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May Survives No-Confidence Vote, Brexit Hurdles Remain; Interview with MP Bernard Jenkin; Interview with MP George Freeman; The U.S. President and the War on Truth; Time Running Out on Climate Change; Theresa May Survives No-Confidence Vote; International Manhunt For Christmas Market Gunman; Second Canadian Questioned In China And Now Missing; Trump's Ex Lawyer Given Three-Year Prison Term; Russia: Maria Butina A Political Prisoner & Tortured. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired December 13, 2018 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:00:00] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello everyone, I'm Rosemary Church and you are watching CNN NEWSROOM. Ahead this hour, Britain's Theresa May survives a no-confidence vote but winning enough support for her Brexit deal is proving to be a far greater challenge.
Plus, four years he says he covered up Donald Trump's dirty deeds. Now, Michael Cohen is headed to prison, but he's not done talking to prosecutors just yet. And later the murder of Jamal Khashoggi sparks international outrage but a new report finds hundreds of other journalists who authoritarian governments are trying to keep quiet.
Well, Britain's Prime Minister can now return her attention to getting approval for her Brexit deal. Theresa May survived her Conservative Party's no-confidence vote Wednesday but the number of lawmakers voting against her underscores how much opposition she still faces in getting the agreement passed.
She acknowledged the opposition and said she would press on with getting the assurances they need from the European Union. Nina dos Santos has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Theresa May won the confidence vote in her leadership scored 200 votes in her favor versus a 117 against. And that meant it was time she said to end the political backbiting and deliver what the British people had voted for which is getting on with the job of delivering Brexit.
THERESA MAY, PRIME MINISTER, U.K.: Following this ballots, we now need to get on with the job of delivering Brexit for the British people and building a better future for this country.
DOS SANTOS: What this result does achieve is to secure Theresa May's position for the next 12 months to come because in accordance with the conservative party rules, she can't face another challenge over the next year. And it also means the chances of a no deal Brexit by which the U.K. would crash out of the E.U. on March the 29th next year without a deal in place, those are also diminished too.
But when it comes to solving the problem of how Theresa May is going to get her Brexit deal through Parliament when eventually they are called to vote on it which is set to happen before January the 21st next year, that again remains to be seen. This is a deal that is loathed by many parts of the political spectrum from left to right, from hard and soft Brexiters inside her own party.
And unless you can negotiate any substantive changes from Brussels, well, she may well face a no-confidence vote from the whole of the parliaments if Labour indeed finally decides to heed Scottish National Party wishes to do that.
In the meantime, Theresa May will be spending Thursday in Brussels but she'll be speaking to E.U. leaders yet again probably impressing upon them the need to change some of the language in the 585-page withdrawal agreement so that she can try and get it through her own country's house. It's not looking as though Brussels though is willing to budge on much. Nina dos Santos, CNN London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Joining us now from Los Angeles is CNN's European Affairs Commentator Dominic Thomas. Dominic, good to have you with us.
DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Thanks, Rosemary.
CHURCH: So Theresa May survived the no-confidence vote and secured her future for at least another year, but her biggest challenge remains, of course, getting her Brexit deal approved. Where does she go from here and what's Brexit's future looking like right now?
THOMAS: Right. Yes, I mean, it's extraordinary. So she survives this and wakes up to find under a pillow still the big word Brexit right, and she's got to move along. And so you know, in many ways securing two-thirds of a party's support is quite meaningful. I mean it points to the extraordinary divisions she has on her side without even having to worry about the whole question of the -- of the opposition.
She's going to go back to the European Union and continue negotiations with them. She's hinted that she's going to be talking more across party lines to folks in the Houses of Parliament. The problem is the backstop with Northern Ireland is really not the only issue. When you look at essentially this kind of the spectrum of positions on Brexit that the Labour Party is talking about, a customs union and a single market which is something that is not going to fly you know, within her party that wants less obligations and less alliance with the European Union.
So she survives miraculously and she's still in power, but there is so much of a sort of you know unexpected terrain ahead that she has to navigate. And sooner or later she's going to have to come back to Parliament and put a meaningful vote before the Parliament which is thought -- which is something they thought they were going to have earlier this week. CHURCH: OK, well that all plays out. I have to ask you this. What
were members of her party even thinking pulling a no-confidence vote at this time given any change of leadership would have set the whole Brexit process back and could have plunged the country into economic chaos? And why did it do it when they didn't even have the numbers?
[01:05:11] THOMAS: Yes. Well, this is really I think what this whole issue is about. It's much easier to get a no-confidence vote within your party. You only need 15 percent of the elected MPs to be able to go doing that. And so these hardcore Brexiters, the far-right wing of a party that have been causing all of this trouble and disruption since the Brexit vote of 2016 and were able to move ahead of this, and I think that they thought that they were going to be able to come out strategize everybody, the Labour Party is kind of paralyzed in the opposition not really knowing where to go. And they thought that they could perhaps capitalize on sentiment when Theresa May announced that she was not going to be holding the meaningful vote earlier on this week two.
