Boyd and Black Unleash a Flurry of Attack Ads

Randy Boyd, Diane Black

Diane Black fired the first direct shot, but the Randy Boyd campaign has responded quickly and Black has already followed up with a second attack ad that solely targets Boyd. Bill Lee has not yet aired anything but positive ads at this point in the Tennessee Governor’s GOP primary race that is quickly descending into the bloodbath between Boyd and Black that most expected. Black aired the first “comparison” campaign ad that tagged two of her primary opponents, Bill Lee and Randy Boyd, as being “two moderates.” The ad focused on Boyd, but the inclusion of Lee underlined his recent surge in the polls. But Black has followed up almost immediately with a second ad that only hits Boyd as being “anti-hunter” while touting Black’s endorsement by the NRA.  In fact, the ad is titled “Anti-hunter” to make the point clear. Black “Anti-hunter” campaign ad transcript: Where does Randy Boyd stand on hunting and guns? Randy Boyd hired his lobbyist from an anti hunting organization. Randy Boyd’s firm gave big money to the lobbying group that would make hunting illegal. The NRA called them an anti- hunting, extremist organization. But Randy Boyd called them “partner”. Read about Randy Boyd’s anti-hunting…

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Bill Lee Donated $1,000 to Phil Bredesen in 2004, Nothing to Donald Trump in 2016

Bill Lee

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee donated $1,000 to Phil Bredesen’s campaign in 2004, when the current Democrat candidate for U.S. Senator was gearing up to run for his second term as governor of Tennessee, and did not contribute to Donald Trump’s 2016 Presidential campaign, according to reports filed with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance and the Federal Election Commission. A spokeseperson for the Lee campaign confirmed to The Tennessee Star that Lee donated $1,000 to Bredesen in 2004, but noted that Lee also donated $1,000 in 2006 to his Republican challenger that year, Jim Bryson. The spokesperson also confirmed what a review of Federal Election Commission records by The Star revealed: Lee did not contribute to Donald Trump’s 2016 Presidential campaign. The spokesperson was quick to add that Lee voted for Trump in 2016 and attended the January 2017 inaugural. Bredesen’s 2004 election finance report filed with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance shows that William B. Lee of Franklin, Tennessee donated $1,000 to Phil Bredesen on October 5, 2004. (See image below).       This new revelation that Lee, who describes himself as an “outsider” and a “conservative,” donated $1,000 to the state’s most well-known Democrat and ultimate…

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Commentary: Is Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein Still Smirking?

Rod Rosenstein

by CHQ Staff   Yesterday, Rep. Jim Jordan grilled Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein about the documents he has been withholding from Congress, as Rosenstein smirked his way through the questioning by Jordan, and Representatives Trey Gowdy and Louie Gohmert. You can watch the full exchange between Jordan and Rosenstein through this link to C-SPAN. “Mr. Rosenstein, why are you keeping information from Congress?” Jordan asked in a particularly heated exchange, reported by our friend Rachel Stolzfoos of the Federalist. “I want to know why you won’t give us what we asked for,” Jordan said. Rosenstein called Jordan’s characterization “inaccurate,” causing Jordan to erupt. “It is accurate!” he exclaimed. “We have caught you hiding!” Jordan dismissed the Deputy AG’s denials the DOJ is hiding anything, asserting that the House vote would dispute that notion. “I think in a few minutes the House of Representatives is going to go on record saying you haven’t complied with requests from a separate and equal branch of government, that you haven’t complied with subpoenas, and you got seven days to get your act together.” Jordan accused Rosenstein of instructing FBI agent Peter Strzok — who testified before the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees — not…

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The Tennessee Education Association Embraces the Union Label in Washington D.C., Denies It in Nashville

NEA headquarters

JC Bowman writes: “There are many other completely, independent non-union organizations now in America that represents public school educators, giving them a clear, non-union voice.  This means they do not spend a large portion of their lobbying efforts and their political funds focusing on bills and causes that fall outside the scope of education.”

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Tennessee Right to Life Endorses Diane Black for Governor

Diane Black

Tennessee Right to Life on Friday announced its endorsement of Diane Black for governor. Tennessee Right to Life’s endorsement is the most recent on a growing list of pro-life organizations backing Diane Black including Susan B. Anthony List and National Right to Life, the campaign said in a press release. Another recent endorsement was by the National Rifle Association. “For more than 14 years Diane Black has demonstrated principled leadership toward the legislative goals of Tennessee Right to Life,” said Brian Harris, president of Tennessee Right to Life, the state’s oldest and largest pro-life organization. “Our members have the deepest confidence that, among a field of pro-life candidates, Diane Black is best prepared by her experience and pro-life leadership to take on the next challenges facing Tennessee’s Right to Life movement.” Black said, ”Although Tennessee Right to Life is one of the most respected groups in our state, the work they do is not for praise or recognition, but for justice and protection for the lives of the unborn. Tennessee Right to Life has been an organization close to my heart for years. In the state legislature, we worked together to pass some of the strongest pro-life protections in the nation. I…

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Democratic IT Aide Says Imran Awan Solicited Bribe from Him in Exchange For Contract with Then-Rep. Gwen Graham

Awan with cash

by Luke Rosiak    – Democratic IT aide Imran Awan solicited a bribe from an IT vendor in exchange for work with then-Rep. Gwen Graham, the vendor said.  – The Department of Justice knows about the vendor, but hasn’t been contacted.  – The vendor said Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz would encourage newly elected members to hire Imran or his relatives. Democratic IT aide Imran Awan solicited a bribe from an IT vendor in exchange for contracting opportunities with the office of then-Rep. Gwen Graham, the vendor alleged to The Daily Caller News Foundation, adding that Imran spoke to him in detail about his alleged financial fraud schemes in the House. The Department of Justice knows of the source — the longtime owner of a major House IT company — and what he is prepared to testify, a high-level official in Jeff Sessions’ DOJ with knowledge of the investigation confirmed. But the vendor said no law enforcement ever even tried to interview them. Imran worked as an IT aide for the congressional office of Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz before he and various family members began appearing on the payrolls of other members, particularly from Florida. The House Inspector General found that the Awans made “unauthorized…

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Gates Foundation Pushes Back On Report Saying $215 Million Education Investment Was A Flop

Bill Gates

by Rob Shimshock   Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates’ $215 million investment in education was a colossal failure, according to a report by the RAND Corporation and the American Institutes for Research. But the foundation emphasized Friday some of the initiatives “important outcomes.” The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation donated the funds to three public school districts in Memphis, Tennessee; Pittsburgh and Hillsborough County, Florida, reported The Washington Post. The school districts, as well as four charter management groups, provided more money, boosting the endowment to $575 million. The project aimed to implement teacher evaluation systems based on students’ test scores, as well as the input of “peer evaluators.” It was not very effective, according to the 587-page study. “Overall, the initiative did not achieve its stated goals for students, particularly LIM [low-income minority] students,” the study said. “We did not find improvement in the effectiveness of newly hired teachers relative to experienced teachers; we found very few instances of improvement in the effectiveness of the teaching force overall; we found no evidence that LIM students had greater access than non-LIM students to effective teaching; and we found no increase in the retention of effective teachers, although we did find declines in the…

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Trump-Putin Summit Shows Why the President Is Ahead of the Curve

Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump

By Robert Romano   President Donald Trump will be meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland on July 16. There the two will discuss nuclear weapons and U.S.-Russian relations. This is not only the right time to cool tensions between the two foremost nuclear powers — who have clashed over Syria, Ukraine and other potential hotspots — but also the right time politically for Trump to take to the international stage. Coming off a successful summit in Singapore with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, achieving an agreement in principle to denuclearize the Korean peninsula, President Trump’s popularity is soaring. He has the political capital to meet with Putin. Trump’s surge, simultaneously stunning and perplexing to D.C. elites — but not to his supporters — comes as he does not appear to be hampered even in the slightest by the ongoing Russia investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Probably because there was no collusion. But not only does Trump have the political capital to meet with Putin from a position of strength, it is politically smart for him to do it. Peace is popular. Not only is this what Trump ran on in 2016 — achieving a better relationship with American adversaries…

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Congressional Candidate Katie Arrington Out Of Intensive Care After Car Crash

Katie Arrington

by Evie Forham   South Carolina Republican congressional candidate Katie Arrington was moved out of intensive care and has begun physical therapy after a June 22 car crash left her in serious condition, a Thursday tweet from candidate’s Twitter account said. Arrington is expected to make a full recovery after the collision. Katie Arrington was moved out of ICU last night. Her physical therapy session today went extremely well and was twice as long as yesterday’s session. Katie knows these sessions are important steps toward her return to serving and fighting for the Lowcountry. #PrayForKatie — Rep. Katie Arrington (@karringtonsc) June 28, 2018 Arrington was sitting in the passenger seat when another car driving in the wrong lane smashed into the South Caroline state representative’s vehicle. Arrington’s driver, the candidate’s friend, Jacqueline Goff, was also critically injured, reported The Post and Courier. The other driver, Helen White, died at the scene. Arrington had surgery on her abdomen and back. She gained national attention when President Donald Trump endorsed her via Twitter in her bid to be representative of South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District over rival candidate Mark Sanford on June 12, the night of the Republican primary. Arrington beat Sanford 50.6 percent to 46.5 percent.…

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Dean Cain: People Didn’t Want Us To Release Abortion Film About ‘Most Prolific Serial Killer’ In US History

by Grace Carr   Actor and reserve police officer Dean Cain sat down with “Fox & Friends” Friday to talk about his new film, “Gosnell: America’s Biggest Serial Killer,” which reveals the horrors that occurred at the hands of America’s most infamous abortion doctor, Kermit Gosnell. “It’s the story of Kermit Gosnell,” Cain said. “Some people call him the most prolific serial killer in the history of the United States … And it was horrible because he was inducing labor and babies were born alive and he was — they were snipping with surgical scissors.” He explained that he and the producers made the film a few years before 2018, but had trouble getting it out because no one wanted to distribute subject matter that was so graphic and terrible. The film is set to hit theaters on Oct. 12. “People didn’t want to talk about it — people haven’t wanted to let us release this film,” Cain said. “Why is it important for this film to be released in your mind?” co-host Ainsley Earhardt asked Cain, to which he responded the “story is so horrendous and so bad” that people should be aware. Most people aren’t aware of Gosnell’s…

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Commentary: Democrats Have Already Started The Second Civil War

anti-Trump attacks

by George Rasley   Democrats, such as Far Left demagogue Rep. Maxine Waters, have recently been called-out for encouraging mob action that could lead to civil unrest, but by most measures we would apply to other countries America is already well into the beginning of the Second Civil War. If we looked at any country in Latin America and saw a half-million people gathered in public applauding calls to blow up the Presidential Palace, political supporters of the President being beaten, government officials being mobbed in public, and a prominent politician shot and critically wounded in an attack on members of the parliamentary majority, we would say, “There’s an insurgency going on here.” Couple that with the Leftist party in Parliament engaging in a “massive resistance” of non-cooperation with the duly elected President and parliamentary majority that is straight out of the Bolsheviks’ playbook for Russia’s October Revolution and we would say, “There’s an insurgency going on here.” While the Trump administration has yet to take a look at this and publicly label what’s going on as an insurgency, Americans outside of government have looked around and drawn the obvious conclusion. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds…

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West Virginia Senate President Credits GOP And Trump Policies For State’s Recovery

Mitch Carmichael

by Nick Givas   West Virginia Senate President Mitch Carmichael claims the Republican party is responsible for the state’s economic turnaround and believes the election of President Donald Trump has only added to their prosperity. “For the first time in over 83 years the people of over West Virginia selected the Republicans to lead the state in 2014,” Carmichael told The Daily Caller News Foundation. “Both houses have been Democrat for 83 years and that leadership brought us the lowest income per capita in the country.” Carmichael blamed Democratic leadership for a loss in population and manufacturing jobs, then accused them of selling out to special interest groups. “All these markers point to a failure in leadership,” he said. “The good news is after only four years of Republican leadership our state is growing and we have had the most improved unemployment rate in America.” The GOP’s policies have brought back construction jobs, increased wages and dramatically lowered the unemployment rate, Carmichael claimed. “We’ve added more jobs, wage rates are rising, unemployment is down and we turned a budget deficit into a budget surplus this year. And we did it all without increasing taxes,” he continued. Republican lawmakers focused on four major pillars to…

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Maury County Poll: Andy Ogles Leads By 10 in Race for Mayor, Bill Lee Leads GOP Gubernatorial Primary by 12

Andy Ogles, Bill Lee

A new poll of voters planning to vote in Maury County in the August 2 election show Republican Andy Ogles leading among all voters in his general election campaign for County Mayor by ten points. The poll also shows conservative Republican businessman Bill Lee leading among Republican voters in the GOP primary race for Governor by twelve points over Congresswoman Diane Black among Republican voters. The poll, conducted by Right Way Marketing on behalf of Power of Liberty, a non-profit educational group, has a margin of error of 5% for both the general election and the Republican primary election and was conducted from June 24 to 26, 2018. Voters were asked: “If the election were held today, who would be your choice for Maury County Mayor, the Republican nominee Andy Ogles, Independent candidate Amanda Kelton, Independent candidate Charlie Norman or Independent candidate Sonny Shackelford?” The poll results were: Andy Ogles 33% Charlie Norman 23% Sonny Shackelford 21% Amanda Kelton 4% Undecided 19% A previous poll conducted by Right Way Marketing from May 14-16 showed Ogles leading with 32.4% over incumbent Independent Charlie Norman – 25.4%. Early voting in the race begins on July 13. With respect to the GOP Primary for…

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Tennessee Star Poll: Boyd Leads Black by 5 in GOP Gubernatorial Primary, Lee Close Behind in Third Place

Randy Boyd, Diane Black, Bill Lee

Knoxville businessman Randy Boyd leads Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06) by 5 points, 32 percent to 27 percent, among likely Republican gubernatorial primary voters in a Tennessee Star Poll released today. The battle for the Republican nomination for governor in Tennessee is now a three-way race, with Williamson County businessman Bill Lee surging into a strong third position, with 20 percent. Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives Beth Harwell (R-Nashville) is no longer a factor in the Republican gubernatorial primary, coming in a distant fourth position with only 7 percent of the vote. Only 13 percent of poll respondents said they were undecided. The poll of 1,040 likely Tennessee Republican primary voters was conducted for The Tennessee Star by Triton Polling and Research over a four day period beginning Monday June 25 and ending Thursday June 28 and has a margin of error of 3.1 percent. The Tennessee Star Poll released today indicates there has been significant movement in the race since the last Tennessee Star Poll results in December 2017. At that time Diane Black had a ten point lead over Randy Boyd, with Black receiving the support of 21 percent of likely Tennessee Republican primary voters, followed by Boyd…

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Bill Lee’s Proposed Office of Faith-Based & Community Initiatives Will Ask Christian, Jewish, Hindu, and Muslim Groups ‘To Help Solve State’s Problems’

Bill Lee

In March, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee, who has made his Christian faith a central theme of his campaign, announced that he will create an Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives if he is elected governor. None of his rivals for the Republican nomination have set forward a similar proposal. President George W. Bush first introduced the notion of integrating “faith-based” initiatives with governmental operations after he was elected in 2000. As those initiatives have evolved over subsequent presidential administrations, and been deployed to various degrees in several state and local governments, a sticky wicket of Constitutional issues and unintended consequences has emerged. The first is that once such a program is established, all religious groups–Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, and others–must be given the same opportunity to participate. The second, and perhaps most troubling, arises when government funding is provided to these faith-based groups to conduct governmental actions and that activity creates the potential for the faith group to proselytize while conducting the government-sanctioned activity. Lee’s campaign website offers this description of his proposed Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives: The Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives will be housed within the Office of the Governor. It will serve as…

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Hundreds Arrested at Senate Office Building Protest

Woman's March protest

Hundreds of protesters were arrested Thursday after staging a sit-in at a U.S. Senate office building in Washington to protest the Trump administration’s immigration policy. U.S. Capitol Police arrested 575 activists, mostly women, decrying President Donald Trump’s “zero-tolerance” policy on admission of undocumented immigrants. They chanted “What do we want? Free families!” and “This is what democracy looks like,” as they sat in the Hart Senate Office Building’s atrium. Protesters wrapped themselves in Mylar blankets, like the ones given to children separated from their families at the southern U.S. border and detained. Democratic Senators Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Maizi Hirono of Hawaii and Ed Markey of Massachusetts were among those who visited the protesters to lend their support. Democratic Representative Pramila Jayapal of Washington, herself an immigrant, tweeted that she was among those arrested. Under the zero-tolerancepolicy, the government has begun prosecuting all migrants caught entering the country without authorization. Trump has halted his policy of taking children from their detained parents under public pressure, but an estimated 2,000 of them are still being held, with many families saying they don’t know how to locate them. Similar protests also took place elsewhere around the country. Hundreds gathered at a rally…

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Tennessee House Delegation Unanimously Opposes Ryan Immigration Bill

TN Congressional Delegation

Tennessee’s U.S. House delegation voted unanimously against House Speaker Paul’s Ryan’s immigration bill Wednesday, including both Democrat members, with Rep. Diane Black not voting. The bill went down in defeat by a wide margin, 121-301, despite President Trump’s subdued support. A sprawling, compromise GOP immigration bill that would have provided a path to citizenship for young illegal immigrants while directing $25 billion for the construction of President Trump’s border wall failed in the House on Wednesday, despite encouragement from the president for Republicans to support it. The bill was overwhelmingly rejected 301-121, in part because some Republicans are reluctant to vote for any bill they worry could be portrayed as “amnesty.” More than 100 Republicans voted against the legislation. The legislation was given little chance of passing going in. Trump’s tweet Wednesday captured his earlier private views that he supports the bill as well as his previous tweets that Republicans were wasting their time on legislation that can’t pass the Senate, putting a different spin on the latter. “HOUSE REPUBLICANS SHOULD PASS THE STRONG BUT FAIR IMMIGRATION BILL, KNOWN AS GOODLATTE II, IN THEIR AFTERNOON VOTE TODAY, EVEN THOUGH THE DEMS WON’T LET IT PASS IN THE SENATE,” he tweeted in…

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Blackburn Distinguishes Self From Bredesen in Competing Statements on Retiring Justice Kennedy’s Replacement

Marsha Blackburn, Phil Bredesen

Both Tennessee candidates for U.S. Senate weighed in and the length of tone of their responses would appear to make it clear Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07) sees this as a clear winning issue for her campaign. Bredesen’s statement was predictable political blather, at best. Bredesen said a candidate’s character and qualifications are more important than party lines. “I just think we have such a partisan mess in Washington right now,” Bredesen said Wednesday in Nashville. “This is a real chance to start unwinding that in something that is very visible and important to the country.” Blackburn also released a statement on Twitter, calling the confirmation of Supreme Court justices “one of the Senate’s most important responsibilities.” “As Tennessee’s next senator, I will be committed to confirming more judges, like Neil Gorsuch, who will honor and uphold our Constitution,” Blackburn said. “I will vote to confirm good constitutional justices who will not be activists and legislate from the bench.” In a statement Wednesday, Blackburn said that Tennesseans want a justice “who will respect both the Constitution and the rule of law.” “They do not want an activist Supreme Court Justice who will seek to legislate from the bench,” she said. “As…

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Commentary: The Turbulent True History of the ‘Good Ole Days’ of Politics

