Cal Thomas, Ed Condon, Griff Jenkins and Mark Krikorian joined WMAL on Thursday!

Mornings on the Mall

Thursday, April 4, 2019

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

 

5am – A/B/C             Carol Roth: Millennials need a dose of reality. (Fox News) – Well, millennials missed the memo and feel like they haven’t participated in American prosperity at all, Charlotte Alter claims in a Time Magazine cover story on Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.. Alter, who is herself a Harvard grad, the daughter of a famous journalist and TV producer and the sibling of a venture capitalist, unironically writes in a tweet: “People our age have never experienced American prosperity in our adult lives— which is why so many millennials are embracing Democratic socialism.” This on the back of a quote from Ocasio-Cortez in the piece that says, “’An entire generation, which is now becoming one of the largest electorates in America, came of age and never saw American prosperity,’ she says. ‘I have never seen that, or experienced it, really, in my adult life.’”

Whether this is an attempt at gaslighting or pure delusion, in America, things are so good that many young people don’t know the difference. Prosperity has seeped into everyday life in a way that goes unappreciated. Millennials are the generation of instant gratification, where food is delivered to them on demand, they can stream entertainment programming to their personal device at any moment from everywhere and they don’t even have to raise their hand to hail a cab or take the bus; setting up an Uber will get you transportation at a moment’s notice. This is all amazing progress and prosperity, unless you take it for granted. Delayed gratification has been studied as a predictor of success. My father lived with my grandmother from the late 1950s to early 1970s — until he was 35, so he could have enough money saved to buy a house and start a family. The reason people have been successful in America is that they worked hard, they sacrificed and ultimately, their delay of gratification over enough years allowed them to experience better outcomes in later years. The instant-gratification generation has forgotten that and expects you should enter adulthood with ease. They believe you should be able to live in any city — including those with limited space and policies that drive up prices — and have amazing living conditions right out of school. They are aghast that you might have to work extra hours if you took on extra debt or that you might forego an avocado toast brunch at the hip café and make your own meals in order to save for a home and family.

5am – D/E     BIDEN VIDEO: Joe Biden: ‘I Will Be More Mindful About Respecting Personal Space’ / Former Vice President and potential 2020 Democrat presidential contender Joe Biden on Wednesday responded to fresh allegations of inappropriate touching against him from several women, pledging to be “more mindful about respecting personal space.” “Social norms are changing,” Biden wrote in a social media post with a two-minute long video. “I understand that, and I’ve heard what these women are saying.” https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2019/04/03/joe-biden-i-will-be-more-mindful-about-respecting-personal-space/

3 MORE BIDEN ACCUSERS: Three more women accuse Biden of improper contact, say his video wasn’t enough. Just hours after former Vice President Joe Biden appeared on video to promise he’d be “more mindful” about others’ personal space, three more women have gone public claiming he touched them inappropriately — and all three said Biden’s video didn’t go far enough.

6am – A         IMMIGRATION / BORDER NEWS:

• Trump Coming To California For Border Wall Update, SoCal Fundraiser. LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Heads up, travelers: President Donald Trump is coming to Southern California later this week. Trump is scheduled to fly into El Centro in Imperial County late Friday morning and travel to Calexico to view a newly completed section of border wall, according to White Hose officials. Following the border wall visit, the president will arrive at Los Angeles International Airport in advance of a planned Southland fundraiser Friday night. Trump made his first visit to California as president last March, and most recently came to the Southland in November to tour the devastation of the Woolsey Fire in Malibu.
• JORGE RAMOS: ILLEGALS ARE COMING & THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO TO STOP THEM: (Breitbart) – “The U.S. economy has been absorbing them and it seems that we have to realize that the only way to deal with this is in a legal way,” Ramos told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “Just to understand that legally they are going to keep coming and there is really nothing we can do to stop them.”
• TRUCKERS FACING HUGE DELAYS AT BORDER. (Reuters) –Trucks delivering goods from Mexico to the United States are facing up to 12 hours of gridlock, drivers said, after a transfer of U.S. border agents to immigration duties slowed the flow of commercial traffic at several border crossings.
• KAMALA HARRIS WANTS DREAMERS TO WORK IN CONGRESS. (Politico) —  On Wednesday, the 2020 contender will introduce legislation with Sens. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Catherine Cortez-Masto (D-Nev.) that would make Dreamers eligible to work as staffers or interns in Congress. It’s the latest move by the California Democrat to seize on an issue that her rival Beto O’Rourke has made his calling card — and to advocate for a Democratic constituency that’s often reduced to a congressional bargaining chip.
• SYRIAN MAN CAUGHT TRYING TO CROSS BORDER ON TRAIN: Agents at the Calexico West Port of Entry were observing a commercial railcar as it passed across the border on Friday around 6:15 a.m. when officers observed something amiss on the lower side of the train using the port’s imaging system.
• Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen makes abrupt border trip for ’emergency surge’

