Weather Channel’s Ray Stagich, Fox’s Janice Dean, Washington Free Beacon’s Daniel Halper, Byron York, ‘Achtung Baby’ author Sara Zaske, VA GoP Chair John Whitbeck and Larry O’Connor joined WMAL on Thursday!

Mornings on the Mall

Thursday, January 4, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C   BANNON- TRUMP FEUD:

• Trump Blasts Ex-Aide Bannon, Says He Has Lost His Mind
• Sarah Sanders: Trump is “furious, disgusted” with Steve Bannon
• Bannon On Jr’s Trump Tower Meeting: “The chance that Don Jr did not walk these jumos up to his father’s office on the twenty-sixth floor is zero.”
• Bannon: “They’re going to crack Don Jr like an egg on national TV. Even if you thought that this was not treasonous, or bad shit & I happen to think it’s all of that, you should have called the FBI immediately”
• Press Secretary Sarah Sanders described ‘Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House’ as “filled with false and misleading accounts.”
• ‘Backstabbing, Harassing, Lying’: Don Jr. Slams Bannon After ‘Treason’ Remarks
• Steve Bannon calls Trump a ‘great man’ just hours after war of words.
• Bannon loses support of pro-Trump billionaire backer over media fights
• Trump’s lawyers send cease-and-desist letter to Bannon. The president’s lawyers told Stephen K. Bannon his comments to author Michael Wolff in a soon-to-be-released tell-all book violate Bannon’s employment agreement with the president in numerous ways. Trump on Wednesday castigated his former chief strategist as a self-aggrandizing political charlatan who has “lost his mind.”

5am – D         CLINTONS / CHELSEA NEWS:

• Fire on Clinton property was in Secret Service facility. (CNN) A small fire broke out in a US Secret Service facility on the property of the home of Bill and Hillary Clinton in Chappaqua, New York, on Wednesday. The building was not connected to the home of the former US President and former US Secretary of State, and the Clintons were not there at the time of the fire, Hillary Clinton Communications Director Nick Merrill tweeted. The fire was put out and nobody was injured, said Sgt. Arthur Mendoza of the New Castle Police Department. The former first couple bought the home before Hillary Clinton’s successful 2000 run for a US Senate seat. Chappaqua is about 40 miles north of New York City.

• Chelsea Clinton denies worshipping Satan. Chelsea Clinton on Wednesday denied that she practices Satanism after a Trump supporter on Twitter took the former first daughter’s exchange of New Year’s wishes with the Church of Satan to mean she was affiliated with the group.  “I’m a Methodist & my husband is Jewish, thank you for asking,” Clinton responded to the woman. Chelsea Clinton @ChelseaClinton: Oh goodness gracious. We can be civil, cheerful, respectful to & friends with people who don’t share our religious beliefs. Sometimes, we even marry them. I’m a Methodist & my husband is Jewish, thank you for asking. A very happy New Year to you Rhonda! // After Clinton and model Chrissy Teigen were tagged in a Twitter thread with the account for Hooters restaurants, Clinton responded, “In 2017, @ChurchofSatan & I were put on a few threads together. In 2018, it’s… @Hooters. What a time to be alive Chrissy!”

5am – E         INTERVIEW — RAY STAGICH – Senior Meteorologist at The Weather Channel

• Today|Windy. Snow this morning will give way to partly cloudy conditions this afternoon. High 28F. Winds NW at 25 to 35 mph. Chance of snow 90%. Snow accumulating 1 to 3 inches. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
• Tonight|Clear and windy. Low 11F. Winds WNW at 25 to 35 mph. Winds could occasionally gust over 40 mph.
• ‘Bomb cyclone’ winter storm to hit US East Coast: What is it?

6am – A/B/C BANNON VS TRUMP FEUD

6am – D         INTERVIEW — HANS VON SPAKOVSKY –  former counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Justice Department, former commissioner for the Federal Election Commission from 2006 to 2007 and senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation

• Trump forced to dissolve voter fraud commission after states refuse to turn over voter info
• Donald J. Trump ‏@realDonaldTrump 16m16 minutes ago: Many mostly Democrat States refused to hand over data from the 2016 Election to the Commission On Voter Fraud. They fought hard that the Commission not see their records or methods because they know that many people are voting illegally. System is rigged, must go to Voter I.D.
• Donald J. Trump ‏@realDonaldTrump: 6m6 minutes ago: As Americans, you need identification, sometimes in a very strong and accurate form, for almost everything you do…..except when it comes to the most important thing, VOTING for the people that run your country. Push hard for Voter Identification!
• Kris Kobach: Voter Fraud Commission ‘Being Handed Off’ to DHS, Will No Longer Be ‘Stonewalled’ by Dems
• Kobach says he will advise DHS after election panel’s demise

6am – E         INTERVIEW – JANICE DEAN —  “THE WEATHER MACHINE” – Fox News senior meteorologist and author of the book “Freddy the Frogcaster and the Terrible Tornado” and author of “Freddy the Frogcaster and the Big Blizzard”

• D.C.-area forecast: Snow to exit, strong winds sweep in — and Arctic cold returns with a vengeance: (Washington Post) — 6:30 a.m. update: Radar shows the moderate area of snow over the Interstate 95 corridor has shifted east of the District with mostly light snow to the west. Over the next couple of hours, the snow will be mostly light with the exception of some moderate snow in our eastern areas. Between 8 and 10 a.m., it should start to taper off from west to east. However, winds gusting to 30 mph or higher will blow snow around and some flurries are possible even through midday. Snow amounts so far range from a coating to an inch in the immediate area, but up to a couple inches east of the city. Reports are that many roads are snow-covered and slick so take it easy.

