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Mornings on the Mall

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C Kathy Griffin: ‘I beg for your forgiveness’ for gruesome anti-Trump photo shoot (CNN)  An apologetic Kathy Griffin took to Instagram to issue a mea culpa for participating in a photo shoot that featured her holding up a bloody head resembling President Donald Trump. “I’m a comic,” she said. “I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it. I went way too far. The image is too disturbing. I understand how it offends people. It wasn’t funny. I get it.” She said she is asking celebrity photographer Tyler Shields to take down the photo. “I beg for your forgiveness. I went too far,” she said in the post on Tuesday. “I made a mistake and I was wrong.”

5am – D Watchdog Claims 5K Noncitizens Registered to Vote in Virginia A new report released shortly after the forming of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity finds that more than 5,000 individuals were determined to be non-U.S. citizens registered to vote in Virginia. The report details how ineligible individuals are slowly discovered by local officials—most often, the authors allege, by accident. Applicants for voter registration are not required to prove they are actual U.S. citizens in Virginia. The vast majority of states only require that people claim to be citizens during registration, PILF notes. The report details, however, that Virginia shares information when a claimed citizen indicates otherwise to a separate state agency.

5am– E   US successfully ‘intercepts and destroys’ target in missile test (CNN) The Pentagon successfully shot down an intercontinental ballistic missile using its own upgraded long-range interceptor missile on Tuesday in what was widely seen as a test of US ability to counter a North Korean missile launch. The Missile Defense Agency launched a ground-based interceptor from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California to intercept a US-launched mock ICBM target over the Pacific Ocean, according to a US defense official.

The interceptor “destroyed the target in a direct collision,” according to a statement from the Missile Defense Agency. “This system is vitally important to the defense of our homeland, and this test demonstrates that we have a capable, credible deterrent against a very real threat,” he said. While the Pentagon is calling this test a success, some experts cautioned that the $40 billion missile defense system still has a long way to go before it can be considered fully developed.

6am – A/B/C  Do school dress codes end up body-shaming girls? But if the girls are wearing the clothes that are primarily being offered to them, don’t we have a problem here? Many think we do, including Catherine Pearlman, a mother of two who penned a tongue-in-cheek letter to her daughter’s middle school principal in a blog post for Today.com that was viewed more than 2 million times. Pearlman said her daughter, now 13, had been told in the fall by a teacher that she couldn’t wear yoga pants because the boys would get turned on and then be embarrassed. Catherine Pearlman’s daughter in the shorts that she says violated her school’s dress code. Then, for two days in a row, her daughter, who is 5 feet 7 inches tall, was told she violated the school’s dress code for wearing shorts that were too short: They are supposed to be longer than students’ fingertips when they have their arms at their sides. She had to put on boys’ gym shorts instead and return to class.

6am – D ‘How Much Crow Are You Going To Eat?’ John Sununu Rips CNN’s Camerota … On CNN  John Sununu blasted the media on CNN’s New Day on Tuesday over their coverage of the investigation into Russia’s alleged meddling in the 2016 presidential campaign. Anchor Alisyn Camerota asked Sununu, “Is there anything about the Russian — investigation connected to the Trump campaign that troubles you?”

The former governor replied by going on the offensive against the media: “Yeah, but the reporting that’s taking place and the exaggeration of the veniality…look, it’s now seven months since the election; and to this day, no one has cited a single piece of evidence.”

The two then sparred over the recent report that Jared Kushner met with a Russian banker with close ties to Vladimir Putin.

6am  – E  ‘You Aren’t Representing Me’: Trump Supporter Confronts Maxine Waters A Trump supporter confronted frequent presidential critic Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and asked why she wasn’t being properly represented. The woman asked Waters why she is not representing the Trump supporters in her Los Angeles district. “I can’t stand him. He’s the most horrible man I’ve ever seen in my life,” Waters said. “Your president is a dishonorable, lying man.” “He talked about grabbing women by the private parts. He lies every day,” Waters said, adding that Trump is “in bed” with Russian petroleum oligarchs.

6am – F  Ariana Grande Sets Manchester Benefit Concert with Katy Perry, Coldplay, Miley Cyrus Pop star Ariana Grande has enlisted the help of Coldplay, Katy Perry, Pharrell Williams and others to perform a benefit concert in Manchester, England to raise money for victims of the suicide bombing that killed 22 people and injured dozens more last week. “One Love Manchester” is set for June 4 at the Emirates Old Trafford cricket grounds in Manchester. Grande promised the performance to her fans in a lengthy Twitter message last week and offered condolences to the victims of the terror attack.

