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Hala Gorani Tonight
Saudi Arabia Presents Evidence Of Iranian Involvement; Fed Cuts Key Rate; Israeli Votes Still Being Counted; Rep. Ami Bera (D-CA) Is Interviewed About The New National Security Advisor And Increased Sanctions On Iran; Trump Names Robert C. O'Brien National Security Adviser; U.K. Supreme Court Weighs Parliament Suspension; Dozens Killed In Attacks Ahead Of Afghanistan Elections; CNN Gets Rare Look Inside Samsung's Secretive Ideas Lab. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired September 18, 2019 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:20]
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone. Live from CNN London, I'm Hala Gorani.
Tonight, remnants of drones and missiles, Saudi Arabia presents what it says is hard evidence that Iran was involved in an attack on its oil
facilities. We are live in the kingdom.
And we are just minutes away from a hotly anticipated Federal Reserve rate decision. One person sure to be watching that closely is the U.S.
president himself.
And, later, dreaming up and cranking out the gadgets of the future. CNN goes inside Samsung's secretive ideas lab.
Pointing the finger of blame at Iran after days of accusations and speculation, Saudi Arabia finally presented evidence today that it says
backs up its claim that Iran is behind the attacks on its oilfields.
And there was a lot of evidence on show. A defense official in Riyadh presented recovered debris, as you can see here. He says 18 drones and
seven cruise missiles were used in the attack. And he also showed reporters maps, surveillance footage and other data.
But while he made clear that the kingdom believes Iran is responsible, he could not say exactly where the drones and missiles were fired from, only
that they did not originate in Yemen, as Iran has claimed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TURKI BIN SALEH AL-MALKI, SAUDI DEFENSE MINISTRY SPOKESMAN: This UAV is Iranian UAV. That's (ph) (INAUDIBLE) and all the components that we have
recovered, and we have analyzed through our experts. It shows the capability of the Iranian regime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, meantime, the American secretary of state is in the region. He's arrived in Saudi Arabia, he's meeting or is due to meet the crown
prince. Before landing, he called the attack an Iranian attack and an act of war. A team of United Nations experts is headed there to help
investigate. The secretary general describes the attack as a dramatic escalation in the gulf.
CNN has reporters across the region to cover this story. Nic Robertson joins me now from Riyadh. Nic, you were at that news conference a few
hours ago with the Ministry of Defense spokesperson. You got a question in as well, as to where they believe this attack originated from. What more
can you tell us?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes. The spokesman didn't want to go into the details of how they're figuring this out. And
he certainly didn't want to say that it was Iran at this stage. I'm struck by the alignment of what he has said and what Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo has said today as well.
They both, leading with the line that it's not the Houthis, despite their claim. That the missiles just don't have the range. And he went to great
lengths to show that.
I really wanted to get some specificity from him about what it was about these drones, delta-wing drones, is how he described them, and these cruise
missiles. Some specificity about why when he looks at them and they interpret what they've got in front of them, how they believe that these
are Iranian-made systems. We were expecting maybe an analysis of circuitry and other things.
And he didn't want to get into that. He did talk about the fact that these are very similar to other Iranian-made systems, that their degree of belief
that these are Iranian-made is a hundred percent, there's no doubt in their minds.
But, again, for that issue of trying to figure out how they work out where the missiles were fired from, well, I asked him and this is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: What is it about these missiles and UAVs that tell you specifically that they don't have the range to have been flown from Yemen?
And for those of us who don't really understand the technology here, how are you going to backtrack and find the launch site?
AL-MAKLI: The cruise missile, can it reach, as we have (INAUDIBLE), and it's not coming from Yemen, the Houthi militia and the proxies in Yemen,
they are just following the orders of the IRGC. Those kind of attacks is coming from the north with a capability that most likely from the north, it
can be launched from somewhere. Right now, we are working to know exactly the launch point.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: So two, I think, standout things in the evidence here that was presented was the CCTV footage showing the drones -- the cruise missiles,
rather, coming in from the north. That, he said, meant that they couldn't come from Yemen.
But also, he talked about the GPS technology that directs the drones and the cruise missiles. He said they were able to get some of those GPS
devices from these weapons systems, and they're kind of using the electronic breadcrumbs that led the missiles to the attack site, to lead
them back to the launch site.
[14:05:11]
And he said even while they're trying to do that, the Iranians, he implied, are trying to scrub the data remotely from those GPS bits of equipment.
GORANI: OK. Nic Robertson, live in Riyadh, thanks very much.
We'll get more on this story. We'll be going live to Tehran in a moment. But first, I want to bring you breaking news. Just five minutes ago, the
U.S. Federal Reserve made an announcement. It is cutting a key interest rate by a quarter percentage point. That was the expectation.
The Fed's meeting comes amid intensifying pressure from President Trump on what should be an independent Fed, to cut rates in order to keep the
economy humming.
The Fed cut is a key interest rate by a quarter point, at its July meeting. This is the second time, because of an unclear outlook on the economy.
We'll have more on that in a moment. We have our reporter Clare Sebastian on that.
