Transcripts For KQED PBS NewsHour 20150430

Woodruff plus. Anybodys achievement is driven by interest. Woodruff a model for great teaching. A passion for curiositydriven learning leads to high honors for one educator named the worlds best teacher. I started to plan a school where i could teach kids and teach teachers at the same time its a Demonstration School and exists for those two audiences local kids and then teachers from around the country and even now around the world. Ifill those are some of the stories were covering on tonights pbs newshour. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. At lincoln financial, we believe that you are the boss of your life. The chief life officer. In charge of providing for loved ones. Growing your nest egg. And protecting what matters the most. Lincoln financial is committed to helping you take charge of your future. Life, income, retirement, group benefits, and advice. Lincoln financial. Youre in charge. Supported by the john d. And catherine t. Macarthur foundation. Committed to building a more just, verdant and peaceful world. More information at macfound. Org and with the ongoing support of these institutions and. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Woodruff baltimore was a portrait of contrasts today, 48 hours after riots catapulted the city into crisis. In some places, people returned to normal routines, while elsewhere, there were scenes that bordered on the bizarre. Hari sreenivasan begins our coverage. Sreenivasan the presence of 3,000 police and national guardsmen, plus an overnight curfew, appeared to stabilize baltimore. By and large, crowds who gathered last night demonstrated without incident. Im here to say that we can be peaceful, we still are upset, but we can be peaceful. Go home tonight, thats all were asking. Sreenivasan thats not to say the night was troublefree. Brief scuffles broke out when the 10 00 pm curfew rolled around, and Police Arrested 35 people. This is where we live. They cant tell us to be in the house at ten. We live down the street. No. Sreenivasan but Maryland Governor larry hogan said today the city is getting back to normal. Schools are open, businesses are open, the State Government is open. We want to get people out there today, going about their business. Theres no question in my mind the city is now safe. Sreenivasan safe enough that the strains of Classical Music echoed downtown as the baltimore symphony moved outside to play a free concert for young and old alike. We werent here to make any statement, other than to just kind of take a break, get together play some music and do so for everybody that was walking by or whatnot. Thats what we do. Sreenivasan on the other hand, it was anything but normal at camden yards, where the Baltimore Orioles played the Chicago White sox in a stadium closed to the public. Meanwhile, Community Leaders organized a march to refocus attention on the case of freddie gray, the 25yearold who died in Police Custody with a severe spinal injury. African american men treated by law enforcement. Tip of an iceberg that has been with us too long. Sreenivasan and in washington, newly installed attorney general Loretta Lynch echoed that call, and pledged full assistance to Baltimore City officials. Woodruff and i spoke with hari a short time ago. Hari, hello. You and the Newshour Team have spent this day on the ground in baltimore. What are you seeing . Sreenivasan well, you know, it depend on what part of the city that you go to, how affected everyone is by this, because there arent any major disruptions to infrastructure freeways trains, or commerce. So people in some part of the city are perfectly fine. And, of course, the other parts that weve seen over the past couple of days are still recovering. Woodruff are people willing to talk about this . Do you find, you and the team, have you found people receptive when you ask them what theyre thinking . Sreenivasan yeah, you know we saw a group of School Children being led here on a freed trip by their teacher because they were concerned about fears and their teacher wanted to take them to city hall showsem this that the wheels of justice why rin motion, that its not just the city the entire country is paying attention to what happened here. There arequite a few people who told us that they want to get back to what happened to freddie gray. I spoke to a 61yearold who was doing needlepoint, and she was making an image of jesus walking on water, and she said this is more likely to repeat itself than actually getting justice for freddie gray. Woodruff and hari, you minded us that in a way it depends where you are in baltimore, that there are different pictures of this depending on what part of the city people live in. Sreenivasan thats right thats right. There are certain neighborhoods that are still reeling from this. Theyre still thinking about this on this is incredibly pressing to them and this is all that they can think about because for a glimmer, they feel like the rest of the city and the rest of the country got a chance to see what they have to live through on a daily basis. And then there are other parts of the city where life is prey normal. Woodruff Hari Sreenivasan reporting for us from baltimore thank you. Woodruff in another development, Baltimore Police said theyll turn the results of their investigation into the death of freddie gray over to prosecutors, instead of issuing a public report. And hundreds of people gathered this evening for another protest. Organizers said theyll march to city hall. Well return to whats driving the unrest in baltimore and other cities, later in the program. Ifill Los Angeles County has approved a settlement over systematic abuses of minorities. The Justice Department said the l. A. County Sheriffs Department targeted blacks and hispanics with traffic stops, and with using excessive force. Under the settlement, the Sheriffs Department agrees to three years of federal monitoring. And, it will pay up to 700,000 dollars to people who can prove they were targeted. Woodruff it turns out this past winter nearly froze the u. S. Economy in its tracks. The federal government reported today that First Quarter output, the gross domestic product, rose at an annual rate of just two tenths of one percent. Analysts cited a sharp decline in exports and slower consumer spending. But the white house cited the bigger picture. The gdp has grown by three percent over the last year. And that does reflect the kind of economic strength that we see across a range of other economic metrics. And that gdp growth is actually 50 faster than have been some at some earlier stages of the ongoing economic recovery. Woodruff also today, the Federal Reserve downgraded its view of the economy, but said it expects improvement later in the year. It offered no further hints on when it plans to raise interest rates. Ifill in nepal, the number of dead in saturdays earthquake neared 5,200, with more than 10,000 injured. Demonstrators took to the streets in kathmandu to protest the slow pace of humanitarian aid efforts. Well have a full report from the quake zone, after the news summary. Woodruff the operator of a cargo ship seized by iran confirmed today that the crew is safe. The vessel was taken yesterday at the entrance to the persian gulf. Today, it sailed to bandar abbas, the iranian navys main port. But in new york, foreign minister javad zarif insisted iran is not trying to be provocative. For us, the persian gulf is our lifeline and nothing is more important for us than freedom of navigation in those waters and we are committed to it and we will respect freedom of navigation. Woodruff the ship sails under the flag of the marshall islands. The iranian government said theres a Court Judgment against the company that chartered the vessel. Ifill back in this country, Capital Punishment was back before the u. S. Supreme court. The justices heard arguments on whether a drug used in several botched lethal injections, amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. Separately, the court upheld state laws that bar elected judges from personally soliciting campaign contributions. 30 states have such laws. Woodruff california governor jerry brown today ordered the states Greenhouse Gas emissions to be slashed 40 below 1990 levels by 2030. Brown called it the most aggressive benchmark enacted by any government in north america. Measures to enforce the cuts will be worked out over the next year. Ifill the Obama Administration is on track to deport the fewest number of immigrants in nearly a decade. The Associated Press reports thats based on figures for the first half of the fiscal year. About 127,000 people have been sent home so far. Its part of the president s efforts to shield more than four Million Immigrants from deportation. Woodruff on wall street today, the Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than 70 points to close back near 18,000. The nasdaq fell 30 points, and the s p 500 slipped eight. Ifill and, American Kids still dont know much about history, or civics, or geography. The education Department Said today that in 2014, only a quarter of eighth graders showed solid performance in those subjects. Thats little changed since the last national assessment, in 2010. Still to come on the newshour devastation from the massive earthquake continues to cripple nepal. Violence subsides in baltimore, but unresolved problems remain. Breaking gender barriers in professional basketball. What a new trade agreement with asia would mean for the u. S. Economy. And, high honors for a teacher who links curiosity with learning. Woodruff the magnitude of the devastation in nepal following a massive earthquake is still largely unknown in some of the most remote parts of the country. Jonathan miller of independent Television News traveled northeast from kathmandu to the town of bharabise, where he met desperate survivors who have yet to see any aid at all. Reporter seismologist says the tectonic wave unleashed had the power of 20 thermonuclear weapons. That shock wave hits the towns and the villages with deadly ferocity. As we drove north, the seismic scars became more and more evident. Those who live in these himalayan foothills have had the foundations of their very lives shaken. The sickly stench of death blew in through our windows. After three hours and 20 miles short of the chinese frontier we were stopped in our traction by a landslide. It was the end of the road. As we watched the first efforts to clear it, a cluster of people emerged. Such was their desperation to get to our side. They charged through. Theyd come from tatapani, a nepaly town on the tibetan border, and along with their few scant possessions and blankets they brought with them stories of the world they had just left behind. Reporter and this is the haven tatapanis quake refugees refugees have escaped to. Parts of bharabise a ghost town lay waste on a saturday lunchtime. If news from the tibet border is terrible, its pretty bad here in barhabise, where theres been death and destruction as well. No one around here has had any outside help. Theyre just fending for themselves. They all say theyve heard their governments promised aid but here, they have nothing. Four days after the quake, we have seen no evidence of any foreign relief aid at all. We saw helicopters. Local people say none has landed. The desperation of some contrasts with the stoicism of those picking through the rubble of the wrecked homes. For those in this aidfree zone, there is only one maxim god helps those who help themselves. Woodruff we have more now on nepal. Earlier today, the newshour acquired this video, shot by a film crew using an aerial drone, showing the devastation above the ancient city of bhaktapur, not far from the capital kathmandu. The city of 300,000 is a unesco World Heritage site. Its been known for having the best preserved palace courtyards and Old City Center in nepal. Reports are that some 200 people were killed there during saturdays earthquake. Apart from nepals rich mountaineering and cultural history, most americans know little about the tiny nation. To help fill us in on the countrys politics, economy and infrastructure, im joined by jonah blank, an anthropologist and a senior political scientist at the rand corporation. Jonah blank, welcome. And before i ask you about this other, i understand your wifes family nepalese, they were in kathmandu when the earthquake struck but theyre doing all right . Yes. Thank you judy. Theyre all safe. But they are trying to get enough water and fuel and wondering what happens next. Woodruff so it gives you another connection to this terrible disaster. So this is a country that for most of its existence was ruled by a monarchy but there has been a lot of political upheaval there in recent years. Nepal was, until recently, the worlds only hindu monarchy. In 2006, a 10year civil war ended, and the maoists, who were the rebels in that fight, came into the government. In 2008, the monarchy was abolished. Since then, it has been a constitutional democracy without a real constitution. The maoists won the first election. Other parties won the subsequent one, and theres been a little bit of jockeying ever since. Woodruff and what has that meant for the stability of country . A lot of has been raised recently about corruption in the nepalese government . Well, the stability has been a pretty good picture up until saturday. In fact, nepal had been doing better economically and by most other measures since 2006, when the year the civil war ended, than it had been before. Corruption is a major issue. Nepal ranks about 150th out of about 175 on transparency internationals ranking, so this is really going to hinder longterm reconstruction. Woodruff which has raised the question for people sending organizations sending in aid money, can they be confident that money is going to be spent the way its supposed to be spent gifeel they can because the relief phase is the phase when International Organizations are going to be spending the money and running their own projects. So if people are sending money to a reputable charity theres a very good chance, a very an almost certainty that the money is going to be spent the way that they intended. The longer term project is when the government tries to rebuild. Woodruff and you were tell me earlier, we were talking about the economy of nepal and you were saying to such a large extent, it depends on money sent back by people who are nepalese who live around the world, the nepalese dirasp ra. Thats right. 29 of g. D. P. Comes from remittances sent back from nepalese working particularly in the gulf, and also india. They face a devils choice here do the labor force, does the labor force go back to nepal to rebuild its own country and thereby give up almost a third of the g. D. P. , or do they keep sending the checks back but have no one who has the hands and the backs to rebuild the country . Woodruff is there any indication what theyre doing . A lot of them are flock back because they want to toned their own families but a longer term questions is what happens in the weeks and months to come. Woodruff one other thing jonah blank, and that is with all the warnings that came from the geological experts about the fact that a big earthquake was coming here why wasnt more done to make sure that buildings were safer than they were . Because nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world. Its really by far one of the poorest countries in asia. Its almost on par with countries like the democratic peoples republic of congo. And it costs a lot of money to prepare for earthquake buildings that are going to withstand these tremors. That is why japan a country that is racked by earthquakes, but very few fatalities managed to do all right. But nepal, a country that everyone knew was due for a terrible earthquake has lost 5,000 so far, and we fear maybe 10,000 before this is all done. Woodruff which calls to mind haiti, another very, very poor country, of course, had its own catastrophe with the earthquake there. Jonah blank with the rand corporation, we thank you. Thank you, judy. Ifill we return to the upheaval in baltimore, and the forces driving it. With Tanehisi Coates, National Correspondent for the atlantic, Lester Spence, professor of Political Science and Africana Studies at Johns Hopkins university. And Laurie Robinson, the co chair of the White House Task force on 21st century policing, and professor of criminology at george mason university. Tanehisi coates, you wrote an interesting piece for the atlantic in which you talked about growing up in baltimore, the fact that your mother was raised in the Public Housing project wheres freddie gray was actually killed. And i wonder whether you think that things have changed now in the time since you were growing up, your attitude towards the police then and now. Im not sure what the attitude towards the police has changed much. The general situation in terms of African Americans has certainly changed around the edges. Certainly the achievement possibilities for individual African Americans are, you know, much greater than they were during my mothers time, as evidenced by the president of the United States. But this feeling African Americans have, this skepticism towards the police and the skepticism that the police show towards African Americans is actually quite old. And it may be one of the most durable aspects of the relationship between black people and their country really in our history. It goes back to slavery, has endured through slavery and here we are today in 2015, pretty much dealing with the same thing. Ifill Lester Spence, what is the appropriate response . First of all, do you agree with him on this and what is the appropriate response . Yeah, i agree. Heres one way to think about it. I dont think i would be a professor at Johns Hopkins universities where tanehisis mom lived in the Public Housing projects but at the same time youre talking about a dynamic where freddie gray wasnt the first person to have his spine basically