.@bevhallberg @IWF guest co-hosts Mornings on the Mall with @VinceCoglianese.

Tune in now to @WMALDC!

— IWF (@IWF) January 10, 2020

Mornings on the Mall

Friday, January 10, 2020

Hosts: Vince Coglianese and Beverly Hallberg with Independent Women’s Forum

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

Alexandra Phillips, Alan Dershowitz, Bret Baier and Beverly Hallberg joined WMAL on Friday!

5am – A/B/C IRAN:

• An Iranian official is denying that one of their missiles hit a Ukrainian airplane that crashed near Tehran and is calling on both the U.S. and Canada to release data backing up their allegations. The head of Iran’s national aviation department spoke Friday in a news conference in Tehran about the crash. President Trump suggested he believed Iran was responsible, but did not directly blame the country. Iran has invited the NTSB to take part in the investigation into the crash, though the agency’s role could be limited by U.S. sanctions on Iran.
• Iranians shot down airliner, Western leaders declare. WASHINGTON (AP) — It is “highly likely” that Iran shot down the civilian Ukrainian jetliner that crashed near Tehran late Tuesday, killing all 176 people on board, U.S., Canadian and British officials declared Thursday. They said the fiery missile strike could well have been a mistake amid rocket launches and high tension throughout the region. The crash came just a few hours after Iran launched a ballistic attack against Iraqi military bases housing U.S. troops in its violent confrontation with Washington over the U.S. drone strike that killed an Iranian Revolutionary Guard general. The airliner could have been mistaken for a threat, said four U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence.
• The Democratic-controlled House has approved a resolution asserting that President Trump must seek approval from Congress before engaging in further military action against Iran. The war powers resolution is not binding and would not require his signature. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi nonetheless insists it “has real teeth” because “it is a statement of the Congress of the United States.” The House approved the measure, 224-194.

5am – D         HUBER PETERS OUT… Report: DOJ’s Probe Of Clintons Ends With A Whimper. U.S. Attorney John Huber effectively concluded a sprawling investigation into several matters related to the Clintons without a finding of criminal wrongdoing, according to a Washington Post report. In November 2017, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions tapped Huber to investigate the Clinton Foundation as well as Hillary Clinton’s actions as secretary of state toward Uranium One, an energy firm linked to Clinton Foundation donors. Huber was also tasked with investigation matters related to the Russia probe, but that part of his investigation was ceded to the Justice Department’s office of the inspector general. Huber reviewed documents related to the investigations and coordinated with federal investigators in Little Rock, Arkansas, who were probing the Clinton Foundation, according to WaPo, which cited current and former law enforcement officials. WaPo’s sources said Huber’s review turned up few leads worth pursuing. The Justice Department has not formally closed the investigation, according to WaPo, but it appears essentially to be over.

5am – E         DEMS GOING AFTER THE NRA RANGE… PRINCE WILLIAM TIMES: Helmer’s indoor shooting range bill could impact NRA’s Fairfax headquarters

• Va. Del. DAN HELMER: Shooting at the range is fun. But they don’t belong in populated work places & few are located there. Look no further than ⁦@NRA HQs in Fairfax, where a worker was wounded in a negligent discharge, to see that office buildings and ranges don’t mix.
• STEPHEN GUTOWSKI: This is a very confusing statement. The NRA range is in a completely separate building from the rest of the NRA offices so why would it be affected by your bill? Also, you say the bill would somehow save lives but now point to an injury from a negligent discharge instead. Why?
• HB567 wants to ensure gun ranges are government-owned. Here’s the text of the summary: As used in this section, “indoor shooting range” means any fully enclosed or indoor area or facility designed for the use of rifles, shotguns, pistols, silhouettes, skeet, trap , or black powder or any other similar sport shooting.     B. It is unlawful to operate an indoor shooting range in any building not owned or leased by the Commonwealth or the federal government unless (i) fewer than 50 employees work in the building or (ii) (a) at least 90 percent of the users of the indoor shooting range are law-enforcement officers, as defined in § 9.1-101, or federal law-enforcement officers, (b) the indoor shooting range maintains a log of each user’s name, phone number, address, and the law-enforcement agency where such user is employed, and (c) the indoor shooting range verifies each user’s identity and address by requiring all users to present a government-issued photo-identification card. / ABOUT THE BILL: https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB567
• TOWNHALL.COM: Trying to capitalize on that momentum, Delegate-elect Dan Helmer (D), an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran, announced on Monday he is introducing three more gun control bills to “reduce gun violence in Virginia.”
  • HB567 will implement a ban on indoor shooting ranges in private buildings with “large numbers of employees” because of “recent workplace shootings.” The bill would ban the ranges if it is in a building that has more than 50 employees working in said building. Indoor ranges would be required to maintain a log of each shooter’s name, phone number, address, and the law-enforcement agency where such user is employed and the indoor range verifies each shooter’s identity and address by requiring all users to present a government-issued identification card. “This is a gun control bill that will eliminate jobs and destroy small businesses in Virginia without reducing crime. In addition to generating about $18 million each year in revenues, the state’s ranges are the epicenter for vital safety training,” National Rifle Association spokesperson Catherine Mortensen told Townhall. “This is where our law enforcement community comes to train alongside families and individuals seeking skills for home and self-defense.”
  • HB568 will ban open carry of firearms in private vehicles, with Helmer calling it “absurd that a loaded gun can be left unattended in a car’s glove box.” Gun owners would be required to secure their firearm in a locked container.

