October 1, 2024 - PBS News Hour full episode

AMNA NAWAZ: Good evening.

I'm Amna Nawaz.

GEOFF BENNETT: And I'm Geoff Bennett.

On the "News Hour" tonight: The Middle East once again on edge after Iran launches missiles at Tel Aviv in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Iran-backed groups in Lebanon and Gaza.

AMNA NAWAZ: The search for survivors continues in Asheville, North Carolina, as the long cleanup and recovery process begins.

We speak to the mayor about what the city needs.

ESTHER MANHEIMER, Mayor of Asheville, North Carolina: The priority is to restore water and power.

And in the meantime, we have got to get resources to folks that need drinking water, food and basic necessities for everyday life.

GEOFF BENNETT: And vice presidential candidates Tim Walz and J.D.

Vance are set to square off in their only debate as the election enters the home stretch.

(BREAK) GEOFF BENNETT: Welcome to the "News Hour."

Tonight, the Middle East stands on the precipice of regional war.

Iran launched a massive attack on Israel with at least 180 ballistic missiles.

AMNA NAWAZ: Israel is vowing serious consequences.

Tonight, we have teams in both Tel Aviv and Beirut.

We begin in Tel Aviv.

That's where our Nick Schifrin is and where he witnessed the impacts of those strikes -- Nick.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Amna, good evening.

I witnessed those impacts just to my right a couple of miles up the coast.

And from this balcony, I watched and filmed Iranian ballistic missiles attack Israel's largest city, Israeli air defense and U.S. air support try and defeat those missiles.

And, tonight, for Israel, everything has changed.

Tonight, over Tel Aviv, gruesome deadly fireworks, the largest aerial attack ever launched against Israel and direct impacts, dozens of direct impacts across greater Tel Aviv, including just outside the city, where the bomb squad had to make sure it was safe.

This is the impact site for one of those Iranian ballistic missiles.

And if you see the size of this crater, that's about 30 feet deep and maybe 50 feet wide.

You can see all the debris around here.

And to give you a sense of the targets for these strikes, that white building back there, about 1,500 feet behind me, is the headquarters of the spy agency the Mossad.

More impacts in Southern Israel and the Negev Desert, the location of the Nevatim air base, where U.S. weapons arrived and where I traveled with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin just after October the 7th.

In Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, residents raised an Iranian ballistic missile tube, its length about triple their height.

To try and stop this attack, the U.S. dispatched additional jets and naval assets and coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces.

And despite these videos, today, President Biden called the defense a success.

JOE BIDEN, President of the United States: But based on what we know now, the attack appears to have been defeated and ineffective.

And this is testament to Israeli military capability and U.S. military.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Israel tonight is vowing revenge.

REAR ADM. DANIEL HAGARI, Spokesperson, Israeli Defense Forces: The majority of the incoming missiles were intercepted by Israel and the defensive coalition led by the United States.

Iran's attack is a severe and dangerous escalation.

There will be consequences.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Iran called these strikes a -- quote -- "legal, rational and legitimate response" to last week's strike that a U.S. senator said he used 2,000-pound American bombs to kill Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Last night, Israel followed his death with its first conventional ground incursion into Lebanon in nearly 20 years.

It also acknowledged hundreds of raids into Lebanon since last November, the country's largest special forces operation in history.

Today, the military showed off the Hezbollah weapons that it captured that had threatened Israeli towns along the border.

NADAV SHOSHANI, Israeli Defense Forces Spokesperson: We're talking about a very precise intelligence.

We're talking about abilities that Hezbollah has been planning and making for decades that we have been able to take away a big part of that.

But there's still ways to go.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: And I'm Leila Molana-Allen in Beirut.

Across the border in Lebanon, a sleepless night as news of the Israeli ground incursion spread to a backdrop of heavy bombardment from the air that shook communities across the south and the capital, today, more fear, more fatalities.

The streets of Beirut's Hezbollah-governed suburbs have become a ghost town, overhead, the low hum of Israeli surveillance drones an ever-present threat.

Residents here have learned fast that where a drone lingers, before too long, bombs will follow.

Over the past few days, the southern suburbs of Beirut and Dahiyeh have been pounded repeatedly by Israeli airstrikes.

Behind me, there's still smoking ruins of a strike from last night.

The area is now completely deserted.

Most of the residents have fled.

The air still stinks of sulfur.

The IDF sometimes issues alerts about impending airstrikes, warning residents to leave the area.

But these are often published in the middle of the night and cover vast swathes of some of the most densely populated urban areas in the country.

Evacuating fully at such short notice isn't realistic.

While we're there, two heavy strikes hit next to the local hospital, on the way out, ambulance sirens screaming through the black smoke on their way to pick up more of the injured.

There was no warning this time.

Hundreds have already been killed in the bombing of these tower blocks.

And for families who do manage to run, a grim reality awaits.

Reda Turab and his wife Ruhaya fled from their home in Dahiyeh on Friday after the enormous missile strike that killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Their baby Bina is just 6 months old and 27-year-old Ruhaya is four months pregnant.

They grabbed what they could and ran.

REDA TURAB, Father (through translator): We lived through a terrible and terrifying moment, my wife and I.

There wasn't only one or two airstrikes.

There were 10 consecutive strikes.

When the bomb hit, our windows smashed and our house shook.

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Reda was right.

Last night, their home and entire apartment block was pulverized in an overnight strike.

They're alive, but they have little else left.

They have been sleeping in the rain on the tarmac at this roundabout for five days, eating stale bread handed out by volunteers.

Reda and Ruhaya aren't alone.

With more than a million people now displaced by the conflict, there just isn't space for everyone in the shelters.