6am – B         MUELLER SUBPOENAS:

• House Democrats authorize subpoenas for Mueller report.  The vote was 24-17, with all Democrats supporting and all Republicans opposed. The authorization of subpoenas does not mean the committee will issue them but gives Democrats on the panel the option to do so. Republicans fumed over the move, accusing their counterparts of “political theater” since the DOJ has already pledged to cooperate.
• CNN’s Manu Raju: “Are you willing to negotiate any middle ground in terms of redactions of the Mueller report?” House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler: “No. The committee must see everything”
• Investigators for Special Counsel Mueller told associates that AG Barr inadequately characterized the findings of their inquiry, which they say could be worse for President Trump than Barr suggested, New York Times reports. Barr didn’t do justice to Mueller report, officials tell New York Times. Some on Mueller’s team think the attorney general should have included more of their material in his four-page summary, The Times reported.
• NY TIMES: Some on Mueller’s Team Say Report Was More Damaging Than Barr Revealed…THIN, THIN, THIN…. The officials and others interviewed declined to flesh out why some of the special counsel’s investigators viewed their findings as potentially more damaging for the president than Mr. Barr explained, although the report is believed to examine Mr. Trump’s efforts to thwart the investigation. It was unclear how much discussion Mr. Mueller and his investigators had with senior Justice Department officials about how their findings would be made public. It was also unclear how widespread the vexation is among the special counsel team, which included 19 lawyers, about 40 F.B.I. agents and other personnel.
• GREENWALD:  Trump/Russia conspiracists are like zombies: the dream can’t die. Their new hope is a) anonymously sourced, b) bereft of even one specific, c) irrelevant to *conspiracy* as opposed to obstruction & d) unrelated to the fact that Mueller indicted *zero* Americans for conspiracy
• CHUCK ROSS: This is one reason why the public is so frustrated w/ the media. Too many news outlets play games w/ their readers like this. If anonymous sources are going to be used they should at least make a specific and testable allegation.
• CHUCK ROSS: Reminder that Mueller & Co. could have issued more indictments or made a decision on obstruction if they thought they had a case.
• WAPO DELIVERS FEW NEW DETAILS: Limited information Barr has shared about Russia investigation frustrated some on Mueller’s team. But members of Mueller’s team have complained to close associates that the evidence they gathered on obstruction was alarming and significant. “It was much more acute than Barr suggested,” said one person, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the subject’s sensitivity
• Nadler In 1998: Of Course You Can’t Release Grand-Jury Testimony In Prosecutor’s Report

6am – D         INTERVIEW – CAL THOMAS – Syndicated columnist

• BIDEN VIDEO: Joe Biden: ‘I Will Be More Mindful About Respecting Personal Space’ / Former Vice President and potential 2020 Democrat presidential contender Joe Biden on Wednesday responded to fresh allegations of inappropriate touching against him from several women, pledging to be “more mindful about respecting personal space.” “Social norms are changing,” Biden wrote in a social media post with a two-minute long video. “I understand that, and I’ve heard what these women are saying.”
• 3 MORE BIDEN ACCUSERS: Three more women accuse Biden of improper contact, say his video wasn’t enough
• Cal Thomas column: Cal Thomas: Joe Biden suffers a political hit. Biden has not been accused of the things Fairfax or Bill Clinton have been accused of by numerous women, one of whom alleges that Clinton raped her. Biden is more experienced than any of the announced Democratic presidential candidates, which may be why the others want to derail his potential candidacy.

