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CNN Live Event/Special

Presidents Trump And Xi Wraps Up High-Stakes Trade Talks; Trump Tells Pentagon To Start Testing Nuclear Weapons "On Equal Basis" With China And Russia; Urgent Need For Aid In Caribbean After Hurricane Melissa; Trump Says "We Have a Deal" with Xi, Could Be Signed Soon; Yosemite and Other U.S. Parks Left to the Wild with Lack of Staff; Presidents Trump and Xi Wrap Up High-Stakes Trade Talks; Blue Jays Wallop Dodgers 6-1 in Game 5, Lead Series 3-2; Sean Combs Hopes for Presidential Pardon from Trump; Speculation Swirls About Next "White Lotus" Location. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired October 30, 2025 - 01:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[01:00:00]

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: Next hour of our coverage starts right now.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands amid a global trade war.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: President Xi is a great leader, a great country, and I think we're going to have a fantastic relationship.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: With us, former California Governor Jerry Brown, who has met President Xi multiple times. The Story Is Hurricane Melissa leaving a trail of destruction behind, with us, the head of the Red Cross. The Story Is how the government shutdown is impacting the national parks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: Under Trump parks like Yosemite stay open with no one at the gates and a skeleton staff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: CNN's Bill Weir takes us to Yosemite.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Los Angeles, "The STORY is with Elex Michaelson."

MICHAELSON: And welcome to THE STORY Is. I'm Elex Michaelson. Our top story is breaking news. New information just coming in on the highly anticipated meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. President Trump is heading back to the U.S. right now on Air Force One as we speak after those crucial talks ended within the last hour.

This what you're looking at right here was the two men walking out of the meeting and exactly on time. It was the final engagement of President Trump's whirlwind tour of Asia. President said he and the Chinese leader agreed on many very important points during their critical meetings in South Korea. Among other things, he said Chinese will buy large amounts of American soybeans and he'll visit China in April. President Trump with high praise for President Xi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I think we've already agreed to a lot of things and we'll agree to some more right now. But President Xi is a great leader of a great country and I think we're going to have a fantastic relationship for a long period of time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Let's get right to CNN's Will Ripley who is live for us in Seoul.

Will, we just heard from the president on Air Force One. What did he say?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, what an eventful, just over 24 hours here in South Korea and now just moments ago, Elex, you have President Trump saying that the United States has reached a trade deal, a one year trade deal that will be renegotiated on annual basis. But President Trump saying the U.S. has a deal, it could be signed soon for one year. Let's listen to this sound just in from President Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We're in agreement on so many elements, large amounts, tremendous amounts of the soybeans and other farm products are going to be purchased immediately, starting immediately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: So that is the most definitive tone that we've heard President Trump strike when talking about these trade negotiations with China thus far. He talked about soybeans there. What we didn't hear any mention of, at least publicly, is one of the most contentious issues between the United States and China, which has been rare earth. And it's basically China's biggest card in many ways, because China at the moment controls not only the mining but also the processing of these rare earth minerals that are crucial to manufacture things like semiconductors, the microchips that power all of our tech. And so these two sides went in.

You didn't see gifts, you didn't see a lot of fanfare. It was, you know, a little bit cringeworthy to see President Xi Jinping standing there with President Trump and the cameras lined up, reporters throwing questions at President Trump, President Trump answering the questions. Xi Jinping never takes questions that are unscripted from reporters. So he stood there and was waiting to get into the boardroom there to get down to business. But President Xi did say, and I believe we have a sound bite from him I'd like to roll right now.

He talked about the differences between the two countries, but his hopes going into these trade talks. Let's play that sound from President Xi.

We don't have that sound, Elex, so I'll just read you to the verbatim. It says, "Given our different national conditions, we do not always see eye to eye with each other. And it's normal for the two leading economies of the world to have frictions now and then." But encouraging news now we have to wait to hear what the Chinese side has to say here. But President Trump, Elex, saying a one year trade deal.

Let's see how the markets around the world react to that. Because this -- if it's true, and you heard it from the president on Air Force One minutes ago, this would be music to the ears of a lot of people.

MICHAELSON: Yes, I mean, a lot going on, all coming at us right at one moment right now. When he says we have a deal, we don't really have any specifics yet on what that deal actually looks like, do we?

[01:05:08]

RIPLEY: That's absolutely right. And we know that President Trump loves to speak off the cuff when he's asked by reporters. And so we really do need to now take a step back and wait and see. You know, what is it? What does the paperwork say, if there's any paperwork presented?

What -- you know, has a deal actually been drafted up? Is that now going to happen? What's the time frame? How is it going to be signed? When is it going to be signed?

Now, we also heard earlier from President Trump and the president of South Korea, Lee Jae Myung, that South Korea and the United States had also essentially reached the framework for a trade deal that has yet to be signed. But it seems as if those two sides came closer than ever, including a pretty stunning announcement from President Trump that South Korea may be able to obtain the technology from the United States to build nuclear powered submarines. Thus far, only the United Kingdom and Australia have received that tech from the U.S. Now, this supposedly would be built in the Philly shipyard that is owned by a South Korean company. And that would take many years probably to configure that shipyard to actually manufacture a nuclear powered submarine.

But nonetheless, some pretty big bombshells in sound bite form. Now we wait to see if it will be in black and white and paper form.

MICHAELSON: Yes. Will Ripley with the major breaking news for us in Seoul, South Korea. Thank you so much for your reporting.

My next guest is former governor of California, Jerry Brown. He is the only man to be the four term governor of California. He was the first governor that Xi Jinping met with in China. He's met with him multiple times, including having him privately to talk about climate and technology. He is the chair of the California China Climate Institute from U.C. Berkeley. Governor Brown joins us from his ranch, Calusa County. Williams, California.

Governor, I said to our team who would I most want to talk to on this issue? And I said you. And I'm so grateful that you're joining us here on The Story Is.

JERRY BROWN, FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Well, thank you, Elex. I'm very eager to talk about it because it's highly significant when the two presidents meet and when you hear the praise that Trump utters for Xi Jinping. And I think there is some receptivity there on the part of the Chinese president. But given the rampant and growing hostility to almost everything Chinese, the fact that they're meeting in a very civil way is very important. Where it all leads, we don't know.

But there's no relationship. Well, the Russia-U.S. relationship is really important, but the Chinese-U.S. relationship encompass a lot more, the trade, the climate, the technology, the immigration, so many things, hundreds of billions in trade. So the fact they're meeting is quite incredible. Whether it will go anywhere. I mean, it's the same day Trump is giving a permission for a nuclear machine to go on a submarine that will also have the power to make a nuclear bomb.

I'm not sure China's going to like that. So there are a lot of stumbling blocks, but this is a positive. Instead of throwing rocks at each other, the presidents are talking and they're agreeing to have more meetings. So as long as you're meeting, you know, you're not destroying each other. So that's a plus.

MICHAELSON: What do you make --

BROWN: A big plus.

MICHAELSON: What do you make of the idea of a -- of a deal? President Trump saying just within the last few minutes that we've got a trade deal?

BROWN: Well, as some people say, Trump creates problems, then he likes to solve because he likes the fanfare, he likes the big deal. But remember, he's the one that stirred the pot that created all these tariffs in the first place, particularly on China. So now if he can pull them off in the -- in relationship to other agreements, all to the good. But let's remember, this is not even a problem until Trump started it.

MICHAELSON: President Trump just said moments ago on Air Force One that on a scale of zero to 10, his meeting with President Xi was a 12. So he's certainly spinning this as a productive meeting. Governor Brown, you have spent time with President Xi in multiple places. What's he like as a man? What's it like meeting with him?

BROWN: Well, it's something. One thing, the first thing he said to me was he appreciated that I had received his father so graciously when I was governor the first time. So that definitely put the meeting on a good footing. Xi Jinping is formidable. He is the supreme leader with a party of, you know, strongly committed people in the Communist Party, I think there's like 80 or 90 million of these people that are carrying out the program.

[01:10:05]

So, and his word is law. There aren't a lot of people around. You say, well, if I get to Joe or Bill, he'll be able to get to Xi Jinping. He's the man. And in some ways, Trump is acting in a similar way, Trump is acting like almost on a whim, he can say, kill these -- you know, bomb these boats, put on a tariff, take off a tariff. So we're looking at two leaders that have an enormous amount of power.

