PBS NewsHour; June 22, 2011 6:00pm-7:00pm PDT

Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS

>> Woodruff: PRESIDENT OBAMA MAPPED OUT A COURSE TONIGHT FOR BRINGING 33,000 U.S. TROOPS HOME FROM AFGHANISTAN BY THE END OF NEXT YEAR. GOOD EVENING, I'M JUDY WOODRUFF.

>> Ifill: AND I'M GWEN IFILL. ON THE "NEWSHOUR" TONIGHT, WE HAVE EXTENDED EXCERPTS OF THIS EVENING'S PRIMETIME SPEECH AT THE WHITE HOUSE. PLUS, ANALYSIS FROM RUTH MARCUS AND WILLIAM KRISTOL.

>> Woodruff: THEN, WE EXAMINE THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION'S RECORD ON CLIMATE CHANGE AS FORMER VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE CRITICIZES THE PRESIDENT'S FAILURE TO TAKE BOLD ACTION ON GLOBAL WARMING.

>> Ifill: FROM RHODE ISLAND, PAUL SOLMAN REPORTS ON THE RISK TO RETIREES AND TAXPAYERS ALIKE WHEN BILLIONS OF DOLLARS FROM STATE PENSION FUNDS ARE TIED UP IN THE STOCK MARKET.

>> WE'D BE ASKING PEOPLE, DO YOU WANT TO PAY HIGHER TAXES IN ORDER TO AVOID TAKING THE RISK IN THE STOCK MARKET? I THINK MOST PEOPLE WOULD SAY NO TO THAT.

>> Woodruff: AND WE CONTINUE OUR COLLABORATION WITH "THE ECONOMIST" MAGAZINE TO HIGHLIGHT THE ART OF FILMMAKING. TONIGHT, JEFFREY BROWN TALKS TO "MY PERESTROIKA" DIRECTOR ROBIN HESSMAN ABOUT CHILDREN GROWING UP AS THE SOVIET UNION FELL APART.

>> FOR EVERY INDIVIDUAL, IT WAS A COMPLICATED PROCESS AND STILL IS TODAY. THERE ARE MANY CONFLICTING FEELINGS ON THE CHANGES AND THE EFFECTS OF THOSE CHANGES ON THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES.

>> Woodruff: THAT'S ALL AHEAD ON TONIGHT'S "NEWSHOUR." MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY:

>> I MEAN, WHERE WOULD WE BE WITHOUT SMALL BUSINESSES?

>> WE NEED SMALL BUSINESSES.

>> THEY'RE THE ONES THAT HELP DRIVE GROWTH.

>> LIKE ELECTRICIANS, MECHANICS, CARPENTERS.

>> THEY STRENGTHEN OUR COMMUNITIES.

>> EVERY YEAR, CHEVRON SPENDS BILLIONS WITH SMALL BUSINESSES. THAT GOES RIGHT TO THE HEART OF LOCAL COMMUNITIES, PROVIDING JOBS, KEEPING PEOPLE AT WORK. THEY DEPEND ON US.

>> THE ECONOMY DEPENDS ON THEM.

>> AND WE DEPEND ON THEM.

>> AND BY THE BILL AND MELINDA GATES FOUNDATION. DEDICATED TO THE IDEA THAT ALL PEOPLE DESERVE THE CHANCE TO LIVE A HEALTHY PRODUCTIVE LIFE. AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INSTITUTIONS AND FOUNDATIONS. 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: IT'S BEEN NEARLY TEN YEARS SINCE U.S. FORCES WENT INTO AFGHANISTAN, AFTER 9/11. TONIGHT, THE PRESIDENT ANNOUNCED HIS PLAN FOR WINDING DOWN THE U.S. ROLE. HE SPOKE IN A NATIONALLY TELEVISED ADDRESS, FROM THE EAST ROOM OF THE WHITE HOUSE. HERE IS SOME OF WHAT HE SAID.

>> BY THE TIME I TOOK OFFICE, THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN HAD ENTERED ITS SEVENTH YEAR. BUT AL-QAEDA'S LEADERS HAD ESCAPED INTO PAKISTAN AND WERE PLOTTING NEW ATTACKS. WHILE THE TALIBAN HAD REGROUPED AND GONE ON THE OFFENSIVE. WITHOUT A NEW STRATEGY AND DECISIVE ACTION, OUR MILITARY COMMANDS WARNED THAT WE COULD FACE A RESURGE IN AL-QAEDA AND THE TALIBAN TAKING OVER LARGE PARTS OF AFGHANISTAN. FOR THIS REASON, IN ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT DECISIONS I'VE MADE AS PRESIDENT, I ORDERED AN ADDITIONAL 0,000 AMERICAN TROOPS INTO AFGHANISTAN. WHEN I ANNOUNCED THIS SURGE AT WEST POINT, WE SET CLEAR OBJECTIVES, TO REFOCUS ON AL-QAEDA, TO REVERSE THE TALIBAN'S MOMENTUM, AND TRAIN AFGHAN SECURITY FORCES TO DEFEND THEIR OWN COUNTRY. I ALSO MADE IT CLEAR THAT OUR COMMITMENT WOULD NOT BE OPEN-ENDED, AND THAT WE WOULD BEGIN TO DRAW DOWN OUR FORCES THIS JULY. TONIGHT, I CAN TELL YOU THAT WE ARE FULFILLING THAT COMMITMENT. THANKS TO OUR EXTRAORDINARY MEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM, OUR CIVILIAN PERSONNEL AND OUR MANY COALITION PARTNERS, WE ARE MEETING OUR GOALS. AS A RESULT, STARTING NEXT MONTH, WE WILL BE ABLE TO REMOVE 10,000 OF OUR TROOPS FROM AFGHANISTAN BY THE END OF THIS YEAR, AND WE WILL BRING HOME A TOTAL OF 33,000 TROOPS BY NEXT SUMMER. FULLY RECOVERING THE SURGE I ANNOUNCE AT WEST POINT. AFTER THIS INITIAL REDUCTION, OUR TROOPS WILL CONTINUE COMING HOME AT A STEADY PACE AS AFGHAN SECURITY FORCES MOVE INTO THE LEAD. OUR MISSION WILL CHANGE FROM COMBAT TO SUPPORT. BY 2014, THIS PROCESS OF TRANSITION WILL BE COMPLETE AND THE AFGHAN PEOPLE WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR OWN SECURITY. WE'RE STARTING THIS DRAW DOWN FROM POSITION OF STRENGTH. AL-QAEDA IS UNDER MORE PRESSURE THAN AT ANY TIME SINCE 9/11. TOGETHER WITH THE PAKISTANIS, WE HAVE TAKEN OUT MORE THAN HALF OF AL-QAEDA'S LEADERSHIP. AND THANKS TO OUR INTELLIGENCE PROFESSIONALS AND SPECIAL FORCES, WE KILLED OSAMA BIN LADEN, THE ONLY LEADER THAT AL-QAEDA HAD EVER KNOWN. THIS WAS A VICTORY FOR ALL WHO HAVE SERVED SINCE 9/11. ONE SOLDIER SUMMED IT UP WELL. THE MESSAGE, HE SAID, IS WE DON'T FORGET. YOU WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE NO MATTER HOW LONG IT TAKES. THE INFORMATION THAT WE RECOVERED FROM BIN LADEN'S COMPOUND SHOWS AL-QAEDA UNDER ENORMOUS STRENGTH. BIN LADEN EXPRESSED CONCERN THAT AL-QAEDA HAD BEEN UNABLE TO EFFECTIVELY REPLACE SENIOR TERRORISTS THAT HAD BE KILLED, AND THAT AL-QAEDA HAS FAILED IN ITS EFFORT TO PORTRAY AMERICA AS A NATION AT WAR WITH ISLAM, THEREBY DRAINING MORE WIDE SPREAD SUPPORT. AL-QAEDA REMAINS DANGEROUS, AND WE MUST BE VIGILANT AGAINST ATTACKS. BUT WE HAVE PUT AL-QAEDA ON A PATH TO DEFEAT AND WE WILL NOT RELENT UNTIL THE JOB IS DONE. OF COURSE, HUGE CHALLENGES REMAIN. THIS IS THE BEGINNING, NOT THE END OF OUR EVIDENT TO WIND DOWN THIS WAR. WE'LL HAVE TO DO THE HARD WORK OF KEEPING THE GAINS THAT WE'VE MADE, WHILE WE DRAW DOWN OUR FORCES AND TRANSITION RESPONSIBILITY FOR SECURITY TO THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT. WE DO KNOW THAT PEACE CANNOT COME TO A LAND THAT HAS KNOWN SO MUCH WAR WITHOUT A POLITICAL SETTLEMENT. SO AS WE STRENGTHEN THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT AND SECURITY FORCES, AMERICA WILL JOIN INITIATIVE THAT RECONCILE THE AFGHAN PEOPLE, INCLUDING THE TALIBAN. OUR POSITION ON THESE TALKS IS CLEAR. THEY MUST BE LED BY THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT, AND THOSE WHO WANT TO BE A PART OF A PEACEFUL AFGHANISTAN MUST BREAK FROM AL-QAEDA, ABANDON VIOLENCE AND ABIDE BY THE AFGHAN CONSTITUTION. BUT IN PART, BECAUSE OF OUR MILITARY EVIDENT, WE HAVE REASON TO BELIEVE THAT PROGRESS CAN BE MADE. OF COURSE, OUR EFFORTS MUST ALSO ADDRESS TERRORISTS SAFE HAVENS IN PAKISTAN. NO COUNTRY IS MORE ENDANGERED BY THE PRESENCE OF VIOLENT EXTREMISTS WHICH IS WHY WE WILL PRESS PAKISTAN IN SECURING A MORE PEACEFUL FUTURE FOR THIS WAR TORN REGION. WE'LL WORK WITH THE PAKISTANI GOVERNMENT TO ROOT OUT THE CANCER OF VIOLENT EXTREMISM AND WE WILL INSIST THAT IT KEEPS ITS COMMITMENTS. FOR THERE SHOULD BE NO DOUBT THAT SO LONG AS I AM PRESIDENT, THE UNITED STATES WILL NEVER TOLERATE A SAFE HAVEN FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO KILL US OR ELUDE US. TONIGHT WE TAKE COMFORT IN KNOWING THAT THE TIDE OF WAR IS RECEDING. FEWER OF OUR SONS AND DAUGHTERS ARE SERVING IN HARM'S WAY. WE ENDED OUR COMMISSION IN IRAQ WITH 100,000 AMERICAN TROOPS ALREADY OUT OF THAT COUNTRY. AND EVEN AS THERE WILL BE DARK DAYS AHEAD IN AFGHANISTAN, THE LIGHT OF A SECURE PEACE CAN BE SEEN IN THE DISTANCE. OVER THE LAST DECADE WE HAVE SPENT OVER A TRILLION DOLLARS ON WAR. AT THE TIME OF RISING DEBT AND HARD ECONOMIC TIMES. NOW, WE MUST INVEST IN AMERICA'S GREATEST RESOURCE, OUR PEOPLE. WE MUST UNLEASH INNOVATION THAT CREATES NEW JOBS AND INDUSTRIES, WHILE LIVING WITHIN OUR MEANS. WE MUST REBUILD OUR INFRASTRUCTURE AND FIND NEW AND CLEAN SOURCES OF ENERGY. AND MOST OF ALL, AFTER A DECADE OF PASSIONATE DEBATE, WE MUST RECAPTURE THE COMMON PURPOSE THAT WE SHARED AT THE BEGINNING OF THIS TIME OF WAR. FOR OUR NATION DRAWS STRENGTH FROM OUR DIFFERENCES, AND WHEN OUR UNION IS STRONG, NO HILL IS TOO STEEP. NO HORIZON IS BEYOND OUR REACH. AMERICA, IT IS TIME TO FOCUS ON NATION BUILDING HERE AT HOME.

