Mark Krikorian, Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer and White House’s Raj Shah  joined WMAL on Tuesday!

Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, April 24, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C IMMIGRATION:

• Trump Orders Homeland Security Not To Let Illegal Immigrant Caravans Into The US. (Daily Caller) — President Donald Trump ordered the Secretary of Homeland Security not to allow illegal immigrant caravans of people to cross into the S. from Mexico. Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump: Despite the Democrat inspired laws on Sanctuary Cities and the Border being so bad and one sided, I have instructed the Secretary of Homeland Security not to let these large Caravans of people into our Country. It is a disgrace. We are the only Country in the World so naive! WALL 9:44 AM – Apr 23, 2018 Trump has been particularly incensed about reports of caravans of Central American migrants bound for the U.S. The President and his administration have pressed the Mexican government to disband the caravans and use their immigration laws to quell illegal arrivals to the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirsten Nielsen has lamented a rise in illegal immigrant arrivals, recently noting “given the numbers we had last month, they just came out, 50,000 in April is the number that we interdicted or otherwise was inadmissible.” “That is a 200 percent increase from March of 2017. This crisis is real,” Nielsen added. “There are many more people coming to take advantage of these loopholes and are being trained by the smugglers.” The secretary highlighted newly released numbers from Customs and Border Patrol, which show a 37 percent increase in the number of apprehensions at the border.
• Census: Immigrants on welfare triples, Medicaid doubles. (Washington Examiner) – Welfare and Medicaid use by new immigrants, even those with college degrees, has surged to new levels, an indication that the jobs they came to America to take aren’t there, according to a new report. The Census Bureau charted the growth in the use of taxpayer-funded programs for financially poor new immigrants and found the biggest rise in the use of welfare, roughly triple over the last 10 years. And, according to an analysis by the Center for Immigration Studies, the use of Medicaid by immigrants has gone up nearly as much.

5am – D         Pompeo vote: Mike Pompeo advances out of committee with favorable recommendation, following Paul flipping his vote. (CNN) Mike Pompeo, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be secretary of state, advanced out of committee Monday with a favorable recommendation, following a last minute reversal from Sen. Rand Paul that averted a historic rebuke of the President’s pick to be the country’s top diplomat. The Senate committee voted 11 to 9 with Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware voting present and Sen. Isakson voting by proxy.

5am – E         Corker says he won’t oppose Democrat seeking his Senate seat. WASHINGTON (AP) — Outgoing Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee is sticking by his decision not to campaign against the Democrat seeking to fill his seat. Corker says he considers the Democrat, former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen (BRED’-uh-sen), a “friend.” Corker backs Republican Rep. Marsha Blackburn but says he won’t oppose Bredesen. The Washington Post reported that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had privately told Corker that his friendly comments about Bredesen risked Republicans’ ability to hold their majority in the November elections. Republicans hold a slim 51-49 advantage in the Senate. Asked why Blackburn is a better candidate, Corker responded: “I think most people in our state … will focus on the first vote she makes, and that’s the vote to elect the majority leader.”

 

6am – A         TORONTO INCIDENT:

• Terrorism is likely motive behind Toronto van attack: S. source. WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Investigators are examining terrorism as the likely motive behind a van attack in Toronto that killed nine people on Monday, a U.S. security source said. The source said there was no reason to believe that the incident in which a Ryder rental van plowed into a crowd was an accident.
• At least 9 dead, 16 hurt after driver plows van into Toronto crowd (Fox News) — Toronto cops nabbed the suspected driver who plowed into a group of people on a crowded city street Monday afternoon, leaving nine people dead. 16 people have been injured, Deputy Police Chief Peter Yuen said. Police confirmed to Fox News the arrest of the suspect, which came just minutes after news of the incident broke. “The van involved in multiple pedestrians stuck in the Yonge and Finch area of Toronto has been located and the driver arrested,” Toronto police tweeted. The identity of the driver has not been released. After striking the pedestrians, the driver sped off, CBC reported. Witnesses said the driver was moving fast and appeared to be acting deliberately, but police said they did not yet know the cause or any possible motive. Photos from the site of the collision showed pedestrians attempting to help people on the ground and multiple bodies covered by sheets.
• France – Vehicle….Toronto – Vehicle…. Barcelona – Vehicle…. Stockholm – Vehicle… Manhattan – Vehicle… London Bridge – Vehicle… Berlin Christmas Market – Vehicle…. London (Westminster bridge) – Vehicle
• Toronto Van Crash Update:
• 911 calls received around 1:30 p.m.
• At least 9 dead, 16 injured
• Five in critical condition at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital
• Vehicle, driver in custody
• Hotlines being established for victims, witnesses
• Investigation stretches several blocks