And the difference, of course, is Xi is very steady. He's an engineer. He has -- this is a very tightly organized system. There's no freelancing here. There's no ad living at a press conference or, you know, getting on X or something and sending out little messages.

This is a serious guy with the fastest growing economy, big economy in the world who's completely dominated, electric vehicles, wind energy, solar energy, battery technology. So they're on the move. Now America has its own great assets in artificial intelligence and so many other ways, but the two countries could collide. We have profound differences. And if we ever collide and it goes nuclear, we're all done.

MICHAELSON: Well, actually --

BROWN: And if you saw that recent movie, "The House of Dynamite," you know how dangerous that all is.

MICHAELSON: Well, and you are the chair of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, in addition to your work on the --

BROWN: Yes.

MICHAELSON: -- China climate issue. And we had news on that front today as well. President Trump putting out a Truth Social post, saying that he is instructing the Department of War to increase nuclear testing to catch up essentially with Russia and China. Your reaction to that? We haven't had nuclear testing in this country since 1993.

BROWN: And nor has Russia for a long time, and China, I think the mid- 90s. Look, it's not clear what Trump meant. Putin is not conducting any explosive tests like underground testing, like America does it in Nevada. He tests missiles, so does America, so does China, so does North Korea. So testing missiles, I think is well within the norm of what's going on by the big countries.

If you're going to go to underground nuclear explosions, that is a bad, bad and terrible precedent that will start a whole arms race of nuclear testing and the inevitable innovations and new types of nuclear weapons. I don't think that's what Trump meant. It'll be clarified, presumably in the morning. MICHAELSON: Meanwhile, while I got you, I just got to ask you at least one politics question. What do you make of the state of the Democratic Party right now, which by some measures is historically unpopular?

BROWN: Well, if you believe the polls, Democratic Party is not very high below the Republicans. So --

MICHAELSON: Why do you think that is?

BROWN: Trump's -- how do I say it? Well, it's fragmented. Trump's dominating the media. It's hard to say. You know, when Trump won last time, that, you know, that conquered the Democrat candidate and there's fallout.

It's hard to explain. It's a fact. But remember, people have written the obituary of political parties like the Republicans, the Democrats, but there's a pendulum swing. And if a good candidate can come forward, someone eloquent and credible, then that will galvanize Democrats. Right now, there's no national face agreed to as the leader. As that emerges in a presidential campaign, you'll see the fortunes of the party rise assuming we get a great leader.

MICHAELSON: Do you think that person is your successor as California governor, Gavin Newsom?

BROWN: I think I'm going to refrain from kind of rating my successor, Schwarzenegger didn't rate me, and I'm not going to try to evaluate Gavin. He's doing -- he's doing a hell of a job. He's going to cop. He's advancing the climate agenda in an incredible, innovative way. So there's a lot there, but there's a lot of people in the party and there's a long way to go and a lot of steps to be taken and a lot of missteps to occur.

MICHAELSON: Are you yes on Prop 50, the redistricting bill?

BROWN: Yes, I'm yes on 50. I mean, when the -- Trump is another one of Trump's crazy things and not a good thing. So he calls up Texas, he calls up Missouri and says, OK, rig your reapportion, rig your congressional lines to squeeze Democrats out and get more Republicans. So Gavin Newsom says, wait a minute, we're going to retaliate and we'll get five Democrats by reapportionment.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

BROWN: It's not a good business, but Trump started, and if he gets away with it, the Republicans will have 15 extra seats, and there's no way the Democrats have a fighting chance. And that isn't right. It's not good for the country. We should have competitive elections.

[01:15:10]

And unfortunately, there are very few congressional seats out of the 435, probably not 40 or 50 that are truly competitive. They're all wired, all Republican --

MICHAELSON: Yes. BROWN: -- all Democrat. And it's gerrymandering just makes the whole thing worse.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

BROWN: Fifty, it's a good deal. Vote yes. It's only temporary. The reportionate (ph) commission --

MICHAELSON: Yes.

BROWN: -- will come back. And it's just if we don't, then you're just giving Trump another five seats.

MICHAELSON: And real quickly, you are living at the Brown family ranch. I've got some pictures of my visit there with you. This incredible spot in Colusa County with these incredible views.

BROWN: Yes.

MICHAELSON: You live off the grid in this very interesting setup with your -- this was pictures with your dogs there at the time. How's life at the ranch?

