13/12/2017 Beyond 100 Days

You're watching beyond 100 days.

Democrats celebrate victory in

Alabama where they have returned one

of their own to the Senate. It is a

blow for President Trump, Steve

Bannon and other Republicans who

campaigned for the controversial

candidate Roy Moore. A Democrat

elected in the deep South is a big

shop but what does it mean?

We have

shown not just in Alabama but we

have shown the country the way, that

we can be unified.

Donald Trump now

says that he knew all along that Roy

Moore could not win of the loss

shrinks his Senate majority and

makes his job harder. US secretary

of state Rex Tillerson said America

would sit down to talk to North

Korea without preconditions. The

White House says, not so fast. Also

the British Government accused of

being deaf to the Brexit concerned

of its own MPs. The prime Minster

faces rebellion on a key piece of

Brexit legislation, the vote

expected in Parliament any time now.

And the words of the year, what do

events around the world tell us

about what people are searching for

online. Do get in touch with us.

Hello I'm Katty Kay in Washington,

Christian Fraser is in London.

Democrats today are triumphant,

celebrating their first big victory

in Alabama in more than 20 years.

They're hoping it is a sign that the

political tide is turning in their

favour. Democratic voters turned out

in almost record numbers. Party

leaders suggest it is the President

Trump affect. But how much does it

reflect the rest of the country. The

Republican candidate Roy Moore was

both extreme and exceptional.

Democrats are unlikely to run

against someone quite like him

anywhere else. A short time ago

President Trump expressed his regret

over not picking up that Alabama

seat.

We lost a seat, many

Republicans feel they were happy it

turned out that way.

But I would

have liked to have the seat. With

more on the dramatic results last

night here is Nick Bryant.

Modern-day Democrats aren't supposed

to win staunchly conservative

states like Alabama.

It's 25 years since that happened.

So no wonder this blizzard

of confetti to mark the shock

victory of Doug Jones.

Alabama has been at a crossroads.

We have been at a

crossroads in the past.

And unfortunately we have usually

taken the wrong fork.

Tonight, ladies and gentlemen,

you took the right road!

The losing Republican

candidate, Roy Moore, thought

he was on his way to Washington.

But he was hit by allegations,

which he denies, of sexual

misconduct against teenage girls.

And shunned by senior figures

in the Republican establishment.

That is where the anger of his

dejected supporters was directed.

It is really sad for the people

of Alabama, what took place

in this state tonight.

You think you have been betrayed

by the Republican establishment?

Absolutely.

No doubt about that.

You know, there was a lot

of dirty politics going on.

I have never seen such ugly slander,

what I believe were blatant lies.

I have never seen such

despicable behaviour.

# You can't always

get what you want...

It's true.

You can't always get what you want.

A lesson for Donald Trump,

who has strongly backed Roy Moore.

So get out and vote for Roy Moore...

So this is a big black eye

for the president and also a failure

of the Trump political playbook.

To deny accusations of wrongdoing

as fake news and to attack accusers.

In Washington this reduces

the Republican majority in the US

Senate to a single seat,

making it even harder

for Donald Trump to get

legislation through Congress.

It also boosts Democratic hopes

of winning back control

of Capitol Hill in congressional

elections next year.

A key battleground will be

the suburbs, and this

election revealed a weakness

there for Donald Trump amongst

moderate Republicans.

On his Twitter feed this morning

the president was blaming a flawed

Republican candidate

for this humiliating defeat.

But Donald Trump

was also a big loser.

Nick Bryant, BBC News, Alabama.

Senior Republicans

on the Hill had been telling

the President for weeks that

Roy Moore was a bad candidate.

So perhaps there was a sense

of Shadenfreude among some today.

Senator Jeff Flake,

who was so appalled by Moore's

selection - he sent

Doug Jones 100 dollars

for his campaign, tweeted this: -

Decency wins.

The Republican representative

Pete King went

a little further: After Alabama

disaster GOP must do right thing

and DUMP Steve Bannon.

His act is tired, inane

and morally vacuous.

If we are to Make America

Great Again for all

Americans, Bannon must go!

And go NOW!!

Joining us now from Capitol Hill is

the BBC's Laura Bicker.

What do they make of this on the

Democratic side?

I have been

listening to one senator who has

been speaking to the networks and

talking about a grassroots movement

in Alabama. He said they were on the

ground way before the sexual

allegations came to light. They're

saying that this is the path to

victory when it comes to 2018, but

they can wrestle back control of the

Senate. The Republicans are throwing

a bit of cold water on that because

they are saying when it comes to

this victory it was a one-off, it

was extraordinary circumstances and

that is what caused their man to

lose. That he was the wrong

candidate in the first place. When

you look at the numbers and break it

down it is interesting to see that

the Democratic vote came from

predominantly African-American

voters, 90% of them of African

American women voted for Dow Jones

and on the other side looking at Roy

Moore most of his vote was

predominantly white and over 65.

