Frederick News-Post’s Kelsi Loos, KT McFarland, Judge Michael Mukasey and Daily Mail’s Hugo Daniel joined WMAL on Wednesday

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Mornings on the Mall

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Hosts: Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor

Executive Producer: Heather Smith

5am – A/B/C             Frederick County’s English-only ordinance repealed. (Frederick News Post) — Frederick County government will no longer be required to conduct its official business in English, but many people on both sides of the language debate agree that won’t change much for local government. The County Council voted Tuesday by a 4-3 margin to repeal a 2012 English ordinance. The former rule required the county to operate in the English language, except when required to provide interpretation by federal law or health and public safety interests. The discussion before the vote intensified when Councilman Jerry Donald began peppering county attorney John Mathias with questions about the wording and purpose of the English ordinance as well as the numerous exemptions in the second half of the document.

5am – D         Redskins QB RGIII talks about much-discussed best QB comment. ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Frustrated that a quote about striving to be the NFL’s best quarterback was taken out of context, Robert Griffin III complained Tuesday that his name “keeps getting used for headlines.” The Washington Redskins quarterback drew heavy scrutiny for his comments to WJLA-TV, the ABC affiliate in Washington, given his struggles with injuries and on-field performance the past two seasons. But Griffin insisted the full context of his words was ignored by most who wrote about the interview.

5am – E         D.C. mayor says city is ‘safe,’ despite recent homicide spike. (WTOP) — WASHINGTON — As the number of D.C. homicides ticks higher and discontent among residents spreads, Mayor Muriel Bowser is facing pressure to do something about it. Now, challenged with a perception that the nation’s capital is dangerous, Bowser is contending that the city is safe. “This city is among the safest cities anywhere in the United States,” Bowser told Fox 5. “And while we’re experiencing a spike in crime, overall our crime statistics are flat.” On Tuesday, multiple shootings were reported in D.C., leaving at least one person dead and bringing this year’s homicide tally to 95 deaths. Homicides for this year are up 30 percent compared to the same eight-month period in 2014 according to police data.

6am – A/B/C Hillary Clinton had a testy press conference filled with questions about her email server. (Business Insider) — Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton endured an at times combative press conference Tuesday, during which she could not answer whether her email server — which was turned over to the FBI last week — had been “wiped” clean of data. Clinton sparred with Fox News reporter Ed Henry, who asked her whether she “wiped” her server. “What — like with a cloth or something?” Clinton joked, before saying she didn’t “know how it works digitally at all.” Clinton ended the press conference after the line of questioning from Henry. She showed some frustration over coverage of the issue when a reporter shouted a question as she turned to leave about whether the story would stop getting traction. “Nobody talks to me about it other than you guys,” she said with a shrug. The private email server Clinton used during her time as secretary of state was turned over to the FBI last week amid revelations that investigators had flagged another 305 emails that may contain classified information for intelligence agencies to further review. Also last week, the intelligence community’s inspector general identified two emails that contained top-secret material in a sample of 40. The server had been overseen since 2013 by the small Denver IT firm Platte River Networks. Officials have said the FBI investigation is preliminary and have emphasized that Clinton is not a target of the investigation. During her press conference, Clinton offered a thorough but familiar defense of her decision to use a private email server and to delete more than 30,000 emails from her time as secretary of state that she says were “personal.” She stressed Tuesday that she did not send classified material or receive anything “marked classified” at the time.

6am – D/E     Kathie Lee Gifford explains why she didn’t have a funeral for Frank (US magazine) — Frank Gifford hated funerals, so there was no way wife Kathie Lee Gifford was going to hold one for him, she revealed on Tuesday, Aug. 18, during the Today show. “We had a party,” the morning show co-host explained of how she and Frank’s family and friends honored her late husband instead. “Frank hated funerals. He hated boxes. He hated to be put in boxes. He hated to get in an elevator, so we played Frank Sinatra all day long and we partied. The only criteria was, if you were there you had to be somebody that he adored, so it kept it nice and small.” The famed football player and sportscaster will also be honored by his former team, she shared. “The [New York Giants] just announced they’re going to honor Frank and Ann Mara, the matriarch of the wonderful Mara family…on their uniforms this season,” Kathie Lee added. “We’ll have number 16 on their helmets to honor Frank.” Kathie Lee further acknowledged Frank’s fans and all the support her family has received since his sudden Aug. 9 death, and said she plans on coordinating an event to celebrate his life and for the public to pay their respects.           

