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Landslide Victory for Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Parties; Supreme Court Blocks House from Receiving Trump Financial Records for Now; Federal Judge Ordered Don McGahn to Testify; Mar-a-Lago Trespasser Sentenced; Priceless German Jewels Stolen; A 6.2 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Albania; Australian Firefighters Dancing in the Rain; Secret Papers Shed Light on China's Detention Centers; Stock of Chinese E- Commerce Company Pops 7 Percent; Hero Dog from al-Baghdadi Raid Visits White House. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired November 26, 2019 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church at CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM: in denial, Hong Kong chief Carrie Lam calls Sunday's election diverse, despite a landslide victory for pro democracy candidates.
A big win for House Democrats, a judge ruling White House staffers cannot ignore subpoenas but that does not mean they will actually show up.
And, in Dresden, a race against time. Police hurry to recover a priceless hoard of stolen jewels before they disappear forever.
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CHURCH: Good to have you with us.
Hong Kong's chief executive is speaking out after pro establishment candidates suffered major losses in local elections. Carrie Lam insists the views expressed in Sunday's poll were, quote, "quite diverse," this despite pro democracy candidates winning nearly 90 percent of the district council seats.
She also said the city's residents no longer tolerate violence. Nick Paton Walsh joins us live from Hong Kong with the latest.
So Nick, Carrie Lam putting down the landslide victory pulled off by pro democracy candidates and talking about residents who no longer tolerate demonstrations.
Where is she going with us? NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: After the extraordinary results we saw in the last 48 hours, frankly, it's unprecedented, breaking records. The most number of voters they have seen in the highest turnout, of 71 percent.
As you said there and 87 percent of the seats now going to pro democracy movements. I should point out, possibly, Carrie Lam is referring to the fact that the number of people who cast votes was not pro democracy. They were slightly less, because of the first parcel post system that resulted in this landslide number of local council seats, I should point out, not seats that impact what happens behind me in legislative council, the real levers of power here in Hong Kong.
It was extraordinary that this remarkable mandate that has been given to the protesters here, even some of the councilors standing in the movement, involved in the movement themselves. It was extraordinary that Lam chose that mandate, to suggest that people were in fact tired of the politics. It shows the opposite, no matter what destruction has happened in Hong Kong, daily life uprooted on an hourly, basis the people are still choosing pro democracy over the stability she has been touting here.
CHURCH: What about China?
What has been the latest reaction from there to the results of these local elections?
WALSH: I think we can possibly interpret from some of the silence, a degree of surprise. Not even pro democracy campaigners expected the results of this nature. There have been concerns that people had gotten tired of the protests. But China said itself that Hong Kong would remain pro China no matter what.
They would like to see the United States and other countries keep their hands off of China's internal affairs. That's references to some of the instances that has occurred, some of the comments made by U.S. officials and the Hong Kong bill yet to be signed by President Trump which could censure some figures here in Hong Kong for disrupting the pro democracy movement.
So China possibly taken aback by how this plays out but also not necessarily having to do very much immediately. They still have a tough line against protests here, they still control what happens here inside of Hong Kong and have not found their grip on the council behind me or Ms. Lam's grip of power changed by these votes.
It's an extraordinary sign that the people of Hong Kong want the five demands met but it has not resulted in a different Hong Kong, since that particular election result came out -- Rosemary.
CHURCH: Many thanks to our Nick Paton Walsh, joining us from Hong Kong.
To Washington and a Supreme Court ruling that will keep Donald Trump's financial records private for now.
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CHURCH: The justices blocked lawmakers from getting a hold of documents from the president's accounting firm until they decide whether to take up the case.
House Democrats say one of the main reasons they need the records is to see if the president has any conflicts of interests. Mr. Trump's attorneys must file their opening brief by December 5th.
A U.S. federal judge says former White House counsel Don McGahn must testify before a House committee, considering the impeachment of President Trump. But don't expect any blockbuster revelations just yet. Manu Raju will explain.
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MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Now the ruling that Democrats are hailing that it would force Don McGahn to testify before the House judiciary committee is probably not going to impact how the House is moving in its own impeachment proceeding that could lead to the vote of this president being impeached before the end of year.
