Month: June 2017

Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander Silent on Federal Contractor Failing to Provide Services to Refugees Dumped in Murfreesboro

Chris Alto
Tennessee Star

The same day that The Tennessee Star discovered complaints publicized on YouTube by the refugee service volunteers in Murfreesboro made against refugee resettlement contractor World Relief for failing to provide basic and essential services, both Sens. Alexander and Corker’s offices were contacted for comment. Sen. Corker’s office never responded and while Sen. Alexander’s media contact asked for and was given additional time to look into the matter before responding, days later no comment was ever received. During the March “Murfreesboro Muslim Youth” (MMY) meeting soliciting help for refugees brought to Rutherford County by World Relief, refugee service organizer Melissa Sohrabi started crying while detailing the contractor’s neglect and failure to provide even basic survival services to the refugees they placed in Murfreesboro: [the third family] had nothing but a mattress and sheets, no blankets. They didn’t know how to work the thermostat, they were freezing. They were scared and they were so relieved because Saffi knew their language. They had been there for several days with no contact with anyone. They did not know how to get in touch with their caseworker and with no language skills they didn’t know where to go or who to ask to even how to get help. We immediately…

Read the full story

Faith: Verse of the Day for Monday, June 19

Dana Hunsinger Gill
Tennessee Star - Verse of the Day

  VERSE OF THE DAY Be blessed and be a blessing June 18, Sunday 2 Corinthians 6:14–18 Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? 15 What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch no unclean thing; then I will welcome you, and you shall be sons and daughters to me, says the Lord Almighty.

Read the full story

NASA Astronaut Jeff Williams Shares Photos From Space At Brentwood Baptist Vacation Bible School Event

Wendy Wilson

Children participating in Vacation Bible School at Brentwood Baptist Church spent this past week learning about outer space and on Friday evening got the chance to meet a real, live astronaut. NASA astronaut Jeff Williams talked about his exciting career and shared his photos from space during an event to close the week. After his presentation, families lined up to have their photo taken with him. The VBS theme was “Galactic Starveyors: Discovering the God of the Universe.” A committed Christian, Williams spoke of seeing “God’s creative work” from outer space. The photos he has taken capture how famous landmarks and terrains appear from the vantage point of space. Photos he shared Friday featured the Grand Canyon, Mt. Everest, glaciers, coral reefs and sand dunes. He also displayed a photo of the Middle East, which he said he is one of the most meaningful to him because it shows the place of the history of the entire Bible, from Old Testament times through the life of Christ. Williams said Christians can only know God through the revelation of the Bible, but that that being an astronaut has helped him appreciate God’s creation. Asked what children interested in becoming an astronaut…

Read the full story

Congressman Scalise’s Condition Improves, But More Operations and Long Hospital Stay Expected

Tennessee Star Staff

WASHINGTON — House Majority Whip Steve Scalise was at “imminent risk of death” after a gunman opened fire at a congressional baseball team practice, but the Louisiana congressman is making progress and is expected to be able to walk again, officials said Friday. The No. 3 House Republican remains in intensive care and is likely to…

Read the full story

Hannity: Deep State ‘Aids and Abets’ the ‘Destroy Trump Media’

Tennessee Star Staff

President Donald Trump retweeted Fox News host Sean Hannity’s Friday tweet in which he previewed his opening monologue on the “Deep State’s allies in the media” and the dangers facing the president. Prior to his opening segment of Friday’s “Hannity” on the Fox News Channel, Hannity promoted the monologue and an interview with former House Speaker…

Read the full story

No Pause in Left-Wing Intimidation of Conservatives Post-Alexandria

Tennessee Star Staff

Despite liberal pundits’ and politicians’ calls for civility in the wake of the targeted shooting of Republican senators in Alexandria, Virginia on Wednesday, left-wing intimidation tactics — not to mention extreme rhetoric — continued unabated. Masked ANTIFA agitators attacked pro-free speech demonstrators at Evergreen State College on Thursday night. The speech was organized by a pro-Trump…

Read the full story

Democratic Party Official Caught on Video in Profane Rant Against California Gas Tax Opponents