6am – B         BABY ALFIE:

• Italy Grants Alfie Evans Citizenship So His Parents Can “Immediately” Take Him to a Hospital There (LifeNews) — The nation of Italy has granted citizenship to Alfie Evans, the 23-month-old little boy whose hospital is threatening to revoke his life support without his parents’ consent. Italy’s decision would make it so Alfie’s parents could theoretically bring him to a hospital in Rome that has offered to provide appropriate medical care and treatment and to look at experimental treatments that could help his degenerative neurological condition. However, British courts have prevented Alfie’s parents from taking him there and a European Court of human rights has refused to intervene.
• European Rights Court Rejects Appeal from Parents of Dying UK Baby (Breitbart) – PARIS (AP) — The European Court of Human Rights on Monday rejected a case from British parents who want to take their terminally ill toddler to Italy for treatment instead of allowing a K. hospital to remove him from life support. The Strasbourg-based court said it received an application from the parents of 23-month-old Alfie Evans on Friday to potentially delay Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool from removing him from life support. The court rejected the application as “inadmissible,” but wouldn’t specify on what grounds. Cases can be deemed inadmissible at the court if they are thought to be “manifestly ill-founded.”

6am – C         Former President George H.W. Bush in intensive care. (CNN) Former President George H.W. Bush is in intensive care, a day after a funeral was held for his wife, Barbara Bush, CNN has learned. Bush, 93, was admitted to the Houston Methodist Hospital Sunday morning after contracting an infection that spread to his blood, family spokesman Jim McGrath said in a statement Monday. “He is responding to treatments and appears to be recovering. We will issue additional updates as events warrant,” said McGrath. According to a source close to the former Republican President, Bush was admitted to the hospital with an infection that led to sepsis, which can be life-threatening. He was in critical condition, the source said. The source added that Bush’s blood pressure kept dropping and a couple of times there was serious concern about whether he was going to come through, but that he had been stabilized. But with Bush’s age, his health and with this infection, this is very serious, the source explained. Bush revealed several years ago he suffers from a form of Parkinson’s disease, which has left him unable to walk, so he gets around either in a wheelchair or a scooter.

6am – D         MACRON VISIT / STATE DINNER:

• First lady releases menu, details for Macron’s state visit. (The Hill) — The White House on Monday revealed the menu, entertainment and other details of the first state visit of the Trump administration in anticipation of the French president’s arrival.  French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife will stay in Washington, D.C., to start the week. The couple will join President Trump and first lady Melania Trump on a trip to George Washington’s old home at Mount Vernon on Monday night, before taking place in a flurry of events Tuesday. Roughly 500 members of the U.S. military and dozens of government officials will greet Macron at the White House for a welcoming ceremony on Tuesday morning.  The first lady selected specific décor, entertainment and food options for Tuesday night’s state dinner, the White House said. The menu will consist of three courses, which will include American dishes with French influences. The main course will be a rack of spring lamb with Carolina gold rice jambalaya.
• Trump And Macron Plant Tree At White House. Pres Trump and Pres Macron shoveling dirt on oak tree that Macron brought as a gift / On the South Lawn, Presidents Trump and Macron shovel some dirt on a sapling from Belleau Wood in France, site of an historic battle for US Marines during World War I.
• White House says POTUS has secured a commitment from France to increase their defense spending and hit their NATO obligation over the next eight years

