25/04/2017 100 Days

North Korea is fast becoming the Trump administration's most

How is the US going to respond to the threat,

and what will the President tell the senators, who are all invited

A missile-armed American submarine has arrived in South Korea,

just as the North marks a military anniversary with live fire.

President Trump still wants to build a wall along the southern border.

The Mexican Economy Minister tell us they aren't footing the bill.

If they decide to do it, it is in their own right.

The only thing that is clear is there there is no way Mexico

But will that wall shut down the US government?

Congress is back in town, and can't even agree

Also, France is getting ready for round two

But today both candidates suspended the intense focus on that campaign

to honour the 37-year old police officer shot dead

And, Ivanka Trump heads to Berlin to defend her father's

Not everyone in the audience was convinced.

A US nuclear submarine pulled into a South Korean port today.

A US aircraft carrier arrives there soon.

And tomorrow, all 100 US Senators have been invited to the White House

for a really unusual secure briefing on the crisis.

Is the North Korea situation at a tipping point, or is this

political theatre from the White House?

Earlier today, Pyongyang carried out a major live fire military exercise

to mark the 85th anniversary of the founding of its Armed Forces.

It is thought to be planning a sixth nuclear test -

Mr Trump says it is time to take off the blindfolds

According to the New York Times today, here's what the Trump

For more, I spoke to former US Ambassador to the UN

Governor Richardson, how urgent do you think the North Korean situation

is at the moment? Has it become more so just recently? It has become more

urgent recently because the possibility of a tinderbox

conflagration is increased because now the skirmishes may be hopefully

not between North Korea and South Korea with artillery shells, with

conventional weapons. I recalled years ago there was a brush up

because a North Korean vessel shot a South Korean vessel, if fishing

boat. This is the danger of conventional miscalculation,

conventional mistakes. Adding to that the prospect of an exhilarated

nuclear programme. Do you think Mr Trump can do what he says -- and

accelerated nuclear programme. Can he solve the North Korean issue?

Well, it remains to be seen. First, the US needs to develop an overall

strategy. I don't think they have won. Secondly, they have to speak

with one voice. You have too many Cabinet members saying different

things. Third, there has to be an injection of diplomacy into this, a

diplomatic deal of some kind. We don't have that. And fourth, I think

we have to let China to find North Korea and see if it works. I don't

know if it will work, but if they put more sanctions on China, coal

exports, while exports reductions, that might help. That seems to be

part of the Trump administration strategy, and it's what he says he

told Xi Jinping, Chinese entities have got to enforce these sanctions

all we will take action against those Chinese entities. But China's

interest in North Korea not the same as the United States, and at some

point could diverged. That's right, and I believe giving China some

incentives, it seems President Trump is doing that, not naming them

currency manipulators. Maybe some trade benefits, maybe some other

cooperation we don't know about. Instead advised China to help us.

Because in the past they haven't helped us. They like the turmoil on

the Korean peninsular because it causes problems for the United

States. They don't want north and South Korean unification, they don't

want them getting together, they like the turmoil. But maybe they are

changing, because Kim Jong-un, with all of these threats and weapons and

ballistic missile that missiles, conventional warfare, maybe nuclear

weapons. The region is very unstable. The opinion of scientists

more involved about nuclear matters than I am so just that about 2020

North Korea could resolve the issue of how to get a missile to the

United States and a warhead that survives that journey, they could

solve our problem. That would be under Mr Trump's what. Is this the

new foreign policy challenge for the new president? This is more than

Syria, more than the Middle East. More than Canada and Mexico. It

seems that is kind of falling apart too, the relationship. But I think

this involves China, one of our biggest competitors, geopolitical...

I wouldn't call them friends, but geopolitical challenges. And North

Korea with nuclear weapons, going after our friends in Japan and South

Korea with 20,000 Americans, 30,000 American troops in South Korea,

50,000 American troops in Japan. This is a brush fire that could

happen with a little miscalculation. That is why we have to be very

careful. I want the Trump administration policy to work, but I

think they should call down the rhetoric, cool down, let's have it

pre-emptive military strike on the table, don't say that. Just by...

Just say all options are on the table. I have negotiated with the

North Koreans, they are unpredictable. It is a cult of

personality. They don't react the way that we do, they don't negotiate

the way that we do. You put their back against the wall and they may

do something stupid. Paul Richardson, thank you very much.

It's very interesting, but Richardson is not the only person I

have heard saying that the president is painting himself into a corner,

Katty, with some of the rhetoric he is using. What do you think is going

on tomorrow, the fact that he is inviting all 100 senators to the

White House, that's pretty symbolic. Why wouldn't he go to the Senate

himself? Yes, it is not just symbolic, it is almost

unprecedented. I have lived here for 20 years and I have never seen

something like this, a president inviting the entire Senate to the

White House for a security briefing that they could, as you say, have in

the Senate as well. They have secure facilities in the Senate for the

spread of purpose. This is what is leading some observers here in

Washington question about whether that is an element of, you know, TV

performance. The sight of all of these Senators group so my trooping

into the White House will be filmed on television, it adds to the sense

of urgency surrounding the crisis. They won't get any different

information in the White House than they would get in the Senate where

it would usually happen. The issue still is what does the president do

to solve this? As he has now said he wants to do. Because the military

side has all of the same perils that it's had forever. A strike against

North Korea is, as Bill Richardson was suggesting is still something

that is very difficult. And putting pressure on the Chinese is something

that has been tried before and hasn't been successful either. It

will be interesting to see whether the president, with this height in

pension coming out of the north, manages to come up with different

solutions. So this heightened tension.

Donald Trump is denying that he has changed his policy on building

a controversial border wall between the United

Last night he suggested demand for initial funding of the wall

could be pushed back to September so that Congress can avoid

But in a tweet earlier today, the US president said: "Don't let

the fake media tell you that I have changed my position on the wall.

It will get built and help stop drugs, human trafficking etc."

Congress might pay the initial up-front costs, but the President

is insisting that eventually Mexico will foot the bill.

Today, I sat down with Mexico's Secretary of the Economy,

Ildefonso Wahardo, who is here in the UK to talk about

What does he make of the threat of new tarrifs, and the President's

I began by asking him about the Nafta free-trade agreement between

Mexico, the US and Canada. Donald Trump has now opposed tariffs on

Canadian lumber. Will he do the same to Mexico's or industry -- he has

imposed tariffs. You have to remember that today's trade between

the US, Mexico and Canada is regulated by Nafta. You are looking

at day-to-day issues that we have to face. Lumber is not the result of

Nafta, it is the result of a long-term dispute that has been

persistent in the US, and Canada, the process. Having a trade

agreement does not mean that you will have not have trade disputes,

you have a framework of how to solve trade disputes. Today probably you

have learnt that the WTO have been favouring Mexico in a tunnel dispute

with US. What happens if tariffs are imposed on some of your exports to

the United States? We have been very clear, basically saying that we need

to improve Nafta, renegotiate Nafta. With a view to really create value.

We will not increase tariffs and consider trade management

techniques. To start with, the order to construct from Nafta is not to

think about tariffs or quotas. Complicating the relationship of

course is the wall. He has been tweeting about it again today. If a

border tax is brought in to pay for it, all these fees are raised, what

with the repercussions by? The wall has been there from the beginning in

terms of the decision that the new president is making. As long as they

do it in their territory, with their own financial sources, it is their

own sovereign decision to do it. We don't like it, we do not believe the

walls are a solution for issues, there are better ways to handle

things. But if they decide to do it is is in their own sovereign right.