When you look at where the

Republicans on the hill apportion

the blame clearly going after Steve

Bannon who was in the Hamptons last

night ironically. They want the

president to listen a little less to

Steve Bannon.

I think when it comes

to the kind of Steve Bannon versus

establishment Republican argument

here today there is a lot of

finger-pointing at Steve Bannon.

Elsewhere perhaps out in the Midwest

there are saying hang on, Mitch

McConnell did not do much to support

the candidate, establishment

Republicans were not there on the

ground and that is why Roy Moore may

have lost. But when you speak to

people hear what they're trying to

look at, lesson learned.

Here's what

one had to say earlier. Should we be

concerned about being able to do

better with younger voters and

African American voters, absolutely,

we need to do better. We need to

have a good substantive agenda and

communicated a lot better. We do a

poor job of communicating our agenda

to people in the coalition and we

have got to go out and get more

people, younger people, African

Americans, Hispanics, bring more

people in to be a successful

majority party.

So both sides

looking at this as a way to learn a

lesson. What worked, what did not

stop both have got an eye on 2018.

For the moment, thank you very much.

That's the reaction on the Hill,

let's have a quick look

at reaction from Alabama today.

Here's the local morning papers.

The Anniston Star goes

all in on the Democratic colour.

Here's the Montgomery Advertiser -

"Sen Jones D for Democrat" -

and the Auburn News -

"Alabama Stunner".

So what does this mean

for Mr Trump's supporters?

With me in the studio

is Republican Mica Mosbacher

who serves on the national advisory

board of Trump for

President in 2020.

If there is one lesson for the

Republican party to learn what would

it be?

Simply to choose a better

candidate. Roy Moore was a very

flawed candidate and while the

sexual allegations in this climate

are swirling around especially in

the entertainment industry and

definitely it was a factor, it is

sending a message that we do need

better candidates. I have to say as

a female I was squeamish once these

women came out with allegations, I

did not really want to victimise

them again. In regards to it being a

referendum on Donald Trump, it is

not. Populism is alive and well in

this country and I judge that by

looking at the RNC and the fact that

they've raised over $100 million in

a non-election year, a record. A

large portion of that has come from

small donors for the first time, the

grassroots base of the party. So the

establishment of which I was apart

for many years, is still not a

factor because the election was a

backlash against the establishment,

the institutions in this country.

Even it it is not a referendum on

the president he did come out in

support of Roy Moore and so does at

Wigan in any way?

He would look bad

if he acted like John McCain or

Senator Jeff Blake by not playing on

the same team. So he went out and

supported the candidate that we had.

Unfortunately it all hat and no

cattle candidate.

You said that you

were squeamish, and some of the

voters blame the Republican

establishment again but I struggle

to see why because Paul Ryan, Mitch

McConnell, senior figures did

denounce Roy Moore and did not want

him as the candidate.

It was the

president who backed him. They

denounced Roy Moore because I think

they were concerned about their own

elections in 2018. And it is

important to look at Steve Bannon,

the firebrand of the party and what

he's doing is energising the base as

we go into 2018, there are 12 keys

Senate races up for grabs, ten

Senate races that are in vulnerable

areas for Democrats including

Pennsylvania, Michelin and

Wisconsin. Trump carried them for

the first time since 1988. So with

the robust ground game in the RNC

and the fact that they have ramped

up those ground games in 12 Senate

races, I think the Democrats while

they are taking a victory lap right

now will have challenges with very

strong candidates going into the

following year.

Well the president

will listen to Steve Bannon because

he puts him in touch with the base

but will other candidates listen to

Steve Bannon and the president next

year because maybe after this result

they would think they're better off

going on there own path.

I do not

think so because riding on the

coat-tails of Donald Trump right now

is absolutely at the heart and soul

of this party. I those candidates

who have distanced themselves from

Donald Trump will be vulnerable.

They will lose donor support. A lot

of pundits missed the fact that

there was momentum with Donald Trump

in the 2016 elections.

But Peter

King congressman has said that is

enough of Steve Bannon, that he is

not helpful to the party and to

candidates.

I disagree, I think he

continues to the base just as the

president does when he tweets. And

President Trump listens to a variety

of opinions and he departed from

Steve Bannon in terms of supporting

Luther strange. So he is a person

that takes in a lot of different

opinions but absolutely does not

follow one playbook.