I want to get back to the Saudi attack. Iran had a blistering response to that Saudi news conference that Nic Robertson was telling us about. A
presidential spokesman says it showed the Saudis can't prove anything about the attack or who is responsible. And its foreign minister is accusing the
U.S. president of escalating an economic war against ordinary Iranians.
TEXT: Donald J. Trump: I have just instructed the Secretary of the Treasury to substantially increase Sanctions on the country of Iran!
GORANI: Now, that followed a tweet from Donald Trump earlier today -- apologies -- ordering increased sanctions on Iran.
Let's go to Nick Paton Walsh. He is live in Tehran. Talk to us about this reaction to the news conference, and also these additional sanctions that
the U.S. president has announced.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, we heard from an advisor to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, saying that
essentially, that press conference proves what they can't prove and what they don't know.
And it is fair to say that the Saudis did struggle to answer Nic's direct question of was this Iran. They believe Iran was behind it somehow, but
the question of where everything took off from has not been conclusively answered yet with evidence or even, in the Saudis' case, actually directly
that well at all.
Iran obviously sees that. (INAUDIBLE) is obviously trying to use that to justify its claim that it had absolutely nothing to do with this at all.
And in fact, they do, on a most senior level, keep going back to the original assertion that they made, that they think the Houthi rebels in
Yemen are able to do this, the Houthis have, today, threatened further attacks, possibly on the United Arab Emirates, even, in the event that
matters here don't calm down or certainly (ph) that Yemen is now is subject to further bombardment.
The foreign minister, Javad Zarif, responding to that slightly vague tweet from President Trump about more, quote, "Substantial" sanctions, said it
simply shows the U.S. being engaged in an economic war against ordinary Iranians. And we actually just heard from Donald Trump, the suggestion we
may hear more details about those sanctions, the next 48 hours.
I have to say, it's hard to know quite how further the Trump administration can turn the screws. They're trying to stop much of the world buying any
more Iranian oil. They wanted to bring it to zero. But some of those previous purchases, perhaps it's (ph) aimed (ph) at finding ways to
continue to get Iranian oil. Their exports have dropped substantially, though.
And even the Revolutionary Guard has been directly sanctioned as a foreign terrorist organization. So we'll wait and see what those details are at
this point -- Hala.
GORANI: All right. And the reaction from inside the United States, Lindsey Graham, top Republican, is essentially saying sanctions are no
longer enough, echoing some of the views of, for instance, Liz Cheney as an example, the number three House Republican, saying a proportional military
strike against Iran is what's needed. Let's listen to what Lindsey Graham had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): This attack on the oil refinery, by any reasonable definition, is an act of war. It is attacking the world
economy, the stability of the oil markets throughout the world.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: So, here, you're starting to have sort of voices becoming louder within the Republican Party in the U.S., saying there should be more than
sanctions applied to Iran. How does the leadership in Iran react to that?
PATON WALSH: Well, they have been consistent in their message, saying they had nothing to do with it. And actually, they are not responding on an
hour-by-hour basis to extra things being said as part of the internal debate in the United States about what to do next.
The issue is, is diplomacy even an option here? Now, it's clear that Donald Trump isn't embracing military action as his favorite choice. He
keeps saying, we'll see what happens, when he's asked that. It's fair to say, too, that there is the possibility that a strike could lead to a
counterstrike, and we see things get out of control, particularly given publicly, Iran says it had absolutely nothing to do with this.
But the issue of diplomacy is a much more delicate one now because we heard, yesterday, from the supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. He said
there will be no negotiations with the United States at any level. Earlier today, we heard on Iranian state media that visas may not be forthcoming at
this point to Iranian officials. The president, the foreign minister wanted to go to New York imminently for the U.N. General Assembly. No
further update on that, but that looks unlikely.
[14:10:01]
Donald Trump was asked about that a matter of minutes ago, and he said, I think, if it was up to him, he'd let them come. Well, frankly, it is
ultimately, I think, up to him, whether the U.S. gives them visas, but there is an exception made for General Assembly meetings at the United
Nations. Mike Pompeo, he's been unclear on that in the past.
So it's interesting to see how that is finally resolved. Because there was a thought, maybe, if they're all in New York, maybe something might occur.
But we have to wait and see quite how that occurs. Tension's certainly rising, though, particularly when you hear voices like Lindsey Graham,
pushing Trump into a corner -- Hala.
GORANI: Thanks, Nick Paton Walsh in Tehran.
Back to our breaking news out of the U.S. Federal Reserve. The Fed announced, just moments ago, it has decided to cut a key interest rate by a
quarter percentage point, over concerns of a potential global slowdown. Let's get our Clare Sebastian in New York with more on this. That was the
expectation, right? Now the overnight key rate is at 1 3/4 percent.
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the range, 1 3/4 to 2 percent, Hala, that was definitely what the market was pricing in here. This is the
second rate cut this year, so very much welcomed by the market. Of course, cutting rates makes money cheaper overall for the economy.
But it's not actually necessarily good news, because this does show that the Fed is still worried about potential risks to the economy, going
forward. The Fed chair, Jerome Powell, has been worried about the trade war, about inflation persistently being below the Fed's target.
