Day: January 8, 2019

Lamar Alexander Supports Federal Funding for the Wall (In Iowa)

Chris Butler

After years of debate, U.S. Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee has finally and successfully helped acquire federal money for a wall — in Iowa. We’re talking about a $117 million flood wall in Cedar Rapids. Alexander, according to that city’s primary newspaper, The Gazette, has political connections to Cedar Rapids’ former mayor Ron Corbett. When asked Monday, Alexander’s spokesman Ashton Davies did not comment to The Tennessee Star on whether her boss is committed to federal funding for another type of wall. This is a wall many of his Tennessee constituents have long clamored for. That other wall, of course, is one along the Mexican border. But Alexander was reportedly happy to push for the wall in Iowa. According to The Gazette, a 2008 flood caused $5.4 billion in damages to Cedar Rapids. Federal aid was not immediately forthcoming. Over the years, federal representatives worked with a lobbyist to help get the money. But, as the paper went on to say, assistance did not come through until last July. The Gazette then reported that Corbett knew Alexander, who chairs the U.S. Senate’s Energy and Water Development Appropriations Subcommittee. “When Alexander ran for president in 1996, Corbett campaigned for him…

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Commentary: By Declaring a National Emergency, President Trump Could Use Defense Department Funding to Build the Border Wall Now

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by Harlan Hill President Trump has given the Democrats every reason to compromise with him on ending the partial government shutdown, yet they still cling grimly to their obstructionist tactics. Congressional Democrats have maintained that a border wall would be both “ineffective” and “immoral,” yet insist that they support the broader goal of border security. Every part of that argument has now been exposed as a lie. Immigration enforcement officials have repeatedly stated that they believe a wall is crucial to achieving real border security, but Democrats have not been willing to listen, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi even reportedly telling Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen that “I reject your facts” during a recent briefing. As the shutdown enters its third week, with Democrats still refusing to provide the necessary funding for border security, the President is further demonstrating his willingness to come to a reasonable compromise while making it clear that we must have proper border security. Since the left has refused to listen to the experts who say that a wall would be the single most effective element of a comprehensive border security strategy, he’s now appealing to liberals’ sense of morality. Over the weekend, the…

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Heidi Shafer Talks to the Tennessee Star Report About Her Bid for GOP Nomination in Special State Senate Election

Julie Carr

In a specific discussion on Monday morning’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 to Heidi Shafer, candidate for the GOP nomination in the State Senate special election in the Memphis area to replace Mark Norris and specifically about how she’s running her campaign and what makes her a stand out candidate from the others. Leahy: We have on the line now, Heidi Shafer who is a candidate for the special election Republican primary in state senate district thirty-two in the Memphis area that former state senator Mark Norris, who’s now a federal judge resigned from. Heidi, welcome to the Tennessee Star Report! Gill: Hey Heidi. Shafer: Good morning. Happy New Year everybody! Gill: Now early voting started Friday so the voting has already started right? Shafer: Yes, and because this is a special election it’s the only thing on the ballot. The voting is going to be slow, turnout is going to be minimal, which means that every single vote is going to matter more than ever. Leahy: So you’re running against a couple other…

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Commentary: Tucker Carlson, the Deep State Establishment, the Tea Party, and Modern Populism

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Tennessee Star

by Thaddeus G McCotter   I listened the other day to Tucker Carlson’s populist dirge on what’s ailing America. Then I perused some rejections, critiques, and commendations of it. Then I shrugged. To be charitable, it certainly wasn’t their fault. It’s the fruit of our communication revolution, wherein the head rush from new media’s immediacy renders antiquated the sober digestion of more lengthy philosophical debates. Small wonder, then, one so frequently searches for abiding comfort in these trying times by, again, turning back the dog-eared pages written by Burke, Kirk, Buckley, Röpke, and Nisbet, among so many other titans of conservative thought. But I digress . . . Or do I? In what does the current debate instruct us that aforementioned works haven’t already? The predatory economy Carlson describes is not market capitalism; it is the “business-government model” of crony capitalism long ago defined and decried by Belloc and Chesterton. Its remedy was found in the “German Miracle” outlined in Röpke’s A Humane Economy. One would also know from Burke, Kirk, and Buckley that, since the French Revolution, it is not greed but ideology—the Enemies of the Permanent Things’ lust to desecrate all you hold dear in order to remold humanity according to their own insidious whims—that has…

