Susan Ferrechio, Mark Krikorian, John Nolte, Jake Tapper and guest host Mary Walter joined WMAL on Thursday!

Mornings on the Mall

Thursday, January 26, 2017

Hosts: Brian Wilson and Mary Walter

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C   Restaurants: The next front for the immigration debate? CHICAGO (AP) – The national debate over immigration policy could be coming to a diner near you. From down-home delis to upscale bistros, dozens of restaurants nationwide are seeking “sanctuary” status, a designation owners hope will help protect employees in an immigrant-heavy industry and tone down fiery rhetoric sparked by the presidential campaign. First inspired by churches, the label is something cities and other public entities have sought to offer local protections to immigrants living in the U.S. illegally, whether it’s barring police from asking citizens about immigration status or refusing to cooperate with federal agents. Roughly 80 restaurants are participating, in locations including New York, Minneapolis, Detroit, Boston, Oakland, California, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. The restaurants agree to anti-discrimination policies, put up signs on windows that pronounce their sanctuary status and receive know-your-rights training, such as webinars on how to ask federal immigration agents for proper paperwork if there’s an attempted raid. Some will also offer a text line for customers or employees to report any incidents of harassment.

5am – D         Mary Tyler Moore, TV and movie star, dies at 80. Mary Tyler Moore, whose comic timing and all-American beauty made her a leading TV star and Emmy Award-winning actress before she took on dramatic roles in films, and whose 1970s situation comedy about the life of a professional single woman was considered a cultural and feminist milestone, died on Jan. 25 at a hospital in Greenwich, Conn. She was 80. Mara Buxbaum, a representative of Ms. Moore, announced the death in a statement. The actress, who had a home in Greenwich, struggled with diabetes much of her life and underwent brain surgery in 2011 to remove a benign tumor from the lining tissue around her brain.  Ms. Moore, who played the spunky housewife on “The Dick Van Dyke Show” in the 1960s and an idealistic career woman on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” in the 1970s, was an actress of dynamic range and accomplishment. She won a 1980 Tony Award for playing a quadriplegic sculptor in “Whose Life Is It Anyway?” and an Emmy for her role as a villainous orphanage director in the TV production “Stolen Babies” (1993). She was nominated for an Oscar as the frosty matriarch in “Ordinary People” (1980), Robert Redford’s directorial debut.

5am – E         Dow 20K: Great!

• Dow closes above 20,000 for first time as Trump orders send stocks flying. U.S. equities closed at all-time highs on Wednesday after a series of executive orders from President Donald Trump increased bullish sentiment on Wall Street, while financials outperformed. The Dow Jones industrial average broke above 20,000 for the first time, rising about 150 points as Boeing, Goldman Sachs and IBM contributed the most gains.
• President Donald Trump wasted little time applauding a stock-market rally that has taken the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the rarefied air of 20,000. In what has become the commander in chief’s signature mode of communication, he tweeted about the 132-year-old Wall Street benchmark’s feat:     Great! #Dow20K https://t.co/wXFhXBLgag  — President Trump (@POTUS) January 25, 2017 / Trump was elected U.S. president on Nov. 8, in a stunning victory against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton and took the oath of office just last Friday.

6am – A         Trump News:

• WEDNESDAY:
• TRUMP IMMIGRATION NEWS:
  • Building wall / Mexico will pay for wall very soon
  • Mexican president `considering’ canceling trip to Washington following Trump border wall order
  • Sanctuary cities could face losing fed dollars
  • Bowser says they’ll continue to be sanctuary city
  • Ryan says US House will put up funds to build Mexico border wall
• THURSDAY
  • Trump to visit Philadelphia for GOP retreat Thursday.
  • TRUMP SCHEDULE THURSDAY:
    • intelligence briefing
    • GOP retreat in Philadelphia
    • meets with Sen. Hatch and US Rep. Brady
    • signs executive order.

