Month: December 2018

Key House Lawmaker: Trump Impeachment Hearings Possible

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A key U.S. lawmaker said Sunday that Democrats in the House of Representatives could pursue impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump, saying that the U.S. leader had “surrounded himself with crooks” and was part of a broad “conspiracy against the American people” to win the 2016 election. Congressman Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat set to become chairman of the House Judiciary Committee when Democrats take control of the chamber next month, told CNN that lawmakers have to decide “how important” allegations are against Trump, but should pursue impeachment charges “only for serious offenses.” Nadler offered his thoughts two days after federal prosecutors accused former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, “in coordination with and at the direction” of Trump, of orchestrating $280,000 in hush money payments shortly before the 2016 election to two women who alleged they had affairs with Trump so they would stay silent before Election Day. Nadler said that if proven, the allegations against Trump were “certainly impeachable offenses.” That could lead to his removal from office, if the Senate were to convict him by at least a two-thirds vote, a doubtful proposition with Republican control of the Senate continuing in the Congress that takes office in January.…

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Female Veterans Quietly Struggle With Sexual Harassment, Suicide

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by Max Jungreis   Pfc. Nichole Bowen-Crawford said she was walking to lunch on her Army base near Nasiriyah, Iraq, in 2003 when she received her daily proposition from a passing fellow soldier. “Hey, Bowen,” the officer tossed out, “let’s go f— in the bunker.” Bowen-Crawford told VOA that while this was the most shocking example of the day-to-day regimen of verbal sexual harassment she experienced while in the Army between 2001-2004, it was not her worst experience — she had been assaulted by a higher-ranking sergeant earlier that year. When she reported the incident to a male supervisor, she was advised to stay quiet for the sake of her career. Bowen-Crawford’s experience is not universal, but far from rare. Suicide rate A work environment tolerant of sexual assault and harassment is believed to be one of the causes of high suicide rates among female veterans, which soared more than 45 percent between 2001 and 2015, according to data from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). The rate among female veterans is lower than that of male veterans, but not compared to their civilian counterparts. Female veterans are almost twice as likely to kill themselves as civilian women. “Certainly…

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Chicago’s New PlayStation Tax Shows How Greedy Politicians Can Be

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by Brittany Hunter   “If it moves, tax it.” That’s government’s eternal motto, as Ronald Reagan quipped. To this, the city government of Chicago has added, “If it amuses, tax it.” A few weeks ago, PlayStation 4 users in Chicago were shocked when they turned on their consoles and saw a message from Sony. The message informed users that as of November 14, 2018, they would be required to pay a 9 percent “amusement tax” for PlayStation subscriptions such as PlayStation Now, PlayStation Plus, PlayStation Music, and others. The tax is specifically related to streaming services, so the PlayStation games themselves will not be subject to the 9 percent tax. But in today’s subscription-heavy economy, many users purchase these consoles as a medium to stream videos and music rather than using them solely to play games. Not to mention, the tax will still include subscription services that allow Playstation users to connect and play with other users around the globe. So if you own a PlayStation in Chicago, it is unlikely that you will be able to fully avoid this tax. PlayStation users, however, are not the only victims of this absurd tax. Chicago’s Amusement Tax Chicago is one of the…

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San Francisco’s Wealthy Leftists Are Making Homelessness Worse

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by Gregory Morin   I recently had the opportunity to visit San Francisco for the first time. Coastal towns tend to be a bit more interesting in terms of cuisine (seafood being one of the more varied palate options) as well as architecture (steep hill structures are ever a testament to human ingenuity) and San Francisco scores high in both categories. However one area where it currently scores quite low is in the aroma zone. At first I thought perhaps they had a very inefficient sewer system near the shoreline retail sector, but as we explored deeper toward the city center it became clear something was amiss. I learned shortly thereafter that San Francisco has a poop crisis. To be blunt — people are literally crapping on the sidewalks. Not the tourists, mind you, but the local homeless population. The situation has come to a head (or to the head to employ a nautical metaphor) primarily as a result of progressive conservatism primed with the power of centralized (governmental) authority. The outside leftist narrative of course is that this poop crisis is inevitable results of unmitigated capitalism, which drives the eternal boogeyman of income inequality. This inequality fuels gentrification of…

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New York City Teachers Reportedly Abused Taxpayer Money at Nashville Gaylord Opryland Resort

Chris Butler

Teachers from New York City came to Nashville last year and spent nearly $3,000 of their own local taxpayer money without documenting how it got spent, according to a new report on Patch.com The teachers spent this money at Nashville’s Gaylord Opryland Resort, according to the story. The story did not specify why the teachers came to Nashville or for what event. This was among only part of $15,000 the New York City teachers spent without supporting documentation, according to the website. According to the Patch.com story, quoting an audit, New York City school officials often disregarded rules and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on lavish hotels, out-of-town trips and other travel costs last year, an audit released Wednesday shows. “City Comptroller Scott Stringer’s office reviewed about $1 million of the Department of Education’s more than $20 million in travel expenses from the 2017 fiscal year. About nine in every 10 payments — 93 percent — violated an internal policy, a directive from the comptroller’s office, or both, the audit shows,” the website reported. The DOE blew more than $233,000 to host meetings and other events at outside venues without bothering to see if any schools or other facilities could be…

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Tennessee Auditors Call Out Tipton County Schools For Irregularities

Chris Butler

Tipton County School System officials spent several thousand more taxpayer dollars than county officials allotted them, according to an audit from the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office, released Monday. School system officials, for instance, spent more than $27,000 on the General Purpose School Fund and on the school’s Federal Projects Fund, according to auditors. The General Purpose School Fund covered technology support services. The Federal Projects Fund, meanwhile, covered a career and technical education program and support services for health. “Salaries exceeded appropriations in four of 20 salary line-items of the School Federal Projects Fund by amounts ranging from $307 to $14,863,” auditors wrote. Auditors said the county commissioners’ budget resolution dictates salaries cannot exceed line-item appropriations commissioners approved. In a written response to auditors, Tipton County Director of Schools John Combs promised to address and then correct the findings. No one at the Tipton County School System returned The Tennessee Star’s requests for comment Monday. County Executive Jeff Huffman, however, told The Star everything is OK with the school system’s finances. “They had a pretty healthy fund balance at the end of the fiscal year so if they go over they are certainly not supposed to do that,” Huffman said. “If…

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Commentary: Empathy is at the Core of Capitalism

