James Carafano, Doug McKelway, Frank Miniter, Josh Kraushaar and Jill Vogel joined WMAL on Friday!

Mornings on the Mall

Friday, October 6, 2017

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C   Partisan divides over political values widen. The gap between the political values of Democrats & Republicans is the largest ever measured… (Pew Research Center) – The gap between the political values of Democrats and Republicans is now larger than at any point in Pew Research Center surveys dating back to 1994, a continuation of a steep increase in the ideological divisions between the two parties over more than a decade. The subsequent chapters explore Americans’ attitudes across individual political values and policy issues, in most cases including data dating back to the late 1990s or early 2000s. In nearly every domain, across most of the roughly two dozen values questions tracked, views of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents and those of Democrats and Democratic leaners are now further apart than in the past.

5am – D         Democrat News:

• California’s Rep. Linda Sanchez: It’s time for Nancy Pelosi and other longtime Democratic leaders to leave
• MSNBC on Calls for Pelosi to Step Down: ‘Ugly Divide’ Inside Democratic Conference Out in the Open

5am – E         GUN DEBATE POST VEGAS SHOOTING TURNS TO BANNING BUMP STOCKS:

• The National Rifle Association on Thursday called on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to review whether bump fire stocks – like the device used in this week’s Las Vegas shooting massacre – comply with current federal law.
• Sen. Tom Cotton: I’d be ‘willing to entertain’ regulation of bump-stocks
• Paul Ryan: Legislation Banning Bump Stocks ‘Something That We Need to Look Into.’ Thursday on MSNBC in a preview of an interview conducted with Saturday morning network host Hugh Hewitt, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said “clearly” Congress needed to look into legislation on bump stocks. Ryan said, “I didn’t even know what they were until this week, and I’m an avid sportsman. So I think we’re quickly coming up to speed with what this is. Fully automatic weapons have been banned for a long time. Apparently, this allows you to take a semi-automatic, turn it into a fully automatic, so clearly that’s something that we need to look into.”
• YODER VOICES SUPPORT FOR BAN: Rep. Kevin Yoder (R-KS) used an Oct 5 press release to announce his support for gun control for bump stocks.
• MEADOWS AND OTHERS JOIN IN: Meadows openness to gun control for bump stocks is complimented on the Senate side by Ron Johnson (R-Wisc), John Thune (R-SD), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and John Cornyn (R-TX).

6am – A         VIRGINIA ELECTION NEWS:

• VA GOV RACE:
  • Trump backs Virginia’s Gillespie, claims Northam ‘fighting for’ MS-13. (Fox News) — With a tweet Thursday night, President Donald Trump has inserted himself into Virginia’s gubernatorial race. The tweet, however, seemed more a critique of Democrat Ralph Northam than an endorsement of Republican Ed Gillespie. “Ralph Northam, who is running for Governor of Virginia, is fighting for the violent MS-13 killer gangs & sanctuary cities,” Trump tweeted. “Vote Ed Gillespie!”

• Donald J. Trump‏ @realDonaldTrump: Ralph Northam,who is running for Governor of Virginia,is fighting for the violent MS-13 killer gangs & sanctuary cities. Vote Ed Gillespie!
• Northam has a wide lead over Gillespie in Va. governor’s race, according to a new poll. (WTOP) — WASHINGTON — A new Washington Post/Schar School poll says Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam leads Republican challenger Ed Gillespie 53 to 40 percent in next month’s Virginia gubernatorial election among likely voters. It is a far wider lead than other polls had found recently and the first to put the Democrat’s lead at a double-digit margin over Gillespie.
• VA LT GOV DEBATE: Sharp words fly in lieutenant governor debate in Richmond. McLEAN, Va. — Virginia lieutenant governor candidates Justin Fairfax and Jill Vogel offered clear distinctions on gun control, the minimum wage and other issues during a debate Thursday that often featured sharp exchanges accusing each other of low-road campaigning. Neither Fairfax, a Democrat, nor Vogel, a Republican, held back in their second and final debate at the University of Richmond. The debate began with a discussion on guns in the wake of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. Vogel said it’s too early to know what lessons can be drawn from the massacre in Nevada.