That's because Democrats do not want to go the route that they went with Don McGahn. When it comes to other witnesses who have defied subpoenas, people like Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, John Bolton, the former national security advisor, Charles Kupperman who was a Bolton deputy, all of whom have resisted demands to come and testify before the House impeachment probe.
While this ruling could have implications for those individuals it could take some time to get them to come and testify before the House impeachment inquiry. They could be forced to go to court, they could be force to go try to get the same ruling that they got from this district judge in the McGahn case.
And at the same time, the McGahn case is already going to be appealed by the Justice Department so that may not be resolved for some time. So, Adam Schiff made it clear before that ruling came out saying in a letter to his colleagues that they were not going to let the president or others, quote, "drag this out for months on end in the courts."
They're making clear that these individuals don't want to testify it's on them. They're going to then use that as evidence of obstruction of Congress that they believe could be rolled into an article of impeachment against the president.
But the ruling from Don McGahn does add some pressure from Democrats to also include in articles of impeachment, article of obstruction of justice, which is of course which was laid out in the Mueller probe instances of the president seeking to undercut the Mueller probe.
There will -- there are already some Democrats that I've talked to who made clear they believe that should be part of the articles of impeachment. But talking to Democratic leaders it's also clear they want to keep this focus narrowly on Ukraine on the president's handling of Ukraine policy. Their allegations that the president abused office in dealing with that country, dangling aid that the country wanted while pushing for investigations into his political rival.
They want that to be the focus. Not necessarily Mueller, not necessarily Don McGahn. So, while this ruling is being held by Democrats, ultimately it may not impact what will happen here in just a matter of weeks which is almost certain that the president could be the third of American president in history to get impeached -- Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
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CHURCH: Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee could finalize their impeachment report by next week. Chairman Adam Schiff says he expects to send the findings to the Judiciary Committee when Congress returns from Thanksgiving recess. That committee would draw up articles of impeachment.
Leading Democrats saying that they would want to keep the focus on President Trump's dealings with Ukraine. But others are pushing to include misconduct detailed in the Mueller report.
Federal prosecutors investigating associates of Rudy Giuliani may be looking into serious allegations against him as well. A grand jury subpoena sent to one witness points to possible charge, including conspiracy, obstruction of justice, money laundering and campaign finance violations.
Trump's attorney has not been charged with anything and has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. The president defended Giuliani on Monday.
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TRUMP: Rudy is the best mayor in the city of New York and in my opinion the strongest mayor and the best mayor and Rudy is a great crime fighter and a great person.
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CHURCH: Giuliani says he was joking earlier this month when he made this comment about his relationship with the president.
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RUDY GIULIANI, ADVISOR TO DONALD TRUMP: He said I've heard things that we've got roaming under the bus but he is it because I have insurance. It is ridiculous or, very good friends and he knows what I did in order to defend him and not to dig up dirt on Biden.
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CHURCH: President Trump Monday said he didn't know what he was referring to there. Jessica Levinson joins us now and is a professor at Loyola Law School.
And welcome to you from Los Angeles.
JESSICA LEVINSON, LOYOLA UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL: Great to be here.
CHURCH: Big legal decisions were made on Monday and let's start with the federal judge ruling that former White House counsel Don McGahn must testify before the House impeachment probe.
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CHURCH: Adding that, "Presidents are not kings."
This will be appealed.
But what impact might the ruling have on witnesses like John Bolton and Mick Mulvaney?
LEVINSON: I think this could be the warm embrace that John Bolton and Mick Mulvaney need to run into the open arms of the House committee that's investigating impeachment in the sense that they have been saying that, we are stuck between two branches.
They are saying Congress has subpoenaed us and the legislative branch told us we need to come and testify. But the President of the United States, the executive branch is telling us know, you are constitutionally immune and don't walk into the door.
What this judge said in 120 pages and really a smackdown decision said no, you have to comply with the congressional subpoena. This allegation of broad constitutional immunity for White House advisers, past or present, doesn't hold any water.
As you said, it's not significant for Don McGahn but it's significant for the other witnesses that have been holdouts and not sure what they're going to do.
CHURCH: We will watch to see what that next step is.