Tennessee Star Staff
Tennessee Star

A Democratic Party official was filmed over the weekend berating a group of gas tax opponents trying to collect signatures in Fullerton, California. San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio, a Republican, and his husband, San Diego Gay and Lesbian News Publisher Johnathan Hale, were petitioning at a local Wal-Mart to recall Democratic state Sen. Josh Newman…

Read the full story

Faith: Verse of the Day for Sunday, June 18

Dana Hunsinger Gill
Tennessee Star - Verse of the Day

  VERSE OF THE DAY Be blessed and be a blessing June 18, Sunday Deuteronomy 32:10 “He found him in a desert land, and in the howling waste of the wilderness; he encircled him, he cared for him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.” Isaiah 29:23 For when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in his midst, they will sanctify my name; they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and will stand in awe of the God of Israel. Psalm 68:5 Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. Matthew 6:4 “Your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matthew 6:8 “Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:26 “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” 2 Corinthians 6:18 “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the Lord Almighty.”      

Read the full story

Latinos For Tennessee Praises Trump’s Reversal Of Obama’s Cuba Policy

Wendy Wilson

Latinos For Tennessee is praising President Trump for reinstating travel and trade limitations on Cuba on Friday, overturning significant parts of former President Obama’s policy. Obama had lifted restrictions last year. Trump’s reversal will restrict tourism and ensure that U.S. dollars do not support the military conglomerate that monopolizes many sectors of the Cuban economy, according to a press release issued by Latinos For Tennessee. Raul Lopez, the executive director of the conservative group, fled Cuba as a young boy along with other members of his family as political refugees. “Today is a great day for the people of Cuba who yearn to be free,” Lopez said in a statement. “By reversing President Obama’s misguided policies, we will no longer be empowering the oppressive Castro regime. “Rather than benefiting the regime and its cronies, American involvement in Cuba should benefit the Cuban people, and pave the way for democracy, and greater economic and religious freedom on the island,” Lopez continued, adding, “The ball is in the Castro regime’s court. If they want better engagement from the United States, they have to support human rights, hold free and fair elections, and release political prisoners.” Latinos For Tennessee promotes faith, family, freedom and…

Read the full story

6 Reasons Why Less Is More for the Mature Fitness Athlete

Patrick Rooney

As the owner of a fitness training and consulting company, and as a mature fitness athlete who has experienced numerous injuries (as well as surgeries), I’m painfully aware—pun intended—of many of the challenges faced by the seasoned fitness athlete. I’m also aware of how these challenges can bring out the best in us. How they can cause us to train smarter, learning valuable lessons about health, fitness, and life that we would likely have missed without these experiences. I’d like to explore with you some of the key changes that often occur in the older fitness athlete, that can bring on new insights and even superior techniques and practices: 1.    Priorities The older fitness athlete has more responsibilities than the younger athlete. Having to pay the bills every month and often take care of a family has a way of focusing the mind! The older fitness athlete no longer has the motivation to spend hours at the gym pumping up. 2.    Desire for more essential things in life As a person matures, we begin to see what’s important to us. Meaning increasingly matters. More time for contemplation matters. The simple enjoyment of life is important. Being a slave to a gym loses…

Read the full story

EXCLUSIVE Scott DesJarlais Interview: ‘Going Forward, I Don’t Want to Confirm or Deny Whether I Carry Or Not’

Tennessee Star Staff
Tennessee Star

Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN) tells The Tennessee Star in an exclusive interview Saturday morning, “Going forward, I don’t want to confirm or deny whether I carry or not.” The Star asked DesJarlais whether he currently has a permit to carry a gun. “I don’t have a carry permit,” DesJarlais says. “I usually have somebody with me that does. It’s easier for me to communicate with people one on one without having a weapon on me,” he adds. In light of the shooting of Congressman Steven Scalise (R-LA), staffers, a lobbyist, and Capitol Hill Police by James Hodgkinson at a practice of the Republican Congressional baseball team in Alexandria, Virginia on Wednesday, DesJarlais made it clear to The Star that he will immediately reconsider his previous personal policy concerning whether he will be armed or not. “Going forward, I don’t want to confirm or deny whether I carry or not,” DesJarlais says again for emphasis. That statement suggests that anyone who intends on harming DesJarlais in the future will be met with an immediate and forceful response. As The Star reported Friday night, “Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN) was one of six Republican members of Congress–all of whom belong to the conservative…

