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NEWS STREAM
The White House Defends Donald Trump's Push For The Border Wall Amid Growing Political And Legal Hurdles; More Trouble For Facebook As U.K. Lawmakers Say The Company Intentionally Violated Data Privacy And Competition Laws; Raging Conflicts In Britain's Parliament, Seven Members Of The Opposition, Labour Party Have Abruptly Resigned; CNN Has Exclusive Details Of Potential Breaks In Relations Between The U.S. And North Korea, Ahead Of The Second Trump-Kim Summit Later Month; A British Parliamentary Committee Has Just Released A Report On Social Media Disinformation After Revealing Internal Facebook E-Mails, And This Is What They Found; There Has Been New Violence At A Flash Point Between Two Nuclear Armed Nations -- India And Pakistan; Ten Days Of Violence Have Gripped The Country With Deadly Protests Against Soaring Inflation And Allegations Of Widespread Government Corruption In Haiti; Venezuela's Opposition Leader, Juan Guaido Is Setting Up A Showdown With His Political Rival Over The Delivery Of U.S. Humanitarian Aid. Aired: 8:00-9a ET
Aired February 18, 2019 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST, "NEWS STREAM" (voice over): The pressure mounts.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is going to protect his national emergency declaration guaranteed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT (voice over): The White House defends Donald Trump's push for the border wall amid growing political and legal hurdles.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADAM SCHIFF, CHAIRMAN, HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE: He is pretty much daring the courts to strike this down.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT (voice over): As new details emerge about how the Russia investigation started.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW MCCABE, FORMER DEPUTY DIRECTOR, FBI: I believe I was fired because I opened a case against the President of the United States.
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SENATOR, TEXAS, REPUBLICAN: What is happening in Venezuela is a man-made crisis of epic proportion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT (voice over): A push for relief.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The aid will get through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: But for some, it may be too little too late.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ISA SOARES, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: What did you eat there? Very little rations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT (voice over): And more trouble for Facebook. U.K. lawmakers say the company intentionally violated data privacy and competition laws.
Vidd2
LU STOUT (on camera): I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to "News Stream." We'll have those stories in a moment, but first more
evidence this hour of the raging conflicts that Brexit is causing in Britain's Parliament, seven members of the opposition, Labour Party have
abruptly resigned saying that they have no confidence in the party's collective leadership confidence or culture as anti-Semitism scandal has
also contributed to these defections.
Let's go straight now to CNN's Phil Black. He joins us from London, and Phil, what more did these seven say about why they're quitting the Labour
Party.
PHIL BLACK, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, Kristie, Brexit looms over this as it does every aspect of British politics at the moment, but the problems
within the Labour Party are deeper and wider than just that one enormous issue, and so that is why people have been speculating about a possible
split within the party for some time.
But there is no doubt on this occasion, Brexit policy is key. The seven resigning MPs are all passionately in favor of another referendum on the
issue and is an idea the Labour Party leadership has not embraced. These seven are also upset and angry at the Party's efforts or lack of them when
it comes to dealing with anti-Semitism among the Labour Party leadership and more broadly, these are people who are concerned with the ideological
gulf that opened up really with the rise of Jeremy Corbyn at the leadership of the Party ever since he has steered the Party quite dramatically to the
left.
So all of these things were discussed and explained by these resigning MPs as they explain to people why they are now leaving a party they were once
very much dedicated to. Take a listen to some of their comments from today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS LESLIE, FORMER BRITISH LABOUR MP: British politics is now well and truly broken. The evidence of Labour's betrayal on Europe is now visible
for all to see.
LUCIANA BERGER, FORMER BRITISH LABOUR MP: I cannot remain in a Party that I have today come to the sickening conclusion is institutionally anti-
Semitic.
