Month: March 2018

America’s Got Talent Season 12 Winner, Darci Lynne Farmer, Makes Debut at the Opry and Ryman

Bethany Bowman

When the shy but active Darci Lynne asked her parents for a puppet when she was nine years old, her parents initially tried to discourage it.  However, they eventually reneged and gave her a “cheap” one for her 10th birthday.  She was fascinated with the dying art of ventriloquism because it was “so cool” that people could talk with their mouths closed.  She wanted to “wow” people like another ventriloquist winner on America’s Got Talent, Terry Fator and Miss Teen America contestant, Lisa Bonacquisti.  So even though she was already singing and doing gymnastics, with tips form Bonacquisti, she self-taught herself the skill and won Edmond’s Got Talent where she won first prize after a month’s preparation.  In 2015, she won first place in both the junior division at Oklahoma’s Got Talent and Oklahoma Kids and won Broadway, Specialty Acts, and overall Entertainer of the Year at American Kids in Branson, Missouri. In March 2016, Farmer made an appearance on Little Big Shots.  Then she asked her parents if she could try out for America’s Got Talent. They advised her that “the judges can be very brutal.” (As anyone who has watched Simon Cowell can verify.)  After the twelve-year-old shocked the world and herself by actually winning Americas…

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Commentary: How Many Laws Did the Mayor of Oakland, California Break?

Tennessee Star Staff

by Printus LeBlanc   Anyone that paid attention to the 2016 election knows the issue of illegal immigration was one of the core issues that drove President Trump to victory. For good reason, the American people were tired of open borders and criminal illegal immigrants roaming freely through their streets. President Trump is keeping his promise to deport criminal illegal immigrants, but many local politicians care more about convicted criminals than they do their own citizens. Since President Trump took office, ICE has increased arrests by 40 percent, a far cry from the Obama administration that had a habit of releasing criminal illegal immigrants into the community. The Obama administration was so inept, or corrupt, at security it released over 19,000 criminal illegal immigrants into U.S. communities. The 19,000 had over 64,000 convictions, including hundreds of guilty of murder, kidnapping, and sexual assault. For some reason, the Obama administration didn’t believe in deporting violent criminals; the administration felt it was more appropriate to let them roam streets. Last week, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched a series of raids across Northern California targeting hundreds of criminal illegal immigrants. It is important to note; these are illegal immigrants that have…

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Donald Trump Pardons Kristian Saucier, Navy Sailor Who Used ‘Hillary Clinton Defense’

Tennessee Star Staff

President Trump has pardoned former Navy sailor Kristian Saucier who was convicted of breaking laws by taking a photo inside a nuclear submarine, the White House said Friday. The case gained national attention because the prosecution of Mr. Saucier contrasted sharply with the Obama Justice Department decision not to bring charges against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for mishandling classified material on her secret email server.

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Efforts to Pull the Northern White Rhino from the Brink of Extinction Intensify as the Last Living Male Declines in Health

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In Kenya, the last male northern white rhino (Ceratotherium simum cottoni) in the world isn’t faring well – the animal is past its prime and in declining health. With time running out, a global team of scientists and conservationists are trying to save the subspecies from extinction with help from the last two surviving females. Angalifu,…

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Investor Group Abandons Weinstein Company Assets Deal ‘For Now’

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The deal to buy assets from Harvey Weinstein’s former production company hit another roadblock Tuesday as former Obama administration official Maria Contreras-Sweet said her investor group was abandoning the venture — for now. “After signing and entering into the confirmatory diligence phase, we have received disappointing information about the viability of completing this transaction.

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Marsha Blackburn and Scott DesJarlais Speak at Rally for GOP State Senate Candidate Shane Reeves

Tennessee Star Staff

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07) and Rep Scott DesJarlais (R-TN-04) spoke at a rally in Murfreesboro of enthusiastic Shane Reeves supporters on Saturday, three days in advance of Tuesday’s special election in the 14th State Senate District. The seat was vacated in November when former State Senator Jim Tracy (R-Shelbyville) resigned to accept a position with the Trump administration. Reeves is the Republican candidate in Tuesday’s election, in which he faces the far left self proclaimed atheist Gayle Jordan, the Democratic candidate. The rally was followed by a Day of Action by Reeves’ supporters, who knocked on doors and called voters on behalf of their candidate. Tennessee Republican State Party Chairman Scott Golden also spoke on Reeves’ behalf at the rally. The race has drawn attention in recent days as political observers look for signs that the purported “Blue Wave” of Democratic victories hoped for in the 2018 midterm elections by Democrats has begun to show up in Tennessee. One data point that might support that notion was the surprisingly narrow victory of former Republican State Rep. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) over his Democratic opponent in the December special election to replace former State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) in Wilson County.…

