President Trump emerged Saturday from a meetings with Congress’ Republican leaders at Camp David and outlined an ambitious legislative agenda for 2018, including the budget, infrastructure, a border wall, immigration and beefing up the military. He called the agenda setting sessions “great meetings” that had been “transformative in certain ways.”
Read the full storyMonth: January 2018
Conservatives Tell Congress: Don’t Give Up on Obamacare Repeal
Congressional Republicans girding for what looks to be a tough election year may view wading into another messy fight over health care to be like “Groundhog Day” — but restless conservative activists are urging them to do just that.
Read the full storyDisney-Fox Mega-Merger Faces Serious Questions over Anti-Competitive Behavior
By Rick Manning Disney and 21st Century Fox have proposed another massive media merger that may rise or fall on Disney’s anti-competitive lawsuit against a small Utah company that allows parents to filter mature content such as violence, strong language, or sexually inappropriate images and sounds from movies and TV shows. VidAngel has become a hot topic amongst social conservative groups whose members want to be able to watch a movie or TV show at home without bringing mature elements into their homes, especially in light of Hollywood’s recent scandals over sexual harassment and parent’s subsequent concerns over how to protect their kids from messages encouraging sexual objectification. Since Disney and other movie producers continue to provide cleaned-up TV and airline versions of their products, there should be no problem with customers having the ability to self-police what shows in their homes. In fact, Congress has already acted once to ensure that parents can decide whether to filter a movie or not in their home. In 2005, they passed the Family Movie Act which specifically allowed the filtering of movies for private home viewing. Unfortunately, now that technology has moved to a streaming world, the federal courts, at Disney’s urging, have failed to extend this…
Read the full storyCommentary: Congress Needs to Put a Stop to Asset Forfeiture
Members of Congress brought renewed attention to a legislative effort to halt efforts by the Department of Justice to restart one of the most controversial civil forfeiture practices, so-called “adoptive” forfeitures. The practice, part of the equitable sharing program, allows state and local law enforcement to seize property in their jurisdictions and then hand it over to federal agencies to conduct the forfeiture. In return, the original seizing agency then receives up to 80 percent of the proceeds if the forfeiture is successful. In 2015, the Justice Department essentially halted this type of forfeiture amid growing concerns that it gave police and sheriffs a financial incentive to circumvent state laws when federal law made it easier to seize assets. Some state laws are more protective of property rights and more restrictive in how forfeiture funds can be raised and spent than federal law. The Justice Department’s decision was hailed by reform advocates, but in July, Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a directive reinstating adoptions. What Congress Has Done That move prompted pushback from lawmakers. Led by Reps. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., and Justin Amash, R-Mich., a bipartisan group of House members sought to put a stop to Sessions’ actions by blocking funding for the program. In September…
Read the full storyHollywood About to Celebrate Its Worst Year Ever
Will the star-studded Golden Globes on Sunday night be a celebration of the creative arts — or a self-congratulatory, Trump-bashing hatefest served up by a pampered elite dressed in black?
Read the full storyTherapist Writes In Washington Post That Trump News Cycle Is Ruining Her Clients’ Lives
One Washington, D.C.-based therapist’s clients have 99 problems, and they all seem to be about President Donald Trump. Elisabeth Joy LaMotte, a psychotherapist and founder of the DC Counseling and Psychotherapy Center, writes in The Washington Post that a number of her patients have been complaining that the media’s fixation on Trump is taking a toll on their personal lives.
