Afghan vet: “There is no way to win there.”

Coming up on today’s show:

• In an address to the nation, President Trump announced he would be sending more American troops to fight in Afghanistan, the longest military conflict the U.S. has ever been involved in. For a look at what’s next, The Takeaway turns to General Dan Bolger, who led the training of Afghan forces from 2011 to 2013, and Carlotta Gall, senior foreign correspondent for The New York Times.

• House Speaker Paul Ryan held a televised town hall on Monday. He faced some heat from constituents over the repeal of Obamacare, and carefully criticized President Trump’s response to the events in Charlottesville. Chuck Quirmbach, a reporter for Wisconsin Public Radio, unpacks the town hall meeting. 

• Chile was one of the few countries where abortion was illegal without exception, but yesterday, the Chilean Constitutional Tribunal ruled that abortion can be allowed in cases where the mother’s life is in danger, when the fetus is nonviable, or in cases of rape. For details, The Takeaway turns to Pascale Bonnefoy, who has been reporting on abortion in Chile for The New York Times and is a professor of journalism at the University of Chile.

• Ten U.S. sailors went missing after a Navy destroyer collided with an oil tanker off the coast of Singapore on Monday, and the U.S. Pacific Fleet announced Tuesday that some their remains were found in the flooded compartments of the U.S.S. John S. McCain. This is the second naval accident in two months. For a look at what went wrong, The Takeaway turns to Sam Tangredi, a professor of national, naval, and maritime strategy at the Center for Naval Warfare Studies at the U.S. Naval War College.

• One in eight American young people are both unemployed and out of school. But one Philadelphia school is making strides. YouthBuild Philadelphia Charter Schools director of student life Akeem Akbar joins a recent graduate, Chalisha Clemens, to talk about the work being done to unearth the potential of their city’s youth.

• “Rabbit: The Autobiography of Ms. Pat” is the first book from Patricia Williams, who has appeared on Comedy Central and NBC’s Last Comic Standing, among numerous other programs and podcasts. The book provides some  raw insight into her personal story overcoming poverty, violence, childhood pregnancy, and imprisonment and how she turned her experiences into material for her comedy career. 

This episode is hosted by Ray Suarez.