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Rutherford County Mayoral Candidate Calls for a County-Wide Safety Assessment of All Schools, Public and Private

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In the wake of the horrific school shootings in Parkland, Florida, Rutherford County Mayor candidate Tina Jones called on the Rutherford County School Board along with Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh to conduct a county-wide safety assessment of all schools – public and private. “Nothing is more important than the safety and security of our children,” Jones said in a statement. “While we may have good security protocols in place for our schools, we need to make sure that they are actually being followed and determine if other ways of securing our schools should be implemented. We need to ACT rather than REACT.” Jones said that the assessment and review should focus on two critical areas: whether access to the schools is properly limited; and whether the security systems that are in place are operational. “We are all encouraged to regularly check the batteries in our home smoke detectors,” Jones noted, adding:  This safety assessment will enable us to do the same thing for our schools and should be an annual process moving forward. We also need to determine whether we have a sufficient number of School Resource Officers (SROs) in place, particularly as our student populations are growing so rapidly, and how we…

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Julian Assange Credits Eric Holder’s DOJ with WikiLeaks’ Releases

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Eric Holder, Barack Obama

Julian Assange on Friday credited the Obama administration for putting him in place to publish sensitive documents through his WikiLeaks website, including Democratic emails released during the 2016 U.S. presidential race. Mr. Assange made the remarks on Twitter in response to a tweet last month by Eric Holder, the former U.S. attorney general in office when the Justice Department initiated its investigation of WikiLeaks following its publication of classified U.S. diplomatic and military documents in 2010.

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Heavy Rainfalls Force Music City Irish Fest to Change Venues

Jason M. Reynolds

Heavy rainfalls in Nashville have caused the organizers of the fourth annual Music City Irish Fest on St. Patrick’s Day to move the venue. The new location on Saturday, March 17 will be Public Square Park on the steps of City Hall, organizers said in a press release. The previously announced location at Riverfront Park “has been deemed unusable as a venue for the staging and production,” the press release said. Weather Underground reports that Nashville International Airport received 10.91 inches of rainfall in February alone. Organizers made the move after consulting with  the City of Nashville, Metro Parks and the Army Corps of Engineers. “I believe the producers of this great not-for-profit event are making the right decision, albeit a tough one, given the existing water levels on the Cumberland River” Metro Councilman Robert Swope said in the organization’s press release. Sunday events have been canceled. Saturday hours are 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. The fest is billed as Nashville’s biggest St. Patrick’s Day celebration with Irish craft vendors, food and beverage, dancers, sports and a full day of Irish music. The festival is free to the public. The fest’s website says the event’s purpose is to educator people…

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Commentary: Democrats Won’t Defeat GOP in November But Complacency Just Might

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by Jeffrey A. Rendall   In olden times by far the most tedious part of being a sailor had to be lookout duty. After all, in most cases the lookout’s stationed high up in the crow’s nest gazing out across the vast and empty sea searching for something – anything – that could be interpreted as a hazard to the ship. When sailing in the open ocean the chances of actually encountering a threat is slim indeed, yet the duty was vital nonetheless. A lookout can’t afford to be complacent. The last thing he’d want to do is to miss an iceberg dead ahead or an enemy ship to the port side. Or perhaps even a big wave. Tidal waves certainly didn’t occur very often, but when they arose they were destructive and deadly. The GOP would benefit from stationing a lookout in the proverbial political crow’s nest because Republicans hope to blunt a big blue wave this November. Some in the party are banking on tax reform to be their salvation from the ravages of a storm on the horizon. David M. Drucker of the Washington Examiner wrote, “[S]omething is happening to the dark blue Democratic tsunami that everyone saw coming, and it is happening just…

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Former Governor Phil Bredesen Fears His Senate Campaign Has Been Hacked

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Former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen fears his 2018 U.S. Senate campaign has been hacked, potentially marking the first known cyberattack targeting the November mid-terms merely eight months until Election Day. Campaign aides last month “received multiple emails that appeared to be from the campaign’s media buyer,” Robert E. Cooper Jr., an attorney for Mr. Bredesen’s Democratic campaign, wrote the FBI in a letter sent to the bureau’s Memphis division Thursday.