And a big win for the president Monday with the ruling from Supreme Court to put a temporary hold on allowing access to President Trump's tax records.
How likely is it that the Supreme Court will ultimately decide to hear a case on his financial records?
Where do you see that going?
LEVINSON: One thing I would say is I'm not sure this is a huge win for President Trump as this is what typically happens when a case is appealed to the Supreme Court. The court was saying they were staying with the ruling and not having to turn over the tax returns and the financial records right now.
They're saying we're keeping the status quo while we decide whether we are going to decide or not going to decide. So what you need on the Supreme Court is four votes to take up to case. I think there may be four votes to make this decision as to the reach of subpoenas on whether the president has to give this information over.
If that is the case, where is it going?
To a hearing and then a decision by the end of June of 2020.
CHURCH: We won't even try to determine what that outcome will be.
Also Monday, a federal grand jury subpoena indicates that federal prosecutors are interested in the business dealings of the president's personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, this broad investigation that could include criminal charges ranging from conspiracy, obstruction of justice and more.
What could this mean for Giuliani and possibly President Trump?
LEVINSON: There will be a lot of legal exposure for Giuliani, particularly because some of his associates are already under arrest. What this investigation looks like are some very serious allegations of criminal and potentially felony misconduct.
It's too soon to know what will happen, if there will be a grand jury, an indictment, a trial. All of that is far down the road. But these are very serious allegation and we know Rudy Giuliani has been the key player in the wrongdoing that was described in the Mueller report and in the impeachment proceedings now.
So it is absolutely time for the president's personal attorney to get a personal attorney.
CHURCH: Very quickly. According to the House chair Adam Schiff, reports about the inquiry is going to be sent to the Judiciary Committee when Congress returns from Thanksgiving recess.
What does that indicate to you?
LEVINSON: It indicates that they have wrapped up their fact finding and they are not going to call other witnesses unless something happens and they have all the information they want and will not go to court and fight the subpoenas for the witnesses that didn't testify and they will leave that to the Judiciary Committee.
It indicates to me that they focused in on two buckets for impeachment: impeachment on the substance of Ukraine issue and impeaching based on thwarting the impeachment process. I think that's ultimately the report will be transmitted to the Judiciary Committee.
CHURCH: Jessica Levinson, always great to have you with us.
LEVINSON: Thank you.
CHURCH: A Chinese woman caught trespassing at President Trump's Mar- a-lago resort has been sentenced to eight months in prison. Yujing Zhang was found guilty in a case that raised questions about whether she was a spy.
The 33-year-old at a flash drive with malware and other electronic devices but she wasn't charged with espionage. Instead prosecutors said she illegally entered the Florida property and lied to a federal officer.
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CHURCH: She's already been in custody for almost a month and could be released within days.
A brazen overnight burglary of a collection of priceless jewels. When we return we will tell you why a Dresden museum heist is worthy of a Hollywood movie.
Plus in the wake of historic flooding in Venice and ferocious wildfires in Australia, a new warning that greenhouse gases are accelerating. More on the climate crisis next.
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CHURCH: A manhunt is underway in Germany after thieves made off with a priceless hoard of jewelry. It took place early Monday morning. This surveillance shows burglars blasting their way into the Green Vault Museum in Dresden Castle, stealing around 100 pieces of historic treasure. CNN's Phil Black has more.
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PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The target: one of Europe's most valuable collections of treasure suggest that technically complex, professionally planned and executed movie-style heist. The reality, it was far less sophisticated. The thieves even triggered the alarm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The culprits as you were able to see, evidently got in through a window facing the palace square. There, they cut through the gratings and then smashed the glass of the case.
BLACK: The museum's interactive tour shows the contents of that case. They escaped with three sets of jewelry including finely crafted necklaces.
Together, the sets were made up of around 100 individual diamonds, pearls and rubies. The Green Vault is famous for its extraordinary priceless collection from the early 1700s.
The incredibly ornate rooms were first built by local leader Augustus the Strong when he was keen to turn the region into a Florence-like hub of art and culture. The collections survived World War II, but the Vault's rooms like much of Dresden were rebuilt. The museum says the value of the stolen pieces can't be calculated
accurately because they're too well-known to ever be sold on the open market.