Read the full storyBeth Harwell: Maybe Medical Marijuana ‘Is a Gift from God’
Tennessee Speaker of the House and GOP gubernatorial candidate Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) made news Friday afternoon when, during a fairly routine interview with Memphis Local 24 about her aspirations to be the next governor, she posited if marijuana is “a gift from God.” Harwell’s position about on marijuana has taken a major turn after her sister, in an attempt to control pain from breaking her back, took an oral form of the drug was reportedly helped by it. As The Tennessee Star reported in August: According to an Associated Press report picked up by Connecticut-based The New Haven Register, Harwell relayed her personal story of how her sister broke her back and was prescribed opioids for the pain. The injury to her sister is the reason Harwell cited in a letter to the Rutherford County Republican Party explaining why she was unable to attend the Reagan Day dinner in May. Harwell recalled to the group that her sister, who had been prescribed opioids for her pain, “had no doubt” in her mind that if she were to “continue this opioid regimen, I will become addicted to opioids.” With Harwell’s sister living in Colorado where marijuana has been legalized, she used some for four or five days until…
Read the full storyPredators Without Top Scorer Forsberg Against Kings
The Nashville Predators will try to continue their success at Staples Center when they play the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night. The Predators are 18-11-0-6 all-time against the Kings in Los Angeles, and have earned at least a point in the past seven games there (4-0-3). Nashville beat the Kings 4-3 in overtime at Staples on Nov. 4.
Read the full storyState Senate Candidate Shane Reeves Promises to Donate His Legislative Per Diem to Charity if Elected
Murfreesboro businessman Shane Reeves, a Republican candidate in the 14th State Senate District special election, is promising to donate his legislative per diem to charity if he is elected. Legislators within 50 miles of the Capitol currently receive mileage reimbursement for travel at a rate of 47 cents per mile and $59 per day for meals and incidental expenses while in Nashville on legislative business. “I am a conservative family man and businessman that plans on taking this same conservative approach to Nashville as a State Senator,” Reeves said in statement released on Friday. “Since I am seeking to work for the people of the 14th district, my travel expenses from Murfreesboro to Nashville should fall on me– not the taxpayers. I am pledging today to make the ‘Conservative Per Diem Pledge’ and donate all of those funds back to the 14th district taxpayers,” Reeves added. Reeves did not disclose exactly which charity would benefit from his contribution of the per diem reimbursements if he is elected. The statement continued: Lawmakers across Tennessee receive reimbursement for the expenses they incur for driving back and forth from Nashville and for nights away from home. Some lawmakers have been known to take…
Read the full storyFBI Investigating Clinton Foundation: Reports
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is probing the foundation of former president Bill Clinton amid pressure from President Donald Trump and allegations of corruption by Republican lawmakers, US media reported Friday. The Hill, a news website covering Congress, CNN and the New York Times all confirmed that Justice Department investigators are looking into issues involving donations to the Clinton Foundation in exchange for political favors while the ex-president’s wife, Hillary Clinton, was secretary of state from 2009-2013.
Read the full storyMetro’s Official Document Reveals That The Real Price Tag For Mayor Megan Barry’s Mass Transit Plan Is $9 Billion, Not $5.4 Billion
Nashville Mayor Megan Barry’s transit plan has been presented as having a cost of $5.4 billion during the 15 year construction plan through 2032. But that figure represents just the rail corridor improvements portion of the plan. But, in reality, he total cost is a whopping $8.95 Billion. The figures for costs and revenues were provided in greater detail within the Let’s Move Nashville Metro’s Transportation Solution Transit Improvement Program document dated December 13, 2017. In addition to the $5.4 Billion for the rail corridor improvements, which quickly increased from the original $5.1 Billion to address an extension to the Charlotte Avenue route, is $1.146 Billion for Bus System Enhancements, $1.185 for Interest, Principal and Financing Costs, $934 Million for Operation and Maintenance and $211 Million for Reserves for a grand total of $8.951 Billion. The corresponding $8.951 Billion in revenues are said to come from Local Option Surcharges of $3.387 Billion, Financing of $3.022 Billion, Federal Capital Improvement Program Grants of $1.434 Billion, TIFIA (Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act) of $500 Million, Contributions from BNA Airport, the Convention Center and Investment Income of $262 Million, Federal Formula and Capital Replacement Grants of $153 Million and Farebox Recovery, otherwise…
Read the full storyCommentary: Democrats’ Obsession with 2018 Midterms Won’t Subside Until They Lose
