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Hala Gorani Tonight
House Brings Articles of Impeachment; House Passes USMCA; New Zealand Volcano Erupts, Killing Six; New Report Highlights Artic Warming Amid Climate Summit; Trump And Russian Foreign Minister Meeting In Oval Office; Johnson Dodges Question On Boy Sleeping On Hospital Floor; World's Top Court Hears Genocide Case Against Myanmar; Entrepreneur Invents Eco- Toilet For Remote Areas Aired 2-3p ET
Aired December 10, 2019 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:16]
HALA GORANI, CNN HOST, HALA GORANI TONIGHT: Hello, everyone. Live from CNN London, I'm Hala Gorani.
Tonight, U.S. lawmakers unveil articles of impeachment against President Trump for only the fourth time in American history.
Also, warming temperatures and melting ice: A new report says the earth's climate crisis is not getting any better.
And Boris Johnson faces backlash. is he hurting his chances ahead of the big election day, which is only two days away?
We are watching history unfold in Washington today. The formal unveiling of articles of impeachment meant to unseat the most powerful leader on
earth. House Democrats are charging President Donald Trump with abusing his power and obstructing a congressional investigation. And they say they
had no choice but to act now to stop the threat to the United States.
We could see the first vote on these charges as soon as Thursday this week, with a full House vote next week. Democrats conveyed a real sense of
urgency as they laid out their case after yesterday's public hearing. They say Mr. Trump's efforts to pressure Ukraine for political favors and his
refusal to cooperate with investigations are compromising U.S. national security, the U.S. Constitution, they say, and American democracy itself.
Adam Schiff, who is the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, explained why impeachment could not wait any longer. Listen to Schiff.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): The argument, why don't you just wait? Amounts to this: Why don't you just let him cheat in one more election? Why not
let him cheat just one more time? Why not let him have foreign help just one more time?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Impeachment is, of course, a political process, it's not a legal one. And right now, at least, President Trump still has the support of
virtually every single Republican in Congress.
Today, the top House Republican attacked his Democratic colleagues, accusing them of trying to overturn the 2016 election because they cannot
accept that Donald Trump won.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): Impeachment is the removal of the highest elected person in this land. I don't care if you think Americans who
support President Trump are deplorables, but you do not have the right to disqualify their vote just because you do not like President Trump.
I would not use the majority simply for your own political gain. And if you can't meet your timeline, change all the rules that this history has
ever seen. So, no, it is not difficult to defend this president, but it is very difficult to defend this Congress on what they have done, and history
will not be kind to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: The minority leader, Kevin McCarthy there, speaking today. And Boris Johnson, the president still -- Boris Johnson. I'm sorry.
(LAUGHTER)
Boris Sanchez. Obviously, I have the U.K. election --
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Happens all the time.
GORANI: -- on my mind.
(CROSSTALK)
GORANI: Boris Sanchez, this is something that's got to be heartening to the president, the fact that every Republican pretty much is still firmly
behind Donald Trump and therefore, any trial in the Senate will probably go the president's way. But he's reacted today on Twitter.
SANCHEZ: Yes, that's right. The president is leaning on Senate Republicans, and that's part of the reason that, for weeks now, the White
House Counsel, Pat Cipollone, and members of his staff have been meeting with these Senate Republicans repeatedly to try to chart a path forward and
figure out exactly what a Senate trial might look like. More on that in a second.
I did want to get to that tweet that you mentioned from President Trump. He writes, quote, "To impeach a president who has proven through results,
including producing perhaps the strongest economy in our country's history, to have one of the most successful presidencies ever, and most importantly,
who has done nothing wrong, is sheer political madness! #2020Election."
The White House, effectively calling these articles of impeachment a sham and the president, saying that he looks forward to his chance to defend
himself in the Senate.
As for the dynamics of that Senate trial, it could get interesting because we're hearing from sources that there are some disagreements between the
White House, the president and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Ultimately, this comes down to how long a trial might drag out.
McConnell had told several people close to him that he wants this to be fast, up to a 10-day affair with Democrats presenting their case and then
the White House Counsel's office presenting their case, and then a simple vote among the Senators.
The president, though, wants to make a show of this. He has said publicly that he wants to see House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Adam Schiff, the chairman
of the House Intelligence Committee, the whistleblower, the Bidens. He wants to see all of these people testify because he sees this trial as an
opportunity to bash Democrats ahead of the 2020 election -- Hala.
GORANI: Mm-hmm. And we can now go to Phil Mattingly who is on Capitol Hill, and the House released this formal written impeachment, these
articles against Donald Trump. The formal charges? Abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. They kept it very narrow, Phil, really centered
on this Ukraine question. Why did they choose that strategy?
