former president donald trump is barred from maine's republican primary ballot next year. the top election official in the state, democratic secretary of state shenna bellows, wrote that he is not qualified to hold office under the part of the constitution that bans individuals who engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the us from running. this decision will not take effect until a court has heard an appeal. a trump campaign spokesman responded to the decision in a statement. saying in part: "we will quickly file a legal objection in state court "to prevent this atrocious decision in maine from taking "effect, and president trump will never stop fighting "to make america great again." earlier this week, the state of michigan decided to keep president trump on the primary ballot next year. it follows last week's decision in colorado, where the state supreme court disqualified the former president as well. the decision is ultimately expected to be made by the us supreme court. given the compressed timeframe, the novel constitutional

joining me live is secretary bellows2. good to have you and good evening to you. i want to start with your decision to disqualify the former president from the primary ballot in maine because as he decided he engaged in insurrection. what made that decision? what convinced you he is ineligible? good evening and thank you for having me. it is really important for your viewers to understand the main law process. every state is different. underthe process. every state is different. under the united states constitution, elections are held and it different voting rights are different ballot access laws. under main law, if a candidate qualifies for the ballot, any registered main voter may bring a challenge. that is what happened here. i qualified trumpet for the ballot and there were three challenges brought. by citizens of maine

floors and a couple cases, to former that it is democratic state senator. that requires me under maine election law to hold an administrative hearing to review the evidence and facts. both parties may be presented by council and mr trump was represented by an attorney as worthy challenges i mentioned. they brought forward witnesses, exhibits. iwas mentioned. they brought forward witnesses, exhibits. i was then required to review the evidence and hearing record, the law and constitution and ultimately thatis constitution and ultimately that is my sacred obligation. my that is my sacred obligation. my duty to uphold the constitution. fix, my duty to uphold the constitution.- constitution. a quick follow-up, _ constitution. a quick follow-up, you - constitution. a quick follow-up, you are l constitution. a quick - follow-up, you are talking follow—up, you are talking about the evidence you reviewed. the former president is facing cases of both federal and state level on election interference. why not wait for a ruling on one of those cases to give this decision the legal foundation? it to give this decision the legal foundation?— foundation? it is specific to maine lava _

foundation? it is specific to maine law. under- foundation? it is specific to maine law. under maine i foundation? it is specific to l maine law. under maine law, once a challenger brings a challenge, i am once a challenger brings a challenge, iam required once a challenger brings a challenge, i am required to hold that hearing within five days and then issue that decision within a compressed deadline. it is not allowed under maine not to wait for the united states supreme court. i know menlo is different to other states. know menlo is different to otherstates. i know menlo is different to other states. i want to ask you what we have seen from other including michigan that made the decision not to disqualify the decision not to disqualify the former president from the ballot was we spoke to the secretary of state there yesterday who says she does not believe it is the role of secretaries of state to make this decision. i want to play the clip. we have to remember for matters like this, which involve an interpretation and novel interpretation of the us constitution. it is the us supreme court whose job it is to ultimately make that call and make that determination. what do you think of that? i cannot speak to michigan and

certainly i hope the united states supreme court will settle this matter nationwide. that being said, every secretary of state must uphold the election laws in their state. that is why i explained so clearly maine state law and legal requirements i am held to. , . legal requirements i am held to. ,. ., ., to. do you expect that to end u . to. do you expect that to end u- in to. do you expect that to end up in front — to. do you expect that to end up in front of— to. do you expect that to end up in front of the _ to. do you expect that to end up in front of the supreme i up in front of the supreme court? . , up in front of the supreme court? ., , a, court? certainly under maine law the next _ court? certainly under maine law the next step _ court? certainly under maine law the next step is - court? certainly under maine law the next step is mr- court? certainly under maine | law the next step is mr trump can appeal and he all the challenges can appeal to the maine supremejudicial challenges can appeal to the maine supreme judicial court and then to the united states supreme court. or the us supreme court. or the us supreme court, an appeal made in colorado, they could issue a ruling that could be determined in may. and i as secretary of state will follow the law. i want to ask about some of the criticism of this decision already. what you a principle to voters in your state who cast their ballots for donald

trump in 2020? more than 40% of people in maine and believe the decision is disenfranchising them. i decision is disenfranchising them. ., ., ,, . ., , them. i am mindful no secretary of state has _ them. i am mindful no secretary of state has ever _ them. i am mindful no secretary of state has ever deprived - of state has ever deprived presidential candidates about access based on section three of the 14th amendment. i am also mindful no presidential candidate has ever before engaged in insurrection. the events of january six were tragic and unprecedented. and the evidence presented in hearing before me that i duty—bound to act upon that indicated january six, 2021 was indicated january six, 2021 was in fact in insurrection and mr trump did in fact engage in insurrection.— trump did in fact engage in insurrection. what about what the former — insurrection. what about what the former president - insurrection. what about what the former president himself. the former president himself has already said? he pointed to you specifically and said he worked for the aclu, you are hyper— partisan, a leftist, what is your response to that?

