Griff Jenkins, James Carafano, Cal Thomas, Rep. David Trone, Tom Fitton, Mercedes Schlapp and Newt Gingrich joined WMAL on Wednesday!

Mornings on the Mall

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C WASHPOST STORY ON MUELLER AND BARR:

• Washington Post: Mueller complained to Barr about his four-page memo. Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III expressed concerns to William P. Barr after the attorney general publicized Mueller’s principal conclusions. Mueller also pressed Barr to release executive summaries.
• Key sentence in the report: “When Barr pressed [Mueller] whether [Mueller] thought Barr’s letter was inaccurate, Mueller said he did not, but felt that the media coverage of the letter was misinterpreting the investigation, officials said.”
• Barr to face grilling in Senate as new reports about Mueller raise eyebrows. Senate Democrats are expected to grill Attorney General William Barr in a dramatic and explosive hearing Wednesday morning, as he faces lawmakers’ questions for the first time since releasing Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report amid accusations he sought to present the investigation’s findings in President Trump’s favor. In a late-breaking article sure to feature prominently in Wednesday’s hearing, the Washington Post reported Tuesday evening that Mueller contacted Barr, both in a letter and in a phone call, to express concerns after Barr released his own public summary of the report in March. Mueller reportedly pushed Barr to release the executive summaries written by the special counsel’s office. However, according to both the Post and the Justice Department, Mueller made clear that he did not feel Barr’s summary was inaccurate. Instead, Mueller told Barr that media coverage of the letter had “misinterpreted” the results of the probe concerning obstruction of justice.

5am – D         INTERVIEW – GRIFF JENKINS – Correspondent for Fox News Channel — discussed what he’s seeing in Mexico while following the caravans.

• Fox & Friends First ‏@FoxFriendsFirst 21h21 hours ago: .@GriffJenkins speaks with migrants from India & Cameroon who are staying at a Mexico shelter. They share why they’re making the trek to the U.S.
• Griff Jenkins ‏@GriffJenkins 18h18 hours ago Caravans in Mexico seeing migrants from all over the globe now @foxandfriends foxnews #border #mexico @ Instituto Nacional de Migracion! Delegacion Tapachula

5am – E         CHUCK & NANCY ANNOUNCE $2 TRILLION INFRASTRUCTURE DEAL: (Daily Mail) — President Trump blamed a former aide for his flawed infrastructure plan his first year in office and praised a $2 trillion proposal put forward by Nancy Pelosi at Tuesday meeting in the White House, where he shared a box of Freshmint Tic Tacs with her. Trump told lawmakers he never wanted a public-private partnership because ‘you get sued’ and would be willing to go a route that ‘may not be typically Republican,’ a Democratic source told DailyMail.com. The president said a top aide who’s no longer with the administration, Gary Cohn, crafted the proposal he seemed eager to ditch. ‘That was a Gary bill. That bill was so stupid,’ the source said Trump told a room of Democratic lawmakers.    The president agreed to double his original ask from Congress for repairs, the source said, settling on $2 trillion because he favors the big, round number. ‘I like the number you’ve been using, Nancy. Two trillion,’ he said. ‘Two trillion. That number you can talk about.’ He also promised Democrats, in the closed-door meeting, ‘I’ll lead on this.’

6am – A         INTERVIEW – JAMES CARAFANO –  vice president of foreign and defense policy studies  The Heritage Foundation. @JJCarafano – analyzed the situation in Venezuela.

• NYT: Venezuelan Opposition Leader Steps Up Pressure, but Maduro Holds On
• Trump, Seeking to Put Pressure on Maduro, Threatens a Full Embargo on Cuba
• Pompeo claims Russia stopped Maduro leaving Venezuela for Cuba
• SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO’S MESSAGE TO VENEZUELA’S MADURO: ‘FIRE UP THE PLANE’
• Venezuela’s Maduro denies Pompeo’s claim that he sought to escape to Cuba after day of clashes that left 1 dead, dozens hurt
• White House national security adviser John Bolton on Venezuela clashes: “The Cubans, we believe, have played a very significant role in propping Maduro up today, possibly with help from the Russians. That’s the speculation, certainly in Caracas”
• MADURO KICKS CNN OFF THE AIR AS VENEZUELANS REVOLT AGAINST HIM
• Venezuela in chaos: Opposition leader Juan Guaidó has called for a new round of mass protests on Wednesday after a day of violent uprising in Venezuela against disputed President Nicolas Maduro. After being absent for most of the day, Maduro took to the airwaves to proclaim that Guaidó’s rebellion had been defeated. However, that did not stop Guaidó, who is recognized by the U.S. and more than 50 other nations as Venezuela’s rightful president, from calling for more protests. Opposition forces hope that fed-up Venezuelans will be so angered by broadcast images of armored vehicles plowing into protesters that they will continue to riot in the streets. And in a blow to Maduro, Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera, the head of Venezuela’s feared secret police, turned his back on the disputed leader in an open letter made public Tuesday night.

