:00:00. > :00:15.Brexit is under way and the EU is fighting back.
:00:16. > :00:17."Those who would challenge European unity threaten
:00:18. > :00:19.their own communities", so says the President
:00:20. > :00:24.We must say, loud and clear, that nationalisms and separatisms
:00:25. > :00:26.which try to weaken the EU are the opposite
:00:27. > :00:37.The French President tells the British that talks on trade
:00:38. > :00:40.will only begin once the UK has agreed a divorce bill
:00:41. > :00:51.In London, Parliament prepares to convert thousands of EU laws
:00:52. > :00:55.We want a smooth and orderly exit and the Great Repeal Bill
:00:56. > :01:03.The Senate Intelligence Committee says Russia tried to hijack US
:01:04. > :01:09.democracy with a campaign of disinformation on social media.
:01:10. > :01:15.The President is spoiling for a fight with the conservative
:01:16. > :01:26.Republicans who blocked Healthcare reform.
:01:27. > :01:35.Day one of Britain's two year countdown to Brexit.
:01:36. > :01:37.European leaders have been setting out boundaries
:01:38. > :01:42.In Paris, the French and German presidents put on a united front,
:01:43. > :01:46.insisting the terms of the UK's withdrawal - including a bill
:01:47. > :01:49.for outstanding debts Britain will pay when it leaves -
:01:50. > :01:52.will need to be agreed first before there is any talk
:01:53. > :01:56.The European Council President, Donald Tusk -
:01:57. > :01:59.who will steer the negotiations - believes Brexit will
:02:00. > :02:04.He said the remaining 27 countries must fight the populism which has
:02:05. > :02:12.We must say, loud and clear, that nationalisms and separatisms
:02:13. > :02:14.which try to weaken the EU are the opposite
:02:15. > :02:23.Those who take aim at European unity, threaten also
:02:24. > :02:26.their own communities, weakening their own
:02:27. > :02:32.Words such as security, sovereignty, dignity and pride must return
:02:33. > :02:51.Settling the exit bill - estimated by the European Commission
:02:52. > :02:54.to be 60 billion euros - $64 billion -
:02:55. > :02:57.will be the first big hurdle when the talks get under way in mid
:02:58. > :03:00.The British Prime Minister said last night the UK
:03:01. > :03:02.would honour its commitments, but the British Government disputes
:03:03. > :03:07.Lets speak to Yo-Anne Pascu, he is Vice-President
:03:08. > :03:10.of the European Parliament who joins us now from Brussels.
:03:11. > :03:16.Thank you very much for joining us on the programme. You're welcome.
:03:17. > :03:25.Negotiations, we are one day in, there is disagreement on even the
:03:26. > :03:30.basics, on the numbers? In a way we are havele launched ourselves, both
:03:31. > :03:36.of us, Britain and ourselves on an adventure. We do not know what is in
:03:37. > :03:43.front of us. And how many obstacles we'll have to overcome. In a way, we
:03:44. > :03:48.have to adjust our pace and find the right way to start the negotiations
:03:49. > :03:52.in earnest and find solutions to the problems which confront us both. I
:03:53. > :03:59.mean, are you heartened things are off to a good start, though? Sorry?
:04:00. > :04:05.Do you have faith that things are off to a good start? Well, I think,
:04:06. > :04:10.you know, we have to do that. Nobody has done it before and we are
:04:11. > :04:15.confronted with a situation we never envisaged and we have to adjust to
:04:16. > :04:19.it. We have to really find a solution to come to a compromise. If
:04:20. > :04:22.we manage to do that, in the two years in front.
:04:23. > :04:30.Us, it will be OK. If we don't, then, you know, we have a new
:04:31. > :04:37.situation which we will also have to confront. I hope, in the end, after
:04:38. > :04:44.this initial adjustment period, we will get on the way with our
:04:45. > :04:48.negotiations. Can I take you back to what the French and German leaders
:04:49. > :04:53.are saying today, there must be an agreement on the divorce settlement
:04:54. > :04:57.before they discuss the shape of the future relationship, would you go
:04:58. > :05:02.along with that? Well, I would say, you know, in the good order of
:05:03. > :05:09.things, you cannot start building something until you clear the field
:05:10. > :05:16.before. In a way, this makes sense. It's logical. I'm a Romanian from
:05:17. > :05:20.Transylvania and I have a German education, if I could say so, to me
:05:21. > :05:24.it makes sense that we have, first, to clear the field and then to start
:05:25. > :05:29.building the new house. Yes. The Europeans are taking a hardline on
:05:30. > :05:32.this. A former Conservative leader, Michael Howard, said to me yesterday
:05:33. > :05:38.I should read Article 50 of the Treaty. I did that today. I will
:05:39. > :05:41.read you a part of it. "When a state withdraws the Union should
:05:42. > :05:45.negotiation and conclude an agreement with that state setting
:05:46. > :05:49.out the arrangements for its withdrawal while taking account for
:05:50. > :05:54.the framework of its future relationship" it's there in black
:05:55. > :05:58.and white. The two must be done hand in hand? It's a matter of
:05:59. > :06:01.interpretation. It's not. It's there in black-and-white. Well, anything
:06:02. > :06:09.is a matter of interpretation. In politics, this is the situation. The
:06:10. > :06:14.constructive ambiguitiy which is practiced especially by Britain, you
:06:15. > :06:19.know, with so much success until now, permits everyone to look at the
:06:20. > :06:23.thing and interpret and understand what he wants. This is the beauty of
:06:24. > :06:28.it. Everyone understands from the same phrase what he wants to
:06:29. > :06:36.understand. Here you know we will have to make room, you know, for
:06:37. > :06:41.political interpretations because everything is political. It should
:06:42. > :06:46.not be applied as such 100%. We should expect ourselves, you will do
:06:47. > :06:52.the same in other fields, and this is, you know, the beginning of the
:06:53. > :06:55.game. It's political. Plenty of to-and-fro to come. We are very
:06:56. > :06:57.grateful for your time. Thank you very much. Thank you.
