Newshour has been provided by moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. Lincoln financial committed to helping you take charge of your life and become youre own chief life officer. And the william and flora hewlett foundation, helping people build immeasurably better lives. 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. Ifill Iraqi Security forces have launched a new offensive against tikrit, now held by Islamic State fighters. Its their latest attempt to reclaim saddam husseins hometown, before they try to retake mosul, to the north. Ground troops opened the assault on tikrit with a rocket and artillery bombardment. They were backed by shiite sunni and iranian fighters, and iraqi planes. Russian authorities insisted today theyre conducting a thorough investigation into the murder of Boris Nemtsov. Hed been a leading critic of president Vladimir Putin before he was gunned down friday night, near the kremlin. On sunday, thousands marched through moscow in a silent tribute to nemtsov. Many charged putin bears at least some blame for his death but foreign minister Sergei Lavrov rejected that today. translated the attempt to use the heinous killing of Boris Nemtsov for political purposes is despicable. This is a heinous crime which will be fully investigated within the full framework of the law to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice. President putin immediately handed down all instructions and is ensuring special control over this investigation. Ifill a woman who was with nemtsov when he was shot, said today she did not see the gunman. Secretary of state john kerry held a tense hourplus meeting with Russian Foreign minister lavrov today, in geneva. Kerry complained last week that russians have lied to his face about their actions in ukraine. Todays meeting came as the u. N. Human Rights Office announced more than 6,000 people have been killed in Eastern Ukraine since april. Back in this country, Fatal Police Shootings are drawing new attention today. Cell phone video showed los angeles officers wrestling a homeless man to the ground before shooting him sunday. They said he grabbed for an officers gun. In cleveland, the mayor apologized for a court filing in the killing of tamir rice last november. The documents blamed the 12 yearold, who was carrying a pellet gun, for causing his own injury. And at the white house, a task force called today for independent investigations in all such cases. We have a great opportunity, coming out of some great conflict and tragedy, to really transform how we think about Community Law enforcement relations, so that everybody feels safer and our Law Enforcement officers feel, rather than being embattled feel fully supported. Ifill there was also word the Justice Department will accuse police in ferguson missouri, of longstanding racial bias in traffic stops. The New York Times reported investigators found the resulting animosity erupted when a white policeman killed an unarmed black teen last august. Senator barbara mikulski, the longestserving woman in congress, announced today she wont seek reelection in 2016. The maryland democrat was elected to the house of representatives in 1976. She entered the senate in 1987. Mikulski is now 78. In baltimore today, she said it came down to her hopes for the final two years of her current term. I had to ask myself this question who am i campaigning for . Am i campaigning for me or am i campaigning for my constituents . I had to decide how i would spend my time fighting for my job or fighting for their job . Do i spend my time raising money or do i spend my time raising hell . Ifill mikulski has been a vocal advocate on issues from equal pay for women to protecting the environment. House Speaker John Boehner came under new pressure over Homeland Security funding. Democrats urged a vote on a clean bill, minus provisions aimed at the president S Immigration policies. Boehners office declined to rule it out. Last week dozens of republicans rejected a threeweek funding bill, so Congress Passed a one week measure. It expires friday. And on wall street, the nasdaq composite index reached a milestone that it last hit 15 years ago, before the dotcom bubble burst. The index gained 44 points, to finish above 5,000 for the First Time Since 2000. The Dow Jones Industrial average gained more than 150 points. And the s p 500 added 13. Still to come on the newshour. How American Jews view Prime Minister netanyahus visit to washington. The Supreme Court considers who has authority to redraw voting districts. The high costs of health care if the Supreme Court outlaws federal tax credits. Amy walter and nia Malika Henderson on the week ahead in politics. And, novelist Richard Price on his new crime thriller the whites. Ifill israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu sought today to ease strains over his plans to speak to congress tomorrow. But he also said he has a moral obligation to criticize a potential nuclear deal with iran. He spoke to aipac, the American Israel Public Affairs committee, meeting in washington. Reports of the demise of the israeliu. S. Relationship are not just premature, they are just wrong. Ifill it was the eve of his speech to congress, at the invitation of republicans, and the israeli leader