Hans Von Spakovsky, Fox’s Peter Doocy, Rep. Steve King, The Hill’s Joe Concha and Fox’s Bret Baier joined WMAL on Friday morning!

Mornings on the Mall

Friday, August 3, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C NYT IS OK WITH THEIR NEW RACIST BOARD MEMBER

• NY Times newest editorial board member doesn’t seem to like ‘Dumba** F***ing White People’
• New York Times hires editorial board member who slammed white people; paper still ‘confident’ in her. After the New York Times announced it was hiring writer and lawyer Sarah Jeong as an editorial board member, numerous posts from Jeong’s Twitter account slamming white people in past years were discovered. Both the Times and Jeong in separate statements Thursday said Jeong’s tweets were reactions to online harassment she endured and that she was actually imitating her harassers. The Times added that it doesn’t condone Jeong’s tweets and is “confident” that “she will be an important voice for the editorial board moving forward.” Jeong, in her Thursday statement on the matter, called her tweets “counter-trolling” and said they were “intended as satire.” “I deeply regret mimicking the language of my harassers,” Jeong wrote, adding that she “would not do it again.”

5am – D         Strzok demanded declassification, other FBI powers before joining Mueller team, emails show (Fox News) — Anti-Trump FBI agent Peter Strzok insisted on preserving his security clearance and powers he held as a deputy assistant director at the agency before joining Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team, newly released emails show. The emails, acquired by the conservative watchdog Judicial Watch, reveal that Strzok’s supervisor agreed to make him a “floating” deputy who would be able to approve national security letters and declassify documents – all while working on the Mueller team investigating the Trump campaign’s alleged collusion with the Russian government. “Broadly, I need to be able to act at least in the capacity of my old CD [counterintelligence division] DAD [deputy assistant director] job – approve NSLs [national security letters], conduct [redacted] declassify information, [redacted] agent travel, requisitions, etc. Of those, the most problematic and one of the most essential is declassification authority,” Strzok wrote in an email to Bill Priestap, FBI counterintelligence chief, dated July 13, 2017. “Of those, the most problematic and one of the most essential is declassification authority.” Priestap wrote back a few days later, saying his request was approved: “In answer to your initial question, while assigned to the special counsel’s office, you will retain your CD DAD authorities to include declassification authority.”

5am – E         Latest on the Manafort trial:

• Manafort case judge warns Mueller team they ‘can’t prove conspiracy’ without star witness. (Fox News) — The federal judge in the trial of ex-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort told Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team on Thursday they cannot prove a key part of their case unless prosecutors call Manafort’s former business partner to the stand. U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis III issued the warning after prosecutors suggested Wednesday that Rick Gates – who is cooperating with prosecutors and had been considered a potential star witness – might not be called to the stand after all.
• Prosecutors release pictures of Paul Manafort’s lavish wardrobe collection after being repeatedly rebuked by the judge for focusing on the Trump campaign chief’s luxury lifestyle during their shaky start to the key trial
• DAILY CALLER: Roger Stone Reviews Paul Manafort’s Fashion. Stone gave TheDC a lengthier statement noting: “Manafort’s style choices were generally wrong for his body type – his custom made Italian suits never fit him properly largely because their svelte design was wrong for his build. He did have generally good taste in shirts and ties mostly buying at Charvet in Paris. Bijan of Beverly Hills….Much of his wardrobe is known for two things – the ridiculously expensive prices and gaudiness of their clothing. Manafort had the view that if something was expensive that meant it was good. He wore $6500 suits that didn’t fit him.”
• Paul Manafort’s bookkeeper AND accountant tell fraud trial Trump’s former campaign manager didn’t reveal his offshore bank accounts – and court hears his 2016 tax return didn’t include any foreign assets.

6am – A/B/C ACOSTA TANTRUM AT WH PRESS BRIEFING:

• Ivanka Trump: ‘No, I Do Not Feel the Media Is the Enemy of the People’
• Donald J. Trump ‏@realDonaldTrump: 12h12 hours ago: They asked my daughter Ivanka whether or not the media is the enemy of the people. She correctly said no. It is the FAKE NEWS, which is a large percentage of the media, that is the enemy of the people!
• CNN’s Jim Acosta asks Sarah Sanders about Trump’s comments that the media is the “enemy of the people”: “You did not say … that the press is not the enemy of people”
• Acosta walks out of press briefing after Sanders refuses to say press isn’t the enemy of the people during heated clash
• Jim Acosta @Acosta: I walked out of the end of that briefing because I am totally saddened by what just happened. Sarah Sanders was repeatedly given a chance to say the press is not the enemy and she wouldn’t do it. Shameful.

6am – D         INTERVIEW — HANS VON SPAKOVSKY @HvonSpakovsky —  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 – discuss Trump officials sounding the alarm on Russian meddling.