6am – A         INTERVIEW – ALEXANDRA PHILLIPS — a member of the European Parliament and a rising star of Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party. She is a former Nigel Farage’s chief of staff for more than a decade and is a former BBC journalist.

• BREXIT PROGRESS: Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill passes in historic vote clearing the way for Britain’s exit from the EU. Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill has passed through its final stage in the House of Commons, clearing the path for Britain to leave the EU at the end of January. With a 80-strong majority, Johnson’s government raced the Withdrawal Agreement Bill through all three of its stages in the Commons in just three days. The legislation will now head to the House of Lords next week where it will be scrutinised by peers. The bill’s speedy passage through parliament represents a stark contrast to its fortunes in the last parliament, where it was rejected three times under Theresa May’s premiership. It is ultimately expected to pass through all stages and receive Royal Assent before entering the statute books by 31 January, when the UK is scheduled to leave the EU.
• History is made as UK MPs FINALLY formally approve Brexit deal after three years of bitter wrangling and deadlock. The historic EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill cleared the Commons this afternoon – despite Labour opposition.
• ROYALS / MEGHAN AND HARRY: Harry has been locked in four-way crisis talks with the Queen, Prince Charles and William as they try to avert all out royal war after he and Meghan Markle announced they want to quit public life 

6am – B/C     Elizabeth Warren Never Washes Her Face. (Daily Caller) – You can’t deny that Elizabeth Warren has glowing, blemish free skin. At least on TV and from a distance. Who knows what would happen if you put her on a warm table underneath a glaring facial lamp? The truth is, the 70-year-old Democratic presidential hopeful who brags about all those selfies, doesn’t wash her face. And it’s not because she’s trying to save the environment. If Pond’s Moisturizer didn’t just get a huge shot in the ass. Warren uses the stuff from the iconic shaped container morning and night. But she leaves actual washing out of her minimalist face care routine. Frances, a master esthetician at Fountains Day Spa in Alexandria who only wanted to offer his first name, thinks Warren is totally off her rocker in regards to skincare. “Elizabeth Warren, you know, you may be a good politician but you’re not so good with skin care in my opinion,” he told The Mirror. “Plus she wears makeup every day. That tells me she doesn’t have good judgement. I don’t like [President] Trump at all, but I would think she would know enough to know you’re supposed to cleanse your skin everyday. People do what’s comfortable for them. She’s not going to age as well as someone who takes care of your skin.” Frances explained that things like “car exhaust, dust, and second hand smoke,” can seep into our skin. He says cleaning the skin allows for a “nice smooth service” for moisturizer.

6am – D         EPSTEIN FOOTAGE MISSING:

• Federal prosecutors say jailhouse video no longer exists of the area around Jeffrey Epstein’s jail cell on the day he survived an apparent suicide attempt. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan told a judge Thursday that jail officials preserved video of the wrong jail cell and that a backup system also failed to capture footage because of technical issues. An Epstein attorney says the missing video deepens the mystery surrounding his suicide weeks later.
• Security footage filmed outside Jeffrey Epstein’s cell on the night of his first suicide attempt was DESTROYED ‘by mistake’, federal prosecutors claim. (Daily Mail) – Federal prosecutors claim that surveillance video taken outside of Jeffrey Epstein’s cell during his first alleged suicide attempt at the Manhattan Correctional Complex was destroyed due to a record-keeping error. The lost footage was taken outside of the cell that Epstein shared with accused quadruple murderer Nick Tartaglione on July 22-23, two weeks before the sex criminal’s death in a different cell. Officials have said that Epstein unsuccessfully attempted to hang himself and that ex-cop Tartaglione intervened and called for help. Prosecutors say that the hallway footage of the incident was deleted by accident when prison workers accidentally marked the wrong camera’s footage for preservation. ‘The footage contained on the preserved video was for the correct date and time, but captured a different tier than the one where Cell-1 was located because the preserved video did not show corrections officers responding to any of the cells seen on the video. After speaking with MCC legal counsel, the Government was informed that the MCC computer system listed a different, incorrect cell for Tartaglione,’ prosecutors wrote in a letter filed in Manhattan Federal Court.