BROWN: Fantastic. We had our recent, actually we had our eighth olive harvest. We have olive trees that we planted several years ago. And we about 60 volunteers from my campaigns from the governor's office, family and friends, we picked over a ton of olives and we'll be making several hundred bottles of really outstanding mountain house olive oil. And I'll get you a bottle.

MICHAELSON: I can't wait to have it. Governor Brown, thank you so much for coming in on a very consequential news night. Really appreciate your perspective.

BROWN: Anytime, Elex. I like talking to you.

MICHAELSON: I like talking to you as well. Thank you so much.

Coming up, the Caribbean is reeling from the deadly destruction of Hurricane Melissa and the threat is not over yet. I will speak with the head of the Red Cross about the urgent aid needed and how you can help. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:21:18]

MICHAELSON: Right now, Hurricane Melissa has regained some strength back to a Category 2 as it's made a way out of the Bahamas and heads towards Bermuda. It is already left a trail of destruction across the Caribbean, hammering Jamaica, Cuba and other islands with torrential rain, flash flooding, dangerous storm surge and fierce winds. Flooding, still the biggest concern in Cuba. Hours after that storm slammed into the island on Wednesday, streets homes washed out there, the floodwaters damaging hospitals, schools, knocking out communications. Officials in Jamaica say that catastrophic isn't even a strong enough word to describe the type of devastation they're seeing.

More than 70 percent of that country has no electricity. Heavy equipment needed to reach some cutoff areas. International aid now on its way to Jamaica as the airports there are back open. Melissa, one of the strongest Atlantic storms on record, responsible for at least 30 deaths throughout the Caribbean.

I'm joined now by Jagan Chapagain, the chief executive officer and secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. He's in Washington. Thanks so much for joining us here on The Story Is and thank you for the important work that you do every day.

JAGAN CHAPAGAIN, CEO AND SECRETARY GENERAL, IFRC: No, thank you for having me.

MICHAELSON: Talk to us about what is the biggest need on the ground right now.

CHAPAGAIN: As you know, as it happens with this type of massive, massive hurricanes, you know, where the impact, particularly in Jamaica, are beyond catastrophic. So in this situation, the immediate needs falls into few categories. One is always -- the immediate need is a search and rescue because the access, the infrastructure had been severely damaged. And some of the rescue operations have started today, but it will take a few days before reaching all these areas because of the massive, massive destruction on the infrastructure.

But there are a few needs that are already emerging. One is the shelter needs. There have been temporary shelter set up to almost 300 locations, but the health infrastructure have been severely damaged. So the needs for health would be massive. So immediately the health, water, food, tarpaulins. And in addition to that, in a day or two, we will start feeling the massive, massive impact also of the mental health needs.

People are traumatized. We don't know exact extent of the damage. So we will also start seeing some of those needs. So in the Red Cross, we are focusing to get the immediate assistance right now. And as soon as the airport opens, we will start getting our planes flying into the country.

MICHAELSON: And some of the immediate need is also blood, right?

CHAPAGAIN: Absolutely. In this type of situation, the donation of the blood sort of goes down because people are not able to come and donate the blood. At the same time, the demand are increasing. And we have already received the reports, particularly in Jamaica, the shortage of blood already.

MICHAELSON: So obviously, when you're in a crisis like this, you got to focus on the immediate problem right in front of you. But sometimes people don't focus on the bigger issue. And you say preparedness is something to be thinking about right now as well?

CHAPAGAIN: No, absolutely. And I think, of course, when the crisis happens and the people are affected, we have to mobilize as fast as possible to save lives and livelihoods. But sometimes what happens is that we don't always invest on unpreparedness. You know, we need to have the preposition stocks. We need to have the, you know, rules and procedures on how to respond when this crisis happen, especially when there is international mobilization, we need to have trained volunteers and manpowers.

[01:25:00]

We need to put coordination mechanism in place. When things like this happens, we can move very, very quickly. And unfortunately, what happens is that we forget the disaster and crisis very, very quickly. In Jamaica, you know, the burial happened just 16 months ago. So it's very important that there is an ongoing investment on preparedness.