But news of the Green Vault raid inspired shock among local officials who say the collection is invaluable as part of the region's culture, history and identity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not just about the material value, but also the immaterial value which is inestimable for the state of Saxon. As our state premier has said, overnight, the whole of Saxon was stolen from.
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BLACK: Police don't know if the thieves had hoped to get away with more, but one extraordinary piece of treasure was well beyond their reach. The famous 41-karat Dresden green diamond. It's currently on loan to the Met Museum in New York -- Phil Black, CNN, London.
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CHURCH: For more on this, we're joined by Scott Selby in Los Angeles, the coauthor of "Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History."
Good to have you with us.
SCOTT SELBY, AUTHOR: Thank you very much, it's good to be here.
CHURCH: What are your thoughts when you saw that surveillance footage of two thieves smashing their way to this jewelry display case with an ax?
SELBY: It is pretty amazing, normally these heists are very intricate and this is a smash and grab. Somebody in your neighborhood smashes the local retail store and grabs stuff.
They pried open some iron bars, smashed a window; two of them climbed in, took the ax and, as you see, they smashed and grabbed everything and got out of there. They were smart, they set off a fire before, they burned their getaway car. But ultimately, it's a smash and grab.
CHURCH: It seemed very easy for them to get in get, the jewelry and get out, didn't it?
SELBY: It does, that is the thing. This is one of the oldest museums in Europe. So maybe that's why the security was not up to snuff. Normally, if you have hundreds of millions of dollars worth of precious stones, you would have incredible security but in this case the thief saw an opportunity and they took it.
CHURCH: And in their original form, these jewels are priceless and easily recognizable. SO they cannot be sold on the open market, so what is likely do happen to them next?
Separated?
Sold in individual portions?
SELBY: It's a tragedy, a cultural tragedy for the people of the Saxony and of the world. It's an artistic tragedy, these are beautiful pieces that together are so much more than some of their parts. But there's nothing you can do with them.
If you have a diamond-encrusted scabbard for a beautiful sword, what you have to do is take it all apart and melt down the precious metals, take these individual stones and transform what they look like.
Even the smaller ones are distinguishable as they were cut very differently back then and the big ones could take some serious changes, it it's really a sad loss to all of us and we're just lucky that the big green stone was safe in the Met.
CHURCH: We're talking about three sets of jewelry, containing the 100 individual diamonds, pearls and rubies and when separated and re-cut, the stones would lose considerable value.
At this point, the burglars do not care about, that all they are wanting in the smash and grab is to resell and they are going to do well, aren't they?
Can any of these be traced, even when they are re-cut?
SELBY: It depends what they do with them. If they are very careful and aggressive, it will be difficult. The biggest thing is, if there are new stones that come on the market, people can figure this out.
For instance, the Hope diamond was part of a larger diamond, so it's always possible. But the more time that time passes, the less likely it is that we will get these things intact. Once they have been through a process, they can appear in your neighborhood jewelry store in a few years and you would never know it.
CHURCH: And, presumably, they will sit tight for a little bit until people -- the memory fades of this. We will see what happens, we will continue to follow this. Scott Selby, thank you for joining us.
SELBY: Thank you for having me.
CHURCH: A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Albania a short time ago and not far from the capital of Tirana and there are fears oof casualties and damage following a dire warning of the climate crisis from the United Nations. Greenhouse gas levels are at a new record high.
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CHURCH (voice-over): Dancing in the rain and jumping for joy. Footage of the volunteer firefighters who have been battling ferocious wildfires in Australia and they're celebrating by busting a few moves when the heavens finally opened in parts of New South Wales.
Australia has suffered a devastating early bush fire season with deadly fires burning through hundreds of thousands of hectares.
New documents reveal more disturbing details about China's detention camps. We will have Beijing's reaction coming up.
And Alibaba makes a blockbuster debut in Hong Kong. Details on its IPO next.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check the headlines for you this hour.
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German police have launched a manhunt for at least two suspects they say pulled off a brazen heist. Thieves smashed their way into the Green Vault Museum at Dresden Castle early Monday morning. Investigators believe around one hundred pieces of priceless jewels were stolen.
