Day: April 12, 2019

Democratic State Rep. Staples Resigns As Assistant House Minority Leader Following Sexual Harassment Claim

Jason M. Reynolds

State Rep. Rick Staples (D-TN-15) resigned from a leadership position in the House following allegations of sexual harassment, multiple media outlets have reported. Staples, of Knox County, on Thursday resigned as assistant House minority leader but will continue to represent Knoxville, WATE said. “I have already publicly apologized for any distress I unintentionally caused. I have decided to step down from my leadership position of Assistant House Minority Leader so I can end the unwarranted suffering on my family, continue to serve my constituents unimpeded and end any distractions this may bring to the Tennessee House,” Staples said in a released statement. “I look forward to following the recommendations of the Ethics Committee and pledge to remain the best servant to my constituency of District 15.  I’ll have no further comment going forward on this matter.” Tennessee legislative sources say a woman filed a sexual harassment complaint against Rep. Staples with the House Ethics Committee. Staples is also a member of that committee. House Republican Caucus Chair Cameron Sexton implied last week that Democratic leaders did not immediately take action on the complaint against Staples, and added that could be a violation, WKRN reported. House Democrat Caucus Chair Mike Stewart denied…

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Commentary: Of Course the Obama Administration Spied on the Trump Campaign – That’s What a FISA Is For

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by Robert Romano   “I think spying did occur… but the question is whether it was predicated, adequately predicated?” That was Attorney General William Barr testifying before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Science and Justice on April 10, acknowledging that the Trump campaign was spied on by the Obama administration during the 2016 election campaign. Barr outlined his impending review of the conduct of the Justice Department, the FBI and U.S. intelligence agencies in launching surveillance and an investigation of the Trump campaign for conspiring with Russia to interfere with the 2016 election — a crime we now know was never committed. And of course spying occurred. The nearly three-year investigation was complete with Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrants, approved in federal court, that allowed federal officials to look at Trump campaign emails, listen to phone calls and see other communications. That’s what a FISA warrant does. It’s for surveillance, which is right in the name of the statute. That is spying. What’s worse, the months-long surveillance resulted in individuals being prosecuted for unrelated process crimes and otherwise destroyed people’s lives, only to find out later there was no conspiracy or coordination with Russia after an exhaustive probe…

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State Rep. Gloria Johnson Attempts to Use Mike Pence to Expand Medicaid in Tennessee, and it Backfires

Chris Butler

Tennessee State Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville attempted to expand Medicaid in Tennessee by invoking the name of Republican Vice President Mike Pence, and it backfired this week, in a big way. As various news outlets reported this week, Johnson and State Sen. Jeff Yarbro, D-Nashville, introduced what they called the “Mike Pence Medicaid Expansion Act of 2019.” According to the Tennessee General Assembly’s website, the bill, if enacted into law, would authorize the governor to expand Medicaid under Obamacare. Johnson and Yarbro put forth an amendment citing “Pence’s work as Indiana’s governor for further support and validation,” according to the Nashville-based FOX News 17. Indiana expanded Medicaid under Obamacare during Pence’s tenure as governor. But Republicans on the House TennCare Subcommittee this week told Johnson she overlooked a few important details. Here is the transcript of what went down, between Johnson and Subcommittee Chairman Matthew Hill, R-Jonesborough. GLORIA JOHNSON: “There is a range of how folks have expanded Medicaid in their state. In Indiana they do have co-pays and things like that. What we’re seeing in Indiana is not as good as what we’re seeing in other states, but I can say that it’s better than what is happening here…

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Sen. Mark Pody on the ‘Heartbeat Bill’: It’s Very Disappointing That Tennessee Right to Life Would Be the Ones Standing in the Way

Laura Baigert

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – The day after the ‘Heartbeat Bill’ was sent by the Senate Judiciary Committee to “summer study,” the Senate sponsor of the bill Mark Pody said about Tennessee Right To Life, “It’s very disappointing that they would be the ones standing in the way.” Sen. Pody (R-Lebanon), in his introduction of the Heartbeat Bill on Tuesday in the Senate Judiciary Committee said in the nine years he had been in the legislature, “This is probably the most important piece of legislation I’ve brought this far.” After more than an hour of testimony and questions and answers from two expert witnesses – Dr. Brent Boles, a Murfreesboro-based practicing obstetrician/gynecologist who has delivered over 7,000 babies and attorney and President of Family Action Council of Tennessee for more than 10 years, David Fowler – the vote to send the bill to summer study passed by a vote of 5 Ayes, 3 Noes and 1 Pass, as reported by The Tennessee Star. The following day, Sen. Pody told The Star that they were positioned to do something about the 200 babies a day aborted in Tennessee, but now it has been postponed until August before there can be more discussion about…