Also prearranged financing in this case because we knew hurricane was coming so we could actually release funding already a week ago so the volunteers could be mobilized and some of the prepositioned stock could be already placed inside the country. So having a free financing is extremely, extremely important.

MICHAELSON: So a lot of people are watching this right now. They want to do something to help. What's the best thing that viewers can do to help right now?

CHAPAGAIN: I think the best help that can be done is to make a cash contribution to these organizations. They know exactly how to respond. They know exactly how to mobilize. This is the best way to get the help of the people as soon as possible.

MICHAELSON: And we know there needs to be so much help. Best of luck to you and to everybody from the Red Cross in this extraordinary disaster and the response to it. Jagan Chapagain, thank you so much for joining us.

CHAPAGAIN: Thank you for having me and thank you for covering this terrible disaster.

MICHAELSON: It is so terrible. To find out ways that you can help those affected by Hurricane Melissa, go to cnn.com/impact.

Coming up, new information from President Trump aboard Air Force One. He is heading home after those talks with President Xi Jinping just wrapped up. We're starting to hear what came out of that meeting. What about rare earths? We've got some news on that front.

Also ahead, concerns from U.S. national park workers who are watching the impact the government shutdown is having on America's most treasured land. Bill Weir takes us to Yosemite.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:31:49]

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: We continue to follow breaking news. President Trump flying back to Washington after his long-awaited

summit with China's President Xi Jinping. We're getting details from Air Force One.

President Trump said just minutes ago, talking to reporters, that a trade deal could be signed soon. That they're meeting on a scale of 0 to 10 was a 12. And that China will work with the U.S. to end Russia's war in Ukraine.

He also says that he, President Trump, will visit China in April, and Xi from China will come to the U.S. sometime later. And he says the rare earth issue, which has been very contentious between the two countries, has, quote, "been settled"

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What are the major stumbling blocks that are left now to work through? And how soon do you think you could sign a trade deal with China?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, I think pretty soon we have not too many major stumbling blocks. We were -- we have a deal. Now, every year we'll renegotiate the deal. But I think the deal will go on for a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: China will quote, "immediately start buying" what the president calls tremendous amounts of soybeans, which it had stopped doing earlier in the year due to that trade war with President Trump.

Meanwhile, the government of the United States is still shut down tonight, and the people working at national parks across U.S. are concerned about what could happen to some of America's most scenic spots because of that shutdown.

Currently, about 9,000 National Park Service employees are off the job. That means that some of the country's most well-known lands are not being taken care of.

CNN's Bill Weir takes us to Yosemite.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: After Elon Musk took a DOGE saw to the National Park Service, America's best idea was already understaffed and under siege. About a quarter of the service staff and their combined experience was lost.

Then came the shutdown with furloughs and threats of more layoffs. And under Trump, parks like Yosemite stay open with no one at the gates and a skeleton staff. One of the worst ideas for national park health, according to 43 former superintendents.

They tried but failed to convince Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to protect the nation's most cherished landscapes from unmanaged crowds. KEN YAGER, PRESIDENT & FOUNDER, YOSEMITE CLIMBING ASSOCIATION: I'm concerned definitely. I've seen this kind of stuff before in the past. This one feels a little different. I have a feeling it's going to last a lot longer.

WEIR: As founder of the Yosemite Climbers Association, Ken Yager has been a fixture on rocks like El Capitan for over 50 years.

[01:34:43]

YAGER: I worry about damage in a lot of ways to these parks. When you've got so many people in a national park like this, it disrupts the wildlife, disrupts the plant life.

Trash gets left everywhere. I clean up trash. That's what I've been doing for 22 years with a bunch of volunteers in Yosemite facelift, and we've cleaned up 1.2 million pounds of trash.

WEIR: Wow.

YAGER: So, it can show you how much and how quickly it'll build up.

WEIR: A reservation system is supposed to control the numbers hiking up Half Dome, but social media shows moments of crowded chaos.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Never seen that before.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right in the middle of the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) meadow.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow

WEIR: Older base jumpers and drone pilots. Last year, there were 15 campground rangers in Yosemite Valley. This summer, just six who also had to pitch in on basic maintenance alongside goodhearted citizens.

I know a lot of volunteers are sort of filling the gap in these shutdown days. Who are these folks?

