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Quest Means Business
New British PM Keir Starmer Selects His Cabinet; Biden: I Am Running And Going To Win Again; Several Top Tories Voted Out Of Their Seats; New British P.M. Keir Starmer Selects His Cabinet; Biden Tells Wisconsin Rally He Is Running, Will Win Again; Labour Says It'll Spur Investment Without Raising Income Taxes. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired July 05, 2024 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:03]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: It is 9:00 PM in Westminster. The sun is soon setting and a new prime minister settles his height on the
first night.
Let's go to the president of the United States, Joe Biden, who is speaking in Wisconsin.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: . to help us out, and has turned out to saved my sanity and save my life. I never -- no I do, I really mean.
So you know, you're -- you're -- all of you have had somebody there when things were tough and reached down and it makes a difference -- well, quite
that's how I collectively think all of you.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And everybody under the age of 12 who had to be here because their parents took them, I owe you --
But what's your name? Leah (sp?). My name is Joe. How old are you?
Eleven. When I was 11, I came up to about your shoulders.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: Well, it is good to see you. Who you with today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dad.
BIDEN: Dad, you know, we Dads are hard to raise. You've got to be patient with us.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: You what I mean?
Anyway, but thank you very much. I am -- I have to -- not have to, I am about to do an interview with George Stephanopoulos. It is going to be
televised and he is waiting in another room somewhere, I am not sure where.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: So I am going to have to head off, but I wish I could say --
(INAUDIBLE CONVERSATION)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thank you. Who is going to snap? All right, and by the way, tell the press how much you like Wisconsin.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go, Biden go.
BIDEN: We're going to give it hell. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(CROWD chanting)
QUEST: There is President Biden. He is in Wisconsin and this is the second time we've heard him. He gave some remarks, very forceful remarks, but he
had a prompter there. Now we are seeing him sort of al fresco, if you will, walking around.
And Paula Newton is with me. Paula, the president in his prepared remarks said he was staying in the race. He was very clear, very forceful about the
way he said that.
But then I look at those pictures there of the president and I mean, yes, he is talking to people and easy, but he is still sort of shuffling and he
is still -- he doesn't look his best.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: He is not looking his best, others would say he looks like an 81-year-old man, which is something that no one
-- he is not trying to hide and no one is hiding.
I would say, Richard, if we saw any kind of that kind of performance at the debate from what we saw in the last 15 minutes of that speech, I am not
sure we would be having this conversation.
Again, as you say, it was 15 minutes, a speech in front of a teleprompter, it has to be said. But what did he say? He actually faced the questions
head on and to a raucous crowd, Richard, that was yelling. "Let's go, Joe." He said, everybody is wondering what is Joe going to do? And his answer
was: "Here's my answer. I am running and I am going to win again."
He is saying that there is no way that he is dropping out and you know, he is saying that, look, you voted for me as the nominee. There is no way that
I am dropping out.
What was also interesting was that he really took it to Donald Trump in the speech. Again, prepared remarks, called him the stable genius, also said
referring to his felony conviction that he was a one-man crime wave and saying that he had failed all the character tests that he was given.
Look, he also went through his record. Again, a rousing speech, again off a teleprompter.
QUEST: But Paula --
NEWTON: At this point in time, it does not seem to be stopping even Democrats from saying that they need more proof that he is their guy.
QUEST: Right. The reality is -- and this is what people say, I say, people will tell me, you watch his performance and you wait. You wait with
something approaching, anxiety or is he going to -- is he going to get to the end of the sentence? Is he going to stumble?
It is awful to say, I mean, we will be talking to Sanjay Gupta, but that is what people say and I say when you watched the president speak.
NEWTON: And it is good to have Sanjay weigh in and he weigh in forcefully as a medical expert here, not that he has diagnosed Joe Biden. I will say
that you're right, the scrutiny is there and why is it there? Because in terms of the people we have been speaking to who deal with this, it is
either a condition or this is episodic because perhaps he didn't get enough sleep or something else was going on. Everyone wants to know the answer.
[16:05:09]
What is key here though, Richard, is that even Democrats are now saying we want a concrete answer.
I will leave you with this thought, Representative Gerry Connolly from Virginia, an important state that Biden must win again in 2024 when asked,
is Joe Biden our nominee? His answer was, I don't know yet.
QUEST: Paula, I am grateful. Thank you.
Paula Newton in New York.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta is with me now.