CHUKA UMUNNA, FORMER BRITISH LABOUR MP: The last few years have shown the established parties are simply not up to this challenge. They can't be the
change because they have become the problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACK: So, this group is not establishing another party, a new party, not yet anyway, but they are organized. They've got a website. They say they
will be sitting in Parliament as the independent group. It is a dramatic day for the British Labour Party, but its impact on wider politics in this
country will really depend what happens next and crucially whether or not other MPs join them, not just MPs from the Labour Party, but MPs perhaps
from the ruling Conservative Party as well. That's what these seven say they want to happen -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: A dramatic day in British politics. Phil Black reporting live for us. Phil, thank you. And the political dysfunction also playing out
in full force on the other side of the Atlantic. The White House, on the defensive after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency to
fund his border wall.
In the coming hours, the progressive group, Move On, is sponsoring protests to denounce what they call a dangerous power grab. But President Trump, he
is doubling down. A White House adviser suggests he is prepared to issue the first veto of his presidency if Congress votes down his national
emergency declaration. Here's what Stephen Miller told Fox News.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS WALLACE, HOST, FOX NEWS: Will the President veto that, which would be the first veto of his presidency?
STEPHEN MILLER, SENIOR ADVISER TO U.S. PRESIDENT TRUMP: Well, obviously, the President is going to protect his national emergency declaration,
Chris, and I know that we're out of time, but again, I want to make this point. There is no threat --
WALLACE: So yes, he will veto?
MILLER: He is going to protect his national emergency declaration guaranteed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: A move like that would no doubt trigger a contentious drawn-out battle on Capitol Hill. Now, Mr. Trump is already facing legal challenges
to the move. California's Attorney General is promising to file a lawsuit imminently.
Meanwhile, in a new interview, the former acting FBI Director, Andrew McCabe says Mr. Trump's own words about the Russia probe are what landed
him under investigation.
[08:05:07]
LU STOUT: Shortly after declaring a national emergency, President Trump headed to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, and that's where find our Sarah
Westwood. Sarah, thank you for joining us. As we heard from Stephen Miller, his former adviser saying that the President's would use his veto
power if Congress acts. How does the White House plan to defend against legal action when the courts take action?
SARAH WESTWOOD, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, CNN: Well, Kristie, good morning and White House officials say this declaration was prepared with these
inevitable legal and congressional challenges in mind.
They spent weeks putting this together and they are set to face lawsuits from California and at least six other states from the ACLU and other
groups challenging the constitutionality of this declaration. That resolution of disapproval is also likely to find some support in the
Senate. House Democrats already preparing to move forward with that.
We already have heard some Republicans make the argument that the national emergency declaration is not a subversion of the will of Congress because
Congress did include some funding for a border barrier in the spending package that President Trump signed on Friday and because lawmakers have
consistently funded barriers along the southern border over the past few years.
So this is simply the President adding more funding to something that Congress itself has chosen to appropriate. Critics of the move of course
accuse the President of trying to go around the will of Congress which had the opportunity to give the President more funding for his border wall
after weeks of negotiations, declined to, Kristie.
LU STOUT: The President also is under pressure because of that interview that Andrew McCabe gave to CBS aired over the weekend, what more did
McCabe, the former acting FBI Director, say about exactly why top officials decided to open that probe into President Trump?
WESTWOOD: McCabe said there were a few events that FBI agents looked at before opening that counter-intelligence probe. One of them was the
President directly tying the Russia investigation to his decision on May 2017 to fire former FBI Director, James Comey; another was the President
telling Russian officials during an Oval Office meeting that the firing of Comey had relieved quote, "great pressure" on him.
So that combination of things combined with the President's continuing attacks on the Russia investigation convinced McCabe, according to him, to
open that counter-intelligence probe which of course was ultimately folded into the work that Special Counsel, Robert Mueller is been doing once he
was appointed.
There has been some back and forth between the Justice Department and McCabe, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein saying that he said in jest
that he would wear a wire to the White House to record President Trump. McCabe said that was a serious suggestion.