by Jeffrey A. Rendall It should come as no surprise to regular followers of American politics that the media is already concentrating intently on this year’s midterm elections – after all, pundits have been fixated on the subject literally since the day Donald Trump vanquished Crooked Hillary Clinton in 2016. With Republicans now controlling all of the elected branches of government the next round of political races offers these desperate souls their only prayer for liberation from their long-dreaded banishment to the electoral wilderness. Trump’s administration has proven to be the most conservative since Reagan (thus far), so the prospect of deliverance is the only thing liberals care about. Sadly, it’s leading them to delusion. Here it is the end of just the first workweek in January and predictions from Democrats abound as to how badly Republicans will suffer for their Trump-supporting sins on November 6th. It’s not hard to find such forecasts, either. For the politically obsessed it’s a 24/7/365 news cycle no matter what else is happening in the world. Oddly enough some suggest this year could be Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s last rodeo as Democrat leader of the people’s house if the party fails to realize the projected…
Read the full storyThree Times Trump Campaign Officials Said They Would Win
White House and former Trump campaign officials are pushing back hard Friday on a claim in a salacious new book that President Donald Trump and his team expected, or maybe even wanted, to lose the 2016 election. The claim is made in Michael Wolff’s new tome, “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.”
Read the full storyIllegal Immigrant Who Killed Kate Steinle Gets Time Served
An illegal immigrant who killed a tourist in San Francisco in 2015 in a case that gained national attention will not have to spend any more time in jail, a judge ruled on Friday. The judge sentenced Jose Ines Garcia Zarate to time served for illegal gun possession — the sole count on which a jury…
Read the full storyTrump Renominates 21 of his Federal Judge Picks, Including Tennessee State Senator Mark Norris
President Trump announced Friday he intends to renominate 21 judicial picks whom he had nominated last year but hadn’t yet been confirmed by the Senate. The 21 nominees come from eight states “that are suffering from judicial emergencies,” according to the White House press release. The states are Alabama, Louisiana, Oregon, North Carolina, Colorado, Texas, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
Read the full storyRuth Bader Ginsburg to Trump: I’m Not Going Anywhere
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dashed any hope President Donald Trump might have had that she would resign before the end of his term, announcing on Thursday that she had hired a full slate of clerks through 2020.
Read the full storyNancy Pelosi Named ‘Porker of the Year’ by Non-Profit Watchdog
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi has been named the 2017 “Porker of the Year” by Citizens Against Government Waste, a non-profit watchdog organization which tracks the excesses of pork barrel spending and lavish mindsets among lawmakers. The California Democrat won the dubious designation, the group says, “for her long history of misinformation and hyperbole about the benefits of Obamacare.
Read the full storyBob Corker Once Told Other Senators That Illegal Immigration Isn’t ‘Fair to American Citizens’
In 2007, when Bob Corker went to D.C. as the newly elected junior Senator from Tennessee he was openly against illegal immigration until he switched over while trying to save the 2013 “Gang of Eight” amnesty bill. During debate on the “Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007,” that would have ended chain migration, instituted a system of merit-based immigration, increased border security and interior enforcement, Corker said that to be “fair to American citizens,” illegal aliens should have to leave the country and then re-enter through legal channels: One of the things we are trying to address in this bill is a situation where our immigration has been broken, the system has been broken for many years. In 1986, legislation was offered to try to solve this problem. What has happened is it has gotten even worse, so there has been, obviously, more thought put into this bill. I appreciate again the many amendments and the discussion that has taken place. Many of the things we have talked about have addressed the legalities, have addressed some of the technicalities in our immigration system. It seems to me, one of the things we have not addressed—while we have tried to address fairness…
Read the full storyExclusive: Army Veteran and Wife Given Opportunity to Win Millions
NBC’s “The Wall,” hosted by Chris Hardwick and produced by LeBron James, has put millions of dollars into the pockets of everyday Americans since it premiered last year. The premise is rather simple. Two contestants compete to earn cash by answering trivia questions — and then sending a ball down a wall, where it can drop on various amounts of money. At one point, one contestant is put into isolation where he or she answers the trivia questions — and the person’s partner decides where to drop the ball on the wall.
