Tom Fitton, Joe diGenova, HHS Secretary Alex Azar, and Sarah Westwood joined WMAL on Monday!

Mornings on the Mall

Monday, March 19, 2018

Hosts: Mary Walter and Vince Coglianese

5am – A/B/C McCabe Fired:

• Ex-FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is fired — and fires back (CNN) — Attorney General Jeff Sessions fired former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe late Friday, less than two days shy of his retirement, ending the career of an official who had risen to serve as second-in-command at the bureau. McCabe had more recently been regularly taunted by President Donald Trump and besieged by accusations that he had misled internal investigators at the Justice Department. In a blistering statement Friday night, McCabe said his firing is part of a larger effort to discredit the FBI and the special counsel’s investigation. “This attack on my credibility is one part of a larger effort not just to slander me personally, but to taint the FBI, law enforcement, and intelligence professionals more generally,” McCabe said. “It is part of this Administration’s ongoing war on the FBI and the efforts of the Special Counsel investigation, which continue to this day. Their persistence in this campaign only highlights the importance of the Special Counsel’s work.

• Trump calls fired McCabe ‘choirboy’, suggests FBI corruption ‘at the highest levels’ (Fox News) — President Trump called Andrew McCabe a ‘choirboy’ as he lauded the former acting FBI Director’s firing, suggesting multiple federal reports show “corruption at the highest level.” “Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI – A great day for Democracy. Sanctimonious James Comey was his boss and made McCabe look like a choirboy. He knew all about the lies and corruption going on at the highest levels of the FBI!” Trump tweeted hours after Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the dismissal.

Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump

Andrew McCabe FIRED, a great day for the hard working men and women of the FBI – A great day for Democracy. Sanctimonious James Comey was his boss and made McCabe look like a choirboy. He knew all about the lies and corruption going on at the highest levels of the FBI!

5am – D/E     Toys R Us’s baby problem is everybody’s baby problem (Washington Post) — Toys R Us was hurt by declining birthrates in the United States and other countries. (iSTOCK). There are endless reasons a big-box toy store would collapse during a retail apocalypse — and Toys R Us acknowledged a number of them in its most recent annual filing: the teetering tower of debt incurred by its private-equity owners, competition from Amazon, Walmart and Target. They even wrung their hands about app stores, labor costs and potential tariffs raising the costs of the imported goods they sell. But one risk stood out. Toys R Us said there just weren’t enough babies (emphasis ours): The decrease of birthrates in countries where we operate could negatively affect our business. Most of our end-customers are newborns and children and, as a result, our revenue are dependent on the birthrates in countries where we operate. In recent years, many countries’ birthrates have dropped or stagnated as their population ages, and education and income levels increase. A continued and significant decline in the number of newborns and children in these countries could have a material adverse effect on our operating results.

6am – A         Hillary Clinton Is Sorry You ‘Misunderstood’ Her Quip About Husbands Forcing Wives To Vote Trump (Hillary Clinton) — I understand how some of what I said upset people and can be misinterpreted. I meant no disrespect to any individual or group. And I want to look to the future as much as anybody.

Durbin: Hillary Clinton’s Comments About Trump Voters ‘Not Helpful At All’ (Mediaite) — Sen. Dick Durbin described former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s recent controversial comments about the 2016 election as “wrong” and “not helpful at all” in an interview with Fox News Sunday’s Chris Wallace. The Democratic Senate minority whip was responding to comments Clinton made a week earlier in India, where she said she won more economically advanced states while President Donald Trump won people over who liked his “backwards” message. The former Democratic candidate also claimed white women were pressured by the men in their life to vote for Trump — a statement that received backlash from analysts on Fox News and CNN alike. “No, it’s not helpful at all. In fact my friend Hillary Clinton is wrong,” Sen. Durbin said. “But we’re moving on to the next chapter of American history… It will be a different cast of characters completely.” Clinton has remained a central focus of national politics in Trump’s America. Her recent statements have added fuel to an ongoing debate among Democrats over whether those up for reelection should distance themselves from longtime leaders of the party, including Clinton and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. “If you look at the map of the United States, there’s all that red in the middle where Trump won,” Clinton said last week. “I win the coast, I win, you know, Illinois and Minnesota, places like that.”

