The Nashville Predators recalled Anders Lindback from Milwaukee and assigned fellow goaltender Juuse Saros to the American Hockey League affiliate, the team announced Thursday. Lindback has an AHL-leading 11 wins to go along with a 2.32 goals-against average and .925 save percentage in 15 games this season for the Admirals. Signed to a one-year contract in…
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News of beloved actor Jim Nabors’ death rocked Hollywood fans on Thursday. The actor, best known for his role on “The Andy Griffith Show” as Gomer Pyle, died on Nov. 30 at the age of 87. TV Producer Phil Arnone confirmed the death to WBRC News. (GettyImages-2691974) …
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By CHQ Staff In its blind failure to recognize its dire peril, Capitol Hill’s Republican establishment is beginning to look a lot like the unfortunate souls at Jonestown who “drank the Kool-Aid” and committed mass suicide as the authorities closed in on the cult at its remote compound in Guyana. However, in a rare moment of lucidity, Senator Lindsey Graham spelled out for CNN’s Dana Bash that failure to pass tax reform means political death for the GOP establishment: For every Republican senator, the fate of the party is in our hands, as well as that of the economy. The economy needs a tax cut, and the Republican Party needs to deliver. Yet, with this imperative two Republican Senators have already come out in opposition to the bill and between six and eight others have expressed reservations about the House-passed plan. Sen Steve Daines (R-MT) joins Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) in publicly rejecting the current version of the bill. According to reporting by The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda, the two senators are pushing for lawmakers to do more to help “pass-through” businesses whose income is taxed through the individual tax code. Pass-throughs can take the form of sole proprietorships and…
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Gubernatorial candidate Representative Diane Black announced Wednesday that her statewide Law and Order Coalition – who have endorsed her campaign and signed on to provide guidance on law enforcement issues – has grown by five new members. “I’m proud to have such a strong group of law enforcement officials from across Tennessee on my team,” Representative Black said in a statement. “The outpouring of support from the law enforcement community has been humbling and I look forward to working with our new members and the existing members to find solutions on the major issues we face like the opioid epidemic and human trafficking. Together, I know we can make sure that Tennessee is a safe place to live, work and raise a family.” District Attorney General Jennings Jones (16th Judicial District), District Attorney General Brent Cooper (22nd Judicial District), Former District Attorney General Al Schmutzer (4th Judicial District), Decatur County Sheriff Keith Byrd, and Hawkins County Sheriff Ronnie Lawson have all agreed to join Diane Black’s Law and Order Coalition. In all, the Law and Order Coalition totals 25 current or former sheriffs and 14 current or former district attorneys general from across the Volunteer State. The full list of Black’s Law…
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Following recent sexual harassment and assault allegations against , something unorthodox happened with an upcoming movie starring the performer. An announcement came out about “All the Money in the World,” directed by Ridley Scott, noting that Spacey would be replaced entirely in the movie through reshoots, which would insert actor Christopher Plummer in the role. …
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The Shelby County Commission voted on Wednesday to override vetoes by Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell of two resolutions passed by the commission earlier this month. One resolution officially confirmed Commission chairwoman’ Heidi Shafer’s hiring of an out-of-state law firm to file an opioid abuse lawsuit against manufacturers and distributors on behalf of the county. The second resolution “instructed the mayor to stop suing the commission in Chancery Court for control of the lawsuit; and approved the use of taxpayer dollars to fund the commissioners’ legal defense against the mayor’s lawsuit,” the Commercial Appeal reported. “The Shelby County Commission and Shelby County sued several pharmaceutical companies in Shelby County Circuit Court on Thursday, alleging illegal abuse in their manufacture, sale, and distribution of opioids,” The Tennessee Star reported on November 6: “It’s not just the drug companies. It’s also the distributors, including pharmacies and the doctors writing the prescription that are being sued,” Heidi Shafer, chairman of the Shelby County Commission tells The Tennessee Star in an exclusive interview. “The lawsuit is very narrowly tailored only to go after those who are abusing,” Shafer adds. “About 80 counties around the country are already suing the companies involved in opioid abuse,” Shafer says.…
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The Nashville-based Beacon Center of Tennessee on Wednesday announced that it has formed a new nonprofit that will serve as the free market think tank’s advocacy partner. Called Beacon Impact, the new nonprofit was set up to promote reform at the state Capitol and within communities. While the new entity is a 501(c)(4) organization, meaning it can endorse candidates as well as engage in unlimited lobbying, the nonpartisan Beacon Center has no plans to break with past practice and start promoting political candidates and parties. Instead, the nonprofit is charged with “focusing exclusively on advocating for the policy ideas developed by the Beacon Center,” according to a news release. The Beacon Center itself is a 501(c)(3) organization, meaning it has a limited ability to lobby. Justin Owen, the CEO of both organizations, said in a statement: The Beacon Center has a solid track record of developing policy solutions grounded in the principles of free markets, individual liberty, and limited government. We have also successfully shepherded many of these solutions into law. But it’s not enough. We need the ability to advocate for meaningful reform both inside and outside the state Capitol, in the halls of the legislature and local governments,…
