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House Judiciary Impeachment Hearings Begin December 4; Albania Earthquake; War in Yemen; War in Syria; Flames Threaten Homes in California, 10% Contained; U.N. Report: 'Future Welfare of Mankind' at Stake; Celebrated French Chef Loses Michelin Star Over Souffle. Aired 12-1a ET
Aired November 27, 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.
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, the impeachment inquiry is about to enter a new phase. The House Judiciary Committee sets a date for its first hearing and invites the president to participate.
In the U.S., a holiday travel headache: severe weather puts the brakes on one of the busiest travel days of the year.
And, escaping the flames: the latest California wildfire sends thousands scrambling for safety.
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CHURCH: We begin with the impeachment inquiry and new details that undercut a number of the Trump administration's narratives on withholding military aid to Ukraine.
First, "The New York Times" reports President Trump had already been briefed on the whistleblower's complaints when he released the aid in September. Also, House Democrats have released the last two transcripts from their impeachment depositions.
A top budget official testified he struggled to find out why the aid to Ukraine was frozen. But no one at the White House told him it was because other countries weren't paying their fair share of the Trump administration has claimed.
Well, President Trump is taking his case directly to the people at a campaign rally Tuesday night in Sunrise, Florida. He said Americans think impeachment is a hoax.
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TRUMP: And they're pushing that impeachment, witch hunt. And a lot of bad things are happening to them. Because you see what's happening in the polls? Everybody said that's really (INAUDIBLE).
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CHURCH: Well, the latest CNN poll tells a different story: 50 percent say the president should be impeached to removed from office, 43 percent disagree and that is the same as last month.
Well, the House Judiciary Committee has invited President Trump and his attorneys to take part in its first public hearings, set for December 4th. And a senior administration official says the proposal is under consideration. More now from CNN's Manu Raju.
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MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: The House Judiciary Committee is moving forward, opening up the new phase of the impeachment proceedings in the House.
They will have a hearing, the first public hearing that they have had, to hear testimony from experts, who will weigh in on the constitutionality of impeachment and whether the president's conduct meets the threshold of high crimes and misdemeanors.
The expert panel of witnesses expected to have a discussion about the facts that were found as part of the two-month investigation that the House Intelligence Committee and two other committees found and looking into the president's handling of the Ukraine policy and whether or not he abused his office, violating the law and withholding key military aid for Ukraine as well as a key meeting with Ukrainian president, to exchange for investigations that could help the president politically, that President Trump had asked the president of Ukraine to launch, into Joe Biden and a theory that the 2016 election because campaign was started by Ukraine, that push by Rudy Giuliani as well.
All that will be addressed in a series of Judiciary Committee hearings that will start on Wednesday. Then, next Wednesday will be that hearing about and then afterwards, probably more public hearings as well before they will actually vote on articles of impeachment in the House Judiciary Committee.
That will probably take place in the second week of December and maybe spill into the third week of December. The third week of December will probably be the week to watch in which the full House will have the opportunity to vote on articles of impeachment against the president, making him just the third American president to be impeached by the U.S. House.
Some of that seems almost certain at this point because Democrats are moving full speed ahead. At the moment they are discussing the size and scope of the articles of impeachment, how many articles to include, whether it is abuse of power, bribery, obstruction of Congress or even obstruction of justice.
Those are all discussions that will be happening behind the scenes, with Nancy Pelosi, her top lieutenants, as well as some members that will be returning to town next week. This announcement by the House Judiciary Committee significant.
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RAJU: It signals a new phase of the impeachment probe is coming and is coming soon. Back to you.
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CHURCH: Thank you so much for that.
Ron Brownstein is CNN's senior political analyst and the senior editor for "The Atlantic." He joins me now from Los Angeles.
Thank you so much for talking to us.
So Ron, "The New York Times" reports that President Trump knew about the whistleblower complaint before he released military aid to Ukraine.
How significant is this and could it be the smoking gun?
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: I don't know about that but it's certainly a battering ram for one of the central defenses of the Republicans. They basically argued, as they would say in America, no harm no, foul. The president gave up the money, the investigations were never initiated by Ukraine.