6am – E         IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she’ll “soon” transmit the articles of impeachment against President Trump to the Senate for a trial. Pelosi faces mounting pressure from Republicans and some Democrats to quit delaying the trial. It’s been three weeks since the House impeached Trump on charges of abuse and obstruction. Republicans say Democrats are embarrassed by their vote. Pelosi says Democrats are ”proud” of upholding the Constitution. Many on Capitol Hill expect the trial to begin next week.

6am – F         TOM STEYER SURGING IN SOUTH CAROLINA:

• ‘SUDDENLY SURGING’: Democrat Comes Out Of Nowhere, Jumps To #2 In South Carolina Behind Biden
• Steyer has QUALIFIED for the January debate with a day to go until the deadline, off an apparent surge in Fox News polls in South Carolina and Nevada

7am – A         Jillian Michaels asked why people are ‘celebrating’ Lizzo’s body. Critics slammed her as ‘fatphobic.’ (Washington Post) – Fitness expert and personal trainer Jillian Michaels has a message for fans of Lizzo, a singer whose chart-topping anthems preach self-love: celebrate her music, not her body. “Why are we celebrating her body? Why does it matter? Why aren’t we celebrating her music?” Michaels asked during a Wednesday appearance on BuzzFeed News’ morning show, “AM to DM.” “’Cause it isn’t going to be awesome if she gets diabetes.” Michaels’s comments — part of a larger discussion on health, wellness and body positivity — went viral Wednesday as critics accused the 45-year-old, who rose to fame as a coach on NBC’s controversial weight-loss competition, “The Biggest Loser,” of being “fatphobic.” A 43-second clip of the interview has since been watched more than 2.3 million times as of early Thursday.

7am – B/C     TRUMP RALLY: President Trump used his first campaign election rally of 2020 to argue that he served up “American justice” by ordering a drone strike to take out Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, while jeering at Democratic leaders for questioning his decision to carry out the attack without first consulting Congress. Trump mocked Nancy Pelosi’s mental acuity and called Congressman Adam Schiff a “pencil neck.” He also tagged Senator Bernie Sanders as “Crazy Bernie” for raising objections to how he carried out the assassination of Soleimani.

• Trump mocks Democrats’ push for notice before further military action on Iran: Pres Trump on killing Soleimani “Didn’t have time to call Nancy she’s not playing with a full deck”
• President Trump on his 2020 opponent: “I sort of hope it’s Joe because he will hear ‘where’s Hunter’ every single debate, nine times a debate.”

7am – D/E     DEMS GOING AFTER THE NRA RANGE… PRINCE WILLIAM TIMES: Helmer’s indoor shooting range bill could impact NRA’s Fairfax headquarters

• Va. Del. DAN HELMER: Shooting at the range is fun. But they don’t belong in populated work places & few are located there. Look no further than ⁦@NRA HQs in Fairfax, where a worker was wounded in a negligent discharge, to see that office buildings and ranges don’t mix.
• STEPHEN GUTOWSKI: This is a very confusing statement. The NRA range is in a completely separate building from the rest of the NRA offices so why would it be affected by your bill? Also, you say the bill would somehow save lives but now point to an injury from a negligent discharge instead. Why?
• HB567 wants to ensure gun ranges are government-owned. Here’s the text of the summary: As used in this section, “indoor shooting range” means any fully enclosed or indoor area or facility designed for the use of rifles, shotguns, pistols, silhouettes, skeet, trap , or black powder or any other similar sport shooting.     B. It is unlawful to operate an indoor shooting range in any building not owned or leased by the Commonwealth or the federal government unless (i) fewer than 50 employees work in the building or (ii) (a) at least 90 percent of the users of the indoor shooting range are law-enforcement officers, as defined in § 9.1-101, or federal law-enforcement officers, (b) the indoor shooting range maintains a log of each user’s name, phone number, address, and the law-enforcement agency where such user is employed, and (c) the indoor shooting range verifies each user’s identity and address by requiring all users to present a government-issued photo-identification card. / ABOUT THE BILL: https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?201+sum+HB567
• TOWNHALL.COM: Trying to capitalize on that momentum, Delegate-elect Dan Helmer (D), an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran, announced on Monday he is introducing three more gun control bills to “reduce gun violence in Virginia.”
  • HB567 will implement a ban on indoor shooting ranges in private buildings with “large numbers of employees” because of “recent workplace shootings.” The bill would ban the ranges if it is in a building that has more than 50 employees working in said building. Indoor ranges would be required to maintain a log of each shooter’s name, phone number, address, and the law-enforcement agency where such user is employed and the indoor range verifies each shooter’s identity and address by requiring all users to present a government-issued identification card. “This is a gun control bill that will eliminate jobs and destroy small businesses in Virginia without reducing crime. In addition to generating about $18 million each year in revenues, the state’s ranges are the epicenter for vital safety training,” National Rifle Association spokesperson Catherine Mortensen told Townhall. “This is where our law enforcement community comes to train alongside families and individuals seeking skills for home and self-defense.”
  • HB568 will ban open carry of firearms in private vehicles, with Helmer calling it “absurd that a loaded gun can be left unattended in a car’s glove box.” Gun owners would be required to secure their firearm in a locked container.

