that makes what mr trump did a crime now remember that mr mohler and the southern district of new york are operating under a justice department policy since two thousand saying you cannot indict a prosecutor president so mr trump as long as in the white house is not confronting a criminal prosecution but that doesn't mean that the house of representatives with the new democrats in control and jerry nadler of the judiciary committee in january can't open up an investigation and conclude that the criminal activity was an impeachable offense it's not punished by prison time but it's punished by removal from office and right now mr trump i think is confronting a high probability of impeachment in the house now remember however the trial would be in the senate you need sixty seven votes to convict and right now you've got fifty three republicans so mr trump is is somewhat protected but he would be enormously embarrassed if used impeached and ultimately acquitted last that you've got to think that mr trump's a mind is thinking about maybe he could cut a deal because your memory talks about t

>> mrs. trump: yes. my journey made me that. >> sean: madame first lady, thank you so much for being with us. we really appreciate it. thank you. >> sean: we're just getting started. coming up next on the special edition of "hannity," the first lady's christmas message to the troops. that's next. ♪ ♪ >> merry christmas and live from america's news headquarters i'm in a anna kooiman. president trump will not budge. the president parts of the government will stay shot as long as democrats refused to build more barriers on the u.s.-mexico border. that announcement this morning -- a lot of hopes for a christmas miracle that will soon allow federal wow several federal departments to reopen and employees to return to work. the partial shutdown began on saturday and senate democratic leaders say there is no resolution in sight. that's because they are refusing to give the president the $5 billion he is asking for for that border wall. >> everyone of of those democrats approved the wall or a fence or very, v

trump -- so to be clear mr. trump has no financial relationships with any russian oligarchs. >> that's what he said. that's what i -- that's obviously what our position is. >> we're a long way from there, kimberly. >> really. yes, we really are. there's always a tweet, there's always a quote when it comes to paul manafort. obviously what we saw this week, usually when files come out and they paint a picture of what's going on, they call them speaking indictments. this is like a shouting indictment of the broad category robert mueller is looking into, including these ever-denied connections with russians, business deals with riussians that president trump denied having. if people have been lying to congress, lying to investigators about that, that is a big problem for the president. >> let me put up sort of the quick bullet points of michael flynn -- of the michael flynn sentencing memo from earlier this week plus michael cohen's. in michael flynn, we learned that there are three vex investigations he's been coop

mr. trump saluted and mrs. trump held her hand over her heart. >> they will visit the bush family across the street today. lines stretched into the early morning hours. more now from cnn's sunlen serfaty on capitol hill. >> reporter: good morning, dave and christine. there have been so many moving moments to honor the life and legacy of george h.w. bush. up here on capitol hill, there was so much emotion from his family as they watched his casket slowly brought step by step into the capitol. his body lies in state at the rotunda. it was opened all night for the members of the public to come in and pay respects. earlier in the day, a ceremony on capitol hill where the common theme was not only speaking about the achievements of the former president, but mostly about who he was as a man. he was humble and he was kind and someone who established deep relationships here in washington. >> he showed us that how we live is as important as what we achieve. his life was a hymn of honor. his legacy is grace perfected. hi

a meeting between mr. trump and iraqi leadership already scrapped. strong rebound on wall street -- the dow index has broken a record and gained more than 1000 points in a single tradith session for first time ever. japan confirms it will resume commercial whale hunting next year in defiance of a global ban and they will leave the organization that aims to protect whales. and tv star and art critic ageer wendy beckett dies at 88.ac we will look bk at her life. ben: hello, and welcome to "bbc world news." president ump and the first lady made a surprise visit to iraq to thank troops posted there for their service. it comes in the midst of a government shutdown and less than a week after mr. trump announced hisontroversial plan to withdraw u.s. troops from syria as well as half of those stationed in afghanistan. a former general in the united states army has served as the deputy assistant secretary of defense for the middle east under george w. bush, and joins us from washington, d.c. explain to us the practical purpose if any of e presidential visit l