was at pains to play down divisions with the white house. My speech is not intended to show any disrespect to president obama or the esteemed office that he holds. The Prime Minister who was invited to go to capitol hill by house Speaker John Boehner emphasized he and the administration are polls apart when it develops to negotiating with iran. I plan to speak about an iranian i plan to speak about an Iranian Regime that is threatening to destroy israel, that is devouring country after country in the middle east, that is exporting terror throughout the world, and that is developing as we speak, the capacity to make Nuclear Weapons lots of them. American leaders worry about the security of their country. Israeli leaders worry about the survival of their country. Ifill as netanyahu spoke, secretary of state john kerry was in geneva, where he and irans foreign minister javad zarif resume talks tomorrow. Today, kerry cautioned against publicly discussing what he called selective details. I want to say clearly that doing so would make it more difficult to reach the goal that israel and others say they share in order to get a good deal. Israels security is absolutely at the forefront of all of our minds, but frankly, so is the security of all the other countries in the region, so is our security in the United States. Ifill president obama opted not to attend this years aipac gathering, or to send the Vice President or kerry. Instead, he sent u. N. Ambassador Samantha Power. This afternoon, he told the Reuters News Service that his commitment to israel remains strong. He called the address to congress a distraction. As a matter of policy, we think its a mistake for the Prime Minister of any country to come to speak before congress a few weeks theyre about to have an election. It makes it look like we are taking sides. Ifill netanyahus appearance also underscored fault lines within the American Jewish community. Today, the American Jewish magazine released this ad claiming most American Jews support president obamas approach to iran. While over the weekend the Emergency Committee for israel took aim at president obama in this video ad. President obama is Holding Secret talks with iran, even as iran threatens to wipe israel off the map. The Prime Minister of israel ifill the last time netanyahu spoke to congress was in may, 2011. This time, 30 democrats have said they will not attend tomorrows speech. So how do American Jews view the controversy surrounding the speech of Prime Minister netanyahu . For that we get two views. Jeremy benami is the founder and president of jstreet, a pro israel and liberal Political Action committee. And david harris is the executive director of the American Jewish committee, a projewish advocacy organization. We heard the president call this whole discussion about whether netanyahu should speak to congress a distraction. What is your view on what is the source of all this friction . Well, the friction is actually over a question of policy because i think that the president and the United States and most of the americanjewish community are in line with the Prime Minister and all of israel in the end goal which is to ensure that iran does not develop a nuclear. But the question is what is the best way to get there and the president believes its through negotiated compromise that is worked out with the International Community that limits irans capacity to enrich and gradually reduces sanctions with very intrusive regime and he believes thats the way to go. The source of the friction is the Prime Minister has a different view hand has come here two weeks before his own election working with the Republican Party in a way that undermines traditional bipartisannen cooperation and that is ant good thing for the u. S. Israel relationship. Ifill david harris, was that a mistake . Well, i think the real issue today is not whether its a mistake or not that the Prime Minister is in washington. The real question is what is he going to say tomorrow . What is his information on the deal. I met with him two weeks ago in his office in jerusalem and he felt the deal would be catastrophic and lifethreatening for the state of israel and he felt he had the obligation to come. He said the timing wasnt meant to be connected to the elections but rather the fact that the deadline is march 24 for the framework agreement, so he felt he had no choice but to come now to make his case to the congress. He wanted to do it in a bipartisan spirit. More than 90 of the members of congress of both parties plan to be there as of now, and then lets judge what he says. I wouldnt prejudge what he says, though at this point. Ifill jeremy benami, is that the tension we are all chronicling closely its almost soap opera proportions. Is this really about tensions between president obama and Prime Minister netanyahu or does it speak to something more fundamental happening within the u. S. Israeli relationship . Actually, neither one. I dont think its just a personal issue and i dont think its really fundamental to the relationship between the countries. What i do think is that you have a right of center world view in the party that netanyahu heads and much of the government israel holds its in line with the republican world view of how to deal with