But he only gave up the money once it was apparent, once he knew that the whistleblower complaint had been filed and that it was only a matter of time until the entire story came out. It is certainly undercuts one of the central defenses.
Will it have any more effect on Republican minds?
CHURCH: Two more transcripts were released by House Democrats, in one a top budget official struggled to find out why the aid was frozen.
Why is that significant?
BROWNSTEIN: The administration, in addition to that -- it has to be seen in the context of other information that has come out, about emails looking for a retrospective justification for withholding the aid inside of the administration.
But all this says is that the aid was withheld. Very few people had a clear understanding why, if there were, the chief of staff is one and he has refused to testify so far. The administration, after the fact, moved very quickly once, as they felt the heat developing defined rationales for what they did.
If you look at all the testimony that we are getting from the career diplomats, from Gordon Sondland, the OMB officials. It's hard to paint another narrative other than the one the Democrats has presented, that the administration withheld this money, withheld the meeting, hoping to pressure the Ukrainian government into launching investigations into Joe Biden and then retreated only when it was apparent that their activities were going to be unearthed.
Each piece of evidence continues to fill in that picture.
CHURCH: Despite the president continuing to call the impeachment inquiry a hoax and B.S., CNN's poll showed 50 percent of those surveyed want to see him removed from office, while 43 percent say they don't. Those numbers have not changed since last month.
What does that tell you?
BROWNSTEIN: First, the obvious point is the country is intensely divided about Donald Trump's presidency. This is trench warfare, not World War II, with big sudden movements of troops. Public opinion only moves slowly.
His approval rating has varied only between 39 percent and 43 percent all year. The country is pretty dug in.
Secondly, it tells you that Americans are rightfully hesitant about a move as big as impeachment and removal. We've never removed a sitting president from office through the impeachment process, although Richard Nixon resigned; 50 percent is quite a bit.
Bill Clinton's support for removal never rose above one-third and for Richard Nixon it reached 50 percent in the very last poll before he left office. On the one hand, we are deeply divided. Opinion is not changing that much about Donald Trump.
What this is doing is hardening the opposition he faces from the majority of Americans who say they disapprove of them. We are in a position where there's probably as high as it's going to get in terms of support for removing him from office, absent some bombshell testimony.
CHURCH: House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler has invited President Trump and his attorneys to take part in his committee's first public impeachment hearing, starting next week, on December 4th. The White House is considering this.
What will their answer be, do you think?
BROWNSTEIN: The White House considered the president having an interview with Robert Mueller for a long, time and that never happened. I would be shocked if the president subjected himself to this.
These hearings are important, because as you know, in the polling, the share of Americans who say the president did something wrong in Ukraine or that he was acting on personal interests and not the national interest is higher than the share that says he should be removed from office.
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BROWNSTEIN: Either because they think it's too late in the presidency or they are not sure it reaches the standard of high crimes and misdemeanors.
I think it's important for Democrats to put forward witnesses who can make their case to the country, that, in fact, what the president did does cross the threshold. I think these are important for the Democrats in building a consensus for the actions, which now seems inevitable in the House.
CHURCH: Ron Brownstein, great to have you with us. We appreciate it.
BROWNSTEIN: Thank you.
CHURCH: Thanksgiving is already a travel headache in the United States and this year could be even worse, with storms hitting coast to coast. More than 20 million people are under a winter weather advisory, from California to Michigan.
Denver has a steady buildup of snow from a system that is now heading to the Midwest. Hundreds of flights are already canceled in Denver, leading passengers stranded. A record 31.6 million people are expected to fly on U.S. airlines this Thanksgiving holiday. That is according to a trade organization.
On Sunday, the busiest travel day, strong winds and rain are forecast for the Northeast.
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CHURCH: Well, now to Albania, where terrified earthquake survivors are spending the night outdoors. Dozens of aftershocks have rattled the region after a 6.4 magnitude quake early Tuesday morning, the strongest to hit the country in 40 years; at least 23 people have been killed.
Volunteers and sniffer dogs from countries around southern Europe are helping in the search and rescue efforts. CNN's Nina dos Santos has more.
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NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Buried alive: local residents, emergency services and military personnel scour the rubble.
