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Trump Makes Joint Statement with Xi in Beijing; U.S. and China Sign Trade Deals; Texas Mass Shooting; Gun Control; Wilbur Ross' Phantom $2 Million. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired November 9, 2017 - 00:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[23:59:57] XI JINPING, PRESIDENT OF CHINA (through translator): We agreed to expand, exchange and co-op (ph) a dialogue between our two militaries at various levels, realized at an early date the visit by U.S. Secretary of Defense to China and a senior high level Chinese military delegation to the U.S. and work to ensure the success of our first joint staff dialogue mechanism and the disaster management joint exercise and economic exchanges.

We agreed to standard law enforcement and cyber security cooperation. The two sides reaffirmed that neither wants to become a safe haven for each other's fugitives. And will instruct competent authorities of the two countries to actively explore a long-term cooperation mechanism regarding fugitive assets recovery and repatriation of illegal immigrants.

The two sides will continue the implementation of this five-point consensus reached in 2015 to enhance cyber-security cooperation including the use of the international terrorist (INAUDIBLE) and tackling cyber crimes. We will do counter-narcotics cooperation and better protect each other's nationals and institutions in their respective countries.

As two distinctive countries our two sides may have different views or differences on some issues. This is only natural. The key is to properly handle and manage them. There is far more common interest between our two countries than differences.

It is important to respect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, respect each other's choice of development path and our difference. As long as the two sides commit to a constructive approach, we can put aside and diffuse differences while at the same time build common ground and advance cooperation.

We also discussed the international responsibilities our two countries shoulder. We agreed to enhance communication and cooperation on major international and regional global issues and jointly seek purposed (ph) resolution of relevant issues to make greater contribution to peace, stability and prosperity of relevant regions and the world at large.

On the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, we reiterated the firm commitment to achieving denuclearization of the peninsula and upholding international nonproliferation regime. The two sides will continue to fully and strictly implement U.N. Security Council resolutions. At the same time the two sides commit to working toward a solution through dialogue and negotiation.

And we are ready to discuss with relevant parties the pathway leading to enduring peace and stability in the peninsula and the northeast Asia. The two sides will maintain communication and cooperation on the Korean Peninsula issue.

We believe that China and the United States are countries with important influence in the Asia Pacific. As I said to the President, the Pacific Ocean is big enough to accommodate both China and the United States. The two sides need to step up communication and cooperation on Asia Pacific affairs, foster common friends, build constructive interactions and jointly maintain and promote peace and stability and prosperity in the region.

We also discussed the Middle East, Afghanistan and other issues and agreed to deepen cooperation on counterterrorism, nonproliferation, nuclear security and stronger support to U.N. peacekeeping operations.

We both believe that friendship between our peoples is the foundation for the sustained growth of China-U.S. relations and we agreed to further promote people to people exchange. We will expand student exchange program, hold China-U.S. young makers (ph) competition every year and open additional young makers exchange centers in both countries.

Ladies and gentlemen, dear friends -- President Trump's state visit is a successful and historic visit. Together the two of us have set out the direction and rolled up the blueprint for China-U.S. relations in the common period. We will work with United States and act on the consensus we reached, seek further progress in China-U.S. relations to bring greater benefits to our peoples and people across the world.

[00:05:02] Thank you very much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much -- Your Excellency. Now President Trump -- you have the floor.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you.

President Xi -- I want to thank you for an incredible welcoming ceremony earlier this morning. It was truly memorable and impressive and something I will never forget.

Melania and I are honored to visit your country with its ancient history, dynamic people and thriving culture. I also want to thank you and Madam Ping for a tour that was given to us yesterday of the very majestic Forbidden City.

Your people are proud of who they are and what they have built together, and your people are also very proud of you. I want to congratulate you on the recent and very successful 19th Party Congress.

Perhaps now more than ever we have an opportunity to strengthen the relationship between our two countries and improve the lives of our citizens. As long as we stand together, with others if necessary, against those who threaten our civilization that threat will never happen. It doesn't even have a chance.

As I said in my address yesterday in Seoul, the entire civilized world must unite to confront the North Korean menace, and the entire world is watching us right now.

Today President Xi -- we discussed our mutual commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea. We agreed not to replicate failed approaches of the past. And there were many.

We agreed on the need to fully implement all U.N. Security Council resolutions on North Korea and to increase economic pressure until North Korea abandons its reckless and dangerous path. All responsible nations must join together to stop arming and financing and even trading with the murderous North Korean regime.

Together we have in our power to finally liberate this region and the world from this very serious nuclear menace. But it will require collective action, collective strength, and collective devotion to winning the peace.

In order to create a more secure future for all and to protect our citizens from extremism and terrorism, President Xi and I also committed to working toward a peaceful future for Afghanistan. Terrorists are a threat to all of humanity, and we will stop radical Islamic terrorism.

