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White House Refuse to Comply House Judiciary Hearing; Bad Weather Rocking the East and West Coast; Vigil Held for Two Terror Victims; Iraqis Still Protests Despite P.M.'s Resignation. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired December 02, 2019 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching CNN Newsroom, and I'm Rosemary Church.

Let's get started.

Refusing to engage. Wednesday's hearing on Capitol Hill would have been the White House's first chance to participate in the impeachment inquiry, but Trump's lawyers say no.

Blizzards, snowstorms and floods. Sunday was bad, and it doesn't look like Monday will be any better. We will have the forecast for you.

Plus, the victims of violence. We are learning more about the two lives cut short in Friday's terror attack in London.

Glad you could join us.

U.S. President Donald Trump and his lawyers are refusing to participate in this week's impeachment hearings. The White House counsel told Democratic lawmakers Sunday the hearings are unfair. The proceedings shift to the House judiciary committee this Wednesday, which will consider possible charges against the president.

Sarah Westwood has details of the message sent to the committee chairman.

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN REPORTER: The White House responded Sunday evening to House judiciary chairman Jerry Nadler's offer to let the White House have a lawyer present at Wednesday's judiciary committee hearing. White House counsel Pat Cipollone saying the White House will not be sending an attorney to that hearing.

Now Cipollone spent much of the five-page letter he sent to Nadler on Sunday night complaining about the House Democrats' impeachment process so far. For example, complaining that the president and administration witnesses have been denied due process, but specifying that the White House would not be taking this opportunity to have representation at Wednesday's hearing. Again, the first in the judiciary committee throughout this

impeachment process.

I want to read you part of the letter that Cipollone sent to Nadler. He wrote, "As for the hearing scheduled for December 4th, we cannot fairly be expected to participate in a hearing while the witnesses are yet to be named and while it remains unclear whether the judiciary committee will afford the president a fair process."

And he goes on to write, "Accordingly under the current circumstances, we do not intend to participate in your Wednesday hearing."

Now this had put the White House in a tough spot because of course administration officials and Trump allies have complained throughout this process that they have perceived it as unfair.

But sending a lawyer to those hearings on Wednesday could have been lending an air of legitimacy to proceedings that Trump and his allies have decried as a sham throughout this process.

Now interestingly, Cipollone did leave the door open for the White House participating in future hearings. Cipollone writing, "We may consider participating in future judiciary committee proceedings if you afford the administration the ability to do so meaningfully."

Now, Cipollone had complained, for example, that not enough information was provided about Wednesday's hearing. Nadler had set an additional deadline of Friday for the White House to specify whether they wanted to mount a public defense for future judiciary committee proceedings.

It's in the judiciary committee that house Democrats will first vote on articles of impeachment, something that House Democrats have said they want to get done by Christmas Day. So, the impeachment inquiry about to accelerate dramatically.

The White House also has a big day on Monday, when House intelligence committee members will have their first opportunity to look at the findings of weeks of work from House Democrats in a report that will be distributed behind closed doors to members.

Sarah Westwood, CNN, the White House.

CHURCH: Well, president Trump is leaving impeachment proceedings behind when he travels to London for the NATO summit in the coming hours.

Back in Washington, the process will pick up pace. On Tuesday, the House intelligence committee will issue a report on its findings. The next day, the judiciary committee will hold hearings to consider charges against the president.

The White House has a Friday deadline to decide whether to participate in future hearings. House Democrats want to vote on impeachment by Christmas.

So, joining me now is Jacob Parakilas. He is an associate of the think tank LSE Ideas. Good to have you with us.

[03:05:06]

Well, President Trump and his lawyers will not participate in Wednesday's impeachment hearings, insisting those or the process at least is unfair. Are they right or wrong on that point, and how much of this is about trying to avoid legitimizing the impeachment process?