trump -- so to be clear mr. trump has no financial relationships with any russian oligarchs. >> that's what he said. that's what i -- that's obisously what our position >> we're a long way from there, kimberly. >> really. yes, we really ars therways a tweet, there's always a quote when it comes to paul man obviously what we saw this week, usually when files come out and they paint a picture of what's gointhon, call them speaking indictments.li this i a shouting indictment of the broad categorl robert mueer is looking into, including these ever-deniedth connections ssssians, busieals with riussians that president trump denied having. if people have been lying t congress, lying to investigators about that, that is a big problem for the president. >> let me put up sort of the quick bullet points of michl flynn -- of the michael flynn sentencing memo from earlier this week plus michael cohen's. in michael flynn, we learned at there are three vex investigations he's been cooperating on. the mueller probe, the crimina

trump over mr. trump's treatment of historically strong allies. mattis was among the president's first cabinet picks. >> general "mad dog" mattis. >> reporter: and now he joins the ranks of departed top officials within the trump administration. the president tweeting, a new secretary of defense will be named shortly. kristen welker, nbc news, the white house. >>> i'm andrea mitchell in washington where the president's plans for afghanistan and withdraw from syria were the final straw. a decision mattis strongly opposed and so had the president's key advisors arguing the fight against isis was not over. >> it would be reckless. >> with regard to stabilization, we have a long way to go. >> reporter: to the president, it's a campaign promise kept tweeting today does the u.s. want to be the policeman of the middle east? mattis among those who thought they talked him out of it and then big pressure from turkey's president erdogan three weeks ago and on a call friday, arguing america's partners in the fight, syrian kurds are terrorists. the president o

trump's legal counsel before submitting it. and mueller's team also says mr. trump's former campaign chairman, paul manafort, lied about five separate issues, even after he pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate. mr. trump has spent the last week attacking the special counsel investigation. asked why the president is so upset, trump ally roger stone tells "the new york times" he has finally figured out that this is about him. and joining me now is senator angus king of maine, an independent who caucuses with the democrats. also part of the intelligence committee there. senator king, welcome back to "meet the press," sir. >> great to be with you, chuck. >> well, obviously a pretty eventful week. at the end of it you have the justice department, if you will, in the southern district of new york, pretty explicitly implicating the president in a crime. and michael cohen then adding to it saying that his testimony, false testimony to congress, was something that was known in advance by some folks in and around the president. what are your takeaways from this week's

one way and one way only: mr. trump, mr. trump. as if they were hypnotized. mr. trump, mr. trump, that's all you ever-- and they actually tried to get reporters who covered the campaign also to reflexively, relentlessly refer to him in one way, one way only, "mr. trump." >> stephen: did they say that to you, like, "call him mr. trump"? >> yes, and they would advise us to do that. some of us did. some of us did not. ( laughter ) >> stephen: uh-huh... so do you think that mueller should be worried right now? because trump has put in this guy, who is on the record as saying that mueller's gone too far, and mueller can be slowed down or defunded. this guy's come in as a hit man, right? >> you said "worry." do you mean more worried? >> stephen: well, i mean, why do you think trump did it so fast? because he's going to drop something really quickly. reasonable people were saying we might learn something this week. >> so he knows mueller has been preparing a report and also doing a lot of work at the grand jury, interviewing more witnesses-- >> stephen: further indictments. >> pos

trump-- so to be clear mr. trump has no financial relationships with any russn oligarchs. >> that's what he said. that's what i -- that's obviously what our positiois. >> we're a long way from there, kimberly. >> really. yes, we really are. the's always a weet, there's always a quote when it comes to paul manafort. obviously whatwe saw this week, usually when files come out and they paint a picture of what's going on, they call them speaking indictments. this is like a shouting indictment of the broad category robe mueller is looking into, includinthese ever-denied connections with russians, business deals with riussians that president trump deni having. if people have been lying to congress, lying to investigators about that, that is a big problem for the president. of the e put up sort quick bullet points of michael flynn -- of the michael flynn sentencing memo from elier this week plus michael cohen's. in michael flynn, we learned that there are three vex investigationsere's been coing on. the mueller probe,

attorney for mr trump the man who once said that he would take a bullet for mr trump will soon because of what he did for mr trump go behind bars cohen was sentenced today to three years in prison a federal court in new york. city as to him over his role in the payment of hush money to women who claim to have had affairs with mr trump before he was elected president cohen was also charged with lying to congress about a proposed in trump tower project in russia a project that was being discussed while mr trump was running for president in two thousand and sixteen the sentence for mr cohen was reduced due to cohen's cooperation with prosecutors. or what should we make of this sentence more on that i'm joined now by randall d. ellison he is a professor investigating white collar crime at george washington university law school in washington d.c. he is also a contributor to the washington post professor it's good to have you on the day let me just get your reaction first of all to the three years of prison sentence for cohen is that justice served. i think i think so he did get some credit

