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Quest Means Business
Trump in Mexico to Meet Country's President; Trump: "We Did Discuss the Wall, Didn't Discuss Payment"; Pena Nieto: NAFTA Good for Both U.S. and Mexico; Brazil's Senate Votes to Oust President; First U.S.-Cuba Flight in 50 Years. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired August 31, 2016 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:00] RICHARD QUEST, CNN ANCHOR: Market bells ringing on Wall Street. The Dow Jones is off 52 points at the close. I have a feeling about
today's gavel. It's got good prospects ahead of it. Come along. Yes. That's what you call a firm gavel. There's no trading on any major market
anywhere in the world on Wednesday. The 31st of August.
Tonight, we go south of the border for the south of the border summit. Donald Trump is due to speak in Mexico any moment now after meeting with
the president.
Rousseff is removed. The recession rumbles on. We'll be in Brazil on a dramatic day that finally saw the end of Dilma Rousseff's career as
president. And history land in Cuba. The first scheduled flight in 50 years arrived in the United States. I'm Richard Quest. I mean business.
Good evening. As one Latin American president gets the sack, another gets a surprise visit from Donald Trump. Mexico's president has been meeting
the man who may soon become his U.S. counterpart, and they're due to speak any moment now.
It comes only hours after Brazil's president Dilma Rousseff was ousted by her country's senate. So we have two major stories from the Americas to
bring you tonight. Obviously, we're going to watch both of them very closely. We will have the full coverage of what Dilma Rousseff's ousting
means and how Brazil moves forward. But we want to start with Donald Trump who is in Mexico City trying to build not walls but bridges with the
country's president.
A surprise trip coming hours before he's due to deliver a speech on immigration in Arizona. It's a remarkable turnaround in relations between
Trump and President Pena Nieto. Trump launched his campaign -- you remember this -- he launched his campaign calling Mexican immigrants rapist
and criminals. The Mexican president has compared Trump to Hitler and Mussolini.
So let's go to Mexico. John Vause is in Mexico City. John, before we find out how was like, how did this meeting come about? It was the Mexican
President, I believe, who initiated the invitation.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: All of this started last Friday, Richard, with an invitation from the Mexican president to both candidates running
for U.S. president. Donald Trump as well as Hillary Clinton. There are some reports out there that when Donald Trump actually accepted the
invitation to come here to the presidential palace in Mexico City to meet with Enrique Pena Nieto, everyone was surprised. No one thought that
Donald Trump would actually accept that invite, but he has, and he's here.
The Trump plane touched down a few hours ago. He took a helicopter from the airport to the presidential palace, and he's been meeting for quite a
long time now, a little longer than we expected with the Mexican president. We're now waiting to see what these two men have to say. There were two
empty podiums inside the presidential palace right now. Both men will come out. They're expecting to make some kind of statement.
There's been a bit of back and forth on whether they'll take questions from journalists. We should note that Donald Trump did not come here with a
traveling press pool. They went on to Phoenix, Arizona where he's due to make that speech on immigration policy later today. And so will they take
questions? We have heard from one Trump aide saying that would now be up to the Mexican government. We'll see what happens.
QUEST: This is an extraordinary development exempt for the fact I was reading today that it is traditional, I believe, for the Mexican president
to invite those nominees in the U.S. presidential election to come and meet the president to discuss bilateral issues.
VAUSE: Well, John McCain did it back in 2008, for instance. So it's not that unusual, but it is unusual because of everything Donald Trump has been
saying about Mexico and Mexico's leaders and Mexicans for the past 14 months. And yes, there's a lot of outrage here directed at Donald Trump
because of his policies and his rhetoric, but there were a couple protesters. Well he could see it. He flew over them avoiding the traffic
and the protests. But what most of the outrage here is directed at the Mexican president for issuing the invitation in the first place. A
historically bad idea, some have called it, even selling out, others have said.
[16:05:04] QUEST: Since you are in Mexico, we're going to talk to the former Mexican president in a minute. From your understanding there, what
is the rationale to invite somebody who has basically called some of your fellow immigrants or emigrants rapists, drug dealers, and murderers?
