April 3, 2025 - PBS News Hour full episode

U.S. markets plunged in the wake of President Trump's announcement of new tariffs. Many stocks had their worst single day since the start of the pandemic in 2020. Leaders around the world denounced the tariffs and experts warned the president's action could risk more inflation, stall growth and even trigger a recession. Lisa Desjardins reports and Geoff Bennett discusses more with Ron Insana.

Financial markets sank in the wake of President Trump's decision to impose tariffs on practically all goods being imported to the U.S. Republican Sen. Ron Johnson is a member of the Senate budget and finance committees. His state of Wisconsin exports more than $27 billion in goods to international markets and he joined Amna Nawaz to discuss the tariffs.

In our news wrap Thursday, President Trump will fire several members of his National Security Council after he met in the Oval Office with conservative activist and conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, the Senate confirmed Dr. Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and a string of violent storms across the Midwest and South killed at least six people.

One of the most contentious immigration policies in recent decades has been the detention of undocumented immigrant families. The Trump administration plans to detain thousands more in an effort to crack down on border crossings and legal pathways to asylum. John Yang discussed more with Caitlin Dickerson of The Atlantic.

President Trump has an expansive view of presidential authority and is claiming sweeping powers over the executive branch, including independent federal agencies. Amna Nawaz spoke with Joel Alicea, a professor of law and director of the Center for The Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition at the Catholic University, for his take. It's part of our series, On Democracy.

Taiwan has long been the most tense flashpoint between Washington and Beijing. By law, the U.S. is required to help Taiwan defend its democracy. This week, China’s People’s Liberation Army launched new drills and sent ships around Taiwan. The U.S. said the moves “put the region’s security, and the world’s prosperity, at risk.” Nick Schifrin reports for our series: Taiwan: Risk and Resistance.