6am – B         MSNBC host apologizes to Trump adviser Larry Kudlow for comments on faith (The Hill) — MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle apologized on Saturday for an on-air comment apparently mocking newly appointed White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow’s faith, saying she “meant no offense” by the remarks. “As a reporter, a mom & a Catholic, I know words matter & I want to clear something up. I meant no offense when discussing @larry_kudlow’s WH appointment,” Ruhle tweeted. “I apologize if my comments came off as dismissive of his faith,” she added. “I would never question another person’s believe in God.”

Stephanie Ruhle @SRuhle

As a reporter, a mom & a Catholic, I know words matter & I want to clear something up.

I meant no offense when discussing @larry_kudlow’s WH appointment. I apologize if my comments came off as dismissive of his faith.

I would never question another person’s believe in God.

The apology came after Ruhle faced criticism for making an offhand remark on Thursday in response to a statement by Kudlow, in which he said that his tenure in President Trump’s White House will be decided by “God’s will.” “That’s an interesting way to talk about being the national economic adviser to the president. ‘God’s will?’ ” Ruhle said.

6am – C         Putin tightens grip on power with overwhelming Russian election win (CNN) —  Vladimir Putin has extended his grip on Russia for another six years after an overwhelming victory in Sunday’s presidential election, a result that was never in doubt. With 99.8% of the votes counted, Putin won with 76.7%, according to Central Election Commission data. It means Putin will rule until 2024, when he will be 71 and obliged by law to step down. Putin sailed to victory against the backdrop of wall-to-wall support from state media and with no serious challenger. His nearest rival, Communist Party candidate Pavel Grudinin, won 11.79%,while ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky took 5.7%. Former reality TV presenter Ksenia Sobchak was on 1.7%, while veteran liberal politician Grigory Yavlinsky received just over 1% of the vote. His fiercest opponent, Alexei Navalny, was barred from the race. Putin, a former KGB spy, has dominated Russian politics for 18 years and the 65-year-old was already the country’s longest-serving leader since Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin. He declared victory in front of thousands of people gathered in below-freezing temperatures at Moscow’s Manezhnaya Square near the Kremlin, where he called for unity in the country. “We are a great big team together and I am a member of your team,” he said, after a colorful show of high-energy musical performances.

6am – D/E/F  INTERVIEW – TOM FITTON – President of Judicial Watch – discussed former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe’s firing, Peter Strzok’s appearance of impropriety with a FISA court judge, and what comes next for Judicial Watch and this case

• Judicial Watch president on what’s coming next: Firing ‘documented liar’ McCabe is just the beginning. (Bizpac Review) — Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton called the firing of FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe a “remarkable development” but warned that it is just the beginning of what’s to come. Fitton discussed the Friday night firing of McCabe by Attorney General Jeff Sessions on “Fox & Friends Weekend” Saturday, noting the magnitude of having the FBI official accused of giving false statements by both the Justice Department’s inspector general and the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility.
• More Dems offer to hire McCabe to help him get his pension (The Hill) — More Democratic lawmakers are coming forward with offers to hire former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe after he was fired Friday, just two days before he was eligible for his pension. Democratic Reps. Seth Moulton (Mass.), Jamie Raskin (Md.) and Luis Gutiérrez (Ill.) have all made job offers on Twitter. The lawmakers are extending the offers in an attempt to help McCabe to qualify for his benefits. “Would be happy to consider this,” Moulton said of hiring McCabe. “The Sixth District of MA would benefit from the wisdom and talent of such an experienced public servant.”
• Trump accuses James Comey of lying to Congress under oath about FBI leaks. (Washington Times) — President Trump accused fired FBI Director James Comey Sunday of lying to Congress when he told lawmakers last year that he never leaked information anonymously to the media or knew anyone else who did. Referring to a news report about a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Mr. Trump tweeted, “Wow, watch Comey lie under oath to Senator G [Chairman Charles Grassley] when asked ‘have you ever been an anonymous source…or known someone else to be an anonymous source…?’ He said strongly ‘never, no.’ He lied as shown clearly on @foxandfriends.” Comey, who is preparing to go on tour for his soon-to-be-released book, told Trump in a tweet that “the American people will hear my story very soon.”