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGERSSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Because they felt like they had no choice. I think one of the interesting debates that's really
been playing out in sometimes a heated manner, I'm told, over the course of the last couple of days, is members of the caucus, of the Democratic
caucus, who wanted to make this wide, include Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report and in that case, have a third article of impeachment
related to obstruction of justice.
Remember, the Mueller report laid out 10 specific instances that he cited that could be taken up as obstruction of justice. But Speaker Pelosi and
sources who are involved in this discussion, saying it was made clear, particularly from front-line members, some of the freshmen who flipped
districts that made Speaker Pelosi the speaker of the House, gave Democrats the majority in 2018, wanted to keep this narrow.
TEXT: Articles of Impeachment: Formal written charges drafted against a public official; House has "sole power of impeachment"; One article is
drafted for each alleged offense; A president is not impeached until the full House votes to approve the articles
Abuse of Power: Democrats charge that President Trump abused his office by pressuring Ukraine to investigate his political rival while withholding
$391 million in U.S. security aid and a one-on-one White House meeting.
MATTINGLY: Remember, there are a lot of Democrats who have been on board for impeaching President Trump for a long time. But the critical mass only
came when those front-line members, those moderate members, those freshman members decided to come on board specifically because of the issue of
Ukraine.
TEXT: Articles of Impeachment: Obstruction of Congress: Democrats charge that President Trump obstructed Congress by 1. Refusing to provide
documents to investigating committees; 2. By instructing officials not to testify in the impeachment inquiry
MATTINGLY: With that in mind, even though the debate went on late into last night, whether or not to have that third article of impeachment, the
decision was made, keep it narrow, keep it at two articles for the good of the caucus, for the political repercussions and what comes from this. And
also because, more often than not, that's what members told the speaker they wanted -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. Thanks so much, Phil Mattingly and Boris Sanchez at the White House.
Let's talk more about the case against President Trump and where it's headed next. I'm joined by Michael Moore, a former U.S. attorney who
prosecuted crimes including public corruption. Thanks for joining us. What do you make of the fact that it's two articles of impeachment,
narrowly focused on the Ukraine question, and not a wider one encompassing, for instance, potential -- what was included in the Mueller inquiry about
Russian interference?
MICHAEL MOORE, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: I think it's probably a very smart move when you look at this. And by doing this, we've sort of followed Nancy
Pelosi's discussions that she's had publicly about whether or not this would be forward-looking or we're going to relitigate 2016.
And clearly --
GORANI: Right.
MOORE: -- the Republicans want to say that we're relitigating or the Democrats are relitigating 2016. But at this point, it looks to me like
we're forward-looking as it related to efforts to do something in the 2020 election, and I think that follows the press conference you saw today.
From a trial perspective, from a trial lawyer's perspective, I think it's a great move because it keeps it very simple and focuses on clearly provable
facts that don't allow for a lot of red herrings to be thrown out by the defense in the case.
GORANI: And now, the next steps. Thursday, we expect potentially a vote in the Judiciary Committee? Then we have Monday, potentially, as soon as
Monday next week, a full House vote on impeachment. And then a trial in January.
And I get this question a lot abroad. What happens during an impeachment trial?
MOORE: Well, the chief justice of the Supreme Court sits as the judge, but it's a different kind of case. This is not a trial that we think about, we
might see on Court TV and things, where -- but basically, these are -- we're seeing -- we're going to watch this unfold according to rules that
the members of the Senate decide together and pass.
And so the chief justice will be enforcing those rules as opposed to what you might have in a regular trial, where two parties are subject to the
rules that are decided by the state legislature or the Congress.
So it's going to be interesting as we go forward. I think that we'll see the House managers present their case, we're likely to see a strong
defense, clearly, from the president's team. And we'll hear from some witnesses.
The hope is that we will get into some facts that we didn't get into --
GORANI: Yes.
MOORE: -- during some of the committee hearings.
GORANI: Well, I mean, this could take a while.
MOORE: Sure.
GORAN: The Bill Clinton, from the moment that the impeachment proceeding began to the day he was impeached, it was 127 days. It was longer, even,
for Nixon, though. Nixon resigned before the impeachment vote, knowing he would lose it. So this isn't something that will be wrapped up quickly, it
seems.
MOORE: There's a chance that they could move in the Senate for a motion to dismiss the charges. I think that's probably a political death knell for
the Republicans to do that, because it essentially keeps things hidden and under a cloak, and they'll want some cover to let the facts go out.
But everybody knows -- I mean, the likelihood of a conviction in the Senate is essentially none. And --
GORANI: Yes.
MOORE: -- that's because they're just not going to get two-thirds of the Senate to vote to convict. I mean, we don't have the same type of
independence that we had, maybe, with John McCain, when he was in the Senate.
I mean, we've got people -- and think about it. Even people who claim to be independent like Lindsey Graham who, for a long time, wore the badge of
independence, has gone from saying that the president is unfit for office, to essentially, you know, sort of having his lips attached to the back end
of that navy-blue suit that we see so much.
so I just think at that point, we're really not in a situation where a conviction is likely. I think we know that. This is a trial --
[14:10:06]
GORANI: Yes.