There's still hope for some, less for others. The region's most powerful earthquake in decades struck during the early hours of Tuesday morning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It was a real horror. So I tried to get out of my home and went through the glass door. I cut myself badly.
DOS SANTOS (voice-over): According to the United States Geological Survey, the epicenter of the 6.4-magnitude quake was the coastal town of Durres, 36 kilometers or 22 miles west of Albania's capital, Tirana.
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama's office updated the death toll upwards several times.
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DOS SANTOS: On Tuesday, the health ministry confirmed at least 325 people have been injured.
Worryingly for potential survivors, aftershocks continue to be felt. Rescue efforts were forced to halt on multiple occasions throughout the day on Tuesday. The prime minister tweeted to say that nearby countries including Italy, Serbia, Montenegro and Greece, have been assisting with the recovery operation.
He went on, "This is a very dramatic difficult time, however we must keep calm and stand by each other to get through this together. We will do everything we can within our power, together with the support of our great friends to overcome this situation."
Albania is the poorest country in Europe according to Eurostat, with a typical income less than a third of the European average. The United States and the European Union both pledged their support.
The Balkans is an area prone to seismic activity. Among the worst, in 1979, a magnitude-6.9 quake hit Albania, leaving 136 dead and more than 1,000 injured. Forty years later, the citizens of Albania have suffered another deadly tremor -- Nina dos Santos, CNN, London.
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CHURCH: We will take a short, break. Still to come, Syrian Kurds say they were forced from their homes after a Turkish offensive.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They took everything. And after they took all our belongings, they set it on fire and burned it all.
CHURCH (voice-over): We hear from civilians paying the cost after U.S. troop withdrawals.
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CHURCH: Plus, North Korea is raising alarms with the test-firing of artillery near South Korean territory. But hear why experts think this is more than just Kim Jong-un flexing his muscles.
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CHURCH: U.S. teams are on their way to the Middle East to investigate a CNN report of U.S. military equipment falling into the hands of rebels in Yemen. The teams are being sent to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Those countries have been supplied with U.S. weapons and armored vehicles in the fight against Houthi rebels in Yemen.
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CHURCH: But CNN's investigation found some of those vehicles in the hands of the rebels and militia. Some factions have ties to Al Qaeda and Iran and they are fighting the U.S.-backed government.
In a letter obtained by CNN, the U.S. State Department says continued insufficient responses from the UAE and the Saudis have delayed the U.S. probe. CNN's Nima Elbagir and her team uncovered key details by traveling to Yemen. In London Monday, she was honored for her work by the Foreign Press Association.
And elsewhere in the Middle East, ISIS remains a threat in northern Syria. News agencies report the top U.S. general for the region says America will pick up the pace against what's left of the terror group.
President Trump ordered U.S. troops to pull back from northern Syria last month. That left Washington's Kurdish allies at the mercy of a Turkish offensive and they say they feel betrayed. CNN's Clarissa Ward has more from northern Syria on civilians paying the price for the U.S. exit.
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CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Class should be in session now but here in Hasakah, the school has become a temporary shelter for displaced people.
In one classroom, we meet Ibrahim Hassan. The Kurdish father of five tells us he was forced to flee his home in Ras al-Ain with his children when the Turkish military operation began.
This is what remains of his house. Ibrahim says it is one of many in his Kurdish neighborhood that was deliberately ransacked by Turkish- backed forces.
IBRAHIM HASSAN, DISPLACED SYRIAN KURD (through translator): They took everything and after they took all our belongings they set it on fire and burned it all.
WARD (voice-over): Just days before the offensive began, Ibrahim's children had posed smiling with U.S. troops patrolling the area. He says America's presence gave him a false sense of security -- then suddenly, they were gone.
HASSAN (through translator): Since America betrayed us, every time I look at these photos of my children with the Americans, I want to erase them.
WARD (on camera): Do you feel that you trust the Americans, still?
(Speaking foreign language).
HASSAN: Bialtabe la.
WARD (on camera): Bialtabe la -- definitely not.
HASSAN (through translator): Now we hear and we see on television America saying that they're only here for the oil. Why did Trump do this?
You have betrayed all of the people.
WARD (voice-over): It's a sentiment we found shared by many here. Nearly 200,000 people have been displaced by Turkey's offensive. Hundreds of their homes have been damaged or looted.