the failure of that strategy rests not just with mr trump but to his previous administrations and the previous incumbents in the pentagon are all the strategies that have actually been packaged in strategies of tended to be operational activities designed to suppress. any. opposition militarily rather than actually deliver a win which can be recognized as a victory by all sides not just domestically but internationally and in and certainly in by the the adversaries in the particular countries so mr trump for whatever reason does have i think a great deal of support both publicly but also factually there is no winning strategy in any of these countries sadly and he is absolutely right that when he reads out as ambassador now adult very things pointed out he was reading out a statement that a rapid withdrawal could lead a power vacuum but even a slow withdrawal would result in exactly the same thing and i think what mr trump is darn is run out of patience with those who have written these statements for him that they haven't produced a plan which is reasonably sure. short term which pro

attorney for mr trump the man who once said that he would take a bullet for mr trump will soon because of what he did for mr trump go behind bars cohen was sentenced today to three years in prison a federal court in new york. city his gym over his role in the payment of hush money to women who claim to have had affairs with mr trump before he was elected president cohen was also charged with lying to congress about a proposed in trump tower project in russia a project that was being discussed while mr trump was running for president in twenty sixteen the sentence for mr cohen was reduced due to cohen's cooperation with prosecutors. or what should we make of this sentence more on that i'm joined now by randall d. ellison he is a professor investigating white collar crime at george washington university law school in washington d.c. he is also a contributor to the washington post professor it's good to have you on the day let me just get your reaction first of all to the three years of prison sentence for cohen is that justice served. i think i think so he did get some credit for the coo

but mr trump said he believed a lot of people were going to come around to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced is the outgoing defence secretary, jim mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander—in—chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone. but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east, a president who seemingly believes in "america first", and getting involved in other countries only as a last resort. even with th

but mr trump said he believed a lot of people were going to come around to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced as the outgoing defence secretary, one person who remains unconvinced is the outgoing defence secretary, jim mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander—in—chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone. but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east, a president who seemingly believes in "america first", and g

a meeting between mr. trump and iraqi leadership already. scra strong rebound on wall street -- the dow index has broken a record and gained more1000 points in a single trading session for the first time everf japan coirms it will resume commercial whale hunting nextan year in de of a global ban and they will leave the organization that aims to prect whales. and tv star and art critic ageer wendy beckett dies at 88. we will look back at her life. ben: hello, and welcome to "bbc world news." president trump and the first lady made a surprise visit to iraq to thank troops posted their service it comes in the midst of a government shutdown and less than a week after mr. trump announced his controversial plan to withdraw u.s. troopelfrom syria asas half of those thationed in afghanistan. a former general iunited states army has served as the deputy assistant secretary of tdefense for the middle e under george w. bush, and joins us from washington, d.c. explaito us the practical purpose if any of the presidential visit like this, a surprise visit

think mr trump is afraid of contacts with them and here's what else he said he used to. this commission for switching said first of all it was a u.s. initiative but then we cancel the meeting in paris because we didn't want to interfere in the. commemorations so we decided to meet. but then the provocation in the black sea took place so the us decided not to have the meeting still have a chance to chat with friends and trump on this issue we expressed our positions and remained committed to them i let's no we think of the incident is a shame that we are unable to have this meeting but i hope it will take place sooner or later when the us is ready for it like this quick exchange between mr trump and mr putin we know that there were full proper meetings between the german chancellor and the russian president and also the day before mr putin met the french president emmanuel macron and the number one focus of these talks was also the current straight straight incident we heard from sources in the russian delegation that mr putin grab a piece of paper and a pen and physicall

trump's core voters might not ca re are mr trump's core voters might not care that much about american foreign policy, but they would be happy to see american troops out of harm's way. yes, there's certainly that element to it. president trump has long campaigned during his election is to get us forces out of the middle east, having us forces in that part of the world has never been a popular proposition in the united states. in many ways, yes, this has been a long way coming. president trump announced earlier in the year, in april, he wanted to withdraw us troops. the foreign policy establishment in washington pushed ha rd establishment in washington pushed hard against that, the pentagon, the state department, professionals at the national security council, but it seems trump never let go of that idea and was never comfortable staying in syria. firas maksad from the arabia foundation. thank you very much. my pleasure, mike. the us central bank, the federal reserve, has again raised interest rates, despite repeated appeals by president trump. they've gone up by 0.25%, that's to 2.25%.