Founding Fathers, Reagan-Bush, Trump

by Jeffery A. Rendall   It’s only natural in times of political turmoil – like what we’re experiencing now and for as long as I can remember – that people harken back to yesteryear for a more tranquil period when everyone got along swimmingly and went out for drinks after each encounter regardless of the rhetorical fights they engaged in earlier that day. We all recall the good ‘ol days as if there was never any conflict; people had manners “back then” and even political enemies found it within their beings to bury the hatchet in their minds rather than in someone else’s back. But was it really that way? A thorough perusal of history reveals that today’s political brawls aren’t much apart from those of the past. Even America’s Founding Fathers were hardly immune from the backbiting and triviality that’s so much in evidence today. Take James Madison and Alexander Hamilton for example. Jay Cost wrote at National Review last week, “One point that I do not linger on in [my new book] is how the two of them came to ascribe bad motives to each other. In Madison’s reckoning, Hamilton was a would-be monarchist who sought the destruction of the republic itself.…

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Pennsylvania Tracks Traffic Stops of Undocumented Immigrants

traffic stop

Pennsylvania state police will soon be required to report more fully the circumstances under which they notify Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents when they stop undocumented immigrants for traffic violations. The move comes amid mounting criticism by immigration lawyers and activists that state troopers have been overzealous in assisting with ICE’s stepped-up enforcement ordered by the Trump administration. It’s also part of a wider debate in several U.S. states about whether police and other state agencies should cooperate with ICE in the wake of the crackdown against illegal immigration over the past year and a half. In Pennsylvania, a recent investigation by ProPublica and The Philadelphia Inquirer uncovered cases in which state and local police helped ICE round up undocumented immigrants, especially Hispanics, using questionable traffic stops. According to the ProPublica/Inquirer investigation, there were more “at-large” arrests of undocumented immigrants without criminal convictions by ICE’s Philadelphia field office, which includes Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia, than anywhere else in the country. Some 1,740 people without criminal records were arrested in the year after President Donald Trump took office, according to the investigation, many with the help of state and local police. This high arrest rate of non-criminals has raised accusations of racial profiling. Assertion…

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Another American Confirmed Hurt by Mystery Attack in Cuba

US Embassy - Havana, Cuba

One more U.S. Embassy employee in Havana has been affected by mysterious health incidents, the State Department said. State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the second of two Americans recently evacuated from Cuba was “medically confirmed” Thursday to have experienced effects “similar to those reported by other members of the U.S. Havana diplomatic community.” The other evacuee was confirmed to have experienced similar symptoms a week ago. The latest case brings to 26 the number of Americans affected by the mystery ailment in Cuba. The United States has said that the Cuba incidents started in late 2016. The State Department calls them “specific attacks” but has not said what caused them or who was behind them. Cuba has adamantly denied involvement or knowledge. Initial speculation centered on some type of sonic attack owing to strange sounds heard by those affected, but an interim FBI report in January found no evidence that sound waves could have caused the damage, The Associated Press reported. The new confirmation comes less than a month after the U.S. renewed demands on Cuba to determine the source of the “attacks” on U.S. diplomats. Cuba responded by once again denying any involvement or knowledge of any such…

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GOP Congressman Says He Received More Death Threats In 2017 Than Every Other Year Combined

by Peter Hasson   Republican Arizona Rep. David Schweikert says he received more death threats in 2017 than every other year he’s been in office combined. “My fear is this is the playbook of a lot of our brothers and sisters on the left — they’re going to get fringier and fringier, louder and louder, angrier and angrier, and as you and I know, we sometimes have some folks in our society who aren’t completely healthy,” Schweikert said while appearing on “Plaidcast,” a podcast hosted by Republican Rep. Sean Duffy of Wisconsin. “And we had more death threats last year, in my office, even one towards my little girl, than we’ve ever had in all the other years combined and my fear is that this rage that is being generated for political turnout is actually really becoming unhealthy for our political society,” Schweikert continued. The Arizona congressman has served in Congress since 2011. “It’s incredibly troubling, because I’ve had threats against my family and my children as well — horrible things said,” Duffy agreed. “We know what happened to [House Majority Whip] Steve Scalise last year and our baseball team and with that, I don’t think the left recognizes that…

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Mark Green Picks Up Another Endorsement For Congress, This Time From Williamson Business PAC

Mark Green

The Williamson Business PAC on Thursday announced its support of Dr. Mark Green for U.S. Congress to replace Marsha Blackburn. The PAC conducted interviews with all the candidates running for the vacant 7th District congressional seat, and its board concluded that State Sen. Green is the best choice, according to a press release from Green’s campaign. “Representing the Williamson Business community, our board members endorse Mark due to his strength, fortitude, integrity and compassion. These are all needed qualities in a statesman and well exemplified by Senator Mark Green,” said Cherie Hammond, the PAC’s chair. Having run a business in Brentwood, Green also based his congressional campaign headquarters in Cool Springs. His campaign is supported by many of the county’s leaders, including State Sen. Jack Johnson, Williamson County Mayor Rogers Anderson, Franklin Mayor Ken Moore, Fairview Mayor Patti Carroll, Spring Hill Mayor Rick Graham and Nolensville Mayor Jimmy Alexander. “I’m honored to receive the Business PAC’s endorsement,” said Green. “Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy. As I travel the 7th District, I’ve heard from countless business owners that burdensome federal regulations are stifling their growth. Having built a company myself, I will fight every day to get…

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Phil Bredesen Afraid to Admit He’d Side With Schumer to Delay Vote on SCOTUS Nominee Until After Midterm Elections?

Phil Bredesen, Chuck Schumer

On the heels of Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy announcing his retirement, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), called for delaying the Senate vote on the President’s nominee until after the November mid-term elections. Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07), who is running to succeed Senator Bob Corker (R-TN), issued a statement shortly after Kennedy made his plans known and indicated her intent to support President Trump’s nominee. The Tennessee Star asked Democrat Phil Bredesen who is also running to succeed Corker, a simple question – “Do you agree with Chuck Schumer that no vote should be held on the SCOTUS nominee until after midterms?” Whether out of loyalty to Schumer who personally recruited Bredesen to run for the Senate, or because he is afraid to alienate potential votes, Bredesen had no response. Bredesen has gone out of his way to avoid giving direct answers to some of the more defining issues in the November elections including whether he would vote for a Constitutional originalist like Neil Gorsuch and whether he agrees with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision upholding President Trump’s travel ban.          

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Will Pro-Abortion Bredesen Support Confirmation of a Pro-Life Justice to the Supreme Court?

