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CNN International: U.S. House Could Vote on Removing Speaker McCarthy; EU Foreign Ministers Meet in Kyiv, Pledge Support; Trump to Return to Court for Day Two of $250 Million Trial; UN Okays Security Mission to Restore Order in Haiti. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired October 03, 2023 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: Hello there and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Bianca Nobilo.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Max Foster. Joining you live from London. Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Kevin McCarthy's Speakership in peril.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At this point next week, one of two things will happen. Kevin McCarthy won't be the Speaker of the House, or he'll be the Speaker of the House working at the pleasure of the Democrats.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Opening statements kicked off with Trump inside the courtroom has already dealt a blow to the former president and his company by saying that he has engaged in a decade of fraud.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Some 200,000 Haitians have had to flee their homes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As gang violence spirals out of control across Haiti, UN approved sending a multinational force.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo.

FOSTER: It's 9:00 a.m. here in London, 4:00 a.m. in Washington, where in the next day or two the House could vote on a resolution to remove its leader, Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and the lawmaker leading the charge as a member of his own party.

NOBILO: Matt Gaetz and other hardline Republicans are furious McCarthy struck a last minute deal with Democrats to avert a government shutdown. Now Gaetz has filed a rare motion to oust the Speaker. A full vote would take a majority to succeed, meaning that McCarthy will likely need Democratic support to hold on to the Speakership, an option mocked by Gaetz.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): Well, I have enough Republicans where at this point next week, one of two things will happen. Kevin McCarthy won't be the Speaker of the House or he'll be the Speaker of the House working at the pleasure of the Democrats. And I'm at peace with either result because the American people deserve to know who governs them.

I have made no deal with Democrats because I believe that Democrats should vote against. Kevin McCarthy for free. It's Kevin McCarthy who's out there offering deals to Democrats. So if there's a deal made with Democrats, the only deal is to make one with McCarthy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, earlier in a tit for tat exchange on X -- formerly Twitter -- McCarthy wrote: Bring it on -- in response to Gaetz's motion to boot him. Gaetz fired back soon after, saying: Just did.

NOBILO: It is incredible that this is what politics has become now. McCarthy is now expected to make an attempt to kill the measure, and we're waiting to see if Democrats will give him a lifeboat.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI (D-CA): If the Democrats save McCarthy, then we will have to have a rearrangement of the power structure within the Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: A number of House Democrats say they're waiting on the Democratic leadership to take a position before deciding on how to proceed when it comes to McCarthy, some are voicing concerns about negotiating with the Speaker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ADAM SMITH (D-WA): McCarthy has made it clear that he doesn't keep his promises. He promises whatever he has to, to get through the moment, and then the second that moment is done, he wipes the slate clean and starts over. So there's really nothing he can, quote, promise us that's going to make any difference. I mean, he made a deal on the debt ceiling on what the appropriations bill should look like and bailed on that the second it wasn't convenient.

So promises aren't going to get us there. And for Kevin McCarthy to be talking about protecting the institution, the guy who ultimately sided with Trump and the insurrectionists over January 6th. It's really hard to see Speaker McCarthy as a credible figure in any of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, Matt Gates says he has enough Republican support to move forward on McCarthy. There are still GOP lawmakers in the House backing the Speaker.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MIKE LAWLER (R-NY): I am supporting Kevin McCarthy as I have throughout and will continue to do so. I think, you know, when you at the work that we are doing as a House Republican majority and what we were elected to do to serve as a check and balance on the Biden administration and the reckless spending that occurred under the prior two years, Matt is undermining that selfishly and delaying the very important work that we have to do to finish the appropriations process over the next 40-5 days. So that we can get a final agreement on spending, on the border and on Ukraine before November 17th. But it's hard to do that work when you are dealing with a motion to vacate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[04:05:00]

NOBILO: CNN's Manu Raju is following all of these developments from Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Kevin McCarthy's speakership in peril as he tried to stave off a right wing revolt led by Congressman Matt Gaetz, who is trying to do something never successfully executed, ousting the sitting speaker through a vote in the House, and promising to do it over and over again, until McCarthy is no longer Speaker.