Read the full storyLongtime Cleveland Mayor Announces Retirement, Endorses State Representative Kevin Brooks as His Replacement
State Representative Kevin Brooks (R-Cleveland) announced in a tweet Thursday morning that he would not be seeking re-election to a 6th term in at Legislative Plaza, but instead, he will run for Mayor of Cleveland, Tennessee, the Bradley County city with a population of more than 40,000. Thank You for the opportunity to serve the greatest city in Tennessee, in the TN House of Representatives. After much prayer, I will not seek re-election to the House, but offer myself as a candidate for Mayor of Cleveland TN. We ask for your Prayers, your Support, & your Vote. pic.twitter.com/hwQtwlPKSs — Mayor Kevin Brooks (@MayorKBrooks) January 4, 2018 In a joint press conference with Brooks, sitting Mayor Tom Rowland, who was first elected in 1991 and is now retiring, endorsed Brooks as his replacement. The announcement was broadcast on Facebook Live: JC Bowman, executive director of Professional Educators of Tennessee, a non-partisan teacher association headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, is one person who will definitely not be running for the seat in the Tennessee House of Representatives Brooks will be leaving. “I have been contacted by several people in my hometown who have inquired if I would have any interest,” Bowman said in a statement released on…
Read the full storyNashville Symphony Seeks Students for Accelerando Music Education Initiative
The Nashville Symphony invites local students of diverse backgrounds to audition for its education initiative, Accelerando.
Read the full storyUS Muslim Population Expected To Double In 30 Years
The U.S. Muslim population will double in approximately 30 years, growing from 3.45 million to 8.1 million, according to projections from The Pew Research Center.
Read the full storyDonald Trump Rolls Out Massive Offshore Drilling Expansion
In a massive rollback of the Obama administration’s energy policy, President Trump’s Interior Department on Thursday released a draft proposal that would open nearly all of the nation’s coastal waters to offshore drilling, sparking yet another battle with environmental groups and states that say they’ll fight the plan at every turn.
Read the full storyFree Speech Group ‘Concerned Educators Against Forced Unionism’ Set to Hold Online Conference This Weekend
Concerned Educators Against Forced Unionism (CEAFU) will host their annual online conference at noon eastern this coming Saturday, January 6. They will discuss the latest on the Janus case, and its implications for teachers. The Janus case could be a very influential decision for the nation. More information, including legal briefs in the case, can be found at www.nrtw.org/janus. The oral argument date in Janus has been set for Monday, 2/26, which is a week later than expected. Matthew Brouillette is president and CEO of Commonwealth Partners Chamber of Entrepreneurs pointed out in a recent editorial that Taxpayer resources – not only at the state level but at school district levels – are regularly used to collect campaign contributions and funnel them to a select group of organizations that, not coincidentally, are among the largest bankrollers of political campaigns in the state. He added “And it’s no secret. The public has known it for years.” Brouillette also pointed out that “ending the use of public resources for unions’ political fundraising would in no way prevent public employees from engaging in politics or limit their ability to do so. They would just have to do so like everyone else, without taxpayer…
Read the full storyPresident Trump Ends His Voter Fraud Commission, Asks Homeland Security To ‘Review The Issues’
President Donald Trump decided to dissolve his commission on voter fraud Wednesday, citing refusal from states to cooperate with his commission. Trump, who created the commission in order to investigate possible instances of voter fraud in the 2016 election, is instead asking the Department of Homeland Security to review the matter, the White House said in a statement.
Read the full storySenator Charles Grassley Says James Comey Likely Leaked Classified Information
A top Republican senator said Wednesday that it appears former FBI Director James Comey leaked classified information in his effort to shape the narrative surrounding President Trump’s decision to fire him. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Charles E. Grassley said Mr. Comey wrote seven memos, and shared four of them with a professor he was using as an intermediary to defend him. Of the seven, four are marked at the confidential or secret level – meaning at least one of the memos Mr. Comey shared contained restricted information.