Thank you for

coming in. Great to get those

thoughts. She said riding on the

coat-tails of Donald Trump is at the

heart and soul of the party at the

moment. Well take a look at this

tweet...

What do you make of that?

Democrats

today are talking about the prospect

of an election coming next year and

that Donald Trump are so unpopular

that they will manage to take

control of the Senate again and also

take seats in the House of

Representatives. The energy we've

seen in marches around the country

they say will be translated into

votes. I would say Rory more was an

extreme candidate. They will not

face candidates lacking in other

states. -- Roy Moore. Although

states they have to defend to hold

the summit. They also say there is a

demographic shift taking place in

the country. We spoke about this

before the election in 2016. But

they seem to be saying that young

voters in Alabama turned towards the

Democrat. And fairly conservative

young voters in Alabama and this

could be a sign of things to come.

This shift favouring the Democratic

public -- party of the Republican

Party.

Here, Theresa May faces a rebellion

this evening in her party on the key

piece of Brexit legislation that

will transfer EU law

into British law.

Conservative MPs have put forward

an amendment to the so-called

Withdrawal Bill that would secure

parliament a "meaningful vote"

on any final deal before

Britain leaves the EU.

We can listen in now.

Order. Order.

We all want to hear the result.

Let's make sure that the result is

correct.

The ayes to the right 309, the noes

to the left 305.

Order.

I'm sure you want to hear the result

to make sure it is correct. The ayes

to the right 309. The noes to the

left 305. The eyes have it. Locke.

It would appear the government has

lost a crucial vote this evening on

the Brexit legislation. The

withdrawal bill is moving slowly

through Parliament at the moment but

the rebels in the Conservative Party

have put forward an amendment and

they were a meaningful vote, on any

final deal agreed with the EU at the

end of this process rather than a

rubber-stamping exercise that they

have currently been promised by the

government. Let's go to Westminster

and Vicki Young. A major defeat on

the government on the eve of this EU

summit in Brussels tomorrow.

A lot

of the arm-twisting from the

government to their own rebel MPs

would have been to say look, Theresa

May has had a good few days and

managed to get this preliminary deal

with the EU meaning we can move to

the next stage of talks for top

things going OK for the first time

in a long time and you want to

scupper that by trying to defeat her

and they have succeeded in doing so

by just four votes. All day it has

been looking incredibly close. Right

at the last minute, a minister

offered a concession, some Tory MPs

said it was too late to stop we have

been talking about this romance and

in the end the government misjudged

this and they have been defeated. It

is all about the power MPs want as

the process goes on, not necessarily

now but further down the line when

you have the withdrawal bill, the

terms of how we leave and the future

relationship. Who will be in charge

of that, who is in the driving

street and enough MPs tonight felt

they needed more powers to make sure

they are in charge and ministers

cannot just change things as they go

along without any parliamentary

scrutiny.

The government had

promised a vote on the final deal.

Why all the fuss about the vote that

they had been promised, what is the

difference with the vote they want?

Well it is all about the kind of

vote it is. What MPs were offered by

the government was really a yes or

no vote on a resolution of the

house. That is not necessarily

binding and also means it is just

take it or leave it. MPs wanted to

make sure this was put into law, put

into legislation so they scrutinise

it, every single line. But it went

through this place in the normal way

and also in decent pint so not done

far too late to make any changes. Of

course critics and Brexiteers said

those on the remain side are simply

using this device to try to scupper

Brexit. Some in some parties, that

will be the case but others say it's

all about democracy. A lot of chat

about Brexit was about bringing back

power and control to Parliament and

they say that is what this about.

Always winners and losers in

politics. The rebels appear to have

won by defeating the government but

they're sending the Prime Minister

to Brussels tomorrow and she now

looks weaker.

I think she does but

I'm sure they are well aware of her

situation. This is what minority

government looks like. She's in this

arrangement with the Democratic

Unionist Party but in the end she

could not persuade enough of her own

MPs to come along with her on this.

I think there will be questions

asked about the way the government

dealt with this. A concession at the

last minute which literally in the

last few minutes did win over people

who were Tories about to vote

against the government some for the

first time in their career and they

did change their minds but not quite

enough. Maybe if they had done it

earlier they would have won. So the

question certainly about tactics

here but ultimately it will add to

the bad blood there is between

people in the Conservative Party,

some of whom say they are refighting

the referendum campaign.

Just on

that point, tactically speaking, the

Prime Minister must have known there

was a chance that she was going to

lose this vote. Perhaps she could

have thrown them a bone tonight and

allowed them to get away with this

already is it just quite

embarrassing.

