Democracy Now!

In California, at least 100,000 people have been forced to evacuate, with about 75,000 people still displaced. Some residents had to flee for their lives, as drought conditions and powerful, erratic winds have contributed to the explosive spread of the fires. Among those who had to flee was Jan Hoyman, a pottery artist who narrowly escaped the fire in Mendocino County last week. We speak to her from her studio in Ukiah, California.

In California, at least 40 people have died, hundreds are missing, and thousands of homes have been destroyed by uncontrollable wildfires. More than 11,000 firefighters are battling the wildfires, with the support of hundreds of fire engines and dozens of helicopters and airplanes. Many of the firefighters are prisoners, who are working for as little as $1 a day. Among the victims of the wildfires were elderly residents of Sonoma County, where authorities say their bodies were so charred, the only way to identify some of them was by the serial numbers on artificial joints or other medical devices. We speak with Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA and author of Weather West, the California Weather Blog.

In California, raging wildfires fueled by climate change have killed at least 40 people, destroyed thousands of homes and businesses and scorched more than 200,000 acres—roughly the size of New York City. The fires are now the deadliest in California since record keeping began. At least 100,000 people have been forced to evacuate, with about 75,000 people still displaced. Some residents had to flee for their lives, as drought conditions and powerful, erratic winds have contributed to the explosive spread of the fires. The fires have also contributed to a housing crisis, leaving thousands homeless in neighborhoods of California where rental prices were already sky-high before the blazes. We speak with Ro Khanna, Democratic congressmember from California.

The U.S.-backed, Saudi-led war and naval blockade in Yemen has sparked a cholera epidemic that has become the largest and fastest-spreading outbreak of the disease in modern world history. There are expected to be a million cases of cholera in Yemen by the end of the year, with at least 600,000 children likely to be affected. The U.S. has been a major backer of the Saudi-led war. But in Washington, opposition to the U.S. support for the Saudi-led war is growing. Lawmakers recently introduced a constitutional resolution to withdraw all U.S. support for the war. In an op-ed for The New York Times, Congressmembers Ro Khanna, Walter Jones and Mark Pocan wrote that they introduced the resolution "in order to help put an end to the suffering of a country approaching 'a famine of biblical proportions.' … We believe that the American people, if presented with the facts of this conflict, will oppose the use of their tax dollars to bomb and starve civilians." We speak with Ro Khanna, Democratic congressmember from California.

Somalia: Twin Truck Bombs in Mogadishu Kill 300, Injure Hundreds, Trump Refuses to Certify Iran Nuclear Deal, Undermining Agreement, Secretary of State Tillerson Rebuffs Senator's Claim Trump "Castrated" Him, California: Hundreds Still Missing as Wildfire Death Toll Rises to 40, Ireland: Remnants of Hurricane Ophelia Make Landfall, Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White Named White House Environmental Adviser, Louisiana: 7 Injured and 1 Missing as Oil Rig Explodes Near New Orleans, Puerto Rico: Official Hurricane Death Toll at 48, Likely to Be Much Higher, States Sue over President's Move to Destroy Affordable Care Act, Iraq Begins Offensive to Seize Kirkuk After Kurdish Independence Vote, Yemen: Cholera Epidemic Now the Worst Outbreak in History, Guatemala: Former Dictator Efraín Ríos Montt Back on Trial for Genocide, More Women Bring Rape Accusations Against Harvey Weinstein, Amazon Studios Suspends Chief Roy Price over Sexual Harassment Charge, Donald Trump's Campaign Subpoenaed over Sexual Assault Charges, Unsigned QB Colin Kaepernick Charges NFL Owners Colluded Against Him

We spend the bulk of the hour with Dr. Robert Jay Lifton, a leading American psychiatrist and author of more than 20 books about the effects of nuclear war, terrorism and genocide. As NBC News reports President Trump has called for a nearly tenfold increase in the United States' nuclear weapons arsenal, and as he threatens to attack North Korea and decertify the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal, Lifton examines what he calls the "apocalyptic twins: nuclear and climate threats." His new book is titled "The Climate Swerve: Reflections on Mind, Hope, and Survival."

As Vanity Fair reports some of President Trump's closest aides and advisers say he is "unstable" and "unraveling," and that the White House is increasingly consumed by chaos, we speak with Robert Jay Lifton, a leading American psychiatrist and author of more than 20 books about the effects of nuclear war, terrorism and genocide.