Read the full storyRepublican Wins Virginia House of Delegates Tie-Breaker in Random Drawing
Virginia Republicans will retain their control of the state House of Delegates after incumbent GOP Del. David E. Yancey held his 94th District seat after defeating Democrat Shelly Simonds in a rare random drawing Thursday in Richmond. After several recounts election officials said the November vote was an exact tie, with the GOP’s 18-year control of…
Read the full storyHuma Abedin Forwarded State Passwords to Yahoo Before It Was Hacked by Foreign Agents
Huma Abedin forwarded sensitive State Department emails, including passwords to government systems, to her personal Yahoo email account before every single Yahoo account was hacked, a Daily Caller News Foundation analysis of emails released as part of a lawsuit brought by Judicial Watch shows.
Read the full storyCommentary: Trump Really Is Draining The Swamp
President Donald Trump is significantly decreasing the size of the federal bureaucracy, a campaign promise he often referred to as “draining the swamp.” The administration downsized permanent staff at all cabinet-level departments by the end of Sept. 2017, except for at Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs (VA) and Interior, The Washington Post reported Saturday.
Read the full storyLeahy Invites Conservative Activists to Attend Constitution Mentors 2018 Kick Off This Saturday
On Friday Tennessee Star CEO and Editor-in-chief Michael Patrick Leahy asked constitutional conservatives from around the state to attend the 2018 kick off of the Polk Foundation’s Constitution Mentors program that will be held this Saturday, January 6, from 1 pm to 4 pm. Anyone interested in attending can sign up here. The event will be held at the offices of Professional Educators of Tennessee at 5100 Linbar Drive, Suite 101, in Nashville. “We held our first Constitution Mentor training session back in November. Now, it’s time to add more Constitution Mentors in preparation for the next Tennessee Star Constitution Bee, sponsored by The Polk Foundation, which will be held in Williamson County at the Main Auditorium of the Williamson County Administration building in Franklin from 9 am to noon on Saturday, April 28,” Leahy said. Secondary school students interested in participating in the April 28 Tennessee Star Constitution Bee can sign up here. “While our primary target is students in grades 8 to 12, we have in the past accepted younger students who have demonstrated zeal for the subject, and they have done quite well,” Leahy said. Leahy added that anyone who shares an originalist view of the Constitution…
Read the full storyStudy Shows DACA Illegals Can’t Speak English
Fully a quarter of illegals who are eligible for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program can’t speak English at all – 46 percent can only speak it a little. That’s according to a 2016 study from the Center for Immigration Studies, coming to light once again because President Donald Trump’s administration is due to end DACA this March.
Read the full storyPaul Manafort Files Lawsuit Charging Mueller Probe is Illegal; Says He Was Double-Crossed
Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort is directly challenging Special Counsel Robert Mueller, charging in a law suit filed on Wednesday that the prosecutor lacked the legal authority to investigate and indict him on pre-2016 money laundering charges.
Read the full storyJoe Biden to Escort Doug Jones at Swearing-In Ceremony: Report
Alabama Sen.-elect Doug Jones plans to have former Vice President Joseph R. Biden escort him to be sworn into office later Wednesday, AL.com reported. Typically, a newly sworn in senator would select his colleague, in this case Sen. Richard Shelby, as an escort. Mr. Shelby, Alabama Republican, was reportedly not asked to serve in this case.