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: You've got to understand why we're here.

RAJU (voice-over): The main reason, McCarthy relied on Democrats to help keep the government open until next month.

RAJU: Are you worried about throwing this institution into chaos? Paralyzing an institution that your party runs?

REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): You talk about chaos as if it's me forcing a few votes and filing a if you motions. You don't know chaos until you've seen where this Congress and this uni-party is bringing us.

RAJU (voice-over): For Gaetz to succeed, he would need the support of at least five House Republicans. If all Democrats voted to eject McCarthy then the House would be paralyzed until a new speaker could be elected.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that members should be looking at for stronger leadership.

RAJU (voice-over): House Democratic leaders have not yet decided how to vote, and what concession to seek from McCarthy.

REP. ADAM SMITH (D-WA): I am not happy with Kevin McCarthy as speaker but a friend of mine says, it can always be worse.

RAJU (voice-over): Others not eager to give McCarthy a lifeline. JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR, THE LEAD: Would you vote to vacate?

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): Would I cast that vote? Absolutely.

RAJU (voice-over): Once Gaetz filed a motion, the House would vote within two days. Today, the speaker would not say whether he would have to cut a deal with Democrats to keep his job, even as the speaker accused Gaetz of retaliating over an ethics investigation he faces, something the Florida Republican denies.

MCCARTHY: You always count me out, right?

RAJU: I'm just asking the possibilities.

MCCARTHY: I'm just telling you the same thing I tell you every time, I never give up.

RAJU (voice-over): The last time a similar vote happened was in 1910. But Joseph Cannon remained as speaker as his powers were weakened. And just the threat in 2015 of ousting John Boehner led to his abrupt resignation as speaker.

McCarthy plans to fight it, even as he is facing more pressure from the right wing to abandon billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine.

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): He can't do it. It would be a violation of the Hastert Rule which is a long held rule by Republican majorities that the speaker cannot bring a bill to the floor if the majority of the majority doesn't support it.

RAJU: All this frustration builds among McCarthy's allies.

REP. RICK ALLEN (R-GA): I just pray for wisdom, for Matt and clarity on this, because I think that would be terrible for America.

RAJU: Now, Gates also accused Kevin McCarthy of cutting a side deal with President Biden over funding Ukraine. But McCarthy himself denied that he had reached that agreement with the president to move on an aid package for that country in its war against Russia.

Now, at the same time, Gaetz contended that he plans to continue to push to seek Kevin McCarthy's ouster over and over again until he eventually succeeds. He also said he spoke to one person in particular, former President Donald Trump, though he declined to say what they spoke about.

Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: One outspoken member of the U.S. House is warning Speaker McCarthy not to move forwards with an aid package to Ukraine. Marjorie Taylor Green of Georgia claims a stand alone bill on Ukraine funding would violate the unwritten Hastert Rule. NOBILO: Named for former House Speaker Dennis Hastert, it holds that

the Speaker cannot bring a bill to the floor if the majority of the majority party doesn't support it.

U.S. President Joe Biden says he fully expects McCarthy and the Republicans to approve new aid for Ukraine, but he's not saying if he's received any specific assurances.

FOSTER: Congress stripped future money for Ukraine from the stopgap spending bill that passed over the weekend, averting a government shutdown, President Biden says U.S. support for Kyiv is essential.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We cannot under any circumstances, allow American support for Ukraine to be interrupted. Too many lives are at stake, too many children, too many people. I fully expect the speaker and the majority of Republicans in Congress to keep their commitment to secure the passage of the support needed to help Ukraine as it defends itself against Russian aggression and brutality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: European Union foreign ministers are also showing their firm support for Ukraine. CNN's Nada, Bashir is here in London with the details. This comes off the back of that very interesting meeting in Kyiv yesterday.

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Absolutely. It was the first time that this Foreign Affairs Council was held outside of EU Member States and this was, of course, a hugely significant step so far as symbolism goes. We heard from the Ukrainian Foreign Minister yesterday saying that these that this meeting may not be taking place in the EU right now, but this is the EU's future orders. And that was really the focus of those discussions yesterday between Ukrainian officials as well as EU foreign Ministers.