And what we saw in the outcome of this is it's extraordinary that even though she got 67 percent of the vote, the hardcore Brexiters have been going on for two years now about the fact that they have 52 percent and that's a majority. And I think that what this vote highlighted is that this far-right contingent in her political party that have been causing so much disruption do not have substantial support and hopefully public opinion will come out once and for all and speak out against these folks and ask them to keep quiet as they go about the process of trying to figure out whether or not some kind of Brexit deal can be achieved.
And that may be the paradox of all of this that they are ultimately silenced. Of course, they're calling for her to resign and so on and so forth but I think they have very little room to stand on and this is backfired because now they can't ask over another -- for a one-year period. Only the Labour Party now can shelve a motion can table emotion of no confidence. That's really worked against them,
CHURCH: Speaking of which, ahead of the no-confidence vote, Theresa May answered questions on the deferred vote on her Brexit deal. And this is how opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn responded.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEREMY CORBYN, LEADER, LABOUR PARTY: The Prime Minister and the government had already been found to be in contempt of parliament. Her behavior today is just contemptuous of this Parliament and of this process.
MAY: He couldn't care less about Brexit. What he wants to do is bring down the government, create uncertainty, sow division, and crash our economy. The biggest -- the biggest threat -- the biggest threat to people and to this country isn't leaving the E.U., it's a Corbin government.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: So Dominic, what is Jeremy Corbyn's alternative plan in the midst of all this chaos with increasing calls for him to demand a general election, to call a vote of no confidence in her government. That has unnerved some investors though. What's his likely next move?
THOMAS: Well, the vote of no-confidence need to call it as a huge difference between asking conservative MPs to vote in their own chambers to try and oust their own particular leader and replace that leader. Then, asking them to go to Parliament, work with the Labour government and try to remove a conservative leader with all of the unexpected sort of terrain and danger that would come -- that would come ahead of that.
I don't think Jeremy Corbyn's party -- and the brim of his party is divided, but their official position is to respect the referendum and therefore allow you know, for Brexit to go ahead, really has you know an alternative or a position here beyond simply arguing for Brexit again. Where his position to be opposed to Brexit you know, that may be a very different -- very different thing.
And what Theresa May has already done you know, by proposing that she would not understand for the 2022 election which in so many ways is influenced by Angela Merkel's decision you know, in Germany to step away from the leadership of the CDU while remaining as Chancellor is she's essentially comforted much of the Conservative Party by saying, I will take the responsibility for trying to shepherd this Brexit deal through which none of you really want to be at the helm in doing this, but I will not run for the next election which gives you time to think about future leadership.
I think that has taken away a lot of the wind from Jeremy Corbyn's sail and the support that he thought he might get from that party in trying to oust Theresa May. But of course, when the deal comes before the Parliament in a few weeks' time for the meaningful vote, once again we'll be looking at it at a complicated situation here.
CHURCH: Yes. Still no answer on Brexit right? Dominic Thomas, always a pleasure to have your analysis. Thank you so much.
THOMAS: Thanks, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Well, the latest now on that train crash in Turkey. Four people were killed when a high-speed train crashed at the Station in Ankara, 43 are injured. That's according to Ankara's governor. State news reports the train derailed and crashed into the base of an overpass. The overpass then collapsed onto part of the train. We will continue to follow this story and bring you the details as they come in to us.
An international manhunt is underway to find the gunman in Tuesday's deadly attack at a Christmas market in Strasbourg, France. Police have released a photo of the suspect, 29-year-old Cherif Chekatt. He has an extensive criminal background including 27 convictions mostly for robbery and acts of violence. The country is now on its highest security threat level.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[01:10:22] ROLAND RIES, MAYOR, STRASSBOURG, FRANCE (through translator): What happened Tuesday evening is indisputably whether we like it or not, a form of a terrorist attack. If you take the basic meaning of terrorists, to mean with the aim of creating terror. For the moment, we do not really know the further motivations of the person who committed these acts but it was indisputably an attack.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Two people were killed and 13 wounded in the attack. Authorities say one is on life support with no chance of recovery. A second Canadian may have been detained in China, an act that threatens to escalate the diplomatic dispute between Washington, Beijing, and Ottawa. Well, Canada has confirmed a former diplomat is being held in Beijing but the timing of this is key. At the request of the United States, Canada arrested the chief financial officer of Huawei, one of the largest telecom companies in the world.
She's now out on bail, accused of fraud, waiting for her extradition hearing. But then Donald Trump weighed in to comment on her case saying he might intervene if it could help reach a trade deal with China. So plenty to cover here. Let's get to our Andrew Stevens who joins us now live from Hong Kong. Good to see you again, Andrew. So what more are you learning about the two missing Canadians in China?
ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it appears, Rosemary, that they were both picked up, detained, and questioned by Chinese authorities on the same day on December 10th. We knew about Michael Kovrig before we heard about her Michael Spavor who has just that news is now starting to trickle out. So the Canadian embassy earlier today, Asia time, confirming that they were concerned about the second Canadian Michael Spavor and the fact that they had lost contact with him.