The United States and China also face many challenges within our borders. Every year drug trafficking destroys millions and millions of lives. Today President Xi and I discussed ways we can enhance (AUDIO GAP) -- and into our communities.

A special emphasis will be placed on the new phenomena, fentanyl, destroying lives by the millions. We're going to be focusing on it very strongly -- the President and myself.

In addition to improving the safety and security of our citizens, President Xi and I discussed improving our economic relationship. We want a vibrant trade relationship with China. We also want a fair and reciprocal one.

Today I discussed with President Xi the chronic imbalance in our relationship as it pertains to trade and the concrete steps that we'll jointly take to solve the problem of the massive trade distortion.

[00:10:05] This includes addressing China's market access restrictions and technology transfer requirements which prevent American companies from being able to fairly compete within China. The United States is committed to protecting the intellectual property of our companies and providing a level playing field for our workers.

At the same time our relationship with you and China is a very important one to me and to all of the people of our country. And just by looking at the tremendous, incredible job-producing agreements just signed by those major companies, we're off to a very, very good start.

As part of our commitment to regional stability and peace, the United States also continues to advocate for reforms that advance economic freedom, individual rights and the rule of law. The United States, working with China and other regional partners, has an incredible opportunity to advance the cause of peace, security and prosperity all across the world.

It's a very special time. And we do indeed have that very, very special opportunity. A great responsibility has been placed on our shoulders -- President. It's truly a great responsibility. And I hope we can rise to the occasion and help our countries and our citizens reach their highest destinies and their fullest potentials.

I want to thank you -- again you're a very special man -- for your gracious hospitality. I send my warmest regards to your citizens. I honor their heritage and celebrate their great, great possibilities and potential for the future.

In the coming months and years I look forward to building an even stronger relationship between our two countries-- China and the United States of America; and even closer friendships and relationships between the people of our countries.

Mr. President -- thank you very much. Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much.

Thank you.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello -- everybody. I'm John Vause, live in Los Angeles. We have been listening to a joint statement from U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Well, for our viewers in the United States, after that statement, we'll now rejoin "ANDERSON COOPER 360" already in progress.

For everybody else, NEWSROOM L.A. continues right now.

Hello -- everybody. I'm John Vause. I'm here with Kristie Lu Stout who is in Beijing.

So Kristie -- you were listening to that joint statement by the Presidents of China and the United States. It seems like if you believe every word they said this is a warm and friendly relationship.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: That's -- we have seen the tone of that kick off yesterday with that lavish welcome for President Trump here in Beijing. But how is that personal rapport going to translate into some tough talks that are taking place today?

Just now we heard some comments from that press conference. No questions from reporters apparently allowed there. We first heard from the Chinese President Xi Jinping talking about seeking a constructive approach and despite differences looking for some sort of a solution together. Obviously, he's making reference to two key issues -- number one,

North Korea and also number two, the very shaky U.S./China trade relationship.

We also heard from U.S. President Donald Trump talking about his desire to solve the nuclear standoff in North Korea or to resolve it and to get China to increase pressure and also saying that he wants to improve the economic relationship between U.S. and China as well.

Now, although President Trump we know that he has blamed past U.S. administrations for the trade surplus and he says that he wants to improve it.

Now, I understand that we have Matt Rivers, our Beijing correspondent standing by. He was also listening in to that speech just now. Let's bring in Matt.

And Matt -- first on the issue of North Korea, you know, it's interesting because we heard those comments from the Chinese President Xi Jinping, you know, saying that yes there are differences but let's work on a constructive solution here.

We know that the goal is the same for U.S. and China -- denuclearization. But how are they going to get there?

[00:15:01] MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, we didn't really get a lot of specific insight into how they plan to achieve that common goal which as you said is a complete and total denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. That was one of the things that we were looking for, perhaps not from President Xi himself but perhaps from President Trump.

We were looking for would there be anything tangible? Would there be any specific measures that both sides have agreed to over the short time that President Trump has been here in Beijing? Would they have anything to announce specifically when it comes to North Korea -- perhaps further steps that China would be willing to take to put the economic pressure that the Trump administration wants them to on Pyongyang?

Perhaps the United States would announce more unilateral activities while here. But really, we didn't hear any of that. We have heard more of the same from both sides -- cooperation, we want the same things. President Trump urging China to do more saying that they y can easily and quickly fix this problem if they so choose.

But really nothing that we haven't heard before -- Kristie. And I think that is relatively surprising given that that is the number one issue that both sides were talking about here. But clearly, there hasn't been enough progress made one way or another to announce new tangible specific steps as to how they're planning to deal with this issue.

STOUT: All right. Matt Rivers -- thank you very much indeed.

Let's cross now to Jeff Zeleny who's been following the U.S. President throughout his five-nation tour of Asia. He joins us live from Beijing. He was also there listening to that press conference just then as we heard from these two leaders talk about where they stand on key U.S./China relations.