The only thing that is clear is that there is no way Mexico is going to

pay for it. You think for instance that they are going to impose a

specific tariff on imports, at the end of the day, it is US consumers

that will pay for it. And any other idea that comes to mind, you have to

review precisely at the end of the day who will be carrying the burden

of that decision. But you are quite clear, and I think you are on record

as saying, that if tariffs were imposed there would be

repercussions. Obviously, because it is obvious that if you impose

tariffs on your imports, the country is being aggregated, it has to

analyse and respond to the consequence. Now, we don't have to

anticipate, we are in a point that we would like to look at this

constructively. Understanding that there are deep differences in terms

of how to view the key issues, like the wall. But we believe there are

ways to really try to work constructively and to really think

about the new Nafta that will benefit both countries. So, if Nafta

survives, and we must presume that it does, what with the opportunities

before the UK? If Nafta survives, and we hope that it does, it will be

very interesting to look at a Nafta agreement with the UK, which will be

a very strong agreement, because there is a lot of UK investment in

Mexico, Canada and the United States. And it makes a lot of sense

to think of these as a way to simplify how North America relates

to the United Kingdom. Do you know, has it been explored, what sort of

value that would be to the UK in terms of comparison with the EU, is

it as big a market? Is it a bit, could? What opportunities are there

for the UK? You know, obviously the European Union has a value in itself

because a grading economy market is extremely important. At the same

time, when you are one of the countries that is extremely

advanced, the UK service sector is very important. And somehow in the

negotiations, the balance out of very vulnerable sectors limits the

scope of how you can integrate. I think that, regardless of your point

of view in Brexit, now it is a reality, and the UK has a tremendous

advantage of hard to do the architecture of agreements that fit

you and suit you well in terms of the relevant sectors. You sound like

quite a fan of Brexit? I'm not, in fact what I'm trying to do is make

the most of it. Because Mexico has had a very, very dynamic open trade

policy. And we do highly regard our relationship with the UK. So, the

Economy Minister there. I think it is interesting we are starting to

hear other countries talk about how they can replace trade relationships

with the United States, effectively, with trade relationships between

each other. He is talking about trade relationships with the UK, the

Canadians are talking to the Mexicans as well. Is this going to

be the future now, people trying to circumvent a protectionist America?

He told me the very thing, when the Mexican president took office, he

said to the Economy Minister, I want you to diversify our portfolio so we

are not so dependent on bearded states. They are looking at Britain

pulling away from the EU and see a big opportunities dependent on the

United States. He sees a big opportunity in Brexit committee

talks about the service sector, he says it is very valuable to our

country. He is not the first person who has told me about this new

perhaps bigger trade agreement between Canada, the United States,

Mexico and Britain, the four countries in the new trading block.

I don't know what they would call it, I think Bafta has been taken! It

is potentially because they do so much trade between each other, it is

a potential is to. That might gather some traction in the weeks and

months ahead. Interesting, that is exactly the kind of things Mr Trump

doesn't want, big multilateral trade agreements. That is the flip side.

The US Congress is back in town, and they have quite a to-do

As we've mentioned, tomorrow Senators will have a briefing

on North Korea, and then we'll also get new proposals on tax reform.

But, probably most importantly, they need to fund the government

A brief time ago, I spoke with Republican Congressman Dave Brat

about the legislative priorities ahead.