So what he's doing here is, taking out an insurance policy against those risks hitting the economy, and essentially causing a recession. The data
that we're getting in terms of the U.S. economy at the moment, isn't all that bad. We're not seeing anyone forecasting an impending recession in
the next few months or something like that.
But what he's doing there, as I say, is an insurance policy. And, you know, it is a complicated balancing act that he's doing, and we have seen
some dissent on the committee. Two members dissented on this decision, so it's going to be interesting to see in about 20 minutes' time, when he
starts his press conference, how he justifies this. It is a communication challenge for the Fed chair.
GORANI: And the New York Federal Reserve has been injecting money into the market for the second day, in fact. What are their concerns?
SEBASTIAN: Yes, so $128 billion is now what the New York Fed, which is in charge of implementing monetary policy, has injected into the economy.
Don't forget, the Fed doesn't just set policy, it has to actually execute it as well. So coming just ahead of this meeting, the timing is a little
bit of a challenge for the Fed chair as well.
What they're trying to do is stabilize the overnight lending market, where banks and other financial institutions borrow money for brief periods.
Now, this is something that we don't often talk about, but it is a critical part for the day-to-day running of the financial system.
We saw interest rates there spike this week, and that has dragged up the federal funds rate, which is that key policy rate, which is used for
interbank lending but could also influence things like car and home loans and the rest of the economy as well.
And the Fed needs to keep that within its target range, so that is why we see them injecting cash into the financial system, to try and stabilize
that. It wasn't enough, though, Hala, to stop that key interest rate from going above the target range, so expect some questions from Jerome Powell,
the Fed chair, on that as well, when he faces the media in a few minutes' time.
GORANI: And it is all about the news conference, it is not just about the rate cut? It was anticipated. We're seeing the Dow Jones lose a hundred
points here, nothing too dramatic. But it is about what the Federal Reserve says about the future, isn't it? And whether or not they believe
that the economy might weaken, how concerned they are, and whether or not we can expect other rate cuts. But it doesn't sound like they're in much
of a hurry to cut more.
SEBASTIAN: No, absolutely not. It's the press conference today, but we also get the economic projections and what's called the dot plot, which is
a kind of another transparency tool by the Fed, where policymakers say where they see the future path of interest rates. And they are kind of
split on that. I think that's probably one of the reasons why you see the market down today.
Seven out of 17 policymakers said they expect another rate cut this year, five of them think we'll stay where we are now and five actually expect a
rise -- and I will caution that this is, you know, a projection frozen in time, it will change with the incoming economic data.
But it is something that Fed watchers watch very closely and particularly, Hala, in this market, which is so obsessed, at the moment, with every
nuance, every minor move that the Fed makes. So communication is another policy tool in itself. That can influence the state of the economy.
GORANI: All right. Clare Sebastian, thanks very much. We'll be waiting for that news conference in about 15 minutes, and it will be covered, I'm
sure, extensively on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS."
[14:14:25]
A lot more to come this evening. Political deadlock in Israel. What will happen after a close election fails, once again, to produce a clear winner?
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: With his political fate hanging in the balance, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is giving up the chance to be on the world
stage. He is canceling his upcoming trip to the United Nations as he tries to navigate the aftermath of an extremely close election at home.
Becky Anderson is in Jerusalem tonight with the very latest. So what happens? It's an extremely close election. Once again, no clear winner.
Who will be the next prime minister?
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN MANAGING EDITOR: Yes. Who knows. It's a sure sign that Mr. Netanyahu is in the political fight of his life, and he knows just
how crucial these next days and weeks are to come. The last votes, Hala, are still being tallied. And we are waiting for what are the final,
official results, as it were.
But it looks like the prime minister's Likud Party is deadlocked with Benny Gantz's Blue and White Party, with neither winning enough support outright
to form a government on their own.
Now, we don't know who the next leader will be. The only thing we know for certain is that tough coalition talks lie ahead, Mr. Netanyahu, who spoke
briefly today, warning Israelis there are now just two choices. Quote, "A government led by me, or a dangerous government that depends on the Arabs."
Oren Liebermann is here with me in Jerusalem. What's his point here, Oren?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, up until this point and as of right now, it doesn't look like Netanyahu actually has a reason to concede,
and he has no right to declare victory.
So he's staying on the offensive. He has no reason to step aside, and he's not going to any time soon. The same, by the way, applies for his rival,
Benny Gantz.
Given that situation, Netanyahu is going on the attack. He has unified the smaller right-wing and religious parties behind him, and that's the
position he's in right now. So he's trying to take advantage of that to paint himself as the guy who can lead Israel forward, and maybe put some
pressure on Avigdor Lieberman to come to his side.
ANDERSON: Let's talk about the winners and losers, and who is Avigdor Lieberman? Remind us.
LIEBERMANN: Avigdor Lieberman is the former defense minister. He was in Netanyahu's government, he used to work for Netanyahu. And now, he is
Netanyahu's rival and may well hold the key, here, to Netanyahu's future, and perhaps the future of the Israeli government, with a small party that
only looks like it has some eight or nine seats.
But he is the kingmaker here. He played his cards right, he grew his party from the last elections, and he, when you look at the political spectrum,
he didn't win the election but overall, he is the winner of these elections. And he probably holds 90 percent of the cards in his hand, the
other 10 percent Israel's president, Reuven Rivlin, who decides who forms the next government.
ANDERSON: If he's the main winner, who are the losers?
LIEBERMANN: Just about everybody else. Blue and White and Likud lost seats, that certainly wasn't a win for them. The ultra-Orthodox parties
and the Arab parties gained seats, but they also didn't gain a position of negotiations, so they can't look at these. And, sure, they may be happy
with getting seats, but they didn't gain negotiating power, and that's more important right now.
ANDERSON: How does this end?
LIEBERMANN: Anybody who tells you they know the answer to that question is lying to you. I've listened to the analysts, I've read the articles.
There is no good 100 percent answer to where this road leads. Right now, the only thing you can say for sure is there's political uncertainty and we
may very well be calling that political chaos very quickly.
[14:20:03]
ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann in the house for you. Everyone talking about deadlock today. But as Oren points out, there is a lot of movement among
one group of voters in particular in this election, perhaps because Mr. Netanyahu's strategy of using scare tactics apparently backfired. Have a
look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL (through translator): The Palestinian authority published an official announcement, and I quote. "Go
out to vote, to topple Netanyahu."
ANDERSON (voice-over): These words from the Israeli prime minister on the eve of the vote. Earlier in the week, he claimed the Arabs tried to steal
the last election. And a post from his Facebook messaging service said that Arabs, quote, "want to annihilate us," end quote. Netanyahu said he
did not authorize that.
But scare tactics, his critics say, are part and parcel of this strategy. Portraying the 2 million or so Arab citizens, they say, as enemies of the
state.
Despite that, this election has seen a high turnout by Arab voters. I sat down with Israeli citizen Shaindy Ort and Adnan Jaber, an entrepreneur
living in East Jerusalem, to get their thoughts on what is behind that voter surge.
SHAINDY ORT, ISRAELI STUDENT ACTIVIST: The environment in Israel in general, with so much hatred and so much racism, and the fact that the
Joint List unified and created a very, very clear statement that in this election, it's a fight for life.
And it doesn't matter what your specific views are, but if you are against occupation, if you're against racism, if you're against incitement (ph),
you believe in equality, democracy and justice, you're going to vote for the Joint List.
ANDERSON: Adnan, you live in Jerusalem -- you both live in Jerusalem -- and yet you can't vote. Why?
ADNAN JABER, PALESTINIAN ENTREPRENEUR: Because I'm a resident, (inaudible), I'm not a citizen. I don't have the Israeli passport. I have
a document, it's red-colored, it's called Israel Travel Document. I need a visa to go anywhere and I can't vote for the Israeli government, for the
Knesset.
ORT: I think -- I mean, I think the apartheid reality that you're describing, I think this is why people who could vote went out and voted.
Because I think a lot of people, including myself, who -- Israel's not a democracy. There is no democracy here when millions of people who live
under Israeli control can't vote, that's not a democracy. And yesterday was not a celebration of democracy.
And with this -- and with that, there still is a limited amount of people that do have the right to vote, and those of us who are voting and are
trying to vote with people like you in mind, hoping that one day there will be democracy or hoping that one day we can both vote --
ANDERSON: How do you feel about that? Will there be democracy here one day for you, Adnan?
JABER: I don't know how much time will it take to have this. And who will force the democracy? Is it going to be Palestine, going to have the
democracy for me in Israel? Or (ph) is it going to be Israel, who's going to give me democracy in East Jerusalem? I still don't know.
ANDERSON: Adnan, do you feel valued by members of the Knesset who are Arabs?
JABER: I think that I'm not included in their agenda. I don't hear anything much about me, and I can't do anything about this. It's Jerusalem
(ph) might with a plan of Jew-dizing (ph) Jerusalem, I feel also my identity as a Palestinian in Jerusalem, is also, like, demolishing slowly
and wiped -- is wiped out slowly.
ORT: The current situation that you're describing is -- it's worse than I could ever, ever imagine. I grew up in the United States, I live here in
Israel today. And the things that me and my -- and all the activists and obviously the Palestinian activists that we're working with, see every day,
are things I don't think most people sitting at home in the United States have any idea are happening in Jerusalem.
ANDERSON: How optimistic are you that things will change here?
JABER: I'm a hopeful person. I want to make impact. And I'm not waiting for any government to support me or stop me. I want to work towards
improving people's lives, and that's what I'm going to keep on doing.
As Palestinian in Jerusalem, I had to go through checkpoints every day to go study in -- for example, in Birzeit University. I had to cross
checkpoints every day, I struggle. But I want to achieve something, I want to change the status quo. And that's how I live now, and that's what I
want to do.
ORT: One thing I think I have learned -- you can learn from the Joint List, in terms of the future, in terms of optimism, in terms of a future
reality that's better for all of us.
[14:25:00]
And I think that the one thing that the Joint List does, is it dismantles the entire structure that the current state of Israel relies on, and that
is the division between Arabs and Jews, and even with -- amongst different groups of Arabs and Jews, constantly trying to incite hatred between
people.
Once you dismantle the idea that somehow there has to be a conflict in this land, I think that -- that's like my only hope, that (ph) actually one day
getting to a more peaceful and more fair future.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Shaindy and Adnan there.
