20/01/2018 BBC Weekend News

Crisis talks in the US,

as politicians try to break

the deadlock that's shut down

the American government.

It comes as tens of thousands hold

protests, marking a year

after the first women's march,

held in opposition to

President Trump's inauguration.

Gunmen storm one of

the highest-profile hotels

in the Afghan capital,

Kabul.

Two of the attackers

are reported killed.

Mary Lou McDonald is confirmed

as the only candidate nominated

to replace Gerry Adams

as Sinn Fein President.

And in rugby, defending champions

Saracens thrash Northampton

to keep their hopes alive

of qualifying for the European

Champions Cup quarterfinals.

Good evening.

The US national government has

officially shut down,

a year to the day since Donald Trump

took office as President.

Senators failed to agree a stop-gap

budget amid a bitter row between

President Trump's Republicans

and the opposition Democrats over

immigration and border security.

Senators are tonight trying

to to broker a deal to get the US

government running again.

It comes as thousands of women

joined marches across the country

to mark the first anniversary

of President Trump's inauguration.

David Willis reports

from Washington.

Marking the first anniversary

of President Trump's inauguration,

protesters took to the streets

here in Washington

and across the country,

as the government of the largest

economy in the world

went into shutdown.

Yays are 50, and the nays are 49.

Last night, a stopgap funding

measure came up ten votes short.

That after the Democrat leader

in the Senate, Chuck Schumer,

met with President Trump

at the White House.

Progress was made, he said,

before the deal-maker

in chief changed his mind.

Negotiating with this White House

is like negotiating with Jell-o.

It's next to impossible.

As soon as you take one step

forward, the hard-right forces

the President three steps back.

The White House branded the Democrat

"obstructionist losers".

What we've just witnessed

on the floor was a cynical decision

decision by Senate Democrats

To shove aside millions of Americans

for the sake of a responsible

political game. The government

shutdown was 100% avoidable.

As the

vote collapsed, outside on the

streets of the capital were the

people whose fate Democrats wanted

to tie to this funding agreement -

young people brought into the United

States illegally, whom President

Trump is threatening to deport.

Republicans want their fate linked

to funding for the wall along the

Mexican border, a pet project for

President Trump. Members of Congress

are working over the weekend to try

to find a solution for the crisis.

Hundreds of thousands of

nonessential government workers will

be placed on temporary and paid

leave. And not even members of the

military will be paid until a

breakthrough is reached -- on paid

leave. President Trump took issue

with that today, tweeting that

Democrats are holding the military

hostage over their desire to have

unchecked illegal immigration,

cannot let that happen. The last

government shutdown

government shutdown here, in 2013,

caused the closure of national parks

and led to around 800,000 government

workers being placed on leave.

Nobody here wants to see history

repeat itself. A year ago, the

president was celebrating sweeping

the power on the platform as the

ultimate deal-maker. He starts his

second year with the government in

shutdown and his approval ratings at

an low. -- at an all-time low. We

will have more from David shortly.

Pennsylvania was one of the key

states in delivering

President Trump his victory.

He inspired hope among many

working-class voters

in places like Bethlehem -

a former steel town that hadn't

voted for a Republican

for President since the 1980s.

The BBC's Nick Bryant went

there to see how people

rate his performance one year on.

It was rust-belt towns that helped

put Donald Trump in the White House.

One-time steel powerhouses such

as Bethlehem, Pennsylvania,

which hadn't gone Republican

since the 1980s.

Democratic strongholds that

became Trump country.

So, all this is new?

All this is new, all this is new.

Keith Hornet runs his

own construction firm,

and has built 300 new apartments

since Donald Trump became President.

He knows there's been a rise

in business and consumer confidence.

It's seen him double his workforce.

As long as I see builders happy,

shovels going in the ground

and there is work ahead of me,

I'm happy.

You're seeing a Trump bump?

Absolutely.

100%.

No doubt in my mind.

This is a direct result.

He might turn out to be

one of the greatest

Presidents we ever had.

George Ambrosio runs a barbers shop,

but keeps a close eye

on the stock market,

which has reached record highs

and has risen about 30%

since this time last year.

A registered Democrat,

he is proud to have voted

for the billionaire.

He's getting all of

the politicians shook up.

No business as usual.

And I like what he's doing.

What about his behaviour?

Well, you know...

What are you going to do?

I mean, you don't like his tweeting,

nobody likes his tweeting.