8am – A/B/C INTERVIEW – ALAN DERSHOWITZ – author of Guilt by Accusation: The Challenge of Proving Innocence in the Age of #MeToo – discussed the latest news about Jeffrey Epstein and his new book fighting the accusations against Dershowitz.

• LATEST NEWS: Security footage filmed outside Jeffrey Epstein’s cell on the night of his first suicide attempt was DESTROYED ‘by mistake’, federal prosecutors claim
• ABOUT HIS NEW BOOK: Guilt by Accusation: The Challenge of Proving Innocence in the Age of #MeToo / BOOK: In Guilt by Accusation, Dershowitz provides an indepth analysis of the false accusations against him, alongside a full presentation of the exculpatory evidence that proves his account, including emails from his accuser and an admission of his innocence from her lawyer, David Boies. Additionally, he examines current attitudes toward accusations of sexual misconduct, which are today, in the age of #MeToo, accepted as implicit truth without giving the accused a fair chance to defend themselves and their innocence, and suggests possible pathways back to a society and legal system in which due process is respected above public opinion and the whims of social media mobs. This book is Alan Dershowitz’s plea for fairness for both accuser and accused, his principled stand for due process no matter the allegation, and his compelling assertion of his own innocence. It is essential reading for anyone who wants to know the inside story behind the accusations against him or who cares about the current societal debate over how we should handle accusations of sexual misconduct. The #MeToo movement has generally been a force for good, but as with many good movements, it is being exploited by some bad people for personal profit. Supporters of the #MeToo movement must not allow false accusers to hurt real victims by hiding behind its virtuous shield, turning it into an exploitive sword against innocent people.

8am – D         INTERVIEW – BRET BAIER – Anchor of “special Report” on Fox News Channel weekdays at 6 pm and author of the latest book “Three Days at the Brink: FDR’s Daring Gamble to Win World War II”

• IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she’ll “soon” transmit the articles of impeachment against President Trump to the Senate for a trial. Pelosi faces mounting pressure from Republicans and some Democrats to quit delaying the trial. It’s been three weeks since the House impeached Trump on charges of abuse and obstruction. Republicans say Democrats are embarrassed by their vote. Pelosi says Democrats are ”proud” of upholding the Constitution. Many on Capitol Hill expect the trial to begin next week.
• TRUMP RALLY: President Trump used his first campaign election rally of 2020 to argue that he served up “American justice” by ordering a drone strike to take out Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani, while jeering at Democratic leaders for questioning his decision to carry out the attack without first consulting Congress. Trump mocked Nancy Pelosi’s mental acuity and called Congressman Adam Schiff a “pencil neck.” He also tagged Senator Bernie Sanders as “Crazy Bernie” for raising objections to how he carried out the assassination of Soleimani.
• WAR POWER RESOLUTION VOTE: The Democratic-controlled House has approved a resolution asserting that President Trump must seek approval from Congress before engaging in further military action against Iran. The war powers resolution is not binding and would not require his signature. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi nonetheless insists it “has real teeth” because “it is a statement of the Congress of the United States.” The House approved the measure, 224-194. Trump mocks Democrats’ push for notice before further military action on Iran.
• IRAN / UKRAINIAN AIRPLANE: An Iranian official is denying that one of their missiles hit a Ukrainian airplane that crashed near Tehran and is calling on both the U.S. and Canada to release data backing up their allegations. The head of Iran’s national aviation department spoke Friday in a news conference in Tehran about the crash. President Trump suggested he believed Iran was responsible, but did not directly blame the country. Iran has invited the NTSB to take part in the investigation into the crash, though the agency’s role could be limited by U.S. sanctions on Iran.
• Iranians shot down airliner, Western leaders declare. WASHINGTON (AP) — It is “highly likely” that Iran shot down the civilian Ukrainian jetliner that crashed near Tehran late Tuesday, killing all 176 people on board, U.S., Canadian and British officials declared Thursday. They said the fiery missile strike could well have been a mistake amid rocket launches and high tension throughout the region. The crash came just a few hours after Iran launched a ballistic attack against Iraqi military bases housing U.S. troops in its violent confrontation with Washington over the U.S. drone strike that killed an Iranian Revolutionary Guard general. The airliner could have been mistaken for a threat, said four U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence.