If you get caught with covid 19, the closest hospital is probably one hour away for most people here. Woodruff all that and more 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. The lemelson foundation. Committed to improving lives through invention, in the u. S. And developing countries. On the web at lemelson. Org. 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 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 this has been a day for honoring americas military veterans, of peace and war, amid the political war over the president ial race. President trump still shows no sign of conceding to president elect biden, or to clearing the way for a change of government. Lisa desjardins begins our coverage tonight. Desjardins rain fell at a veterans day ceremony at Arlington National cemetery, where President Trump made his first public appearance since the Associated Press called his reelection defeat over the weekend. He attended a wreathlaying and saluted at the tomb of the unknown soldier, but did not speak. taps playing in philadelphia, president elect joe biden made his own veterans day stop, he and the future first lady, jill biden, laid a wreath at a korean war memorial. But he, too, had no public comment. The days solemn ceremonies unfolded against the backdrop of mr. Trumps refusal to recognize the Election Results or commence the transition. On twitter, the president continued to make unsupported claims of voter fraud in states he lost or is trailing. One of those states is georgia, where the secretary of state today announced a hand recount of all ballots in the president ial race. There will be plenty of oversight. We want to make sure both parties have opportunities to observe this because we know the stakes are high. Desjardins mr. Biden leads in georgia by about 14,000 votes. The recount comes after the Georgia Republican party and the states entire republican congressional delegation sent a letter to the secretary of state, alleging fraud, without evidence. They asked him to investigate serious allegations of voting irregularities in both the president ial and two u. S. Senate races. The two senate races are headed for runoffs in january. The Trump Campaign also continues to file legal challenges to the president ial vote count. Today it sued michigan to block the state from certifying joe bidens win, which it is scheduled to do on november 23rd. He leads there by more than 140,000 votes. President trump did score one victory today. The Associated Press formally called alaska, for him, increasing his electoral vote count to 217. Woodruff lisa joins us from wilmington, delaware, and Yamiche Alcindor is at the white house. Hello to both of you. Lisa, to you first, and this is the first day, i guess, joe biden has not made public remarks since he was declared the president elect, but we know the transition planning continues. Tell us where that stands. Not a day off for the biden transition, judy, thats for sure. They have more than 4,000 positions, about that many, to appoint in government, and theyre on their way going through that list. Judy, its interesting, i talked to an advisor yesterday who told me that the way theyre going about that is to look at the policy, try and find the people who will best enact policies joe biden wants from healthcare and supporting the Affordable Care act to climate change, to a range of other things including thincludingthe minimumwage. On that front, i can also report that we do think that they will start announcing some potential top staff starting at the top with the chie chief of staff, af that announcement for the white house chief of staff under President Biden when he takes over could come as early as this week. At the u. S. Senate, a lot of swirl around several senators, a lot around Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, about whether they would take positions in this administration. Speak to have the senate, i talked to the Republican Senate office, allies of President Trump, who tell me one reason theyre not speaking out publicly about whether the president should accept the result is they think they can do more behind the scenes. This office tells me there conservative senators spoke to President Trump on the phone and told them, of course, from their point, continue whatever questions you have to raise, but ultimately the senates asked the president to do whats right when the time comes. Woodruff and we will be talking with senator sanders in just a few moments. Yamiche, to you now, we know the president has also not spoken publicly. Weve seen the tweets, weve seen him just now, but we know that his team is still very much trying to win some battles in the court, challenging the results, where does all that stand . Well, President Trumps refusal and the trump caaigns refusal to acknowledge that joe biden is the president elect and to continue to file lawsuit after lawsuit comes down to two big things, politics and money. On the money side, they are raising boatloads of money, thousands of dollars every day by sending out next messages and emails, messaging that they need to keep up the fight, but they want to have money for an election defense fund. When you look at the money being raised, it tells a story. 60 of that money goes to save america pac, a Political Action committee. Aft that if someone donates thousands of dollars more, that money goes to the trump recount account. This is important the Political Action committee faces restrictions on how money is spent. Unlike candidate campaign accounts, the money raised can be spent on personal expenses. 40 goes to the Republican National committee. This money can go to benefit potentially other republican candidates. Critics say this is a slush fund that can go to funding President Trumps lavish lifestyle. The margins are on President Trumps side. Allies of the president told me that today. We want to look at the popular vote margins in the state contested by the Trump Administration and the Trump Campaign. In michigan in 2016 President Trump won by 10,000 votes, joe biden is leading by more than 146,000. In pennsylvania he won by 44,000. In 2016, 50,000 is what biden is leading by. In wisconsin 22,000 is what trump won by. Hes leading, president elect joe biden, by 20,000. Those tell stories and older Establishment Republicans tell me the numbers are not going to work out for the president while younger republicans are continuing to workday and night to try too find more voters to get people to overturn the margins. But its a really, really uphill battle. Woodruff ia niche, we know, with regard georgia is going to have a hand recount. What do we know about President Trumps involvement in that . President trump is continuing to pressure republicans all over the country, including in georgia, to really publicly challenge the integrity of the election. Now the Georgia Republican georgia secretary of state was out a few minutes ago saying that the white house has not contacted him directly to pressure him the do any sort of recount, but the Trump Campaign sees that recount as a huge win, they want to see that the president might be able to wrestlet it back but as you noted joe biden is winning by 14,000 votes, so it will be tough. Woodruff finally, quickly to you, lisa, the fact there will be a narrower margin for democrats in thousands waiting to see what will happen in the senate till january, what does that mean for biden planning . Judy, quickly, the senate new Senate Convenience january 3. The Georgia Election is january 5. That will make it tricky to organize the senate and we will have to watch it closely. Woodruff and we thank both of you. Both of you standing in the rain. Lisa desjardins, in wilmington, Yamiche Alcindor at the white house, we appreciate it. Woodruff joe biden has won the presidency by securing more than 270 electoral votes, and leading the popular vote by a five million vote margin. But democrats wont have a majority in the u. S. Senate, and lost seats in the house. Losses that exposed ideological differences between the progressive and moderate wings of the party on issues from health care to policing. Senator Bernie Sanders of vermont joins me now. Senator sanders, thank you so much for being here. It is clearly a win for the democrats in the white house. Joe biden is the president elect, but disappointment in the results in the senate and the house. What went wrong . Well, i wish i knew di de fientively, but i think diff idefinitely, but i think dt candidates focused on defeating a pathological liar and thats enormously important, but i dont think we did quite a good as job as we should have. In speaking to working families who, today, are probably in worse economic shape than anytime since the great depression, and we did not make the case that were prepared to take on powerful special interests, were prepared to raise that minimum wage to at least 15 bucks an hour, provide equal pay for equal work, make it easier for workers to join unions, create millions of goodpaying jobs, rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, making public colleges and universities tuitionfree, expanding healthcare to all people, so i think we probably were not as strong as we should have been in explaining what a progressive economic agenda would mean to working families throughout the country. Woodruff but now that democrats are going to have fewer seats in the house, now that you may have 50 seats in the senate, but you may end up with 48, are you going to be able to do the kinds of things you just listed, senator sanders . Youre going to have great opposition from republicans and not even support from all democrats. Well, look, i think all of the ideas that i have talked to you about, judy, and many more, are popular ideas. I mean, the truth is that the American People understand that our current Healthcare System is dysfunctional and cruel and wasteful. They understand that 7. 25 an hour minimumwage is a starvation wage. Its insane that our infrastructure is falling. That we are not addressing the existential threat of climate change. That is what the American People understand and want to see us address, and our job is to explain to the American People where the opposition is and put pressure on republicans, especially those coming up for election in two years, that they have got to do what the American People want. Woodruff and at the same time, we know President Trump, as you purchased, received 71 millionplus votes. So republicans are going to point to that, and oppose, we assume, much to have the democratic agenda much of the democratic agenda. So my question is are you going to have to have scaledback expectations for what President Biden is able to accomplish . Look, i think start off with the agenda that want speaks to the American People. What i want all over this country is that ordinary americans, including those who voted for donald trump you know what . They cant afford healthcare, they cant afford to send their kids to college, they dont want veterans sleeping on