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It’s Daylight Saving Time Weekend – Get Ready to ‘Spring Forward!’

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What that the clock giveth, the clock taketh away… Yes; it’s that time again! On Sunday, March 11, 2 a.m. will suddenly become 3 a.m. as most Americans observe Daylight Saving Time. (Or is it that we stop observing it?) Anyway, first implemented in 1918 (and finally made a federal standard in 1966), the metaphysical practice of moving our clocks forward and back was an attempt to help save energy costs and maximize productive hours by mitigating the seasonal changes in the hours of daylight from summer to winter. Of course the practice has many critics – and in some places, “Daylight Savings” is going away altogether. (Looking at you, Florida…!) In others, it never came. (Arizona!) So, those of us who still have “watches” and “clocks” that need setting from time to time – get ready! But for now, enjoy this hilarious little parody that celebrates the absurdity of it all.    

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Ten Things Megyn Kelly Actually Said. Really.

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From the moment it debuted last year, “Today with Megyn Kelly” has been met with groans and eyerolls from many viewers and those in the media — and the periodically aired “Sunday Night with Megyn Kelly” . While we can all acknowledge that speaking on a regular basis in front of a live studio audience must have enormous challenges, Kelly is earning literally millions and millions of dollars for what she does — so the bar is high indeed.

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‘Sopranos’ Prequel Movie ‘The Many Saints of Newark’ in the Works

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If you did not stop believing, here, at long last, is your reward. A long-rumored “Sopranos” prequel has been given the green light, Deadline reports. “The Many Saints of Newark,” a screenplay from “Sopranos” creator David Chase, has been picked up by New Line Cinema, the report says. “The Many Saints of Newark,” a screenplay from “Sopranos” creator David Chase, has been picked up by New Line Cinema, the report says. The story is reportedly set in 1960s Newark, around the time of the Newark riots.

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The Fix Is In: Davidson County Election Commission Ignores Plain Meaning of Law, Votes 3 to 2 to Set August 2 Date for Mayoral Election

Tennessee Star Staff

NASHVILLE, Tennessee–Three of the five members of the Davidson County Election Commission ignored the plain meaning of Tennessee law and voted to set August 2, 2018 as the date for the special election to select a new mayor of Nashville late Friday afternoon, thereby plunging the city into a likely firestorm of lawsuits and threatening the legitimacy of an election held on that date. The meeting was convened in response to the resignation of Mayor Megan Barry on March 6, and the swearing in of Vice Mayor David Briley the same day as acting mayor. Briley has already declared that he will be a candidate for mayor in the upcoming special election. Commission Chairman Jim DeLanis, Commissioner Jesse Neil, and Commissioner Emily Reynolds, all Republicans, formed the three member majority who voted in favor of the motion to set the election date at August 2. Commissioner Tricia Herzfeld and Commissioner A.J. Starling, both Democrats, formed the two member minority who voted against the motion. By the same three to two margin, the commission rejected an earlier motion by Commissioner Herzfeld, an attorney, to submit a request for declaratory judgment before the Chancery Court on Monday to obtain an official ruling…

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Davidson County Election Commission Meets Today to Finalize Date of Election to Select a New Mayor

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The Davidson County Election Commission will hold a special called meeting today, Friday, at 3:30 p.m. to finalize the date of the election to select a new mayor. The resignation of former Mayor Megan Barry prompted the special meeting. The stated purpose of the meeting is to add the office of Mayor to the August 2nd, 2018 election ballot, the date of the Tennessee primary elections for state and federal offices, and the Davidson County general election “for Chancery Court Part 2, county clerk, criminal court clerk, Criminal Court Division 2, General Sessions Court Division 3, General Sessions Court Division 10, juvenile court clerk, public defender, register of deeds, sheriff, and trustee.” Local attorney James Roberts, however, says holding the election to select a new mayor on August 2 will be a violation of Tennessee law. Roberts wrote a letter on Thursday to the Davidson County Election Commission in which he stated that the August 2 date to elect a new mayor is not in compliance with Tennessee law. In order to be in compliance with the law, Roberts wrote, the election must be held either on May 1, the date of the general election for the $9.2 billion mass transit…