Read the full story

Grand Prix Race Planned For Nashville

Wendy Wilson

The Grand Prix might come to Nashville. The Metro Nashville Sports Authority on Thursday approved a proposal to bring a motor race to Nissan Stadium in 2019, reports WKRN News 2. The course would be laid out in the parking lots around the stadium. Grand Prix of Nashville is the group behind the plans and still needs to secure funding. Negotiations will be ongoing and the group must seek additional approvals, according to the Nashville Business Journal. The group’s leader is Joe Mattioloi III, who previously leased The Nashville Fairgrounds track and hosted NASCAR-sponsored races there. Other members of the management team include Matt Crews, Mike Gillespie and Tony Cotman. Crews, the vice president of the group, was quoted by WKRN as saying, “Like the Stanley Cup run has shown us, and like the All-Star Game last year, Nashville delivers every time it’s given a shot on the big stage. Fifty percent of the U.S. population lives within 650 miles of here. Nashville has unbelievable experience in producing large events. So, bringing a true international event to this environment sets the Grand Prix up to be one of Nashville’s biggest events, but also sets the Grand Prix up to be one of the…

Read the full story

Jim Devine, Democrat Strategist, Defends #HuntRepublicans Tweets After Scalise Shooting

Tennessee Star Staff

A New Jersey Democratic strategist has refused to apologize for tweeting #HuntRepublicans and #HuntRepublicanCongressmen in the aftermath of Wednesday’s assassination attempt of Republican members of Congress. According to MyCentralJersey.com, Jim Devine has been involved in politics for 35 years and previously worked on campaigns for New Jersey Assemblyman James Kennedy and state Sen. Raymond Lesniak. Just…

Read the full story

FBI Declines to Release Comey Memos, Citing Use in Possible ‘Law Enforcement Proceeding’

Tennessee Star Staff

The FBI on Friday refused to hand over to The Washington Times unclassified memos that former Director James Comey wrote describing his meetings with President Trump because they are part of a pending or prospective law enforcement proceeding. The denial of the documents, whose existence was made known and whose release was encouraged by Mr. Comey…

Read the full story

Bill O’Reilly Says GOP Shooting ‘Prophecy’ Came True; Gunman ‘Deeply Enmeshed in the Far Left’

Tennessee Star Staff

Author Bill O’Reilly says he accurately predicted the kind of political violence that unfolded this week when an armed gunman attacked congressional Republicans in Alexandria, Virginia. The former Fox News Channel star told One America News Network’s Patrick Hussion Thursday evening that he made prophetic warnings months ago as activists began a “resistance” movement against President…

Read the full story

Legal Experts Say Robert Mueller Faces Tough Obstruction Case Against Donald Trump

Tennessee Star Staff

Special counsel Robert Mueller could have a tough time making an obstruction of justice case stick against President Trump, according to legal analysts, who said he will have to overcome a number of “unique hurdles” – not the least of which is a decades-old Justice Department ruling that a sitting president can’t be charged. Analysts say…

Read the full story

BREAKING: Congressman Scott DesJarlais on List of Republican Targets Found in Van of Shooter James Hodgkinson

Tennessee Star Staff
Tennessee Star

Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN) was one of six Republican members of Congress–all of whom belong to the conservative House Freedom Caucus–who were on a handwritten list found in the van of James Hodgkinson, the man who shot Rep. Steven Scalise, two staffers, a lobbyist, and two Capitol Hill policemen at a Republican Congressional baseball team practice in Alexandria, Virginia on Wednesday morning. Hodgkinson was killed in an exchange of gunfire with Capitol Hill Police Wednesday morning. They were at the practice as part of Rep. Scalise’s security detail since as Republican Majority Whip he is part of the House leadership team. Scalise remains in critical condition, though doctors said Friday his condition has improved. A lobbyist for Tyson’s Food who was shot in the chest by Hodgkinson also remains in critical condition. Chad Pergram of Fox News first reported that DesJarlais’ name was on the list late Friday night in this tweet: Hse GOP names on Hodgkinson list written in pen found in van: DesJarlais, Franks, DuncanSC, Jordan, BrooksAL, Griffith — Chad Pergram (@ChadPergram) June 16, 2017 The Daily Caller first broke the story late Friday: James T. Hodgkinson, the shooter who opened fire on dozens of Republican congressmen and…

