November 6, 2026 - PBS News Hour full episode - PBS

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GEOFF BENNETT: And I'm Geoff Bennett.

On the "News Hour" tonight: President Trump picks a new chief of staff, immigration hard-liner Stephen Miller, in the wake of the Democrats' landslide election.

AMNA NAWAZ: The post-election economy is bolstered by a better-than-expected jobs report, but fears over an AI bubble still weigh on Wall Street.

GEOFF BENNETT: And newly elected Senator Adam Hamilton and Governor-Elect Keisha Lance Bottoms reflect on their historic victories and what the midterm results mean for the Democratic Party's path forward.

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D), Georgia Governor-Elect: We needed to focus on the things that matter to people and not get distracted and not get pulled into fights that weren't productive for us to be able to deliver.

(BREAK) GEOFF BENNETT: Welcome to the "News Hour."

President Trump has replaced White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles with Stephen Miller, the hard-line architect of his immigration agenda, following that crushing midterm defeat.

Immigration, once a political strength for Mr.

Trump, has become a liability after two years of mass detentions, deportations, and armed agents in American cities.

Trump pledged to work with the incoming Democratic Congress, but Miller's appointment signals a doubling down on his agenda.

Miller has called Democrats a -- quote -- "domestic extremist organization."

Liz Landers reports on the appointment and the GOP's post-election reckoning.

LIZ LANDERS: Today, at the White House, President Trump defiant in his choice.

DONALD TRUMP, President of the United States: Stephen's been with me from beginning.

He gets it, very good politically, and he's a very good manager.

He will do a great job, great manager.

LIZ LANDERS: The fallout from the midterm elections reaching his inner circle.

DONALD TRUMP: I wanted to make a change.

I think Susie's done a very good job, great job, but I just wanted to make it.

And we got to make -- we have got to make moves.

LIZ LANDERS: Trump announced this afternoon that Susie Wiles, his chief of staff, is stepping down.

She was the first woman to hold the role and was Trump's longest tenured chief of staff.

Wiles will be replaced by Stephen Miller, the current deputy chief of staff.

Miller is one of Washington's most polarizing power brokers.

He's a chief architect of the administration's immigration crackdown, but his portfolio has expanded to include national security issues.

Meanwhile, for Trump, a president who made loyalty to him a defining test of his party, criticism now comes from within it.

JAMES COMER (R-KY): And I think the Republican voters are more upset about what's going on in Iran than the Democrat voters.

LIZ LANDERS: Oversight Chairman James Comer acknowledged the unpopular war that the Trump administration launched and questioned the defense secretary's role.

JAMES COMER: I can tell you with a high level of confidence that there's a lot of questions about Hegseth.

We have no idea what the strategy is moving forward in Iran.

Defense Secretary: You see, they attack me, they attack us because we are effective.

LIZ LANDERS: The secretary of defense defending himself in a video posted on social media as an outgoing Republican member of Congress could force a vote to impeach the secretary as early as next week.

PETE HEGSETH: It's all about the politics of personal destruction.

Didn't work against President Trump, and it won't work with me.

LIZ LANDERS: Republican fractures also visible beyond Capitol Hill.

MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): Oh, MAGA is completely dead.

PIERS MORGAN, FOX Nation Host: It's dead.

TUCKER CARLSON, Conservative Commentator: Well, that was a disaster, and not just a metaphorical disaster, but a real disaster.

LIZ LANDERS: The discontent isn't confined to Washington or even to Republicans.

ARTHUR YOUNG, Mississippi Voter: I just be believe people were just trying to send a message that we're tired.

LIZ LANDERS: For some voters like this one in Mississippi, the blue tsunami was a reflection of Americans' frustrations with a system they say stopped delivering for them.

ARTHUR YOUNG: We're tired of politicians enriching their pockets while everybody else is suffering.

LIZ LANDERS: But, in Mississippi, one of two Senate races, along with Alaska, that are still too close to call, the outcome remains uncertain.

SCOTT COLOM (D), Mississippi Senatorial Candidate: We're going to follow the lawful process.

LIZ LANDERS: But back at the White House today, President Trump remains optimistic.

So, Liz, let's start with the promotion of Stephen Miller to chief of staff.

What is your reporting show the president is signaling with that move?

LIZ LANDERS: He's signaling that he's doubling down on this hard-line approach to immigration and that he is rewarding Stephen for his loyalty.

The president alluded to that in the comments he made this afternoon.

He aggressively defends the president on television and behind the scenes, from what I have been told.

And he is MAGA through and through.

He believes in this agenda that the president is pushing.

He is so pro-MAGA that he comes across as quite anti-Democrat.

So he has made some of these recent TV appearances where he's called the Democrats the party of freaks, weirdos, losers, and crazies.

So, even though President Trump claims that he is going to work with this Democratic majority that's incoming in January in Congress, we're already hearing from Democratic leaders like Hakeem Jeffries, who will likely be the speaker, calling Miller a reckless extremist today.

The incoming chair of House Oversight, Robert Garcia, says that his committee plans to continue to investigate Miller.

AMNA NAWAZ: And we know who Stephen Miller is now.

But remind us how he got to this role.

LIZ LANDERS: Miller is from Southern California.

