Day: June 7, 2019

Key Figure Trying to Get UAW to Come to Volkswagen Chattanooga Reportedly Had to Settle Slander Suit

Chris Butler

  One of the primary people fighting for the United Auto Workers to set up shop at Volkswagen Chattanooga reportedly had to settle a slander suit for his part in a nasty mudslinging campaign in Michigan. This, according to this week’s Washington Free Beacon. Joe DiSano, a Michigan political consultant, heads up the Center for VW Facts. DiSano reportedly accused VW of waging a “deceptive campaign to discourage employees” from becoming the first UAW plant in the right-to-work state. “DiSano would know a thing or two about ‘deceptive’ campaigns. During a 2012 Democratic primary for a Michigan statehouse seat, he circulated a robocall accusing one of the candidates of ‘using the internet to lure young girls into nude modeling sessions at his home,’ where he took “dirty pictures in his basement,’” The Washington Free Beacon reported. “The target of those robocalls lost the race and later filed a defamation suit seeking to clear his name. A judge dismissed DiSano’s First Amendment defense and the two parties settled. As part of the settlement agreement DiSano agreed to circulate a new robocall correcting the previous mudslinging and issue public apologies in two newspapers.” Southern Momentum, a grassroots group of Volkswagen Chattanooga workers who oppose the…

Read the full story

Tennessee Court of Appeals Says Sons of Confederate Veterans Do Not Have Standing to Stop Removal of Statues at Memphis Parks

Jason M. Reynolds

  The Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) do not have standing to stop the removal of Confederate statutes at parks the City of Memphis had sold to Memphis Greenspace. Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle ordered Memphis Greenspace Inc. to maintain and preserve the statues of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest, President Jefferson Davis, and Captain J. Harvey Mathes until a contested case hearing is held with the Tennessee Historical Commission, The Tennessee Star reported in January 2018. Memphis Greenspace is the nonprofit owned by Shelby County Commissioner Val Turner who ‘bought‘ and removed the statues in a questionable transaction with the City of Memphis in December 2017, The Star said. The city sold the parks for only $1,000 each. The Sons of Confederate Veterans had filed for injunctive relief, according to the appeals court ruling. Prior to filing its complaint, the society filed a petition for declaratory relief with the Tennessee Historical Commission that sought a declaration on the applicability of the Tennessee Heritage Protection Act of 2016 (“THPA”) to two parks and related monuments In the present action, the historical-preservation society requested a temporary injunction under the THPA to preserve the parks and monuments…

Read the full story

Commentary: Death and the Democrats

Admin

by Sebastian Gorka   Our nation is unique. Most every other nation was established in a capricious fashion. Whether defined by an ethnicity, a linguistic community, or the happenstance of being ruled by a royal dynastic elite, other countries were not the result of their people appealing to first principles, of building a political structure from scratch based upon the lessons of prior centuries. Ours is different. Yes, our Republic was born out of war, as has been the case with so many others over the centuries. But our Revolutionary War wasn’t simply waged over a brute demand for self-determination. The catalyst for the fight that would result in our being an independent nation-state was the grievous transgressions of a monarch who our Founding Fathers saw as acting in direct contravention to objective and universal truths. After our unlikely victory against what was then the most powerful empire the world had ever seen, our forefathers enshrined those truths into our founding documents. And the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution have served not only to codify those principles as the foundation of our political system for at least 11 generations, they have become a beacon for hundreds of millions of…

Read the full story

Southern Border Arrests Soar, Officials Declare a ‘Full-Blown Emergency’

Admin

by Fred Lucas   The surge of illegal immigrants coming across the southern border in May increased by about one-third from a month before. The Central American migration boom that has been overwhelming Border Patrol agents for almost a year, but they took 144,278 illegal border crossers were apprehended according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “This latest number demonstrates that we are in an absolute crisis when it comes to the security of our border; we are being overwhelmed by a flood of illegal aliens and it really is a national emergency as the president has said,” Hans von Spakovsky, a senior legal fellow at The Heritage Foundation, told The Daily Signal. “It is imperative that Congress act to give the president the resources he needs to regain control of our border and to close the loopholes in federal immigration law that are helping spur this problem,” von Spakovsky added. CBP continues to face a worsening crisis at the Southwest border. In May, CBP apprehended or deemed inadmissible 144,278 individuals along the SWB—a 32% increase over the previous month. Details here: https://t.co/ru9AsalgPb pic.twitter.com/p8kcr5lZ7Y — CBP (@CBP) June 5, 2019 May’s number is a 32 percent increase from April, the…

Read the full story

Live from Normandy, Mark Green Joins the Tennessee Star Report in Remembrance of D-Day

Julie Carr

  During a specific interview discussion Thursday morning on The 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 spoke to Congressman Mark Green live from Normandy to discuss the tone in France and how it was important to remember what price is paid for our freedom in America. Gill: One of our good friends Congressman Mark Green is in Normandy. Actually commanded troupes at Sainte Mere Eglise where the 82nd Airborne parachuted in to start fighting the Germans. And he’s at Normandy right now giving us an on the spot report right now. Mark good to have you with us. Green: Thanks Steve how are you? Thanks for having me on the show. Gill: As we’re watching some of these images this morning on Fox the potency of this day comes through the TV screen. It must be even more intense to be there. Green: Yeah I really hope that the case for the folks back home because I couldn’t help cry a little bit. You know when you think of the incredible bravery and the sacrifice and…

