PBS News Hour full episode, May 22, 2026
YouTube · A8qkohvRDSA
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard resigned, citing her husband's rare bone cancer, though former officials suggest she was already being frozen out due to policy disagreements and controversial actions.
- ❖Gabbard's tenure included cutting 'agency bloat' by over 40%, declassifying documents, and exposing 'weaponization' of the intelligence community, but she also controversially appeared at an FBI raid in Fulton County, Georgia, related to 2020 election claims.
- ❖US student math and reading scores have seen a decade-long decline since 2013, coinciding with the rise of smartphones and social media, with 8th-grade reading scores now at their lowest since 1990.
- ❖Harvard professor Thomas Kane attributes the 'learning recession' to the dismantling of test-based accountability and the impact of social media on students' time outside school, sleep, and reading habits.
- ❖Mississippi successfully improved student outcomes by implementing extensive literacy and math coaching programs and holding administrators and state leaders accountable for results.
- ❖Voluntary carbon markets have been criticized for opacity, with only about a quarter of projects delivering real emission reductions; however, the Family Forest Carbon Program uses a 'dynamic baseline' method to ensure integrity.
- ❖The Family Forest Carbon Program pays small family forest landowners an annual stipend to defer harvesting, enrolling 200,000 acres across 20 states and aiming for a million acres, providing income while sequestering carbon.
- ❖President Trump maintains a 'vice-like grip' on Republican primary voters, successfully pushing out incumbents like Thomas Massie and Bill Cassidy and endorsing farther-right candidates like Ken Paxton.
- ❖A 'GOP mini-revolt' was sparked by Trump's endorsement of Ken Paxton over loyal Senator John Cornyn and the creation of a nearly $2 billion 'anti-weaponization fund' for victims of 'political persecution'.
- ❖The Democratic Party's recently released 'autopsy' of its losses was criticized as poorly done and lacking introspection, failing to address structural issues facing center-left parties globally.
Insights
1DNI Resignation Amidst Political Freezing Out
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard resigned, officially citing her husband's rare bone cancer. However, former intelligence and Trump officials indicate she was largely 'frozen out' of the policymaking process and was likely on her way out due to disagreements with the President, particularly over Iran policy and her public video opposing military action.
Nick Schifrin reports Gabbard's official reason (husband's illness) and quotes her resignation letter. He then adds that 'former intelligence and Trump officials tell me that Gabbard was largely cut out, she was frozen out of the policymaking process, and that, frankly, CIA Director John Ratcliffe has already been running the intelligence community.' Schifrin also mentions her video opposing an attack on Iranian nuclear sites. Larry Pfeiffer states, 'She was inexperienced to begin with. She should never have been nominated for the job. Once in the job, I don't think she ever fully understood the responsibilities.'
2Decade-Long Decline in Student Achievement Linked to Social Media
American students have experienced a 'learning recession' with a steady decline in math and reading scores since 2013, predating the COVID-19 pandemic. This decline coincides with the widespread adoption of smartphones and social media, which are identified as significant factors distracting students, disrupting sleep, and reducing reading time outside of school.
Thomas Kane, Harvard University professor and co-author of the National Education Scorecard, states, 'The pandemic was just the mudslide that followed seven years of steady erosion in student achievement.' He links this to the dismantling of test-based accountability and social media 'setting fire to students' learning time outside of school.' He believes 'unfettered access to cell phones inside schools and outside of schools' is a major issue, impacting 'sleep disruption, it's about missing homework. It's about just doing less reading in general.' The report notes 8th-grade reading scores are at their lowest since 1990.
3Restoring Integrity to Carbon Credit Markets with Dynamic Baselines
Voluntary carbon markets have struggled with transparency and effectiveness, with many projects failing to deliver promised emission reductions. The Family Forest Carbon Program addresses this by using a 'dynamic baseline' approach, comparing enrolled land to similar control plots and issuing credits only based on real-time, measured carbon differences, ensuring additionality and integrity.
