PBS News Hour

GEOFF BENNETT: Good evening.

I'm Geoff Bennett.

AMNA NAWAZ: And I'm Amna Nawaz.

On the "News Hour" tonight: Florida residents pick up the pieces of their homes and lives in the wake of Hurricanes Milton and Helene.

We visit some of the hardest-hit areas.

ROBERT HARRISON, Florida Resident: It's getting uglier and uglier every storm season.

There's no fix for it that I see.

GEOFF BENNETT: Former President Donald Trump stokes fears at a rally in Aurora, Colorado, a city he's falsely claimed is being taken over by gang violence.

AMNA NAWAZ: And Israel once again injures U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon and launches its deadliest strike in Central Beirut, raising more concerns about its operation targeting Hezbollah.

AMNA NAWAZ: Welcome to the "News Hour."

More than two million Floridians still have no power tonight after Hurricane Milton tore through the state, while many others have returned home to assess the damage.

GEOFF BENNETT: The storm has been tied to at least 10 deaths.

State officials say more than 1,600 people were saved by search-and-rescue teams.

William Brangham reports on what life now looks like in communities that have faced a one-two punch from both Milton and Hurricane Helene.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Matthew King and his family are deciding which of their precious memories to keep and which have to be thrown away.

Nearly everything from their grandmother's home in Bradenton, Florida is molding, soaked by Hurricane Helene two weeks ago and then pounded by Hurricane Milton two days ago.

King was here with his dad and grandmother.

The night Helene rolled in.

MATTHEW KING, Florida Resident: We weren't sure if it was going to, like, drown us or not.

So we had to start packing our bags up on the beds, tables, whatever was a high point in the house, and then get suitcases ready.

And by the time we were ready to get out, the water was already coming through the doors.

It was coming through the walls.

It was starting to flood the living room and all that.

Yes.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That must have been terrifying.

MATTHEW KING: For sure.

But everybody made it out.

We got the dogs.

We got the people.

Anything else can be replaced.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: They started cleaning up, but then Milton hit, raining tree branches onto the house and backyard.

They now have to decide if this is a home they can save or even a region they want to stay in.

MATTHEW KING: Like, if this is just a one-time thing, yes, I'd say it's worth it.

But these storms are getting worse every year.

It's not like it was before, where we get a bad storm every 10 years and it would never hit us directly.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The Kings are like thousands of other families across the state, just starting the long road to recovery and unsure of the future.

Thousands of National Guard troops have been deployed to address infrastructure damage, including to many roads and drinking water systems.

Multiple gas stations also remain closed, and the overall cleanup is expected to take weeks, perhaps months.

Today, President Biden said he will visit Florida this weekend and that he will press Congress for more funding, given that this disaster may cost at least $50 billion.

JOE BIDEN, President of the United States: Everyone in the impacted areas should know we're going to do everything we can to let you -- help you pick back up the pieces and get back to where you were.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: In Lakeland, residents of the Buccaneer Bay mobile home community can't start picking up those pieces, not until they get rid of all the floodwater.

Resident Laura Montgomery has lived here for seven years, but this storm might be the end for her.

LAURA MONTGOMERY, Florida Resident: I'm done.

I'm done with hurricanes.

We're going to move out of state.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Is that right?

LAURA MONTGOMERY: Yes.

We're going to see what FEMA will give us, because these trailers are so old, we can't even get homeowner's insurance on them.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Oh, so you have no insurance at all?

LAURA MONTGOMERY: No, no insurance.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Right behind her, Ken Murray was rowing his 80-year-old mother to safety.

They have lived here for six years.

Her health isn't great, and even as the water rose up in their trailer on the night of Milton, she did not want to leave.

The next day, Murray finally persuaded her.

KEN MURRAY, Florida Resident: She didn't want to.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: And it's hard to push your mom to do things your mom doesn't want to do.

KEN MURRAY: Yes.

I think we all have that problem.

(LAUGHTER) WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Murray's truck is almost out of gas, as are many of the nearby stations, and he wasn't sure where they were going to sleep that night.

DIANE HARRISON, Florida Resident: Sea level is rising.

Florida is not a good place.

Real estate here is quite wet.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Diane and Robert Harrison have been stuck in their home since Milton came through, a little island stranded in the middle of their street.

ROBERT HARRISON, Florida Resident: Every storm seems like it's a little worse than the last one.

If that's what the climatologists and science people call the effects of global warming, then OK.

But whatever the cause, the effect is, it's getting uglier and uglier every storm season.

And there's no fix for it that I see from where I'm sitting at... DIANE HARRISON: It's a global... ROBERT HARRISON: ... except to try and find some place that's a little less inhospitable.

DIANE HARRISON: When's that mother ship coming?

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The one from outer space?

DIANE HARRISON: Yes, because planet Earth is really messed up right now.

(LAUGHTER) WILLIAM BRANGHAM: So, absent the idea of some mother ship coming down to save humanity, we are going to have to come to grips with this, Floridians, people across this country, with the idea that we are going to see more of these serious disasters, many of which are exacerbated by climate change, and that this is part of our new reality going forward -- Geoff.

GEOFF BENNETT: And, on that point, William, we're seeing more data about the connection between climate change and these destructive storms.

What do scientists believe is the linkage?

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That's right, Geoff.

This is a field of science called attribution science.

How much can you attribute climate change to any one given disaster?

And skeptics of this idea, including the Florida governor, Ron DeSantis, who was saying, why do you always have to talk about climate change with regards to hurricanes, we have always had hurricanes, that is true.

