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Quest Means Business
Under Oath, Sheryl Sandberg and Jack Dorsey Get Grilled about Foreign Influence on Facebook and Twitter; Donald Trump Supreme Court Nominee Says if He is Confirmed, He Will Owe His Loyalty to the US Constitution, Not the President; Former Mexican President Tells Why Dropping NAFTA Could Backfire for Donald Trump; British Prosecutors Have Charged Two Russian Nationals with Attempted Murder in the Nerve Agent Poisoning of a Former Spy and His Daughter Back In March; Trump Warns Syria Not to Cross the Line in Idlib; Violent Protests Continue in Southern Iraq; Brazil Museum Officials Hopeful Some Relics are Salvageable After Museum Fire Outbreak; Tech Executives Testify on Election Interference; Digi.Me Promises Control Over Users' Data; A New Report Cites Climate Action Could Deliver $26 Trillion By 2030; Emirates Jumbo Jet Quarantined at New York's JFK with Multiple Sick Passengers; European Markets Close Lower than Expected; French and British Scallop Wars Come to an End; Former Cosby Star Responds to Job-Shaming Attempt. Aired: 4-5p ET
Aired September 05, 2018 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Pretty meandering day. We were up, we were down, essentially, we're flat. Today is Wednesday, September 5th.
Under oath, Sheryl Sandberg and Jack Dorsey get grilled about foreign influence on Facebook and Twitter. A warning from a former Mexican
President who tells me abandoning the NAFTA deal will only make the situation at the US border worse; and an honest day's work, the former
"Cosby" star has a message for those who tried to bring him down. I am Paula Newton and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
Tonight, Sheryl Sandberg and Jack Dorsey under oath before Congress admitting they haven't done enough to shut down fake accounts and curb
election interference. Now all the parties came into the room with their own set of priorities. For Democrats, a look back at Russian interference
in the 2016 US election, for the Republicans alleged bias against conservatives. Progressives want controls on hate speech and the tech
companies want to avoid new regulations that would harm their businesses, but the beginning of the hearing was as much about the issues as who was
and remember, who wasn't there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You solemnly swear to give this committee the truth, the whole truth and nothing but t truth, so help you God.
MARK WARNER, US SENATOR, VIRGINIA, DEMOCRAT: I am deeply disappointed that Google, one of the most influential digital platforms in the world chose
not to send its own top corporate leadership to engage in this committee because I know our members have a series of difficult questions about
structural vulnerabilities on a number of Google's platforms that we will need answers for.
SHERYL SANDBERG, COO, FACEBOOK: Russia used social media as part of, and I quote, "A comprehensive and multifaceted campaign to sow discord, undermine
Democratic institutions and interfere in US elections and those of our allies." We were too slow to spot this and too slow to act. That is on
us.
JACK DORSEY, CEO, TWITTER: We must ask the question, "What is Twitter incentivizing people to do or not do and why?" The answers will lead to
tectonic shifts in Twitter and our industry operates.
SANDBERG: We don't think it is a question of whether regulation, we think it's a question of the right regulation that supports users is transparent
and doesn't squash innovation and we are happy to work with you on the proposal.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: OK, now shares of tech companies - not sure if it even had to do with the hearings - fell sharply. Twitter down about 6 percent, Facebook
and Google were less affected though as you could see there. Now, CNN's senior media and tech correspondents are covering it all, Brian Stelter and
Laurie Segall are here. Laurie first to you, the nuts and bolts of it. For how many years you've actually been covering where deregulation could
or count be applied. Did they really get into that today?
LAURIE SEGALL, CNN SENIOR MEDIA AND TECH CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they didn't actually get into it as much as I thought they would. They came with the
idea that we have to have an honest conversation about regulation. You have Sheryl Sandberg saying what we've heard her say before, which is, it
is not regulations, it is the right kind of regulation, but you didn't hear the nuts and bolts of it.
I will say today, having been in the room for Mark Zuckerberg's testimony, it felt a lot more civil despite the fact that Alex Jones - before Alex
Jones came in and crashed the testimony a bit. It did have a more of a - we're happy that you are doing this. We're happy that you two showed up,
not Google, but we're happy that you're here having this conversation and it's to look for what have you done to protect us and what have you already
done ahead of the midterms. It was a very different feel.
And the other hearing right now with Jack Dorsey is currently going on and that is more nuts and bolts. That's more how do these algorithms work?
That's also a lot of conservatives saying are you suppressing our voice? There's been rumors that they have been doing that. There has been
criticism around that.
So all in all, a really interesting and informative day; not as much explosive stuff as I know --
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA AND TECH CORRESPONDENT: No, and the senators actually seemed more knowledgeable than they did a few weeks ago,
a few months ago or a few years ago.
NEWTON: Thank goodness, they were briefed. They did some research --
STELTER: I was relieved to see that there was a better level of knowledge on the part of these elected officials than there have been before.
NEWTON: Brian, I want to ask you as well, in terms of when we talk about where this could go once we hear the hearings - a lot of people are asking
why aren't they regulated the way we are, for instance? The way media is in general? It is an open question still.