President Trump has been hitting back on Twitter attacking McCabe highlighting the fact that McCabe was fired from the FBI for failing to be
truthful with investigators about a series of leaks. So there has been some back and forth between McCabe and the President as the former acting
FBI Director is speaking out -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Sarah Westwood reporting live from Mar-a-Lago, thank you.
CNN has exclusive details of potential breaks in relations between the U.S. and North Korea, ahead of the second Trump-Kim Summit later month. Our
senior diplomatic correspondent, Michelle Kosinski is live in Washington with more and Michelle, what are sources telling you about a possible
diplomatic upgrade between the U.S. and North Korea?
MICHELLE KOSINSKI, SENIOR DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Hi, Kristie. Well, you know there has been this big question looming just days away from
the second Trump-Kim Summit. But what could possibly come out of this? Because so far North Korea has done really nothing significant towards
denuclearization and there is so little confidence that they are prepared to do anything any time soon.
So now, diplomatic sources are telling us that there are serious discussions between the U.S. and North Korea to begin to exchange
diplomats, although this would be very preliminary. It would be an exchange of what we call liaison officers. So diplomats on each side,
there would be several, they would go to each other's countries and establish an office there called a liaison office and this would be kind of
a first step towards any kind of real diplomatic relationship between the two countries. But it would be different, kind of a precursor to
establishing real diplomatic ties that you would normally see, say, between two countries that get along.
This was attempted before back in 1994, when there was another massive working towards denuclearization in North Korea. It got to the point that
the U.S. actually leased space in North Korea to establish a liaison office.
[08:10:00]
KOSINSKI: North Korea looked at sites in Washington, D.C. for the same, but by the end of the following year, after all of this discussion, North
Korea completely pulled the plug on it. So at this point, all we know is that there are serious discussions going on about this. This is a serious
consideration. It might even be announced at the upcoming summit in Vietnam.
However, a big question mark that still hangs over, of course is, is the U.S. requiring anything specific of North Korea towards denuclearization
before something like this could happen -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: A possible new deliverable being announced to you through sources ahead of the next Trump-Kim Summit. Michelle Kosinski reporting
live for us. Michelle, thank you.
Now, the Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe is refusing to comment on Donald Trump's claim that Mr. Abe nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize
last year after his Summit with Kim Jong-un. A Japanese newspaper reported that Mr. Abe did so after the U.S. government informally sought his
support. Now, here is what the Prime Minister said in a lower House of Parliament earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHINZO ABE, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (Through a translator): As I said earlier, I am not saying that this is not the fact. If you allow me to
repeat, President Trump has been working towards solving North Korea's missile issues decisively. I put a high value on President Trump's
leadership.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Not quite an answer there. Now, the White House did not respond to a request for comment on the report.
A new report by the "Financial Times" says the United Kingdom believes it can handle any security risks posed by the Chinese telecom giant, Huawei as
it builds next generation 5G wireless that works around the world, but the U.S. government doesn't agree. It has been pushing for Huawei's technology
to be banned, alleging that it could be used by China for spying, something that the the company strenuously denies.
Samuel Burke joins us now from London with more. And Samuel first, what exactly is Britain's National Cybersecurity Center saying about the risks
posed by Huawei?
SAMUEL BURKE, BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, Kristie, it's quite interesting because the Cybersecurity Center is saying that they
have unique understanding over Huawei's engineering and security capabilities, so you could interpret that as being, "Listen, even if
somebody or some country wanted to use the Huawei equipment to eavesdrop or manipulate data, we would be able to spot that and fix that."
And I have to tell you that is much more in line from what we've heard from cybersecurity experts, not the cybersecurity experts from governments, but
from private cybersecurity experts who say even if there were some type of flaw in the Huawei equipment that allowed them to do something nefarious,
governments would be able to find it and fix it.