As President Trump moves to dismantle the Affordable Care Act in an executive order, and the White House announces it will stop paying billions of dollars in federal subsidies to insurance companies to help cover low-income people's healthcare plans, we get response from Congressmember Luis Gutiérrez, who says Trump's dismantling of the ACA is an attempt to balance the budget. "It's no coincidence that their next move is to give a tax break to the wealthiest in this nation," Gutiérrez notes.

As President Trump threatens to withdraw federal relief workers from Puerto Rico, home to 3.5 million U.S. citizens, residents of the island and their supporters respond with outrage and disbelief. San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz called Trump the "hater-in-chief." We get response from Congressmember Luis Gutiérrez.

Trump Threatens to Withdraw FEMA from Puerto Rico, Amid Humanitarian Crisis, Death Toll from California's Wildfires Surges to 31, 50 Killed and Tens of Thousands Displaced by Flooding in Vietnam, Report: More Than 150 Land Defenders Murdered So Far This Year, In Twin Blows, Trump Moves to Dismantle Affordable Care Act, Trump Expected to Decertify—But Not Scrap—2015 Iran Nuclear Deal Today, Trump Admin Withdraws from UNESCO, Claiming "Anti-Israel" Bias, London & NYC Police Launch Investigations into Harvey Weinstein's Sexual Assault, "When Will My Organs Fail?": Hunger-Striking Gitmo Prisoners Say Guards Have Stopped Force-Feeding, Echoing Slavery & Chain Gangs, Louisiana Sheriff Laments Release of Prisoners Who Work in Jails, Portland, OR: Six Arrested Blocking ICE Bus Carrying Immigrants to For-Profit Prison, WA: 2 Anti-Trump Protesters Convicted After Judge Rejects Necessity Defense

As part of a roundtable discussion on the rape and sexual assault allegations against disgraced and now-fired movie producer Harvey Weinstein, we speak with journalist Irin Carmon, who wrote an essay titled "Women shouldn't trust the men who call themselves allies." We are also joined by two women who are survivors of assaults by Weinstein: Tomi-Ann Roberts, professor of psychology at Colorado College, and Louise Godbold, executive director of Echo Parenting & Education.

We continue our look at two shocking investigations by The New Yorker and The New York Times, which revealed a slew of rape and sexual assault allegations against disgraced and now-fired movie producer Harvey Weinstein, who had been one of the most powerful men in Hollywood for decades. We speak with Louise Godbold, who recently wrote a blog post titled "My Encounter with Harvey Weinstein and What It Tells Us About Trauma." Now executive director of Echo Parenting & Education, Godbold calls on others to believe and support survivors of sexual assault and harassment, saying, "We need to educate everyone about trauma."

As movie mogul Harvey Weinstein is fired by his own company and more women come forward accusing him harassment, sexual assault and rape, we speak with Tomi-Ann Roberts, professor of psychology at Colorado College, about her "petrifying" encounter with Harvey Weinstein in 1984, when she was an aspiring actress. Today, her academic research includes the psychological consequences of the sexual objectification of women and girls.

California: Death Toll from Wildfires Hits 23, as Fires Continue to Spread, Trump Threatens NBC License over Nuclear Weapons Report, Report: Trump's Aides Call Him "Unstable," as Bannon Predicts He Won't Last Full Term, World Leaders & Senior U.S. Officials Pressure Trump Not to Decertify Iran Nuclear Deal, Weinstein Company Knew About Sexual Assault Payoffs for Two Years, U.S.-Led Coalition Airstrikes Kill Dozens of Civilians in Raqqa, Syria, Trump to Nominate Kirstjen Nielsen as Homeland Security Secretary, Boy Scouts to Accept Girls Next Year, On Eve of Execution in Texas, Robert Pruett Maintains His Innocence

President Trump said Sunday he will not restore DACA—the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program—that protects hundreds of thousands of young undocumented immigrants from deportation—unless lawmakers agree to expand the wall on the U.S.-Mexico border and move to keep out thousands of children fleeing gang violence in Central America. We get response from Cesar Vargas, who is himself a DACA recipient. He's the co-director of DREAM Action Coalition and New York state's first openly undocumented attorney.

Rev. Jesse Jackson joins us in studio to discuss how his Rainbow PUSH Coalition has set up its own commission of scholars and activists to look into voter suppression. This comes as President Trump convened an Advisory Commission on Election Integrity to look into his allegations of voter fraud during the 2016 presidential election. Jackson is also on a tour of college campuses to register voters.