broken by police. Youve had approximately 110 baltimoreans killed in Police Custody, i think the vast majority being African American. There has been a sense among black baltimoreans in general that the police are illegitimate and have reason to think that. Ifill what should the response . Weve seen silent peaceful protests, weve seen violent protests. What should it be . Its important to know that people have been organizing to make police be more humane in baltimore for since ive been here. So approximately 10 years. And there have been a lot of push to make police in baltimore and in the state in general, in the state of maryland, be responsive and be more accountable to their citizens. So im hoping that give that whatsst whats happened there will be more support for that legislation. But as far as the convenience, there will be more people working on that issue. Ifill Laurie Robinson you recently gave the president a ropt these issues, postferg son, posteverything else. And you gave him almost 60 recommendations about how the nation nationally, should be responding to things like this. Loretta lynch the new attorney general, said today, you know, baltimore is not just a symbol. Its just a city. Its more than that. First of all, is that the approach . Is that the proper reaction to look at this as a National Issue or is this baltimore specific . No, our reports that a set of 59 recommendations, and we believe that there are a number of things that individual Police Departments should be doing. For example, adopting a culture of fair impartial, and respectful policing. Adopting what we call a mindset of a guardian mindset not a warrior mindset where youre going in and effectively appearing to occupy communities. We also think there should be a culture of transparency so that the policies of the department are very clear and that departments are working with communities to coproduce public safety, that theyre really collaborating with the communities that theyre working for. Ifill these all seem to be commonsense recommendations. Yes. Ifill but they also dont seem to be happening everywhere. They are happening in some communities but not in very many communities. Ifill Tanehisi Coates, you wrote that calls for nonviolence are the right answer to the wrong question. Tell me what you meant by that. Well i like the way we often approach this is what would we like to see . And we all would like to see protests that are not violent. I think everybody can agree with that. I think everybody can say when they see a cvs burning down or any sort of violent response none of us are joyous about that. But the response of people on the street is not an independent variable. It does not exist independently of the action of other forces. The fact of the matter is the violence in baltimore did not begin with the protestors on tuesday. The actions, as lester just outlined, in terms of people trying to get some attention Pay Attention to the actioning of the police in baltimore did not begin with the protest. The violence started with the actual police. Freddie gray was not the first person. Its just that the cameras suddenly arrived when the cvs starts burning down, and thats where we begin the narrative. And what im trying to say is that, you know, we have to adopt a longer view of history. We have to get beyond these sort of blanket condemnations of people in the streets and say why is this happening . How can it be almost two weeks after freddie gray was taken into custody, and we still dont know how he died . How can that be . That is just un. Ifill let me ask you about that, Lester Spence, because you just heard Laurie Robinson talk about the way it ought to be. You heard Tanehisi Coates talk about the way it is. Where is the action, and where is the appropriate place . So there are people organizing right now to get the Maryland State Assembly to pass legislation to kind of roll back some of the like the Police Officers have kind of like a bill of rights. Were working on peeling that back, and i think thats a great place to start. It didnt have a lot of movement in the Maryland State Assembly this past session, but we think that this is the Perfect Moment to generate support for the next session. And, again, this is not just about police violence. Its about economic violence right. So that census track that freddie gray lived in spent 47 million incarcerating its residents. That money is basically that money coosk spent in so many ditch ways and gen raits a condition in which his census track is basically like a police state. I mean, nobody should want that. Ifill Laurie Robinson, is it policy thats lacking here or is it policing thats lacking . Which is or are they related . One of our overarching recommendations in the report, gwen, was the Administration Needs to look beyond policing. Certainly needs to look at policing but also needs to look at Economic Policy arct health and education, and very pointedly at poverty. Ifill but you heard the president say yesterday, proposing these things, and he didnt sound very optimistic that any of it is happening. Well, what we say is the criminal Justice System alone, policing alone changes in policing cannot solve these problems. Ifill what do you think Tanehisi Coates . What is at the root of this . Its one thing for to us say we have identified the problems. Its another to say we have identified the solutions. I think there are two factors. I think the deciding factor, theres a long history in this country is looking at African American as subhuman. And i think thats reflective in the fact that when we have problems, they really are problems of employment, that are really problems of mental health, that are really problems of drugs, our answer is the police. Our answer is the criminal Justice System. Where if it were not another community that might not be the answer we would give. I think it is true, in fact, those two things are related. Its not just a matter of, you know, a criminal jfs solutions. But the very reasones yes we