He had initially called postal officials to say he'd just been questioned by Chinese authorities and was very concerned about his position. He then disappeared.
What we are hearing now from local media in in Dandong which is a city on the North Korean border is that the local apparatus of the State Security Bureau did pick him up and they have been investigating him because of activities which could endanger the national security of China.
That's important phrase because that's exactly the same phrase the Chinese used on Michael Kovrig that he too, the activities that he was involved with could have endangered the national security of China.
Now, what we know about the second Canadian is that he's a 43-year- old, that he led business delegations. He led to tourism delegations. He also led academics into North Korea from China. He's perhaps best known for accompanying Dennis Rodman, the basketball when he went into North Korea to meet with Kim Jong-un. So he's quite well known in diplomatic circles at least in China. But we at this stage, the Canadian government is saying they don't
actually know his whereabouts and we have this report from a state- owned media or a smaller media operator in the northeast of China saying that he is being investigated and his case is now under review.
And as you point out and most key to this of course, Rosemary, is the timing. The timing comes just a few days after the CFO, the chief financial officer of Huawei was arrested by China -- by Canadian authorities on behalf of the U.S. acting for the U.S. and she's now out on bail. And it came just a couple of days that -- the detentions of these two Canadians came just a couple of days after China warned of basically grave consequences if Canada did not let them go.
CHURCH: Yes. And a critical timing issue here. We know you will continue to follow the details on this story. Our Andrew Stevens joining us live from Hong Kong where it is 2:15 in the afternoon. Many thanks as always.
All right, next here on CNN NEWSROOM, one of the people closest to Donald Trump is now heading to prison. But Michael Cohen says he's not yet finished telling the government what he knows about the U.S. President. Plus hours before she's to plead guilty in a U.S. Court, the Russian government makes some serious allegations. It says the accused Russian spy is being tortured. Back with that in just a moment.
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[01:17:20] CHURCH: Donald Trump's former long-time attorney and so- called fixer will begin a three prison sentence in March.
Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to several criminal counts, including secret pay-offs during the 2016 presidential campaign to two women who claimed affair with Mr. Trump before he become president. Mr. Trump has denied both allegations. More now from CNN's Jeff Zeleny.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump was in no mood to talk today. About the sentencing of his long-time fixer and lawyer Michael Cohen. But Cohen who once said he would take a bullet for Trump finally took aim at his old boss. Apologizing for what he called blind loyalty. While the president has been increasingly dismissive of Cohen --
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So, he's lying very simply to get a reduced sentence, OK?
ZELENY: He in the White House were unusually silent as Cohen implicated the president in a scheme to silence women who said they had affairs with Trump. Cohen accepted responsibility even as he blamed the president. "I thought it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds," he told the judge.
The president still insists to blame rests on Cohen's shoulders. Telling Reuters, "Michael Cohen is a lawyer. I assumed he would know what he's doing." The president also offering a new defense for the hush money payment. Saying, "It wasn't a campaign contribution. If it were, it's only civil. And even if it's only civil, there was no violation based on what we did. OK"
But he doesn't have the final say on that. Today's proceedings in the New York courtroom represent an extraordinary turnabout for Cohen. A member of the Trump's inner circle for more than a decade. His protector in business and politics. Trump first denied knowing about payments Cohen made the women to buy their silence during the campaign.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, did you know about the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels?
TRUMP: No, no. What else?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then why, why did Michael Cohen made this, if there was no truth to her allegations?
TRUMP: Well, you have to ask Michael Cohen. Michael is my attorney, and you'll have to ask Michael Cohen.
ZELENY: He later acknowledged repaying Cohen. But eight months ago, he erupted when authorities raided Cohen's home and office.
TRUMP: So, I just heard that they broke into the office of one of my personal attorneys, good man, and it's a disgraceful situation.
ZELENY: When Cohen started cooperating with prosecutors, Trump changed his tune, and turned on him.
TRUMP: He's a weak person and not a very smart person. What he's trying to do is end -- and it's very simple, he's got himself a big prison sentence. And he's trying to get a much lesser prison sentence by making up a story.
ZELENY: Yet, Cohen may have the last word, telling the judge, "I will continue to cooperate with the government."
So, the fact that Michael Cohen could still cooperate with prosecutors certainly may be unsettling to some here at the White House. The president's reaction, at least, publicly was silent in the immediate aftermath of the sentencing.
Behind the scenes though, officials say he's sieving, he's angry at his former fixer and lawyer. They also say he doesn't believe him. In the words of one official, the president said, Cohen's a liar. Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:20:29] CHURCH: Joining me now to talk more about this is the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics, Larry Sabato. Always great to have you with us.
LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: Thank you so much, Rosemary.
CHURCH: So, Michael Cohen was hit with a 3-year sentence for tax evasion, bank fraud, campaign fraud, and lying to Congress. If the president's former lawyer is going to prison, what might that signal for President Trump's future, the man who directed Cohen to make those hush money payments?