We speak with Rev. Jesse Jackson about how Vice President Mike Pence flew to Indianapolis to stage a walkout of an NFL game between the San Francisco 49ers and Indianapolis Colts, after players on both teams held a protest against racial injustice during the national anthem. Pence tweeted he was there, but used an old photo, and the incident is being condemned as an expensive stunt.

Three weeks after Puerto Rico was devastated by Hurricane Maria, President Trump asked Congress for $4.9 billion loan to help the island pay government salaries and other expenses. This comes as he allowed a 10-day waiver of the Jones Act to lapse, restricting shipments of food, fuel and medicine from foreign-flagged ships as nearly half of the island still lacks clean water and nearly 90 percent lacks electricity. This comes as military security firms continue to patrol the streets of Puerto Rico's capital San Juan, and Academi, formerly known as Blackwater, has a pending bid to provide security services for water transportation. Meanwhile, solar companies and nonprofits say they could help Puerto Rico regain power. We get an update from Democracy Now!'s Juan González and speak with Rev. Jesse Jackson, civil rights leader and the founder and president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, who helped to gather aid to send to Puerto Rico, and has written a column published around the country this week titled "How to put Puerto Rico back on its feet."

In California, powerful winds and bone-dry conditions are fueling massive wildfires. A state of emergency has been declared in northern areas as the fires have left at least 17 people dead, destroying whole neighborhoods and forcing 20,000 people to evacuate their homes. The wildfires come after the U.S. Forest Service warned last year that an unprecedented 5-year drought led to the deaths of more than 100 million trees in California, setting the stage for massive fires. Climate scientists believe human-caused global warming played a major role in the drought. We speak with Park Williams, bioclimatologist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and co-author of a 2016 report showing that global warming is responsible for nearly half of the forest area burned in the western United States over the past three decades.

California: Wildfire from Death Toll Hits 17; Blocks Reduced to Ashes, Puerto Rico: Health System in Dire Condition, 3 Weeks After Hurricane Maria, Officials: Trump Called for Tenfold Increase in Nuclear Weapons Arsenal, More Women Accuse Harvey Weinstein of Rape, Assault & Harassment, Lawmakers Push for End to U.S. Backing for Devastating War in Yemen, Spain Moves to Suspend Catalonia's Autonomy, Philadelphia: Javier Flores Leaves Sanctuary After Winning Immigration Hearing

More than 50 U.S. cities celebrated Indigenous Peoples' Day Monday in place of the federal holiday honoring Christopher Columbus, the Italian explorer who massacred and enslaved Arawak indigenous people while opening the door to the European colonization of the Americas. In New York City, protesters called for the city to make the second Monday of each October Indigenous Peoples' Day. Democracy Now! joined demonstrators for an Anti-Columbus Day Tour at the American Museum of Natural History. Special thanks to producer Andre Lewis.

Last Thursday, a federal judge denied a second request for bail from Reality Winner, the former National Security Agency contractor who is accused of violating the Espionage Act. Winner allegedly passed a top-secret document to The Intercept that claimed Russian military intelligence conducted a cyberattack on at least one U.S. voting software company just days before the 2016 election. Federal Judge Brian Epps of Augusta, Georgia, said his decision to deny bail was based in part on social media comments by Winner that she "admires Edward Snowden and Julian Assange."

Microsoft has joined Facebook in saying it is investigating whether Russian operatives paid for "inappropriate" pro-Trump ads on its Bing search engine and other platforms. Social media giant Facebook has said a Russian company placed thousands of ads on their network at a cost of more than $100,000, including some that targeted states crucial to Trump's victory. Last week, the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee said it reached the conclusion that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Meanwhile, CIA Director Mike Pompeo has blasted Wikileaks as a hostile intelligence service that is often abetted by state actors like Russia, and Trump adviser Roger Stone declined to confirm to the House Intelligence Committee that he was directly in contact with WikiLeaks about damaging information on then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. We get response from Julian Assange, the founder and editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks.

As we speak with WikiLeaks founder and editor-in-chief Julian Assange, he shares an update on when he may be able to leave the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where he has sought refuge and political asylum for more than five years. Earlier this year, Swedish prosecutors have dropped an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by Assange, which he denies and calls a pretext for his ultimate extradition to the United States to face prosecution under the Espionage Act.