We have always had droughts.

We have always had hurricanes.

We have always had wildfires.

The science is showing, though, that climate change can make these things worse, can exacerbate them.

For one example, when a hurricane enters the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean and hits abnormally warm ocean waters, which is driven by human-driven climate change, it can make those storms more intense and make them accelerate more quickly.

That is a proven fact.

There are two new recent studies, one by the Imperial College of London, one by World Weather Attribution, both showing that this most recent hurricane was, by significant percentages, dropping more rain, blowing more wind, and causing more damage to the residents of Florida.

And this is an increasing focus of scientists, but we are now seeing that all of the people around me are paying the price for that.

GEOFF BENNETT: Shifting our focus a bit, we have been reporting all week on the swarm of misinformation and disinformation around these two disasters.

Now there are reports of extremist groups that are showing up to help with the recovery work.

Tell us about that.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That's right, Geoff.

In addition to the -- as we have reported, this torrent of misinformation and lies about FEMA and the federal response and who created these hurricanes, as if that's actually something someone could do, The Wall Street Journal reported that a group known as Patriot Front, which is a racist white supremacist organization, was sending groups of its members down here to a local community to do recovery work.

And they were filming themselves marching around doing -- helping people clean their yards and posting these videos to say, where is your government?

Where are your local leaders?

In fact, we are the people here to protect you, not them.

And we were asking about, well, what is driving some of this?

We spoke to a gentleman named Moustafa Ayad.

He's at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue.

And he told one of my colleagues how groups like this take these fissures in our society and try to sow distrust and division and choose every opportunity they can to try to get and turn Americans against each other.

And, again, this is all happening to people around us right now who are at their most vulnerable.

And the last thing they need is to be lied to and misled.

But that is what we are seeing in today's society.

GEOFF BENNETT: William Brangham in Bradenton, Florida, for us tonight.

William, thank you.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Thanks, Geoff.

AMNA NAWAZ: Former President Trump and Vice President Harris were out on the trail in neighboring states today.

Harris fired up some of her Republican supporters in battleground Arizona.

But we begin our coverage with former President Trump, who held a rally in Colorado, a state not seen as within his reach in this election.

In Aurora, Colorado this afternoon, former President Trump campaigned on crime and immigration.

DONALD TRUMP, Former President of the United States (R) and Current U.S. Presidential Candidate: I will rescue Aurora and every town that has been invaded and conquered.

These towns have been conquered.

Explain that to your governor.

He doesn't have a clue.

They have been conquered.

And we will put these vicious and bloodthirsty criminals in jail or kick them out of our country.

AMNA NAWAZ: Trump repeated lies debunked many times by local officials about Venezuelan gangs taking control of parts of the Denver suburb, delivering a familiar and false refrain about violent crime rates in America, which FBI data shows have been declining.

Vice President Harris, meanwhile, rallied in neighboring Arizona, her second straight day in the battleground border state, this time courting voters from across the aisle at a Republicans for Harris event.

KAMALA HARRIS, Vice President of the United States (D) and U.S. Presidential Candidate: Each of you have had the courage to say, hey, we may not agree on every single thing.

That's also what a democracy looks like.

But foundational first principles cannot be in question, not for the sake of our children, not for the sake of our future and well-being, not for the sake of our standing in the world.

AMNA NAWAZ: While running mate Tim Walz was in Michigan earlier today.

GOV.

TIM WALZ (D-MN), Vice Presidential Candidate: She's proud to be part of the most pro-labor administration in American history.

AMNA NAWAZ: Working to win over a group the campaign has struggled with, blue-collar union workers in battleground states.

BARACK OBAMA, Former President of the United States: Hello, Pittsburgh.

Are you fired up?

(CHEERING) AMNA NAWAZ: Former President Obama has joined that effort, rallying for Harris last night in Pennsylvania, and offering sharp takedowns of her opponent.

BARACK OBAMA: There is absolutely no evidence that this man thinks about anybody but himself.

(CHEERING) BARACK OBAMA: I have said it before, Donald Trump is a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rode down his golden escalator nine years ago.

AMNA NAWAZ: Trump's running mate, J.D.

Vance, meanwhile, made headlines for what he wouldn't say.

QUESTION: Do you believe he lost the 2020 election?

AMNA NAWAZ: Refusing five times in an interview with The New York Times to say that Trump lost in 2020.

QUESTION: Senator Vance, I'm going to ask you again,did Donald Trump lose the 2020 election?

SEN. J.D.

VANCE (R-OH), Vice Presidential Candidate: Did big technology companies censor a story that independent studies have suggested would have cost Trump millions of votes?

I think that's the question.

QUESTION: Senator Vance, I'm going to ask you again.

Did Donald Trump lose the 2020 election?

SEN. J.D.

VANCE: And I have answered your question with another question.

You answer my question and I will answer yours.

AMNA NAWAZ: Vance refused last week to answer the same question during the vice presidential debate.

With polls consistently pointing to a razor-thin race... NARRATOR: Jill Stein.

AMNA NAWAZ: ... a new ad from the DNC today warned voters that backing third-party candidate Jill Stein could tip the results in Trump's favor.

NARRATOR: Stein was key to Trump's 2016 wins in battleground states.

She's not sorry she helped Trump win.

That's why a vote for Stein is really a vote for Trump.

AMNA NAWAZ: As both campaigns crisscross the critical swing states in these final weeks before Election Day.

We start the day's other headlines with the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, which was awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese group of survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The 1945 atomic bombings by U.S. forces were the first and only nuclear attacks in history.

