VA Del. Tim Hugo, Joe diGenova and Susan Ferrechio joined WMAL on Tuesday morning!

Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, September 4, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C BLUE COLLAR/UNION SHIFT TO THE GOP:

• WSJ EDITORIAL: Happy in Their Work — A survey finds that blue-collar workers aren’t as glum as the stereotype.
• TRUMP TWEET: Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend. Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!
• From Trump to Kobach: How the Populists and American Union Workers Are Taking Back the GOP (Breitbart) — American union worker support for populist-nationalist Republicans may have started with President Trump, but it’s not ending with him as many in the pundit class had predicted. In 2015, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka told Chuck Todd in the midst of the Republican primary for president that “probably every” union worker in the United States said “Amen!” when Trump spoke about the crippling impact multinational free trade deals have had on American workers. At the time, Trump was the only Republican in the GOP primary noting how free trade deals like NAFTA, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and KORUS had and would continue to kill jobs in the U.S. and send them overseas to foreign countries. Left behind by these free trade deals, Trump said, were American workers who had been ignored by the free trade apparatus of the Republican and Democratic Party who were beholden to the big business lobby, tech lords, and the Chamber of Commerce. Not only through taking down free trade, but also anti-worker mass immigration policies, Trump garnered historic support from the country’s union workers. When Trump said the mass importation of foreign workers to take blue-collar U.S. jobs was driving down wages and crowding out working-class Americans, union workers nodded in agreement.

5am – D         Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings begin Tuesday. WASHINGTON — For eight weeks since President Donald Trump nominated him for the swing seat on the Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh’s judicial record and legal philosophy has gotten lost amid disputes over his partisan past and withheld documents. But when the Senate Judiciary Committee holds four days of hearings this week, those controversies probably will take a back seat to issues affecting millions of Americans: Abortion. Guns. Health care. And, inevitably, the president himself. Kavanaugh, 53, will be questioned for 17 hours or more about the conservative views he espoused in more than 300 opinions and dissents over 12 years on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit – a traditional steppingstone to the Supreme Court. For half that time, Republicans who have fawned over Kavanaugh since his nomination July 9 will call attention to his pedigree and character: Yale University and Yale  Law School, three prestigious federal court clerkships, nearly a decade of public service and a reputation for open-mindedness and collegiality. For the other half, Democrats whose opposition is all but assured will highlight the Washington native’s rulings and writings on controversial issues and seek assurances on how he would rule in future cases – questions Kavanaugh will parry without making any promises. “There will be sparks at this hearing. Sparks will fly,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. “And there will be a lot of heat.”

• Dems want documents: White House Withholds 100,000 Pages of Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s Records:
• “We’re witnessing a Friday night document massacre,” Mr. Schumer wrote on Twitter on Saturday. “President Trump’s decision to step in at the last moment and hide 100k pages of Judge Kavanaugh’s records from the American public is not only unprecedented in the history of SCOTUS noms, it has all the makings of a cover up.”
• Democrats and Republicans have been arguing for weeks over access to documents relating to Judge Kavanaugh’s time working for Mr. Bush. Democrats say that Republicans are blocking access to the documents as part of an effort to ram through the nomination without proper scrutiny.
• The bulk of the records being withheld “reflect deliberations and candid advice concerning the selection and nomination of judicial candidates, the confidentiality of which is critical to any president’s ability to carry out this core constitutional executive function,” wrote Mr. Bush’s lawyer, William A. Burck.
• They also reflect “advice submitted directly to President Bush,” Mr. Burck wrote, as well as communications between White House staff members about their discussions with Mr. Bush, and other internal deliberations.