6am – E         Merkel Denounces ‘Dismaying’ Rise of Anti-Semitism Among Arab Refugees (Breitbart) — The emergence of  “another form of anti-Semitism” from refugees of Arab origin arriving in Germany has been denounced by Chancellor Angela Merkel. Speaking during an interview with an Israeli television broadcaster on Sunday, the recently re-elected German leader pointed to Arab immgrants who bring profoudly anti-Jewish sentiments to their new home as “dismaying.” “We have a new phenomenon, as we have many refugees among whom there are, for example, people of Arab origin who bring another form of anti-Semitism into the country,” Merkel told the private Channel 10 network. The chancellor added that “to our regret, anti-Semitism existed in Germany even before [their arrival].” Mrs.  Merkel went on to concede that the problem had become so manifest in daily German life that the government had appointed a commissioner specifically to fight against anti-Semitism. “The fact that no nursery, no school, no synagogue can be left without police protection dismays us,” she said. As Breitbart Jerusalem has reported, the arrival of large numbers of migrants with pre-existing prejudices against Jews has been credited with the rise in anti-Semitism across Europe in general and Germany in particular. Schoolteachers and other school officials in Berlin alone have noticed a rising trend of anti-Semitism among pupils and say the expression “You Jew!” has become a common insult.

6am – F         NASA Scientists Think ‘Gravity’ Is the Worst, Most Inaccurate Space Movie Ever Made. (IndieWire) — They like “Apollo 13” and “The Martian,” though. “Gravity” earned critical acclaim, a slew of awards, and more than $700 million at the box office, which is to say that Alfonso Cuarón’s sci-fi drama was fairly successful.  One subset of moviegoers wasn’t impressed, however: NASA scientists. In a BBC video in which the women helping us conquer the final frontier list the best and worst movies set in space, “Gravity” is repeatedly cited as the most inaccurate of them all. Others to earn ire due to scientific inaccuracies are “Mission to Mars,” “Armageddon,” and “Red Planet”; “Planet of the Apes,” and “Spaceballs” receive (dis)honorable mentions as well. Alas, “Gravity” stands above all the others for being utterly divorced from reality. Everything that could go wrong went terribly, terribly wrong, and that’s not exactly the feeling we want everybody to have about this industry,” one scientist says. It’s not all negative, however. “Interstellar,” “Hidden Figures,” “The Martian,” and especially “Apollo 13” receive praise. Other issues with “Gravity,” which won Cuarón the Academy Award for Best Director: “how Sandra Bullock could move between orbits with almost really no issue” and the fact that, “when she gets out of her spacesuit, she’s in cute little underwear. Where’s the diaper?” Where, indeed.

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

• LOCATION: Krikorian is currently on the U.S. – Mexico border and he can talk about what he is seeing.
• Trump Orders Homeland Security Not To Let Illegal Immigrant Caravans Into The US

7am – C         CAPS:

• Capitals, Penguins square off in second round for third straight year

• It’s not just you: The Caps really do play an absurd number of overtime playoff games

7am – D/E     INTERVIEW – LT. COL. TONY SHAFFER  – a CIA trained former senior intelligence officer and the New York Times best-selling author of ” Operation Dark Heart.” @T_S_P_O_O_K_Y ‏