Sanjay, your article, which obviously took a great deal of thought and debate and consideration, particularly getting other doctors, their
thoughts -- calling for detailed cognitive tests by Joe Biden and the results.
You obviously did not do this lightly. Now, you say -- you had just heard my question. The fact is, people like me who have got no medical training
at all, I am just sitting here waiting for something to happen. When he makes a speech, you're waiting to see if he is on top of it.
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, I think what people saw in the debate, some of what they saw was not necessarily
new. I think what was different was that it seemed very pronounced and it seemed very sustained.
I mean, really from the first answer to the question in the night, I think it was pretty clear right away, this was not the performance he was hoping
for, and I think that was what was concerning to a lot of people.
I think the issue that I raised in the article and Paula just sort of alluded to this, what we don't know is, are these episodes that are
intermittent or is this something that is sort of indicative of a larger, more concerning underlying condition?
And the way to sort of get at that would be to do some pretty detailed cognitive testing.
As far as we know, and we've asked the White House about this. he has not had any of that sort of testing done. But I will tell you, Richard, I was
overseas when the debate happened. I was getting lots of texts and e-mails and phone calls from other brain doctors and all weighing in, but I think
collectively, there were several things that we were noticing at the same time.
And again, this isn't going to necessarily sound new, but in totality, it raised a level of concern, sort of the slowness of the speech, the slowness
of the response, sometimes halting speech, sometimes the confused rambling that sort of went on.
Also, you know, there was another thing, sort of the lack of expression in his face at the time. I was just watching him in Wisconsin. He seems to be
smiling. His expression is there. But during that debate, it was not. What was going on? None of these types of things in and of themselves make any
kind of diagnosis.
But what I think they tell us, Richard, is that more testing is warranted. If he were my patient or if you were my father who is right around his age,
that is what I would recommend.
And in large part because there is something you can do about it nowadays as well. So giving tests, it is important not just for the country, but I
think also for him in terms of possible treatments.
QUEST: Weighing in with the essay that you wrote, you will have been well aware that not only did you risk criticism, where you quasi-diagnosing
somebody who is not your patient, but also, you give legitimacy in a sense to the worries that other people have.
People will start saying, ah, well, Sanjay Gupta thinks that you should have some tests, all that President Trump says. You are obviously well
aware that that was going to be part and parcel of that essay.
GUPTA: Yes, I mean, look, I think it is very difficult nowadays to disentangle anything from politics. It was not meant to be a political
essay at all, but rather a medical essay. And I think, you know what I was pointing out. These were things I think that everybody has been seeing for
some time.
I think again, what was particularly concerning was just to see it in such a sustained protracted fashion during the debate, but yes, I think asking
and recommending testing to try and determine are these episodes related to things that are much more simpler to explain -- a poor night sleep, low
blood sugar, a viral illness, a new medication, things like that, which it very well possibly could be, but the testing could also figure out that
maybe there is something else going on cognitively are in terms of a movement disorder or something like that.
And again, Richard, I think as physicians, the point is that you test in order to potentially do something about it, not to malign or demonize, but
in order to actually potentially help the individual.
So, we will see. But yes, you know and I know, you and I both have been doing this job for a long time. I know that it is going to be a very
sensitive topic for a lot of people.
QUEST: Sanjay, I am always grateful for your time. Thank you, sir.
[16:10:10]
QUEST: I am grateful. Sanjay Gupta there.
GUPTA: Thank you.
QUEST: Here in the United Kingdom, the work begins for the British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
He started to form his new government after last night's dramatic Labour victory. He has already appointed Rachel Reeves as Chancellor of the
Exchequer. She was the shadow. She is the first woman to serve as chancellor.
Yvette Cooper has been selected as Home Secretary. John Healey is the new UK Defense minister.
The King met Mr. Starmer at Buckingham Palace earlier and officially invited him to form the next government. Sir Keir then delivered his first
remarks as prime minister.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: With respect and humility, I invite you all to join this government of service in the mission of national
renewal.
Our work is urgent and we begin it today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: CNN's Nic Robertson now looks back at the historic day in British politics.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice over): Britain's new Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his Wife, Victoria a moment 14 years in
the making for the Labour Party to return to 10 Downing Street.
STARMER: Whether you voted Labour or not, in fact especially if you did not, I say to you directly, my government will serve you.
Politics can be a force for good. We will show that.
ROBERTSON (voice over): His party securing a massive landslide majority in Parliament.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
ROBERTSON (voice over): A hard reality though, only around 35 percent of voters supported Labour and turnout was low, less than 60 percent.
