Big John Howell Show Notes 3-24-16

Five terrorists — three dead, two whose fates are unknown. So far, that’s how many people that authorities say played a part in Tuesday’s terror attacks in Brussels, Belgium, that killed 31 people and injured 270. Two were allegedly involved in bombing a train near the Maelbeek metro station. Of them, one has been identified as Khalid El Bakraoui, who died in that suicide attack. Authorities believe a second, unnamed person was also involved in that blast. That man’s whereabouts — and whether he’s dead or alive — is unknown.

Zoya Sheftalovich is a reporter for Politico Europe who was 500 yards away from the bombings in Brussels. She joined John with the latest on the investigation. (Listen here)

Fox News National Security Analyst K.T. McFarland joined John with reaction to the attacks in Brussels. (Listen here)

Dr. Faran Bokhari is the Chairman of Trauma and Burn Services for the Cook County Health and Hospital Systems. He wants to give Naval trainees some real-life experience in treating people in the field. He joined Big John this morning. (Listen here)

The Chicago Teachers Union’s governing body gave its resounding approval Wednesday to a one-day walkout that would shut down the city’s public schools April 1. Union leaders called for what they described as a one-day strike in an effort to push Gov. Bruce Rauner and state legislators to create a new funding plan for schools. The district has said the union’s action would represent an illegal strike because it isn’t in line with the state-mandated process that must take place before teachers can walk off the job.

The sentencing of former House Speaker Dennis Hastert has been delayed. It’s not exactly good news for him, because it’s being delayed so the victims can testify, rather than his health problems.

Donald Trump tonight, not content with mere threats, retweeted a fan tonight who posted an image insulting Ted Cruz‘s wife’s looks. Trump is angry at Cruz over an ad an anti-Trump Super PAC (that has nothing to do with Cruz) ran showing a picture from his wifeMelania‘s nude photoshoot.

The Ricketts family has an unlikely defender from the onslaught of Donald Trump. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel told Bill Cameron the Ricketts family are model corporate citizens. He also joked that when the Cubs are in the World Series, Trump will probably have a problem getting tickets.

A group of students at Emory University led a campus-wide protest after someone wrote ‘Donald Trump 2016’ in chalk across campus. The event was considered to be so traumatic for students, it lead the university to provide “emergency counseling” sessions in response. The President of the University is vowing to hunt down whoever had the temerity to write “Trump 2016” in chalk.

Back in 1980 Donald Trump said in a TV interview that he wouldn’t want to run for President. He said it’s a “mean life,” which is ironic considering what he’s had to say about just about everyone else out there. He added that someone with good but less than popular ideas would have a hard time competing against someone with a “good smile.”

A company called Hanson Robotics was showing off their latest abomination named “Sophia” at SXSW. Sophia is an incredibly realistic robot who can carry on conversations with you and could be used for things like healthcare, therapy and education. Much to her creators chagrin, she also told reporters that she would like to destroy all humans.