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Commentary: An Epidemic of Erasures, Redactions, Omissions, and Perjuries

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by Victor Davis Hanson   Imagine the following: The IRS sends you, John Q. Citizen, a letter alleging you have not complied with U.S. tax law. In the next paragraph, the tax agency then informs you that it needs a series of personal and business documents. Indeed, it will be sending agents out to discuss your dilemma and collect the necessary records. But when the IRS agents arrive, you explain to them that you cannot find about 50 percent of the documents requested, and have no idea whether they even exist. You sigh that both hard copies of pertinent information have unfortunately disappeared and hard drives were mysteriously lost. You nonchalantly add that you smashed your phone, tablet, and computer with a hammer. You volunteer that, of those documents you do have, you had to cut out, blacken or render unreadable about 30 percent of the contents. After all, you have judged that the redacted material either pertains to superfluous and personal matters such as weddings and yoga, or is of such a sensitive nature that its release would endanger your company or business or perhaps even the country at large. You also keep silent that you have a number…

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Two GOP Reps Who Retired In 2018 Join DC Lobbying Firm

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by Henry Rogers   Two former Republican representatives who retired in 2018 have decided to stay in Washington, D.C., both joining a big name lobbying firm Monday. The Akin Gump, a well-known lobbying firm with offices across the world, sent out a joint press release, addressing both of its new hires, former Florida Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and former Texas Republican Rep. Lamar Smith, who will both be joining the firm’s D.C. office, which focuses on “business, law and policy.” “As a firm that operates at the intersection of business, law and policy, we recognize the valuable skills, knowledge and perspectives that Reps. Ros-Lehtinen and Smith bring to our clients,” Akin Gump chairperson Kim Koopersmith said in a statement on the firm’s website. “They will be great additions to our top-tier policy practice, and I am very proud to welcome two individuals with such long and distinguished careers on Capitol Hill to the firm.” Ros-Lehtinen said she hopes to continue on the work she accomplished in Congress by working for the lobbying firm, mentioning trade matters and its domestic and foreign client base. “As home to the largest public policy practice in Washington, Akin Gump has always been a successful advocate on behalf of its clients,…

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Ocasio-Cortez Issues an Apology to Donald Trump Jr. for Subpoena Threat

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by Nick Givas   Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York issued an apology to Donald Trump Jr. on 60 Minutes Sunday, after implying she’d use her congressional powers to subpoena him. Ocasio-Cortez originally tweeted about the president’s son on Dec. 7 and said it was unwise of Trump Jr. to tweet negatively about her. I have noticed that Junior here has a habit of posting nonsense about me whenever the Mueller investigation heats up. Please, keep it coming Jr – it’s definitely a “very, very large brain” idea to troll a member of a body that will have subpoena power in a month. Have fun! https://t.co/oQ6MsdJYCk — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) December 7, 2018 Host Anderson Cooper said some people saw her comments as an abuse of power and Ocasio-Cortez said she was sorry if it made Trump Jr. feel threatened. “Well, if he felt genuinely threatened by me, I apologize,” she said. “But I think, frankly, it’s legal advice that any person would give him.” "If he felt genuinely threatened by me, I apologize." @AOC discusses her Twitter dispute with Donald Trump Jr. https://t.co/HUub7Y0xF6 pic.twitter.com/8ih11Wa0uI — 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) January 7, 2019 “You do know that most politicians don’t apologize for anything?” Cooper replied. “You’ve…

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The Tennessee Star Report Talks with Dr. Manny Sethi About ‘My Healthy Tennessee’