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WTN Introduces Nashville’s Morning News Host Brian Wilson at Live Town Hall Broadcast

Tennessee Star Staff

NASHVILLE, Tennessee–WTN introduced Brian Wilson, the new host of Nashville’s Morning News, heard mornings from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. on 99.7 FM, at a round table style town hall event open to the public from the station’s studios on Music Row on Thursday. The one hour event was broadcast live from noon to 1 p.m. on the Dan Mandis Show in front of a studio audience of WTN listeners. All four of the station’s hosts–Wilson, Michael DelGiorno, Dan Mandis, and Phil Valentine–were present for the lively conversation that covered local, state, and national events, and provided WTN listeners with more details about Wilson’s career in broadcast journalism, which began in the oil fields of West Texas, went through Washington, D.C, and has arrived now in Nashville. Audience members traveled from as far away as Manchester, Bell Buckle, and Liepers Fork. Mandis asked Wilson about his career at Fox News. “I worked for the local Fox News affiliate (in Washington D.C.) for 13 years, and then I went over to the Fox News Channel in year number two, and I worked there for 12 years, and eventually rose to be an anchor reporter,” Wilson said. “I had a weekend show…

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District Attorney Glenn Funk Asks TBI to Shut Down Investigation into Possible Wrongdoing by Megan Barry as Other Investigations Carry On

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Nashville District Attorney Glenn Funk informed the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) in a meeting Tuesday that its file on the Megan Barry case “may be closed.”  However, the other investigations – namely the Special Investigative Committee and the Metro Nashville Board of Ethics are continuing to look into possible wrongdoing by Barry. The Nashville DA’s director of communications Steve Hayslip released a statement that included information about the plea deal(s) struck along with disclosing DA Glenn Funk’s request that TBI end its investigation: There have been several questions from media representatives about the charges Megan Barry and Robert Forrest pled guilty to today. In an effort to clarify, we will answer those questions here: Regarding reimbursement amounts: All members of the security detail saw an increase in hours worked under the Barry administration as opposed to previous administrations. Robert Forrest’s hours increased significantly more than other members of the detail. 45,000 dollars represents an acceptable figure for his increase in hours and pay in contrast to other members of the detail. The 11,000 dollars paid by Megan Barry represents Robert Forrest’s travel expenses. The time frame given in court today of March 1, 2016 through January of 2018 represents the…

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Briley Promises More of the Same Support for ‘Progressive’ Politics, Including $9 Billion Transit Plan

Jason M. Reynolds

Megan Barry, the public face of the proposed $9 billion light rail transit plan may be gone from office, but don’t expect the issue to die. The Metro Nashville Democratic mayor resigned in disgrace March 6 after pleading guilty to felony charges following the revelation of her extra-marital affair with her chief bodyguard, former police Sgt. Rob Forrest. The Tennessean reports that new Mayor David Briley has also been a staunch supporter of the light rail transit plan, which is set for a May 1 referendum. The newspaper calls him a progressive liberal Democrat who has long wanted to be mayor. The newspaper says, “In the weeks ahead, he will take the torch on Barry’s May 1 transit referendum on raising four taxes to pay for a $5.4 billion transit plan with light rail.” The Tennessean uses the $5.4 billion estimate, the figure transit supporters like to throw around. NewsChannel 5 reported that after Briley was sworn in, he said he plans to hold a series of town hall meetings to talk about a variety of issues — including transit, which he called his first priority. “It’s the most important thing that is confronting our city right now and I’m committed to working…

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Newcomer ‘Better Transit 4 Nashville’ Joins the Fight Against the Metro City Council’s $9 Billion Transit Plan