Phil Bredesen

On Wednesday Democrat Tennessee Senate Candidate Phil Bredesen issued a Twitter statement regarding the upcoming confirmation battle to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court. “Not long ago, Senate judicial confirmations were free of openly partisan politics. Justices Scalia & Ginsburg each got 90+ votes. I’m going to vote for or against a nominee based solely on whether I believe them to be highly qualified & ethical, not based on partisan politics.” Not long ago, Senate judicial confirmations were free of openly partisan politics. Justices Scalia & Ginsburg each got 90+ votes. I'm going to vote for or against a nominee based solely on whether I believe them to be highly qualified & ethical, not based on partisan politics. pic.twitter.com/NgzGQC8E4K — Phil Bredesen (@PhilBredesen) June 27, 2018 Bredesen did not indicate whether ideological differences on certain issues would disqualify a nominee for a Federal judicial appointment from receiving his vote for confirmation if he is elected to the U.S. Senate. Since Bredesen tweeted his statement Democrat Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who recruited Bredesen to run for Corker’s Senate seat, has called on his fellow Democrats to reject any nominee who does not embrace abortion.  And although Trump has not…

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Reports: At Least 5 Killed in Maryland Newspaper Office Shooting

Capital Gazette building

Reuters   A gunman fired through a glass door at a newspaper in the Maryland capital of Annapolis and sprayed the newsroom with gunfire Thursday, killing at least five people and injuring several others, authorities said. The suspect has been apprehended and no motive is known for the attack at the Capital Gazette newspaper, local political leaders said. Law enforcement in Baltimore and New York City deployed protective forces to major media outlets as a precaution, authorities said. “The shooter is in custody and is being interrogated at this time,” Anne Arundel County Executive Steve Schuh told a news conference. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan said at the news conference: “It’s a tragic situation. We don’t have all the information yet, and we can’t give all the information yet, but we have had several fatalities.” For now, the Annapolis shooting is being treated as a local incident and not one that involves terrorism, a law enforcement official said. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is on the scene assisting local authorities, the official said. Phil Davis, who identified himself as a courts and crime reporter at the Capital Gazette, tweeted that multiple people had been shot. Davis said a single shooter “shot multiple people at…

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Bredesen Evasive About His Prospective Role in Contentious Supreme Court Confirmation Process for President Trump’s Nominee

Phil Bredesen

Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s retirement on Wednesday has prompted an immediate confirmation battle heading into the Fall mid-terms and is already having an impact on Tennessee’s Senate race. Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07), who is running to succeed Senator Bob Corker (R-TN), issued a statement shortly after Kennedy made his plans known and indicated her intent to support President Donald Trump’s nominee. Blackburn called the confirmation of Supreme Court justices “one of the Senate’s most important responsibilities. As Tennessee’s next Senator, I will vote to confirm constitutional justices, who will follow the rule of law and do not legislate from the bench. It’s absolutely critical to confirm justices who understand the importance of upholding the Constitution, including the right to life.” Former Democrat Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen, was more equivocal about his approach to the Supreme Court vacancy, saying a candidate’s character and qualifications are more important than party lines. “I just think we have such a partisan mess in Washington right now,” Bredesen said. “This is a real chance to start unwinding that in something that is very visible and important to the country.” Bredesen also issued a statement on Twitter on Wednesday, just hours after Kennedy announced his retirement.…

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It’s On! Diane Black Goes Negative on Bill Lee and Randy Boyd in New Ad

Many political observers have been surprised that an anticipated barrage of negative campaign ads have been held back thus far in the Tennessee Republican Primary for Governor. The wait is over as Congresswoman Diane Black has unleashed a new attack at that hits two of her opponents, Bill Lee and Randy Boyd as being “two moderates.” While the ad is particularly scathing in its treatment of Boyd, the inclusion of Lee in the spot seems to confirm that Lee is enjoying a surge in recent polls — which is particularly damaging to Black’s Middle Tennessee numbers.   The transcript of the new Black ad, which began airing today, reads as follows: “Diane Black, endorsed by the NRA. And she helped write Trump’s tax cut. Is Diane Black “too conservative”? Randy Boyd says she is. But Randy Boyd also disavowed Donald Trump in 2016. Boyd even calls himself the “most hated political entity — a moderate.” Bill Lee’s a moderate too. He pushed for a liberal Nashville Mayor who tried to make Nashville a sanctuary city. This race is simple. Two Moderates or Conservative Diane Black.” Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill said the ad is consistent with two major themes…

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How Can Phil Bredesen, Standard Bearer for Increasingly ‘Unhinged’ Democrats, Represent Tennessee?

Democrats Unhinged

In the wake of some genuinely unhinged  behavior and some truly shocking election results, the Republican National Committee (RNC) is out with a new add attacking “unhinged” Democrats like Tennessee’s own Phil Bredesen. The Republican National Committee (RNC) released a brutal campaign ad on Tuesday attacking the political Left ahead of the 2018 midterms, highlighting their extreme rhetoric and actions. The full ad can be seen below. The ad comes after Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) called for the harassment of members of the Trump administration on Saturday. Various members of the Trump administration have already been targeted in recent days including White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. The ad highlights multiple well-publicized instances of those on the political Left advocating for extreme action in response to the Trump administration, including Madonna saying she has thought about blowing up the White House, Snoop Dogg shooting the president in a music video, Bill Maher saying he hopes the economy crashes so it hurts Trump, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi saying she doesn’t know why there aren’t uprisings “all over the country,” and Waters’ extreme speech where she called for the harassment of…

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Steve Gill Debunks Common Media Myths in Immigration Debate on News Channel 5’s ‘MorningLine’

Steve Gill

Tuesday on News Channel 5’s “MorningLine”, Conservative and Tennessee Star Political Editor, Steve Gill sat down with host Nick Beres to discuss immigration and the ongoing debate around it in America today. The full ten minutes is worth a listen as Gill debunks many media myths circling around within the immigration debate. “Part of the problem here …,” said Gill,” of the 12,000 children that have been put into federal custody over the last several months, 10,000 of them came alone. These are not 4 year-olds trekking from Honduras across the Mexican desert. These are 16, 17, and in many cases older than 18 young men who are claiming to be minors.” Gill goes on to debunk other media myths, as well, along with media’s mostly ignoring serious issues of sex trafficking and child abuse linked directly to the same illegal border crossings media is, in essence, defending, while often covering up the more ugly side of same.              