So with that in mind, I just want to put on the screen three takeaways from yet another round of Huawei. Number one, we have to remember here what
we're hearing from telecom CEOs is very different. One CEO even told me here in the U.K. that he believes that the U.K. is taking orders from the
U.S. because of Brexit, because he feels there is so much pressure on the U.K. to get a trade deal with the U.S. that they're taking orders from the
U.S. and other European countries as well.
Number two, in spite of everything happening with Huawei, new numbers show us that Huawei is crushing Apple in China and Huawei says they haven't
changed their sights set on replacing Samsung as the number one provider of smartphones in the world by next year.
And number three, you have to remember that it's not easy to replace Huawei. We hear from so many countries and from so many telecoms companies
that taking out Huawei would make it much harder for them to bring 5G by this year and next year, because the other equipment may not be as good and
would be much more costly -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Fascinating, so if Huawei is a risk or not a risk or manageable risk, the debate just goes on. Samuel Burke reporting live for us, thank
you. Now to the latest controversy involving Facebook.
A British Parliamentary Committee has just released a report on social media disinformation after revealing internal Facebook e-mails, and this is
what they found. The social media platform quote, "intentionally and knowingly violated both data privacy and competition laws."
Now, the e-mail showed that Facebook was quote, "willing to override its users' privacy settings in order to transfer data to app developers." Now,
lawmakers also claim that the document showed that the social network was able to "starve" some developers of data and force them out of business.
Let's bring in Carole Cadwalladr, she is journalist for "The Guardian" as well as "The Observer," and she is one of the reporters who exposed the
Cambridge Analytica scandal. She joins us from London. Carole, thank you for joining us here on the program. You call this new U.K. government
report a fake news and disinformation a landmark report. Why is that?
CAROLE CADWALLADR, JOURNALIST, THE GUARDIAN/OBSERVER, U.K.: It's so comprehensive, it looks at this entire landscape of big tech companies,
digital campaigning, fake news, Cambridge Analytica and so much more and it is completely damming about Facebook.
[08:15:10]
CADWALLADR: It accuses Mark Zuckerberg of holding the Parliament in contempt and of its senior executives actually deliberately setting out to
deceive Parliament in seeking answers.
LU STOUT: Yes, as you point out, it's a comprehensive report. It's a damning report as well, you know, accusing the Facebook founder of contempt
saying that Facebook has behaved like a digital gangster that considers itself ahead of and beyond the law. Were you taken aback or surprised by
that strong language?
CADWALLADR: No, because we have seen over many, many months that the U.K. Parliament and then it was joined by eight other Parliaments from around
the world has really tried to hold Facebook to account and to summon Mark Zuckerberg to Britain to answer these questions, and time and time again,
Facebook has refused. And I think Parliament just ran out of patience.
LU STOUT: Now, Facebook has responded to this Parliamentary report. It's U.K. Public Policy Manager said in a statement this that the company quote,
"supports effective privacy legislation" and is also open to quote, "meaningful regulation." So your thoughts on that response from Facebook
and also the big question, will the British government act?
CADWALLADR: Well, I find that quite an astonishing response from Facebook because many of the laws were actually in place and it deliberately set out
to break them. That's what the evidence of the report is saying. We had laws and it broke them.
So I find that a curious answer from Facebook, and as to whether the British government will respond, that's to be seen, I certainly hope so.
One of the things in the report, it has made very clear is that our electoral laws simply don't work in this new age of digital campaigning and
it says, they are not fit the purpose.
And then there's a third aspect of the report, which is very interesting and that is where the report calls out foreign interference in British
elections and it calls out the government for being completely silent on this subject and it is calling for an independent investigation into all
elections in Britain since 2014. I think that's very significant. I think the government is going to try and want to dodge answering questions on
that. I really hope the MPs don't allow it to get away with it.
LU STOUT: And speaking of foreign interference also on your radar, a Cambridge Analytica employee named Brittany Kaiser has been subpoenaed by
Robert Mueller is part of the Russia probe into collusion with the Trump campaign. How big is this?