I think she knew it

was on the cards, everyone has known

that for a while. She even called in

some of rebels today, they went to

speak to her, I'm sure that she

tried to persuade them. But in the

end it just has not been enough. She

is weakened in all of this. A lot of

them do it with a heavy heart, some

of them it is the first time they've

ever rebelled against their own

government and did not want to be in

this position and their irritated in

fact that ministers, some of them

junior ministers, have not tried to

get a compromise. They have been

many concessions along the way to

avoid this kind of thing but on this

occasion the government clearly felt

they could get through and they have

miscalculated.

Thank you very much.

A lot going on tonight and a lot of

turmoil at the moment.

Wildfires continue to rage

across parts of southern California

as firefighters battle one

of the largest blazes

in the state's history.

Hundreds of buildings and homes

have been destroyed,

with more than 100,000 people

forced to evacuate.

Emergency teams have now managed

to slow the spread of the flames

which have raged for the past week.

The four times Tour de France

champion, Chris Froome,

is being investigated by cycling's

world governing body

after an adverse drugs test.

Analysis of a urine sample showed

the cyclist had more than double

the allowed level of an asthma drug

in his system, during this year's

grand tour of Spain.

The 32-year-old British star -

who has not been suspended -

says the dosage was within

the legal limits.

The US reality TV star turned

political operative,

Omarosa Manigault, is to leave her

role at the White House.

The former star of The Apprentice

will leave early next year.

Press secretary Sarah Sanders

confirmed the resignation.

Although one of the most

prominent African-Americans

in the Trump administration,

colleagues often questioned

what she actually did.

What did she do?

I have asked people

that and they never quite knew what

she did. She was there for public

affairs and strategy. She is to turn

up at meetings and be in the

corridors but no one was clear what

she did. Now there is a question

about how she left, a lot of

speculation on why. She is telling

friends today that she decided to

leave, she'd been there for one year

and actually there are reports that

she was asked to leave. I think this

takes us to number nine perhaps of

Trump administration officials who

have left or resigned or been asked

to resign in the course of not even

his first year in office. She is

also one of the kind of war by hard

Trump fans who was there promoting

the nationalist, populist economic

agenda with him and now she has

gone.

Sebastian gawker was another,

a strange character who seem to

wander around the shadow the White

House and no one seemed to know what

she did.

Scientists have warned that a

warming Arctic is the new normal.

But one researcher said human beings

had left the refrigerator door open.

It came at a meeting in New Orleans.

Take a look.

Some alarming statistics.

Coming up, with UK on the way out,

Macedonia once in. The Balkan

country and its future on the EU and

Nato. We hear from their Defence

Minister. And what do these words

tell us about 2017? We will be

finding out. All still to come.

tell us about 2017? We will be

finding out. All still to come.

Hello once again, not quite done

with winter just yet and there is

more snow overnight for some areas

in the British Isles. A lot of

weather is still to be had at the

moment, we have various bands of

whether moving across the British

Isles over the course of the day.

And now as we look towards the West,

things are brewing yet again. It

looks as though there could be

another impression of snow are quite

low levels for a time through the

Midlands, getting down towards East

Anglia. And following on behind

further pulses of snow into areas of

Wales, the North West of England,

Northern Ireland and the western

side of Scotland. Further to the

east the skies is mainly clearer

especially across the eastern side

of Scotland. So again getting close

to 0 degrees if not alone in a

number of locations. And for the new

day, having had that moisture coming

through overnight there will be

further issues on untreated surfaces

with ice. So just bear that in mind

for your commute. We have been here

before this week but those icy

patches may not be just in the same

locations. Plenty of showers around,

quite wintry across the higher

ground of Scotland and even through

the Central Belt of well at quite

low-level. And also quite windy as

well. But a bit of sunshine to be

had but not doing much for the

temperatures. As we move towards

Friday, the isobars coming in from

north to south and that will be the

flow of the wind meaning it is

coastal areas that get the peppering

of showers down the spine of the

country. A lot of dry and bright

weather but doing nothing to those

temperatures. But into the weekend

we see milder air coming in from the

Atlantic. To the extent that the

temperatures through Saturday and

Sunday will bump up by 23 degrees at

the very least. -- two or three

degrees.

This is Beyond 100 Days, with me,

Katty Kay, in Washington.

Christian Fraser's in London.

Our top stories...

Doug Jones is the first Democrat

to win in Alabama in 25 years -

beating the Republican contender

for the Senate, Roy Moore.

At Westminster, the Prime Minister

faces rebellion on a key piece

of Brexit legislation.

Coming up in the next half hour...

Lining up for EU membership -

why Macedonia wants to be part

of that club, and Nato.

We'll be speaking to

the Defence Minister.

And...

A prestigious dictionary is out

with its word of the year -

you'll have to stay with us

for the big reveal.