Many in the UK losing faith in their politicians.
Outgoing PM Rishi Sunak stepping down as PM and conservative leader.
RISHI SUNAK, FORMER BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I have heard your anger, your disappointment and I take responsibility for this loss.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Sunak's conservatives handed a long anticipated humiliating blow. This election, not so much an endorsement to the left as
a rejection of incumbents.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sir Keir Starmer, Your Majesty.
STARMER: Your Majesty.
ROBERTSON (voice over): Keir Starmer, known by some as No Drama Starmer, a lawyer and former director of Public Prosecutions came late to politics.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
ROBERTSON (voice over): Now, the hard work of governing begins.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Sir Keir won't be able to bask in the glory of his victory for long.
Nic Robertson is in Downing Street.
Nic, let me go through the host of problems in a sense that he is facing and we can talk about the ways in which -- so the task number one is the
economy, which is the anemic economic growth that as GDP 0.7 percent in Q1. Then you've got public services. NHS long waiting lists, increasing crime.
He says he is going to reduce waiting lists, but you've also got the geopolitics.
You've got relations with the EU. He has made it clear that there is no going back in to the EU, but obviously, he wants to improve trade relations
and in his words, make Brexit work.
I've got the Manifesto with me. Nic, it was long on hyperbole and short on detail. How is he going to do all of this?
ROBERTSON: Yes, and that was something we were briefed about in advance of this and partly it was because we were told that he was going to set out a
vision and try to connect with the people and tell them what he is doing and why they're doing it and reinvigorate enthusiasm and belief and trust
in politicians, you know, a party of service, country first-party second he said.
So, I think part of it was that. How is he going to do all of this? Well, of course, some of that is going to falter Rachel Reeves, the new
chancellor of the Exchequer. She came out on the doorstep before. I said, how does it feel to be called Chancellor? She said "Good." And I think
that's how the city feels about her, a safe pair of hands.
And of course, Labour will be counting on that fact, that she served and trained in the Bank of England, that she has a good and strong track
record, is credible in areas of the economy to encourage perhaps in a few more months, better investment in the UK.
And of course, that better trading relationship with the European Union, also something that will over time, they hope improve the economy, which
will they hope provide the money they hope for the things that they want to deliver on.
And he made that very clear at today's speech.
[16:15:10]
You know, don't expect us to the building the schools and the houses all in the first year, and they've laid that out before as well, but ambitious
over their five-year term that they expect to have.
So they are going to have to generate that money first and so there is a couple of ways that they can hope to improve their situation.
QUEST: But, Nic, the thing I had noticed particularly is the lack of triumphalism, the lack of rah-rah, let's celebrate.
Now, he is sort of quite downbeat to begin with. He is an extremely good orator as a former barrister, but this idea of gravitas, experience, and
seniority, get on with work is really telling.
ROBERTSON: It is. Look, No Drama Starmer is what some people say about him. The man who wrote a biography about him said, look, if a politician falls
in a deep ravine, most of them will be flash about it and broadcast to the cameras. They are going to climb up by their teeth and fail.
He said that Keir Starmer in that ravine would quietly be finding a path and not be halfway out before you even the know about it.
This is a man who is known for taking careful, measured steps and it is that hope in the party that those steps will be the right ones to bring the
country out of this economic situation, to engage with the public again and get them believing.
I mean, that's the idea of what this particular leader of the Labour Party can deliver, over and above somebody else who might be more flash.
And let's absolutely face it here. He gets it. The system of politics in this country is not working for the political parties. We've seen the
fringe parties pick away and undermine their vote share and that's because people have lost faith that politicians can deliver. He understands he
needs to make that connection. Can he do it? That's another question.
QUEST: Nic Robertson in Downing Street where it is raining and I am at Westminster where it is also raining.
I'm grateful, sir. Thank you.
At least, you've got an umbrella and I've got a tent.
Still to come on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight, tensions are running high ahead of Sunday's parliamentary elections in France. Christiane Amanpour
sat down with Marine Le Pen to discuss what is coming next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:20:06]
QUEST: A long night of reckoning for the Tories is what we saw last night. Nothing short of a political bloodbath. They lost seats.
The former PM, Liz Truss; the Defense Minister Grant Shapps, the Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt; the former Brexit Secretary Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, all
out.
Twelve senior ministers out. The previous record until last night was seven. And the Conservative leaders aren't mincing the words. Some are
calling it "catastrophic," "incredible rejection," "sobering verdict," "disastrous night," "bitter pill," "took vote for granted."