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Trump Signs Executive Orders to Fast-Track Oil and Gas Pipelines

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by Michael Bastasch   President Donald Trump signed a pair of executive orders aimed at speeding up oil and gas pipeline permitting, including limiting the ability of activists and states to block key energy projects. Trump signed the orders Wednesday at an International Union of Operating Engineers’ training center near Houston. Some labor unions have pushed back against Democrats’ anti-fossil fuel agenda, including the recently introduced Green New Deal. Trump ordered federal agencies to speed up permitting for pipeline projects, including asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to curtail state authority to block projects under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The administration is responding to criticisms that some states have weaponized CWA permitting to block energy projects. For example, New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration has blocked a number of natural gas pipelines from running through his state, depriving the northeast of much-needed energy supplies. The supply crunch hit hard during winter when the region was forced to import gas from Russia. New York City locals fear a moratorium on new gas hook-ups will stall commercial developments. Across the country, Washington state, under Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee, a 2020 contender, has blocked coal and oil export terminals planned along…

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White House Reportedly Mulling Immigration Hardliner for Top DHS Position

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by Jason Hopkins   President Donald Trump is reportedly not done shaking up immigration leadership in his administration, and is mulling whether to replace the head of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Lee Francis Cissna, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), might be dismissed from his position by the end of this week, according to sources who spoke with Politico. In his place, the White House might be considering Julie Kirchner, the former executive director of the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). A nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., FAIR advocates for the reduction of both legal and illegal immigration. Kirchner worked with the group from 2005 to 2015, and served as its executive director from 2007 to 2015. She later got involved with the Trump administration, and was appointed as USCIS ombudsman in May 2017. Along with the agency’s top post, Kirchner has also been considered for USCIS deputy director. “FAIR has no information regarding any positions to which Julie Kirchner may be appointed by President Trump,” FAIR president Dan Stein said in a statement to The Daily Caller News Foundation on Wednesday. “But we can unequivocally vouch for her as one of the most…

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Trump: More Troops Needed at Border with Mexico

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WHITE HOUSE — U.S. President Donald Trump says more troops will need to be sent to the country’s southern border because too many dangerous people are illegally entering the United States. “I’m going to have to call up more military. Our military, don’t forget it, can’t act like a military would act. Because if they got a little rough, everybody would go crazy,” Trump, in Texas, told reporters during a meeting ranchers who complained to him about the constant threat from trespassers on their properties. Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan, asked by reporters earlier in the day about a possible multiyear deployment of troops to the border, responded, saying he had been speaking at length about that with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “I would expect shortly here to have another request for assistance,” Shanahan said. Trump, in San Antonio, specifically blamed the problem on the governments of four countries: Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Colombia. “Those countries are sending the tough ones, they’re sending the gang members,” he said. “They’ll kill you, take your truck, sometimes rob your house. Who the hell can live like this?” asked Trump, sitting in a room surrounded by area Republican…

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US Charges WikiLeaks Founder Assange After London Arrest

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The U.S. on Thursday charged WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in a computer hacking conspiracy linked to the release of hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. documents, just hours after British police dramatically arrested him at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London where he had been holed up for nearly seven years. The indictment of Assange stems from one of the largest breaches of classified information in U.S. history, the 2010 WikiLeaks release of a vast cache of U.S. military records from its wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, assessments of suspected terrorists held by the U.S. at its prison in Guantanamo, Cuba, and 250,000 State Department cables. The U.S. accused Assange of conspiring with former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning, then known as Bradley Manning before declaring herself a woman, to crack a password stored on U.S. Defense Department computers to hack into a government network of classified documents and communications known as the Secret Internet Protocol Network. Cracking the password, the government said, allowed Manning to log on to computers under a username that did not belong to her, initially making it more difficult for authorities to determine the source of the illegal disclosures. The government said that Assange and…

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234 House Democrats, Two Republicans Co-Sponsor Bill Forcing Schools to Let Male Athletes Compete on Girls’ Sports Teams