6am – B         UNC Charlotte: Suspect facing multiple charges in deadly campus shooting, family says he is student. (Fox News) – The suspect in the deadly shooting on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte on Tuesday was reportedly charged with two counts of murder and other charges as authorities search for a motive. Trystan Andrew Terrell, 22, was charged early Wednesday of two counts of murder, four counts of attempted murder, four counts of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill, possession of a firearm on educational property and discharging a firearm on educational property, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department confirmed. The suspect’s grandfather Paul Rold of Arlington, Texas, said that Terrell and his father moved to Charlotte from the Dallas area about two years ago after his mother died. Rold said his grandson was attending UNC-Charlotte. Police Chief Jeff Baker told reporters late Tuesday that campus police received a call about a suspect who was armed with a pistol who “had shot several students.” After officers responded to the scene within minutes, the suspect was disarmed and taken into custody. A total of six people were shot by the suspect. Of those six, two were killed while three remain in critical condition with the fourth suffering from non-life threatening injuries, Baker said. Students were among the victims, but officials would not say how many. The school’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) tweeted just before 9 p.m. on Tuesday that a lockdown across campus was still active, despite the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department tweeting that the scene was “secure.” Before 6 p.m. the OEM said that shots had been reported near the school’s Kennedy Building. “Run, Hide, Fight. Secure Yourself immediately,” the office tweeted. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper was quickly briefed on the situation at UNCC, according to his Twitter account. Vi Lyles, the mayor of Charlotte, tweeted that news of the shooting was shocking. Librarian Laura McShane told The Charlotte Observer that she was working at the school’s Atkins Library when she “heard a ruckus” nearby.

6am – C         ‘No plans’ for Jussie Smollett’s ‘Empire’ character to return as series is renewed, Fox says. (Fox News) — Fox Entertainment’s hit show “Empire” was officially picked up for a sixth season — but without one of its controversial mainstays, Jussie Smollett. “By mutual agreement, the studio has negotiated an extension to Jussie Smollett’s option for season six, but at this time there are no plans for the character of Jamal to return to ‘Empire,’” Fox Entertainment and 20th Century Fox TV issued in a statement to Fox News on Tuesday. A spokesperson for Smollett also told Fox News: “We’ve been told that Jussie will not be on Empire in the beginning of the season but he appreciates they have extended his contract to keep Jamal’s future open. Most importantly he is grateful to Fox and Empire leadership, cast, crew and fans for their unwavering support.” Smollett was spotted vacationing in Hawaii earlier this month after he had 16 felony disorderly conduct charges dropped against him in Chicago for his alleged role in a hate-crime scandal. He also was seen last week having lunch with “Empire” showrunner Brett Mahoney in North Hollywood. In a stunning reversal, the Cook County State Attorney’s office announced on March 26 that all felony counts against Smollett were being dropped and the record in the case sealed. Smollett voluntarily forfeited his $10,000 bond, and Smollett’s attorney, Patricia Brown-Holmes, said the funds would likely go to the city of Chicago.

6am – D         INTERVIEW – CAL THOMAS – Syndicated Columnist – discussed the Chuck/Nancy meeting and Biden presidential campaign rollout.

6am – E         Bernie Sanders Urges Disney to Use ‘Avengers: Endgame’ Profits to ‘Pay Its Workers a Middle-Class Wage’ (Breitbart) — Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said that Disney should be spending its $1 billion-plus profits from the Avengers: Endgame film on paying all it’s employees middle-class wages. “What would be truly heroic is if Disney used its profits from Avengers to pay all of its workers a middle class wage, instead of paying its CEO Bob Iger $65.6 million – over 1,400 times as much as the average worker at Disney makes,” Bernie Sanders said. Sanders’ statement comes after Roy Disney’s granddaughter Abigail Disney criticized Disney CEO Bob Iger over his salary. “When [Iger] got his bonus last year, I did the math, and I figured out that he could have given personally, out of pocket, a 15% raise to everyone who worked at Disneyland, and still walked away with $10 million,” she said. “So there’s a point at which there’s just too much going around the top of the system into this class of people who–I’m sorry this is radical–have too much money. There is such a thing.” Avengers: Endgame certainly has been a huge box office success — earning over $1 billion globally in its opening weekend. Of course, the stars of the film, like many in Hollywood, have used the popularity of the movie to promote their social justice views.

6am – F         NATS HAT GUY REPRESENTIN’ D.C. WHILE SHOOTING AT MADURO’S FORCES: Defected soldiers and protesters exchange gunfire with troops in Venezuela. A guy wearing a Nationals hat and shirt is shooting up the place, going after Maduro’s people.

7am – A         INTERVIEW — REP. DAVID TRONE (D-MD) — discussed Bill to Authorize $5 billion for State Opioid Response Grants.

• Reps. Trone, Armstrong, Sherrill, and Riggleman to Announce Bill to Authorize $5 Billion for State Opioid Response Grants. Bill is first effort of many from members of the bipartisan Freshmen Working Group on Addiction. Washington, DC – Representative David Trone (D-MD) along with Reps. Kelly Armstrong (R-ND), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ), and Denver Riggleman (R-VA) will announce a bill to authorize $5 billion in funding over five years for State Opioid Response (SOR) Grants and Tribal Opioid Response (TOR) Grants at a press conference on Wednesday morning. This is the first bill of many from members of the bipartisan Freshmen Working Group on Addiction, the largest working group in the freshman class dedicated to bringing fresh eyes to the addiction crisis. The group consists of 55 members of the freshman class from 30 states across the country.