The former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak did hold onto his Richmond and Northallerton seat and he apologized to the public in his last remarks on
Downing Street.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SUNAK: To the country, I would like to say first and foremost, I am sorry. I have given this job my all, but you have sent a clear signal that the
government of the United Kingdom must change, and yours is the only judgment that matters.
I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this loss.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The other big winner of the night, the Liberal Democrats, the center-left party won a total of 71 seats. That is its best showing. I
compare that to the 11 seats that they won in '19.
They are the third biggest party in Parliament and a force to be reckoned with.
Sir Vince Cable used to be the leader of the Lib Dems. He served in David Cameron's government as Business and Trade secretary of the coalition, and
Sir Vince, good to see you, Sir, as always.
Excellent night. Congratulations to the party. You managed -- you are the beneficiary in Scotland, you're a beneficiary in England. You took seats
left and right.
What do you think was the driving force? Was it just the anti-Tory?
VINCE CABLE, FORMER LEADER OF THE LIBERAL DEMOCRATS: Well, you know, there certainly was a lot of anger directed against the government, particularly
the Boris Johnson era, with the pandemic and even more with Liz Truss and economic management. So there was a lot of negativity and we benefited from
that.
We were also very focused and organized. We concentrated our support to maximize tactical voting, but I think there was also a popular appeal. We
are very well-grounded in local communities, local government.
We had been working a lot of these seats for a very long time and we've finished up with better representation in the liberal tradition for a
century. So the question now is how we put this to good use offering constructive opposition in the new Parliament.
QUEST: And in many ways, you will be a sort of a more realistic opposition as the Tories go through a blood bloodletting of recrimination in what some
says a Civil War to find their next leader.
But your party also has a challenge, which is to embed itself into those new seats that it has got, so you become the natural party of those seats
in the future.
CABLE: Yes, you're quite right. It is partly determined by what happens to the Conservatives.
There is a very real possibility that they could split because we have the pressure from this nationalist right-wing party reform led by Nigel Farage,
which a lot of their MPs instinctively sympathize with, and it may be that one of the great parties of government for the last 200 years isn't going
to be able to deal with these pressures.
So there is an issue about the future viability of the Conservative Party, but as far as we are concerned, we have to develop our own agenda. We've
traditionally been the pro-Europe party, so we will be pursuing the government which has taken a very weak and inconsequential line on our
future relations with Europe.
We will be pushing for constitutional reform to change the voting system, which is clearly breaking down in the UK and will want to invigorate local
government, which is where many of our active piece have come from.
QUEST: Do you see this as an -- I mean, it is an exceptional night. Is it the massive turning point for the Lib Dems for the future?
CABLE: Well, it is a turning point because we've been through 10 very difficult years. As you mentioned at the beginning, we were part of the
coalition government. I was one of the senior ministers there. Most of us lost our seats at the end of it.
[16:25:10]
What we did, I think was good for the country, but it was terrible for the party and it has taken us 10 years to recover and we need more than
recover.
But I think we are now properly embedded. We have good leadership, good MPs. They have a clear agenda for the future. So I think were set fairer.
QUEST: And the relationship that you think your party can have with Labour.
I mean, you've got a lot of MPs. Keir Starmer has got so many MPs that there will be rabble-rousers, there will be left wingers. There will be all
sorts of mischief makers within his own party now he has such a large majority, and I think the interesting thing is, how the other parties will
work with a government party that really can do what it wants.
CABLE: Well, we have been here before. I mean, when Tony Blair became prime minister, we had the strong results. We were in opposition to the then
Labour government for 13 years and I think we were constructive and effective.
For example, we really one party that fought against the Iraq war politically, very much in line with the public mood. We were very forceful
on civil liberties issues, which the Labour government didn't take so seriously.
And I personally got very heavily involved in the critique of the handling of the banking system, which ultimately collapsed.
So I think we've been there before. We've demonstrated how we can be an effective opposition to a Labour government with a large majority.
QUEST: All right, Sir Vince, thank you. Have a good weekend, Sir, and congratulations to an extremely impressive result last night. I am grateful
for your time tonight. Have a good weekend.
Now, Rana is with me. Rana Foroohar, he is our global economic analyst. You're in London.
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: I'm in London. Here I am.
QUEST: Well, obviously,
FOROOHAR: I am in London.
QUEST: I mean, you knew.