my what is your response to that? my duty and obligation is to uphold the constitution. and i made the determination i did, my decision is thorough and based on a rule of law on the facts before me. bias, my prior experience plays no role in my position. experience plays no role in my osition. ., , ., position. one more question, if this is successfully _ position. one more question, if this is successfully appealed, . this is successfully appealed, we know the trump camp is likely to appeal and he remains on the primary ballot. you expect there to be another challenge if he becomes the republican nominee? in challenge if he becomes the republican nominee?- republican nominee? in my possession _ republican nominee? in my possession i _ republican nominee? in my possession i address - republican nominee? in my possession i address this i possession i address this issue. to my knowledge, this challenge procedure is the only mechanism under maine law i which someone can challenge a presidential candidate placement on the ballot indeed this is not unusual in maine. i have in the past in 2022 held a

similar hearing and ultimately made a decision that was upheld, disqualified district attorney candidates based on failure to qualify. similarly last week a superior court upheld the decision i made to prohibit placement of chris christie on the ballot because he failed to meet qualifications of signature requirements. this is something thatis requirements. this is something that is fairly routine. it is very specific to maine and yet at the same time i do hope and think in the country like washington to see if the united states supreme court will weigh in. . ~' , ., states supreme court will weigh in. ., ~' i., ., states supreme court will weigh in. thank you for “oining us. reau in. thank you forjoining us. really appreciate _ in. thank you forjoining us. really appreciate your - in. thank you forjoining us. | really appreciate your time. thank you. former federal prosecutor joe morenojoins us. i want to get your reaction, we heard from the maine secretary

of state there.— of state there. good to see ou. of state there. good to see you- with _ of state there. good to see you. with all— of state there. good to see you. with all the _ of state there. good to see you. with all the respect, l of state there. good to see l you. with all the respect, the secretary state of maine, it is breathtakingly arrogant for her to unilaterally decide that someone has committed insurrection. the 14th amendment gives the power of what actually is insurrection to congress. congress has passed a criminal law called insurrection. a person can be charged with it. donald trump has not been charged with insurrection. much less convicted. ora insurrection. much less convicted. or a state official without even a trial to just unilaterally say i think i know what insurrection is and based on what i have seen, i think that person has committed it, look, i give her credit for being honest but there is no way does hold up under any judicial scrutiny. but way does hold up under any judicial scrutiny.— judicial scrutiny. but this is the second _ judicial scrutiny. but this is the second safety - judicial scrutiny. but this is the second safety decide . judicial scrutiny. but this is l the second safety decide this way including colorado because we with michigan and other states decide not to disqualify trump. why do you think we are seeing these decisions?- seeing these decisions? we've had nine states _

seeing these decisions? we've had nine states reach - seeing these decisions? we've had nine states reach a - had nine states reach a decision. the first seven went in favour of donald trump and said he is not disqualified under the disqualification language of the 14th amendment. now we had to, colorado and maine that have gone in the other direction. using a very noble interpretation of what they think insurrection is. colorado, will give them credit, at least they had a trial. it was a civil trial, five days and you had a judge actually hear evidence. maine, there was not even a trial. it was 11 independent enquiry at the secretary of state and some kind of hearing. what they are trying to be a stricter action by the us supreme court. they want the supreme court to weigh in. i have no doubt they will and the supreme court. down the estate positions to buy donald trump. i think it is unfortunate because this will create a political bureau and dragging the supreme court in in an election year, there will be many people upset regardless

of how the supreme court rules. i think that is the unfortunate outcome here. these are very shaky legal decisions. i think designed only to inflame the atmosphere here which is already pretty inflamed. to follow up on that, what then happens next? i5 follow up on that, what then happens next?— follow up on that, what then ha ens next? , ., ,, , happens next? is of the supreme court taken _ happens next? is of the supreme court taken this _ happens next? is of the supreme court taken this up _ happens next? is of the supreme court taken this up in _ happens next? is of the supreme court taken this up in fairly - court taken this up in fairly rapid fashion.— court taken this up in fairly rapid fashion. they have to. there is _ rapid fashion. they have to. there is no _ rapid fashion. they have to. there is no way _ rapid fashion. they have to. there is no way you - rapid fashion. they have to. there is no way you can - rapid fashion. they have to. there is no way you can let | rapid fashion. they have to. l there is no way you can let 50 different states apply 50 different states apply 50 different standards and, with different standards and, with different interpretations of the us federal constitutional amendment. the supreme court is obviously going to have to step in and say ok, this is what it means to engage in insurrection or rebellion under the 14th amendment. this is what it takes to be disqualified and out and makes a decision on whether it applies. it has never been used before and why there is so much time that has gone by at this point, now it is on the table, the supreme court will have to get involved.—