STELTER: But I think the answer is that because historically, Republican governments have been loose about regulations. The Trump administration
has been all about deregulation and the tech industry is one of the caveats there. Trump has been talking in vague confusing terms about wanting to
see actions taken against big tech, and nobody really knows what he means and I'm not sure he knows what he means.
So for now, I don't see any real practical proposals on the table. What I see are a lot of people huffing and puffing about the concerns of alleged
censorship. It really means companies are stuck between really two different positions. On the one hand, folks mostly on the right saying you
are censoring me, you are suppressing my free speech; and then on the other side, from the left and from media companies, and from all sorts of critics
--
[16:05:14]
STELTER: -- people are saying what are you doing about misinformation? And hoax as in fake news on their platforms? It's a really difficult
position for these companies to be in.
NEWTON: Yes, and Jack Dorsey was asked you know basically, shouldn't you be letting people that use your platform know when perhaps they've been
duped by some kind of an --
STELTER: I was blown away by what Sheryl Sandberg said about the number of fake accounts that they are dealing with on Facebook, more than a billion.
At any given time, 3 percent or 4 percent of the accounts on Facebook are inauthentic and they are having to take them down every day. So every day,
Facebook is fighting these battles trying to delete misinformation and hoaxes and spammers, but it is a battle.
SEGALL: And I will say, and Twitter has a whole separate problem, and that's what you heard Jack Dorsey today talk about, it was Senator Warner,
who asked, do people have the right, and I thought this was such a fascinating question - do, us, users have a right to know if we are being
contacted by a human or a machine? And by machine they're talking about a bot, an automated account that Twitter has this bot problem.
And what Jack Dorsey said is, we have been thinking a lot about this and it's something we are looking into, informing people and I think
transparency and context were the two words they kind of pulled out from a lot of this stuff today, but we don't exactly know. You've mentioned this
before, we don't exactly know what this looks like, but users need more context about what they are seeing online because we've now entered this
place where we don't know where truth is, what disinformation is and I think that's a really hard place for these tech entrepreneurs and that's a
really hard place to regulate.
NEWTON: And you had been saying earlier that Jack Dorsey has this concept, it's a very nice concept that really cleaves to the First Amendment right
in this country which are different than it is around the world, the fact that this digital town square has to be preserved.
SEGALL: Sure, it was so fascinating to me because he keeps talking about this digital town square, I want to play you the sound and then I'm going
to get to a larger point. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DORSEY: We don't believe that we can create a digital public square for people if they don't feel safe to participate in the first place. And that
is our number one and singular objective as a company is to increase the health of this public space.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEGALL This idea of a town - this public square, this was the promise and I've been covering tech for almost a decade. You interviewed Evan
Williams, the founder of Twitter; you've interviewed Jack Dorsey. They all talk about this town square, we could all come - and we can --
STELTER: It sounds so nice.
SEGALL: And we could speak our truth and the Internet promised to be this place where we could all come and we could have discord, we could - you
could have all sorts of people. And the idea was that the smart would win through, or it would be a place for anyone, but then there's this idea of
the tragedy of the commons, where if you don't have the proper structure in place, that that part gets crowded that people can't even get there, so now
fast forward to the concept of the internet and social media now, you don't have good voices being able to win through, you have bots and trolling and
there haven't been the proper structures in place.
You had one senator asking Jack Dorsey about women being able to use Twitter, which I was very grateful for this comment, how it's very
different for women to be on Twitter --
NEWTON: It becomes so --
STELTER: -- with the amount of harassment.
SEGALL: Yes, and that idea of the tragedy of the commons. And I think that's the part 0 that's where we are right now when it comes to social
media and taking a step back and looking at what's ahead.
STELTER: It's great to have a Central Park, it's great to have a garden, but the garden has been overrun by weeds and you can see these executives
struggling to figure out how to clean up the garden.
NEWTON: And listen, before we go, we just had something break in the "New York Times," Brian, I am just going to read the headline of an op-ed that
is anonymous right now that the "New York Times" just dropped. It is, "I am part of the resistance inside the Trump administration," and again, it's
anonymous. This is someone from the inside.
STELTER: This is breathtaking that the "New York Times" has published an anonymous op-ed from a senior Trump administration official. Someone - we
don't know the identity, but the "New York Times" does know the identity. Someone who is trying to blow the whistle and say, the president is a
danger and yet there are many people in the White House trying to protect the country from the President. Now, that's the theme of the Bob Woodward
book, but here you have a senior official writing it in their own words. We don't know if it's a man or a woman. We don't know their title, but the
"New York Times" knows and the "New York Times" worked with this person to blow the whistle.
NEWTON: But the point is, the person also says, there are more of us. It's not just me.
STELTER: Yes, describing it as a resistance and if I can quote one line, the person says, "It may be cold comfort in this chaotic era, but Americans
should know that there are adults in the room. We fully recognize what is happening."
NEWTON: Wow.
STELTER: This sounds like something out of a thriller, something out of a drama that these White House aides feel like they have to protect the
country from the President. There's even one other detail that I think is going to be important in the days to come. It says that there were Cabinet
officials in the early days of the Trump administration that talked about invoking the 25th Amendment, meaning to begin the process of removing Trump
from power.
