Matthew Heiman, Mark Krikorian, Jeff Platenberg and Larry Kudlow joined WMAL on Tuesday!

Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, January 9, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C   Greenbelt lowers voting age to 16.

5am – D         MUELLER TEAM INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP UNDER CONSIDERATION: President Trump’s lawyers are preparing for the possibility that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team will ask to conduct an interview with the president himself as part of the Russia probe, Fox News has learned … There has been no official request by Mueller’s office to interview the president yet, but Trump’s lawyers are anticipating that Mueller may request information from Trump before winding down the investigation into Russia’s attempted meddling in the 2016 election. According to sources, conversations with Mueller’s team about an interview are in the early stage. It is still possible an interview won’t even take place.

5am – E         James Damore sues Google, claims tech giant discriminates against white conservative men. James Damore, the onetime Google employee who was fired after he wrote a memo criticizing the firm for pushing diversity, has filed a class action lawsuit against the tech giant. The suit was filed Monday in Santa Clara Superior Court. Damore is joined in the lawsuit by another former Google engineer, David Gudeman. “Damore, Gudeman, and other class members were ostracized, belittled, and punished for their heterodox political views, and for the added sin of their birth circumstances of being Caucasians and/or males,” the lawsuit alleged. “This is the essence of discrimination—Google formed opinions about and then treated Plaintiffs not based on their individual merits, but rather on their membership in groups with assumed characteristics.”

6am – A         200,000 Salvadorans may be forced to leave the U.S. as Trump ends immigration protection. Trump Administration Says That Nearly 200,000 Salvadorans Must Leave. Trump Ends Temporary Protected Status For 200,000 El Salvadorans. President Donald Trump’s deputies are ending the often-extended ‘TPS’ temporary refugee status for up to 200,000 El Salvadoran migrants, which was first granted when earthquakes hit their home country in 2001. The TPS decision underlines Trump’s determination to enforce the nation’s immigration laws, and to push his “Buy American, Hire American”  inauguration-day promise, despite growing pressure from the GOP’s business-first wing, Democrats and their allies in the establishment media. The decision also pressures Democrats to accept Trump’s immigration reforms —  or else run as the pro-amnesty political party in November 2018.

6am – B         WOLFF BOOK UPDATE:

• Amazon is deleting reviews of a controversial book about Donald Trump (Quartz) – Amazon has learned an important lesson about trolls and fake reviewers. Michael Wolff’s explosive book, Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, comes out today. Amazon reviews for the book at time of writing were relatively civil, which is, unfortunately, surprising. Beneath the surface, Amazon is surely working hard to keep the trolls at bay. Last September, fake reviewers came out en masse to leave one-star reviews for Hillary Clinton’s What Happened, her book about the 2016 US presidential election. The split between five-star reviews and one-star reviews was clearly unusual, with an uncommonly high percentage of reviews left by unverified purchasers. It took the company half a day, but Amazon ended up deleting at least 900 reviews it said violated its guidelines.
• Excited Katy Tur to Wolff: ‘Congratulations on the President Hating’ the Book!
• PROBLEMS W/WOLFF’S BOOK: Michael Wolff admitted Monday that he did not interview Vice President Mike Pence or any Cabinet members, though some of the more incendiary claims in his book “Fire and Fury” are credited to Cabinet members.

6am – C         Bannon group shopped anti-Trump document in 2015. Washington (CNN) Before Donald Trump and Steve Bannon were enemies, they were allies. And not long before that, Bannon was part of an effort to sink Trump’s presidential hopes — even if Trump didn’t know it. A conservative watchdog group led by Bannon tried to discredit Trump in the early stages of the 2016 Republican presidential primary by shopping a document alleging that Trump had ties to mobsters, according to conservative sources and a copy of the document reviewed by CNN. The anti-Trump opposition research was the work of author Peter Schweizer for the Government Accountability Institute, which he cofounded with Bannon in 2012. It described years of alleged business connections between Trump companies and organized crime figures, allegations that have circulated among Trump detractors for years. The New York Times reported on the document on Friday. The GAI is backed by the Mercer family, one of the largest benefactors for Trump’s campaign. Rebekah Mercer, the daughter of hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer, is listed as the group’s chairwoman on its website. But in 2015, when the document was produced, the Mercers were backing the campaign of one of Trump’s rivals, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, and Bannon had not yet joined the Trump campaign.