JACOB PARAKILAS, ASSOCIATE, LSE IDEAS: I think it's entirely about trying to avoid legitimizing the impeachment process. There's been a calculation throughout while the narrative around the president's actions certainly changes as more facts have come out, there has been an over -- an overarching strategy behind the Trump White House's approach to this, which is don't give an inch of ground. Don't treat the process as legitimate. Trust that the faith of the Senate and House Republicans will hold and that the process will end with a dismissal in the Senate.

That seems to be the animating strategy. So, the question of whether it's legitimate is a little bit beside the point because all of this stems from a desire to throw up as many roadblocks to the process as possible. That's why they blocked off everyone from former White House counsel Don McGahn to former national security adviser John Bolton from testifying.

It's why they have thrown up numerous lawsuits and legal challenges designed to delay and distract and hold on to the idea that assuming that the Republicans hold faith, assuming that Republicans stick together as a bloc, the entire thing will fall into the sort of predictable partisan character that even if you have majority support for impeachment, it won't cascade into overwhelming majority support, which will lead to Republican defections.

That's the animating strategy. I think that's the thing to it. I don't think the rationale behind it is fundamentally a legal one. I think it's a political and strategic one.

CHURCH: Right. I mean, they're right, aren't they? Once this gets to the Senate, he's not going to be impeached. He's not going to be removed. So, a lot of people would suggest, well, this is sort of a waste of everybody's time and taxpayer money, and there are political consequences of that as well, aren't there?

PARAKILAS: Well, the political consequences are unclear. It's certainly animating for a portion of the Republican base, but you also have to bear in mind that this impeachment process is considerably more popular according to public polling than either the Clinton process or the Nixon process if you go back to 1974.

So you actually have a significant -- you have a significant amount of evidence to suggest that a majority of the public, albeit a slim majority, but at this point in the Clinton and Nixon proceedings, it was at 30 percent or 35 percent, and now it's at 48, 50 t 52 percent depending on which poll you look at.

So, the politics aren't just clear cut as there's going to be a blow back. And I do think the Democrats have gone far enough down this passage that it's very unlikely that they won't vote to impeach.

I think it would be -- they would see it as a kind of embarrassing backdown if they didn't make that vote. I do think that the math in the Senate is still very heavily stacked in the president's favor unless something significant changes in the next few months.

I do think you will probably see a vote to void the president's impeachment, to return a not guilty verdict as it were. But the political consequences, putting this all out in the public, having a public conversation about what the president did vis-a-vis bring -- whether he abused his power, might actually be beneficial, and it might actually distracts the president's fire from the Democratic candidates as they're going to finally cross it.

CHURCH: Right.

PARAKILAS: So I don't think it's necessarily bad news.

CHURCH: And of course, the House judiciary committee will consider possible articles of impeachment against President Trump. So how strong is the evidence so far, and does it rise to the level of high crimes and misdemeanors? How do they -- how do they figure that out?

PARAKILAS: Well, it's fundamentally -- I mean the term high crimes and misdemeanors is not defined in the Constitution. It's stated but not defined. There's been a significant volume of legal scholarship about it.

I mean, as a matter of ordinary law rather than constitutional law, the process of seeking to use an official act in order to gain something of value is specifically prohibited by federal election law, and I think the attempt to withdraw military and political aid from Ukraine in exchange for an investigation into a political rival would by most standards be considered a violation of that law.

But that's not the -- that's not the fundamental question here. It's a political question of how the House judiciary defines it and what the implications of doing so are and how well that allows them to make the case to the Senate and to the American people in the subsequent Senate trial.

CHURCH: All right. Jacob Parakilas, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your analysis on this. I appreciate it.

Well, millions of travelers in the United States are scrambling with powerful winter storms causing headaches from coast to coast. And it comes right after the Thanksgiving holiday with some of the busiest travel days of the year.

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In Buffalo, New York, the weather caused a plane to slide off the runway. More than 900 flights have been canceled nationwide, and nearly 8,000 have been delayed. Places like South Dakota have seen blizzard-like conditions. Nearly 50 million people across the country are under some kind of weather alert. On the West Coast, the California mountains are getting heavy snow,

and it's more rain and strong winds for the lower elevations.

