I'm live now on @WMALDC! Spending the last few hours before my vacation guest hosting with the great @VinceCoglianese. Tune in 5-9 am.

— Amber Athey (@amber_athey) August 2, 2019

Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton, Ken Cuccinelli, Trump campaign’s Mercedes Schlapp and guest co-host Amber Athey joined WMAL on Friday morning!

Mornings on the Mall

Friday, August 2, 2019

Hosts: Vince Coglianese and guest host Amber Athey – White House Correspondent, The Daily Caller

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C Do You Dump Grease Down The Sink? You May Be Creating A Dreaded Fatberg | DCist. If you pour used cooking grease down the kitchen sink, you’re not alone—according to a new survey, 44 percent of respondents in the D.C. region pour cooking oil, fat, or grease down the sink at least occasionally. In doing so—rather than dumping it in the trash—you may be contributing to the creation of something truly horrifying—a fatberg. “If people are flushing hair and dental floss and wipes, and then also pouring grease down drains, all of this combines once they’re in the sewer pipes,” explains Heidi Bonnaffon, with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, which conducted the survey. The resulting combination is a fatberg: a disgusting mass of congealed fat so big it clogs sewer pipes. There have been a few local examples, in Southeast D.C. in 2014, in Baltimore in 2017. In London—world-famous for the fatbergs that block its Victorian sewers—there was a fatberg the size of 11 double-decker buses, and another the size of a Boeing 747. While grease and oil dumping appears to be fairly common, according to the COG survey, flushing wipes down the toilet (the other key ingredient of a fatberg) is less popular: 21 percent  of respondents admitted to doing it at least occasionally.

5am – D/E     COMEY NEWS:

• DOJ will not prosecute Comey for leaking memos after IG referral: sources. (Fox News) The Justice Department has decided against prosecuting former FBI Director James Comey for leaking classified information following a referral from the department’s inspector general, sources familiar with the deliberations told Fox News. “Everyone at the DOJ involved in the decision said it wasn’t a close call,” one official said. “They all thought this could not be prosecuted.” Comey penned memos memorializing his interactions with President Trump in the days leading up to his firing. He then passed those documents to a friend, Columbia University Law Professor Daniel Richman, who gave them to The New York Times. Comey admitted to that arrangement during congressional testimony. The report related to Comey’s leaks is separate from Horowitz’s review of alleged Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) abuses. That report’s release is delayed, according to sources, due to the potential components of Attorney General Bill Barr and U.S. Attorney John Durham’s investigation into alleged improper government surveillance. Horowitz publicly confirmed last year that his office was investigating Comey for his handling of classified information as part of memos he shared documenting his discussions with the president. In June 2018, during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Horowitz said he “received a referral on that from the FBI,” and was “handling that referral.”
• FBI agents went to Comey’s house, retrieved secret memo written after his termination. (Fox News) — FBI agents went to James Comey’s house and retrieved as “evidence” a secret, previously unreported memo, well after he was fired as FBI Director, according to bureau documents released Wednesday in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by the transparency group Judicial Watch. Additionally, Comey told agents “spontaneously” that, to “the best of his recollection, two [memos] were missing,” according to the documents. A source familiar with the probe has confirmed to Fox News that the DOJ Inspector General’s office has been reviewing whether Comey’s memos improperly contained classified information, among other matters. Comey was fired on May 9, 2017, and on the morning of June 7, an FBI evidence log showed that he handed the agents three memos comprised of one or two pages, dated February 14, 2017; March 30, 2017; and April 11, 2017. Comey also provided one four-page memo dated “last night at 6:30 pm.” It was unclear exactly which night Comey was referring to. In speaking with agents at his house, Comey indicated that the “second page of the memo dated March 30, 2017 had the incorrect banner line classification of SECRET//NOFORN rather than UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO at the top and bottom of the second page.” The FBI document did not elaborate on the contents of the memo Comey drafted the night before agents visited, nor did it explain how Comey might have mislabeled one memo as classified.

6am – A         Chick-fil-A takes bite out of In-N-Out, named America’s favorite fast food restaurant. Chick-fil-A is officially America’s favorite fast food restaurant.

McDonald’s is feeling the heat from Chick-fil-A; Crate & Barrel is taking reservations. Fox Business Briefs: Franchisees are calling on McDonald’s to focus more on chicken to help them compete with Chick-fil-A; Crate & Barrel opens its first full-service restaurant in suburban Chicago called The Table at Crate. The fast-food chain beat out reigning champion In-N-Out, and took home the top spot on Market Force’s Fast Food Market Research Report. Market Force evaluates input from 7,600 consumers to assess the winner. The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) also named Chick-fil-A as America’s favorite restaurant for the fourth year in a row. The chain, identified by its red chicken logo and cow mascot, scored well above other chains in its customer service, curb appeal and speed of service. In-N-Out still held the top spot in the burger loyalty category, with a 73 percent for staff friendliness, but was challenged by competitor Five Guys in the Food Quality and Speed of Service category. Chick-fil-A is on track to generate more than $10.4 billion in sales, easily surpassing Taco Bell and Subway for the No. 3 spot in the industry.