And Jeff -- from, you know, on the back of what we saw yesterday, you know, this personal rapport between these two leaders, the red carpet being laid out, the Forbidden City, how is that going to translate into progress on key issues like North Korea especially when we hear it straight from the Chinese president that there are differences between these two leaders?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: No question, there are differences between these two leaders. And Kristie, I am in the Great Hall of the People just steps away from where President Trump and President Xi Jinping just delivered those statements.

And I can tell you, you can see the warmth between the two leaders. You certainly could see that with the pomp and the pageantry. But I think looking beyond that a little bit more, yes they -- this is the third time that they have met face to face. I'm told that this was -- that they have also talked nine times by telephone here.

So it definitely is the building of a rapport. But I think one thing I was struck by, President Trump as he reaches the one-year point after he was elected, certainly is sounding much different than Candidate Trump. And there is (AUDIO GAP) than China and trade.

We heard him during the campaign really with blistering language. At one point accusing China of raping U.S. jobs. Well, that was not the message, of course, he delivered here today.

In fact he said he does not blame China. He, you know, believes that they're just looking out for their own interests here. So that was a major step back from what he had talked about. And of course, he is not (AUDIO GAP) -- President Xi Jinping when he is on his turf, if you will.

But certainly his language on trade that helped get him elected into office so softer and so much different here today.

STOUT: Yes, absolutely. Jeff Zeleny there, reporting.

Let's go back to our Matt Rivers also standing by. And Matt -- as you heard from Jeff, he's been following the President for so long. A key marked difference between Candidate Trump when talking about China and U.S. President Trump while here in his first official visit to the Chinese capital having a softer tone on the U.S.-China trade relationship.

You know, that a number of key business deals are going to be announced on this trip. But as Trump did address in that press conference just moments ago in the Great Hall of the People, there are these key, fundamental issues about the U.S.-China relationship. He wants to level the playing field, but how?

RIVERS: Yes. Well, I mean he brought up a couple of different things that we have heard for a long time from the American business community here in Beijing in our conversations with them. He brings up things like market access, for example. The United States has long contended that the Chinese hold back the U.S. companies ability to operate freely here in China to get access to the world's largest consumer market.

He brought up things like forced transfers of technology. Oftentimes U.S. companies operating here in China are forced to share technology with their Chinese counterparts in order to get access to the Chinese market. That's been a big sticking point.

And he also brought up theft of intellectual property and that's something that has gone back very long -- for a very long time in the U.S.-China relationship -- the U.S. accusing the Chinese of stealing intellectual property from the United States.

But again just like we talked about earlier, Kristie -- none of that is new. And there was nothing put out by the President of the United States saying this -- this is how we plan on tackling these issues.

[00:20:06] Now, that might come later, perhaps there's something going on in the works. Perhaps there's going to be a statement put out after the President leaves China.

But in terms of what's happened during the day today, we have heard these kinds of complaints before and we didn't get anything really specific in terms of how the President plans on addressing that.

And it is markedly different. I mean you heard Jeff say that on the campaign trail, Donald Trump accused the U.S. -- or China of raping the U.S. economically and today he gets up there and almost in a joking way says but I can't blame China for that because who can blame any country for taking advantage of another in order to benefit its own citizens?

So I think there you're seeing the effects of the warm, personal relationship that Xi Jinping has with Donald Trump from Candidate Trump to President Trump. The big difference is that now they spent a lot of time together. They've talked on the phone and it is making a difference in the U.S.-China relationship.

STOUT: Incredible. Matt Rivers -- reporting live. Many thanks indeed, for that.

We'll send it back to you, John Vause in L.A. And John -- as you heard Matt say just then, you know, Donald Trump seems to be seduced by the lavish red carpet state visit -- visit that he's receiving here in China, perhaps much to the chagrin of many people in the American business community.

In about an hour from now, he'll be talking to the chairman of Afgo China about that feeling of just where Trump stands on representing U.S. business interests in China and what more needs to be done.

Back to you. VAUSE: It seems China and South Korea are following the Macron playbook -- you know, turn on a big show, flatter the ego and win the heart.

Ok. For more on Donald Trump's visit there, we're joined now by political commentator Mo Kelly, host of "The Mo Kelly Radio Show" and Republican strategist Charles Moran (h). We're also going to talk about politics of the day back here in the U.S.

But first, let's talk about -- first of all, the President's -- just his demeanor and his tone, Mo, I mean this is day six of a 12-day trip. You know, there's a big time difference. He seemed very fatigued so he didn't seem himself. What did you make of it?

MO KELLY, POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: At best -- reserved. At worst -- a little tired and fatigued in a way which just was a little disconcerting. I mean he's a human and he can be jetlagged.

VAUSE: Right.

KELLY: And it's hard to stay on for days and days on end. But the takeaway for me is it's not how well this President performs with the teleprompter it's when he returns to the States or even gets loose on Twitter again. There's teleprompter Trump and there's Twitter Trump and all the good that he may be able to do right now he can undo very quickly once he's off teleprompter.