FOROOHAR: I mean, I knew there was going to be big news, so here I am.
QUEST: Excellent. What do you make of it?
FOROOHAR: I think this puts the UK in a very interesting position relative to both the US and Europe.
I mean, in a funny way, the UK, which is been sort of a sad sack of the West for so long, is now the prettiest house on the ugly block, that is
liberal democracy.
You know, I see CEOs saying, maybe this is a stable place to invest. We don't have the far-right rising, we have a center-left government. This can
be good for business. This could be good for stability. So it is a pretty optimistic moment.
QUEST: And if you compare it to what is happening just over the channel, this weekend.
FOROOHAR: Yes.
QUEST: Now, it is unlikely that Marine Le Pen is going to get an absolute majority.
FOROOHAR: Yes.
QUEST: The RN, but the instability, I mean, you saw, you would have seen obviously Viktor Orban's comments. He is in Moscow. He says he is on a
peace mission, but you've got the chairman -- the president the council Charles Michel saying he doesn't even refer to him by name. He just
described him as the leader of the rotating presidency.
FOROOHAR: Yes. Yes, I mean, I think that what you're talking about is what worries business people, what worries investors all over the world, which
is this swing towards the far right. A government who knows where it is going to land.
France is going the same direction as the US seems to be going. I mean, now what this means, let's say, just to switch to the US for a moment.
QUEST: Right, please.
FOROOHAR: Let's just talk about if we see a Trump presidency, which is looking more and more likely, that is in turn going to have an impact on
what this Labour government in the UK can do, right?
QUEST: Can Labour -- I mean, Labour -- how will Labour deal with Trump, handle Biden -- a second Biden --
FOROOHAR: Yes.
QUEST: And vice versa?
FOROOHAR: Huge difference. So I've already had folks reaching out to me and saying, what do we do if there is Trump? Because think of a Biden
presidency, that's a huge tailwind for this Labour government. They were thinking about implementing their own version of Bidenomics. They've been
having people like Heather Boushey from the Economic Council of the White House coming over and talking to them about how can this work for the UK?
How can we be part of friend-shoring in this kind of reindustrialization that is going on.
Trump, a whole different picture. No special relationship there. It would be like starting from scratch, I think, and at a time when of course the UK
is still cut off from its natural trading bloc, which is Europe.
QUEST: How do you find the mood in this country?
FOROOHAR: You know --
QUEST: I mean, you're not -- to be clear, you are no stranger.
FOROOHAR: I am not. I mean, I have a double passport, but you know, I haven't lived here since 2007, so I find the mood actually better than I
thought it was going to be.
QUEST: Right.
FOROOHAR: Right? I mean, you can -- look, you can feel the impact of 14 years of austerity in public services. You can feel it in hospitals.
You get a sense that this is not the 90s, which is when I arrived in the UK.
QUEST: But, I feel exactly the same thing when I am back in the United States.
FOROOHAR: Yes.
QUEST: I can feel the lack of investment in infrastructure.
FOROOHAR: Yes. For sure.
QUEST: I can feel -- whether it is potholes or whatever.
[16:30:10]
FOROOHAR: Yes. But what -- here is what I feel that is very different from the US or from Continental Europe, it is stability.
This is the thing about Brits. I mean, it is the must not grumble, but it is the sort of, look, we are a center. We are steady as she goes. I mean,
this is one of the great strengths of this country and it is something Labour is going to ride.
QUEST: And you know (INAUDIBLE)
FOROOHAR: What?
QUEST: A nice cup of tea.
FOROOHAR: Especially in this. This is your summer.
QUEST: Oh, stop it. It would -- no, no, no, no, no.
FOROOHAR: Come on.
QUEST: I'm not letting you have it. No. It was beautiful.
FOROOHAR: It's July.
QUEST: It was beautiful earlier in the week and last week was glorious.
FOROOHAR: Yes. So, you say. I've got my Mac over there.
QUEST: British one, right. Thank you. Safe travels.
FOROOHAR: Great to see you.
QUEST: Later in this hour, we will explore how Britain's business community is reacting to the Labour landslide. The economic director of the CBI in a
moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Returning to our top story. President Biden told his supporters in Wisconsin that he is staying in the race for the White House. This campaign
has been in crisis mode since that dreadful performance at last week's presidential debate. Some Democrats are doubting his reelection chances,
the President insisted he will not step aside.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You probably heard we had a little debate last week. I can't say it's my best performance.