trump to influence the election. in july cohen taped some conversation with mr. trump including this one the two discussing pamyments and referencing the ceo of american media. >> i need to open a company for the transfer of that info regarding our friend david. funding. >> so what are we going to pay 150. >> yes. >> and it's all the stuff. >> major is at the white house we're learning that jared kushner is under consideration for chief of staff. what do you know about that. >> consideration is a fluid term. lots of things are under consideration. he remains a key player with powerful roles in the middle east and -- any chief of staff l. have to understand how much he will exercise under jared kushner. >> thanks again and congratulations. >> europeans meet in brussels regarding ongoing migrant crisis, thousands are fleeing to other countries by land. meeting new dangerous. seth doane is in the italian alps. >> reporter: sneaking through the pass and carirying what the could, these trying to cross the worlder in search of opportunities. when a car comes with a lig

mr. trump claimed they are not a crime. is it likely congress would try to remove a president over this alone? >> well, two separate questions. are they a crime and would congress try to remove a president over it? as to the first, they're not only a crime, they're a serious crime, and the southern district of new york memorandum took some pains to spell that out. you could try to construe it as a mere bureaucratic oversight failure to file. but as the prosecutors spell out, this really undermined the vital goal of transparency in the electoral system, kept the american people from knowing what they were buying, so to speak. and we know that both cohen and the president or then the nominee -- the candidate thought it was going to be very problematic for the candidacy and that's why they did it. so as to the crime itself, does it fit elements of campaign finance? yes. and is it a serious crime? yes. the crime itself for cohen, it has been recommended he get several years in prison. >> we know less about whether any criminal

trump and says mr. trump knew. >>> and the parent company of the "national enquirer" admitted it was involved in the hush money scheme. >>> and three people lost in an abandon west virginia coal mine were rescued yesterday. they had been missing since saturday. the mine hasn't been operational for two years. it's not clear what they were doing inside. west virginia officials say they haven't ruled out pressing charges. >>> there were protests in michigan yesterday over what many say is a last-minute power grab by republicans before democrats take over the state's highest office. republicans are accused are making similar moves. dean reynolds has more. >> reporter: demonstrators crowded the michigan capital. >> i think they're trying to take away our vote. >> reporter: opposing moves by republican state house majorities to limit the authority of just-elected democrats. similar power plays in wisconsin have faced the same reaction. both states have republican governors for a few more weeks and they're bei

and i don't think mr. trump understands it. i think he assumes that their obedience and loyalty is about political support for policies and administration. that's absolutely not the case. >> retired rear admiral john kirby. thanks for joining us. >> you bet. >>> a huge rally on wall street is carrying over to tokyo. but not all of the markets are following suit. japan's nikkei with a surge up 4%. australia's asx is almost two points higher. blue chips soared more than 1,000 points or 5%. tech stocks led the way to a nearly 6% gain for the nasdaq. but as alison kosik reports, investors still have major concerns. >> reporter: hey, there. investors dip their toes back in the water after wall street had its worst christmas eve trading ever. today's trading was volatile, with the dow moving between gains and losses before settling on a positive finish. still, the dow has a long way to go before it's back to its peak in october. since then, the dow has lost thousands of points. and the same worries remain. the federal reserve's pace

but mr trump said he believed a lot of people were going to come around to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced as the outgoing defence secretary, jim mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander—in—chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone. but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east, a president who seemingly believes in "america first", and getting involved in other countries only as a last resort. even with th