I asked him how he thinks the first 100 Days are going. Let's start with

the status of the wall, we had the Mexican Economy Minister saying

there is no way his government is going to pay for it. If Mexico

doesn't pay for it, you prepared to do so? Can Congress pick up the

bill? Yes, we are talking about a dying payment of a few billion

dollars, this is one of the signature issues of the President --

a down payment. Everybody knows the president gets a little leeway in

the first year, but not in Washington, DC and not in the swamp

right now. We own all three branches of government now and it is a $4

trillion budget and our party, the Republican party, is at the mercy of

eight Senate Democrats. And the American people are just

exasperated. Burnie on the left was a symbol of that, Trump on the

Republican side for visible of that. And so I think we've got to plough

through the some way. I think President Trump will get burned this

one time, but then he will learn the leveraged that he knows so well from

New York and learn how to apply that leveraged going forward. You have

just come back from your recess breakdown in Virginia. How do your

constituents think the president is doing and how do you think he is

doing? I think he's doing fine. I mean, it's a new environment for

him, right? We've got the health care bill, I think we're going to

get that out next week. I'm in the freedom vice president Kayumova, a

very good negotiator. The Supreme Court is favourable, the stock

market is up, everybody. The biggest deal is the tax package. If that

goes through, I think you are going to see an economic pop. The markets

or looking forward to that. Like JFK, it's nonpartisan. JFK did a tax

cut that was similar, Regin did the same and he got growth for a decade

and a half afterwards. That is what we need more of, and that is what

the election was about. If he gets the job going and we are successful,

if we don't have jobs and a couple of years the American people are

going to judge us. Up until now, the president has not had a single

legislative success. In 90 days, I don't know if Duminy legislative

successes up here in the past, we accumulated 20 trillion in that and

put our kids 100 trillion in liabilities. I'm not aware of any

raving success appear. At least he's trying to move the ball in the right

direction. Usually we move it in the wrong direction in this city and we

are bankrupting the country, we have had 2% economic growth in the past

two years. I'm dying to see some good legislation. I don't know who's

doing. I think we are getting on track. What he figures out this

piece, I think it will be eight gold mine. -- a gold mine. I got an

e-mail today from the White House, it has got quite a long

list of what it considers its historic accomplishment leading up

to the 100 day mark. It's a really long list. Despite their boss trying

to play down the event come the end of the week.

So, how will history look back at the last few weeks compared

Joining us from Austin, Texas now is presidential

Mr Brinkley, you heard the Congressman saying that everything

is going swimmingly. You have said it couldn't get much worse. Who's

right? Well, it's been a very disastrous first 100 Days. There's

been no real accomplishment. He pushed through the repeal and

replace the Affordable Care Act, which was the crown jewel of his

first term yelling with Congress, and it blew up in his face. He's

also had a problem of the Russian election probe kind of hanging over

him. He never really has been able to get his footing yet, Donald

Trump. You are looking at 100 Days, the reason that we do that is that

Franklin Roosevelt came in, 15 major pieces of legislation, got the

country going. And John F. Kennedy struggled during his 100 Days but he

decided to unify the country just weeks after his 100 Days with the

moonshot, putting the first man on the moon. Donald Trump seems to be

kind of having gay hangover effect from the 2016 campaign. And the

surprise -- having a hangover effect. The surprise is the repeal

and replace the Affordable Care Act. Give us a sense of historical

perspective? How much should we judge the ultimate success of an

American President on these first few months? I've never been that

keen on the 100 Days bid, but it's tracking in the 21st century, it is

sort of a media term for, you know, doing a quick checkup on how a

president has been. Barack Obama got the 100 Days passed, but he passed

the stimulus package and save General Motors from going bankrupt.

You could track achievements. Let's call it 20 years from now, the

Donald Trump presidential library, maybe kids will swoon over the 100

Days! It was just a time of confusion. And the president stepped

on his message a lot with his Twitter community, the country right

now is more on unified than ever. He never seemed to be able to strike a

note -- is more dis- unified. History may seem a lost opportunity,

it is not doing jobs and infrastructure, dams, bridges,

highways, dumping that may have been able to pull the country together

for the honeymoon season -- something that may have been able to

pull the country together. Is it possible to judge, not just with

this president but with all presidents, how effective a

legislative programme is in 100 Days? They all try to rush things

through to get some points on the board. I just wonder if all

legislation suffers as a result? Well, that's a great question. And

you said it perfectly. Yes, people try to put points on the board. I'm

simply saying, Donald Trump didn't put any point on the board, it

doesn't mean he won't come before. But some presidents have successful

out of the gate runs, some don't. I mean, Ronald Reagan was beloved

after his first 100 Days, but the country kind of pulled for him to

heal after he was shot, he had very high public approval ratings. It is

a kind of rough barometer, but it is important when you campaign and say

you are going to build a wall, he said he was going to repeal and

replace Obamacare, they have got the White House and they couldn't get

the job done, that looks like incompetence or at the very least

the inability to tally votes properly before you put all of your

chips on something that goes that he wires. Douglas Brinkley,

presidential historian, thank you. -- on something that goes haywire.

Donald Trump has often used his daughter Ivanka

as a surrogate, attending events and defending his record.