SABATO: It doesn't say much good. And, of course, there are others awaiting including the accountant for the Trump Organization. He probably knows more than anybody. But look, if you were Donald Trump and you knew obviously the interactions you had, had with your lawyer. And you realize now that not only of the offense is serious, but that your lawyer probably kept a number of tapes of you, you have to be concerned. Because no doubt, the prosecutor has a great deal of it.
CHURCH: Yes, and Cohen is now painting himself as the victim, and doesn't want to be remembered as the villain in this story tale. What did you take him to mean when he said this about President Trump? "Time and time again, I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds."
Now, Larry, which dirty deeds might he be referring to there and what do you think he is trying to do?
SABATO: He's specifically referring to the payoffs that occurred to two women with whom Trump had, had affairs right before the November 2016 presidential election. But he may also be referring to other things because he and the prosecutor, and possibly a few lawyers are the only ones who really know everything that Michael Cohen has been spilling.
And all that's true and, of course, Donald Trump was the original source of this. But, after all, Michael Cohen also has an independent conscience. And some of these offenses from which he was sentenced today were independent of Donald Trump.
So, I would say, Cohen himself has a lot to apologize for, but he is certainly correct that Donald Trump was the approximate cause of the mortal sins.
CHURCH: Yes, and in that quote, he's saying time and time again he felt. So, it seems to go beyond just the hush money payments, doesn't it?
SABATO: Yes.
CHURCH: But Cohen has also pledged to continue to cooperate with the Mueller investigation. So, what more do you think we might learn if he goes forward and spills some more beans.
SABATO: If he's been smart, and I think he's a pretty clever guy. He's probably saved some things for not just Mueller, but also the local New York prosecutors that might enable him to get a reduced sentence. Now, he got a reduced sentence compared to what he might have served. But he would love to see it reduced lower than the three years or probably the 2-1/2 years that he would actually in fact serve.
That's a long time for someone in his mid-50s. And in the middle of hit the best part of his career, at least, theoretically. So, he may be able to trade more information about subjects not covered by the special counsel in the next few months.
CHURCH: And from what we know so far, and certainly what we've recently learned from this sentencing of Michael Cohen, how damning might this all prove to be for the President of the United States?
SABATO: It can't possibly help Donald Trump. It's not going to look good. And it may be worse than not looking good. That is it's going to give the special counsel an opportunity to tell everybody everything, I hope in the final report.
Now, Democrats may push for impeachment. We know the odds are heavily against that in the Senate. But, you know, President Trump can be indicted once he leaves office. He may be protected during the presidency. Maybe protected during the presidency. But the indictment could come once he leaves office whenever that is. So, this can't be a pleasant prospect for Donald Trump when he's trying to focus on other things.
CHURCH: It must be very interesting at the White House right now to be a fly on the wall, right? Larry Sabato, thank you so much for joining us.
SABATO: Thank you, Rosemary.
[01:24:57] CHURCH: Well, Thursday morning, an accused Russian spy is expected to plead guilty in a Washington federal court. Russia's president says he doesn't know Maria Butina and neither do his spy chiefs.
But the Russian Foreign Ministry is now making some serious accusations. Our Frederik Pleitgen, reports now from Moscow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Just hours before alleged Russian agent, Maria Butina is set to formally enter a plea deal with U.S. authorities. And after she's already begun cooperating with investigators, Moscow lashing out at America.
The spokeswoman for Russia's foreign ministry in an exclusive interview with CNN, claiming Butina is a political prisoner and going even further.
MARIA ZAKHAROVA, SPOKESWOMAN, FOREIGN MINISTRY OF RUSSIA: It's not about justice, it's not justice, it's just inquisition. It's a medieval inquisition. Because she's intimidated, she was tortured and she was treated not like a human being, not like a woman.
PLEITGEN: There is nothing to indicate that Butina who's in solitary confinement has been tortured while in U.S. custody. CNN has learned she gets regular visits from her lawyer, and her boyfriend, Paul Erickson. And is able to speak to her parents in Russia.
However, the hours Butina is allowed out of her cell are minimal and usually at night, to prevent her from interacting with the regular prison population.
When contacted by CNN, the Justice Department refused to comment as the case is still pending. Russia is often accused of jailing and killing dissidents and opposition figures for political reasons, claims, the Kremlin denies.
Butina who cozied up to the National Rifle Association and other conservative organizations is accused of working in the U.S. under the direction of a Russian official without registering as a foreign agent.
JOSEPH MORENO, FORMER FEDERAL PROSECUTOR, JUSTICE DEPARTMENT: As she can explain who that official or officials were, what she was tasked with doing, what steps she took to actually conduct those tasks, and who if anyone was complicit in those activities here in the United States.
PLEITGEN: Butina's arrest was announced on the day President Trump met Vladimir Putin in Helsinki. Moscow also alleging the timing of the announcement was political.