6am – D         INTERVIEW – MATTHEW HEIMAN – former National Security Attorney at the Department of Justice, a visiting fellow with the National Security Institute at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School and Chairman of the Regulatory Transparency Project

• Matthew R. A. Heiman is a visiting fellow with the National Security Institute at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School and Chairman of the Regulatory Transparency Project. He served as an attorney with the national security division of the Department of Justice and as a legal adviser to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq.
• TOPIC: This week the House will begin the process of reauthorizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act — the law that allows the U.S. government to collect intelligence on foreign citizens, with the goal of preventing terrorist attacks.

6am – E         PALTROW NEWS:

• Gwyneth Paltrow Confirms Engagement with Goop Magazine Cover.  Consciously coupled. Gwyneth Paltrow confirmed her engagement to Glee co-creator Brad Falchuk in the Goop-iest way possible: The actress-turned-wellness guru and her betrothed covered the second-ever print issue of Goop magazine, which is published by Conde Nast. Their engagement had been rumored but unconfirmed for a year. Paltrow, 45, captioned the black-and-white, Steven Pan-lensed cover of the Sex & Love-themed issue, which sees the happy couple in matchy-matchy white T-shirts and jeans, with a ring emoji.  Within the issue, on newsstands Jan. 9, Paltrow revealed why she decided to tie the knot again. “Personally, at midlife, I have tried to accept how complex romantic love can be,” she said. “I have decided to give it a go again, not only because I believe I have found the man I was meant to be with, but because I have accepted the soul-stretching, pattern-breaking opportunities that (terrifyingly) are made possible by intimacy.” Paltrow officially announced her split with her ex-husband, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin, in 2014, simultaneously bringing “consciously uncoupling” into the public lexicon.
• Coffee in Your Butt? Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop Touts Dangerous Enema. (Newsweek) – The severely fatigued often joke about setting up an IV drip of caffeine, but Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle website Goop, suggests an equally dangerous recommendation: coffee enema. For background, an enema involves injecting liquid into your large bowel via the anus, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine. The site published a beauty and wellness detox guide for the new year because, as they write, “We’re of the mind that what you put on your body should be held to the same high standards as what you put in it.” According to the guide, the DIY approach should be saved for those who “know what they’re doing,” using something called the “Implant O-Rama System At-Home Coffee Enema.” Recommended by Goop author and cardiologist Dr. Alejandro Junger, the device costs $135 and can be used with other liquids aside from coffee, according to the manufacturer’s website. The company is clear that they make no claims about the product and that information on the site should not replace the guidance of your personal doctor. Goop also includes a note that their articles are not to be used in place of professional medical advice.

6am – F         ‘Roseanne’ star says revived show reflects Trump’s America. PASADENA, Calif. (Reuters) – The March revival of hit 1990s television comedy “Roseanne” will show how a politically divided, working-class American family grapples with daily life and challenges after the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, the show’s stars said on Monday.  Walt Disney Co’s ABC broadcast network is bringing back “Roseanne,” starring Roseanne Barr and John Goodman, for nine episodes starting March 27. In the new episodes, the titular Roseanne, played by Barr, is now a grandmother who voted for Trump and at times clashes with family members and friends with opposing views, the show’s cast and producers said at a Television Critics Association event.

7am – A/B     INTERVIEW – MARK KRIKORIAN – a nationally recognized expert on immigration issues and serves as Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS)

• Trump administration ends special status for Salvadoran immigrants
• President Trump’s border wall, DREAMers and DACA will be at the top of bipartisan talks at the White House Tuesday as both sides hope to end an impasse on immigration with a potential Jan. 19 government shutdown looming… Trump is standing firm on his pledge to build a border wall and end chain migration and says a deal on DREAMers will not happen without a wall. Democrats have balked at Trump’s demands. The legal status of illegal immigrant minors has been a key obstacle in a spending deal and it remains to be seen whether Democrats are willing to shut down the government over DACA. Tuesday’s meeting is designed to bring the opposing sides together