VAUSE: And Charles, it does seem, you know, that the President has a very good opinion of the last person he spoke to. And, you know, could we put, you know, through kind words that he's having, you know, saying about Xi Jinping right now and the Chinese people and China in that category?

CHARLES MORAN, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Donald Trump is being America's primary diplomat right now. I think it's funny that people are criticizing his demeanor in the way that he is warmly received and he is receiving the attention, you know, characterizing him as being uncharacteristic while they criticize him for not being presidential enough. So this is an opportunity where he's being presidential, he is being the negotiator-in-chief and the diplomat in chief.

This is a long trip. It's a probably a 13-hour time distance. This is the longest --

VAUSE: Yes.

MORAN: -- Asian trip that any president has conducted since President H.W. Bush. And in this situation, you know, we have got, you know, Donald Trump came with a mandate and this is what he said. And this is actually consistent with what his campaign promise was -- to go in, to renegotiate all of the trade deals. And he's -- you know, after six days of tough negotiations, sitting at the table, listening to the dialogue, not sending an envoy but being there, he's following through on his promise to take every country one by one and make sure that America is getting the best deal. VAUSE: Well, you know, the Chinese leader Xi Jinping certainly, you

know, turning on a show big league for the U.S. President. There was that very special dinner in the Forbidden City last night. But let's listen to what Candidate Donald Trump thought of, you know, such ceremony.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We give state dinners to the heads of China. I say, why are you doing state dinners for them? They're ripping us left and right. Just take them to McDonald's and go back to the negotiating table -- seriously.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: You know, Mo-- we heard just a short time ago from President Trump saying the relationship U.S. with Xi Jinping and China is incredibly important to me. Xi Jinping had some very friendly words to say about Donald Trump.

But is this friendliness, if you like, or friendship -- is it driven in part by Donald Trump's failure so far to deliver on some of his campaign promises when it comes to China -- currency manipulation, trade, the trade imbalance -- that kind of stuff?

KELLY: Well, part of it I think is you cater to his ego as an individual -- that makes him very warm. That warm's him up if you cater and flatter him.

But let's not confuse the personal affinity with presidential duty. Presidential duties mean presidential all the time, not part of the time.

[00:25:00] And this president has to be able to balance his foreign policy with his domestic agenda. His domestic agenda has failed considerably -- no major legislative victory. And he's abroad now -- not his fault but he's unable to sell his latest piece of legislation -- tax reform. It's almost like you can't serve two masters and one is going to suffer.

VAUSE: And Charles -- it does seem that there's been this sort of constant changing of the message to China. You know, we heard this stuff from the campaign and then there was at Mar-a-Lago over chocolate cake and the meeting, you know, the friendships and the praise and then there were the tweets where he was criticizing China and now we're back to being China's best friend. There does seem to be at least a lack of consistency.

MORAN: Well, everything in this sphere is a shade of gray. It's not we're either China's enemy or we're China's friend. We have to take the advantage where we can.

The United States is enjoying one of its, you know, best economic periods right now. The Dow is at an all-time high, unemployment is at an all-time low. Americans are feeling solid about the condition of the economy. And as I said before Donald Trump is actually fulfilling on his campaign promises. We, you know, he has successfully enacted parts of his legislative package. He's withdrawn from TPP. He's going into every country. You know, there's been a solid new relationship forged in our trade deal with South Korea.

I anticipate that's going to be coming in additional countries later this week. There's been private deals that are -- have been announced and they're going to be continued to be announced.

This is what Donald Trump promised and this is actually Donald Trump at work doing what his agenda was.

VAUSE: Ok. Well, obviously, the big issue hanging over this two-day trip to Beijing is what to do about North Korea. Donald Trump was in Seoul, South Korea just a day ago. He delivered a very blunt warning to the North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, also addressing the South Korean national assembly.

We have, you know, the response from state media in Pyongyang. Part of it reads this. "Warmongering, filthy rhetoric, spewing out his snout like garbage that reeks of gun powder to ignite war". I guess, you know, that actually means that they're not giving up their nuclear program.

But you know, really Mo -- was anybody expecting anything different?

KELLY: No. It's not a matter of what Kim Jong-Un does, it's what President Trump does in response or lack of response.

To Charles -- as far as legislative agenda, we know that the Iran deal hasn't changed. We know they haven't repealed and replace Obamacare. So what he does right now in Asia will matter maybe just proportionately in terms of Kim Jong-Un and be able to deliver on that promise to get him to stand down.

If he doesn't get him to stand down then by 2018 more specifically, then Republicans are in deep trouble.

VAUSE: I just want to get back to the reaction from Pyongyang because clearly, you know, that was a fairly standard response. They will not change their behavior based on one speech.

MORAN: Clearly -- but Donald Trump actually came ready to negotiate. In his speeches that he's given so far he has absolutely articulated that he wants to see a diplomatic solution. He wants to see a situation evolve where, you know, there doesn't have to be an escalation of force.