Julie Carr

On Monday’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 – Gill and Leahy chatted with My Healthy Tennessee founder and Tennessee native, Dr. Manny Sethi, about his non-for profit community based health care fairs.  The men discussed the current situation for Tennessee’s healthcare, it’s fiscal downfall, and accountability of patients. Sethi stressed throughout the segment that there was a great need to “re-think” the current healthcare delivery standard. Gill: Everybody’s had their new year’s resolution’s now at play for a week or so. You know the gyms have been packed. By next week you’ll be able to shoot a canon in the gym and not hit anybody. But everybody starts the new year with a commitment to you know better fitness, better nutrition, better health. And we just thought we would at least help you go into yet one more week of trying to stick to that commitment. Dr. Manny Sethi has launched a website, MyHealthyTennessee.com, it’s a non-profit that he and his wife, Maya founded in 2011 to promote healthier living, healthier lifestyles. They’ve done dozens of health fairs…

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City of Memphis Employees Allegedly Steal Gas

Chris Butler
Gas up

Employees who work for the City of Memphis are using taxpayer money to fill up their personal vehicles with gasoline, according to that city’s CBS affiliate WREG. No word yet on whether Tennessee’s fuel tax increase drove those city employees to do this. City officials, the station went on to say, have launched an internal investigation. “According to that investigation, the city doesn’t do a good enough job of tracking who’s getting gas and where it’s going. That’s largely because some fuel stations don’t have an effective way of doing it,” WREG reported. “Two city employees have been fired for filling up their personal cars with city gas, purchased with taxpayer dollars. Security at city-owned pumps varies. Some are padlocked, requiring a special key. Others are automated, unlocked using electronic key fobs.” The audit, the station went on to say, says those pumps track gas usage easily. The others, however, typically require manual logs that don’t always exist. “The issue increases the potential for fraud. The city’s General Services Division says it’ll fix the problem by putting devices to unlock pumps directly into city vehicles,” WREG reported. “They’re designed to track who’s driving, how much gas they’re getting and when…

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American Militia Catch Texas School Teacher Allegedly Fighting for ISIS in Syria

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by Grace Carr   American-backed forces say they apprehended a former Texas school teacher Sunday who was fighting for the Islamic State. U.S.-supported militia apprehended the Houston man, Warren Christopher Clark, 34 (pictured left), fighting on a battlefield in Syria, The New York Times reported. He allegedly previously sent a résumé and cover letter to ISIS, seeking to teach young students about the group’s violent ideology. “Dear Director, I am looking to get a position teaching English to students in the Islamic State,” Clark allegedly wrote in a letter to ISIS, according to documents recovered by American forces. Clark has reportedly been associated with ISIS since after June 2015, according to The NYT. Prior to pledging allegiance to ISIS, Clark taught English in Saudi Arabia and Turkey, documents reveal. Clark previously substitute-taught at Fort Bend Independent School District in Sugar Land, Texas. Roughly 250 Americans have traveled to Syria or Iraq to join ISIS since fall 2015, according to a December 2015 report from George Washington University’s Program on Extremism. U.S. authorities have charged 71 Americans with ISIS-related activities since March 2014, according to the report. Few Americans who defected to ISIS have been caught and brought back to the U.S. Only four Americans have been captured fighting in Syria and Iraq,…

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Enviros Launch Campaign Against Trump’s Pick To Replace Scott Pruitt At EPA

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by Michael Bastach   Environmentalists kicked off the new year with a campaign to derail the nomination of Andrew Wheeler, President Donald Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). “Make no mistake — to protect our health, planet, economy, and national security we must #StopWheeler from being permanently confirmed as @EPA administrator,” the Sierra Club tweeted Monday. Make no mistake – to protect our health, planet, economy, and national security we must #StopWheeler from being permanently confirmed as @EPA administrator. https://t.co/CMhvJBHlkY — Sierra Club (@SierraClub) January 7, 2019 The tweet linked to an Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) blog post calling Wheeler “unfit to lead EPA.” “Andrew Wheeler has ramped up Scott Pruitt’s relentless attack on public health and environmental safeguards,” EDF’s Martha Roberts wrote in her Jan. 3 blog post. Wheeler, a former coal industry lobbyist, took over as EPA’s acting administrator in 2018 after former Administrator Scott Pruitt resigned. Wheeler was confirmed by the Senate in April 2018 as EPA’s deputy administrator, making him Pruitt’s number two at the time. Pruitt resigned in July amid a slew of ethics allegations and negative media coverage. Democrats and environmentalists also opposed Pruitt’s pushing Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda. Wheeler, so far, has continued Pruitt’s…