Read the full story

Delaware Governor John Carney Signs Pro-Abortion Legislation

Wendy Wilson
Fetus on Health

Delaware has passed a bill to guarantee abortion rights in the state should Roe v. Wade be overturned, a move that removed restrictions in current law. Pro-life advocates strongly opposed the legislation, signed last week by Gov. John Carney, a Democrat. “With a pro-life President in the White House and already one pro-life Justice nominated and confirmed, abortion advocates are running scared,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony List, in a June 6 news release written to rally support for defeating the bill. “Planned Parenthood and the ACLU are using Delaware as a testing ground for their extreme legislation to ensure abortionists can carry out abortions without limit – even on healthy children hours from birth.” Before the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling, laws about abortion were left entirely to the states. The court in Roe v. Wade ruled 7-2 that banning abortions denied women a right to privacy protected by the 14th Amendment. The decision gave women total autonomy over pregnancy during the first trimester but allowed states some say over the second and third trimesters. The new law in Delaware removes existing restrictions on abortion, including a parental consent law for minors and a 24-hour waiting period, until viability,…

Read the full story

Nashville Mayor Megan Barry Slams ICE Agents Trying To Enforce Court Orders of Removal

Wendy Wilson
Tennessee Star

  Nashville Mayor Megan Barry wrote a letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this week strongly criticizing agents for what she views as inappropriate enforcement of immigration laws, despite the fact that the individuals the agency sought were subject to final orders of removal issued by an immigration court. “Over the past few days, we have heard disturbing reports of members of our community being stopped, questioned, and even harassed as part of an increased effort to enforce deportation orders for individuals who had previously been convicted of criminal activity,” Barry wrote in her letter Tuesday, which was published by WSMV Channel 4. The letter was addressed to an ICE community relations officer in New Orleans. Barry’s complaints centered around enforcement efforts among Kurdish immigrants, many of whom are from Iraq. She said she saw a video in which a “Kurdish-American citizen” was “being stopped and questioned by an ICE official for no apparent reason.” Barry took issue with the word “Police” on the officer’s vest. “Our Metro Nashville Police Department has gone to great lengths in building relationships with our New American community in order to promote public safety,” Barry wrote. “This effort can be undermined when ICE agents…

Read the full story

This List Of Attacks Against Conservatives In Last Eleven Months is Stunning

Tennessee Star Staff

A wave of liberal rage has marked the last 11 months since the rise and subsequent election of President Donald Trump. Antifa protestors clad in black masks shut down college campuses, destroy property and indiscriminately attack those they disagree with, whether women or the elderly. Meanwhile, CNN fires Kathy Griffin for taking photos with a bloody…

Read the full story

Two Escaped Georgia Convicts Who Killed Corrections Officers Captured in Tennessee By Rutherford County Homeowner Armed With Gun

Tennessee Star Staff

Two Georgia convicts who escaped after allegedly killing two corrections officers were captured in Rutherford County, Tennessee Thursday evening. A homeowner in Christiana, Tennessee saw the two men attempting to steal his car, got his gun, and held them at gunpoint until police arrived. WKRN reports: Donnie Rowe and Ricky Dubose were taken into custody after authorities spotted a vehicle reported stolen after a home invasion in Shelbyville around 6 p.m. The men gave chase for about 10 miles and traveled at speeds around 100 mph on Interstate 24, Det. Sgt. Dan Goodwin said. According to Goodwin, the pair opened fired on two police vehicles and fled on foot after crashing near mile marker 91. The men were ultimately taken into custody at a home on Pruitt Road after a foot pursuit. The homeowner and a neighbor held the two suspects at gunpoint until deputies arrived to the home where authorities said the escapees were trying to steal another vehicle. An agent for the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation took a picture of the two convicts after they were captured last night and and the TBI tweeted it out last night. Our Agent snapped this picture of Ricky Dubose and Donnie…

Read the full story

Gardenhire Objects to Referring to Those He Calls ‘Undocumented Students’ As Illegal Immigrants