CADWALLADR: Well, we broke this story yesterday in "The Observer" and CNN did a great report on it as well today, and I think it's very significant
because it is the -- Kaiser is the second employee of Cambridge Analytica who we know has been subpoenaed by Robert Mueller.
What's so interesting about her is that she worked on the Trump campaign, but she also worked on the Brexit campaign. And in Britain, we've been
really desperately trying to ignore Mueller's inquiry into Trump-Russia collusion, and the fact that so many threads of it seem to go through
London. But the case is now becoming un-ignorable, and that's why it does feel very important.
And again, again, we really need the government to respond to this and tell us that it is taking this Russian interference threat very seriously.
LU STOUT: Yes, foreign interference, fake news, disinformation, all the threads coming to a head yet again, with this new report out. Carole
Cadwalladr joining us from London. Thank you so much for your reporting and take care.
You're watching "News Stream" and still ahead, just days after a horrendous car bomb left scenes like these in Indian-administered Kashmir, there is
new violence. We'll get the response from both sides of the border.
And staying in Pakistan, the Saudi Crown Prince visits to make major announcements, find out what they are, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:20:00]
LU STOUT: There has been new violence at a flash point between two nuclear armed nations -- India and Pakistan. Four Indian troops have been killed
in a gunfight with militants in Indian-administered Kashmir. This is days after a car bomb exploded in the same area. India has accused Pakistan of
being behind the violence, claims that Islamabad denies. Now for more, let's speak to both Sophia Safi in Islamabad, and Nikhil Kumar in New
Delhi. Hello to you both and Nikhil, we'll start with you. India troops were killed in this clash in Kashmir. How did it unfold? Exactly what
happened?
NIKHIL KUMAR, INDIA BUREAU CHIEF, CNN: So, Kristie, Indian authorities tell us that they had intelligence telling them that there was militants
hiding out in this area in Indian-administered Kashmir. They sent in troops to investigate, to follow up on that intelligence. As they
approached a target house, a house that they had focused on where they thought the militants were hiding, they were met with oncoming gunfire.
In that gun fight, four Indian troops as you said, and one civilian were fatally injured. Two militants were also killed. Indian authorities are
yet to determine which group these militants were affiliated with and they are still combing the area to work out if there are more militants on the
loose in that area.
But of course, this all comes just days after that massive car bomb attack which left 40 Indian troops dead, paramilitaries dead in Indian-
administered Kashmir, the worst attack there in several decades on Indian forces which has inflamed tensions on the subcontinent and let to calls in
India for action against Pakistan.
The Indian authorities say that that car bomb attack last week, that Pakistan had quote, "a direct hand in it." Pakistan of course denies this,
and those tensions have really inflamed politicians' political rhetoric across the political spectrum. There have been calls from everywhere.
And so this attack today, four more killed, plays into that tension. It has led to more calls for action against Pakistan, that again, as I say, in
this case, India hasn't yet said which group was involved. They're still investigating it -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: So Sophia, Indian authorities, they are accusing Pakistan of being behind this spike of violence in Kashmir, so how is Pakistan
responding?
SOPHIA SAFI, PRODUCER, CNN: Well, Kristie, initially when this event actually took place, when this attack happened, there wasn't really much of
a response from Pakistan, which is kind of unusual considering the kind of rhetoric that was coming from across the border.
Now, in previous situations like this, we have seen very strong comments coming back and forth. There has been a volley almost of insults being
hurled across back and forth from border. This time, we saw MOFA release one short statement. Initially, it was just a tweet condemning the
incident and saying that if Pakistan was not behind this, there was a longer statement that came out last night calling India's reaction a knee-
jerk statement, a knee-jerk reaction, claiming that India is being belligerent and war mongering and what is unusual -- the possibility of
this being unusual is because of the timing of this attack.