Barcelona's Mayor Ada Colau is calling for Spain to remove thousands of state police who have been deployed to Catalonia ahead of tonight's expected declaration of independence by regional President Carles Puigdemont, possibly triggering intervention by Spanish forces. We speak with WikiLeaks founder and editor-in-chief Julian Assange, who has been advising those pushing to secede on how to communicate securely even as the state pushes back.

Mass Evacuations in California as Wildfires Kill at Least 10, EPA Chief Scott Pruitt Repeals Obama-Era Carbon Emissions Rule, Puerto Rico: FEMA Chief Dismisses San Juan Mayor's Criticism as "Political Noise", At Least 23 Rohingya Refugees Die as Boat Capsizes, Afghanistan: Red Cross to Pull Staff Amid Mounting Attacks, Syria: Airstrike in Idlib Province Kills 11 Civilians, French Public Employee Unions Strike over Job Cuts, Sick Pay, Google Says "Suspected Russian Agents" Bought Political Ads in 2016, Blackwater Founder Erik Prince Mulls Wyoming Senate Primary Challenge, Deandre Harris, Beaten by White Supremacists in Virginia, Faces Felony Charge, ESPN Suspends Anchor Jemele Hill After She Tweets Support for NFL Protests, 50+ Cities Celebrate Indigenous Peoples' Day as New Yorkers Protest Columbus

Ai Weiwei has been called the most powerful artist in the world—and the most dangerous man in China. Born in 1957 in Beijing, he spent his childhood and youth in a hard labor camp in the Gobi Desert in remote northwest China. As a student at Beijing Film Academy, he first became involved in art and activism. He spent his twenties in New York City and then returned to China. In 2008, after a massive earthquake in Sichuan, China, Ai Weiwei launched a citizen investigation to collect the names of the more than 5,000 schoolchildren who died, partially as a result of the highly shoddy government construction of the schools. While his citizen investigation catapulted him to international fame, it also enraged Chinese government officials. In 2009, his popular blog was shut down. A few months later, police broke into his hotel room and attacked him, punching him in the face and causing cerebral hemorrhaging. In 2010, Ai Weiwei was placed under house arrest, after the Chinese government demolished his studio. Then, in 2011, he was arrested at the Beijing airport and held for 81 days, without any charges. Chinese authorities seized his passport and refused to return it until 2015. For more on the remarkable life of this world-renowned dissident and artist, we speak with Ai Weiwei.

The United Nations says there are now more refugees worldwide than at any time since World War II. The journey and struggle of these 65 million refugees is the subject of Chinese artist and dissident Ai Weiwei's epic new documentary. It's called "Human Flow." For the documentary, Ai Weiwei traveled to 23 countries and dozens of refugee camps. We speak to world-renowned Chinese artist and activist Ai Weiwei.

Republican Sen. Bob Corker Warns Trump Taking U.S. Toward "World War III", Trump Threatens War on North Korea, Saying, "Only One Thing Will Work!", Trump Demands Wall Funds, Migrant Crackdown in Exchange for Action on DREAMers, Hurricane Nate Brings Power Outages and Flooding to Gulf Coast, Canadian Government Settles Suit by Indigenous Children Forced into Adoption, Hundreds of Thousands Rally in Barcelona Against Catalan Independence, Russian Police Arrest Hundreds at Banned Rallies Demanding Democracy, Thousands of Israeli and Palestinian Women March for Peace, Mexico: Edgar Daniel Esqueda Assassinated, 11th Journalist Killed in 2017, Ghana: Gas Explosion in Accra Kills Seven, Injures Over 100, Weinstein Company Fires Harvey Weinstein over Sexual Harassment Reports, Protesters Outside White House Loop Footage of Trump's Sex Assault Boasts, Charlottesville, VA: White Nationalists Return 8 Weeks After Violent Protests, Leaked FBI Report Cites "Black Identity Extremists" as Terror Threat, Utah: No Murder Charge for SLC Cop Who Shot Black Cyclist in the Back, Vice President Mike Pence Stages Walkout Amid NFL Player Protests

We end today's show where we began the week: in Puerto Rico. Doctors say the island's health system remains crippled two weeks after Hurricane Maria hit the island, leaving more than 90 percent of the island without electricity and half of its residents without drinking water. That's at least according to statistics published by FEMA on Wednesday. But on Thursday, FEMA removed data about access to drinking water and electricity in Puerto Rico from its website. Democracy Now!'s Juan Carlos Dávila is on the ground in Puerto Rico, and this week he managed to make it to the island of Vieques to speak with residents of the area that the U.S. Navy used as a bombing range for decades. Since the 1940s, the Navy used nearly three-quarters of the island for bombing practice, war games and dumping old munitions. The bombing stopped after a campaign of nonviolent civil disobedience, but the island continues to suffer. The Navy says it will take until 2025 to remove all the environmental damage left by more than 60 years of target practice. Juan Carlos filed this report from Vieques in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria.