Chris Alto
Tennessee Star

State Senator Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga) has taken exception to The Tennessee Star’s polling question which accurately refers to foreign nationals of any age who have entered or been brought into the country without permission as “illegal immigrants.” Gardenhire prefers to use the left’s politically deceptive description of “children of undocumented immigrants who are brought to this country when they are very young.” “Illegal alien” is the term used in federal immigration statutes and is the term sanctioned by the U.S. Supreme Court in a 2012 immigration case. Open border leftist organizations such as the TN Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) and La Raza, also use “undocumented immigrant” in an effort to “obscure the illegal actions and conduct of those who violate our immigration laws.” In 2014, after failing to move his in-state tuition bill out of committee, Gardenhire tried for a second time the following year. Working his 2015 bill to grant in-state college tuition to illegal alien students, he never used “illegal” anything, referring instead to the potential beneficiaries as, “certain students,” “best and brightest of this category,” “this segment of the population,” “these people,” “undocumented,” and “Tennessee high school graduates.” Rep. Mark White, sponsor of the companion House bills,…

Read the full story

Kentucky Congressman Thomas Massie Introducing Bill to Recognize Outside Concealed Carry Permits in D.C.

Tennessee Star Staff

Rep. Thomas Massie on Thursday said he’s introducing legislation that would recognize out-of-state concealed carry permits in the District of Columbia, in the wake of the shocking attack on Rep. Steve Scalise and others in Northern Virginia on Wednesday. “What I’m trying to do is anticipate how to avoid a tragic situation in the future,” Mr.…

Read the full story

Mark Levin, Rush Limbaugh Rip Media After Hodgkinson’s Attack: ‘Assassination Becomes Mainstream’

Tennessee Star Staff

Mark Levin and Rush Limbaugh both excoriated the media on Wednesday for radicalizing Americans and mainstreaming violent rhetoric in the wake of a shooting attack on congressional Republicans. Two of America’s most famous conservative radio hosts say some culpability for the Alexandria, Virginia, ambush that sent Rep. Steve Scalise and at least four others to the…

Read the full story

Camille Paglia: Democrats in ‘Nationwide Orgy of Rage and Spite’ over Donald Trump

Tennessee Star Staff

Renowned feminist Camille Paglia says the Democratic Party’s leaders are in “a nationwide orgy of rage and spite” that prevents them from connecting with millions of potential voters. In a wide-ranging interview with The Weekly Standard, the author and professor, who supported Vermont Sen. Bernard Sanders in the 2016 primary election and Green Party candidate Jill…

Read the full story

Motlow State Community College President Tony Kinkel Resigns Amid Complaints About His Leadership

Wendy Wilson

Motlow State Community College President Tony Kinkel resigned this week before the release of a report highly critical of his job performance. The report included the findings of an investigation that the Tennessee Board of Regents undertook because of complaints about Kinkel, who was appointed president just two years ago after serving as president of a technical college in Kansas. Released Wednesday, the report found that “the tone being set at the top reflects autocratic management, negativity, and undue pressure, causing long-term employees to seek other employment.” Motlow State has campuses in Smyrna, Moore County/Tullahoma, McMinnville and Fayatteville. In his resignation letter Tuesday, Kinkel didn’t refer directly to the investigation and expressed “deep anguish” over his decision to resign. “With legislation changing the Board of Regents, the resignation of Chancellor John Morgan, and the departure of the Vice Chancellors, I respect that the Board is moving in a new direction,” he wrote. “We all work at the pleasure of the Board and I support their right to chart a different course for a system that is changing.” His resignation is effective Sept. 30 and he is on annual and administrative leave until then. In his letter, Kinkel listed Motlow’s accomplishments under…

Read the full story

Donald Trump Launches Apprenticeship Program, Promises ‘Great,’ ‘High-Paying’ Jobs

Tennessee Star Staff

President Trump launched an initiative Thursday to expand apprenticeships and vocational training programs, saying putting more Americans back to work required giving them the skills for the “jobs of the future.” He signed executive orders that loosen federal restrictions on job-training programs and encourage partnerships between business and colleges to train young workers for a vast…

