Mornings on the Mall

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C What Frustrates You About These School Shootings?

• Suspect, Nikolas Cruz, in custody in Parkland school shooting in Florida (CBS News) — CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. — Seventeen people were killed and multiple people were injured when a former student opened fire at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida on Wednesday, prompting a massive police response and manhunt as frightened students hid in their classrooms. Police identified the suspect as Nikolas Cruz, 19, a former student who was taken into custody about an hour after shooting began. “It’s catastrophic, there really are no words,” Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel said. As of 9 p.m. ET, Israel said 12 of the 17 victims had been identified. Israel said they would not be providing the names of the victims until all of the families are notified. Israel said some of the students did not have their backpacks or identification on them. Israel said “we lost a football coach” in the shooting and a deputy sheriff’s son had been shot. Broward County School Superintendent Robert Runcie said the suspect was a former student of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and was currently enrolled in Broward County schools.
• Parkland, FL High School Shooting:

• 17 confirmed dead —12 in building —2 outside building —1 on street —2 in hospital —Students & adults among dead
• Suspect: Nikolas Cruz, 19 —expelled for disciplinary reasons
• AR-15 recovered —multiple rounds, magazines
• No motive yet

5am – D         Pence vs. The View:

• ‘The View’ star Joy Behar mocks Mike Pence’s Christian faith: ‘That’s called mental illness’ (Fox News) — The women of ABC News’ “The View” took a shot a Vice President Mike Pence’s Christian faith on Tuesday, mocking the former governor of Indiana for talking to Jesus and even calling it a “mental illness.” It all started when they played a clip from “Celebrity Big Brother,” in which former White House staffer Omarosa Manigault Newman discussed the vice president. “As bad as you think Trump is, you would be worried about Pence… everyone that is wishing for impeachment might want to reconsider their life,” she said in the clip. “I am Christian, I love Jesus, but he thinks Jesus tells him to say things.” The talk-show panelists pondered what Omarosa’s motive was, before Sunny Hostin chimed in, “I think what’s interesting is that she said Jesus tells Mike Pence things to say.” Hostin declared that Pence is a “hated figure” in Indiana, claiming she knows firsthand because she attended law school in the state.
• Pence Slams ABC Over ‘The View’ Suggesting Christianity Is A Mental Illness (Fox News) — Vice President Mike Pence torched ABC and “The View” for comparing his religion, Christianity, to mental illness on their Tuesday broadcast. “The View” cohost Joy Behar insisted that it was a form of “mental illness” for Pence to believe that Jesus is talking to him, and Pence did not hold back when asked about her comments during a Wednesday interview with Axios. “Look, criticism comes with this job,” Pence said after a heavy sigh. “I heard that ABC has a program that compared my Christianity to mental illness. And I’d like to laugh about it but I really can’t.” “Tens of millions of Americans today will have ash on their foreheads to mark the beginning of Lent,” Pence said, referencing Ash Wednesday. “To have ABC maintain a broadcast forum that compared Christianity to mental illness is just wrong.” “It’s an insult, not to me, but to the vast majority of American people who, like me, cherish their faith,” he asserted. “It demonstrates how out of touch some in the mainstream media are with the faith and values of the American people.” “It’s just wrong for ABC to have a television program that demonstrates that kind of religious intolerance,” he said. “We’re better than that.

5am – E         Trump endorses 25-cent gas tax hike (Axios) — President Trump endorsed a 25-cent gas tax hike to pay for infrastructure at a White House meeting this morning with senior administration officials and members of Congress from both parties, according to two sources with direct knowledge. Trump also said he was open to other ways to pay for infrastructure, according to a source with direct knowledge. Reality check: Trump’s gas tax idea appears dead on arrival. Republicans aren’t about to hike taxes for the Trump voters driving their pickup trucks to work every day. It’s a regressive tax and in Republicans’ minds would undo some of working and middle class tax cuts they just passed.

6am – A/B/C Reactions to Florida School Shooting

• At least 17 dead in shooting at Parkland, Florida, high school, Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel says
• Democrats Immediately Demand Gun Control After Florida School Shooting
• Chris Murphy addresses Florida school shooting on Senate floor: “Let me just note once again for my colleagues…We are responsible for a level of mass atrocity that happens in this country with zero parallel anywhere else.”
• CNN Analyst, MSNBC Hosts Denounce American Exceptionalism Due to a Lack of Gun Control
• South Florida high school shooting suspect’s classmates “joked” he would one day “shoot up” the school.
• Ellen DeGeneres, Chelsea Handler and Others Rally for Gun Control After Florida High School Shooting
• Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump: My prayers and condolences to the families of the victims of the terrible Florida shooting. No child, teacher or anyone else should ever feel unsafe in an American school.

• CNN’s Phil Mudd becomes emotional about the high school shooting in Florida: “A child of God is dead. Can not we acknowledge in this country that we cannot accept this?”
• HOLLYWOOD REACTION:
• Bette Midler @BetteMidler: Another school shooting, this in FLA.  Congrats to the spineless cowards who do nothing to help us stem this horrific epidemic, ie CONGRESS 6:28 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• RainnWilson @rainnwilson As we send our thoughts & prayers to the people of Parkland, Florida how about we, the people & govt of America, actually DO something abt gun violence. 7:03 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• Chelsea Handler @chelseahandler We have to elect candidates that are not funded by the NRA in November. We have an opportunity to elect candidates who won’t allow kids to go to school and get shot. It is disgusting how many times this has happened and Republicans do nothing. You all have blood on your hands. 5:06 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• Kim Kardashian West @KimKardashian We owe it to our children and our teachers to keep them safe while at school. Prayers won’t do this: action will. Congress, please do your job and protect Americans from senseless gun violence 7:22 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• Elizabeth Banks @ElizabethBanks Sending my love to #parkland. #guncontrol #policyandchange 7:51 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• Alyssa Milano @Alyssa_Milano We can’t wait any longer. #GunControlNow #LoveIsLouder 4:40 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• Stephen King @StephenKing Broward school shooting–There will be prayers from Blabbermouth Don, Pence the Grinch, and their rightwing cohorts. There will be no call for any sort of sane gun regs. 5:02 PM – Feb 14, 2018
• VIRGINIA REACTION
• Former VA Governor Terry McAuliffe ‏Verified account @TerryMcAuliffe 12h12 hours ago Horrific news from Parkland, Florida. Yet another mass shooting at a school. Dorothy and I are praying for victims and their families. Let’s put the politics aside and pass commonsense gun reform. Children should not have to fear for their lives every time they go to school.
•  Ralph Northam‏Verified account @GovernorVA I am heartbroken for the families and community impacted by the shooting in Florida. We have to work together to protect our children and all people from gun violence. 2:17 PM – 14 Feb 2018 from Richmond, VA

6am – D         PORTER / KELLY Update

• President Trump: “I am totally opposed to domestic violence and everybody here knows that. I am totally opposed to domestic violence of any kind. Everyone knows that. And it almost wouldn’t even have to be said. So, now you hear it, but you all know.
• MSNBC’s Katy Tur Outraged at Trump’s Comments About Domestic Violence Omitting Mentions of Women
• Sanders pushes for Kelly to face the press over Porter scandal (Politico) — Sarah Huckabee Sanders wants senior officials to brief reporters directly as the furor continues unabated. Since Tuesday, when FBI director Chris Wray in testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee contradicted her account of how Porter’s background check was handled, Sanders has moved to have White House counsel Don McGahn or chief of staff John Kelly brief the press directly, according to a person close to the White House.

6am – E         Duckworth: ‘I can’t technically take maternity leave’  (Politico) — Sen. Tammy Duckworth has a problem: How can a senator who needs to vote take time off to care for her newborn? “I can’t technically take maternity leave,” Duckworth said in the latest episode of the Women Rule podcast. “Because if I take maternity leave, then I won’t be allowed to sponsor legislation or vote during that time period.” The Illinois Democrat and Iraq War veteran, who is expecting her second child this spring, will be the first sitting senator to give birth in office. She plans to take 12 weeks of paid leave – but she’s working with her party’s leadership and her staff to figure out how she can still take important votes while she’s out. “It’s going to change some Senate rules,” Duckworth said.

6am – F         Internal conversation paints triggered New York Times staffers as ‘parodies of hypersensitive liberal journalists’ (Fox News) — An internal conversation among New York Times employees has been leaked, peeling back the curtain to reveal there’s no end to the hypersensitivities of triggered employees at the Old Gray Lady. Liberal staffers are outraged because their colleague, conservative columnist Bari Weiss, quoted the Broadway sensation “Hamilton” and tweeted, “Immigrants: They get the job done,” in response to figure skater Mirai Nagasu – whose parents are Japanese immigrants — landing a historic triple axel at the Winter Olympics in South Korea. Many people were upset with the tweet, with some critics pointing out that Nagasu is an American and others simply not understanding the “Hamilton” reference. However, HuffPost reporter Ashley Feinberg obtained a New York Times internal Slack conversation suggesting that significant outrage comes from Weiss’ colleagues at the paper, and that the sensitivity stretches well beyond the Weiss tweet. The conversation is a microcosm of the way many people feel about the media elite in the current landscape. Free Beacon reporter Alex Griswold said Weiss’ critics “come off as parodies of hypersensitive liberal journalists.”

Leaked Chat Transcripts: New York Times Employees Are Pissed About Bari Weiss (Huffington Post) — According to one employee, diversity efforts at the publication “are nothing but lip service.”

7am – A          INTERVIEW – JOHN LOTT – President, Crime Prevention Research Center and author of “The War on Guns” – discussed the southern Florida school shooting and the implications it has politically

7am – B/C     INTERVIEW – STEVE KASTENBAUM – Correspondent in Pyeongchang, South Korea – recapped the latest at the Olympics and previewed what is coming up

• Winter Olympics: Mikaela Shiffrin wins giant slalom for first gold in Pyeongchang (CBS Sports) — Mikaela Shiffrin, America’s next big thing in skiing, has the second Olympic gold medal of her career and her first in giant slalom. Shiffrin’s combined pair of runs in giant slalom on Thursday clocked in at 2 minutes, 20.02 seconds, usurping 34-year-old Italian Manuela Moelgg for the top of the podium. Moelgg held a 0.20-second lead on Shiffrin after the first run, when the 22-year-old crossed the finish line in 1:10.82. Shiffrin comfortably won over silver medalist Ragnhild Mowinckel of Norway by 0.39 seconds (2:20.41). Italy’s Federica Brignone took bronze with an aggregate time of 2:20.48. After a shaky second run down the mountain, Moelgg wound up finishing eighth. Shiffrin’s gold here is her first of the Winter Games in South Korea; she won gold at the 2014 Sochi Games in her signature event of slalom. Shiffrin will race in slalom and go for back-to-back golds in that event, and back-to-back golds on successive days, on Friday. Thursday’s giant slalom races in South Korea were finally held after being postponed dating back to Monday due to wind and weather concerns.

7am – D         Warren says Trump ‘will never take’ away her Native American heritage (Politico) — Sen. Elizabeth Warren reaffirmed her claims of Native American heritage during an address to community leaders on Wednesday, pushing back against President Donald Trump’s attacks on her ethnicity in the most expansive explanation yet about a controversy that has dogged her since her 2012 election campaign. In a surprise visit to the National Congress of American Indians in Washington, the Massachusetts Democrat responded to those who have accused her of misleading voters about her ethnic background, according to prepared remarks of the address. “You won’t find my family members on any rolls, and I’m not enrolled in a tribe,” Warren said. “And I want to make something clear. I respect that distinction. I understand that tribal membership is determined by tribes — and only by tribes. I never used my family tree to get a break or get ahead. I never used it to advance my career.” Warren said her mother’s family was “part Native American.” “And my daddy’s parents were bitterly opposed to their relationship,” she said. “So, in 1932, when Mother was 19 and Daddy had just turned 20, they eloped.”

7am – E         Mitt Romney is delaying his announcement that he’s running for a Utah Senate seat after the deadly school shooting in south Florida earlier on Wednesday.

‏@MittRomney 9h9 hours ago: As a father and grandfather, my heart aches for the victims of today’s tragic events. My prayers go out to all of the families and loved ones affected by this senseless act of violence. (1/2)

 Mitt Romney‏ @MittRomney Out of respect for the victims and their families, I will not be making an announcement tomorrow about the Senate race. (2/2)

8am – A         INTERVIEW – DR. SEBASTIAN GORKA –  – FOXNews National Security Strategist, NYT Bestseller author of “DEFEATING JIHAD” and Fmr deputy assistant to President Donald Trump – discussed the Rob Porter Controversy and questions about White House security clearances

8am – B         Ben Shapiro Hilariously Trolls Woman Over Absurd ‘Black Panther’ Tweet. (Daily Caller) — Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro had the perfect response Tuesday to a white woman who said that she didn’t want to see the movie “Black Panther” too soon because of her race. Emily Lakdawalla is the “Senior Editor & Planetary Evangelist” of The Planetary Society, according to her Twitter.

Emily Lakdawalla @elakdawalla

So I carefully did not buy #BlackPanther tickets for opening weekend because I did not want to be the white person sucking Black joy out of the theater. What’s appropriate date for me to buy tickets? Is next weekend ok?

 Ben Shapiro

@benshapiro

You must never go out in public again. That is the only way to ensure that others will not be offended by your presence.

9:52 AM – Feb 13, 2018

“Black Panther,” a new superhero movie with a largely black cast, has garnered serious attention from many in the social justice community who see the movie as a pro-black statement.

8am – C         McDonald’s will banish cheeseburgers, chocolate milk from Happy Meals. NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald’s will soon banish cheeseburgers and chocolate milk from its Happy Meal menu in an effort to cut down on the calories, sodium, saturated fat and sugar that kids consume at its restaurants. Diners can still ask specifically for cheeseburgers or chocolate milk with the kid’s meal, but the fast-food company said that not listing them will reduce how often they’re ordered. Since it removed soda from the Happy Meal menu four years ago, orders for it with Happy Meals have fallen 14 percent, the company said. The Happy Meal has long been a target of health advocates and parents who link it to childhood obesity. McDonald’s has made many tweaks over the years, including cutting the size of its fries and adding fruit. Most recently, it swapped out its apple juice for one that has less sugar. It’s been especially important as the company tries to shake its junk-food image, since McDonald’s is known for getting more business from families with children relative to its traditional rivals, such as Burger King and Wendy’s. The Happy Meal is a key part of that.

8am – D/E     What Frustrates You About These School Shootings?