:06:58. > :06:59.Meanwhile, in the British Parliament, the business
:07:00. > :07:03.The Government has published a first draft of the Great Repeal Bill,
:07:04. > :07:05.which will end the supremacy of European Law over
:07:06. > :07:09.Labour's Keir Starmer, who will lead parliamentary scrutiny
:07:10. > :07:12.of Theresa May's negotiation, said the job of the opposition had
:07:13. > :07:21.While the Brexit Secretary, David Davis - Britain's
:07:22. > :07:24.chief negotiator - said he wanted a clean break.
:07:25. > :07:27.We're being clear that we want a smooth and orderly exit
:07:28. > :07:29.and the Great Repeal Bill is integral to that approach.
:07:30. > :07:31.It will provide clarity and certainty for businesses,
:07:32. > :07:33.workers and consumers across the United Kingdom
:07:34. > :07:41.All rights and protections derived from EU law must be
:07:42. > :07:45.All rights and protections - no limitations, no qualifications
:07:46. > :07:57.Our political correspondent, Rob Watson, is in Westminster.
:07:58. > :08:06.Good to see you. You too. We know why it's called the Great Repeal
:08:07. > :08:11.Bill it will get rid of the European Act. Really, the title is the
:08:12. > :08:15.biggest misnomer known to man. It will not repeal very much, is it?
:08:16. > :08:22.All those rulings and regulations will be shifted on to the UK statute
:08:23. > :08:27.book? You are stealing my best lines. It's an oddly named Bill. The
:08:28. > :08:32.first thing to say, anyone who finds other parliaments ways and means and
:08:33. > :08:37.legislators baffling look away now. To get to it, it's a Bill that does
:08:38. > :08:42.something in three parts. Number one the repeal bit. That does apply,
:08:43. > :08:47.getting rid of the idea that Britain does whatever Europe says. The
:08:48. > :08:52.second bit, absolutely, the biggest cut and paste in history. Basically,
:08:53. > :08:57.what this Bill will do is say - we will not follow European law. Guess
:08:58. > :09:01.what, all that stuff, all those rules and regulations. It's thought
:09:02. > :09:05.there are tens of thousands accumulated over 40 years, we will
:09:06. > :09:09.transfer them over into UK law. Why? Because when Britain leaves the
:09:10. > :09:12.European Union in two years' time the idea is that there shouldn't be
:09:13. > :09:17.a legal black hole. It does one other thing as well, which is not
:09:18. > :09:20.all of these laws or tens of thousands of regulations will be
:09:21. > :09:24.applicable. The Government is saying we will go through them all and get
:09:25. > :09:29.rid of some of them. Plenty of good lines there. Thank you very much for
:09:30. > :09:34.the moment. A lot going on then, Michelle, on the fist day. We had
:09:35. > :09:38.news today about a bank that was moving to Europe, Lloyd's of London.
