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the freeman foundati by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. america. georgia plays host to an encore of sorts. the numbers maybe smaller in tna state runoff, but the stakes could not be higher. a cts dose of reality, the process of getting americans vaccinated is proving tougher than expected. other countries are surging ahead. the question is why? plus, a t touchingributeo covid victims in sweden. i one artist has used thousands

of metal flowers. ♪ welcome. to world news america on pbs and around. . the globe. covid is still managing -- ravaging many parts of the world. trump supporter haveee gathering in washington to protest the certification on wednesday that joe b pen is the nesident. going to the polls again to vote for the next two senators. :report the men standing with joe biden might just be his most important friends right now. democrats raphael warnock and jon ossoff are running for

george's two senate seats. if they went, the president-elect's will control the senate. one state. can chart the course, notth just for next four years, but for the next generation. reporter: the people in georgia. >> the place we demand better is at the ballot box. the energy heror in gea is something i have never seen before. >> yes we can do it. reporter: if jon ossoff wins, he title that once belonged to joe biden. andhas been campaigning da night.joe biden's fate in your . >> we are going to win on tuesday. when we win on tuesday, we are going to enact an agenda that serves working people in this country.

reporter: the pressure on orge's republicans to. >> we're in the battle for the reporter: quarantine for a few days. >> make sure you get friends and family out. reporter: the early turnout has been huge, and that is because this state knows that their candidates will decide just how powerful joe biden's presidency will be. >> pro-business, pro-conservative values have really trickled down to our city. as mayor, what i am telling people is to go out and vote. reporter: teenagers are getting ornized too. polls suggest they could give democrats an edge. since the election, more than 23,000 peopl have turned 18 and cannot vote. >> i did the math, it turns i was sort by just a month i was mad at my mom.

>> even though i was unable to vote in the presidential election, i am in me ways able to vote on a presidential scale. reporter: georgia is the final battle for president trump. he still wrongly believes the election was rigged. >> there is no way we lost georgia. leat was a riggedion. reporter: some republicans worry he could push off voters, giving advantage to joe biden. katty: all eyes on georgia. our guests joins me now. georgians turned out in huge numbers in november for the presidential election. ishe there same amount of enthusiasm for this runoff? reporter: yes. we have more than 3 million georgians who have alrea cost ballots, a record for this type of election.

democrats have built an early advantage. if you look at the statistics, republicans feel like they may be down about 200,000 votes. that is a whole they need to fill on runoff day today with a big surge in turnout. katty: what are you looking for dtonight or over the ne or two? we are all getting used to that at the moment. at are you looking for? reporter: let's look where president trump went last night. north georgia, deeply conservative. he went there because early voting has lagged behind other parts of the state. it shows you the depth of republic concern that some of his loyal supporters are not turning out. we also look at the metro atlanta suburbs. an area that used to be solidly republican, and has now flipped democrat. one of the most important strongholds for democratic

three,ring up the numbers in atlanta's suburbs. katty: explain for our viewers around the world,ge igi voted democrat in the presidential election, wouldn't it stands to reason th it would vote democrat in the senate election too? reporter:hat's a great question. in november, it was theirst time a democrat flips georgia since2. 1 it was a landmark occasion, not typical. it was about 12,000 votes, millions cast. these runoff electors, going to be a smaller electorate. the electorate tends to be older and whiter. that is my republicans came into this with an advantage.tt explain this rule of 3030

two me. reporter: democrats think if they w could a statewide coest if 30% of the electorate heis african-american, and get 30% of the white vote. those two hallmarks are hard to reh. in november, they hit them. the electoratwas about 30% black, and white voters came out in droves for joe biden. the question is, while some of those white voters return and help jon ossoff and raphael warnock? katty: thank you very much. w l wait patiently for the results of the georgia runoff election. as america's political divisions spill over into the newear, stowe -- so do coronavirus. the trump administration had set a target of vaccinating 20 megan people by new ar's day.

around 5 million americans have been vaccinated so far, which is a fraction of the population. compare that to israel,ch whi is far outperforming the rest of the world. the country of just 9 million people has administered more covid-19 vaccinations than any other nation, according to oxford university. israel has managed to administer almo 16 doses per hundred of its people.ed compo the u.s., 1.4 doses per 100 americans. joining nate from israel is a professor, chairman of the craeli association of pub health physicians. thank you very much for joining me. what have you done right? >> week gotrepared, and we are flexible.

