Trump and Kim Trade Insults; ObamaCare under Attack; London Transport Yanks Uber's License.
NEWTON: Iran says it has successfully tested a new ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple warheads. Now it was launched from an unknown location. This is Iran's third type of missile with a range of 2,000 kilometers. It is smaller in size and more tactical than previous types. Officials say it will be operational in the near future. Now the war of words over North Korea's nuclear program has not let up. U.S. president Donald Trump renewed his attack on Kim Jong-un on Friday, calling him not only "rocket man" as he did at the U.N. this week but now disparaging him even more as "little rocket man." Mr. Kim earlier called the U.S. president a "dotard," an old term now for an -- old term for an old imbecile, apparently. Mr. Trump told a rally in Alabama that it is long past time to deal with North Korea.</s>TRUMP: This should have been handled eight years ago and four years ago and honestly -- and 15 years ago and 20 years ago and 25 years ago. This should not be handled now but I am going to handle it, because we have to handle it. Little rocket man, we're going to do it because we really have no choice.</s>NEWTON: Of course none of Mr. Trump's insults appear to have deterred North Korea so far in its nuclear ambitions. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more.</s>BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: North Korea already is getting ready for its next missile launch, according to administration officials, possibly a missile that could hit the U.S. Kim Jong-un now threatening the highest level of hard-line countermeasure in history following President Trump's speech at the U.N. North Korea's foreign minister suggesting the regime may launch potential devastation.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I think this could probably mean the strongest ever hydrogen bomb test on or above the Pacific Ocean.</s>STARR (voice-over): Detonating a hydrogen bomb above ground could change everything.</s>COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: What you are looking at is from a radioactive standpoint is large areas of East Asia, the Western Pacific, all the way potentially to the West Coast of the United States being blanketed by radiation.</s>STARR (voice-over): The U.S. intelligence community will now watch for very particular signs.</s>LEIGHTON: So what they could potentially see is special work being done on the muscle itself. They could see certain things being moved around that would potentially indicate that a warhead of a particular variety was being put inside the missile. Kim matching Trump on the battle of words. "I will shortly and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire." President Trump responding, "Kim Jong-un of North Korea, who is obviously a madman, who does not mind starving or killing his people, will be tested like never before." All after a doomsday warning from president Trump at the U.N. that if the U.S. is forced to defend itself or its allies...</s>TRUMP: We will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.</s>STARR (voice-over): The head of the U.S. Strategic Command, who would help lead any attack on North Korea, making the case for U.S. firepower as a deterrent to Kim.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're right there; we're watching all the time. And if you want to go that way, we're ready. So we can deter an attack on North America or our allies.</s>NEWTON: That report from our Barbara Starr at the Pentagon. Now the latest Republican effort to undo ObamaCare is one vote away from failing after a key senator said he would not support it. It is not the first time that John McCain has opposed legislation important to the Trump White House. In July, McCain cast the deciding no vote on the so-called skinny repeal of ObamaCare. Now on Friday while campaigning in Alabama for a Republican Senate candidate Luther Strange, U.S. president Donald Trump singled out looking for criticism.</s>TRUMP: John McCain's -- John McCain's list -- John McCain was not on the list. So that was a totally unexpected thing, terrible, honestly, terrible. Repeal and replace because John McCain, if you look at his campaign. His last campaign was all about repeal and replace, repeal and replace. So he decided to do something different and that is fine . And I say we still have a chance to -- oh, we're going to do it eventually. We're going to do it eventually, oh, with Luther and every -- we're going to do it.</s>RYAN LIZZA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You can certainly tell that he is deeply frustrated that McCain, for the second time, seems to have scuttled one of Trump's major campaign promises. And because of these funny parliamentary rules of the Senate, if they do not do this by September 30th, it is pretty much dead until the next Congress 2019. So serious frustration with McCain. Remember, these two guys have a long history; during the primary season, you know, I actually have a personal role in that, not to be all Trump-like and talk about myself. But I did an interview with John McCain, where he said Trump was "riling up the crazies." That was his remark. And when I -- after I reported that, Trump was asked about that comment. And that is when Donald Trump attacked John McCain's service in Vietnam and said, I like people who don't get captured, because, of course, John McCain was held by the Vietnamese for many years and tortured. That was the start of their very, very testy relationship, really hasn't improved much with Trump as president. McCain has been a consistent critic of Trump across a host of issues. Frankly, this healthcare was never an issue that McCain was a student of. He is not a big -- it has never been an issue for McCain and so I think a lot of people rightly think that the personal dynamics between the two of them have something to do with McCain's opposition.</s>NEWTON: Ryan Lizza there. Now the CEO of Uber is pleading with London to change its mind about Uber's license to operate, tweeting a few hours ago, "Dear London, we are far from perfect but we have 40,000 licensed drivers and 3.5 million Londoners depending on us. Please work with us to make things right." The rideshare service is appealing after London revoked Uber's license. CNN's Erin McLaughlin tells us why.</s>ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm told this decision involved a lengthy and meticulous review process by Transport for London or TFL, the regulatory body which governs London's transport networks. There were several reasons for this decision, primarily relating to the safety and security of Uber, its approach to the background checks, extensive background checks of its driver as well as the way it reports criminality. Earlier I spoke to London's mayor, Sadiq Khan, who says he supports this decision. Take a listen.</s>SADIQ KHAN, MAYOR OF LONDON: If you're a Uber driver, if you're a Uber user, you're right to be angry at Uber for failing to play by the rules. The question you should be asking is why is Uber not playing by the rules? And Uber have said they're going to appeal this decision. Uber employs an army of lawyers and public relations teams and they've already set out their plans to appeal this decision.</s>MCLAUGHLIN: London's Black Cabbies are likely to be celebrating this decision. They've long protested Uber's presence in the city. Their union actually backs London mayor Sadiq Khan although he told me that this had nothing to do with him, this decision, or any sort of political involvement, that TFL is an independent body. The people who will probably are very upset by this decision, of course, some 40,000 Uber drivers, registered Uber drivers, as well as the millions of people within the city that use their services. We spoke to some of them and they're pretty upset.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, I'm like shattered. I don't know what I'll do on a Sunday night now.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I use one like every day. It's just an easier, better way to get around, like a Black Cab fare is so expensive.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At the end of the day, it's a reliable service. Not only in London, if you're a foreigner, if I fly out to New York or go to somewhere else and I know exactly by pushing a button, I'm getting a reliable driver, he is checked; I know him. We talk and they're all friendly, all of them, you know. And also they have families.</s>MCLAUGHLIN: Well, Uber hitting back at the allegations, saying, quote, "The mayor and Transport for London have caved in to a small number of people who want to restrict consumer choice." It does plan to appeal and can continue to function while the appeal process is underway -- Erin McLaughlin, CNN, London.</s>NEWTON: And thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Paula Newton. I will be right back with the headlines in just a moment.