7am – A/B/C   Interview – JOE DIGENOVA – legal analyst and former U.S. Attorney to the District of Columbia – discussed the firing of Andrew McCabe, allegations of impropriety from former DNI James Clapper, and the possibility of FISA court Judge Rudolph Contreras, who recused himself from overseeing General Michael Flynn’s case,  having a personal relationship with FBI agent Peter Strzok                                        

7am – D         DC Lawmaker makes anti-Semitic comments, then apologizes

• District Lawmaker Thinks The ‘Rothschilds’ Are ‘Controlling The Climate’ (Daily Caller) — A Washington, D.C. city council member posted a video to his Facebook on Friday in which he purported Jewish bankers were responsible for controlling the weather. District councilmember Trayon White Sr. reacted to a brief snowfall in the district Friday with anti-Semitic rhetoric, posting a video to his social media page where he warned D.C. residents to look out for climate manipulators, like the Rothschilds’. “Man, it just started snowing out of nowhere this morning, man. Y’all better pay attention to this climate control, man, this climate manipulation,” White said in the video. “And D.C. keep talking about, ‘We a resilient city.’ And that’s a model based off the Rothschilds controlling the climate to create natural disasters they can pay for to own the cities, man. Be careful.”
• DC councilman apologizes for promoting conspiracy theory that weather is controlled by Jews (The Hill) — DC councilman apologizes for promoting conspiracy theory that weather is controlled by Jews. A Washington, D.C. lawmaker apologized on Sunday after he posted a video promoting a conspiracy theory that the weather is controlled by Jewish financiers. “I work hard every day to combat racism and prejudices of all kinds. I want to apologize to the Jewish Community and anyone I have offended,” Councilman Trayon White Sr. (D) said in a statement to The Washington Post. “The Jewish community have been allies with me in my journey to help people. I did not intend to be anti-Semitic, and I see I should not have said that after learning from my colleagues,” he continued.

7am – E         New Information on Florida Bridge Collapse

• Engineers Gave Briefing on Crack Hours Before Florida Bridge Collapse, University Says (Wall Street Journal) — No safety issues were raised in two-hour presentation on Miami pedestrian crossing. Hours before a new pedestrian bridge collapsed Thursday in Miami, killing at least six people, one of the project engineers briefed representatives of the builder, Florida International University and the state Department of Transportation about a crack in the structure, according to the university. The engineer “concluded that there were no safety concerns and the crack didn’t compromise the structural integrity of the bridge,” the university said in a statement early Saturday. FIU said it is cooperating with officials to understand why the bridge failed just five days after the main span was lowered into place over an eight-lane road. Work crews on Saturday extracted the first two crushed vehicles from the tons of rubble, police said. Video from the scene showed a crane hoisting what appeared to be a flattened pickup so a flatbed truck could haul it away.
• 6 Victims of Fla. Bridge Collapse Identified (NBC) — Authorities identified the sixth and final victim of the collapsed bridge near Florida International University on Sunday. Police said Rolando Fraga-Hernandez, Oswald Gonzalez, Alberto Arias and Navarro Brown were killed when a 950-ton pedestrian bridge collapsed near FIU on March 15. NBC 6 independently confirmed FIU student Alexa Duran was killed in the incident on Friday. On Sunday, a sixth victim in the deadly collapse was identified as Brandon Brownfield by Miami-Dade Police. “I want to thank you all for your continuous love and support and prayers over the last 3 days,” Chelsea Brownfield wrote. “The coming days are going to be excruciating, as we dig deep to find the strength we need to heal.”