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by Peter Hasson   Every House Democrat but one has co-sponsored a bill requiring schools to allow male athletes who identify as transgender girls to compete on female sports teams. Democrats’ Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to make “sexual orientation and gender identity” protected characteristics under federal anti-discrimination law. Among other things, the bill would force public schools to expand female athletic teams to include biological males who identify as transgender girls. Sarah Warbelow, director of the left-wing Human Rights Campaign, praised the bill’s impact on high school sports in written testimony submitted to a House subcommittee on Tuesday. “Opponents of equality in athletics for transgender athletes have argued that girls who are transgender have unfair physiological advantages over cisgender girls and as a result, will dominate women’s competitive sports,” Warbelow wrote, calling it not “rooted in fact” that biologically male athletes will outperform their female counterparts. House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler, a Democrat from New York, made a similar argument during an April 2 hearing his committee held on the legislation. “Many states have sexual orientation and gender identity nondiscrimination laws, and all of them still have women’s sports. Arguments about transgender athletes participating…

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ICE Acting Director to Step Down Friday

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by Jason Hopkins   Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director Ron Vitiello will be stepping down from his position on Friday, marking the latest move in the Trump administration’s immigration staff shakeup. Vitiello, who has served as acting ICE director since June 2018, will officially vacate his post by the end of the week, the agency has confirmed. It is not yet clear who will replace him, but acting deputy director Matthew Albence is next in line. Vitiello’s resignation follows President Donald Trump’s decision earlier in April to pull his nomination to lead the agency in an official capacity. “[Vitiello is] a good man,” the president told reporters the day after rescinding Vitiello’s nomination. “But we’re going in a tougher direction. We want to go in a tougher direction.” Vitiello is one of several high-profile leaders in the Department of Homeland Security who have been pushed out by the administration. The shakeups come as Trump, frustrated over rising illegal immigration at the U.S. southern border, is looking to toughen up enforcement. Trump accepted Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen’s resignation just several days after pulling Vitiello’s nomination. Acting deputy secretary for Homeland Security Claire Grady also submitted her resignation. There…

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Commentary: America Needs Big, Beautiful Tariffs

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by Spencer P. Morrison   Jonah Goldberg writes that President Trump supports tariffs because he is “truly ignorant of some of the most basic” economic principles—or he is “deceiving the public” to push a hidden agenda. Let’s not mince words: Goldberg’s implication is that Trump is either stupid or evil for promoting tariffs. Goldberg is not alone. Economists like Steve Hanke routinely accuse Trump of economic illiteracy. Meanwhile, sophists such as Ben Shapiro assert that tariffs are fundamentally immoral—Shapiro once accused me of favoring “total state control of the economy” like the mass murderer/hair-care aficionado Joseph Stalin. For what crime? Wanting fair, reciprocal trade with China. Since the “free trade brigade” tolerates charges of ignorance, let’s look at what is truly ignorant. Just how ignorant? Buckle up. Worshipping Mephistopheles Goldberg begins with the claim that trade deficits don’t matter. After all, “I have a trade deficit with my cigar shop, barber shop, supermarket and liquor store. They get my money and I get goods and services in return.” Win-win. The same is true of international trade: China gets our money, America gets their goods. Furthermore, the money we pay to China eventually returns to us, since American money must be…

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$22 Trillion in National Debt Not ‘Sustainable Trajectory,’ House GOP Leader Says

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by Rachel del Guidice   Restoring fiscal sanity to Congress is a matter of national security, the chairman of the House’s largest Republican caucus says. “It’s not a sustainable trajectory,” Rep. Mike Johnson, R-La., chairman of the Republican Study Committee, said of a national debt that has topped $22 trillion. “It’s not when we have military officials, the Pentagon officials, the top brass come in and testify to Congress under oath,” Johnson said. “They always say when they’re asked the question, ‘What is the No. 1 threat to national security?,’ they say debt is not a sustainable trajectory for the country. We have to address it.” Johnson, joined by Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., the RSC’s budget and spending task force chairman, spoke in a conversation Tuesday at the Rayburn Building on Capitol Hill moderated by Genevieve Wood, a senior adviser and spokeswoman at The Heritage Foundation. Banks said he believes the national debt can be decreased by reforming programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security. “We have to find ways to reform those programs to, one, make them sustainable and allow them to survive into the future, but also make reasonable and responsible modifications,” Banks said. The Republican Study…