>> Woodruff: NOW FOR SOME ANALYSIS OF TONIGHT'S SPEECH WE'RE JOINED BY RUTH MARCUS, COLUMNIST FOR "THE WASHINGTON POST" AND BILL KRISTOL, EDITOR OF THE WEEKLY STANDARD AND WE THANK YOU BOTH FOR BEING WITH US. SO RUTH, LET ME START WITH YOU. DID THE PRESIDENT MAKE THE CASE FOR THE PULL OUT OF THOSE SURGE FORCES THAT HE PUT INTO AFGHANISTAN OVER A YEAR AGO?

>> WELL HE MADE A CASE. I'M NOT ENTIRELY SURE THAT HE EITHER CONVINCED THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE TROOPS GONE MORE QUICKLY OR ALL TROOPS GONE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, THAT IT MAKES SENSE TO STAY THE COURSE TO THE EXTENT THAT HE WANTS. AND I'M NOT SURE THAT HE MANAGED TO CONVINCE THOSE WHO THINK THAT HE OUGHT TO HAVE LISTENED MORE TO THE GENERALS WHO WANTED MORE TROOPS FOR LONGER. I'M NOT SURE HE'S NULLIFIED THEM EITHER. HE'S IN A PLACE WITH PRESIDENT OBAMA RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THOSE TWO FORCES WOULD

>> Woodruff: HOW DO YOU SEE IT, BILL KRISTOL.

>> HE MAKES IT CLEAR HE WANTS TO GET OUT OF AFGHANISTAN AND ACCELERATED THE WITHDRAW OF THE SURGE FORCES, MADE IT MORE -- MORE QUICKLY THAN PEOPLE ANTICIPATED. THIS WAS A LOT OF TALK HE WOULD WITHDRAW ALL THE SURGE FORCES BY THE END OF 2012 AND I THINK THE MILITARY COMMANDERS. THINKING THAT WOULD MEAN MORE RISK FOR THE COMMISSION, THOUGHT THAT WAS DOABLE BECAUSE THEY WERE GIVEN THE 2012 FIGHTING SEASON. SO THEY COULD REALLY FINISH THE WORK IN THE SOUTH AND MOVE TO THE EAST. NOW WITH THE SEPTEMBER DEADLINE WITH THE WITHDRAWAL OF FORCES, WITHOUT PRACTICE YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO ROW TEETH PEOPLE IN JUNE JULY ETCETERA. THEY'RE GIVING UP AN AWFUL LOT OF 2012 BECAUSE THE PRESIDENT SAYS IT'S BEEN SUCCESSFUL. WHAT HE'S SAYING IS ALL THAT COUNTERINSURGENCY TRYING TO CREATE A STABLE AFGHAN, THE JIHADISTS INTEREST IN THE RANGE, HE REALLY BACKS AWAY FROM THOSE IN HIS SPEECHES. IT WAS POSITIVE FOR THE REGION. WE'RE NOT GOING TO LET AL-QAEDA HAVE A SAFE HAVEN AND THAT OPENS UP, IF YOU'RE A CRITIC THEN, IF YOU THINK COUNTERTERRORISM IS ENOUGH INSTEAD OF COUNTERINSURGENCY, WHY DOESN'T HE HAVE 70,000 TROOPS. JUST USE SPECIAL FORCES AND FORGET ABOUT ALL THIS ATTEMPT TO REALLY FIGHT A WAR THERE.

>> I THINK THE POINT ABOUT THE 70,000 TROOP IS A VERY IMPORTANT ONE WHICH IS THIS IS NOT A CHOICE BETWEEN HAVING ALL THE TROOPS OUT OF AFGHANISTAN BY THE END OF 2012 OR THE FALL OF 2012. YOU CAN HAVE AN ARGUMENT ABOUT WHEN THE FIGHTING SEASON BEGINS AND ENDS AND HOW MUCH MARGINAL DIFFERENCE IT MAKES TO HAVE THAT EXTRA TIME OF MORE TROOPS THERE. BUT AT THE END OF 2012, THERE WILL BE 68,000 TROOPS IN AFGHANISTAN WHEN PRESIDENT OBAMA TOOK OFFICE, THERE WERE 32,000 TROOPS. THAT'S STILL A VERY LARGE FORCE.

>> Woodruff: IS THERE A CONTRADICTION, THOUGH, RUTH, IN SAYING WE'VE DONE A GOOD ENOUGH JOB, WE'RE GOING TO BRING THESE SURGE TROOPS HOME, THESE 33,000, BUT THERE'S STILL A BIG JOB LEFT. HE TALKED ABOUT THE CHALLENGES THAT REMAIN, SO WE NEED TO HAVE TWICE THAT MANY TROOPS, MORE THAN TWICE THAT MANY TROOPS TO FIT IN THERE.

>> THERE IS AN INHERENT CONTRADICTION IN SETTING A WITHDRAWAL TIMETABLE AND SAYING WE WILL NOT RELENT UNTIL THE JOB IS DONE. THAT'S JUST SORT OF BAKED INTO THE CAKE OF THE AFGHANISTAN POLICY. IT'S NOT A NEW ONE, IT WAS WHAT WAS LAID OUT IN 2009. THE ARGUMENT IS IF YOU SET A WITHDRAWAL TIMETABLE, YOU SORT OF ENERGIZE THE AFGHANIS TO GET THEIR ACT TOGETHER AND BE ABLE TO DO IT FOR THEMSELVES. THE COUNTERARGUMENT TO THAT IS YOU ENERGIZE THE AL-QAEDA ELEMENTS AND OTHER INSURGENCENTS TO JUST WAIT YOU OUT. NOW THEY KNOW WAIT THE REST OUT UNTIL 2014.

>> Woodruff: DID THE BILL DESCRIBE THE PROGRESS WE'VE MADE. HE TALKED ABOUT WE MADE PROGRESS TO AL-QAEDA, WE WENT TO PAKISTANI AND FOUND AL-QAEDA. ISN'T HE GIVING THE UNITED STATES ENOUGH CREDIT FOR WHAT HAS BEEN DONE.

>> HE COULD HAVE, QUITE HONESTLY. IT'S A PRETTY AMAZING ACHIEVEMENT BY THE U.S. FORCES ACCOMPANYING THE U.S. PRESIDENT SPEAKING TO THE NATION COULD TAKE PRIDE AND GIVE THE FORCES CREDIT FOR IT. HE GAVE A COUPLE NICE SENTENCES ABOUT THE TROOPS BUT A LOT IS THANKING THEM FOR THEIR SACRIFICES AND DRAWING APPROPRIATELY ON THE WOUNDED AND ON THE KILLED. HE DIDN'T DWELL QUITE AS LONG ON THE ACHIEVEMENT OF THE U.S. FORCES. THIS WAS MORE OF A PIVOT BY THE PRESIDENT ABOUT THE WITHDRAW FROM AFGHANISTAN. HE HAD AN AGREEMENT WITH NATO OR THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT. THERE WAS A PLAN, A CAMPAIGN PLAN. WE WOULD DO THE SURGE, KEEP A GOOD NUMBER OF FORCES WHILE DRAWING DOWN GRADUALLY. THEN THERE WOULD BE MORE OF A DRAW DOWN IN 3013 AND BY 2014 THE PLAN WAS TO TURN OVER SECURITY TO THE AFGHAN FORCES. NOW HE'S ACCELERATED THAT PLAN QUITE A LOT. IN YOU'RE ACTUALLY TAKING CHARGE, YOU SET A DIFFERENT NUMBER FORCES AND VERY MUCH LESS FLEXIBILITY HOW TO DEPLOY THEM.

>> Woodruff: HE'S GOT MORE AMBITION.

>> IT'S UNCLEAR WHY HE NOW THINKS WE CAN ACCELERATE THAT MUCH UNLESS HE'S CHANGED THE GOING -- GOAL POSTS AND I THINK HE HAS. WE'RE GOING TO DENY AL-QAEDA A SAFE HAVEN, THESE THE GOAL. NO TALK, VERY VERY LITTLE THANK YOU ABOUT THE BROADER STRATEGIC INTEREST THAT CERTAINLY BUSH IDENTIFIED, THAT'S ONE THING. AND THAT SENTENCE RIGHT AT THE END OF THE EXCERTAIN WE -- EXCERPTS, IT'S TIME TO TAKE CARE OF OUR HOME. IF YOU WANT INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND FOREIGN AID, I THINK THIS SENTENCE IS GOING TO BE THROWN BACK AT HIM BY PEOPLE IN CONGRESS WOULD

>> Woodruff: AND U.S. WILL BE STILL SPENDING BILLIONS EVERY INFORMANT.

