"How new NCAA rules for student-athletes are playing into this year’s March Madness" PBS NewsHour 4/2/2022
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SUMMARY: Duke University men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski, fondly known as Coach K., will participate Saturday in his last Final Four, and possibly his final game, before retirement. Veteran sportswriter Howard Bryant joins Geoff Bennett to discuss the matchups and how new rules have changed the game for student-athletes and coaches alike.
"Hit show ‘Abbott Elementary’ addresses education equity through a comedic lens" PBS NewsHour 4/2/2022
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SUMMARY: "Abbott Elementary" is a hit new series on ABC, tackling the issue of public education and equity using humor. It's a workplace comedy focused on a group of dedicated teachers at an underfunded elementary school in Philadelphia. Veteran actress Sheryl Lee Ralph, who plays Barbara Howard, an elementary school teacher who has seen it all, joins Geoff Bennett to discuss for our series, "CANVAS."
"A tribute to PBS NewsHour producer Lee Koromvokis" PBS NewsHour 4/1/2022
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SUMMARY: NewsHour is saying farewell to one of our great producers who is retiring after a long career at the program. Lee Koromvokis has worked on hundreds of stories over the years and produced some of our best pieces, and the correspondent she has worked with the most is Paul Solman, who pays tribute to a friend and colleague.
"Brooks and Capehart on Biden’s shifting immigration policy, the Jan. 6 investigation" PBS NewsHour 4/1/2022
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SUMMARY: New York Times columnist David Brooks and Washington Post columnist Jonathan Capehart join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week in politics, including President Biden's decision to tap the country's strategic petroleum reserve, a return to pre-pandemic border policies and the latest on the Jan. 6 investigation.
Judy Woodruff (NewsHour): What you were just hearing about, that return to pre-pandemic border policies, President Biden's attempt to reduce pain at the pump, and the January 6 investigation all heating up.
To discuss another busy week, we turn to the analysis of Brooks and Capehart. That is New York Times columnist David Brooks and Jonathan Capehart, associate editor for The Washington Post, new position.
Congratulations.
Jonathan Capehart (Washington Post): Thank you, Judy. Thank you.
Judy Woodruff: So good to see both of you. And there is a lot to talk about.
Let's start, David, with the report that we just heard Amna talking to a reporter about. And that is the Biden administration rescinding this rule that was handed down under President Trump, the argument being that COVID — we're in a different place with COVID, this is the humane thing to do. Is it the right thing to do?
David Brooks (New York Times): Intellectually, yes.
I mean, it was — there seems to be a bipartisan agreement, Republicans and Democrats, saying the reason it was put in place for COVID reasons doesn't pertain anymore. It's just not — it's not a health matter. It's become an art of convenience to simplify what goes on at the border.
The question is what plan they have in place. And we're at a rate now where there are two million encounters at the borders a year. Like, two million times, U.S. officials are encountering immigrants or people are trying to get in.
And it's just flooding the system. And there's a lot of skepticism that there's a system in place, if we not get rid of 42, that they will be able to have the hearings, do all the stuff we normally do with asylum seekers.
And so, as we just heard, it's just a gigantic political issue. And in the bumper, that little quote there, that 21 percent of Americans say immigration is the highest, if you think about the dominant issues right now, inflation is number one, immigration is probably number two. Probably education and crime are three or four.
These are all nightmare issues for Democrats right now. And so Republicans put up this long fact sheet. And I don't want to vouch for its veracity. It's a partisan fact sheet. But you see the ads writing themselves, chaos at the border, drugs coming in, record opioid deaths.
Republicans are going to go to town on this one.
Judy Woodruff: So, Republicans against it, Jonathan. Even some Democrats are saying they think it's the wrong thing.
Jonathan Capehart: Right. And I think the — what it points to is the lack of a comprehensive immigration overhaul.
And this is something that's vexed Republican presidents. I remember when President George W. Bush wanted to do something. It's vexed Democratic presidents. President Obama wanted to work with Congress. And Congress gave him the stiff-arm. And that's what pushed him to do DACA, after saying over and over again that he had no power to do anything about immigration.
This is a political problem for the President, for the White House, for Democrats. In a normal, functioning Congress, the White House and the House and the Senate would be able to get in the room, get together, and come up with a solution.
But there's no political will on the part of Republicans. And it's great that they put out what — you called it a fact sheet, but a fact sheet with no policy prescriptions. A functioning party would say, Mr. President, you're in trouble, the country's in danger. Here's what — here's our proposal.