That means thousands of people are now sleeping rough on the streets of Central Beirut.

Every few minutes here, a car or a minibus turns up filled with desperate people who fled with just the bags they can carry and small children in tow.

As the conflict intensifies, Lebanese across the country are doing what they can to help, bringing food and mattresses for those in need.

Ruhaya is in shock and hasn't eaten since the attack.

They can't afford to see a doctor.

Weak from hunger, she holds Bina close, gently rocking as she drinks her milk, but their meager supplies are running out.

They have got just enough baby milk left until tonight and then they don't know what they're going to do to feed Bina.

REDA TURAB (through translator): We have children.

We don't want war.

A lot of children and women have already died.

They don't deserve this.

I can't think of the future right now.

Who even knows if we will live or die?

AMNA NAWAZ: And Leila joins us now from Beirut, as does Nick Schifrin, who continues to report from Tel Aviv.

So, Nick, what are you hearing from U.S. officials, from Israeli officials about how they will respond to this latest Iranian attack?

NICK SCHIFRIN: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tonight made a strong statement.

He said - - quote -- "This evening, Iran made a big mistake and will pay for it."

And he added: "Whoever attacks us, we attack them."

That is a clear threat, Amna, that Israel will attack Iran directly.

After Iran attacked Israel back in April, and that was a relatively smaller strike than the one we saw today and the one that Israel and the U.S. managed to largely defeat, President Biden urged Netanyahu to -- quote -- "take the win."

And it was seen that Israel's response to Iran at that point was relatively surgical.

But the message out of the U.S. is not that.

Tonight, Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, said: "There will be severe consequences for this Iranian attack, and we will work with Israel to make sure that is the case."

And so that is why so many people in this region and inside the administration are worried that there will be a direct fight between the Middle East's two largest militaries.

AMNA NAWAZ: Meanwhile, Leila, you and Nick both reported on Israel's ground incursion into Lebanon.

Give us the view from there on the ground.

How are people there responding and reacting to that move?

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Well, last night, as it became clear that Israeli soldiers had crossed the border to Lebanon, people were terrified.

They're terrified that 2006 could happen all over again.

Thus far, it's clear that's not the case.

The IDF is saying this is a limited operation right now.

But, really, the main impact that people are suffering is what they suffered all last night, repeated airstrikes, airstrikes throughout the south, airstrikes in the suburbs of Beirut.

We could hear those loudly across Beirut.

The whole city was shaking.

And it's worth pointing out that all these rockets have just landed in Israel, but, across Israel, people have shelters.

They have air raid sirens.

In Lebanon, they don't have either of those anywhere.

So unless they see these occasional reminders from -- these warnings from the IDF about large areas they're going to strike, if they can see them in time, if they can evacuate in time, people are at the mercy of these strikes.

And we are seeing hundreds of civilians dying, 50 killed in just the last 24 hours by these airstrikes.

AMNA NAWAZ: Leila, there are a lot of moving parts here.

There seems to be already sort of a pattern of escalation.

When you talk to people on the ground there, how worried are they about this turning into a larger regional war?

LEILA MOLANA-ALLEN: Thus far in Lebanon, there had been great hope alongside the fear that Western partners would try to dissuade Israel from a full ground invasion, from a full air force invasion of Lebanon.

We saw France's foreign minister come out last week and say this mustn't happen.

We saw the U.S. leaning heavily on its Israeli partners not to have a full invasion last week.

That mood after Iran's strikes tonight may now have changed.

People in Lebanon are terrified that they have already been pulled into Hezbollah's battle, a group that many people in this country do not support and feel are bringing this war upon them.

They may now be pulled into Iran's war too.

And if Lebanon is trapped yet again as the pawn in the middle of the Middle East wars, many thousands of people here are going to suffer and die.

AMNA NAWAZ: Meanwhile, Nick, right before Iran had launched its latest attack, there was a terrorist attack just south of you in Jaffa before then.

What happened there?

NICK SCHIFRIN: Israel's emergency services, Amna, say that four people were killed and several more injured by a terrorist attack by two gunmen who approached a light-rail train, as you said, in Jaffa, just a couple miles behind me.

And it happened right after all of those sirens went off, warning Israel for that unprecedented Iranian attack.

And it just goes to show you, Amna, how people are responding in this city and across the country to a very difficult day for Israel and for across the region -- Amna.

AMNA NAWAZ: Nick Schifrin reporting from Tel Aviv, Leila Molana-Allen for us in Beirut, thank you to you both.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Thank you.

GEOFF BENNETT: Well, for the second time in six months, Iranian forces launched a massive aerial attack on Israel.

What does this latest flash point hold for the region after Israel's punishing campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon?

We have perspectives now from two longtime watchers of the region.

Suzanne Maloney is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution's Center for Middle East policy.

And David Makovsky is the director of the Washington Institute for the Near East Policy Project on the Middle East Peace Process.

Thank you both for being here.

Suzanne, we will start with you.

I want to start with your reaction to today's developments.

What does it suggest about the future course of this war?

SUZANNE MALONEY, Saban Center for Middle East Policy, Brookings Institution: Well, I think we're on the precipice of something that we really haven't experienced before, which would be a direct engagement, a direct military conflict between Israel and Iran.

The two countries have been locked in conflict for decades, but it has largely been a gray zone war.

And for their part, the Iranians have primarily relied upon proxies, including and especially Hezbollah, in order to wreak violence against Israel.

What we're now seeing in April and with this latest attack is that they are prepared to violate a taboo that had held for 45 years, a direct attributable attack from Iran against Israel, which does run the risk of a direct interstate war, which would have devastating consequences for Iran and for the wider region.

