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Two Officials to Testify in First Public Impeachment Hearings; The Trump Presidency; Israel-Gaza Violence; Australia's Catastrophic Fires; Hong Kong Police Struggle to Keep Peace; Bolivia's Uncertain Future; President Jimmy Carter Recovering from Surgery; Syria's White Helmets. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired November 12, 2019 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live on CNN, this is CONNECT THE WORLD.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Hello and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Paula Newton.
Now by this time tomorrow, we'll be hearing testimony that could change the course of the Trump presidency. Two key officials, one of them the top
U.S. diplomat to Ukraine will answer questions for the first time during the public hearing, the public portion of this impeachment inquiry.
Now ahead of the hearing, officials from both parties are plotting out their strategy And the legal saga involving White House chief of staff
Mick Mulvaney took another turn when his attorneys announced he's dropping a plan to sue over the House subpoena he received.
Instead, his attorneys say he will obey a White House order not to testify. We want to get to the latest developments with Suzanne Malveaux and Steven
Collinson.
First to Suzanne, I mean, here we go again. We had heard he was going to change how he was going to dispute this in court and not join another
lawsuit that was ongoing. He was going to have his own. And now this.
Is there any sense of the legal grounding he has here?
I have to ask you, do the chair of these committees even care?
They have said they have enough information. They don't need Mick Mulvaney.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN U.S. CORRESPONDENT: We have heard from Adam Schiff. He's put out a memo about the details of tomorrow and how things are going
to go. They're going to call additional witnesses next week.
But they don't need him, they do have what they feel is an ironclad case against the president when it comes to abuse of power, that there are
multiple witnesses that have come forward and corroborated the original whistleblower's story.
We have also heard from Republicans today as well, they're trying to get on top of things, their own talking point, putting out an 18-page memo on how
they're defending the president tomorrow.
The highlights being four points, that the July 25th phone call shows no evidence of pressure, they'll argue. That the Presidents Trump and
Zelensky have said there was no pressure on the call. The Ukrainian government was not aware the aid was on hold. The aid ultimately was
provided to Ukraine.
The big question is whether or not the American people and the rest of the world will buy this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): The impeachment countdown ticking closer to public hearings tomorrow. First, the public will hear from top diplomat to
Ukraine, Bill Taylor and deputy assistant Secretary of State, George Kent, Wednesday. The former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch,
testifies Friday. Their testimony is expected to detail explosive claims alleging President Trump pressured Ukraine to launch investigations for his
political benefit.
So how will this week's hearings work? House intelligence chair Adam Schiff and Republican ranking member Devin Nunes will lead the sessions.
They'll have 45 minutes each to question witnesses with staff lawyers likely playing a big role. All other committee members will get five
minutes each to do the same.
REP. JACKIE SPEIER (D-CA): Our strategy is to focus on the facts.
MALVEAUX: Meanwhile, House investigators releasing three more transcripts from their closed-door depositions. Including former Ukraine aide
Catharine Croft revealing the summer hold on assistance wasn't the first time the Trump administration delayed military aid for Ukraine. Croft
telling lawmakers that in 2017, then-budget director Mick Mulvaney held up plans to send missiles to Ukraine saying he was concerned that Russia would
react negatively, despite claiming all of the policy agencies were in support of providing the equipment.
REP. MIKE QUIGLEY (D-IL): What's Mick Mulvaney doing making that decision when he's the head of OMB? It's extraordinarily unusual.
MALVEAUX: Croft also testifying Mulvaney was involved in Ukraine policy making this year.
[11:05:00]
MALVEAUX: Working alongside Trump megadonor turned U.S. ambassador
to the European Union, Gordon Sondland. The claim corroborating former top Russian adviser Fiona Hill's testimony.
And, according to Croft and Laura Cooper's testimonies, Ukraine was aware about the hold on security assistance earlier than previously believed.