So, let's turn to our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri, who has been watching all of this very closely. People want to know when things are going to start to improve.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: here we go. Wait until Tuesday morning unfortunately, Rosemary. And of course, that is when the airline industry considers that the period, the holiday travel period ends is Tuesday morning.

So, this is when the storm system we expect finally moving offshore and away from the eastern United States. But notice there is the center of circulation right across the eastern Great Lakes, right across the Ohio Valley. And gradually it is shifting in across the major metro cities of the northeast.

Now, there's such a broad feature, the impacts of course have been pretty significant, well in advance of its arrival. But snow showers from Boston out towards New York City really going to be the name of the game here. And going to be a wintry mix event set up here. So, it's not going to be all snow, but some rain, some snow, certainly some sleet.

And as you noted, about 50 million people dealing with the winter weather alerts. That is encompassing some 20 states, part of 20 states dealing with the wintery weather.

Now when you take a look at what has already happened, Boston just about three inches has come down so far. That was enough to cause about 500 flights to be disrupted on Sunday alone. So, kind of speaks to the impact, the volume of air travel in place there.

And of course, you work your way towards other areas in interior New England. As much as over a foot has already come down. So here goes the storm system. And notice kind of the time stamp here as we go into the early morning hours and eventually through late Monday and eventually into Tuesday.

This system parts just offshore, so it is very slow moving. The snow showers tapering off sometime early Tuesday. And when it's all said and done, because of the fact that the temps are just a little too warm, we don't expect significant accumulations for the major metro cities.

In fact, look at this. Washington, 45 for a high today. New York around 40. Boston around 40 degrees. Even Detroit and Chicago into the mid and upper 30s. But the winds will be howling. It will be a slushy mess and of course, that is the worst-case setup when it comes to additional disruptions which we know of at least 500 flights already disrupted into the early morning hours of Monday.

These are all preemptive disruptions so we'll watch this carefully throughout the day. Rosie.

CHURCH: It is just unbelievable, isn't it? Pedram, thanks so much for keeping such a close eye on all of that. We all appreciate it.

JAVAHERI: Thank you.

CHURCH: Thanks.

Well, people will soon come together in London to honor the two people killed in Friday's terror attack. We will have more on the victims next.

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CHURCH: In just a few hours, the victims of Friday's London terror attack will be remembered at a vigil.

Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones were involved in a prisoner rehabilitation program called learning together. They had been attending an event linked to that program when they were stabbed by a man convicted on terrorism offenses who was out on early release. Three other people were also injured in that attack.

CNN's Nina Dos Santos has more.

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Twenty-five-year-old Jack Merritt and 23-year-old Saskia Jones. Both were Cambridge graduates. Both passionate about giving even the most serious offenders a second chance.

It was this belief that brought them to an event near London Bridge to discuss rehabilitation with former prisoners and a belief that put them into contact with Usman Khan, a convicted terrorist out on license.

The fact he was freed early has been seized upon by the prime minister, already pledging to get tough on law and order with the general election now less than two weeks away. And days before a NATO summit in the U.K., which will see the country welcome world leaders, including the U.S. president.

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BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I think it's repulsive that individuals as dangerous as this man should be allowed out after serving only eight years, and that's why we are going to change the law.

JEREMY CORBYN, LEADER, LABOUR PARTY: I think there has to be an examination of how our prison services work, and crucially what happens to someone released from prison.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOS SANTOS: Over the weekend, authorities have increased their surveillance of 74 criminals out on license, like Khan. That led to the arrest of a 34-year-old man on Sunday night. In a statement, Jack Merritt's family described him as a beautiful,

talented boy who believed in redemption, not revenge. And they urged Johnson not to politicize his passing.

"We know jack would not want this terrible isolated incident to be used as a pretext by the government for introducing even more draconian sentences,' they said. A legacy captured in Jack's own words describing his work in this radio interview earlier this year.

