Youre killing an innocent child. A womans right to choose is critically important. I think we all need a voice to speak up and to take a stand. And no man should ever have any say in terms of our own bodies. And what we choose to do. I think its very important we vote for those who are going to support President Trump and his agenda. Make America Great again. A big variety there. Post a video to instagram telling us whats pushing you to the polls. Use the hashtag whyivotecnn. All right, top of the hour. Glad youre with us. Im poppy harlow in new york. Im jim sciutto. Florida governor rick scott is expected to update us on preparations for Hurricane Michael which scott is calling monstrous and in his words, the most destructive storm to threaten the florida panhandle
in decades. This morning, michael grew to a category 2. Its expected to reach category 3, which means 120 Miles Per Hour by the time the center hits the panhandle. Look a this graphic. This is going to show you, all of these counties under Evacuation Orders or advisories with just a few hours left for people and their pets to get out or stay put until it is over. We are tracking michael from every angle this morning. Lets begin with chad myers with more. As jim mentioned at the top, more warm water to go over. Thats the concern about the acceleration into a category 3. Thats how it got where we are right now. That water near cozumel is even two degrees warmer than what its in, and thats why it just snapped into action. Now, the good news is the Gulf Of Mexico isnt very big. So we dont have four more days to watch this thing turn into a cat5. By the time were talking about
landfall, somewhere between 24 and maybe 30 hours from right now, its going to gather more strength, but not as much as it could. It still could be a cat4, no question about that. This 120 is plus or minus 10 . Keep that in mind. So the direction is also 10 plus or minus east or west from panama city. Heres the storm in its full view, in visible satellite mode. 100mileperhour storm, but the Aircraft Flying through it did just find a 105mileperhour gust. Well see what they do with the storm at 11 00. So 120 Miles Per Hour, afternoon tomorrow, making landfall somewhere very close to panama city. It could be apalachicola, it could be to the left, maybe not Fort Walton Beach or destine but that area. The right side is always the worst. The left side, the winds are going to blow offshore. We do have winds getting to Tropical Storm force by tonight. 8 00 tonight, right there. Thats the last time youre
going to be able to get over some of these bridges. Dont wait until morning when the winds are blowing 60 because they may not let you over. Lots of power lines down. Widespread Power Outages with trees down, power lines down and a long time to actually get to put the power lines back up. 8 to 12foot storm surge. What does that mean . 12 feet of water in your home. Were talking about places like st. Marks where the land is pretty low. All of a sudden, that water is coming up, coming up, slowly, slowly, slowly, and you need to be out of there. Wind will hurt you, but water will kill you. If youre anywhere near the water, less than 12 feet above sea level, you need to go. A great representation of storm surge. Its hard for people to imagine. They think 12 feet is moving horizontally, but its moving up. Thats two of me. Thats a lot of water. Chad myers thanks very much. Dianne gallagher is on the beach at Panama City Beach, florida. What are you seeing . I can see the waves getting
rough behind you. But what are the preparations there like . Jim, really were starting to see the wind kick up. We had constant breeze thats kicked up in speed and in force over the past hour or so. Preparation wise, the best news is that were not seeing people out Walking On The Beach for the most part. Were seeing people pack up, leave hotels, right here along this strip. Panama city beach, those who are out here were watching Sandbagging Happening in condos. You can see the pier out here, farther out that you look, you can see a couple still Walking Around the shoreline. Most people, though, are getting last minute evacuation things in order, including a wedding. We actually had just within the past hour a couple, benny and cindy quinn, who were supposed to get married tomorrow afternoon, right when Hurricane Michael is supposed to roll in here. At Panama City Beach. They moved it up so they can get inland. Theyre going toward alabama now
to begin their honeymoon. They said they didnt have a choice, and thats the best thing people can do. Move your plans up and get out. Chad just said the wind will hurt you, water will kill you. Thats what the people here in Panama City Beach are trying to make sure that everyone understands. Now, were dealing with fuel issues already. A lot of the gas stations are either low on or have run out of fuel overnight. They were expecting some shipments to come in to help with these Evacuation Procedures here, but look, the highway is getting off the island, youre going to expect long lines. Give yourself some time. The best way to do this is to get out now. Good advice. Hope everyone heeds it. Thank you. On the phone with us now is the mayor of panama city. Thank you for being with us, mayor. Whats your biggest concern right now . Biggest concern now is that people are complacent because in the past we had a lot of storms that were didnt really turn
out to be much of a storm, so they say, see, all these scare tactics. They said this, they said that, and look, nothing happened. So you know, were fortunate. If nothing happens this time, wouldnt it be wonderful . But we have to prepare for the worst. And all indications are it has not gotten any better since last night, so its going to get worse. And the storm surge is going to get to a point, the wind is going to get to a point that if people decide, well, im staying, and something happens to them, First Responders will not be able to get to them. So im not trying to fearmonger, im trying to let people know to be realistic. That if you that now is the time. The gas stations that were out of gas last night, they have gas today. I went by several of them. So now is the time. We ask people to leave at first light this morning. And we asked visitors yesterday so that it wouldnt clog up the roads for our constituents to go ahead and go. So we want to keep people safe. Number one priority of government and the only way we can keep you safe is mayor, all right. Thanks very much. Were going to stay on that story. We have Breaking News now just in to cnn. This is cnn Breaking News. Were learning new details now. This just coming out as we speak. But reports that nikki haley, of course, the u. S. Ambassador to the u. N. , has resigned. And that the president has accepted her resignation. This being reported by axios first, and were waiting for response from the white house now. Again, nikki haley, the u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations has resigned. Were getting our reporters on this. Look, this is someone who was highly critical of the president during the campaign. But then when she took this post, she has been an ardent defender of the president , so much so that just last month,