5am – E         No Deal with Canada Yet But Talks Continue:

• Trump’s NAFTA threat leaves Trudeau locked in high-stakes game of poker. With his Friday decision to officially notify Congress of a U.S. trade deal with Mexico alone, the president laid the groundwork to go forward, within a month, with a U.S. free trade agreement that does not include Canada. Trump’s move appeared to be intended to pressure Prime Minister Justin Trudeau into making concessions for fear of Canada getting left out of the deal. But the end of September is not actually a drop-dead date either, and the Canadian side views it as yet another faux deadline “ginned up” to attempt to get Canada to give in, a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity said on Monday.
• Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump: Sep 1 I love Canada, but they’ve taken advantage of our Country for many years!
• Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump Sep 1: There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal. If we don’t make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out. Congress should not interfere w/ these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off…

6am – A         TRUMP RIPS SESSIONS AGAIN:

• Trump slams Sessions on Twitter, says AG is hurting GOP in midterms. WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday launched a fresh attack on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, accusing him of jeopardizing the chances of re-election for two Republican congressmen by bringing criminal charges against them just before the midterm elections. Trump wrote on Twitter the Justice Department’s decision to file charges will hurt safe Republican seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Election analysts believe there is a 50 percent chance the Democratic Party will take control of the House, in which all 435 seats are up for grabs in the Nov. 6 elections. Republicans currently hold a 236-193 advantage and there are six vacant seats. “Two long running, Obama era, investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department,” the Republican president wrote. “Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff….” Justice Department spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores declined to comment on Trump’s tweets, which did not name the congressmen. On Aug. 8, Congressman Christopher Collins, a Republican who was candidate Trump’s first supporter in the House, was charged with participating in an insider trading scheme involving an Australian biotechnology company on whose board he served. Collins has denied wrongdoing but will not seek re-election. Despite Trump’s claim that both investigations began under Democratic President Barack Obama, Collins was charged over trades in June 2017 – nearly six months after Trump took office. On Aug. 23, Republican Representative Duncan Hunter was indicted on charges that he and his wife used hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign funds to pay for vacations, video games and other personal expenses and filed false campaign finance reports, federal officials said. Hunter, the second congressman to back Trump for the White House, has denied wrongdoing, and a recent poll put him in the lead for the election. The Hunter investigation began under Obama.
• Hits Sessions for charges against NY Rep. Chris Collins & Calif. Rep. Duncan Hunter
• TRUMP: Two long running, Obama era, investigations of  two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department. Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff……
• TRUMP 2: ….The Democrats, none of whom voted for Jeff Sessions, must love him now. Same thing with Lyin’ James Comey. The Dems all hated him, wanted him out, thought he was disgusting – UNTIL I FIRED HIM! Immediately he became a wonderful man, a saint like figure in fact. Really sick!

6am – B/C     NBC News insists that network “at no point” obstructed Ronan Farrow’s reporting on Harvey Weinstein (The Hill) — NBC News chairman Andy Lack maintained in a memo to staff on Monday that the network did not obstruct Ronan Farrow’s efforts to report on an exposé of sexual assault and misconduct allegations against Harvey Weinstein. “Contrary to recent allegations, at no point did NBC obstruct Farrow’s reporting or ‘kill’ an interview,” Lack wrote in the memo, which NBC released to the press. “Immediately after Farrow had parted ways with us, he asked for NBC cameras to record another anonymous Weinstein victim,” Lack continued. “Farrow conducted the interview but we declined the request for a crew because we believed filming another anonymous interview would not get us any closer to clearing the threshold to broadcast, and because he had already informed us he was pursuing the story for another outlet.” The memo comes after Rich McHugh, a former producer at NBC who worked with Farrow, told The New York Times last week that “the very highest levels of NBC” shut down Farrow’s Weinstein story and prevented Farrow and McHugh from interviewing a woman who alleged that Weinstein raped her. NBC News denied McHugh’s claims in statements to the Times and The Hill last week, saying that the story was not reportable at the time Farrow decided to leave the network and publish his reporting in The New Yorker. “We repeatedly made clear to Ronan and Rich McHugh the standard for publication is we needed at least one credible on-the-record victim or witness of misconduct,” NBC News president Noah Oppenheim said. “And we never met that threshold while Ronan was reporting for us.” Lack provided a similar defense of the network in his memo to staffers on Monday, writing that NBC News “did not have a single victim or witness willing to go on the record.”  “So we had nothing yet fit to broadcast,” Lack wrote. “But Farrow did not agree with that standard. That’s where we parted ways — agreeing to his request to take his reporting to a print outlet that he said was ready to move forward immediately.”