(BEGIN VOICE CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our students in prison often have a very firsthand, very real but also very nuanced idea of how the law works. We essentially start talking to our students about ideas of justice and access to justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOS SANTOS: Khan's lawyer says longer sentences aren't the answer. The focus instead should be on rehabilitation before release.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VAJAHAT SHARIF, USMAN KHAN'S LAWYER: The point to learn from this is that the system could benefit by reviewing its position on something like this and having offenders interact with deradicalizes sometime before they are be released in the community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DOS SANTOS: Police are still trying to understand the events leading up to Friday's attack. What they learn may have important consequences for how and when offenders are released in the future even if that may not necessarily have been the reform that Friday's gathering had been hoping to achieve.

Nina Dos Santos, CNN, London.

[03:20:03]

CHURCH: Iraq's parliament has accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi, who vowed to step down amid violent protests. But the move hasn't ended the unrest. There have been more demonstrations in Najaf where sources say more than a dozen people have been killed since Wednesday.

Local courts have started prosecuting officials over the killing of protesters. Meanwhile, demonstrators gathered in Baghdad to mourn of the lost -- the people they've lost. Some lit candles. Others carried flags as they marched in the capital.

CNN's Arwa Damon is in Hillah where another grieving community has come together.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They cry for those they love, for those they never met, for the agony of loss today and that of Iraq's painful past. The sorrowful lyrics, a traditional Shia martyr hymn told from the perspective of the martyr saying farewell to the living.

This is Hillah the predominantly Shia capital of the province of Babylon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This speech from the old civilization in the old from Babylon. We love our country. We love life. So, we made this peaceful demonstration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAMON: Our presence prompts an address in English. Those who are here starved to get their message out to an international audience.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need all the world to support, to stop crimes against innocent people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAMON: Those crimes reflected in this living peace of macabre art and along the walls laid in to the protest grounds.

"After all the blood that was spilled, we won't let that go. We won't give up," 22-year-old Tabarik Fahdel (Ph) vows. She's a recent college graduate, and this is about her future. It's a future without the chains of Iraq's sectarian political parties, without the toxic influence of Iran and other outside powers.

Students of all ages are on strike, foregoing their education until their demands are met.

They want to start over. They want a do over when it comes to Iraq's democracy project, and it really is this generation that is forcing about this change.

But few places are as calm as this, where there is an agreement with the police to keep the peace. This is the local provincial council that has been shut down at the request of the population. I mean they've basically gotten rid of the local government here.

They also torched the local offices of all political parties, a reflection of the outrage felt towards the political elite and their outside patrons.

But just a 45-minute drive further south, in the holy Shia city of Najaf, the bloody repression against those who dare revolt continues. In the last few days, at least 20 people have been killed. More than 500 wounded.

"Check if my son is thirsty. I will drink after him. I'm worried he died thirsty," this father Aroli (Ph) beside himself cries out. And this little girl just five years old was killed by a stray bullet when she was standing in front of her house.

Najaf is where Shia political power lies and Iran's influence is more prominent. But even here there is no more tolerance left for the status quo. Protesters have already burned the Iranian consulate, and more recently attacked the shrine of a once revered Shia cleric whose family is now entrenched in Iraqi politics.

Despite the crushing pain, there is hope and determination. A strike even in sorrow that those here swear is more powerful than any sectarian force.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Hillah, Iraq.

CHURCH: In Mexico, 19 people are dead following a gun battle between security forces and suspected cartel members. Gunshots from the clash alarmed a family nearby, forcing them to take cover. Officials say 19 people were killed including four police officers and two civilians.

The battle happened in northeastern Mexico. The governor says criminal groups have long sought to enter the region, but he vowed to keep them out.

CNN's Rafael Romo has more.

RAFAEL ROMO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was a brazen attack that happened in plain daylight in Mexico just south of the U.S. border. It all started when a group of armed men arrived in more than a dozen trucks and opened fire against a local municipal building in northern Mexico.