>> IT'S HARD TO KEEP IT STRAIGHT. ABSOLUTELY AND THE DEGREE TO WHICH FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS ARE INFLUENCING AND TO SOME EXTENT DRIVING THESE DECISIONS CAN'T BE OVERESTIMATED. THE PRESSURES THAT THE BUDGET NEGOTIATORS FEEL THE PRESSURES THAT ARE BROUGHT TO BEAR BY POLITICIANS WHO ARE TALKING ABOUT SPENDING THESE BILLIONS SLICING THEM OUT OF THE PROGRAM. THE PRESIDENT DID A SIMILAR PIVOT IN THE WEST POINT SPEECH WHERE HE TALKED ABOUT TIME TO SORT OF REBUILD AT HOME. THIS WAS EVEN MORE DIRECT BECAUSE THE FRUSTRATION LEVEL HAS GROWN AND THE SENSE OF THE REAL NEED TO DEAL WITH THE DEFICIT HAS GROWN.

>> Woodruff: LET'S TALK ABOUT THE REACTION GOING FORWARD. THERE WAS SOME REACTION THAT REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES ON THE HILL AND YOU HAD JON HUNTSMAN THE REPUBLICAN AGREEING WITH NANCY PELOSI THAT MORE NEEDS TO BE DONE. WHAT THE PRESIDENT SAID TONIGHT, DOES THE CALM THE GROWING DEBATE OUT THERE ABOUT THIS WAR OR DOES IT RILE IT UP OR IS IT RIGHT WHERE IT WAS BEFORE THIS SPEECH?

>> HIS POLICY'S NOT GOING TO BE REVERSED FROM EITHER SIDE IN CONGRESS SO I THINK AFTER A FEW DAYS OF CRITICISM AND WORRY AND WARNING AND LAMENT FROM BOTH SIDES PERHAPS IT'S NOT GETTING OUT FAST ENOUGH OR PUTTING THE MISSION AT RISK BY GETTING OUT TOO FAST, I SUPPOSE THE DEBATE WILL DIE DOWN. THAT WILL DEPEND ON THINGS ON THE GROUND. I WORRY THE MOST THAT THIS COULD SNOWBALL. THERE'S NUT MUCH --

>> Woodruff: WHAT DO YOU MEAN SNOWBALL.

>> NATO ALLIES COULD SAY HE'S EXCELLING HIS WITHDRAWAL LET'S ACCELERATE OUR WITHDRAW. AFGHAN AND THOSE IN PAKISTAN WHO MIGHT WANT TO WORK WITH US LOOK AT THIS SPEECH AND SEE BOY HE'S GETTING OUT OF THERE FASTER AND THERE'S ONE OR TWO SENTENCES ABOUT A PERMANENT RELATIONSHIP WITH AFGHANISTAN. THERE'S NOT A LOT OF FORWARD LEANING TALK ABOUT HOW WE'LL BE THERE SUPPORTING OUR FRIENDS, WE HAVE BROAD INTERESTS IN THAT PART OF ASIA. I WOULD WORRY HONESTLY THAT THIS IS READ AROUND THE WORLD IN THAT WAY. THEN AT HOME, AT LEAST AMONG REPUBLICANS, THERE WILL BE A LITTLE BIT OF A SENSE YOU'RE NOT FIGHTING THIS TO WIN, LET'S JUST GET OUT. THIS IN BETWEEN PATH IS NOT SUSTAINABLE.

>> Woodruff: TEN SECONDS, DO YOU AGREE WITH THAT IT COULD SNOWBALL.

>> I'M NOT SURE ABOUT THE ALLIES, I THINK IN TERMS OF NATIONAL DIALOGUE HERE AT HOME, I DON'T THINK AFGHANISTAN, UNLESS SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAPPENS IS GOING TO BE FRONT AND CENTER IN THE POLITICAL DEBATE, IT'S GOING TO BE THE ECONOMY, AND I WOULDN'T SAY STUPID.

>> Woodruff: GEE, WHAT MAKES YOU SAY THAT. ALL RIGHT.

>> BECAUSE YOU'RE SO SMART.

>> Woodruff: RUTH MARCUS AND BILL KRISTOL, WE THANK YOU BOTH.

>> THANK

>> Ifill: STILL TO COME ON THE "NEWSHOUR": A REPORT CARD ON THE ADMINISTRATION'S ENVIRONMENTAL RECORD; STATE PENSION FUNDS AT RISK IN THE MARKETS AND GROWING UP AS THE SOVIET UNION FELL APART. BUT FIRST, WITH THE OTHER NEWS OF THE DAY. HERE'S HARI SREENIVASAN.

>> Sreenivasan: NATO IS SHOWING THE FIRST SIGNS OF A POSSIBLE SPLIT OVER THE MISSION IN LIBYA. ITALY CALLED TODAY FOR A HALT TO MILITARY ACTION. FOREIGN MINISTER FRANCO FRATTINI SAID THE FIGHTING NEEDS TO STOP, TO ALLOW ACCESS FOR HUMANITARIAN AID. HE ALSO SAID CIVILIAN DEATHS FROM NATO AIR RAIDS SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED. FRANCE AND BRITAIN REJECTED THE APPEAL. THE BRITISH INSISTED THE ALLIANCE IS HOLDING STRONG. A SECURITY COURT IN BAHRAIN SENTENCED EIGHT TOP SHI-ITE ACTIVISTS AND OPPOSITION LEADERS TO LIFE IN PRISON TODAY. THE COURT ACTION STEMMED FROM PRO-DEMOCRACY PROTESTS THIS PAST SPRING. WE HAVE A REPORT NARRATED BY JONATHAN RUGMAN OF "INDEPENDENT TELEVISION NEWS."

>> Reporter: THIS WAS THE PEARL ROUNDABOUT, THE SYMBOL OF BAHRAIN'S LARGELY SHIA UPRISING AGAINST THE SUNNI MONARCHY.

>> WE WANT FREEDOM! WE WANT A TRUE PARLIAMENT!

>> Reporter: BUT THERE WAS NO REVOLUTION HERE. IT WAS BRUTALLY QUASHED. TODAY A MILITARY JUDGE IN BATTLE FATIGUES SENTENCED 21 ACTIVISTS TO LONG PRISON SENTENCES, EIGHT OF THEM TO LIFE. GUILTY OF PLOTTING TO OVERTHROW THE GOVERNMENT WITH FOREIGN HELP, PRESUMED TO BE FROM IRAN. ALL BUT ONE OF THE GUILTY MEN WERE FROM THE ISLAND'S SHIA MAJORITY. HASSAN MUSHAIMA, A WELL-KNOWN OPPOSITION LEADER FACES LIFE IN JAIL. IN BAHRAIN'S SHIA VILLAGES, MORE PROTESTS AFTER TODAY'S VERDICTS. THIS ONE WAS CONTAINED BY POLICE. LAST NIGHT, PROTESTERS WERE CALLING FOR THE ROYAL FAMILY TO BE OVERTHROWN, DESPITE PROMISES OF NATIONAL DIALOGUE DUE TO BEGIN ON THE FIRST OF JULY. HOW CAN YOU HAVE DIALOGUE SAYS THIS LEADING BAHRAINI REFUGEE IN LONDON WHO IN ABSENTIA TODAY WAS SENTENCED TO LIFE.

>> THESE DESPOTS AND REGIMES AND TYRANTS, WHEN THEY ARE THROTTLED BY THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE THEY JUST THROW OUT SUCH STATEMENTS BUT THEY DON'T REALLY MEAN IT.

>> Reporter: NEXT WEEK SENTENCES ARE DUE TO BE HANDED DOWN ON SCORES OF DOCTORS AND NURSES WHO TREATED THE WOUNDED. THEY STAND ACCUSED OF INCITING REVOLT.

>> Sreenivasan: THE SHI-ITES SENTENCED TODAY WILL HAVE 15 DAYS TO APPEAL. IN CHINA, RENOWNED ARTIST AND DISSIDENT AI WEIWEI WAS RELEASED FROM JAIL TODAY. HE HAD BEEN ARRESTED IN APRIL AFTER STRONGLY CRITICIZING THE RULING COMMUNIST PARTY. AI RETURNED TO HIS HOME IN BEIJING LATE AT NIGHT, BUT HE SAID HE WAS ON PROBATION AND COULD NOT TALK. STATE MEDIA SAID HE CONFESSED TO TAX EVASION-- SOMETHING HIS FAMILY HAD LONG DENIED. POLICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND ARE BLAMING AN OUTLAWED PROTESTANT GROUP FOR TWO NIGHTS OF SECTARIAN RIOTING IN BELFAST. IT STARTED LATE MONDAY, IN THE RUN-UP TO A HOLIDAY WHEN PROTESTANTS MARCH ACROSS THE REGION. ARMORED POLICE VANS FILLED THE STREETS TUESDAY AS HUNDREDS OF MASKED RIOTERS THREW BRICKS, FIREWORKS AND GASOLINE BOMBS. AT LEAST THREE PEOPLE WERE SHOT, BUT NONE OF THE INJURIES WERE LIFE-THREATENING. THE CITY OF MINOT, NORTH DAKOTA BEGAN TO FLOOD TODAY AS A BLOATED RIVER POURED OVER ITS LEVEES. AT THE SAME TIME, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE POURED OUT OF THE CITY FOR THE SECOND TIME THIS MONTH. EVEN BEFORE THE SOURIS RIVER THE RIVER THREATENED TO ENGULF BRIDGES AND ROADS, CUTTING OFF WHOLE AREAS AND FORCING SOME 11,000 PEOPLE TO EVACUATE MINOT BY NIGHTFALL.

>> JUST WAITING.

>> Sreenivasan: NEARLY 500 NORTH DAKOTA NATIONAL GUARD SOLDIERS WERE ON HAND TO HELP, PROVIDING TRAFFIC CONTROL. TIME WAS OF THE ESSENCE IN ONE NEIGHBORHOOD WHERE THE ONLY ROAD IN HAD ALREADY BEEN INUNDATED.

>> THE FIRST TIME THEY CAME BY THEY SAID A LEVEE HAD BEEN BROKE THAT THE DIKE HAD BEEN COMPROMISED. SO, WE NEEDED TO GET OUT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

>> Sreenivasan: THE SOURIS, WHICH FLOWS FROM CANADA INTO NORTH DAKOTA, HAS BEEN BLOATED BY HEAVY SPRING SNOWMELT AND RAIN. EARLIER THIS MONTH, THE RIVER THAN AN INCH SHY OF THE HISTORIC FLOOD THAT SWAMPED THE CITY IN 1969. 10,000 RESIDENTS WERE EVACUATED, THEN ALLOWED TO RETURN ONLY TO BE TOLD TO LEAVE AGAIN.