[16:10:01]
STELTER: If you have enough Cabinet officials together to vote on that, you can remove a US President from power. Now, this White House official
says, the Cabinet decided not to do that because they didn't want to provoke a Constitutional crisis. So instead, they are trying to do what
they can from inside.
NEWTON: The op-ed is chilling. We will continue to cover that here on CNN. Laurie, thank you so much to the both of you, actually for continuing
to follow the tech hearings. Appreciate it.
Now, it was you know, one of those strange trading days on Wall Street. Volume was low as well. Now, the Dow managed to close relatively flat, I
would call that. The NASDAQ though, it suffered its worst one day decline in months as tech companies like Netflix, Twitter, and Amazon all fell
sharply. Now, earlier on "QUEST EXPRESS," I asked, SilverBear Capitals, Alan Valdes what's driving the tech route?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALAN VALDES, SENIOR PARTNER, SILVERBEAR CAPITALS: Please don't go to the stocks. So eventually even these stocks have to kind of plateau at some
point. They don't keep going up forever, but what worries a lot of people down here is, if you weren't into techs, your 401K is flat, so the techs
come in, you could see this market capitulate --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, investor concerns were compounded by collapse in emerging market currencies: Mexico, Russia, India, and Argentina have all suffered
steep drops this year. Now, earlier, our emerging markets editor, John Defterios explained it this way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: The common theme though, Paula, there has been seven economies that for the last 12 months have been
running very high current account deficits, and it has all come home to roost here. They are very vulnerable. I'm kind of using the analogy of a
heat-seeking missile. If you have a high current account deficit, investors are testing you right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now Donald Trump Supreme Court nominee says if he is confirmed, he will owe his loyalty to the US Constitution, not the President. Brett
Kavanaugh is facing his second day of confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill and he was asked directly if he would have trouble ruling against a
President who appointed him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRETT KAVANAUGH, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: No one is above the law in our constitutional system. Federalist 69, Hamilton makes clear all the ways
that the executive branch as designed by the framers of the Constitution was different from the monarchy. Under our system of government, the
executive branch is subject to the law, subject to the court system and that is an important part of Federalist 69, it's an important part of the
Constitutional structure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: OK, listening in was our Congressional Correspondent, Phil Mattingly. So, glad to see you. Good to see you. In terms of what
happened out there. Let's just remind everyone what is at stake. This is a man who will likely be the swing vote in the Supreme Court, and when
we're talking about what is going on in the White House now, his words matter, right, in terms of who he will side with?
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no question at all and it took just a few minutes in today's hearing to recognize that
President Trump was moved to the forefront. Specifically, his potential legal issues. He was asked by Democrats whether or not a President should
have to comply with subpoenas, whether or not the President could pardon somebody, whether or not the President could pardon somebody in exchange
for a bribe.
Now on each of those issues, Paula, he declined to answer. Saying - citing past President for nominees, that he wasn't going to address hypotheticals
of potential cases he may face, but there was a reference to a past case that wasn't very subtle. Paula, take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAVANAUGH: You think about United States versus Nixon, which I've identified as one of the greatest moments in American judicial history
where Chief Justice Burger who had been appointed by President Nixon brought the court together in a unanimous decision to order President Nixon
in response to a criminal trial subpoena to disclose information.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MATTINGLY: Obviously, referencing US versus Nixon as he talked about there, basically, the Supreme Court ruling unanimous at the time that the
Nixon White House would have to turn over those tapes that became so central to President Nixon ending up resigning from office.
The interesting element about all of this is not only do you have executive power issues, you also have issues of healthcare, of abortion rights, of
regulation. And you make the key point. He will most likely make up the fifth vote of a conservative block in a nine-person court. This will
totally swing the pendulum away from where Anthony Kennedy was who was considered more of a swing vote towards more of a conservative bend. That
is why you see the fight as partisan as it is, that's why you've seen it as fierce as it is.
But Paula, as you know very well, at this moment, Republicans need only stay together and they have the votes to confirm him. That's where it
looks like it's heading right now, no question. There's two more days of hearings. This one - today is supposed to go through 9:00 p.m. or maybe
even later, mercifully, hopefully not. The fight is going to continue and rage on for the next couple of days.
NEWTON: Yes, and a lot of people obviously have commented as well that you have some Democrats there that might have a little bit of an ambitious
political future and that's another reason why these hearings are going the way they are. Phil, I can't let you go without asking you about the op-ed
in the "New York Times" right now. We just discussed it with Brian Stelter, but I wanted to get your take in terms of how people on Capitol
Hill will feel about this.
[16:15:06]
NEWTON: The criticism has always been that the GOP just does not stand up to the President and that - just is not worried really in the way other
people are about the President's policies or behaviors.
MATTINGLY: Yes, publicly, and I think that is the most interesting element at least the thread that I have taken from the op-ed that I've read up to
this point is what you see in that op-ed reflects a lot of what I hear privately from Republican members in the sense of they don't feel like it
helps them in any way, shape or form to publicly castigate the President, to publicly attack the President or to call him out for doing things that
they believe break traditional norms.