7am – A         INTERVIEW — KELSI LOOS – Reporter, Frederick News-Post – joined WMAL to discuss Frederick County’s English-only ordinance hearing.

She covered the English Only hearing

• Frederick County’s English-only ordinance repealed. (By Kelsi Loos) — Frederick County government will no longer be required to conduct its official business in English, but many people on both sides of the language debate agree that won’t change much for local government. The County Council voted Tuesday by a 4-3 margin to repeal a 2012 English ordinance. The former rule required the county to operate in the English language, except when required to provide interpretation by federal law or health and public safety interests.

7am – B         Trump to O’Reilly: The 14th Amendment Won’t Hold Up In Court. (Mediaite) — Bill O’Reilly interview Donald Trump tonight, where he put particular focus on Trump’s newest idea for immigration by eliminating birthright citizenship. O’Reilly said that even though he was intrigued by his call to curb illegal immigration, but challenged him by saying that his ideas for mass deportations can’t happen under the 14th Amendment. Trump responded that O’Reilly’s concerns by saying he was wrong about how the Constitution applies to anchor babies. “Many lawyers are saying that’s not the way it is in terms of this,” Trump said. “They are saying it is not going to hold up in court. It will have to be tested but they say it will not hold up in court.” O’Reilly agreed that the country needed stronger laws and borders, but said that the federal courts would never allow a mass deportation for those who are entitled due process by their American citizenship. “Do you envision federal police kicking in the doors around the country dragging families out and putting them on a bus,” O’Reilly asked.

7am – C         Four D.C. suburbs rank among the best places to live, magazine says. (Washington Post) — Money Magazine ranked the top 50 small cities to live in and four cities in the greater Washington region cracked the top 50: North Laurel, Md.; Damascus, Md.; Urbana, Md.; and Vienna, Va. The rankings consider factors like median income, job growth, median home price, property taxes, schools and “that special something that makes it a great place to live.” Apex, N.C., a city of about 42,000 people with a median household income of $88,558, topped the entire list. In the D.C. area, North Laurel ranked highest, coming in at No. 23. North Laurel, according to the rankings, is boosted by its proximity to both D.C. and Baltimore and an unemployment rate that’s lower than the state average. “Thanks to its proximity to two major metropolitan areas, the town’s unemployment rate of roughly 4% is well below the state average of 5.3%,” Money writes. “The big draw for families, though, is Howard County’s public education system; with a graduation rate of 93%, the high schools are top-notch.” Damascus, a town of 15,723 and a median household income of $106,104, came in at No. 31, with Money noting its high-performing Montgomery County Public Schools. Urbana, whose residents have a median household income of $120,909, ranked No. 35 on the list.

7am – D         INTERVIEW — KT MCFARLAND – Fox National Security Analyst

• Obama administration objects as #Russia moves ahead with Iran missile sale
• Senator Menendez becomes second Senate Democrat to oppose the Iran Deal
• KT’s piece on FoxNews.com opinion piece on Hillary’s emails: Is the Hillary email scandal Watergate all over again?

7am – E         Entertainment News:

• Melissa McCarthy Slams the Term ‘Plus-Size,’ Launches Own Line. (ABC News) — Melissa McCarthy is a bona fide movie star, but the actress actually moved to New York in the 1980s to become a fashion designer. The “Ghostbusters” star, 44, spoke to Refinery 29 about her new line, Melissa McCarthy Seven7, and slammed the term plus-size as it refers to clothing lines. “Women come in all sizes. Seventy percent of women in the United States are a size 14 or above, and that’s technically ‘plus-size,’ so you’re taking your biggest category of people and telling them, ‘You’re not really worthy.’ I find that very strange,” she told the site. She added that she just thinks it’s bad business. Her line sells clothes up to a size 28. Nordstrom, the Home Shopping Network and Macy’s are just a few of the outlets that will carry the actress’ line. Melissa McCarthy is a bona fide movie star, but the actress actually moved to New York in the 1980s to become a fashion designer. The “Ghostbusters” star, 44, spoke to Refinery 29 about her new line, Melissa McCarthy Seven7, and slammed the term plus-size as it refers to clothing lines. “Women come in all sizes. Seventy percent of women in the United States are a size 14 or above, and that’s technically ‘plus-size,’ so you’re taking your biggest category of people and telling them, ‘You’re not really worthy.’ I find that very strange,” she told the site.
• Rosie O’Donnell’s missing daughter found. NEW YORK (AP) — Hours after it was publicly revealed that Rosie O’Donnell’s 17-year-old daughter had been missing for a week, she was found by police safe in a New Jersey home on Tuesday. Chelsea O’Donnell had left the family’s home a week earlier with a therapy dog, and her mother’s concern was intensified because she had not been taking needed medication. Chelsea suffers from mental illness, according to her mother’s spokeswoman, Cindi Berger. Rosie O’Donnell lives in South Nyack, New York, about 25 miles north of New York City, and police there had been involved in searching for her daughter since Sunday. They informed authorities in Barnegat, New Jersey, on Tuesday that they believed Chelsea was there, said Lt. Keith Germain, spokesman for Barnegat police. Police went to the residence and although the person answering the door initially did not want to reveal Chelsea’s presence, police said they would not be leaving until she came out. She then appeared and left with police without incident, Germain said.
• LISTEN: Josh Groban sings Donald Trump’s best tweets on Jimmy Kimmell Live.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – JUDGE MICHAEL MUKASEY – Former U.S. Attorney General

• Birthright citizenship: What does the 14th Amendment really say about Birthright Citizenship and how hard is it for the clause to be repealed?
• Donald Trump and Scott Walker want to repeal birthright citizenship.
• Legal issues with Clinton email server

8am – B         Health News:

• E-cigarettes could be prescribed by the NHS to help smokers quit, report says. (BBC News) — E-cigarettes are 95% less harmful than tobacco and could be prescribed on the NHS in future to help smokers quit, a review of their use has concluded. Experts who have compiled a report for Public Health England say “vaping” could be a “game changer” for persuading people to quit cigarettes. They also say there is no evidence they give children a “gateway” into smoking. Some health campaigners have welcomed the findings, but the British Medical Association has expressed caution. The Welsh government has previously announced that it plans to ban the use of e-cigarettes in enclosed spaces. E-cigarettes are increasingly popular and are now used by 2.6 million adults in Britain. But public health experts have been divided over whether they should be seen as a much safer alternative to smoking, or a pathway to a deadly addiction. Public Health England asked a team of experts to examine the emerging evidence. Their findings are unequivocal. On the question of safety, they conclude – as a broad estimate – that e-cigarettes are “around 95% less harmful” than smoking.
• FDA approves first prescription drug to boost sexual desire in women. WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved the first prescription drug designed to boost sexual desire in women, a milestone long sought by a pharmaceutical industry eager to replicate the blockbuster success of impotence drugs for men. But stringent safety measures on the daily pill called Addyi mean it will probably never achieve the sales of Viagra, which has generated billions of dollars since the late 1990s. The drug’s label will bear a boxed warning — the most serious type — alerting doctors and patients to the risks of dangerously low blood pressure and fainting, especially when the pill is combined with alcohol. The same problems can occur when taking the drug with other commonly prescribed medications, including antifungals used to treat yeast infections.
• Coffee could help prevent colon cancer recurrence. (BOSTON) — Drinking caffeinated coffee could help prevent recurrences of colon cancer, while even limiting drinkers’ risk of other serious diseases. The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, looked at almost 1,000 patients and found that those who drank four or more cups of coffee per day were 42 percent less likely to have cancer recur. They were also 34 percent less likely to die from cancer or any other cause, according to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where the study was conducted. Researchers say two to three cups of coffee per day offer more modest benefits, while one cup or less provides minimal health benefit. The study notes that non-herbal tea and decaffeinated coffee were not associated with the same outcomes.

8am – C         Most popular hard liquors in every state: Every drinker has his or her poison of choice, but it turns out that every state does, too. BARTRENDr, a social app for drinkers to connect with one another, analyzed data from its 700,000 users to determine the most popular liquor brand in every state based on posts and photos of the liquors its users like to drink. Forty-two states named some brand of whiskey as their most popular, with Jack Daniel’s and Fireball being the two most predominant brands within the group. Some states, including Wisconsin, favored rum — Captain Morgan was the Badger State’s brand of choice — while Virginia was among states leaning toward Grey Goose vodka.

