Joe diGenova, Mark Paoletta, FAIR’s Dan Stein and Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot joined WMAL on Monday.

Mornings on the Mall

Monday, April 18, 2016

Hosts: Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C No charges filed against man who killed Md. Firefighter. (WUSA) — PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (WUSA9) — The homeowner who shot and killed 37-year-old Prince George’s County Firefighter John Ulmschneider is a free man Saturday, because there’s not enough evidence to warrant charges at this time.  As a result, the law requires the government to let this person go home. But John Erzen, a spokesperson for the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Office, told WUSA9 that this could change. “There are so many moving parts, and we’re only a little over 24 hours in,” Erzen said. “So we’re not at a point where we can definitely say that this happened or that happened.”

5am – D         John Kasich clarifies stance on women attending parties with alcohol.  Gov. John Kasich clarified remarks he made about sexual assault and alcohol in an interview that aired Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.” At a town hall earlier in the week, a college student asked Kasich how he would help her “feel safer and more secure regarding sexual violence, harassment and rape” as president.

Kasich discussed initiatives taken in Ohio to provide support for students who have been assaulted or harassed before advising the student against alcohol-fueled parties. “I’d also give you one bit of advice,” Kasich told the student. “Don’t go to parties where there’s a lot of alcohol. OK? Don’t do that.” Kasich told CNN political correspondent Dana Bash on Sunday that his intent was not to imply that victims of sexual violence were culpable for what had happened to them.

5am – E         Tax Day:

• Rampant Fraud: Government Tax Agencies Overwhelmed By Identity Thieves. (Daily Caller) — As tax day looms for American taxpayers on Monday, one state comptroller is struggling to figure out what to do with thousands of fraudulent tax returns submitted by identity thieves. “I have 50,000 fraudulent returns sitting on my desk. I have no subpoena power. I have no investigatory powers as far as those fraudulent returns,” Maryland Comptroller Peter Franchot told WBAL Radio last week. Maryland is not the only state tackling fraudulent returns. “It’s happening to every state around the country,” he said.
• Tax Day 2016 freebies and deals: WASHINGTON — This year, Tax Day — the filing deadline for federal tax returns — has been pushed to April 18 because of D.C.’s Emancipation Day holiday on April 15. Its arrival has many businesses offering weary taxpayers everything from free massages and cookies to discounts on beer and bagels.

6am – A/B     Hamilton likely to remain on $10 bill, woman to replace Jackson on the $20. (CNN Money) — NEW YORK — Treasury Secretary Jack Lew is expected to announce this week that Alexander Hamilton’s face will remain on the front of the $10 bill and a woman will replace Andrew Jackson on the face of the $20 bill, a senior government source told CNN on Saturday. Lew announced last summer that he was considering redesigning the $10 bill to include the portrait of a woman. The decision to make the historic change at the expense of Hamilton drew angry rebukes from fans of the former Treasury Secretary. The pro-Hamilton movement gained steam after the smash success of the hip-hop Broadway musical about his life this year. Those pressures led Lew to determine that Hamilton should remain on the front of the bill. Instead, a mural-style depiction of the women’s suffrage movement — including images of leaders such as Susan B. Anthony — will be featured on the back of the bill. Treasury spokesman declined to comment on the pending changes. But Lew hinted that a decision could come this week.

6am – C         Critter News:

• ‘Jungle Book’ roars with $103.6 million debut. NEW YORK (AP) — The Walt Disney Co.’s “The Jungle Book” opened with $103.6 million in North America, making it one of the biggest April debuts ever at the box office and continuing the studio’s streak of unearthing live-action riches buried in its animated classics. Jon Favreau’s update of Disney’s 1967 animated version of Rudyard Kipling’s book tells the tale of Mowgli with computer-generated imagery and big-screen bombast. A sizable 42 percent of the film’s domestic sales came from 3-D and premium-format screens.
• Maryland opens rockfish season with new regulations. WASHINGTON — Drive over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge this weekend and you’ll see hundreds of boats with fishing lines in the water. Saturday is the first day of rockfish season. Rockfish, also known as striped bass, are a popular game fish for lots of reasons. They fight well, and they taste good. “They have mild, white flaky meat — very popular with restaurants,” says Erik Zlokovitz, recreational fishing and public access outreach coordinator with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Service. “They’re a universally popular game fish here and all over the Mid-Atlantic.” The 2016 season opens with new regulations for Maryland anglers. “You can keep one fish 35 inches or larger,” Zlokovitz said. “That’s different from last year, when we had a slot limit, where you were only able to keep a certain-sized fish between two different lengths.”