Let us know your thoughts

by using the hashtag...

The tiny land-locked

country of Macedonia wants

a seat at the table.

The EU table and the Nato table.

This former Soviet bloc nation

emerged this summer from ten

years of nationalist rule

and its new government -

elected on a ticket

of anti-corruption and economic

reform - is now

pushing to get ahead.

To that end, the country's

Minister of Defence -

who is also the country's

Deputy Prime Minister -

is on a tour of Europe's capitals.

Last week, Radmila

Sekerinska was in Berlin.

Today she is in London.

And she joins us in the studio.

Why does Macedonia want to be a

member of the European Union?

Being

a tiny landlocked country in the

Balkan Peninsula, it is enough. We

have gone through the 1990s and the

difficulties of Yugoslavia falling

apart. And we know how important it

is to have stable governance, decent

democratic values and to belong to

something which is better and

bigger. These were the key issues

that have emerged from our citizens.

I was on your border a couple of

years ago, actually. Greece,

Macedonia, you were an important

staging post on the route through

the Balkans to Europe. A lot of

migrants came your way and then your

defence forces pulled down the

drawbridge and that was it. There

was no way forward. Do you feel at

that point that you got enough help

from the European Union? Because

there is a feeling tomorrow that

European countries are not taking

enough of the quarter. That is what

they will be talking about in

Brussels.

We got a lot of positive

supportive messages by many EU

officials. We got some equipment. We

even have now some police officers

that are part of this joint European

support. But it is true that without

a co-ordinated European response

generally dealing with the migration

issue, Macedonia is not strong

enough to sustain the pressure. So

it is really, if you asked me what

kind of support we need from the E,

it is first and foremost a plan of

how to deal with future migration.

-- from the EU.

It is solidarity.

That is what it is founded on. If

there is not solidarity to share the

migrants, countries like yours get

lumbered with an unclear proportion.

-- unfair proportion.

We did not

have a single migrant wishing to

stay in Macedonia because they also

look for social and economic

opportunities. Macedonia is also in

dire straits, unfortunately. It is

true that we have the support needed

to control the border. We can still

take advantage of some of that

equipment. But it is true that we

had to use additional military

support for police officers and army

men are still there. Macedonia is

still playing a huge budgetary price

four other control at the Borders.

We'll we said we are prepared to

share the burden. What we are also

looking at is a possibility of open

doors of it comes to Nato and the

EU. If we can help Nato at times of

need, it is helpful if we get

solidarity and support when it comes

to our strategic goal of becoming a

member.

Minister, let me ask you

about Macedonian politics. Earlier

this year, you were physically

attacked by your political

opponents. I think we have the

pictures. Extraordinary scenes that

came to us out of Macedonia. We can

see them there. Nationalist members

of your Parliament blocked in and

punched you and I think you ended up

in an orthopaedic place. Firstly,

how are you, I hope you're better. I

was the kind of images you think a

country that wants to join the EU

can have passed around the

continent?

Democratic and serious

countries get into trouble. I think

the key question is...

We don't

often see those images from EU

member states.

How do we prevent

this? Macedonia has been going

through a protracted crisis through

the past three years. It was

specifically the lack of checks and

balances and anti-corruption

efforts, and of course a lot of

pressure on media, on opponents, and

businesses that have led the country

into such a situation. But, you

know, Macedonia is a small country

and manages to recover it strength

rather quickly. Not more than seven

months have passed from these

images. And we are talking about the

country that can actually be a

beacon of hope for many Balkan

countries, especially. We are very

diverse country. We have emerged

from this crisis as a more united,

more cohesive country. And this is,

at least this is what I had from my

colleagues in Bosnia, Kosovo and

elsewhere in the Balkans, this is a

reassuring sign that you can go

through the ordeal but with the

right policy and leadership, you can

make your country stronger. So the

new government is only focusing very

much on a democratic reform agenda.

We have a thing come up with

tangible results. Very decent

elections where we have got the

endorsement of a wide part of our

population. I think that we are,

again, the positive all can example

for the EU and Nato.

We hope that

you find the support that you want.

Thank you for coming in.

Thank you

for the invitation and the

opportunity.

Muslim countries have declared

Jerusalem as the Palestinian capital

and asked other countries to follow

suit.

The declaration was made at the end

of a summit in Turkey of more

than 50 Islamic states,

who all condemned President Trump's

move to recognise Jerusalem

as the capital of Israel.

The Palestinian President Mahmoud

Abbas said the US had now

"disqualified" itself from future

Middle East peace talks.

From Istanbul, Mark Lowen reports.

Standing together, but can

they stand up to Donald Trump?