Just in, Donald Trump, reacting to the results here for the first time, saying -- and I quote -- "Everyone knew it was going to be close." He also
said, "Our relationship is with Israel. We'll see what happens." Make of that what you will.
And just a reminder, that we are still waiting on the official-official final results, as it were, and of course we'll bring you those just as soon
as we get them -- Hala, back to you.
GORANI: All right. Becky, thanks very much.
Still to come tonight, a new U.S. national security advisor has been named to replace the highly controversial John Bolton. We'll get reaction from
the United States, we'll tell you more about Robert O'Brien. And I'll be joined by a Democratic congressman for his reaction as well, ahead.
Also, strong words for the British prime minister. A lawyer tells the U.K. supreme court he is the father of lies.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GORANI: As I mentioned earlier, a week after firing John Bolton, President Donald Trump has named a new national security advisor. Robert C. O'Brien
is currently serving as the president's special envoy for Hostage Situations.
Mr. Trump interviewed O'Brien for the post late last week, as well as four other candidates, and he had this to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Mr. O'Brien's highly respected. He was highly respected by so many people that I didn't even
know really knew him. He did a tremendous job on hostage negotiations, really tremendous, like unparalleled. We've had tremendous success with
that regard, brought home many people.
And through hostage negotiations, I got to know him very well myself. But also, a lot of people that I respect rated him as their absolute number one
choice.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, let's get to our Stephen Collinson, live in Washington with more. Robert O'Brien, he worked in several administrations and people may
remember him from the A$AP Rocky case in Sweden. He was sent by the administration to try to convince authorities there to release A$AP Rocky.
What more do we know about it? How will he differ from Bolton?
[14:30:06]
COLLINSON: Well, Hala, I think, as you say, this is not the first name that might have sprung to mind for such a crucial job as national security
advisor. Mr. O'Brien does have Republican pedigree, as you say, with several administrations.
But he also has other things that recommend him to President Trump that the previous national security advisor, John Bolton, didn't have. He doesn't
have an independent power base politically or in the Pentagon as did some of the generals that the president has used in key foreign policy posts.
He doesn't seek the limelight. That's something that the president likes. He doesn't like to be over shadowed. And he has a record of praising the
president in public, notably over his handling of hostage situations.
So as scenic might say that those qualities, which John Bolton who is very outspoken, experienced, and very media savvy, didn't have those qualities
of the ones that perhaps have recommended Mr. O'Brien to the president.
And I think what it shows is that the dominant force, in this administration on foreign policy, is the president and those around him
either agree with him or have to get out of the tent.
GORANI: Yes. And regarding -- according to reports, he shares on many levels, the hawkish views of John Bolton. I mean, his outward lead
demeanor is different, and that from what I understand and according to reporters who've interviewed him, he's quite liked by his staff. He's not
necessarily combative. But he's on board with a lot of them more hawkish views expressed by in the past by John Bolton.
COLLINSON: Yes. And I think he will definitely reflect the views of the Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo. He's coming from the State Department.
Pompeo is the dominant hawkish voice now in this administration on foreign policy, especially since the departure of John Bolton.
I think he was always going to be the case and the person who took over as national security advisor, would have Mike Pompeo's endorsement, given his
power and the way that he has managed to ingratiate himself with President Trump so far at least. Although let's face it, this president does have a
record of strongly favoring certain people at his administration bringing him in, praising him as we saw him do to Mr. O'Brien on the tarmac there.
But then turning against him. If they say something that angers him. If they differ from him publicly in some sort of policy ways. So I think
history suggest that while the president -- Mr. O'Brien and Mike Pompeo seemed to be on the same page and are getting along with each other well
right now, that could change at any point given the character of this president.
GORANI: Thank you very much. Stephen Collison.
So, how was Congress responding to news of the new security advisor and increased sanctions on Iran?
Joining me now to talk about all this is U.S. Democratic Congressman, Ami Bera. Thanks, Congressman for being with us.
First of all, your reaction to this new national security advisor. I don't know if you heard my conversation with Stephen, but at least in style, very
different to John Bolton.
REP. AMI BERA (D-CA): You know, I did. We don't know a whole lot about Mr. O'Brien. It does look like he's got some similar stances to Mr.
Bolton. But I agree with you, in style, he does seem to be a different stylistic national security advisor.
We'll look forward to getting to know him a little bit more. And this is obviously an incredibly important time. You touched on your tensions in
the Middle East with Iran. And, you know, we need that national security advisor on board.
Our concern is if the president is surrounding himself with folks who are just going to agree with him, that really isn't the best way to do joint
decision making. We want the tension and we want differences of opinion, and we want the president to be able to hear all of the differing opinions
as we move forward. And obviously, we'd like the president to work closely with us and Congress as well.
On the Iran question, the national security advisor who would disagree with him is more likely to be, you know, in support of some sort of military
action. Because the president seems to be indicating he's not in any hurry to go to war with Iran over that attack on the Saudi oil field over the
weekend.
In your opinion, what should the United States be doing?
BERA: You know, we've heard the president make various comments. But he's been pretty clear he doesn't want to have another war in the Middle East.