6am – D         INTERVIEW – VA DEL. TIM HUGO – — representing the 40th district, which includes the municipalities of Catharpin, Clifton, and Fairfax Station and is the Majority Caucus Chairman for the Virginia House Republican Caucus – discussed the redistricting fight in Virginia.

• State lawmakers clash over legislative redistricting. RICHMOND, VA (WWBT) – State lawmakers reconvened for a special session on redistricting Thursday, but they’re no closer to a decision. Republicans spent the day grilling Democrats about their proposal to change 29 House districts. Meanwhile, Democrats accused Republicans of delaying to avoid court ordered redistricting. In June, a federal panel ruled that 11 districts in Richmond, Petersburg and Hampton Roads must be redrawn. The panel determined that lawmakers illegally packed African-American voters into some districts to make surrounding districts more Republican. Republicans are appealing the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court and had asked the federal court to extend an  Oct. 30 deadline until the case is heard. However, the Virginia federal court denied that motion at the end of the day Thursday, arguing voters need constitutional district lines for the 2019 House elections. When the special session opened Thursday, delegates briefly debated the Democrats’ proposal to redraw 29 House districts. Democrats say they provide fair representation, but Republicans complained they will likely flip five Republican seats to Democrats and that several Republican incumbents were drawn into the same districts. “It paired four of our Republican incumbents into the same district,” said House Majority Leader Todd Gilbert (R – Shenandoah). “This map kept a number of Democratic incumbents separated who lived less than a mile apart from each other.” House Minority Leader David Toscano (D – Charlottesville) said the criticism is a delay tactic, saying, “Until a court acts or grants an appeal or grants a stay, you are required to comply with the terms with an order of the court.” When the bill moved the House Privileges and Elections Committee, Toscano said he did not have information on Republican incumbents addresses in drawing the House districts.

6am – E         Michael Avenatti announces ‘resistance’ rally in Texas at the same time Trump holds one for Ted Cruz. (Washington Examiner) — Michael Avenatti announced Sunday that he will hold a “resistance” rally at the same time President Trump plans to to campaign for Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. In a tweet, the lawyer to porn star Stormy Daniels encouraged “all groups” to join and stressed the needs to “fight fire with fire.” “I am excited to announce that I will be leading a large resistance rally in Texas at the exact same time of Trump’s (details tba). All groups are welcome to join. We must fight fire with fire and we must send a message that we will fight to make America America again. #Basta,” he tweeted.  Trump tweeted on Friday that he will attend a “major rally” for Cruz in October, a move that highlights how concerned Republicans have become about keeping the seat. Polls show Cruz in a dead heat against Democratic Rep. Beto O’Rourke.

6am – F         Buzz Aldrin, second man on the moon, takes his shot in that ‘First Man’ American flag flap. (USA Today) — Astronaut Buzz Aldrin has waded into the flag flap surrounding “First Man,” Damien Chazelle’s new drama about the moon landing. The Neil Armstrong biopic, starring Ryan Gosling as the first man to walk on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission, was unveiled last week at Venice Film Festival to stellar reviews. But conservative commentators slammed the filmmaker’s decision to skip a shot of Armstrong planting the American flag. (Critics who’ve seen the film say the flag is shown flying in it.) Aldrin, the second person to step out on the moon, took his jab Sunday on Twitter. “#proudtobeanamerican,” he tweeted, along with images of the flag planting.  Gosling got the conversation going at a news conference in Venice, where he told journalists that Armstrong was “extremely humble” and “didn’t consider himself a hero,” saying the milestones of the mission “transcend countries and borders.”

