Former Bush Adviser Brad Blakeman, Dr. Stephen Farnsworth and Larry Kudlow joined WMAL on Tuesday!
Mornings on the Mall
Tuesday, November 15, 2016
Hosts: Brian Wilson and Larry O’Connor
Executive Producer: Heather Hunter
5am – A/B/C Cancel Inaugural Parade? Trump hotel, will protesters be there, too? (Washington Post) — Free speech advocates told a federal court on Monday that the sidewalk in front of Donald Trump’s luxury hotel in the District and nearby Freedom Plaza should not be shut off to demonstrators during his inaugural parade, which will pass both sites. Two months before Trump is sworn in as president, an appeals court in the District considered how close protesters can get to the parade along Pennsylvania Avenue. The case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit was filed long before Trump was elected and is the latest chapter in ongoing litigation over National Park Service regulations that determine the location of Inauguration Day demonstrations. But challengers said the case has heightened significance at a time when thousands of people already are protesting Trump’s election in cities throughout the country. “People are coming to Washington, D.C., on Inauguration Day to exercise their free speech rights in opposition to racism, misogyny and bigotry. But the government wants to stage-manage democracy,” said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, executive director of the nonprofit Partnership for Civil Justice Fund who argued the case on Monday for the ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism). Government lawyers told the court that the Park Service has long set aside space on the parade route for the incoming president’s organization to plan a day of “national celebration.”
5am – D Possible Trump Team Picks:
- Report: Giuliani is top choice to be Trump’s secretary of State. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is the top choice to be President-elect Donald Trump’s secretary of State, the Associated Press reported Monday night. A senior Trump official told the AP the job is Giuliani’s if he wants it. Giuliani was a top Trump surrogate on the campaign trail and his name has been mentioned as a possible administration member. The former federal prosecutor had been mentioned as a top choice for U.S. attorney general — especially given his focus on a Trump administration prosecuting Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server as secretary of State. But he made comments at a recent event in Washington signaling that he didn’t want that position. John Bolton, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, is reportedly also considered a leading contender for head of the State Department. Bolton is known for his hawkish foreign policy and penned an op-ed last year calling for the U.S. to bomb Iran.
- Laura Ingraham considered for White House press secretary post. (CNN) – Conservative radio talk show host Laura Ingraham’s next microphone could be behind the White House press briefing room podium. Ingraham is under serious consideration for White House press secretary, sources confirmed to CNN on Monday. “I am honored to be considered for that job and other jobs. So we’ll see what happens,” Ingraham said on Fox News. She cautioned: “I think people are getting a little far ahead of the narrative.” But she strongly suggested that some sort of Trump administration post is in the works. “It’s a big decision, but I’m at the point where, if my country needs me, and if I can do something to actually, you know, advance the Trump agenda, which is stuff I have written about now for 15 years, with trade, immigration and just renewing America, then I obviously have to seriously consider that,” she told Fox’s Tucker Carlson.
- Trump considers Mitt Romney’s niece to run RNC. (NY Post) — Donald Trump isn’t holding Mitt Romney’s criticism of his presidential run against the entire Romney family. The president-elect is considering supporting Michigan GOP chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel — Romney’s niece — to run the Republican National Committee. “I’ll be interested in whatever Mr. Trump wants,” McDaniel told the Associated Press. Romney spoke out harshly against Trump in the Republican primary — and never came around to endorsing the mogul in his general election bid against Hillary Clinton.
5am – E Donald Trump has spoken by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kremlin says. (CNN) Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with US President-elect Donald Trump Monday, according to statements from the Trump transition team and the Kremlin. Putin “called to offer his congratulations on winning a historic election,” according to a Trump statement. The two leaders discussed issues including shared threats, strategic economic issues and the historical US-Russia relationship. The two men also spoke about working to normalize relations between the two countries and emphasized the importance of creating a foundation of bilateral ties through trade, the Kremlin said. They also discussed the need for “joint efforts in the fight against common enemy No. 1” — international terrorism and extremism.
6am – A/B/C Hundreds of students walk out of Md. high schools to protest Trump. SILVER SPRING, MD. (WUSA9) – Students walked out of class Monday at five Silver Spring high schools to protest president-elect Donald Trump. The walkout started around 10 a.m. and involved students from Blair, Northwood, Wheaton, Kennedy and Einstein High Schools. Sky 9 captured video of students holding signs and walking from school to University Blvd in Wheaton. They blocked traffic on University Blvd, went to Westfield Wheaton Mall, continued south on Georgia Ave towards downtown Silver Spring and ended at Veteran’s Plaza. School officials said the walkout was organized by students. They said no teachers were involved and they continued teaching as students walked out. Up to 500 students are participating in the protest. Some were heard chanting “we reject the president-elect.” “It doesn’t matter how old you are…your voice could be heard,” one student said. “We decided to cut time from school to make sure our voices are heard. They are hearing us.”