>> ABOUT TWO WEEKS AGO, WE HAD A BIG CREW HERE, MOVED EVERYTHING OUT, AND THEN STARTED MOVING BACK IN THIS LAST WEEKEND. NOW WE'RE MOVING IT BACK OUT AGAIN.

>> Sreenivasan: ON MONDAY DESPITE WARNINGS, SOME HELD OUT, SANDBAGGING THROUGH A DOWNPOUR IN A LAST DITCH EFFORT.

>> YOU DON'T KNOW. IT MIGHT BE ENOUGH TO SAVE ONE HOUSE, TWO, EVEN A WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD. YOU DON'T GIVE UP.

>> Sreenivasan: THE U.S ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS WAS WORKING, TOO, TRYING TO SHORE UP FLOOD DEFENSES WHERE IT COULD. BUT IT MAY ALL BE FOR NAUGHT. FORECASTERS PROJECT THE SOURIS WILL REACH AN ALL-TIME HIGH BY THE WEEKEND, ECLIPSING RECORDS SET IN 1881. AND, IT'S NOT EXPECTED TO RECEDE UNTIL MID-JULY. THE FEDERAL RESERVE HAS DIALED BACK ITS GROWTH FORECAST FOR THIS YEAR AND NEXT. THE CENTRAL BANK ANNOUNCED THE LOWER ESTIMATES TODAY. IT SAID SOME PROBLEMS-- LIKE SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTIONS FROM THE JAPANESE TSUNAMI-- SHOULD BEGIN TO DISSIPATE. BUT FED CHAIRMAN BEN BERNANKE SAID OTHER PROBLEMS COULD BE AROUND LONGER THAN ANTICIPATED.

>> MAYBE SOME OF THE HEADWINDS THAT HAVE BEEN CONCERNING US LIKE WEAKNESS IN FINANCIAL SECTOR, PROBLEMS IN THE HOUSING SECTOR, BALANCE SHEET AND DELEVERAGING ISSUES, SOME OF THESE HEADWINDS MAY BE STRONGER, MORE PERSISTENT THAN WE THOUGHT.

>> Sreenivasan: ALSO TODAY, THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE WARNED THAT THE NATIONAL DEBT IS ON PACE TO EXCEED THE VALUE OF THE ENTIRE ECONOMY BY 2023. THE REPORT CAME AS CONGRESSIONAL NEGOTIATORS ARE STRUGGLING TO CRAFT A SWEEPING PACKAGE TO CUT THE DEFICIT. AND ON WALL STREET TODAY, THE DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE LOST 80 POINTS TO CLOSE AT 12,109. THE NASDAQ FELL 18 POINTS TO CLOSE AT 2,669. FEDERAL REGULATORS HAVE GIVEN A NEW SAFETY ENDORSEMENT TO SILICONE GEL BREAST IMPLANTS. THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION REPORTED TODAY THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THEY LEAD TO SIGNIFICANT HEALTH PROBLEMS. IT DID ACKNOWLEDGE THAT MANY WOMEN WILL HAVE TO HAVE THE IMPLANTS REMOVED WITHIN TEN YEARS, WHEN THEY RUPTURE OR CAUSE SCAR TISSUE. THE F.D.A. REVIEW WAS THE FIRST SINCE SALES OF SILICONE IMPLANTS RESUMED IN 2006. THEY HAD BEEN BANNED FOR 14 YEARS OVER CONCERNS ABOUT POSSIBLE LINKS TO CANCER AND OTHER ILLNESSES. THOSE ARE SOME OF THE DAY'S MAJOR STORIES. NOW, BACK TO GWEN.

>> Ifill: NOW, TO THE POLITICS OF CLIMATE CHANGE. FORMER VICE PRESIDENT AL GORE, WRITING IN AN UPCOMING EDITION OF ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE, TAKES PRESIDENT OBAMA TO TASK IN AN ARTICLE TITLED "CLIMATE OF DENIAL." MR. GORE WRITES: "PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS THUS FAR FAILED TO USE THE BULLY PULPIT TO MAKE THE CASE FOR BOLD ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE..." HE GOES ON TO ARGUE THAT THE PRESIDENT "...HAS NOT DEFENDED THE SCIENCE AGAINST THE ONGOING, WITHERING AND DISHONEST ATTACKS." GORE'S ARTICLE HAS FORCED A LARGELY INTERNAL DEBATE INTO PUBLIC VIEW. WE GET THREE TAKES ON THAT, FROM GLENN HUROWITZ, WHO WORKS ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AT THE CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL POLICY. DANIEL WEISS, THE DIRECTOR OF CLIMATE STRATEGY AT THE CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS. AND KEN GREEN, WHO STUDIES ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY FOR THE AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE. GLEN HUROWITZ, IS AL GORE RIGHT?

>> HE IS RIGHT. UNFORTUNATELY ENVIRONMENTALISTS GOT THE SENSE THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA WAS NOT FULLY FIGHTING FOR THE CLIMATE AND FOR THE URGENT ENVIRONMENTAL NEEDS THAT WE HAVE DURING THE DEBATE OVER CLIMATE LEGISLATION WHEN HE CUT SIDE DEALS WITH THE OIL INDUSTRY, THE COAL INDUSTRY, THE NUCLEAR INDUSTRY WITHOUT GETTING ANYTHING IN RETURN IN TERMS OF A COMMITMENT TO SUPPORT A CAP ON POLLUTION OR INVESTMENT IN CLEAN-ENERGY JOBS. THAT WAS RUMOR THAT HE WAS SEEING OTHER PEOPLE BUT WE REALLY GOT CONFIRMATION WHEN HE EMBRACED A BROAD AGENDA OF DRILLING FOR OIL OFFSHORE IN THE GULF, NOW LOOKING TO DO IN THE VERY SENSITIVE ECOLOGICAL AREAS IN ALASKA. WE SAW IT WHEN HE OPENED UP HUGE AREAS FOR COAL MINING IN WYOMING IT'S ABOUT 30 TIMES THE AMOUNT OF COAL MINING AS CLEAN ENERGY THAT HIS INSTALLATION HAS INSTALLED. HE'S ALSO STALLED CLEAN AIR ACT THAT WILL HAVE BENEFITS AND ARE AIMED AT PROTECTING PUBLIC HEALTH LIKE MERCURY, SMOG AND SOOT SO THERE'S BEEN A REAL SERIES OF ATTACKS ON THE ENVIRONMENT COMING FROM THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION AND I'M HAPPY TO SEE VICE PRESIDENT GORE TAKE A LEADING EDGE ON THIS.

>> Ifill: YOU ANY PRESIDENT IS GETTING A BUM RAP?

>> I THAT GLENN IS LOOKING AT THE GLASS SEEING IT ONE QUARTER EMPTY WHEN IT'S REALLY THREE QUARTERS FULL. PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS DONE MORE TO REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING POLLUTION AND OTHER TOXIC POLLUTANTS THAN ANY OTHER PRESIDENT. WE'VE GOTTEN $90 BILLION INVESTED IN CLEAN ENERGY AS PART OF THE RECOVERY PACKAGE WHICH CREATED TENS OF THOUSANDS OF JOBS. WE HAVE THE FIRST IMPROVEMENT OF FUEL ECONOMY STANDARDS SINCE 1987 THAT WILL SAVE CLOSE TO TWO BILLION BARRELS OF OIL AND REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING POLLUTION BY NEARLY ANOTHER BILLION TONS. WHERE WE'VE BEEN DISAPPOINTED IS IN HIS INABILITY TO HELP GET 60 VOTES IN THE U.S. SENATE-- A SUPERMAJORITY-- FOR A PROGRAM THAT WOULD REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING POLLUTION AND REMEMBER THIS TOOK PLACE IN THE MIDST OF THE WORST ECONOMY IN 80 YEARS. THERE'S NEVER BEEN A MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL LAW PASSED WITH UNEMPLOYMENT ABOVE 7.5%. UNEMPLOYMENT LAST YEAR AND THE YEAR BEFORE WHEN HE WAS TRYING TO PASS THIS LAW WAS, YOU KNOW, A FAIR HIGHER THAN THAT.

>> Ifill: KEN, ARE WE EVEN HAVING THE RIGHT ARGUMENT.

>> I AGREE A LITTLE MORE WITH DAN HERE. I THINK PRESIDENT IS GETTING A BUM RAP. I WISH HE'D BEEN LESS ACTIVE ON CLIMATE POLICY BUT I THINK IT'S CLEARLY A PRE-ELECTION...

>> Ifill: WHY?

>> I THINK A LOT OF POLICIES HAVE BEEN BAD AND WILL PORTEND WORSE FOR AN ECONOMY ALREADY BARELY IN RECOVERY AND IS STAGGERING ALONG IN ITS RECOVERY SUCH AS LETTING THE E.P.A. REGULATE GREENHOUSE GASES. I THINK IT'S CLEARLY A POLITICAL MOVE TO SET THE STAGE, THE LEFT ENVIRONMENT STAGE, FOR THE 2012 ELECTION. THEY'RE TAKING OUT THE POSITION ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL SIDE, AL GORE BEING THE LEADER OF THAT POSITION TO DRAW THE DEBATE IN THAT DIRECTION. I THINK WE'LL SEE THAT THROUGHOUT AS WE APPROACH FROM ELECTION YOU'LL SEE THAT ON BOTH SIDES OF VIRTUALLY EVERY ISSUE, STAKING OUT THE EXTREME TO MAKE THE MEDIUM LOOK MORE REASONABLE.

>> Ifill: SHOULD THERE BE A POLITICAL CALCULATION INVOLVED IN THIS?

>> IF THERE IS A POLITICAL CALCULATION INVOLVED IT ARGUES VERY STRONGLY FOR STANDING UP TO THE POLLUTERS, INVESTING IN CLEAN ENERGY AND PROGRAMS LIKE REFORESTATION AND PUBLIC LAND PROTECTION. THE REASON FOR THAT IS...

>> Ifill: SOMETHING YOU SAID THE ADMINISTRATION ISN'T DOING.