:09:39. > :09:47.They are moving a subsidiary, 100 jobs. JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, is
:09:48. > :09:50.it something we should be concerned about or is this brass plating where
:09:51. > :09:54.they are trying to get an address and foothold in Europe so that they
:09:55. > :09:58.are part of the European Union? Well, look, I think it's like any
:09:59. > :10:03.business, they are looking at the laws of the land. In some cases,
:10:04. > :10:09.they will be required to have a presence, as you say, brass plating,
:10:10. > :10:13.in Europe if they want to continue funding, doing, performing certain
:10:14. > :10:17.operations. That being said, there is a huge part of the financial
:10:18. > :10:21.market, a huge part of certain of their activities in which London
:10:22. > :10:28.remains the centre. So while there is a lot of concern, teeth gnashing
:10:29. > :10:29.about what it will do as London as a financial centre it will remain
:10:30. > :10:36.important to the financial world. Let's turn to news
:10:37. > :10:38.here in Washington. There are now a series
:10:39. > :10:40.of congressional hearings and investigations that are looking
:10:41. > :10:42.into the Russia's inteference The House Intelligence Committee
:10:43. > :10:46.held its first public At that session the FBI director,
:10:47. > :10:55.James Comey, confirmed the FBI is leading its own investigation
:10:56. > :10:57.into alleged links between Russia Today, the Senate Intelligence
:10:58. > :11:04.Committee invited in cameras for Among 20 people summoned to give
:11:05. > :11:13.evidence will be the former National Security Adviser,
:11:14. > :11:15.Mike Flynn, who was forced to resign last month,
:11:16. > :11:18.and the President's son-in-law The stakes are high for Senate
:11:19. > :11:24.investigation given the disarray we have witnessed
:11:25. > :11:27.in the House investigation. The infighting between Republicans
:11:28. > :11:29.and Democrats brought that inquiry By contrast, the Senate Committee
:11:30. > :11:39.appears an example of bi-partisan The ranking Democrat,
:11:40. > :11:46.Mark Warner, and the Republican chair, Richard Burr,
:11:47. > :11:48.stand side by side promising We will always say to you,
:11:49. > :11:51.this investigation scope will go Russia's goal, Vladimir Putin's
:11:52. > :11:55.goal, is a weaker United States - weaker economically,
:11:56. > :11:57.weaker globally, and that should be a concern to all Americans
:11:58. > :12:08.regardless of party affiliation. Just before today's
:12:09. > :12:11.committee hearing started, Russian President Vladimir Putin
:12:12. > :12:13.dismissed the US intelligence TRANSLATION: Did the Russian
:12:14. > :12:19.government attempt to influence TRANSLATION: At one time Reagan
:12:20. > :12:33.debating, I think about taxes and addressing the Americans said -
:12:34. > :12:36."read my lips" - no! Well, one man who has
:12:37. > :12:39.already given evidence, earlier today in fact,
:12:40. > :12:41.is Former FBI special agent Clint Watts, who is now a fellow
:12:42. > :12:55.at the Foreign Policy Research We heard Putin there, basically,
:12:56. > :12:59.saying, no Russia was not involved. What did you make of that? Is I
:13:00. > :13:03.don't know why we would believe him. He is not honest to his own people
:13:04. > :13:06.in his own country. I surely wouldn't believe him in this
:13:07. > :13:15.context. For three years, two colleagues and I have watched
:13:16. > :13:18.Russian influence online. It's a deliberate strategy over those three
:13:19. > :13:23.years. It's not covert. What tends to be pushed around in the media is
:13:24. > :13:28.that it's a hidden hand. The hacking we hear with about now of people's
:13:29. > :13:33.accounts was hidden and come to light due to investigations the
:13:34. > :13:37.influence is not. You can go to state sponsored Russian outlet, do
:13:38. > :13:42.analysis and see how they want to manipulate it. You talk about the
:13:43. > :13:48.influence of Russia, their tactics. Are you concerned we could see the
:13:49. > :13:56.tactics employed in up coming European elections? It's already
:13:57. > :14:01.happening. They are focussed on the German and French elections. They
:14:02. > :14:04.will steer their candidates towards the per ferd outcome they would
:14:05. > :14:09.like. I know that you dashed straight to us from this intel
:14:10. > :14:13.committee hearing, so we should play a bit of that. It's interesting what
:14:14. > :14:19.you had to say. Let's just show our viewers.
:14:20. > :14:22.Part of the reason active measures works, and it does today -
:14:23. > :14:25.in terms of Trump Tower being wired tap - is because they
:14:26. > :14:28.So Putin is correct, he can say that he's not influencing
:14:29. > :14:31.anything because he's just putting out his stance, but until we get
:14:32. > :14:34.a firm basis on fact and fiction in our own country,
:14:35. > :14:36.get some agreement about the facts, whether it be -
:14:37. > :14:39.do I support the intelligence community or a story
:14:40. > :14:42.I read on my Twitter feed, we're going to have a big problem.
:14:43. > :14:44.I can tell you, right now today, grey outlets,
:14:45. > :14:46.that are Soviet pushing accounts, tweet at President Trump
:14:47. > :14:48.during high volumes, when they know he's online,
:14:49. > :14:53.So if he's to click on one of those or cite one of those,
:14:54. > :15:08.Are you saying that some of this is entirely legal. What they are doing
:15:09. > :15:11.is pumping out misinformation to Republican supporters, to Trump
:15:12. > :15:20.campaigners who hover it up and recite it or recycle it as fact?
:15:21. > :15:23.Yes. The overt propaganda that anyone can look on the internet is
:15:24. > :15:30.the standard party line in Russia. Where it gets a little bit weird
:15:31. > :15:33.though is in social media. Their use of automated bots, fake accounts
:15:34. > :15:36.that look like people, they are pushing a message on their behalf
:15:37. > :15:39.and their use of covert accounts used for hacking, both in terms of
:15:40. > :15:44.social engineering to get into people's accounts and to influence
:15:45. > :15:49.their opinions. That is where it's a little bit more covert and a lot
:15:50. > :15:52.less overt. During your evidence or the information you gave to the
:15:53. > :15:59.Senate hearing today you talked about yourself being targeted? Sure.
