Cal Thomas, Noah Pollak, Gordon Chang, Amb. Ron Dermer and Fox’s Peter Doocy joined WMAL on Wednesday morning!

Mornings on the Mall

Wednesday, May 9, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C New Jersey school passes rule that everyone makes cheerleading squad, or no one. EAST HANOVER, N.J. (WPVI) — A school in East Hanover, New Jersey has passed a new rule when it comes to the cheerleading squad. Either everyone makes the squad, or no one does. This all started after tryouts at Hanover Park High School, where some cuts were made. When a parent complained that their child was not allowed on the team, the Athletic Director changed the policy. Now, anyone who wants to cheer can be on the squad. The rule is being met with mixed reaction, and strong emotions from students who don’t agree. “I tried my hardest. Now everything is going away because of one child who did not make the team, and their parent complained, so now all my hard work has been thrown out the window,” student Stephanie Krueger says.

5am – D/E     IRAN DEAL WITHDRAWAL:

• Trump Withdraws From ‘Defective’ Iran Deal
• Former Pres. Obama in a rare statement says the Iran nuclear deal is working and calls Trump’s decision to leave it “misguided”
• Former Secretary of State John Kerry tears into Trump over Iran decision: He’s “dragging the world to the brink” of war
• Turkey’s Erdogan says U.S. will be loser in quitting Iran deal
• UK, France, Germany: We’re not leaving the Iran deal
• Flake: Withdrawal from Iran deal tells world “we’re not a reliable partner”

6am – A/B/C Bob Marley’s granddaughter plans to sue California police department after robbery claim at Airbnb (NY Daily News) — Bob Marley’s granddaughter and two pals, all of whom are black, plan to sue a California law enforcement agency after they were confused for thieves, rather than Airbnb guests, according to authorities. The trio served the Rialto Police Department with notice of a pending lawsuit Monday after an April 30 confrontation where Donisha Prendergast, a 33-year-old filmmaker and descendant of the legendary reggae singer, was accused of burgling a home. She and her friends were witnessed packing their luggage into a car outside a rental, which alarmed the 911 caller who failed to “recognize the vehicle or the people as neighbors, or the homeowner.” The officers pulled Prendergast over in the San Bernardino suburb and said a neighbor saw “three black people stealing stuff.” “Like breaking into the house and taking stuff,” the officer said, according to video of the April 30 encounter. The back-and-forth spanned more than 20 minutes as police grilled the trio, eventually conceding that the group was “Airbnb renters and were at the residence as guests,” according to police officials. The department assured Prendergast and the two other guests were never restrained as officers contacted the rental owner “to confirm there had been no crime committed.” The three guests were identified by police as Marley’s grandkid, Prendergast, Kells Fyffee Marshall and Komi-Oluwa Olafimihan. Both Prendergast and Marshall bemoaned the encounter on social media. “Got surrounded by the police for being black in a white neighbourhood. Smh,” Prendergast wrote in an Instagram post.

6am – D         INTERVIEW – CAL THOMAS – Syndicated columnist — Location in Australia – reacted to the withdrawal of the Iran Deal.

6am – E         WEST VA PRIMARY RESULTS:

• Morrisey wins, Blankenship suffers beatdown in West Virginia (Politico) — State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey won the West Virginia GOP Senate primary on Tuesday, avoiding a nightmare scenario for Republicans, who feared that former coal magnate Don Blankenship would capture the party’s nomination in a race that could determine which party controls the Senate next year. The Associated Press called the race with Morrisey leading Rep. Evan Jenkins, and Blankenship in third place with only about 20 percent of the vote. Blankenship, the former Massey Energy CEO who was convicted in 2015 of conspiring to skirt mine standards and was only released from custody a year ago, conceded the race about a half-hour before it was called for Morrisey. When Blankenship seemed to be surging in the final days of the race, President Donald Trump and the Republican Party implored voters not to back him, saying it would guarantee a loss to Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in the general election. In comments to supporters at his election-night party in Charleston, West Virginia, Blankenship expressed no regrets about his campaign, including television ads that referred to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) as “Cocaine Mitch” and said he has a “China family.” (McConnell’s wife, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, has Chinese parents.)
• Blankenship loses bitter Republican Senate fight in West Virginia // WASHINGTON (Reuters) – State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey won the Republican U.S. Senate nomination in West Virginia on Tuesday, beating former coal executive Don Blankenship and calming the fears of party leaders who thought the brash ex-convict would spoil their chance to pick up a Senate seat.  Morrisey will now face endangered Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, a prime target for Republicans, in one of the top Senate races of November’s midterm elections. Blankenship had panicked Republican leaders by showing signs of a late surge, but he faded to a third-place finish behind Morrisey and U.S. Representative Evan Jenkins after President Donald Trump intervened to urge voters to reject him. The divisive Blankenship, who served a year in prison for safety violations in a 2010 disaster that killed 29 miners, ran a racially charged campaign that included attacks on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell for creating jobs for “China people” and ads highlighting the Taiwanese heritage of McConnell’s wife. Blankenship told supporters in Charleston, West Virginia, that he had no regrets about his campaign and blamed the “establishment” for the loss.
• TRIP GABRIEL: .@DonBlankenship tells me he thinks Trump’s tweet cost him at least 10 points.  He led in internal polls by all 3 candidates after the May 1 debate, he claims. Of the damage: “When you’re 84% positive like Trump is, it can be big.”
• McConnell team tweets ‘Narcos’ reference for Blankenship loss // Washington (CNN)Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s team tweeted its own spin on the poster for the Netflix series’ “Narcos” on Tuesday evening, an apparent reference to Senate candidate Don Blankenship’s nickname for the Kentucky Republican. The tweet was posted after it was projected that ex-con Blankenship had lost the West Virginia Republican primary election for a US Senate seat. It showed McConnell surrounded by a white, powdery substance next to the phrase “Thanks for playing, Don.”