6am – B         TRUMP ADMIN:

• Trump issues cryptic warning about coming “storm,” refuses to explain. What storm? ‘You’ll find out,’ Trump responded. (The Hill) — At an event with military leaders at the White House Thursday, President Trump cryptically told reporters that the gathering was “the calm before the storm.” As Trump and First Lady Melania Trump gathered for a photo with the military leaders and their spouses, Trump pointed around the room and asked the assembled reporters, “you guys know what this represents?” “Tell us,” one reporter said. “Maybe it’s the calm before the storm,” Trump replied, according to pool reports. Another reporter asked Trump if the “storm” was Iran or ISIS. “We have the world’s greatest military people,” Trump said. A third reporter again asked Trump what the “storm” was, to which Trump replied, “you’ll find out.”
• President Trump dines with Reince Priebus, his former chief of staff. Washington (CNN) President Donald Trump dined with his former chief of staff Reince Priebus at the White House Thursday, CNN has learned. According to a source familiar with the meal, the two men had lunch together in what is one of their few in-person meetings since Priebus was driven out of the administration more than two months ago.
• Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was summoned to the White House amid presidential fury. (NBC News) – WASHINGTON — John Kelly, the White House chief of staff, abruptly scrapped plans to travel with President Donald Trump on Wednesday so he could try to contain his boss’s fury and manage the fallout from new revelations about tensions between the president and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, according to six senior administration officials. Kelly summoned Tillerson, and their ally Defense Secretary James Mattis, to the White House, where the three of them huddled to discuss a path forward, according to three administration officials. The White House downplayed Kelly’s decision to stay in Washington, saying he did so to manage day-to-day operations.
• John Kelly’s personal phone may have been breached. (Washington Examiner) – White House officials believe that the personal cellphone of White House chief of staff John Kelly was compromised, possibly dating back to December, according to a report Thursday. Prior to assuming his position as chief of staff in July, Kelly served as the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, and as a result, there are concerns about whether hackers or foreign governments obtained information on Kelly’s phone during his time in the Trump administration, a report from Politico and the Project on Government Oversight said. Kelly submitted his phone to White House tech support over the summer and said it hadn’t been working properly for months or updating software, which led tech support staff to uncover a suspected breach.
• Tom Price’s flight reimbursement check to the US Treasury has been processed. Washington (CNN)Prior to resigning from his position as secretary of Health and Human Services, Tom Price vowed to reimburse taxpayers for $51,887.31 — the cost of his seat on private flights. That payment has now been processed, an HHS official told CNN Thursday. Price was caught in the midst of a scandal when it was uncovered that he had been traveling via taxpayer funded charter planes. Politico reported Price traveled on the charter planes at least 24 times since May. The total cost of the travel was estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and his check was to cover his seat on the flights rather than the entire cost of the flights.
• Treasury Secretary Mnuchin’s government flights cost taxpayers over $800,000 but broke no laws: Review.  Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin took seven trips on government jets during his short tenure at the department that have cost taxpayers over $800,000, but at no time did he violate any laws, a preliminary internal review concluded on Thursday. A new memo to the Treasury Department’s Inspector General from his legal counsel Rich Delmar determined that while these expensive trips don’t break the law, they also don’t meet the standards for justification set out in guidelines this administration has said it would follow. Those guidelines were laid out in a memo by President Obama’s chief of staff, Bill Daley. “I see no violation of law in these requests and uses,” Delmar, writes in the report. “What is of concern is a disconnect between the standard of proof called for in the Daley memo, and the actual amount of proof provided by Treasury and accepted by the White House in justifying these trip requests.”
• Transportation Secretary Chao Has Used Government Planes 7 Times This Year. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao has used government planes owned by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) seven times this year to attend official events both in the United States and abroad, the Washington Post reported Thursday. The report comes after Tom Price stepped down from the Department of Health and Human Services over the revelation that he spent about $1 million in taxpayer dollars on private and government plane trips. Several other Cabinet heads are also under review for their travel on non-commercial planes. Chao’s non-commercial air travel appears to be more typical than Price’s trips on private jets, however. The transportation secretary has used a government plane owned by the FAA seven times, and used them only when commercial flights could not accommodate her schedule or security needs, her office told the Washington Post.
• Zinke Blasts Criticism Over Charter Travel. Any allegation of his wrongdoing regarding taxpayer funded charter flights is “complete and utter bulls**t” and driven by politics, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told reporters Wednesday. Zinke brushed off the recent criticism leveraged against him, saying that all of his trips are “legal, ethical. All the trips went through absolute due diligence,” the Billings Gazette reported. Since he took office, Zinke has made three private flights, costing about $20,000. One $12,375 flight from Las Vegas to an airport near his home in Montana has drawn attention and criticism for its necessity and connection with the oil and gas industry. The plane was owned by industry executives.

