Former VA Governor Jim Gilmore, Lt. Col. Tony Shaffer, Amb. John Bolton and Larry Kudlow joined WMAL on Tuesday!

Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Hosts: Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor

5am – A/B/C INTERVIEW – FORMER VIRGINIA GOVERNOR JIM GILMORE – head of the Trump campaign’s Virginia Get Out The Vote Outreach effort – discussed whether Virginia will go red.

5am – D         NY, NJ bombings: Suspect charged with attempted murder of officers.

New York (CNN)The man suspected in Saturday’s bombings in New York and New Jersey was captured on Monday after a frantic manhunt and shootout. Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, was charged with five counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer after a shootout Monday with police in Linden, New Jersey, Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park said. He is also charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose.

5am – E         WMAL FREE SPEECH FORUM: Join Brian Wilson, Larry O’Connor, Chris Plante and Mark Levin at WMAL’s Free Speech Forum Saturday, October 1st at The Birchmere! Brian, Larry, Chris and Mark live on stage discussing the latest news and politics… they’ll be taking your questions and they won’t be holding anything back! Seating is general admission and is first come, first served.  Food and drink are available for purchase, so please feel free to enjoy dinner before the show.  Doors open: 6pm / Program starts: 7:30pm / Meet & greet after the show starts approximately 9pm GO TO GET TICKETS: https://www.wmal.com/freespeechforum/

6am – A/B/C Hillary’s Hollow Call for ‘Tough Vetting.’ Clinton’s 550-percent refugee increase would make proper screening impossible. In the wake of new terrorists attacks carried out against American citizens by foreign-born Muslim extremists, Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton attempted to obscure her radical position on Syrian refugee resettlement. At a press conference in White Plains, New York, Monday, Clinton said she has been a proponent of “tough vetting” for refugees.

6am – D/E     Hugging at work: OK or not OK?  (U.S. News and World Report) — You’re greeting a colleague you haven’t seen in a while, or ending a meeting with a client. Do you enthusiastically open your arms for a hug?  Do you wait awkwardly to see if they initiate a hug first? Shrink back in the hopes that you won’t get hugged? Just default to a handshake? Hugging in professional contexts can cause a lot of confusion, especially since some people are determined huggers and others definitely don’t want to physically embrace colleagues. And yet there are entire industries where hugging is normal, especially as offices become more casual, and there are also fields where hugging would seem wildly out of place.

7am – A         INTERVIEW — LT. COL TONY SHAFFER – a CIA trained former senior intelligence officer and the New York Times bestselling author of ” Operation Dark Heart: Spycraft an Special Operations on the Frontlines of Afghanistan – And The Path to Victory.”   His last book was “The Last Line.”

• NY, NJ bombings: Suspect charged with attempted murder of officers. Ahmad Khan Rahami, 28, was charged with five counts of attempted murder of a law enforcement officer after a shootout Monday with police in Linden, New Jersey, Union County Prosecutor Grace H. Park said. He is also charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a weapon and second-degree possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. Authorities said Rahami is “directly linked” to bombings Saturday in New York City and Seaside Park, New Jersey, and is believed to be connected to pipe bombs found Sunday night in Elizabeth, New Jersey, sources said.
• Bombings suspect spent time Afghanistan, Pakistan, official says.  (CNN) Ahmad Khan Rahami, the suspect in the weekend bombings in New York and New Jersey, traveled for extended periods to Afghanistan and Pakistan in the last few years, officials said. Rahami, 28, spent several weeks in Kandahar, Afghanistan, and Quetta, Pakistan, in 2011, according to a law enforcement official who reviewed his travel and immigration record. Two years later, in April 2013, he went to Pakistan and remained there until March 2014 before returning to the US, official said. Investigators are looking into whether he was radicalized overseas before returning to the United States in 2014, according to the official.

7am – B         Gary Johnson: I’d close Dept. of Homeland Security. Libertarian presidential nominee Gary Johnson on Monday said he would shutter the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as president. Johnson’s vow follows bombings incidents in New Jersey and New York over the weekend that injured 29. “I would,” he told host Neil Cavuto when asked on the Fox Business Network if he would consider closing down the agency. “I think it’s just another layer of bureaucracy. It’s just spending more money than we have to spend. “Look, we should always be looking for ways to make government more efficient. Why is it that government makes the perfect choices and business doesn’t? Well, business doesn’t and they admit it.” Johnson, the former GOP governor of New Mexico, said he would have the FBI assume the DHS’s responsibilities.