after that anonymous Opinion Piece was written about the president in the New York Times, she wrote a separate Opinion Piece in the Washington Post lambasting them and said, look, when i disagree with the president , i take it directly to the president. She wrote then, i dont agree with the president on everything. When there is a disagreement, theres a right way and a wrong way to address it. We dont know what it is that led to her resignation. Was it a disagreement . Was it something personal . Was it serving for two years and that being enough time . We dont know, but again, a huge development. And to be clear, this is axios that is reporting this, and that the president has accepted this. As we wait for comment from the white house, one of the areas of disagreement between the u. N. Ambassador, nikki haley, and the president , in Public Comments has been on toughness in the face of russia. Russian interference in the election, russian activities Around The World, in ukraine and elsewhere. Nikki haley has not been shy by
any means about voicing those concerns in public from the seat, the u. S. Seat at the u. N. Security council and elsewhere in terms that the president , that this president has not used, rarely if ever used to describe russia and the russian president. Again, we dont know what the background about this, whether it was a disagreement or some other reason, but those public disagreements have been very clear cut. Look, she has stood behind the administration and the president on action when it comes to russia. She will point to the sanctions that were passed unanimously in congress and then signed by the president. But in terms of rhetoric, when shes sitting there at the u. N. With her counterparts, shell go further than the president will go on russia. Looking at the president s Foreign Policy National Security team, you know, to the extent at any point you had something of a team of rivals here, folks in there with power and with the occasional taking the occasional option of disagreeing with the president in public, several of
those have now left. H. R. Mcmaster, National Security adviser, replaced by john bolton, more in line with the president on a number of things. So from the view of the outside of the United States, youll often hear from foreign diplomats among u. S. Allies that people like nikki haley have made them feel more comfortable about their relationship with the u. S. On key National Security issues. As you see folks like that leave, you know the reaction from others abroad will be a nervous one. Lets bring in our colleague, mark preston, with more on this. Mark, one other thing i was thinking of, nikki haley has taken a lot of questions and heat from some about the president s comments on women. For example. And she being a very senior female in the administration, has stood by him. I have been at off the record events and Background Events hearing nikki haley supporting the president even in some of the most sort of dramatic times and moments of turmoil for the president. What is your read on this and are you hearing anything about why and why now . Well, a couple things. One is, to your point, it has shown how astute of a politician nikki haley has been. Certainly in these past couple years of the Trump Administration. Shes been able to walk that fine line and be able to address some of these very tough issues but yet not necessarily address them and be hypercritical of the president. Jim was talking to, when you talk about foreign issues as well, shes been very tough on russia, but at the same time, it hasnt appeared as if she was breaking with her boss necessarily, maybe just reaffirming what the administration would like our allies to hear and not necessarily what President Trump said. But at the same time, shes also very young. She was not a trump person initially. She supported marco rubio, the florida senator, for the republican president ial nomination. Mark preston, if i could interrupt you there for a moment because this was first reported by axios. This has been confirmed by a
white house official to jim acosta. Cnn has the same reporting. Nikki haleys departure, resignation, President Trump accepting that resignation. Sorry, i interrupted you. Go ahead. I wanted to point out, she certainly was one of these folks who came into the cabinet who was not a loyalist in the campaign. When he became the nominee, by and large, the whole party got behind President Trump. But shes not somebody who was necessarily by his side from the beginning. Look, shes done her couple years. Perhaps she just wants to get out of the fire. You couldnt blame her for it. You would have thought if thats the point, there may have been some indication or something leading up to this. Any sort of comments from the president or her. Two quick things. Shes in the west wing. We know that. Our colleague is reporting that. Shes in the west wing. She walked by reporters who asked can you confirm you resigned . She did not respond to that. Elise labott is on the phone with us. Can you hear us . I can. And elise, you have interviewed nikki haley. You know this top to bottom. What can you tell us . Well, look. Poppy, it comes as a surprise, i think, that she would do it now. Were so close to the midterms. And if anything, nikki haley is a Republican Party loyalist. Shes a true conservative, and you know, her aides said that she was constantly assessing what her role was in the administration. She seemed to have the ear of the president in some ways. The president let her do some of the things that she thought were very important, like i went and traveled with her to africa to visit refugees in south sudan, ethiopia, the democratic republic of congo. She also did the same in syria and turkey. She was very interested in u. N. Reform and the president kind of let her take the ball with that. But at the same time, she disagreed with the president on other issues. Elise, im going to apologize for interrupting you here. We have reaction from the white house to this. Please stand by. Abby phillip is at the white house. Abby, what are you hearing from the white house . Hey, jim and poppy. At the white house here, we are expecting to see President Trump and nikki haley in the oval office shortly. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders says they will appear together at 10 30 this morning in the oval office. My colleague, jeremy diamond, just saw nikki haley. You just mentioned that on air. Just saw her in the west wing. Shes in the building. She declined to answer any questions about her fate, but i think its notable that if this is in fact the moment in which the president acknowledges her resignation, announces it to the world, its a sign that they are trying to show a sign of unity or at least an amicable departure from the administration, but i have to say, jim and poppy, this is an interesting time for nikki haley to make this decision. President trump is coming off an extraordinarily good week. He just had a Supreme Court justice confirmed, just did his victory lap at the white house last night. Great economic news, but to be losing basically a cabinet level