:16:00. > :16:07.I received notification two weeks after I wrote about this, November
:16:08. > :16:11.2015, the FBI visited the Foreign Policy Research Institute let them
:16:12. > :16:17.know I'd been targeted with a cyber-attack. They don't tell you
:16:18. > :16:21.who targeted it came two weeks after I talked about fake social media
:16:22. > :16:27.accounts being controlled by Russia. We have been talking a lot about,
:16:28. > :16:33.you gave testimony in the Senate and what is going on in the House, are
:16:34. > :16:36.you confident we can find out what has been going on here and whether
:16:37. > :16:43.there has been involvement on the side of the Trump camp? In terms of
:16:44. > :16:46.the information warfare going on I can't speak to the Trump campaign
:16:47. > :16:53.members. What I don't understand is why Stone would say he's in contact
:16:54. > :17:01.with one of the hackers or why he would know about WikiLeaks. I don't
:17:02. > :17:06.know why they would cite a fake Russian prop gang da story after it
:17:07. > :17:12.had been debunked or why President Trump would get those lines fed to
:17:13. > :17:15.him. What is the connection between humans and this online information
:17:16. > :17:24.campaign. Thank you very much. It's hard to believe this time last
:17:25. > :17:27.week we were talking about President Trump's health care
:17:28. > :17:33.plan and its chance of becoming law. couldn't get the Freedom Caucus -
:17:34. > :17:51.the conservative members of his own At the time he blamed
:17:52. > :17:57.the Democrats, but today we got The Freedom Caucus will hurt
:17:58. > :18:01.the entire Republican agenda if they don't get
:18:02. > :18:03.on the team, fast. We must fight them,
:18:04. > :18:05.Dems, in 2018! Our North America Editor,
:18:06. > :18:11.Jon Sopel, is watching Trump is going to battle with
:18:12. > :18:14.members of the party he is meant to be working with? Never let it be
:18:15. > :18:18.said that Donald Trump is afraid to pick a fight. He goes after the
:18:19. > :18:26.Democratic Party, you might expect it and the Freedom Can you suss, 30
:18:27. > :18:30.plus Republican tea party house members who sunk his Health Care
:18:31. > :18:34.Bill. Donald Trump has been talking about how it could be resurrected.
:18:35. > :18:40.You think - why are you going after your tea party members if you are
:18:41. > :18:47.trying to get them on board. Maybe what his real strategy is to prize
:18:48. > :18:51.enough Democrats away so they will backed a revise healthcare reform
:18:52. > :19:02.Bill. Paul Ryan is the Speaker of the House. He was asked about it. He
:19:03. > :19:04.gave it the same enthusiastic response as you would having root
:19:05. > :19:10.canal treatment. But if this Republican Congress
:19:11. > :19:12.allows the perfect to be the enemy of the good,
:19:13. > :19:15.I worry we'll push the President I mean, have you reached out
:19:16. > :19:20.to the Democrats yet to work No, I'm trying to get
:19:21. > :19:23.this Bill passed. Nancy and I see things
:19:24. > :19:25.very, very differently. Then you guys are not
:19:26. > :19:27.on the same page. The President of the United States
:19:28. > :19:30.saying he's going to work You don't want - Yeah,
:19:31. > :19:33.I know he's been saying that, Because I want a patient centred
:19:34. > :19:50.system, I don't want Where is this new majority going to
:19:51. > :19:55.come from that Donald Trump is talking about? Also, what kind of
:19:56. > :20:00.concessions is he going to have to make to winsome of these Democrats,
:20:01. > :20:03.especially when be you are talking about healthcare and, further
:20:04. > :20:08.down-the-line, budget talks, tax reform? Well, you name it. The
:20:09. > :20:12.problems are piling up. We have already heard about the possibility
:20:13. > :20:17.that the administration, the government could run out of money by
:20:18. > :20:22.the end of April. Almost coinciding with his 100 days in office. One of
:20:23. > :20:26.the things that he has put in his spending bill is to fund money for
:20:27. > :20:31.that wall that Mexico was going to pay for, but isn't. So he's asking
:20:32. > :20:35.Congress to pay for it. They don't want to. If he hasn't got the votes
:20:36. > :20:39.to get that through. What does he do? Does he either give up on the
:20:40. > :20:45.immediate plans to build the wall? Or does he go-ahead and push it in
:20:46. > :20:49.and the spending bill gets voted down and government shuts down. On
:20:50. > :20:55.that, too, he's between a rock and a hard place. I was thinking today,
:20:56. > :21:00.Jon, about the irony of this, you have ideologues standing next to the
:21:01. > :21:04.President who thought they could speak openingly to the Freedom Can
:21:05. > :21:09.you suss and his Budget Secretary who was a under foing member and
:21:10. > :21:14.still they can't control them? One of the interesting critiques I've
:21:15. > :21:19.seen is that Donald Trump is trying to be a President as an ideologue.
