Day: March 23, 2018

Marsha Blackburn, Diane Black, Scott DesJarlais, and Jimmy Duncan Vote Against Deficit Increasing $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Budget Deal

Tennessee Star Staff

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07), Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06), Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN-04), and Rep. John J. “Jimmy” Duncan (R-TN-02) were the only four Republican members of the Tennessee delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives to vote against the deficit increasing $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Budget Bill to fund the federal government for the remainder of FY 2018 that passed the House on a 256-167 vote Thursday afternoon. A total of 90 Republicans and 77 Democrats voted against the bill. The bill now goes to the Senate for a vote on Friday. If it passes in the Senate, President Trump will have until midnight on Friday to either sign or veto the bill before non-essential offices of the federal government shut down. Three Republican members of the Tennessee delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of the huge spending bill: Republicans Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN-01), Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03), and Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN-08). Kustoff’s yes vote could spell trouble for him in August, as he faces a tough primary challenge from Dr. George Flinn, who is a staunch conservative on fiscal matters and is running a well funded and aggressive campaign. The two Democrats in the U.S.…

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Trump Boosts Tariffs on Chinese Imports

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U.S. President Donald Trump imposed tougher economic sanctions on China on Thursday, setting the stage for $60 billion in new tariffs on Chinese imports that could quickly lead to a trade war with Beijing. The U.S. leader targeted China’s alleged years-long theft of U.S. intellectual property, imposing new restrictions on Chinese investment in the U.S. that mirror regulations that American companies face when they invest in China.

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Commentary: Why Are the IRS and Congress Ignoring the Millions of Cases of the Life-Altering Crime of Identity Theft Committed by Illegal Aliens Each Year?

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By Printus LeBlanc   Despite the media and amnesty proponents on both sides of the aisle declaring illegal immigrants don’t commit crimes, a recent report from CNS News should shut down the amnesty debate. After reviewing several Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) reports, CNS found the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) routinely ignores massive numbers of possible identity theft. According to the report, there were 1.2 million cases in 2017 in which illegal aliens filed tax returns using Social Security Numbers (SSN). Why are the IRS and Congress ignoring a problem costing American citizens billions of dollars and countless years to fix? This is not the typical identity theft most people think of, but employment identity theft. Employment identity theft is when someone uses another person’s identity to get a job. The IRS can identify the theft through the ITIN/SSN mismatch process. The process detects instances in which an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) is listed as either the primary or secondary Taxpayer Identification Number on form 1040, and the Form W-2, included with the return has an SSN. What is most infuriating about the recent report is the lack of enforcement of federal law. The IRS found 1.3 million cases of…

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Report: Capitol Hill Republicans Sick and Tired of White House Leaks

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“I guess you just operate under the assumption that everything is going to be leaked.” Between the outrageous and dangerous leak revealing secret details of President Trump’s telephone call with Vladimir Putin or Wednesday’s flurry of leaks about the behind-the-scenes negotiations over the omnibus spending bill, it’s clear that Chief of Staff John Kelly has not plugged the leaks in the West Wing.

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Trump Boom Continues as Personal Earnings Up In Most States

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Statewide personal income increased at a significantly faster rate in 2017 than in 2016, according to data released Thursday by the adding to the growing evidence of a sustained expansion since President Donald Trump took office. The increases averaged 3.1 percent last year, compared to only 2.3 percent in 2016, the last full year of President Barack Obama’s tenure in the Oval Office. The BEA is a unit of the Department of Commerce.

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US: Plans Being Made in Case Iran Nuclear Talks With Europeans Fail

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The U.S. says it had constructive talks with its European partners last week on changes to the Iran nuclear agreement, but it is making contingency plans in case the talks fail and President Donald Trump decides to pull out of the landmark 2015 deal. Lead negotiator and State Department Policy Planning Director Brian Hook told reporters Wednesday he cannot predict whether U.S. talks with Britain, France and Germany on forging a supplemental agreement to address what Trump sees as deficiencies in the Iran nuclear agreement can meet a May deadline.

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