MOORE: -- this is a process that the jury is -- the jury's already decided where they're going. This is really about what the American people will
hear and how that plays into their decision in 2020.
GORANI: Certainly it's a political process, and in an election year. Thanks very much, Michael Moore, for joining us. Really appreciate your
time on the program.
MOORE: Glad to be with you.
GORANI: Now to a veteran political analyst and professor and historian. Larry Sabato is the director of the Center for Politics at the University
of Virginia. He's also author of "The Kennedy Half Century."
Let's talk about this within the context of history here. This is only the fourth time that a president, an American president, faces an impeachment
vote. And it will be if he's impeached, which we all expect, only the third president in American history to be impeached. Put this in context
for us.
LARRY SABATO, CENTER FOR POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: The context is this, Hala. It only happens when a really serious matter comes to the fore
and the Congress is controlled in whole or in part by the opposition party. And obviously, to get an impeachment, it has to be the opposition party.
So that explains part of what's happening. But it's more than that. The fact is that Donald Trump has stomped on virtually every norm and tradition
associated with the American presidency and the American system.
So have some people been itching to do something, given the right stimulus? Yes. But this was the right stimulus. Going to a foreign government and
asking for an investigation of the most likely Democratic rival to the incumbent president in 2020, is really outrageous.
GORANI: But it is a political process. We were discussing with Michael Moore, our legal analyst. So this is really about presenting the case to
the American people because there's no -- virtually no expectation at all that the Senate trial will result in a conviction of the president and the
removal of the president of the United States.
My question to you is, is this going to convince voters on the fence, or potentially voters in swing states that the president is unfit or that he
committed an impeachable offense, or will it not stick next year in 2020?
SABATO: Well, you're right to mention that we're a long time from November 2020. And never underestimate the ability of the American electorate to
move on to another issue.
However, there are, you know, a few percentage points of people who are undecided. And as they come to understand what Donald Trump actually did
and what the import of that is, it's possible they could be persuaded.
On the whole, though, I think it's strengthening the Trump base and it's strengthening the Democratic base. So I don't know that it's going to have
any massive effect on the election in 2020. But remember, we're not just speaking to voters in the here and now, Hala. We're speaking to history.
That's what this impeachment process is doing, and that's where I think Donald Trump is likely to really suffer.
GORANI: Why is not a single Republican -- I mean, Justin Amash is one former Republican who left the party, but apart from him, even departing
retiring congressmen and women from the GOP are not publicly opposing or criticizing the president. So what I don't -- I can understand those
running for re-election. But why those retiring or not running for re- election?
SABATO: Well, they're not going to renounce their church publicly. It can cause all kinds of consequences. Look, we live in a hyper-partisan age, at
least in the United States. And the vast majority of people not only identify with one party or the other, they feel it very strongly and it
determines most of --
GORANI: Right.
SABATO: -- what they do. That's especially true for elected officials, and it's not going to change any time soon.
GORANI: And on "Fox News," the primetime shows on that network, there was an inspector general report about the FBI probe into Russian interference
that concluded that the FBI though, that it had made mistakes but that it not acted in a partisan way or a legal way.
But -- so that's the fact. But this is how "Fox News," that has many viewers who are Trump supporters, presented the story.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TUCKER CARLSON, FOX HOST, TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT: The actual report was something of a disaster for the FBI. That was obvious to anyone who
actually read it.
SEAN HANNITY, FOX HOST, HANNITY: Everything we have been reporting for years was dead-on accurate. We were right every step of the way.
LAURA INGRAHAM, FOX HOST, THE INGRAHAM ANGLE: The report, as I mentioned to Hannity, is a devastating indictment of our FBI and our intel-gathering
apparatus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: So straight up, this is untrue. It's factually incorrect. And yet this is presented as fact by anchors who work for a news channel. What
impact does that have on the public discourse, on the democratic system in the United States, that you can have these untruths so vehemently presented
on one of the most-watched news channels in America?
[14:15:21]
SABATO: We live in the post-factual era, Hala. The only thing that matters is the letter D and the letter R. That's the honest-to-God truth.
I'm going to say something to you that I think most historians would agree with. If there had been a "Fox News" in the early 1970s, Richard Nixon
would have finished his second term.
GORANI: That's actually very interesting, to look at it that way. Thanks very much, Larry Sabato. Always a pleasure talking to you on this historic
day as well.
SABATO: Thank you, Hala. Thanks a lot.