In Japan, survivors are known as Hibakusha, and many have dedicated their lives to abolishing nuclear weapons.

Their win today was, in a way, a warning.

The chair of the Nobel Committee said -- quote -- "In a world ridden with conflicts, we wanted to highlight the importance of strengthening the nuclear taboo."

The winners were shocked when they heard the news.

The organization's co-chair said their stories matter now more than ever before.

TOSHIYUKI MIMAKI, Co-Chair, Nihon Hidankyo (through translator): What I seek the most is peace, of course.

The images of the children in Gaza covered with blood held by their parents remind me of Japan 80 years ago.

Children lost their fathers in the war and lost their mothers with the nuclear bomb.

They became orphans.

AMNA NAWAZ: Palestinian officials say the war in Gaza has killed more than 42,000 people, the majority women and children.

And Russian President Vladimir Putin recently announced a shift in his country's nuclear policy.

That was seen as a warning to the West against allowing Ukraine to strike Russia with long-range weapons.

But, overnight, it was a Russian missile that struck deep into Ukraine, hitting the southern port city of Odesa and killing at least four people.

Located on the Black Sea, Odesa is one of Ukraine's biggest hubs for exporting grain.

Russia has attacked it four times this week alone, in an apparent effort to damage one of Ukraine's economic lifelines.

In the meantime, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in Germany today, where he received a pledge of more than a billion dollars in military support from Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

And he urged all Western partners not to let up their assistance.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, Ukrainian President (through translator): For us, it is very important that aid does not decrease next year.

For us, it is very important to think about the coming year, to have everything sufficient to protect people and lives.

AMNA NAWAZ: Russian President Vladimir Putin was engaging with his own allies today, meeting with Iran's president at a conference in Turkmenistan.

He told regional leaders he wants to create a -- quote -- "new world order" against the West.

New data shows an increase in migrants crossing the Darien Gap last month.

That's a rugged stretch of dense jungle between Colombia and Panama that connects South America to Central America.

Records show that more than 25,000 migrants crossed in September, a rise of more than 50 percent from the month before.

Of those, 80 percent came from Venezuela, after that country's controversial July elections and the crackdown that followed.

In total, nearly 278,000 migrants have crossed this year amid a push by Panama's new president to curb migration.

In Texas, an investigation is under way into what caused a gas leak at an oil refinery that killed two people.

Dozens more were treated for poisoning.

Emergency vehicles rushed to the Pemex facility in Deer Park outside Houston yesterday.

Authorities say that the victims were killed when hydrogen sulfide leaked during work at the facility.

That's a foul-smelling gas that can be toxic at high levels.

Officials issued a shelter-in-place order, but that has since been lifted.

It's the second such incident in the past two weeks.

This natural gas pipeline also in Deer Park spewed massive flames for more than four days last month.

Boeing says that it's cutting 17,000 jobs and delaying the rollout of its 777X wide-body plane as a monthlong strike by factory workers hurts its finances.

That is about 10 percent of the plane maker's global work force.

In a statement, Boeing's CEO said the cuts are necessary -- quote -- "to align with our financial reality."

A strike by more than 30,000 workers has shut down production of Boeing's 737's MAX jet, among others.

This week, Boeing withdrew its latest contract offer after talks between the union and management broke down.

American consumers are growing a bit more concerned about the state of the economy.

Today's reading on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan showed a dip in October after two months of gains.

Economists say consumers are frustrated by high prices for goods and services.

That comes as a Labor Department report showed producer prices were unchanged in September from the month before, which signals a continued easing of overall inflation.

On Wall Street today, stocks surged to new records after some strong earnings from big financial companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average jumped more than 400 points to a new all-time high.

The Nasdaq added about 60 points on the day, and the S&P 500 closed above 5800 for the first time ever.

And stargazers were treated to a dazzling display last night, as the Northern Lights put on a show much further south than usual.

A celestial collage of colors could be seen in New York, Washington, D.C., and even Kentucky.

The mix of purples, greens and reds is actually caused by a series of strong solar storms hitting Earth.

When particles and energy from the sun collide with gases in our atmosphere, they can emit photons of brilliant light.

Similar conditions are set for tonight, but experts say the lights will only be visible in Canada and some Northern U.S. states.

Still to come on the "News Hour": where the presidential candidate stand on abortion and IVF access; David Brooks and Jonathan Capehart on what to expect in the final weeks before Election Day; and why an English town is hoping the success of its soccer team will revive the local community.

GEOFF BENNETT: It has been another day of widening war in Lebanon.

Israeli troops fired again on U.N. positions, wounding two, and IDF troops also fired on Lebanese armed forces.

The leaders of France, Spain, and Italy issued a joint letter denouncing the strikes on U.N. forces, and President Biden said he too asked Israel to stop the attacks.

That's as Hezbollah militants fired dozens more rockets into Israel today.

But, as Leila Molana-Allen reports, the most severe Israeli strike was overnight in Central Beirut.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: All through the night, the wail of sirens, plumes of acrid smoke, the bitter smell of fire.

Last night, at least two Israeli airstrikes hit the very heart of Beirut without warning in a busy residential area most believed it was off-limits.

But as the war intensifies, Lebanese are fast learning that nowhere is safe.

Grandmother Hannah has lived here for 40 years.

She thought last night was her last.

HANNAH HASBINEH, Beirut Resident (through translator): I was sitting at home watching television when I suddenly saw something like a meteor and then it exploded.