threats, how to deal with iran and other threats in the region that is different from the world view that president obama and much of the Democratic Party in this country have and folks on the central left in israel have. So theres actually a very real policy disagreement here that is not just about iran, it can be translated as well into the israelipalestinian conflict and the broader israeliarab conflict. Its a legitimate disagreement, it should be discussed and debated and were going to have to find a way to work through the disagreement while not hurting the fundamental relationship. Ifill david harris Governor Scott walker one of the many republicans running for president , wrote a story for National Review magazine today in which he said the u. S. Israeli relationship is in crisis. Do you agree or disagree with that . Well, i think, first of all, the issue is not just the world view, its the geographical divide. Its about where israel is situated and where america is situated and eve to look at that first gwen. Israel is sitting in the tumultuous middle east that since the socalled arab spring has become even more chaotic and more destructive. Israel is facing the country iran that openly calls for its destruction. So the fact that the Prime Minister would come should be seen in that context. Hes worried about the neighborhood, hes worried about the fact that iran or iranian proxies he says now are in gaza in lebanon, in syria, on the heights and worried about the grumbling of the middle east. Hes iran asserting power extending its reach and building Nuclear Weapons capability. In that context he says the jewish state faces potential destruction and we cant outsource the discussions with iran to other countries that wont take our views necessarily into account as we feel they should be. So i think its not just about world views, its about geographical location. Ifill but does that put a strain on the israeliu. S. Relationship to agree its in crisis or is this just a disagreement well get past . I think its axe actually the latter because if one takes the longer view and i think Prime Minister netanyahu said it earlier today at the apec conference, trive have been other disagreements between the United States and israel going back to 1948, withh president there has been a moment of not just december agreement but crisis with both democrats and republicans yet the relationship has gotten stronger. So im confident that despite the very open difference on this issue, its about policy, not politics or personalities, and the relationship will endure because its in both countries interest for that relationship to endure. Ifill jeremy benami something similar to what the president had to say when speaking to reuters today. Are both sides stepping back from the brink and we heard Samantha Power make the same kind of statement, do you think theyre stepping back from what could have been an explosive situation . I think if there is a deal reached in the coming two to three weeks and we dont know, you know, the Administration Says its perhaps a 50 50 shot that they can actually get to an agreement but if there is an agreement, the dispute that were in the middle of here is going to be elevated to historic poprorussian. I dont know that theres been a fight in the congress and in the senate over an issue like this deal on which the government of israel and the government of the United States would be on different sides, and i think that i do believe it is a policy disagreement. I think it is something that reflects the world view of the two leaders and the two camps and i think that it is going to be a very very heated and difficult debate and discu a civil manner. Ifill well talk about it more tomorrow evening once we the voters were seen as cutting edge to reduce partisanship hat resulted in safe seats for the incumbents to the party in power and reduced the number of truly competitive election districts. Brown but the state legislature said, no youve gone too far and thats how we ended up in court . Yes, absolutely again. The issue before the court is whether voters acting through an initiative are really acting as a Legislature Within the meaning of that word legislature in the constitution. Brown all right. Weve got that clause because the argument is, as often, right, its about a word or a clause. Yes. Brown this is the election clause from the constitution. Lets put that up. Okay. Brown tell us about what happened here how that played into the argument today. Former solicitor general paul clement was representing the Arizona State legislature and he said that word legislature has always been meant to be a representative body from the beginning of the drafting of the constitution until today, and the one thing voters could not do was usurp the state legislatures power, cut them out of the redistricting process permanently, that that violates ttttt elections clalalalala which gives to a representatatathe authority to direct the place and manner of congressional elections. Brown how did that go over with the justices . Went over fairly well with the majority. Were not sure yet. But there was pushback. Justice sotomayor said there wasnt initiativity and ref referendum of the drafting of the constitution, didnt exist. And there are Sup