official at this stage in his administration, 28 days before the midterm elections, is something that i think will raise a lot of eyebrows here in washington. But we will hear and see from them, themselves, in just a few minutes, in about 15 minutes. Reporters will by allowed in the room, according to Sarah Sanders. More than raise a lot of eyebrows. It will cause concerns. There are a number of foreign, and apologize to our viewers, as we look, were getting messages on our phones, on our computers from folks reacting to this, but the view from abroad but also from other National Security circles here in the u. S. Will be one of concern because they have seen Ambassador Haley as something of a voice of reason and also someone who is willing to stand up on key National Security issues, particularly russia, but not just russia. Human rights issues, et cetera, in a way they have not consistently heard from the president himself. As we bring mark preston back into the conversation, when it
comes to human rights abuses Around The World, where nikki haley has gone further than the president , case in point, relevant this week, saudi arabia. Shes called out publicly saudi arabia on human rights. The president did not choose to do that when it comes to the question of what happens to jamal khashoggi, the journalist. Also an area where she has previously broken with the president , you mentioned russia importantly, in terms of going farther in rhetoric, is obsexual assault. Back in December 2017 when the president s accusers were coming forward, she said all of the accusers, including the president s accusers, quote, should be heard. Look at what the president has said in the past few days about dr. Blasey ford. We dont know why shes resigning. Im just pointing out areas where she has publicly disagreed with the president. Mark. Well, so a couple things. One is look what you just went through, just think of the level of exhaustion you would have if you were a high level cabinet secretary, specifically one that often has to go to World Leaders and try to walk back the
comments, the statements, the remarks of the commander in chief of the United States. Not just her. We see this with jim mattis, sure, same with mike pompeo. Just an incredible exhaustion level. We dont necessarily know why shes leaving. We would see certainly cabinet officials leaving around this time. We saw marc short, who was not a cabinet official, but the legislative affairs director, not a commentator here at cnn, he left recently as well. Youll see some turnover in the administration. She has broken with him. We should note, though, in a couple high profile things she has stood by him. There was that anonymous oped in the New York Times where she came out and she was very forceful in her defense of him and said listen, if i have a problem with him, im not going to the New York Times. Im going to walk in his door. That was one. And the second thing, of course, when youre talking about her, and youre talking about donald trump, is the u. N. Speech. When he was mocked, right . He was laughed at during the
u. N. Speech, she came to his defense and tried to explain it away as, oh, they were laughing because they really enjoy his honesty. So nikki haley has done a very good job of politicking, not only within the administration with the president but externally. No question. Michelle kaczynski joining us now, our State Department correspondent. Michelle, is there any sense of why at this time . This is catching a lot of people by surprise. Do we know about motivation here . Right. Okay, so theres lots of speculation, obviously, and people that you talk to Around Washington who know nikki haley, yes, some of them this morning are surprised. But there are others who say that this was a possibility. They knew this could be a possibility down the road, so to them, it is less surprising. What we dont know, though, is exactly what led up to this being right now, today, this morning. I was just told by a Senior State Department official that she told her staff this morning. See that was the first that they
were at least officially aware that now was the time that she was resigning. Remember, there was plenty of speculation she was the author of that oped criticizing speculation. Of course. We dont know. Theres plenty of speculation out there. But as for hard answers, we expect to get those from the white house later on this morning. In just minutes, well hear from them in the oval office, in ten minutes, but as we wait for that, just walk us through how critical nikki haley has been for this administration in this post. Well, you could say that all Foreign Policy really comes from the white house. And that everything is dictated by the white house. But she has, as other guests have pointed out, she has been a constant booster for white house decisions. Shes been outspoken in defending this administration. Shes at times gotten a little farther out on certain issues than the white house has. Shes delivered these speeches that have been hard on other countries, and remember when she started in this position, she was calling out countries like iran and russia very forcefully. So she made a name for herself being forceful on these problems that the u. S. Has been dealing with. And being tough on other governments. In a way that the president has not. Just adding this, i have been texting with congressman on the hill, both democratic and republican, and the one Uniform Response i have heard from them is surprise. They did not see this. They did not see this coming. Elise im sorry, go ahead, michelle. I wanted to ask elise a question. There was that time, too, that she got farther out than the administration on russia sanctions, which did not seem ultimately to be her fault. She may have been given information and then released it before the white house was
ready. But she then responded to criticism of her when the white house said that she was confused about this information. It made headlines Around The World when she responded that she doesnt get confused. So while she was a forceful defender of the administrations policies, she also wasnt going to take it when she felt she was taking the blame for something that was not her fault. The president has just tweeted. Let me read it for you. Big announcement, with my friend, Ambassador Nikki Haley in the oval office at 10 30. Again, ten minutes, well hear from both of them. Elise labott, big announcement. Lets not speculate as to what theyre discussing here. Is it another role, perhaps . But sorry, elise is not there. Mark preston, if youre still there, how does this change the president s National Security team to lose a voice like this . Well, i mean, externally,
its a big, big blow. In many ways, because were alluding to this earlier, you have the likes of your Defense Secretary and your Secretary Of State now and your u. N. Ambassador who is constantly having to go overseas and to talk our allies off the ledge after comments that have been made by President Trump. And we have seen this time and time again. So you know, not only is she having to worry about this whole new approach to government that donald trump has taken to washington in a way that we have never seen before, but shes also having to fix these problems, these selfinflicted wounds that the administration does to itself and the president does to himself. Okay. Mark, stick with us. Nic robertson is joining us as well. Our International Diplomatic editor. Because shes such a face for the United States on The World Stage, are you hearing reaction from Around The World . No, but i think it will be perhaps a little while before we