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Justice Kennedy Retirement Raises the Stakes for Senate Mid-Term Elections

Marsha Blackburn, Anthony Kennedy, Phil Bredesen

The announcement that Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy is retiring, which will prompt a confirmation battle heading into the Fall mid-term election cycle, is already raising the stakes in contested U.S. Senate races across the country. Democrats are defending Senate seats in ten states that President Donald Trump carried in 2016, including five that he won by double digits. The confirmation of a replacement for the 82 year old Justice will certainly have an impact on Tennessee’s Senate race. Trump has already indicated that his appointment of a replacement for Kennedy will come from the list of conservatives that he named during his election campaign, along with five others he added last Fall.  And Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says a vote for the confirmation of a new Justice will come this Fall. Liberal activists are already melting down over the announced retirement, though it was widely anticipated.  In fact, a Democratic National Committee rules committee was on a conference call when the announcement came and the anguished reactions were audible. Conservative Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) is among those thought to be on Trump’s short list, and was among those on the initial list of 25 conservatives that Trump plans…

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JC Bowman Commentary: SCOTUS Janus Decision Will Make Unions More Accountable to Their Members

Mark Janus

The Janus Decision will not create drastic structural changes to unions.  It will simply make them more accountable to their own members.  And in the case of teacher unions, this greater accountability should focus on making the quality of education front and center, help public education rebuild support from the public for issues like raising teacher pay and school funding, and work for the common good of all students and educators.

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Kremlin: Trump, Putin Will Meet for Summit

Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin

Kremlin officials say there is an agreement for Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Donald Trump to hold a summit in a third country. The announcement came Wednesday as U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton was in Moscow for talks with Putin and other senior Russian officials. Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said details about the venue for a Trump-Putin summit would be announced Thursday. The meeting is expected to take place after Trump attends the NATO summit July 11 and 12 and visits Britain on July 13. Vienna and Helsinki are among the venues being considered. Earlier, Putin told Bolton that his visit to Moscow increased the chances of a restoration of Russian-U.S. relations. Putin said relations between the two countries were “not in the best shape.” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters “the sad state” of bilateral relations between the two countries would be discussed, as well as a range of international issues. Bolton had said he hoped his one-day visit would lay the groundwork for what would be the first summit between Putin and Trump. Trump and Putin have met twice on the sidelines of international summits and have spoken several times by telephone. Washington-Moscow relations…

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Minnesota’s Capital Cancels Independence Day Fireworks Because It’s Too Expensive

Melvin Carter

by Anders Hagstrom   The Democratic mayor of Minnesota’s capital cancelled the city’s annual 4th of July fireworks show Wednesday, claiming it required too many tax payer dollars. St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter made the announcement on Facebook and clarified that while there would be no fireworks, there would still be a parade, Kare11 reported. Carter’s budget concerns come after years of disappointment in the city’s fireworks show that seems to shrink annually, causing many Minnesotans to attend competing shows nearby. “As I’ve considered the budgetary priorities we manage across our city in the first year of my administration, I’ve decided I can’t in good conscience support spending tax dollars on a fireworks display in St. Paul this year,” he wrote. “Over the past three years, the city partnered with CHS Field to hold fireworks on the 4th, but given the venue’s location and capacity, this was always intended as a short-term solution,” Mayoral spokeswoman Liz Xiong told the Pioneer Press. “As we considered all these factors this year, including the costs for fireworks, insurance and city department costs including fire, police and public works, the mayor could not in good conscience support spending upwards of $100,000 from the city’s budget.” Carter has spent most…

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Nashville Demonstration Protests Trump Travel Ban Victory at Supreme Court

AMAC, David Briley

Rallies were held in Nashville and across the country Tuesday following the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold President Trump’s travel ban on Muslim countries. The latest, third version of the policy applies to five mostly Muslim countries as well as North Korea and Venezuela, NewsChannel 5 reports. Chief Justice John Roberts said the ban was within the scope of Presidential authority to protect national security. Predictably, some were not happy. In Nashville, the American Muslim Advisory Council held a rally at Legislative Plaza. The council and MPower Change organized on a Facebook page. The page said, “It’s crucial that we have a visible, strong presence across the country of people who care about Muslim and refugee communities and oppose Trump’s White Nationalist agenda. The #NoMuslimBanEver campaign is calling for a national day of action whenever the decision is announced.” Nashville Mayor David Briley attended the rally, WSMV says. At least 18 groups in addition to the council participated, the station says. It is unclear how many people actually attended. Challengers had argued the administration’s order was discriminatory and unconstitutional because the president had called for a ban on Muslim travelers from the Middle East while he was on the campaign trail in…

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Commentary: Misplaced Democrat Outrage Over Illegals Has Backlash Written All Over It

Antifa in Nashville

by Jeffrey Rendall   Have Democrats got something here, or have they really lost it? The question passed through my mind as a member of my church stood up a couple Sundays ago to request special prayers for the “families” with kids being separated from parents down along the southern border, genuinely implying there was a true humanitarian crisis at hand in America. Fellow church parishioners nodded in agreement to the man’s plea and many a petition was instantly heaven-sent for the sake of children and parents whom we’ll most assuredly never meet and who likely will be deservedly deported right back to whence they came. We shouldn’t have a problem praying for these folks – it’s the human condition, right? A little divine intervention here could only be a positive thing. But Democrats are taking this child-separation issue to the extreme, rejecting every overture from President Trump or congressional Republicans to not only aid those impacted by the government’s official policies, but also to deal with the illegal immigration problem itself. The minority party’s lack of interest in the authentic dilemma exposes their naked ploy to milk the crisis for every political chit it’s worth. Here’s thinking such a flawed strategy is…

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Brad Greer Endorses 2016 GOP Primary Opponent Dr. George Flinn for Congress in 2018 Election

Brad Greer, George Flinn, David Kustoff

In 2016 Dr. George Flinn narrowly lost a multi-candidate Republican primary race to now first term 8th District Congressman David Kustoff (R-TN8). Flinn and Kustoff are facing off again in 2018, but this time one of their primary opponents, Brad Greer, has signed on to help Flinn. In the 2016 Republican primary Greer won Madison, Obion and Lake counties. “We need a Congressman who will represent the whole district – from Memphis to Lake County over to Henry County and down to Jackson,” Greer said in making his endorsement. “We need someone who will guard our West Tennessee values – faith, family, hunting, fishing and supporting our community. George Flinn embodies those values. He’s a Christian man, who loves this country.” Greer said he really got to know Dr. Flinn during the 2016 Republican Primary. “I learned during the 2016 campaign what type of man George Flinn is – he’s a man of integrity. He’s someone who cares about the people. He’s the same person behind the curtain as he is on stage. I saw it day in and day out because I was campaigning against the man,” Greer pointed out. “I came to a point of realizing, if I…

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China on the Verge of Gaining a Key Foothold on the U.S. Mainland

China, Port of Long Beach

By Printus LeBlanc   The U.S. is on the cusp of allowing the Communist Chinese government a strategic foothold on the homeland. China must not be permitted to purchase the operating rights to the Port of Long Beach. While the mainstream media is concentrating on what salad dressing the President uses and encourages people to harass politicians they disagree with; the world keeps spinning. Not only is the world still spinning, but the global powers are maneuvering to challenge the U.S., and all we talk about is the First Lady’s jacket. One of the chief misconceptions about the Port of Long Beach sale is about the two companies involved. Most people believe the issue is just one Chinese firm taking over from another Chinese company. Technically that is true, but one must look at the difference between the two companies to see what is going on. Last July, Shanghai-based China COSCO submitted a $6.3 billion bid to buy Hong Kong-based Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL). OOCL is a 70-year-old company founded by C.Y. Tung. It became the first Asian-based shipping line to transport containerized cargo across the Pacific. In 2012, OOCL signed a 40-year lease worth $4.6 billion to develop the Long…

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House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows Endorses Jimmy Matlock in 2nd Congressional District Race

Jimmy Matlock, Mark Meadows

Candidate for U.S. House District 2 Jimmy Matlock announced Wednesday that he has earned the endorsement of the current House Freedom Caucus Chairman Mark Meadows. Matlock is in a heated race for the 2nd Congressional District seat which has been represented by a member of the Duncan family for over 50 years, with John J. Duncan Sr. preceding his son “Jimmy” from 1965 to 1988. The conservative known for his independence announced in August 2017 he would not seek re-election, and Congressman Jimmy Duncan has since thrown his support behind Matlock. While the Federal Election Commission reports a 10-year record of 17 candidates running for the office, since the Civil War the seat has not been held by a Democrat and the race is essentially between the two Republican front runners Jimmy Matlock and Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett. Meadows, who has served North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District since January 2013, was one of the original nine founding members of the House Freedom Caucus which originated out of a Hershey, Pennsylvania Republican congressional retreat at the start of Meadows’ second term in January 2015. In 2017, Meadows became the second Chairman of the estimated thirty-plus member Caucus, following the two-year…

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State Senate Candidate Wade Munday Looking For Lawyers to Help Illegal Aliens Come and Stay in Tennessee

Wade Munday

With the continuing crush at the border of illegal aliens traveling with children to whom they may or may not be related and children being sent with smugglers to cross the border alone, liberals and open border groups have found a new reason to oppose President Trump’s “zero tolerance” for illegal immigration. In Nashville, Wade Munday, Executive Director of the open borders organization TN Justice For Our Neighbors (TN-JFON) is looking for lawyers to volunteer and help illegal aliens come and stay in Tennessee. In addition to his $61,000+ job at TN-JFON, Munday is the Democrat candidate running against incumbent conservative Republican Kerry Roberts for the state Senate District 25 seat. TN-JFON provides free and low-cost legal services to legal immigrants like refugees as well as to asylum seekers and “unaccompanied alien children” (UAC) who have entered the country illegally. TN-JFON finds legal help by providing continuing legal education which is required for Tennessee lawyers, partnering with area law school legal clinics and using area media to carry their appeal. Not surprisingly, TN-JFON supports Obama’s unconstitutional DACA administrative amnesty program and “safe arrivals” for “unaccompanied minors,” their term in lieu of the statutorily correct unaccompanied alien children. Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC), by law are defined as…

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Justice Kennedy Announces Retirement

SCOTUS Kennedy

by Kevin Daley   Justice Anthony Kennedy announced his retirement Wednesday, precipitating a generational political fight over the future of the U.S. Supreme Court. Kennedy’s departure was announced Wednesday morning, after the justices released the final decisions of its current term. Few justices loom as large as Anthony Kennedy in the history of the high court. As the bench became an object of political competition and the tribunal itself began to reflect the country’s ideological entrenchment, Kennedy led narrow majorities to landmark decisions on gay rights, abortion, the First Amendment, and Guantanamo Bay detainees. Dignity and civility occupied the center of his jurisprudence, values he saw emanating from the deepest recesses of the Constitution which provide a single unity to its divergent threads. The justice revived these principles in Tuesday’s travel ban case, where he tacitly admonished the Trump administration in a short concurring opinion many saw as a valedictory message. “It is an urgent necessity that officials adhere to these constitutional guarantees and mandates in all their actions, even in the sphere of foreign affairs,” he wrote. “An anxious world must know that our government remains committed always to the liberties the Constitution seeks to preserve and protect, so…

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Professional Educators of Tennessee: SCOTUS Janus Decision a Victory for Workers’ First Amendment Rights

Mark Janus

The U.S. Supreme Court announced a 5-4 decision on Wednesday in Janus v. American Federation of State, Country, and Municipal Employees, Council 31, that reaffirms the First Amendment, especially people’s freedom of association. The ruling today eliminates compulsory unionism, which requires individuals to join a union as a condition of employment.  It will influence the cycle where government unions collect compulsory fees from government workers and then use it to help elect pro-union politicians to achieve and maintain political power — who then empower and enrich the government employee unions. “No American worker should be forced to become or remain a union member,” JC Bowman, executive director of Professional Educators of Tennessee, told The Tennessee Star after the decision was announced. Bowman added: People should be free to join, or not join any organization or union they want, without losing their job or be forced to pay for political agendas with which they disagree based on political or ideological purposes.  The Janus Decision will not create drastic structural changes to unions.  It will simply make them more accountable to their own members.  And in the case of teacher unions, this greater accountability should focus on making the quality of education…

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Embattled Chief Operating Officer Rich Riebeling OUT of Metro Nashville Government

Rich Riebeling, Emily Passini

Newly elected Mayor David Briley announced Tuesday that Metro Nashville Government Chief Operating Officer, Rich Riebeling will be leaving his administration. As part of a reorganization of the Office of Mayor, Briley named Emily Passini as Chief of Staff, the administration’s senior official who will “organize the policy priorities of the office, manage staff and work with department heads to drive the Mayor’s agenda.” The appointment of Passini displaces Riebeling as well as current Chief of Staff Debby Dale Mason. Riebeling recently came under heavy fire for being the focal point of several financial scandals during his 11-year tenure in Metro Nashville Government which spanned three different mayors from gubernatorial candidate Karl Dean, to disgraced Megan Barry to a short stint with David Briley. Much of the attention to Riebeling’s improprieties was drawn by Carol Swain, Briley’s chief rival in the May 24 special mayoral election and The Tennessee Star’s Culture of Corruption series. Mayoral candidate Swain called for then Acting Mayor Briley to fire Riebeling when it became public in early May that Riebeling was involved with $7.4 million of federal relief funds for the 2010 flood being redirected away from victims to design the Ascend Amphitheater. Of that,…

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When Did Democrat Activist Behind Fear Mongering Billboard Resign From Board of Emerge Tennessee?