I thought I was going to die.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Walking down this familiar street, seeing her local grosser's fresh vegetables now covered in soot and building dust, she can't believe her eyes.

HANNAH HASBINEH (through translator): This area is amazing and peaceful.

I don't know why this happened.

We experienced a number of wars over the years, but nothing like this one.

The displaced families from the south and southern suburb are staying here.

Where should they go now?

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: The janitor of her neighbor's apartment block and his whole family were killed.

And many others who died here were families displaced from the south.

They took refuge here because they thought it was safe.

The man Israel says it was targeting, Wafiq Safa, Hezbollah's main intermediary with Western agencies and governments here, escaped the strikes unscathed.

Many civilians did not.

At least 22 people died last night and nearly 120 were injured.

Overwhelmed local hospitals worked until dawn to save who they could.

It's a shift E.R.

doctor Jihad Bekaai won't forget.

DR. JIHAD BEKAAI, Makassed Hospital Beirut (through translator): Most of the injured were women and children.

The kids all had critical injuries in the stomach and thighs or heads.

One young girl died right away.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Desperate families arrived one after the other begging for news of missing loved ones.

DR. JIHAD BEKAAI (through translator): They were all in a state of extreme panic, not knowing if their relatives were injured or even alive.

When they injured our children and women and not military men, it affects us a lot.

They came here to seek shelter, thinking that the city was safe.

They were wrong.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: As the strikes escalate, Jihad is sealing himself for another night of treating their victims.

DR. JIHAD BEKAAI (through translator): I can only pray this war ends and the world wakes up to the fact that these attacks are targeting civilians, not soldiers.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Down the road, a scene of carnage.

The airstrikes in this residential neighborhood last night brought down this entire high-rise apartment block.

They were digging bodies out of the rubble through the night, and now civil defense volunteers are trying to clear what's left of these homes.

Residents retrieve what they can from the rubble, inconsolable, mixed in with the twisted metal and fractured concrete, the pieces of normal family lives turned to ashes.

This was a child's bedroom, a small mattress, dolls, a Barbie coloring book.

In the background, the ever-present sound of an Israeli drone flying above.

Ahmed Khatib's family had just finished supper when there was a booming flash and their wall caved in.

AHMED KHATIB, Beirut Resident (through translator): We heard a bang, and suddenly I couldn't see anything.

I ran straight to my daughter.

She'd been sleeping in her bed, but I found her on the floor covered in dust.

I don't know how I dug her out and rescued her.

She was calling out to me.

She's only little.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Ahmed's wife, Marwa, was buried here under the rubble as their 3-year-old daughter, Ayla, screamed for her mother.

They could hear her struggling to breathe, so they rushed to dig her out.

They managed to, but she's still in intensive care.

AHMED KHATIB (through translator): The guy who was helping me dig her out told me: "Your wife is already dead."

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: As his aunt arrives to comfort him, Ahmed's steely resolve breaks.

I ask him if I can see pictures of his wife and daughter, but he doesn't have any to look at while he waits for news of Marwa's condition, because his phone, like everything else they own, was destroyed in the explosion.

As Israel's military campaign spreads further across Lebanon and its capital, hundreds of lives are being torn apart in its wake.

Everyone now fears they will be next.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Leila Molana-Allen in Beirut.

AMNA NAWAZ: Two years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade made abortion access a top political issue across America and now in the race for the White House.

Our Laura Barron-Lopez has been covering both candidates' positions on reproductive rights.

She joins me now.

Good to see you, Laura.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Good to be here.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, start with the national landscape for us here.

Where do the bans and restrictions currently stand nationwide?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Right now, across the country, 13 states total, Amna, have abortion bans with very few exceptions.

Now, after that, four -- there are four states that have bans at six weeks and three other states ban abortions after 12 or 15 weeks.

And the majority of those states are in the Deep South, including swing states like Georgia and North Carolina.

AMNA NAWAZ: OK.

So that's where we are now.

When it comes to the candidates, walk us through it.

Where does Vice President Harris stand on this issue?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Harris became the face of abortion rights for the Biden administration, and she was the first sitting vice president believed to have visited an abortion clinic during this administration.

Now, when it comes to her positions on abortion, here's what she wants to do.

She wants to restore the federal right to an abortion that was first established under Roe v. Wade.

She wants to protect abortion access until fetal viability, which is generally considered to be around 23 to 24 weeks.

And she supports ending the filibuster to pass federal protections for abortion.

The reality though, Amna, is that it's highly unlikely that Vice President Harris would have enough votes in the Senate to pass -- to end the filibuster and to pass legislation like that.

But Harris made her pitch to Latino voters on this issue in a town hall last night.

KAMALA HARRIS, Vice President of the United States (D) and U.S. Presidential Candidate: There are probably many people here and watching who rightly have made a decision that they do not believe in abortion.

The point that I'm making is not about changing their mind about what's right for them or their family.

It's simply saying the government shouldn't be making this decision.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Amna, Harris has made abortion rights one of the biggest issues in her campaign this year and is hoping that it helps her in a number of the swing states.

AMNA NAWAZ: OK, so that's where Vice President Harris stands.

What about her opponent, former President Trump?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: When running in 2016, Donald Trump said that you have to ban abortion.

Now let's dive into his record and current positions, Amna.

In 2016, he also said there has to be some form of punishment for women who get abortions.

And, in 2016, he ran on appointing Supreme Court justices to overturn Roe.

Now, since then, the former president has said that he would veto a 15-week national abortion ban, despite the fact that multiple Republicans and the anti-abortion movement support a national ban.

