Day: February 18, 2018

Tennessee College Republicans Hear From Candidates at Annual Gathering

Tennessee Star Staff

  NASHVILLE, Tennessee–The 14th annual Tennessee College Republican State Convention met in the chambers of the Tennessee House of Representatives at the State Capitol in Nashville on Saturday, and heard from a number of GOP candidates, including gubernatorial candidates Bill Lee, and Tennessee House Speaker Beth Harwell (R-Nashville), U.S. Senate hopeful Dr. Rolando Toyos, and Congressional candidates Dr. Mark Green (7th District) and John Rose (6th District). Supporters of gubernatorial candidates Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06) and Randy Boyd, as well as U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07), and Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN-08), who is running for re-election to his House seat, spoke as well. Bobbie Patray, President of the Tennessee Eagle Forum, also spoke and was a crowd favorite. Party officials, including Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden, addressed the audience as well. About 75 representatives from colleges across the state of Tennessee were in attendance. “It’s good to see young Republicans from across the state joining together to hear from current and future leaders in our government, and be able to obtain information to make a responsible and educated decision for the future of conservatives in our state and country,” Adam Yardumian, who is currently interning for State…

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GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Bill Lee Announces 100-Member Activist Coalition, ‘Students for Bill’

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Franklin-area businessman-turned-gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee announced “Students for Bill,” a new addition to his coalition of grassroots and citizens’ groups that support his bid to be the state’s next top executive. The Saturday announcement comes the same day Lee will address the 14th Annual Tennessee College Republican State Convention. “With this initial coalition of student activists from across our state, I’m so honored to see the continued grassroots support for this campaign and my vision for Tennessee,” Lee said in a statement. “These students make up a diverse group of leaders working to ensure our victory in November.” The Lee campaign says the coalition, which spans schools across the state, “will serve as an essential component of Lee’s grassroots support and help spread Bill’s ideas within their campus communities.” Students for Bill will have three Co-Chairs – to represent East, Middle, and West Tennessee – to lead the effort. University of Tennessee student Janey Green, the Co-Chair for East Tennessee said, “For some, running to be governor is just part of their political career. We don’t need a politician for governor; we need a businessman, a farmer, and a man of faith, working to improve the lives of Tennesseans. Bill…

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Women’s March Organizers Plan ‘National School Walkout’ for Gun Control

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Organizers of the Women’s March on Washington — the same group that donned pink “pussy” hats in a Washington, D.C. protest march following President Donald Trump’s inauguration — have a new mission. This time, their target is guns — and their aim is stringent new gun control legislation in this country. The Women’s March Youth EMPOWER group is asking students, teachers, parents, administrators, and “allies” to walk out of school on Wednesday, March 14.

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Carol Swain Commentary: Seven Reasons to Beware the Southern Poverty Law Center

Carol Swain

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) says its primary mission is to fight hatred, teach tolerance, and seek justice. These are noble goals for most Americans, but this is not a noble organization. It is the exact opposite. Given the SPLC’s power and influence over the media and members of Congress, this once highly-regarded civil rights organization deserves fresh scrutiny. Here are seven reasons why the SPLC fails to serve the public interest: The SPLC ignores basic standards of scientific research in selecting and classifying hate groups and extremists. The SPLC’s definition of “hate” is vague. It defines a hate group as one with “beliefs or practices that attack or malign an entire class of people, typically for their immutable characteristics.” SPLC President Richard Cohen testified in December 2017 that its assessment of hate is based on opinion, not objective criteria. (See minutes 43-48 of his testimony.) George Yancy, a University of North Texas sociologist, documented the SPLC’s subjective nature in a 2014 study, “Watching the Watchers.” Yancy said the group’s methodology seemed more geared to mobilizing liberals than cataloguing hate groups. The SPLC uses guilt by association to engage in ad hominem attacks against individuals. Hannah Scherlacher, a Campus Reform worker, found her…

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Letter to the Editor: To See Why Nashville’s Transit Plan is Doomed, Just Look at California and Texas

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Dear Tennessee Star, Nobody asked me, but . . . So, let’s see. Mayor Megan Barry’s Transit System will cost about 5.2 billion dollars, plus another $5 billion for “operating expenses,” as per government estimates. For you non-math whizzes, that’s over $10 billion dollars, not the $5.2 billion they are advertising. And that’s if everything goes according to plan. Well, as anybody who has ever been involved in planning a new business venture will tell you, original estimates are always “pie-in-the-sky” wishes. There are too many variables that will be encountered that cannot be foreseen on the initial drawing board. These things always cost more. The California High Speed Rail (HPS) is already over budget and it isn’t even completed yet. Original estimates given to the population in 2008 was $40 billion. Latest estimates in 2015 put the project at $64 billion, a 62.5% increase in less than 10 years, and it isn’t finished yet. Not to mention the bonds that were sold to partially finance the project. Those bonds will come due in the future and are payable by raising taxes in a state where “raise their taxes” is already the rallying cry of politicians. Do you wonder why…

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Russia Indictment ‘Good Day’ for Trump, Former Prosecutor Says

Tennessee Star Staff

In an indictment handed down Friday charging 13 Russians — but no Americans — with interfering in the 2016 presidential campaign does not quite vindicate President Donald Trump, but it comes close, a Republican congressman said. Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) said on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News that special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation began last year with the accusations that Trump’s campaign colluded with Russian agents.

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Metro Nashville Police Announce Task Force to Confront Growing Green Hills Crime Wave

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Metro Nashville Police Chief Steve Anderson announced Thursday the formation of a “multi-component task force” that will use “overt and covert strategies” to disrupt and apprehend what police think may be two separate groups of armed teenagers plaguing the Green Hills neighborhood. Police say the teens are responsible for auto thefts, violent carjackings, shootings, and personal robberies over the past several days. “Nashville and its police department will not tolerate the violent gun crime being exhibited by these teens,” Chief Anderson said in a statement. “While we ramp up enforcement strategies, it is time for parents, extended families and other stakeholders to take notice of what is occurring and do their part to stop it.” Authorities are careful to characterize the rash of teen crime as being perpertrated by “groups” and not “gangs,” though the spike in frequency and severity by the groups could indicate a higher level of organization. “We have an issue right now with these young teenagers committing very violent crimes, and this police department is not going to put up with it,” said MNPD Spokesman Don Aaron told WSMV. “We’re arresting young people, teenagers with guns, one-by-one-by-one, but there are seemingly more to take their places.” As an…

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