July 8, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

In our news wrap Wednesday, a key impeachment witness against President Trump is leaving the U.S. Army. Lieutenant Col. Alexander Vindman announced his retirement Wednesday, with his lawyer accusing Trump of blocking Vindman’s promotion. Also, more than 150 academics, artists and writers are warning about what they perceive as growing threats to free speech, in an open letter in Harper’s Magazine.

Coronavirus cases in Florida, Arizona and South Carolina are increasing faster than in any other country in the world, reigniting the debate over American exceptionalism. Nick Schifrin talks to former Mexican foreign minister Jorge Castaneda, former Hungarian ambassador to the U.S. Réka Szemerkényi and Maina Kiai, a human rights and anti-corruption lawyer previously with the United Nations.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld Trump administration rules that limit birth control coverage under Obamacare -- the third time justices have considered whether some employers could opt out of that coverage based on their beliefs. As the court wraps up its final week of the current session, Marcia Coyle of The National Law Journal joins John Yang for a closer look.

The metal lithium has become integral to our daily lives, due to its essential role as a battery material in electronic devices. Over the next several decades, the rising popularity of electric vehicles is expected to mean the demand for lithium will increase even more -- so companies that mine the metal are racing to improve their productivity. Science correspondent Miles O’Brien reports.

The deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor have sparked a renewed dialogue on racism in America. Reform advocates want policy and institutional changes, but individuals are also asking how they can address their own inherent racism. Amna Nawaz talks to Ibram X. Kendi, author of "How to Be An Antiracist," and Robin DiAngelo, author of “White Fragility.”

Since the earliest days of the coronavirus pandemic, public health experts have emphasized that having an efficient system for wide-scale testing was key to bringing the COVID-19 outbreak under control. But in reality, virus testing in the United States has consistently missed the mark. William Brangham talks to Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiologist at Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security.

A new PBS NewsHour documentary, “China: Power and Prosperity,” examines today's China, its powerful leader in Xi Jinping and relationship with the U.S. Now, amid a global pandemic, the two governments are decreasing collaboration and accelerating confrontation, says Nick Schifrin, who joins Judy Woodruff to discuss this in-depth portrait.