(CROSSTALK)
[16:35:07]
BIDEN: But ever since then there's been a lot of speculation. What you're going to do? Is he going to stay in the race?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
BIDEN: Is he going to drop out? What's he going to do? So, here's my answer. I am running and going to win again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: The President tonight sits down for an extended interview which will be on the ABC television network. The performance will be scrutinized, of
course, by undecided Democrats, everybody. Ron Brownstein is a senior editor at The Atlantic and a senior political analyst for CNN. All right.
Let's just go to -- his -- Ron, the President was forceful today and it looked good. But he was on prompter and it was organized and it was, if you
will, a restrained environment, put him when he's walking around later and he's shuffling around. And he's not rambling but he's slowing speed. There
is a discrepancy here.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes. And look, I mean, there's also a fundamental question about whether even a good day, going
forward a race is what voters saw on a very bad day. I mean, you know, I mean, I don't think voters who are worried about his age and his capacity
necessarily feel that he's incapable of doing this every day. But once you introduce the idea into the deck, that there are days where it does not
seem like he is able to do the job.
Can you really undo that by you know, having a good interview with George Stephanopoulos? I can tell you, Richard, there's a lot of frustration and
maybe even despair, among the Democrats who are dubious that he can recover from this that he's digging in so hard publicly and, you know, kind of
making this -- there's certainly a desire to allow him to some space and grace is the word I heard quite often today to make a decision.
QUEST: Right.
BROWNSTEIN: I think doubling down like this kind of adds to the frustration among Democrats, most of whom -- I mean, the people who run campaigns for a
living, I think the dominant view is that he cannot recover from what happened last week, in part because he was losing already going in and in
part, because what happened, confirmed it now the voters already had.
QUEST: So, talk me through the route by which he can be removed or yes -- I mean, in this country, they sort of -- they call it the gray men in suits
go in and, you know, you're told to do the honorable thing. If it goes on and on and on and he still won't go, and the polls are against him and the
conventions coming up. What happens? You know, let's go to the nth degree to the edge, what happens?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. So first of all, under Democratic party rules, they changed them in the 80s. Even the delegates who were elected for Joe Biden
are not obligated legally to vote for him on the first ballot. So, in theory, someone could choose to challenge him whether or not he gets out of
the race, of course, all of those delegates were selected specifically for their loyalty to Joe Biden. So that makes that a very uphill climb.
I think the general view in the Democratic Party is that if he wants to stay in the race, it is almost impossible to dislodge it. And as I said,
there has been a prospective that says give him some time to get through this on his own without a lot of public pressure. But I'm not sure that
withstands the kind of statements we've seen today when I think most people, you know, do this for a living in the Democratic Party, do not
think any more than he can be Trump and that he could lead them to losses in the House and Senate, that could be pretty severe and take a long time
to overcome.
QUEST: Right. But let me push you right into the corner and squeeze hard. If he won't go and it's looking like he's going to lose. I mean, obviously,
before the convention. If he won't go, and it's looking bad. I mean, are they -- is the Democratic Party ruthless enough to connive to get rid of
him?
BROWNSTEIN: I would say right now, the answer is no. Particularly because of the problem I mentioned which is that, you know, yes, the delegates can
vote against him, but they're his delegates. So, if he stays in, it's hard for me to see any top tier figure who would clearly be seen as in the party
as a better alternative, taking the risk of jumping to challenge them under those circumstances.
By the way, it's not clear that any top tier challenger would get into challenge Vice President Kamala Harris if Biden steps aside largely for the
same reasons. You know, but I do think, you know, anything -- the frustration is mounting because, you know, the polling is what it is.
Donald Trump is further ahead in national polls and has been at any point since he came down the escalator and Biden is going out saying no one is
going to push me -- push me aside. It's not that these democratic critics, you know, think he's been a bad president.
[16:40:03]
They think that A, almost certainly can't win and B, they're uncertain whether you can do this job for four more years.
QUEST: I bet you wish you had the British system whereby that you have the election on one day and you have the transition, the next. As the --as one
guy leaves out the back door, the next day arrives in the front. And there's something to be said for that. Ron?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Well, look, I would say also one of the thing I take -- yes, a parliamentary system and a level of polarization like we're living
through, you know, actually probably would work -- would work better. And you could imagine if there was a vote of no confidence now, I mean, whether
Biden would really win that in his own party. The other thing I'm just taking from this, Richard, and you can speak to this as well, you know, the
incumbent parties in both France and Great Britain in the global inflation that we're experiencing post COVID.