Carol Brown Andrews

Uncertainty surrounds the details of the departure of a Democratic activist behind the PAC that paid for the deceptive and fear mongering billboard that attacks conservative legislators from the board of directors of Emerge Tennessee, thanks to the evasiveness of the group’s executive director, Kristal Knight. Emerge Tennessee is the state affiliate of the national organization, Emerge America, that has the goal of increasing the number of Democratic women at all levels of public office. On Tuesday, Knight contacted The Tennessee Star by email, requesting the story remove a reference to Carol Brown Andrews, the Democratic activist behind the PAC that funded the deceptive billboard as having an affiliation with the Emerge Tennessee board of directors. The Star’s report on Tuesday stated: According to the Tennessee Bureau of Ethics and Campaign Finance website, officers of the Tennesseans for Common Sense PAC, formed on March 13, 2018, are long-time Democrat operative Carol Brown Andrews and Lebanon-based personal injury lawyer Neal Agee. In addition to her Democratic campaign research work as Vice President of Grindstone Research, LLP, with clientssuch as former Nashville mayor turned gubernatorial candidate Karl Dean, Andrews is on the board of directors of Emerge Tennessee, the state affiliate of a national organization with a goal of increasing…

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Commentary: The Left’s Next Step Is Open Violence Against Conservatives

Attacking Trump supporters

by CHQ Staff   A number of conservative women have faced harassment because of their support of President Trump and because of what the Leftist media would like America to believe is a grassroots backlash toward the Trump administration’s “zero-tolerance” policy at the border. Over the course of the past week White House press secretary Sarah Sanders was asked to leave a restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, due to her work on President Trump’s behalf and then followed across the street by the restaurant’s owner who harassed her all the way to the door of her next stop. That incident followed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen being forced to leave a Mexican restaurant in Washington by a crowd of harassers, including Department of Justice employee Allison Hrabar, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America. A similar group later gathered outside Nielsen’s home waving signs reading “child snatcher” and chanting “how do you sleep at night.” The demonstrators blasted Nielsen’s home with audio distributed by ProPublica in which alleged child illegal border crossers can be heard sobbing for their parents allegedly while in federal custody. Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi was also harassed at a movie theater this weekend by Leftist…

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Federal Authorities Warn Antifa To End ICE Occupation Or Be Arrested

Portland Occupy ICE

by Kyle Perisic   Federal authorities warned Antifa members Monday to stop occupying an Oregon Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building or be arrested. “Individuals who continue to obstruct the entrance of this federal facility will be subject to arrest and prosecution in federal court,” a flyer Federal Protective Service agents distributed to Portland, Oregon, Antifa members reads. “It is unlawful under federal law to obstruct the entrances, foyers, lobbies, corridors, offices and/or parking lots of federal facilities.” Antifa has been camping outside the ICE building since last week and effectively shutting down the building. Federal authorities went into the building around 3:30 a.m Monday to secure the building. Antifa is known to get violent and they are labeled an official domestic terrorist organization. During an August 2017 protest at the University of California, Berkeley, they were recorded in several video clips attacking and injuring individuals they deemed “far-right” or “alt-right,” although there’s no evidence the individuals were associated with such groups and didn’t identify in such a way. As part of a new normal, liberals are consistently targeting President Donald Trump supporters and threatening them, especially if they work for immigration-related agencies or departments. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Republican Sens.…

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Bob Corker Won’t Stop Undermining Trump in Trade Battle, Democrats Offer Him a Helping Hand

Trump-Corker-Toomey

A new item out at Politico highlights just how determined outgoing Tennessee Senator Bob Corker is to cause problems for President Trump in trade negotiations while he still continues to have the power to do it. And Republican Senator from Pennsylvania Pat Toomey is helping him do it. Corker restarts tariff battle with Trump The frequent Trump critic is seizing on the Senate’s farm bill to try to curb the president’s tariffs. GOP Sen. Bob Corker is making a new push to allow Congress to block President Donald Trump’s tariffs on U.S. allies, though GOP leaders may stop it in its tracks once again. The Tennessee senator is offering an amendment written with Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) to the Senate’s farm bill this week that would allow Congress to approve or disapprove of tariffs levied against countries on national security justifications. Naturally, President Trump opposes the effort, as does Senate Finance Chairman Orin Hatch, calling it “too broad.” Trump opposes the amendment, and it could imperil the farm bill if the amendment is adopted. Party leaders are not sure whether it has 60 votes to succeed; Corker and Toomey argue the only way to find out is to hold a…

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Diane Black is Only Gubernatorial Candidate Willing to Change Attorney General Selection Process, Victor Ashe Says

Diane Black Would Veto in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrant students

Victor Ashe noted in his weekly column that Diane Black is the only gubernatorial candidate who supports bringing more transparency to the attorney general selection process. The Black campaign touted Ashe’s column in a press release. The former Knoxville mayor wrote in the Knoxville News-Sentinel that Democratic candidates Craig Fitzhugh and Karl Dean, along with Republicans Beth Harwell (state House speaker) and Randy Boyd all said they support the status quo. Ashe wrote, “Surprisingly, no one is a change agent here as the selection process for state AG is unique to Tennessee with the Supreme Court (only five people) meeting behind closed doors once every eight years to pick a Tennessean to be the chief legal officer. The open meetings laws do not apply to this meeting of a public body.” Black supports voter input Black, however, believes the voters should have a say. “Whether through direct election or legislative appointment, Diane supports changing this process and will push for that change as governor.” Tennessee’s attorney general is Republican Herbert H. Slatery III. He was sworn in as the attorney general and reporter on Oct. 1, 2014, according to the attorney general’s website. Prior to his appointment, Slatery served as…

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Supreme Court Lets Contested District Maps In Texas, NC Remain In Effect

SCOTUS, North Carolina, Texas

by Kevin Daley   The U.S. Supreme Court Monday cleared the way for Texas and North Carolina to use a set of contested legislative district lines, declining to side with plaintiffs who alleged the maps were gerrymandered for partisan or racial advantage. The decisions come one week after the high court sidestepped sweeping rulings in landmark challenges to political gerrymanders. The North Carolina case, Rucho v. Common Cause, involved a challenge to the state’s congressional district map. The current lines afford Republicans a 10-3 advantage in North Carolina’s congressional delegation, although the state has adopted a moderate political character in recent election cycles. As in other gerrymandering cases, mapmakers brazenly acknowledged the partisan interests driving the process. “I think electing Republicans is better than electing Democrats,” said North Carolina Republican Rep. David Lewis, who chairs the state legislature’s redistricting committee. “So I drew this map to help foster what I think is better for the country.” A three-judge district court said the map was unconstitutional and ordered the state to produce new maps in time for the 2018 elections, but the justices placed that order on hold in January. Monday’s order lifted the three-judge panel’s ruling, and required the lower court to…

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