He has been politically active from a young age, really since he was in high school.

When he went to Duke, he also kind of rose to national prominence at that time because he was doing television hits on national TV defending the lacrosse team against those false rape allegations at the time.

He started working for an immigration hard-liner Senator Jeff Sessions, who was one of the first senators to endorse President Trump.

And Miller went and started working on the Trump campaign in 2015.

He was writing a lot of speeches about immigration.

Once the president won his first term in office, Miller went to go work for him, was doing a lot of that immigration policy at the time.

He was the architect of the Muslim ban, one of the most controversial policies of the first administration, also helped with that zero tolerance immigration policy of family separation.

He has been the policy chief of staff this administration.

So he has been working with the president on some of these executive orders, has been a vocal defender of that executive order that the president signed and was shot down by the Supreme Court over ending birthright citizenship.

And just one more example of Miller's very hard-line stance on immigration, earlier this year, when Alex Pretti was shot by immigration officers in Minneapolis, Miller called him an assassin, which he then had to walk back.

AMNA NAWAZ: So he is now chief of staff.

That role is different for every administration.

What has it been like under President Trump?

LIZ LANDERS: I think, for President Trump, it's more about managing the staff than it is about managing him.

I think chiefs of staff in the past have found difficulty in trying to rein him in and some of his impulses.

Instead, I have heard that Susie Wiles was an effective chief of staff because the staff at the White House really liked her and respected her and a little bit in some ways feared her at times.

We saw far fewer leaks, I think, in the Trump 2.0 than we did at the first Trump administration.

For Miller's part, looking at how he's going to come into this role, he posted online this afternoon.

He said: "The mission now is more clear than ever, fight with all of our soul to support our president and defend this magnificent republic."

AMNA NAWAZ: All right, Liz Landers beginning our coverage tonight.

GEOFF BENNETT: And we start today's other headlines in Washington, D.C.

President Trump's plans to build a massive Triumphal Arch near Arlington National Cemetery are on hold, at least for now.

Late yesterday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from breaking ground on the monument for two weeks, citing concerns about disruptions to traffic and emergency services.

The ruling came just hours after a federal panel, including several Trump appointees, gave final approval to the project.

Despite the setback, the administration launched a new Web site today promoting the proposed monument.

Some veterans have objected to its placement near Arlington National Cemetery, arguing that it detracts from the solemnity of the site.

Two more top officials have resigned from the Justice Department just days after Democrats won back control of Congress.

John Eisenberg led the DOJ's National Security Division, where he oversaw cases involving terrorism, leak investigations, and espionage.

And Jason Reding Quinones helped lead the so-called grand conspiracy investigation into President Trump's political opponents.

Attorney General Todd Blanche thanked both men for their service, but did not provide additional details on their departures.

Just a day earlier, Harmeet Dhillon left her post as head of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division.

Along the Georgia-Tennessee border, waters have receded and residents are returning home after record flooding submerged local towns.

As much as 10 inches of rain fell in just six hours Thursday, turning the Toccoa River into raging rapids.

Floodwaters surged through roads, rising as high as street signs and reaching the rooftops of some homes.

First responders deployed helicopters, drones, and swift water boats to conduct dozens of rescues.

In McCaysville, Georgia, businesses were swamped by mud and debris.

One owner said he likely suffered hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost inventory, but said others were even worse off.

HUGH ROGERS, Business Owner: It's a little bit heartbreaking, but there's a lot of people that's lost their homes and everything they have, so it's -- we're not in such bad shape here.

And I would a lot rather be doing this than lose a home.

So... GEOFF BENNETT: Both McCaysville and neighboring Copperhill, Tennessee, had just recently finished cleaning up from a separate flood back in August.

Senator Chris Murphy says he will miss several weeks of votes on Capitol Hill while he recovers from a recent stroke.

The Democrat from Connecticut says he was released from the hospital today and will spend the coming weeks at a rehabilitation center.

His doctor says Murphy suffered a small stroke last weekend and that he's shown tremendous improvement.

Murphy is expected to make a full recovery.

The longtime manager of the late country music legend Dolly Parton has dropped a lawsuit against her nephew.

The suit accused Bryan Seaver, who once served as Parton's bodyguard and announced her death on social media, of threatening to damage her business empire in an effort to extract money from her estate.

Seaver denied the allegations, saying he was simply seeking payments owed to his security company.

Parton died back in August after a brief battle with cancer.

The reason for the lawsuit's dismissal was not disclosed.

Pope Leo touched down in Uruguay today to kick off a three-country tour of Latin America.

The 71-year-old pontiff was welcomed by the nation's president in Montevideo this afternoon.

His 12-day tour comes just three weeks after he underwent lung cancer surgery, which put the entire trip in doubt.

After Uruguay, Leo will head to Argentina and then Peru, where he will enjoy a homecoming of sorts.

He served as a missionary and bishop there for more than two decades and even became a naturalized citizen before being elected pope last year.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk says the company will wind down production of its Cybertruck by the middle of next year.

Musk says the Texas factory that produces the electric pickup will shift its focus to Tesla's new Cybercab Robotaxi.

The Cybertruck has struggled to gain traction since its 2023 debut.

The vehicle faced multiple recalls.

And Musk's political activities also alienated some potential buyers.