But at the same time he has also demonstrated to our allies that he is prepared to do that, he's moved a third aircraft carrier into the region. So, again, he's approaching it with a carrot and with a stick hoping, again from his speeches and from his statements, that diplomacy rules the day.

VAUSE: Ok. In case you missed it, a year ago tonight Donald Trump won the election here in --

MORAN: He did.

VAUSE: Yes, apparently so.

According to an analysis by the "Washington Post", the President has mentioned that election win one out of every five days on average over the past year. So Mo, to you -- does that indicate that this is a President who's in many ways or at least someway has been unable to move on from that night?

KELLY: Well, winning is important to all of us. It is especially important to this president. But also, a part of winning is also being able to deliver. And I think he's innately aware of what it means to be able to deliver in terms of North Korea. And he's aware of what he said about China as part of this conversation. And he knows he had to tone down that rhetoric because he needs China as an ally to thwart North Korea.

He is self-aware. I don't think that he's not aware but ultimately, yes, he is all about winning. And winning does not include repeal- and-replace. Winning does not include the Iran deal. Winning does not include tax reform as of yet. I think he is aware.

VAUSE: Ok. With that in mind Charles -- a new CNN poll found 63 percent of those who were asked believe the President does not deserve a second term. It's only a year in. Is there a criticism here that the President is already heading to lame duck territory?

MORAN: Well, I wonder if that was the same CNN pollster who ended up predicting a Hillary Clinton win in the last election.

VAUSE: Our polls are correct. What you guys get upset about with, you know, Hillary has 99.99 percent chance of winning which we didn't do t.

(CROSSTALK)

MORAN: And it is a -- it is a temperature. And any given day those temperatures fluctuate. But really, you know, Donald Trump, you know, as he has continued to move through his first year of his presidency clearly I think that he's realizing that's harder to strike those types of deals.

[00:30:00] As we have gone through, you know, there was the Ossoff election in Atlanta where the Republican ended up winning. Last night clearly Republicans had challenges in traditionally Democratic areas -- New Jersey and Virginia. So we'll see a balance and we've got another year until the next round of elections. So I think there's absolutely space for this.

MO KELLY: We have December in Alabama and that election will tell us a lot about whether the Democrats have momentum or whether it's business as usual.

VAUSE: Yes. I love your spin about -- (CROSSTALK)

MORAN: Well, you know, there's a lot of different other --

VAUSE: It was a (INAUDIBLE) election that was -- the opinion poll said --

(CROSSTALK)

MORAN: Democrats have been outraised three to one by the Republicans in this last cycle.

(CROSSTALK)

VAUSE: Which is very similar to the Obama administration. (INAUDIBLE). We'll leave it there. Charles, Mo, as always, great to see you guys.

MORAN: Thank you.

KELLY: Thank you.

VAUSE: Next here on NEWSROOM L.A., things seem to be going well as Donald Trump meets with the Chinese president. But will it be enough to get China-U.S. relations back on track?

We'll head back to Beijing right after this.

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause. We have just one top story this hour.

U.S. President Donald Trump is spending a second day in Beijing as the guest of the Chinese President Xi Jinping. A short time ago, Mr. Trump and Mr. Xi witnessed the signing of $250 billion in mutual trade deals.

Later Mr. Trump and his wife will attend an elaborate state dinner.

Let's head back to Kristie Lu Stout, live in Beijing.

And you know, a very crucial days for the U.S. president and he seems to be, you know, at least, in his words, making good.

LU STOUT: Yes. After that lavish welcome that he received yesterday, today you could say comes the hard part. Talks and some pretty hard issues, like the future of the North Korean nuclear standoff and the U.S.-China trade relationship.

After that of Great Hall, the people press conference that we watched live a few minutes ago, U.S. President Donald Trump is now sitting down with Li Kichong, the Chinese premier for talks.

And joining me now here for more analysis in Beijing is Paul Haenle, he's the director of the Carnegie (INAUDIBLE) Center at Xinhua University.

And, Paul, good to meet you in person finally. Thank you for joining us.

PAUL HAENLE, CARNEGIE CENTER: Nice to meet you.

STOUT: Let's talk about the issue of progress because a lot of goodwill has been generated on both sides from Donald Trump over the last months, heaping so much praise on Xi Jinping to the lavish imperial welcome in the Forbidden City yesterday.

Will that translate into progress on key policy issues between U.S. and China?

HAENLE: That's the key question, of course. You know, the warm tone of the relationship that you are seeing unfold here and the Chinese offering what they call --

[00:35:00]

HAENLE: -- a state visit-plus, it's very important for the relationship. That tone is important for the relationship. And so are the big deals that are being announced here with U.S. companies and Chinese companies.

But underlying that are a series of fundamental and structural issues, which, if not addressed and if progress is not made, will affect the long-term health of the U.S.-China relationship.