That was her mission today at a G20 summit in Berlin.

But it didn't really go down so well with the crowd.

Ivanka sat alongside the German Chancellor,

Angela Merkel, and the IMF chief, Christine Lagarde,

and defended her father's record on women and families.

He's been a tremendous champion of supporting families,

You can hear the reaction from the audience.

Some attitudes towards women your father has publicly displayed

in former times might leave one questioning whether he's such

I think the thousands of women who have worked

with and for my father for decades when he was in the private sector

are a testament to his belief and solid conviction

in the potential of women, and their ability to do

What do you make of that? She was good, she is an impressive speaker

on the public stage. She does make a case for his -- her father. His

record is mixed. He has passed an executive order, bills to try and

get more women into science. But he has revoked a fair pay order that

helped women. And earlier he signed an executive order stopping federal

funds for international groups that perform or advisable shunt. Women's

groups are saying it is a mixed record. -- or advise abortions. The

international reproductive fund is what he cut, which is crucial. It

focused on women in Africa, that hardly empowers them. They don't

have control over reproductive rights in that sort of thing. Just

separate to that. What about Angela Merkel in fighting her, as with the

regime she has, to Berlin? -- inviting her. They are trying to

make the point, there is a lot of data on this, that there so many

global studies now that show that companies that employ more women

actually make more money. This study has been done by Columbia, IMF,

Goldman Sachs, that was the point of this gathering. But it got hijacked

by the politics of Donald Trump, I think we are living in that kind of

era word, you know, you try to talk about issues and Donald Trump comes

into the picture. That is what Ivanka found out in Berlin today.

But not a bad channel for Angela Merkel to aim at, she has a route

into the White House. You're watching 100

Days from BBC News. Still to come for viewers on the BBC

News Channel and BBC World News... Now it's down to two,

who will the supporters of the ousted presidential

candidates cast their votes for? We've some new polls

to share with you. And, a post promoting

President Trump's Florida resort finds its way

onto State Department websites. Should it have been

there in the first place? That's still to come

on 100 Days from BBC News. Good evening. Quite a mixed bag of

weather across the UK earlier on today. In northern Scotland it was

like we jumped back into the middle of winter with widespread snow, even

slowed further south in Staffordshire. It was lying on the

cars and roofs. A bit of sign trying here as well and sunny spells and

showers in Dudley. A real mixed bag. We started on a decent note with

some sunshine, but showers developed quite widely and spread south on a

cold wind coming down from a long way north. Another cold night ahead.

A frosty night for many of us, and we are not done with the wintry

showers yet. The next few hours have a good crop of them, they tend to

fade away from western areas, we will keep a few going along the

eastern coast, where it stays windy. Further west where the skies are

clear and winds are lighter, that is where we expect the lowest

temperatures, the blue tinge shows a widespread frost, just a degree or

two above freezing, below freezing in roar spots. But a lot of

sunshine, just the odd shower clipping the tip of Cornwall. Cloud

in the Midlands and the East generally. Showers in East Anglia up

into Yorkshire, more wintry over higher ground. The north-west and

much of Scotland and Northern Ireland, a cold but a bright start

with a good deal of sunshine. One or two showers in the north-west. The

main focus for showers through Wednesday will be central and

eastern parts of England. One or two of those will be heavy with thunder

and hail mixed in. Showers are few and far between in the western

areas, reasonable day with a few spells of sunshine. Northern

Ireland, only eight or 9 degrees. In 11 or 12 for Cardiff and London.