Now, if he's going to ratchet up sanctions, the sanctions that we already have in place have been pretty biting. The goal now would be, if you are
going to increase sanctions, is it to get the Iranians to the table to negotiate? What is that end goal?
And again, this is where I'd urge President Trump to work with our allies, so we're speaking with one voice and work with Congress. So, you know,
there's a single U.S. foreign policy as we address this crisis from this challenge.
[14:35:09]
GORANI: You're on the Foreign Affairs Committee, what do you think the United States should do? Iran has said, we won't come to the negotiating
table, you know, unless, essentially, there's some sort of relief on sanctions. The United States strategy is the exact opposite. It is
increasing sanctions.
What would you do?
BERA: Well, so I would look to try to decrease tensions in the Middle East. I don't think the American public or even the global community wants
to see increasing tensions and they'd like to get a resolution of what's happening in Yemen, but also the tension between the Saudis and Iranians.
So I would try to -- negotiation is never a bad thing. And being a senior member on the Foreign Affairs Committee, diplomacy, certainly, is something
that we'd prefer. That doesn't mean no preconditions but invite the Iranians potentially to the table. I would do it in the multi-lateral way
with our allies and I would wake sure you have congressional support as well.
GORANI: All right. And that's something that was done to achieve the Iran deal. Of course, the United States walked away from the Iran deal.
Did you -- were you able to see that news conference from the Saudi Arabian minister of defense spokesperson showing journalists evidence that Iran was
behind this attack?
BERA: I was not able to catch that news conference. We've heard reports that Saudis certainly think that Iranians were behind this or at least
supply the Houthi rebels with equipment. With that said, we've got to figure out how to --
GORANI: Congressman, I can tell you what they -- what essentially the spokesperson said. He showed remnants of missiles used in the attack and
drones as well, saying that there are circuit boards that were pretty much intact that could allow them to trace this back to Iran, but did not
provide, as far as I can tell, evidence that the attack originated from Iran.
Is it your understanding and your belief that the attack came from inside Iran?
BERA: You know, that isn't my belief. And again, I don't think we've seen that type of evidence.
And again, I would try to look for a path towards de-escalating this. But I'd, again, urge President Trump to work with our European allies and
others, as much as we did around the Iran nuclear deal.
GORANI: Let me ask you since you're from California, about the administration revoking your state's ability to set its own vehicle
emission standards. And California has much stricter emission standards than the rest of the country, at least than what's required by federal law.
And so essentially, this became -- California became the de facto emission standard of the country, because automakers don't sell different cars to
different states. How do you react to this development today?
BERA: Look, I think this is another effort by President Trump to take on California. He clearly doesn't like us a bit. I love being a Californian.
We've led the way in climate policy and environmental policy. And we've had this waiver for years. Even the automakers are willing to work with
us.
So I think this is a step back. I expect our attorney general, Xavier Becerra, to sue the Trump administration in court. And again, this has
been a policy that's in place. It's the right policy and it's moving California, and hopefully, the country in the world in the right direction.
GORANI: Let me ask you one -- quick last question on the democratic candidates running for president. Who do you support and why?
BERA: You know, I haven't endorsed anyone. I think we've got a wide variety of candidates running. Obviously, as someone who thinks about
foreign policy quite a bit. You've got a very experienced person in vice president, Joe Biden, who I think could hit the ground running on day one.
But again, I haven't endorsed anyone and I'm glad that we've got these talented folks running.
Congressman Ami Bera, thanks very much for joining us. Appreciate it.
BERA: (INAUDIBLE)
GORANI: A note here on what's happening in -- thank you again. A note on what's happening in Saudi Arabia, as we've been reporting. The U.S.
secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, is there on the visit. He has met with the Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman. There you see images of their
meeting.
He has then scheduled to travel on to the United Arab Emirates. There you see the two men. They've met in the past. They have a friendly
relationship. They are in Jeddah there. And we will tell you more about what was said at that meeting when we get it.
Let's turn our attention now to the latest on Brexit. And Britain's high court is in the second day of arguments about whether Boris Johnson's
government acted unlawfully or lawfully when it decided to suspend Parliament for five weeks.
The government's lawyer says the suspension is not a matter for the courts, that it is the business of parliament. The Scottish high court disagreed,
and said Boris Johnson, in fact, misled the queen when he asked her to suspend Parliament. Scotland's lawyer wants the prime minister to come and
testify.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[14:40:07]
AIDAN O'NEILL, SCOTTISH BARRISTER: He's the one who makes the decisions. He's the one who' accountable. He's the one who needs to make a witness
statement and expose himself to the requirements of speaking under oath the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but.
A lot of Parliament being shut down by the father of lies, rather than allowing lies to triumph. Listen to the angels of your better nature and
law says this promulgation is unlawful.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Matthew Chance has been watching the arguments at the Supreme Court today, and he joins me now. What's the latest today?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean, the latest is that the government and those opposed to it have been banging away at
their -- at their positions, which from the government's point of view is that look, their ability to suspend or provoke parliament is something
that's something political or something as bad as political judgment on whether they do that or not and for why, what reason they do that, about
how long they do that.