I have yet to hear what the Republican proposal is, other than fearmongering.
David Brooks: Build a wall.
(LAUGHTER)
Judy Woodruff: Oh, yes, there's that.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
David Brooks: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
Judy Woodruff: But we just — yes, we just seem stuck on this issue.
David Brooks: Yes.
Well, it's a complicated moral problem. People are coming here not because their lives are great back home. They're coming here because situations in a lot of Latin American countries are deteriorating. And some of them are genuinely in horrific circumstances. And one's heart leaps out to them.
And yet they're coming in such large numbers, it's probably beyond our capacity to absorb all the people who want to come. And a lot of people are coming for economic opportunity. I don't blame them. My ancestors came for economic opportunity. And they — I wish they would go through the regular means.
But it takes a morally complicated government or a policy or a collective mind to say, we're going to help the people we are capable of helping. How many people are we capable of helping? And how do we help them humanely? And how — for those who can't, how do we say sorry, but how do we do it humanely?
And that kind of moral nuance is not something we have seen a lot of in American policymaking for a while.
Judy Woodruff: We're not seeing that.
Jonathan Capehart: No.
And it's made more complicated because the party opposite the President, instead of lending a hand, is hurling brickbats and not being part of the solution. The only way we get to this nirvana you're talking about, David…
(LAUGHTER)
Jonathan Capehart: … is if the Republican Party wanted to be a true negotiating partner wanting to get something done.
Judy Woodruff: Well, another hot issue, I think it's fair to say, that surface this week, and it's something the president announced yesterday, David, and that's that he said, yes, the jobs numbers are looking good. And we had more proof of that today.
But the administration is still very worried about inflation, very worried about the price of gas. The president announced he's going to release 180 million barrels from what's called the Strategic Petroleum Reserve just to try to get gas prices down a little bit.
Is this — is this a good move at this moment?
David Brooks: It's hard to know.
Presidents always do this. They always release from the reserve, and it never works. Now, in Biden's — to his credit, this release is way bigger than any other President has done. And so they're trying to dump stuff on the market. And they're saying that it may produce a 10, 15, 20 percent gain per gallon at the pump.
And so that would have some effects. That is far from certain, because when we release from the reserve, the markets think, well, they're releasing now, but they're going to have to put back in the reserve. And so the markets can think long term and think, well, that's not going to really reduce demand.
Second, we're not the only people producing oil, in this country. OPEC could say, we want to keep prices up. If they're releasing, we will just limit our supply for a little while. And so there are plenty of other actors who have the chance to mess with our plans.
And so I remain, I guess I would say, guardedly skeptical…
(LAUGHTER)
David Brooks: … that this is going to do — that this is going to do much for the people who are paying 60, 70 bucks to fill up their tank.
Judy Woodruff: How do you size this up?
Jonathan Capehart: Well, the key thing you said, David, is that markets think long term, but Presidents think in short — well, they try to think long term, but when presidents go to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, this is short-term thinking.
There is short-term pain that the President has to deal with. And the reports I saw showed that this release would/could lead to 10 cents per gallon, up to 35 cents per gallon for consumers. When you — when you are a consumer, and you're saving 10 cents, that adds up; 35 cents, that's huge.
And gas prices is — they are the one thing that consumers feel immediately. And so, if you're a White House looking at tough economic news, and the American people are angry about inflation and everything, if you can give them something where they're saving in the short term, you will go with it.
But David is right. The market does think long term and think, yes, they're releasing it, but they're going to have to buy it back. So — but I think administrations always do this, but I think it's the right thing to do for their political calculus right now.
Judy Woodruff: They're saying it's — excuse me. They're saying it's for six months. I looked at the calendar. That's right about November, David.
David Brooks: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
Judy Woodruff: Do you think — do you think this is going to matter in the elections this year?
David Brooks: Oh, yes. Oh, absolutely.
Judy Woodruff: Hello.
David Brooks: As Jonathan said, you look at the — you drive down the street, you see the gas prices.
And I was out in California, and it's like, whoa.
Jonathan Capehart: Oh.
David Brooks: And so it's definitely going to matter.
The — substantively, the better policy, in 2015, Barack Obama and Paul Ryan, the Republican House speaker, did a deal where they increased production, which the Republicans wanted, lightening regulations on producers, but then, in exchange, increased money for green energy, which the Democrats wanted.
And Joe Manchin saying, let's do that all over again. And that sounds like a good idea. But it probably won't help Joe Biden between now and November.