VAUSE: At the same time, Enrique Pena Nieto has likened Trump to Hitler and Mussolini. There has been a lot of volatility, you could say, in this
relationship between these two men. There's a lot of theories going around now as to why the Mexican president did this. One, they didn't expect they
would take up the offer.
The other theory there is that he has a lot of problems here domestically. He's in the midst of a corruption scandal. There's a scandal over
apparently he plagiarized when he was at university. There is also an uptick in crime for related drugs. Maybe this is a distraction from those
domestic issues at home.
Others are being a little more kind. They're saying, well look, regardless of what is said between these two men, Enrique Pena Nieto has tried to take
the tone of the relationship down a bit, sort of lower the volume, if you like, to some degree. And talking about, we need to sit down. We need to
have dialogue for the best, for what is best for the Mexican people. And maybe this is simply a case that Enrique Pena Nieto wants to meet with the
man who might just be the president of the United States. Because after all, the relationship between the United States and Mexico is incredibly
important.
QUEST: John Vause, who is in Mexico City. Thank you very much. And as you can see in the screen, we are awaiting the two-podium setup. We're
waiting for the two men to speak. President Pena Nieto and Donald Trump. We don't know if they're going to take questions. But as soon as --
believe me, as soon as they move into that room, we'll be all over it like a cheap suit.
Now, Donald Trump's running mate, Mike Pence, spoke to CNN earlier, and he said this is just the start of a serious talk over the U.S./Mexico
relationship.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, REPUBLICAN VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Today is really the beginning, beginning of a conversation. Negotiations will follow this, but
it all proceeds out of a relationship. And to know Donald Trump is to know not your standard issue politician, but really a business leader that
knows, you know, you first have to sit down with people. You have to look them in the eye. You've got to tell them where you stand. They can
express their positions and that's where real negotiations can begin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The issue and the relationship between Trump and Mexico, besides the idea of deporting 11 million illegal immigrants, it's really being
defined by the wall. Donald Trump has insisted time and again he is going to build the wall and Mexico is going to pay for it. Using the gains from
its surplus with the United States. Let's go to Mexico City.
ENRIQUE PENA NIETO, MEXICAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Representatives of the media, good afternoon to all of you.
Next November 8, the United States people will elect a new president of the United States. I am sure that electoral process will continue being an
intense debate, all of these characteristics of the grand democratic tradition of the U.S.
As well as Mrs. Hillary Clinton as well as Mr. Donald Trump, I have publicly expressed my respect. As it has been with the president and
friend Barack Obama, the next president of North America will find in Mexico and its government a neighbor that wants to work constructively to
strengthen even more the relationship among our nations and to confront, together, all the challenges that we face together in common.
I believe that there is great opportunity for both countries, if we decide to take advantage of this as good friends, allies, and strategic allies,
beginning from a relationship based in mutual respect. Even though we may not agree on everything, I trust that, together, we will be able to find
better prosperity and security without losing sight of security and independence, are the most important in all of what we value.
[16:10:05] Any close relationship needs to be visited and renewed from time to time. We always need to be open to discuss what has worked and what
hasn't. How can we improve on things on both sides of the border? How can we clear and understand misunderstandings and understand each other better?
So, keeping that in mind, a few days ago, I sent a letter to both presidential candidates, both to Mrs. Hillary Clinton and to Mr. Donald
Trump, asking them to have a meeting and to have a constructive meeting of the shared future of our countries.
I have met today with Mr. Donald Trump. And in the near future, I hope to do so with Mrs. Hillary Clinton, with whom I am pleased to have had
discussions over in here in Los Pinos in the past.
We may not agree on certain topics, but his presence here, Mr. Trump, demonstrates that we have a fundamental coincidence. Our respective
countries are very important, one for the other.
The U.S. is very important for Mexico, just the same as Mexico is very important for the United States. We share the most traveled border through
which, every day, legally, more than a million people cross it, and over 400,000 vehicles.