>> SOMETHING WHICH THE ADMINISTRATION HAS NOT BEEN DOING ENOUGH OF AND IN MANY CASES I DISAGREE KEN. IT WAS DISAPPOINTING TO SEE HIM NOT FIGHT HARD FOR CLIMATE LEGISLATION BUT WHAT REALLY HURT WAS USING HIS ADMINISTRATIVE POWER TO OPEN UP VAST AREAS FOR NEW COAL MINING. BUT I THINK REASON WHERE POLITICS COMES IN IS ENVIRONMENTALISTS ARE REALLY DISAPPOINTED ABOUT WHAT PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS BEEN DOING AND THEY'RE NOW UP FOR GRABS. THEY WON'T TURN OUT FOR POLLS OR WE'LL SEE WHAT HAPPENS ON THE REPUBLICAN SIDE BUT THE REALITY IS IT'S GOING TO BE... THE NUMBER-ONE THING THAT WILL DECIDE THIS SELECTION IF ECONOMY AND IF PRESIDENT OBAMA ISN'T MAKING SUFFICIENT INVESTMENTS IN CLEAN ENERGY AND ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION HE'S NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO GENERATE THE ECONOMIC GROWTH AND JOB CREATION THAT WE NEED. EVERY DOLLAR INVESTED IN WIND POWER AND SOLAR PANELS AND REFORESTATION CREATES TWO TO THREE MORE JOBS THAN INVESTING IN FOSSIL FUELS.

>> YOU'RE MISSING THE POINT HERE. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PRESIDENT OBAMA AND VICE PRESIDENT GORE CAN BE MEASURED IN INCHES. THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THOSE TWO AND THE REPUBLICANS CAN BE MEASURED IN MILES. IN 2008 PRESIDENT OBAMA AND THEN SENATOR McCAIN HAD ESSENTIALLY THE SAME POSITION TO REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING POLLUTION. IN THE COMING ELECTION, IT'S VERY POSSIBLE THAT THE PERSON RUNNING AGAINST PRESIDENT OBAMA IS GOING TO DENY CLIMATE SINCE. THEY'RE GOING TO DENY THAT A PROBLEM EXISTS LET ALONE HAVE A SOLUTION TO SOLVE IT. THAT'S A HUGE DIFFERENCE AND THAT'S A VERY UNFORTUNATE. IN MY VIEW, THAT'S SOMETHING THE MEDIA OUGHT TO BE FOCUSING MORE ON RATHER THAN VICE PRESIDENT GORE'S DISAPPOINTMENT IN THE FACT THAT PRESIDENT OBAMA ISN'T GIVING ENOUGH SPEECHES ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING.

>> Ifill: AND TO CORRECTLY CHARACTERIZE HIS ARGUMENT, IT WAS MORE OF AN ATTACK ON THE MEDIA FOR NOT MAKING THE CASE THAN AN ATTACK ON PRESIDENT OBAMA.

>> 98 SCIENTISTS HERE, TWO SCIENTIST THERE IS AGAINST SAYING THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN AND THEY BOTH GET EQUAL TIME.

>> Ifill: ARE WE HAVING THE RIGHT ARGUEMENT. ARE THE CLIMATE SKEPTICS BEING GIVEN TOO MUCH? TOO LITTLE? NO ATTENTION.

>> WE'RE BEGINNING TO HAVE RIGHT ARGUMENT, WHICH IS INTERESTING. YOU HAVE TO "NEW YORK TIMES," AN ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTER SERIOUSLY UPSET OVER THE FACT THAT THE U.N. I.P.C.C. INTERGOVERNMENTAL PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE LET A REPORT ON RENEWABLE ENERGY BE WRITTEN BY THE SIERRA CLUB. THIS IS A HUGE SCANDAL OF UNPRECEDENTED PROPORTIONS. AND SOME OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL LEFT REPORTING COMMUNITY ARE FURIOUS. ARE LIVID OVER WHAT'S BEEN DONE AND THE DISCREDITING THAT'S GOING HAPPEN TO THE ENTIRE U.N. ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT. SO I THINK NOW WE ARE BEGINNING TO HAVE THE RIGHT DEBATE. IT'S NO LONGER OH THERE'S ONLY A FEW CRANKS AND A FEW PEOPLE WITH TINFOIL HATS. THERE'S A REAL PROBLEM WITH THE POLITIZATION OF CLIMATE SCIENCE AND NOW IF WE HAVE THAT DEBATE

>> BUT KEN, THAT POLITIZATION HAS OCCURRED ON THE RIGHT. THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES RELEASED A REPORT TWO MONTHS AGO THAT FOUND THAT 96% OF ALL THE GLOBAL WARMING STUDIES THAT HAVE BEEN PEERED REVIEWED BY SCIENTISTS WERE ALL POINTED IN ONE DIRECTION. INCREASED...

>> AGAIN, IT TAKE TWO SIDES...

>> INCREASED EMISSIONS ARE LEADING TO GLOBAL WARMING AND WE'VE SEEN THE STORY THAT WAS ON RIGHT BEFORE HERE. THE FLOODING IN MINOT, NORTH DAKOTA. IT'S THE EXACT KIND OF AFFECTS THAT SCIENTISTS TOLD US FOR YEARS WE WERE GOING TO SEE AND NOW WE'RE SEEING EXTREME WEATHER IN 2011 AND 2010 THAT IS RECORD- BREAKING.

>> Ifill: GLENN HUROWITZ, YOU'RE NEVER GOING AGREE BUT LET ME ASK IT THIS WAY. HOW MUCH OF THIS, WHETHER YOU BELIEVE THERE SHOULD BE GOVERNMENT ACTION OR NOT, SHOULD HAVE THE PUBLIC CLAMORING TO CHANGE? HOW MUCH CAN THEY STOMACH? ESPECIALLY AT A TIME OF ECONOMIC STRESS?

>> WELL, I THINK THE PUBLIC NEEDS IT AND...

>> Ifill: WE ALSO NEED BROCCOLI BUT WE DON'T ALL LIKE IT.

>> THAT'S TRUE. BUT I THINK WHAT VICE PRESIDENT GORE WAS SAYING IN THE ARTICLE WAS THAT IT'S HARD FOR JUST THE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMUNITY TO STAND UP AGAINST ENTIRE REPUBLICAN PARTY, AGAINST THE FOSSIL FUEL LOBBY WITH ALL THEIR MONEY. THERE NEEDS TO BE LEADERSHIP THE WHITE HOUSE. HISTORICALLY THAT'S HOW WE'VE MADE ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRESS TO PASS THE CLEAN AIR ACT, TO PASS THE CLEAN WATER ACT, TO PROTECT PUBLIC LANDS AND NATIONAL PARKS AND WITHOUT THAT KIND OF LEADERSHIP WE WON'T GET THE AGENDA WE NEED. AND IN TERMS OF JUST DAY TO DAY PUTTING BREAD ON THE TABLE, LIKE I SAID, REVITALIZING THE ECONOMY MEANS INVESTING IN CLEAN ENERGY. IT MEANS INVESTING IN ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION. AND IN ORDER TO DO THAT, WE'RE GOING TO NEED LEADERSHIP THE WHITE HOUSE, THAT'S HOW IT'S BEEN ACCOMPLISHED IN THE PAST AND I HOPE PRESIDENT OBAMA REALIZES WE'RE IN A NEW ECONOMIC PARADIGM WHERE THE COUNTRY THAT WINS THE FUTURE IS GOING TO BE THE COUNTRY THAT WINS THE... FILL STILL THAT REALISTIC?

>> ABSOLUTELY. AND THAT'S WHAT PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS BEEN SAY BUG MORE IMPORTANTLY HAS BEEN DOING. IN ADDITION...

>> Ifill: AS MUCH AS IT SHOULD?

>> AS MUCH AS WE HAVE BEEN ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH WITH... CONGRESS HAS BLOCKED HIM BECAUSE OF A WALL ON OPPOSITION FROM REPUBLICAN SENATORS.

>> Ifill: THAT'S WHY I ASKED WHETHER THIS IS REALISTIC.

>> IT IS BUT POLITICS IS THE ART OF THE POSSIBLE. THERE WAS JUST A SURVEY RELEASED BY YALE UNIVERSITY A COUPLE WEEKS AGO THAT FOUND OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF AMERICANS-- INCLUDE A SMALL PLURALITY OF REPUBLICANS-- ALL SUPPORT ACTION TO REDUCE CARBON POLLUTION THAT CAUSES GLOBAL WARMING. IT'S NOT A QUESTION OF THE PUBLIC. IT'S A QUESTION OF OFF POLITICAL PARTY, THE REPUBLICANS, IT'S THE ONLY MAJOR POLITICAL PARTY IN ANY WESTERN DEMOCRACY THAT IS DENYING CLIMATE SCIENCE. THAT WASN'T TRUE FOUR YEARS AGO OR THREE YEARS AGO. IN FACT, JOHN HUNTSMAN, NEWT GINGRICH AND TIM PAWLENTY ALL DID ADS SAYING WE MUST REDUCE GLOBAL WARMING AND NOW THEY'RE ALL APPEALING TO THEIR HARD RIGHT OF THEIR PARTY.

>> Ifill: KEN GREEN IS SHAKING HIS HEAD.

>> WITH ALL RESPECT THIS WHOLE LANGUAGE ABOUT THE NEW GREEN ECONOMY IS SILLY. IF YOU LOOK AT THE EXPERIENCES OF THE COUNTRIES IN EUROPE THAT HAVE TRIED IT THEY HAVE FOUND IT ECONOMICALLY UNSUSTAINABLE AND ARE NOW BACKING AWAY FROM SUBSIDIES. CALIFORNIA, A WORLD LEADER IN ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY, EVERYBODY AGREES THAT, LOOK AT THEIR JOB SITUATION. LOOK AT THEIR ECONOMY. THIS IDEA THAT BY RENAMING IT, WE'RE IN A NEW PARADIGM, A NEW PARADIGM WHERE GRAVITY IS LESS THAN IT IS, MY SCALE WOULD THANK ME BUT YOU CAN'T DECLARE IT BY FIAT AND FINAL WORDS.

>> Ifill: I HAVE TO ASK YOU A BRIEF QUESTION. WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE THE PRESIDENT DO?

>> I'D LIKE TO SEE HIM FOCUS ON GETTING PEOPLE BACK TO WORK. UNLESS ECONOMY IS PROSPEROUS PEOPLE ARE NOT ABLE TO AFFORD ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION. IT'S WHEN PEOPLE FEEL PROSPEROUS THEY WILL SET ASIDE FORESTS AND PROTECT STREAMS AND THE AIR. WHEN PEOPLE FEEL THAT THEY'RE NOT DOING WELL THEY PUT ASIDE ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES. IF YOU CARE ABOUT IT YOU WANT US TO BE PROSPEROUS.

>> I THINK THE NUMBER ONE THING HE HAS TO DO IS ENFORCE THE LAWS THAT ALREADY EXIST AND USE HIS TREMENDOUS ADMINISTRATIVE POWER TO IMPLEMENT PROTECTIONS AGAINST AMERICA RISHGS AGAINST SOOT, SMOG, AND ESPECIALLY CARBON POLLUTION. HE HAS THE POWER TO DO IT, HE CAN DO IT, HE SHOULD DO IT AS FAST AS POSSIBLE SO WE CAN CLEAN UP THE AIR, PROTECT PEOPLE'S HEALTH AND SAVE THE PLANET.

>> Ifill: REALISTICALLY WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE?

>> ALL OF THE THICK WHICH IS GLEN SAYS WILL CREATE JOBS ACCORDING TO STUDIES BY UNIVERSITIES. ISSUE FUEL STANDARDS SO CARS GET 60 MILES PER GALLON BY 2025, THAT WILL CREATE JOBS, SAVE MILLIONS OF BARRELS OF OIL. SET A NEW OZONE SMOG STAN DHARD WILL PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH, SAVE KIDS FROM HAVING ASTHMA ATTACKS DURING THE SUMMER.

>> Ifill: DANIEL WEISS, GLEN HUROWITZ AND KEN GREEN, THANK YOU ALL.

>> Woodruff: NEXT, QUESTIONING SOME BASIC ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT PUBLIC PENSIONS. CITIES AND STATES AROUND THE COUNTRY ARE PUSHING TO OVERHAUL OR MAKE CHANGES TO PENSION PLANS. THIS WEEK ALONE, THERE ARE BIG VOTES IN ATLANTA AND NEW JERSEY. TONIGHT IN HIS THIRD STORY FROM RHODE ISLAND, ECONOMICS CORRESPONDENT PAUL SOLMAN LOOKS AT THE DEBATE OVER HOW TO CALCULATE INVESTMENT RETURNS FOR THAT STATE'S TROUBLED PENSION FUND. IT'S PART OF HIS ONGOING REPORTING EFFORT: "MAKING SENSE OF FINANCIAL NEWS."

>> I'D LIKE TO CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER.

>> Reporter: RHODE ISLAND TREASURER GINA RAIMONDO, A DEMOCRAT, PRESIDING OVER THE BOARD THAT RUNS THE STATE'S $7 BILLION PENSION FUND.

>> WE'RE STILL ABOUT A BILLION DOLLARS OFF WHERE WE WERE BEFORE THE MARKET CRASHED WHEN WE WERE AT $8.4 BILLION.

>> Reporter: THE FUND IS NOW BILLIONS IN THE HOLE, IN PART BECAUSE OF PAST INVESTMENT ASSUMPTIONS THAT PROVED TOO BULLISH.

>> WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO IS SET THE MOST PROBABLE SCENARIO THAT WE BELIEVE WILL COME TO PLAY BASED ON THE DATA THAT WE HAVE TODAY.

>> Reporter: THE QUESTION HERE IS ONE CONFRONTING STATES ACROSS THE COUNTRY. WHAT'S A REALISTIC RATE OF RETURN ASSUMPTION? THE ANSWER COULD MEAN HIGHER TAXES, LOWER PENSIONS, BITTER POLITICS.

>> I'M GOING TO ASK YOU TO PLEASE PUT THE POLITICS ASIDE. I KNOW THERE ARE PRESSURES. I FEEL THESE PRESSURES MYSELF.

>> Reporter: LIKE MOST STATES, RHODE ISLAND INVESTS ABOUT 60% IN STOCKS. BUT OVER THE PAST DECADE, THE MARKET HAS BARELY BUDGED. CONSULTANT ALLAN EMKIN.

>> THE 2001 TECH BUBBLE AND THE CREDIT BUBBLE IN 2007, 2008 OVER THOSE TWO PERIODS YOU HAD A 70% CUMULATIVE LOSS AND EFFECTIVELY OVER THE WHOLE PERIOD THE EQUITY MARKET GENERATED ZERO. YOU HAD A LOST DECADE.

>> Reporter: SINCE MOST OF THE OTHER 40% IS INVESTED IN LOW- PAYING BONDS, THE HIRED EXPERTS TOLD RHODE ISLAND: GET REAL. DROP YOUR ASSUMED RATE OF RETURN FROM THE CURRENT 8.25% TO 7.5%. PROBLEM IS, THE LOWER THE ASSUMED RATE OF RETURN, THE GREATER THE OFFICIAL UNDERFUNDING OF THE RETIREMENT PLAN, THE MORE THAT TAXPAYERS OR WORKERS MUST CONTRIBUTE TO MAKE UP THE SHORTFALL THAT WOULD ARISE FROM A MORE SOBER ASSUMPTION. PUBLIC EMPLOYEES, WHO MAKE UP ALMOST HALF THE BOARD, WERE UNHAPPY. SAID RETIRED ENGINEER MICHAEL BOYCE:

>> AND QUITE FRANKLY I'M NOT GOING TO VOTE FOR 7.5%

>> Reporter: THAT'S BECAUSE DROPPING THE RATE OF RETURN ASSUMPTION WOULD FORCE THE STATE TO COME UP WITH SOME $300 MILLION MORE A YEAR TO REPLENISH THE FUND-- A HUGE HIT TO ANGRY TAXPAYERS OR THEIR NEW SCAPEGOATS, STATE EMPLOYEES. SO BOARD LAWYER MICHAEL ROBINSON, PUSHING TO CUT THE RATE ASSUMPTION, TARGETED WORKERS LIKE BOYCE.

>> IF YOU WERE TO ACT CONTRARY TO THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF YOUR EXPERT WITHOUT A SOUND AND CONSIDERED BASIS IN FACT WOULD REALLY CONSTITUTE A BREACH OF YOUR FIDUCIARY OBLIGATIONS.

>> IF I FOLLOW MIKE'S RATIONALE I WOULD GUESS THAT WE SHOULDN'T EVEN HAVE TO BE HERE BECAUSE IF THE ACTUARY SAYS 7.8, DO 7.8.

>> NO, NO, NOT AT ALL MIKE.

>> I HAVE THE FLOOR PLEASE. I'M TAKING OFFENSE AT ALMOST BEING TOLD THAT I BETTER VOTE TO WHAT EXACTLY HE SAID.

>> Reporter: RICHARD LEECHT, STATE DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION, SIDED WITH THE EXPERTS.

>> WHILE REASONABLE PEOPLE CAN DIFFER, PAST EXPERIENCE SHOWS THAT WE SHOULD BE A LITTLE, A LITTLE MORE ON THE CAUTIOUS SIDE AND I WILL VOTE YES.

>> Reporter: BUT, SOME ECONOMISTS SAY EVEN A 7.5% TARGET IS FAR TOO HIGH.

>> THEY SHOULD BE USING SOMETHING LIKE 4.5%, BECAUSE OVER ANY PERIOD THERE IS NO GUARANTEE WHATSOEVER THAT THE PORTFOLIO OF STOCKS AND BONDS IS GOING TO PRODUCE ENOUGH TO PAY THE PROMISED BENEFITS.

>> Reporter: FINANCE PROFESSOR ZVI BODIE SAYS TO EARN MORE, PENSION FUNDS HAVE TO MAKE RISKY INVESTMENTS THAT COULD FAIL, IN ORDER TO PAY FOR BENEFITS THAT ARE GUARANTEED. SO WHY NOT INVEST IT ALL IN SAFE U.S. TREASURIES WHICH HAVE BEEN PAYING ABOUT 4% TO 4.5% LATELY. THAT WAY THE PENSION FUND WILL ALSO BE GUARANTEED?

>> THOSE ARE LONG-TERM OBLIGATIONS WHICH ARE GOING TO BE PAID FOR SURE, PENSION BENEFITS ARE JUST LIKE THAT.

>> Reporter: BY CONTRAST, BODIE POINTS OUT, STOCKS ARE SUBJECT TO ALL SORTS OF RISKS. IMAGINE THE REACTION TO, SAY, AN ACT OF NUCLEAR TERRORISM; A TSUNAMI THAT DROWNS NEW YORK; A METEOR BARRAGE THAT SIGNALS A KILLER ASTEROID ATTACK. OKAY, HOLLYWOOD SCARE FILMS MAY SEEM RIDICULOUS FOR PENSION PLANNING. BUT, SAYS BODIE, BACK IN 1989, WHEN THE JAPANESE STOCK MARKET PEAKED, THE DISASTER THERE SINCE WOULD ALSO HAVE BEEN UTTERLY IMPLAUSIBLE.

>> YOU AND I BOTH REMEMBER IN THE 1980s HOW EVERYONE YOU TALKED TO THOUGHT THE JAPANESE ECONOMY WAS OVERTAKING THE U.S. ECONOMY. 22 YEARS HAVE GONE BY SINCE THEN AND THE MARKET IN THE U.S. IS UP. THE JAPANESE WHO WERE SUPPOSED TO OUTPERFORM US, THE MARKET IS NOW ROUGHLY A QUARTER OF WHAT IT WAS.

>> Reporter: SO WHAT ABOUT A JAPAN-LIKE CATASTROPHE? WE ASKED PENSION CONSULTANT EMKIN.

>> COULD IT HAPPEN? YES. IS IT LIKELY? IN MY OPINION, NO. DO YOU PLAN FOR THE WORST POSSIBLE EVENT, OR DO YOU PLAN FOR THE MOST LIKELY EVENT, OR DO YOU PLAN FOR AN AVERAGE?

>> WE CAN'T PLAN OUR LIVES AS THOUGH WE'RE GOING HAVE A COMPLETE ECONOMIC DISASTER.

>> Reporter: ECONOMIST DEAN BAKER ECHOES THE CONSULTANTS, AND MAKES THE CASE THAT YOU HEAR FROM UNIONS TOO: 7.5% IS THE LEAST A STATE SHOULD ASSUME, BECAUSE ITS PENSION FUND IS ETERNAL.