7am – C         Trump stands for national anthem at NCAA game; Alabama player heard saying ‘F— Trump’ (Fox News) — President Trump brought his fight against national anthem-kneelers to the field of the NCAA championship football game in Atlanta on Monday night, standing and singing “The Star-Spangled Banner.” Meanwhile, one Alabama player — identified as running back Bo Scarbrough — was heard yelling ‘F— Trump’ before the game, Sporting News reported, showing video of the team apparently walking off the field after pregame warmups. Trump was announced to a varied combination of cheers and jeers as he entered the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in a dark suit and red tie. Waving and smiling to the crowd of thousands, Trump walked onto the field to hear the Zac Brown Band sing the anthem. With his right hand on his heart, Trump smiled and occasionally sang along with the band. Both the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide stayed back in the locker room as the anthem played, which is common among college football teams. They stormed the field shortly afterwards.

7am – D         MUELLER NEWS:

• MUELLER TEAM INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP UNDER CONSIDERATION: President Trump’s lawyers are preparing for the possibility that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team will ask to conduct an interview with the president himself as part of the Russia probe, Fox News has learned … There has been no official request by Mueller’s office to interview the president yet, but Trump’s lawyers are anticipating that Mueller may request information from Trump before winding down the investigation into Russia’s attempted meddling in the 2016 election. According to sources, conversations with Mueller’s team about an interview are in the early stage. It is still possible an interview won’t even take place.
• DOJ Official Linked To Trump Dossier Leaves Another High-Level Post. (Daily Caller) — A Justice Department official who was demoted last month after he was found to have links to the Trump dossier has left a second high-level position at the agency, The Daily Caller has confirmed. At the beginning of last month, Bruce Ohr held two positions at DOJ: associate deputy attorney general and director of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). Fox News first reported on Monday that Ohr will no longer lead OCDETF. A Justice Department spokeswoman confirmed Ohr’s separation from that division but did not say whether Ohr resigned or was removed from the position.
• FBI agents’ text messages spur congressional probe into possible news leaks. (The Hill) — Republican-led House and Senate committees are investigating whether leaders of the Russia counterintelligence investigation had contacts with the news media that resulted in improper leaks, prompted in part by text messages amongst senior FBI officials mentioning specific reporters, news organizations and articles. In one exchange, FBI counterintelligence agent Peter Strzok and bureau lawyer Lisa Page engaged in a series of texts shortly before Election Day 2016 suggesting they knew in advance about an article in The Wall Street Journal and would need to feign stumbling onto the story so it could be shared with colleagues. “Article is out, but hidden behind paywall so can’t read it,” Page texted Strzok on Oct. 24, 2016. “Wsj? Boy that was fast,” Strzok texted back, using the initials of the famed financial newspaper. “Should I ‘find’ it and tell the team?” The text messages, which were reviewed by The Hill, show the two FBI agents discussed how they might make it appear they innocently discovered the article, such as through Google News alerts. “I can get it like I do every other article that hits any Google News alerts, seriously,” Strzok wrote, adding he didn’t want his team hearing about the article “from someone else.”

7am – E         OPRAH OBSESSION:

• NBC’s ‏@PeterAlexander: A source close to @Oprah tells @tvkatesnow as of today, she has no intention of running for President in 2020: “It’s not happening.  She has no intention of running,” the source said. Source says that’s from Oprah herself.
• Sources: Oprah Winfrey ‘actively thinking’ about running for president (CNN/by Brian Stelter) – Oprah Winfrey is “actively thinking” about running for president, two of her close friends told CNN Monday. The two friends, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, talked in the wake of Winfrey’s extraordinary speech at the Golden Globes Sunday night, which spurred chatter about a 2020 run. Some of Winfrey’s confidants have been privately urging her to run, the sources said. One of the sources said these conversations date back several months. The person emphasized that Winfrey has not made up her mind about running. A representative for Winfrey has not responded to requests for comment.
• White House spokesman: “We welcome the challenge whether it be Oprah Winfrey or anybody else” //  White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley told reporters aboard Air Force One, “We welcome the challenge whether it be Oprah Winfrey or anybody else.”
• Bill Kristol Unleashes Tweet Storm Endorsing Oprah For President
• Bill Kristol @BillKristol Oprah.#ImWithHer 11:12 AM – Jan 8, 2018
• OPRAH 2020? NATIONAL REVIEW COLUMNIST JOHN FUND ON WHY IT COULD HAPPEN: Oprah Winfrey ignited speculation she will run for president with her impassioned speech celebrating women at the Golden Globes on Sunday night … So what are the chances that Oprah will throw her designer glasses into the ring and mount a campaign? Here are some of the factors that will go into her thinking. (1) She couldn’t ask for more favorable media coverage. (2) The building blocks for a candidacy – name recognition and money – are there. (3) Oprah would have no trouble delaying any decision to run, because she will remain in the public spotlight. (4) She will have favorable notices from the small but politically influential “Never Trump” movement within the Republican Party.