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by Barry Brownstein   You don’t have to search far to read claims that capitalism is centered on greed and selfishness. For some, the assertion seems self-evident as they read, for example, stories of pharmaceutical companies dramatically increasing the price of important drugs. Those who hold a “capitalists are greedy” belief fail to distinguish between crony capitalists — who make their money through subsidies, mandates and government restrictions on competition — and entrepreneurs who make their money through fulfilling the most urgent needs of consumers. The Instant Pot is a little story of how entrepreneurs unselfishly better our world. If you don’t have an Instant Pot or don’t cook, you are probably wondering what the fuss is about. If you have one, you know. Without traditional advertising, Instant Pot has become a best-selling item on Amazon, selling 215,000 units on Amazon Prime Day. Bloomberg Magazine calls it a “magical pot.” The Wonders and Success of the Instant Pot Reimagined for the 21st Century, the Instant Pot combines slow cooker and pressure cooker features and adds others. We have two Instant Pots on our kitchen counter; most days, we use both. Meals with whole grains and beans are staples in our home. When our pressure cooker didn’t seal, the meal…

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Family of Keri King Needs Financial Help After Alleged Illegal Immigrant Killed Her

Chris Butler

If you’re out on the roads in Tennessee and a reckless driver without insurance kills you then your surviving family members might have to pay a massive sum of money for hospital bills or funeral costs. Especially if the driver is an alleged illegal immigrant who escaped the custody of the Tennessee Highway Patrol and is currently a fugitive. That’s exactly what the family of Keri King is dealing with right now in Bedford County — they have more than $35,000 in hospital and funeral costs brought on through someone else’s negligence. But, fortunately for them, staff members of a Shelbyville bank are collecting funds to help. As The Tennessee Star reported, Edgar Torres-Rangel was intoxicated in late October when he hit and killed King, 29, as she was on her way home. Torres-Rangel sustained his own injuries in the crash. Authorities transported him to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. He later escaped the facility without anyone noticing. Officers with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation recently placed Torres-Rangel on their 10 Most Wanted List. Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance spokesman Kevin Walters told The Star Monday Tennessee law requires drivers to carry insurance. “Because Tennessee is an ‘at fault’ state, the…

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Leiper’s Fork to Welcome Kid Rock in Dec. 15 Christmas Parade

Jason M. Reynolds

Colorful entertainer Kid Rock will be welcomed in the Christmas parade in Leiper’s Fork. Parade goers at the Leiper’s Fork Christmas Parade on Saturday, Dec. 15, will be joined by special guest Kid Rock, who will walk in the parade. The parade, previously scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 8, was postponed until Dec. 15 at 2 p.m. due to inclement weather, the Williamson Herald said. Kid Rock was disinvited as the grand marshal of the Dec. 1 Nashville Christmas Parade after he called Joy Behar of ultra-liberal show “The View” a word that starts with “b,” The Tennessee Star reported. The colorful singer appeared on “Fox & Friends” Dec. 30, live from Nashville, and made the remark about Behar. Parade organizers instead invited James Shaw Jr., the hero who wrestled a gun away from the Waffle House shooter in April. Nashville Mayor David Briley and Councilman Freddie O’Connell had threatened to boycott the parade over Kid Rock, according to Fox 17 News. In the “Fox & Friends” interview, Kid Rock also bemoaned political correctness, Townhall said. Rock said everyone deserves love, minus one person in particular – Behar. He then used the derogative term. “No, no, no, no,” host Steve Doocy…

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Tennessee Star Report: Senior Correspondent Laura Baigert Discusses the Proposed Red Flag Bill and the Possibility of it Passing

Julie Carr

On Friday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Leahy spoke to Senior Correspondent and Tennessee General Assembly expert, Laura Baigert regarding the current “Red Flag” bill proposed by Senator Steve Dickerson, a Republican from Nashville and defined its inconsistencies along with the reality of whether or not the bill has the possibility to be passed. Leahy: And we are joined now by our top or senior correspondent covering the capital hill here in Tennessee General Assembly and the Governor, Laura Baigert who has our lead story about are flag bill being introduced by state Senator Steve Dickerson.  Welcome, Laura! Baigert: Good morning, how are you, Michael? Leahy: So our lead story today is about state Senator Steve Dickerson, a Republican from Nashville who has promised to introduce a, what’s called a Red Flag bill.  But that bill is being criticized by local gun right groups like the Tennessee Fire Arms Association as well as national gun right groups.  Tell us what a Red Flag bill is Laura. Baigert: Well, the Red Flag is kind of what you think…

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Walter Williams Commentary: Our Ignorance Of Socialism is Dangerous

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by Walter E. Williams   A recent Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation survey found that 51 percent of American millennials would rather live in a socialist or communist country than in a capitalist country. Only 42 percent prefer the latter. Twenty-five percent of millennials who know who Vladimir Lenin was view him favorably. Lenin was the first premier of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Half of millennials have never heard of communist Mao Zedong, who ruled China from 1949 to 1959 and was responsible for the deaths of 45 million Chinese people. The number of people who died at the hands of Josef Stalin may be as high as 62 million. However, almost one-third of millennials think former President George W. Bush is responsible for more killings than Stalin. By the way, Adolf Hitler, head of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party, was responsible for the deaths of about 20 million people. The Nazis come in as a poor third in terms of history’s most prolific mass murderers. According to professor Rudolph Rummel’s research, the 20th century, mankind’s most brutal century, saw 262 million people’s lives destroyed at the hands of their own governments. Young people who weren’t alive…

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Wall Street Bankers Following Pence’s Lead in #MeToo Era

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by John Elliott   If a young, female executive wants to find an experienced male colleague on Wall Street to mentor her, she can stop looking now. In the wake of #Metoo and the Brett Kavanaugh affair, male bankers and lawyers are quite literally fleeing to their man caves. Bloomberg reporters Gillian Tan and Katia Porzecanski have discovered that the ripple effects of the #Metoo campaign have hit Wall Street like a tsunami: For obvious reasons, few will talk openly about the issue. Privately, though, many of the men interviewed acknowledged they’re channeling Pence, saying how uneasy they are about being alone with female colleagues, particularly youthful or attractive ones, fearful of the rumor mill or of, as one put it, the potential liability. A manager in infrastructure investing said he won’t meet with female employees in rooms without windows anymore; he also keeps his distance in elevators. A late-40-something in private equity said he has a new rule, established on the advice of his wife, an attorney: no business dinner with a woman 35 or younger. The changes can be subtle but insidious, with a woman, say, excluded from casual after-work drinks, leaving male colleagues to bond, or having what should be a private meeting with a boss…

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Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Blocks Trump Effort to Deny Asylum for Illegal Aliens