Read the full story

Mae Beavers: ‘Before Police Arrive, Those of Us Who Have Secured Permits and Are Armed Are the Only Source of Protection’

Tennessee Star Staff

  JACKSON, Tennessee– Gubernatorial candidate Mae Beavers told a meeting of the Tennessee Firearms Association here on Thursday night that in the event of an attack similar to the shooting of Republican Congressman Steve Scalise (R-LA) in Virginia on Wednesday, “before police arrive, those of us who have secured permits and are armed are the only source of protection for ourselves, our loved ones and our neighbors.” “We should continue to pray for the victims of the vicious attack on Republican Members of Congress — and their families. That horrific event should remind us that it is our responsibility to protect ourselves and our families from violence. Had there not been a security detail present the ‘tragedy,would have been, as Senator Rand Paul has pointed out, a ,massacre,” Beavers said, adding: Although the police responded quickly and effectively, it was still several minutes before they arrived. When seconds count, the police are minutes away. In that critical time span before police arrive, those of us who have secured permits and are armed are the only source of protection for ourselves, our loved ones and our neighbors. Those who have obtained permits in Tennessee should carry a weapon and be prepared…

Read the full story

Ken Starr Says Questioning of Jeff Sessions by Democrats Failed Attempt to Embarrass Him, Not Find Answers

Tennessee Star Staff
Tennessee Star

Kenneth Starr said Thursday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions was within his right to refuse to answer questions over possible claims of executive privilege. “The attorney general was exactly right. He was protecting executive privilege, he wasn’t asserting it,” Mr. Starr said on CNN. Mr. Starr acted as an independent counsel during the investigation into former…

Read the full story

Atheist Group Objects To Graduation Prayers At Alabama High School

Wendy Wilson

An atheist group has objected to a high school in a small southern Alabama town including prayers and references to God at graduation events, reports AL.com. But a conservative group is coming to the school’s defense. The Freedom From Religious Foundation sent a letter dated June 5 to Opp City Schools finding fault with the May 21 baccalaureate service at the Opp High School auditorium, and also the graduation ceremony held at a later date at the football stadium. The letter noted that the school principal led students in prayer at the baccalaureate service, and that administrators scheduled a student prayer at the graduation ceremony, where the principal’s speech included references to God and prayer. “We ask that you cease sponsorship and hosting of future baccalaureate services occurring in the District, that you ensure that no prayers are scheduled for future high school graduation ceremonies or any other school-sponsored events occurring in the District and that you inform us in writing of the steps the District is taking to respect the right of conscience of each of its students,” said the letter from the atheist group, which is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. Opp City Schools Superintendent Michael Smithart told AL.com that…

Read the full story

State Senate Candidate Mark Pody Calls The IMPROVE Act ‘Washington Politics’

Laura Baigert

MOUNT JULIET, Tennessee — At his first public speaking engagement since announcing, in an exclusive interview with The Tennessee Star, his candidacy for the State Senate seat Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) will be leaving to run for the Republican nomination for governor in 2018, Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) called the IMPROVE Act “Washington politics” for the way numerous issues were combined in one bill without an “up or down” vote on each individually. At the Americans For Prosperity Town Hall held in Mt. Juliet on Monday evening with Field Director Shawn Hatmaker and attended by more than 30 people to honor and appreciate Rep. Pody and Sen. Beavers for their vote against the gas tax increasing IMPROVE Act, Rep. Pody’s comments on the recently concluded legislative session focused largely on the IMPROVE Act. Using four different colored packs of sweeteners and sugar, Rep. Pody gave a visual demonstration of the IMPROVE Act when he ripped the packets open and poured them out together, alluding to the separate and unrelated issues in the bill (HB534), saying “They all came out white,” and they then had to “Vote on that, whether there was some good or some bad.  That’s what DC does.” “As…