7am – C         WMAL FREE SPEECH FORUM: Join Brian Wilson, Larry O’Connor, Chris Plante and Mark Levin at WMAL’s Free Speech Forum Saturday, October 1st at The Birchmere! Brian, Larry, Chris and Mark live on stage discussing the latest news and politics… they’ll be taking your questions and they won’t be holding anything back! Seating is general admission and is first come, first served.  Food and drink are available for purchase, so please feel free to enjoy dinner before the show.  Doors open: 6pm / Program starts: 7:30pm / Meet & greet after the show starts approximately 9pm GO TO GET TICKETS: https://www.wmal.com/freespeechforum/

7am – D         Virginia governor spotted with Willie Nelson _ and his weed. BRISTOW, Va. (AP) — Posing for pictures is part of every governor’s job. Posing with a can of marijuana — not so much. But Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe did just that, inadvertently, when he went to greet country music legend Willie Nelson this weekend. A picture posted on Twitter shows McAuliffe and Nelson, who was performing in Virginia. On the table between them is a can of Willie’s Reserve, Nelson’s brand of marijuana that’s sold in Colorado and Washington. Marijuana possession is illegal in Virginia.

McAuliffe photographed with Willie Nelson – and Willie’s weed – at Va. Concert. (Richmond Times-Dispatch) – McAuliffe spokesman Brian Coy said the governor stopped by Nelson’s bus while thanking several performers at Farm Aid 2016, an annual festival meant to benefit family farmers. Coy said McAuliffe, who opposes marijuana legalization, visited Nelson for 10 minutes or less and “had no idea” what else was on the bus. “He was not and still is not aware of whatever was on the table or anywhere around him and wouldn’t know marijuana or related paraphernalia if it walked up and shook his hand,” Coy said. “He’s cool, but he’s not that cool.”

7am – E         Entertainment News:

• Angela Lansbury revives ‘Beauty and the Beast’ role in NY. NEW YORK (AP) — For one night only, Angela Lansbury served audiences a live performance as Mrs. Potts. The actress revived her beloved character from the Disney animated musical “Beauty and the Beast” during a 25th anniversary screening Sunday at Lincoln Center in New York. In videos of the event posted online , Lansbury sang the musical’s title track and sweetly capped off the performance with a few lines from the film: “Run along and get in the cupboard, Chip. It’s time you was in bed. Night, night.” Lansbury was accompanied by “Beauty and the Beast” composer Alan Menken on the piano for the spontaneous post-screening performance.
• Dolly Parton And Pentatonix Give ‘Jolene’ A Hauntingly Beautiful A Cappella Update. (Huffington Post)  – Dolly Parton has teamed up with a cappella group Pentatonix to give her classic hit “Jolene” a refreshing update.  In a video posted by the Texas quintet on Friday, they’re seen performing the track with Ms. Dolly herself. With just their vocals, the band gives the country icon’s song a hauntingly beautiful twist, complete with perfect harmonies and a little beatboxing. (It’s now available on iTunes.) Parton’s voice, as usual, is on point.  The day the video was released, Parton tweeted about the experience of singing with Pentatonix, calling it “pure magic.”
• Emmy ratings set another record low. (USA Today) — The 68th Primetime Emmy Awards averaged a meager 11.3 million viewers Sunday, worse than last year’s record low of 11.9 million. Preliminary Nielsen ratings show the telecast, which aired live in all time zones, suffered against competition from NBC’s Sunday Night Football, and was even approached by the opener of CBS’s The Case of JonBenet Ramsay miniseries, which drew 10.3 million. The turnout compares unfavorably to the Emmys’ recent high in 2013, when 17.6 million tuned it to see Modern Family and Breaking Bad win the top awards. ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel hosted Sunday’s Emmys, as he did in 2012, the last time they aired on the network.  Unlike other awards shows, the Emmy Awards rotates among the four major broadcast networks. Last year, Fox’s broadcast, hosted by Andy Samberg, followed that network’s own late-afternoon football telecast. Nielsen Social reports that 1.4 million people generated 2.7 million interactions on Facebook and Twitter Sunday night, easily tops among non-sports TV shows for the week.

8am – A         INTERVIEW — AMB. JOHN BOLTON – former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute – previewed Obama’s final speech at the UN and analyzed this weekend’s terror incidents.

• Russia calls for emergency UN Security Council meeting over airstrikes on Syrian troops. (CNN)Hours after US-led coalition airstrikes reportedly killed dozens of Syrian troops, the US and Russian ambassadors to the United Nations chastised each other outside an emergency Security Council meeting. The strike occurred Saturday in an eastern part of Syria that is not a part of a delicate and nearly week-old ceasefire. The US military said it was targeting ISIS militants and if it hit Syrian troops, it was an accident.
• World Leaders at UN Approve Plan for Refugee Crisis. UNITED NATIONS — World leaders on Monday approved a declaration aimed at providing a more coordinated and humane response to the refugee crisis that has strained resources and sparked divisions from Africa to Europe. The issue of what to do about the world’s 65.3 million displaced people took center stage at the U.N. General Assembly with leaders from the 193 member states taking part in the first-ever summit on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants.
• Obama, in final visit to United Nations, to focus on refugees. NEW YORK — President Obama will push world leaders to do more to meet the needs of the world’s swelling throngs of refugees on Tuesday, telling the United Nations that the entire world has a responsibility to help families displaced by war and persecution.
• Thoughts on the 3 terror incidents over the weekend