Local authorities are now trying to move them out of the schools so that class can start again and into hastily-built camps like this one. Conditions are bleak and resources are scarce.
Because of the security situation, international aid agencies have had to pull out, leaving the Kurds with no one to rely on but themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
WARD (on camera): So she's saying it's really difficult here because it's very cold, especially at night. They don't have enough food, they don't have electricity and the water is not good.
WARD (voice-over): Camp organizers say there are 3,000 people living here now with more arriving every day.
WARD (on camera): Almost everyone in this camp is from the town of Ras al-Ain and Ras al-Ain used to be around 75 percent Kurdish.
Now though, we're told there are just a handful of Kurds left. And the people here believe that the ultimate goal of this Turkish offensive is to essentially push the Kurds out of this area completely and change the ethnic makeup of it forever.
WARD (voice-over): Turkey has done little to alleviate their fears. As the Kurds have poured out of these areas, Arabs have been bused in -- Syrian refugees, who Turkish authorities claim are originally from these areas.
After more than eight years of civil war, this part of Syria is full of stories of people forcibly displaced. In the Christian village of Tal Nasr, we find more families from Ras al-Ain sheltering in the ruins of a destroyed church.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
WARD (on camera): Will you try to go home, I asked these women.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
WARD (on camera): There's no home to go to, they reply.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (Speaking foreign language).
WARD (voice-over): ISIS cleansed this area of Christians when it was on control. They have yet to return. Now the village provides refuge for another people forced from their homes with no sense of a possible return.
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WARD (voice-over): Clarissa Ward, CNN, Northern Syria.
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CHURCH: In another display of defiance, North Korea has test-fired artillery near South Korean territory, part of a growing pattern of frustration from Kim Jong-un. He has met with U.S. president Donald Trump three times since 2018 for denuclearization talks, with nothing to show for it. More now from CNN's Brian Todd.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From North Korea's young supreme commander, a menacing show of force. Kim Jong-un in a white trenchcoat, supervises the test-firing of short-range artillery from an near his country's disputed maritime border with South Korea.
It draws a protest from Seoul for violating an agreement between the two countries' military.
Experts believe this is more than muscle flexing from the dictator. It could well be a reflection of the growing pressure they say he's under to stand up to the U.S.
COL. DAVID MAXWELL (RET.), FOUNDATION OF DEFENSE OF DEMOCRACIES: Because of his failure to get concessions and sanctions relief, he is under extreme internal pressure. And so he must demonstrate his military strength and resolve to his own military and to his own elite.
TODD: North Korea's state-run news agency says the military unit which conducted this drill was quote "boiling with glory, joy and ecstasy" from receiving the great historic leader.
A volleyball exhibition was staged. An all-female military band performed. And in one of several class photos, Kim is in the middle of dozens of female soldiers, many of whom are openly crying.
MAXWELL: We've seen many pictures like this. And women crying, even men crying. And we should remember that Koreans only get ahead in the north by demonstrating personal loyalty to Kim Jong-un. These tears whether they are real or fake are an attempt to demonstrate that personal loyalty.
LINDSEY FORD, THE BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: He's almost this mythical, untouchable kind of god-like leader. And so that's why you want to see this kind of hysteria around him when people have the opportunity to see him and meet him.
TODD: Analysts say the bizarre photo op and the artillery drill are part of a pattern of recent smaller scale provocations from North Korea which include several short range missile tests and hostile and threatening statements directed at the U.S., all reflecting a much larger frustration felt by Kim Jong-un.
Kim's regime has given President Trump and his team until the end of this year to make more progress on a nuclear weapons deal. Experts say if that doesn't happen, North Korea could go back to testing nuclear warheads and long range missiles.
FORD: If this all goes south in a couple of months and we blow past this self-imposed deadline the North Koreans have offered, we have to assume that we're facing a far more capable, more angry and dangerous North Korea than we were looking at two years ago.
TODD: And analysts believe another provocation from North Korea to tweak the U.S. and South Korea is imminent. In the next few days they say the North Korean military is going to begin its so-called winter training cycle. More than a million troops conducting a massive series of drills that will last for months.