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Founder of The American Evangelicals Association, Kelly Kullberg Urges Tennessee to ‘Come Along With Us’ and Pass the Heartbeat Bill

Julie Carr

On Tuesday’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 talked to Kelly Kullberg who founded the American Evangelicals Association with a first hand account of what occurred in Ohio during the passage of the heartbeat bill in that state. Towards the end of the segment, the group spoke about the protesters and the responses from particular people who have spent several years trying to see this bill pass.  Kullberg urged Tennessee to “Come along with us!” and pass the Heartbeat Bill in the Tennessee Senate. Leahy: We are joined now on the line by our good friend, Kelly Kullberg the founder of the American Evangelicals Association. She lives in Columbus, Ohio. She was there yesterday when the Ohio state legislature did something that the Tennessee General Assembly at least in Tennessee State Senate doesn’t have the courage to do. They passed a fetal heartbeat bill. Welcome Kelly. Kullberg: Hi Mike. Hi Steve. Thanks for having me. Gill: The Ohio legislature showed a lot more courage than the Tennessee legislature. The House moved the heartbeat bill here…

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Commentary: RAISE Act Introduced, Cuts Immigration Numbers, Makes Merit Top Priority

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by CHQ Staff   Republican Senators Tom Cotton, David Perdue and Sen. Josh Hawley have introduced the 2019 version of the Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (RAISE) Act, a bill to replace the current employment-visa system with a skills-based framework that gives priority to immigrants who are more educated, speak English and have a history of achievement. In a statement announcing the introduction of the 2019 version of the bill the Senators said it would spur economic growth and raise working Americans’ wages by giving priority to the best-skilled immigrants from around the world and reducing overall immigration levels. Representative Francis Rooney (FL-19) will introduce companion legislation in the House of Representatives. The RAISE Act is supported by President Trump and has been described by the White House as a bill that “will create a merit-based immigration system that protects our workers, our taxpayers, and our economy.” Specifically, the RAISE Act would: Establish a Skills-Based Points System. The RAISE Act would replace the current permanent employment-visa system with a skills-based points system, akin to the systems used by Canada and Australia. The system would prioritize those immigrants who are best positioned to succeed in the United States and expand…

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Lawyer Avenatti Charged in California with US Fraud, Tax Crimes

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Lawyer Michael Avenatti was charged with 36 counts of fraud, tax evasion, identity theft and other financial crimes in an indictment made public by federal prosecutors in Los Angeles on Thursday. The indictment came about three weeks after Avenatti, best known for representing adult film star Stormy Daniels in her legal battles with U.S. President Donald Trump, was arrested in New York on two separate criminal complaints filed by federal prosecutors in New York and California. The indictment means the grand jury has found the California prosecutors have probable cause to pursue their charges. Avenatti has said he is innocent. https://twitter.com/MichaelAvenatti/status/1116345651489435650 “I intend to fully fight all charges and plead NOT GUILTY. I look forward to the entire truth being known as opposed to a one-sided version meant to sideline me,” Avenatti wrote on Twitter on Thursday. The Los Angeles prosecutors have accused Avenatti of misusing a client’s $1.6 million settlement to pay for his own expenses as well as those for his coffee business, and with defrauding a Mississippi bank of $4.1 million in loans by submitting false tax returns for 2011 to 2013 that inflated his income. The New York prosecutors have separately accused Avenatti of trying to…

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The Tennessee ‘Trigger’ Abortion Ban Bill May Get New Life

Chris Butler

Some people considered the Tennessee ‘trigger’ abortion ban bill dead, but it may have new life next week, said State Rep. Ron Gant, R-Rossville. Gant told The Tennessee Star Thursday he made a motion to recall it in the House Health Committee. House rules permit legislators to recall bills that subcommittees have already acted upon. As The Associated Press reported last month, a House subcommittee blocked the measure in a 4-3 vote. Gant, however, updated The Star on the matter. “We use this rule to recall House Bill 1029, and we took that vote Tuesday to recall it and it passed a majority,” Gant said. “So, this coming week it will be heard in our full Health Committee for a vote, and from there it will go to the House floor for a vote.” Gant said he talked with other committee members, and they all seem supportive. The bill, as Gant describes it, prepares Tennessee for what might happen if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade. In that 1973 case, members of the U.S. Supreme Court ruled state laws that banned abortions were unconstitutional. The proposed ‘trigger’ law also considers what would happen if there is a Constitutional…