The steps that Europe can take not only to further their support for Ukraine over the course of this war, but also to ensure that they can put forward those concrete commitments that Ukraine has been looking for, namely of course, membership of the European Union.

[04:10:03]

And we heard from President Zelensky yesterday. We can listen to what he had to say about the dependence, really, that this victory that they are hoping to achieve against Russia has on the potential cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): I am sure that Ukraine and the entire free world are capable of winning this confrontation, but our victory depends directly on our cooperation with you. The more strong and solid steps, the faster this war will be over. Will be over in just terms, with restoration of our territorial integrity and reliable guarantees for peace in entire Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASHIR: And we heard from the EU Foreign Affairs Chief Josep Borrell yesterday. He did speak about the potential for the -- for Ukraine to join the EU, saying that EU membership would be the strongest commitment that EU leaders can offer Ukraine at this current point in time.

But of course, they have proposed new funding, more than $5 billion in a new package that to be put forward on a biannual basis. So this is a significant step. But of course there's positive indications when it comes to the potential for accession to the EU is something that Ukraine has been pushing for since the very beginning of Russia's invasion.

We heard from the Ukrainian Foreign Minister yesterday saying that he hopes negotiations can begin before the end of this year. But of course, as you know, there are stringent requirements that Ukraine will have to fulfill before accession can be fully negotiated, from tackling corruption, minority rights, press freedoms in Ukraine, lots of measures that they will have to deal with, and that is obviously going to take a lot of time. But for now, what the EU is focusing on particularly off the back of the decision taken by the U.S. Congress on this temporary budget measure is bolstering that support both on the financial front, this new military aid package that will be put forward before EU leaders, but also, of course, in showing that symbolic commitment to include Ukraine as part of the European Union family.

FOSTER: OK, Nada, thank you so much.

NOBILO: The U.S. president's son is due in a federal court in Delaware today. Hunter Biden's attorneys say that he will plead not guilty to three felony gun charges. His legal team asked that he be allowed to appear remotely, but that request was denied.

FOSTER: Hunter Biden is accused of lying when he said he wasn't using or addicted to drugs when he bought a gun in 2018. A plea bargain to resolve the charges fell through in July. Convictions on all counts carry a penalty of up to 25 years in prison, although usually that's unlikely for a nonviolent crime by an alleged first time offender.

NOBILO: Donald Trump says he'll be back in court today for the civil fraud case that cuts to the heart of his brand as a successful billionaire.

FOSTER: Unlike Trump's criminal indictments, this child brings no risk of jail time but could cost him some prized possessions. The New York Attorney General is seeking $250 million in penalties and wants to prevent the Trump Organization from operating in the state.

NOBILO: And that's after a judge ruled last month that Trump and his sons committed fraud by inflating their real estate assets. Outside the courtroom, Trump called the trial a scam and a sham and insulted both the judge and the DA.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have a rogue judge who rules that properties are worth a tiny fraction of 1/100th. A tiny fraction of what they actually are. We have a racist Attorney General as a horror show who ran on the basis that she was going to get Trump before she even knew anything about me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: But Trump's former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, knows a lot about him. Cohen's deposition was played during the prosecution's opening statement.

FOSTER: The Trump team argues Cohen, a convicted felon, isn't credible, and later --he later gave CNN his take on what happened on Monday in court.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER TRUMP LAWYER: On the outside of the courtroom, he was all bluster. He was typical Donald. He was in campaign mode to the point that he was looking to figure out how to make this scenario into something profitable.