And Donald Trump has said he would allow states to restrict abortion access.

Now, Donald Trump, as he's been running, has also said that states with bans have a right to monitor pregnancies and prosecute violations.

The former president is also open to restricting abortion pill access like mifepristone.

And then, finally, Project 2025 calls for a nationwide abortion ban.

And we mention Project 2025, Amna, because so many of the people that wrote that and women that are calling for that served in the first Trump administration and are likely to serve in a second Trump administration.

Now, at a recent rally, Donald Trump also suggested that women are not going to need to worry anymore about abortions if he's elected again.

DONALD TRUMP, Former President of the United States (R) and Current U.S. Presidential Candidate: You will be protected and I will be your protector.

Women will be happy, healthy, confident and free.

(CHEERING) DONALD TRUMP: You will no longer be thinking about abortion.

That's all they talk about, abortion.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: And we should also note the past comments made by Trump's running mate, J.D.

Vance.

In 2022, when he was running for the Senate, Amna, he said that he would like abortion to be illegal nationally.

And he also said that he was quote sympathetic to a national ban on interstate travel for women who are seeking to get the procedure.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, Laura, as you well know, and you have covered IVF.

In vitro fertilization has also been in the spotlight this cycle, especially after that Alabama Supreme Court decision that said frozen embryos should be considered children.

Where do the candidates stand on IVF specifically?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Vice President Harris backs a Senate bill that establishes protections and rights for people to access treatment to in vitro fertilization nationwide.

And her most prominent surrogate on this has been her running mate, Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota, because he and his wife used fertility treatments when they were trying to have their first child.

Now, as for Trump, that Alabama court decision put Republicans on the defense, Amna.

And Trump has said he opposes efforts to limit IVF, that, if elected, he'd provide full coverage of IVF protections and full serve -- cover full services by requiring insurance companies to pay for it.

But he hasn't provided details on how exactly he would pay for a lot of that.

And Senate Republicans twice, Amna, have blocked that Senate bill that we talked about that would protect IVF nationwide.

AMNA NAWAZ: So Vice President Harris is clearly running on this as a big issue.

We know former President Trump has been asked about it a number of different ways.

How important is this issue to voters this year?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: To get a sense of that salience, Amna, in the last two years, six states considered abortion on the ballot, abortion rights on the ballot.

And all six states, including red states like Kansas and Kentucky, decided to protect abortion rights.

Now, this year, abortion referendums are on the ballot in 10 states this fall, including the battleground of Arizona and Nevada.

And our most recent poll on abortion, Amna, it found that 45 percent of voters say it -- that abortion is a deciding factor for them this election, versus 36 percent who say it's important, but not necessarily a deciding factor.

So, overall, this is going to be one of the biggest issues this election cycle.

AMNA NAWAZ: Great reporting, as always.

Laura Barron-Lopez, thank you.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Thank you.

AMNA NAWAZ: And we will continue to delve into the issues at stake in this election in the coming weeks.

Right now, you can watch all of our Promises and Policies conversations online at PBS.org/NewsHour.

GEOFF BENNETT: Former President Barack Obama hits the campaign trail for Kamala Harris as the race for the White House enters its final weeks, and Donald Trump unleashes a torrent of false statements and distortions about the federal response to Hurricanes Milton and Helene.

Let's turn now to the analysis of Brooks and Capehart.

That's New York Times columnist David Brooks, and Jonathan Capehart, associate editor for The Washington Post.

It's great to see you both.

JONATHAN CAPEHART: Hey, Geoff.

GEOFF BENNETT: So, the polls show a race that is as tight as ever 25 days out from Election Day, and Democrats are doing what Democrats do best.

They are worrying, they are fretting that Kamala Harris' early momentum might have stalled.

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: I want to start with your assessments of the race.

David, you first.

Has there been a vibe shift?

DAVID BROOKS: Yes.

I mean, her momentum has stalled.

She was going, going up.

Then she seemed to plateau, and I would say, if you look at the polling movement in the last week, Trump is doing slightly better, and I should emphasize slightly.

And so he's doing a lot better in the Sun Belt swing states.

In the Industrial Midwest, he's doing slightly better, but, again, very slight.

And so you would have to think -- when I look at the results right now, where we are -- and, of course, it could all change -- I do think the decision not to pick Josh Shapiro in Pennsylvania, we could look back on that as a major mistake.

And, second, I think she made a mistake this week by not breaking with Joe Biden on a bunch of major issues.

She was asked twice on two different shows, is anything really different?

And she basically said no.

And this is a country where, what, 28 percent think the country's on the wrong track.

Joe Biden has like a 41 percent approval.

It seems to me elementary act of politics, I'm my own person.

This is how I would change.

GEOFF BENNETT: Jonathan, how do you see it?

JONATHAN CAPEHART: The race today is the race as it was when she became the top of the ticket, as it was the night of the dreadful debate in June 27, as it was in the months before that.

It's close.

It's always going to be close.

It was always going to be close.

And the fact that Democrats are panicking, I'm not shocked by it.

I'm annoyed by it, because you could do all the panicking you want, but it's going to come true if folks don't get out and vote.

And I don't know if I agree with there's been a vibe shift and she's plateaued and in all of this other stuff.

I think that what's happening is, reality is setting in.

It's going to be close.

And this idea that she made a mistake in not picking Governor Shapiro, I just have to disagree with that strenuously.

She picked Governor Walz.

I think Governor Walz is a terrific candidate.