do because governments and diplomatic channels will want to take a measured response and see who nikki haleys replacement is going to be. But if you look at the example of britain, nikki haleys relationship with theresa may, the british prime minister, earlier this year, nikki haley was a welcome ally and a welcome voice for theresa may at the white house because she wanted to see a stronger push on russia. She wanted to see sanctions from the United States on russia for what russian operatives were doing, poisoning citizens living in britain. So you know, the skripal poisoning, for example. Nikki haley played a key role there, and that was important to the uk. Somebody that could be relied upon to have a similar view to british officials. She was outspoken, if we look back in august on the deteriorating humanitarian situation in yemen, which became even more pressing during september with some bombings
there of the saudiled coalition, killing yemeni civilians. Thats despite the close relationship between President Trump, the white house, and the saudi leadership at the moment. So nikki haleys voice has been one we can see from an international perspective, a little discordant with the views from the white house. So how will, for example, theresa mays office respond . I think at the moment is really is going to be a wait and see what happens next. But the reality is, thats an ally gone, and you need to rebuild allies. One thing that is clear, im sure you have had the same experience. When i have spoken to diplomats, politicians in countries, particular in the east of europe on the front lines in the conflict with russia, they will frequently cite from nikki haley in support of them, with great strength and conviction, et cetera, as a Confidence Builder for them. Often at times when they have
not heard similar statements and reassurances from President Trump. Richard roth is with us, who has covered the United Nations for decades, literally. Richard, so your read and what youre hearing in the halls there . I havent hurt the speculation that preceded me, but it didnt take long after nikki haley was in office that a major Security Council diplomat who sat with her at the table said shes a politician, and you dont often hear that from u. N. Diplomats. My sense would be as people start to get the news is they think that shes got her eye on bigger dreams than the u. N. Ambassadorship. She had just completed a very busy one month as the president of the Security Council, where she demanded all of the meetings of the council be held in the open, in other words, before cameras. Thats not the way its normally done. It did produce a lot of shouting and yelling and tensions with russia, and some say the u. N. Should be more open, but a lot of diplomats felt things are best discussed behind closed doors. Yes, haley was the rock star, to use that overused term, of the u. N. And it will be interesting to see who might replace her, but nikki haley was on a rocket from South Carolina up to the u. N. She didnt attend every meeting. She didnt have to, but she attended the major topics. She didnt really do the party circu circuit. It was the u. S. Or forget it. Nikki haley walked in the first day and said well be taking names. Which didnt go down that easily. Richard, sorry to interrupt you. I have a reaction from a diplomat at the u. N. To this, and ill read it as it comes in here. This comes as a surprise. Ambassador haley has been a strong and effective advocate for the u. S. She and the secretarygeneral have had a strong working relationship which has avoided what could have been a breakdown of the u. S. u. N. Relationship. That comes from a senior diplomat at the u. N. That characterizes there what
has been a real concern of folks at the u. N. , other diplomats of u. S. Allies where they have had real differences. And real concerns about weakening of american support for those alliances, nato, et cetera. Im so glad you have all these sources and youre getting that. And that also comes at a time when the president has been very critical of the institution of the United Nations, et cetera. Of funding that she was such a source of strength in that relationship. We should note that the president , via twitter, has said there will be an announcement at 10 30, three minutes from now. Well bing that to you live. He said hes going to be appearing alongside his now resigned u. N. Ambassador, nikki haley. Abby phillip, the president has tweeted this announcement. And thats it. Have we seen the ambassador arrive at the white house yet . We have seen her here. She did arrive at some point this morning. We saw her physically in the west wing, not too long ago. And i think well expect to see them shortly because reporters are about to go into that room. It will be a little bit of a delay before we find out exactly what was said in there, but it is it seems to be happening about on time for this white house. And i would note, also, jim, it was interesting to see President Trump conspicuously using the word friend. Again, this is an effort by the white house to make sure that the optics around this are fairly positive, but of course, were going it be working our sources and trying to find out more details about what led up to this moermanment. A lot of people were surprised and did not see this coming at this particular moment. But we will find out more about what they have to say in the next couple minutes. Mark preston, knowing the nikki haley that the world has grown to know in this post, she may very likely not dance around
in whatever comments she gives in the oval office. She said before i dont want to be a wall flower or a talking head. I want to be able to speak my mind. Are you expecting relatively direct answers in just a few minutes here . I think were going to hear glowing praise from nikki haley of President Trump and the administration, and everything that they have accomplished over the past couple years. I mean, look, the fact that its being done very quickly, well find out eventually why she has decided to go. Shes decided to resign. Perhaps this wasnt as quickly as we thought. Perhaps it is, who knows, but i do think the way this is being staged right now by the president , the fact theyre doing it together, says something about how theyre going to part. And lets say one thing about nikki haley. She may no longer be the u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations, but again, shes very young and shes an unbelievable politician and has beat back the establishment Republican Party many, many times, which really made her steeled and prepared