6am – B/C     CNN’s Democrat Primary Debates Draw Abysmal Ratings. (Breitbart) — CNN’s Democrat primary debates Tuesday and Wednesday night attracted just 8.7 million and 10.7 million viewers respectively – numbers that pale in comparison to June’s Democrat primary debates hosted by NBC. The first night’s debate – which featured candidates such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), and  author Marianne Williamson (D) – drew just 8.7 million viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research data.  However, CNN says the final number looked more like 9.2 million viewers after combining the network’s digital streaming services. Even with CNN’s streaming services considered, the numbers still pale in comparison to the first night of the Democrat debates hosted by NBC in June, with the first debate attracting over 15 million viewers. Despite that, Tuesday’s debate managed to garner slightly more than the popular Tuesday night shows America’s Got Talent, which garnered 7.9 viewers, and Hannah Brown’s season finale of The Bachelorette, which averaged 7.4 million, according to CNN. Wednesday night’s debate – featuring Democrat frontrunner Joe Biden (D) and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-CA) – attracted 10.7 million viewers and “an additional 576,000 viewers” via live-streaming, according to the Hollywood Reporter. By contrast, NBC’s second debate June 27 attracted 18.1 million viewers.

6am – D         A Marianne Williamson Supporter Instructed a CNN Staffer How to Knock on a Door at This Week’s Presidential Debate. Then Things Got Weird.

6am – E         DEMS WANT MICHELLE OBAMA TO RUN:

• Michael Moore urges Michelle Obama to run against Trump. “She would beat him in the debates, he wouldn’t be able to bully her, he wouldn’t be able to nickname her.”
• Michelle Obama says there’s ‘zero chance’ she’ll run for president: ‘It’s just not for me’

6am – F         VINCE’S DAD IS RETIRING FROM THE MARINES.

7am – A         YESTERDAY’S NEWS HIGHLIGHTS:

• U.S. preparing to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan in initial deal with Taliban. The Trump administration is preparing to withdraw thousands of troops from Afghanistan in exchange for concessions from the Taliban, including a cease-fire and a renunciation of al-Qaeda, as part of an initial deal to end the nearly 18-year-old war, U.S. officials say. The agreement, which would require the Taliban to begin negotiating a larger peace deal directly with the Afghan government, could cut the number of American troops in the country from roughly 14,000 to between 8,000 and 9,000, the officials said. That number would be nearly the same as when President Trump took office. The plan has taken shape after months of negotiations between the Taliban and Zalmay Khalilzad, an Afghan-born American diplomat who was appointed by the Trump administration last year to jump-start talks. Officials said an agreement could be finalized ahead of the Afghan presidential election in September, though they cautioned that Taliban leaders could delay and that significant challenges remain.
• Senate passes massive 2-year budget deal. The legislation lifts the debt ceiling for two years and raises spending $320 billion over current levels. Here Are All The Senators Who Voted No On Spending Deal Trump Pushed. Trump slaps 10 percent tariff on $300B more in Chinese goods. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin just returned from trade talks in Shanghai, where little progress appeared to have been made. The negotiations reportedly ended early. A new meeting had been set up for September, the White House said earlier this week. Trump’s tweet comes in the wake of an 11:30 a.m. ET meeting at the White House, when Trump’s trade team briefed the president on how the negotiations went, CNBC reported. The ensuing tweets suggest that Trump is frustrated with China’s lack of follow-through.
• TRUMP: Our representatives have just returned from China where they had constructive talks having to do with a future Trade Deal. We thought we had a deal with China three months ago, but sadly, China decided to re-negotiate the deal prior to signing. More recently, China agreed to… …buy agricultural product from the U.S. in large quantities, but did not do so. Additionally, my friend President Xi said that he would stop the sale of Fentanyl to the United States – this never happened, and many Americans continue to die! Trade talks are continuing, and… …during the talks the U.S. will start, on September 1st, putting a small additional Tariff of 10% on the remaining 300 Billion Dollars of goods and products coming from China into our Country. This does not include the 250 Billion Dollars already Tariffed at 25%… …We look forward to continuing our positive dialogue with China on a comprehensive Trade Deal, and feel that the future between our two countries will be a very bright one!
• FLASHBACK, WEDNESDAY MORNING: Update from the White House on the Shanghai talks: “The Chinese side confirmed their commitment to increase purchases of United States agricultural exports. … we expect negotiations on an enforceable trade deal to continue in Washington, D.C., in early September”

7am – B/C     Late Night with Larry Hogan: Governor tells Seth Meyers he won’t have ‘angry reaction’ to Trump’s Baltimore insults. (Baltimore Sun) – Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan made his first appearance on late-night television early Friday, and host Seth Meyers asked him about (what else?) President Donald Trump. Hogan was in New York on Thursday on a media tour with national outlets after becoming chairman of the National Governors Association, including appearances on Fox News, CNBC and, finally, “Late Night with Seth Meyers” on NBC. Meyers asked Hogan, a Republican, about working to combat climate change and boost infrastructure investment at the state level before the topic turned to Trump and his nearly weeklong attack against Maryland’s largest city, Baltimore. Trump has attacked Baltimore as a “rat and rodent infested mess” as a way to attack U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Baltimore Democrat, and his district. Cummings’ committee voted to subpoena senior White House officials, including Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Meyers said he thought Hogan’s initial reaction to Trump’s insults against Baltimore (in which Hogan’s spokesman said “more attacks between politicians aren’t going to get us anywhere”) was too weak. “It didn’t seem fair to me to describe that as attacks between politicians,” Meyers said.