Commerce between our countries goes over $500 billion a year. We innovate and produce together. As far as national security, the daily cooperation
amongst our governments is ever more important to face all the challenges of a complex world.
So, I had what a very open and constructive discussion with Mr. Donald Trump. The objective of this meeting was to meet each other and to know
about the bilateral relations. As far as commercial issues, I shared with Mr. Trump my conviction that the free trade of North America has done a lot
of good to both the U.S., as well as Mexico.
U.S. exports to Mexico are close to $200 billion a year. And according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, more than six million jobs in the U.S. rely
on the exports to Mexico. Our country buys more from the U.S. than Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Japan, and the U.K. together. A lot of
jobs in the manufacturing industry in the U.S. were not moved over to other areas of the world precisely because, together, we have developed a
manufacturing platform competitively in the North American continent together.
Forty percent of the Mexican content is made in the U.S. As partners, we need to work together to avoid all the jobs leave our region.
However, this doesn't mean that the free trade agreement, the North America Free Trade Agreement may not be improved to benefit both parts. Telecom is
an agreement that was signed over 22 years ago. The next president of the U.S. will find in my government a partner willing to build the route to
modernize telecom, so that it would become more effective and to generate higher-quality jobs and better-paying jobs in both countries.
I don't think that the commerce must be considered a zero sum game, so that only one wins and the other one loses. To the contrary, it must be seen an
effort that generates value to both parts and that makes our North American region the most competitive and innovative in the world.
With regards to border issues, I have a very clear vision. The border must transform itself in an asset for our region.
[16:15:04] We have had great advances in the last few years, working very closely with Obama administration. And with the next administration, we
must accelerate this effort so that the Mexican and United States border is more efficient and safe.
However, an important number of U.S. citizens chase the border as a real problem because undocumented persons and illegal drugs cross the border
unto the U.S. Undocumented immigration from Mexico to the U.S. had its highest point ten years ago and it has slowed down consistently, even to
the point of being negative in a net effect at this point.
Even so, we know that it continues to be a shared challenge, including the increasing number of non-Mexicans that cross our country to go to the U.S.,
which creates a great humanitarian crisis. However, this is a clearly incomplete vision of the border issues, because it doesn't account for the
illegal flows that are coming southbound including weapons and cash. Every year, thousands of dollars, millions of dollars and weapons come in from
the north which strengthen the cartels and other criminal organizations that generate violence in Mexico, and obtain gains from the drug sales in
the U.S.
This flow must be stopped. What we need is an integral focus regarding the border that serves the challenges of undocumented people, and illegal drugs
and weapon flows as cash all the same. Many lives maybe saved in both sides of our borders, if the criminal organizations stop receiving all of
the weapons and cash that today allow them to pursue their criminal endeavors. Illegal weapons, drugs and cash flows in both directions have
multiple negative consequences of both sides of the border.
Our border must be seen as a joint opportunity. Both countries must invest more in it. More infrastructure, more people, and more technology, to make
it safer and more efficient. I do admit that -- recognize that the natural right that every country has to protect its own borders, I also believe
that a real corroboration between friends and allies is the best route to attain this. All the while, I expressed this to Mr. Trump to make a better
border with Mexico and all the friends from Central America. It's a vital importance to both Mexico and the U.S. Equally as far as national
security, both Mexico and the U.S. work together to confront all the challenges that a complex world poses.
Every day, the security agencies of both countries are exchanging information and coordinate both actions. Independent of the results of the
North American election, the next presidency of the United States may count on a continuing integrity of the Mexican government to make similar with
the U.S.
Mr. Trump, I'd like to reiterate right now what I -- few minutes ago, I expressed to you privately. My priority as the Mexican president and of my
government is to protect Mexicans wherever they may be. That is my responsibility and I will continue to comply with it with all my heart.
In the United States, the Mexican population contributes with talent and creativity to development of both Mexico and the U.S. Mexican nationals in
the United States are honest people, working people. They are people of good will that respect family, they respect life in the community, and they
are respecting of the law.