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Blackburn Works With Democratic Sen. Baldwin to Introduce Bill to Improve Internet Infrastructure In Rural Areas

Jason M. Reynolds

U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) on Thursday introduced SB 1166, the Internet Exchange (IX) Act, which will help to improve internet access for consumers, especially in rural areas. The senators made the announcement on Twitter, available here, and in a press release, which is available here. Today, @SenatorBaldwin and I introduced S. 1166, the Internet Exchange(IX) Act, which will help to improve internet access for consumers, especiallythose in rural areas. More: https://t.co/ieTjwkDcOD pic.twitter.com/mBHnKwHy3W — Sen. Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) April 11, 2019 “You can’t have a 21st century education, 21st century healthcare, or a 21st century business without access to 21st century internet,” said Blackburn. “The bipartisan IX Act will make big strides in closing the digital divide in Tennessee by providing internet access to areas with the highest degree of need.” Baldwin said, “We need to strengthen our internet infrastructure to better serve Middle America and rural communities, and improve the online experience for people in all parts of our country. This bipartisan measure will help expand broadband access across our country. By investing in our internet infrastructure and adding more internet exchanges in Wisconsin and throughout the heartland, we can help more rural households and…

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Video Shows Ilhan Omar Mocking Americans for Their Anxiety Over Terrorist Organizations

Anthony Gockowski

A recently unearthed video shows Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) mocking Americans for their anxiety over terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda and Hezbollah. The video was released Thursday by The Reagan Battalion and comes just days after the Daily Caller News Foundation obtained video of Omar describing 9/11 as an event in which “some people did something.” As The Minnesota Sun reported, Omar faced widespread backlash for those comments, and is once again facing pressure from the GOP to be removed from her assignment on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In the new video, Omar is discussing a course on terrorism that she took in college, and mocks the professor for being uncomfortable when discussing terrorist organizations. The clip is from a 2013 interview Omar did with the Somali-American show “BelAhdan,” and the full episode can be viewed here. “The thing that was interesting in the class was that every time the professor said Al-Qaeda, he sort of—his shoulders went up, and you know—‘Al-Qaeda,’ you know, ‘Hezbollah,’” she says while mockingly shrugging her shoulders and laughing with the moderator. A recently discovered video shows @IlhanMN mocking Americans for their anxiety about al-Qaeda, equating US armed forces to al-Qaeda and Hezbollah. pic.twitter.com/VBuKhAHjjE…

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House Democrats Introduce ‘Minnesota Green New Deal’ Written By High School Students

Anthony Gockowski

Minnesota lawmakers have officially introduced a state level “Green New Deal” that was inspired in large part by youth-activist organizations. In fact, when introducing his bill Wednesday, Rep. Frank Hornstein (DFL-Minneapolis) said it was the “first time” he’s ever “witnessed high school students actually writing a bill.” Hornstein was joined at a Wednesday press conference by a handful of student activists with the climate group “MN Can’t Wait,” according to MPR News. The bill itself, officially titled “Minnesota Green New Deal Act,” calls for making the state’s electricity 100 percent carbon-free by 2030. It would also place a “construction moratorium” on allowing state agencies to issue permits to “construct a facility to transport, store, or process coal, crude oil or its derivative products, propane, or natural gas.” “The commission is prohibited from issuing a certificate of need to construct an electric generating plant powered by coal, products refined from crude oil, or natural gas,” the bill adds. Hornstein’s legislation would also establish a “Climate Change Advisory Council” that would “provide recommendations to improve Minnesota state government operations, functions, and policies to identify groups and individuals in need of assistance in adapting to climate change and develop programs to assist those…

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Tim Ryan Distances Himself from Eliminating Private Health Insurance Despite Being Cosponsor of Bill That Does Just That

