Katie Phang, Washington Post’s Robert Costa, Steve Kastenbaum in Rio, Fox’s James Rosen, Redskins analyst Trevor Matich and legal analyst Danny Cevallos joined WMAL on Friday!

Mornings on the Mall

Friday, August 19, 2016

Hosts: Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C             Lochtegate:

• Lochte’s Teammates, USOC Join With Police in Discrediting Robbery Story. Olympians Ryan Lochte, James Feigen, Gunnar Bentz and Jack Conger accused of bathroom damage at gas station.
• Jimmy Feigen, U.S. Swimmer in Lochte Scandal, Pays to Leave Rio
• USOC Apologizes for ‘Distracting Ordeal’ from US Swimmers Who Claimed Robbery

5am – D         Donald Trump says he regrets some of what he’s said “in the heat of debate.”  CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — For the first time since declaring his presidential run, Republican Donald Trump acknowledged that his caustic comments may have caused people pain, saying that he regrets some of what he’s said “in the heat of debate.” A day after announcing a campaign shake-up and as he trails in the polls, the GOP nominee said that he recognized that his comments — which have angered minorities and alienated large swaths of the general election electorate — may have been ill-advised. “Sometimes in the heat of debate and speaking on a multitude of issues, you don’t choose the right words or you say the wrong thing. I have done that,” the GOP nominee, reading from prepared text, said at a rally in Charlotte, N.C. “And believe it or not, I regret it — and I do regret it — particularly where it may have caused personal pain.” He added that, “Too much is at stake for us to be consumed with these issues.” As the crowd cheered, Trump pledged to “always tell you the truth.”

5am – E         Bethesda Family Lives without Power While Refusing To Pay Pepco Fees. (Bethesda Magazine)  — Tuesday is day 13 without power for the Pascalev family of Bethesda. Pepco disconnected electricity service to the home on Sleaford Road after almost two years of husband Mario Pascalev and wife Assya Pascalev refusing to pay the utility’s $14-a-month fee for customers who opt out of its smart meter program. Despite sweating through record heat over the weekend and more high temperatures Monday, the Pascalevs said they will continue their protest against smart meters, the opt-out fee requirement and what they claim is a series of inaccurate billing statements from Pepco. The couple has copies of checks sent to Pepco through certified mail showing they paid for their electricity use, but not the smart meter opt-out fee. “There is the notion of unjust laws and civil disobedience against unjust laws,” Mario Pascalev said Friday while sitting in a downtown Bethesda Starbucks. “It is wrong and [Pepco] should not be able to force it on you.” The family, which includes two teenage children age 13 and 18, have coped with the lack of air conditioning in the house by hanging out in Bethesda coffee shops and bookstores. Like Vollmer, the Pascalevs object to the smart meters by claiming they could emit harmful radiation, are a fire hazard and are a privacy concern because they could help Pepco track exactly when electricity is being used in the house. When asked about the lack of any conclusive evidence linking the smart meters to harmful radiation, Assya Pascalev said the family would “rather err on the side of safety.”

6am – A/B     Obama administration says $400M to Iran was contingent on release of prisoners was contingent on release of prisoners. (Fox News) — The Obama administration admitted Thursday that a $400 million cash payment to Iran in January was contingent on the release of American prisoners being held in the country – while still denying that the payment was a ransom. State Department spokesman John Kirby said that the negotiations to return the money – originally from a 1979 failed military equipment deal made between Iran and the U.S. – were conducted separately from negotiations to free the four prisoners. The four detainees who were released on January 17 were Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian; former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati; Christian pastor Saeed Abedini and Nosratollah Khosravi-Roodsari, whose case had not been publicized before the release. However, Kirby said that the U.S. withheld the cash delivery until Iran made good on its promise to release the prisoners. “In basic English you are saying you wouldn’t give [Iran] the 400 million in cash until the prisoners were released, correct?” asked a reporter at Thursday’s State Department briefing. “That’s correct,” Kirby responded.

6am – C         Pablo Picasso? Try Panda Picasso: Bao Bao paints at National Zoo. WASHINGTON (WUSA9) – Every artist begins as an amateur, once opined Ralph Waldo Emerson. But how many artists begin as a panda? At least one: Bao Bao. The baby panda, who turns three-years-old on August 23, at the National Zoo has, somehow, found a little free time in between sleeping and climbing trees to pick up a new hobby: painting. Sitting in her cage, Bao Bao maneuvers a rod, that serves as her paint brush, that’s attached to the cage. Half of the rod – the portion she grabs – is inside the cage, the other half of the rod – the portion with the brush end – is outside the cage. The rod is long enough to reach a canvas that is held by a trainer outside the cage. That trainer reapplies paint to the brush as needed. You must be wondering: why would a panda need to paint? Besides the fulfillment of artistic expression, the process of painting does actually serve a training purpose for the panda — it’s what trainers at the National Zoo call “enrichment training.”

6am – D         INTERVIEW – KATIE PHANG – Fox News legal analyst, trial attorney, former prosecutor and Partner at Berger Singerman, based in Miami, FL.

• Jimmy Feigen, U.S. Swimmer in Lochte Scandal, Pays to Leave Rio
• USOC Apologizes for ‘Distracting Ordeal’ from US Swimmers Who Claimed Robbery
• Ryan Lochte endorsements could be in trouble
• Can Brazil get Ryan Lochte extradited?

• Would Ryan Lochte face jail time if it turns out he’s lying?

6am – E         White House Official Gets in Physical Altercation With Autistic Redskins Fan. An autistic Native American man accused a White House official of physically assaulting him Wednesday over his Washington Redskins jersey. Oklahoma college student Barrett Dahl and White House Initiative on American Indian and Alaska Native Education director William Mendoza both agree that a fight occurred, but disagree about who started it. Dahl told local CBS affiliate KWTV that Mendoza confronted him at a D.C. powwow over his Redskins jersey, calling him a “weetard” and spitting on him. Mendoza agrees he spoke to Dahl about the jersey, but says it was Dahl who took it to the next level. “I don’t have to (expletive) explain (expletive) to you. If you want to step outside and take this outside, I’d be happy to explain it to you,” Dahl supposedly said, according to Mendoza’s attorney.

7am – A         INTERVIEW — ROBERT COSTA – national political reporter at The Washington Post.

• COSTA: Trump, speaking after campaign shake-up, expresses regret over causing ‘personal pain’ / Trump also tore into his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, during the speech.
• Campaign shake-up signals that Trump will finish race on his own terms
• Trump shakes up campaign, demotes top adviser
• Donald Trump To Visit Louisiana Areas Hit by Flooding. Donald Trump and his running mate Mike Pence plan to tour flooded areas in Louisiana on Friday. Details of the trip have not been publicly released, and Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

7am – B/C     INTERVIEW – STEVE KASTENBAUM IN RIO

• WINS:
  • Helen Maroulis of Rockville, Md., wins first-ever wrestling gold for U.S. women
  • Rio Olympics: U.S women win protest after dropping baton in 400-meter relay and will race again
  • Usain Bolt does it again and takes gold on the track for the men’s 200m
• LOCHTE AND SWIMMERS: Ryan Lochte, Brazilian police disagree over robbery. Jimmy Feigen, U.S. Swimmer in Lochte Scandal, Pays to Leave Rio. USOC Apologizes for ‘Distracting Ordeal’ from US Swimmers Who Claimed Robbery.

7am – D         INTERVIEW — JAMES ROSEN — Chief Washington Correspondent for Fox News Channel and Author of “Cheney One on One”

• Obama administration says $400M to Iran was contingent on release of prisoners was contingent on release of prisoners. The Obama administration admitted Thursday that a $400 million cash payment to Iran in January was contingent on the release of American prisoners being held in the country – while still denying that the payment was a ransom.

7am – E         Amazon launches one-hour delivery in Arlington. (ARLNow) – Arlingtonians can order a pint of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream from Amazon.com and get it while it’s still frozen.  Amazon announced this morning that it has launched its Prime Now service for parts of Northern Virginia, including Alexandria, Springfield and all of Arlington. (Users can check to see if the service is available by typing in their ZIP code.) Prime Now allows Amazon Prime members (link goes to a 30-day free Prime trial offer) to order more than 10,000 everyday items, from groceries to household essentials to electronics to pet supplies, and get it delivered in 1-2 hours.  One hour delivery costs $7.99, while two hour delivery is free.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – TREVOR MATICH — WMAL’s Redskins Analyst and Comcast SportsNet

• Redskins eager for runners to rumble in second preseason game against the Jets
• PREVIEW: New York Jets at Washington Redskins / eek 2 of the 2016 NFL preseason / Where: FedEx Field. Landover, Md. / When: 7:30 p.m. ET. Friday, August 19
• RGIII getting divroced

8am – B/C     INTERVIEW — DANNY CEVALLOS – Seh-VAHL-los – CNN legal analyst

• Danny Cevallos is a CNN legal analyst and co-founder of the law firm Cevallos & Wong, LLP. He focuses his practice in the areas of state, federal, and territorial criminal defense and civil litigation
• Analyzed the Lochte / U.S. Swimmer

8am – D/E     Lochtegate Calls