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A new grassroots citizens group called ‘Better Transit for Nashville’ has burst onto the political scene to oppose the Metro City Council’s $9 billion transit plan. Formed less than a month ago in mid-February, the plucky group has earned over two thousand Facebook page ‘likes’ and reached an impressive 108 thousand people, according to a statement: Better Transit FB Page Reaches 108,000 & 2,200 Followers in Just Three Weeks NASHVILLE, 3/8/18 – The grassroots group Better Transit for Nashville’s momentum continues. BTN’s message is simple: we need a regional plan without light rail, a strong bus system, with BRT where needed, and tech. BTN’s FB page has 2,200 followers in just three weeks. BTN’s ongoing request to the pro side to commit to riding the light rail (LRT) has yielded only two (2) people who say they will ride it. They would not submit their first names. BTN has published the open request on social media, the BTN website, in emails, comments on the pro transit FB page, and to the 60 businesses who have funded the $2.5 million pro PAC. LRT/tunnel is 70% of the $9B cost. BTN has published the most detailed analysis available of projected ridership of the…

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Mitt Romney Under Attack in Utah for ‘Liberal Massachusetts Values’

Tennessee Star Staff

Mitt Romney is being hit with the first attack ad of the Utah Senate race Thursday, a slickly produced video that portrays him as a darling of the D.C. establishment and gives him the nickname “flip-flopper Mitt.” The ad from Republican candidate Larry Myers slams Mr. Romney, the presumptive front-runner in the GOP race, with accusations of not being conservative enough for Utah voters. “The D.C. establishment loves Mitt Romney. But Utah voters have a better choice. Larry Myers,” says the announcer.

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Commentary: Attorney General Jeff Sessions Wakes Up

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by CHQ Staff   To many conservatives it appears that Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who as a Senator was one of the few principled conservatives serving in the upper chamber of Congress, has been asleep at his desk at the Department of Justice. For the past year it has often looked as though Obama holdovers were in charge and few conservative priorities were being pursued. While things are far from perfect at DOJ conservatives can take heart that the Attorney General has taken on one of the most important challenges facing the Trump presidency and constitutional government; California’s “sanctuary” for illegal aliens policies. Yesterday, in remarks to the California Peace Officers’ Association, Attorney General Sessions laid down the law to the state of California: I understand that we have a wide variety of political opinions out there on immigration.  But the law is in the books and its purpose is clear. There is no nullification.  There is no secession.  Federal law is “the supreme law of the land.”  I would invite any doubters to Gettysburg, and to the graves of John C. Calhoun and Abraham Lincoln. A refusal to apprehend and deport those, especially the criminal element, effectively rejects all immigration law…

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Which Democrat Is Obstructing Confirmation on Trump’s Openly-Gay Nominee for Ambassador to Germany?

Tennessee Star Staff

An intriguing fact about the fate of Richard Grenell, President Trump’s nominee for Ambassador to Germany, was revealed Tuesday on the Hugh Hewitt Show. Hewitt began an interview with Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) with a question on the fate of Grenell’s nomination: Hewitt: Rick Grenell not getting confirmed is an embarrassment.

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Islamist Activists Take Anti-Islamophobia Agenda to Sit-Down Meeting With Speaker Beth Harwell

Chris Alto

Earlier in the week, members of the politically aggressive American Muslim Advisory Council (AMAC) that was formed in 2011 with the support of the Haslam administration, scored a sit-down meeting with Speaker Beth Harwell to discuss the problem of bullying in schools. As reported by WKRN, the group told Harwell that they want a bill that would protect students who are bullied because of their religion. Islamist activists in Tennessee connect bullying in school to Islamophobia which they claim leads to being regularly victimized or bullied because of their religion. In 2013, AMAC teamed up with Obama-appointed U.S. Attorney Bill Killian, to talk about Islamophobia as a means to suppress criticism of Muslims or Islam. At the time, Killian said that he would use federal civil rights laws to stop legally permissible hate speech directed at Muslims. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation’s state bias-crime statistics reflect a different reality in Tennessee. The numbers consistently show that followers of faiths other than Islam suffer higher numbers of bias-related crimes. Anti-bullying proposals are being offered by Islamist groups in other parts of the country to counter Islamophobia and to expand school privileges for Muslim students. The San Diego Unified School District worked with the Council on…

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Nashville Business Coalition: Let’s All Support David Briley and Not Have A Contested Election to Select a New Mayor in August