ZAKHAROVA: And all the details of that case was closely connected with political relationship between Russia and United States. Because all that happened just after two presidents met each other and hold negotiations. And, of course, that was another evidence that this is a political case, and she's a political prisoner.
PLEITGEN: After the deal and her eventual released from jail, Butina will probably have to return to Russia where officials are already making her out to be a victim of the turmoil between the U.S. and Russia. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Well, her critics say, stamina is not a strategy. Her supporters say, she will get a Brexit deal done. More reaction as Theresa May survives another political day from hell. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:30:21] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone.
You are watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church.
Let's check the headlines for you this hour.
Rescue efforts are underway in Ankara, Turkey after a high speed train crashed killing four people. The city's governor says 43 are injured. State news reports the train derailed and crashed into the base of an overpass which then collapsed on to part top of the train. There were 206 passengers on board at the time of that crash. Anti-terror police have joined an international manhunt for the gunman
accused of killing two people at a Christmas market in Strasbourg, France. Authorities say 29-year-old Cherif Chekatt has an extensive criminal background with more than two dozen convictions in France, Germany and Switzerland mostly for acts of robbery and violence.
British Prime Minister Theresa May survived a no-confidence vote from her own Conservative Party Wednesday. But the challenge of getting her Brexit deal passed in parliament remains. She is seeking reassurances from the European Union on trade arrangements at the Irish border but that's not expected to sway her opponents.
It has been an excruciating 24 hours for Britain's Prime Minister. CNN's Anna Stewart takes us through the leadup to Theresa May's Wednesday night win.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Theresa May returned from a whistle-stop tour of Brussels and Berlin Tuesday night with a clear message ringing in her ears. The E.U. would offer no further concessions.
But there was even worse news waiting on the doorstep. She would face a vote of no-confidence from her own MPs the very next day. Forty- eight MPs, 15 percent of the party have sent letters to the chair of the 1922 Committee.
Through this archaic mechanism, a club of conservative MPs, the party expressed their displeasure. The chair of the 1922 Committee Graham Brady confirmed the news.
GRAHAM BRADY, CHAIR, CONSERVATIVE PARTY'S 1922 COMMITTEE: The rules are straightforward. The -- if at least 15 percent of the parliamentary Conservative Party write letters to me as chairman of the 1922 Committee. Then it is for me to inform and consult with the Prime Minister. I did that over the telephone last night. And then to proceed with a ballot as soon as is reasonably practicable in the circumstances.
STEWART: Snubbed by Europe and insulted by her own party, Theresa May then had to face Prime Minister's Questions. As she often has done in this fractious process, she gave a pugnacious and confident performance against the odds.
THERESA MAY, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The Right Honorable gentleman said we wouldn't get agreement in December -- we did. He said we wouldn't get the implementation period in March, we did. He said we wouldn't get a withdrawal agreement and a political declaration and we did.
JEREMY CORBYN, BRITISH LABOUR PARTY LEADER: Her behavior today is just contemptuous of this parliament (INAUDIBLE).
Mr. Speaker -- the Prime Minister's appalling behavior needs to be held to account. STEWART: But at the very moment Theresa May suggested in the House of
Commons that further talks were possible, in Germany, Angela Merkel was reiterating to the Bundestag that the deal on offer was the final deal.
With a vote scheduled for the afternoon, MPs returned to their offices and tearooms to plot, chat and talk to the media.
At last as night fell, Graham Brady delivered the verdict.
BRADY: The number of votes cast in favor of having confidence in Theresa May was 200, and against was 117.
Under the rules set out in the constitution of the Conservative Party, no further confidence vote can take place for at least a year.
STEWART: A victory for Theresa May who survived yet another political day from hell and demonstrated her remarkable fortitude, albeit at a cost.
She told the 1922 Committee she will not be standing in the next election.
Anna Stewart CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Bernard Jenkin is a conservative member of parliament and a leading supporter of Brexit. He spoke to my colleague Hala Gorani right after the vote and talked about why he thinks keeping Theresa May as Prime Minister is a mistake.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: You must be disappointed then this evening.
BERNARD JENKIN, MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT: I am disappointed. I think this is going to make life more difficult for the conservative government. This was a vote of confidence of just conservative MPs. More than a third of Theresa May's MPs voted against her.
[01:35:01] GORANI: But she acknowledged that, by the way, in her statement.
JENKIN: Yes.
GORANI: That was one of the first things she said.
JENKIN: Well, I think that was generous of her and I congratulate her on her victory. But the problems that we're concerned about that her deal doesn't deliver Brexit, that her deal has alienated her coalition partner because of course 317 MPs in the House of Commons is less than half the MPs.
GORANI: Yes. JENKIN: We don't have a majority so we have to have an agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party from Northern Ireland and they hate this deal.
GORANI: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: And they're not the only ones.
But let me ask you this. What is the alternative? Why would you or anyone who doesn't like this deal be able to negotiate a better one with Brussels?
JENKIN: Well, partly because I think Theresa May has run out of negotiating credibility with the European Union. She's actually put her signature on this deal that she can't get through the House of Commons. I mean --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: But why would you be -- do a better job?