GORANI: Russia and the U.S. have a lot they agree on and a lot they don't. Or we should say Russia and the White House. That was the message U.S.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gave just minutes ago, after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
They spoke about Syria, Venezuela, North Korea and Ukraine, and Pompeo said he stressed that Russia needs to stop meddling in U.S. elections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE: On the question of interference in our domestic affairs, I was clear, it's unacceptable and I made our
expectations of Russia clear. The Trump administration will always work to protect the integrity of our elections, period. Should Russia or any
foreign actor take steps to undermine our democratic processes, we will take action in response.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Mike Pompeo, there. For his part, the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said he's not seen any proof that Russia interfered in the
2016 election. In just a few minutes, Lavrov is scheduled to meet with Donald Trump in the Oval Office. We'll have a live report on that at --
coming up.
Now, one hour after unveiling articles of impeachment against President Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced a deal, a trade deal between
the U.S., Mexico and Canada that is meant to replace NAFTA.
After months of negotiations, Democrats say they finally got the concessions they wanted from the White House. Pelosi touted it as a win
for her party on a deal Mr. Trump hoped would be one of his signature accomplishments. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): I would say that we came a long way from what he originally proposed, what he originally proposed. And there are some
people who said, why make it look like he has a victory? Well, we've -- we're declaring victory for the American worker and what is in this
agreement. But we would never, not any one of us is important enough for us to hold up a trade agreement that is important for American workers
because of any collateral benefit that might accrue to any one of us.
GORANI: Mexican officials are hosting the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and the U.S. trade representative, Robert Lighthizer, in Mexico
City to sign off on final changes in the deal.
Matt Rivers joins me now from Mexico City. What -- how is this deal different from NAFTA, Matt?
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what the Democrats would say, what Republicans would say is that it better protects the American worker. You
know, the criticism against the North American Free Trade Agreement, negotiated during the Clinton administration, was that it came at the
expense of the American worker. That it drove down wages, that's why unions didn't like it; that it took advantage of cheap labor in places like
Mexico, here, at the expense of the American worker.
And we're in this kind of rarified air that we haven't been in in a long time, Hala, which is a bipartisan agreement. What happens in bipartisan
agreements? Both sides take credit for a victory. And that's kind of what's happening right now, and it hasn't really happened during the Trump
administration, and that's what's happening today.
Frankly, it's kind of strange to be talking about a bipartisan agreement, but you've got Democrats and Republicans touting this as a deal. Right
now, we have a signing ceremony going on, as you mentioned, with the U.S. trade rep, Robert Lighthizer, with Jared Kushner, he's here.
They're joined by the Mexican president, Lopez Obrador, as well as the deputy prime minister from Canada. They're all here, they're going to sign
this new version of USMCA that, you know, Democrats asked for changes and got from the Trump administration.
And then all three of these parties are going to have to go back and get it ratified by their respective legislatures, and there is every expectation
that is going to happen. You heard Nancy Pelosi calling this a win for the American workers, and they're going to probably pass this next week,
sometime, and you can expect similar things to happen in Mexico and Canada.
Hala, it's just remarkable that it's happened on the same day as the Democrats announce two articles of impeachment against the president.
GORANI: Right. And then took credit for the deal, and a big news conference. Thanks very much, Matt Rivers.
[14:20:00]
One of the newest Democratic presidential contenders has a start assessment of the race. Michael Bloomberg says Donald Trump is getting stronger and
that he is in fact on course to win re-election. He gave an exclusive interview to Christiane Amanpour. He explained his position on impeachment
and why he is worried that the Democratic frontrunners will not fare well, one on one, with the president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it is very sad for this country that I can say the following. But unfortunately, the evidence
seems to be serious enough that I would, if I was in the Senate -- in the House, I would vote for impeachment.
But I don't think we should do this lightly. I think it's a great danger, you influence the political process. Fundamentally, I think the electorate
should decide who they're led by. And if -- and they have an opportunity to throw them out every four years.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: So your campaign manager said -- and he said to me, and he said to others -- that it looks
like it's impeach, acquit, re-elect, talking about Donald Trump in the House, the Senate --
(CROSSTALK)
BLOOMBERG: The first two, you can be pretty sure that both of those are going to happen, getting impeached and not getting convicted. Getting re-
elected? That's what an election's all about, it's not until --
(CROSSTALK)
AMANPOUR: But that's one of the reasons why you've jumped in. Because you think, right now, Trump is winning?
BLOOMBERG: I think Trump is getting stronger, and I think he would just eat alive the candidates. Because they don't have plans that I think are
practical, that can be implemented. They don't have management experience. And the president's job is a management job, 4 million people to manage.
And if you don't have a lot of management experience -- this is not a job where you take training wheels, this is the future of the world, the free
world, maybe the whole world. And you need people with experience.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: That was Michael Bloomberg. He's using pretty unconventional election strategy, skipping early states like Iowa and New Hampshire and
blanketing bigger states with unprecedented television ads, spending millions and millions of dollars.
Still to come tonight, flying boulders and blasts of toxic ash: what it must have been like to be on that volcano in New Zealand as it blew.