court will have to get involved. , ., involved. interesting to get our involved. interesting to get your perspective _ involved. interesting to get your perspective on - involved. interesting to get your perspective on the - involved. interesting to get i your perspective on the story. thank you so much forjoining us. the government of taiwan has accused china of mounting a major disinformation campaign, aimed at influencing the outcome of the island's presidential election next month. taiwan's ruling democratic progressive party is seeking an unprecedented third consecutive win. but the dpp is loathed in beijing, which has long laid claim to taiwan. in recent weeks, china's air force has increased incursions across the taiwan strait. but china says taiwan's government has played up military threats in the run up to the election, by highlighting the nearby presence of chinese warships and fighter jets. rupert wingfield—hayes has this story. it's 6am and this fighter base on the coast of taiwan is already a hive of activity. on the apron, mirage 2000 fighter jets from taiwan's rapid reaction squadrons, theirjob to meet any incoming threats to taiwan's airspace. these taiwanese fighter jets being scrambled behind me

here are heading out into the taiwan strait to confront chinese aircraft that are coming across the strait and probing taiwan's airspace. this is now happening multiple times every day. these pictures are from chinese television, showing their fighterjets, and that down below is the coast of taiwan. just over the horizon, there is another game of cat and mouse. this man puts up a long antenna to eavesdrop on the radio traffic coming from china's navy. radio chatter. that's the chinese navy talking to the taiwanese navy, saying, "your territorial waters, that you claim, "do not exist," that the people's republic of china is the only legitimate government of china and taiwan is an inseparable part of china. "they tell us the taiwan strait is peaceful," he says. "then why are there chinese ships "and harassing us all the time?

"how is that peaceful?" back in taipei, the former head of taiwan's armed forces says china's tactics are designed to intimidate the island's voters and send a warning to its allies. i think china is sending a very strong signal to the united states, evenjapan — "this is our area, "our territorial area, so i can do whatever i want." but also in the meantime, they can use this kind of aggression to make taiwanese people scared and make taiwanese people capitulate. as polling day approaches, there is little sign the intimidation is working. at this rally, supporters of the frontrunner to win taiwan's presidency tell me they would rather fight than capitulate to beijing.

i'm very worried, but i'm not afraid, because i will volunteer to be a soldier if they invade our beautiful country. if someday, we may be at war or something else, i'm not afraid because i think, "i'm taiwanese. "i need to protect my country." on the coast, the jets are returning from yet another patrol. taiwan has fewer than 300 fighter jets, china more than 2,000. whoever wins taiwan's presidential race will face a military balance tipping ever more in china's favour. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in hsinchu, taiwan. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. a prominent pro—democracy activist has fled hong kong to seek asylum in the uk, breaching a supervision order put on him by authorities. tony chung was convicted of calling for hong kong's secession under the territory's

tough security law in 2021. he says that since his release injune, authorities had been pressuring him to become a paid informant against other activists. venezuelan president nicolas maduro has condemned the deployment of a british warship off the coast of neighbouring guyana. maduro says it breaches the "spirit" of an agreement between his country and guyanese authorities to de—escalate tensions in a long—running border dispute over an oil rich region. the area is recognised as part of guyana, but venezuela has revived claims to it. guyana is a british ally and former colony. budapest, hungary, is coping with severe flooding along the danube. the river has reached a decade—high of nearly 7m — that's about 23 feet. workers have built ramps and deployed mobile dams. experts warn of more frequent severe floods in the region due to climate change. you're live with bbc news. israeli forces say they have

struck more than 100 targets in 2a hours. they ordered at least 150,000 palestinians to evacuate central gaza. with several hundred thousand other civilians already displaced across gaza, aid organizations say people will struggle to find shelter. the un says the humanitarian situation in the israel—occupied west bank is also seeing "rapid deterioration". it has reported arbitrary and unlawful detentions, and alleged torture and other forms of ill—treatment of palestinian detainees. israel maintains it is trying to protect civilians in its operation to destroy hamas. an israeli military official said the country "regrets harm to civilians" during air raids on december 2a, where use of the wrong munition led to "extensive collateral damage" within the maghazi refugee camp. meanwhile, fighting has intensified at israel's northern border with lebanon. a minister in israel's war cabinet warned the hezbollah militia group that israeli army forces could hit harder. egypt has proposed a plan to end the fighting that includes prisoner and hostage exchanges.