Judy Woodruff: Yes. That's the question.
Do you think it helps Democrats at all between…
Jonathan Capehart: Which…
Judy Woodruff: Between now and the midterms.
Jonathan Capehart: David — what David was just talking about, it's long term.
Judy Woodruff: Yes.
Jonathan Capehart: So, in the short term, no, it's not going to help them.
But I do think the SPR, that will help.
Judy Woodruff: The January 6 Committee, two developments this week, David.
One of them, there's this seven-and-a-half-hour gap in the phone records from the White House on January the 6th. There appears to be a gap. The committee's still figuring out what that's all about, whether that was deliberate where it was an accident. We will see.
The other is that the members of the committee — I ended up talking to two of them this week, Adam Schiff and Zoe Lofgren, who are just more openly critical of the Justice Department for not picking this up and running with it and moving towards some kind of prosecution of people like Mark Meadows, the former White House Chief of Staff.
Zoe Lofgren said to me yesterday — what did she say? What he [Trump] did was completely lawless, she said.
David Brooks: Yes.
Well, first, on the gap, it sparked a bunch of conspiracies, reminded us all the Watergate, so we could all plug and play on that one.
Judy Woodruff: Yes.
David Brooks: But is he using a burner phone secretly?
And I think CNN seems to have the most plausible explanation, which is, when — the record-keeping in the Trump administration is not always meticulous, was 'not always meticulous' which I know was a shocker for everybody. And — but, apparently, when he went into the Oval Office, he didn't use the White House phone system, and then it wasn't recorded.
That could be it. They were just bad record-keepers. It is weird that it happened to be at the crucial moment on January 6. So I assume we will find out here.
To be honest, I trust Merrick Garland. The political players on Capitol Hill are political players. And they're going to go maximalist. They have no incentive to be balanced. Merrick Garland and the Justice Department have an incentive to be like prosecutors. And my overall approach to this whole deal, there have been a lot of extremely questionable things that have been done.
But the Trump administration does us a favor by doing most of their questionable things out in the open.
(LAUGHTER)
David Brooks: And I haven't seen much that would make me think that there's some hidden, gigantic scandal, like, there's some phone call somewhere where Donald Trump was saying, storm the Capitol.
If that call exists or that e-mail exists or that tweet exists, then we're in a whole new ball game. But it's easy for people who want to delegitimize Donald Trump to get excited that they have got something and get a little overpoliticized about it. So, right now, my trust would be of the Justice Department.
Judy Woodruff: How do you read all this?
Jonathan Capehart: Well, when it comes to the Attorney General, I think what Chairman Schiff and Congresswoman Lofgren, their upset with him over the contempt charges, I think, are — they're valid.
They have passed out of the House. They're sitting at DOJ. And no one knows what's happening with them in terms of prosecution.
Where I agree with David in terms of trust Merrick Garland is on the call from the — from Democrats and folks on the left for the DOJ to investigate Donald Trump. And I think these are two separate things. And when it comes to investigating the former President, I — it would be, I was about to say, insane if Merrick Garland telegraphed that this was happening before he had all the I's dotted and the T's crossed.
This has been — there are lots of former prosecutors out on television who keep saying the same thing you're saying. Trust — they trust — they trust Merrick Garland. But, at some point, that trust is going to erode.
But, right now, when it comes to the contempt charges, I say, Mr. Attorney General, what are you doing? But when it comes to the overall issue of, should Donald Trump be investigated, I'm willing — I'm willing to wait, because I want DOJ, I want the attorney general to be as careful as possible, to make his case as bulletproof as possible, if there is one, so that it doesn't make things worse by falling apart.
Judy Woodruff: Their focus right now seems to be Mark Meadows, but we will see.
Jonathan Capehart: Yes.
Judy Woodruff: We will see.
Jonathan Capehart, David Brooks, thank you both.
Jonathan Capehart: Thanks, Judy.
"Biden administration ends controversial Trump-era immigration rule" PBS NewsHour 4/1/2022
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SUMMARY: The Biden administration announced Friday that it will be phasing out what's known as Title 42, a policy that prevented migrants from seeking asylum in the U.S. due to public health concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Washington Post immigration reporter Nick Miroff joins Amna Nawaz to discuss.