Leaders from the 57

strong Organisation for

Islamic Corporation in Istanbul

today to respond to the US

recognition of Jerusalem

as Israel's capital.

The Muslim world hardening

its reaction to the divisive move.

Turkey played host, its president

the most forthright critic, having

warned the US it was plunging

the world into a fire with no end.

President Erdogan gave a history

lesson about Israeli expansion and

didn't mince his words.

TRANSLATION:

With this

decision, Israel, the

perpetrator of crimes such

as occupation, siege, illegal

settlements, demolishing houses,

displacements, property and land

grabs, disproportionate violence

and murder, has been rewarded

for all its terror acts.

The US, he said, was supporting

terrorism and accused

it of bullying the world.

The Palestinian

president also hit out

at Washington.

TRANSLATION:

With this step,

the United States of

America will have chosen to lose

its competency as a mediator.

And to disqualify

itself from playing a

role in the peace process.

We shall not accept any

role for the United

States in the peace process.

After hours of talks,

the OIC issued a

joint statement including...

Declaring East Jerusalem the capital

of Palestine and asking all

countries to recognise

a Palestinian state.

Rejecting and condemning the US

decision on Jerusalem as null and

void.

And calling on the UN to reaffirm

the city's legal status as

the capital of two states.

It is time...

President Trump's move last week

delighted his conservative

voters at home but prompted

condemnation abroad.

Large protests rocked

the Muslim world, from

Istanbul to Amaan,

Beirut to Ramallah.

Yet the reaction was more

muted than expected.

The call for a new intifada

or uprising hasn't

materialised.

There is a sense of

powerlessness against the US

decision.

That is one of the problems

here, another that among

the members, positions

on Donald Trump differ.

Saudi Arabia and Egypt sending only

ministers, possibly to

keep the US onside.

Today's summit gives

the semblance of unity but

it's unlikely to change

the White House position.

And beyond the tough talk,

there is little bite.

We're getting mixed messages today

from the White House on North Korea.

Yesterday, the US Secretary

of State Rex Tillerson offered

to start talks with Pyongyang any

time and without preconditions.

It was a notable statement.

Today, however, Reuters

news is quoting a senior

White House official

contradicting that offer.

According to that report,

the White House says there can be no

talks with North Korea

until the country "fundamentally

improves its behaviour."

So are talks imminent or not?

Stephen McDonell sent us his take

from the South Korean capital Seoul.

Since the most recent North Korean

ballistic missile test,

Washington appears to have

softened its stance.

The Trump administration says

it is now offering Pyongyang a first

round of talks without

preconditions, in what is described

as the beginning of

a process of engagement.

Let's just meet.

And let's...

We can talk about the

weather if you want.

We can talk about whether it's

going to be a square table

or a round table if that's

what you are excited about.

CHUCKLING.

But can we at least sit down and see

each other face-to-face?

The United States Secretary of State

did say that for this meeting

to take place, America would require

a quiet period without fresh

North Korean nuclear

or missile tests.

However, he appeared to suggest that

denuclearisation would not have

to be on the table,

at least initially.

It's not realistic to say

we are only going to talk

if you come to the table ready

to give up your programme.

They have too much invested in it.

The President is very

realistic about that as well.

This comes as North Korea's leader

has urged to make his country

the world's strongest nuclear power.

He was attending a munitions

industry conference

in the North Korean capital.

However, a senior United Nations

envoy who has just returned

from Pyongyang says a key message

he received from North Korea

was that the isolated regime,

above all, does not want conflict.

Washington has given Beijing certain

assurances regarding its troops

based here in South Korea.

The US Secretary of State says

he has told China that,

if for any reason, American soldiers

should cross the border

into North Korea,

that they won't stay.

Perhaps this is something

that the leaders of South Korea

and China might discuss

when they meet this week.

Stephen McDonell, BBC News, Seoul.

I was watching the director of

national and to this morning and he

said he was thinking back to his

negotiation with North Korea three

years ago and he said it took five

minutes. A lot of that time was

taken up by a translation for him to

understand that denuclearisation was

not going to be any precondition for

further talks. They are not going to

give up nuclear weapons. The other

thing he said was, how many more

times as the Secretary of State

going to be undermined, and in this

case, by the press Secretary of the

White House?

It is interesting

because he has been undermined once

by the president on the whole issue

of negotiations with North Korea. He

had said earlier in the autumn that

he wanted our talks and the

President sent out a tweak to say it

was a waste of time. Cillessen

yesterday had some quite striking

remarks in Seoul and said, any time,

anywhere, basically. -- Rex

Tillerson yesterday. Now we have

someone talking to Reuters saying,

not so fast, this is not the right

time to go ahead with negotiations.