AVA LEWIS, YOSEMITE VOLUNTEER: A lot of them are maybe furloughed employees or folks that work with concessionaire or like people in the local community and people that just really care about this place and care about this park.

CORY GOEHRING, OUTDOOR PROGRAMS MANAGER AND NATURALIST, YOSEMITE CONSERVANCY: For the most part, I think we're seeing the best of people come out at this time.

WEIR: Volunteers like Corey Goehring from the nonprofit Yosemite Conservancy are trying to provide as much basic info as they can.

But he says days like these remind Americans that the park belongs to them, and it's time to be a good steward.

GOEHRING: Number one, and I think the most important, plan ahead and prepare. Number two, travel and camp on durable surfaces.

Number three, dispose of waste properly.

Number four, basically leave what you find. Take only pictures. Leave only footprints.

WEIR: That's the one my dad hammered into me.

GOEHRING: Yes. And number five, you know, only use established fire rings.

Number six, respect wildlife.

WEIR: Ooh, ok. I love that.

GOEHRING: So, keep wildlife is a difference.

WEIR: Yes.

GOEHRING: And then number seven, yes, respect each other while you're here. While you're visiting.

WEIR: But good campers can't control invasive species or protect wildlife from poachers or identify archeological wonder like the pros can.

LEWIS: More traffic through the park. And, you know, people going off trail and litter and all those things really add up when you don't have full staffing in the park.

WEIR: Right.

LEWIS: So, you know, folks like me will go around and we fill in the gaps where we can. But it's -- it's not nearly enough.

WEIR: That's not sustainable long term.

LEWIS: No, it's not. And a lot of us, you know, were just passing through. We're visiting.

WEIR: Yes.

LEWIS: People are coming for their weekend vacation or something. So, we need -- we need the people that are here. Boots on the ground.

WEIR: Bill Weir, CNN -- Yosemite Valley, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Doesn't get more beautiful than that.

A quick check of the markets and how they are reacting to the high- stakes summit between presidents, Xi and Trump. We just heard from President Trump that there is a deal when it comes to trade. And look at those numbers all up across the board. Let's talk about all of this and more with CNN's Kristie Lu Stout, who is live in Hong Kong. Kristie, what are you seeing in the markets right now?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Elex, it's great to meet you. Welcome to CNN.

MICHAELSON: Thank you.

STOUT: As a fellow Californian, it is wonderful to be working with you.

MICHAELSON: Thank you.

STOUT: Now, U.S. President Donald Trump, as reported, has been giving a rather rosy assessment of his meeting with the Chinese President Xi Jinping, saying at a scale between zero and 10, he gave it a 12 -- shades of the movie "This Is Spinal Tap" there.

But the markets are taking some direction. We're seeing some mixed action this day. They're moving past the caution that we heard from the U.S. Federal Reserve earlier, zeroing in on that consequential meeting.

And if we look at the markets and where they are this day, and I'm having some tech issues, I'm looking at a screen through a door right over here.

You're seeing that mixed picture I mentioned earlier, Japan, we're seeing gains there. But South Korea, the KOSPI is losing. Hang Seng in Hong Kong losing ground as well.

Now we're also been keeping an eye on U.S. futures, as you just mentioned at the very top, all pointing to a higher trading day when Wall Street opens in just a few hours from now.

The U.S. President Donald Trump is wrapping up his tour of Asia. He had that highly-anticipated meeting with the Chinese President Xi Jinping, in which he said that they had struck a deal, a deal that could be signed and a deal that would be renegotiated after a year.

Now we got to this moment because of all the work behind the scenes from top trade negotiators in both the U.S. and China trying to untangle a host of contentious trade issues between these two economic power rates.

And if we bring up those lists for you, you can see, of course, at the top you have fentanyl. In addition to that, curbs on rare earths, also Chinese purchases of U.S. soybeans, U.S. Port entrance fees, and, of course, the final deal on TikTok.

Now on fentanyl, Donald Trump said that he is reducing fentanyl- related tariffs from 20 percent to 10 percent.

On the issue of soybeans, Trump says that, quote, "large amounts" of soybeans will be purchased by the Chinese.

And on the issue of rare earths, Trump said that that issue has been, quote, "settled".

[01:39:45]

STOUT: It appears that progress has been made, but many analysts are skeptical.