[03:25:05]

This was the beginning of several shoot-outs in a town of Villa Union located about 40 miles south of the U.S. border town of Eagle Pass, Texas. By the time the shoot-outs were over about an hour and a half later, at least 19 people had died including 13 suspected cartel members, four police officers, and two civilians according to the Coahuila state governor, Miguel Angel Riquelme.

Authorities confiscated 14 vehicles with powerful weaponry that already used by the criminals in the attack. According to Riquelme the attackers belongs to the cartel of the northeast, a criminal group that has long sought to enter his state and that tried once again Saturday with the force that is not like anything they had seen in a long time.

The shoot-outs happened only days after President Trump said he would designate Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. Trump also offered to go in and clean it out, but the Mexican government rejected the offer.

Also, in northern Mexico less than a month ago, three mothers and six of their children with dual Mexican and American citizenship and members of a Mormon community were massacred.

This latest incident of violence happened the day before the Mexican president was to celebrate his first year in office. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador won the presidency in part because he promised to improve security across Mexico.

Rafael Romo, CNN, Atlanta.

CHURCH: Activists in Mexico say they are fed up with the rampant violence plaguing their country.

On Sunday, they voiced their frustration in a massive demonstration. Thousands were out in force urging the government to address the problem. Some took aim at the president and called for his ouster. The crowd also mourned the nine members of the Mormon community who were killed in a massacre last month.

Well, if you're watching internationally, thank you so much for being with us. Dubai POV is next.

And if you're joining us here in the United States, do stay tuned. We have more news for you on the other side of the break.

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers here in the United States. You're watching "CNN Newsroom." I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check the headlines for you this hour.

A vigil will be held in the coming hours to honor the victims of the London stabbing attack. Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones were Cambridge graduates involved in an education and prison reform program called Learning Together. They were stabbed by Usman Khan, who was convicted of terrorism offenses and was out on early release. Three other people were injured in that attack.

Across the United States, powerful winter storms are causing a nightmare for travelers. More than 900 flights have been canceled and nearly 8,000 have been delayed. Blizzard-like conditions are being blamed for a deadly plane crash in South Dakota and heavy fog for a 25-car pileup in Maryland.

U.S. President Donald Trump will not participate in the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment hearing this Wednesday. The president's attorney wrote to the committee saying it wasn't a fair process. He said they will respond separately to a Friday deadline about participating in future hearings.

U.S. Democratic presidential candidates were in Iowa this weekend. Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, and Kamala Harris were all stumping in the key state. The former vice president is on his No Malarkey bus tour hoping to give his flagging poll numbers in the state a boost.

CNN's Arlette Saenz caught up with him.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Joe Biden is continuing what he's calling his No Malarkey bus tour hitting 18 counties through Iowa on his second day of his visit to the state. Biden made three stops in more rural small-town communities as he's trying to connect with Iowa voters here ahead of the caucuses.

And I had the chance to ask Biden about the fact that he is leading in the polls nationally. But here in Iowa, he is battling for second place. Take a listen to what he had to say.

JOE BIDEN (D-DE), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it is translating. I think that that's why we're here. We're here to translate. We're here to translate the polls nationally here. Look, I feel good about Iowa, and the fact is that my impression and the news factor (ph) forgotten more about this won't know (inaudible) is that Iowans make up their minds late, and they change, and the frontrunner ends up getting behind, and the frontrunner comes back. I'm running to win. I'm not running to lose. I'm not running to come in third or fourth or fifth or anything like that. So I feel good about it.

SAENZ: Biden will continue on with his bus tour with two stops on Monday, all in an effort to try to meet as many voters as possible. His campaign tells me the more one-on-one time Biden spends with voters, the better they believe his campaign will be. Now, I talked to several voters who came to these events undecided, some walked away undecided but others did came away leaning towards the former vice president.

Arlette Saenz, CNN, Storm Lake, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joe Biden is one of 17 people running for the Democratic nomination. There's one person who could help narrow down that field, Former President Barack Obama. But as Dana Bash reports, he's not making any endorsements. Not yet anyway.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's going on out there?