JENKIN: Well, a fresh Prime Minister would have had the opportunity to say, right, we're starting again and would have said with the support of the DUP we're going to leave the European Union without an agreement if necessary.
But there's a problem with the agreement that the U.K. has been offered so far. We can literally leave the E.U. just by serving notice. These new arrangements for leaving the E.U., we can't leave those without the permission of the E.U.
GORANI: But time is ticking.
JENKIN: Yes.
GORANI: It's -- it is also a question of how much time you have to negotiate a better deal. Article 50 was triggered when some would argue it didn't need to be.
JENKIN: Some would argue and it probably --
GORANI: It was too early.
JENKIN: -- well. I'm surprised --
GORANI: You didn't have a plan.
JENKIN: I think that's one of the reasons why Theresa May has rather lost credibility. Why did she ask parliament to help her invoke Article 50 --
GORANI: Yes.
JENKIN: -- when it turned out, you know, 15 months later the government hasn't even agreed with itself what it was going to try and negotiate?
GORANI: Why not extend the negotiating period at this point? Give your country a chance to negotiate a better agreement.
JENKIN: There might be a case for that but the real problem, you know, is we have 52 percent of our voters who voted to leave. Not 52 percent of the MPs. Most of the MPs want to remain in the European Union. This is really in the Beltway-outside of the Beltway stuff.
GORANI: Yes.
JENKIN: And gradually, even though the MPs all said we accept the referendum result. We accept the referendum result -- they don't.
(CROSSTALK)
JENKIN: And they're trying to --
GORANI: So you'd rather leave without a deal --
JENKIN: Yes.
GORANI: -- than create a scenario in which you have more time to negotiate?
JENKIN: Yes, I would because actually --
GORANI: Because a lot of people would listen to you and say that's not in the best interest of the country.
JENKIN: Well, we would have some short-term problems.
GORANI: It is political.
JENKIN: Well, the result of the referendum was political. It was a decision to take back our independence as a sovereign state. As you know, the United States of America would never agree to join something like the European Union where lawmakers in a foreign country -- ok, you got one guy at the table but they make your laws. And there's a court that can overrule your Supreme Court.
And all kinds of regulations and laws are applied in your country which you can't control. That's what it is like being in the European Union. You would never accept that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Well, one of Theresa May's supporter sis conservative MP George Freeman. He also talked to Hala and explained why he gave the Prime Minister his backing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Mr. Freeman -- you voted for Theresa May. Why?
GEORGE FREEMAN, CONSERVATIVE MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT: Because I think triggering a conservative leadership election tonight would have been a complete distraction from the real challenge which is that we've got three months to find a deal.
And the default, the legal default is a no deal which would be very damaging to the U.K., very damaging to our Irish partners and very damaging to Europe.
GORANI: Well, Sir Bernard Jenkin, who was here before you said he'd rather leave without a deal.
FREEMAN: Yes. Bernard, I would classify as a religious zealot on Brexit. For 30 years he's overriding mission in politics has been to pull out of the European Union. I think he'd actually like the European Union to fail.
Now I do not share that view and nor do most of my colleagues. So the moderate voice of the Conservative Party tonight has triumphed in saying we have to get on and try and negotiate a deal that works for everybody. And the world --
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: So does that mean that the hard Brexiters will be -- you know, less of a force in your party?
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: In the end, they're the ones who got David Cameron into the mess that he got himself into by calling a referendum, right? I mean are they the ones now who are going to be slightly more kind of --
FREEMAN: I think they've overplayed their hand. I think many people like me, I was for remain. I was in business before I came into the conservative politics. I was a business minister under David Cameron.
We've all compromised. I've accepted that we're leaving the European political union. I've accepted that. And I think the Brexiters have overplayed their hand tonight. And the Conservative Party has said enough actually. We need to get on and find a deal.
[01:40:04] GORANI: Here's my question. Why do you accept the inevitability of Brexit? You haven't left yet.
FREEMAN: Why do I expect the inevitability of us leaving the European political union?
GORANI: Yes. Yes.
FREEMAN: Because I think the British public are very clear, very clear. And I think those people who think we'll have a second referendum. And I know this view in Europe is common. Many of my European friends say to me, you know, Britain will change its mind.
I honestly don't think that's the case. I voted to remain. So I'm not saying this as someone who thinks that I'll get my way. I just -- I'm afraid. I think the British public have decided that we should leave the political union and a political party that tells them they're wrong will never recover.
So the challenge is for us to find a Brexit which -- which is orderly, which is moderate, which is sensible. Now my hard-core colleagues like Bernard Jenkin --
GORANI: Yes.
FREEMAN: -- are against it. But I think that majority in the House of Commons is for it.
GORANI: But you say that the party that will go against the people's wish to exit the political union would be damaged irreparably.
FREEMAN: Yes.
GORANI: Is your party not damaged irreparably as it is?