Cooper, the only Pentagon official to testify in the inquiry so far, recalling a conversation with then U.S. envoy to Ukraine, Kurt Volker, in
August. Saying, he gave a very strong inference that there was some knowledge on the part of the Ukrainians.
In that same meeting, Cooper says Volker explained, an effort that he was engaged in to see if there was a statement that the government of Ukraine
would make that would somehow disavow any interference in U.S. elections. Adding, the path that he was pursuing to lift the hold would be to get them
to make this statement.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Trump has been teasing via Twitter he would be releasing the transcript from another phone call he had with the Ukrainian president,
that that would happen sometime today or perhaps later in the week.
But the Democrats are dismissing that, saying it really isn't all that relevant or significant, the context of that because it's going to be the
July 25th phone call, the fallout from that open hearings that is going to really impact what the American people believe the story is.
NEWTON: A lot at stake. How are people preparing?
MALVEAUX: You've got Democrats who are going to be huddling throughout the day, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will be meeting with her leadership caucus
later in the day. They want to make sure they get everything on the same page.
We've heard from Adam Schiff and his memo, detailing the process and also the memo he sent to all of those in the impeachment inquiry, saying it was
going to be a professional exercise, a warning to any of the Republicans who would potentially try to unmask the whistleblower during this public
hearing.
So that warning has already been issued. The Republicans huddling as well, Paula. They are putting out these talking points, making sure they're on
the same page. We've gotten a tick-tock of tomorrow's events as well. Everything will be starting hopefully on time, 10:00 the gavel will go down
as it goes to session and Schiff saying that those witnesses could go until 4:30 in the afternoon.
NEWTON: What a day. Everybody better stock up on food --
(CROSSTALK)
MALVEAUX: Hold on.
NEWTON: Thanks so much. Appreciate that. We want to go to Steven Collinson who will also have to buckle up as we get ready for the hearings.
When we talk about the strategy on either side, they're playing to their own constituencies. It's not the base of the Republican Party or the
Democratic Party.
In terms of these hearings now going into this new phase, what's at stake here?
What do both the Democrats and the Republicans have to do?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: In the most broad sense, of course, the presidency itself is at stake. The Democrats are trying to
shift public opinion against the president through these hearings with what they believe will be very compelling witnesses, giving testimony to
presidential misbehavior that will change the political aspects of this and make it more difficult for Republicans in a subsequent Senate impeachment
trial to acquit the president.
Of course, this is a political process, it's not a legal case. But there are some pretty clear legal arguments emerging. I would say the Republican
defense that was laid out by Suzanne is the most coherent defense of the president that we've had so far.
The White House and Republicans have been scattershot, mixing conspiracy theories so far with blatant untruths. They're concentrating on the
substance totally of that call between the president and President Zelensky of Ukraine in July and they're saying that there is no evidence of
pressure.
I think all of the four planks of the strategy that Suzanne laid out are open to great debate but at least they're the basis of a defense for
Republicans that we haven't seen so far.
NEWTON: Another basis for that defense has been the line, of course, maybe he did something that was wrong but it's not impeachable. The former
ambassador to the United Nations is making headlines. One of the things she said was you cannot impeach the president over this.
The other thing she did and continues to do is obviously defend him wholeheartedly. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUESTION: Any question about his truthfulness, his ability to tell the truth?
NIKKI HALEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: I talked to him multiple times. When I had issues, he always heard me out. I never had any concern on
whether he could handle the job, ever.
QUESTION: What about his truthfulness, did you think he was a truthful person?
[11:10:00]
HALEY: He was truthful, he listened and he was great to work with.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: You know, some people say, obviously, this has to do with her having a book out and her political ambitions. But the timing, curiously,
comes at a good time for President Trump and the Republicans, who are backing him on the Hill.
COLLINSON: I was remarking about that. The timing of getting a book out, which is a month-long process for it to come out, just the day before this
public testimony and thrust Nikki Haley back into the political spotlight is amazing.