7am – A         INTERVIEW – JOE DIGENOVA – legal analyst and former US Attorney to the District of Columbia

• Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearings begin Tuesday. WASHINGTON — For eight weeks since President Donald Trump nominated him for the swing seat on the Supreme Court, Brett Kavanaugh’s judicial record and legal philosophy has gotten lost amid disputes over his partisan past and withheld documents. But when the Senate Judiciary Committee holds four days of hearings this week, those controversies probably will take a back seat to issues affecting millions of Americans: Abortion. Guns. Health care. And, inevitably, the president himself.

7am – B         CHUCK TODD’S OP-ED CALLS FOR MEDIA TO “START FIGHTING BACK”

• CNN’s Brian Stelter ‏@brianstelter —@ChuckTodd is right. Let’s recognize this anti-media campaign for what it is – and respond accordingly. The days of “don’t engage” are over.
• Daily Mail’s David Martosko @dmartosko David Martosko Retweeted Brian Stelter: The minute reporters start “fighting back,” they sound like columnists. That’s a credibility-killer and plays directly into the hands of him-who-shall-not-be-named. See “Ryan, April” and “Karem, Brian.” TV hosts with their own shows can weather that. Most in the profession can’t.
• It’s Time for the Press to Stop Complaining—And to Start Fighting Back. A nearly 50-year campaign of vilification, inspired by Fox News’s Roger Ailes, has left many Americans distrustful of media outlets. Now, journalists need to speak up for their work. BY CHUCK TODD / SEP 3, 2018 // (The Atlantic) — I’ve devoted much of my professional life to the study of political campaigns, not as a historian or an academic but as a reporter and an analyst. I thought I’d seen it all, from the bizarre upset that handed a professional wrestler the governorship of Minnesota to the California recall that gave us the Governator to candidates who die but stay on the ballot and win. But there’s a new kind of campaign underway, one that most of my colleagues and I have never publicly reported on, never fully analyzed, and never fully acknowledged: the campaign to destroy the legitimacy of the American news media. Bashing the media for political gain isn’t new, and neither is manipulating the media to support or oppose a cause. These practices are at least as old as the Gutenberg press. But antipathy toward the media right now has risen to a level I’ve never personally experienced before. The closest parallel in recent American history is the hostility to reporters in the segregated South in the 1950s and ’60s. Then, as now, that hatred was artificially stoked by people who found that it could deliver them some combination of fame, wealth, and power. Some of the wealthiest members of the media are not reporters from mainstream outlets. Figures such as Rush Limbaugh, Matt Drudge, and the trio of Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, and Laura Ingraham have attained wealth and power by exploiting the fears of older white people. They are thriving financially by exploiting the very same free-press umbrella they seem determined to undermine. Much of the current hand-wringing about this rise in press bashing and delegitimization has been focused on the president, who—as every reporter in America sadly knows—has declared the press the “enemy of the people.” But, like much else in the Trump era, Donald Trump didn’t start this fire; he’s only spread it to a potentially more dangerous place.

7am – C         Chris Brown says increased child support would spoil his daughter. (PageSix) — Chris Brown thinks giving his baby mama more child support will spoil their 4-year-old daughter, Royalty. Nia Guzman — who recently hired a new attorney to fight Brown — is seeking $21,000 per month and $250,000 in retroactive child support, according to The Blast. But the “Freaky Friday” singer isn’t giving in, claiming Guzman is financially set thanks to her own income, the support he already pays and the spousal support she receives from a prior marriage. The site reports that Brown already gives her $6,000 a month for private school, medical expenses and a nanny, and also pays upwards of $3,000 for travel, entertainment and extracurricular activities.  In documents filed by Brown, he says that “providing a four-year-old with everything she demands could be harmful and is not in her best interest.”