Inside the courtroom, he was he was behaving the way that you would expect, you know somebody to behave when they're in a situation that they have no control over. And that's something that Donald hates. He hates not being in control. Look at what he did today, just with Letitia James and with Judge Engoron. Judge Engoron he called him, you know, all sorts of names, a rogue judge, Tish James, of course, is a racist. It's a line that he's used many times with many people. He said the same thing about Jack Smith. He says the same thing about Fani Willis. This is a guy who doesn't understand disparaging somebody is not the way to win a case. What you need to do is to bring the evidence, bring the documents in order to clear your name.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, Trump wasn't required to attend the trial, but says he decided to do so, to quote, watch this witch hunt himself. CNN's Brynn Gingras has more on the color of from inside and outside the courtroom.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[04:15:00]

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, pretty eventful day for the first day of the civil fraud trial brought against Donald Trump, his adult sons and the Trump Organization by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Opening statements kicked off with Trump inside the courtroom. And in those opening statements, the state's attorneys laid out what its case will be for the next three months or so that this trial is expected to last. Talking about how Trump and his sons and Trump or conspired to commit persistent fraud and saying in doing so banks took on hidden risk. They talked about how they'll be calling several witnesses to the stand including Trump's sons and possibly Trump and even Michael Cohen who is of course his testimony to Congress is the whole reason why this case even got started in the first place.

When it was the defense's turn to bring its opening statements, they talked about how Trump made billions off of just good business deals in real estate. Essentially saying that he did everything by the book and pointing out the fact that no fraud was committed and that there were really no victims in this case. In some they say there was no illegality, there was no fraud and there are no victims.

Now, as far as what was happening inside that courtroom, Letitia James was there inside sitting as well as Eric Trump. And Donald Trump was seated with his defense attorneys. Now Donald Trump did not acknowledge Letitia James several times as he walked past her, except for maybe one time. Eric Trump actually went over to Letitia James and shook her hand twice throughout the duration of the day.

But Trump did take the time outside of the courtroom to lash out not only at Letitia James, but about this trial in general and about the judge who will be deciding the really the balls and strikes of this entire case.

So it'll be interesting to see if he shows up later on Tuesday for court. But as of now, it's unclear if he will show up, although he is eager to testify again in a trial that is expected to last three months.

I'm Brynn Gingras, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: U.S. Capitol police say they're working to track down the suspects who carjacked a U.S. Congressman. Democrat Henry Cuellar from Texas was parking his car in Washington Monday night when three armed men approached him.

FOSTER: They stole his car, which was later recovered, along with his phone and iPad. The Congressman wasn't hurt. And his chief of staff issued a statement thanking police for their swift response.

Now, a nine-year-old girl who vanished during a camping trip in upstate New York on Saturday has been found. The governor says authorities located Charlotte Sena after her alleged kidnapper hand delivered a ransom note to the girl's home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATHY HOCHUL, NEW YORK GOVERNOR: They literally drove up to the families mailbox assuming they were not home. 4:20 in the morning opens the mailbox and inserts the ransom note, leaving a critical piece of evidence behind -- his own fingerprint.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBILO: The girl was rescued from a camper that the suspect lived in behind his mother's home. Police say the suspect is now in custody and New York's governor expects charges to be brought against him. Such a relief to have a ending to that story.

FOSTER: Yes, so quickly.

NOBILO: The UN Security Council finally heeds the pleas of Haiti and authorizes an international force to retake the country from violent gangs. We'll look at how desperate the situation has become for the people who live there.

FOSTER: Plus, scathing criticism of Donald Trump from his former Chief of Staff, John Kelly. Hear what he's saying about his former boss.

NOBILO: Also ahead, Pope Francis takes a stance on the potential blessings of same sex couples, one which could raise eyebrows among the Catholic Church's most conservative Cardinals. When we come back.

[04:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: New York's governor is taking steps to tackle the growing migrant crisis in the state. She announced on Monday that the States Department of Labor has identified 18,000 job opportunities for Venezuelan migrants who have been granted temporary protected status by the Biden administration.

NOBILO: She says this initiative will alleviate pressure on New York City's migrant crisis and reduce the number of people living in migrant shelters.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams will travel to Latin American countries later on this week, in part to learn about the path that asylum seekers take. His office says that he'll stop at the Darien Gap, the treacherous forest connecting South and Central America that has become a major crossing for migrants trying to reach the United States.

FOSTER: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, also -- or will also head South this week to visit Mexico. He'll cochair the 2023 U.S. Mexico High Level security dialogue and meet with the country's president.