Tesla shares closed more than 4 percent higher today following yesterday's sell-off.

Elsewhere on Wall Street today, stocks steadied a bit to close out the week.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped nearly 240 points, but the Nasdaq managed a gain of more than 1 percent.

The S&P 500 also ended in positive territory.

Still to come on the "News Hour": we speak with two newly elected Democratic politicians making history with their midterm successes; David Brooks and Jonathan Capehart break down the fallout from this week's elections; and we remember the life and legacy of former Senator Jay Rockefeller.

AMNA NAWAZ: Well, hiring was much stronger than expected last month.

Employers added 165,000 new jobs, according to a new government report out today.

Job gains for August and September were revised upward as well by a combined 84,000 jobs.

That makes the last three months of the job market look better than we thought, an average of 137,000 new jobs per month.

But it all comes during a week when questions grew about the sustainability of the AI boom and its impact on the economy.

Markets had a wild ride, losing more than $2.5 trillion in value yesterday before rebounding today.

For some insight, I'm joined now by Diane Swonk.

That's one of the world's largest firms for professional and tax services.

DIANE SWONK, Chief Economist, KPMG: Good to be here.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, stronger-than-expected jobs report, upward revisions for August and September, what does all of this tell you about the labor market right now?

DIANE SWONK: Well, it tells us that we're generating a lot more paychecks, which is great.

That is what's helping to keep aggregate consumer spending afloat, along with wealth effects tied to AI.

The downside is, of course, that even though the unemployment rate fell to 4.1 percent, average hourly earnings rose only 3.1 percent from a year ago.

That's yet another month it will fall short of overall inflation.

That's why it's not resonating to most individuals, because they're actually losing purchasing power out there.

We also know the underemployment rate, which includes discouraged workers, those unemployed for a very long time, over 27 weeks, and those forced to take on part-time, instead of full-time work, when they were looking for a full-time job, that rose to 7.9 percent in the unemployment rate.

That's the highest since July and well above anything we saw pre-pandemic.

One more notable issue is that the New York Fed updated the unemployment rate for new college grads, which fell over the summer, but, again, for not the best reasons.

And that is underemployment for new college grads is at its highest level since 2020, during the pandemic.

AMNA NAWAZ: That's concerning news there.

But we also saw that big drop in the markets yesterday that I mentioned, part of a massive tech- and AI-driven sell-off.

We saw the president kind of refer to that drop today.

He attributed to the midterm elections on Tuesday.

DIANE SWONK: Well, what we saw is, first of all, we have been tracking the backlash to AI since the beginning of the year, which has really grown to a crescendo.

It crosses every age, income strata, and party affiliation.

There's just nothing more galvanizing than the fears of job loss due to AI, along with the concerns that people have about a data center in their backyard, their higher electricity costs.

So it collides with the concerns about inflation out there.

And we had already seen market jitters in the month of October, which is why we started modeling both bear case, a bear market scenario, along with a base case where we're able to sort of muddle through and keep the wealth effects going.

But when you're sitting on something that's a one-legged stool, which is the AI boom and the wealth that it generates propelling the economy forward and adding to inflation, that's precarious at best.

At worst, it can tip over fairly easily.

AMNA NAWAZ: So what kind of concerns are investors expressing with those kinds of sell-offs?

How real are the concerns that we're hearing about an AI bubble?

Everyone arguing that, like, housing and, like, the Internet, the investments and spending into AI, are -- gotten way ahead now of profit expectations.

DIANE SWONK: Well, that's exactly -- it is.

This is not uncommon with the technological innovation.

And the returns on those investments are far in the future.

It takes a long time to scale these innovations to make them as powerful and tap the productivity growth.

But you have also got to make sure that you include human beings and people's lives and livelihoods in the center of that innovation.

People have to see a place for themselves where their fortunes rise with the tide, instead of recede with the shoreline.

AMNA NAWAZ: All right, that is Diane Swonk, chief economist for KPMG, joining us tonight.

AMNA NAWAZ: Democrats' midterm election wins have reached red states throughout the country.

That includes Kansas, a state that hadn't sent a Democrat to the U.S.

That will soon change after Reverend Adam Hamilton, who leads the largest United Methodist Church in the country, defeated Republican incumbent Roger Marshall on Tuesday night.

And Senator-Elect Hamilton joins us now.

ADAM HAMILTON (D), Kansas Senator-Elect: Oh, it's a joy to be with you today.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, 94 years since Kansans have sent a Democrat to the Senate.

Why do you think they chose to do so this year?

ADAM HAMILTON: I think there was a lot of frustration with what's happening in Washington.

Across the state of Kansas, there were people who had voted Republican all their lives and yet looked at what was happening in Washington and felt like things were happening there that were -- that were not kind, they were cruel, they were immoral, they were corrupt, and policies that were hurting people in our state.

And I think there was a lot of folks who said, this is not OK.

AMNA NAWAZ: You put messages of decency, of morality right at the center of your campaign.

You said that those are rooted in your faith.

How does your time at the pulpit translate to how you talk to voters in this campaign?

Well, first of all, I have spent my life communicating with people.

And so every Sunday you're asking the question, how does this -- how does our sacred text, the old New Testament, how does it speak to people's daily lives?

