Moving our economy for 160 years. Bnsf, the engine that connects us. Charles schwab, proud supporter of the pbs newshour. 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 the war between israel and hamas raged on today, with strikes on a United Nations school and a busy market in gaza. After more than three weeks of fighting, the Palestinian Death toll reached 1,359 and in israel, 56 soldiers have been killed, along with three civilians. Bodies were carried onebyone out of a crowded shopping area in the eastern gaza strip today. The israeli airstrike hit when people were taking advantage of a fourhour ceasefire, but it applied only to certain areas. Hamas also broke it by firing at least 20 rockets during that time period. The attack followed one of the Israeli Militarys most active days since the four week conflict began. Earlier in the day it was a u. N. School that came under fire. At least 16 people were killed and more than 100 injured. The school was one of dozens in gaza giving shelter to 200,000 displaced palestinians. translated people were translated children, men, everyone was dismembered at the abu hussein school. Why were they killed . What did they do . Woodruff a u. N. Spokesman on the ground said the light of day revealed the assault came from israeli tanks. We have visited the site and gathered evidence, we have analyzed fragments, examined craters and other damage. Our initial assessment is that it was israeli artillery that hit our school in which 3,300 people had sought refuge. Woodruff Israeli Defense force spokesman peter lerner said his countrys forces acted only in response to a mortar shell launched at them from near the school. There is a challenge on the ground where this terrorist organization is exploiting the reality on the ground, exploiting the civilian environment and exploiting the people of gaza themselves. Were up against a huge challenge and clearly that can be tragic results that we have seen. Woodruff still, the shelling of the u. N. School drew widespread condemnation, including from the white house. And in new york, the u. N. Deputy secretary general expressed shock. For me this is a moment where you really have to say,enough is enough and you have to search for the right words to convince those who have the power to stop this. Woodruff mosques were again an israeli target and five were reduced to rubble. In daylight, the destruction was clear. Korans littered the ground, the buildings minaret was resting on a nearby apartment building. translated people come here to pray and do their duty five times a day. Now we have been deprived from praying dawn, morning, noon, evening. Where will people pray now . Woodruff but israeli officials said the mosques are being used by militant fighters. The Israeli Military dropped warning leaflets in gaza, urging residents to keep away from terrorists, and to report rocket launchers, tunnels and ammunition arsenals. Meanwhile, hamas carried out its own campaign to boost morale. Last night it broadcast video purportedly showing its fighters using a tunnel to carry out an attack on an israeli outpost near gazas border. In washington today, the state department reacted to more criticism levied at secretary john kerry by israeli media. Hes come under fire for his failed attempt to broker a ceasefire. His spokeswoman, marie harf, called the attacks shocking and disappointing. The hours all of us have spent with the secretary in jerusalem and trying to get middle east peace, trying to work to protect security, thats why its so disappointing is its so at odds with reality and flies in the face of everything we have been trying to do. Woodruff during ceasefire negotiations, kerry had suggested hamas demand to end the blockade of gaza be on the table, which set off the israeli criticism. Ifill at least 19 people were killed today in eastern ukraine, as new clashes flared between Government Forces and prorussian separatists. Much of the violence targeted areas in and around the rebel stronghold of donetsk. The fighting stopped International Experts from reaching the Malaysian Airlines crash site for a fourth day. Its been two weeks since the plane went down. A Ukrainian Government spokesman warned the area is becoming more unsafe. translated at the crash site, terrorists set up new firing positions. They moved a lot of heavy artillery there and mined entrances to this territory. It prevents International Experts from carrying out their work while they are trying to start fulfilling their duties and find causes of the downing of boeing 777. Ifill ukraines border with russia is also the scene of russian troop movement. Today, natos military commander reported their numbers have risen sharply to over 12,000. Woodruff russia had harsh words today about the new round of u. S. Sanctions president obama imposed yesterday. A statement from the Russian ForeignMinistry Read both the u. S. And the European Union imposed new sanctions against russian banks, energy and defense firms for russias role in the separatist uprising in ukraine. Ifill officials in liberia shut all the countrys schools and quarantined more communities to try to stop the rapid spread of the worst outbreak of ebola on record. The World Health Organization estimates the highly Infectious Disease has killed at least 129 people across the west african country. It has no known cure. The u. S. Peace corps announced today its withdrawing all of its volunteers about 350 people from liberia, sierra leone and guinea after two volunteers came in contact with someone who died of the virus. Woodruff the u. S. House of representatives voted to sue president obama today for overstepping his executive powers. The lawsuit