[16:20:09] As such, Mexicans deserve everybody's respect. Let's continue working to solidify the relationship between Mexico and the United States
based on the mutual respect, trust and the joint attention to all the common challenges that we have. My conclusion reiterating that the Mexican
government will be totally respectful of the electoral process of the United States.
I recognize its decision to sustain a constructive dialogue. A dialogue is the route that gets people closer to the people who think differently.
This is the route that allows for a better understanding.
Thank you very much.
Let's listen to the words from the Republican candidate, Mr. Donald Trump.
ANNOUNCER: Let us hear the words for the Republican candidate to the presidency of the United States of America, Mr. Donald Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you. It is a great honor to be invited by you, Mr. President. A great, great honor,
thank you.
We had a very substantive, direct and constructive exchange of ideas over quite a period of time.
I was straightforward in presenting my views about the impacts of current trade and immigration policies on the United States. As you know, I love
the United States very much. And we want to make sure that the people of the United States are very well- protected.
You equally expressed your feelings and your love for Mexico. The United States and Mexico share a 2,000-mile border, a half a trillion dollars in
annual trade, and one million legal border crossings each and every day. We're united by our support for democracy. A great love for our people,
and the contributions of millions of Mexican-Americans to the United States.
And I happen to have a tremendous feeling for Mexican-Americans, not only in terms of friendships, but in terms of the tremendous numbers that I
employ in the United States and they are amazing people. Amazing people. I have many friends, so many friends, and so many friends coming to Mexico
and in Mexico. I'm proud to say how many people I employ.
And the United States, first, second, and third generation Mexicans are just beyond reproach, spectacular, spectacular, hardworking people. I have
such great respect for them, and their strong values of family, faith, and community.
We all share a common interest in keeping our hemisphere safe, prosperous, and free. No one wins in either country when human smugglers and drug
traffickers prey on innocent people, when cartels commit acts of violence. When illegal weapons and cash flow from the United States into Mexico, or
when migrants from Central America make the dangerous trek -- and it is very, very dangerous -- into Mexico or the United States without legal
authorization.
I shared my strong view that NAFTA has been a far greater benefit to Mexico than it has been to the United States. And that it must be improved upon
to make sure that workers, and it's so important, in both countries, benefit from fair and reciprocal trade. I expressed that to the United
States and that of the United States, that we must take action to stem this tremendous outflow of jobs from our country. It's happening every day.
It's getting worse and worse and worse, and we have to stop it.
Prosperity and happiness in both of our countries will increase if we work together on the following five shared goals.
[16:25:06] Number one, ending illegal immigration. Not just between our two countries, but including the illegal immigration and migration from
Central and South Americans, and from other regions that impact security and finances, in both Mexico and the United States. This is a humanitarian
disaster -- the dangerous treks, the abuse by gangs and cartels, and the extreme physical dangers. And it must be solved. It must be solved
quickly. Not fair to the people anywhere worldwide, you can truly say, but certainly not fair to the people of Mexico, or the people of the United
States.
Number two, having a secure border is a sovereign right, and mutually beneficial. We recognize and respect the right of either country to build
a physical barrier or wall on any of its borders, to stop the illegal movement of people, drugs, and weapons. Cooperation toward achieving this
shared objective, and it will be shared, of safety for all citizens is paramount to both the United States and to Mexico.
Number three, dismantling drug cartels and ending the movement of illegal drugs, weapons, and funds across our border. This can only be done with
cooperation, intelligence, and intelligent sharing and joint operations between our two countries. It's the only way it's going to happen.
Improving NAFTA, number four. NAFTA is a 22-year-old agreement that must be updated to reflect the realities of today. There are many improvements
that could be made that would make Mexico and the United States stronger and keep industry in our hemisphere.
We have tremendous competition from China and from all over the world. Keep it in our hemisphere. Workers in both of our countries need a pay
raise very desperately. In the United States it's been 18 years, 18 years. Wages are going down. Improving pay standards, and working conditions,
will create better results for all, and all workers in particular. There is a lot of value that can be created for both countries by working
beautifully together. And that, I am sure, will happen.