And part of that is trying to understand where are people, what are they struggling with, what's happening in their lives.

So, when you go out, and, as a pastor, I will just tell you I deeply care about people.

I tell folks I don't have very many remarkable gifts.

My superpowers are that I listen carefully, I care deeply, and I fight for people.

And so, when I traveled across the state, listening to people, hearing their stories, hearing their pain, their frustrations, their disappointments, and then imagining with them what a better future looks like comes naturally as a pastor.

And then communicating on the campaign trail is a lot of fun for me.

And -- but the biggest thing is, I have spent 38 years trying to ask, what should the world look like?

And Jesus talks about this in the Sermon on the Mount in the Lord's Prayer.

He asks us to pray, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.

And I tell people who have no particular religious faith, I say, if you think about that, this is like, what is the world supposed to look like?

And we're hoping to see that happen.

And as a -- as somebody who's running for office, you're imagining what that world should look like, and then you are willing to go fight to see it happen.

AMNA NAWAZ: One of the first big decisions you're going to have to make is what you want your leadership to look like when you get to the Senate.

You said you're not going to support Chuck Schumer to be majority leader.

So who do you think should lead the party in the Senate at this point in time?

And I mean no disrespect by saying that about Chuck Schumer.

He's had a long and distinguished career.

I just -- I think we need leaders who are going to bring people together, Republicans and Democrats together, centrists, moderates, and progressives bringing people together, conservatives.

And I would like to see... AMNA NAWAZ: And you don't think Chuck Schumer can do that?

ADAM HAMILTON: I'm not saying he can't.

I'm just saying, in my mind, I don't know Chuck very well.

I'm just saying that I feel like we need to have people who are determined to do that.

I also think it's time for fresh ideas, young newer ideas, newer people coming in, and folks -- I hear that a lot from people in Kansas as well, both Democrats and Republicans, saying, I think we have got to have fresh ideas.

We have got to have people who are bringing folks together.

And I think the perception, at least here in Kansas, is that maybe that doesn't happen as much as it could in the United States Senate.

AMNA NAWAZ: Can I ask you about some news?

We heard just today about President Trump naming Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff.

What kind of message does that send to you as an incoming member of the Democratic majority that he has promised to work with?

Well, I would say I think, for many of us, Stephen Miller seems to be the author, the person who has put together so many of the things that the president has done that we don't actually like.

So, whether it's about immigration and how we talk about immigrants, or it's the war in Iran, it's policies related to tariffs, in all of these ways, dismantling so many of the important agencies in the federal government, if he is in fact the person who is -- who's behind these ideas, placing him as the chief of staff seems -- it just seems difficult and challenging, I think, for many of us.

AMNA NAWAZ: I want to ask you about something else voters made clear in this election, which was something like 90 percent of them said government corruption was a crucial factor for them in how they voted.

The likely new chairman of the House Oversight Committee, Robert Garcia, told us yesterday that the first issue for them will be investigating the Trump family and what he called clear corruption.

ADAM HAMILTON: Well, look, I want to stop the corruption, and I do think there has been a lot of corruption happening in Washington and just ways of doing things that would have been considered irregular, immoral, unethical in the past.

And so I want to make sure we're erecting guardrails to make sure that never happens again.

That's really, really important to me.

AMNA NAWAZ: And what about the accountability looking back?

So what I also want to say that there's a part of me that says, I don't want to spend the next two years in trials.

I want to spend the next two years working for the American people and solving problems for them and things that are that are solvable.

We have got to reverse things that have been done in the last two years.

We have got some really big issues to solve when it comes to Social Security, health care, when it comes to immigration, when it comes to national debt.

And if I thought I was going to spend the next two years in investigations and trials, I might not have ever got into this race.

So, yes, I think we need to hold people accountable.

But that's not where my priority lies.

My priority lies with people and with solving the problems that are hurting people in my own home state.

AMNA NAWAZ: That is Senator-Elect Adam Hamilton from Kansas joining us tonight.

Sir, thank you so much for your time.

GEOFF BENNETT: Georgia voters made history this week, electing Keisha Lance Bottoms as the state's first Democratic governor in more than two decades and the first Black woman ever elected governor in the country.

The former Atlanta mayor campaigned on lowering costs, expanding access to health care, and pushing back against the Trump administration.

But she will face the challenge of advancing that agenda in a state where Republicans still control the Senate.

I spoke with the governor-elect earlier today.

Governor-Elect Keisha Lance Bottoms, welcome to the "News Hour."

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D), Georgia Governor-Elect: Oh, thank you for having me.

GEOFF BENNETT: You have, of course, made history as the first Black woman elected governor in U.S.

What does this moment mean to you personally?

And what message did Georgia voters send with your victory?

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS: It's deeply personal for me.

My family goes back at least five generations in Georgia.

We are able to trace our roots to a plantation in Crawfordville, Georgia, where my great-great-grandparents were once enslaved.

So just on a personal level, to have come from people who had to toil the soul of Georgia, and to now be elected governor has exceeded every dream that I ever had for my life.

And just for the people of Georgia, for us to have had the blue wave, or the blue tsunami, as it's being described in this state, really represents a shift in Georgia, throughout the South, I believe, that's going to reshape who we are as a party, as a state for many years to come.