8am – A/B/C INTERVIEW – JEFF PLATENBERG –  – Assistant Superintendent, Department of Facilities and Transportation Service for Fairfax County Public Schools

• TOPIC: Discuss the school closings and the process of how they are determined

8am – D        INTERVIEW – LARRY KUDLOW – CNBC Senior Contributor and host of The Larry Kudlow Show on WMAL Saturdays at 7 pm and author of “JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity” @larry_kudlow

• Larry Kudlow @larry_kudlow 10h10 hours ago: Autos, farms, energy & consumers would suffer enormously if US pulls out of NAFTA. Stocks would blow-up. Protection is anti- growth. Reciprocity deals always better than tariffs (taxes).
• Trump Tells Farmers He Wants a Better Nafta. President avoids threats of withdrawal from the North American Free Trade Agreement. President Donald Trump told a gathering of farmers Monday that he is seeking a better trade deal with Canada and Mexico that will benefit both the agricultural industry and manufacturing
• TRUMP HOSTS BIPARTISAN IMMIGRATION MEETING – President Donald Trump will meet with a bipartisan group of nearly two dozen lawmakers from both chambers of Congress on immigration this morning at the White House. Both parties, however, are skeptical that Tuesday’s talks will yield any significant progress, raising doubts among congressional Republicans and White House officials that a related budget agreement can be reached with Democrats in the next 10 days, Rachael, Seung Min and Bres report.
• Congress has until Jan. 19 to raise spending caps and avert a government shutdown. But a fight over the fate of Dreamers, young undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children, has imperiled spending talks. Democrats won’t support a long-term spending plan unless Congress agrees to shield hundreds of thousands of Dreamers from deportation.

8am – E         Some people curse and say nasty things in their sleep. There’s a good reason. (Washington Post) — Worried you might say something you regret when talking in your sleep? Your concerns may be justified: According to a recent study from France, your midnight mumblings may be more negative and insulting than what you say while awake. In the study, researchers found that sleep talkers said the word “no” four times as often in their sleep as when awake. And the f-word popped up during sleep talking more than 800 times more frequently than while awake. To study sleep talking, the researchers recorded nearly 900 nighttime utterances from about 230 adults during one or two consecutive nights in a sleep lab. Because sleep talking is a relatively rare event, the majority of people in the study had certain types of sleep disorders, or parasomnias, which are unusual behaviors that happen during sleep, the researchers noted. Once recorded, the nocturnal episodes were analyzed for such factors as wordiness, silences, tone, politeness and abusive language. These results were compared to see how sleep speech matched up to everyday spoken French in form and content. The researchers found that the majority (59 percent) of the nighttime utterances were unintelligible or nonverbal, including mumbling, whispering and laughing. But among the utterances that were intelligible, a surprising amount of what was said was offensive or aggressive: 24 percent contained negative content, 22 percent had “nasty” language and almost 10 percent contained the word “no” in some form. (By comparison, the word “no” accounted for 2.5 percent of awake language.) The f-word also made a frequent appearance and was one of the most common words spoken during sleep talking: It showed up 2.5 percent of the time, compared with just 0.003 percent of spoken words while awake. In total, 10 percent of all clauses spoken during sleep contained profanity.