her to go into this position with the Trump Administration where she really was put in some very difficult situations. But she by and large stood her ground but did it in a way that respectful enough to the president that we never heard much criticism from the president about nikki haley as we have heard him about some of his top cabinet folks. A reminder, about now, the president has tweeted some time in the next few moments, he will appear at the white house with nikki haley. The news just breaking, if you have just joined us, that nikki haley has resigned as u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and that President Trump has accepted that resignation. The president saying hes going to appear alongside his now former u. S. Ambassador to the u. N. Very shortly. Well bring that to you live. Susan glasser, cnn Foreign Affairs analyst, has covered the u. N. And the issues that its involved with very closely. Tell us how substantive, how substantial, significant this
is. I think it is extremely significant for this trump Foreign Policy team. You know, from the beginning, you have had nikki haley being a voice of really much more the republican establishment, you know, clearly at times at odds with the president. But also pushing him toward more hawkish positions on certain issues that he has ultimately adopted. For example, she was a leading voice inside the administration, pushing to withdraw from the Iran Nuclear Deal at a time when h. R. Mcmaster, the National Security adviser, and jim mattis were against it. And so i think its very significant that shell no longer be there. Were waiting, obviously, to hear the framing for it. Obviously, the political context strikes me immediately. You do have someone who is a very ambitious politician who has taken a political approach to her tenure at the u. N. She was a newcomer to Foreign Policy, by all accounts, very adept at it, but very much an
outsider in some ways both to the Trump Administration and also to the world of the Foreign Policy establishment. Yeah. Interesting to note that the president arguably has been less critical of the United Nations than he has been of nato, eu, other alliances. In fact, sometimes hes tweeted about the potential of the u. N. As a body. Certainly no love lost there, talk of cutting u. S. Contributions financially, et cetera, but hes been more critical of other u. S. Alliances. We know, susan, also that in just april of this were when reporters asked nikki haley about her relationship with the president , she summed it up with a few words and said its perfect. Notable that the president called her my friend in his announcement of this meeting that should happen at any moment. The cameras will be there and youll see it live in a minute. What do you think is the most significant thing she has done during her tenure at the United Nations, susan . I think she has made it very clear at the u. N. That the
United States is willing to be much more aggressive than it has in the past in being an advocate for and partner of israel. She has withdrawn and pushed to withdraw from u. N. Bodies that were critical of israel. The human rights council, for example. And i think she has really politically used that platform in many ways to advance her own standing inside the very active republican jewish donor community. Shes gotten very much plaudits, i think, for taking a much more aggressive position at the United Nations than some of her predecessors when it comes to not standing up for criticism. I think many people, however, will look back on this period and wonder whether, you know, Ambassador Haley and President Trump have really made a rhetorical significant shift in saying were no longer going to vote with or to give aid to those who vote against us at the United Nations. And really appearing to take a
much more transactional and conditional approach to u. S. Leadership in the world. She certainly was involved with that. She has been a lone voice, its very important, on things like human rights and freedom when it comes to a Trump Administration and a president who has not been very interested or engaged in those issues. And so i wonder what the administration will look like with her outside of it, when it comes to those issues of human rights. Yeah. Michelle, we understand youre getting more reaction from foreign diplomats. Right. Just surprise. More people shocked that the timing was now. Saying they didnt see this coming. People who had spoken to her not long ago. I feel like we have heard that time and time again this morning. That people who spoke to her only recently at the u. N. General assembly, and were surprised by this timing, even though they felt like the fact that she is a politician and many felt that she had political ambitions beyond this, which she
has denied, you know, they felt like at some point this would come not necessarily right now today, however, she just got past the u. N. General assembly. They saw her as a very forceful voice for the way the u. S. Stands on a number of issues. Remember how fiercely she has called out russia, going well beyond the white house on that. Shes called out syrian president bashar al assad, but at times foreign diplomats would say the way she would word things, the threats she would make to u. S. Allies, saying were taking names. The u. S. Will remember this. If you vote against the way the u. S. And israel are going. And remember, she threw a party once for those who supported the u. S. Stance on that. A party that was only for our friends. An invitation went out saying that. She made moves like that that were forceful and you could see the white house and in particular President Trump loving, but her counterparts at
the u. N. Often felt like those were rookie moves or rookie mistakes in their view. And this morning, theyre expressing a lot of surprise by the timing of this. So to mark preston, if youre still with us, as we wait, were going to get tape from the oval office. Theyre meeting, filming it. Youll see it as soon as we get it, we promise. Who would fill her shoes . Lets talk about senior women within the president s senior team. Ivanka trump, possibly . Dina powell. Who was until recently the deputy security manager. Irk withed in the bush white house. What do you think . Whoever the successor is to nikki haley is going to have to navigate many different paths in that white house. When that person comes in, theyre going to have to be able to work very well with mike pompeo. At the same time, they have to work well with Jared Kushner and ivanka trump. You brought up which dina powell does, which
dina powell works very closely with Jared Kushner and ivanka trump. Correct. Starts to check the boxes. This is when we start to do the box checking. But theres been some talk that ivanka trump, as you said, would like that position herself. And whos to say that her father wouldnt put her in that position . Who knows . I can say this though. I can say that the president is loving every mbt of this because this is really playing into this whole Reality Tv Atmosphere of this presidency. Were going to leak a Little Something out. Get us all worked up, and were all worked up because were really interested. This is a very important position, and then well let it play out a little bit. Give us little kernels, little crumbs, and then hes going to release it. It does play right into the presidency. He loves a show, he loves an announcement. Dina powell is a name thats been mentioned, and we have a couple of our reporters here who are noting that as a possibility. Again, its early. Another name, ivanka trump. Mark preston, is that a genuine possibility . And it was already unprecedented