the street, they dont want to destroy their car by going over some pothole, they want action to improve the lives of working families, so does everybody else in america. So i think the very first thing you do is make the case, here are the problems, here are the solutions, then you can sit down with republicans and see where we go. Now my hope is that in early january, democrats will pick up two more seats in the georgia runoffs, and that will make our life a lot easier. Woodruff one thing about the election, senator, im sure youve heard the complaints, the comments from democrats, moderate democrats who say all the talk about at the funding the police, using the term allowing republicans to repeatedly accuse democrats of being socialists, hurt democrats, and they are saying the idea that youre going to move to a Green New Deal, that youre going to move to some form of dramatic form of Police Reform, that that will only hurt democrats going forward. What do you say to your democratic colleagues about that . First of all, im not aware maybe im wrong on this, but i dont know there are any Democratic Candidates that talked about defunding the police. Do we want Police Reform so that innocent africanamericans are not shot and killed . Of course, we do. So do the vast majority of the American People. In terms of some of the arguments against us, the problem is theyre just not true. To the best of my knowledge, 100 congressional candidates ran on medicare for all. Do you know how many lost . Zero. I think one candidate who ran on a Green New Deal lost. The reason for that is these proposals are popular proposals. So the idea of blaming our ideas on their defeat, im not sure that thats true. I think the converse may be true. Got a lot of people out there listening to some democrats and saying, what do you stand for are you going to represent us when we are hurting so much . Do you have the guts to take on powerful special interests . Are you going to raise that minimumwage . Are you going to fight for healthcare for all . I dont want to go bankrupt because i cant afford to pay my medical bill. What are you going to do about it . How are you going to make sure my kid can afford to go to college. I want to turn the argument around and say to my more society of democratic friends is maybe the working class of the country did not perceive that you are prepared to stand up and fight for them. Woodruff two other quick questions, senator, one is theres talk of your being interested in being labor secretary in the Biden Administration. Are you interested in doing that . Let me just say this, judy, the working class of this country is in a lot of pain right now unemployment very, very high, wages are low, workers cant form union, people are not getting the pensions theyre entitled to. So im going to do whatever i can whether in the senate or whatever in fighting for the rights of working families. If i am asked to become a member of the Biden Administration and if im given a portfolio that can make a difference to the working families of this country, would i accept it . Yes, i would. Woodruff and do you have a favorite for treasury secretary . Well, i think there are a number of good candidates out there but i think Elizabeth Warren has a track record of standing up to vair powerful wall street interests. I think she knows the interests backwards and forwards and she would be a very powerful secretary in the treasury. Woodruff even giving up a seat in the senate . Well, i think well, going into all of the details, i think there are ways to protect that seat. Woodruff we will leave it there. Senator Bernie Sanders of vermont, we thank you. Thank you very much. Woodruff the deep divisions in this country can also be found this week within the republican party. A majority of elected g. O. P. Officials are standing with the president s false claims about election fraud. A number remain silent, but here is a sampling of some of that support. 72 million americans instinctively know somethings not right here. And if you just look at the state of pennsylvania, where the unequal treatment of the voters in that state, some counties low voters to cure their ballots. Some didnt. Some counties allow pre canvassing of ballots. Some didnt. Some counties along with satellite voting offices. Some counties didnt. And you can imagine which counties allowed those things to happen. What are the democrats trying to hide . Right now, youve got half this country that has doubts about the veracity of this election. And thats why the process that exists in the law. Theres a long process in the law that exists after the election, before the results are certified. That process has to be allowed to move forward. Otherwise, were going to have a result here that half the country will harbor significant doubts about. And thats bad for the country. Thats why both sides should be welcoming, having this process be open, transparent, and according to the rights afforded to both candidates by the law. Woodruff on the other side of the divide, more than thirty former republican lawmakers are calling his allegations of voter fraud unacceptable. Former missouri congressman tom coleman is one of them and he joins me now. Tom coleman, thank you so much for talking with us. The president says fraud has been committed and the American People deserve to know what happened, and hes pursuing multiple lawsuits. Hes within his rights to do that, isnt he . Yes, he is. You have a close call in some of these states, and this is a ver