GEOFF BENNETT: And, David, give us a sense of how Israel is calibrating its response right now, especially in light of this statement from the prime minister that Iran made a big mistake and will pay for it.

DAVID MAKOVSKY, Senior Fellow, Washington Institute for Near East Policy: Look, you have 181 ballistic missiles.

I think it takes 12 minutes for a ballistic missile to leave Iran and land in Israel.

These ballistic missiles landed all over the country.

This is something Israel has never experienced before in 76 years.

So, a threshold has been crossed here too.

I agree with every word Suzanne said.

She's 100 percent right.

This is a new threshold.

So I think an Israeli retaliation is certain.

To me, the only question is the target, the scope, the timing.

And I don't know to an extent in terms of wanting to be sure the U.S. is on board with all of Israel's strikes, how much consultations are in advance.

Tomorrow evening begins the Jewish new year of Rosh Hashanah, which is a time where Jewish families gather with their families.

What, are they can be in their safe rooms this holiday?

It's not a way to have a two-day holiday.

So I don't know if the strike will be delayed until there's more consultations, until the holiday is over, but a retaliation is certain.

This is a new threshold that's been crossed.

GEOFF BENNETT: Delving more deeply, Suzanne, into Iran's calculation here, this attack is significant.

It's much stronger than the one in April.

Yet the IDF said it intercepted a large number of the ballistic missiles.

Is Iran in some way showing restraint, or is what we saw all it can do right now?

SUZANNE MALONEY: I don't think Iran is showing restraint.

I think, in fact, this attack was not as heavily signaled as the one that took place in April, for which the United States was able to prepare carefully with Israel and with other partners and allies around the region to ensure that there would be a successful effort to repel it.

In this case, I think it was a much dicier, much shorter turnaround time.

And I think what we saw today is not restraint on the part of Iran, but rather the capabilities of Israel's air defense system and the support from the United States, which made it possible to ensure that there were apparently only one casualty, and that happened to be a Palestinian in the West Bank.

GEOFF BENNETT: Where does this leave Hezbollah, especially given the Israeli stepped-up occupation and -- operation, rather, in Southern Lebanon?

DAVID MAKOVSKY: Well, look, its leadership has been decapitated.

We have never seen anything like this.

There have been targeted killing of one of these people, but we never saw the entire top tier, including the leader himself, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, killed.

So I think they have been wanting Iran to come to their defense.

We have heard stories about fireworks tonight in Beirut and Amman and Gaza, saying, finally, here's Iran coming to our aid.

Don't forget, I mean, Qasem Soleimani, who was the legendary head of the Revolutionary Guards, this was his concept, the ring of fire, all the proxies.

Hezbollah was supposedly the jewel in the crown of Soleimani, of the Iranians.

And now, if Israel's decapitated their leadership because they want to make Israel unlivable, both the north and the south, where people had to abandon their homes for a full year, they want to know now, OK, now we're in disarray.

What is Iran going to do for us?

So here's what we see tonight, and I expect this to be an escalatory spiral at this point.

GEOFF BENNETT: U.S. officials today at the White House, at the State Department, at the Pentagon, they all expressed this view that a diplomatic solution is the only solution for a lasting peace right now.

Is that achievable at this point, in your view, today?

SUZANNE MALONEY: I don't think it's imminent, unfortunately.

There has been a lot of diplomatic effort invested in trying to advance a cease-fire in Gaza, and there has also been throughout this long war in Gaza a serious effort on the part of the White House to try to persuade Hezbollah diplomatically to pull back from the Israeli border and to eventually disarm, as required under a prior U.N. Security Council resolution.

I think that there had been some optimism that if one could be achieved, the cease-fire had been presumed to be the first order of business, that the second could be achieved diplomatically.

Now, with the region aflame and with the likelihood of an Israeli response against Iran, which will inevitably precipitate some kind of Iranian retaliatory effort, whether it's another barrage of missiles or whether it's an effort to try to reactivate terrorism against Israel and Israeli interests around the region, I think we're in for a very difficult time ahead.

GEOFF BENNETT: And de-escalation has been the primary interest of this administration, and that has not been the story of these last two weeks.

Does the administration have any leverage left, or is Netanyahu really impervious to U.S. influence at this point?

DAVID MAKOVSKY: Well, look, I think, as Suzanne said, I mean, the U.S. put all -- we put all of our eggs in the cease-fire-for-hostage deal on Gaza.

I think we were close at certain points.

The U.S. certainly not lacked the energy to make this happen, but, in the end, couldn't bring it over the finish line.

There's going to be a lot of finger-pointing on why that didn't happen.

I think, in the end, it comes back to Yahya Sinwar maybe in a tunnel somewhere, but leave that aside.

Look, I hope we don't see a regional war.

I mean, let's be clear.

All the Arab governments, there's not one that is for the Iranians.

When we say regional forces, we're talking about proxies like Houthis and Hezbollah and people like that.

Most of the Arab states see Iran as a destabilizer.

Now, can the U.S. say, Israel, OK, you will get your retaliation, but, after that, let's find a way out of this, let's find the off-ramp?

I still think it's possible.

I don't think a regional war is preordained at all.

But, clearly, the U.S., our first choice was the cease-fire-for-hostage deal, and that now seems that we're -- very unlikely.

GEOFF BENNETT: In a minute we have left, what does an off-ramp look like at this point?

SUZANNE MALONEY: I think an off-ramp really has to be a decision the part of the Iranians that they're not going to retaliate once they're hit by Israel, because that is fundamentally the next step.