GEOFF BENNETT: I wonder, have you spoken with Stacey Abrams since your victory?

As our viewers will know, she ran for governor herself and spent years rebuilding the political infrastructure that allowed for Georgia to be competitive for Democrats.

What do you think this moment means for the movement that she helped build?

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS: Yes, I haven't spoken with her, but for so many of us across the state, it's been about building on progress that's been made.

And we take all the lessons from elections passed, we keep all the great things that were done, and then we make corrections where necessary.

And this has been decades of work in Georgia.

We haven't had a governor, a Democrat governor, elected since 1998.

And there have been so many elections since then, so much work that's been done, not just from groups that Stacey has worked with, but a lot of groups across the state, names who never get called on national news, but people who've been deeply committed to building a true grassroots movement in this state.

And it's finally all come together in the way that we have hoped that it would for a very long time.

GEOFF BENNETT: What lessons should the national Democratic Party take from your winning campaign?

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS: I think, across America, hopefully, everyone realizes that you have got to listen to people and those issues that matter to them and focus on those things that impact their daily lives.

Throughout the course of this campaign, it's been about the cost of living and people asking me directly, what can you do, what will you do as governor to address these issues, and then going back and delivering plans to do just that?

And, hopefully, Democrats across the nation -- and just based on the results, it appears that we all had the same takeaways, that we needed to focus on the things that mattered to people and not get distracted and not get pulled into fights that weren't productive for us to be able to deliver.

GEOFF BENNETT: Affordability, as you mentioned, was central to your campaign.

You have promised to raise the minimum wage.

How do you plan to deliver on promises like that, given that Republicans still control the state Senate?

How quickly can Georgians realistically expect to see your agenda put into action?

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS: Well, we were able to take the House this time, and we are really one seat away from controlling the Senate.

So we're going to try and find those things that we can get bipartisan agreement on, those things we can get done immediately.

And if minimum wage, for example, is one of those things, then we're going to move forward with it.

But it may be something that we have to wait until we have control of the Senate.

But I do believe things like health care and education funding are things that we can cross party lines to find consensus on immediately.

GEOFF BENNETT: Finally, there is enormous symbolism in your election, especially for the Black women who have been so central to the Democratic Party's success over the years.

Symbolism also creates enormous expectation.

I wonder, do you feel additional responsibility to deliver, knowing how many people see themselves in your victory?

KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS: You know, for me, it is just the responsibility to deliver.

I moved around this state, and I asked people to support our campaign and to believe in the vision that I was setting forth for the state of Georgia.

And I want to make sure that I'm true to my word.

So it is -- it's beyond who I am and the symbolism, representation of who I am.

It is just about being an effective leader on behalf of all Georgians.

GEOFF BENNETT: Georgia's Governor-Elect Keisha Lance Bottoms, thanks again for your time.

AMNA NAWAZ: As Democrats celebrate their historic gains, Republicans are beginning to take stock of major upsets and what comes next for their party.

Here with us now is former Arizona Senator Jeff Flake, one of the most outspoken Republican critics of President Donald Trump during his first term and the author of the 2017 book "Conscience of a Conservative."

Senator Flake, welcome back to the "News Hour."

JEFF FLAKE (R-AZ): Thanks for having me on.

AMNA NAWAZ: I want to begin with that piece of news today that President Trump has elevated Stephen Miller to be his new chief of staff.

This is the man who's the architect of the president's hard-line immigration agenda, so many other policies.

What does that decision, just days after huge Republican losses in the midterms, say to you?

JEFF FLAKE: Well, it suggests that the president is doubling down.

I had hoped that, on that issue to immigration, that that's one area where the president might reach an agreement on certain issues revolving around immigration.

I know, when I was in the Senate and the president was in his first term, he seemed willing to do that, but he was always pulled back by people like Stephen Miller.

And so I'm a little discouraged to see that, because, on some issues, he might be inclined to work with the Democrats, but not so much now.

AMNA NAWAZ: Does that tell you anything about what we should expect to see these next two years?

JEFF FLAKE: Yes, I -- unfortunately, I think it does.

I think the president would not have elevated Stephen Miller if he expected to reach some deals with Democrats on certain issues.

I hope I'm wrong on that, but that's kind of been the history.

AMNA NAWAZ: We know that there are still a few races left to be called from this election, but the picture's very clear.

We're talking about generational losses for the Republicans.

Extinction level is how Florida Governor Ron DeSantis put it.

And I'm sure you have seen President Trump, Vice President Vance have basically said this was all about the Iran war.

Certainly, that played a big role, but on the economy and affordability, obviously, was the biggest issue for voters.

The original sin for this administration economically were tariffs.

Tariffs raised prices for everyone.

And that was long before the war started.

And then it wasn't just policy as well.

It was just style, Republicans referring to Democrats or anybody they didn't agree with as socialists or communists or pedophiles or jihadists, that just hope -- gratefully ran its course, and people are tired of it.

AMNA NAWAZ: And it was reported late today that Arizona Democrats gained a trifecta to control the state house, Senate, and governor's office for the first time in 60 years.

What does that tell you about what's going on in your state?