• Trump officials sound alarm on Russian meddling, vow to fight back: Democracy ‘in the crosshairs’ (Fox News) — Top Trump administration officials warned Thursday that Russia is posing a sustained threat to American elections with its influence operations, saying “democracy itself is in the crosshairs.” Top national security and intelligence officials sounded the alarm during a high-powered White House press briefing, raising concern about foreign operations that pose a threat to the 2018 midterms and even the 2020 election.  “We continue to see a pervasive messaging campaign by Russia to try to weaken and divide the United States,” Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said. The briefing showed the administration renewing its public commitment to combating the Russian threat, just weeks after President Trump faced broad and bipartisan criticism for initially appearing to accept Russian President Vladimir Putin’s denial of meddling during their summit in Helsinki.  But National Security Adviser John Bolton, in a new letter to senators, said Trump has directed a “vast, government-wide effort” to protect U.S. election integrity.  “A single attack can have widespread and cascading consequences. … It’s not just risk to prosperity, privacy, and infrastructure,” Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said. “Our democracy itself is in the crosshairs.”  Coats said the threat is “real” and “continuing” and “we’re throwing everything at it.”
• Dan Coats, Director of National Intelligence: “The president has specifically directed us to make the matter of the election meddling and securing our election process, a top priority.”

6am – E         TSA considering ending screening at 150 small airports: It’s ‘beyond comprehension,’ says critic (AP) — The TSA is considering ending screening of passengers at smaller airports across the country to focus security efforts at the largest airports. It is unclear how advanced the proposal is, and whether it will ever be adopted. Still, aviation-security experts reacted with alarm, saying that dropping security at smaller airports could make those flights an inviting target for terrorists. CNN reported that the Transportation Security Administration is considering whether to end passenger screening at about 150 airports that serve planes with 60 seats or fewer. The report cited senior agency officials and internal documents from June and July.

6am – F         BUSINESS NEWS:

• Brookstone Files for Bankruptcy With Plans to Shutter All Stores in Malls. A shift toward online spending among consumers has threatened many businesses that rely primarily on their brick-and-mortar locations to drive sales. (CNBC) — Brookstone announced its plans to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and hopes to find a buyer for certain parts of the chain, which is known for selling unique gifts and tech gadgets at its stores. The company said in a press release Thursday it’s already started the process of shuttering its remaining 101 mall stores across the U.S. Brookstone cast blame on a “continued deterioration of traditional mall traffic.”
• Apple makes history as the iPhone maker becomes the world’s first trillion dollar company. Two mavericks named Steve – Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak – started the company in a Silicon Valley garage 42 years ago. Apple shares rose 2.7 percent to an all-time high of $207.05 around midday, pushing the firm over the trillion dollar mark. The iPhone maker’s shares are up 22 percent so far this year. (Daily Mail) — Apple has become the world’s first publicly traded company to be valued at $1 trillion – 42 years after Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak began the firm in a Silicon Valley garage. The stock rose nearly 3 percent following a strong third-quarter earnings report earlier this week, briefly hitting a session high of $207.05 in midday trading before falling back below $207.  This briefly pushed Apple over the historic trillion dollar mark.   The valuation caused confusion earlier in the day as the number of shares were adjusted as part of a buyback, prompting Apple’s own Stock app among others to tell users the firm had crossed the threshold before it had.

7am – A         INTERVIEW – PETER DOOCY – correspondent for Fox News Channel – discussed the latest news on the Manafort trial.

• Manafort case judge warns Mueller team they ‘can’t prove conspiracy’ without star witness. (Fox News) — The federal judge in the trial of ex-Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort told Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team on Thursday they cannot prove a key part of their case unless prosecutors call Manafort’s former business partner to the stand. U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis III issued the warning after prosecutors suggested Wednesday that Rick Gates – who is cooperating with prosecutors and had been considered a potential star witness – might not be called to the stand after all.

• Prosecutors release pictures of Paul Manafort’s lavish wardrobe collection after being repeatedly rebuked by the judge for focusing on the Trump campaign chief’s luxury lifestyle during their shaky start to the key trial
• Paul Manafort’s bookkeeper AND accountant tell fraud trial Trump’s former campaign manager didn’t reveal his offshore bank accounts – and court hears his 2016 tax return didn’t include any foreign assets.

7am – B/C     D’Souza Gets White Supremacist Richard Spencer To Admit Being A Socialist Progressive

• DON JR: So the left spends the last 3 years falsely calling my entire family NAZI’s, but the second I point out the similarities between the economic platform of the National Socialists and the Democrat Party, they scream bloody murder. Here’s what I was referring to. #facts

7am – D         Amber Alert issued after girl is abducted from Reagan National Airport (Washington Post) — A 12-year-old girl visiting from China was abducted at Reagan National Airport, officials said Thursday while issuing an Amber Alert. Jinjing Ma is believed to have been abducted about 8:15 a.m., police said. Ma is 4-feet-11, about 90 pounds and has black hair and brown eyes. She was last seen at the airport wearing a white T-shirt, blue jeans and a black jacket, according to the alert. Ma was visiting from China as a part of a tour group that was sightseeing and looking at schools in the United States since July 26, authorities said. At some point, the child said she needed to use the restroom before meeting with an unknown middle-aged Asian woman. The woman helped Ma change clothes before they walked toward the “arrivals” area of the airport. Ma and the woman were later seen entering a white Infini vehicle with New York tags, David Huchler, chief of police for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, said during a press conference Thursday afternoon. About 10 p.m. Thursday, MWAA authorities said in a statement that the agency believes that the missing child got into a white Infiniti QX70, a 2016 or 2018 model. Huchler said before the incident occured, the woman was seen with a male. Officials also think a man was driving the vehicle the child left in.