6am – E         House Democrats Want ‘Oversight’ over Fox News’ Editorial Decisions. (Breitbart) — Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives are demanding to know why Fox News did not publish a story prior to the 2016 election about an alleged affair years before between porn star Stormy Daniels and Donald Trump. House Committee on Oversight and Reform chair Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) wrote to former Fox News reporter Diana Falzone last month demanding that she turn over any documents relating to Trump’s alleged extramarital affairs. An article in the New Yorker last month alleged that Fox News executive Ken LaCorte spiked the story to protect Trump — a claim LaCorte has vehemently denied, saying the story lacked corroborating evidence and that the network was merely practicing responsible journalism, as were other outlets who declined the story. That article seems to have motivated Cummings’s letter — a letter that not only seeks personal dirt on the president, but seeks information that might be used to review Fox News’ editorial decisions. The committee’s letter suggests that Fox News may have violated campaign finance rules if it tried to help Trump by suppressing the Daniels story.

6am – F         Ancestry Testing Company: It’s Our ‘Moral Responsibility’ to Give The FBI Access to Your DNA. (Gizmodo) – A popular DNA testing company seems to be targeting true crime fans with a new pitch to let them share their genetic information with law enforcement so cops can catch violent criminals. Two months ago, FamilyTreeDNA raised privacy concerns after BuzzFeed revealed the company had partnered with the FBI and given the agency access to the genealogy database.  Law enforcement’s use of DNA databases has been widely known since last April when California officials revealed genealogy website information was instrumental in determining the identity of the Golden State Killer.  But in that case, detectives used publicly shared raw genetic data on GEDmatch. The recent news about FamilyTreeDNA marked the first known time a home DNA test company had willingly shared private genetic information with law enforcement. Several weeks later, FamilyTreeDNA changed their rules to allow customers to block the FBI from accessing their information. “Users now have the ability to opt out of matching with DNA relatives whose accounts are flagged as being created to identify the remains of a deceased individual or a perpetrator of a homicide or sexual assault,” the company said in a statement at the time. But now the company seems to be embracing this partnership with law enforcement with their new campaign called, “Families Want Answers.” The company plans to air a new advertisement this week in San Francisco that features Ed Smart, father of Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted in 2002 and held captive for nine months before being rescued.

7am – A         INTERVIEW – ED CONDON – DC Bureau Chief for Catholic News Agency — talked about what this appointment means (its significance) and the challenges the incoming Archbishop would face.

• Last week, Ed Condon (DC Bureau Chief for Catholic News Agency) reported that Pope Francis had asked Wilton Gregory (Archbishop of Atlanta) to lead the Washington Archdiocese. He would be the first African American to lead the Washington Archdiocese. Yesterday morning, Condon was reporting that the official announcement will be made Thursday in the Roman bollettino.
• Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Atlanta accepts Vatican’s offer to become new archbishop of Washington, where he will succeed Cardinal Donald Wuerl. (Washington Post) — ROME — Archbishop Wilton Gregory of Atlanta has accepted Pope Francis’s offer to become the new archbishop of Washington, according to two sources familiar with the process. The appointment finalizes a months-long effort to find a leader for an archdiocese that has been upended by accusations that its last leader mishandled cases of sexual abuse by clergy and his predecessor carried out abuse. A formal Holy See announcement will come Thursday, one of those sources said. With the new position, Gregory, 71, the only living African American U.S. archbishop, will become one of the most visible Catholic leaders in the country. The leader of the high-profile D.C. seat traditionally is made a cardinal, and Gregory would be the first black American to hold that position, and to thus be eligible to vote for the next pope. He replaces Cardinal Donald Wuerl, 78, who resigned in October but stayed on in a temporary caretaker position. In Gregory, Pope Francis has tapped one of the American church’s most visible Catholic leaders on the problem of sexual abuse, a man who helped write the U.S. church’s first guidelines on ending the abuse scandal, to helm an archdiocese tarnished by the crisis. However, advocates are more pleased than inspired by his record; he is seen as having done far more than his peers at the time, but he has not escaped some criticism. Neither Gregory nor a Vatican spokesman responded to requests for comments. An Archdiocese of Atlanta spokeswoman did not respond to numerous messages, nor did the Washington archdiocese. The offer to Gregory was first reported by the Catholic News Agency.