One anecdote to let you know how it is for a clerk of the superior court in Maricopa County -- Maricopa County is the fourth largest county in the country with about nearly four million residents -- a Democrat, a 19-year-old, won that seat from a former state legislator Republican who wasn't scandal-ridden.

And a 19-year-old Democrat won that seat by about 100,000 votes.

That's kind of how it went in Arizona, and I think was replicated elsewhere in the country.

AMNA NAWAZ: So, back in 2019, you wrote this in a tweet.

You said: "One day in the not-too-distant future, Republicans will wake up and say, we did this for this man?"

What are you hearing from other Republicans?

JEFF FLAKE: Well, I think so, from some other Republicans, yes, but then you hear some of the talking heads or those who have closely aligned themselves with the president, whether it's think tanks or other advocacy groups, and you see they're sticking with it.

So I hope that Republicans, certainly elected officials, those who are left, will realize that this is not a winning ticket here, and that we're in a cul-de-sac as a party unless we change course.

AMNA NAWAZ: But when you decided not to run for reelection, like so many others who opposed and publicly spoke out against President Trump, you left office, and now the party is almost entirely the party of Donald Trump.

JEFF FLAKE: Well, nothing focuses the mind like a huge election loss, and we underwent that.

And we have to now get a nominee for president.

And I can tell you, I don't think it's going to be somebody who is in lockstep with the current president.

We have got to chart a different course and in some ways regain and go back to some of the principles that have animated the party for generations, limited government, economic freedom, some modicum of free trade, American leadership abroad, recognizing our allies from our adversaries.

Those are winning issues if we can get somebody who has some distance from the president, because I think to have some saliency with the voters, you're going to have to have distance from the president.

AMNA NAWAZ: I take that to mean you don't think that J.D.

Would you support someone like Marco Rubio?

JEFF FLAKE: Yes, Marco has managed to keep some distance.

It kind of depends on how long he stays in the position he's in.

I don't suppose he can be there very long without tying himself directly to the president.

Marco's very bright, and you know where his heart is.

I have known him for years, and I think he really doesn't agree with some of the things that the president has done.

I'm hopefully -- hopeful some new faces will come up, or maybe some governors, if there are any left, who can actually breathe new life into the party.

I did 18 years in elected office, and that's probably enough.

AMNA NAWAZ: Former Arizona Senator Jeff Flake, thank you so much for being with us tonight.

GEOFF BENNETT: Well, President Trump is shaking up his White House leadership, Republicans are confronting deep divisions within their party, and Democrats are preparing to take control of Congress.

For more on what comes next, we turn to Brooks and Capehart.

That's David Brooks of "The Atlantic" and Jonathan Capehart of MS NOW.

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: And we end it with President Trump announcing that Stephen Miller will replace Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff.

After one of the most devastating midterm defeats in modern history, the president is elevating one of the architects of his most hard-line policy.

He's going for the wartime consigliere, which is what Stephen Miller is.

I guess they're going to the mattresses, as they would say.

I spent a week in Sicily, so I got a lot of "Godfather" references.

(LAUGHTER) DAVID BROOKS: I just think he's going with the guy who's the ultimate loyalist.

And he's I think sending Susie Wiles over to help pick the nominee for the next Republican, on the illusion that he has going to have much of a say in who's the next nominee.

I have really been struck by how so many Republicans are unleashed, not all in public.

The one who's been most public is Ron DeSantis, the Florida governor.

After the election, he was unleashed, and he was just furious about what's happened to the party, how it's been destroyed.

He called this election a near-extinction event for the Republican Party.

And a lot of Republicans feel that.

A lot of other Republicans, I would say, are just quiet.

And so how that shakes out, but I don't think there's going to be much flavor for more of the same, which is what Stephen Miller is, doubling down on the same.

GEOFF BENNETT: Our Liz Landers reports that Susie Wiles submitted her resignation last night.

And there's other reporting that President Trump was angry with Wiles after the GOP's shellacking in this week's midterm election.

Is Stephen Miller's elevation, Jonathan, the clearest signal yet that President Trump has no intention of changing course?

I mean, I think, pardon the imagery I'm about to present, Stephen Miller's elevation is a big middle finger to the American voters, what they had to say through their votes on Tuesday, to the incoming Democratic majorities.

How are they going to -- it just seems to me this is the clearest indication that the president has even -- has given up even pretending that he wants to govern.

My hope is that -- to pick up on what David was saying about Republicans, is that the behavior of the Republicans who come back to Washington in the 120th Congress, that their behavior will change.

And I'm particularly looking at Republican senators.

Lisa Murkowski is going to need some other moderates to join her in working with Democrats to get things done.

I mean, Democrats have a lot on their plate, given the results of the election.

But so do -- but so do Republicans.

And I would hope that there are some moderates within the Republican Party, because I do know that there are some, will start to assert themselves, especially if they're thinking of running for president themselves in '28.

GEOFF BENNETT: In order for that to happen, Republicans would have to believe that MAGA is no longer a potent political force.

Tucker Carlson said last night on his show that the Trump era is over.

For this election, people don't -- in 2010, when Barack Obama suffered that shellacking, he -- the Republicans had an advantage of 7 percentage points up in the total House race.

This time, the Democrats had a total House race advantage of 13 points.

So it was twice as big as 2010, which we considered this massive midterm setback for the president.