sponsored by Speaker John Boehner claims the president failed to uphold the constitution during the implementation of the Affordable Care act. Debate on the house floor was heated and completely along party lines. Once again republicans are putting special interest in the howls of impeachment hungry extremists before the needs of the nation. The lawsuit is only the latest proof of House Republicans contempt and disregard for the priorities of the america people. This isnt about republicans and democrats. Its about defending the constitution that we swore an oath to uphold and acting decisively when it may be compromised. Woodruff on the road in kansas city today, president obama weighed in on the lawsuit, calling it a political stunt and saying it was keeping lawmakers from doing real work. Every vote theyre taking like that means a vote theyre not taking to actually help you. laughter when theyve taken 50 votes to repeal the Affordable Care act, that was time that could have been spent working constructively to help you on some things. applause woodruff the house also overwhelmingly approved a compromise bill to reform the department of Veterans Affairs and improve veterans access to health care. The 17 billion overhaul now heads to the senate, which is expected to act it soon before heading home for the august recess. Ifill a massive cleanup effort was underway today in los angeles after a major water main break inundated the campus of u. C. L. A. A nearly centuryold pipe ruptured yesterday and for three hours spewed nearly eight million gallons of water. Crews began cleaning up six damaged facilities, including a recentlyrenovated basketball arena. An official from the Citys Department of water and power warned repairing the pipe could take several days. We found that weve got a number of valves leaking through that has complicated getting access to the repair. We are currently assessing all options to get the leakage down and what repairs we can make. We cannot begin any repairs until we get the water completely down and were working on that. Ifill city officials have yet to determine what caused the pipe to burst. More than 700 cars parked in flooded underground garages remain submerged. Woodruff stocks were mixed on wall street today after a betterthanexpected report on Economic Growth. The Dow Jones Industrial average lost more than 31 points to close at 16,880. The nasdaq rose 20 points to close at nearly 4,463. Nd the s p added a fraction of a point to close at 1,970. Well take a closer look at the state of the economy right after this news summary. Ifill still to come on the newshour how the u. S. Economy looks from around the country, addressing Sexual Assaults on College Campuses, terrorists turn to kidnapping europeans as a lucrative source of revenue, how tiny pieces of plastic in body wash and facial scrubs are causing big problems in the great lakes, plus, a comedians take on race and changing demographics. Woodruff the u. S. Economy rebounded strongly in the Second Quarter of this year. Better, in fact, than most predicted. New numbers out today showed the Gross Domestic Product grew at a 4 annual rate. Thats far better than this winter, when the economy seemed to slump and shrank by about 2 . Still, those numbers dont quite tell you what it feels like in different parts of the country. Jeffrey brown gets some regional views. Brown in addition to todays numbers, the overall jobs picture has improved of late, averaging a more than 200,000 increase for five straight months. But again, questions what kinds of jobs . And how longlasting is the upward swing . We get a snapshot of three parts of the country, from mark vitner, managing director and senior economist at wells fargo in charlotte, North Carolina, tom binnings, senior partner at Summit Economics in colorado springs, colorado and shirley leung, a Business Editor at the boston globe. Shirley, start us off here do the numbers showing an upswing jibe with what you see in the northeast . What sectors are better, what are still lagging . Yeah, in massachusetts the economy has been going very strongly, and todays numbers, you know, look like the same upward growth. One of the things were seeing here and continue to see is the growth is very uneven, you know, Greater Boston folks who work at tech or hospitals do very well. If youre out beyond the Greater Boston into the western part of massachusetts or southern parts of massachusetts where you dont have those kind of sectors, the Unemployment Rate is quite high. Brown mark vitner, start at the southeast where you are. What do you see . Well, the southeast really gained momentum over the last year and i think its pretty typical of what weve seen in the country. The first four years are really telling. We were bairlg making 2 growth. The last year its been about 2. 5 and weve seen job growth pick up in North Carolina, georgia and florida, parts of tennessee, but it is more urbanoriented. The big areas, charlotte and raleigh, atlanta, nashville, all the big florida metro areas, miami, orlando, tampa, are all doing exceptionally well, but the rural areas are mostly lagging, in a few of the big cities most closely tied to the government are still sluggish because to have the effects of sequestration. Brown tom binnings, colorado, the larger mountain region, whats driving the growth there and where is it heading . I would echo what everyone else has said. The denver, Salt Lake City, metro area, theyre doing well and have been doing well several years. Robust growth, employment growth and you get into the outlying areas and the second and thirdtier communities and cities and the the growth is lagging. Brown what about jobs, tom. Does