PBS News Hour full episode, Feb. 4, 2026

For the first time in over half a century, the world's two largest nuclear arsenals (U.S. and Russia) are no longer limited by treaty. The New START agreement, which capped deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles and warheads, has expired. Secretary of State Marco Rubio argued the treaty was 'no longer fit for purpose' due to China's rapidly growing nuclear stockpile, projected to exceed 1,000 warheads by 2030. This has sparked a debate between experts like Rose Gottemoeller, who advocates for maintaining limits on Russia to prevent a rapid warhead upload while the U.S. plans for China, and Frank Miller, who contends the treaty's 2010-era caps are inadequate for simultaneous deterrence of Russia and China, suggesting that lifting limits would strengthen U.S. deterrence.

The New START treaty limited the U.S. and Russia to 700 deployed ICBMs and 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads. Inspections ceased during COVID. Secretary Rubio stated the treaty was 'no longer fit for purpose' because it 'doesn't include China because of their vast and rapidly growing stockpile.' The Department of Defense projects China will have 'more than 1,000 warheads' by 2030. Rose Gottemoeller argued for keeping 'the Russians under limits' to prevent them from 'upload[ing] warheads and put[ting] more warheads on each of their missiles.' Frank Miller countered that the treaty kept U.S. deterrence at '2010-2011 levels,' which are 'inadequate to deter Russia and China simultaneously.'

Federal agencies, particularly ICE, are utilizing a suite of advanced surveillance tools to track individuals, including immigrants and protesters, often without judicial oversight. These tools include 'Webloc,' which tracks mobile phone location data likely sourced from the advertising ecosystem, allowing agents to map and follow individuals from protest sites to their homes or workplaces without a warrant. 'Paragon Solutions' provides remote phone hacking capabilities for up-to-date devices, potentially accessing encrypted communications. 'Mobile Fortify' is a facial recognition app used by ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that queries government databases to verify identity, citizenship, and deportation orders, with ICE asserting individuals cannot opt out of these scans.

Joseph Cox of 404 Media detailed 'Webloc' as allowing ICE to 'track the location of mobile phones without a warrant,' with data 'most likely coming from the advertising ecosystem.' He explained it allows ICE to 'draw a map around a particular neighborhood... and then see the location of all the phones in that particular place.' 'Paragon Solutions' is described as 'some of the most powerful surveillance technology' allowing remote breaks into 'fully up-to-date mobile phones' to 'read Signal messages, for example.' 'Mobile Fortify' is ICE's facial recognition app that an officer can 'point their mobile phone at any person' to 'query a database of hundreds of millions of images and other government databases.' Cox noted that ICE 'believe[s] you cannot opt out of this scanning.'

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has significantly broadened his portfolio and influence within the Trump administration, evolving from a senior adviser in the first term to a key architect of policy across immigration and foreign affairs. Miller, known for his hard-line conservative views, has refined his approach to implementing controversial policies, learning from the initial chaos of actions like the Muslim travel ban. His role now includes providing the intellectual framework for President Trump's intuited policies and executing them more effectively, leveraging tools like the Alien Enemies Act and advocating for an end to birthright citizenship. His expanded purview signifies a consolidation of power and trust from the president.

Ashley Parker of The Atlantic stated Miller 'provided an intellectual framework and policy understanding and philosophy of these views that Trump sort of intuited, but might not have originally been able to articulate.' She noted he 'learned things in the first term' regarding the travel ban's 'disaster' and 'now understands how to craft that order in a way that will be far more effective.' Chad Wolf, former Acting DHS Secretary, confirmed Miller 'comes armed in this administration with a lot more experience' and 'understands how to effectuate the policy within that executive branch.' Miller is cited for pushing the 'Alien Enemies Act to quickly carry out deportations' and supporting the 'executive order ending birthright citizenship.' Parker concluded his influence this term is 'that on steroids' and 'hard to overstate.'

The Washington Post is undergoing massive layoffs, cutting a third of its workforce, including over 300 journalists and entirely eliminating its sports desk and books section, alongside significant reductions in arts, foreign, and local staff. Former Executive Editor Marty Baron described these cuts as 'among the darkest days' in the paper's history, arguing they will 'do enormous damage' to its ability to provide comprehensive coverage. Baron criticized the current strategy, suggesting it diminishes the brand and will lead to fewer subscribers. He attributed a significant portion of the paper's financial struggles and subscriber losses to owner Jeff Bezos's shift in engagement and controversial editorial decisions made around the 2024 election, including ending presidential endorsements and altering opinion pages to be deferential to Trump.

The Post is 'laying off a third of its work force across both the newsroom and its business operations,' affecting 'more than 300 of the approximately 800 journalists.' This includes 'eliminating its sports desk and books section entirely,' and 'eviscerating the foreign staff, largely eviscerating the local staff.' Marty Baron called these 'huge, huge cuts' that 'are going to do enormous damage to the newspaper’s ability to cover its community, to cover the country, and to cover the world.' He stated Bezos 'became sort of detached in about 2019' and 'took a real turn after it looked like Trump was going to be elected president yet again' in 2024. Baron cited that 11 days before the 2024 election, 'they killed an editorial for—that was endorsing Kamala Harris,' and Bezos 'said the paper wouldn’t endorse ever again for president,' leading to 'hundreds of thousands of subscribers canceled.'