March 12, 2020 - PBS NewsHour full episode

The economic consequences of the novel coronavirus pandemic are growing even more severe. Stocks logged their worst day of trading since the 1987 market crash, cancellations and closures rippled across the globe and the fallout from President Trump’s decision to ban most travel from Europe became evident. Nick Schifrin reports and Charles Schwab’s Liz Ann Sonders joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.

On Capitol Hill, lawmakers are working on a multi-billion dollar novel coronavirus aid package to help the Americans hit hardest by the pandemic. They, along with Democratic presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders, also weighed in on President Trump’s response to the crisis. Lisa Desjardins reports and joins Nick Schifrin, Yamiche Alcindor and Judy Woodruff to discuss.

As the novel coronavirus pandemic takes hold in the U.S., some Americans are expressing concerns over how the government is handling the situation, the availability of testing kits and the U.S. response in comparison to that of other countries. Dr. Ashish Jha of the Harvard Global Health Institute joins Judy Woodruff to discuss the “deeply disappointing” U.S. management of the outbreak.

Until 2018, Florida was one of only a few states that banned felons from voting for life. But that year, a two-thirds majority of the state passed an initiative to restore voting eligibility to felons who had served their sentences. It was a major victory for voting rights -- but the subsequent implementation has been fraught with legal battles, politics and confusion. Stephanie Sy reports.