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by Kevin Daley   The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a temporary restraining order against a Trump administration policy that denies asylum to illegal aliens. The 2-1 decision is the latest setback the 9th Circuit has rendered to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda. “Just as we may not, as we are often reminded, ‘legislate from the bench,’ neither may the executive legislate from the oval office,” Judge Jay Bybee wrote for the majority. Former President George W. Bush appointed Bybee to the bench, and the judge has a conservative reputation. Read the 9th Circuit’s full decision here. U.S. District Court Judge Jon Tigar entered an injunction against President Donald Trump’s new asylum rules on Nov. 19. In effect, the reforms withhold asylum from illegal aliens, though foreign nationals who present for inspection at designated ports of entry remain eligible for legal status. Bybee sympathetically notes the rules were meant to address “a staggering increase in asylum applications” between 2008 and 2018. Trump issued the new guidelines as several thousand caravan migrants congregated near the U.S. border in Tijuana, Mexico. The 9th Circuit panel largely agreed with Tigar’s earlier decision, concluding that Trump’s policy violates the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which Congress…

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Commentary: Only Two Weeks Left for Republicans to Get It

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by Rachel Bovard   There’s only one area where bipartisanship still reigns in Washington: avoidance. Republican and Democrat leaders this week held hands and used the funeral events for President George H. W. Bush as an excuse to move their funding deadline—which previously expired on December 7—two weeks forward, to December 21, four days before Christmas. In doing this, Congress isn’t getting festive. Rather, backing up a government funding deadline dangerously close to the Christmas holiday is an old political tactic, designed to assure passage of bloated and controversial spending bills. In the old days, the carrots in this equation were earmarks—funding pet projects of lawmakers was the way to grease the skids on controversial bills. But now that earmarks have been banned (in theory, anyway), the only option left is a stick: threatening lawmakers with chaos, missed Christmas holidays and a government shutdown, unless they instantly (and many times, without reading) pass whatever bill their leaders cook up. This is a vexing development for conservatives, particularly when it comes to the big will-they-won’t-they question circulating around Washington: the fate of Trump’s border wall. If GOP leaders are already willing to waste critical weeks in the waning days of their majority, what…

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Chuck Schumer Demands Climate Concessions From Trump on Infrastructure Spending

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by Michael Bastach   Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer told President Donald Trump that Democrats won’t cut a deal with him on infrastructure spending unless it includes a slew of policies aimed at fighting global warming. Schumer, the Senate’s top Democrat, called for, among other things, making green energy and electric vehicle tax credits permanent, more research funding into green technology and funding to harden infrastructure against extreme weather. “The impacts will continue to worsen if we do not take decisive and immediate action to transition to a 100-percent clean energy economy,” Schumer wrote in a letter to Trump sent Thursday. Both Trump and Democrats proposed $1 trillion infrastructure packages, but Democrats also want to make an infrastructure build-up about fighting global warming. “A single infrastructure bill will not solve our climate problem in its entirety, but it is an important first step,” Schumer wrote to Trump, also giving a list of demands for any infrastructure plan. Schumer’s letter, and accompanying Washington Post op-ed, come as Democrats push for global warming to become a central focus of 2019. A small, but growing, cadre of Democrats led by Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York want “Green New Deal” legislation to rapidly force the U.S. to use…

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California’s Background Check Law Had No Impact on Gun Deaths, Johns Hopkins Study Finds

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by John Miltimore   A new academic study has found that, once again, gun laws are not having their desired effect. A joint study conducted by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the University of California at Davis Violence Prevention Research Program found that California’s much-touted mandated background checks had no impact on gun deaths, and researchers are puzzled as to why. California Gun Laws Are a Failure In 1991, California simultaneously imposed comprehensive background checks for firearm sales and prohibited gun sales (and gun possession) to people convicted of misdemeanor violent crimes. The legislation mandated that all gun sales, including private transactions, would have to go through a California-licensed Federal Firearms License (FFL) dealer. Shotguns and rifles, like handguns, became subject to a 15-day waiting period to make certain all gun purchasers had undergone a thorough background check. It was the most expansive state gun control legislation in America, affecting an estimated one million gun buyers in the first year alone. Though costly and cumbersome, politicians and law enforcement agreed the law was worth it. The legislation would “keep more guns out of the hands of the people who shouldn’t have them,” said then-Republican…

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Mueller and Manafort Have a Lot Riding on a Supreme Court Double Jeopardy Case

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by Kevin Daley   The Supreme Court appeared skeptical Thursday of overturning an exception to the Constitution’s double jeopardy prohibition, which allows state and federal prosecutors to bring successive prosecutions for the same offense. The case is carefully followed in Washington because of its potential ramifications for special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. “The notion that the federal government would step in and prosecute a defendant after a state jury acquitted him of the same offense would have shocked the founding generation,” one of the briefs at the high court reads. Thursday’s case arose in Alabama, when Terence Gamble was arrested during a 2015 traffic stop after police recovered two baggies of marijuana and a 9mm handgun from his car. State prosecutors charged Gamble, a convicted felon, for illegal possession of a firearm. A federal charge for the same crime followed. The so-called separate-sovereigns doctrine allows state and federal courts to prosecute individuals for the same offense, double jeopardy notwithstanding. The question in Thursday’s case was whether that rule should be overturned. That move could hinder the Mueller probe, should President Donald Trump choose to pardon aides and associates who the special counsel has since indicted. Since the president can only issue…

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Rep. Steve Cohen Says President Donald Trump is a ‘Criminal Enterprise’

Jason M. Reynolds

U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09), the same man who said he wants U.S. Sen.-elect Marsha Blackburn to jump off a bridge, has concluded that President Donald Trump is a “criminal enterprise.” On Friday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “The Last Word,” Steve Cohen spoke about the sentencing memos on former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. He said, “Donald Trump is a criminal enterprise.” Host Lawrence O’Donnell said, “Only three presidents of the United States have been accused of federal crimes by … a prosecutor, a federal prosecutor of any kind while in office, and Donald Trump is now one of them.” O’Donnell pointed out that any impeachment proceedings would start in the House Judiciary Committee, where Cohen is a member. Steve Cohen said, “I think that what we’ve learned today is what we — many of us have known for at least two years, and some for maybe 10 or 15, that Donald Trump is a criminal enterprise. The Trump family is a criminal enterprise, and that most of the people he’s involved with, like Michael Cohen and Manafort, are shady folks.” The representative said many committees would investigate “Trump activities” but they would not start out with impeachment. Steve Cohen added, “proof…