8am – B         SPORTS NEWS:

• In Mets debut, Tim Tebow absorbs fans’ love, ready to ’embrace the grind.‘ (USA Today) — PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. – They shrieked the moment they spotted him on the baseball field. They gave him a standing ovation after each round of batting practice. The lively crowd, nearing almost 600, even cheered him during calisthenics. Tim Tebow, the legendary Florida quarterback and newest member of the New York Mets organization, captivated this sleepy town Monday morning, with kids skipping school and adults calling in sick from work.
• Multiple Philadelphia Eagles Players Protest National Anthem During Monday Night Football Game. (ABC News) — The Philadelphia Eagles have joined in on growing protests nationwide in which NFL players refuse to stand during the national anthem before the start of football games during the 2016 season. During a Monday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, multiple Eagles players stood with one fist raised in the air during the anthem. An American flag was held on the field by a local police and two fans in the stands held a sign reading, “Stand up.” Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins said after practice Saturday that he believes there will “definitely” be Philadelphia players who will show their feelings about social injustice prior to kickoff, following San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and other players around the league’s lead, ESPN reported.  Jenkins was among the players who raised their firsts. “Last week, we talked about doing some stuff, but we wanted to make sure that we didn’t do anything to take away from the families that suffered from 9/11,” Jenkins said. “We didn’t want to mess with that day, so we left last week alone. But moving forward, I’m sure there will be guys that will probably join in.”
• Washington Post: I was optimistic about the Redskins. I regret the error. (By Dan Steinberg) – The Washington Post is committed to correcting errors that appear in the newspaper. And so, I’d like to offer a few clarifications. * A Sept. 6 column argued that the Redskins had become weirdly boring, and that there was no longer any drama to spur impassioned debate. What I meant was, within two weeks, a national outlet would be quoting an anonymous source about locker room frustrations with starting quarterback Kirk Cousins, sports radio callers would already be convinced that Cousins cannot be a franchise quarterback, players would be tweeting their concerns with the media and with the fan base, and the topic of the moment would be whether we’ve already reached Code Red status.

8am – C         Fairfax County Public Schools superintendent announces resignation. WASHINGTON — Fairfax County Public Schools’ superintendent announced her resignation Monday after more than three years at the helm. Superintendent Karen Garza said she is leaving the job on or before Dec. 16, 2016 for a job as the president and CEO of Battelle for Kids, a not-for-profit education organization based out of Columbus, Ohio.  “It has been an honor and privilege to have worked with the dedicated and professional staff who make FCPS the finest school system in the country,” Garza said in a statement Monday. Garza, the first woman to hold the position, has been the superintendent for the school system since June 2013. The school board will soon name an interim superintendent and in the coming weeks will provide details regarding a search process, said School Board Chair Sandy Evans.

8am – D         INTERVIEW —  LARRY KUDLOW – CNBC Senior Contributor and host of The Larry Kudlow Show on WMAL Saturdays at 7 pm – discussed the polls tightening between Clinton and Trump.

• KUDLOW’s new book is “JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity”
• LARRY BOOK SIGNING IN DC AT HERITAGE FOUNDATION ON FRIDAY
• Friday, Sep 23, 2016 / TIME12:00 PM – 1:00 PM VENUE Lehrman Auditorium
• Thoughts on polls tightening
• Fed meeting tomorrow

8am – E         GOP Mostly Powerless in Stopping Obama ‘Midnight’ Regulations’ (Roll Call) — Republican lawmakers are bracing for a slew of last-minute rules and regulations, as well as more executive actions to place swaths of land under federal protection, during President Barack Obama’s final months in office. “Midnight regulations” are a feature of any lame-duck administration and represent a president’s last opportunity to lock in rules on legacy issues. In many instances, GOP members acknowledge they are powerless to stop him. Obama first served notice that he’d take such a tack in January 2014, when he vowed to use the legal authorities of the office of the president to act when Congress would not — or could not — do so. “We’re not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we’re providing Americans the kind of help they need,” he said then. “I’ve got a pen and I’ve got a phone.” White House aides in recent weeks have made it clear that Obama will continue to use his legal authorities on whatever he deems important to wrap up before he leaves the Oval Office on Jan. 20.  Major regulatory changes require a 60-day waiting period, meaning Obama theoretically has until late November to tend to his to-do list.