And I think that where we are with the Iranian leadership, I wouldn't bank on any further restraint.

GEOFF BENNETT: Suzanne Maloney, David Makovsky, thank you so much for your insights and for being here at the desk with me.

I appreciate it.

DAVID MAKOVSKY: Glad to.

SUZANNE MALONEY: Thank you.

GEOFF BENNETT: And we start today's other headlines with three new world leaders stepping into the limelight from France to Japan to Mexico, where the country's first ever female president was sworn in.

Claudia Sheinbaum, a scientist and Mexico City's former mayor, officially kicked off her six-year term after coasting to victory in June's elections.

At Mexico's Congress, she vowed to continue the social policies of her predecessor and laid out what she herself brings to the role.

CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, Mexican President (through translator): I am a mother, grandmother, scientist and woman of faith, and as of today, by the will of the people of Mexico, the constitutional president of the united Mexican states.

GEOFF BENNETT: Also today, Japan's Parliament confirmed Shigeru Ishiba as the country's new prime minister.

He immediately unveiled a new Cabinet and pledged to maintain close ties with the U.S. while focusing on the economy.

Ishiba also called for a snap parliamentary election for later this month.

And the new prime minister of France, Michel Barnier, gave his first major address to Parliament.

The longtime conservative was heckled by angry lawmakers as he promised to cut that nation's debt.

In North Carolina, election officials say they have their work cut out for them to ensure a smooth vote in November following Hurricane Helene.

Today, the executive director of the state's Board of Elections said that the destruction is unprecedented and this level of uncertainty this close to Election Day is daunting.

She added that the storm closed 12 county election offices in the western part of the state, but no voting equipment was damaged.

In-person early voting is set to begin there on October 17.

Breast cancer rates are on the rise, especially among younger women.

A new report from the American Cancer Society shows that one in 50 women will develop invasive breast cancer before they turn 50 years old.

The sharpest increase was among women in their 20s.

There was also a steep rise among Asian American and Pacific Islander women.

Across all age groups, breast cancer rates went up 1 percent each year from 2012 to 2021.

Breast cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. for women, though fatalities actually dropped by 10 percent in the last decade due to more screenings and better treatments.

On Wall Street today, worries about the situation in the Middle East weighed on stocks.

The Dow Jones industrial average gave back around 100 points.

The Nasdaq dropped more than 250 points, or nearly 1.5 percent.

The S&P 500 also ended lower on the day.

And the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation has awarded its latest so-called Genius Grants to 22 luminaries in the arts, literature, academia, and science.

This year's fellows include more writers, artists, and storytellers than in past years.

They include trans cabaret singer Justin Vivian Bond, Sterlin Harjo, the filmmaker behind the FX on Hulu series "Reservation Dogs" about indigenous teens, and author Jason Reynolds, whose work often reflects the experience of Black children.

Each winner receives an $800,000 grant they can use however they wish.

You can see the full list of winners on our Web site, PBS.org/NewsHour.

And former President Jimmy Carter celebrates his 100th birthday today.

He's the first president to live for a century, going from a peanut farmer to the 39th president of the United States.

Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his humanitarian work and defense of democracy around the globe.

He was also a longtime ambassador for Habitat for Humanity, which is building 30 houses over five days to mark his birthday.

The White House put up a sign today wishing Carter a happy birthday.

The building's current resident, Joe Biden, was the first sitting senator to endorse Carter's presidential campaign back in 1976.

The White House shared this video tribute today.

JOE BIDEN, President of the United States: Happy 100th birthday.

You have always been a moral force for our nation and the world.

I recognized that as a young senator.

That's why I supported you so early.

Put simply, Mr. President, I admire you so darn much.

May God continue to bless you, Mr. President.

You have been a good friend.

GEOFF BENNETT: Carter has been spending the day in his hometown of Plains, Georgia, where he was born and has lived for more than 80 of his 100 years.

And we have a passing of note.

Actor John Amos has died.

JOHN AMOS, Actor: You want to run me by me again?

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: Arguably, his most famous role was as the stoic family patriarch James Evans Sr. in the 1970s hit "Good Times."

He later earned an Emmy nomination for his seminal portrayal of the adult Kunta Kinte in the 1977 miniseries "Roots."

JOHN AMOS: I tell you, Fiddler, sometimes, it seem like being alone and being free, all the same for a slave.

LOUIS GOSSETT JR., Actor: You don't be free.

You be dead.

JOHN AMOS: Then I be free.

GEOFF BENNETT: His publicist confirmed today that Amos died last month of natural causes in Los Angeles.

John Amos was 84 years old.

Still to come on the "News Hour": we break down the potential flash points of tonight's vice presidential debate; port workers on the East and Gulf Coasts go on strike for the first time in nearly 50 years; and we examine the life and complicated legacy of baseball's banned hit leader, Pete Rose.

Hurricane Helene is turning out to be one of the deadliest hurricanes to ever make landfall in the U.S. More than 150 people died and hundreds more are still unaccounted for.

Over a million people still don't have power, and the historic flooding nearly washed some small towns away in Western North Carolina.

In North Carolina, the city of Asheville is still reeling from destroyed water lines, road closures, and a lack of basic supplies.

Joining us now to discuss the dire situation there is Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer.

Thank you for being with us.

ESTHER MANHEIMER, Mayor of Asheville, North Carolina: Thank you.

I'm glad to be here.

GEOFF BENNETT: What are conditions there like right now?

What are the most pressing challenges you're facing?

ESTHER MANHEIMER: First of all is that we don't have water and power to most folks that are living in Asheville and the surrounding area, which is in Buncombe County.

And so the priority is to restore water and power.

