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Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C Who should be buried at Arlington National Cemetery? Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) is at another crossroads in its history. In about twenty-five years, ANC will run out of space as an active cemetery to honor our Nation’s veterans. In order to significantly extend ANC’s capacity, changes to either eligibility criteria and/or expansion of the cemetery’s geographic footprint are required.

5am – D/E     Fight against ISIS has shifted to “annihilation tactics,” Mattis says

Secretary of Defense James Mattis said the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria has “accelerated” and shifted to “annihilation tactics.” “Our strategy right now is to accelerate the campaign against ISIS. It is a threat to all civilized nations,” Mattis said in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “We have already shifted from attrition tactics where we shove them from one position to another in Iraq and Syria, to annihilation tactics where we surround them,” Mattis said. “Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa. We’re not going to allow them to do so. We’re going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate.”

5am – E  Sleep deprivation can cause brain to start ‘eating’ itself (The Telegraph)
A lack of sleep can cause parts of the brain’s synapses to be ‘eaten’ by other brain cells, according to a new study by researchers at the Marche Polytechnic University in Italy. Astrocytes are a cell in the brain that clean out worn-out cells and debris. Scientists studying the brains of mice found these cells were more active when the animals had been deprived of sleep, breaking down more of the brain’s connections. “We show for the first time that portions of synapses are literally eaten by astrocytes because of sleep loss,” research leader Michele Bellesi told New Scientist.

6am – A  Vox Smears Marines As ‘Fraternity’ Members With A ‘Toxic Masculinity Problem’  Vox attacked the Marine Corps for its “toxic masculinity problem” on Memorial Day, the national holiday dedicated to honoring the American men and women who died serving their country in the armed forces.

The liberal website, a personal favorite of Barack Obama with a reputation for butchering simple facts, claimed the Marine Corps has a “well-earned reputation for being a fraternity that often marginalizes or mistreats female troops.” The author, Vox staff writer Alex Ward, does not appear to be a military veteran. Ward claimed that a recent Marine Corps ad on women in combat “inadvertently refocused attention on the service’s well-earned reputation for being a fraternity that often marginalizes or mistreats female troops.”

6am – B Comey acted on Russian intelligence he knew was fake (CNN)

Then-FBI Director James Comey knew that a critical piece of information relating to the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s email was fake — created by Russian intelligence — but he feared that if it became public it would undermine the probe and the Justice Department itself, according to multiple officials with knowledge of the process. As a result, Comey acted unilaterally last summer to publicly declare the investigation over – without consulting then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch — while at the same time stating that Clinton had been “extremely careless” in her handling of classified information. His press conference caused a firestorm of controversy and drew criticism from both Democrats and Republicans. The Washington Post reported Wednesday that this Russian intelligence was unreliable. US officials now tell CNN that Comey and FBI officials actually knew early on that this intelligence was indeed false.

6am  – C        Civil War Museum Says It’s Closing Because County Asked Them to Remove Confederate Flags (TIME) A Georgia Civil War museum is closing its doors after the county asked it to remove a Confederate Flag from public land in front of the building.

The Nash Farm Battlefield Museum alleged in a May 23 Facebook post that Henry County Commissioner Dee Clemmons asked the staff to remove all Confederate flags from within the museum and gift shop, and that its main volunteer and donor decided to take his relics off display in response. Clemmons told a local Fox affiliate that she asked the museum to remove the flag from out front, but said she had no issue with the flags on display inside the museum.

“To exclude any Confederate flag would mean the historical value has been taken from our exhibits, and a fair interpretation could not be presented to each guest,” the Board of Friends of Nash Farm Battlefield, Inc. said in the statement. “Confederate flags were on this hallowed ground, as were the Union flags. To remove either of them would be a dishonor.”

6am – D/E/F  Should people convicted of misdemeanors have to give DNA samples?

Va. crime commission to study expansion of DNA databank to include more people convicted of misdemeanors. The Virginia State Crime Commission will consider expanding the state DNA database of convicted people by including more misdemeanors.

While a larger database of DNA profiles from offenders would help solve more crimes, further expansion of qualifying crimes raises cost and privacy concerns and is opposed by the ACLU of Virginia and others.The commission staff will also review the adequacy of current safeguards against the unauthorized collection, retention or dissemination of DNA information collected by authorities and the money required for any additional collecting.

7am – A/B/C  What changes do you want to see in the White house?

Trump Pushing Big White House Changes as Russia Crisis Grows (WSJ)

President Donald Trump is actively discussing major changes in the White House, including having lawyers vet his tweets and shaking up his top staff, as he grapples with the fallout from probes into his campaign’s dealings with Russia, according to several senior administration officials and outside advisers.