default to criminal jfs has to do with who we are and how we view African Americans. Ifill Lester Spence, one of the things people have been arguing is this is lesof a race issue and more of a class issue. What do you think . Well, its interacting. For example me as a professor in baltimore, 46 years old, i dont have problems with the police, right . And thats in part because of my class background. But the reality is that if you take the poor black neighborhoods that freddie gray lived in and a lot of African Americans lived in, and you compare them to the poor, white neighborhoods in places like dundock, and essex here in baltimore, the black people in those neighborhoods likely experience harsher policing. Theyre likely poorer. And theyre likely sicker. So class operating but its hard to imagine a black kid a white kid having his spine broken and it be, like, a week or two later and we still dont really know what happened. Ifill Lester Spence of johns hob kins university. Laurie robinson, and Lester Spence of the atlantic. Thank you all so much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Woodruff next, as part of our Ongoing Partnership with the atlantic magazine, my profile of Michele Roberts, the executive director of the National Basketball Players Union. An article featuring roberts is in the magazines may issue that is currently on the stands. Woodruff last year this time, Michele Roberts was one of the countrys leading trial lawyers. An unknown quantity in the world of basketball, she was still chosen out of 300 candidates receiving almost 90 of the vote from player representatives to lead their union. Initially when i got the job, and this is true, there were literally mornings id get up and i remember that i was no longer in d. C. , i was no longer practicing law and then i just burst into laughter, and think like, this is so cool my two older brothers were basketball fans. We had one television growing up and we saw a lot of knicks games. And so, just by osmosis, i started watching the game and loving the game. That love of basketball never changed. Woodruff the first woman ever to run a professional sports union in north america, Michele Roberts, is undeniably on top of what is still very much a mans world. When i caught up with her at a knicks game last month, it was clear that even big time players like the legendary walt frazier understand her value. I spent about 12 seconds thinking that i wont get this job because i am woman. I got over that a long time ago. Now having said that, i also knew that they would notice that i was a woman, and i have to at least assure them that i was not some wuss. Woodruff shattering glass ceilings is roberts specialty. One of the countrys top litigators, she honed her skills as a public defender where losing a case could mean a life sentence for her clients. That she has the background in litigation was big for us. You know shes a tough one shes not going to take any b. S. From anybody. Woodruff players like the New York Knicks lou amundson, and jason smith, both very active in the union, were impressed from the beginning. We had a lot of different people in mind. She presented to us multiple times so i think we kind of had a mindset as a union that we wanted her to lead us into battle. Woodruff now nine months into the job, she took me from the harlem headquarters where she presides over the union, back to the south bronx where it all began. Its been a long journey. Woodruff melrose houses, a lowincome apartment project was home for michele, her four siblings and her mother elsie. So this was your building . Up on the 10th floor. She was a no nonsense, no excuses, no pity, i dont want to hear it kind of woman. Her view was, i will feed you. I will clothe you. I will make sure that you have a shelter and in exchange for that theres one thing you got to do you gotta come in here with the best grades you can. In the summer, theyd have tournaments. Basketball was huge. She didnt have a high school diploma. She was on welfare. She had five kids and her husband split. I dont know where she found the nerve and the commitment to even encourage us. But she did. Woodruff for high school Elsie Roberts strategically guided her daughter towards a scholarship at the prestigious Masters School an all Girls Boarding School only 50 miles from home, but worlds away. Michele went on to Wesleyan University and then to u. C. Berkeleys top notch boalt hall law school, fulfilling her dream to become a lawyer, a career inspired by one of her mothers peculiar hobbies. Dont ask me what in the world motivated her to go watch trials but she did. Woodruff she would sit in on trials at the bronx supreme court, sometimes with michele in tow. Even though i couldnt understand probably four percent of what i was watching, i could tell that this lawyer was not doing such a great job. And my mother told me, explained to me, well, you know, thats a Court Appointed lawyer, poor people who end up in the criminal Justice System. Theyre not able to afford counsel. They get whoever the court appoints. And at that moment, i knew i was going to be a public defender. Woodruff Elsie Roberts didnt live to see her daughters illustrious legal career or her historic entry into the world of professional sports. You obviously are not the only rookies in the room. Woodruff just how unlikely a match was it do you think . Its not as unlikely as people think. Being the executive director of a Players Union means understanding what the members want, what the members need and helping them get there. Woodruff that Promised Land for players is a new collective Bargaining Agreement with owners up for negotiation in 2017. The last agreement, in 2011, was reached only after a lockout. It cost the players much of their season and depleted their total revenue by as much as three billion dollars. It was very favorable to the owners. Woodruff andrew zimbalist, a top sports economist at smith college, points out that players were earning more a decade ago. The players share of total