FREEMAN: Yes. And I think the Labour Party would be damaged absolutely irreparably if they're in the same place. And that's why --
GORANI: No, no. I mean as it is, is it not damaged irreparably?
FREEMAN: It has been damaged by Brexit.
GORANI: It is so divided.
Bernard Jenkin for instance, I mean his discourse is so different to yours.
FREEMAN: Yes, I agree. I'm agreeing with you.
GORANI: Saying things that people have tweeted me are outright lies.
FREEMAN: Shop horror (ph).
GORANI: Like that the E.U. imposed its laws on the U.K. --
FREEMAN: Yes.
GORANI: They're saying it's outright lies. And so you are a member of the same party as Bernard Jenkin, how do you reconcile that?
FREEMAN: Well, shop horror -- the Conservative Party is divided by Brexit. The country is divided by Brexit. The Labour Party, by the way, is equally divided by Brexit. Jeremy Corbyn is playing a clever game up north where there's a very strong Labour Brexit vote. he plays the Brexiter down south in London, in the liberal Labour Party he plays a remainer.
In the end, the country is divided. And I'm not sitting here telling you tonight this is a moment of unity and triumph, at all.
GORANI: Yes.
FREEMAN: I'm simply saying to you that we've now better get on with the job.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And in about 30 minutes I will be talking live to Tom Brooks, professor of law and government at Durham University about what is next for Theresa May and, of course, her Brexit battle.
Also a new report details the growing number of journalists jailed for doing their work. When we come back, what role does President Trump play in the war on truth?
[01:42:27] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Well, the spike in jailed journalists around the world is not a temporary trend, it's the new normal. That's the message from the Committee to Protect Journalists in a new report.
The group says for the third year in a row at least 251 journalists are jailed worldwide. And Turkey, China, Egypt and Saudi Arabia are responsible for more than half of those.
The report shows that 98 percent of jailed journalists are locals imprisoned by their own governments and 13 percent are women.
Joining me now to talk more about this is the deputy executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, Robert Mahoney. Thank you so much for being with us.
ROBERT MAHONEY, DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, COMMITTEE TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS: Thank you.
CHURCH: Now this new CPJ report highlights just how dangerous it is to be a journalist covering politics and human rights in countries like China, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. What is it about these countries that makes journalism so perilous? And why do they jail more journalists than other nations?
MAHONEY: Well, because there's a creeping authoritarianism around the world. These countries are run by leaders that really will brook no criticism and at quashing independent journalism.
In China it is the case in the far west of the country you have the jailing of Wega (ph) journalists in the Shenzhen region. And Turkey -- Turkey has long been a jailor of journalists and that has continued.
But I think what we see is a growing authoritarianism in the Middle East here. I mean in Egypt there are now more journalists in jail this year than last as President Sisi is throwing critics behind bars. And a huge increase relatively anyway in Saudi Arabia which has been in the news as you know because of the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. But the number of journalists in Saudi Arabia has doubled in the last 12 months.
CHURCH: Yes. And we'll certainly get to that in just a moment. But, you know, when we're looking at numbers -- at least 251 journalists jailed worldwide for a third year in a row. That's according to this latest CPJ report.
What is the international community doing about this? Is there any sense that there's a priority to protect journalists at all?
MAHONEY: No. That's the problem is that journalists are feeling very much like they're on their own and rely on other journalists and organizations like the Committee to Protect Journalists to stand up for them.
One of the biggest developments has been the loss of the United States, in particular of the White House as a champion of press freedom with Donald Trump labelling journalists the enemy of the people. That sets a tone which these dictators and strongmen around the world have picked up. And we now find that the numbers of journalists jailed worldwide on so-called fake news charges or false news is growing from nine just a couple of years ago when Trump first came to power to 28 this year.
So we lost part of the United States as a champion of -- of independent journalism.
CHURCH: And do you feel that President Trump is very much linked to that increase of jailing of journalists?
MAHONEY: Well, it sets the tone. It's the backdrop against which this is playing out. And leaders can use Trump as a pretext. And they're doing so. I mean President Duterte in the Philippines has cracked down on the press citing false news. President Sisi in Egypt has done exactly the same thing.
So instead of making the situation better, what we've got here in the U.S. is we're making it worse.
CHURCH: And of course you mentioned the U.S. because we saw reaction in the United States to the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi that highlighted how some politicians here in the United States don't even appear to be very concerned about a journalist being murdered. Why is that? What is at work right now?
MAHONEY: Well, there are several things but the biggest is that the Trump administration and even members of the Trump family have connections, commercial and other with Saudi Arabia. And Trump is being quite explicit that this is a transactional relationship with Riyadh and he doesn't want to put it in jeopardy.
So far from coming out and strongly condemning Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and his government for what -- what was done, the butchering of -- of a journalist in a Saudi consulate -- instead of doing that in a very forthright manner we had if you like Trump making excuses and trying to play it down.
[01:49:58] And it's only senators and congressmen in Washington that have kept the issue alive as far as the U.S. government is concerned.