6am – C         Tropical Storm Nate kills 20 in Central America as it heads toward US. (CNN)Tropical Storm Nate killed 20 people in Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Honduras on Thursday, officials said. Hurricane and tropical storm warnings have been issued in three US states as the storm barrels northward. Seven people are still missing after the storm hit Nicaragua, the country’s vice president said.  It is forecast to make landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula on Friday with up to 8 inches (20 centimeters) of rain.

6am – D         6:35 – Interview – JAMES CARAFANO – director of Foreign Policy Studies for Heritage Foundation and leading expert in national security – discussed Iran and the Russia probe.

• IRAN: Trump to announce that he’ll ‘decertify’ Iran nuclear deal, kicking issue to Congress. (Washington Post) –  President Trump is expected to announce next week that he will “decertify” the international nuclear deal with Iran, saying it is not in the national interest of the United States and kicking the issue to a reluctant Congress, people briefed on the White House strategy said Thursday.
• RUSSIA: “Three investigations is just way too many”: Trump loyalists lose patience with congressional Russia probes. (Politico) —  Loyalists of President Donald Trump are losing patience with Republican leaders over the wide-ranging Russia probes creeping into his inner circle, saying House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have allowed the investigations to hobble the White House for months. “Three investigations is just way too many,” said Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.). “Some of them need to step back and wait until we see what evidence is educed.”
• News per CNN: Robert Mueller has interviewed Christopher Steele who put together the Trump dossier. Washington (CNN)Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators met this past summer with the former British spy whose dossier on alleged Russian efforts to aid the Trump campaign spawned months of investigations that have hobbled the Trump administration, according to two people familiar with the matter. Information from Christopher Steele, a former MI-6 officer, could help investigators determine whether contacts between people associated with the Trump campaign and suspected Russian operatives broke any laws. CNN has learned that the FBI and the US intelligence community last year took the Steele dossier more seriously than the agencies have publicly acknowledged. James Clapper, then the director of national intelligence, said in a January 2017 statement that the intelligence community had “not made any judgment that the information in this document is reliable.”

6am – E/F      HARVEY WEINSTEIN:

• RNC chairwoman calls on Democrats to return campaign contributions from Harvey Weinstein. (The Hill) — The Republican National Committee (RNC) on Thursday called on Democrats to return campaign donations from Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, following a report by The New York Times that he had been accused of sexual harassment by various women over the years. “During three-decades worth of sexual harassment allegations, Harvey Weinstein lined the pockets of Democrats to the tune of three-quarters of a million dollars,” said RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel in the statement. “If Democrats and the DNC [Democratic National Committee] truly stand up for women like they say they do, then returning this dirty money should be a no brainer.” The RNC cited the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonpartisan organization that follows campaign contributions, for specific amounts that Weinstein had donated to a number of high-profile Democrats. The GOP pointed to at least $769,532 given by Weinstein to Democratic candidates and the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
• Hollywood Titan, Hillary Donor Harvey Weinstein Accused of ‘Decades’ of Sexual Harassment… The New York Times dropped a career bomb on Harvey Weinstein, the multiple Oscar-winning producer and Democrat power donor. According to the report, Weinstein has settled no fewer than eight sexual harassment complaints over 25 years, between 1990 and 2015. Weinstein, who has been married for most of those years, told the Times Thursday that he is “working with a therapist and planning to take a leave of absence” from his film company.
• Harvey Weinstein’s Hollywood future is in question after sexual harassment allegations (LA Times) — For years, the esteemed Harvey Weinstein pumped out award-winning releases including “Chicago,” “The King’s Speech” and “The Artist.” But lately, the flops have piled up, financing for independent films has shrunk and the producer’s golden touch has lost some of its luster. Now his Weinstein Co. is facing its biggest crisis yet. On Thursday, Weinstein said he would take a leave of absence after the New York Times published accusations of sexual harassment that stretch across decades. The board is reportedly meeting Friday to discuss his fate.
• Visitor Records: Harvey Weinstein Visited Obama White House 13 Times (Breitbart) — Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein had a close relationship with President Barack Obama, visiting the White House complex on 13 occasions during the Obama presidency, according to visitor records. Nine of his visits were with President Obama himself, including some events together with first lady Michelle Obama. Other visits were with high-level staffers Valerie Jarrett, Michelle Obama’s aide Melissa Winter, and Jeremy Weinstein, who served on the National Security Council between 2009 and 2011. The New York Times reported that Weinstein has been accused of numerous sexual harassment incidents throughout his career as a movie producer. The Obamas routinely visited with Weinstein at fundraisers, some of them hosted by Weinstein and his wife Georgina Chapman.

7am – A         Interview – DOUG MCKELWAY – Washington Correspondent for Fox News Channel – discussed the Virginia gubernatorial election and the gun control debate.

7am – B/C     Interview – FRANK MINITER – NRA’s America First Freedom columnist, and bestselling author of the books “Kill Big Brother” (a novel), “The Politically Incorrect Guide to Hunting”, and “The Future of the Gun.” – discussed the debate over bump stocks, silencers and more gun control.

7am – D/E     Cam Newton loses Dannon yogurt sponsorship after mocking female reporter. (Washington Examiner) – Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has lost a sponsorship deal with Dannon a day after mocking a reporter after she asked about how his receivers ran their routes during the game. In a press conference Wednesday, Newton said it’s “funny to hear a female talk about routes” after Charlotte Observer reporter Jourdan Rodrigue asked a question about receiver Devin Funchess. Video of the incident was posted to social media and met with outrage. Newton had been seen in ads for Dannon’s Oikos Greek yogurt. “We’re disheartened by Cam Newton’s behavior, which we perceive as sexist. We shared our concerns with Cam & will no longer work with him,” the company said in a tweet.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – JOSH KRAUSHAAR – political editor for National Journal – discussed Democrat news:

• California’s Rep. Linda Sanchez: It’s time for Nancy Pelosi and other longtime Democratic leaders to leave
• MSNBC on Calls for Pelosi to Step Down: ‘Ugly Divide’ Inside Democratic Conference Out in the Open