7am – D/E     INTERVIEW – TOM FITTON – President of Judicial Watch

• DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz referred former FBI Director James Comey for potential prosecution for leaking classified information, but the Department of Justice has ultimately decided against prosecuting Mr. Comey, according to a source familiar with the deliberations. “Everyone at the DOJ involved in the decision said It wasn’t even a close call,” according to the official familiar with the deliberations. “They all thought this could not be prosecuted.”
• A new report revealing that FBI agents collected evidence from former Director James Comey’s home in relation to his 2017 admission of leaking official memos to the New York Times.
• FBI agents went to Comey’s house, retrieved secret memo written after his termination. (Fox News) — FBI agents went to James Comey’s house and retrieved as “evidence” a secret, previously unreported memo, well after he was fired as FBI Director, according to bureau documents released Wednesday in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by the transparency group Judicial Watch. Additionally, Comey told agents “spontaneously” that, to “the best of his recollection, two [memos] were missing,” according to the documents. A source familiar with the probe has confirmed to Fox News that the DOJ Inspector General’s office has been reviewing whether Comey’s memos improperly contained classified information, among other matters. Comey was fired on May 9, 2017, and on the morning of June 7, an FBI evidence log showed that he handed the agents three memos comprised of one or two pages, dated February 14, 2017; March 30, 2017; and April 11, 2017. Comey also provided one four-page memo dated “last night at 6:30 pm.” It was unclear exactly which night Comey was referring to. In speaking with agents at his house, Comey indicated that the “second page of the memo dated March 30, 2017 had the incorrect banner line classification of SECRET//NOFORN rather than UNCLASSIFIED//FOUO at the top and bottom of the second page.” The FBI document did not elaborate on the contents of the memo Comey drafted the night before agents visited, nor did it explain how Comey might have mislabeled one memo as classified.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – KEN CUCCINELLI – acting Director of the Citizenship and Immigration Services

• Asylum rules: Trump’s appointee Ken Cuccinelli at USCIS reminds his asylum officers they can’t give asylum to migrants who didn’t seek safety in their home country. This is just one of many initiatives in admin’s ‘broad strategy’ to prevent a worldwide rush to America.
• USCIS Ken Cuccinnelli – Migrants Must First Seek Asylum at Home. (Breitbart) — Officials are reviving the long-ignored requirement that asylum-seeking migrants must seek safety in their home country before asking for refuge in the United States, says President Donald Trump’s deputy at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) agency. “We … know that there are safe places in all of these countries to live,” acting director Ken Cuccinelli told Breitbart News, adding: So we remphasize to our officers that they need to check and see if people [asking for asylum] attempted to relocate internally. And [officials] need to check and see with the information they have available what internal relocation options exist for each applicant. “Let me clarify that it’s not a new policy,” he told Breitbart News. “This is my efforts to harness the information we have available and provide it to our officers and remind them of various requirements of the regulations.”
• The problem with traffickers and children: Ken Cuccinelli: Cartels and traffickers kidnap and sell children to criminals who then use them to enter our country by exploiting loopholes in our immigration system. Thx to El Paso police, this 9 year old boy was rescued before he could be sold by traffickers
• MEXICO’S HELP: Donald Trump: Mexico Has Done More to Protect Our Border than Democrats. President Donald Trump thanked Mexico for their efforts to help control the Southern border during acampaign rally in Cincinnati, Ohio, on Thursday. “I’m starting to like a Mexico a lot,” Trump said. “They do a lot more for us than the Democrats do, right? A lot more.” Trump said that Mexico deployed 21,000 soldiers on the border to help keep illegal immigrants from crossing into the United States.

8am – B/C     BIDEN ‘SURPRISED’ BY OBAMA CRITICISM:

• Biden surprised by ‘degree of criticism’ Obama took at Democratic debate
• Joe Biden: “Absolutely Bizarre” To See Fellow Democrats Criticize Obama, He Has Nothing To Apologize For
• CNN’s Lemon: It ‘Doesn’t Make Sense’ That Democrats Are Attacking Obama
• CHRIS MATTHEWS: OBAMA PRESIDENCY ‘STILL THRILLING TO ME’

8am – D         INTERVIEW – MERCEDES SCHLAPP – Senior advisor, Trump-Pence 2020 campaign shared her thoughts on the Democratic debates this week, the push for Michelle Obama to run and the interesting attacks on President Obama’s legacy by Dems.

8am – E         Ninja, a Fortnite Star, Leaps From Twitch to Mixer.