in 2009, we forms that 2013 vaccination for polio, we are icating with the public. we saw the adjustable challenges lated to the -- we have great infrastructure of health maintenanceat organns, very good at the community level. they know how communicate with the public, and get vaccination sites close to communities. there are many challenges. we still have not started thech second dose, ws a challenge. vaccines.ve a shortage of problems.d of definitely soar, a wonderful success. katty: run through us those logistical challenges and how you solve them.

spell out, vaccines being administered, and who is doing the administration? >> you need on the one hand to be centralized. we have all of the national supply together, at one place. heing the national mission., they are very expensive. experience in delivering drugs including using cold chain. here ithe great challenge. you need to use all of the ccines in five days, and once you open the vile, in six hours.

we get the people ready. so far, there is very minor and misuse of using the vaccine. katty: we were just looking at some of the images. is the military being deployedp to hminister the vaccine? >> no. interestingly, and i was thef headchnology in the israeli defense forces, not at all. the vaccine operation has been run successfully by the health system, including getting two different cities, to nursing homes. vthe military hady minor role. ai in israel that they were high expectations from the military, which were not -- the

health system -- we also see thatti for the vacci companies, the health system is doing the job. it seems like that even i israel, we did a very strongli ci sector, and not necessarily faith in the military. katty: thank you very much. very interesting to see what is happening there in israel, and congratulations on the successful rollout. let's have a little bit of a compare and contrast. that was the view from israel, let's take a look at the siation here in the u.s.. i am joined by the dean of brn university's school of public health. thank you for ining the program. i hope you had a chance to hear what professor levine is saying abouisrael. can you speak on the u.s. experience compared to the israeli experience?

>> i was listening to the contrast, it could not be sharper. we do not have a coordinated effort. disorganized.decentralized and things are not going well so far. i expect things to turn around a little bit, but what professor levine laid out, is not the strategy being used in the united states. that is why our rates are about 1/10 or worse than israel's. katty: my husband was saying, is a population of 9 million people. it's very centralized. here weave 50 states, is it just not possible given the state nature of the united stat? >> i think it is possible. we can do big things nationally. it requires a different model, and it requires worknd attention, and that is what has not been done.

the federal government's strategy turn it over totates, but without adequate funding, without partnering with states. then, we are surprised when states are not able to pull it off on their own. this is in my mind incompetence of the federal government. katty: just to clarify, is it lack of supply? is it lack of equipment? is it lack of personnel, what is it that is holding it up? >> the single biggest thing is there is no money. states are pretty much out of money on vaccine distribution. the federal government and congressad not passed any resources. states were on a shoestring to happen.out how to make this they have a definite lack of rsonnel, and what states have done, because they are out of money, they have posted toocal counties and said, you figure it

ou local counties are struggling to figure out how to do this. vaccine campaign. run a national what we really needed was resources, early from the federal government, from coress to states, and a partnership between states and the federal government. including logistical support so we can set up vaccination sites. y: you said at the beginning of thiinterview that you were hopeful things might be about to turn around. why and how? >> f two or three reasons. congress h finally passed this money. most states have notet started getting it, but i expect states will start getting resources, start building out a vaccination infrastructure. states are making progress. they have spent the last few weeks working out a plan, stntting to put those plans place. that's good. here we are better late than

never. we are a cple weeks away from a biden administration that has made getting people vainated a top priority, much in the way the trump administration really should have. the biden administration is pulling together a group of individuals that are highly competent an effective, and i expect the federal government will be a far more usefurt paner to states in the weeks ahead. katty: tnk you for joining the program. a reminder, america has vaccinated 1% of its population in the same time period israel has vaccinated 10%. a l quickk at other news from around the world. prosecutors in wisconsin have cleared a white police officer in the august 23 shooting of a black man, jacob blake. the incident touched off street protests and inflamed racial tensions in the u.s..

ahead of the decision, local officials prepared for potential unrest with the city council -- once the announcement is made. three-year dispute between qatar and its gulf neighbors appears to be over. this is the moment he embrace the saudi crown prince. the border between the two it began back in 2017, when qatar's neighbors accused it of supporting terrorism and aligning too closely with iran. a hospital in warsaw is being investigated, after about celebrities and a former prime nister to jump the line to get coronavirus vaccinations. 18 people were reportedly invited to get the jab to promote a campaign, only meant for workers and their families. s poland'ime ministeralled it a scandal, saying there was no justification for breaking the rus and jumping the line.

