The Mike Hosking Breakfast

Our reporter Chelsea Daniels has walked into Waiau to speak to the people there who have been affected by the earthquake.

Roads in and out of town are not passable. 

She says everyone gathered at the Civil Defence center at Waiau School, and some have now gone home.

However, the damage to buildings around the town appears to be significant. 

Sez Nathan was inside with six other family members when the quake hit.

Her 11 year old daughter's room is at the front - a window pane nearly crushed her.

They all huddled together in the house with no way to get out.

All made it out alive. 

Chelsea Daniels speaks to Mike Hosking above

Building engineers will be out in force today checking structures in the capital, and around the South Island for safety.

LISTEN ABOVE: Gerry Brownlee speaks to Mike Hosking

Acting Civil Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee said a number of buildings will need to be assessed, before people can go inside.

"I understand the Wellington City Council have been advising people that they should stay away from CBD buildings for a time this morning to ensure that those buildings are inspected and declared safe."

Gerry Brownlee has been at the Civil Defence emergency bunker in Wellington.

He described the quake as frightening and violent.

"It went on for quite some time and was of a reasonably violent nature."

"When people describe it as rolling, that's one way to think of it but it was significant movement."

LISTEN ABOVE: Roger Kerr tells Mike Hosking that Kiwi exporters are scratching their heads

The rest of the world is waiting to see what'll happen to the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement.

It's no secret the US President-elect is against the TPPA - a trade agreement that's been over a decade in the making.

PricewaterhouseCoopers Treasury Advisor, Roger Kerr told Mike Hosking the change has got Kiwi exporters scratching their heads.

"Is it going to effect just consumer products out of China, or is it going to go as far as New Zealand Timber exporters sending some nice timber into the Home Depot in the US?"

Roger Kerr said Trade Minister Todd McClay needs a plan B.

Mike Hosking was at Hillary Clinton's Headquarters on election night, as a presumed victory evaporated in front of their eyes. 

Here's his audio timeline of how it played out. 

MORE: Hillary Clinton concedes the 'painful' result

Prime Minister John Key has conceded the Trans Pacific Partnership is unlikely to progress following the election of Donald Trump as US President.

LISTEN ABOVE: John Key talks to Mike Hosking about what Trump's win means for the TPP

Key said this morning that he was pessimistic about the 12-nation trade deal being ratified before Barack Obama left office.

"We'll work our way through it," he told Mike Hosking. "It's bad in the sense that it's very hard to see TPP progressing now in that lame duck period."

While Trump's election was bad for the TPP, it was not necessarily bad for all trade between New Zealand and the United States.

"I think over time Donald Trump has said he just doesn't like the deal, not so much that trade can't work," Key said.

New Zealand's economy was "cranking", with growth rates of at least 3.5 per cent, he said. 

"The reality is we've done all that without TPP. So it's just a bit of a lost opportunity in the short term for us.

"His argument when you think about hasn't been that trade is bad. He just keeps saying 'this is a horrible deal, this is a horrible deal'.

"Well, let's see their capacity to negotiate a better deal I suppose."

Key said he did not fear a trade war between the United States and China. 

Trump won the election by mobilising blue collar voters, Key said, and if he were to put a 45 per cent tariff on Chinese goods it would reduce this group's purchasing power. 

"So again I'm not saying he isn't going to do what he said. But it might be a lot more nuanced or it might be a bit more of a threat to see some sort of change in certain areas.

Controversial conservative pundit Ann Coulter has been backing Donald Trump since the beginning of his campaign, and is over the moon to see him win. 

She told Mike Hosking that Trump had an incredibly tough road to victory. 

"People who don't live in America don't realise what has been thrown at Trump. The media completely gave up its objectivity. The Republican Party turned on him."

Listen to Ann Coulter speak to Mike Hosking above

Today's US election is tipped to see the highest voter turnout in modern American history.

LISTEN ABOVE: Alex Conant, former communications director for Marco Rubio, and Penny Lee, a democratic political strategist, spoke to Mike Hosking in New York

Alex Conant, the former communications director for Republican Marco Rubio, told Mike Hosking early voting numbers have been high across all demographics - and in Florida, about half of voters have already cast their ballot.

"It's unclear who that benefits. Obviously a lot of older white voters turning out to vote. It probably helps Trump but we're also seeing a lot of Hispanic and younger voters, especially here in Florida. That probably helps Hillary Clinton."

Democratic Political Strategist Penny Lee says it's going to take all efforts on their part to get Hillary Clinton into the White House.

And she told Mike Hosking when it comes to who's elected into the Senate, it's going to be all about voter turnout in key states, with ticket-splitting firmly on the cards.

"Vote for Trump on President but then a Democrat in the others, or vice versa Hillary and or Republican on the other side. So it's going to be right up until the last state to be able to decide what's the balance of the Senate."

Mr Conant said whatever the outcome today, the Republican party is going to continue struggle to win national elections if it doesn't work out how to connect with Hispanic voters.

Mike Hosking is in the USA, and he and his team hit the streets to get the views of voters of New York. 

By and large New Yorkers seem to be backing Hillary Clinton, but for many that said more about the controversial Donald Trump. 

NEWSTALK ZB's election coverage

Jerry Seinfeld joins Mike Hosking to give him some thoughts on how to survive New York.

"Stay in your hotel, don't leave, order room service, order liquor, and watch TV."

The tongue in cheek advice comes with the comedian planning to visit New Zealand to perform for the first time. 

He discusses the New Yorker style of comedy, saying he "learnt how to be funny" in the city that never sleeps. 

They also talk about the secret to comedy - that is might seem very casual - but that there are hours of work that go into each joke and set.

"It's more of a lifestyle than a career. You wake up thinking about it and you live all day thinking about it."

LISTEN TO THE FULL JERRY SEINFELD INTERVIEW ABOVE

Talk of a rebound in the last few days of the US election campaign - possibly in Hillary Clinton's favour.

The result should be known on Wednesday afternoon.

Former Democratic presidential nominee Governor Howard Dean told Mike Hosking the only good thing about the news the FBI is looking at more of Clinton's emails, is that there'll be a rebound.

"I think we are seeing that rebound and I think you're seeing it in the Nevada turnout, in the Florida early voting turnout where there will be a lot of Latinos going to the polls."

However, former Republican national committee chief of staff Mike Shields told Mike Hosking some traditionally Democrat states are going to Donald Trump, because they have white voters with lower income and education.

"So whereas they may have voted Democrat in the past, that's not really the issue here this time. It's more about working class voters reacting to globalisation and different trends in the economy."

Shields said some traditionally Republican areas are leaning towards Hillary Clinton, because they have more university educated people living in the suburbs.