>> GOVERNMENTS ARE IN A DIFFERENT SITUATION FROM INDIVIDUALS. WE AS INDIVIDUALS ARE ALL GOING HAVE FINITE LIVES. THE MARKET HAS ITS UPS AND DOWNS, SO IT MIGHT JUST BE THE CASE WE PLAN TO RETIRE IN THREE YEARS AND IT TURNS OUT, BAD NEWS FOR US, THE MARKET JUST FELL 20%. SAME OLD GOVERNMENTS ARE GOING BE THERE INDEFINITELY.

>> Reporter: MOREOVER, SAYS BAKER, IF YOU PLAY IT TOO SAFE, YOU'RE PROBABLY INVESTING MORE CONSERVATIVELY THAN TAXPAYERS OR PENSIONERS WOULD WANT YOU TO.

>> MOST PEOPLE IN THEIR OWN INVESTMENTS, CERTAINLY ANYONE WHO HAS A 401(K), THEY WANT TO TAKE SOME RISKS. AND IT'S A LITTLE PERVERSE IF WE SAY, HERE YOU COULD HAVE AN INDIVIDUAL TAKING RISKS WITH THE STOCK MARKET, INDIVIDUALS KNOWING THAT THINGS HAPPEN, THAT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO RETIRE AT A CERTAIN POINT IN TIME, AND ON THE OTHER HAND WE HAVE THE GOVERNMENT THAT'S GOING TO BE THERE IN PRINCIPLE FOREVER AND THEY CAN'T TAKE THE RISK. THAT WOULD SEEM VERY PERVERSE TO ME.

>> Reporter: BUT THE GOVERNMENT ENTITY IS TAKING A RISK WITH ITS TAXPAYERS' MONEY.

>> THERE'S NO WAY TO AVOID THAT. WE'D BE ASKING PEOPLE, DO YOU WANT TO PAY HIGHER TAXES IN ORDER TO AVOID TAKING THE RISK IN THE STOCK MARKET? I THINK MOST PEOPLE WOULD SAY NO TO THAT.

>> THE STOCK MARKET HAS BEEN MISBEHAVING.

>> Reporter: BUT PROFESSOR BODIE SAYS THAT IF PENSION FUNDS DON'T MAKE THEIR ASSUMED RATES OF RETURN, THE TAXPAYERS WILL BE IN FOR A SHOCK AND HIGHER TAXES AT THAT POINT.

>> IF THINGS DON'T WORK OUT TAXES ARE GOING TO HAVE TO BE HIGHER ON THE NEXT GENERATION OF TAXPAYERS TO PAY THE CURRENT GENERATION'S PENSION BENEFITS. NOW, I'D SAY THAT'S FINE AS LONG AS EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT IS THE RISK THAT IS BEING TAKEN BUT OF COURSE NOBODY KNOWS THAT. RIGHT?

>> Reporter: TREASURER RAIMONDO WANTS TO STEER A MIDDLE COURSE ON RISK. AT A WOMEN'S SHELTER SHE HELPED BUILD, SHE EXPLAINED THAT CAUTIOUS INVESTING IS EXPENSIVE: TAXES RISE, SERVICES GET CUT. BUT AT THE OTHER EXTREME, OVER- OPTIMISM COULD MEAN FAILURE, AND AN EMPTY TILL WHEN RETIREES ARE DUE THEIR MONEY.

>> BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT STATE EMPLOYEES I WANT TO MAKE SURE THEIR PENSION IS THERE FOR THEM AND BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT ALL OF RHODE ISLAND, INCLUDING THE WOMEN WHO ARE HERE, I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT STATE CAN AFFORD AND HAVE ENOUGH MONEY LEFT FOR ALL THE OTHER SERVICES THAT WE NEED.

>> Reporter: BACK AT THE RETIREMENT BOARD MEETING, THE VOTE ON LOWERING THE ASSUMED RATE OF RETURN.

>> TREASURER RAIMONDO.

>> YES.

>> RICHARD LIECHT.

>> YES.

>> ROGER BOUDREAU.

>> NO.

>> MICHAEL BOYCE.

>> NO.

>> Reporter: BY NINE TO SIX, THE BOARD CUT THE ASSUMPTION TO 7.5%, LOW, COMPARED TO OTHER STATES.

>> ON THE BASIS OF WHAT WE'VE HEARD FROM OUR FINANCIAL ADVISERS, IT WAS PRUDENT TO ASSUME 7.5%. HAVING SAID THAT, IF WE KEEP BENEFITS THE SAME AND THE INVESTMENT RETURN COMES DOWN, THE TAXPAYER WILL PAY MORE.

>> Reporter: IN FACT, THE BOARD HAS SINCE VOTED TO HIKE TAXPAYER PENSION CONTRIBUTIONS BY 50%. THE LOWER RATE OF RETURN AND THE HIGHER CONTRIBUTIONS GO INTO EFFECT NEXT YEAR. RAIMONDO SAYS THE FUND IS STILL IN CRISIS, HOWEVER, AND IT CONTINUES TO PLACE MOST OF ITS BETS ON STOCKS LIKE PRETTY MUCH EVERY STATE IN THE UNION.

>> Woodruff: YOU CAN WATCH THE PREVIOUS STORIES IN PAUL'S SERIES ON HIS "MAKING SENSE" PAGE ON OUR WEBSITE.

>> Ifill: FINALLY TONIGHT, A FILM ABOUT THE SOVIET UNION'S PAST AND RUSSIA TODAY. IT'S PART OF THE ECONOMIST FILM PROJECT, A "NEWSHOUR" COLLABORATION WITH "THE ECONOMIST" MAGAZINE. TOGETHER, WE SHOWCASE INDEPENDENTLY-PRODUCED DOCUMENTARIES THAT TAKE US PLACES WE DON'T ORDINARILY GO. JEFFREY BROWN HAS MORE.

>> Brown: THE STORY OF THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION HAS BEEN TOLD MANY TIMES, BUT NOT THE WAY IT WAS IN "MY PERESTROIKA." HERE WE GET THE POINT OF VIEW AS FIVE MUSCOVITES TALK ABOUT THE CHANGES THEY LIVED THROUGH FROM 1970s CHILDHOODS FILLED WITH COMMUNIST-ERA PROPAGANDA TO THEIR ADULT LIVES TODAY AS THEY MAKE THEIR WAYS-- SOME SUCCESSFULLY, SOME NOT-- IN THE NEW RUSSIA. THE FILM MAKER IS ROBIN HESSMAN, AN AMERICAN WHO LIVED IN MOSCOW IN THE 1990s. WELCOME TO YOU. HI.

>> Brown: WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO TELL THIS STORY THIS WAY THROUGH REAL THEM? WHAT WERE YOU AFTER?

>> I LIVED IN RUSSIA FROM '91 TO I 99 AND THERE WERE EXTRAORDINARY CHANGES THAT WERE HAPPENING EVERYDAY. WHEN I MOVED BACK TO THE STATES AT THE END OF '99 IT SEEMED THAT DESPITE THE FACT THAT THE COLD WAR HAD ENDED AND MY IMPRESSION HAD BEEN THAT THAT ENTIRE DECADE THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF FREE- FLOWING INVESTIGATION TO THE STATES IT STILL SEEMED THAT NONE OF MY FRIENDS BACK HOME HAD REALLY ANY IDEA OF WHAT IT HAD BEEN LIKE FOR ORDINARY PEOPLE. THEY HAD SEEN THE GANGSTERS AND OLIGARCHS AND DESTITUTE PEOPLE AND SHORT NEWS CLIP BUS IT SEEMED THAT THERE WERE NO OPPORTUNITY FOR THEM TO HEAR THAT REAL VOICES OF THE MORE QUOTE/UNQUOTE ORDINARY PEOPLE AND THE PEOPLE I HAD LIVED THERE WITH.

>> Brown: AND WHAT DID YOU WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW ABOUT WHAT YOU EXPERIENCED AND WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN RUSSIA.

>> WELL, THAT'S ATE VERY COMPLICATED THING TO MAKE THAT TRANSITION. THERE'S NO ONE SENTENCE CONCLUSION TO TAKE AWAY TO MAKE ABOUT THE SOVIET UNION TO RUSSIA TO THEIR STRIVING TOWARD COMMUNISM TO THE CAPITALIST WORLD. I HAVE THE FEELING THAT IT'S LOT SIMPLER AND PEOPLE LIKE TO HAVE KIND OF THE ONE-SENTENCE TAKE AWAY, BUT FOR EVERY INDIVIDUAL IT WAS A COMPLICATED PROCESS AND STILL IS TODAY. THERE ARE MANY CONFLICTING FEELINGS ABOUT THE CHANGES AND THE EFFECTS OF THOSE CHANGES ON THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES.

>> Brown: THERE'S FIVE MAIN CHARACTERS. HOW DID YOU FIND THEM AND WHO ARE THEY?

>> WELL, THE FIVE MAIN CHARACTERS, THERE'S A MARRIED COUPLE WHO TEACH HISTORY IN SCHOOL 57 IN MOSCOW. AND THERE'S A FORMER PUNK MUSICIAN WHO'S NOW IN A PUNK BLUEGRASS BAND, A VERY FREE SPIRIT.

>> Brown: WHO WOULD HAVE THOUGHT RIGHT, THE SOVIET UNION TO RUSSIA, RIGHT?

>> AND THERE'S OLGA, WHO WAS A SINGLE MOTHER WHO WORKS FOR A BILLIARD TABLE COMPANY AND SHE RENTS OUT BILLIARD TABLES TO PUB AND A CASINOS ALL OVER MOSCOW AND THE FIFTH IS ANDREI WHO SELLS EXPENSIVE FRENCH MEN'S DRESS SHIRTS. WHEN I STARTED FILMING HE HAD THREE STORES AND BY THE END HE HAD 17 STORES OVER RUSSIA. AND THEY WERE ALL CHILDHOOD CLASSMATES GROWING UP. ONE OF THE THINGS I THOUGHT ABOUT AS I THOUGHT HOW TO APPROACH TELLING THE STORY OF A GENERATION-- AND THIS GENERATION, IN PARTICULAR, I SHOULD SAY, IS VERY INTERESTING IN THAT THEY STRADDLE BOTH WORLDS. THEY HAD COMPLETELY NORMAL SOVIET CHILDHOODS AND THEY WERE JUST COMING OF AGE WHEN GORBACHEV CAME AND THEY GRADUATED FROM COLLEGE THE YEAR THAT THE SOVIET UNION COLLAPSED. SO THEY WERE NOT ASSIGNED A JOB IN A WORKPLACE FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES AND THEY ALL HAD TO NAVIGATE THIS NEW WORLD WITH NO MODELS TO FOLLOW.