the bbc�*s shaimaa khalil has more from jerusalem. and a warning, her report contains some distressing images from the beginning. once again, a child tells their story of the war. this child's home in khan younis was bombed overnight. "we were upstairs," she says, "then we were hit, and i started running." she tries to comfort her sister, but she has no idea that her mother and brother were killed in the strike. herfather, abdullah, sits next to the body bags. he's still in shock. "this is my son," he says. "this morning, he asked me for biscuits. "i went to buy them. "when i came back, ifound him and my wife dead." the ground offensive continues to deepen in the southern city of khan younis, where hundreds of thousands have fled from the fighting in northern gaza. israel says it's

trying to protect civilians during its operation against hamas fighters. but it said it regretted what it called extensive collateral damage in a strike last weekend. the hamas—run health ministry says at least 86 people were killed in the strike on al maghazi refugee camp in central gaza. israel says it used the wrong type of munition. people shout here injerusalem, thousands of teenagers march towards the israeli parliament. "alive, now," they chanted. they want a new deal to return those still in captivity. the war is not going to end any time soon. that is the message from the israeli government. but that only increases the frustration among the young people gathered here, many of them from communities that have been worst—affected by the 7 october attacks. their message to those in power — bring the hostages back home now. i am from kibbutz kfar aza.

i was there on october 7 and my people were kidnapped. we want them back. for me, personally, i really hope that it ends for both sides as quickly as possible. war is horrible on either end of it. judith weinstein haggai was thought to be in captivity still, but now she's believed to have been killed on october 7. her husband gadi is also believed to have been killed by hamas. in the agony of war, new life begins. iman tends to three of her quadruplets. one is still in intensive care. there is very little food and not enough formula or diapers. she and herfamily are sheltering in a un school after being forced out of their home in the north. her new babies born into displacement. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, jerusalem. some of the targets hit by the israeli military in the past 2a hours are tunnels allegedly used by hamas.

israeli troops took the bbc to what they claim is the largest underground tunnel found so far. part of the tunnel near rantisi hospital in the nasser area of gaza city was destroyed, apparently by an israeli air strike. our correspondent kasra naji and camera operator soran qurbani were taken not far from the erez border crossing which was breached by hamas when it launched its attacks on israel. here is their report. at the main crossing into northern gaza, for the israeli military, progress in the war has been a lot slower than anticipated. the reason — the vast network of tunnels that hamas is using for hit—and—run attacks on israeli soldiers and for hiding. erez crossing is right behind us. you can see how the entrance was blasted open. the israeli army took us and a group of other journalists inside gaza on foot to show us the biggest tunnel that they have discovered so far.

there were no restrictions on journalists other than not showing some positions of troop concentration. we are just north of gaza. this is what gaza looks like from here — a devastated shell of a ghost town. we can hear the sound of heavy machine gunfire and drones flying overhead. there is also the occasional blast of an artillery round. this is the mouth of the huge tunnel israelis have discovered just a few hundred metres from the border with israel. a spokesman for the army, originally from iran, spoke to me in persian. translation: in this tunnel, you can find anything. - you can live in them. you can sleep in them. you can take a bath. you can keep prisoners here for years, if you like. and no—one from the above would know what you are up to. from here, the tunnel

doesn't look like a major discovery or a massive engineering feat. but inside it's clear that this has been a major development project for hamas to be able to quickly move gunmen to the border with israel. the tunnel is wide enough to drive a car through. it's 11.5 kilometres long. it opens in the northern part of the city of gaza. it's wired for electricity and other amenities. it's made of concrete. it must have taken hamas years to build and cost millions of dollars. it begs the question — how did the israeli intelligence agencies miss something of these dimensions? after about 30 metres or so, we were not allowed to go any deeper into the tunnel for our own security. soldiers had their guns and their lights pointed at the dark end of the tunnel, just in case.