mr trump has already said that he is very unhappy with his toys as mr powell as the fed chairman —— with his choice.|j wonder what janet yellen is thinking, she's at home watching closely at imagine, i wonder what thinking. let's look at city am, eu olive branch is as city fears, what is the olive branch? the eu's response to regulation the bank of england has already implemented a few months ago for the case of a no—deal brexit scenario. the regulations saying that the current regulation, which means london based banks can trade in the eu will continue for a certain amount of time, about 12 months. business as usualfor a period of time. time, about 12 months. business as usual for a period of time. only a period of time, that is important, this is something the european commission hasn't aimed for, they would have wanted to settle this, not with a no deal contingency plan, but with something real in the settlement, concerns about... that trillions of derivatives contracts could be moved in a very short amount of time, and have now been found to be unfounded. but, as you said, it is so

attorney for mr trump the man who once said that he would take a bullet for mr trump will soon because of what he did for mr trump go behind bars cohen was sentenced today to three years in prison a federal court in new york. city has them over his role in the payment of hush money to women who claim to have had affairs with mr trump before he was elected president cohen was also charged with lying to congress about a proposed in trump tower project in russia a project that was being discussed while mr trump was running for president in two thousand and sixteen the sentence for mr cohen was reduced due to cohen's cooperation with prosecutors. or what should we make of this sentence more on that i'm joined now by randall d. ellison he is a professor investigating white collar crime at george washington university law school in washington d.c. he is also a contributor to the washington post professor it's good to have you on the day let me just get your reaction first of all to the three years of prison sentence for cohen is that justice served. i think i think so he did get some credit

attorney for mr trump the man who once said that he would take a bullet for mr trump will soon because of what he did for mr trump go behind bars cohen was sentenced today to three years in prison a federal court in new york. city as to him over his role in the payment of hush money to women who claim to have had affairs with mr trump before he was elected president cohen was also charged with lying to congress about a proposed in trump tower project in russia a project that was being discussed while mr trump was running for president in two thousand and sixteen the sentence for mr cohen was reduced due to cohen's walk aeration with prosecutors. or what should we make of this sentence more on that i'm joined now by randall d. ellison he is a professor investigating white collar crime at george washington university law school in washington d.c. he is also a contributor to the washington post professor it's good to have you on the day let me just get your reaction first of all to the three years of prison sentence for cohen is that justice served. i think i think so he did get some cred

well, and the decision by mr trump saying isis was finished, it is not finished. we are talking about maybe 4000 skilled fighters of is in the area and the heavy clashes have been going on for three days. so is is not finished yet, other than the other areas. so what we are afraid of, maybe they will find an opportunity to organise themselves and to be a threat to everybody again, over the world, especially the timing, now turkey is threatened with invasion from the north side. so this makes us worried about that. the timing, the invasion on the turkish side and from the other side, the weakness on the fronts, the fighting areas. we've heard from the french president emmanuel macron that french troops will remain in syria. does that give you some reassurance? 0nly not the french troops, also, as we are talking about the international coalition against the terrorism. the uk, france and germany and others. they said they were not satisfied with the decision. i hope if they can take the place of the united states but mainly the united states were leading in the coali

but mr trump said he believed a lot of people are going to come around to his way of thinking. he went on to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced as the outgoing defence secretaryjim mattis who resigned at the president's plans. mrtrump resigned at the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign he intends to push forward with what he thinks is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump of suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander in chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone, but mrtrump see his soldiers in a combat zone, but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east. a president who seem

i thought we would begin with the short version of how you know donald trump? mr. bossy, first you. >> i got a chance to meet donald trump in 2010 so i've known the president for quite some time. i got to meet the president because i was trying to raise money for children's hospital in washington, dc, where my son had one of his major surgeries and we were very blessed to be able to have great medical care for my son, and we wanted to help other families, so we wanted to raise money so that others would have the same opportunity, and i got to chance to meet mr. trump because we were doing a golf tournament at a golf course in washington that he ended up buying, trump national washington, dc, and we were able to -- i got a chance to know him because he wanted to help me with that mission of helping children, and it was something that i didn't forget or take lightly, and he understood that it was a political guy, so i kind of became someone he would call and ask questions and we would get together when mostly when i was in new york. never came to d.c. very often. but

the fired fbi director saying mr. trump

but mr trump said he believed a lot of people were going to come around to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it's time for us to start using our head. one person who remains unconvinced is the outgoing defence secretary, jim mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it is reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work left to be done there and in syria, and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so—called islamic state group have been defeated. this was the first trip by this commander—in—chief to see his soldiers in a combat zone. but mr trump has given every signal that he wants to be less involved in the middle east, a president who seemingly believes in "america first", and getting involved in other countries only as a last resort. even with th