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Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Miss Arguments Following Lung Cancer Procedure

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by Kevin Daley   Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg missed oral arguments Monday as she recuperates from cancer surgery. It’s not clear when the 85-year-old justice will return to work, though the Supreme Court’s public information office said she will continue to participate in official business from her home in Washington. Despite Ginsburg’s absence, a Court spokeswoman said the justice would participate in Monday’s cases by reading transcripts of the proceedings, then voting as normal. Monday is the first time that Ginsburg has missed arguments since she joined the high court in 1993. Surgeons at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York removed two cancerous nodules from Ginsburg’s lungs on Dec. 21. She was discharged on Dec. 26. The justice’s doctors said the surgery was successful and there are no signs of disease elsewhere in her body. The growths were detected when Ginsburg was hospitalized for a rib fracture in November 2018. On that occasion, the justice fell in her chambers and was admitted to a Washington-area hospital after experiencing discomfort in her chest. In a public appearance just days before December’s procedure, Ginsburg said her health was “fine”, and made no mention of the pending surgery. The justice has been diagnosed…

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Mark Dayton Slams Trump’s ‘Destructive Nature’ in Final Interview As Governor

Anthony Gockowski

Now former Gov. Mark Dayton (D-MN) officially left office Monday afternoon as moving trucks were spotted outside the Governor’s Mansion over the weekend. In his final exit interview with TPT Almanac, Dayton was asked by host Mary Lahammer for his opinion on the divisiveness in American politics today. “So much of it now is one man’s destructive nature. It’s not the way government should be. This guy tweeting at 3 o’clock in the morning. I mean, it’s just—it’s frightening,” Dayton responded. Dayton also addressed his declining health, which hospitalized him for a month in October. His administration was criticized for waiting several weeks to inform the press in November that he was still hospitalized after undergoing surgery. During his hospital stay, his administration sent out press releases stating that he was meeting with staff and top officials. “Well, I’ve been having trouble with my spine for a few years now, and I got a couple surgeries, which improved things. But it was deteriorating so I realized I had to deal with it again. So in October I had another spinal surgery, which had a bad after effect. It damaged my lungs, which has had the most limiting effect in terms…

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Ohio Governor Kasich Signs Occupational Licensing Reform Bill, Increasing Market Competition

Andrew Shirley

Governor John Kasich signed Senate Bill 255 (SB 255) Friday, reforming Ohio’s occupational licensing laws, some of which are considered to be the most economically crippling in the country. The law will require Ohio’s state legislature to examine every occupational licensing board in the state, assess their value and utility, then decide if they serve an essential function. If not, they will be disbanded. The legislatures have a five-year window to complete the examination. In addition, the Legislative Service Commission will review every future proposed board to ensure they are fair and not economically detrimental to citizens. The Buckeye Institute, a non-partisan, free-market think tank “whose mission is to advance free-market public policy in the states,” was the primary force advocating for and encouraging passage of the bill. Following it’s signing, Buckeye Institute Research Fellow, Greg R. Lawson celebrated the decision, stating: With the signing of Senate Bill 255, Ohio has gone from being one of the very worst states in the nation on occupational licensing to the very best…Through the extraordinary leadership of Senate President Larry Obhof, Senator Rob McColley, and Representative Ron Hood, Ohio can now rightly claim its place at the top of the list of states on occupational licensing,…

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Elizabeth Warren Looped Video of Line Outside Iowa Rally to Create ‘Overflow’ Impression