6am – F         NORTH KOREA NEWS:

• Kim Jong Un holds an unannounced meeting with China’s leader Xi Jinping
• Xi and Trump Talked Trade, Korea Ahead of Chinese Aide’s Visit
• US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heads to North Korea
• Pompeo in final stages of talks to release Americans held by North Korea
• “Secretary Pompeo is right now going to North Korea.” —POTUS

7am – A         CNN’s April Ryan hit for saying Melania Trump is ‘not culturally American’ (Fox News) — Critics are slamming CNN contributor April Ryan for suggesting that First Lady Melania Trump is “not culturally American” when discussing the “Be Best” campaign to combat cyberbullying on Monday night.   “This is a first lady who is not culturally American, but she is learning the ways and this is not just an American issue. These are not just American issues,” Ryan told “OutFront” host Erin Burnett. “These are international issues. Cyberbullying is an international issue. Social media is international and also the opioid addiction issue, so it’s not just here, but it’s abroad as well.”

7am – B/C     INTERVIEW – NOAH POLLAK – Washington Free Beacon writer – reacted to the withdrawal of the Iran Deal.

7am – D         INTERVIEW – GORDON CHANG – Daily Beast columnist,  author of “The Coming Collapse of China” and “Nuclear Showdown: North Korea Takes On the World”

• Kim Jong Un holds an unannounced meeting with China’s leader Xi Jinping
• Xi and Trump Talked Trade, Korea Ahead of Chinese Aide’s Visit
• US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo heads to North Korea
• Pompeo in final stages of talks to release Americans held by North Korea
• “Secretary Pompeo is right now going to North Korea.” —POTUS

7am – E         MUELLER NEWS:

• Mueller rejects Trump request to answer questions in writing. (CBS News) — Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who is now on President Trump’s legal team, told CBS News correspondent Paula Reid Monday that special counsel Robert Mueller’s office has rejected proposals to allow Mr. Trump to answer questions from investigators in writing. The president’s legal team has signaled that this would be their preferred format for a possible interview, since it helps protect Mr. Trump from the possibility of lying or misleading investigators, which is a criminal offense.
• Guiliani wants parameters of Mueller interview with Trump set by May 17 (The Hill) — President Trump’s attorney Rudy Giuliani said on Tuesday that he wants the parameters of an interview between the president and special counsel Robert Mueller to be set by May 17, which is the one-year mark for when Mueller was appointed to probe possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia’s efforts to influence in the presidential election.  “You need a sort of action-forcing event. I think that’s a good one for us, is the special counsel,” Giuliani told NBC’s Kristen Welker. He added that the deadline is tentative and an actual interview would not happen by that date. “I can’t walk into it and say ‘absolutely.’ I don’t speak for them. I don’t know if it can get complicated by another, you know, another situation where they – we find that they’ve engaged in misconduct,” he continued.
• Mueller interviewed Putin-tied oligarch about hundreds of thousands of dollars paid to Cohen: report  (The Hill) — Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team has interviewed a Russian oligarch tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin about the payments his company made to President Trump’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen in the months after the 2016 election, CNN reported Tuesday. Mueller’s team reportedly questioned Viktor Vekselberg about the hundreds of thousand of dollars paid from his company’s U.S. affiliate, Columbus Nova, to Cohen. Mueller is currently investigating ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. The team also asked Vekselberg about donations the head of the American affiliate made to Trump’s campaign and inaugural funds, according to CNN. Columbus Nova’s attorney Richard Owens pushed back against the report in a statement to The Hill, saying that reports that Vekselberg used the company to make payments to Cohen “are false.” Owens said the company hired Cohen after the inauguration “as a business consultant regarding potential sources of capital and potential investments in real estate and other ventures.”

 

8am – A         INTERVIEW – AMBASSADOR RON DERMER – Israel’s Ambassador to the United States — to give his reaction to President Trump announcing the withdrawal from the Iran deal.