They believe kind of twofold. First and foremost, if you want to get his attention, you work behind the scenes. That's how he responds best. I've
had the Speaker of the House tell me that. I've had the Majority Leader of the Senate tell me that, but perhaps more importantly and there is a thread
of this in the op-ed, is the idea that there it is a Republican in the White House and there is a graph or two in that op-ed where it talks about
the things that they have accomplished up to this point, which is essentially what members of Congress have said.
With a Republican in the White House, regardless of who that Republican is, they have gotten the 2017 tax law. You've seen the administrative agencies
cut back on decades of regulations that Democrats put into place that Republicans have long opposed. You see a number of significant policy
achievements that Republicans on Capitol Hill have been working for years to get, and it's one of those things where this is the trade-off
essentially.
If they have somebody that will sign these things whether legislatively or via regulatory fiat then they will support him, at least publicly. That
said, it does not mitigate in any way the concerns you hear behind the scenes about how the President has run the office, how the President
operates via 280 characters particularly how he operates on foreign policy, but it's the trade-off that you constantly see.
I know it frustrates a lot of people, frankly, it frustrates some Republicans, but the viewpoint up here is if you want to get stuff done,
particularly with a Republican in the White House, you just have to go along to get along and that is why if you watch Speaker Ryan's press
conference today, or Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's conference today, they were asked about the Woodward book, they were asked about
tweets related to whether Jeff Sessions should be favoring Republicans in his prosecutions and they didn't weigh in. That's all the evidence you
need.
NEWTON: That is all the evidence we need and we take it right back to Brett Kavanaugh because they are getting what they want, well, likely get
what they want in that nomination as well. Phil, we will point out to everyone, that so far the White House is saying that they have no response,
no comment yet on that "New York Times" editorial.
Phil, really good to see you. Appreciate it. Coming up on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, the former Mexican President tells me why dropping NAFTA could
backfire for Donald Trump, and the case of the quarantined plane. This is so interesting and a bit alarming why health officials met this flight at
the airport.
[16:20:56]
NEWTON: Canada's Foreign Minister for one isn't giving up on striking a new NAFTA deal with the United States. Chrystia Freeland says trade talks
remain constructive despite missing several key deadlines. Now, President Trump is raising the pressure on Canada threatening to strike a separate
agreement with Mexico. Earlier, I spoke to the former Mexican President Felipe Calderon who told me he believes Canada absolutely should be
included in any deal.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
FELIPE CALDERON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF MEXICO: I want to be very respectful about my own government, but the point is, that's the fact right now. I
would rather have Canada with us. But in any case, good news is we can have a deal saving the trade with the United States which is very important
the for both countries.
However, the devil is in the details and I don't know the details, honestly. Somebody is talking about there is some kind of (inaudible) or
secret agreement related with establishing a cap with Mexican exported vehicles. And honestly, if that is true, it is good in the sense that it
saves the industry for any blocking limitation.
But also, it is bad because it is going to prevent the most successful business story in Mexico. The industry of cars are creating a lot of jobs,
and paradoxically, if you block export from Mexico to the United States, you will have more Mexican workers trying to migrate to the United States
which is a bad idea, honestly.
NEWTON: That is a very interesting point. So you are saying that this could end up in a loose situation. They think that they are moving jobs to
the United States, but they could also end up with a problem on illegal immigration.
CALDERON: Completely. It is a bad story for both. For the United States, because even the American cars will be more expensive for the consumers in
the United States and it's going to be - they are going to be - for those cars out in the competition. You know in the middle of the crisis in 2009,
the three big companies of the United States -- Chrysler, Ford Motors Company and General Motors -- they saved the companies from bankruptcy with
their plants in Mexico because they were able to create incredible, fancy competitive cars. It's a story of integration.
NEWTON: President Trump would totally take you on with that and say that was at the expense of American jobs. That's what they are negotiating --
CALDERON: That's on the contrary. On the contrary, this integrated way to work saved millions of jobs in the United States. Actually, there are more
- 1.2 American families depending directly in the export towards Mexico and even more, we are estimating at least six million families of American
workers dependent on the trade with Mexico including the car industry. Because, when you see the level of integration we have, a car crosses the
border six or seven times. So, a lot of American jobs are now under threat I would say if we cancel the trade or we reduce the trade with Mexico,
honestly. It is not only a Mexican story.
NEWTON: You know I can't let you go without talking to you about the wall.
CALDERON: Which wall, I'm sorry. Wall Street? We can talk about that.
NEWTON: The wall, President Trump continues to say it will be built and Mexico will pay for it. At the end of the day, do you think it will die
with any --
CALDERON: Well, you know, I don't know what happened in the States, but we, the Mexicans takes the words of the President of the United States
every day less seriously, with all due respect. So maybe there will be a wall, you want to put a wall in your garden, your landscape. You want it
to be an ugly monument in your garden, you can do that. But we are not going to pay for it. It's your own decision and your public work.
I don't care about that. But the wall is a solution of probably before Middle Age. China tried a wall long centuries ago and it is completely
useless. What China doing today? It is the One Belt One Road project, which is investing massively in Asia and Africa, and that will be quite
smart strategy. I think that will be the solution for the 21st Century, not a wall.