7am – A INTERVIEW – ALEXI MCCAMMOND – Axios’ Deputy News Editor

TOPIC: Changes in White House staff

• The newest FBI director candidates: John Pistole and Chris Wray
• The White House staff shakeup begins

7am –B Democrats Attack Texas Republican After He Calls ICE On Illegal Protesters Matt Rinaldi, a Republican Texas state representative, claims Democratic colleagues of his threatened him with violence after he called ICE on illegal immigrants who were protesting in the state capitol Monday. Rep. Rinaldi claimed in a Facebook post, “Today, Representative Poncho Nevarez threatened my life on the House floor after I called ICE on several illegal immigrants who held signs in the gallery which said ‘I am illegal and here to stay.’ Several Democrats encouraged the protestors to disobey law enforcement.” Then Rinaldi claims another Democratic representative became violent towards him. “When I told the Democrats I called ICE, Representative Ramon Romero physically assaulted me, and other Democrats were held back by colleagues. During that time Poncho told me that he would ‘get me on the way to my car.’

7am  – C  Are video games addictive like drugs, gambling? Some who’ve struggled say yes Uncontrollable video game playing is a 21st century affliction in search of an identity. Is it an addiction on its own terms, as many researchers believe? Or is it just a symptom of deeper problems such as depression or anxiety, as other experts insist?  Dozens of scientific papers have yet to produce clear answers, and the medical establishment has been equally indecisive, calling it a condition that requires further study before it can be classified as a full-blown psychiatric disorder. That has put the small portion of American gamers whose play experts classify as “pathological” in a tough spot: Even when they believe they have a problem, there’s no defined path to recovery. Treatment specialists are uncommon, their methods are unproven and their care is rarely reimbursed by insurance. A few support groups have formed, but they’ve struggled to achieve visibility and attract members. Many gamers thus have to figure out recovery for themselves, coming up with their own techniques to wrestle their habits into submission.

7am – D INTERVIEW – RONALD KESSLER –  Author of The First Family Detail 

Topic: Comey acting on false Russian intelligence

• Then-FBI Director James Comey knew that a critical piece of information relating to the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s email was fake 

• Sen. Lindsey Graham says Comey needs to be ‘held accountable’ over Clinton investigation decisions

7am–E  Astronaut John Glenn’s Body Disrespected At Military Mortuary Dover Air Force Base senior mortuary employee William Zwicharowski twice asked military inspectors if they wanted to view the astronaut’s body earlier this year. One anonymous military official told Military Times that Zwicharowski may have made that same offer to others. “Even after Mr. Zwicharowski was counseled by his chain of command regarding the inappropriate nature of his earlier offer, he repeated it,” reads a memo obtained by Military Times.

8am – A  INTERVIEW – BRANDON SCOTT – Baltimore Council Representative District 2

TOPIC: Youth crime and curfew in Baltimore

• Youth crime a concern as curfew returns in Baltimore
• Will Baltimore remove Confederate statues?

8am – B/C/D Kathy Griffin: ‘I beg for your forgiveness’ for gruesome anti-Trump photo shoot (CNN)  An apologetic Kathy Griffin took to Instagram to issue a mea culpa for participating in a photo shoot that featured her holding up a bloody head resembling President Donald Trump. “I’m a comic,” she said. “I cross the line. I move the line, then I cross it. I went way too far. The image is too disturbing. I understand how it offends people. It wasn’t funny. I get it.” She said she is asking celebrity photographer Tyler Shields to take down the photo. “I beg for your forgiveness. I went too far,” she said in the post on Tuesday. “I made a mistake and I was wrong.”

8am – E  Portland Killer Is An Anti-Circumcision, Bernie Sanders Supporter

Jeremy Joseph Christian, the 35-year-old Portland man who allegedly murdered two men and left another critically wounded while yelling anti-Muslim slurs in a knife attack on Friday, has been painted by the mainstream media as a “right-wing extremist,” but posts on his Facebook page indicate he was a supporter of socialist Senator Bernie Sanders and Green Party candidate Jill Stein. According to screen captures of his Facebook page obtained by Buzzfeed, Christian was not a Trump supporter, as many media outlets claimed, but was a supporter of the idea of a Sanders/Stein ticket.