Through the evening, still a few showers for the first part of the

evening, but they become fewer before fading away. Cloud is

gathering in the North and West without bricks of ring. That will be

if each of things as we get on into Thursday. A week weather front is

slipping south, bringing cloud and rain. Behind that we have slightly

less cold or even milder air. Temperatures rising by a degree or

so in England and Wales, the effect will be noticeable in Scotland and

Northern Ireland. Cloud and patchy rain for England and Wales, dries up

in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Glasgow and Belfast to 11 or 12

degrees. Welcome back to 100 Days,

I'm Katty Kay in Washington, A missile armed American submarine

has arrived in South Korea as a former UN ambassador warns

President Trump to be wary. This is the biggest foreign policy

challenge for the new president, more than Syria, more than the

Middle East. And the UK's opposition Labour party

clarifies their position on Brexit. The French President

Francois Hollande has called for unity in the long,

difficult fight against terrorism. He made the remarks at a public

memorial for police officer, Xavier Jugeles, who was shot dead

on the Champs Elysee in Paris last week -

500m where we were broadcasting Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen

also attended that ceremony. On policy - Mr Macron,

is an advocate of open borders, and has urged people not to give

in to fear. Ms Le Pen however wants France

to reintroduce border controls and to deport all foreigners

on the terror watch-list. When you left Paris yesterday to

what extent was this playing into the final round of the election. I

think terror will come into the debate quite strongly next week when

they sit down for this televised debate on Wednesday. Last night

actually Marine Le Pen stood away from the National front, she stood

down as their president. I can see why she did it, but I think the

problem for her if she is synonymous with the National front brand. The

pen name is synonymous with that. But she is trying to stand as

presidential candidate rather than National front candidate. I looked

at some opinion poll figures last night, from one of the polling

agencies had done for the magazine Paris match. They're looking at

where its supporters are going from other camps especially from Jean-Luc

Melenchon. 51% would go to Macron and just 19% to Le Pen. The economic

platform is virtually the same for Jean-Luc Melenchon and Le Pen. Just

to distance yourself from the party name, is that going to do it for

her? I think she is going to say forget the National front, I'm in

line with your anti-globalist, nationalist economy view of life.

You are voting for Jean-Luc Melenchon for those reasons but not

for me because you do not like the National front brand. If you look at

the supporters of Francois Hollande, one third will go to Marine Le Pen,

the Roman Catholic vote, 41%, more right, going for the centre and

Macron then for Le Pen. So she's trying to say I am the mother of the

nation and bring back nationalism to friends and I will get rid of the

elite that have performed so badly over the course of the last ten

years and Mr Macron is more of the same so vote for me and not for the

National front necessarily. It will be very interesting to see whether

making that move and take myself out of the party will actually persuade

voters. Let's move on to the British election.

Today Theresa May took the UK General election campaign to Wales,

a Labour stronghold, where she said this election

is about giving her a clear mandate through the Brexit talks.

Every single vote for me and the local Conservative candidate

will be a vote for a stronger Wales, for a stronger United Kingdom, and,

as I say, will strengthen my hand in those important

And a vote for any other party would be a vote for a week

and failing Jeremy Corbyn, propped up by a coalition

of chaos which would risk our national future.

But on the Labour side today they were clarifying

The Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer said Labour accepted that

free movement of people could not continue but suggested EU nationals

'could' still be allowed in if they had a guaranteed job

offer - while taking aim at the prime minister.

If Theresa May gets another five years in power,

she'll take it as a green light to sideline Parliament,

ignore opposition and drive through a reckless Tory Brexit.

Joining us now from Westminster is the BBC's Eleanor Garnier.