And I think what she needs to be doing in this campaign is continuing to go out there and do what she's done all week this week, going out and talking to people on the various shows and podcasts and everything and telling - - showing them who she is and what she's for.

And what I found interesting is, of all the interviews, the Howard Stern interview was terrific, but I also thought her interview with Stephen Colbert was very good.

And I was thinking of your column, David, in that in watching her in this interview with a comedian, you -- I felt like you actually got to see the real Kamala Harris, personality-wise, but also what she stands for, what she believes in a manner that is more comfortable than when she's sitting before "60 Minutes."

GEOFF BENNETT: Well, Jonathan teed up your column.

I will ask you about it.

JONATHAN CAPEHART: I'm here to help.

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: You wrote that she had an incredible first act, but the question now is, can she construct an effective second and third act?

What might that look like?

DAVID BROOKS: So I consulted the experts, and so I looked at what screenwriters like Aaron Sorkin and dramatists like David Mamet say about that.

And they say, what drama is, it's intention and obstacle.

You want to see the main character have an acute, passionate desire.

They want something very specific, but then there has to be an obstacle in their way.

And so it's about broadcasting your acute, passionate desire.

And I agree with Jonathan.

Kamala Harris has begun to show, this is what I want.

This is the ruling passion of my soul.

But I think that has not fully come out.

And one of the things that haunts me is watching campaigns past is a disease a lot of politicians fall into, including outstanding people, which you might call hold-back-ism, which is, they're surrounded by all these strategists.

The stakes are incredibly high.

They do the game plan, instead of their heart.

And so I would say Mitt Romney was a very wonderful human being, but he held back.

He never really fell on the crowd and let the crowd hold him up.

I'd say the same was Hillary Clinton, that she never really said, take me, this is what I want.

I trust you.

And I think Harris is doing a lot better on that front as of this week, but I think there's some ways to go.

GEOFF BENNETT: Well, Barack Obama will spend the final weeks before Election Day stumping for Kamala Harris.

He appeared at a rally in Pittsburgh yesterday, and he really painted a searing picture of Donald Trump as malicious and incompetent.

But before that rally, he had a stop at a campaign office and he admonished Black men, whom he suggested are hesitating to vote for Kamala Harris because she's a woman.

Take a listen.

BARACK OBAMA, Former President of the United States: We had not yet seen the same kinds of energy and turnout in all quarters of our neighborhoods and communities as we saw when I was running.

Now, I also want to say that that seems to be more pronounced with the brothers.

When I hear about this stuff, I start feeling like we don't have enough of a sense of what's at stake here.

These are not ordinary times and these are not ordinary elections.

GEOFF BENNETT: Jonathan, I'm coming to you on this, because there are Democrats who see this as unfair scapegoating.

And if you're going to focus on race and gender, you could have nearly every Black man in these swing states vote for Donald Trump and it wouldn't be enough to make a difference.

If he was going to focus on race and gender, he could focus on white men who are breaking for Donald Trump, or go back to 2016 and the white women who put Donald Trump into the White House, effectively, who broke for Donald Trump.

How do you see this?

JONATHAN CAPEHART: We're talking about a Black man who is the former president of the United States and for whom this is a very personal issue.

Now, I watched the entire 15-minute remarks, and we have got to put this in context.

He's at -- I'm glad you pointed out he was at a campaign office.

He was talking to African American campaign workers and volunteers.

And the key thing in the 15-minute remarks is when he said, and I think anybody you are talking to at a barbershop, anybody you are talking to in your house, in your family, at a church who is coming with that kind of attitude, I think you need to ask them, well, how can that be?

He is giving the people in that room the arguments and the talking points to try to convince those folks in their families, in their communities that there is a reason, not necessarily to not vote for Trump.

What he's really pushing up against is the couch,people who might opt not to vote because they don't think the system has worked for them.

And in the entirety of these 15-minute remarks, he talks about how the change that folks want doesn't come quickly, because that's not how things work.

And he walked through what happened during his presidency, what happened during other presidencies.

And so folks who feel like the former president was lecturing them or talking down to them or singling them out, I understand where that's coming from, but that's not what he's doing.

Remember, President Obama is somebody who rarely speaks out, but, when he does, it is with intention, and he means what he says, and he's trying to get across a message.

And the fact that it's rare when he speaks, people listen to what he says.

And he hopes, the former first lady Michelle Obama hopes, but, most importantly, the Harris/Walz campaign hopes that his words will be galvanizing to those campaign workers, but also to the Black men and their Black families, motivating them to get out to the polls and vote.

GEOFF BENNETT: You know, David, big picture, sometimes, it takes the former president to provide the clarity of argument that a candidate can't provide themselves.

I mean, thinking back to 2012, it was then former President Bill Clinton who had to make this argument for Barack Obama when his campaign kind of hit a rough patch.

The question, though, is, is the Obama appeal, separate from this argument about his message to Black men, is it transferable?

Is it transferable these days to a Kamala Harris?

DAVID BROOKS: Not really.

I mean, people are voting for the candidate.

They already voted for Barack Obama.

They voted for Bill Clinton.

I think it helps.

Like, Bill Clinton really rescued that 2012 convention.

And, partly, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton are, like, Fernando Tatis and Shohei Ohtani, who are baseball players.

(LAUGHTER) JONATHAN CAPEHART: I got Ohtani.

I knew who that was.

DAVID BROOKS: And so they're superstars.

And so they're really good at what they do.

And so it's not -- it doesn't -- bad to have a superstar on your team.

But I think people are -- they can separate one candidate from another.