But in my mind, for my customers

and everybody else, it's

what everybody's thinking

but won't say.

But there are people

in Bethlehem who regard

Donald Trump not as a messiah,

but a pariah.

Pensioner Julie Rae is worried about

the new President's temperament.

It's a common complaint from

Republicans as well as Democrats.

I don't think he has a real grasp

on any kind of reality, in a way.

You know, in a theatrical

reality, yes, he's great.

But as far as leading our

country, I think he has no

clue what he's doing.

And I don't think he realises

the seriousness of it.

People in these communities aren't

consumed by the fire and fury gossip

coming from the White House.

They are not following every

twist and every tweet.

Many judge this presidency

with an economic yardstick, and,

financially, many feel better off

than they did this time last year.

For all the chaos and controversy

in Washington, there's a sense

of resurgence in the rust belt.

Nick Bryant, BBC News, Pennsylvania.

Let's pick-up some points with David

Willetts now. Despite Nick's report,

with the protests and the shutdown

of government, this is, it's fair to

say, not the kind of weekend the

president would have liked to have

had one year on from his

inauguration?

Not exactly, I think

that's there to say. The president

was due to be guest of honour at a

fundraising dinner to mark the

one-year anniversary of his

inauguration at his posh Florida

resort, Mar-a-Lago. Instead, he is

here in Washington, feuding with

opposition Democrats. And if

anything, his stance seems to have

hardened over the last 24 hours. The

White House is saying point-blank

that there will be no negotiation on

immigration, the so-called dreamers

issue, until Democrats help to solve

the impasse as far as the shutdown

is concerned. The Democrats say that

you just can't debate with this man

coming he keeps changing his mind.

Meanwhile, the iconic Statue of

Liberty has been closed, and

training for military recruits is

being put on hold. Many are

wondering whatever happened to the

President who gave the world the art

of the deal, Kate.

David, thank you.

In Afghanistan, gunmen have stormed

one of the most popular

international hotels in the capital,

Kabul, opening fire

on staff and guests.

At least four men are said to have

carried out the attack

on the Intercontinental hotel.

Two of them are reported

to have been shot dead

by Afghan special forces.

Several civilian casualties have

been taken to hospital.

Our correspondent Zia

Shahreyar is in Kabul now.

What updates do

you have for us, Zia?

Several hours after the attack

started, it's still going on,

according to officials. Two

attackers are still resisting inside

the hotel Intercontinental, a very

high profile hotel in Kabul. And

five people have been injured,

according to officials. But there

are also unconfirmed reports of many

people who have died in this attack.

And

And also, the Afghan security

forces, special forces, have been

deployed to the area. And also the

Nato forces are set to be in the

area, helping the Afghan security

forces. The hotel was also attacked

several years ago. And the

responsibility was taken by the

Taliban. No group has taken

responsibility so far for this

current attack. And the security

forces are engaging to clear

different floors of the hotel. And

it's also said that the kitchen of

the hotel is burning and has been

set on fire. So we will have to wait

a few hours to see what probably the

casualties, the real casualties of

the attack, and who is taking

responsibility for the attack.

Thank

you, Zia.

Sinn Fein has announced

who'll succeed Gerry Adams

as its Party President.

Mary Lou McDonald, who's a Member

of Parliament in the Irish Republic,

was the only candidate for the role.

The two come from very

different backgrounds,

as our Ireland Correspondent,

Chris Page, reports.

Many would say Gerry Adams

has been handing over

to Mary Lou McDonald for some time.

And today, Sinn Fein confirmed

she would be the new leader

of Irish Republicanism.

Please welcome the President-Elect

of our party, Mary Lou McDonald.

She indicated she'd put her

own stamp on the job.

I won't fill Gerry's shoes.

But the news is that

I brought my own, and we together

will walk a journey which marks

a defining Epoque, a defining

chapter in our achievement

of a united Ireland.

Her own political journey has been

very different to her predecessor.

Gerry Adams came from a

working-class area of west Belfast,

the crucible of the conflict

in Northern Ireland.

Security sources believe

he was a senior IRA member,

though Mr Adams has always denied

being in the organisation.

Mary Lou McDonald

was brought up in a

middle-class suburb of Dublin.

She joined Sinn Fein

during the peace

process, just as the party

was starting to score electoral

success in the Irish Republic.