In a way, it's a coincidence but she's obviously using it for her own political purposes. There are many people who believe that Nikki Haley has
ambitions in the 2024 race. We're already talking about that.
There's absolutely nothing to lose for her to be seen by President Trump's voters who are expected to be a powerful force in the Republican Party, as
standing up for the president.
The problem with her suggested defense that what the president did is perhaps not appropriate but is not impeachable, is that this is a defense
that the president himself has repeatedly ruled out.
He'll allow no talk that anything he did with Ukraine was not perfect, as he said, when he refers to that call with Zelensky. That defense would get
a lot of more moderate Republicans off the hook in the Senate in terms of a Senate trial if they can say, I don't agree with what the president did but
it's not right to overturn the election.
This doesn't raise to the standard of high crimes and misdemeanor. But the president isn't allowing that defense.
That defense was also the one that was adopted by Democrats 20 years ago, when they were angry about what President Clinton did, lying under oath
about a relationship with Monica Lewinsky. They said that offense didn't raise to the level of impeachment.
NEWTON: It's all interesting in terms of the fallacies and logic. If you look at what Nikki Haley was saying, just because Ukraine got the aid
doesn't mean the president didn't do something wrong. We'll leave it there. But, oh, my goodness are we going to hear more about this. Thanks
so much.
The House impeachment hearings begin tomorrow on Wednesday, they start at 10:00 am here in New York, 3:00 pm London time. Tune in for CNN's
extensive live coverage. We'll have all the angles covered and we'll bring you through the testimony.
Violence has erupted along the Israel-Gaza border following the assassination of a senior commander of Islamic Jihad. His funeral was held
in Gaza City earlier today. Israeli defense forces killed him and his wife in a targeted airstrike overnight. Officials say he was plotting imminent
attacks against Israel.
While speaking in Tel Aviv, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared his country will do whatever it takes to defend itself. But the leader of
Islamic Jihad said Netanyahu will pay a high price.
CNN's Oren Liebermann is live for us in Ashkelon.
You saw, as you do, a rocket land just behind you when you were live on the air a little while ago.
At this point in time, is it quiet now?
Do you feel we're on the cusp of a deescalation, mainly because Hamas has not joined in here?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Has not joined yet and that will be one of the key factors. The fighting has been, as we've seen on the
border, between Israel and Islamic Jihad. The member killed in this targeted assassination was Bahaa Abu al-Atta, who Israel said was planning
attacks and responsible for the rocket fire we've seen.
They felt it was in their interest and they felt it was necessary and justified to conduct a targeted killing. And that leads us to where we are
today. Now it's quiet, there are people walking on the boardwalk next to us.
Does that mean this is over?
No, certainly not. And as the evening continues we'll see how this develops. Crucially, as you point out, this has remained between Israel
and Islamic Jihad. It's only Islamic Jihad that has fired rockets. Israel says it's only fired strikes at Islamic Jihad targets.
If it remains that way, there's an offramp to deescalation for both sides. If Hamas decides for other reasons it needs to make a statement and fire
some rockets, it would quickly go to an escalation. It's not difficult to see this spiraling out of control as fighting would continue over the next
few days.
NEWTON: As you're talking, we saw one of the rockets from Gaza hit one of those toll roads there in Israel, which is another reason why it was empty.
[11:15:00]
NEWTON: Yet this is having a profound impact in both Gaza and parts of Israel. Schools are closed, businesses shut down. It obviously is a
terrifying thing, no matter how many times you've seen it before.
This time seems a bit different. It has to do with the politics going on within Israel itself. I know there have been a lot of denials; walk us
through that in terms of how this could impact internal politics in Israel right now.
LIEBERMANN: Whether or not there were political considerations behind the strike and crucially the timing of the strike, we'll let the politicians
argue about that. But it's clear there were political consequences and political effects here. Most of those appear to favor Benjamin Netanyahu.