Also ahead, ice is still melting in the Arctic and land is getting warmer. The impact can be felt far beyond the region, though, an impact that will
affect all of us. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUSSELL CLARK, INTENSIVE CARE PARAMEDIC: It was like -- like I've seen the "Chernobyl" miniseries, and there was just -- everything was just blanketed
in ash. It was quite an overwhelming feeling.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: One of the paramedics who flew in after a volcano erupted on a New Zealand island, six people are now confirmed dead, one person died in the
hospital. this is some of that apocalyptic landscape that the medic described. Look at that, wow. It really does look like complete and utter
devastation.
[14:25:14]
Eight people are still missing, by the way. The victims were mostly tourists, some on a cruise excursion and some of them, walking right on the
volcano itself. Will Ripley tells us what it must have been like when the volcano blew.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It must have been absolutely horrific for the people who were on White Island at the time of this eruption, which
happened, we're told, with very little notice. Even though some volcanologists say that there have been signs in recent weeks of increased
activity at this active volcano, which also happens to be an incredibly popular tourist destination, visited by thousands of people every year.
That, of course, raises the obvious question, why were people allowed not just to visit this island, but to actually hike into the volcanic crater?
Yes, the tour company that operates the majority of these trips has an excellent safety record. But this nonetheless is a volcano that is known
to have eruptions from time to time.
And this eruption, while it might be considered relatively minor by volcanic standards, if somebody's standing right up there next to the
crater, looking over the edge? Well, we talked with a volcanologist who describes the conditions, the horrific conditions they would have likely
endured, a blast so powerful it would have shot boulders possibly up to a meter, three feet across, straight up into the air, not to mention smaller
particles of rock being shot laterally at sonic or even supersonic speeds.
Just the impact from that alone could be fatal, not to mention that impenetrable cloud of volcanic ash and the toxic gases and steam that would
have enveloped these people who were on the island. Forty-seven people on the island when the eruption occurred. It blew the rotors off a
helicopter.
People who would have been in the middle of it wouldn't be able to see, they wouldn't know which direction to run to go to safety. And that's why
you have hospital officials here, warning that people who have burns over 30 percent of their bodies, not to mention whatever they inhaled, they may
not be able to survive their injuries, which is why the number of dead is expected to climb.
There are also bodies that are still sitting on the island. Rescue crews, so far, have not been able to go recover them because the conditions have
been deemed unsafe. And so you have this cruise ship, the Ovation of the Seas, sitting here. It was supposed to be at sea.
It's still here, docked, passengers kind of waiting to learn what's going to happen next as this investigation continues, as people continue to try
to recover int he hospital with their worried families, back at home, wondering if they're going to pull through, never expecting that they would
have gone on a cruise like this, gotten off the boat, gone on an excursion, only to never come home.
Will Ripley, CNN, Tauranga, New Zealand.
GORANI: All right. Will Ripley, there, as you saw there from the footage, able to see that island from his position on shore, where that volcano
erupted. Six people confirmed dead, eight still missing and many of those who survived, suffering injuries some of them with quite severe burns as
well.
Still to come tonight, we are live from the COP25 climate conference in Spain as a new report highlights the dangerous changes to our planet. What
are we going to do about it? we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: While leaders from around the world put their heads together in Madrid about climate change, there is more ominous news about what is
happening to our environment. Some U.S. scientists looked at conditions in the Arctic and found that the warming trend is continuing.
TEXT: 2019 Arctic Report Card: Sea ice extent at end of summer 2019 tied for second lowest on record; Average annual surface air temps second
warmest on record; Greenland losing nearly 267 billion metric tons of ice per year
[14:30:01]
GORANI: Sea ice cover this year was the second lowest on record. Temperatures on land were the second warmest, and Greenland is losing ice
to the tune of almost 267 billion metric tons every year.
Frankly, I can't wrap my head around that number. I don't know what that means, 267 billion metric tons. But scientists are saying that it is
getting worse and it's getting worse faster than we thought that it was going to get worse.
For more information on the experts at the COP 25 summit, what they're saying needs to be done now in order to prevent the worst-case scenario for
materializing, our senior international correspondent, Arwa Damon, joins us live from Madrid in Spain.
What are they saying? Because obviously, it's one record after the other these last few years, warning us that things are getting worse and we need
to take drastic actions.
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They are, Hala, and this most recent report is really very startling and terrifying to a
certain degree, saying that there are signs that that cooling system, the arctic which is basically the world's refrigerator is beginning to break
down. That damage could irreversible. This is already an area that was highlighted in previous reports as being a tipping point.
That loss means that islands like the island of Tonga, and we heard from people who live there begging those who can make decisions, begging those
developed countries who have the highest levels of emissions to do something to stop that. Because on the one hand, when we talk about the
arctic sea ice melting, they talk about their islands sinking.