But I don't want to be trapped in the discussion of the wall. I know there are a lot of political feelings and strategies behind that, I respect that
of the President of the United States, but it is still, that is not going to work for the United States and definitely, we are not going to pay any
single cent of that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: OK, Felipe Calderon talking about these ongoing negotiations. The dairy industry in those negotiations has become a predictable sticking
point in those trade talks between the US and Canada. Now, President Trump has repeatedly lashed out at Canada for what he says are 249 percent tariff
on US dairy products, but levies on agricultural products are actually quite common.
[16:25:11]
NEWTON: In fact, the US imposes 350 percent tariff on some tobacco products. Now, giving in to the United States' demands could leave Prime
Minister Justin Trudeau very vulnerable politically. Canada's dairy region makes up a crucial part of his voter base. He is going into an election
later next year, President Trump though isn't giving up the fight.
He is repeating his calls to end dairy tariffs and this was in a press conference earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have to make a fair deal with Canada. As you know, they charge tariffs of 300 percent on dairy
products which a lot of people never understood. They have walls up against us doing business in Canada and yet, they come and do business with
us, and we can't let that happen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Tom Vilsack is President and CEO of the US Dairy Export Council and he was also a former Secretary of Agriculture. He joins me now from
Des Moines, Iowa. Thanks so much. I cannot think of a better person to put this pointed question to. Would you leave Canada out of it especially
if they do not budge on dairy. Just keep the bilateral deal with Mexico, thank you very much.
TOM VILSACK, PRESIDENT AND CEO, US DAIRY EXPORT COUNCIL: The reality is Canada needs to take care of the dairy business in this negotiations. It's
an absolute must. We are not going to have a NAFTA agreement that is satisfactory to dairy producers, unless two things happen. One, Canada
eliminates Class 7 pricing system, that's the story of the powder market, and two, it opens up its markets.
Absent those two things, I don't think it is an agreement that dairy producers will be particularly excited about.
NEWTON: Meaning dairy producers want Canada involved? They want to move on this. They want that trilateral deal.
VILSACK: They would like to see a NAFTA agreement where we modernize our relationship with both Mexico and Canada. We see a removal of the
retaliatory tariffs on our Cheeses in Mexico and an opening up of the Canadian market. It has been closed for far too long. There is no
question their supply management system has caused them not to do right by American producers, but more importantly, from a political perspective in
Canada, not to do right by their consumers. Their consumers are paying significantly more for their dairy products than they need to if we had a
more open, fair trade relationship with Canada.
NEWTON: Yes, Mr. Vilsack, that's milk I buy usually every week, if not every day, and you have a point there in terms of consumer prices. I just
want to get to what some American farmers have told CNN though even in Wisconsin and saying, "Look, what is wrong with the supply management
system?" Because quite frankly, US farmers sometimes are not that happy with the kind of prices they get for their own dairy.
VILSACK: Well, the problem is that they don't basically solve problems within the supply management system that's caused by the supply management
system. That's why they created Class 7, a pricing system that has distorted the powder market. They couldn't get rid of the powder within
their own market because of the supply management, so they are dumping in on the world market causing significant pain for producers not just in the
United States, but around the world.
If you have a supply management system, then solve the problems that it creates within that system. Don't export those problems to the rest of the
world.
NEWTON: In terms of exporting problems to the rest of the world, the Trump administration has caused problems for US dairy exports to China. Your
organization has been vocal in terms of really trying to fight this. What do you have to say to the Trump administration if this escalates any
further in terms of the cost to that dairy industry in the United States?
VILSACK: We have done a study and there is no question that the tariffs will have an impact on the dairy industry with reference to China. We had
momentum building in that market. This tariffs could potentially eliminate that momentum and it could result in as much as $12 billion of lost revenue
over the next five years.
Our message to the Trump administration is fairly clear, don't escalate on the tariffs. Get to the negotiating table. Try to get this thing resolved
before the end of the year, otherwise, there is going to be significant pain to the dairy producers in this country at a time when we're losing
dairy producers because of low prices.
NEWTON: Yes, and it will be important for us to follow that story as China becomes an issue in the coming weeks. Mr. Vilsack, I invite you back.
Please come back and talk to us because this will continue to be an issue in the weeks to come. Appreciate it.
Now, it is 4:29, in fact, do you know where your data is? As Congress weighs new regulation., one company is promising to get your data under
your control.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:32:00] NEWTON: Hello, I'm Paula Newton and there's more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment. When I talked to the CEO of a new app that's
promising to help to take control of your digital life. Health officials in the meantime meet an A380 after a number of passengers turned up sick.
Before that though, the headlines this hour.
British prosecutors have charged two Russian nationals with attempted murder in the nerve agent poisoning of a former spy and his daughter back
in March. Russia denies any involvement, but the British Prime Minister says the suspects are Russian military intelligence officers.
President Trump is sending a new message to Syria not to cross the line in Idlib. Government troops are believed to be preparing to attack the last
major rebel stronghold after a meeting with the leader of Kuwait Wednesday. Trump had these words for Syria's government.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And these are innocent -- you have 3 million at least innocent people there, and you have to be very
careful and the world is watching and the United States is watching very closely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: In Iraq, at least six people have been killed and dozens more injured after a third straight day of protests in the southern city of
Basra. Unemployment, power cut and a lack of basic services have all contributed for its extent of a rising fury.