for a president to have a daughter as a Senior Adviser in the white house. As a u. N. Ambassador, possible . Sure. Anything is possible in a trump presidency. I dont think the rails are on the lanes anymore at the bowling alley. Theyre just not. So if donald trump, you know, really wants to put her in that role, im sure he can do it. In many ways you have to wonder why she would want that role. Does she want separation . Assuming thats the case, does she want to get back to new york . Theres been talk about how her and her husband would like to get back to new york. That could get them back to new york. I would argue this. I think shes in such a powerful position being right next to the president that i dont know why anybody would want that position if she was really looking for power. Let me jump to this, as someone who interviewed ivanka trump before and knows her interests and area of work, one of them right now is on advocacy around the globe. And particularly when it comes to womens issues, and its something she doesnt make a lot of headlines for, but it is an area where a lot of her werk has gone. I do think she may have some interest in a role like this that would truly put her on The World Stage and put her focus on some more of the global issues where she may be able to have some success. What do you think . You know what it would do, again, speculative, were kind of guessing here, but it would allow her to carve her own path. It would allow her to get out a little further from her fathers shadow. Right now, shes right next to him. But she goes to new york. Having said that, shes still going to have to promote and push and advocate her fathers policies which will always put her in debt to her father and always link her to her father, no matter how she tries to separate herself. Folks, if youre just joining us, nikki haley has resigned as u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations. The president has accepted that resignation, and right now, the president has said this. Hes tweeted this. They are meeting at the white house. And the president has said there will be an announcement, once we have that announcement, it will be on tape. Well turn it around and broadcast it for you. Abby phillip, if youre still there, were hearing some reporting that haley may have raised this possibility last week at the white house. Do we know about the timing and how much advance notice there may have been involved here . Yeah, thats something that were still working out the details of, but it seems very clear at the moment that a lot of senior people within the white house, and even around nikki haley, were caught by surprise by this, but we are hearing from some sources that it was raised among a very small group within the white house as early as last week. Even though this is something that is being talked about kind of all the time around this Trump Administration. Last week, were hearing from a source, that she may have raised this issue with a small group of
advisers, leaving some others who are pretty senior here in the dark. So it was clearly closely held, and note the timing on that. This would have been in the middle of a major, major battle for this white house. They were in the middle of the kavanaugh confirmation. Obviously, not trying to layer on multiple issues if they can avoid it at any point. Now that that is clear, were finally getting word of her resignation. So as we get more, well get it to you. But clearly, this was something that was very, very closely held up until even this morning when a lot of senior people here seemed to have no idea it was coming. Were getting some notes from inside the oval office. Trump and haley together. We dont have the tape, but what theyre saying, they talked about the hurricane, but the president saying nikki haley has been very special to me. Shes done an incredible job, a fantastic person. She gets it. Been at the u. N. Since the beginning. The president goes on, again,
these are notes from inside the oval office provided from cnn reporter inside. She told me six months ago, the president says, that maybe at the end of the year, she would want to take a break. So at least from those initial comments from the president and her at least portrayed there in those comments as a friendly departure, that the president is saying he had some advanced knowledge of. Our Michelle Kaczynski is with us as well, who covers the State Department. Michelle, i think you do have, were hearing, new reporting on this. What can you tell us . We have found out earlier from a Senior State Department official that she just notified her top staff about this resignation this morning. So that was the first that at least many of them, according to this source, knew about it. Now were being told by another diplomatic source connected to the u. N. That what she told them was that she has done her two years and now its time to move on. Any further detail than that, i assume, well get soon from the
white house. But were also hearing from a senior foreign diplomat, more surprise that she was well liked at the u. N. , according to this source. And that they didnt see this coming. Yeah. Richard roth, if youre still there over at the u. N. , as poppy was saying, you have a few years in that building, you know it well. He was, and i heard this from a u. N. Diplomat she, rather, was seen as a bulwark against the outliers, you might say, in the Trump Administration. Someone that folks, diplomats in the u. N. Trusted to help keep that relationship going. Ambassadors did praise her. They liked the fact she got the Trains Rolling and would demand further action and say, hey, why is this Peace Keeping Mission Still there . Where is the money going . I think they liked that part. The politics maybe coming more from washington, they were totally against the u. S. , and the United States was historically sometimes the only country voting a certain way in the Security Council or the General Assembly on the middle
east and other issues. There was always a sense haley would leave. What michelle is quoting is someone saying she did her two years. Its been about a year and seven months. And you just cant help but look ahead down the political calendar. Unless there is some other problem we dont know about. Nikki haley was the u. S. Ambassador here and was more well known than any other diplomat. No one knows who the secretarygeneral is if you go out on the streets. It was the haley show. She was tough, she was strong. They said behind the scenes she was more of a moderating force between the Trump Administration and the u. N. , as we have been discussing this morning. And not just from the u. N. Two names that come up, when you meet with foreign diplomats, officials from u. S. Allies. They will say general mattis. Right. And nikki haley give us comfort about our relationship with the u. S. , that some of the more controversial things that come from this president or the white house about nato, et