7am – B/C     Key House Democrat requests Trump’s tax returns from IRS. (CNN) House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal has formally requested President Donald Trump’s tax returns from the Internal Revenue Service, likely launching a battle with the administration that could stretch months or even years in the courts and could shed light on the President’s finances.  In a letter to the IRS sent Wednesday and first obtained by CNN, Neal cites a little known IRS code in his request for six years of Trump’s personal tax returns from 2013 to 2018. He also requested the tax returns of eight of Trump’s business entities, a nod to escalating pressure from liberals in the caucus who have argued that Trump’s personal returns wouldn’t sufficiently paint a picture of the President’s financial history. Trump said late Wednesday that he wouldn’t be inclined to provide his tax returns to Congress until he was no longer under audit. Asked about the request for six years of his tax returns, Trump asked, “Is that all? Oh, usually it’s 10 so I guess they’re giving up.”    

7am – D         INTERVIEW – GRIFF JENKINS – Fox News Channel report — is reporting from the border — reported that border patrol resources are at breaking point.

• Trump Coming To California For Border Wall Update, SoCal Fundraiser. LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Heads up, travelers: President Donald Trump is coming to Southern California later this week. Trump is scheduled to fly into El Centro in Imperial County late Friday morning and travel to Calexico to view a newly completed section of border wall, according to White Hose officials. Following the border wall visit, the president will arrive at Los Angeles International Airport in advance of a planned Southland fundraiser Friday night. Trump made his first visit to California as president last March, and most recently came to the Southland in November to tour the devastation of the Woolsey Fire in Malibu.
• Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen makes abrupt border trip for ’emergency surge’

7am – E         TRAYON WHITE UPDATE:

• Councilmember Trayon White is on another conspiracy theory kick, this time involving Nipsey Hussle. (DCist) — Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White has questions about the official narrative about the homicide of Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle on Sunday, and he has been posting conspiracy theories about Hussle’s death on his Instagram account. “5 shots to the body 1 to the head,” wrote White in a post with screenshots of an article outlining Hussle’s philanthropic efforts. “I been around violence all my life and never heard of someone that precise and intentional. That sounds professional. What’s the real truth🗣” After DCist contacted White’s office about the posts, the caption was edited to remove the portion that said: “I been around violence all my life and never heard of someone that precise and intentional. That sounds professional.” White and his office have not responded to repeated requests for comment. On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Police Department arrested 29-year-old Eric Holder in connection with Hussle’s killing. Police said the shooting stemmed from a personal dispute. “We believe they were known to each other,” LAPD chief Michel Moore said at a press conference on Tuesday. “It appears to be a personal matter between the two of them, and I’ll leave it at that.” But since Hussle, born Ermias Asghedom, was killed, conspiracy theorists have connected his death to his reported work on a documentary about Dr. Sebi, an herbalist who claimed that a diet he developed could cure AIDS and other illnesses. White appears to be among the people promoting the unfounded claim.
• D.C. AG Charges Man Driving Councilmember Trayon White’s Car In Alleged Hit And Run. (DCist) — The D.C. attorney general’s office is charging a 28-year-old man with leaving the scene of a car crash and driving without a license after he allegedly got into a fender bender while driving Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White’s car. The man’s name is Sergio Raynard Hill, and he lives in Southeast Washington, according to court documents. Hill got into a crash in White’s 2007 BMW on March 18 along I-295 near the Malcolm X Avenue exit, per the affidavit. He allegedly rear-ended a Toyota Camry with three people inside, causing damage to both vehicles. While he initially stopped on the side of the road to speak with the Camry driver, Hill reportedly told the Camry driver that his name was “Sergio Vererta,” and gave him two phone numbers that didn’t work, according to court documents. He left the scene, and the Camry driver called the police.