"Strong jobs report shows the American economy gaining steam" PBS NewsHour 4/1/2022
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SUMMARY: As the White House tries to manage rising inflation, the U.S. labor market is bouncing back, adding another 431,000 jobs in March and bringing the unemployment rate to a new pandemic-era low of 3.6 percent, according to the latest jobs report from the Labor Department. Bharat Ramamurti, deputy director of the White House National Economic Council, joins Geoff Bennett to discuss.
"Florida school uses art displays from around the world to promote diversity and inclusion" PBS NewsHour 3/30/2022
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SUMMARY: In Sarasota, Florida large scale artworks are being used to teach students about diversity, inclusion and mental health. This comes at a time when there is growing controversy in the state, and school districts across the country, over how and whether to teach about racism in America. Special correspondent Charlayne Hunter-Gault went to see how the exhibit encourages inclusion.
"Blue Origin’s latest mission takes a professor and entrepreneur to the edge of space" PBS NewsHour 3/30/2022
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SUMMARY: American astronaut Mark Vande Hei returned to Earth Wednesday from the International Space Station along with two fellow Russian cosmonauts. He was in space for 355 straight days, longer than any American yet. But attention will return to private efforts Thursday as Blue Origin, the rocket company founded by Jeff Bezos, will launch its latest human flight. Miles O’Brien reports.
IMHO: Again, government at any level should NOT regulate the relationships between citizens, including parents and their children.
"How Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law regulates school lessons on gender, sexual orientation" PBS NewsHour 3/30/2022
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SUMMARY: A controversial new law went into effect in Florida this week. Coined by opponents as the "Don't Say Gay" bill, it forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for kindergarten through third grade. But those who oppose the bill say it doesn't protect parents, it just harms children. Ana Ceballos, a reporter for the Miami Herald, joins John Yang to discuss.
I'm all FOR it! These rich people and corporations never have to worry day-to-day about losing their home, deciding which bill to pay and which to not pay, being able to afford enough food, etc. So they can afford to pay more taxes to support the poor and middle-class thanks to the huge GOP tax breaks.
"Democrats unveil new plan to increase taxes on billionaires" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: President Biden unveiled a budget proposal this week that includes a new wealth tax targeting the richest Americans and aimed at addressing wealth inequality. The latest Democratic proposal would affect households worth $100 million or more. Dan Primack, business editor at Axios, joins Lisa Desjardins to discuss.
"Supreme Court hears an Army reservist’s case involving exposure to burn pits in Iraq" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: The Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in a case that questions whether sweeping legal immunity for states trumps guarantees for America’s veterans. John Yang introduces us to a Texan who served his country, and now finds himself in a legal battle for his old job.
"Rep. Adam Schiff discusses the probe into Trump’s actions during the Capitol attack" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: Reports indicate a gap of nearly eight hours in then-President Trump's phone records on Jan. 6, 2021. It took place during the time frame that his supporters stormed and attacked the U.S. Capitol in an effort to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Rep. Adam Schiff, a member of the committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.
"Biden signs law making lynching a federal hate crime" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: The Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Act became law on Tuesday, a bipartisan step towards acknowledging the history of racial violence in the United States. Amna Nawaz reports on the law's significance and what it took to get here.
"Breaking down the major moments from the Academy Awards" PBS NewsHour 3/28/2022
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SUMMARY: Ripple effects continued Monday after some unscripted drama at Sunday night’s Academy Awards ceremony, as actor Will Smith struck presenter Chris Rock on stage. But there are also many other highlights to explore. Jeffrey Brown reports for our arts and canvas series, "CANVAS."
"Oscar-winner Troy Kotsur reflects on his historic victory for ‘CODA’" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
Excerpt
SUMMARY: One of the most moving moments from Sunday’s Oscars ceremony was the award for Best Supporting Actor to Troy Kotsur, making him the first male deaf actor to win an Oscar Award. The film he appeared in, “CODA,” was also named Best Picture. Jeffrey Brown has our look for our arts and culture series, "CANVAS."
TROY KOTSUR, (through interpreter):
So that's been my barrier to really find a role that would really help them think outside of the box and collapse that box. And with our film "CODA," I mean, we just won three Oscars; Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor.
"Slapping incident at the Oscars sparks difficult but important conversations" PBS NewsHour 3/31/2022
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SUMMARY: Four days after the shocking events at this year's Oscars, the fallout is not over yet. The Academy of Motion Pictures, Arts and Sciences says it is considering disciplinary action against Will Smith. Author and film critic Eisa Nefertari Ulen, and Mark Anthony Neal author and professor of Black popular culture at Duke University, join Stephanie Sy to discuss.