6am – B         D.C., other ‘sanctuary cities’ defiant in the face of Trump’s threats. District officials warned that the nation’s capital could lose millions — or even billions — in federal assistance annually after President Trump signed a vaguely worded order to crack down on communities that resist the deportation of illegal immigrants. Speaking Wednesday at the Department of Homeland Security, Trump singled out sanctuary cities, such as the District, Chicago and Los Angeles, as causing “immeasurable harm” to the American people and to the very fabric of our Republic by refusing to help the federal government identify and deport undocumented residents.

6am – C         Protesters with Greenpeace lift ‘RESIST’ banner from crane near White House. WASHINGTON (AP) — The morning after President Donald Trump issued orders to delay environmental rules and restart pipeline projects, seven Greenpeace protesters climbed a 270-foot tall construction crane blocks from the White House and unfurled a massive orange and yellow banner with the word, “RESIST.” The banner encouraging opposition to Trump’s agenda was clearly visible from the grounds of the White House for several hours on Wednesday, and from some angles it appeared to hover over the building. Protesters hoped it would get under his skin.  “There’s nothing that irritates him more than to know he’s not popular and we don’t like him,” one of the protesters, Karen Topakian, told The Associated Press in an interview conducted via FaceTime from high up on the crane. District of Columbia police took a hands-off approach while the protesters suspended themselves from harnesses and ropes below the crane’s huge arm. Police closed three city blocks to traffic and appeared content to wait until they climbed down to be arrested. The protesters scaled the crane before dawn at a sprawling construction site that was previously home to The Washington Post. They revealed the banner after 9 a.m. and remained atop the crane into the afternoon before beginning a slow descent.

6am – D         Nude News:

• Nude cruise to set sail from Tampa Bay. TAMPA (FOX 13) – A new kind of vacation experience is departing from the Port Tampa Bay, but you may want to wait until you’re in the privacy of your own home to book your trip on cruisebare.com. That’s right, it’s a clothing-optional cruise experience setting sail in February, and the website gives an *ahem* accurate depiction of what travelers can expect.  According to its website, the nude cruise line has been in business for 20 years. In 2013, the company stepped up to a 3,000-person ship, the Carnival Freedom, and renamed the Big Nude Boat. The cruise leaving from Tampa is somewhat smaller. The Carnival Pride will host just over 2,100 free-spirited guests from Sunday, February 5 through Tuesday, February 14. The itinerary includes Key West, Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Amber Cove, and a few fun days at sea.
• NAKED restaurant opens in Spain – customers can eat dessert off nude models. (Daily Star UK) – GOT nothing to wear? This new naked restaurant in Spain will solve all your problems. If you have ever been discouraged from going to a restaurant because you have to get dressed up, then we have news for you. A new nude restaurant has opened in Tenerife – the largest of the Canary Islands in Spain – this week. The eatery called Innato encourages diners to take their kit off while enjoying the gourmet libido-boosting menu. The idea was inspired by a nude pop-up diner that appeared in London last summer and attracted a wait list of more than 46,000 people, according to owner Tony de Leonardis. The restaurant will also give you a chance to disconnect as you have to check your smartphones in at the door before being led to a changing room to strip down to a bathrobe. Diners will then walk to their tables completely starkers while they lap up the “orgasmic atmosphere”. Bamboo partitions segregate tables so customers can be naked without the fear of being seen by strangers. The menu includes libido-boosting specials like the “aphrodisiac menu” which is served on naked male and female models who pose as human tables.