DANA BASH, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama staying on the sidelines of the Democratic Primary. Some 2020 hopefuls are doing what they can to draw a personal connection to the last Democratic president, especially where it all started for him in Iowa.

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It is good to be back in Iowa.

BASH (voice-over): Where Mayor Pete Buttigieg certainly seems open to comparisons with Obama and his message of generational change.

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D-IN) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was knocking on doors in rural Iowa for a different young presidential candidate with a funny name.

BASH (voice-over): And if this drum line with Senator Kamala Harris in Iowa looks familiar, it's the same one that Obama marched with in 2007. In an Iowa campaign video, Harris reminisced about breaking barriers and -

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Campaigning for a senator by the name of Barack Obama.

BASH (voice-over): -- And of course Former Vice President Joe Biden has made his relationship with the president he served with central to his 2020 pitch.

BIDEN: Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Barack and I never disagreed on a strategy.

Barack and I did a pretty good job.

[03:35:05]

BASH (voice-over): In a race where most Democrats say their top priority is finding someone who can beat President Trump, Obama is giving some hints about how to do it. The former president warned the 2020 field to remain, quote, "rooted in reality."

OBAMA: The average American doesn't think that we have to completely tear down the system and remake it.

BASH (voice-over): But he also gave a nod to progressives in his party.

OBAMA: I wouldn't run the same campaign today in this environment as I ran in 2008.

BASH (voice-over): So, for those looking to take on the Obama mantle, his message seems to be, you need your own.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: And the next Democratic debate will be held December 19th in Los Angeles.

We'll take another break, but still to come, rising sea levels, extreme weather events. Scientists are warning countries must do more to fight climate change.

Coming up, a look at the United Nations conference going on right now that's looking to do just that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Right now, world leaders are gathering in Madrid to tackle climate change at the U.N. Conference COP25. The summit comes as scientists warn it's urgent for countries to take action. The commitments of the Paris Climate Accord will likely be a big topic despite the United States formalizing its withdrawal from the accord. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is in attendance with other Democratic lawmakers.

Well, for more, our senior international correspondent, Jim Bittermann, joins me now from Paris. Good to see you, Jim. So, young activists particularly have very high expectations of this. What is likely to come out of the conference, though? What is possible?

[03:40:00]

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is largely a technical conference more than anything else. But it's a very important one because basically the failure of Paris many believe was the fact that there were no real -- there was no real enforcement mechanism outlined in the Paris agreements four years ago or the COP21, and no enforcement mechanisms, and the goals were nowhere near high enough.

So, the people who are gathering, the climate scientists, the government officials, there would be about 30 heads of state in government there, basically are hoping to basically tighten things up ahead of next year's very important conference in Glasgow, Scotland, where they will, in fact, enforce -- come up with enforcement measures and perhaps a carbon trading mechanism. That's one of the things that's going to be talked talked about today in Madrid.

When you talk about young people, Greta Thunberg, the climate activist, is on her way to Madrid. She is coming across the ocean on a catamaran, and she'll be there perhaps representing the voice of youth. There will be plenty of other young people there as well. Rosemary?

CHURCH: All right. Many thanks to our Jim Bittermann joining us from Paris.

Teen climate activist Alexandria Villasenor will be attending that conference and joins me now from Davis, California. Good to have you with us.

ALEXANDRIA VILLASENOR, FOUNDER EARTH UPRISING: Hi. Thank you for having me today.

CHURCH: Now, you are 14 years old, and you say COP24 failed us all. So what are your expectations for COP25? How might it be different this time, do you think?

VILLASENOR: At COP25, I think it's so important because there's going to be all of the youth of the world is watching this. And so, really what we want to see is world leaders make a radical, binding, and a global emissions reduction commitment right now.

So we have seen a lot of dire science big reports come out over the past 12 weeks, and it's really scary what is happening and what our planet is facing. So, there's no time to wait. Myself and other FridaysForFuture activists will be at COP25 along with Greta Thunberg to make sure we hold our world leaders accountable.