Museum officials in Brazil are hopeful that some of those ancient relics can be salvaged after this week's devastating fire. Some of the items
recovered so far includes ceramic pieces, meteorite and human skull, the cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but government's funding
cuts and years of neglect are being blamed.
Tech executives admit they didn't do enough to curb Russian interference in the U.S. election. Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg and Twitter's Jack Dorsey
testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee, committee members blasted Google for failing to even send anybody from their top leadership.
Now as we were just discussing Congress is working out how to police your social media. One company wants to give you control over your data right
now.
[16:35:00] If you're like me, you use a range of online services, I am on Twitter and Instagram, but there are a few others too, and Digi.me,
promises to put all of that data from all of your services. We're talking financial, health, social and more in one place.
And get this, you can search it all and decide who can see it and who can use it. Joining me now is Shane Green; the CEO of Digi.me U.S. Shane,
thanks so much for joining us. Now, help me out, explain to me how this works because at this point, it's sounding a bit too good to be true.
SHANE GREEN, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, DIGI.ME: Hi Paula, and thanks for having me today. So Digi.me does exactly what you said. It allows
individuals to plug in more than 15,000 different sources of data about themselves, aggregated in one private and secure place that they control
and then set permissions on which apps or services get access to it.
And that's exactly what we're focused on, is putting that control back in the hands of individuals.
NEWTON: And in putting it back in the hands of individuals though, how all encompassing is this, because I still assume that whatever data I willingly
give to Twitter or Facebook or Instagram, that they can still use exactly the way they want to.
GREEN: Well, we hear that a lot, and that is an obvious question. Of course, that data is going to continue to exist in other places out there,
but it's living in all of these different silos. When you get your arms around all of that data in one place, it gives you as an individual sort of
that unique competitive advantage to decide which other services get access.
And that really gives you the differentiation in empowering those apps. Your data combined in that way really lets any of those apps leave private
competition.
NEWTON: And can you explain that to me a little bit further in terms of, well, we've been used to hearing places like Facebook selling your data on,
that's still going to happen though as well, isn't it?
GREEN: Well, it will happen, but I think increasingly, you're going to see app developers and companies choose solutions like ours. And you're
already starting to see this in a big way in Europe, where they have new laws and just generally a whole different view on privacy and consent and
transparency.
And so what we're doing right now is basically, you know, firing the starting gun in a race to the top among developers, to not only create the
best apps and the move value for your from your data, but also showing at the same time a good steward they can be of your data.
NEWTON: And do you think they'll be able to continue to do it for free?
GREEN: Well, absolutely, we do get paid by the developers who build apps and who ask for data from the users, and we're very transparent about that
to everyone involved. We are not selling data or even able to touch, hold or see data, so we really are just like a credit card company and that we
get paid every time that data gets delivered faithfully to another app that abides by these new rules and respect your ownership and control of your
data.
NEWTON: Yes, unfortunately, we've had problems with that before with other companies, so we'll put that on hold for a second. You know, we had raised
the possibility that, you know, this seems like it's important to people when other times you see a lot of people don't have any problems with their
data going to these companies.
Because they kind of believe, you know what? There's a way to get it anyway, and they kind of don't trust the entire system as it is.
GREEN: Well, I think that's been true historically, but that's also because people haven't had easy tools to use other options. And so, that's
why the app developers are building another platform, they're doing -- they're creating very easy to use, compelling apps that maybe even do some
of the things other apps you're already using to do, like help you with your -- managing your personal finances.
But when they tell you, we will do this with complete respect for your privacy, complete control over their data and we will never do anything
with that data that you don't know about.
That's very different, I think we're starting to find that people, you know, they listen up and they say, yes, I want to try that, and when they
see that they can actually experience that in a way that's, you know, transparent and clear, unlike most of the current services, it does start
to change their gratitude towards this.
NEWTON: Yes, and it is a fair point as all of us become a little bit more savvy about what's going on with our data out there. Shane, thanks so
much, really appreciate it.
GREEN: Thanks for having me.
NEWTON: Now, coming up, dozens of people on board this plane right here said they felt unwell. Now, health officials met them on that JFK runway,
just a few hours ago, we will bring you the very latest after the break.
[16:40:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: A major new UN report claims bold action on climate change could deliver 26 trillion in economic benefits through 2030. By taking action on
energy, food and land-use and industry, the report says more than 65 billion -- sorry, pardon me, million new low-carbon(ph) jobs could be
created by 2030.
Now, more than 700,000 premature deaths are now due to climate change and those could be avoided. And subsidy and reform and carbon pricing alone
are capable apparently of generating 2.8 trillion in revenues for governments around the world by 2030.
Earlier, former Mexican President Felipe Calderon told me he's actually convinced by the report claims.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FELIPE CALDERON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF MEXICO: It's a good economic argument for people. People thinking about jobs -- one example, solar and wind
energy, renewable energy already has in the United States more jobs, almost 500,000 jobs in the United States, more than coal and natural gas combined.
