October 16, 2023 - PBS NewsHour full episode

The House of Representatives is entering a third week with no full-time speaker. The Republican majority is meeting Monday night and speaker nominee Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio will look to sway dozens of colleagues who just voted against him last week. Congressional Correspondent Lisa Desjardins reports from the Capitol.

A federal judge in Washington imposed a narrow gag order on former President Donald Trump in the election subversion case against him. It bars Trump from targeting Special Counsel Jack Smith, his team, court staff and potential witnesses. It does not prevent him from criticizing the Justice Department in general. Geoff Bennett discussed more with NPR Justice Correspondent Carrie Johnson.

The brutal murder of six-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume, a Palestinian American boy in Illinois, has left a community grieving and fearful about growing anti-Islamic sentiment during the Israel-Hamas war. Amna Nawaz discussed more with Edward Ahmed Mitchell, a civil rights attorney and national deputy executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

The Hamas terrorist attack on Israel shook the Middle East and threatens to expand far beyond Gaza. Secretary of State Blinken has visited seven countries across the region hoping to prevent the war from expanding, gain release for American hostages and coordinate humanitarian aid. Nick Schifrin discussed the regional consequences with Francis Ricciardone and Hanin Ghaddar.

NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter join Geoff Bennett to discuss the latest political news, including the possibility of a Jim Jordan speakership and new fundraising hauls in the 2024 campaign for the White House.

"The Iliad" is one of the foundational works of Western literature and thought. It’s an old story that continues to resonate in our time and has been given new life in a translation by distinguished classical scholar Emily Wilson. She spoke with Jeffrey Brown in Philadelphia for our arts and culture series, CANVAS.