The U.S. and South Korea meanwhile have been scaling back their joint military exercises to appease North Korea and get back to the negotiating table but experts say Kim Jong-un is not about to scale back his military drills -- Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
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CHURCH: Another fast-moving fire threatens California but as firefighters work to control it, the weather might finally be on their side. That is ahead.
Plus, another dire warning from the United Nations, which says countries are not doing enough to keep the Earth's temperature from rising to near catastrophic levels. We are back in just a moment.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. Wan to check the headlines for you this hour.
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A top U.S. budget official says the White House never raised concerns about other countries' contributions to Ukraine until months after U.S. aid was frozen. That undermines how the Trump administration has tried to defend the freeze during the impeachment inquiry.
European countries have contributed hundreds of millions of dollars in development aid to Ukraine. The U.S. has borne the brunt of military aid.
At least 23 people have died in the strongest earthquake to hit Albania in 40 years. The quake's epicenter was in the port city of Durres, about 30 kilometers from the capital, Tirana.
The prime minister's office says about 45 people have been rescued from the rubble. Search teams are looking for more survivors.
Winter weather is expected to disrupt Thanksgiving travel across the U.S. Blizzard conditions have already closed highways and forced flight cancellations in Denver, Colorado. That storm is now moving east.
Meanwhile, another storm system is bringing hurricane-force wind and rain to the West Coast.
Firefighters are making progress with fast-moving flames in central California. The Cave Fire has burned 17 square kilometers and is 10 percent contained. Favorable weather is now moving through the area, but fire crews say they are facing some of the toughest conditions anywhere in the world.
Nick Watt is on the ground in Santa Barbara.
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NICK WATT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Six hundred firefighters battling blazes in bone-dry brush.
FIRE BATTALION CHIEF ANTHONY STOMETTA, SANTA BARBARA COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: It's been quite the fire fight, were moving up slope, downslope, across the slope.
WATT: With high winds whipping flames across steep hillsides of Santa Barbara, the fabled beach town and home to nearly 100,000.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm like, oh, my God.
WATT: Dozens of homes threatened, thousands of people forced to flee. Flames engulfing Highway 154. For some, the only route to safety.
After daybreak, tanker air drops, more helicopters joining the fight.
FIRE CHIEF JIM HARRIS, LOS PADRES NATIONAL FOREST: It's a really hard, difficult piece of country to fight fire in, and the weather is some of the most extreme anywhere around.
WATT: But so far, not a single home lost, just one outbuilding.
There are ancient Chumash Native American cave paintings here in these hills, safe, covered in advance of the flames with heat-resistant tarps. And that's why they're calling this the Cave Fire.
(on camera): There is a rain storm moving and that will drop a couple of inches that will help douse this fire. But fire season here in California is not over. You know, one state official said used to be, just a few years ago, fire season was pretty much over by November 1. Not anymore. This year, Cal Fire is staying fully staffed up through New Year's.
Nick Watt, CNN, Santa Barbara.
(END VIDEOTAPE) CHURCH: The United Nations has released a dismal record on the
world's environment, ahead of a climate change convention starting next week. The report says countries are not doing enough to keep the earth's temperature from rising to near catastrophic levels.
CNN's Jim Bittermann has the details.
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JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Basically, to understand what's happening here, you have to understand what took place in Paris four years ago. The COP-21 took place, 196 countries getting together to agree to some pretty lofty goals about climate change.
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They wanted to keep the rise in global temperatures at 1.5 degrees. That's at 1.5 degrees Celsius, over and above what the temperatures were around the world back at the turn of the 19th to 21st -- 20th Century, back at the time of the industrial revolution.
In any case, four years after that, this report comes out ahead of yet another climate change meeting in Madrid, which is supposed to start next week, basically challenging countries again, saying that if anything, they've slipped backwards on their attempts to meet this goal.
The way it looks now, 1.5 degrees could still be obtainable by 2030, which is what the original goal was, could still be obtainable but, in order to do that, the countries of the world will have to cut back 7.6 percent of global gas emission -- global greenhouse gas emissions every year between now and 2030. Something that a lot of people say is practically impossible.