Tennessee Star Staff

Nashville Business Coalition (NBC) asked on Wednesday that residents of Nashville forego the opportunity to choose among competing candidates in the special election to select a mayor to serve out the remaining year of former Mayor Megan Barry’s term in August. On Tuesday, Vice Mayor David Briley was sworn in as Mayor of Nashville after former Mayor Megan Barry resigned in disgrace after pleading guilty to a felony. “The business coalition, which operates a political action committee, wasted little time after the resignation of former Mayor Megan Barry on Tuesday to get behind Briley, voting Wednesday morning to back the former vice mayor,” The Tennessean reported on Wednesday morning. The Tennessean also reported these comments from NBC’s chair of the board of directors, Nancy Stabell: “We encourage all qualified candidates to give the voters of this great city ample opportunity to do what they have done so very well over the last quarter century — elect a great mayor,” said Nancy Stabell, the coalition’s chair. “We simply don’t believe that there is sufficient time between now and the August special election to allow voters that opportunity. “Additionally, continuity of leadership over the next 18 months is absolutely critical to sustain Nashville’s success, and…

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Attorney: August 2nd Davidson County Mayoral Election Date Would Violate State Law

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In the wake of the resignation of Nashville Mayor Megan Barry on March 6, 2018, a special election to fill the balance of her term is required by Tennessee law. Tennessee Code Annotated (TCA) Section 2-14-102 establishes the timing and procedure for scheduling a special election in the event of a vacancy in a municipal office such as Mayor of Nashville: (a) Special elections shall be held not less than seventy-five (75) days nor more than eighty (80) days after the officer or body charged with calling the election receives notice of the facts requiring the call. An election for an office shall be held on the same day in every county in which it is held. (Emphasis added.) (b) (1) If it is necessary to hold a special election to fill a vacant seat in the United States house of representatives, a vacancy in a county office, or a vacancy in any municipal office, and the date for such election, as established under subsection (a), falls within thirty (30) days of an upcoming regular primary or general election being held in that district, the governor, or the county election commission, as specified in § 2-14-103, may issue the writ…

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Michael Novak Commentary: How Christianity Created Capitalism

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Michael Novak

by Michael Novak   Capitalism, it is usually assumed, flowered around the same time as the Enlightenment–the eighteenth century–and, like the Enlightenment, entailed a diminution of organized religion. In fact, the Catholic Church of the Middle Ages was the main locus for the first flowerings of capitalism. Max Weber located the origin of capitalism in modern Protestant cities, but today’s historians find capitalism much earlier than that in rural areas, where monasteries, especially those of the Cistercians, began to rationalize economic life. It was the church more than any other agency, writes historian Randall Collins, that put in place what Weber called the preconditions of capitalism: the rule of law and a bureaucracy for resolving disputes rationally; a specialized and mobile labor force; the institutional permanence that allows for transgenerational investment and sustained intellectual and physical efforts, together with the accumulation of long-term capital; and a zest for discovery, enterprise, wealth creation, and new undertakings. The Protestant Ethic without Protestantism The people of the high Middle Ages (1100—1300) were agog with wonder at great mechanical clocks, new forms of gears for windmills and water mills, improvements in wagons and carts, shoulder harnesses for beasts of burden, the ocean-going ship rudder,…

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Two Democrats in Tennessee General Assembly Sponsor Bill That Helps Attorney General Push Compliance With Supreme Court Decision on Same Sex Marriage in Tennessee

Chris Alto

A seemingly benign bill sponsored by progressive Democrats from Davidson County,  Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) and Rep. Darren Jernigan, if passed, will support Tennessee Attorney General’s directive to county clerks that they must issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples in compliance with Supreme Court’s ruling in the Obergefell case. Attorney General Slattery issued that directive the same day the Supreme Court issued its ruling. The Yarbro/Jernigan bill, SB1790/HB1785, would raise the state’s age of marriage to 18 and eliminate all other provisions in state law that allow parents to consent to minors marrying. David Fowler, President of the Family Action Council of TN (FACTN) says that amending Tennessee’s marriage license laws in any way, arguably supports the Attorney General’s position opposing the suit filed by FACTN’s Constitutional Government Defense Fund (CGDF) challenging the Obergefell decision’s effect on the state’s marriage license laws. It is the only case of its type pending in any U.S. court. In that case the Attorney General argued that “As the General Assembly…has declined to repeal [the male-female language requirement] post-Obergefell, it is evident that the General Assembly does not intend the entire marriage-licensing scheme should be invalidated in the wake of Obergefell.” Serving as counsel of record for the CDGF, Fowler filed…

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Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney Retains Attorney as Court Date is Delayed Until March 27