trump is starting to build. it's not just mr. cohen. it's also this company and they agree that the president directed these payments and did so to influence the election. >> reporter: the payment was illegal because federal law bars corporations from giving money directly to a candidate's campaign. cohen will ultimately serve at least 2 1/2 years behind bars, a huge fall for the man who was once so close to donald trump. >> i think there is also a lot of anger and upset and hurt for what this is going to do to his life and what this will mean for his future and the future of his family as well. >> reporter: the judge ordered cohen to report to prison march 6th. in the meantime, he might continue cooperating with robert mueller's investigators. >>> joining us once again msnbc legal analyst danny se valceval. there is this consideration around t around cohen. he's gotten 3 1/2 years in jail. a guy like roger stone, who we've been expecting something was going to come down with regard to him any day you, nothing has happened quite yet. do

attorney for mr trump the man who once said that he would take a bullet for mr trump will soon because of what he did for mr trump go behind bars cohen was sentenced today to three years in prison a federal court in new york. city has him over his role in the payment of hush money to women who claim to have had affairs with mr trump before he was elected president cohen was also charged with lying to congress about a proposed in trump tower project in russia a project that was being discussed while mr trump was running for president in two thousand and sixteen the sentence for mr cohen was reduced due to cohen's cooperation with prosecutors. or what should we make of this sentence more on that i'm joined now by randall d. l. is and he is a professor investigating white collar crime at george washington university law school in washington d.c. he is also a contributor to the washington post professor it's good to have you on the day let me just get your reaction first of all to the three years of prison sentence for cohen is that justice served. i think i think so he did get some credit

it was mr. trump's first trip to a combat zone. while there, he defended his much criticized decision to pull out american soldiers from neighboring syria. the president returns home to a government that remains partially shut down because of a stalemate over funding for a border wall. tom hanson is here in new york, has been following all of this. tom, good morning. >> good morning, brook. that trip certainly caught washington off guard and president trump made it clear he wants to put an end to broad-scale u.s. involvement overseas. president trump is defending his decision to withdraw from syria. >> america shouldn't be doing the fighting for every nation on earth so we're not the suckers of the world. we're no longer the suckers, folks. >> during a surprise visit with u.s. troops in iraq yesterday, he said other rich nations should rebuild the wartorn country. >> our presence in syria was not open-ended and was never intended to be permanent. >> the commander in chief had been giving the military six-month extensions in syria,

trump. the president says mr. cohen lied to get a lesser sentence. marc liverman is here with more on this story. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. the moment of reckoning for michael cohen is just a few hours away. this is a man who has stood by the president for more than a decade. now he's about to find out if his decision to walk away will have been worth it and if it will spare him a harsh prison sentence. michael cohen will be sentenced today for crimes such as tax evasion, lying to congress and campaign finance violations. president trump's former person attorney has admitted to arranging payments during the 2016 election to stormy daniels and karen mcdoog gel that was in exchange for their silence about their alleges affairs which he denies. court documents last week stated that cohen arranged the payments with quote at the direction and in coordination with the president. prosecutors say the hush money payments cohen made violate campaign finance laws. president trump calls them a simple private transaction. yesterday the president to

trump so that the souls that really mr trump has no interest whatsoever in the strategic policy in the middle east is just looking for short film economic gains that helps his presidency at home circus if you're saying you correctly because of cold hard cash this transactional thing that's happened with turkey buying. from the u.s. the u.s. has said well that's good enough for us we're pulling out i think that this is the major reason for mr trump to do this actually to let the kurds in the end and this will lead to the kurds making a deal with damascus so in the end the syrian regime will go back to the northeast of syria they will call a broker some kind of deal the kurds and the mouse because in the end we will have syria falling back into the regime hands that is dependent on russia and iran christine helberg syria analyst and journalist always good to get your insights thanks for weighing in thank you. all right let's get you up to speed now with some of the other stories making news around the world. flights from london's gatwick airport are suspended after drones were spotted fl