7am – B/C     Venezuela in chaos: Opposition leader Juan Guaidó has called for a new round of mass protests on Wednesday after a day of violent uprising in Venezuela against disputed President Nicolas Maduro. After being absent for most of the day, Maduro took to the airwaves to proclaim that Guaidó’s rebellion had been defeated. However, that did not stop Guaidó, who is recognized by the U.S. and more than 50 other nations as Venezuela’s rightful president, from calling for more protests. Opposition forces hope that fed-up Venezuelans will be so angered by broadcast images of armored vehicles plowing into protesters that they will continue to riot in the streets. And in a blow to Maduro, Manuel Ricardo Cristopher Figuera, the head of Venezuela’s feared secret police, turned his back on the disputed leader in an open letter made public Tuesday night.

• NYT: Venezuelan Opposition Leader Steps Up Pressure, but Maduro Holds On.
• Trump, Seeking to Put Pressure on Maduro, Threatens a Full Embargo on Cuba
• Pompeo claims Russia stopped Maduro leaving Venezuela for Cuba
• SECRETARY OF STATE MIKE POMPEO’S MESSAGE TO VENEZUELA’S MADURO: ‘FIRE UP THE PLANE’
• Venezuela’s Maduro denies Pompeo’s claim that he sought to escape to Cuba after day of clashes that left 1 dead, dozens hurt
• White House national security adviser John Bolton on Venezuela clashes: “The Cubans, we believe, have played a very significant role in propping Maduro up today, possibly with help from the Russians. That’s the speculation, certainly in Caracas”
• MADURO KICKS CNN OFF THE AIR AS VENEZUELANS REVOLT AGAINST HIM

7am – D/E     INTERVIEW – TOM FITTON – President, Judicial Watch (In studio) – discussed Attorney General Barr’s upcoming hearing and Judicial Watch’s lawsuit against the DC metro.

• DC Metro Sued for Denying Request for Customer Satisfaction Survey Results. Judicial Watch Sues WMATA on Behalf of DC Metro Watchdog for Customer Satisfaction Survey. Unsuck DC Metro, an anonymous Metro watchdog, says it has repeatedly asked for Metro to produce the results of a September 2018 survey.
• BARR HEADS TO THE HILL ON WEDNESDAY: Senate Judiciary Committee hearing featuring testimony from US Attorney General William Barr will be at approximately 10:00 a.m. (ET). Barr will face lawmakers’ questions Wednesday for the first time since releasing special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report.

8am – A         INTERVIEW – MERCEDES SCHLAPP – White House Director of Strategic Communications @mercedesschlapp – reacted to the situation in Venezuela.

8am – B/C     Barr to face grilling in Senate as new reports about Mueller raise eyebrows. Senate Democrats are expected to grill Attorney General William Barr in a dramatic and explosive hearing Wednesday morning, as he faces lawmakers’ questions for the first time since releasing Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report amid accusations he sought to present the investigation’s findings in President Trump’s favor. In a late-breaking article sure to feature prominently in Wednesday’s hearing, the Washington Post reported Tuesday evening that Mueller contacted Barr, both in a letter and in a phone call, to express concerns after Barr released his own public summary of the report in March. Mueller reportedly pushed Barr to release the executive summaries written by the special counsel’s office. However, according to both the Post and the Justice Department, Mueller made clear that he did not feel Barr’s summary was inaccurate. Instead, Mueller told Barr that media coverage of the letter had “misinterpreted” the results of the probe concerning obstruction of justice.

8am – D         INTERVIEW – NEWT GINGRICH – former Speaker of the House and author of new book “Collusion: A Novel” AND host of the new podcast “Newt’s World” – discussed his new book, previewed the Barr hearing.

• BOOK SIGNING TONIGHT: Wednesday, May 1st) at 7:30 pm at the Barnes & Noble in Ashburn, VA

8am – E         AOC NEWS:

• AOC IS EXCITED ABOUT HER GARDEN: “I am SHOOK, like honestly, gardening, FOOD– that comes out of dirt… it’s Like magic “
• Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders Silent On Venezuela Allegedly Attacking Protesters. Socialists Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) were completely silent on Tuesday about the situation unfolding in Venezuela as the socialist nation reportedly fired on and ran over protesters. “Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó took to the streets on Tuesday, calling on citizens and the military to back him up in the ‘final phase’ of the interim president’s plan to end the regime of socialist President Nicolás Maduro,” Fox News reported. “Guaido’s announcement immediately drew support from politicians in the U.S., which said earlier this year it would recognize Guaidó as the country’s interim president.” At the time this report was written, neither of the socialist politicians had made any remarks about what was happening in Venezuela which included reports that the government had fired on protesters and a disturbing video of an armored military vehicle driving over protesters. Ocasio-Cortez tweeted nothing about Venezuela from her official congressional Twitter account or from her personal Twitter account.