Read the full storyMark Fitzgibbons Commentary: Violencing Politics, Speech, and Religion
by Mark Fitzgibbons In a recent appearance on the Tucker Carlson Show, I discussed the troubling legal ethics of attorney Lisa Bloom’s attempt to funnel money from undisclosed sources to women to accuse President Trump of sexual harassment. The timing in October and November of 2016 appeared clearly designed to influence the 2016 presidential election. Legal ethics prohibit payments to fact witnesses except for a limited number of purposes, such as travelling to testify; otherwise the offer of money would tempt people to lie. That would create chaos in our legal system. Ms. Bloom’s explanation was that she was acting as a conduit of funds to help protect the safety of the accusers. Protecting any honest accuser from violent retribution is a worthy cause. I remarked to friends that such “private witness protection programs” would have been needed had Hillary been elected president instead of Donald Trump. It is noticeable that the left has promoted the use of violence and physical retribution for political purposes. In March 2016, Peter Beinart of The Atlantic wrote: What will happen to American politics if, as now appears likely, the Republican Party nominates Donald Trump? Here’s one bet: It will get more violent. *** The…
Read the full storyTied Delegate Race in Virginia to be Settled with a Drawing of Names
The tied race in Virginia is now moving to a random draw this week after a judge ruled Wednesday that the court will not reconsider its ruling on a disputed ballot. Democrat Shelly Simonds tried to get the court to reconsider the disputed ballot that originally gave her a single-vote victory in the state’s 94th district. A review, however, found the ballot to be in favor of Republican incumbent David Yancey making the race an exact tie.
Read the full storyAbortion, Not Birth Control, is Pushing U.S. Pregnancy Rates Down
Legalized abortion is a bigger factor than broader access to birth control in the declining U.S. birthrate and steadily shrinking family sizes, according to new research by a Middlebury College professor. “The results suggest that policies governing access to the pill had little, if any effect, on the average probabilities of marrying and giving birth at a young age,”Middlebury College Professor Caitlin Knowles Myers wrote in The Journal of Political Economy in a that received little notice in the mainstream media.
Read the full storyRomney Changes Location to ‘Utah’ on Twitter
In a sign that may indicate his intention to seek the soon-to-be vacated Senate seat currently held by Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney quietly changed his location on Twitter from the Bay State to the Beehive State yesterday.
Read the full storyDOJ Showed ‘Double Standard’ by Favoring Clinton, Abedin, Says Former Navy Sailor Kristian Saucier
Former U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Kristian Saucier blasted the Justice Department on Fox News Tuesday night for exhibiting a glaring “double standard.” He said it set “an example” through his own case of the mishandling of sensitive information while giving former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her aides a pass for using private email servers to conduct sensitive government business.
Read the full storySenate Democrats Push Pension Relief in Effort to Woo White Working Class
Senate Democrats, trying mightily to win back the white working-class voters who backed President Donald Trump, are making a strong push for protections for blue collar workers’ shaky pensions.
Read the full storyTeachers Union Money and Support May Be Toxic in GOP Legislative Primaries
With a huge number of vacancies in State House and Senate seats in 2018, many due to retirements and others due to Members accepting political appointments or seeking other offices, there will be a historic number of contested seats in the August, 2018 Republican primary election. Republicans currently enjoy supermajorities in both the House and Senate, so the primary elections are tantamount to winning the seat in many cases. In recent years the Tennessee Education Association (TEA) has recognized the political realities in the state and started moving from previously supporting only Democrats in state legislative races to putting increasingly significant resources into both the Republican caucuses and individual campaigns. However, a new Tennessee Star poll reveals that accepting TEA money and support may come at a high cost for candidates in Republican primaries. The Tennessee Star Poll was conducted by Triton Polling December 12-18, 2017 and included 1000 likely GOP Primary voters from across the state. Respondents were asked: The Tennessee Education Association and National Education Association are unions that use Tennessee teachers’ dues to oppose the Second Amendment, support Planned Parenthood, and attempt to elect political candidates like Hillary Clinton. Would you be more likely or less likely…
Read the full storyAfter More Than Thirty Years, Local News Icon Demetria Kalodimos Is Summarily Fired from WSMV
After more than three decades, Nashville’s Demetria Kalodimos will no longer be a part of the WSMV news broadcasts. Word of the beloved anchor’s ouster is yet another in a string of scintillating stories of ageism, abuse, firings, and lawsuits that have roiled longtime viewers of the NBC affiliate. According a statement by Kalodimos to The Nashville Scene, she learned of her dismissal from a letter left on her desk by management. “I have spent more than half of my life at WSMV, working long and unpredictable hours, winning awards and ratings, serving and understanding the community and building trust,” she said. “It is quite sad to end a nearly 34 year career the way this company chose to end it, with a letter left on a desk, no conversation, no face to face meeting, no thanks.” A quick search of the WSMV website shows she has been removed, and a short statement has been posted: Demetria Kalodimos’ contract with the station expired on December 31, and as a result she is no longer a daily part of the Channel 4 broadcast team. Channel 4 offered an extension of her contract for the purpose of discussions, and hoped to continue supporting her journalistic work. However, we received no…
Read the full storyTrump Calls for Justice Department to ‘Finally Act’ Against Huma Abedin
President Donald Trump ripped Huma Abedin in an early Tuesday tweet for “disregarding basic security protocols” while serving as Hillary Clinton’s personal aide at Foggy Bottom and urged the Justice Department to “finally act.” The Daily Caller that Clinton’s deputy chief of staff at the State Department forwarded sensitive emails containing government passwords to her personal Yahoo email address.