7am – D Hillary Clinton’s Team Is Worried the Resistance Doesn’t Want Her As of late, Hillary has taken to marketing herself as the leader of the anti-Trump resistance, Tweeting about her defeat, haranguing Trump in public appearances and “persisting” despite her loss.  Hillary Clinton’s inner circle is concerned that the “resistance” that cropped up in the wake of President Donald Trump’s electoral win isn’t embracing the failed Democratic Presidential candidate as their de facto leader. As of late, Hillary has taken to marketing herself as the leader of the anti-Trump resistance, Tweeting about her defeat, haranguing Trump in public appearances and “persisting” despite her loss. It’s clear from Clinton’s Twitter feed, paid speeches, and comments that she wants to lead the mostly female opposition to Trump’s policy agenda. But according to sources close to Clinton’s inner circle, she’s yet again failing in her quest to win over motivated Democrats. POLITICO reports that her top aides are getting frustrated that they simply can’t force progressives to adopt Clinton as their leader. Reportedly, Clinton had planned to lay low through the winter, studying her campaign postmortems in order to re-emerge on the political scene with a strong message in the spring. They apparently expected her to be warmly received, and cast into the role of a “central resistance figure.” But in the time Clinton spent licking her wounds and imbibing Chardonnay, the Democratic Party moved on. The “resistance” coalesced, and determined both its priorities and its strategy without her leadership.

7am–E  Palestinian judge bans divorce during Ramadan because ‘people make hasty decisions when they’re hungry’ A Palestinian judge has banned divorces during the month of Ramadan as people may make hasty decisions “because they have not eaten and not smoked”. Mahmoud al-Habbash, head of the Palestinian Islamic sharia court system, said people who deprive themselves of food and cigarettes during daylight hours may “create problems” in their relationship and then make “quick and ill-considered decisions”. To avoid such decisions, judges will only consider and rule on divorce applications made after the month of fasting is over, Al Jazeera reports. He said his order was based on “the experience of previous years”.

8am – A  INTERVIEW –GEOFFREY SKELLEY – U. of Virginia Center for Politics political analyst 

Topic: Two weeks left in the Virginia Governor’s race – an early call for the 2018 midterms – or not?

• The Democrats’ race is too close to call. 
• Ed Gillespie is probably safe in the GOP race, but he trails both Democrat candidates by double digits in the latest polls.
• Also – a lot of drama in the Lt. Governor’s races

8am – B Fight against ISIS has shifted to “annihilation tactics,” Mattis says

Secretary of Defense James Mattis said the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria has “accelerated” and shifted to “annihilation tactics.” “Our strategy right now is to accelerate the campaign against ISIS. It is a threat to all civilized nations,” Mattis said in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” “We have already shifted from attrition tactics where we shove them from one position to another in Iraq and Syria, to annihilation tactics where we surround them,” Mattis said. “Our intention is that the foreign fighters do not survive the fight to return home to North Africa, to Europe, to America, to Asia, to Africa. We’re not going to allow them to do so. We’re going to stop them there and take apart the caliphate.”

8am–C           Bryce Harper, Hunter Strickland start bench-clearing brawl between Nats, Giants (ESPN) Washington Nationals star Bryce Harper charged San Francisco Giants reliever Hunter Strickland in the eighth inning of the teams’ game Monday, leading to a bench-clearing brawl between the clubs. Strickland plunked Harper in the hip with a 98 mph fastball. Harper then gestured at Strickland with his bat, strode to the mound and threw his helmet at the Giants pitcher before the two exchanged blows as benches cleared. It was the first time the two had met since Harper hit two home runs off Strickland during the 2014 National League Division Series between the Nationals and Giants.

8am – D INTERVIEW – LARRY KUDLOW – CNBC Senior Contributor and host of The Larry Kudlow Show on WMAL Saturdays

TOPIC:  President Trump’s Growth Budget

• It will restore the Clinton-Gingrich welfare reforms that made it more profitable to work than not work.

8am – E Golfer Tiger Woods says prescription medication led to DUI arrest in Jupiter Golfer Tiger Woods was charged with driving under the influence early Monday morning in Jupiter and said later in a written statement that prescribed medications contributed to the arrest. In April, he said in a post on his website that he underwent successful back surgery to alleviate ongoing pain in his back and leg.

It’s unclear if Woods was given a breathalyzer at the time he was stopped by police.  Jupiter police have not released the arrest report.