to pick up that quote from Keir Starmer, people with a guaranteed

job offer could come to the UK. Are we saying could or will? I think we

are saying should, if that helps. What he was saying today was that he

understands that Labour understands that with the current membership of

the single market it would mean freedom of movement would have to

end that he said we need an immigration system that works for

the economy so there needs to be into the UK to support business. So

if you have a job offer you can come here. How that is managed in terms

of permits and work visas are still something to be sorted out but he

said the last thing we want is for businesses to go bankrupt here so

here's a few and that of the whole Shadow Cabinet as he said, the top

team of the opposition parties, he said was their view that those with

work permits could come over here. I think it is to be seen whether the

whole of the Shadow Cabinet are signed up to that position but that

is how he put it today. We have said during the programme that Labour has

just clarified its present position. We are edging up towards half a

million new registered voters now. If those voters, some of them want

to take a stand against Brexit still, do they have any other clear

option other than the Liberal Democrats. I think that is what the

Liberal Democrats want to hear, they're the only pro-European party

out there for young people especially to look to. But I think

what the Labour Party needs to do and what they have tried to do today

is show they are pro-European and also flexible when it comes to the

negotiations. The short Brexit has been huge for weeks and months. And

I think it has come to just weeks before a general election and Labour

is trying once again to clarify its position. The referendum was almost

one month ago so it is a difficult task for Keir Starmer and the Labour

Party to do when we are so close to the election. And when Theresa May

is putting out a clear message, saying no to the single market,

noted the customs union, note of freedom of movement. And note of the

European Court of Justice. So unless the Labour Party manages to put the

issue of Brexit to bed, it is not going to get a hearing on the issues

it wants to talk about such is the NHS, being an anti-austerity party,

social care, unless it manages to draw a line under Brexit and present

something that is palatable and clear to the electorate. Then it is

not going to get traction on those other issues and I think it has left

it late in the day to convince the voters that it knows what it is

talking about when it comes to Brexit. Thank you very much.

On Monday night Arkansas carried out back to back executions,

becoming the first US state to put more than one inmate to death

The deaths came after numerous court challenges and as the state races

to use a part of the three drug protocol before it expires.

The BBC's Aleem Maqbool has covered this story extensively for us

This morning I was reading there were a number of stays of execution

but eventually two men were executed on the same night. Yes it was an

extraordinary evening and has been so much drama around these

executions. But as you said this started because Arkansas wanted

these eight executions to happen in ten days because one of the drugs

expires at the end of the month. Some of the legal action to hold off

these executions was about how effective this drug was because

there have been several cases around this country where this legal --

lethal injection cocktail has not worked. In one case a couple of

years ago in Arizona man took almost two hours to die and in another case

in Oklahoma man took 43 minutes. Yesterday it looked like the first

execution of a man named Jack Jones, a convicted rapist and murderer, had

passed off OK. He came into the chamber and it took him apparently

14 minutes to die. But then when the second man was brought him he was in

the execution chamber, on the padded bed, and suddenly at that point he

was told that there was a stay of execution because there had been

problems with the first execution according to lawyers. You have been

down in Arkansas covering the story, I know our viewers around the world

will look at this and think it is barbaric. So many execution is

happening so fast because the drug about to expire. But the drug

companies are distancing themselves from what Arkansas is doing as well.

That is why I think it will become even more difficult for states to

put people to death. Not only was that action about the fact that

there are suffering involved for some of these people but now the

drug companies are saying we do not want to sell these drugs to states

any more because now we know what they're used for. They were sold to

be states on a medicinal basis because they were going to be used

for therapeutic uses. Now they find out what they're used for they do

not want to sell any more. There had been stays of execution on that

basis but the Supreme Court in the end ruled that the executions could

go ahead. That is what Arkansas had this problem because after the drug

runs out they do not know where they're going to get it from.

Donors at a conference in Geneva have pledged nearly one point

one billion dollars - that's 857million pounds -

to Yemen to help relieve what the UN is calling the "world's

The United Nations had previously asked for more than two billion

dollars as aid groups warn the country is on

Two years of war between a Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen's

government and Houthi rebels have devastated the country.

And Sir Elton John is recovering at home after cancelling a series

of shows in America due to what's been described as a potentially

Sir Elton - who's 70 - fell ill while on tour

The President calls his Mar E Lago resort in Florida his

But of course he shares it with his paying guests.

It is part of the Trump business empire, the fees have gone up

since he became President, and every time he stays there,

his brand gets some more valuable publicity.

And what if the federal government was also marketing

The US state department was forced to react quickly this week

to criticism of a blog on its website that was promoting

What's more, several American embassies republished it.

We did try to take a look at that blog on the US embassy's UK page,

Yes - the State Department has taken it down, saying that it regrets

The White House said they had no idea that this was going up.

Let's do some marketing of our own and tell viewers that we're going to

be carrying on after 100 days. We have a special programme on Friday,

days on Friday. -- 99 days. We will be here on Monday as well and we

hope you will be with us tomorrow as well. We will be back at the same

time.