His rival, Benny Gantz, who is now trying to form a government, now trying to lead the country and as long as there's a security situation going on
here, a major security situation like this, he loses time, the precious week and a half left or so he has to try to form a government as he's
decided he's going to stand behind Netanyahu to put out a front of unity.
It favors Netanyahu. Meanwhile, it makes it almost impossible for Gantz to form a minority government without Netanyahu. So politically it becomes
difficult for Gantz to support that idea. It also puts pressure on the kingmaker in Israeli politics, Avigdor Lieberman.
All of that favors Netanyahu and let's not forget there's a looming potential indictment against Netanyahu. He could say, are you seriously
doing this now, there's a security situation going on.
If the end result is a unity government -- and Gantz is calling for unity - - regardless how it ends, it would be Netanyahu who is the winner from the outcome of this.
NEWTON: You set aside the motivations but the consequences do become clear at this point. I have to ask you about the politics in Gaza itself. Hamas
is not shedding a tear that this Islamic Jihad leader is out of the way.
How potent do you think that argument is?
LIEBERMANN: It's crucial to understand what's happening here. Israeli officials believe they can reach a cease-fire understanding with Hamas, a
long-term understanding. But it's the Islamic Jihad that's opposed to that. Israel blames some of that opposition, some of the rocket fire in
opposition to a long-term cease-fire.
Having Bahaa Abu al-Atta out of the way may make it easier for Hamas to essentially reach those understandings and make it easier to reach a cease-
fire here. There could be benefit and analysts here have said this. There could be benefit to him being out of the way for Hamas.
It's not that simple. Hamas will face internal pressure to stand at the resistance to Israel. They'll come under pressure from their own brigades.
The question is, which one of those forces win out. And I think we might have the answer for that by tomorrow morning as we see what happens.
NEWTON: A reminder that the long suffering population of Gaza in the middle of all of this right now. Thanks so much. Appreciate it.
Still to come on CONNECT THE WORLD, firefighters in Australia drive straight into danger zones across New South Wales to save homes and lives
with weather conditions working against them.
Plus police in Hong Kong struggle to contain the chaos. We'll tell you how a university has become a flashpoint in protests.
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NEWTON: Firefighters in eastern Australia are staring at such a long battle ahead. They're struggling to contain more than 100 bush fires.
Over the past day, crews have been facing what officials call catastrophic fire danger.
Dry, windy conditions and high temperatures are fueling fires that are already burning right out of control. I mean, take a look at this
harrowing scene. The video was taken by firefighters as they drove through a New South Wales neighborhood. You can see it there, the fire is burning
all around them.
Now scenes like that has become all too common. One resident put it this way, it's like Armageddon. Now this report from CNN affiliate 7 Network.
Brian Seymour has more for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYAN SEYMOUR, SEVEN NEWS REPORTER (voice-over): Trapped in the middle of a fire storm. Surrounded by flames, Anthony Thornhill takes refuge in a
tiny paddock at his home in Koorainghat just south of Taree. As the fire races towards him, he desperately tries to calm his horses, 11 in total
safe by his side. The challenge, keeping them from bolting back into the bush and into the path of the inferno.
ANTHONY THORNHILL, KOORAINGHAT RESIDENT: Stay with me. Stay here.
SEYMOUR: Engulfed by the flames, Anthony started filming. A record of their final moments in case they didn't make it.
THORNHILL: That's why I sort of grabbed the camera out and videoed a little bit. So this is the last bit. So I'm like, so that's it. Sorry
about that, sweetheart.
THORNHILL: Lynn and Peter Iversen returned to their place in Rainbow Flat this morning. This is all that's left.
LYNN IVERSEN, RESIDENT: Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness.
THORNHILL: Their neighbors fought to save their house but couldn't.
PETER IVERSEN, RESIDENT: It's only things. It's only things. We've got family and we've got our lives.
LYNN IVERSEN: And we're lucky we've got each other. Some people don't even have anything, so we're blessed.