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Gannett Offers Buyouts to Staff, Including Tennessean, Other Tennessee Papers

Jason M. Reynolds

Gannett is examining the possibility of making cuts across its company — and that includes possible layoffs at The Tennessean and several other papers around Tennessee. The Nashville Scene reported on the pending cuts. Maribel Wadsworth, president of USA TODAY Network and publisher of USA TODAY, told employees during a company-wide conference call Tuesday that digital revenue is not replacing decreasing print revenues, and some budget tightening will be coming in the new year. “Going forward, we will be a smaller company,” she said, noting that monetization has not been strong on mobile devices and that Gannett properties need to “deepen engagement” with mobile readers. The Memphis Flyer said it is hard to determine whether The Commercial Appeal in Memphis can stand more reductions in force. In November, a company-wide buyout offer targeted employees over 55 with more than 15-years experience. The deadline to take Gannett’s offer of 30-35-weeks pay, and a possible bonus of up to $5,520 is Dec. 10, the Flyer said. Wadsworth told employees that the company cannot continue many of the products it produces, putting focus on non-daily print publications, according to the Scene. In Middle Tennessee, Gannett publishes weekly or twice-weekly content in Dickson, Robertson,…

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President Trump: John Kelly Will Be Leaving at the End of the Year

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Saturday, President Trump told reporters Chief of Staff John Kelly and he would be parting ways at the end of the year. President Trump added the White House would be making an announcement “in the next day or two” with who would replace the retired Marine general – but added that replacement may be temporary. The staff announcement comes on the heels of other high-profile personnel changes as the president faces a new Democrat majority in the House of Representatives in January, while also gearing up for what political experts promise will be an all-out politial war for the Senate and the Presidency in 2020. News broke last week that Army General Mark Milley will replace Marine General Joseph Dunford as President Trump’s top military advisor. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert is set to replace outgoing United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, while former Bush 41 Attorney General William Barr will be nominated to serve as the nation’s ‘top cop’ once again. President Trump’s remarks were made on the White House lawn at an informal press gaggle as he was leaving to attend the annual Army-Navy football game being held in Philadelphia. A short time later Trump – an avid sports…

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Inspector General Report Says Metro Nashville Should Repay FEMA $413K From 2010 Flood Grant Funds

Jason M. Reynolds

A report from the Office of Inspector General says Nashville-Davidson County owes the Federal Emergency Management Agency $413,074 in grant money from the May 1, 2010 flood, NewsChannel 5 said. The Inspector General report is available here. The city estimated that it cost the city and its residents $1.5 billion. Nashville was declared a federal state of emergency three days after the rivers began rising, WVLT said. According to the Inspector General’s report, “We determined the County was not fully aware of Federal grant administration requirements and FEMA Public Assistance Program guidelines. Specifically, for the projects we reviewed in the second phase of our two-phase audit, the County mostly accounted for FEMA funds project by project, as required.” The report continued, “However, the County did not always follow regulations and guidelines when spending the funds. As a result, we identified $413,074 in project costs that FEMA should disallow. These costs consist of $402,552 in contract charges not supported by adequate documentation and $10,522 in duplicate costs. Additionally, FEMA has not finished reviewing insurance proceeds and allocating them to the County’s projects although doing so could reduce FEMA’s project costs under this grant.” “We reviewed $365,684 of contract costs the County…

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Controversial Bedford County Rodeo Supposedly Dissolved Last Year

Chris Butler

The Mexican rodeo in Bedford County where several illegal activities are alleged to take place supposedly dissolved as a business more than a year ago, according to the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website. Yet that establishment, Rancho La Herradura in Bell Buckle, continues to operate, according to its Facebook page, and has another event planned for Dec. 22. As reported, a few county commissioners suspect its management allows drug deals, prostitution, gambling, and human trafficking, among other things. Also, as reported, Edgar Torres-Rangel, an alleged illegal immigrant, was drinking there before he allegedly drove drunk and killed Bedford County resident Keri King in an Oct. 21 automobile wreck. According to the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website, Rancho La Herradura dissolved in August of last year. Secretary of State spokesman Keith Boring said Wednesday by phone that if his department’s website list a certain business as dissolved then that means the business owner or owners filed paperwork to make that happen. In a follow-up Thursday, he said Secretary of State officials don’t determine whether such entities violate state law based on registration status with that office. “Our function is more ministerial in nature – business entities file formation documents and subsequent…

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Commentary: Paul Ryan’s Legacy is the Destruction Of American Sovereignty

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According to our friend Rep. Jim Jordan (OH-4), Speaker of the House Paul Ryan and his leadership team, including Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and GOP Whip Steve Scalise, refused to lobby for the Trump-supported Goodlatte immigration bill, which would have built a border wall, enacted E-Verify procedures, and offered DREAMERS a path to citizenship. It failed to pass the House after nearly 20 Ryan loyalists voted against it. Now, many of the 20 Republicans who voted “NO” on Goodlatte are gone, defeated or retired in the 2018 midterm election, and Rep. Goodlatte has been clear on why his bill did not pass, when Republicans had the majority in the House. Our friend Neil Munro reports Rep. Bob Goodlatte, the retiring Chairman of the House Committee on the Judiciary, says the GOP leadership let the House immigration reform die in June by allowing a critical bloc of GOP legislators to split their votes between two rival reform bills. “The strategy of having two options really let people have an off-ramp — they could vote for the more conservative bill and against the other, or vote for the second bill and not the first,” Goodlatte said, adding according to Munro’s reporting: That…

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Boston’s Broadcast King, Howie Carr Tells The Tennessee Star Report Why Even the NY Times Thinks Elizabeth Warren’s DNA Test Proves She’s a Fauxcahontas Phony

Julie Carr

On Friday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Leahy chatted with Howie Carr, legendary king of Boston broadcast radio and author of Kennedy Babylon Volume II, to speak on Elizabeth Warren’s past, DNA tests, and subsequential ‘ethnic fraud’ by simply “checking the box”. Leahy: Welcome Howie. Carr: Hey thank you Mike, thanks for having me on. Leahy: It’s always great to have you on.  So, Howie, first, congratulations, twenty-five years on the air in Boston, fantastic! Carr: I know I’ve dodged a lot of bullets over the years. Leahy: Literally. Carr: And I’m still dodging, yeah. Leahy: Literally dodged a bullet for those of you that listened to us last time Howie was on. The Boston Mafia Hood, Whitey Bulger put a contract out on Howie years ago.  And now let’s say Whitey Bulger was murdered in prison… Carr: Thats right. He sleeps with the fishes. Leahy:  He sleeps with the fishes. So Howie and I first became really good friends when we started identifying the problems associated with Senator Elizabeth Warren, also known and “Pocahontas” and other various…