On Thursday, the National Rifle Association said it would support additional regulation on the gun accessory known as "bump stocks." Investigators believe the device was used in Sunday night's mass shooting in Las Vegas, in which Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old white man, killed 59 people, including himself, and injured nearly 500 people. Authorities say Paddock bought at least 12 bump stocks, which allow semi-automatic rifles to act like machine guns, capable of firing hundreds of rounds a minute. But many say the "bump stocks" regulations do not go far enough to prevent future mass shootings. We go to Las Vegas, where we are joined by Annette Magnus-Marquart, executive director of the Nevada-based Battle Born Progress, which advocates for gun control.

Amid news of the Nobel Peace Prize being awarded to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, we turn now to look at whether President Donald Trump is trying to sabotage the Obama-brokered nuclear agreement with Iran and seek a war with Iran. According to The Washington Post, Trump is expected to announce next week the deal is not in the United States' national interest, and will move to "decertify" the deal. If this happens, Congress will decide whether or not to reinstate harsh economic sanctions against Iran, potentially tanking the landmark deal. The move comes despite the fact the Trump administration begrudgingly certified that Iran has complied with its obligations under the agreement earlier this year, as has the International Atomic Energy Agency, which closely monitors Iran's activities.

As the Nobel Committee made their announcement today in Oslo, President Trump is expected to "decertify" the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal next week. We speak with Tim Wright, the Asia-Pacific director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, and go to Tehran and Washington to get response.

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons Wins Nobel Peace Prize, WaPo: Trump to Decertify Landmark Iran Nuclear Deal, Trump Issues Cryptic Threat: "The Calm Before the Storm", Tropical Storm Nate Kills 22 in Central America, Tesla's Elon Musk Proposes Solving Puerto Rico Electrical Crisis with Solar Power, NRA & Lawmakers Support Regulation for Gun Devices "Bump Stocks", Ivanka & Kushner Rerouted Emails to Trump Organization Servers, White House: John Kelly's Personal Cellphone May Have Been Hacked, Mueller's Investigators Met with British Intelligence Agent Christopher Steele, NYT Reveals Decades of Sexual Harassment Accusations Against Harvey Weinstein, Anti-Abortion Rep. Tim Murphy Resigns After Lover Reveals He Pressured Her to Have Abortion, Trump Admin to Limit Affordable Care Act Contraceptive Coverage, Interior Department Official Joel Clemente Resigns in Protest, Pakistan: Suicide Bombing at Shiite Mosque Kills 20, Red Cross Warns of Harrowing Spike in Violence Across Syria, In Rebuke to Trump, California Adopts "Sanctuary State" Law

We get response from Puerto Rican-born Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) to President Trump's visit to the island two weeks after Hurricane Maria, and his comments that he would help the U.S. territory wipe out its $73 billion debt to help it recover from the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Maria. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney later walked back the remarks.

As the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee says it has reached the conclusion that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and CNN reports a number of Russian-linked Facebook ads specifically targeted Michigan and Wisconsin, two states crucial to Trump's victory in November, we speak with Russian-American journalist Masha Gessen. "We don't know if there was a conspiracy," Gessen says of allegations the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. "But even if there was, we should do our best to try not to engage in conspiracy thinking. … It lends itself to this idea that once we discover that Trump colluded with the Russians, that we'll magically get rid of Trump." She says it is unlikely the investigation will produce the kind of evidence of collusion that could be used as a legal basis for impeachment, and argues impeachment is unlikely while Republicans have control of both houses of Congress.

As the Senate Intelligence Committee says Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election, we discuss Russia and Trump with Russian-American journalist Masha Gessen. Her new book, "The Future is History: How Totalitarianism Reclaimed Russia," has just been shortlisted for the National Book Award and offers a warning to the United States today as she points to the similarities between Trump and Putin, and warns of the threat of autocracy under a Trump presidency.

