Mornings on the Mall 01.16.18

Joe diGenova, Susan Ferrechio, Ronna Romney McDaniel and Larry Kudlow joined WMAL on Tuesday!

Mornings on the Mall

Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

Executive Producer: Heather Hunter

5am – A/B/C WILL THE MEDIA WEAR DOWN THIS PRESIDENT?

• Trump may be digging himself into a ‘shithole’ (NYPost / Michael Goodwin) – “Despite his denial that he used the words “shithole countries,” most of the media instantly branded him a racist. After a few days of saturation coverage, polls will show a disapproving public and the ritual beatdown will be complete. Then we’ll be on to the next ­crisis because this is life with Trump in the White House. He and we are always on the razor’s edge because that’s who he is. That’s been the pattern for a year, and the president has managed to keep his head above water. But past performance is not a guarantee of future results — ­especially in an election year when passions against him are already overheating.”

5am – D/E DACA BATTLE / ‘DICKY DURBIN’ NEWS:

• Trump goes after “Dicky Durbin”: President Trump slams Sen. Dick Durbin, who he says “misrepresented” his immigration comments
• Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin confirms Trump made “shithole” remark at meeting, says President’s denials are not true
• Rep. McSally — Co-Sponsor Of Goodlatte’s DACA Replacement Bill — Says Dems Should ‘Get Over’ Idea Of Clean Dream Act … TRUMP called Goodlatte bill ‘a good starting point’ last week
• Leadership Wrestles Over What To Do With Goodlatte Bill, Which Goes Further Than White House’s Starting Priorities
• REMAINDER FROM WEEKEND: Graham, Durbin were ‘AMBUSHED’ by Cotton, Perdue, Goodlatte in White House meeting… DEMS blame Stephen Miller
• Trump says that he is ‘not a racist,’ denies souring chances for immigration overhaul by using vulgarity
• Dick Durbin: ‘Chain Migration’ Is A Racist Term
• Graham hits Trump over “shithole countries” remark: “It’s pretty embarrassing” when children can’t hear the news
• 2013 FLASHBACK: Lindsey Graham — We Can’t Have Everyone That Lives In A Hellhole Come Here To America
• Lindsey Graham rips GOP senators for not remembering Trump’s “shithole” comment

6am – A VEGAS ATTACK UPDATE:

• VEGAS SHOOTER’S GF DELETED FB ACCOUNT BEFORE HIS NAME WAS RELEASED: (NY Post) – Even before her boyfriend was named as the man responsible for the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history, Marilou Danley knew something was up. An hour before Las Vegas cops released Stephen Paddock’s name, Danley deleted her Facebook account, according to newly released documents about the Oct. 1 mass murder of 58 people attending an outdoor country music concert on the Strip.
• VEGAS ATTACK DOCUMENTS UNSEALED: (NY Times) — The F.B.I. search warrants shed new light on the degree to which the gunman, Stephen Paddock, who killed 58 people and wounded more than 500 others when he opened fire on a crowd from a hotel room in October, planned the attack and prepared for the aftermath. One of the warrants described how Mr. Paddock “destroyed or tried to hide digital media devices.”

6am – B Hawaii missile alert: How one employee ‘pushed the wrong button’ and caused a wave of panic. (Washington Post) — Shortly after 8 a.m. local time Saturday, an employee at the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency settled in at the start of his shift. Among his duties that day was to initiate an internal test of the emergency missile warning system: essentially, to practice sending an emergency alert to the public without actually sending it to the public. It was a drill the agency had started with some regularity last November — around the time Hawaii reinstated its Cold War-era nuclear warning sirens amid growing fears of an attack by North Korea — and so, while the tests were not yet routine enough to be predictable, they were not entirely new either, according to an agency spokesman. Around 8:05 a.m., the Hawaii emergency employee initiated the internal test, according to a timeline released by the state. From a drop-down menu on a computer program, he saw two options: “Test missile alert” and “Missile alert.” He was supposed to choose the former; as much of the world now knows, he chose the latter, an initiation of a real-life missile alert.

