PBS News Hour - Politics

As members of Congress finally arrive at an agreement over how to fund border security and avoid another government shutdown, both Democrats and Republicans are claiming victory -- and fielding criticism that they caved. But with only three days before the deadline, it will be a scramble to pass the proposed legislation. Judy Woodruff gets the latest from Lisa Desjardins and Yamiche Alcindor.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., played a key role in brokering the bipartisan agreement lawmakers have arrived at to secure border security funding and avoid a second government shutdown. He speaks with Judy Woodruff about how members of both parties “worked extraordinarily hard” over the past several weeks and why he thinks physical barriers make sense in some places along the border but not others.

Just weeks after the longest government shutdown in U.S. history ended, the prospect of a second shutdown looms. Democratic and Republican negotiators are now at odds over who and how many people should be detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Judy Woodruff is joined by Lisa Desjardins and Yamiche Alcindor for an update on what both sides want.

Minnesota Democrat Amy Klobuchar became the fifth senator and fifth woman to announce she's joining the crowded 2020 race to take on President Trump. Meanwhile, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren made her campaign official. Judy Woodruff reports.

NPR's Tamara Keith and Amy Walter from the Cook Political Report join Lisa Desjardins to discuss the week’s political news, including the widening 2020 field as Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., announces her presidential campaign, plus why top Democrats reprimanded a freshman lawmaker of their own party.

NewsHour Weekend Special Correspondent Jeff Greenfield puts the week in politics into perspective -- from the lack of moderate or self-identified centrists in the Democratic presidential race so far, to what the blackface controversy in Virginia says about race relations in America. Also, one of the stories you might have missed--what the current farm economy may mean for President Trump.

This month marks the 40th anniversary of the Iranian revolution when Ayatollah Khomeini returned to establish an Islamic republic and toppled the U.S.-backed regime of the Shah. Suzanne Maloney of the Brookings Institution joins Hari Sreenivasan to discuss the history of U.S.-Iran relations, Iran’s economy, and what’s next.

A bipartisan group of Congress members working on a deal to avoid another partial government shutdown next Friday are still negotiating some major issues including the funding amount for increased border security and number of detention beds. Annie Karni of the New York Times joins Hari Sreenivasan for an update on the talks.

Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker insisted Friday he hasn’t “interfered in any way” in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. His much-anticipated testimony came before a contentious hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, now led by Democrats. Lisa Desjardins reports.

Rep. John Dingell, D-Mich., passed away Thursday at the age of 92. He was the longest-tenured member of Congress, serving for nearly 60 years before retiring in 2015. The son of a 12-term congressman, Dingell was known as a dealmaker particularly passionate about healthcare reform, which his father had proposed in the 1940s. Judy Woodruff looks back at his long and prolific career in the House.