Rebecca Sanders-DeMott of the Clean Air Task Force states, 'I think we have a lot of credits that are circulating that may not represent the climate benefit that they are intended to.' Rita Hite, CEO of the American Forest Foundation, explains their program's methodology: 'We want to make sure that we're not just paying landowners for things they would have already done... We're only issuing credits if we actually measure the carbon and see the difference, right?' Sanders-DeMott's study scored this method as 'satisfactory,' a significant improvement over other methods.
4Trump's Unwavering Grip on the GOP and Growing Corruption Concerns
President Trump continues to exert immense control over the Republican Party, successfully campaigning to replace incumbents who show disloyalty with his preferred candidates. This power, combined with controversial financial moves like the 'anti-weaponization fund,' has led to accusations of unprecedented political corruption and sparked a 'mini-revolt' among some GOP members.
Jonathan Capehart notes Trump's 'vice-like grip' on MAGA Republicans, citing the ousting of Thomas Massie and Bill Cassidy, and the endorsement of Ken Paxton over John Cornyn. David Brooks describes the week as 'the Coachella of political corruption' due to Trump getting out of a $100 million IRS fund, immunity from future tax investigations, and a $1.8 billion 'slush fund.' Walter Olson is quoted calling it 'the biggest act of political corruption of his lifetime.'
Bottom Line
The DNI position, created post-9/11 to break down intelligence silos, is vulnerable to politicization and weakening if the director is perceived as weak or frozen out by the President, potentially undermining national security coordination.
The effectiveness of critical national security infrastructure can be compromised by political infighting and a lack of clear understanding of the DNI's core responsibilities, leading to a less cohesive and effective intelligence community.
Future administrations or legislative bodies could reassess the DNI's role and powers, potentially strengthening its independence or clarifying its mandate to prevent political interference and ensure its original purpose of intelligence integration is met.
The 'learning recession' in US education, driven by factors like social media and a lack of accountability, suggests a need for systemic reform beyond just funding, focusing on pedagogical approaches and holding educational leadership responsible for student outcomes.
Without addressing these root causes, the long-term economic and social health of the nation is at risk due to a less educated populace. The current generation of students may face diminished future earnings and opportunities.
States and districts can implement comprehensive, data-driven accountability systems for administrators, invest in targeted coaching for teachers (like Mississippi's model), and explore policies to manage technology use in and out of schools, focusing on early literacy and increased reading.
The controversy surrounding sustainable fashion brands being acquired by fast-fashion giants like Shein highlights the limitations of 'buying your way into sustainability' and the need for legal standards across the industry.
Consumer trust in 'sustainable' brands is eroding, and without regulatory intervention, the environmental and labor impacts of the fashion industry will continue to escalate, as companies can simply acquire greenwashing credentials.
Advocates and policymakers should push for clear, enforceable legal standards for environmental and labor practices across the fashion industry, shifting the burden from consumers to regulate the market itself.
Lessons
- Parents and educators should critically evaluate and manage children's access to smartphones and social media, recognizing their documented negative impact on academic performance and overall learning time.
- Policymakers and state education leaders should consider implementing robust accountability systems for school administrators and state officials, similar to Mississippi's model, to drive improvements in student outcomes.
- Corporations seeking carbon offsets should prioritize programs with transparent, data-driven methodologies like the Family Forest Carbon Program's 'dynamic baseline' to ensure actual climate benefits and avoid 'greenwashing'.
Quotes
"The pandemic was just the mudslide that followed seven years of steady erosion in student achievement."
"We want to make sure that we're not just paying landowners for things they would have already done, because, if that's the case, then you don't actually get additional carbon. The atmosphere doesn't feel a difference."
"This was like the Coachella of political corruption all in one week."
"I just called it a trash can of warmed-over conclusions with none of the introspection of, say, the autopsy of 2012... when Mitt Romney lost to President Obama."
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