6am – E         Battle over new stadium for Redskins heats up. Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has long made it known that he would like the Washington Redskins to call Virginia home. McAuliffe says he can make the move happen without any burden on taxpayers. WASHINGTON – In the past few months, we have seen NFL teams jockey for new homes. The Rams and Chargers have found new homes in Los Angeles while the Raiders could be on the move to Las Vegas. Are the Redskins next? Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe has long made it known that he would like the Washington Redskins to call Virginia home. McAuliffe says he can make the move happen without any burden on taxpayers. “There were no taxpayer dollars involved,” he said. “You do development rights around the stadium. It’s got to work for the Redskins. It’s got to work for the taxpayers around the commonwealth of Virginia.” McAuliffe believes that having the Redskins stadium in Virginia could be a compliment to what he describes as Virginia’s “booming” economy. He compared his proposal to what was done in Los Angeles with the Rams when the decision was made to leave St. Louis and move to their eventual new stadium in Inglewood. McAuliffe referenced conversations with the Redskins owners Dan Snyder, Robert Rothman and Dwight Shar saying, “It would be great for the Redskins, it would be great for the commonwealth of Virginia, so Dan knows where I am and I have talked to Dan and Bob and Dwight, the owners of it. Now, their lease isn’t up until 2027 so they do have some time, but we have been in active negotiations, but we don’t need taxpayer dollars.”

6am – F         Obama’s Student-Loan Fiasco. A ‘coding error’ helped justify a punitive new education regulation. (WSJ) — President Trump has promised to restore trust and accountability in government. How about auditing the Education Department?  During its final days the Obama Administration slipped the news that its College Scorecard repayment rates were inflated, and on closer inspection the mistake doesn’t look innocent or innocuous. In early January the department disclosed that it had discovered a “coding error” that incorrectly computed College Scorecard repayment rates—that is, the percentage of borrowers who haven’t defaulted and have repaid at least one dollar of their loan principal. The department says the error “led to the undercounting of some borrowers who had not reduced their loan balances by at least one dollar.” The department played down the mistake, but the new average three-year repayment rate has declined by 20 percentage points to 46%. This is huge. It means that fewer than half of undergraduate borrowers at the average college are paying down their debt. The rest have either defaulted, sought forbearance or enrolled in income-based repayment plans, which are causing many borrowers who are only making minimum payments to owe more debt due to accrued interest.

7am – A         INTERVIEW — SUSAN FERRECHIO – the Washington Examiner’s chief Congressional correspondent – reported from the GOP retreat in Philadelphia.

• GOP RETREAT: Republican Senators and representatives are meeting in Philadelphia this week from Wednesday through Friday to map out an aggressive policy agenda.
• Peyton Manning to speak at GOP retreat: report (The Hill) — Legendary NFL quarterback Peyton Manning will speak to Republican lawmakers at a GOP retreat in Philadelphia this week, Politico reported Tuesday. Manning, a Republican, was a major donor to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s 2016 presidential bid. He never officially endorsed a candidate in the general election.
• Trump to visit Philadelphia for GOP retreat Thursday. WASHINGTON —  Philadelphia will get some time in the international spotlight this week, as President Trump makes the city what is likely to be his first major stop outside Washington since his inauguration. The president is scheduled to address congressional Republicans, who will be gathering at the Loews hotel Wednesday through Friday as they try to map out an aggressive agenda for their newfound power in Washington
• In Philly, a chance for Trump, GOP to unify (By Susan Ferrechio) — House and Senate Republicans have two big questions for President Trump when they meet in downtown Philadelphia for their annual strategy retreat: what do you want to do, and how do you want to do it?

7am – B         Virginia bill addresses the scourge of drunken Segway drivers on roads. Yes, you read that right. Virginia could soon be spared the terrors of drunken Segway drivers. Under a bill proposed by a Fairfax County senator, the battle for safe streets could be taken to any desperado riding a bike, an “electric personal assistive mobility device, electric power-assisted bicycle, or moped” on a highway while intoxicated. Thank goodness, the measure wouldn’t affect people zipping up and down the aisles of Walmart on electric scooters. But when was the last time anyone took a Segway for a spin on the highway, boozed up or otherwise? Come on! And yet this is not a Gob-related subplot in an episode of “Arrested Development.” If passed, offenders would be hit with a Class 2 misdemeanor. That could mean that at least six months in the pokey and a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

7am – C         People were taking Trump seriously. Now they’re starting to take him literally. (Washington Post) — During the campaign, many of Donald Trump’s supporters and even his advisers said they took many of the candidate’s most far-reaching promises seriously but not literally. Now in his first week at the White House, President Trump is showing that at least some of them were indeed meant literally — putting him at odds not only with critics but with some members of his own party. The Trump administration is showing every sign of taking the nation far to the right in an effort to make good on a number of his pledges, including barring refugees and immigrants from some Muslim-majority countries, potentially implementing an ideological test for others, working to build a wall on the border with Mexico and even exploring the possibility of reopening a caustic debate over “enhanced interrogation techniques” such as waterboarding.