that fit into the picture youre talking about . Absolutely, the job growth is strong in colorado as whole because of the denver metro to wyoming all the way to the border. A lot of professional technical services, we have a vibrant construction industry, a lot of growth in the last couple of years, accommodations and food service, so our growth is pretty broadbased throughout the different economic sectors. Brown and mark vitner when you look around the country do you see other large regions that are a little slower than yours or is it uneven regionally . It is uneven regionally. I think there are large parts that are growing at a sluggish pace. When you get away from boston and new york city, its really, really sluggish. Atlantic city is having a really tough time now as is a part of new jersey. Detroit is doing better in the auto sector but you get away from that and things havent picked up all that much. Theres a real contrast between the areas that have vibrant energy and Technology Sectors and the areas that dont seattle, san francisco, austin are some of the Fastest Growing metro areas in the country. Brown i gather the globe did a poll recently looking at peoples attitudes about the economy and you found some disconnect between the growth and whether people really are experiencing it . Yeah, i mean, absolutely. Unemployment rate is 5. 5 here and, you know, the Housing Market here is a lot of parts of it in Greater Boston have more than recovered. They actually surpassed the peak from 2005. But in a recent survey, eight out of ten voters say that they feel that their personal financial situation is worse or the same compared to last year. Half the respondents in our survey say theyre cutting back on basic necessities. I think also people are dining out less and theyre cutting back on discretionary spending. Brown is there any sense of whats causing the disconnect . I think theyre a little nervous about their jobs, still. I think theyre a little nervous about whats happening in washington and kind of really the political future of the country. I think the stock market is reaching some, you know, new highs and theyre in the sure why theyre going along with it, so i think there is just a lot of uncertainty. Brown tom binnings, do you have a sense of public sentiment out there in that region visavis the economy . Well, yeah, i do. I think its more positive but theres still caution. A lot of it has to do with the aging baby boomers, with retirement looming ahead, and just sort of trying to forecast their own futures. And then we get a lot of young people moving into colorado, and then theyre generally optimistic, but, on the other hand, a lot of them are bringing with them a lot of student debt so theyre challenged in that regard. Mark vitner, what about housing . Its come up in this discussion but its such an important sector for so many people. Well, it is really stuck in a hard place right now. I think that it fits in with your previous question when youre asking about the uncertainty people are feeling. Older households are staying in place. Maybe they had an interruption in their employment and thats hit their savings and theyre worried about how theyre positioned for retirement, so theyre not selling their home and relocating or downsizing. At the other end, the younger households are having a tough time getting started. They graduated into a very weak job market, many are working parttime jobs or working outside their chosen field. They have huge student loan debts and theyre choosing to rent rather than buy. So were really having a tough time getting to minimum in housing. Its true in the south and most parts of the country. There are a few sectors where housing is is doing. We Salt Lake City is one, Orange County in california, in particular, san diego is beginning to pick up, but very spotty. Brown tom binnings, an important sector where you are is the energy industry. Well, the energy sector, its not as important as sometimes we think in colorado, but its concentrated north of denver and weld county, and thats doing well, but thats not whats driving the Economic Growth in the colorado and the mountain region. So the housing is actually booming in denver right now, but its more higherdensity housing versus traditional and a lot more rental housing was mentioned, difficulty in people qualifying to buy, and developers having a difficult time developing for purchase. Brown just as we get in the last couple of minutes here, i just wonder, is there a sector or maybe even a local business that you like to watch as your bellweather to tell you how things are going . Well, thats definitely a good question. You know, one thing i have been watching closely is restaurants and just hospitality because thats about discretionary spending. We actually have had a lot of new restaurant openings and you didnt see that a lot. You saw more restaurants closing during the recession and, so, i feel like even though people are cautious about eating out here in our survey, i think restaurants feel comfortable about that. I feel like a lot of new restaurants are opening all over the city now. Brown mark vitner, i know you take a wide look at the country, but is there one store or company you like to look at . Well, theres not so much one store or company. I look at sectors and i watch retail very closely and look at whats happening with different retailers, looking at whats happening with the furniture stores, their business has been very, very good. You look at whats happening with the discounters and were struggling and i think thats where the split is occurring and consumers and lower and middle income households are really having a tough time