On election night, we weren't quite clear on how big these margins is, Jon Ossoff 18 points, Talarico 12 points, El-Sayed, who was kind of one of the weaker candidates, seven points, just huge margins.

And so the Republican -- he's suffered setbacks before, but never when he's two years away from ending his term.

And so I think this was such a comprehensive, existential setback, and he's got so little left in his term in office, I think people are -- this is the end of MAGA.

But, as a movement, as a force, there's the end.

GEOFF BENNETT: Let's talk about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and his future, because Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, he's forcing a confrontation and will introduce this measure to launch what would be an impeachment vote potentially as early as next week -- excuse me -- given the controversy surrounding Hegseth's leadership and the deeply unpopular war with Iran.

How do you see this playing out, Jonathan?

JONATHAN CAPEHART: Well, remember, Congress -- well, the House of Representatives went on recess early because Speaker Johnson didn't want Thomas Massie's, I think it was a discharge petition to actually have to be enforced.

So they went on, what, it was like five or six weeks to ostensibly go and campaign.

Now that they're coming back, they're going to have to face it, and putting folks on the record in the lame-duck.

If they don't do something now, then you better believe, in the 120th Congress, they are going to do something.

Also, the war with Iran, we still don't know, what's the -- what's the plan?

We have no idea what is happening to our service members who are in the region, who are on those aircraft carriers in the region.

At a minimum, at a minimum, Secretary Hegseth needs to be brought on -- brought to the Capitol to explain himself, not just to Congress, but to the American people.

DAVID BROOKS: Yes, I hope the Democratic leadership goes to Donald Trump and say, you mentioned you want to do a deal.

And no progress is going to be made in this -- in any sort of dealmaking as long as Miller's in there, and no competent running of that war is going to be as long as Hegseth there.

And so, if they can tell Donald Trump, tell us what you want in exchange for these two guys, and we will do that, I think that would be good for the country, good for the Pentagon, and good for the prospects of some sort of deal, which is impossible if Miller and Hegseth are in there.

JONATHAN CAPEHART: That's a deal that -- I mean, that's a great idea, but you know what in instantly came to mind, because we're talking about President Trump?

He will say, give me some kind of vanity project in order to... DAVID BROOKS: It's worth it.

(LAUGHTER) GEOFF BENNETT: Well, let's talk about the Democratic leadership, because you have Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries.

They're poised to lead a Democratic Congress after this historic victory.

Schumer himself said this past week in a press conference that Americans voted for change.

But there are Democrats who believe that that change should extend to their own party's leadership.

Are Schumer and Jeffries the right people to lead Democrats into this new political era?

I realize I'm asking you about Democratic family business, but, still, weigh in.

(LAUGHTER) DAVID BROOKS: Jeffries certainly is.

I think Democrats got to realize this is a temporary thing so far.

This is a rental, not an ownership, this majority.

As Amy Walter pointed out on election night, people have thrown the party out of power in 10 of the last 11 elections.

They're ready to move on if they have to.

And so having people who know what they're doing -- I sort of believe in experience.

Schumer sort of knows what he's doing.

And they have some -- just some big challenges.

Remember, the Democrats have to understand that Donald Trump existed for a reason.

A lot of people feel left behind by elites in this country.

And they have got to do something to address that.

And they can do it with health care, they can do it with tax policy, they can do it with a generous welfare state, but they have got to resolve the inequality crisis in this country, and they have got to resolve the stagnation crisis in this country.

And Washington and especially Congress works through experience of people who know how to goes.

And I'm not sure they can find better than those two.

GEOFF BENNETT: Does this political era demand a new generation of leadership?

And as I ask the question, we should say that no one has emerged to run against Schumer or Jeffries.

So this is a theoretical conversation.

I remember in 2018, when the Democrats took back the majority, and everyone was saying, Nancy Pelosi is not the person to lead the House of Representatives.

And I remember writing a column at the time that said, do you not understand the moment that you're in?

You need her there, because you will go toe-to-toe with the president.

I think Democrats can say whatever they want to say.

Unless and until someone comes forward, the leaders will be Hakeem Jeffries and especially Chuck Schumer, who twice brought Democratic majorities and retaking the Senate with impossible terrain.

He did it in 2006 as the DSCC chair back then, and he's done it again on terrain that no one, no one predicted, Kansas, Texas, Mississippi if things keep going the way they're going.

Democrats are going to need experience.

Democrats thankfully are on record saying they understand that, even though they're in the majority, this doesn't mean that the American people love them and that they have to prove to the American people, have to earn the trust that they have been given.

And that's -- that is going to be a big task.

But it will be made that much more difficult if you just hand the keys to leadership to someone untested.

GEOFF BENNETT: This idea that it's not a realignment, it's a rental, that's a phrase I have heard this past week.

What's it going to take for Republicans to be electorally competitive again?

(LAUGHTER) DAVID BROOKS: They don't know what they stand for anymore.

Donald -- there was a Republican Party we all understood, free trade, that sort of thing, low taxes, small government.

Donald Trump blew up that Republican Party.

He's just blown up his own version of the Republican Party.

And so it's still going to be a working-class party.

Every center-right party in the Western world has become a working-class party, and their goal is to become a work a multiracial working-class party.