7am – D         INTERVIEW — MARK KRIKORIAN — a nationally recognized expert on immigration issues and is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS)

• Trump orders construction of border wall, boosts deportation force. Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump on Wednesday started to reshape US immigration enforcement policies via executive action, taking his first steps toward fulfilling some of the most contentious pledges that defined his campaign — building a border wall and speeding the deportation of undocumented immigrants. Trump signed two executive orders directing the construction of a wall on the US-Mexico border, boosting border patrol forces and increasing the number of immigration enforcement officers who carry out deportations. The orders also call for stripping sanctuary cities of federal grant funding and announced sweeping new criteria that could make many more undocumented immigrants priorities for deportation

7am – E         Days Into Trump Admin, Corrupt Employees Are Already Being Fired At The VA. Days into Donald Trump’s administration, heads are finally beginning to roll at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Two notoriously corrupt employees in Puerto Rico were fired this week, indicating that more may be on the way. One is the hospital’s CEO, DeWayne Hamlin, who offered an employee $305,000 to quit after she played a role in exposing his drug arrest. “Mr. DeWayne Hamlin was removed from federal service effective January 20, 2017,” the VA said. Jan. 20 was Inauguration Day. Under former Secretary of Veterans Affairs Bob McDonald, the agency ignored years of evidence about shoddy work ethic, theft and whistleblower retaliation. The VA finally began a months-long investigative proceeding last year, after an outside agency, the Office of Special Counsel, prodded VA leadership.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – JOHN NOLTE –  editor-at-large of The Daily Wire and a film/TV critic

• Remembering Mary Tyler Moore

8am – B         Trump News:

• WEDNESDAY:
• TRUMP IMMIGRATION NEWS:
  • Building wall / Mexico will pay for wall very soon
  • Mexican president `considering’ canceling trip to Washington following Trump border wall order
  • Sanctuary cities could face losing fed dollars
  • Bowser says they’ll continue to be sanctuary city
  • Ryan says US House will put up funds to build Mexico border wall
• THURSDAY
  • Trump to visit Philadelphia for GOP retreat Thursday.
  • TRUMP SCHEDULE THURSDAY:
    • intelligence briefing
    • GOP retreat in Philadelphia
    • meets with Sen. Hatch and US Rep. Brady
    • signs executive order.
  • D.C., other ‘sanctuary cities’ defiant in the face of Trump’s threats. District officials warned that the nation’s capital could lose millions — or even billions — in federal assistance annually after President Trump signed a vaguely worded order to crack down on communities that resist the deportation of illegal immigrants. Speaking Wednesday at the Department of Homeland Security, Trump singled out sanctuary cities, such as the District, Chicago and Los Angeles, as causing “immeasurable harm” to the American people and to the very fabric of our Republic by refusing to help the federal government identify and deport undocumented residents.

8am – C         How to get a bottle of McDonald’s special sauce – for free – on Thursday: WASHINGTON — McDonald’s, which recently rolled out two new versions of its iconic Big Mac — the Mac Jr. and the Grand Mac — will give away 10,000 bottles of the sauce that made the Big Mac famous at selected locations on Thursday. The giveaway, on a first-come-first-served basis, a first for the fast-food chain. The McDonald’s locations are being kept under wraps until Jan. 25. The D.C. location where a limited number of sauce bottles will be handed out will be posted at mcdonaldsdmv.com. In order to get the free bottle, customers must say the special code phrase “There’s a Big Mac for that.”

8am – D         INTERVIEW – JAKE TAPPER – Anchor of CNN’s THE LEAD AND STATE OF THE UNION

8am – E         Remembering Mary Tyler Moore