Both had really bad elections. And that's obviously an ominous trend that has to concern Democrats as well.
QUEST: Right. Right. One other question does occur to me. What do you make of this idea of Senator Mark Warner who's leading and putting together a
group of seniors, I suppose, gray men in suits in British Parliament? But he's putting together some group that would ask specifically Biden to step
aside. What do you make of these reports?
BROWNSTEIN: And there -- and that's happening now. I think in a -- look, for the people who want Biden to step aside that may be necessary, there
was hope, as I said that if you gave him some grace, without a lot of public pressure, he would kind of get to the place that many Democrats feel
is the, you know, inevitable and result here. But that does not seem in any way to be happening if anything, he's doubling down on this insistence.
So, I think that the first thing you're going to see, as you're talking about pushing to the nth degree are more people expressing publicly what
all -- what many of them are saying privately and which they are kind of leaving to a strange group, the donors, you know, to be the most public and
saying this is not tenable. I do think you're going to see more senators and more House members coming out in the next few days if the White House
continues to send the signal that he is not even really considering this.
At a time when I think public and private polling would show you him trailing in all of the swing states that he needs to win. So, I do think
that the Warner thing is significant. I think you're going to see more of it if Biden continues to dig in his heels because as I said, I think the
dominant view among the people who are either on the ballot or working for the people on the ballot is that the fall he took last week is not
something you can recover from.
QUEST: I'm grateful for your time, sir. As always, thank you.
Keir Starmer is promising to cure Britain's economic malaise. I'll speak to the CBI, the Confederation of British Industry in just a moment. What do
they want from the new government?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:45:28]
QUEST: We're here in Westminster, our new Parliament is preparing to take on the issues facing the U.K. The Labour Party will need to act fast to
spark an economic comeback. The manifesto offers a glimpse into the path ahead. I've got it here. But it seems to be under the bell. It says more
than seven billion pounds. Potentially it will go to fund -- National Wealth Fund.
It will go for infrastructure factories and clean energy projects. The big question, what will Labour do about taxes? It's vowed not to raise income
taxes and to cap the corporate rate at 25 percent which makes it difficult to hit spending pledges as well. Mohammad Jamei is the Director of Economic
Policy at the CBI. The Confederation of British Industry and joins me now. Sir, you have obviously delved deep and long into the manifesto. Can
British business thrive under these proposals in your view?
MOHAMMAD JAMEI, DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC POLICY, CBI: Good question. So, we do believe that British business and the businesses that we've spoken to
really can thrive. We know that the new government, the incoming government has a strong mandate. We've seen that in the past 24 hours. We have spoken
to who were shadow officials and engage with them continuously over the last three to six months.
And we really do believe that there are -- there are policies that this incoming government could implement in its first fiscal event which would
be sort of a bit later this year and it's -- in its first 100 days that can really help boost economic growth. I mean, as you've sort of talked about
economic malaise just before the break, really what we've seen is effectively no growth or very little growth in the past 2-1/2 half years in
the U.K. economy and that has to change.
QUEST: What don't you like about their proposals? What is it that you think could harm your members?
JAMEI: Well, I think there's -- in the -- in the manifesto, in the Labour's manifesto, there's a lot that we are able to get behind in particular and
some of the commitments that they're made to increase grid connectivity, planning reforms, reform of some of the taxes that they've -- that --
including business rates of tax that businesses pay, which have sort of premises. So, we believe there's a lot in the manifesto that is -- will be
beneficial to members.
And then what we're really calling for is for the incoming government to act quickly within the first 100 days because there is really an
opportunity here that we need to get as we'd say roll up our sleeves and get delivering. I think that's what we have -- we have been focusing on
sort of having those productive conversations with the Labour Party. And they've been very open to engaging with us.
We really believe that they are focused on wealth creation and in business and -- in sort of the driving seat to help increase growth.
QUEST: Do you believe -- do you believe that Labour has fundamentally changed from the old days of tax the rich, spend money you haven't got, run
up huge deficits. Bearing in mind the choice does an extremely good job of all of those things in the last few years of government, which is probably
why they're not in in government tonight. But do you believe that Labour has fundamentally -- has the leopard changed its spots?
JAMEI: Well, I think what I would say on that is that we have had very positive engagement with the Labour Party, with (INAUDIBLE) on policies
that will help boost growth and they've made firm commitments to manage public finances. We know that there isn't that much money that given the
commitments that they've made to stick to the current borrowing rules, that they are really quite limited in what they can do on increasing taxes and
increasing borrowing.