CHURCH: Robert Mahoney -- thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it. MAHONEY: Thank you.
CHURCH: A warning from the U.N. Secretary General on climate change, Antonio Guterres says the planet no longer has the luxury of time to find solutions to global warming.
Our Nick Paton Walsh has more from the COP 24 Climate Conference in Poland.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: As we enter into the last 48 hours of these really make or break talks for averting catastrophe on the planet, the U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has returned to the talks.
Now some say they were always expecting him to do that, because that's the nature of the fixed time negotiations. Things get tenser towards the end. The heavy lifting has to occur then. then.
And then some say it's unexpected and perhaps a sign that things aren't necessarily going with the pace that one would require. Now, in a speech that he gave, he said clearly that key political issues remain unresolved and, quote, "They are running out of time".
Now, his concern seems to be around the ambition of what they're trying to attempt here and also the complexity of it. Now really this is the follow-up meeting from the Paris agreement of 2016, ushered in by the Barack Obama administration.
That set the tone of what countries want to do with their greenhouse emissions. But really it's here that the technicalities have to be worked out. Many call it the rule book, establishing how you measure emissions, whether developed countries and the developing countries have different rules for measuring their emissions and how transparent those necessarily are.
It sounds technical and there are some here who say, well listen, this is all about technicalities, we can work it out at a future date. But really climate change is an extraordinary technical issue. We are 12 years away from reducing our emissions by 1.5 degrees to avert catastrophe and the clock is ticking incredibly loudly here.
And without those technical questions being answered, how do you actually guarantee emissions are in fact going down? The tone of the summit, some say jeopardized by over the weekend -- the United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait -- strange bedfellows frankly, all casting doubt to one of the key scientific reports about the need for urgent action in the next 12 years.
And then on Monday the U.S., strangely many say launching a side event promoting responsible fossil fuel use, clean fossil fuel use.
There's a lot of hard work here, a lot of conflicting agendas, a lot of concerns that really the general tone coming out of Washington has given many here wiggle room to not make uncomfortable choice. And this key speech from Antonio Guterres, U.N. Secretary-General, really I think reminding people what is at stake here.
There's no debate about the science. There's no debate about exactly and what has to be done. Emissions have to be lowered drastically.
The question is do the next 48 hours see world powers and everyone else agree exactly how they're going to do that and stick to it.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN -- Katowice.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: We'll take a short break here.
But in the world of fashion, it is not what you wear. It is how you wear it. And apparently that applies to U.S. politics as well.
Back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Well, a nightmare for some, a very sweet dream for others. A ton of liquid chocolate spilled on to a German street after a tank at a chocolate factory overflowed. Cleanup crews used blowtorches and hot water to scrape it all away. I could have helped them out.
[01L54:56] Of course, it instantly drew comparisons to the film "Willy Wonka" that features a chocolate river. Remember that. Have to admit the real thing looks a lot more appetizing than the Hollywood version.
All right. An image of U.S. House member Nancy Pelosi is lighting up the Internet right now. Social media users are giving her rock star treatment for donning these shades and a bright red jacket after a tense meeting with President Trump.
Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At that now famous Oval Office meeting --
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: We should not have a Trump shutdown. You have --
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A what -- did you say Trump?
MOOS: There was a lot of shade thrown, but when Nancy Pelosi put on shades for exactly five seconds that became the moment the fans immortalized.
"Pelosi like a rock star."
"That look when you just got finished manhandling a man-baby."
The new power suit for women -- red coat, sunglasses, nerves of steel."
For a politician who almost saw her position as house speaker to be blown up, it must be sweet to be compared to the cool dude in CSI Miami.
Critics threw cold water when they're getting excited by Nancy Pelosi putting on sunglasses, you need to take a deep breath and maybe look in the mirror. Tell that to whoever made Pelosi gangsta by adding Dr. Drey and Snoop Dogg.
Pelosi joins other sunglass wearing women who went viral -- like Hillary and Elizabeth Moss from "Madmen". At the meeting President Trump, Nancy'd and Chuck'd the two leaders to death.
TRUMP: Nancy, Chuck. Nancy.
When you have walls Chuck, Nancy -- I have it passed in two seconds. The last time Chuck. Nancy, I need ten votes from Chuck.
MOOS: But why waste time with two separate names when you could combine them into one. Nan-Chuck. Nan-Chuck was the brainchild of two CNN anchors -- Lemon and Cuomo or if you prefer -- Lemonomo. Cuomo gave Lemon credit.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: My name was not good. I had Cylumer and Shulosi. Nan-Chuck is great because it's like what Bruce Lee would do with those things.
MOOS: From Bruce Lee to Jay-Z.
Pelosi. Nancy Pelosi. Also known as a Nan-Chuck.
Jeanne Moos, CNN --
PELOSI: The fact is, you do not the votes in the House.
TRUMP: Nancy -- I do.
MOOS: -- New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And you are watching CNN NEWSROOM.
I'm Rosemary Church.
The news continues on CNN right after this short break. Do stick around.
[01:57:35] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