6am – F         FAST FOOD WARS: Fast-food wars heat up as McDonald’s, Taco Bell and others roll out low-priced items. (LA Times) –  A new battle for low-priced eats is breaking out in the fast-food wars. As McDonald’s Corp. prepared to roll out a new Dollar Menu on Thursday, Taco Bell countered by announcing Wednesday that it would sell a new item, Nacho Fries, for $1 starting Jan. 25. Taco Bell, the Irvine-based unit of Yum Brands Inc., also said the fries were one of 20 new $1 items that the chain plans to unveil this year, on top of 20 “mainstay” $1 products it already sells including certain tacos and burritos. Wendy’s Co. also jumped into the fray, saying Wednesday it expanded the chain’s “4 for $4” menu to include eight entrees, such as burgers and chicken sandwiches. Each entree comes with chicken nuggets, a small order of French fries and a drink for $4. Jack in the Box Inc. this week also promoted “Value Done Jack’s Way,” with items priced from $1 to $5.

BACK IN DECEMBER: Subway is bringing back the $5 footlong — and franchisees are revolting against the deal. Franchisees say that the $5 footlong deal and other promotions that the company has rolled out as a response to plummeting customer traffic are pushing their businesses to the edge.  “The national promotional focus over the past five years … has decimated [us] and left many franchisees unprofitable and even insolvent,” petitioners led by Virginia franchisee Mitesh Raval complained in a letter that was sent to Subway and obtained by The New York Post. More than 400 franchisees have reportedly signed the petition, which protests the chain’s plans to roll out its famous $5 footlong deal in January.

7am – A         DANIEL HALPER – contributing editor to the Washington Free Beacon and New York Times bestselling author of Clinton, Inc – discussed the Bannon-Trump feud.

7am – B         WHITE HOUSE PRESS CORPS GONE MAD:

• Reporter to White House Press Secretary: “Should Americans be concerned about the president’s mental fitness?”
• “Is the president engaging in authoritarian behavior?”
• “Did Donald Trump Jr. commit treason?
  “Is it dangerous for POTUS to taunt leaders on Twitter? Do Americans like him more when he’s not tweeting?”

7am – C         VA RECOUNT: Judges Deny Virginia Democrats’ Request to Undo Recount Decision. A three-judge panel rejected a request to reconsider its ruling on a recount in an election that could determine partisan control of the Virginia House. The panel on Wednesday denied Democrat Shelly Simonds’ request to undo its decision to strip her of a one-vote victory she won after a dramatic recount of November’s election. Her lawyers argued the judges committed legal errors, including counting a ballot for her Republican opponent after the recount ended. Virginia elections officials plan to meet Thursday to randomly pick a winner in the contest. If Simonds wins, the partisan split will be 50-50. If incumbent Del. David Yancey wins, Republicans will have a 51-49 majority.

7am – D/E     BYRON YORK – chief political correspondent for the Washington Examiner — discussed the Bannon-Trump feud and the latest on dossier.

• Press Secretary Sarah Sanders described ‘Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House’ as “filled with false and misleading accounts.”
• ‘Backstabbing, Harassing, Lying’: Don Jr. Slams Bannon After ‘Treason’ Remarks
• Steve Bannon calls Trump a ‘great man’ just hours after war of words.
• Bannon loses support of pro-Trump billionaire backer over media fights
• LATEST ON MUELLER INVESTIGATION / DOSSIER
• Manafort sues DOJ, Mueller over Russia probe authority
• House Intel committee to get long-sought documents from DOJ on Fusion GPS, Nunes says
• Deputy AG, FBI director make unannounced visit to Paul Ryan’s office

8am – A         INTERVIEW — SARA ZASKE (ZASK-EE) — author of “ACHTUNG BABY:

AN AMERICAN MOM ON THE GERMAN ART OF RAISING SELF-RELIANT CHILDREN”

• Author SARA ZASKE has written a new book, “ACHTUNG BABY: An American Mom on the German Art of Raising Self-Reliant Children.”
• This American woman lived in Germany for six years, enough for her young children to go thru their early education system.  They do things a bit differently over there, and apparently as adults they come out more grounded, confident, self-sufficient, and ready for the real world.
• For instance, in Germany:

–90% of 3-5 year olds are enrolled in childhood education (compared to 25% here in the U.S.)

–homeschooling is illegal

–Early schooling emphasizes social and emotional development, not academics

–Parents are instructed to make their kids walk to school… there is even curriculum in navigating traffic and mobility… whereas in the U.S., only 12% of students walk or bike to school

–Early on, children are left alone to learn how to fend for themselves… even 4-year-olds learn how to make fires, and prepare meals using knives

–and with this early imparting of responsibility, at 14, you can legally have sex (as long as your partner is at least 14)… and you can buy beer and alcohol at 16

8am – B/C     INTERVIEW — JOHN WHITBECK – VA GOP CHAIRMAN

• VA RECOUNT:  Judges Deny Virginia Democrats’ Request to Undo Recount Decision. Random Drawing To Break Tied Virginia House Race Set For Thursday

8am – D/E     INTERVIEW — LARRY O’CONNOR — host of WMAL’s “The Larry O’Connor Show” from 3 to 6 PM, and for the purposes of this interview, former EDITOR OF BREITBART TV – discussed the Bannon-Trump feud.