And, in the meantime, we have got to get resources to folks that need drinking water, food, and basic necessities for everyday life.

So, that could be diapers, formula, all the things that you would think of that you need to live in your home.

That's really our priority at this point.

But the area that was devastated by the flooding is being inspected from top to bottom.

I was just visiting with the FEMA folks that are set up here working with all the organizations from around the country that have come in to assist with the effort to sort through all of the damaged area, make sure that everyone is accounted for.

That is not complete yet.

GEOFF BENNETT: How is the search-and-rescue operation progressing, given the challenges presented by impassable and destroyed, in some cases, roads and bridges?

ESTHER MANHEIMER: It is difficult, but it's amazing to see.

I just got done seeing a lot of it in action.

And they have got ground crews everywhere.

They have got all kinds of equipment in here.

They're trying to do their best to methodically move through the entire affected area and do a complete review of everything, first of all, to make sure they have accounted for everyone, but also look for dangerous hazards like leaks and so on and so forth, and then begin the tedious task of removing all the debris.

But we do have some areas that are completely impassable because of road outages.

And so they have had to figure out how to get in and make sure they're able to account for everyone.

And, on top of that, we had complete loss of communications.

No one's cell phone worked.

It's only today that we're seeing some broad restoration of communication ability.

So just simply trying to call someone who got landlocked from a road washout or a bridge washout was something that couldn't be accomplished.

GEOFF BENNETT: President Biden said that he's directed FEMA to stay in Asheville until the situation is stabilized.

Do you have what you need from the federal government and from the state government?

ESTHER MANHEIMER: I would say that we do, but we need that effort to continue to grow and to stay constant.

The president has called me.

We have had a conversation.

He's going to be here doing a flyover of our area tomorrow.

We're eager to have him see the damage firsthand, which you know can be much more helpful to understand the gravity of it than just seeing pictures and images.

So the governor has already been here on the ground.

So we're seeing that support.

And, as I mentioned, I was just down at the -- where FEMA is headquartered and took a look at what their operation looks like.

And it is amazing, and folks from all over the country here helping in the effort.

GEOFF BENNETT: Asheville is 300 miles from the coast.

It's thousands of feet above sea level.

It's not the kind of place that people would think would be affected by a hurricane.

Was the city adequately prepared for the flooding in advance of Hurricane Helene?

ESTHER MANHEIMER: I don't know how you would prepare for this kind of devastation.

We have two major rivers that run through the city, the Swannanoa and the French Broad.

They flooded at historic highs, water levels never seen before.

So, yes, I mean, we're used to some flooding.

We have rivers throughout our country.

City and tributaries.

So we have historically had flooding issues and flood damage, but nothing like this, nothing on this level.

And just looking at the water line on these damaged structures that I just saw firsthand they're way above the flood stage for building code.

So I know -- no.

The answer is no, because we have never in the history of -- documented history of the city seen flood levels like this.

GEOFF BENNETT: Anyone who spent time in Asheville knows it's a haven for artists, craftspeople, entrepreneurs.

It's a real economic engine for Western North Carolina.

What does it mean to the state?

And what's it mean to you?

ESTHER MANHEIMER: It's devastating, in a word, for our city, for our region.

There are many people whose livelihoods depend on the ability to have folks travel here and dine in a restaurant, stay in our hotels and support our local economy.

And outside of tourism, we also have all kinds of other economies that are functioning here that are at a standstill, just at a complete standstill.

Some of those, we will be able to ramp back up.

Some of those have experienced so much damage that it's going to be some time before they're functional again.

GEOFF BENNETT: Esther Manheimer is mayor of Asheville, North Carolina.

Thank you for joining us.

ESTHER MANHEIMER: Thank you.

GEOFF BENNETT: Our thoughts are certainly with you and all of the people affected by Helene.

ESTHER MANHEIMER: Thank you.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

AMNA NAWAZ: Vice presidential nominees Governor Tim Walz and Senator J.D.

Vance square off later tonight in the final scheduled debate of the presidential campaign.

GEOFF BENNETT: For more on how the candidates are preparing and what to watch for, let's welcome in our panel.

That's our own Lisa Desjardins and Laura Barron-Lopez, as well as Republican strategist Kevin Madden and Democratic strategist Ameshia Cross.

With a welcome to all of you, Lisa, J.D.

Vance is coming into this with less experience as a candidate.

How is the Trump campaign getting him ready for tonight's debate?

LISA DESJARDINS: Well, there is official debate prep, unlike what Trump said he was doing.

J.D.

Vance has been preparing at home in Cincinnati and over Zoom calls with someone personifying Walz.

And that person is fellow Minnesota Tom Emmer, who also happens to be the number three House Republican.

Now, I'm told that this prep is something that they have done in earnest.

But, at the same time, Politico reported today that, on a phone call with Teamsters, J.D.

Vance said that he hasn't had to do all that much, because he's focused on the policy and that they feel good about their policy.

That is in contrast to a press call that the Trump campaign had yesterday in which they tried to downplay J.D.

Vance's ability and say that they thought Walz was going to be a tougher debate opponent.

It's clearly the expectation game.

I am told that they are prepared for two different kinds of Walz personas, whether it's the jocular dad or someone who goes on the attack.

AMNA NAWAZ: Laura, tell us about how the Democratic vice presidential nominee is preparing here.

How is Walz getting ready for tonight?

And, also, is he trying to speak directly to any kind of target audience?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Amna, yes, Governor Walz has had much -- a very traditional debate prep, very similar, I'm told, almost identical to the kind of debate prep that Vice President Harris went through for her debate against Donald Trump.

And he had help from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who played J.D.