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Tyson Foods will open a new facility in Humboldt in West Tennessee, creating more than 1,500 jobs, Gov. Bill Haslam announced last week. Haslam made the announcement along with economic development commissioner Bob Rolfe. “The new facility will be Tyson’s fifth location in Tennessee and it means a great deal that a company of this magnitude continues to grow its footprint in our state,” Haslam said in a press release. The facility will produce pre-packaged trays of fresh chicken for grocery stores across the country, according to a Tyson Foods press release. The chicken production complex will include a processing plant, hatchery, feed mill and related operations. The company will contract with local farmers to raise chickens. Tyson Foods’ investment of more than $300 million in Humboldt is the company’s biggest in Tennessee and the single largest investment in Gibson County’s history. Headquartered in Arkansas, the food processing giant sells various chicken, beef and pork products under the brands Tyson, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm, Sara Lee, Ball Park, Wright, Aidells and State Fair. Tyson Foods has been producing chicken in Tennessee for more than 45 years. The new facility marks the second major project the company has started in the…
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Stephen K. Bannon plans to campaign with GOP Senate nominee Roy Moore next week at a rally in Alabama, despite the continued controversy surrounding the judge’s candidacy. Mr. Bannon, who was among Mr. Moore’s early backers, will join the candidate in Fairhope, Alabama, on Dec. 5 ahead of the special election on Dec. 12, ABC News reported. …
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Sen. John Thune said Wednesday that Republicans have reached out to their colleagues who are unsure of whether to support the tax reform bill. He was specifically asked about Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and John McCain of Arizona, who are both still uncertain about whether they’ll support the bill when it comes to a full…
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The Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) arrested 20 men and women in Memphis this week for using fraudulent identification documents to get jobs at Expeditors International. Homeland Security Investigations worked with THP on the case, said Thomas Byrd, a spokesman for U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “It’s a state level investigation and we assisted,” Byrd told The Tennessee Star. “We did not detain anyone. Everyone arrested was detained by THP.” Expeditors International is a global logistics company headquartered in Seattle. The individuals arrested were trying to land jobs with a temp agency that contracts with Expeditors, reports WREG News Channel 3. They were arrested Tuesday morning at the company’s Hickory Hill warehouse and charged with forgery and criminal simulation. Expeditors issued a statement indicating its willingness to cooperate with authorities. Those arrested presented fraudulent permanent resident and social security cards as well as Tennessee driver’s licenses, according to a THP news release. The immigration activist group Latino Memphis raised questions about the arrests as details were unfolding. “It’s a reality that immigrants have to find documentation to work,” Mauricio Calvo, the group’s executive director, told WREG. “It’s ironic that working is a crime.” But THP Colonel Tracy Trott said that…
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President Trump urged China’s president in a phone call Wednesday to use “all available levers” to pressure North Korea to halt its “provocations,” a day after Pyongyang tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile. Mr. Trump emphasized to Chinese President Xi Jinping “the determination of the United States to defend ourselves and our allies from the growing…
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Citing “inappropriate behavior with an individual who worked with him,” Minnesota Public Radio said Wednesday it has terminated its relationship with Garrison Keillor, the former host of “A Prairie Home Companion” who helped build MPR into a national powerhouse. …
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As president of the State Financial Officers Foundation, I have the privilege of working with some of the nation’s sharpest financial officers. They are not merely treasurers. They are thought leaders, experts, and fighters who, day-in and day-out, serve on the front lines of fiscal policy and intimately understand their state budgets, cash flow, and state…
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Former State Rep. Billy Spivey (R-Lewisburg) announced today that he is a candidate for the Republican nomination in the special primary election scheduled to replace former State Sen. Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) in the 14th State Senate District. “Over two terms in the Tennessee House, I took on Common Core. I took on policing for profit, I took on the Hall Tax. And I won,” Spivey said in a statement released to The Tennessee Star early Thursday morning. “Not by being a bully and not by playing the games of the Establishment. I won these battles by listening, thinking, and standing on principle,” he added. “This is the passion and record that I now hope to bring to the Tennessee Senate,” the former State Rep. continued. “These are the reasons that I humbly request the votes of the good people of District 14, and promise, if elected, to bring true conservative, anti-Establishment change to Nashville . . . where we all know it’s desperately needed,” Spivey concluded. As The Star reported on Wednesday, the Republican and Democrat primaries will be held on January 25, and the general election will be held on March 13, “according to a writ of election issued…
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