They know they're voting for Kamala Harris this year.

GEOFF BENNETT: Well, as you wrap up our conversation, Florida and parts of the Southeast are struggling now to recover from two hurricanes in the course of two weeks.

And we have seen how the response has been hampered by just a torrent of misinformation and disinformation from Donald Trump and others, to include Marjorie Taylor Greene, the Republican from Georgia, who claimed the federal government can control the weather.

You know, Charlie Warzel of "The Atlantic" has a great piece, where he says, this isn't just a misinformation crisis.

It's something darker.

It's a cultural assault on institutions and individuals that operate in reality.

How do you see this moment that we're living in?

JONATHAN CAPEHART: Well, one, let's just call it what it is.

I will call it what it is.

It's not just misinformation and disinformation.

It's lies.

GEOFF BENNETT: Yes.

JONATHAN CAPEHART: Lies that are putting people's lives at risk, that is tearing apart communities, people who are in danger, who are at the most stressful point in their lives trying to outrun a hurricane and being told that your government is not -- where you pay taxes, your government's not coming to help you, your government is giving money away to other people?

All lies.

And what makes this even more reprehensible is that Republicans who know better are not speaking out in force and en masse to say, this is not right, this is wrong, President Trump, please stop doing what you're doing.

I give the governors of Georgia and Florida, the Republican governors of Georgia and Florida credit for saying the Biden administration has been very helpful, pushing back against the misinformation.

But I want Republicans to be more direct in saying, who's feeding the -- who's feeding the disinformation and the lies and to hold that person accountable.

GEOFF BENNETT: Is there any way back from this, when we have this ecosystem that exists where people actually believe that the federal government can control the weather, something as nonsensical as that, seriously?

(CROSSTALK) GEOFF BENNETT: I mean, it's an indictment of our time.

DAVID BROOKS: Well, each party has to police their own side, and Republicans have failed at that big time since 2015.

I think the larger question for me is, the rise of Donald Trump shows it's an advantage to have no conscience, that you can rise and succeed in America, both in his business career and in now in his political career,if you actually have no conception of right or wrong, you only have a conception of yourself.

And that's sort of a disturbing lesson for a generation to come.

GEOFF BENNETT: David Brooks and Jonathan Capehart, thanks so much.

JONATHAN CAPEHART: Thanks, Geoff.

DAVID BROOKS: Appreciate it.

AMNA NAWAZ: English soccer is booming in the U.S.

While little threat to the mighty NFL, much less the NBA or Major League Baseball, millions of Americans are increasingly rabid fans of English clubs.

Almost half of the teams in England's top division, the Premier League, are now American-owned, including Ipswich Town, which has had a fairy tale rise into the top tier since American investors took over.

For a very personal perspective, we sent special correspondent Malcolm Brabant back to Ipswich, his hometown, and to the stadium where he made his first ever broadcast at the dawn of radio -- well, maybe a bit more recently than that.

Oh, and it is football.

He refuses to use the term soccer because, for a Brit, that would be blasphemy.

Here's Malcolm.

MALCOLM BRABANT: You may have Fenway Park, Yankee Stadium, the Rose Bowl, the Astrodome, but, for me, the field of dreams will always be Portman Road.

TERRY BUTCHER, Former Ipswich Town and England Defender: It just has this real good family feel.

It's a lovely place to live.

It's a one-club town.

RUSSELL OSMAN, Former Ipswich Town and England Defender: The club has got its footballing identity back again.

MALCOLM BRABANT: They were a towering partnership for both Ipswich and England, Russell Osman and Terry Butcher, who famously shared blood for his country.

TERRY BUTCHER: The whole county loves watching Ipswich Town Football Club play.

So, yes, it's part of your soul.

And as the old saying goes, it's part of your DNA.

STACIE CHENNER, Ipswich Town Fan: The atmosphere is incredible.

It's something that we watched as a kid.

We saw the generation grow up Premiership.

Now it's their time to enjoy it, so that's good.

GEORGE KETTERINGHAM, Ipswich Town Fan: It's living a dream, a dream that I was dreaming upon when I was a child.

Football is everything, and this club is everything to me.

MALCOLM BRABANT: The team's shirt sponsor and minority stakeholder is a local lad by the name of Ed Sheeran.

ED SHEERAN, Musician: People like success stories like this.

It is a grassroots club.

And it just feels like it's lifted up the town as well.

Like, Ipswich has gone through some tough years, and this feels great for the area.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Ipswich is the town where I went to school, misspent my youth and, to be honest, got away from as quickly as possible.

This region is a rural backwater.

The clue is in the nickname of the football team, the Tractor Boys.

After an absence of 22 years, Ipswich are back in English football's top tier, the Premier League.

Hard to believe after this performance four seasons ago, which gave tractors a bad name.

Ipswich are in blue.

When Chris Barclay and I were schoolmates, our team was one of England's best, but in 2019 Ipswich hit rock bottom.

CHRIS BARCLAY, Ipswich Town Season Ticket Holder: There was a season a few years back where the football was dire, it was negative, and I described it as random acts of football.

There was no thought behind it.

It was an insult to your intelligence.

I did think about giving up my season ticket then, but I'm so glad I hung on, because since we have got our new manager, it's been uphill all the way.

(CHEERING) MALCOLM BRABANT: And this is the moment in may when Ipswich secured Premier League status after back-to-back promotions from the third and second tiers.

The architect of that success is Kieran McKenna, a young coach from Northern Ireland regarded as a genius by his players and the club's American financial backers.