"Russia’s invasion of Ukraine hits an impasse amid fierce fighting and looming peace talks" PBS NewsHour 3/28/2022
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SUMMARY: Nearly 5,000 people have been killed and 160,000 remain trapped inside the city of Mariupol without heat, water or electricity. Ukraine said the city is on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe, but no evacuation corridors were agreed on Monday, fearing Russia would launch attacks on anyone trying to flee. Special correspondent Jack Hewson reports from Kharkiv, Ukraine.
"Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Ukraine and the West: ‘Don’t push us into the corner’" PBS NewsHour 3/28/2022
Excerpt
SUMMARY: President Biden on Monday stood by his comments over the weekend that Russia's Vladimir Putin "cannot remain in power" as Ukraine President Zelensky said he was open to discussing neutrality for his nation in exchange for a ceasefire. Special correspondent Ryan Chilcote talked with President Vladimir Putin's chief spokesman and deputy chief of staff Dmitry Peskov to get a view inside the Kremlin.
"Russia and Ukraine discuss a path to peace as Ukrainian forces retake critical Kyiv suburb" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: President Biden's expressed skepticism Tuesday over Russia's statement that it would curtail some of its military activity in northern Ukraine as talks between Ukraine and Russia in Turkey showed some signs of progress. This as Russian forces continued to bombard urban areas amid a fierce Ukrainian resistance. Special correspondent Jack Hewson reports from Kharkiv.
"Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas on war in Ukraine and the Russian threat" PBS NewsHour 3/29/2022
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SUMMARY: The tiny nation of Estonia shares a 180-mile border with Russia. During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied the country and then annexed it until Estonia regained its independence. Now, it is a NATO and European Union member on the front lines with Russia. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas joins Judy Woodruff to discuss how her nation is responding to the war in Ukraine.
"Russian strikes rock Ukrainian cities despite pledge to ease attacks" PBS NewsHour 3/30/2022
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SUMMARY: A day after Russia vowed to draw down some troops around Kyiv, there's been no let-up in the bombardment across Ukraine. The U.S. said Russia began repositioning some forces arrayed around the capital, but is expected to redeploy them elsewhere. Meantime, new U.S. intelligence suggests President Putin's aides have misinformed him on Ukraine, raising tensions inside the Kremlin. Ali Rogin reports.
"Civilians endure intense suffering as Russian shelling reduces Kharkiv to ‘a smoking ruin’" PBS NewsHour 3/30/2022
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SUMMARY: Kharkiv near the Russian border in northeastern Ukraine is majority ethnic-Russian and the nation's second-largest city. Now, many of its people have fled thunderous Russian airstrikes and artillery that have reduced this Ukrainian center of culture, learning and industry to a shell of its former self. Special correspondent Jack Hewson and filmmaker Ed Ram report from the embattled city.
"Russia shifts focus to Ukraine’s south amid stiff resistance" PBS NewsHour 3/31/2022
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SUMMARY: President Biden said Thursday there was "no clear evidence" that the Russians were scaling back their military operations around the Ukrainian capital, despite that assertion from Moscow earlier this week. The U.S. has seen some redeployments of Russian troops, but not in sizable numbers. Meanwhile the Russian attacks and Ukrainian resistance grind on. Jack Hewson reports from Kharkiv.
"Ukrainian civilians resort to desperate attempts to evacuate war zone" PBS NewsHour 3/31/2022
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SUMMARY: The city of Zaporizhya lies in the southeast of Ukraine along the Dnieper River. It’s very close to the front lines, and so far remains in Ukrainian hands. In the early days of the war, fighting at its nuclear power plant put the entire world on edge. But as things settle down there, Zaporizhya has become a way station for thousands trying to escape Russian attacks. Volodymyr Solohub reports.
"Ukraine Aims High with Request for F-15 and F-16 Jets. Here's Why It Probably Won't Happen" by Thomas Novelly, Military.com 04012021
Ukraine is asking for more modern F-15 and F-16 fighter jets from the U.S. and western allies that it says could be pushed into the fight against Russia within weeks, but experts say the proposal is unlikely and unrealistic.
"In the sky, the greatest need is for fighter jets -- F-15s and F-16s of the fourth generation or higher would be sufficient," the country's Air Force tweeted on Thursday, "pilots can learn to fly these with just 2-3 weeks of training."