• Macron State Visit / IRAN DEAL: Washington (CNN) Amid the pomp and circumstance of a full state visit, French President Emmanuel Macron is on a rescue mission to convince President Donald Trump to stick with the Iran nuclear deal. But despite the apparent warmth of the relationship between the two leaders, he faces an uphill struggle. It’s not just the French leader who is going all in to save the pact: The cavalry will arrive on Friday in the form of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and she may be followed by British Prime Minister Theresa May, though a phone call is more likely. Even with the high-level European lobbying effort, and progress by negotiators, sources within and close to the Trump administration tell CNN that the White House — subject to the whims of the ever-impulsive President — is ready to leave the deal.
• POMPEO VOTE:  Mike Pompeo advances out of committee with favorable recommendation, following Paul flipping his vote. (CNN)Mike Pompeo, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be secretary of state, advanced out of committee Monday with a favorable recommendation, following a last minute reversal from Sen. Rand Paul that averted a historic rebuke of the President’s pick to be the country’s top diplomat. The Senate committee voted 11 to 9 with Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware voting present and Sen. Isakson voting by proxy.
• JUDICIAL WATCH PANEL:  Judicial Watch announced that it is hosting special educational panel on Tuesday, April 24, from noon to 1 pm ET to discuss “The Deep State Update.” Panel Experts will be Rep. Jim Jordan, Vince Coglianese, Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer, Michael Bekesha
• TORONTO INCIDENT: Terrorism is likely motive behind Toronto van attack: U.S. source. WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Investigators are examining terrorism as the likely motive behind a van attack in Toronto that killed nine people on Monday, a U.S. security source said. The source said there was no reason to believe that the incident in which a Ryder rental van plowed into a crowd was an accident.
• At least 9 dead, 16 hurt after driver plows van into Toronto crowd (Fox News) — Toronto cops nabbed the suspected driver who plowed into a group of people on a crowded city street Monday afternoon, leaving nine people dead. 16 people have been injured, Deputy Police Chief Peter Yuen said. Police confirmed to Fox News the arrest of the suspect, which came just minutes after news of the incident broke. “The van involved in multiple pedestrians stuck in the Yonge and Finch area of Toronto has been located and the driver arrested,” Toronto police tweeted

8am – A         KANYE:

• Kanye West’s embrace of a black Trump supporter not well-received
• DAILY BEAST: How Kanye West Became a Far-Right Media Hero

8am – B/C     INTERVIEW – RAJ SHAH – Principal Deputy Press Secretary for the White House – discussed the latest White House meeting including the French President Macron visit and the Pompeo vote.

8am – D/E     Amazon will now deliver packages to the trunk of your car. New service in collaboration with GM and Volvo will launch in 37 cities in the US. (The Verge) —

Last year, Amazon asked for permission to unlock your front door so it could leave packages inside your home, and a certain number of extremely trusting Amazon Prime subscribers (Amazon won’t say how many) said okay. Now, the tech giant wants to do the same thing with your car. Amazon announced today a new service that gives its couriers access to a person’s vehicle for the purpose of leaving package deliveries inside. But rather than use smart locks and a cloud-connected camera to gain entry, Amazon wants to use the connected technologies embedded in many modern vehicles today. The company is launching this new service in partnership with two major automakers — General Motors and Volvo — and will be rolling out in 37 cities in the US starting today. “We were really happy with the response to in-home delivery,” Peter Larsen, vice president of delivery technology at Amazon, told The Verge. “What we wanted to do — and it was part of the plan all along — is how we take that beyond the home.” Amazon has been beta testing the new service in California and Washington state for the past six months. In a video by Amazon, a woman said she likes getting diapers delivered to her car because it meant her toddlers could nap without being disturbed by the doorbell. Another woman used it to have a few birthday presents delivered to the trunk of her car so as not to tip off her daughter. To start out, the service will only be available to Amazon Prime subscribers. It’s also limited to owners of GM and Volvo vehicles, model year 2015 or newer, with active OnStar and Volvo on Call accounts. Amazon says it plans to add other automobile brands over time. Packages that weigh over 50 pounds, are larger than 26 x 21 x 16 inches in size, require a signature, are valued over $1,300, or come from a third-party seller also are not eligible for in-car delivery. Amazon signed a two-year contract with GM and Volvo, a source with knowledge of the deal told The Verge, and all three companies have agreed to use these two years as a trial period. Neither the automakers nor Amazon hope to make additional money with the service, but instead saw it as an added convenience they can market to their customers, the source added.