:21:20. > :21:23.That's no he is. If only the real Donald Trump, the populous, would
:21:24. > :21:27.stand up, there will be things he would agree with the Democrats over.
:21:28. > :21:32.There will be things where he will find himself at odds with the
:21:33. > :21:37.Freedom Can you suss he goes too close to them but not close enough
:21:38. > :21:42.to satisfy them. He has to work out, where is his majority going to come
:21:43. > :21:46.from on a pile of issues. Does he move towards the Democrats and leave
:21:47. > :21:52.the Freedom Caucus behind or get them united. How does he do that
:21:53. > :21:56.without upsetting moderner rate Republicans. I think he thought
:21:57. > :22:00.force of personality would be enough. I will speak to them, they
:22:01. > :22:04.will come over, I am anticipate the great deal maker. His first go at
:22:05. > :22:11.that didn't end up terribly well. No, quite. The realities of the job
:22:12. > :22:13.clearly coming to hit him at home. Jon Sopel, our North America editor,
:22:14. > :22:34.thank you very much. A judge in Hawaii has
:22:35. > :22:36.extended the suspension of President Trump's new travel ban.
:22:37. > :22:39.Which means people from six mostly Muslim states can still enter
:22:40. > :22:41.the country while it's Many of America's biggest businesses
:22:42. > :22:45.have spoken out against the order Mr Trump says the ban will stop
:22:46. > :22:49.terrorists entering the country and has previously pledged to take
:22:50. > :22:51.the case "as far We know President Trump
:22:52. > :23:19.enjoys a round of golf - so much so, he conducts much
:23:20. > :23:22.of his weekend business at the so-called winter,
:23:23. > :23:24.or Southern, White House - He owns that course,
:23:25. > :23:28.his name's also on a golf club Christian, apparently he's not such
:23:29. > :23:32.a bad golfer either. Well the former world number one,
:23:33. > :23:35.Greg Norman, was quite complimentary about Mr Trump,
:23:36. > :23:38.and not just about his swing. Our sport reporter, Seth Bennett's
:23:39. > :23:40.been speaking to the man known His flexibility, for a 70-year-old
:23:41. > :23:44.guy, is pretty darn good. He hits a ball out
:23:45. > :23:46.there a fairly long way. I'm not saying - You're not just
:23:47. > :23:49.being nice though because he's - No, I've played with him quite
:23:50. > :23:52.a few times. And, back to his golf swing, no,
:23:53. > :23:54.I'm not embellishing that or just saying it,
:23:55. > :23:57.I would tell you if I thought he had a crappy swing, right,
:23:58. > :23:59.but he actually gets Are you surprised that Rory McIlroy
:24:00. > :24:03.got the stick he got? He did get a lot for it, wrongly so,
:24:04. > :24:06.because if the President of the United States asks you to go
:24:07. > :24:09.play golf, you go play golf with the President
:24:10. > :24:11.of the United States. A great story, if I give
:24:12. > :24:16.you analogy, I got a phone call from the White House and it said
:24:17. > :24:18.that the President will be in Australia on such and such
:24:19. > :24:22.a date, he would love to play You know, "I don't
:24:23. > :24:27.want to play with him." So you know he what I did,
:24:28. > :24:30.I called up President Bush, 41. I said, "Mr President,
:24:31. > :24:32.I've got to seek your advice, I just got a call from
:24:33. > :24:36.the White House a they're requesting we play golf with President Clinton
:24:37. > :24:40.in Australia and I'm not a big fan, I'm not a Democrat, I'm
:24:41. > :24:42.a Republican, my views and beliefs He said, "Great, let me tell you,
:24:43. > :24:46.respect the position of You go play golf
:24:47. > :24:51.with the President." This is why I can say with complete
:24:52. > :24:55.authority, within myself, I was an idiot because it turned out
:24:56. > :25:01.to create one of the great friendships that I have,
:25:02. > :25:08.to this day. Because, when I got to know him,
:25:09. > :25:11.he was just a wonderful guy. You know, there will be times
:25:12. > :25:14.when he would even call me up, when the whole Tiger Woods thing
:25:15. > :25:18.was going on, right. He would call me up and say, "Greg,
:25:19. > :25:21.you are the only person, you're his neighbour,
:25:22. > :25:24.go down and talk to him. You would go - this is pretty cool,
:25:25. > :25:28.getting that type of call. You know, it's going back
:25:29. > :25:31.to respecting the position of That's all I ask everybody
:25:32. > :25:40.out there globally. You're watching 100
:25:41. > :25:46.Days from BBC News. Still to come for viewers
:25:47. > :25:53.on the BBC News Channel and BBC World News -
:25:54. > :26:01.inside Syria - six years on we see what life
:26:02. > :26:05.is like for people living with war. Is US intervention
:26:06. > :26:17.making any difference? It's been a warm day in the
:26:18. > :26:21.north-east of Scotland, the wind direction changed. That is the
:26:22. > :26:27.picture in Aberdeenshire. The highest temperatures to the
:26:28. > :26:31.south-east of England. Kew Gardens beautiful day. Clearer skies to
:26:32. > :26:35.England and Wales as the wet weather transferred its way towards the
:26:36. > :26:38.Irish Sea but continues toing bring some persistent rain across the
:26:39. > :26:42.north-west of England. More rain overnight. One or two showers to
:26:43. > :26:45.central and eastern areas. The wetter weather out towards the
:26:46. > :26:49.Westheading into Scotland. There will be heavy rain over the hills,
:26:50. > :26:56.foo. With the cloud around it will be a mild night, 11-12 degrees
:26:57. > :27:00.typically. Tomorrow, early sunshine across eastern parts of England. A
:27:01. > :27:02.line of showers. That is it pushing eastwards through the morning. The
:27:03. > :27:07.main focus of the wet weather is going to be further north and west.
