Day: November 13, 2017

Mae Beavers Calls on Tennessee Comptroller to ‘Conduct a Complete and Thorough Audit and Investigation’ of All TECD Grants Issued During Randy Boyd’s Tenure as Commissioner

Tennessee Star Staff

Conservative Republican gubernatorial candidate Mae Beavers called on the Tennessee Comptroller to “conduct a complete and thorough audit and investigation” of all the grants issued during Randy Boyd’s tenure as commissioner of Tennessee Economic and Community Development (TECD). Boyd announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor in March after resigning as commissioner of TECD in January. “It appears Randy Boyd has used Tennessee taxpayer dollars and resources as ECD Commissioner to lay the foundations of his gubernatorial campaign,” Beavers said in a statement released late Monday. “The Comptroller should conduct a complete and thorough audit and investigation of this grant — as well as all other grants awarded during Mr. Boyd’s tenure — in order to determine if this is part of a broader pattern of targeted corporate welfare designed to build political support,” the former State Senator from Mt. Juliet said. Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury Justin P. Wilson is in charge several departments, including the  Division of State Audit, which “conducts financial and compliance audits, performance audits, information systems audits, attestation engagements, investigations, and special studies to provide the General Assembly, the Governor, and the citizens of Tennessee with objective information about the state’s financial condition…

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CBS Sports’ Barrett Sallee Calls Potential Tennessee Coaching Candidate ‘Home Run Hire’

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Tennessee’s coaching search is officially underway following the termination of former head football coach Butch Jones on Sunday. Several names have been linked to the Vols’ coaching position for weeks, but CBS Sports’ Barrett Sallee believes current Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen is the best option. “Mullen would be a home run hire for Currie if…

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Roy Moore to Sue The Washington Post

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Roy Moore, the Republican’s nominee in the Alabama fight for the U.S. Senate seat, announced he’s going to sue The Washington Post for the series of stories that implicate him in sexual dalliances with underage girls 40 years ago. He said this as political players in his own party were folding like cheap card tables to…

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Pat Toomey Says Roy Moore Should Drop Out of Alabama Senate Race, Bob Corker Calls His Nomination ‘A Bridge Too Far’

Tennessee Star Staff

Sen. Pat Toomey has joined the growing chorus of Republicans who say Roy Moore should drop out the U.S. Senate race in Alabama over charges that the former judge pursued relationships with teenaged girls when he was in his 30s. “I think the accusations have more credibility than the denial. I think it would be best…

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Diane Black Campaign Says ‘Losing Toyota-Mazda Is a Tremendous, Inexcusable Loss for Our State’

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Last week, officials with Toyota and Mazda announced that they have eliminated the state-funded Memphis regional “Megasite” from consideration for a new automobile manufacturing facility. The gubernatorial campaign of Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06) quickly issued a statement stating “Losing Toyota-Mazda is a tremendous, inexcusable loss for our state.” You can read the full statement here: The Diane Black for Governor campaign today reacted to the disappointing news that Toyota-Mazda has eliminated the Memphis Regional Megasite (formerly known as the West Tennessee Megasite) from consideration for its new plant. Tennessee’s Economic and Community Development Commissioner confirmed that the megasite was removed from consideration because it was not “shovel-ready.” The state purchased the land for the megasite in 2009 and taxpayers have invested $140 million thus far in preparing it for a tenant. Diane Black for Governor Communications Director, Chris Hartline, made the following statement: “Some may campaign on making Tennessee a business-friendly state, but they are overlooking their failures to make Tennessee a business-ready state. The state has had years to make the Memphis Regional Megasite ‘shovel ready,’ and has come up short once again. Losing Toyota-Mazda is a tremendous, inexcusable loss for our state. We have to take action and…

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Commentary: Republicans Hold the Key to Their Own Success in the 2018 Midterm Elections

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by Jeffrey A. Rendall   Now that 2017’s few elections and reflections on the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s triumphant win in the 2016 election are in the rearview mirror it’s time to look ahead to the all-important midterm elections of 2018. Midterms are always a big deal because they portend to reveal how well – or how poorly – a president is received by a wide cross-section of the American public. Ahead of next year’s vote media pundits are doing what media pundits always do, namely find any way feasible to describe the Republican Party as being in trouble. Their routines are predictable: wake up in the morning, put on a pot of coffee, take their anti-depressant medication, check Trump’s twitter feed, organize their angry thoughts and then scribble a story bashing Trump and predicting doom. In Trump’s case it’s been happening for well over two years now so liberal journalists have the shtick down cold. The only problem is their predictions rarely come true. Other commentators actually look at the facts and try to draw some reasoned conclusions. David M. Drucker and W. James Antle III of the Washington Examiner wrote earlier this week, “One year out from the midterm congressional…

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State Senate Candidate Shane Reeves’ Company Received $1 Million Grant from TECD Approved by Randy Boyd in 2016, Reeves Family PAC Donated $5,000 to Gubernatorial Campaign in 2017

Tennessee Star Staff

Tennessee political observers are questioning whether former commissioner of Tennessee Economic and Community Development (TECD), and current Republican candidate for governor, Randy Boyd used his previous office as a platform to prepare a gubernatorial campaign by directing state grants to local officials and businesses who might, and in many cases have, support his run for governor. One example cited by those observers involves State Senate candidate Shane Reeves. In July 2016 Randy Boyd, then-commissioner of TECD,  approved a $1 million “Fast Track Economic Development Fund” grant for Murfreesboro based TwelveStone Health Partners, whose founder and and CEO Shane Reeves is a candidate for the Republican nomination in the 14th District State Senate special election prompted by the resignation of State Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville). Soon after Boyd left his state position to run for governor, the Reeves Family PAC, which lists Shane Reeves as the sole officer, donated $5,000 in April, 2017 to the Randy Boyd gubernatorial campaign. Reeves also personally endorsed Boyd during a campaign stop in Murfreesboro that same month. Randy Boyd resigned as commissioner of TECD in January 2017 and announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor in March. In October, the Randy Boyd for Governor campaign announced that “50 of the 95 county mayors…

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