This happened right before a landmark visit by Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. It happened just the day before. He was due to
arrive and it also happened the weekend before there was an Afghan-Taliban delegation due to arrive in Islamabad.
So diplomatically, this was a very sensitive - this was a very sensitive weekend for the country. Normally, you have the Pakistani military
spokesperson consistently and constantly making statements against India whenever even a small incident occurs. So it's been very quiet
comparatively on this front.
[08:25:10]
SAFI: We are expecting more statements after - you know, today has passed because MBS has just left Pakistan, so it remains to be seen how this does
play out, but it is something that is causing massive concerns here amongst analysts in Pakistan -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Yes, with Kashmir emerging as a flash point, yet again. Nikhil Kumar reporting live from New Delhi. Sophia Safi reporting live from
Islamabad. Thank you to you both and Sophia stick around. We are going to talk again very, very shortly.
As Sophia reported just then, the situation in Kashmir is overshadowing a major visit from one of the country's major allies, Saudi Arabia, the Crown
Prince, Mohammed Bin Salman left Islamabad a short time ago. He spent the day there as part of a tour of Asia that will also include India and China.
Now, let's go back to Sophia standing by in Islamabad. And Sophia, Pakistan really rolled out the red carpet for the Saudi Crown Prince and
has Pakistan been richly rewarded?
SAFI: Well, you know, there has been a signing of agreements between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, which amounted to about $20 billion. Now, this
is a massive amount of investment in the country. I spoke to the Chairman of the Board of Investment, and according to him, this is the largest ever
investment in recent history in Pakistan by another country.
Now, apart from that, there's also been an announcement by the Saudi Crown Prince that he is going to be -- that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is going
to be releasing over 2,000 Pakistani prisoners languishing in jails across Saudi Arabia, this was a request that was made by Prime Minister Imran Khan
at a state banquet on Sunday night.
So it was very surprising that the decision was made immediately the next morning. It's been welcomed by human rights activists, but again, there is
a massive economic crisis in Pakistan. The country is on the brink of another economic bailout from the IMF, so this will actually soften that
kind of situation that Pakistan is currently facing.
Apart from that, what some critics are saying is that this renewal of ties with Saudi Arabia might prove problematic when it comes to Pakistan's
relationship with allies in China, in Turkey, in Qatar, as well as in Iran. So generally, a positive vibe here in Pakistan, but you know, he has got
another two countries to visit - China and India. So it remains to be seen what developments will come out of that, and how this will play out in the
months to come -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Sophia Safi, we thank you for your reporting. You're watching "News Stream." Still ahead, U.S. Senator, Marco Rubio says humanitarian
aid to Venezuela will get through with or without the help of President Maduro. We are live in Caracas, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:25:08]
LU STOUT: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, you're watching "News Stream." And these are your world headlines. Seven members of Britain's
Labour Party have abruptly resigned saying that they are embarrassed and ashamed of their Party's handling of Brexit. They also expressed their
lack of confidence in Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn and the handling of a growing scandal over anti-Semitism.
A newly released report by a British lawmakers conclude that Facebook quote "intentionally and knowingly violated privacy and competition laws." It
also find its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg showed contempt toward the British Parliament by refusing to testify before them. Facebook denies the
accusations.
Haiti's government is calling on residents to return to normal activities today. Ten days of violence have gripped the country with deadly protests
against soaring inflation and allegations of widespread government corruption. Hundreds have gathered to try to stock up on fuel and water,
now in scarce supply. It's not even clear how many people have been killed and injured in the unrest in Haiti. Many cannot get to treatment and
hospitals are overwhelmed.
Let's go straight to Sam Kiley. He has been reporting in Port-Au-Prince. He joins us now live, and Sam, the government is calling for this return to
normal, but what's the situation today there in Haiti?
SAM KILEY, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Well, there hasn't been a mass return to normal, Kristie nor has been a return to the sort of
riots that cursed this country for the previous nine days. Yesterday, the opposition tried to get some demonstrations off the ground, but they -- if
you'll excuse the pundit, fully catch fire.