Read the full storyAmid Iran Protests, Trump Faces Decision on Sanctions
U.S. President Donald Trump, who has been quick and forceful in his support for Iranian anti-government protests, will have a chance later this month to further step up pressure on Tehran. In mid-January, Trump faces another series of congressionally mandated deadlines to certify whether Iran is complying with the terms of the nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers.
Read the full storyState Senate Candidate Shane Reeves Made No Contributions to President Trump’s Campaign in 2016
Shane Reeves’ initial mail pieces and television spots in the special election for the 14th District State Senate seat vacated by former State Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) highlight his support for Presidential Donald Trump and his anti-Establishment agenda. However, an examination of Reeves’ record finds scant evidence of support for President Trump either during the Tennessee Presidential primary election or during last year’s general election. While Reeves has a record of supporting moderate candidates in Tennessee and nationally with campaign contributions, including Tennessee Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, and 2012 Presidential nominee Mitt Romney, there is no record at the Federal Election Commission of Reeves making any contribution to President Donald Trump in 2016. Reeves has also made a contribution to, and endorsed, self described “moderate” Republican candidate for Governor Randy Boyd. As reported by The Tennessee Star in November 2016, then ECD Commissioner Randy Boyd directed a million dollar “fast track” grant to Reeves’ company. Then, once Boyd left ECD to pursue his campaign for Governor, Reeves donated $5000 to Boyd through his PAC — and endorsed him during a campaign stop in Murfreesboro. The Boyd-Reeves connection is particularly relevant to Reeves’ campaign claim of support for President…
Read the full storyCommentary: The Not-So-Hidden Costs to 2018’s Minimum Wage Hikes
by Mark J. Perry In a 2014 letter written by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) to President Obama and congressional leaders in support of an increase in the federal minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, more than 600 economists apparently agreed with, and endorsed this statement: Research suggests that a minimum-wage increase could have a small stimulative effect on the economy as low-wage workers spend their additional earnings, raising demand and job growth, and providing some help on the jobs front. More recently, EPI endorsed a $15 an hour federal minimum wage and estimated that: The rising wage floor would generate $144 billion in additional annual wages, which would ripple out to the families of these workers and their communities. Because lower-paid workers spend much of their extra earnings, this injection of wages would help stimulate the economy and spur greater business activity and job growth. Seems almost like economic magic right? Through a government edict in the form of an artificial price control (minimum wage law), we can stimulate the entire US economy and increase national income, prosperity, and jobs! And here’s the latest from EPI on the pending increases in state minimum wages next week: At the beginning of 2018, 18 states will increase their…
Read the full storyPrankster ‘Welcomes’ California’s Sanctuary State Status
California became an official sanctuary state at the start of 2018, and at least one prankster mockingly marked the occasion with fake “Welcome” road signs. The California Department of Transportation confirmed the discovery of five official-looking signs declaring the state as an “official sanctuary state,” the Washington Examiner reported Jan. 2. The signs are posted underneath official “Welcome to California” highway signs and appear genuine. There were no reports of the identity of the prankster or pranksters. A sanctuary city, or state, is one in which federal immigration policies will not be honored. One sign posted on Interstate 15 at Mountain Pass near the California-Nevada border has been taken down, California Department of Transportation spokesman Mark Dinger told the Washington Examiner. There was no word on the fate of the other fake signs. The Alternative News Media’s Instagram page showed a photo of one of the signs, which reads, “OFFICIAL SANCTUARY STATE Felons, Illegals and MS13 Welcome! Democrats Need The Votes!” The state seal and a logo with the Democratic Party’s donkey mascot adorn the fake signs as well. The law that took effect on Jan. 1 prevents police from asking people about their immigration status or participating in federal immigration…