6am – D/E     Study: Dyson hand-dryer spreads more germs than paper towels. You probably don’t give much thought to how you dry your hands in a public restroom.But the results of a new study might change that. According to new research published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology, a Dyson Airblade hand-dryer spreads 1,300 times more germs than paper towels and 60 times more germs than standard air dryers. The study, which was conducted by the University of Westminster, was carried out by researchers dipping their hands in water containing a harmless virus before drying them with the Dyson Airblade, a standard hot-air dryer, and paper towels.

7am – A         INTERVIEW — JOE DIGENOVA – legal analyst

• Huma Abedin will be grilled over Hillary’s emails. The State Department has agreed to a conservative legal group’s request to question several current and former government officials about the creation of Hillary Clinton’s private email system. The agreement filed late Friday with the U.S. District Court in Washington comes after a judge consented to allow the group Judicial Watch “limited discovery” to probe why Clinton relied on an email server in her New York home during her tenure as secretary of state.
• High court takes up case for shielding immigrants from deportation. This week, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in United States v. Texas, the case involving a lawsuit brought by 26 states against President Obama’s efforts to grant de facto amnesty to some 4.7 million illegal aliens through executive action. A lower court has issued an injunction blocking implementation of two programs, Deferred Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA) and an expanded version of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). The administration is asking the high court to lift that injunction. There are many constitutional reasons why the Court should emphatically deny the administration’s request. Last week, the administration itself introduced a compelling fiscal reason for why DAPA and expanded DACA should be allowed to go into effect.
• No charges filed against man who killed Md. firefighter. The homeowner who shot and killed 37-year-old Prince George’s County Firefighter John Ulmschneider is a free man Saturday, because there’s not enough evidence to warrant charges at this time.

7am – B/C     No charges filed against man who killed Md. Firefighter. (WUSA) — PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (WUSA9) — The homeowner who shot and killed 37-year-old Prince George’s County Firefighter John Ulmschneider is a free man Saturday, because there’s not enough evidence to warrant charges at this time.  As a result, the law requires the government to let this person go home. But John Erzen, a spokesperson for the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney Office, told WUSA9 that this could change. “There are so many moving parts, and we’re only a little over 24 hours in,” Erzen said. “So we’re not at a point where we can definitely say that this happened or that happened.”

7am – D         INTERVIEW — MARK PAOLETTA — was a former lawyer in Bush 41 White House Counsel office who worked on Clarence Thomas confirmation.

• Mark Paoletta is a lawyer specializing in representing clients in congressional investigations
• ‘Confirmation,’ HBO’s Kerry Washington movie about Anita Hill is a ‘hit job,’ says former White House lawyer   

7am – E         Food News:

• All-You-Can-Eat Fries Coming Soon To One McDonald’s Location. SAINT JOSEPH, Mo. (CBSLA.com) — A McDonald’s location in Saint Joseph, Missouri will soon be testing out all-you-can-eat fries. The new location will also have a kiosk in place where consumers can order their bottomless fries. Those fries will then be brought to the customer’s table. The new store is already being billed at the “McDonalds of the Future.” It’s set to open in July.
• Roy Rogers restaurants expanding in Maryland. Brothers bring back Roy Rogers and its ‘holy trio’ of burgers, chicken, roast beef. Jim Plamondon seemed a good bet to become a member of the legal profession’s elite back in 1995. A Notre Dame grad and George Washington University law school alum, he was a federal prosecutor when he chucked it all to sell roast beef sandwiches and fried chicken. Quite a pivot. Or maybe not. Jim, 52, and his brother, Pete Jr., 56, are the third generation of their family that has been in the hospitality business. Their father ran the Roy Rogers chain for what is now Marriott International and eventually owned 15 of the restaurants. Plamondon Cos., as they call themselves, oversees a brand that encompasses 50 restaurants across six Mid-Atlantic states. Not bad, but well off the chain’s peak of 648 in its heyday. Of the 50 existing Roy Rogers, 23 are owned directly by the brothers and 27 are owned by franchisees. Six more are opening this year.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – DAN STEIN – President of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR)

