You probably know Steve Buscemi as a character actor from films like “Billy Madison” or “The Big Lebowski.” You may even know him from his lead role in five seasons of the HBO drama, “Boardwalk Empire.” You likely don’t know him, however, as a former firefighter for the FDNY’s Engine Company 55 in Little Italy. Before…
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The events of Sept. 11, 2001, gave way to countless stories of tragedy, desperation and pain. They also also gave way to stories of bravery and unity. Amid the rubble and devastation of a terrorist attack that changed this country forever were people helping each other and first responders running toward certain danger. The country will…
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Last week, Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, introduced an amendment to the State and Foreign Operations Appropriations Act blocking any U.S. funding to Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW). Between 2015 and 2016, IRW received $370,000 in federal funding. DeSantis explained to the Free Beacon that: U.S. tax dollars cannot go to groups involved in funding terrorism. Any group tied to Hamas or the Muslim Brotherhood should be ineligible for funding.  It is a slap in the face of the American taxpayer to allow such groups to receive federal funding. Founded in 1984, IRW is headquartered in the UK but operates as a franchiser of sixteen charity affiliates comprising the largest Islamic charity in the West with revenues in the hundreds of millions. Islamic Relief USA (IRUSA), reputed to be one of the largest affiliate funders of IRW, is also inter-connected to IRW through leadership. For example, IRUSA’s former CEO, Abed Ayoub also served on the governance committee of the IRW. Between 2012 and 2016, Memphis Imam Yasir Qadhi has been helping IRUSA raise money speaking at a dozen fundraising events. More recently, he undertook an eight-date tour in the UK to raise money for the parent organization IRW. Britain’s Charity Commission which…
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Senator Bob Corker is considering retirement, according to a CNN report breaking this morning: Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker, the influential chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee who was once considered for a spot in President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, is weighing whether to call it quits next year. Corker told CNN last week that he has not made a decision about his future, and appeared to confirm Trump’s tweet that he asked the President for political advice about whether to run for reelection. “As far as what am I going to do in the future, I’m still contemplating the future,” Corker said in an interview. “It’s a tremendous privilege to do what I do, and to weigh in on the big issues. … But I have not decided what I’m going to do in the future.” The junior Senator has been oddly quiet about any 2018 re-election run as possible candidates consider challenging him in the August primary, and investigations into some too-good-to-be-true stock trades develop. CNN continues: A source familiar with Corker’s thinking said the Republican is legitimately torn about whether to remain in the body another six years or to return to his roots in the business sector.…
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President Trump made phone calls Sunday morning to governors of Southern states bracing for Hurricane Irma, which earlier had made landfall at Cudjoe Key, Florida. Mr. Trump spoke with governors in Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee. Federal preparations for disaster response continued, including briefings for the president and vice president at Camp David, the White…
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Special counsel Robert Mueller is obsessed with President Trump’s network of business interests for suspected money laundering as a critical focus of his investigation into Russian meddling in the presidential election last year, according to sources from the intelligence community close to the former FBI director. One of the sources, who spoke on the condition of…
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Once upon a time the Constitution meant something to everybody. Every American took pride in a Constitution that was written in plain language that anyone, even a lawyer, could understand. Ours was “a nation of laws,” not of judicial fiat or bureaucratic whim. That was the strength of the exceptional nation. But because a law can…
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The Air Force has shipped 300 doctors and support staff to Florida to help out with medical care as Hurricane Irma rages up the coast. Four C-17 Globemaster III’s began moving Air Force medical personnel into the heart of Florida near midnight Saturday, just as many residents of the state were evacuating as fast as possible,…
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Sen. John McCain says it would be “unconscionable” to send Dreamers back to their native countries, urging Congress to pass an amnesty program as a part of comprehensive immigration reform. “It is not conscionable to tell young people who came here as children that they have to go back to a country that they don’t know,”…
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This is the twentieth of twenty-five weekly articles in The Tennessee Star’s Constitution Series. Students in grades 8 through 12 can sign up here to participate in The Tennessee Star’s Constitution Bee, which will be held on September 23 from 9 a.m. to noon at Sycamore High School, 1021 Old Clarksville Pike, Pleasant View, Tennessee. Federalism and The Separation of Powers are the two foundational concepts framed in the United States Constitution which, together, were designed to protect the liberties and natural rights of individual citizens. Federalism refers to the division of powers between a national government and individual state governments, while The Separation of Powers refers to the three branches of government – legislative, judicial, and executive – whose competing powers provide checks and balances on the threat of tyranny. The legislative branch, is in itself divided into two separate legislative bodies, the House of Representatives and the Senate, each with its own unique powers. The Founding Fathers masterfully added yet another layer for safeguarding liberty through the method by which the members of the two legislative bodies would be elected. At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, the Framers decided that the members of the House of Representatives would be elected directly by the people (Direct Election) and…
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One brave woman delivered her own baby Sunday after Hurricane Irma trapped her in her home and firefighters were unable to reach her in Little Haiti, Fla. The woman gave birth to the baby based on the instructions from the Jackson Health System, which walked her through the process so that she would have a safe…
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In her first television interview since the election, Hillary Clinton relitigated some of the 2016 campaign’s biggest talking points, saying “sexism” and “misogyny” were majors factors in her defeat. “I started the campaign knowing that I would have to work extra hard to make women and men feel comfortable with the idea of a woman president,”…
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A new poll released by Tennesseans for Conservative Action (TCA) shows that the Republican race for the party’s gubernatorial nomination in 2018 is still wide open. “Our findings show that, among Republicans who plan to vote in the 2018 GOP Primary, President Trump remains wildly popular and the 2018 governor’s race is wide open with a majority still unsure who they will vote for,” a member of the TCA leadership team tells The Tennessee Star. TCA “surveyed 822 Tennesseans on the evenings of August 28 and August 29, 2017 who self-identified as likely to vote in the August 2018 Republican primary. The margin of error is +/- 3.42%,” according to its website. The TCA poll showed that 82.3 percent of likely Republican primary voters approved of President Trump’s job performance. The result was remarkably consistent with President Trump’s 86 percent job approval rating as reported in the Tennessee Star Poll conducted in early June. The head-to-head match up of six declared candidates shows a remarkable 57.4 percent of likely Tennessee Republican primary voters are still undecided in the governor’s race. Those results were virtually unchanged from the Tennessee Star Poll conducted three months earlier during the first week of…
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VERSE OF THE DAY Be blessed and be a blessing September 11, Monday Psalm 37:1-6 Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; 2 for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. 3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. 4 Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this: 6 He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun.
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