Number five, keep manufacturing wealth in our hemisphere. When jobs leave Mexico, the U.S., or Central America, and go overseas, it increases poverty
and pressure on social services, as well as pressures on cross-border migration. Tremendous pressure.
The bond between our two countries is deep and sincere. And both of our nations benefit from a close and honest relationship between our two
governments. A strong, prosperous and vibrant Mexico is in the best interest of the United States, and will keep and help keep for a long, long
period of time -- America together. Both of our countries will work together for mutual good and most importantly for the mutual good of our
people.
Mr. President, I want to thank you. This has been a tremendous honor, and I call you a friend. Thank you.
QUEST: Are they taking questions? Yes. They are.
TRUMP: I think excellent. Excellent. Tremendous respect for the president. We were actually together for quite some time. And I think
excellent. I was with, as you know, Senator Sessions and Mayor Giuliani. And we had a tremendous more than an hour, I think it was very good.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (OFF MIKE)
TRUMP: Say it yes?
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (OFF MIKE)
[16:30:00] TRUMP: No, not at all. Look, we want what's good for the United States. And the president wants what's good for Mexico. And in
sitting down and in talking, we both realize that we have realized this from the beginning that it's good for both of us. Better for both of us,
actually. Yes, John.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (OFF MIKE)
TRUMP: We didn't discuss that. We didn't discuss who pays for the wall. We didn't discuss.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (OFF-MIKE) for Mexico to take back (OFF-MIKE) very harsh words directed toward. Would you like to take back some of those and
the wall is it a non-starter? Is there any chance Mexico paying for the wall?
TRUMP: Well, I'll start. I mean nothing like an easy question like that. We did discuss the wall. We didn't discuss payment of the wall. That'll
be for a later date. This was a very preliminary meeting. I think it was an excellent meeting and we are -- I think we're very well on our way. A
lot of the things I said are very strong but we have to be strong, we have to say what's happening.
And there is crime, as you know there's a lot of crime and there's a lot of problems. But I think together we'll solve those problems. I really
believe that the president and I will solve those problems. We will get them solved.
Illegal immigration is a problem for Mexico as well as for us. Drugs are a tremendous problem for Mexico as well as us. I mean it's not a one-way
street. And we will work together and we will get those problems solved. Mr. President?
PENA NIETO (through translator): Absolute respect for the electoral process in the United States. I wanted to invite both candidates, which
was responded quite quickly by Mr. Trump, the candidate.
So the meeting, besides the issues that we just recently discussed, we also talked about how relevant is the relationship among our countries, how
important it is to have strategic alliance in between our countries.
I also asked and I showed Mr. Trump the great responsibility that I have to defend the Mexican population, both the Mexicans who are here and outside
of Mexico. That there has been a misinterpretation or assertions that regrettably had hurt and has affected Mexicans and its perception of his
candidacy of which I am fully respectful.
The Mexican people have felt hurt by the comments that have been made. But I am sure that his genuine interest is to build a relationship that will
give both of our society's better welfare.
That the willingness expressed of the Mexican presidency to get together with both candidates of the United States based on that same premise to
work together. But above all in a mutual respect among nations. This is what I have shared with candidate Trump.
UNIDENTIFIED ANNOUNCER: This concludes this event and we thank all of you for your attendance.
QUEST: Well, you don't see that every day. Joining me now on the line, Felipe Calderon served as Mexico's president from 2006 to 2012. He says
Mexico won't pay one cent for Trump's border wall. Mr. Former president, thank you for joining us. From what you heard, what's your initial
reaction?
FELIPE CALDERON, FORMER MEXICAN PRESIDENT (via telephone): Well, let me tell you that I'm very surprised in Mexico, like I would say most of the
Mexican people, about visions of Mr. Trump to our country. I think that there are like national surprise and sectors indignations about this visit.
And my reaction is that I'm not quite sure what the most convenient position for Mexico to receive this visitor, this guy in particular in the
middle of the American campaign.
QUEST: Was it a mistake -- was it a mistake for the president to invite Mr. Trump to Mexico? I mean, you have the wall. You've got the
deportation. You've got the abuse. Whichever way this goes, it was not going to go well for him.