It's not something that should be decided in the courts. They also say that look, you know, if the parliament is not happy with the way the
executives behaves, the prime minister behaves, they have other constitutional leavers to act. They could have brought the government
down. They didn't do that.
And that, sort of, that view has been supported already by the highest court in England, the high courts. And you'd think that would be the end
of the matter. But, of course, as you mentioned, north of the border in Scotland, Scotland's highest court, the Court of Session, which is called,
took the exact opposite point of view.
And actually, it is a matter for the courts and what matters of the matter of law, but Boris Johnson broke the law because he suspended Parliament in
order to prevent the body from -- the Parliament from scrutinizing his Brexit strategy.
So it's the very delicate, difficult job of the Supreme Court now, which is the Supreme Court for the whole United Kingdom, to decide which view should
prevail.
GORANI: And whatever the ruling, whatever ruling comes out of the Supreme Court, will that be it? Will we be done with all these legal challenges?
CHANCE: Yes, on this issue, definitely.
I mean, the Supreme Court is the final call of result.
GORANI: That's it. It's like in the United States, it's the final say. And when do we expect a ruling?
CHANCE: Right. We expect a ruling as early as tomorrow, but it could go on until the end of the week. I just want to say, if the reading does go
against the government, not justice going to be embarrassing for Boris Johnson, because Parliament have to be recalled and then they'll go about
their business making lives difficult was again for him.
But it could have profound constitutional implications for Britain. And will give the courts a much greater say in the future in, you know, in sort
of checking the authority of government.
GORANI: Right. And this is something that whoever is in 10 Downing Street might -- whatever party is in 10 Downing Street might come also to regret,
because it might go your way when you're in the opposition and against you when you're in power.
So as you said, you mention if the ruling goes against Boris Johnson, will he be obliged to recall Parliament?
CHANCE: Absolutely. And I think that point was made clearly today by the lawyers representing him in the court. He has no choice but to recall
Parliament. It's going to be a very uncomfortable thing for him to do, of course. Because it'll be the sixth or seventh times, one of his act as
prime minister. He hasn't been a prime minister for that long.
GORANI: Yes.
CHANCE: He's been sort of rejected outright. He's the first prime minister who have lost his first six votes in Parliament. This is another
setback for him.
GORANI: It would be beating his own -- the record he's set himself.
CHANCE: It would be. And, you know, those parliamentarians are bound to, sort of, make his life as miserable as possible by trying to pass new laws
to limit his room for maneuver.
GORANI: Matthew Chance, thanks so much for that.
Still to come tonight. The Taliban attacks again. We'll look at the surge of violence ahead of the presidential elections in Afghanistan. We'll be
right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:45:16]
GORANI: While the attack on Saudi oil facility has captured the world's attention, it's been another week of bloodshed in Afghanistan.
Taliban attacks are spiking ahead of next week's presidential election.
As Lynda Kinkade reports, there is no end in sight seemingly to the violence.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR (voice-over): The Taliban says it's responsible, yet again, for two suicide attacks Tuesday, which killed
dozens of people in Afghanistan.
There's no let-up from the militant group in what has been a bloody string of bombings, one of which prompted U.S. president, Donald Trump, to cancel
secret peace talks with the Taliban leaders a week and a half ago, after a U.S. serviceman was among the victims.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When they did what they did in order to create what they thought was a better negotiating stance, I
said, that's the end of them, get them out.
KINKADE: In the latest carnage, a blast ripped through an election rally for Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, the Taliban is bound to disrupt the
upcoming vote set for September 28.
Ghani was unhurt in that attack, but more than two dozen people were killed, many more injured.
MOHAMMAD MAHFOOZ WALIZADA, PARWAN PROVINCE POLICE CHIEF (through translator): When the people were entering the police camp, an old man
riding a motorcycle arrived on the highway and detonated his explosives, causing casualties.
KINKADE: The second explosion was in the country's capital, Kabul, near the U.S. embassy. Witnesses say it was a gruesome scene.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It was around 1:00 when suddenly a blast occurred at the entrance of the army recruit center. I saw people
and human flesh in the air.
KINKADE: The Afghan government condemned the attacks blaming the Taliban for failed peace talks. The Taliban says it's open to continue dialogue
with the U.S. all the while continuing its campaign of bloodshed.
Next month, marks 18 years since the U.S. war in Afghanistan war began.
Lynda Kinkade, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Let's talk more about the ongoing violence in Afghanistan. CNN's chief international correspondent, Clarissa Ward joins me from New York.
Why the spike in violence now?
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think, Hala, sadly, this is not surprising because this is the fallout from the collapse
of the peace talks that were going on between the U.S. and the Taliban which while it's clear, they were very flawed in many ways and had a lot of
detractors and critics.
There was, at least, a sense of optimism that the U.S. and the Taliban were coming close to agree upon a framework for withdrawal which would then
paved the way for a direct dialogue between the Afghan government and the Taliban.
With President Trump rescinding his invitation to the Taliban to Camp David and also ordering essentially the cancellation of those talks, it really
now hangs in the balance what happens with those peace efforts, what happens with the more than a year of nine rounds of talks and efforts been
going on behind the scenes.