So it's a new story about economic growth and clean growth. And talking about business, let's talk about profits, you can get the businessmen a lot
of profits doing the right thing. Just getting for instance energy efficiency in your industry, you can get even more productivity, which
means more money, more revenues, more profit.
So these are -- this is a successful story about profits and about jobs and about economic growth.
NEWTON: What do you think the barriers are to getting to that point? And I mean, it's OK to talk about it in the United States or Germany, to name
one, but what about in developing countries? In places like -- in countries like Africa. And I know a lot of Asian countries complain about this as
well.
They are just starting to get some momentum in their economies, and I think sometimes they cannot afford this.
CALDERON: Actually, it's the other way around. Because for instance, there are 1 billion people mainly in Africa that are -- they don't get
access to electricity for instance. So they don't need to repeat the model we have in the past. So very -- polluting greens and a lot of stuff.
For instance, lift-trolling all the way to removable energy could be a process, quite similar for instance to the phone lines, fixed phone lines.
You remember -- when I was --
NEWTON: I remember, believe me --
CALDERON: No, you don't, you don't remember, but I --
NEWTON: Oh, no, I remember --
CALDERON: Went --
(CROSSTALK)
The whole idea is to have a fixed line everywhere --
NEWTON: Absolutely --
CALDERON: And suddenly India and a lot of developing countries, yes, leap frog, the point, that's -- yes, modern phones and renewable energy could be
like that. So in order to provide electricity for all those families, we can do in a very modern, efficient, productive and of course clean way, and
instead to repeat the mistakes we did in the past.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: OK, a number of passengers reported feeling ill on a flight from Dubai to New York's JFK Airport. The flight, again, from Dubai to New York
was on an Emirates flight it was quarantined at JFK Airport and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says 11 people were taken to
hospital for treatment.
[16:45:00] Our Rene Marsh has been following all of this. I mean, this is a little bit alarming when you think about it. Have they gotten to the
bottom of exactly why and how this happened?
RENE MARSH, CNN GOVERNMENT REGULATION & TRANSPORTATION CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so we are hearing some late words from the CDC, and according to a source
there at the CDC, respiratory illnesses like influenza are among what's been considered as far as what caused these passengers to get sick.
We're talking about a flight, as you mentioned, it was from Dubai to New York's JFK, there were more than 500 passengers on board. That plane was
isolated once it landed at JFK Airport as multiple passengers reported feeling sick. Passengers and health officials say that people were
coughing, some had fevers.
Both the CDC and sources with the New York port authority which controls JFK Airport said as many as 100 passengers reported feeling sick. But the
airline says only 10 passengers were sick. So the latest information that we have from Emirates is that three passengers and seven crew, they were
taken to the hospital for further medical evaluation.
All the other passengers though, they were released and allowed to continue with their travels. But again, the late words from the CDC is that they're
looking at possibly illnesses like influenza as well as MERS which stands for the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome which is essentially a viral
respiratory disease that they first identified in 2012.
So they're just trying to get to the bottom of it, but right now, it does not look like anything nefarious involved as far as why these people
looking sick --
NEWTON: Yes, which is a relief on the one hand, but this --
MARSH: Yes --
NEWTON: Is an A380, you know, you're talking about 500 passengers, relieved to know that the vast majority were released. And yet, we
actually have quite a few of the crew members that seem to be the ones that were ill here.
MARSH: Right, and again, you know, we all know that on those aircrafts, that there's that air that's circulated and most times, the crew who have
to work in these conditions, they're there, they're exposed to so many people on a daily basis with that recycled air.
So if it is indeed a case of influenza, that makes sense, because again --
NEWTON: Right --
MARSH: Traveling, we all know that sometimes you just get exposed to so many people in such a short period of time. But to your point, Paula, the
good news, you know, obviously, when we heard about so many people being sick on a commercial aircraft, it raises a lot of red flags --
NEWTON: Oh, yes --
MARSH: But at this late hour, we're now beginning to learn that the CDC at least at this point, they do not believe --
NEWTON: OK --
MARSH: Anything nefarious at this --
NEWTON: And that is good news, Rene, thanks so much, appreciate it. Now, on honest days, work for honest day's pay, that's what they're saying --
says. After the break, overwhelming support for a former TV star photographed working in a grocery store, we'll hear from the man at the
center of it all.
[16:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
NEWTON: European markets closed in the red are right across the board as investors track those international trade tensions. Paris, as you can see
there, suffered the greatest losses, closing down over 1.5 percent. Staying in Europe, a short, bad-tempered conflict between French and
British scallop fishermen has thankfully come to an end.
The truce in the so-called scallop wars was called after the French and British governments reached a deal. British fishermen will respect a
French closure period in a section of water in exchange for compensation. Now, a former "Cosby Show" star who was really wrapped by the press working
for -- at the cash register.
And the paparazzi's got him on this one in a store and he told CNN that afterwards, the outpouring really affected him because he at first was in
fact devastated by being photographed as you see there at Trader Joe's; a grocery store here in New Jersey.
Now Geoffrey Owens was pictured bagging those groceries, he says it was an apparent attempt to job-shame him. Now you remember him starring as Alvin
in the "Cosby Show", he went on to play various roles on stage and on screen. He is still a working actor after this "Daily Mail" article came
out and a similar piece in Foxnew.com.