israel discovered this tunnel over two weeks ago, its mouth hidden in a sand dune. i've just come out of this tunnel. you can only go down this tunnel for about 20 metres or 30 metres. and israeli soldiers stop you from going any further, which means that two weeks after having been discovered, this tunnel is still not completely safe or secure. the tunnel is... we've been through the whole tunnel from side to side. it branches off into different directions. it goes down. however, you have to understand that these tunnels are very complex, and all of a sudden you can find another entrance to a tunnel that you never knew about. this stretches for kilometres all the way to gaza, into gaza city. this tunnel goes to gaza city. and so therefore cautiously saying that we know every element of this tunnel, but we're not going to take any chances. it is now clear that the tunnels have presented the israeli army

with a big challenge. they say the war may now last for many months, particularly now that hamas says it has moved to guerrilla tactics of hit—and—run attacks using these tunnels. kasra naji, bbc, northern gaza. the us and mexico have agreed to work together more closely to stem the flow of migrants at their shared border. it comes a day after high—level talks between senior officials from the two countries in mexico city. us secretary of state antony blinken says the countries will strengthen a sponsorship initiative for venezuelan, cuban, nicaraguan and haitian migrants. on thursday, mexican president andres manuel lopez obrador said visiting us officials had agreed to keep legal border checkpoints open, after us border agents temporarily closed some rail and road crossings. talks are expected to take place again in washington next month. vinyl records are continuing to make a comeback, with uk sales rising nearly 12%. taylor swift's 1989 was the best—selling lp, followed by the rolling stones�*

hackney diamonds. four—fifths of recorded music is consumed via streaming, but vinyl sales are now at their highest level since 1990. thank you for watching bbc news. hello there. friday is shaping up to be a fairly decent day for many. there should be more sunshine around, the winds not quite as strong. there'll still be a few showers around. it will be a little bit cooler than of late, but things turn a lot more unsettled, though, for the last couple of days of 2023. you might want to take note if you have travel plans. for friday, then, we have low pressure anchored to the northeast of scotland. that's still going to bring strong gale force winds here to the northern isles, some snow showers at times. more sunshine for southern scotland. this weather front will bring a band of cloud to northern england, northern ireland, a little bit of snow to the higher ground and plenty of sunshine for the rest of england and wales.

but there will be a few showers running into wales, southwest england, the midlands, southern england later on. just about double figures in the south. otherwise, it's a cooler day across the board. as we head through friday night, it stays blustery. further showers across northern scotland, but many places will turn drier with clearer skies and light winds — a recipe of quite a cold night to come, i think, to start saturday, with widespread frost and ice to watch out for across parts of scotland. however, into the weekend, if you have travel plans, you'll want to take note to the forecast the next few days. we'll see further wet and windy weather, with snow on the hills in the north, so there could be some travel disruption. and it's all down to this next area of low pressure, a deep, low moving in on saturday to bring gales and heavy rain. many southern, eastern, northern areas will start dry and cold, but as the wind and the rain bumps into that cold air, we'll see snow falling over the high ground of northern england and across scotland, maybe even to lower levels for a while. i don't think the conditions will be too bad across the south—east at this point for saturday. double figure values again, but wet and windy further

north and west. that band of heavy rain spreads across all of england and wales through saturday night. the centre of the low moves in towards the north of the uk, so the winds turn a little bit lighter here. so i think on sunday — of course, new year's eve — the strongest, gustiest of the winds will be across southern britain, where we'll see plenty of showers rattling in. some of them could be quite heavy, but there will be some sunshine through central and northern areas. but it will be a chillier day, i think — temperatures in single digits for most. so an unsettled end to the year. as we head into new year's day, the 1st of january, it stays quite cool and unsettled, and a chilly first week of january to come with low pressure always nearby.

voice-over: this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines for you at the top of the hour,

which is straight after this programme. whoopi goldberg is one of the very few people to have won all four of america's big entertainment awards... whoopi goldberg! ..emmy, grammy, oscarand tony, for her work in film, theatre and television. lovely to meet you. thank you. please take a seat. brought up by a single mother in a new york housing project, she first made her name with a solo comedy show onstage before turning to dramatic acting roles, starting with her movie debut in the color purple. until you do right by me, everything you think about is going to crumble. since then, she's made around 100 films, including ghost and sister act. she's hosted the academy awards several times and has forged a career as an outspoken and controversial television personality. the craziness of what's going on in this country

at the moment. let's mic you up. in this episode of this cultural life, the radio 4 programme, she reveals her formative influences and experiences. just come on under the shirt. yeah, you sure? babe...i've been doing this a long time. if you're an old lady, you don't mind. you're like, "thank you." whoopi goldberg, welcome to this cultural life. thank you. on this cultural life, i ask my guests to reflect on the most significant influences and experiences that have shaped their own creativity. you were born and raised in chelsea in new york city in the late �*50s and the �*60s?

yes.