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After a bizarre series of events that led to his arrest for assault on a student, Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney has retained attorney Mark Puryear of the Franklin, Tennessee law firm Puryear, Newman and Morton to defend him against the simple assault charge he faces for allegedly accosting a student and forcing her into his personal vehicle – a Class A Misdemeanor. Originally, Looney was booked and released after posting a $1,500 bond, and instructed by the court to return March 8 at 1pm to begin his trail. That date has now been rescheduled for March 27, the Williamson Herald reports. After news of the incident became known, Looney issued a statement denying the charge, stating, in part: I apologize to the community for the distraction that this accusation has caused. I completely deny the allegations and have faith that the legal process will result in a positive resolution. Looney’s arrest has sparked concern with area parents, who have called for his ouster. However, after a carefully choreographed public meeting recently, the Williamson County School Board affirmed their support of the embattled superintendent, reading detailed a joint statement to the packed room of citizens, which said, in part: Based on…

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JAMA Study: Non-Opioid Pain Relief Outperforms Opioids for Chronic Pain

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Opioids were found to have no benefit over non-opioid medications in relieving chronic pain, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on Tuesday. The randomized clinical trial included 240 participants from Veteran Affairs primary care clinics who were seeking treatment for chronic pain related to their back, hip, knee or osteoarthritis. The average age of participants was 58.3 and majority male, with 32 female participants.

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Ronna McDaniel, RNC Chair: GOP Looking to ‘Defy’ Historical Trends in Midterm Elections

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The head of the Republican National Committee is confident that the national party could “defy history” in the midterm elections, saying the GOP has a record of accomplishment to run on and Democrats are flailing around looking for a message. RNC Chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel said Wednesday that voters recognize that President Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress have pursued policies that have strengthen the economy and allowed them to keep more of their hard-earned money.

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North Korea Nuclear Talks – Approach With Caution, Analysts Say

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North Korea’s agreement to enter into talks with the United States could be a diplomatic breakthrough to reach a peaceful resolution to the nuclear crisis, or a ruse to weaken sanctions, or both. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s willingness to engage with the United States in negotiations to end his country’s nuclear weapons program, and his promise to suspend nuclear and missile tests while talks are under way, was reported on Tuesday by Chung Eui-yong, the head of South Korea’s National Security Office, following his meeting with Kim in Pyongyang.

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Bill Lee Resigns From Board of Nashville Business Coalition After Group Endorses Democrat David Briley for Mayor of Nashville

Tennessee Star Staff

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee resigned from the board of the Nashville Business Coalition Wednesday afternoon after he learned the group had endorsed David Briley for Mayor and asked other candidates not to contest their chosen pick in the August special election to select a replacement to serve out the balance of former Mayor Megan Barry’s term. Lee sent out this tweet shortly after he learned of the Board’s decision when The Tennessee Star asked his campaign for comment. I strongly disagree with the Nashville Business Coalition’s decision about the Nashville Mayoral race, and I opposed them taking this action. As a result, I have resigned from their board, effective immediately. — Bill Lee (@BillLeeTN) March 7, 2018 “Leadership groups should not discourage others from entering the political process,” Lee added in a statement released to The Star. “Nashville has many talented individuals who are extremely qualified to be considered for leadership roles and our community would benefit from their ideas. We should encourage more people to enter the political arena, not less,” Lee concluded. Among the social media responses to Lee’s resignation from the Nashville Business Coalition board was this one on Twitter:   Good. The race should be open…

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Exclusive: Kyle Schmid on ‘Six’: ‘We Try to Provoke the Audience Emotionally’

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SIX tv show

“Six” is a unique television program. The military drama not only sheds light on Navy SEALs and the brave work they do — it’s enlightened by the experiences of actual veterans. The creators are the father-son duo of William Broyles Jr. and Danny Broyles. William Broyles is a Vietnam veteran; his son was a special operations soldier before he dove into this series.

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Do You Have the ‘Bandwidth’ to Cope with That ‘Dumpster Fire’?

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How fast can you say “dumpster fire” (as opposed to “disaster”)? One source has now made the informal expression quite kosher. Here’s the example of its use in a sentence: “So while 2017 has been, by many measures, a complete dumpster fire of a year, New Yorkers can at the very least take refuge in the fact that their city is becoming an even safer place to live. — Clayton Guse”

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