CALDERON: No. Actually, I want to quote Enrique Krause as one of the most brilliant academic and intellectual people of Mexico. Enrique Krause says
that it is a historical mistake. He expresses that violence must be faced with dignity and courage. And it is a little naive to try to crowd them,
to try to relax them or something of that. So I believe yes, I think it's a mistake. I think whoever decided inside government, whoever advised
President Pena to receive Donald Trump made a mistake, and what they're doing is throwing a lifeline to a sinking campaign, transcending the Trump
campaign, exactly in the words, a moment for him. So I think it was a mistake, yes.
QUEST: Mr. Former president, thank you for joining us. We appreciate it. It was a difficult line there, but we appreciate hearing your views.
Gloria Borger, CNN's chief political analyst, have you ever seen --
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: No.
QUEST: I mean, you had -- I have seen sort of meetings before with candidates and sitting presidents. But not one where the elephant in the
room is so huge, there's a wall, there's deportations, there's rapist, murders, and drug traffickers. The president, the Mexican president --
BORGER: Well, the Mexican president -- I don't know what he gets out of this. You know, he's low in the polls. There is a lot of controversy over
the invitations in the first place. And what the Mexican president said today was, and I quote, that Mexican people were genuinely hurt by Donald
Trump. And what Donald Trump said. Right? And so he said that. Then he went on to say that it's mutually beneficial for us to meet and talk over
our issues.
And then Donald Trump went on with his five-point plan, which I might add, he did not mention mass deportation or deportation force, which is the big
issue in the United States. But he did say that we want to end illegal immigration, and we're going to build a wall. And he didn't ask who's
going to pay for it.
QUEST: And the Mexican president, without reference to the deportation, says it's my responsibility to protect Mexicans wherever they may be.
BORGER: Right. So it begs the question, doesn't it? It begs the question because there weren't a lot of questions that were answered here, although
Donald Trump did answer some questions. But you know, Donald Trump went on about ending illegal immigration, you know, securing the border,
dismantling drug cartels, improving NAFTA. He didn't say kill NAFTA. Talked about improving NAFTA and keeping manufacture wealth in our, our
hemisphere.
QUEST: So there's a lot in there that the president could agree with. In terms of --
BORGER: Sure.
QUEST: You know, if we stick to the banalities of policy, strengthening borders, security, keeping manufacturer in our hemisphere, but you're left
always with the wall and the deportations.
BORGER: Well, and you're left also with what the president of Mexico has compared Donald Trump to, Hitler and Mussolini. Remember that. He's since
walked back those comments a bit, but Donald Trump's language in this campaign has clearly been such an issue to him personally, and to people in
Mexico personally, that you know, the question I have is whether the diplo speak is going to work.
QUEST: What did you make of Donald Trump's appearance? The way he comported himself? Because he had to look presidential whilst at the same
time not giving ground.
BORGER: Right, and I think he could help himself, to be honest. I think he went out of his way to sound diplomatic. To kind of say he had a
tremendous respect for the president and we all want what's good for our countries, professing his love for America as he did. And saying, but I'm
going to be strong.
[16:40:00] Now, so I think standing next to the president of Mexico as a candidate for president of the United States could help Donald Trump in the
way that he wants it to help him. It's not going to help him any more with the base of the party who may be angry with him for doing this, but it
could help him with those voters who are kind of on the line here, trying to figure out what to do, and saying, oh, he looked presidential, or he's
reaching out. The suburban Republican women he's been losing ground with.
QUEST: Finally, he gives this speech tonight on immigration. It's a time when they say their policy is clear, but everybody else says it's not.
BORGER: Right.
QUEST: So tonight, does he have to in abc ways, 1, 2, 3, say yes, we'll still deport. Yes, we'll build a wall. Does it have to be that clear?
BORGER: Well, I think clarity would be useful, with 69 days left until the election. But I think what you're likely to hear is what Donald Trump Jr.
signaled the other night to Anderson Cooper, which is baby steps. Was the phrase he said. This is not what we heard at the beginning of the
campaign. We heard build the wall and deport. Now you're going to hear build the wall and then let's figure it out. Which by the way, was the
position of a lot of other of those Republican candidates on the stage with Donald Trump.