:27:08. > :27:10.The heavier rain moving away from western parts of Wales, continuing
:27:11. > :27:16.across Northern Ireland, the far north-west of England. Cumbria will
:27:17. > :27:18.be wet to begin with. Rain to central and southern Scotland.
:27:19. > :27:22.Wetter in northern Scotland as well. Low pressure will bring the wetter
:27:23. > :27:25.weather here. That will push the rain away from Northern Ireland and
:27:26. > :27:29.north-west England and Wales but continue to bring rain in central
:27:30. > :27:33.and northern Scotland. To the south of that, one or two showers, but we
:27:34. > :27:39.break the cloud up, we will get sunshine. We have fresher air, but a
:27:40. > :27:43.decent afternoon, 15-17 degrees. Improving in Northern Ireland.
:27:44. > :27:48.Showers waiting in the wings. In time for the weekend or the start of
:27:49. > :27:52.the weekend we will get April showers for the first day of the new
:27:53. > :28:05.month, chilly overnight, but a fine day on Sunday. Not a bad day to the
:28:06. > :28:11.south-east of England, very few showers. The showers will fade away,
:28:12. > :28:14.they will be pushed away by high pressure, it will settle things down
:28:15. > :28:18.for the second-half of the weekend keeping the weather fronts at bay
:28:19. > :28:21.for the time being. A dry day, fine day, sunshine in the morning after
:28:22. > :28:25.the chilly start. Cloud around in the afternoon, but with light winds,
:28:26. > :30:08.when you do get the sunshine, it should feel pleasantly warm.
:30:09. > :30:10.Welcome back to 100 Days with me, Michelle Fleury, in Washington,
:30:11. > :30:25.The French President says Brexit talks on, will only begin once a
:30:26. > :30:32.divorce bill with the European Union has been set in place. And Ivanka
:30:33. > :30:40.Trump is starting as an unpaid employee. How is that going to work?
:30:41. > :30:43.The US Secretary of State, Rex Tillerson, has been meeting
:30:44. > :30:45.with Turkish leaders amid deep disagreements on who should lead
:30:46. > :30:47.the fight against so called Islamic State in Syria.
:30:48. > :30:54.US special forces are working with the YPG, the Kurdish
:30:55. > :30:56.People's Protection Units, which Ankara considers
:30:57. > :30:58.a terrorist group, linked to the separatists in Turkey.
:30:59. > :31:00.President Erdogan said he has stressed in their meeting
:31:01. > :31:03.the importance of working with what he called the "right
:31:04. > :31:13.and legitimate" elements in the fight against IS.
:31:14. > :31:16.What we discussed today were options that are available to us.
:31:17. > :31:18.They are difficult options, let me be very frank.
:31:19. > :31:23.These are not easy decisions, they are difficult choices
:31:24. > :31:26.So this has been very good, the conversations today
:31:27. > :31:42.I think the status and the longer term status of President Assad will
:31:43. > :31:47.Quite clearly Turkey wants to be involved in the operation to capture
:31:48. > :31:49.the IS stronghold of Raqqa - but not alongside
:31:50. > :31:52.A lot has been made here in Washington of the Pentagon
:31:53. > :31:55.seemingly stepping up its operations in Syria and Iraq.
:31:56. > :31:57.Elsewhere, there are reports that 300 American marines will be drafted
:31:58. > :31:59.into new operations in Helmand province in Afghanistan.
:32:00. > :32:02.We are told the Pentagon has begun resupplying Saudi Arabia
:32:03. > :32:04.with precision weapons, for the ongoing war in Yemen.
:32:05. > :32:05.There's also a renewed focus on Libya.
:32:06. > :32:09.It would seem the US is getting much more active in conflicts it had
:32:10. > :32:20.This week the BBC is focusing on six years of war in Syria.
:32:21. > :32:22.Our Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet,
:32:23. > :32:35.is in Homs, to the north of Damascus.
:32:36. > :32:38.This renewed focus with the Secretary of State Tillerson,
:32:39. > :32:44.in Turkey, what shift are we seeing coming from the US position?
:32:45. > :32:49.Well, today one very significant shift, and hints there is trouble
:32:50. > :32:52.over how to shift on another question, the first that Secretary
:32:53. > :32:57.of State Tillerson has now made it clear that the long-term future,
:32:58. > :33:06.as he put it, of President Assad is up for the Syrians to decide.