revenue in the nba or what they call basketballrelated income has fallen. It was up around 60 . It fell to 57 . Now its roughly at 50 . So its gone steadily down as revenues have gone up. Woodruff in 2016, the Largest Television deal ever made by the nba will go into effect, to the tune of 24 billion over nine years. The amount of revenue thats coming in is three times what it was under the last tv deal. These teams are not going to, i think with a straight face, try to suggest that they are broke, its a different environment. Gate receipts are up and so the game is more popular than ever. Woodruff but roberts is still battling uphill. Theres not much public sympathy for millionaire players squaring off against billionaire owners. Everyone knows what the players compensation but they dont know what the profit is of these teams. The focus is not going to be on how much kobe bryant makes, but were going to be focusing on how much money the lakers make. Woodruff nonetheless, the average player salary is 5 million, and almost 30 of players are making more than that. We never ever run from the fact that we are well compensated thats why we have so much respect for our fans, because without them none of this is possible. Woodruff james jones, a forward for the cleveland cavaliers, is the secretary treasurer of the National Basketball players association. But make no mistake about it, were still labor. Woodruff one of roberts biggest coups thus far is getting superstar lebron james to take on the role of union vice president. Roberts hope is to strengthen the union by getting more players involved. Its hard to have a proletarian or working class solidarity attitude if youre making 5. 5 million. Over time these players have gotten paid more and more. Theyve become more and more reluctant to, lets have solidarity guys and lets stay ought the bad guy owners. A lockout is something we want to avoid. Either way, we know that shell be prepared, that shell have the best game plan in place for us to hold us together. Woodruff with negotiations for the next collective Bargaining Agreement still two years away, roberts has time to build her relationship with nba commissioner adam silver, who was also appointed just last year. Right now i have an opponent who would like to be a partner. And to the extent that we can maintain civility and understand that we have respective clients that we have to represent, i think the future is optimistic for cba negotiations. I dont want the community to believe that were gonna have another lockout or strike. The outcome is gonna be determined by leverage. And the leverage will only come if michelle roberts, ultimately, is able to fashion that unity. Woodruff whatevers in store, Michele Roberts says she is more than ready. I plan to be the best executive director in the history of this union. But im proud of it. And im proud of the players for being, bold enough to give a girl a chance. Ifill one of the biggest economic fights taking place behind the scenes in washington and around the country this year is a battle over a farreaching new trade deal. That agreement could translate into hundreds of billions of dollars in business, exports and profits. With so much at stake, japan and the u. S. Used a state visit this week to step up their lobbying campaign. Japans leader spent yesterday at the white house, and today on capitol hill. It was the first time a japanese Prime Minister has ever addressed a joint session of congress. I extend my happiest gratitude to you for inviting me. Ifill and it came at a critical moment in the fight to establish a sweeping u. S. Trade deal with 11 Asian Pacific rim nations, not including china. Once in force, the Trans Pacific partnership, or t. P. P. , would account for some 40 of the worlds economic output. Its aimed at opening up trade by removing tariffs and other barriers. It also deals with labor standards, investments and patents, among other issues. The Prime Minister touted the possibilities. The t. P. P. Goes far beyond just economic benefits. It is also about our security. Let us bring the t. P. P. To a successful conclusion through our joint leadership. Ifill but first president obama is trying to win renewal of fasttrack negotiating authority that would make it harder for congress to change any deal once an agreement is reached. He admitted yesterday, hes got a fight on his hands. Its never fun passing a trade bill in this town. Ifill Many Democrats warn that an asian trade pact would cost american jobs, and would not include enough environmental protections. But abe argued today the trade deal is vital to the future. We must turn the area into a region for lasting peace and prosperity. That is for the sake of our children and our childrens children. Ifill that was an indirect reference to the trade deals potential to counter chinas growing power across asia. Joining us to a senior fellow at the council of Foreign Relations who has been following the trade talks closely why are japan and the u. S. In particular so insistent this happened . I think its a big deal for both governments. For the United States, this is the culmination of an effort to create free trade in the region that goes back 25 years, the early 1990s. In japan its critical for the japanese economy. Hes hoping this will jump start what has been a moribund economy. Ifill we mentioned the Fast Track Trade Authority which congress is going to be asked to vote on. Why what is it about what congress could do that could possibly derail this deal . Well, theres a longstanding tradition of Congress Passing trade authority that gives the president the right to go out and negotiate the deal and bring it back to congress for an upordown vote. The concern is negotiate an elaborate package, it goes back to congress, and then Congress Amends it and then you go back to japan and the other 10 countries and say we have to amend the deal because congress didnt like it. Ifill the same problems cropped up around, that especially among democrats who are not crazy