Read the full storyAmerica’s Opioid Crisis Has Doctors Warning Nashville Patients, ‘You Will Feel Pain’
Nashville Public Radio reports Tennessee’s medical community is in the midst of a major turnaround in the way they treat patients’ pain in response to the opioid addiction crisis gripping the nation: The big hospital chains based in Nashville are accepting some of the blame for the country’s opioid crisis, which grows more deadly by the year. They admit they were going overboard with opioids to make people as pain-free as possible. So in an effort to be part of the cure, they’re issuing an uncomfortable warning to patients — you’re going to feel some pain. Even for those who’ve never struggled with drug abuse, studies are finding that patients are at risk of addiction anytime they go under the knife. In short, one of the most common gateways to addiction is medical treatment, itself. NPR reporter Blake Farmer shares the all-too-common story of Las Vegas mom and paramedic Michelle Leavy, a healthy mother who underwent a c-section and was prescribed opioids to manage the post-surgical pain: [Leavy] welcomed the high-dose intravenous narcotics while she was in the hospital. And as she went home, she gladly followed doctors’ orders and kept ahead of the pain with her Percocet pills. But then she needed…
Read the full storyPakistan Summons US Ambassador Over Trump Tweet
Pakistan has summoned the US ambassador, an embassy spokesman said Tuesday, a rare public rebuke after Donald Trump lashed out at Islamabad with threats to cut aid over “lies” about militancy. Ambassador David Hale was asked to go to the foreign office in the Pakistani capital on Monday night, after Islamabad responded angrily to the US President’s allegations that it provided safe havens for militants in the latest spat to rock their alliance.
Read the full storyWrecked And Retching: Obscure Vomiting Illness Linked To Long-Term Pot Use
For 17 years, Chalfonte LeNee Queen suffered periodic episodes of violent retching and abdominal pain that would knock her off her feet for days, sometimes leaving her writhing on the floor in pain. “I’ve screamed out for death,” said Queen, 48, who lives in San Diego. “I’ve cried out for my mom who’s been dead for…
Read the full storyOFF THE RECORD: The Tennessee Star’s Awards for Best of the Best in 2017
On Tuesday, we dished out last year’s “bad” awards with our “Worst of the Worst for 2017.” Today, we hand out the “good” stuff, with our “Best of the Best for 2017.” “The envelope please…” COMEBACK KID. Congresswoman Diane Black caused many political pros to question her decision to accept the Budget Committee Chair while prepping a run for Governor, knowing that getting anything done would be a heavy lift. Yet, she dodged most of the landmines and when the Trump tax cuts passed she was standing right next to the President accepting accolades in word and tweet for a job well done. Look to see those Trump comments in commercials this year as she works to “out Trump” her opponents. As she and Randy Boyd start spending their respective personal fortunes on media in the coming weeks, the noise will drown out the pack and one of the two will emerge as the frontrunner. Thanks to Trump, who will be in Tennessee next week, Diane may have the slight edge at this point. BIGGEST SURPRISE. When Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett entered the race to succeed longtime Congressman Jimmy Duncan in the 2d District the biggest question mark was…
Read the full story