So, what we're really calling for here is not to outspend our rivals but to outsmart them by reducing the regulatory burden, but also making some sort
of more practical changes and some sending some practical positive signals on things around investment, for example, or reforming some of the existing
policies to really provide that competence that businesses need to invest. I think something that we've really picked up on in the last six months is
many businesses putting their investment plans on hold to see what the outcome of this election was going to be.
And actually, I think, if anything is quite positive, but there is a strong mandate here, because that will give businesses if there is stability, the
confidence to invest going forward.
[16:50:04]
QUEST: I'm grateful, sir. Thank you very much. Have a lovely weekend. The British voters have voted. They went to the polls and now it's France's
turn for that second round on Sunday. Special coverage of all the results begins at 8:00 p.m. in Paris, 2:00 p.m. in New York. We'll have more in
just a moment. QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: So, this is a photo we -- I think we showed it before. It's the -- captured by NASA's James Webb telescope. An illustration of the beauty and
timeless lure of space. The number of space flights is an all-time high this year, it will set a new record for successful launches. As the
industry grows, there are more space vehicles coming to the market and one company in Dubai is looking for a way to simplify how to design a space
vehicle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To get to the moon, you need a rocket, this rocket.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Engineers took more than a decade to develop and fly the Saturn V, the rocket use for the Apollo missions to the moon. Fast
forward to today and in just half that time, SpaceX designed and launched its renowned Falcon 9. Rocket science is speeding up.
And these engineers think it could be even faster. Thanks to Artificial Intelligence.
LIN KAYSER, CO-FOUNDER, LEAP 71: What we are showing is that you actually can autonomously generate functioning machines through a computational A.I.
And this is almost more important than, you know, the rocket engine
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Josefine Lissner and Lin Kayser founded leap 71. Based in Dubai, the company says it's responsible for the world's first liquid
fuel rocket engine designed by Artificial Intelligence.
JOSEFINE LISSNER, CO-FOUNDER, LEAP 71: I hit the stop button. And the program will do everything automatically from now on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Within minutes, a new rocket engine design is ready for manufacturing.
KAYSER: So if somebody says I'm sorry, you know, there needs to be changed, you know, the pressure isn't right or whatever. 15 minutes later, you have
a new design and that's huge.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The company says this has helped clients save at least $500,000 in the design process.
KAYSER: We basically gave a space startup, a working engine in the first week of their existence. Usually that's the first two years of your
development cycle.
[16:55:09]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The program's very first engine was 3D printed in Germany and trialed last month in the U.K.
Industry experts are looking forward to expand the use of A.I. in space while ensuring safety measures are kept in place.
HERMANN LUDWIG MOELLER, DIRECTOR, EUROPEAN SPACE POLICY INSTITUTE: I think the risk wider -- the width of applications of A.I. in space, whether it's
a human engineer or whether it's a A.I. support, they need to make sure that what you will do to clear flight ready has been verified and
validated.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Leap 71 is determined to get those verifications with more prototypes.
LISSNER: All software allows us to do much more complex design.
KAYSER: We want to start the movement of engineering away from these very laborious manual processes towards more intelligent way of working.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: And you and I, we will take a profitable moment after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's profitable moment. The truth be told the Tories didn't deserve to win last night. And the fact that they got trounced in such a
dramatic fashion is really no surprise. The way in which Sir Keir Starmer has entered Downing Street in a dignified, non-triumphalist way, pointing
out the work that has to be done. The difficulties ahead, the tough decisions that have to be made, it's been one of extremely impressive
performance.
It was to be expected to an extent the man is a former top civil servant. He was the director of Public Prosecutions. He's also a top K.C., a King's
Council and a top barrister. But now, of course, he has to prove that you can govern. And I don't just mean next week, next week, next month. There's
you've got the NATO conference. You've got all sorts of events that you'll have to turn up.
But he has to prove that Labour has fundamentally changed in more than just name only. Is it the old tax and spend or is there really a new Labour?
Remember, Tony Blair brought us new Labour and then it went back to the old-fashioned way under Jeremy Corbyn. So, there's a lot of work to be
done.
[17:00:04]
But I can tell you tonight in Britain, as you heard from others, there is a feeling of well, things are getting better. And big bell is chiming which
means that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in London. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it's profitable
(INAUDIBLE) chimes the hour.
END