:33:07. > :33:09.This is a very marked departure from the statements of former
:33:10. > :33:11.Secretary of State John Kerry, who always said that
:33:12. > :33:13.President Assad had no legitimacy, that he must step down,
:33:14. > :33:16.that he must go and that there will not be any election,
:33:17. > :33:19.that he must go and that there will not be any elections,
:33:20. > :33:23.Now Secretary of State Tillerson is making clear what we already know
:33:24. > :33:25.about President Trump, that his interest in Syria,
:33:26. > :33:27.neighbouring Iraq is the fight against so-called Islamic State.
:33:28. > :33:30.He wants to work with Russia, as for the internal conflict
:33:31. > :33:33.in Syria they think that America, it is not really America's interest.
:33:34. > :33:35.Now the second shift is one that is still being discussed.
:33:36. > :33:40.What will America decide when it comes to whether they will work
:33:41. > :33:42.with Syrian Kurdish forces, much admired by the US military
:33:43. > :33:47.as a very effective fighting force, and their key Nato ally
:33:48. > :33:52.President Erdogan of Turkey, who insists there absolutely cannot
:33:53. > :33:55.be any strategic alliance with the Syrian Kurds,
:33:56. > :34:00.because Turkey sees them as an off-shoot of the PKK
:34:01. > :34:02.in Turkey, terrorist separatists in President Erdogan's eye.
:34:03. > :34:07.What Secretary of State Tillerson said today, these are difficult
:34:08. > :34:11.choices, our expectation is they will work with
:34:12. > :34:14.choices, our expectation is they will work with the Syrian Kurds,
:34:15. > :34:16.but somehow try to placatee Turkey's fears that
:34:17. > :34:19.will threaten Turkey's own interest on its own border with Syria.
:34:20. > :34:21.Donald Trump gave his generals 30 days to come up
:34:22. > :34:26.We have not really seen the details of that plan,
:34:27. > :34:31.but anecdotally we are starting to feel like they're
:34:32. > :34:34.stepping up the bombing of IS positions in Iraq and Syria,
:34:35. > :34:36.and we have showed people on the map other positions
:34:37. > :34:42.around the Middle East, and in Afghanistan,
:34:43. > :34:43.where they are stepping up military activity.
:34:44. > :34:48.Well, what we know was the first steps taken by President Trump's
:34:49. > :34:50.administration, which involves sending hundreds of special forces
:34:51. > :34:54.backed up by troops and artillery into northern Syria,
:34:55. > :34:59.was a decision that was taken at the end of President
:35:00. > :35:03.They knew they had to do something to ratchet up
:35:04. > :35:08.the pressure on Islamic State, both in Iraq as well as in Syria,
:35:09. > :35:12.that the present balance of forces on the ground simply wouldn't work,
:35:13. > :35:19.but since then, President Trump's team had been adding,
:35:20. > :35:21.and adding in a way which is very interesting.
:35:22. > :35:23.We are getting hints from the President Trump's
:35:24. > :35:24.administration, he, with his great
:35:25. > :35:27.admiration of the US military is willing to give his commanders
:35:28. > :35:29.on the ground more leeway in taking some of the day-to-day decisions.
:35:30. > :35:31.That seems to involve the deployment of forces,
:35:32. > :35:37.There are restrictions on combat troops, but not on advisers,
:35:38. > :35:39.special forces, and we have seen in places like Afghanistan,
:35:40. > :35:47.So yes, a President which talked about America first is deciding that
:35:48. > :35:50.putting America first means being even a greater
:35:51. > :35:52.presence militarily, more boots on the ground as we say,
:35:53. > :36:08.Lyse Doucet in Homs, to the north of Damascus.
:36:09. > :36:20.This is from a court in South Korea that has approved an arrest want
:36:21. > :36:24.rant for the country's ousted President.