Budget Director Walks Back Trump's Comments on Forgiving Puerto Rico Debt, Las Vegas Shooter Stockpiled Dozens of Firearms & 12 Devices to Turn Rifles into Machine Guns, Senate Intelligence Committee Hasn't Ruled Out Collusion Between Russia & Trump, Report: Ivanka & Donald Jr. Were Nearly Charged with Felony Fraud in 2012, Tillerson Denies He's Considered Resigning over Conflicts with Trump, Iraqi Military Says It's Seized Control of Hawija from ISIS, Egypt Launches Widening Crackdown Against LGBT Community, First Syrian Regime Soldier Convicted of War Crime, Israeli Military Seals Off West Bank & Gaza for 11 Days, Aung San Suu Kyi Stripped of Freedom of Oxford Award over Crackdown on Rohingya, House Passes Bill to Criminalize Abortion After 20 Weeks, St. Louis: 140+ Arrested Blocking I-64 over Acquittal of White Cop for Killing Anthony Lamar Smith, Prisoner Rights Advocate John Thompson Dies at 55

We get reaction to President Trump's attack on NFL players protesting racism from Bishop William Barber, president of Repairers of the Breach and author of "The Third Reconstruction: Moral Mondays, Fusion Politics, and the Rise of a New Justice Movement." "The president is trying to change the issue," Barber says. "Kaepernick knelt because he was saying the nation is not living up to its promise—one nation under God, liberty and justice for all—because African-American men, unarmed, are being shot—and women—in the street by people who have sworn to protect and serve."

This weekend hundreds will gather in Raleigh for the North Carolina NAACP State Convention, the last one that will be presided over by Bishop William Barber II as president of the state conference. Rev. Dr. Barber announced he would not run for re-election to his post earlier this year, in order to focus on his work with Repairers of the Breach and the launch of a Poor People's Campaign. In what he says is a national call for moral revival, Barber is on a 15-state public event tour to address issues of systemic racism, poverty, militarism and ecological devastation, and spread North Carolina's Moral Mondays movement nationwide in a push that draws on the history and unfinished work of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1967-'68 Poor People's Campaign, which called for America to stand against what King called the "triplets of evil"— systemic racism, poverty and militarism. Bishop Barber joins us in our studio and says right now he is focused in part on voting rights. "It is amazing to me that we're having a conversation about Russian hacking, but we're not having a conversation about racialized voter suppression, which is systemic racism, which is a tool of white nationalism, which is a direct threat to our democracy."

In the aftermath of the deadly shooting in Las Vegas Sunday night by 64-year-old Stephen Paddock that left 59 people dead and 527 others wounded, we look at calls for gun control and how Australia worked to change its culture of gun violence after a massacre 20 years ago—and won. In April of 1996, a gunman opened fire on tourists in Port Arthur, Tasmania, killing 35 and wounding 23 others. Within 12 days of the attack, Australia's conservative government announced a bipartisan deal to enact gun control measures. There has not been another mass shooting in Australia since. We speak with Rebecca Peters, who led the campaign to reform Australia's gun laws after the Port Arthur massacre and is now an international arms control advocate and part of the International Network on Small Arms.

Puerto Rico officials say the death toll from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico has increased from 16 to 34, though the Center for Investigative Journalism reports that number could still rise. The announcement came after President Donald Trump visited the U.S. territory on Tuesday and repeatedly praised his administration's response to the storm, comparing it to George W. Bush's handling of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. During Trump's visit, protesters also gathered outside the convention center in San Juan. On Tuesday evening, Trump shocked observers by suggesting that he might seek to cancel Puerto Rico's $74 billion debt. We get response from Democracy Now!'s Juan González.

Puerto Rico Death Toll Rises as President Trump Lauds Hurricane Response, Protesters in San Juan Blast Trump's Hurricane Response, U.S. Militarism, Leaked Photos Show Las Vegas Shooter's Arsenal, Casino Workers Say They Witnessed Las Vegas Shooter Abuse Girlfriend, House Suspends Silencer Bill as Senate Leader Rejects New Gun Controls, Sen. Bernie Sanders: Tax Bill Would Give $52 Billion Break to Walton Family, Defense Secretary Mattis Opposes Withdrawal from Iran Nuclear Deal, NBC: Secretary of State Tillerson Called President Trump a "Moron", U.S. Expels Cuban Diplomats Amid Dispute over "Sonic Attacks", Spain: Hundreds of Thousands Join Catalan Independence Protests, Parts of French State of Emergency to Become Permanent Under New Bill, Former Iraqi Leader Jalal Talabani Dies at 83, Mexico: Earthquake Death Toll at 366 as Last Body Recovered from Site, Scotland Bans Oil and Gas Fracking, Equifax CEO Apologizes to Congress over Data Breach Affecting 143 Million, Yahoo Says All 3 Billion User Accounts Were Breached in 2013 Hack, Ben & Jerry's Signs Labor Agreement Protecting Farmworkers