This morning though, we are getting a slightly mysterious story coming from government authorities alleging that five Americans among a small group of
seven or eight other foreign nationals have been arrested in possession of weapons and accused of criminal conspiracy. They haven't yet been charged.
We don't know what the charges are. There is not yet any kind of suggestion directly from the government of some kind of political activity,
but that is certainly serving as a distraction for Haitians from the day- to-day realities here which is a very, very tough life.
Indeed, in the last 48 hours, people have been stocking up on cooking gas, on gasoline for their cars, on water which is extremely short supply here
in the capital, Port-Au-Prince, Kristie, but that is following nine days really when an awful lot of people, most people indeed, were unable to
leave their homes amid this paroxysm of violence that was a result of an explosion of anger marking the anniversary of the second year of the
President coming to office.
Now, of course, they're demanding he step down. The Prime Minister stepped in a couple of days ago saying that there would be the launch of a
commission to investigate corruption and to name names in that process. That may have drawn the sting for now. But Haitians remain extremely angry
and extremely frustrated with their government -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Too early to call a return to calm there in Haiti. Sam Kiley reporting live for us. Sam, thank you.
Venezuela's opposition leader, Juan Guaido is setting up a showdown with his political rival over the delivery of U.S. humanitarian aid. He is
calling on a million volunteers to help to bring supplies into the country by Saturday. The aid has been piling up in neighboring Columbia because
sitting President Nicolas Maduro has refused to let it in.
U.S. President Trump is expected to mention the Venezuela crisis during a speech in Miami later on Monday. On Sunday, U.S. Republican Senator, Marco
Rubio had this message for President Maduro.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUBIO: Well, the aid is going to get through, and I think ultimately, the question is whether it gets through in a way that he is cooperative with or
in a way that he is not. But there is no way you're going to stand ultimately in the way of a people whose children are starving to death,
whose families are dying in hospitals because of preventable diseases and they don't have the medicine for it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: CNN's Isa Soares joins us live from Caracas, Venezuela, and Isa, the lack of aid, the lack of medical care has forced many to seek help
outside the country. What have you seen?
SOARES: Very much so, and I've been on both sides really. I've been on the Cucuta side in the Colombia side, but also here now in Venezuela, and
the need is dire. We've heard from Juan Guaido, the self-declared interim President of Venezuela. He, himself said, Kristie that as many as 350,000
people are at risk of dying if they don't have their medication, and what I've seen on the other side of the border is the most basic needs. I am
talking about gauze. I am talking about IV fluids to all the way to anti- retroviral to antibiotics.
[08:35:02]
SOARES: I met some of the people who are crossing the border and seeking desperately needed help. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
SOARES (voice over): For most of her young life, Frangeli has only known hunger. Now, her body is feeling its impact. Frail, irritable and in
pain, she's been unable to keep food down, but her little tummy, suffering from secure acute malnutrition in what was once the world's richest oil
nation just can't keep it in.
She's one of thousands of Venezuelan children leaving home with many being treated at this border city hospital in Cucuta.
Several floors up, on the maternity ward, I meet several women who, too, have seen scarcity for months on end.
SOARES (on camera): (Speaking in foreign language). What did you eat there? Very little? Rations.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking in foreign language).
SOARES (voice-over): I go further down the hall. And on a floor where pain and life go hand in hand, I come face to face with tragedy.
SOARES (on camera): She's telling me that her baby is -- baby's dead. No heartbeat, nothing. No life, she's telling me. (Speaking in foreign
language).
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking in foreign language).
SOARES: Twenty-nine, six months. So basically 29 weeks. So she's -- her baby's died.
SOARES (voice-over): This is the toll of the humanitarian crisis Nicolas Maduro denies. But death and despair are not just contained within these
hospital walls. I travel through old Cucuta and meet others desperate for help. Nineteen-year-old Clabor Salazar (ph) recently arrived from Caracas.
