December 20, 2019 - PBS NewsHour full episode

In Los Angeles, seven leading candidates for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination faced off for the final time this year at the PBS NewsHour/POLITICO debate Thursday night. They jousted over policy, campaign contributions and who among them is best equipped to take on President Trump in next year’s general election. John Yang reports on how the contenders sought to distinguish themselves.

In our news wrap Friday, British lawmakers in the House of Commons approved Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s bill paving the way for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union. Parliament's upper chamber, the House of Lords, still must approve it. Also, envoys from Russia and China blocked a United Nations resolution to renew cross-border humanitarian aid deliveries into war-torn Syria.

According to the U.S. Immigration Policy Center, one in four asylum seekers forced by the Trump administration to remain in Mexico encounters violence there. Yamiche Alcindor looks at the risks they face as they wait out their cases in places sometimes more dangerous than those they fled.

A new investigation reveals the rapid growth of for-profit prisons being used to house immigrants. While the phenomenon has generated tremendous revenue for the industry, it has also resulted in hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and mistreatment in those facilities. William Brangham reports and talks to USA Today’s Alan Gomez about who the migrants are and what they say happens in the facilities.

Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the latest political news, including risks for red-state Democrats who voted to impeach President Trump, how Trump reacted to impeachment, the potential for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to delay transmitting the articles to the Senate for trial and takeaways from the sixth Democratic debate.

The classic novel “Little Women” has enchanted readers young and old for generations. Brought to the movie screen many times, a new version hits theaters nationwide on Christmas Day, featuring both familiar touches and a modern flavor. John Yang sits down with director and screenwriter Greta Gerwig to discuss the “sisterhood” of the international cast and how she stayed true to the text.