And I worry if they're not addressed in some way during this trip, we'll begin to see a hardening of U.S. policy toward China and potentially an even confrontational approach emerge.

STOUT: Can we talk about issue of North Korea?

We know that both the U.S. and China agree that the aim is denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula; they don't quite agree on how to get there.

What is the likelihood of China shifting the position here?

HAENLE: You are right. China and the U.S. both agree we don't want to see North Korea with a nuclear weapon but we disagree on the tactics and China has yet to fundamentally alter its approach the way President Trump wants it to, I would say largely because based on their consideration of their own interests.

However, North Korea has done a number of things that undermine China's interests as of late, including a nuclear test where people in the Northeast, Chinese people in the northeastern part of China are worried about radioactive fallout. They just recently, news reports say that the North Koreans sent in an

assassination team to kill the son of Kim Jong-nam, who was here in Beijing. What will change China's considerations in my mind is not so much U.S. pressure or tweets from President Trump, it is actions by the North Koreans and I think we're getting to the point potentially, frustration is very high in China and President Trump and his team should push China to do more on this trip.

STOUT: It is whether or not China has a red line when it comes to North Korea. If North Korea crosses it, China may be willing to do what Donald Trump is suggesting, to isolate Pyongyang.

I want to ask you more about the U.S.-China relationship. There are a lot of differences there. You know, there might be some deliverables announced, some bit, multi-billion dollar deals but, you know, huge structural issues here.

HAENLE: Absolutely.

STOUT: In that press conference, President Trump did acknowledge there are issues when it comes to intellectual property, right?

When it comes to leveling the playing field for U.S.-China trade, is there going to any substantive action taken?

HAENLE: This is one of the most important issues. And a former trade official said to me recently, if every country in the world operated its economy like China, the global economic and trading system would not work. China is closed much more than the rest of the world's economies are.

After China joined the WTO in 2001, there was hope that China would open up. China has not done that.

And so in order to compete fairly, China, the United States and countries in Europe and in the Asia Pacific region want to see China open up more. There are problems with intellectual property, forced technology transfer.

These are the issues that really need to be addressed for the fundamental health of the U.S.-China relationship in the long term but also in China's own interests because these are the issues in the third plenum in 2013 when China announced its economic reform plan, these were the issues China said it wanted to address to rebalance its own economy.

So it's in -- President Trump needs to make the case, it is in China's interest and the world's interests for you to become more open and deal with these more structural and economic and trade issues on the agenda.

STOUT: A question about the power dynamics at play here between Xi Jinping at the apex of his power and Donald Trump, who is kind of under fire right now. Xi Jinping just emerged from the party congress. He has considered his power. He is presenting himself as a new imperial-style leader. Donald Trump under fire for the ongoing Russian probe. His Republican

Party suffering major electoral defeats this week, et cetera, et cetera.

Do you think that power dynamic is going to be played out through these talks?

And does China have the upper hand?

HAENLE: I worry about that. President Xi comes into this with a strong position coming out of the 19th Party Congress. President Trump has even congratulated him and recognized that he is in a position of strength.

President Trump will try to use that to say that, you're through your year of domestic politics. And I know what that is like during the presidential campaign. But now you are tough it and you're in a stronger position and President Trump will try to use that to say to President Xi, do more now on North Korea. Do more on the fundamental and structural issues of the trade and economic relationship.

Whether President Xi will do that is an open question. I worry that he will not feel the pressure to do so because he is in a strengthened position. And so I think that's one of the key questions going forward.

STOUT: All right. Paul Haenle of the (INAUDIBLE) --

HAENLE: Thank you so much.

STOUT: -- thank you so much for joining me. Take care.

And keep it here because, coming up next on CNN NEWSROOM, we have U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visiting the Texas community reeling from the mass shooting and --

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STOUT: -- the promise he made to them just ahead.

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VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody.

And emotional day in Sutherland Springs, Texas, for U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, meeting with survivors and victims' families of Sunday's mass shooting; 25 people and an unborn child were killed when a gunman opened fire at the First Baptist Church.

Pence promised to close the loopholes which allowed the shooter to get a gun despite his history of violence and a criminal record.

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MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: 0We will find out why this information was not properly reported in 2012. And we will work with leaders in Congress to ensure that this never happens again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: In June last year, the wake of what was then the worst mass shooting in U.S. history, 49 killed at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, Democratic lawmakers in Congress staged a sit-in, demanding a vote on a gun control bill.

It was a dramatic night but Republicans adjourned the House and the vote never happened.

Well, two years earlier, gun control activists staged protest marches around the country; this one was in Brooklyn. They were chanting, "Not one more." You may remember that was the plea from Richard Martinez, after his son was shot to death by a disgruntled young man on a killing spree in Santa Barbara.

There were protests demanding the reinstatement of the federal ban on the style of military semi-automatic rifles after the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, which left 20 children and six adults dead.