about this. Yes, this has been a contentious debate for a long time. Many of president clintons supporters in the Democratic Party were not with him on the nafta vote. But even then b100 democrats supported it in the house. This time, the numbers could be as low as 20 democrats supporting in the house, which is an extraordinarily low number given that we have a democratic president. It really goes back to that agreement, and the feeling that these trade agreements have hurt United States workers in various ways. Youve seen a big decline in manufacturing employment, offshoring of jobs, wages have been pretty stagnant for most people for a couple of decades. And there are many on the left who blame the trade agreements for that. I think the consensus among economists is trade has some effect in this respect but there are a lot of other things going on technology in particular. Ifill lets talk about china for a moment because this is something both the i noticed in an interview with the wall street journal this week, president kept pressing the idea that china may have an upper hand here, and, of course, japan has expressed the same concerns. What is at the root of that . China is really the elephant not in the room in these negotiations. China is not part deal. The concern among many countries in the region japan, malaysia, vietnam, others is that china is really becoming the dominant power in the region and they dont want to see china set the rules for economic endpaijment throughout asia. From the u. S. Perspective, the u. S. Wants to be a player there. This is really the key part of president obamas pivot to asia. And the idea is to create a set of trading rules that really will work in the United States favor but then also to hold an offer out to china and say, look, if china wants to join we are open to that, but theyre going to have to play by the rules that the u. S. And these other countries negotiated. Ifill has china signaled in any way theyre interested in joining . Tentatively, tentatively. Theyve indicated they see the potential for disadvantage if countries located in these t. P. P. Countries have special rules that make trade easier and cheaper in those countries. China is worried about losing Foreign Investment which has been very important to chinas gement so yes, they have indicated they may be interested. Ifill the definitionave deal is everybody gets a little bit of something but in this case, the u. S. And japan, for example, get to protect Certain Industries as well. Some of the toughest issues between u. S. And japan have to do with the most sensitive industrys. Japan, for instance, incredibly high tariffs on agriculture. Hundreds of percent on rice and beef impossible to sell into that market. The u. S. Wants to see those import duties eliminated. Japan wants to sell more cars to the United States even though they sell a lot and we are saying you need to buy more american cars, too. Japan buys fewer american cars than 20 years ago. So its a pretty sensitive issue. Ifill it sounds at the end of the day there are a lot of odd bedbedfellows climbing in together to make this thing work. Very much. For instance, theres controversy over provision that allows companies to sue governments over regulations that harm their business. Philip morris is suing the government of australia because australia says you cant put your brand on cigarettes. We want to discourage cigarette so you have to use plain packaging. Philip morsis suing the government. That has upset a lot of folks on the left in the Democrat Party but it has upset libertarians in the republican party. You get odd alliances on this. But at the end of the day, if fast track passes congress it will be with the support of a democratic president and an overwhelming majority of republican asks very few of the democrats in congress. Ifill and timing . Well, congress is going to debating it seriously next week. Could well be done by june. Ifill edward alden thanks for making it clear. Good to be here, gwen. Woodruff next, a profile of a teacher whose approach has caught international attention. President obama today recognized some of the countrys best educators, at a white house ceremony honoring the teacher of the year. Shanna peeples, a High School English teacher from amarillo texas received the top prize. Last month in dubai, a teacher from maine took home the First Ever Global teacher prize and one Million Dollars. Nancie atwell is using her time in the spotlight to continue her lifes work. The newshours april brown reports for our american graduate series, a public Media Initiative funded by the corporation for public broadcasting. Reporter for roughly 40 years, Nancie Atwell has thought of herself first and foremost as a teacher. But recently in dubai, she got a major title bump. And the global teacher prize goes to Nancie Atwell. Reporter today, many are calling her the worlds best teacher, after winning whats been dubbed educations nobel prize. Along with that honor she was awarded 1 million from the varkey foundation, a nonprofit that aims to improve educational outcomes for underprivileged children across the globe. I was delighted, shocked, you know gob smacked and so proud to you know to represent my profession. The goal is excellence always. Reporter atwell was among ten finalists competing against nominees from countries including afghanistan, india haiti and kenya. This is going to work if you can play it out slowly. Reporter she won in large part because of the small, independent k through eight school she started in 1990 in edgecomb, maine, with the goal of teaching more than just students. I started to plan a school where i could teach kids and teach teachers at the same time and thats the genesis for the center for teaching and learning. Its a Demonstration School and exists for those two audiences local kids and then teachers from around the country and even now around the world. Reporter those teachers complete fourday internships at the center for teaching and learning, finding