CHURCH: And do you think they will do that, those world leaders?

VILLASENOR: I think that -- I think that our our world leaders will do and take action just because of how much youth are going to be at this conference. And really COP25, it's the anniversary of so much youth engagement.

And so COP24, the failure that happened there really sparked so much youth to getting involved. And so, COP25 is one of these moments where it has everyone watching it.

CHURCH: So you feel the pressure has increased on these leaders to do something at last. So what are your overall goals for planet Earth, and how achievable are they?

VILLASENOR: My overall goals for planet Earth is to see our world leaders make a global reduction of greenhouse gas emissions so they stay in line with the United Nations' IPCC report that came out last October.

And so, one of the ways that we are going to really hold our world leaders accountable is the United Nations' petition to reverse (ph) climate crisis, one that I'm a part of.

And so, that petition is -- was filed to the Committee on the Rights of the Child stating that five countries, Argentina, Germany, Turkey, and Brazil are violating our rights by their inaction on the climate crisis.

And so, on November 20th, our petition was accepted by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child. And so, those five respondent countries have two months to respond on the admissibility of our case and six months to respond to the merits of our case.

And so, then we hope the committee agrees our human rights are being violated and rules in our favor. And so, that is just one way that you see youth are really stepping up and taking new ways of action.

CHURCH: So, how optimistic are you about the future of our world?

VILLASENOR: I am optimistic about the future just because of the Youth Climate Movement. And the Youth Climate Movement is only just beginning. There are -- there will be more strikes, but you're going to see a lot of new kinds of actions that will be taken by the youth.

We're going to show up in decision-makers' offices, in our classrooms and institutions, and in front of corporations. And of course, you're going to see us in the streets. And so, with more youth getting engaged, it makes me optimistic because we are really showing our world leaders that we are demanding that they take action.

CHURCH: And we salute your hard work and your passion on this issue. Alexandria Villasenor, thank you so much for joining us.

VILLASENOR: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: And as a result of climate change, scientists say hundreds of millions of people around the world are at risk of rising sea levels. A study released in October predicts entire cities could be submerged in the coming decades, and that includes London.

And CNN's Phil Black reports. [03:45:08]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: London has long respected the power of the sea. Straddling the city's famous river, you'll find this, the Thames Barrier.

Finished in the early '80s, it's a mighty, mechanized fortification. This sped-up video of a recent test shows how it works. Fully extended, the gates stand five stories high. It's designed to hold back the North Sea on its angriest days to protect lives and the vast riches of one of the world's wealthiest cities.

IVAN HAIGH, OCEANOGRAPHER, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHAMPTON: If there was flooding, it would be absolutely catastrophic, particularly if it happened at night. If something was to go wrong, the city would absolutely grind to a halt, you know, flooding of subway stations, flooding of the tubes.

BLACK: We meet oceanographer, Ivan Haigh, on a day the Thames is swollen by a big tide and the storm surge.

Have you ever seen the Thames look like this before?

HAIGH: I've never seen it this high.

BLACK: It's a close call, but experts monitoring the river have decided not to close the barrier. The Thames looking bloated and full gives a powerful sense of London's vulnerability to what scientists now consider inevitable, sea level rise caused by climate change.

HAIGH: At the moment, we're on track to reach at least a meter.

BLACK: And that's factored in that we expect that regardless of sort of policy decisions from here forward?

HAIGH: So, that's very much dependent on whether we follow the Paris agreement or not.

HAIGH: The Paris agreement's goal is to sufficiently cut carbon emissions to keep the average global temperature increase below 2 degrees. That's to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.

Scientists say achieving that goal will limit rising sea levels from expanding water and melting ice sheets. But it's already too late to prevent it.

Scientists say even if some of the best case forecasts prove accurate, this big, impressive piece of infrastructure still has a limited shelf life. Sea level rise means long before the end of this century it will have to be replaced by a new, bigger, hugely expensive barrier further downstream.