7am – D         KAEPERNICK – THE NEW FACE OF NIKE

• Colin Kaepernick is the face of a Nike advertising effort commemorating the 30th anniversary of its “Just Do It” motto. The official apparel company of the NFL is launching an ad campaign around a player who’s alleging the league is colluding to keep him out. Colin Kaepernick is the face of a Nike advertising effort commemorating the 30th anniversary of its “Just Do It” motto. “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt,” Kaepernick tweeted Monday — Labor Day — the words superimposed on an image of his face. The Nike swoosh accompanies the image.
• ‘Well done, Colin’ John Brennan praises Kaepernick for anthem protests, Nike campaign / Former Obama CIA Director John O. Brennan ‏ @JohnBrennan: 7h7 hours ago / John O. Brennan Retweeted Colin Kaepernick: Colin Kaepernick drew our collective attention to the problem of continued racial injustice in America. He did so not to disrespect our flag but to give meaning to the words of the preamble of our Constitution—“in order to form a more perfect union.” Well done, Colin, well done.
• Former Iranian President Mahmoud_Ahmadinejad Tweets Support for Colin_Kaepernick. Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took to Twitter on Monday, to lend support to anthem-protesting former quarterback. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad @Ahmadinejad1956:  The #NFL season will start this week, unfortunately once again @Kaepernick7 is not on a NFL roster. Even though he is one of the best Quarterbacks in the league.#ColinKaepernick #NFL 2:40 PM – Sep 3, 2018

7am – E         HILLARY CLINTON IS HIRING INTERNS FOR THE FALL — BUT WON’T PAY THEM A CENT. (Daily Caller) — Hillary Clinton is hiring a batch of unpaid interns for the fall to work in her New York City office, according to documents obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation. Applications are currently being accepted on a rolling basis and will “run from September to mid-December.” The internship requires “a minimum of three days per week,” and undergrads “of all majors are encouraged to apply.” While the amount of hours per day aren’t specified, the “internship is unpaid.” “Interns will provide support to our staff, assisting our work on a wide range of projects. Work will include but will not be limited to: compiling press clips, monitoring social media, conducting research, drafting correspondence, and assisting with office management,” the job posting states. Clinton’s office is looking for applicants who have “a high level of professionalism and discretion,” “strong research and writing skills,” “the ability to work collaboratively as part of a team,” “strong interpersonal communication skills,” “a diligent work ethic and a sense of conscientiousness,” as well as “enthusiasm, dedication, and a positive attitude.” The job posting does not offer any alternative ways of compensation like school credit or a stipend.  During the 2016 presidential campaign, Clinton was criticized for asking the Federal Election Commission to allow some campaign workers to accept college credit and a modest stipend for compensation.

8am – A/B/C ARETHA FRANKLIN’S FUNERAL HAD SOME STRANGE MOMENTS:

• PASTOR UPSETS FRANKLIN FAMILY:
• ‘NOBODY SAYS ANYTHING’: PASTOR GOES OFF ON BLACK-ON-BLACK CRIME AT ARETHA FRANKLIN’S FUNERAL (VIDEO) Pastor Jasper Williams launched a scathing criticism of black-on-black violence on Friday at Aretha Franklin’s funeral, where he delivered the eulogy. “It amazes me how it is when the police kills one of us, we are ready to protest, march destroy innocent property. We’re ready to loot, steal, whatever we want. But when we kill 100 of us, nobody says anything. Nobody does anything,” Williams said. “Black on black crime, we’re all doing time. We are locked up in our minds. There’s got to be a better way. We must stop this today. Think down, look down, walk down, talk down, act down — most times we are low down. Where is your soul?” the pastor continued. “If you choose to ask me today, do black lives matter? Let me answer like this: no, black lives do not matter; black lives will not matter; black lives ought not matter; black lives should not matter; black lives must not matter until black people start respecting black lives and stop killing ourselves — black lives can never matter.”
• Aretha Franklin’s family slams pastor’s ‘very, very distasteful’ funeral eulogy. Aretha Franklin’s family pushed back on the eulogy delivered Friday at the singer’s Detroit funeral, calling it “offensive and distasteful” and saying a longtime family associate “did not properly eulogize her.” The Rev. Jasper Williams Jr. has caught flak for an address that criticized black-on-black crime and asserted that single mothers are incapable of raising sons by themselves. Williams also seemed to decry the Black Lives Matter movement in the 50-minute eulogy delivered at Greater Grace Temple. Williams, pastor of Salem Baptist Church in Atlanta, has stood by his fiery speech. Williams was long associated with the Franklin family, having provided the eulogy at the funeral of Aretha Franklin’s father, the Rev. C.L. Franklin, among others. Vaughn Franklin, a nephew of the late singer, provided a statement to the Free Press late Monday. He was speaking on behalf of the Franklin family, said publicist Gwendolyn Quinn, who has represented the family since the singer’s Aug. 16 death
• FARRAKHAN
• Andrea Mitchell Cites Antisemite Farrakhan as Evidence of ‘Inclusive Group’ at Aretha’s Funeral
• Networks crop Farrakhan from Clinton/Jackson/Sharpton image at Aretha’s funeral. (Washington Times) — It was an image that caused quite a stir Friday afternoon.  There on the stage presiding over Aretha Franklin’s epic funeral extravaganza was former President Bill Clinton alongside former presidential candidates Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton. And immediately next to those three, in the same honored position as the ex-president and the civil rights leaders was anti-semite, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan.  The controversial, fringe leader who has been accused of anti-semitism, anti-white racism, anti-gay slurs, and sexism was prominently featured in the marathon television coverage but somehow didn’t show up in the social media coverage from some of America’s major networks.
• ARIANA GRANDE GETS TOUCHED AND LEERED AT
  • ARIANA / BILL CLINTON: Bill Clinton Caught Staring at Funeral Performer’s Derriere? Bill Clinton looked Ariana Grande up and down when she sang at #ArethaFranklinFuneral 
  • CNN Op-Ed: Ariana Grande reminds us women have no safe place in America
  • BISHOP APOLOGY:  Aretha Franklin funeral bishop apologizes to Ariana. DETROIT — The bishop who officiated Aretha Franklin’s funeral apologized Friday to Ariana Grande for how he touched her onstage and a joke he made about her name. Bishop Charles H. Ellis III led Franklin’s funeral and awkwardly greeted Grande on stage after she performed “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman.” Images of the moment showed Ellis’ hand holding Grande well above her waist, with his fingers pressing against one side of her chest. The preacher apologized in an interview with The Associated Press at the cemetery where Franklin was interred late Friday. “It would never be my intention to touch any woman’s breast. … I don’t know I guess I put my arm around her,” Ellis said. “Maybe I crossed the border, maybe I was too friendly or familiar but again, I apologize.”

8am – D          INTERVIEW – SUSAN FERRECHIO – chief congressional correspondent for the Washington Examiner – previewed the Kavanaugh hearings.

8am – E         Scientists say ‘sonic attacks’ on US embassies may have been caused by Cold-War era microwave weapons. Scientists say microwave signals may have caused brain injuries to 33 US officials and their family members at embassies in Cuba and China. The saga began in 2016 when 24 US diplomats and their family members fell ill after being exposed to what US officials claim was some form of “sonic attack”. The victims suffered permanent hearing loss, severe headaches, loss of balance, brain swelling, and disruption to cognitive functions. Many victims claimed to hear strange noises before the symptoms appeared. One diplomat reported a “blaring, grinding noise” that woke him from his bed in a Havana hotel; others say they heard “loud ringing or high-pitch chirping”. Some said they could walk “in and out” of areas where the noises were blaring. Then in May this year, at least nine Americans associated with the US consulate in Guangzhou were medically evacuated after workers complained of strange aural sensations. At least one government employee in Guangzhou was confirmed to have developed a brain injury consistent with that of the 24 US diplomats and their family members who fell ill in Cuba. Since then, more than 250 people connected to diplomatic missions in China have received medical evaluations. Symptoms of the mystery illness include dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, cognitive issues, and difficulty sleeping, the US Embassy said.