I want to share with you what we heard from Dickie Wong. He's the head of research based here in Hong Kong for Kingston Securities. And this is what he said.

He said this, quote, "I don't see there's any major optimistic surprise at this point, both for the markets and the U.S.-China talks. It's still that same question.

After the meeting ends, does it really mean the two countries will have a joint statement? And then the U.S. will roll back all tariffs on China, drop tech curbs, and China will export rare earths again? I don't see any possibility."

Really interesting comments there.

Now the markets here in Asia also reacting to that expected Fed cut. Also reacting to policy guidance from the Bank of Japan.

But above all there was all that hope that we would see a pause on the world's biggest trade fight. But still, as we see with that mixed market reaction, a bit of skepticism out there.

Elex, back to you.

MICHAELSON: Yes, they got to see the fine print.

Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong. Thank you. And thanks for the shout out to California. We appreciate it.

STOUT: Yes.

MICHAELSON: All right.

Coming up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TREY YESAVAGE, BLUE JAYS PITCHER: It's a crazy world. Crazy world. Hollywood couldn't have made it this good.

So, just being a part of this, I'm just very blessed.

DAVE ROBERTS, DODGERS MANAGER: So right now were at elimination and we've got to kind of wipe the slate clean and find a way to win game 6 and pick up the pieces and see where we're at.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Folks in southern California aren't loving this. The Toronto Blue Jays are one win away from winning the World Series. Toronto trouncing the L.A. Dodgers 6-1 at Dodger Stadium.

The Blue Jays bats were buzzing against the phenomenal pitcher Blake Snell, back-to-back solo homers in the first. Dodger fans were stunned.

This was the most surprising part of this whole thing, rookie pitcher Trey Yesavage. What a name for himself. He's only been in the majors a month, guys.

He held the Dodgers to just one run and racked up a dozen strikeouts, including five in a row. The series now heads back to Toronto for game six on Friday.

The Blue Jays are one win away from their first title in 32 years.

You're watching THE STORY IS.

For our international viewers, "WORLD SPORT" is next. For our viewers in North America, I'll be right back.

[01:41:55]

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ELIZABETH WAGMEISTER, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: Have people in Sean Combs' orbit -- have they had conversations with the Trump administration?

NICOLE WESTMORELAND, ATTORNEY FOR SEAN COMBS: Yes. My understanding is that we have reached out.

WAGMEISTER: Reached out is one thing. Having a conversation is another. Do you know if there have been active conversations about a pardon?

WESTMORELAND: Yes. We've, it's my understanding that we've reached out and had conversations in reference to a pardon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So that was Sean "Diddy" Combs attorney there speaking to CNN's Elizabeth Wagmeister in August. Elizabeth joins me now.

So there's some news on this front. You've been covering this Diddy thing for so long now. In terms of when he's going to get out, what do we know?

WAGMEISTER: Yes.

So news this week is that Sean Combs' prison release date has been set for May of 2028.

You remember, Elex, that earlier this month that.

The. Judge had sentenced him to just over four years. So 2028, obviously

less than four years. That's because that factors in time served. He's already been in jail for a year.

But it's interesting that the news is that there's a release date because his team is still fighting to get him out. They don't want him --

(CROSSTALKING)

WAGMEISTER: -- to be there at all. out.

MICHAELSON: They want him out -- they want him out right away. They thought that he was potentially going to get out when he was sentenced. And you've got a statement from them now.

WAGMEISTER: Yes.

So literally, Elex, just hours ago, his team filed their latest motion for an expedited appeal. So what this means is, of course, they will be appealing, but they are saying that they want this to happen as quickly as possible.

Here's a statement that I obtained from his attorney, Alexandra Shapiro, today. She tells me, quote, "Sean has already served more than a year in jail, and we are hoping the court can hear his appeal in time for it to matter.

Sean's appeal will challenge the unfair use of the Mann Act, an infamous statute with a sordid history to prosecute him for sex with consenting adults."

So again, they have always maintained that this was consensual, that these are adults. Of course, that is not what the conviction said, and that's not what the judge said when he sentenced him. The judge came down very harsh on him. But they are appealing.

MICHAELSON: So is there a timeline on the appeal or when it potentially could be heard?

WAGMEISTER: You know, his team is laying out a timeline, that they want this to happen before the end of the year. They want their arguments to be heard in December, as you heard there from his attorney.