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Commentary: Don’t Listen to Conservative Quitters

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by Brandon J. Weichert   Ann Coulter thinks Donald J. Trump will be the last Republican president ever. She might be right. In fact, in my darkest moments, I have feared as much. After all, there hasn’t been a Republican like Trump in more than a generation—and there aren’t any like him on the horizon. Who will replace Trump when his second term ends? Will it be Mike Pence? I like the vice-president. I’ve even prayed with him. But he simply isn’t a replacement—he struggles to connect with audiences outside of the Evangelical community and he sounds too much like George W. Bush. Marco Rubio? Nice guy and a good man—but he doesn’t pass the smell test. Nikki Haley? Don’t make me cringe. Ted Cruz? He’s not a closer. Go down the list of potential successors and try not to get too depressed. Of course, there’s a chance a person is just waiting in the wings, as Trump was, to swoop in and fundamentally transform the 2024 Republican primaries. Although judging from the types of people running the show in the GOP, and given that all of the top-tier “talent” in the party (whether on the campaign side or on…

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DOI Discovers Largest US Oil and Gas Reserve Ever Found in New Mexico

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by Chris White   New Mexico and West Texas are sitting on a bonanza of potentially recoverable oil and gas reserves in the Delaware Basin that lies between the two Western states, the Department of the Interior announced Thursday. Two underground layers in the Delaware known as the Wolfcamp Shale and Bone Spring Formation contain 46.3 billion barrels of unrecovered oil and 281 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, the DOI announced. That’s the largest oil and gas reserve the U.S. Geological Survey has ever discovered. “Even for someone who understands the resources and potential of the Permian Basin, I can’t help but be surprised by the sheer enormity of what the USGS has reported,” New Mexico Oil and Gas Association Executive Director Ryan Flynn told reporters. He added: “The Permian resources shared by New Mexico and Texas make this area one of the most important places in the world in terms of oil production.” Total reserves in the Delaware Basin could be far larger than reported. The USGS only looked at the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring formations, or just two of the many layers of hydrocarbon-filled shale rock zones in the Permian Basin. Hydraulic fracturing is a hot-button issue…

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Illegal Border Crossings are Down Because Migrants are Applying for Asylum Instead

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by Jason Hopkins   While the number of apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border have gone down, applications for asylum are reaching all-time highs. Around 304,000 illegal immigrants were apprehended at the southwest border during the 2017 fiscal year, a dramatic plunge from the 1.6 million apprehensions recorded in 2000. At the same time, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recored 78,564 requests for asylum in 2017, a major increase from the 13,880 requests made in 2012. These numbers have only increased. During this fiscal year, the USCIS recorded a record-setting 99,035 asylum requests — 62,609 of which included Salvadorans, Guatemalans, and Hondurans. “We’ve never seen this many people coming to the border to seek asylum,” Faye Hipsman, a former analyst with the Migration Policy Institute, told The Wall Street Journal. The rise in asylum applications come at a time when the White House is working to reform the process. “My administration is finalizing a plan to end the rampant abuse of our asylum system to halt the dangerous influx and to establish control over America’s sovereign borders,” President Donald Trump announced in early November, around the same time a caravan of Central Americans was heading toward the U.S. border.…

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Boeing Cancels Controversial Satellite Order Funded by China

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by Hanna Bogorowski   Boeing decided to cancel an order for a satellite that uses sensitive technology used by the U.S. military and was reportedly being funded by a state-owned Chinese financial firm. A Wall Street Journal investigation revealed Tuesday the troubling web of financial transactions that skirted around U.S. export laws, which would ban Boeing from selling satellites to China, and resulted in the Chinese government funneling nearly $200 million to the project and obtaining a large stake of the company responsible for the satellite. Boeing told WSJ Thursday it cancelled the project, which was near completion at a Boeing facility in Los Angeles, citing default for nonpayment. A source familiar with the project said the cancellation was a business decision, and the company may attempt to resell the satellite. Emil Youssefzadeh and Umar Javed, two Americans who founded the startup Global IP in 2008 with the goal of improving internet accessibility in Africa, were Boeing’s original customers of the satellite. A few foreign financial transactions made in an attempt to sidestep U.S. export laws almost potentially resulted in the Chinese government repurposing the satellite’s sensitive technology for its own use. Youssefzadeh and Javed were contacted in 2015 by executives at China…

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Harlan Hill Commentary: The American Worker is Back In Charge

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by Harlan Hill   The Trump economic boom is still in full swing, with both hiring and wages continuing to grow robustly, according to the latest jobs report. The U.S. economy added 155,000 jobs in November, keeping unemployment at a historic low of 3.7 percent — a figure not seen since the 1960s. These 155,000 new jobs follow revised an October total of 237,000. The numbers are even more impressive because they come from such a solid starting point — we’re well past the point of merely replacing jobs lost during the recession. These numbers reflect solid expansion within the American economy, as new and growing enterprises scramble to fill job openings with American workers. This is something historic — the return to full employment in America. Even the manufacturing sector, which conventional wisdom long presumed to be in permanent decline due to globalization, added 27,000 jobs last month, pushing the total number of new manufacturing jobs created since the President took office above 400,000. Meanwhile, only one sector had a noticeable drop in employment: government workers. Full employment isn’t just about people getting off the breadline by taking any job they can get; it means people are finding jobs they actually…

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Irish Lecturer Slaughtered in France for ‘Insulting Muhammad’

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by Joshua Gill   A Pakistani national stabbed an Irish lecturer to death Wednesday in Paris, telling responding police he attacked because the lecturer “insulted the Prophet Muhammad.” The attacker, identified by authorities only as 37-year-old Ali R., was seen talking with lecturer John Dowling, 66, outside Pôle Universitaire Léonard de Vinci where Dowling taught English before he brandished a steak knife and stabbed the lecturer in the throat and chest, the Daily Mail reported. Police arrested Ali, a former student of the university, on the scene, where he confessed to stabbing Dowling 13 times because he believed that the lecturer spoke ill of Muhammad. Ali also confessed to harboring a grudge against Dowling ever since he failed his exams and was kicked out of the university in September 2017. “He came to France two years ago to join the management school, but did not pass his first year,” said prosecutor Catherine Denis, according to the Daily Mail. “Since then he had been returning to the college, and had become unwanted to the point that he was not allowed in any more.” Ali claimed that Dowling disrespected Muhammad by showing a drawing of Muhammad to his English class, though students interviewed by authorities said…