He made the journey simply for survival.
CLABOR SALAZAR, REFUGEE (ph) (Through translator): If I stayed in Venezuela, I was going to die. I knew I was going to die. In fact, all my
friends with NIV in Venezuela, out of 30, only one is alive.
SOARES (voice-over): He says he is HIV-positive and desperately needed antiretroviral drugs, unavailable back home.
As he gets a check-up, the doctor at the NGO for which Clebor (ph) volunteers for, tells me nine of his HIV patients died in 2018, all
Venezuelans. Clebor (ph) got out just in time. But getting here has come with sacrifice and the wounds he carries are still fresh.
I do my best to delicately ask him if he ever had to sell sex to survive.
SALAZAR (ph) (Through a translator): Yes, I sold it and I sold it many times. And I sold it not only because I needed medicine. I sold it for
food, I sold it because I needed many things.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
SOARES: And Kristie, these are really heart wrenching stories and only three stories there but there are many people that stopped me on Cucuta
Bridge on that bridge in Colombia side asking me where can we get medicine? I've been speaking to a doctor here in Caracas, too, who sent me a whole
list of medicines they're actually in desperate need of, only two actually available in Colombia, so it gives you a sense of people's frustrations,
but also, their needs, their urgent needs.
LU STOUT: And people there are so desperate that Venezuelans are doing whatever it takes to survive. Now, we know that Juan Guaido, he has
pledged that is going to bring the aid in. If and when that happens, will it help save more lives?
SOARES: Well, that's what he's hoping. We don't know yet exactly where exactly that is going to for, who is actually it is going for, but he knows
that as many as 350,000 people at that brink of death of dying, really, if they don't get that medication. The fear, of course, is, Kristie that one,
he doesn't know for sure that the aid is going to come in and, two, if it does come in, whether Maduro's forces will take the aid from them and then
distribute it amongst themselves.
So there's the real risk that by creating this human chain that these people could be stopped by any one, any of the forces on their way in from
Colombia. He has a huge task ahead of him, and although he has the support, it's not clear yet where the rank and file will let the wave of
people through, but clearly, a lot riding on this, not just for Guaido, but clearly for the hundreds of thousands of people who are in dire need of
help -- Kristie.
LU STOUT: Absolutely, Isa Soares, in Caracas, Venezuela. Isa, we thank you so much for your reporting. You're watching "News Stream." We'll be
back right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LU STOUT: All right, the start of a new week here in Hong Kong. Welcome back, this is "News Stream." Now, U.S. President Donald Trump says he has
discovered collusion and the guilty party is the cast of "Saturday Night Live." It all started when the show opened with Alec Baldwin as the
President predicting how his national emergency declaration on the border wall will turn out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEC BALDWIN PORTRAYING DONALD TRUMP, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE: I'm basically taking military money, so I can have the wall. So I am going to sign these
papers for emergency and then I'll immediately be sued and the ruling will not go in my favor, and then I will end up in the Supreme Court and then,
I'll call my buddy, Kavanaugh and I'll say, "It's time to re-pay the Donnie," and he will say, New phone, who this?" And then the Mueller
report will be released, crumbling my "house of cards" and I can just plead insanity and do a few months in the puzzle factory, and my personal hell of
playing President will finally be over.
(Cheering and Applause)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LU STOUT: Okay, so that clearly got under the President's skin. The next morning, he tweeted this, quote, "Nothing funny about tired "Saturday Night
Live." How do the networks get away with these total Republican hit jobs without retribution. Very unfair. It should be looked into. This is the
real collusion." Exclamation point. Now, as far for Alec Baldwin, he fired back with this, quote, "Trump whines. The parade moves on.
#resignalready."
And that is "News Stream." I am Kristie Lu Stout, but don't go anywhere, "World Sport" with Christina McFarlane is next.
(SPORTS)
[09:00:00]
END