The United Nations Security Council has approved an armed multinational force to restore order in Haiti, which has been requested it -- requesting it for a year. The Western hemispheres poorest nation has been torn by murderous gang violence, political chaos and the collapse of its economy and its health system. Journalist Stefano Pozzebon reports on the Council's decision.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: The United Nations Security Council approved on Monday the deployment of a multinational armed force to Haiti as gang violence and political paralysis continue to affect the Caribbean nation. The force is expected to be led by Kenya, which has pledged 1,000 policemen to spearhead the mission. Although other countries in the Caribbean have also expressed their intention to participate.

The vote was passed on Monday afternoon with the abstention of China and Russia. It follows repeated calls by the Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, to pledge for international assistance, and it was actually applauded by the government of Henry.

JEAN VICTOR GENEUS, HAITIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: On behalf of the government and people of Haiti, I would like to thank all of those who, through their voices, their efforts, their support and their contribution of all sorts, have finally made today's decision possible. More than just a simple vote, this is in fact an expression of solidarity with a population in distress.

[04:25:49]

POZZEBON (voice-over): They took power in 2021 following the assassination of late President Jovenel Moise. While some nations question his mandate, the security situation has greatly worsened under his watch. The country's capital, Port-au-Prince, for example, is largely controlled by warring gangs. And the United Nations estimate that some 200,000 Haitians have had to flee their homes due to the wave of violence.

POZZEBON: As of now, it is unclear when these multinational force would actually reach Haiti, nor the exact composition of this expedition.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: CNN's David McKenzie has been monitoring these developments for us and joins us now. David, what has the reaction been in Haiti to this? Because obviously the UN has a record of abuses there. The Haitians have had such a grueling and difficult time and lack of support from the international community. What's been the response?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly from the Foreign Minister and other Haitian officials, this is welcome because they've been asking for help in an international force of some kind for some time. With no help forthcoming, you would think potentially there would be volunteers from the region, including the U.S. and Brazil. But that ended up being that in July, the Kenyans volunteered to lead this force, which at this stage appears to be mostly a police force to help the national police in Haiti to try and deal with this intractable gang problem.

What the people in Haiti feel about this? Well they will probably be quite jaded about the possibilities of hearing some kind of security ahead of proposed elections in that country. And as you say, previous peacekeeping missions, including by the UN after the deadly earthquake more than a decade ago, were seen as problematic, at the very least. Contributing to cholera outbreaks as well as rampant accusations of sexual violence from those peacekeepers. So this is a big test. Whether it has any impact is will be -- will be -- become clear in the coming months -- Bianca, Max.

FOSTER: And just take us through the role that Kenya specifically has to play in all of this.

MCKENZIE: Well, Kenya has said that it will have at least 1,000 policemen of some kind. Now they have both regular police units and paramilitary units in Kenya. There was some concern from groups like Amnesty International ahead of this vote that there has been a history of questionable tactics by Kenyan police in terms of putting down protesters and also extrajudicial killings. They seem less -- more muted in their criticism after the vote. Amnesty saying that within that resolution there are clear guidelines to respect human rights.

The Kenyans, for their part, clearly want to show that they can make an impact on the world stage. Kenya has a lot of experience in peacekeeping missions. More military than police across the African continent and elsewhere. And also a very close ally, the U.S. has pledged at least $100 million in funding for this mission to Haiti in both logistics and support. It's unclear yet what the exact makeup of this force will be and how they'll interact with the Haitian police force. But it's an extremely challenging and violent situation that Haitians face and Kenyans saying they can help out -- Max, Bianca.

FOSTER: OK. David, thank you for that.

NOBILO: For the first time, Pope Francis has hinted at the possibility of some same sex couples receiving blessings in the Catholic Church. He says it could only happen on a limited case by case basis. The church doesn't recognize same-sex marriages.

FOSTER: Now the Pope's opinion came in response to formal questions posed by five conservative cardinals -- some of his harshest critics. And it differs from an explicit Vatican ruling against blessings of same-sex couples issued in 2021.

Still to come, the U.S. prepares for its newest Senator to be sworn in today. But who is the Laphonza Butler? A rise to the Senate. Just ahead.

[04:30:00]