Vance in their mock debates.

And sources told me that Governor Walz is essentially trying to exit this debate the same way he entered it, which is with a higher favorability on average across polls than J.D.

Vance has.

I'm also told that he is -- Governor Walz is expected to try to make moments and hit J.D.

Vance on abortion, on Project 2025, as well as on Trump's past comments saying that he has -- quote -- "a concept of a plan" for getting rid of the Affordable Care Act.

But even though Walz is very much liked by progressives, Amna, he -- the Harris campaign is hoping that his everyday dad persona, his relatability can speak to centrist Republicans, specifically Nikki Haley voters, which the campaign is aggressively courting.

And they got a boost today, Amna, from a specific group of former Nikki Haley voters who voted for Haley in the Republican primaries in their states.

And this is a PAC that's called Haley Voters For Harris.

And they launched a seven-figure digital ad campaign today.

They shared the details first with "News Hour."

And I spoke to Craig Snyder, chair of the group, who said that the goal of these new ads is to create a permission structure for Republicans who may be considering voting for a Democrat for the first time in their life.

GEOFF BENNETT: That's interesting.

CRAIG SNYDER, Chairman, Haley Voters For Harris: Our argument is pretty simple.

And that is that the vice president is a candidate of the center of American politics.

She may be center-left, and these voters may be center-right.

But the key word in that sentence is center.

This is a pragmatic individual who is who is seeking in this campaign a coalition with people across the aisle.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: These ads are featuring lifelong regular Republicans who voted in the primary and who are intending to vote for Kamala Harris come the November election.

And they are going to be featured across platforms like Meta, YouTube, as well as the Max app.

GEOFF BENNETT: Ameshia, I was so eager to bring you into this conversation that I kind of jumped the gun.

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: But I was speaking with a Harris campaign aide today who said that Tim Walz really needs to tell the story of Kamala Harris, that he really has to advocate for her because voters are looking at the top of the ticket, not at the vice presidential race.

What do you think he needs to do tonight?

AMESHIA CROSS, Democratic Strategist: No, I think that's absolutely true.

He's going to have to really clear that working class message.

One of the issues that we have seen in recent polling is that working-class voters are tiering to the right.

That is a problem for the Democratic ticket, especially because we're looking at decades of that level of movement.

And this is probably the largest gap the Democrats have seen in a very long time.

So he's going to have to talk about her story, her narrative, but also that economic agenda.

The top thing on voters' minds is the economy.

And he's going to have to sell her economic message.

He's going to have to sell the opportunity economy, what that means for everyday individuals.

And I think he's also going to have to lean in on women's reproductive rights.

He's debating against J.D.

Vance, someone who has found in himself a way to deter women from both sides of the aisle and everywhere in the middle.

And I think that he's going to have to push on that really hard.

AMNA NAWAZ: Kevin, we know the overarching mantra for any V.P.

selection and campaigning and certainly for tonight, do no harm, right?

So, for J.D.

Vance, who does struggle with favorability ratings, what is the potential there to either help or hurt the Republicans?

KEVIN MADDEN, Republican Strategist: Yes, I think, like, one of the problems that he's had right now, one of the challenges is that he's actually been the focal point of too many attacks.

Like you said, like, Donald Trump has had to explain statements that J.D.

Vance has made in the past.

And I think one of the stickier attacks has been the childless cat ladies thing.

And the Democrats have used that very adroitly during this campaign.

I think his main charge here is very different from Tim Walz's, in the sense that I think you're right that, while Tim Walz will be out there trying to tell the story of Kamala Harris, I think J.D.

Vance is going to be trying to tell the story of Kamala Harris, but he's going to be trying to fill in the blanks with a bit more of a negative frame, tie her to some of the more extreme positions that she has on everything from the economy to immigration, to national security, and then also really try to focus on what Donald Trump would do for the future.

I think those will be the main changes.

I think one of the other things too is tying Harris to the Biden administration.

Like, you know Harris has gotten a little bit of a free pass here.

As an incumbent, she's sort of been the new face of change.

And so I think it's going to be upon him to sort of really bring in and sort of kind of yoke the -- Harris to the failures of the Biden administration on everything like the economy, immigration and such.

GEOFF BENNETT: Ameshia, I mean, how would you gauge the Harris/Walz tickets ability to really cast themselves as a change ticket?

AMESHIA CROSS: Well, I think that, for Kamala Harris, she's doing it on her own.

She's out here.

She's a lot further to the left when it comes to things like legalizing marijuana.

We just heard her talk about that on a podcast the other day.

We are watching her expand the conversation around abortion rights and women's reproductive rights.

That was a bit of a sticky point for President Biden, partially because of his Catholic religion.

The other thing I think that she's leaning in on is understanding that the American public is very frustrated with the cost of things right now, be it whether it's housing, grocery prices, whatever that is.

And I think that, for her, it is leaning in on the successes of the Biden administration, but also acknowledging that people are feeling pain.

One of the things that I think that was really hurtful for President Biden was Bidenomics and Bidenomics is great.

However, people are saying, this is not working for me.

And there was a failure to acknowledge the fact that many people across this country from rural areas to urban areas could not afford their basic needs.

So she's leaning in on that, talking about plans and policies to help reduce the cost, but also speaking to the grievances that they feel.

AMNA NAWAZ: Kevin, meanwhile, we know there's not going to be immediate fact-checking from the moderators tonight as part of the format.

There will be online separate fact-checking.

We will have our own fact-checking here in our coverage as well.

But who does that present the biggest challenge to tonight?

KEVIN MADDEN: Well, I think both of them are going to be very contentious in trying to fact-check each other.