cetera, balanced by the positions, the statements, the assurances they received from a haley or mattis. Mattis, our reporting has been that the relationship with trump is not particularly warm these days and now nikki haley leaving. Mark preston, back to you. Whoever replaces nikki haley will need to be confirmed. Its going to have to be someone who has strong relationships on the hill, across parties. Our dana bash points out in her reporting, ivanka trump has worked to build those relationships, especially with female democratic senators. How important for nikki haleys replacement, whomever it may be, to have, as jim points out, to be someone who gives reassurance, not pause, to our allies overseas . Well, i think thats extremely important. We would hope that all of the senators when theyre taking this into consideration, whoever they choose to take into consideration what the persons background is, what their knowledge is, what their
relationships are Around The World. I will tell you this, though. I have spoken to folks who have told me how important it is, and this is very well understood within the administration, how important it is to send somebody that is close to the president to Key Countries when youre dealing with the ambassadors, and also using this position right here as somebody that when World Leaders hear nikki haley speak, they know shes speaking for donald trump. Whoever follows in her footsteps has got to be able to do the same thing. Otherwise, that person is going to be extremely ineffective. So lets assume that it is someone like dina powell, who has a long resume, very well respected. Jim, you know, you have dealt with her a lot as well. Over the years. She is somebody that is very well respected. If its somebody like ivanka trump, it will give pause. No question, it will give pause to World Leaders about her experience, and it will give them a little sense of probably
relief knowing that whoever they would talk to, if thats her, then they would at least have the president s ear. But it does come down to the u. S. Senate and the whole confirmation battle. There could be the small issue of nepicism as well, just imagine that. Were getting more details. As we have been speaking, the president and nikki haley have been together in the white house. Well see this tape momentarily, but we have notes from reporters inside. This news, President Trump says haley will be leaving at the end of this year. Not leaving tomorrow but staying in the position through the end of the year. We also learned that haleys resignation caught john bolton and mike pompeo by surprise. Thats significant given how closely she works with them. It caught both of them by surprise. Trust me, im hearing that from democrats and republicans on the hill as well. One final note from the notes inside, from reporters inside the oval office meeting, the president and ambassador making every effort to make nice with
this departure. Showering each other with praise. The president saying that she telegraphed this to him some several months ago. The idea being that the president attempting to make clear he was not taken by surprise by this, this was always in the plan, and that theyre leaving each other on good terms. Thats the sense were getting from inside the oval office as they speak to reporters. Well have that tape momentarily. Nic robertson, big picture on The World Stage. If you think about the totality of the relationship that the United States has now under the leadership of President Trump with our allies and what has been strained and what has been strengthened, how do you think nikki haley has been most integral in those relationships . On the issues that allies have wanted to see President Trump be tough on, in particular, russia, because thats one that he seems to be sensitive on and not one that hes wanted to push as Allies In Britain and france and germany,
the baltic states, have all wanted him to be, nikki haley has been a source of comfort. She has understood intrinsically the concerns of the baltic states. Theyre so close to russia, so close to its transgressions in ukraine and crimea. That when Terresheresa May was appealing to the United States for diplomatic support, when the Russian Military agents poisoned or tried to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter back in march earlier this year, nikki haley was seen as a source of comfort to relay that message and strengthen the United States resolve. If youre one of the United States enemies, and iran would certainly be front and center on that, nikki haley has been an absolute powerful advocate, even before we really got into the runup to President Trump removing, pulling the United States out of that International Joint nuclear deal, the jcpoa. I remember standing at the
international Atomic Energy agency in vienna, responsible for overseeing details in that agreement. Nikki haley came not long after she was appointed to the United Nations as ambassador and she told the top diplomat there, the secretarygeneral that he needed to get tougher on the iranian inspections. They needed to push harder and be tougher. And i have to say, at that time, standing there talking to officials there, it really raised eyebrows. If you are one of the United States enemies, and nikki haley steps out of this position, then perhaps you breathe a tiny bit easier for a while until you see what comes next. Other news other news, nic, coming in as we speak. These are notes from inside the oval office where the president is appearing alongside nikki haley, some speculation there has been about her running in 2020. Shes putting that speculation to rest saying shes going to be campaigning for President Trump
in 2020. We have david gergen on the phone now. Hes served four u. S. President s, republican and democrat. Describe how significant a loss this is for this administration. Is it destabilizing in your view . No, i dont think its destabilizing but its a significant loss. Nikki haley was one of the people that donald trump has trusted most. They seem to be very simpatico. Shes also popular in the cabinet generally. Very importantly, she sends out a signal of a woman who is standing by the president s side. A popular woman, a woman who has had guts when she was governor of South Carolina. In that sense, its a political blow. It also you know, theres a great deal of speculation, has been for some time, about what her political future might be after the u. N. That did not seem the last stop in the road, much of the speculation centered on whether donald trump could make her his