6am – D/E Highlights of Obama’s presser
7am – A INTERVIEW – BRAD BLAKEMAN – was a member of President George W. Bush’s Senior Staff having served from 2001-2004 as Deputy Assistant to the President for Appointments and Scheduling, Vetting and Research, Correspondence and Surrogate Scheduling AND currently a professor at Georgetown University – discussed what’s ahead for the Trump transition (vetting, appointments, research) and hiring new White House staff.
7am – B A ‘Disappointed’ Lena Dunham Left Speaker Paul Ryan a Voicemail About Steve Bannon and Taped it. (Mediaite) – Lena Dunham is not happy that Donald Trump has named Breitbart’s Steve Bannon as his chief strategist and senior counsel. She posted a video to her Instagram account today in which she leaves Speaker Paul Ryan a voicemail, telling him, “I wanted to leave a message to let you know how disappointed so many of us are in the appointment of Steve Bannon.” She encourages her followers to do the same, leaving his phone number in her caption. The Girls creator and star continues, “I’m not sure you’re really going to listen to this, but I hope you do, because I want to let you know that as a woman, as a Jew, as a person who cares about other human beings, people of color, the idea of pointing an anti-Semitic white supremacist…” She gets cut off before she’s done leaving the message.
7am – C Clinton wins New Hampshire’s 4 Electoral College votes. CONCORD, N.H. – Democrat Hillary Clinton has won New Hampshire’s four Electoral College votes. Republican Donald Trump’s campaign had until 5 p.m. Monday to seek a recount. His campaign did not do so, officially sealing Clinton’s victory in the state. Clinton won the small state by roughly 2,700 votes. That’s less than 1 percent of the 732,000 ballots cast. New Hampshire drew intense attention from the two campaigns in the final days before the election.
7am – D INTERVIEW — DR. STEPHEN FARNSWORTH – Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, VA @drsfarnsworth
- What does the trump win for Virginia politics and Tim Kaine’s future?
- Richmond Times-Dispatch editorial: Clinton defeat roils Virginia politics, Kaine’s future
- Virginia governor’s race may come down to early Trump supporter. Corey Stewart, chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisor, says he thinks he’s now the front-runner for the GOP’s gubernatorial nomination next year after he backed Mr. Trump, while his opponents put distance between themselves and the billionaire businessman. Mr. Stewart will be part of what’s shaping up as a crowded, high-powered field. Former Bush White House adviser Ed Gillespie, state Sen. Frank Wagner and Rep. Robert J. Wittman have all shown interest — though some operatives say Mr. Wittman may forgo a bid and instead enjoy the GOP’s control of the House, Senate and White House.
- Trump Victory Upends Virginia Politics, Governor’s Race. The biggest turmoil from a Trump win may be within the state GOP, where gubernatorial candidates were already battling to claim Trump’s supporters. Virginia’s gubernatorial race, with a general election in November 2017, will test the power of Trump’s popularity during the first months of his presidency. Next year’s only other significant contests are races for New Jersey governor and New York City mayor.
7am – E Possible Trump Team Picks:
- Report: Giuliani is top choice to be Trump’s secretary of State.
- Laura Ingraham considered for White House press secretary post.
- Trump considers Mitt Romney’s niece to run RNC.
8am – A/B/C Hundreds of students walk out of Md. high schools to protest Trump. SILVER SPRING, MD. (WUSA9) – Students walked out of class Monday at five Silver Spring high schools to protest president-elect Donald Trump. The walkout started around 10 a.m. and involved students from Blair, Northwood, Wheaton, Kennedy and Einstein High Schools. Sky 9 captured video of students holding signs and walking from school to University Blvd in Wheaton.
8am – D INTERVIEW — LARRY KUDLOW – CNBC Senior Contributor and host of The Larry Kudlow Show on WMAL Saturdays at 7 pm, author of new book is “JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity
8am – E Fitbit study says D.C. residents lost most sleep of anyone night of election. (Washington Post) – If it seemed as if Washington-area residents were stumbling around like the walking dead the day after last week’s presidential election, it may be because they stayed up late waiting for results and awoke early the next day. According to the folks at Fitbit Inc., the maker of the wrist-worn, wireless fitness trackers, residents of the nation’s capital lost more sleep the night of Nov. 8 than people elsewhere in the country. D.C. residents who wore Fitbits logged 49.75 fewer minutes of shut-eye than on a typical night — far above the national average of 29.62 minutes of lost sleep. Fitbit said Monday that researchers reviewed a sampling of its 10 million users across the nation to see how sleep patterns were affected by the wait to see whether Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Hillary Clinton would emerge as the nation’s 45th president. What the Fitbit could not tell was whether anxiety, excitement or other emotions played into the sleeplessness. The devices use heart rates to tell whether a user is slumbering. “Was it excitement, stress? That’s not known, but we were surprised and impressed to see such a change in sleep in a typical day,” said Karla Gleichauf, Fitbit research data analyst. In addition, Virginia and Maryland ranked among the top 10 sleep-deprived states. Virginia residents came in fourth with about 40.03 minutes of lost sleep, and Maryland residents came in 10th with 36.93 minutes. Other East Coast states, including New York, Florida and Massachusetts, were in the top 10. Alabama and Arkansas also made the list.