You have to wonder at some point,

does Rex Tillerson say, I can't keep

making statements like this and have

them refuted the next day by the

White House and be an effective

Secretary of State. Everyone knows

around the world that you have to

have a Secretary of State that has

the era of the President, his

respect, because otherwise they are

powerless.

Talks without

preconditions is probably the only

way to go, given the rather dire

military options on the table. The

problem is, even if the North

Koreans were going to give the CD is

fought, and presumably they would,

if it comes without any

preconditions, the administration

has just undermined the man putting

the offer on the table. They must be

saying, how serious is the US about

this?

You have jewelled tracts of

speculation reported by analysts in

Washington. Those saying Kim Jong Un

byes-mac mission all along was to

get himself called a nuclear state

and then step down. The North

Koreans in a few weeks have

suggested they are in that position

and would be prepared to talk. At

the same time, the White House

clearly ratcheting up tensions in

saying, look, we're not prepared to

negotiate unless they prepare

better. -- behave better. We are

going round and speculation in

Washington at the moment the

prospect of military action on the

Korean Peninsula is much closer than

people are aware of.

In the last

hour, the United States Central

Bank, the central reserve, has said

it will raise its percentage point

by a quarter of a percent. The move

is another step in reversing

policies put in place after the

financial crisis.

This is Beyond 100 Days.

Still to come...

Joy for Doug Jones

and his supporters -

why one group in particular felt

compelled to get out and vote.

In sport, England's

cricketers will be

fighting to keep their Ashes

hopes alive tomorrow

as they take on Australia

in the third test in Perth.

England lost the first two tests

and need at least a draw

to avoid a series defeat.

But it'll be a tough task - they've

not won at the Waca since 1978,

as Andy Swiss reports from Perth.

In one of the most isolated

cities in the world,

one of the loneliest places

for English cricket.

The Waca is where so many

Ashes dreams have died.

So many decades of

disappointment for England's

players and their fans.

But here, a team trailing

on the pitch and in turmoil off it

know they need something

extraordinary.

It's an opportunity

to create history.

It's a real chance to flip

the dynamic of this series

on its head and, if we do come away

2-1 from this game, it does blow

the series wide open.

Well, for England over the years

the Waca has normally

lived up to its name.

They've lost their last seven tests

here and they've arrived for this

one with not just their cricket,

but their conduct

under the spotlight.

The latest barroom incident,

in which bowler Jimmy Anderson had

a drink poured over him,

has given Australia's headline

writers another field day.

And some believe the culture

of the team needs to change.

They do behave like students.

You know, when they go out,

they think they're students.

They're not, they're

England cricketers.

The perception is that

they drink too much.

In terms of everything that's

happened to the team,

their performance levels,

the off-field antics,

I would be staggered if England got

a victory this week.

This will be the last

Ashes Test at this

atmospheric ground -

for so long, Australia's

western stronghold.

But, for one final time,

they could watch the sun set

on England's hopes.

Andy Swiss, BBC News, Perth.

You're watching Beyond 100 Days.

As we pour over the exit polls

from the Alabama Senate

race, it's clear some groups

were more motivated to vote in this

election than others.

The Democratic campaign really

focused on African-American

neighbourhoods and it paid off.

30% of those who voted in Alabama

yesterday were black -

that's an even bigger proportion

of the total turnout than

when Barack Obama was on the ballot.

And 96% of them cast

their ballot for

the Democrat, Doug Jones.

Some of them told us why.

I was so happy that we came out in

numbers to vote. And made history.

So I was happy to be part of that.

We actually made a difference. I

think if the African-American

population had not gone out in the

numbers that we did and voted, we

would have Roy Moore the Senate

instead of Dub Jones. -- as senator

instead of Dub Jones.

Roy Moore, the

way he carried him the Mac himself

in the past, I did not feel that he

represented Dummett deserve to be in

Washington representing the state of

Alabama.

Let's get more on this

with the BBC's Anthony Zurcher.

He is in the studio with me. I am a

bit of a Nadler comes to things like

exit polls and I have a whole stack

of them here. You could go for hours

and hours going through these. We

talked about the African-American

vote and one of the things are

really interested me was in

particular, African-American women.

17% of the people who voted in

Alabama's race yesterday were black

women. 98% of imported the

Democratic candidate.

90%. An

astounding figure. Lacks in Alabama

make up about 25% of the electorate.

The fact that 30% unit, surpassing

the turnout for Barack Obama, the

first black American president, is

truly astounding. It is a testament

to the town notability on the ground

that Doug Jones did. He focused on

black turnout. He had the black New

Jersey senator comment. Charles

Barkley, a famous basketball player.

That ever played off.