Anthony Gockowski

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) campaigned in Iowa over the weekend after announcing an exploratory committee for a 2020 presidential campaign. Her first stop was in Council Bluffs where she posted a video of an “overflow line” of supporters gathered outside the event. The video, however, was sped up and looped, meaning it begins playing again from the beginning of the line once it reaches the end. “First event in Iowa, first overflow line in Iowa,” Warren tweeted on Friday. First event in Iowa, first overflow line in Iowa! pic.twitter.com/VGLKONVxoJ — Elizabeth Warren (@ewarren) January 4, 2019 One twitter user slowed down the video and showed that about 85 people were standing in line for Warren’s event. Here is the video slowed down 1/1024 speed. As you can see there's about 86 people. pic.twitter.com/tbjpaS8NQx — Mike (@Fuctupmind) January 5, 2019 As Battleground State News reported, Warren was asked at one event about her 2018 DNA test that contradicted her claims of Native American heritage. “I’m glad for us to have a chance to talk about it. I am not a person of color. I am not a citizen of a tribe,” she responded. “Tribal citizenship is very different from ancestry. Tribes…

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Former North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory Eyes 2020 and 2022 Races

A.P. Dillon

During his weekly radio show last week, Former North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory went on the record about possible future runs for political office. McCrory specifically spoke about running for governor again in 2020 and possibly the U.S. Senate in 2022. “I’m going to do a thorough assessment on whether or not I want to run for governor again between now and December,” McCrory told WBT listeners. “I’m also going to do an assessment of whether or not I could make a positive difference possibly in running for the U.S. Senate in 2022. But I’m not ready to make either decision.” McCrory said he wasn’t going to make a quick decision and wanted to discuss ‘reentering politics’ with his family and friends first. “I want to go through a thorough examination with my family and my friends and supporters on whether or I should reenter into politics in 2020 or 2022,” said McCrory. “I’m not ready to make that political announcement, because I have other goals and aspirations,” McCrory said. “And plus, I’d be getting right back into the game that I’ve been criticizing – the game of groveling for money two years before an election even occurs.” McCrory was…

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Virginia Governor Aims To Repeal Voter ID Law

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by Luke Rosiak   Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam on Monday announced proposed legislation to repeal the state’s requirement that voters show photo ID. “Participation makes our democracy strong—we should encourage every eligible voter to exercise this fundamental right, rather than creating unnecessary barriers that make getting to the ballot box difficult,” Northam, a Democrat, said in a statement. Delegate Kaye Kory, a sponsor of the measure, said in a statement, “The photo ID requirement prevents the most vulnerable Virginians from voting and silences the voices of those who most need to be heard.” The proposal would also allow people to vote absentee without providing a reason why they could not make it to the polls. Democrat Terry McAuliffe beat Republican Ken Cuccinelli for the Virginia governorship in 2013 by only 56,000 votes. In 2014, Democrat Mark Warner squeaked by against Republican Ed Gillespie in a Senate race decided by less than a percentage point, or 18,000 votes. The attorney general’s race came down to a mere 165 votes. Then, just before the 2016 election, McAuliffe restored the right to vote for 60,000 felons using an unorthodox procedure. McAuliffe had sought to allow all of Virginia’s estimated 200,000 felons to vote, but state courts said…

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Gov. Haslam Grants Clemency to Cyntoia Brown, Sets Aug. 7 Release Date for Woman Convicted of Murder at Age 16

Jason M. Reynolds

Retiring Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Monday gave executive clemency to convicted murderer Cyntoia Brown by commuting her life sentence. Brown will be released on Aug. 7 to parole supervision for a period of 10 years, Haslam said in a statement. She served 15 years in prison. She was convicted as a teenager of killing a man while she said she was a sex trafficking victim at age 16, NBC News said. In 2006, Brown was convicted by a Davidson County jury of first-degree murder and aggravated robbery for the 2004 murder of 43-year-old Nashville real estate agent Johnny Allen, the governor’s office said. The incident occurred when Allen took Brown to his home. She received a life sentence with the possibility of parole after serving a minimum of 51 years in prison, which means she would not have been eligible for parole consideration until 2055, at the earliest, without the governor’s action. Brown said that she feared for her life and pulled a gun from her purse and shot Allen while in bed with him because she believed he was going for a gun, NBC News said. Brown, a runaway, lived with her 24-year-old boyfriend, a pimp known as…

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