7am – E         Woman, 25, ‘rammed a man’s Jeep with her car and labeled him a ‘racist’ after spotting a Trump bumper sticker on the trunk.’ Chloe Wright, 25, has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault with a dangerous weapon, vandalizing property and leaving the scene of property damage. Wright is accused of intentionally hitting a man’s SUV because it was adorned with a Trump decal. (Daily Mail) – A Massachusetts woman has been arrested for allegedly ramming a man’s Jeep after becoming enraged by his bumper sticker supporting for President Donald Trump, in an incident that was caught on video. Chloe Wright, from Taunton, appeared in court on Monday and pleaded not guilty to a charge of assault with a dangerous weapon. The 25-year-old also faces charges of vandalizing property and leaving the scene of property damage. The incident took place on June 30, but Wright was only taken into custody a month later after being pulled over during a traffic stop. The victim, who was identified by WBZ only as Brendan, said he was driving in Hyannis on the evening of June 30 and was stopped at a red light when the driver behind him began honking the horn.  At the next red light, Brendan said he could hear the female driver behind him screaming something. Concerned that there might be something wrong with his SUV, Brendan pulled over and stepped out of the vehicle. The other driver, later identified as Wright, asked Brendan, ‘Did you vote for Trump?’ The man said he told the woman he did vote for him, which allegedly triggered the woman’s violent response. ‘I get out, and all of a sudden I hear, “You’re racist,” and a bunch of cuss words,’ the victim recounted to WBZ.  At that point, Brendan switched on the camera on his phone and recorded the incensed female motorist driving around his SUV.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – REP. STEVE KING – R-IA – discussed his thoughts on the president’s government shutdown threat over the border wall.

• President Trump ‘Would Personally Prefer’ Government Shutdown Fight Over Immigration, Border Wall Before Midterm Elections. (CNN) — President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he would rather have a government shutdown fight over his immigration and border security demands before the midterm elections this November than afterward. “I would personally prefer before, but whether it’s before or after, we’re either getting it or we’re closing down government,” Trump said. “We need border security. We need border security.” The President said “a lot of great Republicans” had pointed to the strength of the economy and did not want to “complicate” that as voters prepare to head to the polls in elections that will decide control of Congress. “I understand it,” he said. “I’m a little torn myself.” Trump, who was speaking at a rally in Pennsylvania on Thursday evening, said prominent conservative commentators Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity thought the shutdown fight should come before the elections.

8am – B/C     INTERVIEW – JOE CONCHA – Media Reporter, The Hill – discussed the fight between White House press secretary Sarah Sanders and CNN correspondent Jim Acosta.

• Ivanka Trump: ‘No, I Do Not Feel the Media Is the Enemy of the People’
• Donald J. Trump ‏@realDonaldTrump: 12h12 hours ago: They asked my daughter Ivanka whether or not the media is the enemy of the people. She correctly said no. It is the FAKE NEWS, which is a large percentage of the media, that is the enemy of the people!
• CNN’s Jim Acosta asks Sarah Sanders about Trump’s comments that the media is the “enemy of the people”: “You did not say … that the press is not the enemy of people”
• Acosta walks out of press briefing after Sanders refuses to say press isn’t the enemy of the people during heated clash
• Jim Acosta @Acosta: I walked out of the end of that briefing because I am totally saddened by what just happened. Sarah Sanders was repeatedly given a chance to say the press is not the enemy and she wouldn’t do it. Shameful.

8am – D         INTERVIEW – BRET BAIER – Anchor, Special Report, Fox News Channel, weeknights at 6 PM and author of Three Days in Moscow: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of the Soviet Empire” @BretBaier – discussed his trip to California, appearance on Jimmy Kimmel and the Trump admin’s presser on election meddling.

8am – E         First US Guinness brewery in 60 years to open in Md. Friday. (WTOP) – WASHINGTON — Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan was on hand Thursday to help open the first Guinness brewery on U.S. soil in more than 60 years. “Our administration is proud of Maryland’s robust and growing brewing industry and we are excited to welcome a legendary brewery like Guinness to our great state,” Hogan said at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Guinness Open Gate Brewery and Barrel House in Halethorpe, Maryland, Thursday morning. The brewery opens to the public at 3 p.m. Friday. The new brewery sits on the refurbished site of a former Seagram’s bottling plant in Baltimore County. The beer-maker said the brewery will create 200 new jobs and said it hopes to attract 300,000 visitors in the first year. The Baltimore County operation will be home to new Guinness beers specifically created for the U.S. market, such as the Guinness American Blonde Lager. The brand’s iconic stout will continue to be brewed at the famed St. James’ Gate in Dublin. Construction on the $80 million project began last spring. The brewery opened a test taproom last October.