Expert: Tennessee Regulators are ‘Tammany Hall Hucksters’

Adam Jackson, Alarm Board

A Tennessee businessman said he couldn’t sell his state-of-the-art security software because members of a state board told him no. But those regulators, specifically the five-member Alarm Systems Contractors’ Board, said that’s not true, because they never made a final decision on the matter. But go over the video and transcripts of one key meeting, said Braden Boucek, director of litigation for the Beacon Center of Tennessee, a Nashville-based free market think tank. It all boils down to board members telling the businessman, Adam Jackson, he had to get a license to sell his product. The Tennessee Star went over the transcripts and video of one key meeting. Board members explicitly told Jackson repeatedly to get licensed. “At no point do they ever indicate that he might not need a license, or that if he did his business differently, they’d change their mind,” Boucek said. During the meeting, board members read state law to Jackson to back up their position. At another point, board members said they didn’t write the law, but they were trying to uphold it. As reported, this board has existed since 1993. Members meet regularly to license, register, and regulate alarm systems contractors.  They also judge…

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Report: Smith County Library Director Cheated Taxpayers

Smith County Library

Tennessee Comptrollers have called out the director of the Smith County Library in Carthage for taking money from taxpayers for working hours she, in fact, did not work. She got away with it because her supervisors weren’t watching her all that closely, auditors said. State Comptrollers released their audit Friday. County taxpayers lost $331.55 for time the library director did not work, according to the audit. That may seem like a paltry sum of money compared to other instances of government waste, fraud and abuse across the state. But $331.55 is the only loss Comptrollers could prove, and they said it’s likely the library director took off far more time than that. No one at the Smith County Library was available to talk Sunday. “Our investigation revealed two instances in which the library director was not working on Wednesday when auditors and officials requested to speak with the library director,” Comptrollers wrote. “In those two instances, we were able to document the library director submitted time sheets reflecting that she had worked on those days she was not at the library.” Comptrollers said they interviewed other library employees for this report. “Our interviews with library employees indicated that the library…

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Federal Judge Will Continue Accepting DACA Applications Despite Believing The Program Is Illegal

Andrew Hanen

by Molly Prince   A federal judge in Texas announced Friday that the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program can continue to accept applications and operate as written despite it likely violating federal law. U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen rejected the request by seven states to issue an injunction and promptly discontinue the DACA program. Hanen asserted that while he understands the program is presumably unlawful and will ultimately be struck down if challenged in his own court, he kept DACA in place as the appeal continues, reported CNN. “Here, the egg has been scrambled,” Hanen wrote. “To try to put it back in the shell with only a preliminary injunction record, and perhaps at great risk to many, does not make sense nor serve the best interest of this country.” The states – Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, Texas and West Virginia – filed the lawsuit arguing that DACA could only be established by the legislative branch and by circumventing congress, the program was thereby unconstitutional, according to The Washington Post. Hanen reiterated his belief in the unlawfulness of DACA as enacted by former President Barack Obama but emphasized the necessity of the program itself. “DACA is a popular…

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The LA Times Inadvertently Admits Trump Is Right About What’s Causing California’s Massive Wildfires

wildfire

by Tim Pierce   Adopting more active forest management policies such as increased thinning of trees and conducting controlled burns will help mitigate damage from future wildfires, the Los Angeles Times editorial board writes. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke began advocating similar policy prescriptions earlier in 2018 after President Donald Trump blamed California’s “bad environmental laws” for creating a wildfire-prone environment. California forests have grown drier and less healthy from overcrowded trees, infestations of bark beetles and the effects of climate change, the LA Times writes. California’s restrictions on active forest management have contributed to the poor and worsening conditions of the forests, allowing them to grow uninhibited while suppressing fires that would normally naturally control the forests’ growth. “Fire is not necessarily bad for forests. California used to burn with regularity, and low-intensity fires are vital in some ecosystems to clear excess brush and small trees from the landscape,” the editorial board writes. “But there’s been a change in fire behavior over the last century, as the state and federal government began dousing the blazes. Decades of fire suppression have allowed forests to grow dense with trees.” “Combined with drought, insect infestations and the stress of a warming climate, those management…

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EXCLUSIVE: Hillary Clinton Is Hiring Interns For The Fall – But Won’t Pay Them A Single Cent

by Joe Simonson   Hillary Clinton is hiring a batch of unpaid interns for the fall to work in her New York City office, according to documents obtained by The Daily Caller News Foundation. Applications are currently being accepted on a rolling basis and will “run from September to mid-December.” The internship requires “a minimum of three days per week,” and undergrads “of all majors are encouraged to apply.” While the amount of hours per day aren’t specified, the “internship is unpaid.” “Interns will provide support to our staff, assisting our work on a wide range of projects. Work will include but will not be limited to: compiling press clips, monitoring social media, conducting research, drafting correspondence, and assisting with office management,” the job posting states. Clinton’s office is looking for applicants who have “a high level of professionalism and discretion,” “strong research and writing skills,” “the ability to work collaboratively as part of a team,” “strong interpersonal communication skills,” “a diligent work ethic and a sense of conscientiousness,” as well as “enthusiasm, dedication, and a positive attitude.” The job posting does not offer any alternative ways of compensation like school credit or a stipend. During the 2016 presidential campaign,…

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Daily Caller’s Stephanie Hamill Accuses Democrats Of Ignoring Allegations Against Keith Ellison