So they're now scratching their heads and saying, OK, he said we were for amnesty. What is this? And that's going to be what the American public
really has to decide, whether the base of the party feels betrayed by Donald Trump for not mentioning the deportation part of it or not going at
it immediately, or whether they believe that he is being presidential and deciding to take it one step at a time. And whether that helps him with
the larger group of voters he has to appeal to.
QUEST: We have never seen anything quite like we saw just then.
BORGER: You know, we see campaign conversions a lot here. But this is something that's really different, because this was the signature issue for
Donald Trump.
QUEST: And on that note, we'll take a break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: More on the Trump-Mexican President meeting from Washington, we're joined now by Earl Anthony Wayne, who served as the former U.S. Ambassador
to Mexico. Ambassador, what did you make of it?
EARL ANTHONY WAYNE, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MEXICO: Well, I think it was a good discussion of the importance of our relationship with Mexico. It's
the relationship that we have that touches the most daily lives of American citizens. You could see that from the discussion of the issues.
[16:45:00] QUEST: But you can have as many discussions as you like, but where one party in the discussion is threatening to build a wall, getting
you to pay for it while deporting 11 million of your national citizens, it must have been, I think the phrase would be, an undiplomatic perhaps
meeting of moments.
WAYNE: I think the key thing is people start talking about the facts here. We trade over a million dollars a minute with Mexico. We have five to six
million U.S. jobs dependent on our trade to Mexico. They are the second largest buyer of our goods in the world. If you start talking about those
facts, then you can have a serious effort to find solutions to the challenges.
QUEST: So what was in it for the Mexican President to have this meeting? Now, I know that it's customary to invite the candidates, but what does he
get out of it? His polls are already low. This surely -- why did he do it?
WAYNE: Well, I can't second guess why he did it. I know he extended an invitation to both candidates, which is, I think, somewhat in that
tradition of saying that this is an important relationship. And Mr. Trump accepted, probably a little bit quicker than anybody thought.
But I go back to this. It's really good to have a broad discussion, including this discussion of just how important this relationship is.
There are a lot of good things going on between these two countries. And there are challenges they both need to work on.
QUEST: One of the things I notice, I'm just going back to the desk to get my notes, but one of the things I noticed is Mr. Trump talked about
improving NAFTA. What was interesting is the Mexican President also agreed that the free trade deal which was signed 22 years ago, he said we're
willing to re-examine NAFTA. So that does suggest some sort of tinkering with NAFTA is agreeable to the Mexicans.
WAYNE: They do seem to have signaled that they're willing to have a dialogue on this. And in fact, the current draft agreement of the TPP, the
Trans-Pacific Partnership does in effect update and add chapters to NAFTA. For example, e-commerce didn't exist when NAFTA was signed, so there are
places that NAFTA is not up with the times. And the same thing for environmental standards and labor standards. So there are areas where
NAFTA is behind the most recent kind of trade accords.
QUEST: Ambassador, thank you. We'll talk more as the election moves on.
WAYNE: Take care.
QUEST: Michel Temer has been sworn in as the new President of Brazil after Dilma Rousseff was ousted. Brazil senate voted 61 to 20 to remove the
country's first female president from office. Some senators sang the Brazilian national anthem as the results were announced. Others held up
signs calling it a coup as she was suspended in May for allegedly misrepresenting the country's budget deficit. Shasta Darlington is in
Brasilia What a moment. What was it like?
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Richard, you get so wrapped up in this long-running process that you sort of forget what a historic moment
this is. Not only was Brazil's first female president impeached today, it also brings the end of 13 years of administrations run by the left-leaning
Workers Party, which certainly had their high moments under Luiz Inacio da Silva, when China was buying up the all these commodities.
The peak was when the economy was growing at 7.5 percent a year. It also had its serious low points, we're now in the second year of a very deep
recession. There's been this huge corruption scandal. That angered people enough that they wanted an end to all of this.