:36:25. > :36:29.The Parliament's decision to impeach her. A court has approved an arrest
:36:30. > :36:38.warrant for her. The North Carolina Senate has
:36:39. > :36:40.cleared a plan to repeal a controversial law that limits
:36:41. > :36:43.protections for lesbian, gay, A key element banned transgender
:36:44. > :36:46.people from using toilets in accordance with their chosen
:36:47. > :36:48.gender, earning the measure Two-thirds of the Senate approved
:36:49. > :37:04.the repeal bill after a late-night Nicola Sturgeon who released this
:37:05. > :37:08.picture, argues that Scotland deserves the right to choose what
:37:09. > :37:13.path to follow in the wake of the Brexit vote. The UK Government has
:37:14. > :37:15.already said it will block a referendum until the complicated
:37:16. > :37:21.Brexit process has been completed. Severe weather is continuing to reek
:37:22. > :37:23.havoc in the Australian state of Queensland,
:37:24. > :37:25.in the wake of cyclone Debbie. Tens of thousands are still
:37:26. > :37:28.without power on the mainland and thousands are also stranded
:37:29. > :37:31.on resort islands in the north east, where officials have issued
:37:32. > :37:33.new evacuation warnings ahead We take you into space now
:37:34. > :37:39.where Nasa astronaut Peggy Whitson, dressed all in white,
:37:40. > :37:40.has ventured outside the International Space Station
:37:41. > :37:43.on a record breaking spacewalk. It's her eighth time and breaks
:37:44. > :37:45.a record for the most She surpasses Sunita
:37:46. > :37:48.Williams' record. It's the 199th spacewalk
:37:49. > :37:50.in support of space station assembly and maintenance -
:37:51. > :37:52.on this walk they are Ivanka Trump is officially
:37:53. > :38:14.joining her father's administration as an unpaid employee,
:38:15. > :38:16.with the title Assistant She will be given security clearance
:38:17. > :38:20.and an office in the White House. Ivanka - like her father -
:38:21. > :38:42.is the sole beneficiary He put all his business interests
:38:43. > :38:46.aside but she won't do that, is that right? She stepped aside from her
:38:47. > :38:51.brand, the sort of the clothing line, the shoe line that bore her
:38:52. > :38:56.name, the perfumes but the assumption was she would never join
:38:57. > :39:00.him into a business, there were issues with that Jared Kushner was
:39:01. > :39:05.able to do because he wasn't directly related. It is unusual to
:39:06. > :39:08.have an immediate family relative joining in, working for the
:39:09. > :39:13.President in this way, they said it wouldn't happen, now we are seeing
:39:14. > :39:16.it is, I don't know if they think the ethics questions will somehow
:39:17. > :39:21.disappear, but certainly they haven't changed since we were
:39:22. > :39:26.talking about that few weeks ago. The thing that strikes me, while his
:39:27. > :39:31.poll ratings are are so low he seems to be pulling people close to him
:39:32. > :39:34.closer, so Kushner has this new job in the White House and now Ivanka
:39:35. > :39:39.Trump with this job. It seems while he is under siege if you will he
:39:40. > :39:41.will bringing his family close to him.
:39:42. > :39:44.Well, here on 100 Days, we like to check in with our
:39:45. > :39:46.audience from time to time, to find out what they make
:39:47. > :39:50.This week we're in Massachusetts - a state that voted
:39:51. > :39:52.for Hillary Clinton - but today we're joined, in fact,
:39:53. > :39:59.by a Trump supporter - Cathie Digrazia.
:40:00. > :40:07.Just wanted to ask you, how do you think Donald Trump is doing? . I
:40:08. > :40:12.think he's doing a terrific job. I am very encouraged by some of the
:40:13. > :40:20.appointments he has made to his cabinet. His nomination of, is
:40:21. > :40:23.fantastic and will be great for our constitution and the Supreme Court,
:40:24. > :40:28.so I think he is doing just a great job. Cathy, good to see you, thank
:40:29. > :40:32.for coming on the programme. Let me talk to you about the events of the
:40:33. > :40:36.last week, the repeal and replacement of Obamacare, that was a
:40:37. > :40:40.central pledge of the campaign, and they have flunked that. Who do you
:40:41. > :40:44.blame for it? Do you blame the President or the Republicans? . I am
:40:45. > :40:49.very disappointed with our Republican leadership. And I have
:40:50. > :40:54.been for quite some time, as well as many of the people that I know, you
:40:55. > :41:00.reknow, who feel the same way that, the Republicans have had the ability
:41:01. > :41:05.to prove themselves to their constituents over the past two
:41:06. > :41:08.years, and they failed to do that. They are just exposing themselves
:41:09. > :41:13.further with this action, frankly. It is this split, is it, between the
:41:14. > :41:17.freedom Caucasus and the moderates that is causing the problems, are
:41:18. > :41:25.wow with the President that the Caucasus has to be defeated? Well,
:41:26. > :41:31.I, I think that his message is that we need to be unified, and I, I am
:41:32. > :41:37.confident that his message is directed not just to the freedom
:41:38. > :41:43.Caucasus or the balance of Republicans but to Democrats, and
:41:44. > :41:51.you know, one of my greatest hopes for this presidency is he will be
:41:52. > :41:56.able to start to mend our inability to work across the isle, to have by
:41:57. > :42:02.partisanship, so I am hopeful for that, he is a great negotiator, that
:42:03. > :42:05.is why we voted for him, he has had fantastic success in his
:42:06. > :42:09.professional life, and we expect that he will carry that over and it
:42:10. > :42:14.will translate into his administration.
:42:15. > :42:15.Cathy, thank you very much indeed. Thanks for having me.
:42:16. > :42:19.That is 100 Days for this week - if you'd like to get
:42:20. > :42:21.in touch with us, do so using the hashtag,
:42:22. > :42:24.For now though, from Michelle Fleury in Washington -
:42:25. > :42:27.and me, Christian Fraser, in London - goodbye.
:42:28. > :42:37.Back same time next week. Do join us, same time next week, here on 100
:42:38. > :42:39.Days on BBC News. Thanks for watching today. Goodbye.