Anthony Gockowski

Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH-13), now a candidate for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, said in a recent CNN interview that he doesn’t support the elimination of private health insurance. Ryan, however, is cosponsoring a bill that would eliminate most private insurance, which is one of the explicit goals of the bill’s lead sponsor. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA-07) introduced her “Medicare for All” bill in late February, and explicitly states in the bill that starting on “the effective date described in section 106(a), it shall be unlawful for a private health insurer to sell health insurance coverage that duplicates the benefits provided under this Act.” While speaking with reporters, Jayapal said that her bill “really makes it clear what we mean by ‘Medicare for All.’” “We mean a complete transformation of our health care system, we mean a system where there are no private insurance companies that provide these core comprehensive benefits that will be covered through the government,” she said, according to NBC News. Jayapal’s staffers told Roll Call that the bill would eliminate most private insurance under its prohibition on duplicate coverage. Ryan joined the bill as a cosponsor on February 27 along with 107 of his Democratic colleagues…

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Ohio Lawmakers Look to Come Together on Tax Reform Amid Divisive Abortion Battle

Anthony Gockowski

Ohio House Democrats unveiled a number of proposals Thursday that they claim will “modernize” Ohio’s tax system to “benefit working people, families and small businesses.” They’re calling the set of proposals the “People First Tax Reform,” which will include a “Working Families First” tax incentive. This incentive would reform Ohio’s Earned Income Tax Credit by removing caps and making the credit refundable, according to a press release from the minority caucus. House Democrats claim this incentive could save families up to $212 million each year, and note that similar ideas were included in the biennial transportation budget. “We saw some pieces of the Working Families tax incentive in the transportation budget, so we know there is a bipartisan appetite for these commonsense reforms,” House Minority Leader Emilia Strong Sykes (D-Akron) said. “We need to work together to get our state on the right track so we can start growing again.” Another proposal calls for fixing the “state’s LLC loophole,” which Democrats describe as a “tax giveaway to Ohio businesses that, when designed, was supposed to create jobs.” Ohio’s job creation has consistently lagged behind the national average in recent years. “Years of tax giveaways and loopholes have held our state…

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DeWine Officially Signs Heartbeat Bill as National Groups Prepare for Legal Battle

Andrew Shirley
FETUS ON Health

Gov. Mike DeWine signed Ohio’s heartbeat bill into law Thursday afternoon, and advocacy groups and legal teams nationwide are all preparing for what is sure to be a major political and legal battle. For the third time in the last decade, a bill that would ban all abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected officially made its way to the Ohio governor’s desk. Senate Bill 23 (SB 23) would ban any abortion once a fetal heartbeat can be detected. Though this varies based on available medical technology,  it is generally agreed to be around the six to the nine-week mark. Hence, many consider it a six-week abortion limit. “The essential function of government is to protect the most vulnerable among us, those who don’t have a voice,” DeWine said while signing the bill. “Government’s role should be to protect life from beginning to end.” Past versions of the bill were both vetoed by former Gov. John Kasich, who stated that he agreed with it in principle but felt that “the state of Ohio will be the losing party in that lawsuit and…will be forced to pay hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars to cover the legal fees for the pro-choice activists’ lawyers.” This time,…

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Freshmen GOP Legislators Ignore TSBA Scandal

Laura Baigert

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – When presented with an opportunity to hear a bill that would bring accountability and transparency to the Tennessee School Boards Association (TSBA), nine GOP legislators in the Tennessee House of Representatives– primarily freshmen – voted against it on Tuesday. This, despite the fact that the sponsor of the bill, Representative and House Finance, Ways and Means Subcommittee Chairman Andy Holt (R-Dresden), laid out the details of the special carve-outs that the taxpayer-funded Tennessee School Boards Association (TSBA) enjoys. Six freshmen GOP legislators–State Representatives Charlie Baum (R-Murfreesboro), Scott Cepicky (R-Culleoka), Mark Cochran (R-Englewood), Kirk Haston (R-Lobelville), Tom Leatherwood (R-Arlington), and  Iris Rudder (R-Winchester)–joined three other GOP legislators– State Representatives Jim Coley (R-Bartlett), David Byrd (R-Waynesboro), and  Kevin Vaughan (R-Shelby County)– and four Democrat legislators–State Representatives Vincent Dixie (D-Nashville), Jason Hodges (D-Clarksville), Harold Love (D-Nashville), and Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis)–in defying the House GOP leadership’s wishes to have Holt’s bill recalled for consideration by the full House Education Committee. The final vote in the committee was 13 against recalling the bill, and 8 in favor of it. The bill failed in the House Education Administration Subcommittee last week, largely through an administrative oversight. The Tennessee Star has featured several reports on the taxpayer-funded TSBA…

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