So I don't know if there's necessarily an advantage there.

One of the interesting things that I think we will see very early in the dynamics of this debate is that these are two candidates that really don't like each other.

And they have been sort of sniping at each other from afar, calling each other into question on what they -- on their past statements, on their past policies.

And this is going to be the first chance for them to really get up close and do it in person.

So I expect that there would be a pretty contentious tone during the -- during this debate.

GEOFF BENNETT: Lisa, what are you watching for tonight?

LISA DESJARDINS: Well, I think I'm watching for that.

GEOFF BENNETT: Yes.

LISA DESJARDINS: It's clearly in the interest of both of these men to rise above it and to talk about policy and to be focused on that.

That's what persuadable voters say they want to hear.

But it's going to be hard, I think, for anyone who's a number two to Donald Trump to not take swings.

And on the campaign call I was on yesterday, it was a dozen different things that Jason Miller, who's one of those involved in debate prep, said they want to go after Walz on.

So how does Vance do that?

Does he try and change his persona, how he's perceived and be above it?

Or does he do what the campaign is saying they want him to do, which is throw punches?

GEOFF BENNETT: Laura, we have got 30 seconds left.

Same question to you.

What are you watching for tonight?

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Well, one thing I found interesting, Geoff, is that sources close to the campaign, Harris campaign, told me that they believe that J.D.

Vance is going to be able to land some punches on Tim Walz, so a bit of expectation setting also from the Harris campaign, that they think J.D.

Walz is a far more experienced debater -- sorry -- J.D.

Vance is a far more experienced debater than Tim Walz.

GEOFF BENNETT: All right, Kevin Madden, Ameshia Cross, Laura Barron-Lopez, Lisa Desjardins, our thanks to all of you.

And our panel will be joining us again later tonight for a live simulcast of the CBS News vice presidential debate.

You can watch the debate followed by live analysis right here on PBS and on our Web site starting at 9:00 p.m. Eastern.

AMNA NAWAZ: Tens of thousands of dockworkers along the East and Gulf Coast walked off the job this morning.

William Brangham has been covering the story.

So, William, this essentially freezes operations at ports that handle, what, half of all U.S. imports and exports?

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: That's right, Amna.

This strike is being called by the International Longshoremen's Association.

And they believe, analysts believe that this strike could cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars every single day.

In fact, today, the president of a union local in Philadelphia made clear that workers intend to use every single bit of leverage they have.

BOISE BUTLER, International Longshoremen's Association Local 1291: We may be 60,000 members from Maine to Texas, but what we control in the economy is billions of billions of billions of dollars every day, every day, OK?

And all we want them to do is share.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: So, to understand what's behind this and what this means for U.S. consumers, we're joined again by Peter Goodman.

He's global economics correspondent for The New York Times and author of "How the World Ran Out of Everything: Inside the Global Supply Chain."

Peter Goodman, great to see you back on the "News Hour."

We have got about 50,000 workers on strike at 14 major ports across the East and Gulf Coast.

What are they striking about?

What is it that they want?

PETER GOODMAN, The New York Times: Well, they want higher wages.

They want a piece of the action after years in which international shipping carriers have racked up record profits.

And they also want assurances that there will not be more automation without their permission at major ports.

They see automation as a way to replace them with robots.

And, of course, they're not paranoid to have concluded from history that if you go back to the beginning of containerized shipping in the 1950s, the people who own ships use machinery as a way to make themselves less vulnerable to work stoppages by labor.

And they'd rather pay machines than human beings, who can go on strike, who can be home sick, who can be wanting to do other things than moving cargo.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: The U.S. Maritime Alliance, they have said they have offered a nearly 50 percent wage increase... PETER GOODMAN: Right.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: ... increases to their retirement benefit plans, and some specific language about automation in this regard.

It sounds like, though, they are not anywhere close to a deal.

PETER GOODMAN: Yes, it's unclear how much of this is posturing.

Maybe they are close, but we're in the final stretch and the union is posturing to try to get more.

I mean, their initial demand was reportedly 77 percent increase in wages over six years.

Their argument was not only are the carriers making record profits, but their own wages have not kept pace with inflation in the years when inflation has been very high.

So they're playing catchup.

The automation question, we'd have to see the nitty-gritty of the contract proposals to know how far apart they are.

But we do know, certainly from -- I know from spending my day in Newark, which is the busiest port on the East Coast, and talking to some of these striking dockworkers and looking at their placards, that they are very concerned that automation is a way to hurt their livelihood and replace them.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: So this is the first major strike along the East Coast in, I think it's almost 50 years.

We don't know how long it's going to last.

But what are the implications here?

Who could get hurt by this strike?

PETER GOODMAN: Well, if it doesn't last more than a couple of days, it'll end up being a blip, because there was so much anticipation of this strike by companies that move product that, as one guy, the CEO of Flexport, put it to me, most of their customers are now sitting on two months worth of excess inventory.

They have diverted shipments to West Coast ports, anticipating that there'd be problems at East and Gulf Coast ports.

But if this lasts longer than a week or two, well, then we will really have a problem, because ships can't come into these ports, which means they're stuck waiting for a chance to load and unload.

Any ship that's stuck in a floating queue off Newark or Savannah or Houston is a ship that can't be deployed somewhere else in the world.

So, suddenly, you have scarcity elsewhere.

You also have congestion at ports like Los Angeles and Long Beach.

These two ports together are the gateway for roughly 40 percent of all imported goods reaching the United States by container.

People will remember that during the worst of the pandemic, we had 50, 60, 70 ships stuck miles off the coast of Southern California waiting for their chance to load or unload at the docks.