But after the election they have just run, that's going to be a lot of work.

I do think, the governors, they have got some talent, DeSantis, not my cup of tea, but he's a talented politician.

Governor Kemp from Georgia would be a very formidable presidential candidate.

So they have got some talent, but they just -- they're starting from ground zero right now.

GEOFF BENNETT: David Brooks, Jonathan Capehart, thank you both.

GEOFF BENNETT: And now we remember Jay Rockefeller, the former West Virginia governor and longtime U.S.

senator, who devoted more than half-a-century to public service.

Born into one of America's wealthiest and most prominent families, Rockefeller forged his own path in politics, becoming a leading voice on health care, education, and the needs of working families.

AMNA NAWAZ: Across five terms in the Senate, he earned a reputation for putting the interests of his constituents ahead of partisan politics.

He was also the husband of Sharon Rockefeller, president and CEO of WETA, the public television station that produces the "PBS News Hour."

Lisa Desjardins looks back now at Senator Rockefeller's life and impact.

JAY ROCKEFELLER (D-WV): I love the intensity of the work, the gravity of the issues.

I love fighting for West Virginia here.

LISA DESJARDINS: A son of one of the country's wealthiest families... MAN: Senator Rockefeller.

LISA DESJARDINS: ... John D. Rockefeller IV, known As jay, dedicated his career to one of the nation's poorest states.

Rockefeller was born in New York in 1937, a month after the death of his great grandfather of the same name, who co-founded the Standard Oil Company.

His great-grandson charted a maverick path.

His early jobs were at the Peace Corps' offices in Washington, but Rockefeller wanted a more hands-on position tackling poverty.

That drive took him to rural Emmons, West Virginia, where he worked to improve the lives of young people in the community.

From there, Rockefeller quickly decided to enter politics.

He switched from Republican to Democrat, breaking from his family's longstanding affiliation with the Republican Party.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: Since 1960, I have really felt myself to be a Democrat, although I realized that public image would probably be different.

LISA DESJARDINS: And in 1966, he won a seat in the state's House of delegates.

In 1968, following the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, Rockefeller's uncle, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, offered him the then vacant Senate seat if he would become a Republican again.

Over the next decade, he instead rose up the West Virginia political ladder.

He also met and married his wife, Sharon Percy.

Their wedding was featured on the cover of "LIFE" magazine.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: I run for governor.

LISA DESJARDINS: The '70s brought one setback, a defeat for governor in 1972, and then a comeback in 1976.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: Today, we leave behind the defeatism of the past.

Starting here, starting now, you and I together step out into the rising sun of a new day for West Virginia.

LISA DESJARDINS: His time as governor saw many challenges, from natural disasters to strikes and economic downturn.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: I have a tremendous sense of what our future can be and how I can help as your United States senator.

LISA DESJARDINS: In 1985, Rockefeller moved on to the U.S.

Senate, where he would represent West Virginia for 30 years.

His largest impact was on health care.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: Our problem is that we treat potential solutions in health care on like a short-term basis.

LISA DESJARDINS: Rockefeller fought to keep and expand Medicare and Medicaid.

And he authored the Children's Health Insurance Program, CHIP, which still provides low-cost health coverage to millions of children annually.

Rockefeller also created a bill securing lifetime benefits for retired coal miners, often referred to as the Rockefeller Coal Act.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: Saddam's existing biological and chemical weapons capabilities pose real threats to America today.

LISA DESJARDINS: Senator Rockefeller voted to authorize the invasion of Iraq.

He later started an investigation into the evidence for the war.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: We haven't found any weapons of mass destruction.

The al-Qaida/Iraq connection has not been found to be very real.

LISA DESJARDINS: Then, in 2013, the West Virginia senator announced his retirement.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: I will miss the Senate.

LISA DESJARDINS: He addressed the chamber for the last time on December 4, 2014.

JAY ROCKEFELLER: To West Virginia, thank you for placing your faith in me, I know it was hard at first, and giving me the greatest reward, the chance to fight for meaningful and lasting opportunity for those who are too often forgotten, but absolutely deserve the best.

LISA DESJARDINS: He was committed to philanthropy, along with his wife.

They founded the Blanchette Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute for Alzheimer's Research, dedicated to his mother, who lived with the disease.

Rockefeller leaves behind his wife, Sharon, four children and his grandchildren.

AMNA NAWAZ: Of course, our thoughts are with Sharon and the entire Rockefeller family.

Well, later tonight, be sure to tune into "Washington Week With The Atlantic" right here on PBS.

Moderator Jeffrey Goldberg and his panel discuss the Republican Party's sweeping losses this week and what could come next.

GEOFF BENNETT: On "Compass Points" this weekend, Nick Schifrin and his panel discuss worldwide interest in this country's midterm elections and how the results are playing abroad.

And, on "Horizons," William Brangham talks to two astronauts about life on the International Space Station.

You can watch both "Horizons" and "Compass Points" on our YouTube channel or wherever you get your podcasts and on your local PBS station.

AMNA NAWAZ: And that is the "News Hour" for tonight.

GEOFF BENNETT: And I'm Geoff Bennett.

For all of us here at the "News Hour," thank you for spending part of your evening with us, and have a great weekend.

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