6am – C Drones keep entering no-fly zones over Washington, raising security concerns. (Washington Post) — Over a career that has taken him to Afghanistan and Iraq, Col. Patrick Duggan has seen the lethal power of drones. Now, as a base commander in the nation’s capital, he is worried that frequent illegal flights buzzing over Washington could pose a threat. In the middle of a federal no-fly zone for drones, in some of the most sensitive and restricted airspace in the United States, technicians working with Duggan recorded nearly 100 drone sightings over two months last summer. And that was just around two Army posts he oversees. Many of the operators were probably oblivious to the flight ban or just ignoring it as they flew for fun, he said. But he’s not sure. “Are they bad guys? Well, we don’t know,” Duggan said. “It’s a technology that can be used to attack us at home. Why? Because we are not as prepared as we need to be.” In an acknowledgment of the threat, Congress in November voted to broadly expand the Defense Department’s anti-drone powers within the United States. President Trump signed the measure, included in a major defense bill, last month.

6am – D Kevin McCarthy sucks up to Trump with jar of pink and red Starburst. (NY Post) — Lawmaker sucks up to Trump with jar of candy. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy has found the way to President Trump’s heart: Give him a jar of Starburst, the sugary multi-colored candies that kids love — but only the red and pink ones. The California lawmaker learned about the fast-food-loving Trump’s sweet tooth while they flew together on Air Force One and the commander-in-chief reached for a bowl of Starburst — which weigh in at 31 grams of carbohydrates per serving, about the same as two pieces of bread. “We’re there, having a little dessert, and he offers me some,” McCarthy told the Washington Post. “Just the red and the pink. A bit later, a couple of his aides saw me with those colors and told me, ‘Those are the president’s favorites.’ ”

Trump in ‘Excellent’ Health, Says White House Doctor. President Trump underwent a physical exam on Friday and was determined to be in “excellent health,” lead White House doctor Ronny L. Jackson announced in a White House statement that originally misspelled his name. Dr. Jackson, who also said that the physical “went exceptionally well,” will go into more detail about the results of the exam during Tuesday’s White House press briefing — though federal law still allows Trump to choose what the public does and does not hear about his health. “The President’s physical exam today at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center went exceptionally well. The President is in excellent health and I look forward to briefing some of the details on Tuesday.” — Dr. Ronny Jackson

6am – E Smelling your partner might help ease your anxiety. (NY Post) — During a stressful time, smelling a partner’s scent might help ease anxiety, a study suggests. Stress levels dropped in women who smelled their partner’s shirt during a stress test but rose in women who smelled a stranger’s shirt, researchers found.

“Many people wear their partner’s shirt or sleep on their partner’s side of the bed when their partner is away but may not realize why they engage in these behaviors,” said lead study author Marlise Hofer, a psychology graduate student at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. “A partner’s scent alone, even without their physical presence, can be a powerful tool to help reduce stress,” Hofer told Reuters Health by email. Hofer and colleagues worked with 96 couples, most in their early 20s, to complete the study. They asked the men to wear a white T-shirt for 24 hours without deodorant or scented products. Then the shirts were turned inside out, folded and placed in a sealed plastic freezer bag with the underarm section facing the opening. The women participated in the Trier Social Stress Test, which includes a mock job interview and unanticipated mental math question that causes a stress response. They were randomly assigned to smell a single shirt three times before and three times after the stress test. The shirt might have been worn by their romantic partner or a stranger, or it might have been new and unworn. The women also completed a questionnaire five times during the experiment to indicate anxiety, physical discomfort, tension, desire to leave the situation and feelings of control. Saliva samples were collected seven times during the experiment to measure levels of the stress hormone cortisol. The research team found that perceived stress changed during the experiment for most women, and those who smelled a partner’s shirt felt less stressed both during and after the stress test than those who smelled a stranger’s or unworn shirt. The researchers were surprised to find that cortisol levels were higher after the stress test in women who smelled a stranger’s shirt. “These unanticipated findings could serve as a source of future research,” Hofer said. Cortisol levels didn’t differ between women who smelled their partner’s shirt and an unworn shirt. Dr. Donald McBurney, professor emeritus of the University of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania, has researched olfactory comfort in close relationships. “In our studies, we received many anecdotes, including lovers who mailed worn clothing back and forth between military members and their partners back home,” McBurney, who wasn’t involved in the new study, told Reuters Health by email. “And hospitals give infants items of their mother’s clothing to sleep with.”