8am – A         More than 8,000 people on Instagram were watching AOC’s Instagram live stream, showing her put together IKEA furniture, drinking wine and talking about the GOP and climate change.

• As AOC begins putting her IKEA table together, she is asked about “tips for time management” on her Instagram feed. She says she “sacrifices a lot” so she’s not the best person to ask about that…
• AOC says she probably shouldnt be doing this while assembling furniture because she’s likely to mess it up
• While eating popcorn on her Instagram live video, AOC compared climate change and the world ending in 12 years to the civil rights movement and people protesting against African-Americans…
• AOC gives tips about “problem solving” and she says she learned this from “studying economics”…. says it’s important to know “your givens”
• AOC shares advice she’s gotten before about how to put IKEA furniture together

8am – B         2020 NEWS:

• UH OH: Rising Democratic presidential contender Pete Buttigieg said ‘all lives matter’ in 2015, putting his record on race in the spotlight
• Presidential candidate and South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg said during his interview with USA Today that it is hard to look at the actions of President Donald Trump and think he believes in God. (USA Today) — “I’m reluctant to comment on another person’s faith, but I would say it is hard to look at this president’s actions and believe that they’re the actions of somebody who believes in God,” Buttigieg said. “I just don’t understand how you can be as worshipful of your own self as he is and be prepared to humble yourself before God. I’ve never seen him humble himself before anyone. And the exaltation of yourself, especially a self that’s about wealth and power, could not be more at odds with at least my understanding of the teachings of the Christian faith,” he added. He also criticized conservatives  “saying so much about what Christ said so little about, and so little about what he said so much about,” like how the issue of abortion has become a litmus test. During an interview with The Washington Post, he also criticized Democrats for their tendencies to shun religion. “I think it’s unfortunate [the Democratic Party] has lost touch with a religious tradition that I think can help explain and relate our values,” the Navy veteran said. “At least in my interpretation, it helps to root [in religion] a lot of what it is we do believe in when it comes to protecting the sick and the stranger and the poor, as well as skepticism of the wealthy and the powerful and the established.”

8am – C         Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath Reveals He’s Going Deaf and Needs Hearing Aids After Years of Performing: “It’s scary because my job is hearing,” McGrath recently said of losing his hearing while he continues to tour around the country.

8am – D         INTERVIEW – MARK KRIKORIAN  – Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) – shared his observations from touring the border this week.

8am – E         FANS GUSH OVER COLLEGE ADMISSIONS FRAUDSTER PARENTS:

• “I’m gonna literally vomit!” Two young fans lost their minds when they saw Lori Loughlin heading into a Boston courthouse to face federal charges for the college admissions scheme
• Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin Appear in Court as College Admissions Scandal Rewrites Lives. (NY Times) — BOSTON — The actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin made their first appearances in federal court in Boston on Wednesday, along with 10 other parents charged in the college admissions fraud investigation. But while they are months away from a potential trial, in some ways their punishments have already started. Even before the 33 parents charged in the scandal have their cases heard in court, they are facing repercussions, from the limitations that come with being on bail to the shame of being held up as examples of greed and entitlement. They have been placed on leave or lost their jobs, had book contracts canceled and television shows scrapped. They must seek permission to leave the country, and for now, it seems, international vacations are out. In Boston, the horde of photographers outside the courthouse on Wednesday pointed to the public fascination with the case, in which the parents have become symbols of what many believe is a rigged system, not just in college admissions but in American society at large.