• Trump Withdraws From ‘Defective’ Iran
• Former Pres. Obama in a rare statement says the Iran nuclear deal is working and calls Trump’s decision to leave it “misguided”
• Former Secretary of State John Kerry tears into Trump over Iran decision: He’s “dragging the world to the brink” of war
• Opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem happening NEXT WEEK: JERUSALEM – US Embassy road signs went up in Jerusalem on Monday ahead of next week’s opening of the mission in accordance with President Donald Trump’s recognition of the city as Israel’s capital. The embassy formally relocates from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem on May 14. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is being planned for May 14 to mark Israel’s re-establishment as a country 70 years ago.
• US officials growing increasingly concerned Iran could attack Israel. Washington (CNN)There are increasing concerns Iran is on the cusp of an attack against Israel, several US military officials told CNN. Intelligence is not clear on when an attack could come and what form it would take, they said, with one official noting that “if there is an attack it might not be immediately clear it’s Iran.” The US is watching very closely to see if Iranian-backed actions could come from inside Syria or Lebanon, or even from inside Iran itself, though that would be considered a major military escalation.
• UK, France, Germany: We’re not leaving the Iran deal

8am – B         Hatch apologizes to McCain for saying it was “ridiculous” for him not to want Trump at his funeral (The Hill) — Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has sent Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) a letter apologizing for saying it was “ridiculous” to not want President Trump at his funeral. “I’ve spoken out of turn. … I shouldn’t have said what I said,” Hatch told reporters on Tuesday. Asked if he had sent a letter to McCain apologizing for his remarks, Hatch confirmed that he had. Hatch sparked a backlash on Monday when he told reporters that it was “ridiculous” McCain wanted Vice President Pence at his funeral instead of Trump. “Well, he’s the president of the United States and he’s a very good man. But it’s up to [McCain]. I think John should have his own wishes fulfilled with regard to who attends the funeral,” he said. McCain, who is battling brain cancer, has had a contentious relationship with Trump, who mocked him for being captured in the Vietnam War. Meghan McCain hit back at Hatch during “The View” on Tuesday. “I’d like everybody to take a collective breath and chill out on my dad for a second — especially Orrin Hatch,” the Arizona senator’s daughter said.

8am – C         MSNBC’s Joy Reid reportedly sees ‘significant decrease in audience size’ / MSNBC star Joy Reid’s program “AM Joy” reportedly has been losing viewers since the #Resistance hero backtracked on claims that diabolical hackers were responsible for planting anti-gay rhetoric in her pre-fame blog.

8am – D         INTERVIEW – PETER DOOCY – Fox News Channel reporter – reacted to the breaking news about American hostages in North Korea and the latest on the West VA primary results.

• Morrisey wins, Blankenship suffers beatdown in West Virginia (Politico) — State Attorney General Patrick Morrisey won the West Virginia GOP Senate primary on Tuesday, avoiding a nightmare scenario for Republicans, who feared that former coal magnate Don Blankenship would capture the party’s nomination in a race that could determine which party controls the Senate next year
• Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump: I am pleased to inform you that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in the air and on his way back from North Korea with the 3 wonderful gentlemen that everyone is looking so forward to meeting. They seem to be in good health. Also, good meeting with Kim Jong Un. Date & Place set.
• Donald J. Trump‏ @realDonaldTrump: Secretary Pompeo and his “guests” will be landing at Andrews Air Force Base at 2:00 A.M. in the morning. I will be there to greet them. Very exciting!

8am – E         HASPEL CONFIRMATION HEARING TODAY:

• CIA Nominee Gina Haspel To Face Tough Questioning At Confirmation Hearing. The first woman nominated to be CIA director faces tough questioning at her confirmation hearing Wednesday. She met with Democratic members of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Monday.
• Gina Haspel, President Trump’s nominee to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, will go before the Senate Intelligence Committee for her confirmation hearing at 9:30 a.m.
• Senators want to know more about her decades as a spy, particularly her oversight of the torture of a suspected Qaeda member at a secret prison in Thailand and her strong advocacy for destroying videotapes that documented brutal interrogations of terrorism suspects.
• 9/11 Planner Asks to Tell Senators About Gina Haspel. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-professed mastermind of the 9/11 terror attacks, says he has information to share with lawmakers about CIA head nominee Gina Haspel ahead of her Senate confirmation hearing.Mohammed, who was repeatedly tortured by the CIA following his 2003 capture in Pakistan, sought permission this week from a Guantanamo Bay judge to “share six paragraphs of information” about Haspel with the Senate Intelligence Committee, reported The New York Times.
• SEN. TOM COTTON: Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the 9/11 mastermind, can testify to the Intelligence Committee after every 9/11 widow, widower, & child testifies about what they think of him vs. Gina Haspel & the CIA. Until then, he can rot at Gitmo & then he can rot in hell.