And what is quite startling as well when it comes to COP 25 is this phenomenal disconnect that seems to exist as if you have people looking at
two completely separate world.
On the one hand, you have the key decision makers, the global leaders, the representatives from their respective governments who are having their
meetings trying to hammer out this final language about the Paris Agreement, trying to hammer out the rules for things like the carbon
markets, for example, and then they're supposed to be setting these new benchmarks, because the ones they set in Paris aren't enough. They are
severely lacking in urgency and any sort of ability to come to decisions.
And then on the other hand, you have this other group of people that includes these young activists who are going out there, trying to raise
awareness. You have cities and businesses who are it taking upon themselves to bring their emissions down.
But overall, broadly speaking, it really doesn't feel at this stage as if those who need to make decisions, as if those who need to cut emissions,
are going to do so in time, Hala.
GORANI: All right. Arwa Damon, live in Madrid.
Still to come. We're just days away from the British general election. One of the most divisive in history, and a new leaked conversation from a
top Labour Party member has Jeremy Corbyn on the defensive. We'll tell you all about it, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:35:08]
GORANI: Ordinarily, when Donald Trump meets with the foreign officials, there is some kind of opportunity for the media to get pictures of the
event. But that will not be the case for the meeting happening right now with the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov.
He arrived at the White House just a few minutes ago. There you see him walking in. His meeting with the president will not be open to reporters.
You may recall there was quite a bit of controversy the last time Lavrov visited the White House in 2017. Mr. Trump reportedly shared highly
classified information with him and Russia's U.S. ambassador during that meeting in the oval office.
This is a picture from that meeting back in May of 2017. Let's bring in CNN's Matthew Chance in Moscow. What's the goal as far as the Russians are
concerned of this visit against the backdrop of this impeachment inquiry into the president?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Hala. Yes, just like these pictures you're showing, remember, the U.S. press weren't
allowed into that meeting back in 2017.
GORANI: Yes.
CHANCE: But the Russian media were allowed in. That's we've got those pictures of President Trump shaking hands with Sergey Lavrov. We don't
know what situation is this time. This time, you know, the U.S. press aren't allowed in, whether Sergey Lavrov is going to authorize Russian
photographers to come in and so we get some images of that very controversial meeting that's going to be taken place over the next few
minutes. We'll just have to wait and see.
It says what the Russians want -- I mean, they want this relationship to be, in some way, normalized and, you know, they've been watching the
proceedings taken place, the impeachment proceedings taken place over the past couple of months. And indeed, the whole Russia investigation over the
past several years with a mixture of kind of glee and the discord that it's created in the United States, and concern about what it means for that very
important in some areas like Syria, like Iran, like Ukraine, that very important bilateral relationship, Hala.
GORANI: Yes. And as I was telling our viewers a little bit earlier this hour, Lavrov met with his counterpart, the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo.
Now, the rhetoric is different when it's coming from Mike Pompeo. I'm not sure if that will be reflected in any kind of policy or in other
pronouncements of the U.S. president.
Pompeo said he told Lavrov that the U.S. wants Russia to stay out of Ukraine. Listen to him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE POMPEO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We also spent a fair amount of time talking about Ukraine. It was a major part of our conversations. For Mr.
Lavrov just returned from Paris where President Putin and President Zelensky had substantive conversations. I'm proud of what this
administration has done and the defense of that country sovereignty and security.
I reiterated to Foreign Minister Lavrov that Crimea belongs to Ukraine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Of course, Ukraine is the central topic of the impeachment inquiry and these articles of impeachment that were unveiled today.
Is the U.S. really putting pressure on Russia when it comes to Ukraine or is it just words?
CHANCE: I mean, it's difficult to say now. There's sanctions, of course, that are imposed by the United States, as well as others in the
international community against Ukraine. And not just for its annexation of Crimea, which is Ukrainian territory back in 2014, but also for its
backing of rebels, breakaway rebels in the east of the country where, you know, 13,000 people have been killed and, you know, million or more people
have been displaced.
There's definitely U.S. sanctions in place because of that. At the same time, you know, the provision of crucial military aid to the Ukrainians by
the United States was withheld for a short time by the United States. And, of course, that's the central allegation of these impeachment hearings that
are underway in the United States that he was -- President Trump was doing that in order to get the Ukrainians to launch an investigation into his
political rivals, Joe Biden and his son.
And so the Russians will be seeing that, will be watching that closely, of course, and, you know, drawing their own conclusions.
[14:40:06]
GORANI: Matthew Chance, live in Moscow, thanks very much.
I'm sorry. I forgot we had this symphonic introduction to our U.K. election coverage because it is a momentous event. There is just one more
full day of campaigning left until Britain's general election and what's shaping up to be the most consequential vote in more than a generation.