It would take more than a couple of weeks to train new pilots on the advanced American aircraft, and providing that high-tech aircraft would ultimately create more problems than solutions for the U.S. and Ukraine, according to John "JV" Venable, a research fellow with the Heritage Foundation, a think tank in Washington, D.C.
Venable, a 25-year Air Force veteran with more than 2,000 hours of flight time on the F-16, said supplying and training Ukrainians on those planes would be nothing short of a "herculean effort."
The U.S. is the largest operator of the F-15 Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon, which have been used in numerous conflicts in recent decades. Both were introduced to the service in the 1970s and have since been adopted by countries such as Israel, Japan and Germany. They were developed for lightning fast speed, durability in a variety of weather environments and are armed with high-tech radar and long-range missiles.
Venable said it would take a proficient pilot like himself upward of six weeks to retrain on the F-16, a plane he is already very familiar with. Additionally, a shipment of F-15s or F-16s would require a lot of financial and logistical commitment from the country supplying the fighter jets.
"Where would Ukraine receive that training?" Venable said. "The host nation would have to completely stock their own training pipeline, and no nation is going to do that. It's a false hope."
Along with just the necessary pilot training, providing Ukraine with F-15s and F-16s would mean any donor nation would also need to supply an abundance of parts, maintenance crews to train their military and runway preparation.
The Ukrainian Air Force's request is the latest example of the tense back-and-forth conversations the U.S. and European allies have had with Ukraine as they figure out how best to deliver air support in their effort to repel Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February after massing more than 150,000 troops around its border over the past year.
Last month, conversations between Poland and the U.S. focused on supplying Ukraine with Russian MiG-29 jets because their pilots are already trained on flying that aircraft, but the talks broke down over the complexities of delivering the aircraft. Those planes were more up to date than what their country's air force had in their possession, meaning the transition would have been more seamless.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, President Joe Biden's administration has provided more than $1 billion worth of aid to their military, including Javelin and Stinger missiles to fight against aircraft, as well as thousands of rifles and millions of rounds of ammunition.
And while Ukrainian forces have made great use of the weapons and continue to stymie Russian advances, their military and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy continue to plead for more advanced defenses.
In a tweet thread on Thursday, Ukraine's Air Force said it can't compete with Russia's missile systems and requested high-tech American-made Patriot missile systems. The long-range Patriot batteries are used by the U.S. military and are capable of taking down ballistic missiles and aircraft.
Venable said all of these "asks" would be a logistical nightmare for the U.S., and more than likely, Ukraine is testing the waters for future weapons acquisitions.
"They're asking for the moon and hoping they land somewhere around there," Venable said.
Karl Mueller, a senior political scientist at the nonprofit Rand Corp. who specializes in national defense strategy, said Russia was expected to sweep Ukraine's Air Force and has fallen short.
Mueller added that while providing Ukraine with American missile launchers and advanced aircraft may not work for the short term, it's laying the groundwork for their country to get major military upgrades when the dust settles.
"Providing them with more up-to-date western aircraft is a more long-term question," Mueller said. "I assume, now that we know they're not going to be conquered by Russia ... there will eventually be a flow of weapons to make sure Ukraine can stay secure."
"Russia claims Ukrainian forces struck fuel depot in cross-border attack" PBS NewsHour 4/1/2022
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SUMMARY: Russia on Friday accused Ukraine of entering into its airspace for the first time and striking a fuel facility in the western city of Belgorod, 16 miles away from the border. But Ukrainian officials have not confirmed the attack as fierce battles continue in major population centers. And in Mariupol there was another failed attempt to evacuate civilians. Jack Hewson reports.
"Russian forces retreat from Ukraine’s capital region as civilians attempt to flee Mariupol" PBS NewsHour 4/2/2022
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SUMMARY: Ukraine says its forces have retaken the entire region around the capital Kyiv as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that retreating Russian forces left behind "a complete disaster" and said residents should beware of continued shelling and land mines. Meanwhile, efforts to get civilians out of the hard-hit city of Mariupol pressed on. Correspondent Ali Rogin has our report.
"Ukraine accuses Russia of genocide as retreat outside Kyiv leaves ‘trail of death’" PBS NewsHour 4/3/2022
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SUMMARY: Ukrainian prosecutors investigating possible Russian war crimes say they have found 410 bodies in the towns surrounding Kyiv. Meanwhile, Moscow continues to deny the military is killing civilians. But as Russian troops pull back from those areas they are scorching the earth behind them. Correspondent Ali Rogin reports and Simon Ostrovsky joins Geoff Bennett with more from on the ground in Ukraine.