We saw black

voters to me to leave a Junior race

as well as mine. But look at the

state is the Democrats have to

defend if they want to take this

Sennett next year. Missoula, North

Dakota... These are not state

whether flood of the population is

black. -- Missouri.

It is going to

be difficult. Those are states where

Donald Trump one big. More than this

black turnout, although it is

important, if you look at the junior

and Alabama, it is young voters also

coming out. Suburban voters.

Particularly suburban

college-educated women. If they can

replicate this coalition that they

are putting together, and meanwhile

you see Donald Trump's support fall

off when someone named Donald Trump

is not on the ballot, we have about

50% of Donald Trump's votes for Roy

Moore yesterday. A significant drop.

If that happens, even in the states

that are Trump territory, you can

see these rip -- incumbents hold on.

But in my ex Paul knows you, it said

a majority of college-educated women

voted for the Republican and not

Democrat candidate.

That is a good statistic but you're

not taking my stat of the day title.

Not yet, anyway

not taking my stat of the day title.

Not yet, anyway!

I am the statistician. People on

Twitter saying, were you not talking

about Dr -- Doug Jones?

He is a

former US attorney, part of a

successful prosecution of some KKK

members responsible for the death of

some black girls about ten years

ago. It was dating back to the civil

rights era, a crime that they dusted

off and re-prosecuted. He ran as a

model it in Alabama. You cannot be

too liberal. He stuck by traditional

democratic principles like abortion

rights. He took a number of hits

from the evangelical community in

Alabama for his support of late term

abortions. In the case of the health

of mothers. You had him in his

victory speech last night talk about

children's health care being a

priority. Democrats would love to

get him into Washington to vote

against the tax bill coming down the

pike, Lott does not look like that

will happen. He is not the most

charismatic personality but he was

able to put together this coalition

of not only black votes but also

young and suburban women. Suburban

educated voters. He has a certain

appeal, even in Alabama.

You said it

was good to be tough in those ten

areas they will be fighting at the

midterms in 2018, but of course what

will feed into that is just how much

Donald Trump has achieved. When you

look at the bigger national picture

now, 51 plays 49 in the Senate, it

is going to be a lot tougher.

It is.

They are going to most likely get

tax reform through before Doug Jones

comes into the Senate. But if you

look at the tax reform proposal, it

is not particularly popular right

now among the public at large. I

don't live much is going to help

make the case that Republicans

should stay in power after the

mid-term elections. And yes,

Democrats have an uphill battle to

take control of the Senate and they

are couple of pick-up opportunities

in Nevada and Arizona. That's third

pick-up that was tough to find, they

got it in Alabama. Meanwhile, those

of representatives could be in play.

It seems much more likely house

would go on the way of election.

What we are seen, especially in

Virginia, is that turnout is up

amongst Democrats. The enthusiasm of

the resistance movement will be seen

on the ground. That is translating

into votes. When the mid-term rolls

around. I think they are hoping that

repeats itself.

OK, thank you very

much coming in with all that. I have

one more statistic and I will not

let you get away, Christian, without

hearing it. From the Alabama race.

40% of people who voted in the

Alabama race believed that sexual

harassment allegations against Roy

Moore were false. 40%. A lot of

people. That takes us very neatly

into this.

If you want to encapsulate

the mood and events

of the last 12 months,

it seems the words that people have

been looking up online are a pretty

good place to start.

The American dictionary

Merriam Webster has issued its ten

most popular word searches

of the year and they make

for a fascinating insight

into the big themes of 2017.

In third place is recuse,

meaning "to disqualify oneself

as judge in a particular case",

that search of course connected to

US Attorney General Jeff Sessions,

who recused himself from the FBI's

Russia investigation.

In second place is "complicit" -

the word of the moment

when President's Trump's daughter

was asked on television

whether she and her husband,

presidential adviser

Jared Kushner, were "complicit"

in what was happening

in the White House.

She said she "didn't know what it

means to be 'complicit."

But in first place is feminism.

The dictionary defines feminism

as "the theory of the political,

economic and social equality

of the sexes".

It adds that it is also "organised

activity on behalf of women's

rights and interests".

This is interesting because it was

not very long ago here in the United

States... I am going to see the four

years ago that people were very

reluctant to call themselves

feminists. There had been a huge

backlash against the use of that

term and yet this year, with the

women's marches and the sexual

harassment stories, with women

turning out to vote in places like

Virginia and Alabama in big numbers.

It seems like being a feminist is

back in vogue again.

That is the word of the year. Coming

up next on BBC World News...

Ros Atkins is here with

Outside Source and for

viewers in the UK, we'll

have the latest headlines

from Clive Myrie.

For now - from Katty Kay

in Washington and me