The future of Brexit is at stake, so as every other aspect of British life therefore, because Brexit is having an impact on everything, the economy,
the National Health Service, for instance. Both the Labour and Conservative parties promised to raise funding for the NHS. But the Prime
Minister, Boris Johnson, is facing some criticism for his reaction to a photo that illustrates the health care crisis.
Now, this four-year old boy who had suspected pneumonia, the hospital that he was taken to was so full that he had to sleep on the floor of the
emergency room because there were no available beds.
And an ITV reporter reputedly tried to show Mr. Johnson the photo of this child on his phone, the prime minister refused, at one point, taking the
phone and putting it in his pocket. Mr. Johnson later apologized.
Now, the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, is also under pressure today after the Labour shadow health minister was overheard calling the party's
election chances, quote, abysmal.
Scott McLean is Glasgow, Scotland and he joins me now.
So there always these sort of, you know, these iconic kind of key turning point moments in every election campaign. And this picture of this sick
kid on the hospital room floor with the prime minister refusing to look at the picture of the child.
I want to show our viewers a snippet of that moment with this ITV report and then I'll get to you, Scott.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I have every sympathy --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You refused to look at the photo, you've taken my phone, put it on your pocket, Prime Minister. His mother says the NHS is
in crisis. What's your response?
JOHNSON: I'm sorry. It's a terrible, terrible photo. And I apologize, obviously, to the family and all those who have terrible experiences in the
NHS.
GORANI: I wonder, Scott, is this going to hurt the prime minister's campaign?
MCLEAN: You could bet Labour hopes it does. It is important to point out though, Hala, that the prime minister did eventually look at that
photograph. He even sent his health secretary, Matt Hancock, to that hospital and leads to personally apologize to that boy's mother.
But he said that, overall, people have better experiences with the British health system than this boy had. The other party is the Labour Party, for
one, has said that Boris Johnson doesn't care about that four-year-old boy. The Liberal Democrats said that the prime minister's behavior showed a
shocking lack of empathy.
This election has largely focused on Brexit and rightfully so, that's what the big issue that has been on everyone's mind since they voted for Brexit
three plus years ago and it still hasn't happened.
But Labour would like to make it about health care. Jeremy Corbyn has repeatedly tried to warn of looming privatization of parts of the NHS in
the event of a future U.S.-U.K. trade deals, I mean, the Conservatives have flatly rejected as untrue.
But with just two days to go before Brits head to the polls, they would need to do something if they're going to prevent a conservative majority,
and obviously, they hope that this photo might help them do that.
GORANI: And you're in Scotland, and of course, Scotland voted to remain in the E.U. against Brexit, and they are running M.P.s, many Scottish National
Party M.P.s, for instance, I wonder, how will that factor in to the electoral picture? What happens in Scotland?
MCLEAN: It is a confusing time for Scottish politics to map here in just three elections has gone from reliably Labour to almost exclusively SNP.
Lately, in the last election, the conservatives made some end roads. But it's really squeezed out Labour and Liberal Democrats. That's because the
battle lines here are less about party and more about two important issues, Brexit and Scottish independence.
We've met people who would be reliable, Liberal Democrat voters or even Labour voters who are holding their nose and voting conservative, because
they want to get out of the E.U. or they think that the people's vote on this referendum should be, in fact, respected.
We've also met people who would have voted Labour who are now in the SNP camp because they believe in Scottish independence. There ought to be
plenty of motivation for Scotts to actually show up and vote though. In the last election, there were nine races, Hala, decided by 300 votes or
less.
GORANI: All right. You had some very thin margins certainly and very important constituencies that could determine the outcome. Thanks very
much for that, Scott McLean.
[14:45:06]
In Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi has long been considered the defender of human rights and democracy. But this week, she has a very different role.
Suu Kyi was in The Hague in The Netherlands to defend her country against accusations that the military's persecution of Rohingya Muslims was, in
fact, genocide.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDREW LOEWENSTEIN, LAWYER FOR GAMBIA: The soldiers killed the male members of my family. They shot them first and then slit their throats.
GORANI (voice-over): As lawyers shared testimony from Rohingya witnesses, Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, listens to stories alleging
atrocities by soldiers.
The Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and former human rights icon is defending her country and its military against accusations of genocide.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your order must --
GORANI: On day one of hearings at the top court of the United Nations, lawyers asked the court to order special measures protecting Rohingya
Muslims.
Buddhist majority, Myanmar, is charged with mass murder, rape, and destruction of minority, Rohingya Muslim communities. In a brutal military
operation, one U.N. leader has described as likely tantamount to ethnic cleansing.
It is the first case of its kind in decades initiated by Gambia's justice minister who heard from Rohingyas now living in the refugee camps after
fleeing the violence in their home country.
ABUBACARR TAMBADOU, GAMBIAN JUSTICE MINISTER: I saw genocide written all over these stories. I have spent a decade and a half interacting with the
victims of the 1994 Rwanda genocide. I could tell that these stories were very, very similar.