She's become a robust

parliamentary adversary

of the Prime Minister,

Leo Varadkar.

Sinn Fein's opponents still focus

on the party's links to

the IRA, and Sinn Fein is continuing

to defend the IRA campaign, but it

prefers to talk about the present

rather than the past.

As well as being the

second-biggest party here

in Northern Ireland, it is also now

the third-largest in the Republic.

The first challenge

for Mary Lou McDonald will be

negotiations to restore

power-sharing

with Unionists at Stormont.

But in the coming years,

she'll be talking a lot about

Brexit, which Republicans believe

has changed the picture and renewed

the debate about Irish unity.

Chris Page, BBC News, Belfast.

Six women from the British Army have

become the largest all-female group

to ski coast-to-coast

across Antarctica.

The Ice Maiden Team began

the 1,000-mile expedition

on November the 20th.

They've been battling

winds of up to 60 mph

and temperatures as low as -40.

Tough stuff.

With all the sport, here's

Lizzie Greenwood Hughes

at the BBC Sport Centre.

Thanks very much.

Good evening.

It's been a busy day of football.

Match of the Day and

Scottish Cup highlights

are on BBC One later tonight.

So, if you don't want to know

the scores, you know what to do...

Manchester City bounced back

from their first defeat

of the season with a 3-1 home

victory over Newcastle United.

The runaway Premier League leaders

are still 12 points clear

at the top of the table.

Sergio Aguero scoring a hat-trick.

Elsewhere, there wins

for Arsenal, champions Chelsea,

Manchester United, Leicester

and Stoke, who were playing under

new manager Paul Lambert

for the first time.

In the Scottish Cup,

Aberdeen eased into the fifth

round with a 4-1 win over

Championship side St Mirren.

Gary Mackay-Steven with the goal

of the game to seal their place

in the last 16 draw.

Amongst the other teams

through are the Highland League side

Brora Rangers and Cup holders

Celtic.

Alexis Sanchez will move to

Manchester United after their

player, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, agreed

to go to Arsenal in return.

The quarterfinal line-up for rugby

union's European Champions Cup

is still undecided, as teams

continue to jostle

for places on the last

weekend of qualification.

Holders Saracens gave themselves

a late life-line by beating

Northampton at the expense

of Ospreys, which means the only

Welsh team through are Scarlets.

They topped their pool

with a narrow win over Toulon,

leaving Bath in the cold.

Ade Adedoyen rounds

up the action for us.

For the fans, the final round of

pool matches in the European

Champions Cup is something of a

mathematical maze, but a whole host

of permit Asians and possible

outcomes for their team. For the

defending champions, Saracens, --

permutations. They hope other

results go their way. But it was the

visitors who opened the scoring.

Saracens, desperate to preserve

their dream of winning a third

successive European title, quickly

took control of the match, running

in five tries in the first half to

pretty much wrapped things up before

the interval. Richard Wigglesworth

securing the bonus point. The second

half was more of the same, with two

Moore tries to compete an emphatic

win. -- two more tries to complete

an emphatic win. They are in a

strong position to qualify as one of

the best runners-up. Scarlets are

guaranteed a place in the

quarterfinals. They had to win

against Toulon, and did, but only

narrowly, after taking a convincing

lead and the players had to give

everything to resist a fightback

from the French side.

World number one Simona Halep

survived an epic battle

at the Australian Open tennis

to reach the fourth round.

But former champion

Maria Sharpova is out.

In the men's draw, there was no

trouble for top seed and defending

champion Roger Federer -

who, at 36, looked as good as ever

on his way to beating

Richard Gasguet in straight sets.

Novak Djokovic is also through.

Britain's Kyle Edmund

is action overnight.

Going for his first ever grand slam

quarterfinal.

Now, it's just a few weeks

until the Winter Olympics

begin in PyeongChang.

And today, the IOC have agreed

that hosts South Korea

and their neighbours North Korea can

march under the same flag

in the opening ceremony.

The International Olympic Committee

has also allowed both nations

to field a unified team

in the women's ice hockey

for the first time.

North Korea will have 22

athletes at the Games,

including skiers and ice skaters.

There's plenty more

on the Winter Olympics

on the BBC Sport website,

including some brilliant

footage of the British

women's bobsleigh team.

But from me, for now, goodnight.

Thanks, Lizzie.

You can see more on all of today's

stories on the BBC News channel.

That's all from me.

Goodnight.