The U.S. Justice Department will appeal a federal judge's ruling that former White House counsel, Don McGahn, must testify in the impeachment inquiry. The judge says presidents are not kings and can't keep aids from taking an action the law requires.
Hong Kong's chief executive says city residents can no longer tolerate the chaos of the pro-democracy protests. Carrie Lam spoke after democratic candidates won nearly 90 percent of district council seats in Sunday's election. She admitted the elections allowed voters to express their discontent with the government.
Well, now to another big leak of secret Chinese government documents, the second in just under a week. Now, these reveal how those huge detention centers in China's Xinjiang province are run.
They're basically operating manuals from 2017 that say the detainees, mostly Uyghur Muslims, are not allowed any contact with the outside world. And these inmate they call students must never escape.
The documents also say the program focuses on language and manners training, as well as ideological education.
The papers were released by a group of global journalists on Sunday. CNN cannot independently verify what's in those documents.
Now, for a look at China's reaction, we do turn to CNN's Steven Jiang, who is live in Beijing.
Good to see you, Steven. So a massive leak, another one, initiated by a very brave individual, no doubt. How's China responding to all this?
STEVEN JIANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, the government response was swift and angry.
A foreign ministry official on Monday described the reporting based on these -- these batch of latest leaked documents as a despicable ploy by certain media outlets to hype up this issue and to smear China's counter-terrorism efforts in Xinjiang. In his words, Xinjiang's social stability and ethnic harmony are the best counterattacks against these fabricated stories.
Now, as we mentioned, this was the second trove of leaked documents to be published in -- by international media in just over one week, on November 16. "The New York Times" revealed what they said were more than 500 pages of sensitive Communist Party documents, also leaked by one anonymous source, which the newspaper said, for the first time, linked Chinese President Xi Jinping directly to the launch of these massive camps in Xinjiang.
So at that time, officials also were called the "Times" report fake news. But interestingly, in both occasions, Rosemary, they did not dispute the authenticity of the documents themselves -- Rosemary.
CHURCH: So Steve, what lengths would China go to to hunt down the leaker or leakers of these documents in a couple of instances now, and what will likely happen to that person?
JIANG: Well, that's one issue the government officials are definitely not addressing publicly, but I think you're right. They're going to -- they're likely to going to deploy all their resources, trying to track down this individual, individuals.
And remember, in the past, the authorities have taken some very drastic measures in the name of security and social stability. For example, a few years ago, they cut off the entire region's Internet access, international phone calls, just to -- for that purpose.
But I think the important thing here is these leaked documents, the broader picture, the broader themes revealed in these documents are not surprising, given what we have been hearing from former detainees.
But I think it is just further evidence and proof to -- really, to contradict what the government has been saying publicly, because they call these facilities voluntary vocational training centers, but these documents obviously show officials mandating the use of locked doors, surveillance cameras and 24-hour guards. And as you mentioned, explicitly saying, never allowing any escape. So I think that's why these details and information reveal -- revealed in these documents are very important and valuable.
CHURCH: Yes. It will be interesting to see how the international community responds to this. Steven Jiang joining us live from Beijing. Many thanks.
CHURCH: Well, stocks in Asia opened to early gains Tuesday, after another day of record highs on Wall Street. Investors are optimistic a partial trade agreement could be coming soon between the U.S. and China.
On Wall Street Monday, the Dow closed up 190 points, about 30 points above last week's record. The S&P 500 and NASDAQ also surged.
And China's e-commerce company, Alibaba, helped push the Hang Seng's numbers up at the opening. The stock jumped 7 percent in its initial public offering in Hong Kong. The listing could raise as much as $12.9 billion, making it the largest IPO this year.
Sherisse Pham joins us now from Hong Kong with the very latest. So Sherisse, what are the expectations? How's this likely to play out?
SHERISSE PHAM, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Rosemary, this is playing out really well so far for Alibaba. Analysts I talked to ahead of this public debut expected the stock to pop on the open. It has done that, and they have saved up shares in Alibaba here in Hong Kong, have stayed up throughout the day.