In May of 2000, the Million Mom March on the National Mall in Washington called for stricter gun control.

But since last month's latest shooting in Las Vegas and the killing spree at a Texas church, 35 days later, nothing. Not only that, it seems that there's not even been a national conversation about the epidemic of gun violence.

Adam Winkler joins us now. He's a law professor at the University of California Los Angeles. He's taken a close look at the whole issue of gun laws and what could be down and what hasn't been done.

Adam, it seems right now this country looks at mass shootings like a weather event. It's something which just happens. They just simply can't control it.

ADAM WINKLER, UCLA: Well, Americans are very pessimistic about the possibility of stopping mass shootings. First of all, the NRA has a virtual lock on American politics and no major gun restrictions will be passed by this Congress.

At the same time, Americans feel that even if there were new gun restrictions adopted, we still have 320 million guns already out there and a mass shooter can get their hands on guns when they need to.

VAUSE: They've reason to be pessimistic, too, when it comes to any action on gun reform. In the days after the Vegas shooting, there was a lot of focus on bump stocks, the device which changes a semiautomatic into an automatic weapon essentially. That seemed like low-hanging fruit. But it seems to have gone nowhere. WINKLER: That's right. The NRA called for new ATF regulations but the ATF has determined that there's no possible way --

[00:45:00]

WINKLER: -- to issue new regulations and they're handcuffed by the state of the law. I was talking to Republican senators just this week and it sounds like no new legislation will be passed on bump stocks, either.

VAUSE: You made the argument that the country is actually not having the right discussion, the right conversation about guns. The focus should not be on mass shootings. The problem with that is all the attention on gun laws happens after a mass shooting.

WINKLER: Mass shootings are high-profile events that do cause us to think about gun violence. But we have to remember when one of these mass shootings like there was in Texas on Sunday, that every day since then about 33 people have lost their lives to gun violence in America, just from ordinary criminal misuse of guns and suicide and ordinary accidents.

What we should do is try to bring down that toll, that daily death toll of gun violence. We could have some success there; whereas fighting mass shootings is really very difficult.

VAUSE: If you bring down the overall number of fatalities from gun deaths and if there are some regulations put in place, what will be the positive effect from that I guess when it comes to mass shootings?

Will there be any?

WINKLER: Possibly, possibly not. It's really hard to stop a mass shooter. If you want to get your hands on a gun in a society like ours that has made a commitment to have civilians armed, it is very difficult to stop mass shootings.

But there are things we can do to reduce the daily death toll of gun violence, universal background checks, better enforcement of our current gun laws, unshackling the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, the main law enforcement agency.

Those are things that can happen.

Will it have an effect on mass shootings?

It is not really clear.

VAUSE: On the other side of the equation, there seems to be the almost mythical sort of quality or aura around the Second Amendment in the Constitution, the right to bear arms and there seems to be, you know, some confusion out there. Maybe some deliberate confusion out there about its scope and its power and what it covers and what it does not cover and what the courts can actually do and what Congress can actually do when it comes to gun laws. WINKLER: One of the biggest misconceptions we have is that the Second Amendment doesn't allow for good and effective gun control law. That's not true. The courts have upheld the vast majority of gun control laws. What's really stopping us from getting the gun laws we need: politics, that the NRA is able to really turn out a bunch of single issue pro-gun voters on Election Day that really make a difference.

And until gun control advocates have that same political mobilization, they're going to continue to lose.

VAUSE: When it comes to the NRA, this is an industry lobby group, which has been incredibly effective at what it has to do, which is essentially lobby on behalf of the gun industry.

Is there sort of an almost a misperception that the NRA is there for gun owners as opposed to gun makers?

And what sort of difference does that make?

WINKLER: Well, there's a lot of gun owners who disagree with the NRA, even among its membership. A lot of gun owners want to see things like universal background checks or a no-buy list for terrorist suspects or even a regulation of bump stocks.

And those voices are marginalized in the NRA but the NRA is appealing to this core group of really diehard gun voters, for whom guns are really kind of an identity or cultural issue. And any effort to regulate them, they take as a personal attack. And as long as those people are such a force in American politics, the NRA will be one, too.

VAUSE: So what you're saying is by having this core group of supporters, these one-issue voters, that gives the NRA this incredible political power which means that these restrictions just never get put in place and the gunmakers continue to sell guns?

WINKLER: That's right. We think of democracy as the will of the majority. But the truth of the matter is, a small, intense, really active minority can really overcome a more apathetic majority.

And the truth is, when it comes to gun control, Americans are a little apathetic. They're either pessimistic that nothing can be done or if they're gun control supporters, they're not willing to organize and mobilize and make that the single issue that they're voting on.

And so as a result, you have this intense minority that exerts a disproportionate influence on American law.

VAUSE: And seems to have done so for quite some time.

Good to see you. Thank you so much. We appreciate it.

