Day: September 13, 2017

Art Laffer Endorses Diane Black for Governor, Joins Campaign as Economic Policy Adviser

Wendy Wilson
Tennessee Star

  Conservative economist Arthur Laffer on Wednesday endorsed U.S. Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-6) for Tennessee governor and announced that he will serve as her economic adviser. Laffer, who was a close adviser to former President Ronald Reagan, lives in Nashville and earlier this year voiced criticism of the gas tax hike passed this spring by the state legislature. Laffer also was an economic adviser to former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. “Diane Black knows exactly how to keep Tennessee’s economy growing rapidly by ensuring that Tennessee keeps tax rates low while paying its bills and protecting its taxpayers,” Laffer said in a news release. “I moved from California to Tennessee eleven years ago for these very reasons, and I couldn’t be happier with my adopted home state. There’s no one more qualified and prepared to lead Tennessee into a new era of prosperity than Diane Black.” In the 1980s, Laffer became known as the father of supply-side economics because of his influence in a movement to cut taxes. That time period saw great economic expansion in the U.S. “Art Laffer has the greatest fiscal policy track record of the last 40 years,” said Black. “I am honored to have his endorsement and…

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Leah Remini Wins Emmy for Scientology Documentary, Forgives Mom for Introducing Her to ‘Cult’

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Actress Leah Remini took home an Emmy for her A&E documentary series “Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath,” publicly forgiving her mother for introducing her to what she described as a “cult.” Ms. Remini, a former Scientologist, gave an emotional speech Saturday night after winning for outstanding informational series at the Creative Arts Emmy Awards in…

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House Speaker Beth Harwell Banks on Experience in Run for Tennessee Governor

Wendy Wilson

  House Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) told the Beacon Center of Tennessee last week that her “core conservative values” and experience in the state legislature make her a good candidate for governor. A Nashville-based nonprofit that promotes the free market, the Beacon Center is conducting Facebook Live interviews with gubernatorial candidates on issues facing the state. “I think I have core conservative values that I’ve taken to state government and put them into place, and because of that I think we do in fact have a good, well-run state government,” Harwell said. Harwell said that in her leadership role she has “led in some of our state’s boldest and most successful   initiatives – everything from eliminating the inheritance tax and gift tax to making us the third lowest taxed state in the nation and the lowest debt state in the nation – but also reforming our unemployment and workers compensation laws, making this a very legally stable environment for businesses to flourish.” Harwell also touted sponsoring legislation allowing for charter schools and for making Tennessee friendly for homeschoolers. In addition, she mentioned a program launched last year that allows parents of children with special needs to access a variety of educational…

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Seattle’s Democratic Mayor Resigns in Wake of 5th Child Sexual Abuse Allegation

Tennessee Star Staff

SEATTLE — Seattle Mayor Ed Murray resigned Tuesday, just hours after new allegations that he sexually abused a younger cousin decades ago in New York. Murray, a former Democratic state legislator elected mayor in 2013, said in a statement he is resigning effective 5 p.m. PDT Wednesday. “While the allegations against me are not true, it…

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Commentary: McLaughlin Poll Warning for GOP – Back the Trump Agenda or Face Defeat in 2018

Tennessee Star Staff

  by ConservativeHQ.com Staff   Last week we told you about a recent poll by respected pollster John McLaughlin which showed that, in spite of Leftwing attacks on freedom of speech, Americans overwhelming support the First Amendment and freedom of thought and speech. But as our friend Dr. Timothy Daughtry pointed out in a recent article for Townhall there’s a lot more to the poll than support for freedom of speech. Daughtry says that, for the Republican Party, the central message of the poll is “dance with the one who brung ya,” and more specifically, dance with the Trump voters and their agenda. The message of that McLaughlin poll could not be clearer or simpler for Republicans as they choose in the coming weeks between the agenda of President Trump and the agenda of the Beltway insiders: The base that brought you to the dance supports the Trump agenda. Dance with your base and win. Dance with the Beltway and lose. Here are just a few highlights Dr. Daughtry culled from the poll: Voting to increase the debt ceiling without new constraints on spending will make 62% of voters less likely to vote to re-elect a Member of Congress. “Bailing…

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Robert Ranco, Texas Lawyer Behind Betsy DeVos Sex Assault Tweet, Resigns From Firm

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A lawyer that sparked outrage after tweeting that he’d be “OK” with Education Secretary Betsy DeVos being sexually assaulted has resigned from his Texas law firm. Robert Ranco, a partner at the Carlson Law Firm who disagreed with the Trump administration’s plan to reform how accusations of sexual assault are adjudicated on campus, wrote in a…

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Violins of Hope Coming to Nashville in March to Teach About the Holocaust

Wendy Wilson
Amnon violins of hope

  NASHVILLE, Tennessee — The Violins of Hope are coming to Music City. The instruments were played by Jewish musicians interned in concentration camps during the Holocaust in Europe during World War II. Today, the collection is traveling across the U.S. to educate people about the Holocaust and inspire discussions about music, art and justice. The collection came to the U.S. in 2012 and its stops have included the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, Cleveland and Sarasota, Florida. The Violins of Hope will arrive in Nashville next year in mid-March and stay through May. The Nashville Symphony hosted a press conference Tuesday at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center downtown to unveil plans for related musical performances, art exhibits, lectures and more. More than two dozen Nashville-area groups are involved in the project. They include the Jewish Federation of Nashville and Middle Tennessee, Nashville Public Library, Nashville Ballet, Frist Center for the Visual Arts and Vanderbilt University. “We are thrilled to be working with so many enthusiastic partners on this historic initiative,” said Alan Valentine, president and CEO of the Nashville Symphony. The instruments were restored and refurbished by Israeli luthiers Amnon and Avshi Weinstein. They are the subject a book by James…

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Latinos For Tennessee Defends Nashville Statement Endorsing Traditional Marriage

Wendy Wilson
Tennessee Star

  Latinos For Tennessee is defending the Nashville Statement, a declaration by Christian evangelicals that upholds traditional marriage and maintains that homosexuality and transgenderism are sinful. Tommy Vallejos, the group’s board chairman, says the swift backlash against the statement is “outrageous.” The statement was approved Aug. 25 at a meeting of evangelical leaders in Nashville and was named for the city in keeping with a historical Christian practice of naming doctrinal statements for the places where they were written. Nashville Mayor Megan Barry, a progressive Democrat, spoke out against the statement, tweeting that it “does not represent the inclusive values of the city & people of Nashville.” Three Nashville progressives started a counter statement that says, “God does not need you to change.” The Nashville Statement has also drawn criticism from some Christians who attend conservative churches who say it was too harsh and not helpful to the discussion of LGBT issues. A Sept. 9 news release from Latinos For Tennessee noted that the Nashville Statement reiterated “a set of beliefs and principles that are shared by millions of Americans and the majority of Tennesseans, according to some polls.” Vallejos, who is a pastor in Clarksville and a Montgomery County commissioner, said…

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Faith: Verse of the Day for Wednesday, September 13

Dana Hunsinger Gill
Tennessee Star - Verse of the Day

  VERSE OF THE DAY Be blessed and be a blessing September 13, Wednesday Genesis 39:21-23 the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden. 22 So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in the prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there. 23 The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph’s care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did 2 Corinthians 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.    

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