you're watching bbc world news america. japan's topumo wre pler has testitive for the coronavirus, as the country faces a third wave of infections. ♪ katty: tensions between iran and south korea are - i crew of 20 has been detained. the incident comes amid here is the bbc's reporter. reporter: h kor put out a statement saying they think there are $78 bilon worth of irann funds frozen in bank accounts here. earlier this month -- earlier december, there was discussion willing to barterleaseran was

those funds in return for some vaccines. however, there has been no headway, and the tension has increased.th deputy foreign minister was due to fly to tehran on nday. they are not sure if that is it is going to go ahead, but it is essential to have talks on this issue. ♪ katty:n japan, the record-breaking sumo champion has tested positive or the coronavirus, just days before a 15 day grand sumo tournament. as of tuesday, japan has reported more than 250,000 cases of the virus, and over 3500 deaths. the prime minister is considering declaring a state of emergency in the tokyo we have the report. reporter: my bully informed sumo wrestler is the youngest serving

of all-time. but this giant of japan's most iconic sport, has won a record 44 tournaments, has succumbed to the virus. he has lost his sense of smell. this is a cle contact sport. other members of his -- just last week1 members tested positive. in may, a 28-year-old wrestler died dpl to mul organ failure related to coronavirus. he came to japan at age 15 to enter the world of sumo. now 20 years on, he is under pressure. he has been dealing w any injury and has notomplioed a competitn since march. withdrawing from three tournaments. he has an official warning for repeated absences. the sports strongest rebuke, short of recommending

retirement. japan is battling a third wave of coronavirus infections, but the prime minister insists that the government will still hold he says the games will be prooft ankind overcame the virus. for now, he has to beathe virus to stay on top of his game. bbc news. katty: looking at those people fighting in close contact. coronavirus is going to spread. sweden's handling of the coronavirus pandemic has divided medical experts and public health officials around the world. theha natio avoided tough lockdown measures we have seen elsewhere. that has come at a cost. infection rates have been rising, and nearly 9000 people have died. when artist has chosen to pay tribute to the coronavirus victims with a unique installation. ♪ >> when corona came to sweden, t

to do something. it was terrifying and strange. that is but i started making flowers and putting them in the eld. one flowers for deceased corona patients. i planted 6000 -- 6530 flowers in total. i would chuck the daily number of deceased,it and just down the dates on my paper. the total, that will give me the

number. ♪ the other reason i started the project was because i thought it was terrifying if someone s corona, you are not allowed to be near that person. if you are allowed, a lot of regulations, uncertainty, fear. i wanted those people who did not get attention, to give them a place where they could have a

little respect. ♪ katty: sometimes the numbers are overwhelming, but each one of f those people hily. before we go, christmas maybe over but the festive spirit lives on, even if you have to go underwater to find it. ahead of the christianti fesval, a spanish scuba diving club has installed an underwater nativity scene.

his offer charity. those who want to take part have to pay about six dollars to receive a training course and an underwater christening. only then can they pdle down to view the festive output. many children will wake up to a christmas tree left by the threes wisemen narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... laguage specialists teachin spanish, french and more. raymond james. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pu solutions for america's neglected needs. by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank yo

nat the height of the conflict. into vietnam he bwoame a single parent of t young children. we moved a lot. we slept in rest areas. we slept in our car. i didn't realize that we were actually homeless. it makes your world really small. happened to have a tv, it was really special. we loved nova. especially when it would be about space. we would talk for hours about the universe watching nova, i felt big, like, my mind was big, my ideas were bi the trajectory of my life changed. i could see a world outside of our poverty and i felt like things were going to get better. ♪ pbs opened up a world i didn't know existed.

♪ judy: good evening i'm judy woodruff. on the "newshour" tonight. balance of power -- voters head to the polls in georgia's runoff u.s. senate and thre of of the much of president-elect biden's agenda at stake. then. combating the coronavirus -- the u.s. sets another daily record for covid-19 infections as the vaccination campaign lags behind projections. plus. rethinking college -- lost revenue and cutbacks from pandemic-related closures have compelled many struggling institutions to make big cuts. >> i believe that covid s not created challenges, but has accelerated challenges. it's forced us all to think di