OK. "Forbes" magazine is reporting that the U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross lied about his net worth. We'll ask the "Forbes" editor about the findings after the break. (MUSIC PLAYING)

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VAUSE: It is a bad week for U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, starting with a huge leak of financial documents, revealing his direct business ties to the family of Russian president Vladimir Putin. That sparked outrage among Democrats, accusing Ross of being less than transparent.

Also, "Forbes" announced they were dropping his name from their list of the 400 wealthiest Americans. Ross made his debut among the who's who of the rich and fabulous in 2004 with a net worth of a billion dollars.

Last year, his fortune was said to be $2.9 billion. This year, though, "Forbes" believes Ross is worth $700 million. He doesn't make the cut.

But what happened to the $2 billion?

Well, it seems you can't miss what you never had. Dan Alexander is an associate editor at "Forbes" and he dropped the billion bombshell and he joins us now from New York.

So, Dan, explain to us how this all began. It started with an error and a lie.

Right?

DAN ALEXANDER, "FORBES": That's correct, yes. Back in 2004, you know, "Forbes" made a mistake and we assumed that the money that other people had invested into Wilbur Ross' funds was actually Wilbur Ross' money himself.

Called him up and he basically went along with it saying, yes, that all sounds good and then over the years he increased what he was doing and said, you know, here are the values of my assets and really they were the values of his businesses.

And then ultimately he just started sending us what appeared to be totally fabricated numbers about his net worth.

VAUSE: OK. Now everything started to unravel when Ross accepted a cabinet position with the Trump administration, which would require financial disclosure. Here's the moment when Ross is explaining to you that you had actually or "Forbes" made the mistake with because that missing $2 billion was put into a trust.

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WILBUR ROSS, U.S. SECRETARY OF COMMERCE: No control over them and I'm not a beneficiary of them. And so you've apparently not counting those, which are more than $2 billion.

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VAUSE: That statement is just not true. And it's not true according to the Commerce Department.

Right?

ALEXANDER: That's correct. So you know, I talked to Wilbur Ross on a Sunday afternoon. He gave me that explanation. We published a story then because were a lot of questions of, if you transfer a bunch of money into your trust, then theoretically that money still would have produced income and you would have had to disclose it anyway.

And we didn't see it and so that raised a whole bunch of questions and we followed up with them, published the story, asked these questions. And then after that, the Commerce Department issued a statement, saying there was no major asset transfer after the election on behalf of Wilbur Ross.

VAUSE: OK. So this conversation between you and Ross goes on for, what, seven minutes?

At the end, Ross says, hey, look, it's all fine. Just drop me. I don't care, whatever. But just put in my explanation. Here's that part of the conversation.

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ROSS: I don't care if I'm on the list or not.

ALEXANDER: Right.

ROSS: Quite frankly. Doesn't matter. But what I don't want is for people to suddenly think that I've lost a lot of money when it's not true.

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VAUSE: OK. Ross very much wanted to be on the list because it wasn't just good for his ego but good for his business, which is why last year he complained that you had actually lowballed him, undervalued the worth.

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VAUSE: He said was worth $3.7 billion?

ALEXANDER: That's correct. He said $3.7 billion; we went with $2.9 billion. If you're a guy who manages money for other people, it looks a lot better if you're worth $3.7 billion than if you're worth something like $700 million. So you can raise a lot more money from people and you have a way of actually translating fake numbers, made up numbers, into real assets.

VAUSE: At the end of the day, though, it would seem that a lot of billionaires exaggerate or inflate their wealth and some actually try to minimize this.

But has there ever been a case quite like this?

ALEXANDER: This one is particularly egregious. But I'll tell you this. There are two other people who we have done long stories on about inflating their net worth. One is a Prince Alwaleed of Saudi Arabia, who, interestingly enough, is one of these people who was just arrested in the last week, and the other, of course, is Wilbur Ross' current boss, Donald Trump.

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VAUSE: Well, that's a coincidence, huh?

Since you mentioned Donald Trump, is there a bigger issue here about what it says about the people that the president has hired?

ALEXANDER: Well, you know, I think that Wilbur Ross coming into the administration was thought of as sort of an adult in the room. You know?

This is a guy who had been really, really successful. When you talk to him, he sounds genuine. Obviously brilliant. He passed the Senate with higher margin than almost anybody else in the cabinet and here you have a guys who was thought to be one of the most trusted people, who, now if you look back at his career, has a long history of dishonesty.

This is not just about lying to "Forbes" magazine, this is a guy who's been accused of stealing business interests from his former employees, a guy who the U.S. Senate said did not disclosure all of his lawsuits initially.

So he's got a lot of issues with honesty. One person told me just flat out he's lied to a lot of people.

VAUSE: OK. I'd be happy with $700 million.

(LAUGHTER)

VAUSE: Dan, thanks so much. Good to see you.

ALEXANDER: Thank you.

VAUSE: And you've been watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause. Stay with us, we'll be back after the break with Kristie Lu Stout, live in Beijing.