is ready for it like this quick exchange between mr trump and mr putin we know that there were full proper meetings between the german chancellor and the russian president and also the day before mr putin met the french president emmanuel macron and the number one focus of these talks was also the current strong straight incident we heard from sources that the russian delegation that mr putin grabbed a piece of paper and a pen and physically draw them out of what was going on on the ground to explain russia's take on this and at the press conference there were also questions about this of course for mr putin mr putin said that the reaction of western leaders to russian position was very calm and he said that he tried to convene in detail a full timeline of events that happened there and besides this he brought forward some evidence which included some notes from the ukrainian vessels logbooks so this was also something that a lot of our putin brought with him to argentina the russian president continued by talking about the state of martial law that was imposed by the ukrainian president p

trump might raise in these meetings. who now is left to challenge mr. trump when he decides to move down some road, whether it be in syria, iran, north korea, and some of these other areas, china and russia. people have to be able to speak up and bring to mr. trump and to that discussion the voice of reason and experience. and jim mattis was that person. john kelly i think also was that person. now we're left with people who are yes men, whether it be a mike pompeo or john bolton or others. these are individuals who have not demonstrated any backbone or spine in terms of standing up. jim mattis i think he's been true to who has been throughout the course of his life, which a patriot and dedicated and loyal to this country. >> john brennen just mentioned syria, iran, north korea and russia all pressing national security issues for the united states, and there are others we haven't mentioned. what's your reporting tell you what happens next? >> i think there are people inside the white house who really don't know what happens next. you could see this comi

is something that mr trump. the political rhetoric has chimed with greatly he has always said that we don't have an effective strategy in afghanistan and in iraq and that we should withdraw from these countries and i think the syrian decision plays into that and all of this i think chimes at the lower levels of military command who recognize that if you like some truth in what he's saying allen nash me mr trump told reporters that the u.s. might base american commandos on the border in iraq to launch raids and other missions into syria going forward if that was needed now is this something that the u.s. would need to get permission from the iraqi government to do in and what do are up the officials think about this statement. no i think this is what he said yesterday he said we are still in iraq because you know there is many forces arises yesterday and last weeks when mr samba say. it's a decision to withdraw medical editor from syria and order that many many politicians in washington say this is a bad message

is something that mr trump. the political rhetoric has chimed with greatly he has always said that we don't have an effective strategy in afghanistan and in iraq and that we should withdraw from these countries and i think the syrian decision plays into that and all of this i think chimes at the lower levels of military command who recognize that if you like some truth in what he's saying alan nash me mr trump told reporters that the u.s. might base american commandos on the border in iraq to launch raids and other missions into syria going forward if that was needed now is this something that the u.s. would need to get permission from the iraqi government to do in and what do are up the officials think about this statement. no i think this is what he said yesterday he said we are still in iraq because you know there is many forces arises yesterday and last weeks when mr. say. it's a decision to withdraw the medical the door from syria in order that many many politicians in washington say this is a bad message f

in his announcement mr. trump declared victory over isis. that decision drew immediate bipartisan criticism and surprised some allies who also fought isis. senator graham was an outspoken critic of the move and he met with mr. trump yesterday. >>> coming up on the morning now's, wildfire blame, a california utility could face criminal charges in the state's deadliest fire. >>> and a nose for cuteness by the tsa may soon be using more floppy-eared dogs. this is the "cbs morning news." floppy-eared dogs. this is the "cbs morning news." isis. ♪ >>> in texas, the eagle landed but a bit off the mark. a bald eagle was supposed to circle at&t stadium in arlington before the cotton bowl and then land on the field. but, no, it first landed on a fan's shoulder and then perched itself on another fan's arm. the bird eventually made it back to its handlers. it was not hurt, neither were the fans. that turned out to be the on good luck for the notre dame supporters. they lost to clemson. 30-3. clemson goes ton play alabama in the national championships.