>> Brown: ALL WENT IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS AND SOME SUCCESSFULLY SOME LESS SO. HERE'S A CLIP. LET'S LOOK AT THIS CLIP. THIS IS FOUR OF THE FIVE TALKING ABOUT THEIR... LOOKING BACK AT THEIR CHILDHOOD. LET'S RUN THAT.

>> ( translated ): IF YOU LOOK AT NEWSREELS FROM THE EARLY '80s THEY TALK ABOUT THE GREAT SUCCESSES BUILDING SOCIALISM THOUGH BY THAT TIME NO ONE REALLY CARED. BUT WE WERE STILL KIDS AND AT SCHOOL THEY WERE TRYING TO TURN US INTO UPSTANDING CITIZENS OF SOVIET SOCIETY.

>> ( translated ): YES, SURE, LENIN, THE PARTY, PIONEERS, YOU WROTE A RED TIE ON YOUR NECK, BUT WERE YOU THINKING ABOUT LENIN EVERYDAY? OF COURSE NOT.

>> ( translated ): I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHO COULD HAVE ENJOYED IT. IT MEANT YOU HAD MORE RESPONSIBILITIES, YOU HAD TO HOLD MEETINGS WITH YOUR GROUP, DECIDE WHAT KIND OF COMMUNITY SERVICE YOU WERE GOING TO DO. IT WAS SO MUCH EXTRA WORK. BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, I SUPPOSE IT WAS ACTUALLY A GOOD THING BECAUSE THESE KIDS... I MEAN ALL OF US, WE WERE ALWAYS KEPT BUSY.

>> ( translated ): WORKING TOGETHER, WORKING WITH FRIENDS, IS ALWAYS FUN AND INTERESTING. ESPECIALLY TODAY WHEN NOT ONLY YOUR CLASS AND NOT ONLY YOUR SCHOOL BUT THE ENTIRE COUNTRY IS WORKING TOGETHER ON COMMUNIST CLEANUP DAY.

>> ( translated ): WELL I WAS VERY OBEDIENT AT HOME, BUT OUT IN THE WORLD THIS OBEDIENCE OF MINE TURNED INTO CONFORMISM. I WAS A STRAIGHT A STUDENT AND A GOOD CHILD AND, OF COURSE, I WAS A PERFECT PIONEER AND SOMETIMES IT GOT PRETTY RIDICULOUS.

>> ( translated ): PIONEERS! TO STRUGGLE FOR THE GOALS OF THE PARTY IN THE SOVIET UNION, BE PREPARED!

>> ( translated ): I REMEMBER ONCE WHEN I WAS IT WILL IT WILL TELEVISION WAS ON AND I HEARD THE FIRST NOTES OF THE SOEF CREDIT NATIONAL ANTHEM. SO I STOOD UP RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF THE T.V. SCREEN AND GAVE MY BEST PIONEER SALUTE WHILE THE SOVIET ANTHEM PLAYED. WHAT A NIGHTMARE! IT WAS JUST AWFUL. BUT I WAS COMPLETELY OVERWHELMED WITH EMOTION. WHAT WAS THERE TO FEEL SO EMOTIONAL ABOUT? I HAVE NO IDEA.

>> ( translated ): SOMEHOW BY EIGHTH OR NINTH GRADE IT BECAME CLEAR THAT PEOPLE ALL AROUND YOU WERE SAYING THINGS THAT DIDN'T CORRESPOND AT ALL WITH REALITY. BECAUSE BY THEN THE SYSTEM WAS ALL TOGETHER IN SUCH A CRISIS THAT EVERYBODY KNEW IT. SO YOU SAW WITH YOUR OWN EYES THAT THEY SAY ONE THING, DO SOMETHING ELSE AND WHAT WAS REALLY GOING ON WAS SOMETHING ALL TOGETHER DIFFERENT.

>> Brown: THAT'S GREAT, BECAUSE YOU SEE THE CONTRADICTIONS OF THEIR LIVES, RIGHT? THE ENFORCED CONFORMISM WHICH IN A WAY WAS QUITE COMFORTING. THEN YOU HAVE LUBA LAUGHING ABOUT... WHAT DID SHE CALL HERSELF? A PERFECT PIONEER?

>> IT'S TRUE THAT ALSO WE GOT THE IMPRESSION THAT IT WAS A LOT MORE... THAT IT WAS SOMETHING VERY FLIGHT NG AND FOR THESE KIDS GROWING UP IT WAS IN A SENSE LIKE THE SCOUTS. IT WAS REALLY KIND OF A NORMAL PART OF THEIR EVERYDAY LIFE THAT THEY DIDN'T QUESTION AND TO A LARGE EXTENT THEY DIDN'T THINK ABOUT THE POLITICS OF IT. IT WAS WHAT CHILDREN DID.

>> AT THE SAME TIME HER HUSBAND AT THE END IS SAYING THERE WAS A POINT WHERE YOU COULD SEE THAT THE SYSTEM JUST... THERE WAS NO "THERE" THERE. OR THERE WERE BIGGER PROBLEMS.

>> CERTAINLY, AS HE GOT OLDER. AND ONE WONDERFUL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO OF THEM IS FOR LUBYA... HER FAMILY WOULD LISTEN TO THE VOICE OF AMERICA WITH THE FAUCETS RUNNING SO THE NEIGHBORS COULDN'T HEAR AND HE WAS PRETTY MUCH AWARE OF THE SHAM EXTERIOR BEFORE SOME OF HIS OTHER CLASSMATES. FOR LUBYA IT WAS PASHG AND GLAS MOST UNDER GOSH CHECK THAT IN HER 18 EVERYTHING WAS TOLD THAT SHE WAS TAUGHT. IT WAS A SHOCK. SHE DID GO THROUGH THE MOST PROFOUND TRANSITIONS DURING THE CHANGES.

>> Brown: I WANT TO ASK YOU PROFESSIONALLY AS A FILMMAKER. WHAT DO YOU LOOK FOR IN TRYING TO TELL A STORY? WHAT DOES IT HAVE TO HAVE?

>> WELL, WITH THIS KIND OF STORY WHERE SO MUCH IS BASED ON THE CHARACTERS, THE FIVE PEOPLE OF THE FILM, YOU LOOK FOR... YOU LOOK AT THEM AND ARE THEY GOOD STORYTELLERS? ARE THEY OPEN?

>> THEY'RE THE STORYTELLERS.

>> THEY REALLY ARE AND THE STORY IS MADE UP OF INTERVIEWS AND CONVERSATIONS WITH THEM. I TRIED VERY MUCH TO MAKE THEM VERY INFORMAL. IT FEELS MORE LIKE SITTING AT SOMEONE'S TABLE BUT IT'S ALSO ME OBSERVING THEM AS A FLY ON THE WALL. SO I FIRST FOUND THE COUPLE AND FROM THERE MET THEIR CHILDHOOD CLASSMATES BECAUSE PEOPLE IN RUSSIA WERE TOGETHER IT WAS THE SAME 20 OR 25 PEOPLE FROM FIRST GRADE THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL THESE PEOPLE HAVE HAD AN ENORMOUS SHARED EXPERIENCE.

>> Brown: THEY TELL THE STORIES AND THEN YOU HAVE TO WEAVE IT TOGETHER AND THIS'S WHERE YOU COME IN.

>> YES, ALONG WITH THE EDITORS.

>> Brown: THE NEW FILM IS "MY PERESTROIKA."

>> Ifill: "MY PERESTROIKA" AIRS ON THE PBS SERIES "P-O-V" ON JUNE 28. CHECK YOUR LOCAL LISTINGS. AND YOU CAN LEARN ABOUT "THE ECONOMIST" FILM PROJECT OR SUBMIT YOUR FILM AT film.economist.com.

>> Woodruff: AGAIN, THE MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS OF THE DAY: IN AN EVENING ADDRESS TO THE NATION, PRESIDENT OBAMA SAID THE TIDE OF THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN IS RECEDING. HE ANNOUNCED 33,000 U.S. TROOPS WILL WITHDRAW BY NEXT SUMMER MARKING THE BEGINNING OF THE EFFORT TO WIND DOWN THE TEN- YEAR-OLD WAR. AND HE SAID THE TIME HAD COME TO SHIFT TO FOCUS ON NATION BUILDING HERE AT HOME. AND TO HARI SREENIVASAN FOR WHAT'S ON THE "NEWSHOUR" ONLINE. HARI?

>> Sreenivasan: THERE'S MORE ABOUT "THE ECONOMIST" FILM PROJECT AND "MY PERESTROIKA" ON THE ART BEAT BLOG. AND SEE HOW INVESTMENT ASSUMPTIONS AFFECT STATE PENSION FUNDS ACROSS THE COUNTRY IN AN INTERACTIVE MAP ON OUR MAKING SENSE PAGE. PLUS, AMID CONCERNS AMONG EDUCATORS ABOUT A HIGH SCHOOL DROP OUT CRISIS. HEAR FROM STUDENTS IN WASHINGTON, D.C. AND NEW YORK CITY ABOUT WHY KIDS QUIT SCHOOL. IT IS PART OF OUR STUDENT REPORTING LABS PROJECT, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH RADIO ROOTZ. ALL THAT AND MORE IS ON OUR WEB SITE: newshour.pbs.org. JUDY?

>> Woodruff: AND THAT'S THE "NEWSHOUR" FOR TONIGHT. ON THURSDAY, JIM LEHRER INTERVIEWS OUTGOING SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ROBERT GATES ABOUT THE TROOP DRAWDOWN IN AFGHANISTAN AND MORE. I'M JUDY WOODRUFF.

>> Ifill: AND I'M GWEN IFILL. AND WE'LL BE BACK AGAIN HERE AND ONLINE TOMORROW EVENING. THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT. MAJOR FUNDING FOR THE PBS NEWSHOUR HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY: AND WITH THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF THESE INSTITUTIONS AND FOUNDATIONS. 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. Captioning sponsored by MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org