They know that there is a ticking clock because his sentence is not that long, relatively speaking. He could have been facing life in prison. Now he's facing under four years.

MICHAELSON: So you -- we heard in August, them talking about this idea of a pardon or commutation with you for the first time. Have we learned that there's any more conversations happening on that? Have we heard from the president's team on that?

WAGMEISTER: So look, here's what I want to tell you. There is a lot of rumor out there, right?

There's a lot of tabloid reports that this is being strongly considered by the White House. That he may be commuted, or he may be pardoned.

You heard when I asked his attorney there months ago, we got the first confirmation that they had reached out. I will tell you from my sources, that's really all that this is.

That is what I am hearing, that Diddy's team, they are making continuous efforts to reach out to President Trump. He told our colleague Kaitlan Collins that, yes, he did reach out. But that's all we've heard.

MICHAELSON: Yes.

WAGMEISTER: Or reach out is very different than the conversation.

(CROSSTALKING)

MICHAELSON: Different than the conversations or negotiations or a date like there.

All right, Elizabeth, while you're here, we want to have some fun as well. You have some "White Lotus" news.

WAGMEISTER: Yes.

MICHAELSON: Stick with us. More of THE STORY IS.

[01:49:21]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MICHAELSON: Welcome back to THE STORY IS.

Elizabeth Wagmeister is with us.

You recently talked to the stars of the "White Lotus" about where Season 4 is going to be.

WAGMEISTER: Yes. So it's always a mystery. Where is the next season going to be located? Who's going to return?

Well, I spoke to Jason Isaacs and Natasha Rothwell when they were nominated for Emmys in September. I asked them, let's take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JASON ISAACS, ACTOR: I have a feeling -- well, he said something about having had enough of beaches and water and stuff. So, I hope it's a city with something interesting in it.

This is my chance to beg for the opportunity to come back. Then please, please. But I think the answer is no.

NATASHA ROTHWELL, ACTRESS: I feel like South Africa, Morocco, Egypt.

My moneys on someplace hot. I don't think Mike likes to be cold.

I don't know if I'm coming back for Season 4, but my passport is always up to date and Mike knows I will follow him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So they both were wrong, right?

WAGMEISTER: They both were wrong. And Natasha, I love you, but it's not Egypt. It's not Morocco.

[01:54:47]

WAGMEISTER: Elex, it is going to be France. Season 4 is expected to be set in France. Now my sources close to the show, they caution that this is all speculative at the moment.

But today, "Variety" had a very detailed report that production is scouting locations both in the French Riviera and in Paris, which means that we would still get some beach activity, but also some city activity, which means Jason Isaacs wasn't totally wrong when he said he'd like to see a city.

MICHAELSON: And we have an excuse to show people in bikinis and all the rest of it.

WAGMEISTER: There you go. And you know, here's the thing. Like the whole cast of the "White Lotus", anytime you ask them where it should be set, they all say there's no way it will ever be in the cold, because Mike White hates the cold.

Because I think it would be epic to have a luxury ski resort like a murder in the snow.

MICHAELSON: No. We want to see the bodies. That's the whole point of this whole thing.

WAGMEISTER: I want to see blood in the snow.

MICHAELSON: Because people that look like that.

Meanwhile, we're so excited to see you. Some people may not know. This is our first time together on this show, but not our first time together on the air.

We've known each other for decades. Your mom was my elementary school principal.

WAGMEISTER: We go way back, Elex.

MICHAELSON: We go way back. This is so surreal to be on this show with you. I'm so excited for you and so excited for you and your baby that's coming as well.

WAGMEISTER: Yes, you are going to be Uncle Elex. There is -- in just about eight months.

So yes, there's a baby cooking in here, coming right around the end of the year.

But I am so excited for your new baby, this show, THE STORY IS WITH ELEX MICHAELSON.

I'm so thrilled to officially call you a co-worker. We've covered red carpets. I've been on your show at your previous place of work.

And we are just so thrilled to have you here at CNN. No one better than you.

MICHAELSON: Thank you very much, Elizabeth. We're going to have a lot of fun.

Thank you so much for watching. Appreciate it. I'm Elex Michaelson.

The news continues right here on CNN.

[01:56:36]

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