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FAKE NEWS: Google and Facebook’s Official Fact Checker ‘Snopes’ Botches Republican-Bashing Fact Check

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by Peter Hasson   Snopes, a left-leaning fact-checking website given preferential treatment by Facebook and Google, botched its fact-check of a viral meme that was mocked within political circles for spreading false information. The meme showed a picture of President Donald Trump with Republican lawmakers and members of his administration following the House’s vote to repeal Obamacare in 2017. Thirty-three people in the photo Snopes used had a red X over their face, though it cropped out a 34th person included in others. The caption accurately claimed the photo was taken at the White House following the House’s Obamacare vote, then falsely claimed that “Everyone with an X has since been voted out of Congress.” https://twitter.com/JoePerticone/status/1063927192822915072 DeSantis ran for gov. Tom Price went into the Cabinet. Steve Pearce didnt run for the House This is quite literally insane fake news. — Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) November 18, 2018 Amazing. This photo illustration — posted by @nicholaskitchel — is actually more incorrect than correct. — Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) November 18, 2018 Or to be clear, it’s just flat out inaccurate. https://t.co/NH7xiCbbHq — Seung Min Kim (@seungminkim) November 17, 2018 Politico reporter Jake Sherman observed that the meme “is actually more incorrect than correct.”…

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Commentary: The Green Agenda Burns to Ashes in Paris

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by Jarrett Stepman   A riot is an ugly thing. The anarchical mayhem in the streets of Paris in recent days paint a picture of a fractured society with deep-seated problems—a breakdown of the fragile yet essential rule of law. – 70% of French voters believe democracy doesn't work well in France– Only 11% trust political parties– 24% trust the media– 63% of young French were ready for a large-scale revolt The gilets jaunes protests were almost inevitable https://t.co/hGrlVTsnyJ pic.twitter.com/cPcaybyNfl — Bloomberg Opinion (@opinion) December 3, 2018 While we’ve come to expect such things in France, there are specific reasons why these protests have erupted in the last month. The “climate” agenda, peddled as a means to save the planet and reduce inequality, is being exposed in France as an agenda inherently at odds with the interests of middle- and working-class people. Last year, a wide range of American and international media, celebrities, and activists excoriated President Donald Trump for pulling the United States out of the international Paris climate agreement. Trump said in 2017 that he would put “no other consideration before the well-being of American citizens” and that he would reject an agreement that would force taxpayers to…

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Tennessee Star Report Exclusive: Ben Cunningham Says Conservatives Living in Metro Nashville Council District 29 Should Run in January Special Election

Julie Carr

On Thursday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Leahy welcomed special guest host, Ben Cunningham to the show and chatted about his urging of conservatives in metro Nashville to run for office in District 29’s January special election.  The men also reminisced about the Tennessee Tax Revolt, how people became transformed and activists,  and how today there is so much a citizen can do to make a difference if they just get involved. Leahy: Guest hosting today is our good friend Ben Cunningham. Ben we were talking about getting involved in activism both the parents and grandparent’s and kids.  Possibly encouraging somebody to run for metro council in the 29th district here a special election in January where Karen Johnson has left.  Um, there’s also other things that need to be going on here… Cunningham: All the council seats are coming up in August of next year.  August of 2019 is, be a full slate of the council member elections.  Anybody can run for those seats also if you’re in Davidson county you have to qualify by, I think it’s May 13th…

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Federal Taxpayers Sent Two Tennessee Officials to China

Chris Butler

Federal taxpayers paid to send two Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation officials to China recently. The two employees who made the trip were TDEC’s Deputy of Engineering Services George Garden and Assistant Commissioner Dr. Kendra Abkowitz, said TDEC spokesman Eric Ward. Ward did not say when, exactly, they went. The pair went to China for a symposium on “food, water, and energy systems” to benefit Tennessee, Ward said. “They did so at no expense to TDEC – all meals, airfare and lodging were paid for by the National Science Foundation in the US and China,” Ward told The Tennessee Star in an email. The National Science Foundation is a federal agency with an annual budget of $7.8 billion, according to its website. The agency “is the major source of federal backing” for 27 percent of the total federal budget for research at U.S. colleges and universities, the website said. Ward directed questions about the two TDEC employees’ travel costs to the NSF. But, in an emailed statement, NSF spokeswoman Sarah Bates referred those questions back to TDEC. Bates did, however, provide a link showing this trip was one part of a $300,0000 grant to the University of Tennessee’s Institute…

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Obama Meets with Florida Loser Andrew Gillum Igniting 2020 Speculation

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by Molly Prince   Defeated Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum sat down with former President Barack Obama on Tuesday, launching speculation that he may be another Democrat added to the already long list of those considering a 2020 presidential run. Gillum met with the former president while he was in Washington, D.C., to address the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, according to CNN. While speaking at the event, he dodged answering questions regarding his presidential aspirations. “I’m plan on being married to my wife. That is all I’m planning,” Gillum said. “What I am committed to doing between now and 2020 is doing everything I can to make the state of Florida available and winnable for the Democratic nominee for president.” Prior to his ultimate defeat, Gillum, the former mayor of Tallahassee, Florida, faced backlash on a variety of fronts, including his anti-police stances and ties to anti-Israel and anti-Zionist organizations. Gillum‘s campaign had been fraught with scandals from the onset. Tallahassee City Hall has been under FBI investigation since as early as 2015 as part of an ongoing corruption probe. Records were released in October showing that an undercover FBI agent gave him tickets to a Broadway show, undermining his claims that he received the gift from…

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Five Marines Still Missing After War Planes Crash Off Japan

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by Grace Carr   Five U.S. Marines are still missing after two military aircraft crashed roughly 200 miles off the coast of Japan early Thursday. Rescuers are searching for the missing Marines but have still not been able to locate them, according to U.S and Japanese authorities, NBC News reported. Seven Marines were involved in the crash and two of the men have been found, according to the Japanese Defense Ministry. A Japanese military ship found one of the Marines who was killed in the crash, according to CNN. His body was taken to a hospital to be evaluated. The other Marine is in “fair condition,” according to NBC. The incident occurred after two military planes collided and crashed into the Sea of Japan early Thursday morning. An F/A-18 fighter jet carrying two passengers struck a KC-130 aircraft during refueling. “We are thankful for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s, the Japanese Coast Guard’s, and the U.S. 7th Fleet’s efforts as they continue to respond to the search and rescue operation,” the Marines tweeted from its official Twitter account. Three ships and 10 Japanese aircraft are helping search for the remaining Marines, CNN reported. The accident took place during a regular training exercise at Marine Corps Air…