• Dan Stein is an attorney who has worked for nearly 35 years in the field of immigration law and law reform. He has been in his present position as President since January 2003.
• SUPREME COURT PREVIEW: High court takes up case for shielding immigrants from deportation
• FLASHBACK: LAST WEEK: Obama’s IRS Chief: We Don’t Alert Americans When Illegal Aliens Steal Social Security Numbers to Get U.S. Jobs
• FLASHBACK: LAST WEEK: Border Patrol ordered to release illegals ‘still soaking wet’ from Rio Grande, union says

8am – B         2016 news:

• Sabato: Sanders-Pope Meeting Could Help With Catholic Vote In New York. Ahead of the New York primary, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders met with Pope Francis on Saturday during his visit to the Vatican. University of Virginia political science professor Larry Sabato told CNN that the meeting could help garner the Catholic vote in New York. “Even though Sanders would be the first Jewish president, he’s doing very poorly among Jewish voters in New York. He’s losing to Hillary Clinton by 20 or more percentage points,” Sabato told CNN. “I think Sanders probably hurt himself with older Jewish voters, with his comments on Israel. Think about the voters in New York: it’s 6 percent Jewish and in the Democratic primary, it can be a lot higher than that in New York City, often 20 percent.” The professor believes Sanders could use the Pope meeting to use his advantage with Catholic voters. “But Catholics in New York are 39 percent of the population. So what Sanders may have lost among Jewish voters, he potentially could make up with Catholic voters,” he said.  Bernie Sanders takes a private flight to Rome to speak at the Vatican conference – burning gallons of fuel just hours after attacking Hillary Clinton on climate change
• Coachella’s next surprise guest? Bernie Sanders. Coachella’s surprise-guest tradition took a turn Saturday afternoon when presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders showed up on video to introduce the politically inclined rap duo Run the Jewels on the main stage.
• Cruz wins Wyoming delegates in weekend convention rout. CASPER, — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) continued his romp through the Republican Party’s state conventions Saturday, winning 14 delegates in Wyoming to complete a near-sweep of the state. At the same time, in conventions in Virginia, Georgia and South Carolina, Cruz-friendly activists won delegate slots in congressional districts that had voted for someone else in the primaries.
• Trump trounced by Cruz supporters at Georgia district conventions. Donald Trump won a commanding victory in Georgia’s Republican presidential primary last month. But over the weekend the Republican billionaire started losing the bulk of the delegates that were supposed to come with that win to the candidate who finished in third place. Trump was outmaneuvered by supporters of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz at Saturday’s district conventions held to elect more than half of the 76 delegates who will go to the July nominating convention in Cleveland. Even the sunniest projections from Trump supporters estimated that he landed only about a dozen of the 42 delegates who he can count on to stick with him through multiple ballots at a contested convention. Supporters of Cruz, who finished third in the primary, said they put supporters in 32 delegate slots.

8am – C         Flyers’ Steve Mason gives up an all-time terrible goal vs. Caps. The Philadelphia Flyers are already facing an uphill battle, down 1-0 in a series against the regular season’s best team and one of the most loaded offensive lineups in the postseason. The Washington Capitals really don’t need help when it comes to scoring goals, but they got an assist via an unconscionable gaffe by Flyers goalie Steve Mason.

8am – D         INTERVIEW — MARYLAND COMPTROLLER PETER FRANCHOT

• Discuss the April 18 tax filing deadline day to give a summary of this year’s tax filing season and to provide any last-minute tips for people who wait until the last minute to file.
• Discuss how the comptroller is struggling to figure out what to do with 50,000 fraudulent tax returns submitted by identity thieves. When the Maryland General Assembly concluded their session last week, the Maryland Senate refused to give the comptroller more power to investigate and prosecute tax thieves. “What I heard was that they [the Democrat lawmakers] were sending a message to me that they don’t like the fact that I worked fairly well with [Republican] Governor Hogan or something like that. They had some grievance,” he said in an interview last week.

8am – E         9 Gitmo detainees released to Saudi Arabia. The Department of Defense announced Saturday that nine Guantánamo Bay detainees have been released to Saudi Arabia. The Pentagon said in a statement that the Guantánamo Review Task Force did a comprehensive review on each detainee’s case. Eight of the nine were approved for transfer unanimously, and one was approved by a consensus. “The United States is grateful to the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its humanitarian gesture and willingness to support ongoing U.S. efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility,” the Pentagon statement said. “The United States coordinated with government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to ensure these transfers took place consistent with appropriate security and humane treatment measures.”