6am – F Metro says a broken rail likely caused Red Line train carrying 63 to derail. (Washington Post) — A preliminary investigation shows a Metro train derailment on a downtown stretch of the Red Line Monday morning was likely caused by a broken rail, officials said. The agency said a 7000-series train with 63 passengers aboard derailed as it passed over a section of defective tracks around 6:30 a.m. One passenger was evaluated for shortness of breath, but there were no serious injuries, officials said. Three railcars from the rear of the train came off the tracks, officials said, and the passengers were herded through the tunnel to the Metro Center station platform after an estimated 90-minute wait aboard the train outside Farragut North. The early-morning derailment on a busy section of system in the downtown core raised new questions about the millions invested in the year-long SafeTrack maintenance program, and efforts to raise hundreds of millions more to improve the safety and reliability of the system. The cleanup, meanwhile, was likely to impact the Tuesday morning commute.

7am – A INTERVIEW – JOE DIGENOVA – LEGAL ANALYST AND FORMER US ATTORNEY TO THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

• RUSSIA PROBE:
  • Trump campaign officials Paul Manafort and Rick Gates return to court to discuss a trial date Washington (CNN)Trump campaign officials Paul Manafort and Rick Gates return to court Tuesday morning for a hearing that could give the clearest picture yet of how both sides are preparing for a trial related to the Russia probe. Special counsel Robert Mueller’s team of prosecutors have asked for the trial to begin on May 14 — roughly six months before November’s midterm elections.
  • Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski expects to voluntarily testify before Congress behind closed doors this week as part of the Russia investigation
  • White House Communications Director Hope Hicks is expected to meet with the House Intelligence Committee as soon as this week
  • Steve Bannon expected to meet with House Intel Committee
  • Nunes charges ‘abuse’ of government surveillance by FBI and Justice officials. House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes told Republican colleagues in two closed-door meetings this week he has seen evidence that shows clear “abuse” of government surveillance programs by FBI and Justice Department officials, according to three sources familiar with the conversations, raising more questions about whether the controversial anti-Trump dossier was used by the Obama administration to authorize surveillance of advisers to President Trump.
• URANIUM ONE: Feds announce indictment in massive bribery scheme connected to Hillary Clinton’s Uranium One deal. A federal indictment connected to the infamous “Uranium One” deal facilitated by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Obama administration was announced Friday. DOJ announced 11-count indictment against Mark Lambert involving Uranium One. Lambert is the “former co-president of a Maryland-based transportation company that provides services for the transportation of nuclear materials to customers in the United States and abroad,” the DOJ said in a statement.

7am – B/C INTERVIEW – SUSAN FERRECHIO – chief congressional correspondent for the Washington Examiner

• This week’s congressional agenda: Avoiding a shutdown and searching for DACA fix. (CNN) — Back after a long holiday weekend, lawmakers must reach an agreement on a budget plan before the Friday deadline when government funding runs out, but demands from each side of the aisle are impeding progress on negotiations. For a spending deal, Republicans want to secure a long-term increase in Pentagon funding, while Democrats feel pressure not to agree to such a plan unless it ensures protections for recipients of the expiring Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. GOP leaders don’t anticipate finalizing any deal in time for the deadline and are instead proposing a stopgap-funding bill as the talks continue to avoid a shutdown on Friday. It’s unclear if they have the votes to pass such a bill.
• DACA BATTLE / DICKY DURBIN: Trump goes after “Dicky Durbin”: President Trump slams Sen. Dick Durbin, who he says “misrepresented” his immigration comments

7am – D/E CHELSEA MANNING FOR SENATE:

• Chelsea Manning files for US Senate run in Maryland. (CNN) Chelsea Manning, the former Army intelligence analyst who spent several years in prison for leaking classified information, has filed to run as a Democratic candidate for Senate in Maryland. Manning is one of four Democratic candidates who have filed to run for Senate in Maryland. Incumbent Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin, 74, has not yet announced he would seek a third term in the Senate.
• Chelsea Manning announces run for US Senate with video on Twitter. Imprisoned leaker and activist confirms plan to run as a Democrat in Maryland with video hashtagged #WeGotThis, saying: ‘We need someone willing to fight’