out how atwells teaching philosophy works in the classroom. Here, the entire school day is driven by a simple motto let kids have choices. Whether its the book they want to read, or where they want to read it. Anybodys achievement is driven by interest. You know adult, child, boy, girl it doesnt matter. Reporter as they would in Public Schools atwells 75 students follow a curriculum in every subject. But within the traditional framework, her kids choose what topic they want to explore in history, or what they want to research in science class. Atwell believes this gets them to invest in what they are learning. And not just invest arbitrarily, but invest in the way a literary critic does, a writer does, a mathematician does, a historian does a scientist does out of real curiosity, real passion, a real sense of motivation. Forester said they really fit a specific kind of role. Reporter atwell also does not believe in tests and quizzes. Teachers assess their students progress daily, as english teacher glenn powers did in this discussion on flat versus round characters which ended up crossing many literary genres. In the beginning of the trilogy hes a flack character and by the end he changes how he thinks and how he feels about other people. When we evaluate our student its on the basis of portfolios of their work, and students selfassess as part of the portfolio process. These are the first and second graders who have just come back from swimming. Reporter the way students are evaluated isnt the only unusual feature of this school. The environment is, too. Atwell designed it to encourage interaction and collaboration. Its just so friendly to open a door and number, you know another space. Teaching can be lonely. We teaching can be lonely, so we tried to build this building so that people would feel connected. There are at least 20 titles. Jennifer wilson is a teach frer charlottesville, virginia who came to reporter Jennifer Wilson is a teacher in charlottesville, virginia who came to atwells school to see what methods here could be used in her own english classroom. Working on a poem, and some kids are working on microfiction but i might nooed to make is a little less structured and a little more lirn in terms of this is what is due on this day because is seems things could get lost in the shuffle. Reporter for atwell thats perfectly fine. The internships are meant to get teachers thinking more about their craft and how best to reach their own student no matter what kind of system they work in. The idea was to start the school so other teachers wouldnt have to start schools of their own, and especially and essentially Public School teachers. Our mission here is to experiment for the good of everybodys children and then pass those methods along. Most of the kids attending atwells school live nearby, and 80 dont pay the full 8,000 a year tuition because its calculated on a sliding scale based on parental income. We keep the tuition low on purpose because we want to attract regular kids. So the kids that you see in our classes, their parents are farmers, fishermen lobstermen Small Business owners the whole range of professions that people work in the midcoast of maine. Reporter for many of her students, there is no question why atwell is being called the worlds best teacher. She was able to teach people who then could teach other people and so she kind of she grew a web of teaching, and its just it spread and so i think thats why she was up for it. She can engage everyone and make one topic that would be really hard to relate to just something amazing to every kid in the class. Reporter this popular teacher says shes already made plans to maximize her newfound fame. Id like to speak up for the brilliance of teachers, for the privilege of being a member of this profession, and for the need for it to transform again so that its viewed as an intellectual opportunity because right now its not. Reporter atwell plans to invest the Million Dollars she won back into her school. Some of the money will Fund Scholarships and much of the rest will go toward keeping the center for teaching and learning open for years to come. For the pbs newshour im april brown in maine. Woodruff on the newshour online nepal rests on one of the most dangerous fault zones in the world, and scientists are predicting that another major earthquake is inevitable. The question is where and when. We talked to geologists who study the himalayan fault, and you can read their analysis, on our home page. All that and more is on our web site, pbs. Org newshour. Ifill tune in later this evening on charlie rose Iranian Foreign minister Mohammad Javad zarif and the pending deal over Irans Nuclear program. And thats the newshour for tonight. On thursday, we return to vietnam, 40 years after the fall of saigon, to look at the images and stories that shaped americas vision of the war. Im gwen ifill. Woodruff and im judy woodruff. Well see you online, and again here tomorrow evening. For all of us here at the pbs newshour, thank you and good night. Major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by and with the ongoing support of these institutions and. This program was made possible by the corporation for public broadcasting. And by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. Captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org this is nightly business with Tyler Mathisen and sue herera. Slowing to a crawl. Economic growth stalled at the start of the year as businesses slashed investment and exports tumbled. Insights from a former fed governor about wha. Not yet. The Federal Reserve does not move on rates and left few clues about what might lie ahead. And your money. What should you do with your stocks and bonds now that the . All that and more tonight on nightly business for good evening, everyone and welcome. Anemic. That describes First Quarter growth. And while many expected the economy to be weak they didnt expecte this weak. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of goods and