Today, that was brought to an end, and we have a new president, a much more conservative president. And one who frankly isn't very popular either,
Richard, but he has friends in congress. That's what's important.
QUEST: Dilma Rousseff, is she finished in politics? Or I mean, she's been removed from this term, but can she stand again in the future or does this
impeachment mean nope, it's over? She can never stand for national politics again?
DARLINGTON: Well, listen, Richard. Thanks to some last-minute wrangling in the senate, they split the vote in two. There was the impeachment vote,
which removes her from the presidency. But they voted separately whether she could keep her political rights.
[16:50:00] In the end, there wasn't the two thirds majority needed to strip her of her political rights. In theory, that means she could run again for
office and she could also hold a position in another government, in somebody else's government. She could hold public office that isn't
elected.
There is another law, in fact, that's called the clean history, which likely would prevent her from running for office anyway, so the speculation
here is that on the one hand, that just allows her to hold a public office, and on the other hand, it's sort of her way of just getting a little bit
back from the senators. They didn't strip her of absolutely everything, Richard.
QUEST: Shasta, I shudder to think what your next big story is you'll be covering but you have certainly done sterling service for us on QUEST MEANS
BUSINESS and we thank you for joining us tonight. We'll be back shortly. You need to take a moment, perhaps, to make, create, innovate.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: New relations and the beginning of starts between the United States and Cuba, regularly scheduled commercial flights have begun between the two
countries. The first landed in Santa Clara in Cuba this morning. The JetBlue flight left Ft. Lauderdale and took just an hour to complete the
short journey. CNN's Rene Marsh was onboard that first flight. She's in Santa Clara. An hour in the air and decades in history swept aside, Rene.
RENE MARSH, CNN AVIATION AND GOVERNMENT REGULATION CORRESPONDENT: That's absolutely right. I can tell you, being on that flight, it was like
nothing that I had ever seen. There was so much emotion on that flight, there was a lot of cheering, a lot of celebration. But then there was also
just raw emotion as we were touching down here at Santa Clara.
You can see the airport here. There are some other flights coming in, so that's why you still see people milling around behind me. I had some time
to speak with one woman who was onboard, and she just broke down in tears because she said that she hadn't been back to Cuba in 16 years.
She hasn't seen her family in that long. She had cancer and that's what kept her away, that coupled with how expensive the charter flights were.
When she saw the $99 flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Cuba, she hopped on and said she was healthy enough to make this trip, and she just broke down in
tears.
Those were the real people stories. Of course, there's the history here, as you mentioned, you know, it's been more than five decades.
QUEST: Rene, there are many more flights. Nine cities across Cuba and 20 flights a day to Havana before the end of the year will be introduced.
Realistically, Rene, can Cuba cope with this sudden and dramatic increase?
MARSH: That is the question. As you mentioned, it was just announced today, those direct flights from various cities in the United States to
Havana. You know, that is the most sought after destination, and that's why that destination took a little bit longer.
[16:55:00] But you know, just leading up to today, we were told that they were cutting the hedges, they were painting. So there is this push to get
ready, but it remains to be seen, you know, how they will receive the crush of people who especially Havana looking to travel here from the United
States. Again, it's now so easy, Richard.
You simply go on to a website, Travelocity, any one of those websites, and you can purchase a ticket. It was not that easy before, so they are
expecting those numbers to be way up. There are plans to build, you know, extra hotels, things of that sort to essentially accommodate all of these
people, but it remains to be seen how that will all work out.
QUEST: Rene in Cuba, I'll have a Churchill cigar on the way back, please. Thank you very much. Just get me a couple. Thank you very much.
Although I suspect everybody has asked her to bring something back. We'll have a profitable moment after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's profitable moment, strange sort of day really. Donald Trump goes to Mexico and meets the Mexican president. They talk about a
wall but not who's going to pay for it, and a plane goes from the U.S. to Cuba and history is made. Put it all together and you have QUEST MEANS
BUSINESS this Tuesday. I'm Richard Quest in New York. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I do hope it's profitable. We'll do it again
tomorrow.
END