That could happen again.

Then we could have product shortages.

We could have inflation.

I mean, it could be very bad.

We have seen estimates of $5 billion a day in damage if this strike continues.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: Can we talk a little bit about the politics of this?

We are just a few weeks away from an election.

President Biden has said he will not intervene, even though he has the federal authority to do so.

What are the political implications if this strike really drags out?

PETER GOODMAN: Well, if this strike really drags out, it's going to be bad politically because it will probably exacerbate inflation.

We could have product shortages.

And, of course, this is an election that could hinge on economic sentiments at a time when people are very unhappy about higher consumer prices.

The problem for Biden and Harris is that labor is a core Democratic constituency, and the optics of stepping in to intervene and undercut the leverage of the union could be very bad, could anger the rank-and-file.

Of course, two years ago, Biden did something similar in imposing a settlement on rail workers who were threatening to strike.

That also threatened real supply chain disruptions.

And he imposed a settlement that had lower wages than the union wanted and it had no paid sick leave, which really angered rank-and-file workers.

So there are no good options here for Biden and Harris.

WILLIAM BRANGHAM: All right, Peter Goodman of The New York Times, always great to talk to you.

Thank you so much.

PETER GOODMAN: Thank you.

AMNA NAWAZ: Finally tonight, remembering baseball legend Pete Rose, the all-time hitting king who was later banned from the game for life.

Questions about his legacy and whether he belongs in the Hall of Fame are still hotly debated.

Jeffrey Brown has our look back at the player better known as Charlie Hustle.

ANNOUNCER: Two-one pitch from Show into left-center.

There it is.

Rose has eclipsed Cobb.

That's number 4,192.

(CHEERING) JEFFREY BROWN: September 11, 1985, Pete Rose breaks the record held by Ty Cobb for career hits.

By any measure, Rose was one of baseball's greatest ever players, especially in his years as part of the Cincinnati Reds' Big Red Machine and later with the Philadelphia Phillies, a most valuable player award in 1973, three-time World Series champion, three-time batting champion, 17 All-Star appearances.

ANNOUNCER: A fight breaks out, Pete Rose and Buddy Harrelson.

JEFFREY BROWN: He was known for a ferocious, pugnacious, nonstop style.

ANNOUNCER: And this is the way Rose plays the game, just 150 percent each and every time.

JEFFREY BROWN: Sliding headfirst into bases, running to first base after every walk.

He spoke of it with his manager, Sparky Anderson.

PETE ROSE, Former Major League Baseball Player: I have to agree with you that I am somewhat of an animal when I'm on the field, because I just like to win.

And a lot of that is instilled because of my father.

JEFFREY BROWN: The most famous or infamous incident, the 1970 All-Star game, when Rose rammed headfirst into catcher Ray Fosse, winning the game, yes, but injuring Fosse in what was essentially a meaningless showcase.

Rose's on-field exploits would become overshadowed as long-rumored concerns over his betting on sports contests, including baseball, were confirmed in a 1989 report.

And Rose, then manager of the Reds, was banished from the game by then-commissioner Bartlett Giamatti.

BARTLETT GIAMATTI, Former Commissioner, Major League Baseball: The banishment for life of Pete Rose from baseball is the sad end of a sorry episode.

One of the game's greatest players has engaged in a variety of acts which have stained the game.

PETE ROSE: Well, regardless of what the commissioner said today, I did not bet on baseball.

JEFFREY BROWN: Rose denied the charges for years to come, only admitting it publicly in a 2004 autobiography, when he also spoke to ABC's Charles Gibson.

CHARLES GIBSON, ABC News: Did you bet on baseball?

PETE ROSE: Yes, I did.

And that was my mistake, not coming clean a lot earlier.

JEFFREY BROWN: Rose fought for years to be reinstated, as the ruling kept him from any work in baseball and shut out of the Hall of Fame.

Beloved and reviled, baseball hero and shamed villain, one of the greats and the center of one of the game's greatest scandals.

Rose said this in 2015: PETE ROSE: My fans have stuck behind me, and I appreciate that.

I can't tell you the ongoing support I get everywhere I go.

And I think that's partly because of the way I played the game.

JEFFREY BROWN: Pete Rose died yesterday at his home in Clark County, Nevada.

No cause of death was given.

He was 83 years old.

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Jeffrey Brown.

GEOFF BENNETT: And remember to join us at 9:00 p.m. Eastern for our simulcast of the CBS News vice presidential debate.

We will have live coverage of the debate, plus additional analysis.

AMNA NAWAZ: And coming up before our debate coverage tonight on PBS, "American Experience" presents a timely film, "The American Vice President."

The documentary explores the little known story of the second highest office in the land, tracing its evolution from a constitutional afterthought to its current position of enormous political consequence.

MAN: Mr. Vice President, are you prepared to take the oath of office as president of the United States?

GERALD FORD, Former President of The United States: I am, sir.

MAN: There's this weird situation with the vice presidency.

It's historically seen as a political death sentence.

WOMAN: The founding fathers really didn't give the vice presidency much thought.

LYNDON JOHNSON, Former President of the United States: All I have, I would have given gladly not to be standing here today.

MAN: Immortality is a major factor here for presidents.

MAN: You want to be sure that there's no gap in terms of where the executive power is.

MAN: And it's sort of shocking that we don't pay more attention to the seriousness of the office.

AMNA NAWAZ: "The American Vice President" airs tonight at 8:00 p.m. Eastern right here on PBS.

And that is the "News Hour" for tonight.

I'm Amna Nawaz.

GEOFF BENNETT: And I'm Geoff Bennett.

We will see you back here soon.