Do you think American drive has made a difference?

RUSSELL OSMAN: No, I don't think so.

I think it's just the fact that the Americans have this attitude that if everything's going well, we will keep backing you.

He's repaid them in the way that he's got the team playing.

He's got the supporters back at Portman Road.

MALCOLM BRABANT: One of Kieran McKenna's gifts has been to transform players from the lower echelons into all-conquering heroes.

Has everybody got the potential to be a star, do you think, with the right handling?

KIERAN MCKENNA, Ipswich Town Manager: I don't think so.

I think, if I understand the question, I don't think star is the word.

I think everyone has the potential to improve and everyone has the potential to develop.

And not many people are operating at their maximum capacity every game, whether that's physical reasons, technical reasons, mental reasons, tactical reasons.

So it's trying to help the players in each of those areas and in an environment that is built to support them.

MALCOLM BRABANT: McKenna's greatest challenge in the top flight is competing against clubs with vast budgets and world-class players.

He's recruited relatively inexpensive players from lower divisions with huge potential such as defender Jacob Greaves.

JACOB GREAVES, Ipswich Town Defender: I can already definitely feel that he's improved me already in a short space of time.

MALCOLM BRABANT: But schoolboy errors like this could come back to haunt Ipswich Town at the end of the season.

Oh, well.

Time to talk to the old enemy.

MICK DENNIS, Sports Journalist: I'm a Norwich City supporter.

Welcome to my home.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Thank you so much.

I have known top sports reporter Mick Dennis for 50 years.

His main character flaw is that he supports Norwich City, Ipswich Town's great rivals in Eastern England, who are currently in the second tier.

Dennis keeps his Norwich memorabilia in the smallest room, which Ipswich fans would say is the perfect place.

Mick, how much does it hurt you as a Norwich supporter that Ipswich are doing so well?

MICK DENNIS: Well, it's a matter of supreme indifference to me, because they haven't beaten Norwich for 5,712 days, not that I'm counting.

(LAUGHTER) MICK DENNIS: I think it's extremely difficult for promoted teams.

Last season, the three promoted teams came straight back down again.

Enjoy the ride at the moment.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Success has cascaded to the Greyhound public 10 minutes walk from the stadium.

KATIE MOY, Ipswich Town Fan's Wife: I'm a football widow.

(LAUGHTER) MALCOLM BRABANT: Because?

KATIE MOY: Because Ipswich -- well, Ipswich, in through the dark ages and the times, he was very dedicated fan.

And now they're in the Premiership, football comes first.

MALCOLM BRABANT: What's the change like?

TOM MALLETT, Ipswich Town Fan: Oh, it's huge.

Now I have actually got that buzz before a game, sort of leads up a couple of days before the actual kickoff.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Landlord Danny Lightfoot relishes the transformative power of sport.

DANNY LIGHTFOOT, Landlord, The Greyhound Public: Oh, it's amazing for us.

The ground is sold out every game.

So we're packed.

All the pubs in town are the same before and after the games.

It's been great for the economy, great for us, just a great boost for the business.

MALCOLM BRABANT: But on the days when there's no football, Ipswich Town center is moribund.

For example, its most historic building, the Ancient House, where I bought school books, is empty, as is a former old-fashioned gentleman's outfitters, where I was sacked for my negligent attitude to the clientele's inside leg measurements.

Neil MacDonald is the leader of Ipswich Council.

NEIL MACDONALD, Leader, Ipswich Borough Council: We definitely would like to bring more business here.

And part of bringing business here is to have a successful football team, a successful nightlife, successful culture offer.

And all that helps attract and retain people in the town.

MALCOLM BRABANT: When I lived here, Cornhill, the central square, was bustling.

Not anymore.

SOPHIE ALEXANDER, Ipswich Chamber of Commerce: The main square should be the central hub of this town.

We should be trying to create an atmosphere, like every other European city.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Sophie Alexander of the Chamber of Commerce believes Ipswich would thrive if this square was ringed with bars and restaurants.

SOPHIE ALEXANDER: It could be internationally renowned.

We're missing out on a huge element of the tourism, the visitor economy.

And this place could be so much more than what it is.

MALCOLM BRABANT: One of the main obstacles is this store, which once sold my school's uniforms.

It's been empty for 12 years.

The owner is from Dubai.

SOPHIE ALEXANDER: It's a unit that's prime location, and the owners won't look to sell it to anybody that wants a late night or an alcohol license.

NEIL MACDONALD: It's been a nightmare, really.

MALCOLM BRABANT: The council is hoping to break the impasse by invoking powers compelling the owner to sell.

NEIL MACDONALD: It's so frustrating, when we work very hard to improve the town, around the town.

MALCOLM BRABANT: Regenerating Ipswich will take time.

So the town desperately needs the football club to remain in the top flight.

With Kieran McKenna at the helm, there's always hope.

But as English football supporters know all too well, it's the hope that often rips you apart.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Malcolm Brabant in Ipswich.

AMNA NAWAZ: And be sure to tune into "Washington Week With The Atlantic" tonight for a look at the presidential candidates' campaign strategies in these final weeks of the election.

GEOFF BENNETT: And on "PBS News Weekend": As the Southeast works to recover from back-to-back hurricanes, we look at the long-term effects of these disasters on vulnerable communities.

And that is the "News Hour" for tonight.

I'm Geoff Bennett.

AMNA NAWAZ: And I'm Amna Nawaz.

On behalf of the entire "News Hour" team, thank you for joining us, and have a great weekend.