholson sees the referendum as poisoning the balance between suburban Northern Virginia and the rest of the state. These two populations really don't understand each other. They don't.

So there's just a disconnect that inevitably, if this referendum passes, those people are just going to be forgotten. To make the map more blue, Democrats would carve up deep blue Fairfax County. Where I'm standing would be the intersection of three congressional districts, so that the apartment buildings over here would be in one congressional district, those over there would be in a second, and then right over here, these folks would be in a third congressional district. If you drove just a short distance away, you'd find a fourth congressional district and then a fifth.

That's led to a new Republican catch for, don't Fairfax me popping up. Countering that, Texas started it, bumper stickers. Democrats stress the changes end after the 2030 census. It's very clear that it's a temporary measure to deal with an unprecedented power grab from Donald Trump. The state's Speaker of the House, Democrat Don Scott, says Virginia must push back at Trump now. Donald Trump is the President of the United States. He's the Speaker of the House.

He's the Senate Majority Leader. He has an unprecedented power right now because. no Republican in Congress will hold him to account. But this is not a simple party line vote. Even some Democrats say this goes too far. And we just do not have to adopt Trump's toxic politics or policies in order to beat him in November and beyond. Brian Cannon helped create Virginia's current independent system to draw nonpartisan maps

and opposes this redistricting. It would be the worst gerrymandered Virginia's ever seen, and we've seen a good deal of them. And as a Democrat, I'm telling my Democratic friends, we really don't need to cheat to win. We don't need to burn this down. But what Virginians believe is not clear yet. Polling indicates the remapping push has an edge, but this is the closest redistricting referendum the country has seen. For the PBS News Hour, I'm Lisa Desjardin in Virginia. And President Trump is personally joining the push against the Virginia ballot measure. He's set to join a virtual rally tonight, along with House Speaker Mike Johnson.

The U.S. Labor Secretary's resignation marks the third Trump cabinet departure in recent weeks. To discuss that and more on redistricting and the midterms, we turn to our Politics Monday duo. That's Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter and Tamara Keith of NPR. It's great to see you both, as always. So the Labor Secretary, Lori Chavez-Daremer, is stepping down from the Trump administration to take a job in the private sector that's according to the White House Communications Director. Tam, we know President Trump is willing to stand by embank. officials until he isn't. What tends to be the tipping point? Yeah, and this is the third embattled official that is now out. Remarkably, normally this happens

from a presidential post on Truth Social, his social media site. In this case, it was just a post from the White House Communications Director. Trump didn't even get his hands dirty on this one. It has varied each time, but there is often a nexus that involves testimony on Capitol Hill or controversies that threaten to break out and get out of control and unable to manage. And so here we are. The other issue at play here is that if President Trump expects that Republicans will have a narrower margin in the same, Senate after this year, then he may want to lock in new cabinet officials that he'll be able to get confirmed. So now might be the time for this turnover.

And often there is a decent amount of turnover depending on the administration, certainly the first Trump administration had a ton. Typically that that second year is a time of turnover. All right. Well, let's talk about redistricting. We just saw Lisa's terrific reporting there. Amy, polling shows Virginians narrowly favoring this measure. even though the Democratic governor, Abigail Spanberger, won statewide by roughly 15 points.

So why that disconnect? Is this not going? Well, who knows, right? But is it going to pass? The disconnect is you do have a lot of independent voters who don't like Donald Trump, but who also like the partisan, the nonpartisan redistricting that has already taken place and that the current map is all about. I mean, in California and in Virginia, the conversation about redistricting has centered really around Donald Trump, at least the conversation on the Democratic side. Let this be a check on Donald Trump. But I think if we want to step back just a little bit further

as to what this all looks like now in the big picture, the first is even when Virginia is done tomorrow night, there's still one more state that can redraw its lines. Florida meets in a special session next week. the potential there is that they redraw a map that would give Republicans two to three seats. That is likely to be our last map before the 2026 election. Overall, what we see is essentially a wash. After all this redistricting, all these new lines drawn in many of these states,

neither side is likely to come out ahead on this. The second is that it's been interesting to watch sort of the pressure campaigns from both sides. On the Republican side, the president got a lot of what he wanted, Texas and North Carolina and Missouri, but he didn't get everything he wanted. He really pressured a state like Indiana, for example, that rebuffed him. Same with Kansas, New Hampshire. And on the Democratic side, even dark blue states that didn't have to go through this whole referendum process, like Virginia and California did to redraw their lines, Illinois and Maryland, they decided not to take up redistricting. So not everybody jumped on board from the pressure on both sides. And finally, I think we're not likely to see the end of this.

Remember, we have a Supreme Court case that is yet to be decided involving the Voting Rights Act. If indeed this gets overturned, the Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, what we could potentially see for 2028 are southern states. redrawing their maps, they would no longer have to draw minority, majority districts. That could give Republicans up to a dozen seats. What stands out to you about all of this? It is fascinating. I'm a Virginia resident, and so I'm being bombarded with mailers and advertising on TV, and it is just nonstop. And the message that the No campaign is pushing is very interesting, because in part, they are playing to the priors of Democrats,

Democrats who have railed against gerrymandering for years, replaying quotes from former President Obama, from Governor Spanberger in the past, saying that gerrymandering is bad and shouldn't happen, and now it is turned around. But when you talk to voters, Democratic voters, who are predisposed to think gerrymandering is bad, they say, okay, well, you got to fight fire with fire.