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Trump’s EPA Moves to Repeal Obama’s De Facto Ban on New Coal Plants

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by Michael Bastasch   The Trump administration proposed rolling back Obama-era regulation that opponents called a de facto ban on building new coal-fired power plants. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will raise carbon dioxide emissions limits for new coal-fired power plants and eliminate the Obama administration’s mandate that new facilities install carbon capture and storage equipment. “Consistent with President Trump’s executive order promoting energy independence, EPA’s proposal would rescind excessive burdens on America’s energy providers and level the playing field so that new energy technologies can be a part of America’s future,” EPA acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler said in a statement. EPA’s plan to modify New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for power plants is part of the Trump administration efforts to unwind the Clean Power Plan — the centerpiece of former President Barack Obama’s global warming agenda. The Obama administration’s 2015 Clean Power Plan forced states to cut CO2 emissions at existing coal plants and made it extremely difficult to build new ones by mandating they install carbon capture and storage (CCS) equipment. What the Obama EPA did was consider CCS the “best system of emission reduction” for new coal plants, despite criticism from power plant operators, unions and Republicans that…

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Alison Krauss and Other Guests to Join Keith and Kristyn Getty for ‘Sing! An Irish Christmas’ at Schermerhorn Symphony Center on December 21

Bethany Bowman

Modern hymn-writers Keith and Kristyn Getty will bring their seventh annual Sing! An Irish Christmas tour to Schermerhorn Symphony Center on Friday, December 21, at 7:30 p.m. The duo will revisit popular hymns and Christmas carols during a performance that will include appearances by Alison Krauss, Phil Keaggy and Scott Mulvahill.

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DNC Chair Tom Perez Complains That Voters Influenced by Church

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by Peter Hasson   Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Tom Perez on Wednesday complained that voters are influenced by what they hear in church on Sundays. Perez claimed that Republicans have an advantage because “people buy” what they hear at church. “And we all have to make sure that we’re fluent in what’s happening across our ecosystem so we can come to each other’s defense because we need to build a bigger orchestra. They’ve had a big orchestra for some time and they’ve got the megaphones to amplify it, whether it’s Sinclair at the local level or Fox at the national level,” Perez said at an event for Demand Justice, a left-wing political group. “I’ve learned this from the outreach we’ve done at the DNC. Why aren’t we penetrating, I ask? And I had someone in northwest Wisconsin tell me: ‘You know what? For most of the people I know, their principle sources of information are Fox News, the NRA newsletter and the pulpit on Sunday.’ And it should come as a surprise to no-one that our message doesn’t penetrate,” Perez continued. “It should come as a surprise to no-one that that person has elevated the issue of courts to…

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Facebook Gave Data on Users’ Friends to Some Firms While Barring Others

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Facebook privacy concerns

Facebook Inc let some companies, including Netflix and Airbnb, access users’ lists of friends after it cut off that data for most other apps around 2015, according to documents released on Wednesday by a British lawmaker investigating fake news and social media. The 223 pages of internal communication from 2012 to 2015 between high-level employees, including founder and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg, provide new evidence of previously aired contentions that Facebook has picked favorites and engaged in anti-competitive behavior. The documents show that Facebook tracked growth of competitors and denied them access to user data available to others. In 2014, the company identified about 100 apps as being either “Mark’s friends” or “Sheryl’s friends” and also tracked how many apps were spending money on Facebook ads, according to the documents, referring to Zuckerberg and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg. The insight into the thinking of Facebook executives over that period could invite new regulatory scrutiny into its business practices. Facebook said it stood by its deliberations and decisions, but noted that it would relax one “out-of-date” policy that restricted competitors’ use of its data. One document said such competitor apps had previously needed Zuckerberg’s approval before using tools Facebook makes…

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Money and Support for Migrant Caravans Flows Through Chicago

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Migrant Caravan

by Kevin Mooney   Advocates of open borders quoted in media coverage of the migrant “caravan” moving north through Mexico are part of a network of U.S.-based groups funded in the past by left-leaning foundations, according to tax and financial records. Pueblo Sin Fronteras, a Chicago-based nonprofit whose name means People Without Borders, is widely credited with organizing the caravans of migrants that traveled from Central America on trains and buses and on foot this year and last.Two United Methodist churches in Chicago appear to be bases for People Without Borders, which is led by one of the pastors, documents show. Several organizations are “consistently connected on various websites” and “have overlapping people, most notably Emma Lozano,” said Hayden Ludwig, a research analyst at Capital Research Center, naming the Chicago pastor. Capital Research Center, a Washington-based nonprofit that examines how foundations and charities spend money, analyzed tax and financial records related to People Without Borders. The Daily Signal reviewed this analysis and related documents and websites. Information on the website and Facebook page of People Without Borders indicates that the advocacy group played a key role for at least the past decade in forming caravans that typically got started in…

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Carol Swain Commentary: President Trump’s Ingenious Plan to Get the Supreme Court to Rule on the Constitutionality of Birthright Citizenship

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by Dr. Carol M. Swain   On October 30, President Donald Trump announced plans to issue an executive order ending the practice of giving U.S. citizenship to children of illegal aliens. By taking this bold action, the President is poised to make history by forcing the U.S. Supreme Court to issue its first-ever clarification on whether the USA-born children of illegal aliens are entitled to birthright citizenship. Following the President’s lead, Senator Lindsey Graham expressed his support by stating his plans to file legislation addressing the matter. Birthright citizenship comes from the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause, which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” Although some scholars argue it would take a constitutional amendment to end the practice, others point to statutory language and the text of the 14th Amendment to argue that Congress has the authority to address the matter. Congress’s authority, they argue, is found in the language that implies anyone not subject to the jurisdiction of the United States is excluded from automatic citizenship. The “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” clause is understood to mean…

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Audit: Controversial Greenbelt Program Misused in Johnson County

Chris Butler

A controversial tax break program, known as Greenbelt, reportedly known to help the wealthy but hurt people of more modest incomes, is the subject of an audit Tennessee Comptrollers released Thursday. State officials enacted Greenbelt laws to help Tennesseans hold on to their farms. The Greenbelt tax breaks kick in for property owners who maintain at least 15 acres of farmland, forests or open spaces. But these tax breaks are also known to hurt other people. According to the new audit, out of Johnson County, certain people who bought properties that already qualified for Greenbelt did not have to file new applications to continue that status — as Tennessee law requires. “In 38 of 110 (34%) of the parcels tested, the assessor did not require new owners of property that had been previously qualified as agricultural, forest, or designated open space at the date of sale to file a new application in a timely manner to continue the agricultural (Greenbelt) classification,” according to auditors. County assessors, auditors went on to say, must notify new owners of these properties that they cannot receive Greenbelt status unless they file an application “within 30 days of such notification together with a late fee of…