As President Trump travels to Puerto Rico two weeks after it was devastated by Hurricane Maria, we go to the island for an on-the-ground report. Democracy Now!'s correspondent Juan Carlos Dávila traveled to the town of Utuado to speak with residents who have yet to get help other than a few bottles of water. He also joins us live in the capital San Juan from a protest against Trump's visit.

Efforts by President Donald Trump to ease some restrictions on U.S. weapons sales overseas have raised concerns as he considers changes that would allow the State Department and Pentagon to more actively advocate on behalf of American arms manufacturers. The move could be included in an executive order or presidential memorandum Trump plans to issue this fall. This comes as the United States is already the global leader in weapons exports, accounting for more than half the world's annual arms deals. We speak with William Hartung, the director of the Arms and Security Project at the Center for International Policy.

As details emerge about the massacre in Las Vegas, the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, Republican leaders called for a moment for national mourning and prayer, even as lawmakers advanced a pair of bills that would liberalize gun laws. One measure that could pass the House as early as this week would remove long-standing restrictions on silencers. Another bill expected to move through Congress this fall would allow people to lawfully carry concealed weapons across state lines into jurisdictions that don't allow them. We speak with two journalists following the story: Kira Lerner is a political reporter at ThinkProgress, and Lois Beckett is a senior reporter at The Guardian covering gun policy, criminal justice and the far right in the United States.

As the the toll from Sunday night's mass shooting in Las Vegas rose to 59 dead and 527 wounded, we go to Nevada to speak about the state's lax gun laws with Elizabeth Becker, the former head of the Nevada chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. "The people of Nevada want every gun sale … to have to undergo a background check," Becker says.

Las Vegas: 59 Dead, 527 Injured as Police Search for Shooter's Motive, Las Vegas Shooter Stephen Paddock Had Arsenal of 42 Guns, Explosives, Republicans Call for Mourning and Prayer Amid Push to Liberalize Gun Laws, Trump to Visit Puerto Rico After Calling Critics "Politically Motivated Ingrates", Supreme Court Opens Term with Workers' Rights Case, White House Advisers Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump Used Private Email Server, Yemen: ICRC Warns of New Outbreaks as Cholera Cases Near 1 Million, Syria: 11 Dead as Suicide Bombs Target Damascus Police Station, Kenyan Police Clash with Supporters of Opposition Presidential Candidate, Spain: Mass Protests Continue as EU Rejects Catalan Independence Vote, New York Judge Throws Out Case Against Activist Prosecuted by NYPD, Rock Legend Tom Petty Dies of a Heart Attack at 66

In Spain, tensions are escalating over Sunday's independence referendum in the northeast region of Catalonia. More than 800 people were injured after Spanish police stormed polling stations and tried to forcibly prevent people from voting, firing tear gas and physically attacking prospective voters. Late on Sunday night, the Catalan regional government said 90 percent of Catalan voters chose independence. The Catalan government now says it plans to unilaterally declare independence from Spain within 48 hours. Spain says it will recognize neither the results of the referendum nor a declaration of independence. The escalating conflict is being described as the biggest constitutional crisis in Spain since the end of the Franco dictatorship in the 1970s. For more, we speak with Sebastiaan Faber, professor of Hispanic studies at Oberlin College and author of the forthcoming book "Memory Battles of the Spanish Civil War: History, Fiction, Photography." He's the co-author of an article in The Nation headlined "Have Spain and Catalonia Reached a Point of No Return?" We also speak with Pau Faus, filmmaker and writer from Barcelona, Spain. His recent documentary "Ada for Mayor" follows the campaign of Barcelona Mayor Ada Colau.

The U.S. military has sent more than 4,000 soldiers to Puerto Rico as the island continues to grapple with a dire shortage of clean water, food and electricity nearly two weeks after Hurricane Maria. For more on the militarization of Puerto Rico in the aftermath of the devastating storm, we speak with Xiomara Caro Diaz, lawyer, activist and director of New Organizing Projects at the Center for Popular Democracy.