SEYMOUR: Further north in Wytaliba a town broken by the death of two of their own, one, George Noll, remembered today.
STORM SPARKS, WYTALIBA RESIDENT: He was a very interesting character. That's for sure. Lots of loud classical music and afternoon coffees.
SEYMOUR: Those who have lost everything are seeking refuge in evacuation centers. Holding tight now to the things that matter most. Their homes
badly damaged, Peter Thornhill and his partner Julianne are there now, too. Like so many preparing for tomorrow.
SEYMOUR (on camera): Today the owners of at least 150 homes are working out where to go. What's next? Grateful for the community support they are
receiving, but many, almost all angry that more hazard reduction burns weren't done ahead of this fire season.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was no maintenance because of legislation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Things need to change, obviously, mate.
SEYMOUR (voice-over): Today he's the eye of this fire storm. Without a change in the weather, it could yet become far worse.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: That was Brian Seymour from our affiliate Seven Network.
Now the Chinese University of Hong Kong is becoming a flashpoint as police struggle to keep the peace in that city. Earlier we were seeing clashes
between police and protesters at that university. Police have now withdrawn. Protesters, had demanded they leave campus by 9:00 pm local
time or else they'd escalate.
The head of the university was sent to try and negotiate something here. Police are struggling to contain chaos elsewhere in the city by 8:00 am
local time Tuesday. Police had already fired tear gas.
[11:25:00]
NEWTON: Ivan Watson filed this report just a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Look at the police retreating. We're in central in downtown Hong Kong. The heart of the
financial district of luxury shopping.
Demonstrators had occupied this square. Police ran them out with several rounds of tear gas and then detained dozens. And now a force is leaving
and they're being pursued by residents.
Come take a look at the defensive posture they're taking right now. This is not a police force that feels secure and confident in its own city. It
gets to the heart of the problem here. The administration is relying on this police force; a substantial portion of the population does not agree
with the policies.
And you get scenes like this, police hiding their identity, their faces covered, with the crowd hurling abuse and curses at them. And there is no
end in sight to these sharp political divisions and this crisis that has plunged Hong Kong into economic recession. The worst crisis the city has
seen in a generation -- Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Our thanks to Ivan there. As you can see things are dangerous on the streets of Hong Kong.
Coming up, Russia is watching the impeachment inquiry with interest. Many ordinary Russians are backing President Trump. More from Moscow, next.
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NEWTON: Welcome back to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Paula Newton live for you in New York.
We're one day away from what could be the most consequential day so far in Donald Trump's presidency. Two top ranking State Department officials are
set to testify in the first public hearings in the impeachment inquiry of the president.
George Kent, on the left there you see him, is a career diplomat in the U.S. State Department and Bill Taylor, on the right, is the top U.S.
diplomat to Ukraine. Both parties are plotting out their strategies ahead of tomorrow's hearing.
The president was back on Twitter, not surprising, repeating his unsubstantiated claim of bias against him. Asha Rangappa joins me now
live.
Not surprising, of course, he's on Twitter in terms of the way this all sets up. But just the fact he knows that this is coming, less than a day
away now, clearly a lot at stake for him and Republicans and Democrats.
ASHA RANGAPPA, CNN LEGAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Despite President Trump's claims of bias, these are all people from his own team, Paula.
This is his foreign policy team. In the case of, for example, ambassador Gordon Sondland, that is his own appointee, a donor to his campaign.
What to keep an eye out for is basically some common themes that are going to be corroborated over and over again. One is the aid to Ukraine was
being withheld. The second is that many of these career foreign policy people found this incredibly troubling and against the interests of U.S.
national security.
And lastly, this was all being conditioned on Ukraine promising to do a couple of things: investigate the Bidens -- this is the former vice
president and his son -- and also to get to the bottom of the 2016 election meddling, both of which have potential personal benefits to Trump.
NEWTON: I want to get to the issue of Hunter Biden. Of course, his father, Joe Biden, the second. First to the issue of whether or not Donald
Trump actually asked for this in exchange, it's been interesting to hear the arguments of someone like Nikki Haley, right?
The former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. saying, look, Ukraine got the aid.
Legally, you tell me, as the lawyer of the two of us, isn't it still a crime if you try and basically deny funds that were approved by Congress?
Just the fact you weren't successful, isn't just trying that -- wouldn't that be illegal?
RANGAPPA: That's right, Paula. It's a basic component of criminal law, you don't have to succeed in the crime for it to be criminal. In the
criminal law aspect, this is about the state of mind.
Was the person acting with a corrupt intent to get something of benefit in exchange for an official act?
And as an impeachable offense, it doesn't have to meet all the criminal elements. The question is whether he was using the power of his office for
self-gain. That's called abuse of power and it's an impeachable defense.
NEWTON: The issue here was he trying to game the system, game the campaign to make sure he could take a good shot at former Vice President Joe Biden
as he was running for the 2020 campaign. I want you to listen to Joe Biden and his reaction in our town hall last night as to whether or not his son,
Hunter, should testify. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: What's your response to the Republicans who say Hunter should speak to the country?
JOE BIDEN, FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT AND PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Zero rationale for that to happen. This is a diversion. It's classic Trump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Even if that's all true at this point, what are the Republicans getting at with asking for this?
Of course, it leads to the same question they're accusing other people, if you don't appear, what do you have to hide?
RANGAPPA: I think the Republican strategy here is to basically refocus the attention to this alleged wrongdoing by the Bidens, which takes away
attention from Trump.
As a former vice president said, there's no evidence of that wrongdoing. But what they want to do is litigate the issue and create a sense that the
president may have had some reasonable justification for wanting these investigations to happen; which, again, you know, there are so many
problematic aspects to that: the fact it was being done secretly.
[11:35:00]
RANGAPPA: We don't generally ask foreign countries to investigate our own citizens. It's not a component of foreign policy. But I think what
Republicans hope to do is muddy the waters and make this -- the transaction seems less problematic than it actually is.
NEWTON: I want to talk about the structure of these hearings. They've changed the form and structure and they're making sure that lawyers can
present the case.
How important is that?
In what we've already seen at times on Capitol Hill, since the president came to power, everything seems to get lost in terms of the meaning of
something, the import of something and nothing seems to stick.
RANGAPPA: I think that's a great point. So, you know, normally we've seen hearings, where these five-minute rounds conducted by the members of
Congress, often theatrical, the questions are not well-formulated. They're not necessarily lawyers.
By contrast, these impeachment hearings are going to be conducted in 45- minute rounds of uninterrupted questions by experienced litigators. It's not going to be about theatrics. It's going to be about eliciting
information.
I think it will be powerful. You have former prosecutors and former defense lawyers who will be doing the questions. It's going to have a much
different impact than the hearings we've seen before.
NEWTON: They do it again and again and we'll see if it plays out any differently. This is backing up the transcripts that we already have.
Asha, really appreciate it as we continue to do the countdown to the impeachment hearings.
We want to move on now to Bolivia. Its longtime president will soon arrive in Mexico after being granted political asylum there. He resigned on
Friday after weeks of protests over disputed election results.
What's unknown is who is in charge of Bolivia. There's been a heavy police presence on the streets, the opposition leader expressed hope of forming a
transitional government very soon. We want to try to figure our way out of this. It's been a confusing 48 hours in Bolivia. I'm joined by Peter
Hakim, senior fellow at the Inter-American Dialogue think tank.
I have to ask you in terms of what's at stake, they can't find someone to lead the country.
What's the risk when you do start to see that police presence on the ground and the fact that many people are saying, why was it the military in
Bolivia that had to tap him on the shoulder to say it's time you go?
PETER HAKIM, INTER-AMERICAN DIALOGUE: Well, Bolivia is a country that has not developed strong institutions to say the least. The country is evenly
divided. Morales has 45 percent or 50 percent; it's a large share of the population. There is a clear willingness on both sides to use violence to
pursue their positions.
And my sense is that this is going to be a very, very difficult period.
Can the military -- does the military have the power, does it have the will, does it have the resolve to really impose some kind of peaceful
solution?
Will it be accepted by both sides?
There's no easy constitutional road to a solution because the Morales political party has the majority in congress still. So in some ways, it's
hard to see any way out other than sort of the military taking some charge of the process.
NEWTON: Yes, and not good news, of course, for protesters there on the ground. I have to say your analysis is spot-on. We were just learning
that Morales' allies have boycotted any transitional government.
As you're saying, we're starting to see this come to a head and a lot of the disagreements that were going on, even when Morales was still
president, continue to linger.
We have to say, he came to power a little bit under 14 years ago with so much hope; indigenous president, the country two-thirds, in fact,
indigenous. He did do a lot for his people there on the ground. A lot of people do say objectively that's his legacy.
And what does it tell us about what that legacy is, not just in Bolivia but throughout Latin America?
HAKIM: Well, let's say, first of all, not only did he leave a legacy but he maintains a large proportion of the population who are still supporting
him and are, let's say, are willing to go to the streets with violence to support him.
[11:40:00]
HAKIM: That's what makes the situation so difficult, so dangerous, is the fact that you have a division in the country that's very much along 50-50
lines. The sides are polarized. They're polarized regionally. They're polarized ideologically.
I don't think it has many ramifications outside of Bolivia, frankly. I don't think it has any lessons. I don't think it's -- but it's Bolivia
itself that's in grave danger here.
NEWTON: Understood. We have seen a lot of movements in Latin America to be sure. I will bring up Venezuela; the opposition is trying to move on
this momentum. Understood, it's completely different.
What is it in South America and Latin America right now?
We've seen protests in the streets from Ecuador, Chile and Venezuela. We've had a change in government in Argentina.
If you're a protester, you're saying, why changes in Bolivia and why not here?
(LAUGHTER)
HAKIM: That's a very good question and particularly when Chile, which had been something of a model for Latin America in terms of economic success,
the building of political institutions, has deteriorated into violence.
It could happen anywhere in the region. It's hard to identify a single cause. It's hard to identify a general trend.
In the case of Bolivia, I think what triggered this was a -- the intellectual -- the electoral manipulation, the electoral fraud that was
carried out by the sitting government. And it just sort of touched the anger and frustration of the Bolivians.
In other countries, the economy has played more of a role. In some countries, it's the seeming distance between the political leadership and
ordinary people in the country.
I think it's just very, very hard to identify a broad, underlying cause in Latin America. I think there are many different causes. Every time one
tries to find a single cause, one loses the essence of each individual situation.
NEWTON: Understood. And I do take your point that, unfortunately, with this squabbling in Bolivia, it might have to be the police or military
that, at some point, step in. We'll continue to obviously follow that story as it unfolds. I want to thank you for your insights here,
appreciate it.
HAKIM: Thank you.
NEWTON: Now former U.S. president Jimmy Carter is recovering right now from brain surgery. The 95-year old suffered three falls this year,
breaking a hip, fracturing his pelvis and suffering a black eye. Those falls led to internal bleeding and pressure on his brain, which doctors
believed needed to be relieved.
Martin Savidge is in Atlanta at the Emory Medical Center.
You know more than most in terms of following this man in his post presidential career. How resilient he is.
How are things going now?
What would worry doctors, obviously, at this point considering the former president is 95 years old?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Can't be overlooked, even though many people would say he's an iron man when it comes to recovering
from medical issues. He's gone through a lot just in the past month, let alone in the past couple of years.
The good news this morning, coming from Emory University Hospital here, is the former president is out of surgery and recovering and there are no
complications they've seen.
That said, going forward, it's likely he'll be in the hospital for at least a day or more. In fact, the Sunday school, the church where he teaches
almost every Sunday, has said he won't be teaching this weekend.
However, you know if it was up to the former president, he'd be there regardless. He does not let these medical issues keep him down for any
time. In fact, last month after suffering a severe fall, he had a black eye, 14 stitches. He showed up the very same day in Nashville, Tennessee,
to be part of the Habitat for Humanity program that he and his wife have believed so much in.
So I think doctors are going to be looking forward to now in the next couple of days is to how does he recover, making sure everything went well
with the anesthesia.
[11:45:00]
SAVIDGE: That's got to be something you're concerned with. It's going to be all the well wishes and prayers of people all around the country and all
around the world that highly regard this former president who has done so much.
He's worked in 14 different countries building homes and empowered more than 100,000 people to get involved. Quite a remarkable man. Hopefully
he's got many years to go.
NEWTON: I was going to say, you don't want to count him out of any of their charitable endeavors. As you've seen, whether it's there in Atlanta
or around the world, he's front and center and on the front lines of giving back to foundations and charities. I'm sure everyone wishes him well.
He is likely to remain in hospital for a little bit of time now. We certainly wish him well. Thanks so much for the update. Really appreciate
it.
We'll be right back with more CONNECT THE WORLD.
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[11:50:00]
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NEWTON: One of the leading backers of Syria's White Helmet rescue group has been found dead in Turkey. James le Mesurier was a former British army
officer and a vocal supporter of the White Helmets, an all volunteer group that helps civilian victims.
Scott McLean has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A man who helped save so many lives in the Middle East was found dead on Tuesday in Istanbul. The
body of James le Mesurier, the high profile backer of Syria's White Helmets, was found lying on the pavement in front of his home. He had
apparently fallen from a balcony.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We came to work at around 9:00 am in the morning and we heard from our friends that noises were heard from
here.
MCLEAN (voice-over): Turkish police are investigating. His wife told a friend who spoke to CNN that he had fallen from their balcony while she was
sleeping and the balcony was not high off the ground.
He was the 48-year-old former British army officer and founder of the non- profit Mayday Rescue which helped fund and train the Syria's civil defense commonly known as the White Helmets.
The network of volunteers featured in a 2016 Netflix documentary, showing their heroic and dangerous work, digging survivors out from rubble amid
airstrikes in Syria.
Mayday Rescue called him a great leader, a visionary and that James dedicated his life to helping civilians respond to emergencies in conflicts
and natural disasters. In 2015, he told CNN about the void filled by the White Helmets in Syria.
JAMES LE MESURIER, WHITE HELMETS: There is nobody that you can call. You can't pick up a phone and call the fire service. You can't call a local
police department. They don't exist.
MCLEAN (voice-over): In his native U.K., he was honored by the queen in 2016. But in the Syrian conflict, Russia has tried to discredit the White
Helmets as terrorists. Last week, the Russian foreign ministry suggested without proof that he had active ties to Britain's foreign intelligence
service as well as terror groups.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): He lit off many conflicts around the world, including in the Balkans and the Middle East. Given the role of
the West in undermining stability in these regions.
[11:55:00]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It's not difficult to assume what the British intelligence officer did there.
MCLAUGHLIN: The death came as a shock and said it is his humanitarian efforts that Syrians will always remember -- Scott McLean, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Our thanks to Scott there.
As we have been discussing, the House impeachment inquiry, those public hearings, right, start tomorrow. About 22 hours from now. 10:00 am here
in New York, 3:00 pm London time. Tune in for CNN's coverage. It will be live throughout the day. We'll have our analysts, our experts and we'll be
covering each and every angle.
Remind you that President Trump is here in New York and will be giving a speech within the hour. A lot of people are hoping he brings up the issue
of China and trade and gives some kind of hint as to whether or not he'll sort out that trade dispute.
He also promised to release another transcript by the end of the week.
That was CONNECT THE WORLD. Thanks for watching.
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