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State Sen. Steve Dickerson’s Promise To Introduce ‘Red Flag’ Bill Getting Criticism From Local And National Gun Rights Advocacy Groups

Laura Baigert

State Senator Steve Dickerson (R-Nashville) has gotten the attention of local and national gun rights activist groups for promising to introduce a “red flag” bill in the upcoming legislative session. So-called red flag laws permit a judge to issue an order to seize firearms from a lawful owner based upon a petition from police or family members citing something as feeble as statements made by the gun owner in question, hence the name “red flag.” Dickerson, in an op-ed to The Tennessean, alludes to bills signed into law by Republican governors since the Parkland shooting, saying, “This is exactly the type of bipartisan, common-sense gun violence prevention policy we need in Tennessee.” That’s why, Dickerson says, “I will introduce a red flag bill when the Tennessee General Assembly reconvenes next session.” Tennessee Firearms Association Executive Director John Harris, in an email to the organization’s members, has raised the question as to whether Constitutional rights should be subject to the low threshold infringements of red flag laws.  Ammoland Shooting Sports News picked up Harris’ commentary and published it in its entirety. Harris says that red flag laws “may just be the newest euphemism for reasonable gun control.” Indeed, in his commentary,…

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The Tennessee Star Report Talks to Brentwood Police Officer, Scott Willey About How to Stay Smart and Safe This Holiday Season

Julie Carr

On Wednesday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – the duo spoke with Brentwood Police Officer Scott Willey about how to be aware and protect yourself this holiday season and strategies on how to prevent an attack . Gill: I was talking with one of my friends in the Brentwood Police Department, Scott Willey the other day and he was talking about some of things that they’re seeing in law enforcement not just in Brentwood, Williamson County but across Middle Tennessee that kind of raised my eyebrows on wow, we need to let people know what to be aware of, particularly during this holiday season.  Your running around, it’s rushed, it’s chaos, it gets dark early.  So how do you protect your property when your heading to the mall or your heading to a shopping center somewhere.  We’re seeing an increase in violence and crime in Nashville and it’s bleeding into, no pun intended, suburban areas.  So I thought we’d get Scott on to give us just some tips, some advice on how to keep your “head on a…

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Commentary: California’s Rigged Election Process Is Coming To America

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by Edward Ring   The conventional wisdom among experts who monitor elections in America is unvarying: Voter fraud is statistically insignificant. These sanguine claims are made despite the fact that internal controls are often so poor, or even nonexistent on election integrity, that it is nearly impossible to know if voter fraud has even occurred. In every critical area—voter identification, voter registration, duplicate voting, absentee ballots, ineligible voting, ballot custody, ballot destruction, counterfeit ballots, voting machine tampering—gaping holes exist that invite systemic fraud. But so what? How relevant is voter fraud, if the entire system is already rigged to favor one party over the other? Come to California to see what’s going to roll out across America in time to guarantee a progressive landslide in 2020. It may be perfectly legal. But it’s so rigged it would make Boss Tweed blush. When planning for the November 2018 election, California’s Democrats didn’t just aim to pad their supermajority in the State Legislature. They weren’t going to be satisfied with a sweep of every elected state position, including governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, controller, treasurer, insurance commissioner, and superintendent of public instruction. They knew they could do that, but…

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Tennessee Auditors Call Out Humphreys County Law Enforcement for Abusing Drug Money

Chris Butler

Humphreys County Sheriff’s officers took more than $16,000 in money from their Drug Control Fund and used it to pay for things they weren’t legally allowed to, according to an audit released Tuesday. This, of course, is money law enforcement officers confiscate from alleged drug crimes. Members of the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office released the audit. The audit covered July 2016 through June of this year. Sheriff’s officers spent $1,911 of that money on travel, $1,620 on sponsorships, $5,486 on repairs, $4,148 on transportation costs, and $3,031 on other materials and supplies, Comptrollers wrote. According to state law, Drug Control Fund money can only go to local drug enforcement or education programs or nonrecurring general law enforcement expenditures. County Sheriff Chris Davis did not return repeated requests for comment Tuesday. County Executive Jessie R. Wallace told The Tennessee Star that county officials will work to make sure this never happens again. “This happened through a lack of understanding and some inadequacy and interpretation of the drug fund rules,” Wallace said. “It was nothing overt. It was just a case where expenditures seemed to fit the criteria.” Wallace said he would not respond to complaints certain people around Tennessee make about law…

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Dr. Carol M. Swain Commentary: How Euphemisms and Language Restrictions Shroud America’s Immigration Debate

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by Dr. Carol M. Swain   Immigration reform requires a political and social environment where well-meaning individuals can speak honestly about the nature of the problem and its implications for American society. Unfortunately, that is not our world right now. Consequently, we are no closer to solving what has become a perennial problem. America has not had a major immigration reform bill since 1986, when Congress passed the Immigration Reform and Control Act. It granted amnesty to an estimated 3 million people residing illegally in America. Estimates today range from 11-22 million illegals, with the latter number provided by a 2018 Yale University mathematical modeling study. Euphemisms are being used to deceive, obscure, and control America’s immigration debate. The Oxford Dictionary defines a euphemism as “a mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt when referring to something unpleasant or embarrassing.” Tremendous advantages are afforded the side most skilled using language and the one with the larger platform for messaging. The framing of the issue to affect public perception and response is central to the successful use of euphemisms in affecting public opinion. The Metaphor Project shows that the Left is very…

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Biden Says He’s The Most Qualified To Be President

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Former Vice President Joe Biden said Monday night whether he makes a White House run in 2020 will depend on whether he and his family are “ready,” though he stressed his credentials. “I think I’m the most qualified person in the country to be president,” Biden told an audience in Missoula, Montana, on a stop to promote his book “Promise Me, Dad.” “The issues that we face as a country today are the issues that I’ve worked on my whole life — the plight of the middle class and foreign policy. But my family and I need to decide as a unit whether we’re ready — we do everything as a family.” Biden, the vice president to two-term Democratic president Barack Obama, said he would make a decision about the 2020 campaign the next six weeks to two months. “I have two young grandchildren my son left who love me and adore me and want me around,” the former vice president said. “I want to be there to take care of them, so we’ve got to figure out whether or not this is something we can all do as a family.” Biden has said the passing of of his eldest…

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