8am – A         INTERVIEW — Health and Human Services Secretary ALEX AZAR – discussed President Trump’s upcoming visit to New Hampshire where he will talk about the Opioid Crisis, President Trump’s plan to deal with drug dealers, and the best way to deal with overprescribing of drugs by doctors

• President will be traveling to New Hampshire on Monday.  The purpose of this trip is to further enforce the administration’s commitment to combatting the opioid crisis.
• Trump to release plan to fight opioid epidemic that includes death penalty for drug dealers
• Alex Azar on opioid crisis: ‘We’ve got to take back extra drugs’

8am – B         MARCH MADNESS:

• UMBC made history night with an unforgettable upset over UVA. UMBC Electrifies the NCAA Tournament With Historic Upset. UMBC makes history with an unforgettable upset over Virginia, become the first 16-seed to vanquish a 1-seed.
• West Virginia is moving on! The Mountaineers defeat in-state rival Marshall, 94-71! #MarchMadness
• March Madness: Florida State upsets No. 1 Xavier, but fellow giant-slayer UMBC falls to Kansas State. Top-seeded Xavier blows late lead, falls to Florida State

8am – C         Some officials wanted Stoneman Douglas suspect Nikolas Cruz committed in 2016, documents show (Fox News) — Some school counselors and officials were so concerned about the mental stability of Nikolas Cruz, accused in last month’s Florida school massacre, that they decided to have him forcibly committed more than a year before the shooting. However, the recommendation was never acted upon. Documents in the criminal case against Cruz showed that school officials at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and a sheriff’s deputy recommended in September 2016 that Cruz be involuntarily committed for mental evaluation under Florida’s Baker Act for at least three days, sources confirmed to Fox News on Sunday. The documents, part of Cruz’s criminal case in the shooting, showed that he had written the word “kill” in a notebook, told a classmate that he wanted to buy a gun and use it, and had cut his arm supposedly in anger because he had broken up with a girlfriend. He also told another student he had drunk gasoline and was throwing up. Calls had even been made to the FBI about the possibility of Cruz using a gun at school.

8am – D         Interview – SARAH WESTWOOD – White House reporter, Washington Examiner – discussed the controversies surrounding the firing of Andrew McCabe and the possibility that President Trump might fire special counsel Robert Mueller

• Trump lawyer calls for end of Mueller probe. (CNN) — President Donald Trump’s attorney John Dowd called for the end of special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian election meddling Saturday, just a day after the Justice Department announced the firing of former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. “I pray that Acting Attorney General Rosenstein will follow the brilliant and courageous example of the FBI Office of Professional Responsibility and Attorney General Jeff Sessions and bring an end to alleged Russia collusion investigation manufactured by McCabe’s boss James Comey based upon a fraudulent and corrupt dossier,” Dowd told CNN in a statement, reacting to the news of McCabe’s firing. Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, is overseeing the Russia investigation after Sessions recused himself from the probe last year.
• White House attorney: Trump not considering firing Mueller (Politico) — President Donald Trump is not considering firing special counsel Robert Mueller, White House attorney Ty Cobb said Sunday evening, attempting to assuage concerns that Trump’s attacks of Mueller mean a showdown is imminent. “In response to media speculation and related questions being posed to the Administration, the White House yet again confirms that the President is not considering or discussing the firing of the Special Counsel, Robert Mueller,” Cobb said in a statement to the White House press pool.

8am – E         Prince Harry refuses to sign prenup to protect his fortune ahead of wedding with Meghan Markle (New York Daily News) — Prince Harry is picking romance over riches — rejecting a prenup that would protect his royal fortune. The 33-year-old prince — currently fifth in line to the British throne — has reportedly been urged to safeguard his nearly $42 million chunk of the Windsor millions should wedded bliss go bad with once-divorced actress Meghan Markle, 36. “There was never any question in Harry’s mind that he would sign a prenup,” the Daily Mail, quoting an unnamed friend of the prince, reported Saturday. “He’s determined that his marriage will be a lasting one, so there’s no need for him to sign anything.” British high-society columnist Sophia Money-Coutts first reported rumors of a prenup in the works. Instead, the romantic prince decided to follow the example of big brother Prince William and their adored mother, the late Princess Diana, neither of whom signed prenups, the UK-based Metro reported.