As we're heading into the afternoon session, we see them up just shy of 7 percent. They've been hovering between six and eight-tenths of a percent and 7 percent all day long. And it's a really auspicious number, as well, for Alibaba. Alibaba is here in Hong Kong, trading under the ticker, nine nine, eight eight, anybody who knows Chinese lucky numbers, those are some incredibly lucky numbers. They mean longevity and prosperity. And Alibaba also, baba, eight eight, trading is a homonym there, too.
So the company could raise as much as $12.9 billion in this Hong Kong listing, but of course, they are already trading in New York. They had a blockbuster IPO there in 2014 in what remains the largest IPO on the record, at $25 billion.
But this Hong Kong listing is a real homecoming for this company, because Hong Kong was Alibaba's first choice. They weren't able to list here because of a disagreement over shareholding structure.
The rules have changed on the Hong Kong burse (ph) and now here we are. We have Alibaba listing, massive homecoming, big pop on the open. A real boost of confidence, not only to the city, but also a big win for Beijing. Alibaba is one of the crown jewels of technology companies in China and this coming home. It's a Hong Kong work in trade, a little bit closer to mainland China, a really big win for Beijing, and a boost of confidence in the city, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Keep a close eye on that, Sherisse Pham. Many thanks to you with that report from Hong Kong.
Well, President Trump wasn't top dog at the White House Monday. That honor went to Conan, a military dog, from the al-Baghdadi raid. And we will have a declassified look at the canine hero, just ahead.
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CHURCH: Well it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the White House. First lady Melania Trump welcomed the White House Christmas tree Monday. This year's tree is a five-and-a-half-meter Douglas fir, and was delivered by a horse-drawn carriage. The tree was chosen by White House officials weeks ago, during a visit to a farm in Pennsylvania.
And even though Thanksgiving is just two days away, two turkeys are living it up in the U.S. capital. Bread and Butter, as the White House has named them, will both receive a presidential pardon that will spare them from Thursday's dinner table.
Until then, these fortunate foul are flocking together at a luxury hotel in Washington.
The presidential turkey pardon is an annual White House tradition, dating back to 1947. They're having a blast.
And, we go from turkeys at the White House to a dog, a very good dog. Conan is the military pooch who was injured in the raid against ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Conan got a welcome from the president on Monday, as CNN's Jeanne Moos reports.
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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Remember the time when Donald Trump said --
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: How would I look walking a dog on the White House lawn? Would that be -- It feels a little phony.
MOOS: Well, here he is walking with a dog, out of the White House, the hero dog that chased down the leader of ISIS.
TRUMP: So this is Conan. We just gave Conan a medal and a plaque.
MOOS: You can almost hear Conan thinking, "I was told there'd be junk food," you know, like all those athletes get.
Even FOX News hosts analyzed the body language.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mike Pence was snuggling up to that delicious Conan. President Trump a little bit further away.
MOOS: The president was hands off, while Vice President Pence couldn't stop petting Conan, and Conan kept sniffing and nosing Pence.
(on camera): Conan himself had nothing to say to the White House press, not a whimper, not a bark.
(voice-over): Unlike "SNL's" version --
CECILY STRONG, CAST MEMBER, NBC'S "SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE": Have a sip of water.
MOOS: -- with a canine interpreter providing Conan's commentary.
STRONG: What is this janky fake medal the president put on my neck? It just has a picture of a paw on it. What the hell is that? You don't give humans a medal with a foot on it.
MOOS: When the real Conan emerged, he was greeted with --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh boy.
MOOS: Well, actually, the pool reporter was told that Conan is a good girl, a female. But then a White House official reversed gender, and a pool reporter noted "Conan is a good boy again," finally resorting to "Conan is a good dog," which led to comments like, "Didn't anybody just look? It's not like dogs wear pants."
"Cohen the dog had better clarify their gender situation before Trump tries to ban them from serving."
At the last number, a reporter yelled --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Melania, do you want to adopt the dog for Barron?
MELANIA TRUMP, FIRST LADY: No.
MOOS: But Conan didn't take it personally.
D. TRUMP: Conan is a tough cookie.
MOOS: Don't call him [SIC] a cookie. Give him [SIC] one. Make that tail wag even more.
Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
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CHURCH: Great day for the dog there. And thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. WORLD SPORT is coming up next.
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CHURCH: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM.
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