These 10 yearly forecasts show what will happen to London if it doesn't have a barrier and the world doesn't act quickly to cut emissions. By 2100, wide areas of land along the Thames turn blue. Within another 200 years, the river swallows much of central London.

For this advanced inland city with vast money and resources, managing rising sea levels will be an extraordinary challenge. While around the world, small islands, coastal cities and river delta communities will be making do without those advantages.

Phil black, CNN, London.

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CHURCH: Russian President Vladimir Putin may be turning the page on his image. Is a buttoned-down diplomat replacing the shirtless tough guy of old? We'll take a look.

[03:50:00]

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CHURCH: It's been called the first of its kind. Australia's state of New South Wales has cell phone detection cameras to crack down on drivers illegally using phones behind the wheel. The government says the cameras will use artificial intelligence.

And if caught, drivers could face several hundred dollars in fines and penalty points on their license. In a test run earlier this year, officials say the technology caught more than 100,000 drivers on their phones.

Well, freed hostage, Timothy Weeks is speaking out after more than three years in Taliban captivity. Weeks is back home in Australia. He and a U.S. citizen were freed last month in exchange for three high- ranking militants. The two men are professors who were captured while traveling together in Afghanistan in 2016. On Sunday, Weeks gave his first public interview detailing how several rescue attempts had failed.

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TIMOTHY WEEKS, FREED HOSTAGE: I believe it was the Navy SEALS who were right outside our door. So, I believe and I hope that this is correct that they came in six times to try and get us and that a number of times they missed us only by hours.

I had hope all the time. I never, ever gave up hope. And I think in that sort of situation, that if you give up hope, there is very little left for you. So, yeah, I had hope the whole time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: It is amazing. And Weeks also said it was very emotional reuniting with his loved ones.

Well, it's that time of year again. The Vladimir Putin 2020 calendar is out. Gone are the days of the macho bare chested Mr. Putin. This time, the Russian president is opting for a softer, more com passionate image. CNN's Matthew Chance has a sneak peek at what this coming year has in store.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So, the 2020 Putin calendars have already hit the shelves here. You'll be glad to know. Featuring, as they do every year, is the Russian president in various encounters.

There are multiple calendars this year with a strong focus. I think it's fair to say, on Putin's diplomacy. The Russian strongman is pictured with various world leaders, including one image of him sitting next to U.S. President Trump, Emmanuel Macron of France, and the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel.

Putin is also shown sharing a smile with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, and watching a judo match with Shinzo Abe of Japan. Of course, the Kremlin keeps a very close eye on Vladimir Putin's public image.

In the past, Putin calendars have featured a bare-chested president riding a horse or fishing. But it seems that this year, after a series of high-profile Russian diplomatic successes, particularly in the Middle East, the image of Putin as international statesman is the one that's in favor.

[03:55:01]

It's not all suits and ties, though. One of the Putin calendars is devoted entirely to his reported love of animals, Putin with various dogs, Putin feeding a young deer with milk, Putin stroking a baby bird in the palm of his hand, Putin hugging a koala, and of course, Putin cuddling a leopard.

The intended message is I think pretty clear. This is still a strongman president despite being in power for more than 20 years, no longer isolated despite continuing international sanctions against Russia. But with his softer side, his apparent connection with nature's still very much intact.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

CHURCH: Irving Burgie, the singer and songwriter who penned the classic tune "Day-O" has died at the age of 95. Burgie passed away on Friday in his native home, Brooklyn, New York.

He wrote most of the songs for Harry Belafonte's 1956 album, Calypso, the first to sell over a million copies in the United States. The hit song "Day-O," also known as the Banana Boat Song, transcended the '50s. It was even used in the 1988 film "Beetlejuice."

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CHURCH: Brilliant. And the song was so popular that in 1997 it was used as the wake-up call for astronauts in space. And thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. "Early Start" is coming up next. Have yourselves a great day.

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