Nobody yet knows if they will continue. It seems like the door would still be open for them to continue. But until there is some kind of an official
announcement, I think it is only logical that we will continue to see the Taliban strike out in more aggressive, more egregious, and more bloody ways
to give them more leverage at the negotiating table.
It's a deeply cynical tactic. But it's one that we've seen the Taliban implement many times before. And elections, in particular, are a favored
target for the group, Hala.
GORANI: What would it take to get these talks back on track, to get the Taliban back to the table at this stage?
WARD: It's tough. Because really, it would require a major climb down from one side or the other. It's hard to see how the U.S. could do that,
particularly given how President Trump was criticized for even contemplating, inviting the Taliban to Camp David the same week as the 9/11
anniversary.
[14:50:16]
Then if you're looking at what it would take from the Taliban side, I think, very clearly, people would expect to see some guarantee of
respecting a nationwide ceasefire, at least while talks were going on, and some guarantee of good faith going into an intra-Afghan dialogue. This has
always been the stumbling point.
In a sense, Hala, is that the Afghan government, which the U.S. is extensively supporting, has been completely shut out of these talks. And
has not really been given any agency. And quite frankly, they have very little to gain from these talks without more guarantees being put in place
to guarantee their security.
So, again, once you start talking about those guarantees, then you're talking about the Taliban turning away and saying, no, we can't engage in
this.
So it's going to require compromise and a climb down from all sides, as most peace talks traditionally do. But it's not clear yet as to who will
be willing to make the first move and when.
GORANI: And one quick last word on the new national security advisor. So John Bolton, obviously -- we're all familiar with him over the years, a
hawk, someone highly controversial, who could be very prickly, and certainly had a personality that could be difficult to those who work with
him.
Robert O'Brien very different, at least, in style but not necessarily in substance. Someone who embraces a lot of those hawkish views that John
Bolton supported.
WARD: And I think what will be interesting is to see what he does with the role. Because up until now, obviously, in his role as a hostage negotiator
or liaison for hostage negotiations, it's a very different kind of role than what we had seen Bolton doing in the past.
And it's a very difficult role as well as the very fact that he is now the fourth national security advisor in the Trump administration. How is he
going to shape his legacy, into what extent is he going to allow his own instincts, hawkish or not, to dictate his views or is he going to take a
more, sort of, conciliatory posture whereby he will largely do what he thinks president wants him to do.
Others in the administration who have more staying power such as the vice president, Mike Pence or Secretary Of State Pompeo, they have -- you know,
in the eyes of many, their success has been in that they are willing to sort of do and say whatever the president does or says. They very rarely
will publicly disagree and even privately challenge him.
And so it'll be interesting to see whether O'Brien goes into this with the attitude of, right, let's get some things done and this is the vision and
what's our strategy, and what's our coherent policy on this or whether it will be more kind of responsive just, OK, the president wants this or so do
this and let's say this. It's unclear as to what exactly he will be able to do with this role, Hala.
GORANI: Well, I'm not sure, privately, but publicly, at least, so far, he's been very complimentary of the president. So I'm not sure if that had
anything to do with Donald Trump's decision to pick him among all the available candidates.
Clarissa, thanks very much. Clarissa Ward, our chief international correspondent in New York.
More to come, including robots, sensors, and the next big things in tech. We get an exclusive look at the gadgets inside Samsung's secretive ideas
lab. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:55:18]
GORANI: With the global smartphone sales declining, electronic companies are searching for the next big thing. For Samsung, it's all about sensors
and wearable tech. It's all coming from their secretive research and development labs in South Korea.
And our Kristie Lu Stout got an exclusive tour.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): Samsung Electronics has one of the most secured R&D labs in the world. Security is
tight, and everyone and everything is scanned to make sure that all intellectual property remains on site.
But we managed to get in and to get rare access to go inside and see a wide variety of yet to be released innovations including a robot that you can
wear.
LU STOUT (voice-over): In 2010, the company released its first medical device in a calculated bid to turn health care into a new growth engine.
Recently, Samsung is focused on sensors and wearables. These robot guys developed a product they called, the Gait Enhancing Motivation System, or
GEMS.
LU STOUT (on-camera): It doesn't feel heavy. Oh, my goodness. I'm sorry. This sounds weird, but there's a tingling sensation.
Those are sensors located on my hips. They measure the angles created by the distance each of my legs moves in a typical walk. And then, motors
lift my legs based on that personalized Gait, giving my muscles a big boost.
Oh, goodness, it just kicks up my feet.
Of course, Samsung's biggest competitors -- I'm talking companies like Apple, Huawei, Google, Amazon, all have secretive labs as well. But
Samsung has a reputation for throwing things against the wall to see if they stick often at a faster rate than its rivals.
Now, that strategy is great when it works, but it can lead to the occasional flop. But for a company built on what they call a crisis
culture that constant cycle of inventing, failing, and iterating is baked into its DNA.
And according to analysts, it's what's keeping them on that leading edge of technology.
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Thanks for watching tonight. I'm Hala Gorani. Do stay with CNN. A lot more on the Fed rate cut coming up after a break on "QUEST MEANS
BUSINESS."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