trump over mr. trump's treatment of historically strong allies. mattis was among the president's first cabinet picks. >> general "mad dog" mattis. >> reporr: and now he joins the ranks of departed t officials within the trump administration. the president tweeting, a new secretary of defense be named shortly. kristen welker, nbc news, the white house. >>> i'm andrea mitchell in washington where the president's plans for afghanistan and withdraw from syria were theinal straw. a decision mattis a decision mattis strongly opposed and so had the president's rg key advisorsng astrongly opp so had tsident's key advisors arguing a fight against isis. >> it would be reckless. >> with regard to il station, we have a long way to go. >> reporter: to the president, it's a campaign promise kept tweeting today does the u.s. want to be the policeman of the middle east? mattis among those who thought they talked him out of it and from erdogan three weeks ago and on a call friday, arguing america's partners in the figh syrian kurds are terrorists. the president ov

the first couple likely would have gone to services near mr. trump's palm beach estate. but the president decided to stay in the capital amid the border wall stalemate. >> and the national christmas tree that sits behind the white house reopened to the public yesterday thanks to a grant from the national park foundation. it had been closed due to the government shutdown. wendy. >> tom hanson here in new york, thanks. >>> back in this country, stock markets are closed today. investors trying to catch their breath following days of heavy losses. the dow is on its way to its worst december since the great depression in 1931. japan's nikkei followed wall street plunging near 5% this morning. tokyo and other markets are on track to lose 10% of their value this year. christmas eve turned into another bloodbath on wall street. the dow jones industrial lost 653 points. the s&p 500 lost 65 points and the nasdaq dropped 140 points. the latest sell-off triggered by another attack on the fed by president trump. errol barnett has more. >> after the stock market saw its worst christma

but mr trump said he believed that a lot of people were going to come round to his way of thinking. he went on to insist that it is time for us to start using our head. one person remains unconvinced as the outgoing defence secretary, james mattis, who resigned over the president's plans. mr trump says he is in no hurry to find a permanent successor to general mattis, a sign that he intends to push forward with what he believes is right. it's reported that the pentagon has been asked to draw up plans to severely reduce the number of american troops in afghanistan. many in the military feel there is still much work to be done that and in syria. and there has been widespread criticism of mr trump's suggestion that the so called islamic state group have been defeated. even with those questions about his foreign policy, mr trump may well feel that that trip to iraq has been a brief break from the battles he is facing year in washington. there are concerns about the economy, the stock market, and the economy, the stock market, and the partial government shutdown which left hundreds of th

this tweet is typical of mr. trump, boasting without clarity or details. it does require a bit of context here, george. because china actually slashed tariffs on foreign cars back in july right before the trade war started with the u.s. so now, if you buy foreign cars from countries other than the u.s., you pay a 15% tariff. the 40% tariff figure on u.s. cars is because china has added a 25% punitive tariff on u.s. cars after the trade war began. so a lot of people are still trying to figure out what the president meant by reducing or removing the 40% tariffs. does he mean it is going back to 15% or 0%? that would be a major coups. still, this example really illustrates, george, the added confusion, uncertainty trade negotiators from both sides, i think, have to deal with as they resume their very tough trade talks in the coming weeks and months, george. >> steven, so let's talk about what we do know, because certainly there are questions from what the president tweeted. but we do know that the united states has agreed to essentially put tariffs on ice for

mr. trump saluted and mrs. trump held her hand over her heart. >> later today, the president will visit the bush family at the blair house. the blair house is across the street from the white house. lines stretched into the early morning hours. more now from cnn's sunlen serfaty on capitol hill. >> reporter: good morning, dave and christine. there have been so many moving moments to honor the life and legacy of george h.w. bush. up here on capitol hill, there was so much emotion from his family as they watched his casket slowly brought step by step into the capitol. this is where he once served as a congress member from texas. his body lies in state at the rotunda. it was opened all night for the members of the public to come in and pay respects. earlier in the day, a ceremony on capitol hill where the common theme was not only speaking about the achievements of the former president, but mostly about who he was as a man. he was humble and he was kind and someone who established deep relationships here in washin

mr trump has now tweeted that the withdrawal will be slow and highly co—ordinated. our correspondent chris buckler is in washington. will come onto the cereal withdrawal ina will come onto the cereal withdrawal in a moment but this replacement at the pentagon, the new secretary of defence, what do we know about him and where he stands on issues like the withdrawal of troops from syria? patrick sha na han is the withdrawal of troops from syria? patrick shanahan is a former boeing businessman so he is someone with a different background to james mattis, who was a general in the marine corps, and was called mad dog mattis at one stage. it will be a very different person taking this acting post. president trump hasn't said how long he will be acting for. we believe there will be some continuity because he has been working below continuity because he has been working beloinm mattis but you have the sense that president trump wa nts to have the sense that president trump wants to appoint somebody he believes in and who is going to listen to him on some key issues. it is c