Stephanie Hamill, Keith Ellison

by Nick Givas   The Daily Caller’s video columnist Stephanie Hamill accused the Democratic party of purposely ignoring abuse allegations against House Democrat Keith Ellison, on “Fox & Friends First” Saturday. “You would think that the #MeToo movement people, the women’s march, the Democrat leadership, you think they would be speaking out about this,” Hamill said. Daily Caller’s Stephanie Hamill Accuses Democrats Of Ignoring Allegations Against Keith Ellison https://t.co/5BiVv6u7i1 pic.twitter.com/8yPNv2U2Qx — The Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 1, 2018 “You would think that this would be enough to generate the protests across the country where people are storming the streets in their pink clothing and their silly hats. But, for some reason it seems like when the people that are being accused that happen to be Democrats, then it is — there are victims that aren’t really believed in this case.” Hamill said the DNC has been investigating the allegations for weeks, but continue to stonewall the press to protect the party’s brand. “The DNC has been investigating this for a couple weeks now, but they’re not giving out any information,” she continued. “The Daily Caller has reached out multiple times through email, through phone calls and pretty much the DNC is stonewalling.”…

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Billionaire CEO Of JD.com, Richard Liu, Arrested In Minnesota For ‘Suspicion of Sexual Misconduct’ – Again

Richard Liu

by Kyle Perisic   The billionaire CEO of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com was arrested in Minnesota Friday on suspicion of sexual misconduct, and it’s not the first time he’s been involved in such allegations. The company said it was a false allegation after Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, was released. He’s worth an estimated $7.9 billion, according to Forbes, making him one of China’s richest men. “During a business trip to the United States, Mr. Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation,” the company said Sunday, The Wall Street Journal reported. “The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr. Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned.” Liu has previously been accused of sexual misconduct, according to The WSJ. He reportedly tried to keep his name out of a sexual assault case in Australia, where he has a home in Sydney, in 2015. Beginning in 1998 as an online electronics store, JD.com has become an online retail behemoth — operating similar to Amazon. Walmart is its second largest shareholder, behind Liu, owning 10 percent and 17 percent, respectively. Alphabet’s Google owns about 1…

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Commentary: It Isn’t Just Trump vs. Bernie in Florida Governor’s Race

Ron Desantis, Andrew Gillum, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders

by George Rasley, CHQ Editor   Tuesday’s Florida Primary Election rocked the Florida political establishment of both parties and set up what will likely be the most expensive and certainly the most important gubernatorial election of 2018. On the Republican side Rep. Ron DeSantis (FL-6) one of the most visible conservative members of the U.S. House of Representatives rode his national media profile to a wipeout of Florida political icon, Republican Ron DeSantisCommissioner of Agriculture Adam Putnam. Putnam, once the youngest member of Congress and one of the Sunshine State’s most popular politicians, was long assumed to be on his way to the Governorship, the Senate and perhaps even the presidency. On Tuesday those expectations came crashing down – crushed in a wave of populist support for Congressman DeSantis, who has been one of President Trump’s staunchest defenders on TV and who proudly campaigned with Donald Trump’s endorsement. While DeSantis and Putnam differed little on real substance – both are solidly conservative Republicans – it was DeSantis’ campaign against the Tallahassee political establishment that defeated Putnam, who had, perhaps unfairly, become seen as the candidate of a notoriously corrupt state capitol. On the Democratic side another iconic Florida political name…

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Caryville, Tennessee Police Department Blasted in Comptroller’s Report for Holding Confiscated Guns for 50 Years

handguns

Members of the Caryville Police Department confiscated other people’s guns and tried to trade them before getting the proper permission. There’s other things they did with those firearms they weren’t legally allowed to do. Tennessee law, for instance, says they can only hold onto those guns for 180 days, but they’d kept some of them a lot longer than that — since the time Lyndon Johnson was president. These were among the findings of a Tennessee Comptrollers’ Report released Friday. No one at the Caryville Police Department was available to speak Sunday. Tennessee law gives law enforcement officials the power to exchange firearms they have in their possession. The police chief, according to the audit, took 50 confiscated weapons to a local gun shop owner for an appraisal and trade offer. “The chief told investigators that he left these weapons at the gun shop and intended to return with the court order authorizing the exchange, believing that approval would occur on the following day. Due to unforeseen circumstances, the court order approval was delayed,” according to the Comptrollers’ report. “Shortly after the guns were delivered to the gun shop, the chief acquired a handgun and ammunition from the gun shop…

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Developers Defend $25 Million Incentives They’re Getting for Fifth and Broadway in Nashville

Fifth and Broadway project

Tax Increment Financing benefits are normally meant to incentivize developers to build new projects in blighted areas of town and, if possible, spruce them up. But developers who want the same benefits for a new project at tourist heavy Fifth and Broadway in Nashville, across from Bridgestone Arena, say TIF is too sweet a deal to pass up. As reported, the developers OliverMcMillan and Spectrum I Emery want $25 million in TIF benefits. They defended this plan in an emailed statement Wednesday to The Tennessee Star. “A Metro commitment for $25 million in tax increment financing has been a component of the convention center site redevelopment project since the public-private partnership agreement was approved by Metro Council in 2015,” they said in the email. “Low bond market interest rates and the ability to lock in a fixed rate for the full term make a TIF bond the best business option. Since market interest rates are at low levels, the amount of interest MDHA pays on the bonds is minimized. Since the bonds are secured by the project’s property tax payments there is no risk to any Metro Nashville Agency.” The development, called Fifth + Broadway, will have 230,000 square feet…

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