Read the full story

NASA Astronaut Jeff Williams To Speak at Brentwood Baptist on Friday

Wendy Wilson

  NASA Astronaut Jeff Williams will speak Friday evening at Brentwood Baptist Church to close a week of Vacation Bible School featuring a galactic theme. The event is open to the public and there is no cost to attend his presentation. Williams, a native of Wisconsin, has spent 534 days in space on four separate missions, including nearly 32 hours in five spacewalks. After returning from the International Space Station in September, Williams briefly held the record for most days in space, a record he also held earlier in his career. But Williams’ most recent record was broken in April by astronaut Peggy Whitson, a biochemist currently on a mission. She is expected to have more than 650 days in space at the end of her mission this fall. Williams is a committed Christian who chronicled his adventures in space and his faith in his 2010 book, The Work of His Hands: A View of God’s Creation from Space. The book features photos he took while on board the International Space Station. Williams said that he came to know God through Scripture, but that being an astronaut helped him reflect on God in a new way. “The experience did have an…

Read the full story

Left-Wingers Embrace Threats, Violence After Scalise Shooting

Tennessee Star Staff

A left-wing Twitter user made an implicit threat against Laura Ingraham, editor-in-chief of LifeZette, on Wednesday afternoon in the wake of a shooting attack made in Virginia against GOP members of Congress. The offensive tweet read simply, “Too bad you don’t play baseball.” The remark came after Ingraham noted on Twitter: “A @BernieSanders supporter did shooting…

Read the full story

Army Forces Troops, Civilians To Attend Transgender Sensitivity Training

Tennessee Star Staff

The Army is now holding mandatory transgender sensitivity training for officers, non-commissioned officers and civilians. As part of the Pentagon’s attempt to create an accepting environment for transgenders, the Army held a session Tuesday teaching officers and others how to implement existing military policy, particularly how to “assist soldiers who have a medical diagnosis indicating that…

Read the full story

The Shooter Who Opened Fire on Republicans Has Been Identified And His Facebook Page Is Filled With Anti-Trump Posts

Tennessee Star Staff

According to the Washington Post, law enforcement officials have confirmed the identity of a man who opened fire on Republican politicians and their staffers at a baseball field near Washington, D.C. Sixty-six-year-old James T. Hodgkinson of Belleville, Illinois has been identified by the Washington Post as the shooter. Hodgkinson is alleged to have opened fire on…

Read the full story

Commentary: The Recusal Double Standard

Tennessee Star Staff

by George Rasley, CHQ Editor Yesterday, during his testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Attorney General Jeff Sessions explained in great detail the process we went through to recuse himself from participation in the Department of Justice’s counter-intelligence investigation of whether Russia interfered in the 2016 presidential election. One of the more startling revelations in Sessions testimony was that he refused from day one of his tenure at Justice to take any briefing or receive any files on the Russia investigation because he, and DOJ attorneys, were reviewing whether he should recuse himself. What was even more startling was the revelation that he was advised to recuse himself from the investigation because it involved a political campaign to which he had been an unpaid advisor. Our friend former Assistant U.S. Attorney Andy McCarthy, writing for National Review, says judging from the public testimony that former FBI director James Comey has given about the investigation into Russia’s election-meddling, the DOJ regulations did not mandate recusal. McCarthy points out, Sessions says that he recused himself, on the advice of career ethics experts at the Justice Department, because he thought this was required by the federal regulation controlling “Disqualification arising from personal or…

Read the full story

Conservative Presbyterians Elect Progressive Academic Who Bemoans ‘White Privilege’ As Moderator Of Annual Meeting

Wendy Wilson

A college professor who promotes progressive theories on race and white privilege was elected moderator Tuesday for this week’s annual meeting of leaders in the conservative Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). The PCA is the second largest Presbyterian denomination after the liberal mainline Presbyterian Church (USA). Since forming in the early 1970s, the PCA has been known as a conservative evangelical body standing in sharp contrast to the liberal mainline denomination. But in recent years, the PCA has experienced increasing internal division over race, the role of women in the church, and how to respond to cultural pressure to overturn biblical teachings on marriage and sexuality. The PCA has a strong presence in Middle Tennessee. Its larger churches include Christ Presbyterian in Nashville, Covenant Presbyterian in Green Hills and Christ Community in Franklin. More orthodox believers in the denomination are alarmed by the changes. But they are stymied by a growing progressive influence bringing radical secular ideas into the church, often wrapped in select Bible verses about compassion and generosity that leave conservatives afraid of being called racist and uncaring. Alexander Jun, the moderator chosen for this week’s General Assembly meeting in Greensboro, North Carolina, is co-author of a new…

Read the full story