GORANI: Gambia's submission site United Nations investigators --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The greatest crimes under international law.
GORANI: -- who found actions of Myanmar's military to be genocide.
Those investigators saying Aung San Suu Kyi's involvement, was a quote, open-ended question. In a 2017 campaign that drove more than 700,000
Rohingyas from their home to neighboring Bangladesh where they now watch this provisional trial unfold.
JAMALIDA BEGUM, ROHINGYA REFUGEE (through translator): We left Myanmar because the army tortures our mothers and sisters, three military personnel
raped me. They detained hundreds of our women and raped them in front of their children and husbands. We have been demanding justice for all of
this.
GORANI: Aung San Suu Kyi has long denied any ethnic violence against the Rohingya and describes her government's actions as a legitimate response
to, quote, terrorism.
She was once known for her resistance to the military junta, winning a Nobel Peace Prize in 1991 after 15 years spent under house arrest.
But Suu Kyi has recently drawn ire from some human rights leaders who say she has gone from being a voice for the oppressed to siding with the
oppressors.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: We'll be right back. We have a lot more on CNN. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:50:14]
GORANI: Well, we covered the COP 25 summit in Madrid. And all this week, we're meeting green innovators who are working to improve the planet.
And today, we are introducing you to a Malaysian entrepreneur who found inspiration on the hike in the Himalayas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Zuraina Zahrain is a serial entrepreneur from Malaysia. In order to escape city life, she would often travel to the
mountains. But during her trek in the Himalayas, she found inspiration for her latest green business.
ZURAINA ZAHRAIN, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ECOLOO: I was facing this problem to toilet, right? I just have to find a toilet. And what shocked
me was the last toilet at this Everest base camp, there's a mountain of poop inside, so I was like, whoa. I started to become conscious about the
environment. And I started to realize, hey, it's the people who's polluting the environment.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Zuraina invented the EcoLoo, a biological toilet system that uses zero energy, creates zero sewage, and most importantly, uses zero
water. All with the help of a special formula of microorganisms to break down the waste.
ZAHRAIN: We formulated this special microbe where you just need to apply like 20 grams. It's powder form, you can see it. You just need to mix
with lukewarm water, about one liter. Shake it and leave it for a while, activate it. You activate the yeast, right? To make bread. Same thing,
you just activate it and they will become, like, you know, just put them inside the bowl and that's it. You're done.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Once in contact with human waste, the microbes transform the waste in natural liquid fertilizer, perfect for organic
farming.
ZAHRAIN: It was difficult in the beginning, you become motivated, you know, like, hey, you know. I didn't know that people would -- some people
would appreciate what we are doing. So I said, OK. I'll just do it, you know. It may take time, but it will become fruitful one day.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: A lot more to come tonight. A hotel in Hungary's capitol has become a haven for artists.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: Jennifer Lawrence, and Matt Damon, Harrison Ford, are just some of the Hollywood celebs who found themselves filming in Budapest recently.
And they always stops at one particular boutique hotel. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETER GRUNDBERG, CO-FOUNDER, BRODY HOUSE: You arrive at a building the side door has got bullet holes in it.
But once you come in, I mean, it's a grand building, and we are very fortunate to have -- to be able to operate in this space.
WILLIAM CLOTHIER, CO-FOUNDER, BRODY HOUSE: And that's something for the guest, another thing they don't expect is these grand spaces, these grand
staircases, these big rooms.
I think it's changed from making space available for artist's studios and starting a journey with the artists in that way. And that's now moved as
revolved and we've turned their studios into bedrooms and into bars and things like that.
[14:55:12]
The funny thing with these rooms is none of them has sort of had a big plan beforehand about their design. They've all sort of happened quite
organically by and from the story and the time with the artists or just what we've found within the room in terms of the colors of the old paint or
the position of things that work.
GRUNDBERG: So the design logic in terms of using what we've found. We do upcycle materials. Because I think (INAUDIBLE) lovely tradition in
Budapest. That's where each district, you have sort of (INAUDIBLE) day and you literally empty your cap, you empty your apartments, and dump all the
stuff on the street.
We've foraged a way and picked things up and a lot of that just comes from those (INAUDIBLE) days, those were a testament to one man's rubbing another
man's treasure.
CLOTHIER: We've had great fun in hosting, great deal of Hollywood as they've made movies in Budapest.
I think it's definitely an unconventional experience and they're looking for something which is unique to Budapest. And it's going to get their
creative juices flowing. And then one way or another or -- and something that they might not see in the parts of the world. We're happy to sort of
be a small part of that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Thanks for watching tonight. I'm Hala Gorani. I'll see you same time, same place tomorrow. There's a lot more ahead on the other side of
this break.
Richard Quest is in London with "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS." Stay tuned. CNN will be right back.
END