8am – A INTERVIEW – RONNA ROMNEY MCDANIEL – RNC CHAIRWOMAN

• OVERVIEW OF THE PRESIDENT’S FIRST YEAR:
  • President Trump assumed office on January 20, 2017 — THIS SATURDAY will be anniversary of president’s first year in office
  • STATE OF THE UNION IS TWO WEEKS FROM TODAY: The 2018 State of the Union Address will be given by the 45th President of the United States Donald Trump on Tuesday, January 30, 2018
• MIDTERMS: There is a wave of Republicans leaving Congress. (CNN) House Republicans are announcing they’re leaving office at a significantly faster rate than any other recent Congresses, suggesting Democrats could pick up seats in the 2018 midterm elections. On Tuesday it was Pennsylvania Republican Bill Shuster, the influential chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Already, at least 29 House Republicans have announced they are retiring, running for another office or resigning outright. They’re leaving from all over the map, from southern New Jersey to southern New Mexico. Democrats need to pick up 24 House seats to retake the majority from Republicans, who’ve had control of the House since 2011.
• ROMNEY FOR SENATE? Ronna is the niece of former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. NYT: Friend says Romney will run for Senate. Washington (CNN) Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney texted a friend that he will seek the open Senate seat from Utah this year, according to a New York Times report published Sunday. The Times’ report adds to the growing expectation that Romney will declare his intention to seek the Republican nomination to replace outgoing Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch, who earlier this year made it official that he will not seek re-election. Romney is scheduled for two public events in Utah during the coming week — one before the Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce and the other at a technology conference. The deadline for Romney to get into the race officially is not until March, and it is unclear when he might declare. The report said Utah GOP Gov. Gary Herbert told Kem Gardner, a friend of Romney, that the former Republican presidential candidate should not be “coy” about seeking the Senate seat. Gardner later called Herbert and read a text from Romney saying, “I’m running.”
• GOP DIVISION: FLAKE’S ATTACKS ON TRUMP: Republican Sen. Jeff Flake: The GOP should stand up to President Trump’s Stalin-like attacks on media Washington (CNN) GOP Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona plans to deliver a speech comparing President Donald Trump’s attacks on the press as reminiscent of Joseph Stalin, and said Monday that his colleagues should join him in speaking out. “I hope that more of my colleagues will stand up when the President uses ‘fake news,’ for example, in ways that I think put journalists across the world in danger,” Flake told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour. Flake has been among the most outspoken critics of Trump’s statements and policies regarding trade and immigration, and the senator said he plans this week to deliver a speech on the Senate floor attacking Trump for calling mainstream outlets “the enemy of the American People!”

8am – B Sarah Sanders warns Amazon about its Echo device: ‘We have a problem.’ White House press secretary Sarah Sanders complained to Amazon on Twitter on Sunday about a possible defect with its Echo devices that connect to its Alexa personal assistant service that lets her kids order toys just by screaming out their names. “Alexa, we have a problem if my 2 year old can order a Batman toy by yelling ‘Batman!’ over and over again into the Echo,” Sanders tweeted Sunday afternoon. Sanders, a mother of three children, said the device had already confirmed a nearly $80 Batman toy was on its way to her home. Television commercials for Alexa have touted how simple it is for owners to verbally order items through the device.

8am – C R.I.P. LEAD SINGER OF THE CRANBERRIES:

• Dolores O’Riordan, lead singer of The Cranberries, dies at 46; the Irish band became international stars in the 1990s with hits including ‘Zombie’ and ‘Linger.’ From earnest teenage dreams to political angst and later motherhood, the Limerick-born singer was one of the 1990s’ most distinctive voices.
• President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, issued a statement in tribute to the mother-of-three and spoke of the “great sadness” he felt at hearing of her shock passing. It read: “It is with great sadness that I have learned of the death of Dolores O’Riordan, musician, singer and song writer. Dolores O’Riordan and The Cranberries had an immense influence on rock and pop music in Ireland and internationally. I recall with fondness the late Limerick TD Jim Kemmy’s introduction of her and The Cranberries to me, and the pride he and so many others took in their successes.To all those who follow and support Irish music, Irish musicians and the performing arts her death will be a big loss.”
• English group Duran Duran said: “We are crushed to hear the news about the passing of Dolores O’Riordan. Our thoughts go out to her family at this terrible time.” Cranberries lead singer Dolores O’Riordan, who died suddenly on Monday, was last married to former Duran Duran tour manager Don Burton. O’Riordan and Burton reportedly met while Duran Duran and the Cranberries were on tour together. They quickly fell in love and married in 1994.
• The Cranberries ‏@The_Cranberries: We are devastated on the passing of our friend Dolores. She was an extraordinary talent and we feel very privileged to have been part of her life from 1989 when we started the Cranberries. The world has lost a true artist today. Noel, Mike and Fergal
• The Cranberries are an Irish rock band formed in Limerick in 1989 by lead singer Niall Quinn (later replaced by Dolores O’Riordan), guitarist Noel Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan, and drummer Fergal Lawler. Although widely associated with alternative rock, the band’s sound also incorporates indie pop, post-punk, Irish folk, and pop rock elements.The Cranberries rose to international fame in the 1990s with their debut album, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?, which became a commercial success. The Cranberries sold over 40 million records worldwide. The band achieved four top 20 albums on the Billboard 200 chart (Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?; No Need to Argue, To the Faithful Departed and Bury the Hatchet)[2] and eight top 20 singles on the Modern Rock Tracks chart (“Linger”, “Dreams”, “Zombie”, “Ode to My Family”, “Ridiculous Thoughts”, “Salvation”, “Free to Decide”, and “Promises”).
• ABOUT Dolores O’Riordan: Dolores O’Riordan (/oʊˈrɪərdən/; 6 September 1971 – 15 January 2018) was an Irish musician and singer-songwriter. She led the rock band the Cranberries for 13 years before the band took a break starting in 2003, reuniting in 2009. Her first solo album, Are You Listening?, was released in May 2007 and was followed up by No Baggage in 2009. O’Riordan was known for her lilting mezzo-soprano voice,[2] her emphasized use of yodeling and for her strong Limerick accent.

8am – D INTERVIEW – LARRY KUDLOW – CNBC Senior Contributor and host of The Larry Kudlow Show on WMAL Saturdays at 7 pm and author of “JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity” @larry_kudlow

• KUDLOW PREDICTS 3-4% GROWTH UNDER TRUMP: During Sunday’s “The Cats Roundtable” on New York AM 970 radio, economist and CNBC contributor Larry Kudlow predicted that the GOP’s tax cuts would result in a three to four percent economic growth, proving the “naysayers wrong.” “You are seeing a big Trump effect,” Kudlow, who advised Trump on the tax reform legislation, said. “There’s no question about it. All the naysayers are wrong.”
• This week’s congressional agenda: Avoiding a shutdown and searching for DACA fix. (CNN) — Back after a long holiday weekend, lawmakers must reach an agreement on a budget plan before the Friday deadline when government funding runs out, but demands from each side of the aisle are impeding progress on negotiations.

8am – E HAWAII’S FALSE ALARM:

• Hawaii missile alert: How one employee ‘pushed the wrong button’ and caused a wave of panic
• FCC “launching a full investigation” into false ballistic missile alarm in Hawaii. Ajit Pai, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, announced that his agency is conducting a “full investigation” into the false ballistic missile alert that sent across Hawaii in the early morning there on Saturday. “The @FCC is launching a full investigation into the false emergency alert that was sent to residents of Hawaii,” Pai said in a brief tweet.
• Jamie Lee Curtis nuclear meltdown: “Hawaii missile scare is on YOU Mr. Trump…. YOU DID THIS! Jamie Lee Curtis @jamieleecurtis: This Hawaii missle scare is on YOU Mr. Trump. The real FEAR that mothers & fathers & children felt is on YOU. It is on YOUR ARROGANCE. HUBRIS. NARCISSISM. RAGE. EGO. IMMATURITY and your UNSTABLE IDIOCY. Shame on your hate filled self. YOU DID THIS! 3:24 PM – Jan 13, 2018
• Jim Carrey @JimCarrey: I woke up this morning in Hawaii with ten minutes to live. It was a false alarm, but a real psychic warning. If we allow this one-man Gomorrah and his corrupt Republican congress to continue alienating the world we are headed for suffering beyond all imagination. ;^\ 4:01 PM – Jan 13, 2018
• In Hawaii, No Heads Roll over False Missile Alarm (National Review / by John Fund) — It’s time we demand more accountability from the people who have such influence over our daily lives. In ancient Hawaii, members of the outcast class Kauwa were often sacrificed to the gods.