Fellow actors and fans rushed to his defense. Our Chloe Melas tells us that he really was put in an impossible situation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHLOE MELAS, CNN ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER: What is the most upsetting though, although he's been getting some really positive reinforcement,
people like Tyler Perry have been offering him jobs in the wake of this. It's the fact that he actually knew that the "Daily Mail" was going to be
publishing a story with photos of him.
And that they said, look, you better talk to us, because we're going to run this story with or without you. Well, he now has a very strong message for
the "Daily Mail" and "Fox News", both of which he says job-shamed him.
GEOFFREY OWENS, FORMER ACTOR: They set out to exploit the fame in us in a public that wants to see stories about people who were once great or
celebrated, now fallen, fallen from grace. There's something in us that is titillated by that, that's what those news outlets are exploiting.
But hey, this is what I think of it, you know, "Fox News", if I'm in "Fox News", then I must be a fox. I hope you learned your lesson, I hope that
you see that people are better than you think they are. That people don't want to celebrate people's downfalls, they want to lift people up again.
And as I quote, "great is the temptation to do good", our better natures will prevail, and that might mean that you sell a few less papers, et
cetera. But people are better than what you're giving them credit for.
MELAS: I have to tell you though in light of all the media scrutiny and these outlets, publishing these stories, he's had to quit his job at Trader
Joe's now. So currently, he's out of a job and looking for work.
NEWTON: And I find the nuts and bolts to this so interesting. We have to say this is an incredibly talented, articulate man, he is still an actor,
he still works as an actor, it just doesn't make enough money for him right now --
MELAS: Exactly --
NEWTON: This is a Yale graduate --
MELAS: That's what I was going to say --
NEWTON: I think -- I think other than him saying that people want to celebrate downfall, I think a lot of -- you know, what I immediately
thought of is they're by the grace of God go, and I give him so much credit. Why did that not happen in these publications.
This is an everyman. This is a man that's out there trying to put food on the table. Some interesting that we spoke about is that what people don't
realize is that it's been over two decades since the "Cosby Show" was on the air. And he actually touched me about the fact that he hasn't had
steady work in that time.
OWENS: The "Cosby Show" ended 26 years ago. And in the past 26 years, I have hardly ever had an acting job that lasted more than 10 weeks. And
most of those jobs were theater jobs which pay a lot less than television and film. So basically, for the last 26 years, I haven't had steady
employment.
The article was negative, the article was from a kind of a shaming slants, oh, look at him now, isn't that sad? You know, under the guise of, oh, I
feel bad for him. But it was really kind of like, you know, isn't this -- you know, isn't this interesting how the -- you know, mighty television
star is now just bagging groceries at a grocery store.
[16:55:00] So that was the initial thing, and that stung, that was definitely hurtful especially, you know, the picture they chose to use and
stuff like that. You know, it seems like they kind of went out of their way to use like the very worst image, it was all designed to look as bad as
possible.
But the good thing was it lasted a very short time before all the positive supportive responses started coming in from around the world. So there's
initial shocking, and ever since I kind of forgot when the story is going to come out, I kind of played it out like what would be the worst case
scenario like how bad is it going to be?
And it was worse. When it came out, it was like -- I was like, oh, my gosh, this is worst than I ever imagined. But that lasted a very short
time before all the support started coming in and just overwhelming the bad stuff.
MELAS: Well, look, he also spoke to me about the fact that when Bill Cosby, the star of the "Cosby Show" started being accused of rape by
multiple women, a network society to pull the "Cosby Show" off the air, that that impacted him financially because he wasn't making royalties off
of the re-runs anymore.
Now, Tyler Perry and others have come forward and offered him jobs now, and he says he doesn't want anybody to feel sorry for him, he doesn't want
anybody giving him a handout just because he has this new found notoriety. He wants to get more auditions though because of this and compete with his
peers.
NEWTON: And hopefully he will because we all miss him on TV, I don't know, and we all did and we miss him on TV --
MELAS: Yes --
NEWTON: I thought it was so incredible too, when he said no job should be valued among another. And for those of us who come from incredibly modest
backgrounds, we all believe that, right? I mean, this is great that he was out there --
MELAS: How anybody could criticize somebody for just working to make a living is just absurd and really offensive --
NEWTON: And on Labor Day.
MELAS: Definitely --
NEWTON: I know, so we will continue, I hope now to follow his career, and thanks so much --
MELAS: You're welcome --
NEWTON: Really appreciate bringing the story too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Now, if you want to keep on top of the day's business headlines in just 90 seconds, then try our daily briefing podcast, it's updated twice a
day before and after the bell rings on Wall Street, and you can just ask Alexa or your Google home device for your, quote, "CNNMoney flash
briefing", and that is every weekday.
And that is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for today, I can tell you for those viewers waiting for him, Richard Quest will be back. Now, you can see I
have no bell here, I can ring no bell, Richard doesn't let me ring the bell. I have my own bell to ring, can tell him that I did it when I come
back, OK? Richard will be right in the chair.
Thanks for joining me, the news continues right here on CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