In fact, what it looks like is that, by 2030, temperature will slip up to two degrees, and if nothing happens after that, it could go up to 3.2 degrees Celsius in recent temperature, over the industrial revolution, pre-industrial revolution temperature s by the year 2100.
Really dangerous, indeed. And in fact, the kind of thing that we've already seen. Right now, we're about one degree over the pre- industrial temperatures, and we've already seen all kinds of very dramatic climate events around the world.
Just to emphasize how serious this is, the secretary-general of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said this: "There's never been a more important time to listen to the science. Failure to heed these warnings and take drastic action to reverse emissions means we will continue to witness storms, deadly and catastrophic heatwaves, storms and pollution."
A very pointed message, especially to climate change deniers like President Donald Trump.
Jim Bittermann, CNN, Paris.
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CHURCH: And we'll take a short break here.
Still to come, for some chefs, it represents the peak of their career, but others are rejecting the coveted Michelin star. Their reasons, when we come back.
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CHURCH: Well, for any restaurant, it's a career high to win a Michelin star, but that's not the case for one South Korean chef. Eo Yun-gwon is reportedly suing Michelin for including his restaurant in its 2019 guide to Seoul against his riches.
He takes issue with the secretive process Michelin uses to judge restaurants. In a phone interview, he told CNN that the "Michelin guide is a cruel system," calling it the cruelest test in the world. He says, "It forces chefs to work around a year waiting for a test, and they don't know when it's coming."
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He says it's humiliating to see his restaurant given a rating in what he calls "that unwholesome book." He added, "The guide is blinded by money and lacks philosophy."
Well, the South Korean chef isn't alone in challenging Michelin. One French chef has been awarded nine stars but now says he doesn't want any.
As Saskya Vandoorne reports, it all begins with a cheese souffle.
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SASKYA VANDOORNE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): (SPEAKING FRENCH) In France, food is given a special place. In the best restaurants, it's given an almost ceremonial reverence. And for the top chefs, the ultimate measure of their success is the Michelin star. But what if, far from being something to wish for, the Michelin star was more of a curse?
(voice-over): Marc Veyrat, one of France's most famous chefs, has earned nine stars in all, but in January, his Maison des Bois restaurant in the Alps lost its third star over a souffle that a critic said tasted of cheddar, an affront that Mr. Veyrat has not even begun to digest.
MARC VEYRAT, CHEF: (SPEAKING FRENCH)
GRAPHIC: I'm ready to accept losing a star, but they have to tell me why. In my opinion, they are incompetent! Do you realize they mixed up reblochon and cheddar? They said my souffle was made of cheddar, but that's nonsense. VANDOORNE: Now, the 69-year-old is taking the Michelin guide to court. He said he no longer wants its stars and wants the guide to clarify its reasons behind its decision.
But it turns out it's not that simple. While Michelin says Veyrat's talent is not in dispute, it insists its first duty is to inform the consumer.
GWENDAI POULIENNEC, INTERNATIONAL DIRECTOR, THE MICHELIN GUIDE: Food, especially in France, is about passion. It's about emotion. Chefs are real artists, so they are quite proud, sometimes excessive, fragile. And I think in that case, he's saying, OK, I deserve three stars because I am who I am. We have to -- to avoid any kind of, let's say, emotional blackmail.
VANDOORNE: It isn't the first time that the pressure placed on chefs by the star system has caused controversy. The 2003 suicide of the three-star chef Bernard Loiseau was linked to a system of intense gourmet critique.
Several chefs have even asked for their stars to be removed, citing the psychological, as well as financial pressure of maintaining their rating.
VEYRAT: (SPEAKING FRENCH)
GRAPHIC: For 20 years, I couldn't sleep for three months in the lead up to the guide being because I was so scared I would lose the stars. How can you allow that? Will we do this tomorrow for lawyers, doctors, mechanics, for everyone? What right do they have to do this?
VANDOORNE: Veyrat hopes the hearing today will force the guide to be more transparent about how it awards stars, and more importantly, why it takes them away.
Saskya Vandoorne, CNN, Paris.
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CHURCH: And thanks so much for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I am 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 am Rosemary Church. Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM. The impeachment inquiry is about to enter a new phase. The House Judiciary Committee sets a date for its first hearing and invites the president to participate.
In the U.S., a holiday travel headache.
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