vice president ial candidate in 2020, whether she might play a significant role, whether she might step up to be Secretary Of State at some point. Often, the u. N. Can be a Stepping Stone to the Secretary Of State position. Ask madeleine albright. Thats an interesting point, the fact we just learned from our reporting that Secretary Of State mike pompeo and National Security adviser john bolton were caught unaware, were surprised by the announcement. You would think they would be in the loop, no . Absolutely. Especially since the argument is that she was tired and everybody sort of knew that she would want to resign after two years. I dont think anybody knew, at least anybody that we know about knew. So theres still a great deal of mystery about this resignation. Presumably, the story will come out over the next couple days. But right now, i think the truth is that none of us on the outside really knows why she did it. Abby phillip, if youre still there, the president being effusive about his u. N. Ambassador here. The ambassador being effusive about the president here, describing a warm relationship. How much they admire each other. Is that accurate, abby phillip, or have they had disagreements . I think a lots of people would characterize President Trumps relationship with nikki haley as her being for a long time in this administration kind of a golden child. They did have a very close relationship, especially at times when President Trump had a tougher relationship with some other members of his Foreign Policy team. Rex tillerson earlier on in the administration. Nikki haley was seen as someone who spoke for President Trump, even through those times when she would seem to distance herself a little bit from him. I think that they had a Mutual Respect for each other after a Bruising Campaign in which she opposed him for a lot of that campaign. They had come to be much closer to each other. I think people close to the president describe nikki haley as being someone who was very much a student of president
trump. She understood how to talk to him, how to execute what he wanted out of his Foreign Policy, and was seen as someone who did do that for a long time in this administration. There were not many people who were seen as having the gruviavs and the respect of President Trump to speak for him on The World Stage. Now there are more people around President Trump like mike pompeo who have that aura around them, but she was one of few for a while in the administration. I would also add President Trump, according to the notes coming out of their meeting today, noted that nikki haley has actually elevated the position of u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations. And he says a lot of people now want this job because shes made it basically a job that people want. So i think he views her very highly, and he thinks shes done Something Different with that job. A lot of people were not sure how you could have a u. N. Ambassador given this administrations sometimes adversarial posture toward institutions like that. And nikki haley was seen as
someone who was able to thread that line. I think thats what youre hearing from President Trump today. Very adept at that. Michelle kaczynski, let me jump back to you for more of your reporting on this. Sure. She told her staff this morning that she had done her two years, and it was time to go. So without getting a lot more information than that, she took her own staff by surprise. In at least many cases that we know of. And were hearing from senior diplomatic sources that both john bolton and mike pompeo were, quote, blindsided by this news. We know the president from the notes coming out of what hes saying now, she told him about six months ago that she had done her job and she was looking for a break or to move on. Well, apparently, not too many other people knew about this because what we keep talking about today is the surprise of diplomats at the u. N. , of people around her, even other cabinet members. So why this was so closely held,
even to people like the Secretary Of State and the National Security adviser, thats what were waiting to find out. But thats the word that is circulating now among those close to nikki haley and her position. Other news coming out of the oval office, this is where as we speak the president and nikki haley have been meeting, talking, showering each other with praise and talking about the departure. But the president said he will name her successor within the next two or three weeks. Okay. You would assume taking a number of questions because this has been going on for a while, since 10 30 in the morning. Theyre turning the tape so youll hear it soon. But again, nikki haley, the u. S. Ambassador to the United Nations, resigning. A surprise to all of us. A surprise to mike pompeo, the Secretary Of State, and john bolton. The National Security adviser. To all of your sources as well. To folks inside the u. N. Where nikki haley, like in a lot of places, was seen as a
moderating force for a president who often gave them concerns about u. S. Alliances and positions abroad. David is with us, a Global Affairs analyst. How do you see this and the timing and the fact it was such a surprise . I think it hurts the president in terms of the lack of women on the Foreign Policy team. And i agree with what jim said. She was sort of a moderating voice. Theres senate personality in the Foreign Policy team is mike pompeo, who as Secretary Of State is a hard liner on iran, and hes really the dominant force. He was sort of overshadowing nikki haley. Also overshadowed john bolton, and the president loves him because pompeo is so tough on iran. So that voice, that viewpoint, is going to grow stronger. Okay. No question. We have richard roth at the u. N. Of course, Ambassador Haleys home base for a couple years now. Speak about moderating influences. Also Confidence Building Influence that nikki haley gave
to u. S. Allies. Look, she presented a very good look politically or otherwise for the United States at the u. N. And when she guided President Trump around the u. N. Two weeks ago at the special General Assembly, it was like presenting him with look at where you are. They scheduled extra meetings almost as if to say to President Trump, the u. N. Is not so bad. Theres a meeting were going to do on drugs you care about and the Opioid Epidemic and a meeting on iran, but were not going to call it about iran. Were going to broaden it out. Also in the streets of new york and elsewhere, nikki haley was one of the few people in this Trump Administration who Trump Supporters loved and many people who dont like donald trump also loved. A lot of that has to do with israel, i think, and Jewish Americans who support israel love the tough stance she took in trying to battle an antiisrael lineup among the 193 u. N. Member countries. I think she may have just decided it was better to get out now. She cant go any higher in her standing and perhaps the Bolton Pompeo combination a little more restrictive than Rex Tillerson was when he was Secretary Of State. Nikki haley had free reign, and she was in effect the spokesman to the world for the United States for the first few months. And richard roth, listen, theres a narrative that the white house is pushing out that this has been in the works for months, that the president knew about it, theyre leaving on the happiest of terms. Our colleague saying there are questions about that, even within the administration. Because there are several folks within the administration, including in the State Department and elsewhere, who are surprised by this, that word if it had been or warning if it had been given to the president some months ago, they did not hear it. And listen, this is four weeks before the midterms, after a bruising kavanaugh fight. Lots of questions still to be answered. Well hear directly from nikki haley and the president in less than two minutes
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