8am – B         Listen to Fallon’s Female Writers (and Miley Cyrus) Read Thank-You Notes to Hillary Clinton. (Vanity Fair) – For several weeks now, Hillary Clinton has been getting a hero’s welcome from late-night hosts. First, Stephen Colbert presented her with a parade of naked man-butts, branded with the words “I’m with Her.”  And then, during her visit to The Tonight Show on Wednesday night, Jimmy Fallon temporarily vacated his desk so that the show’s female writers—plus special week-long guest Miley Cyrus—could write her a series of heartfelt thank-you notes. Those notes are a recurring segment on the show, but this was probably the most touching edition of the bit yet.  The expressions of gratitude kicked off with pure sincerity. As one writer said, “Thank you, Hillary Clinton, for handling this transition with more grace than I ever could have imagined. That being said, call me day or night and I will be there with a gallon of ice cream and two spoons to tell you, ‘Girl, you are so much better than him!’“ Of course, the jokes started coming faster and faster as the segment continued, including gems like this one: “Thank you, Hillary, for all the work you’ve done for public health care; ever since the election, I’ve really depended on my government-subsidized anti-anxiety medication.” Or this one: “Thank you, Hillary, for remaining strong and showing poise before, during, and especially after the election. You taught me that when dealing with a difficult defeat, it’s O.K. to take time to reflect, set your focus on a new path forward, and maybe find a cave in the woods to scream into.” O.K., just one more, because why not?  “Thank you, Hillary, for always sticking to the issues even as people criticize you for superficial things like your hair, your wardrobe, and your appearance. You show girls everywhere that politics isn’t a popularity contest—because if it were, you would have won by about 3 million votes.” And then, toward the end, came Cyrus, who struggled to hold back tears as she delivered her own note. “Thank you, Hillary, for being a constant beacon of strength, hope, and determination for me and millions of other young women. You’ve been a role model and an inspiration and a voice of reason in uncertain times. I could go on and on, but I’d like to get right to the point. Can I give you a hug?” Clinton said yes.

8am – C         School evacuated over Pumpkin Spice aroma — seriously. (NY Post) – The strong scent from a pumpkin spice air freshener caused the evacuation of a Baltimore high school Thursday when students got a whiff of the mysterious fragrance and became ill. The heavy aroma — a popular fall addition to lattes and cookies — caused panic among students and teachers at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, according to the Baltimore Sun. “It was a smell that they certainly weren’t used to,” the school’s president told the paper. “It appeared to be getting stronger.” After several students reported difficulty breathing, the principal had the school evacuated and called the fire department — who then requested a HAZMAT team. The team conducted tests to determine whether there were any hazardous materials in the building, but the tests all came back negative. After firefighters opened the windows to air out the building, they eventually discovered the source of the offending odor: a pumpkin spice aerosol plug-in inside a third floor classroom.

8am – D         Interview – JILL VOGEL – Virginia State Senator, R-Fauquier and running for Virginia lieutenant governor

• Jill Vogel is a Virginia attorney, currently Member of the Virginia Senate from the 27th district, representing the northern part of the state, consisting of Clarke and Frederick Counties, the city of Winchester, and parts of Fauquier, Culpeper, and Loudoun Counties.
• Sharp words fly in lieutenant governor debate in Richmond. (Washington Post) — McLEAN, Va. — Virginia lieutenant governor candidates Justin Fairfax and Jill Vogel offered clear distinctions on gun control, the minimum wage and other issues during a debate Thursday that often featured sharp exchanges accusing each other of low-road campaigning. Neither Fairfax, a Democrat, nor Vogel, a Republican, held back in their second and final debate at the University of Richmond. The debate began with a discussion on guns in the wake of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. Vogel said it’s too early to know what lessons can be drawn from the massacre in Nevada.

8am – E         A Sermon For D.C. Brunch, Which The American Conservative Says ‘Has Replaced Sunday Worship’ — (DCist) — The American Conservative has published a story that argues D.C. brunch is “the finale of the quasi-religious weekend trifecta: bar crawl, Tinder hook-up, hungover brunch and hair-of-the-dog Bloody Marys with well vodka … Brunch has replaced Sunday worship. The bottomless mimosa is the blood of Christ.” The author, Addison Del Mastro, wrote on Twitter the piece is a “(slightly tongue-in-cheek) takedown of DC conformity and brunch culture.”