October 12, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

Senate confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett opened Monday under highly unusual circumstances, only weeks before Election Day and during a pandemic. The political stakes for Barrett’s nomination are high, as the Supreme Court is scheduled to consider the Affordable Care Act in November. Lisa Desjardins and John Yang join Judy Woodruff to discuss the proceedings and the policy implications.

Both Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and Vice President Mike Pence campaigned in battleground state Ohio Monday -- and both referred to President Trump's latest Supreme Court nominee, Amy Coney Barrett. Biden warned that a more conservative court could overturn the Affordable Care Act amid the pandemic, while Pence argued Barrett would defend religious liberty. Yamiche Alcindor reports.

Senate confirmation hearings for Amy Coney Barrett began Monday. With her nomination, President Trump and Republican lawmakers are seeking to put a conservative stamp on the Supreme Court for years to come. But Senate Democrats expressed concerns both about Barrett’s perspective on the Affordable Care Act and the process by which she is being evaluated. John Yang reports.

In our news wrap Monday, remnants of Hurricane Delta blew out to sea after soaking the mid-Atlantic. The storm made landfall in Louisiana Friday night, killing at least two people and causing widespread flooding and power outages; thousands of residents remain in the dark. Also, Facebook says it will ban any content that denies or distorts the Holocaust and redirect users to credible information.

With Election Day less than a month away, a former top official with the 2016 Trump campaign has written a new book about his experiences with Donald Trump the candidate and Donald Trump the president. William Brangham talks to Rick Gates, a Republican political consultant who ended up as a key witness for Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference, about “Wicked Game.”

With Election Day just over three weeks away, polls suggest congressional Republicans are struggling in suburban areas of the country. At the same time, Democrats are trying to take advantage of changing demographics in these districts. One such example is the diverse county of Fort Bend, Texas, a longtime GOP stronghold that is now competitive. Houston Public Media’s Andrew Schneider reports.

With the Los Angeles Lakers’ NBA championship victory Sunday night, LeBron James has further cemented his superstar status. And just a few months shy of his 36th birthday, he doesn’t look to be approaching the end of his remarkable career yet. Hall of Famer and former James teammate Ray Allen joins Amna Nawaz to discuss James’ incredible basketball legacy -- and off-the-court advocacy.

NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report join Judy Woodruff to discuss the latest political news, including President Trump’s return to large, in-person rallies after his COVID-19 diagnosis, the Trump campaign’s strategy for appealing to voters beyond his base and which Senate races could be in play.