This one time, it's okay. That's what we saw from voters in California. And it's what we're seeing from Democratic voters in Virginia as well, the sense that, you know, you may not like it, but you might just vote for it anyway. Yeah. Let's look ahead to the midterms, because we're seeing some eye-popping numbers,

fundraising numbers from Democrats, including James Tala Rico in Texas, who reported more than $27 million raised in a single quarter. What stands out the most to you in these early numbers, Amy? For sure, the energy that Democrats are feeling on the ground. We're seeing it in special elections, where they have been outperforming. Kamala Harris is showing in those same districts in 2024. One sign of their enthusiasm, Democrats' enthusiasm.

Another sign is individual fundraising. That's how partisans tend to show their interest in elections. because a lot of that money that Tal RICO raised isn't just from Texans. It's from Democrats across the country. To me, the biggest, and maybe we'll call it the $300-plus million question for this year, is what is going to happen to the $340-plus million in the MAGA-Inc Super PAC account? That is the President Trump's super PAC that every Republican in America is desperate to get a piece of. how and when he spends that is going to be a very, very big story.

Again, these numbers are impressive. $340 million in a very small playing field. That's a big deal. And, Tam, of course, we know from history that fundraising money doesn't always translate into votes. Money does not necessarily always translate into votes. The other thing I will just note quickly is that although Democratic candidates are raising a lot of money, the Democratic Party, the DNC and the Democratic Party committees are not raising as much. And so that might make coordinating or prioritizing where the money goes a little bit more challenging

coming into the fall because these high-profile viral candidates are able to just direct money to ourselves. Tamara Keith, Amy Walter, thanks as always. You're welcome. Today marks the final day of Dark Sky Week, which is hailed as a global celebration of the night and a call for less light pollution. In some cities internationally, local governments are trying to find a solution to lighting the night that can better serve

critical wildlife ecosystems and humans alike. Malcolm Brabant reports from Denmark. It's dusk in Gladzaxa, a municipality north of Copenhagen that prides itself on combining urban growth with environmental initiatives. Gladzaxa was the first Danish local authority to install red street lighting,

that helps reset the balance between human beings and the animal kingdom. The council removed conventional white spectrum street lamps from this stretch of road next to a large bat colony in the trees. Artificial white light is hugely disruptive for a broad range of creatures. For example, bees get a form of jet lag, frogs lose their libido, and bats find it difficult to catch food. Red light enables bats to see in the dark, unlike white light, which blinds them.

This simple solution to restoring Bat's night vision has been adopted in Mets in eastern France, Worcestershire, in the British Midlands, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and its spreading. Every light source we put up changes some balances, move things around, makes it easier for some animals to find a mate, get food, and makes it harder for someone else.

Runa Brandt Hermanson was one of the ones. of the designers behind the red light project in Gladzacca. We need to take care and try to change and affect our surroundings as little as possible. And a lot of lighting is actually there for no one's sake. I'm not an advocate that we should not have lighting for humans. I'm an advocate that we should try and have as little lighting as we can so we can offer more darkness for nature. Biologists say that people need to recognize the importance of bats in the ecosystem.

It may resemble rats with wings, but they have a critical role to play in protecting human health. We underestimate the importance of bats. Mikhail Steiner Mullah is a senior biologist with a Danish Sustainable Development Consultancy. Bats are predators, and they eat half their weight in insects every night. They're kind of a pest control and important part of keeping insects populations in a natural balance and check. The consequence of bats failing to feast on insects is that farmers are forced to use chemical

pesticides on their crops. Studies have shown that the toxins can contribute to cancer and other diseases in humans. It's important to regulate how we affect the ecosystem, not only for the ecosystem itself, but for our health. Steenemullah blends his biological knowledge with the design skills of lighting consultant Leeserdam Tram to create the most efficient illumination of the most efficient illumination for a client's parking lot next to a sensitive wildlife habitat. People are actually adapting to this new technology and this new type of light.

We've been used to having this very bright light during nights, and we have to actually change our mindset. And people are, I think, really embracing this a lot. People in Denmark really care about the nature. If we can do something different, I think that people are really up for it. Owenser, Denmark's third largest city, is the latest to install biodiversity lights. diversity lights. This version, using orangey red lamps, becomes softer and warmer as the night

darkens, aligning with the circadian rhythms or internal body clocks of nocturnal wildlife. But as runner Michael Gruenbeck explains, some people find the darker pathways intimidating. For those who have a fear of darkness, I think that this can feel unsafe. Some people prefer more light. Some don't. It doesn't bother me. Gladzacca sees itself as a role model for other cities around the world. Switching to red lamps has proved to be a cost-effective way of addressing light pollution. The system uses less power and requires less maintenance than conventional street lighting. Siddell Benli is Glasgow's mayor.

I hope that we can help inspire other municipalities to join the bandwagon here, because it is quite important that we think about sustainable. that we think about sustainability, think about biodiversity all the way around, because that is what we owe to future generations. We owe it to our planet and to those we share this planet with, namely to all living beings on this planet. And consultant Runa Brand Hermanson predicts

that improvements in lighting technology will contribute more to the harmonious coexistence of humans and the animal kingdom. We are at the brink of a lot of technological advancements that can actually make a difference without it having a negative impact on humans because we shouldn't change society. I mean, we need lighting to do what we do. There's no reason for us not to have our light and for nature to have the darkness or their light.

Conventional lighting accounts for approximately 5% of all global carbon dioxide emissions and 15% of total global electricity consumption worldwide. So, the experts say, switching to red streetlights could contribute to slowing climate change, as well as helping bats to maintain a healthy insect diet. For the PBS News Hour, I'm Malcolm Brabant in Glasgow, Denmark. Remember, there's always a lot more online. We look at a new vaccine for Lyme disease that could soon receive FDA approval.

You can find that story on our YouTube page. And that is The News Hour for tonight. I'm Jeff Bennett. I'm Amna Navaz. On behalf of the entire News Hour team, thank you for joining us. Thank you.