8am – D         INTERVIEW — HUGO DANIEL — Daily Mail Reporter

• EXCLUSIVE: Hillary’s email firm was run from a loft apartment with its servers in the BATHROOM, raising new questions over security of sensitive messages she held. (By Hugo Daniel In Denver, Colorado, For Dailymail.com) — The IT company Hilary Clinton chose to maintain her private email account was run from a loft apartment and its servers were housed in the bathroom closet, Daily Mail Online can reveal. Daily Mail Online tracked down ex-employees of Platte River Networks in Denver, Colorado, who revealed the outfit’s strong links to the Democratic Party but expressed shock that the 2016 presidential candidate chose the small private company for such a sensitive job. One, Tera Dadiotis, called it ‘a mom and pop shop’ which was an excellent place to work, but hardly seemed likely to be used to secure state secrets. And Tom Welch, who helped found the company, confirmed the servers were in a bathroom closet. It can also be disclosed that the small number of employees who were aware of the Clinton contract were told to keep it secret. The way in which Clinton came to contract a company described as a ‘mom and pop’ operation remains unclear. However Daily Mail Online has established a series of connections between the firm and the Democratic Party. Platte River Networks worked for Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper – once heavily tipped to be Clinton’s 2016 running mate – during his election to be mayor of the city in 2003. The company’s controversial vice president of sales David DeCamillis is also said to be a ‘big Democrat’ supporter who offered his house to Joe Biden for the party’s convention held in Denver in 2008. It will be the small scale of the firm and its own home-made arrangements which will raise the most significant questions over security and over what checks Clinton’s aides made about how suitable it was for dealing with what new transpires to be classified material. Daily Mail Online spoke to former employees of the firm, including Tera Dadiotis, who was a customer relations consultant between 2007 and 2010. Describing it as ‘a great place to work, but kind of like a mom and pop shop’, Tera reacted with disbelief that her former company was hired to manage the email system of Democratic juggernaut Hilary Clinton.

8am – E         State Fair of Texas to serve ‘expensive’ fried lobster, bacon margarita. (Guide Live) — You’ll be able to order a whole lobster tail, fried and served with lemon-butter Champagne gravy, at the State Fair of Texas this year. Dallas Morning News

@dallasnews: #BREAKING! @StateFairOfTX to serve fried lobster and a bacon margarita this year | @GuideLive http://d-news.co/R2fnD pic.twitter.com/hYi56pdxpK

It’s the first year the fair has served fried lobster. Ditto fried alligator and fried buffalo. Those foods are but three of eight Big Tex Choice Awards finalists. It’s the 11th year the State Fair of Texas has hosted the food contest, which has seen some seriously strange creations over the years such as fried butter, fried Thanksgiving dinner and fried Pop-Tarts. These fried nuggets are filled with shredded chicken, cream cheese, Monterey Jack cheese, bacon, cilantro and Sriracha.

• Chicken-fried lobster with Champagne gravy: Concessionaire Abel Gonzales dreamt up a “seafood spread,” says the fair, of breaded and fried lobster tail served with lemon-butter Champagne gravy. (And yes: The gravy actually has Champagne, from France, in it.) Whereas fried lobster used to be a delicacy at fine-dining restaurants such as Dallas’ Fearing’s, now it will be available outside, from a State Fair of Texas street vendor.
• Cowboy corn crunch: In one bite, you’ll get sweet corn, jalapeño, cream cheese and bacon, “rolled up like a tater tot and fried,” says Isaac Rousso, whose fried Cuban roll won “best taste” last year. Rousso has two finalists in the Big Tex Choice Award — a rarity.
• Smoky bacon margarita: The only drink on the list, Rousso’s margarita is mostly not fried. It’s a traditional margarita, made for 21 and up only. The fried part comes in with the bacon crumbles. (“Of course the bacon is fried,” Rousso says. He’s a veteran of the fried food contest.)

TOMORROW: Amanda Carpenter and Tucker Carlson