Read the full story

Border Patrol Reports a Surge of Africans Trying to Illegally Cross the Border

Admin

by Jason Hopkins   Border Patrol is reporting “a dramatic rise” in the number of African migrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in recent days. Border Patrol agents have apprehended over 500 individuals from the continent of Africa in the Del Rio Sector since May 30, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The migrants — most of them family units from Congo, Angola and Cameroon — are increasingly found trying to cross the Rio Grande River, exacerbating an immigration crisis primarily driven by Central Americans. “The introduction of this new population places additional burdens on processing stations, to include language and cultural differences,” Del Rio Sector Chief Patrol Agent Raul L. Ortiz said in a CBP press statement Wednesday. “Our agents continue to meet each new challenge as the ongoing humanitarian crisis evolves.” Agents at the Del Rio Sector, a stretch of border between Texas and Mexico, apprehended their first large group of African migrants on May 30, nabbing 116 Africans crossing the Rio Grande together. A group of migrants is considered “large” if it’s made up of 100 or more persons. U.S. Border Patrol agents assigned to Del Rio Sector apprehended a large group of 116 individuals—from…

Read the full story

Steve Gill Chats with Living Legend Larry Gatlin

Julie Carr

  In an interview on The Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast Wednesday on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – Steve Gill spoke to Larry Gatlin of the Gatlin Brothers about his show this week at City Winery during the CMA Fest. Towards the end of the segment, the men discussed how the music business has changed and that you can’t just have a few good songs on an album due to music downloading. They agreed that there was more pressure on artists today that every song becomes a single. Gill: Larry is up and Adam and with us. Larry good to have you with us on the Tennessee Star Report. Gatlin: Well I’m doing this in my sleep so I’m still sleeping in too. Hi guys. Gill: Good, good to have you with us. Man big week the CMA Fest underway you guys are going to be performing at the City Winery tomorrow night. And then doing the Opry this weekend. Its one of those times when you guys are always on the road, everybody else is always on the road. These are the times…

Read the full story

Booker Says The Hyde Amendment Is ‘an Assault on African-American Women’

Admin

by Mary Margaret Olohan   Democratic New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker said Thursday that the Hyde Amendment is an “assault on African American women.” The Democratic 2020 presidential hopeful spoke at the Democratic National Committee African-American Leadership Summit in Atlanta, Georgia against the Hyde Amendment, which bans the use of federal funding for abortions except in cases of rape, incest or if the mother’s life is in danger. Left-wing activists claim the amendment disproportionately affects low-income women and women of color. “This assault on women’s reproductive rights is an assault on women, but it’s particularly an assault on African-American women,” Booker said, according to a tweet from CNN’s DJ Judd. “And the Hyde Amendment, to deny people through Medicaid and Medicare abortion rights, that is an assault on African American women too.” Speaking at the DNC African American Leadership Summit in Atlanta, Senator Cory Booker calls the Hyde Amendment “an assault on African American women.” Booker goes on to pledge to “create in the White House an office of reproductive rights.” pic.twitter.com/PtXy0sr0fX — DJ Judd (@DJJudd) June 6, 2019 Booker also tweeted his support of the amendment on Wednesday. “The Hyde Amendment is a threat to reproductive rights that punishes…

Read the full story

US Productivity Grew at Solid 3.4% Rate in First Quarter

Admin

  U.S. productivity grew at a strong 3.4% rate in the January-March quarter, the best showing in more than four years, the Labor Department reported Thursday. It was an encouraging sign that productivity may finally be improving after a long stretch of weakness. The first quarter gain was more than double the 1.3% increase in the fourth quarter, although it was slightly lower than an initial estimate of 3.6% made a month ago. Labor costs fell during the first quarter, declining by 1.6% following a 0.4% drop in the fourth quarter. Productivity, the amount of output per hour of work, is a key factor determining an economy’s growth potential. If the current rebound continues, it would provide support for President Donald Trump’s efforts to achieve sustained 3% growth rates. The slight downward revision in productivity reflected the fact that overall output, as measured by gross domestic product, was revised down from an initial estimate of 3.2% growth to 3.1% growth in the first quarter. The 3.4% advance in productivity was the strongest increase since a 3.7% rise in the third quarter of 2014. Productivity has risen 2.4% over the past four quarters, the best performance since a 2.7% four-quarter gain…

Read the full story

Trump Administration Ends Contract Supplying Fetal Tissue for Research

Admin

by Rachel del Guidice   The Trump administration has ended the government’s contract with a bioscience company that provided human fetal tissue from elective abortions for testing purposes. The Food and Drug Administration no longer will obtain the fetal tissue from California-based Advanced Bioscience Resources Inc., the Department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday. The statement announcing the change said HHS was not satisfied with the results of a review it conducted to make sure that the procurements were in keeping with government regulations and with ethical and moral concerns. “The Trump administration has rightfully taken action to separate federal research funding from the abortion industry,” Melanie Israel, a research associate at the DeVos Center for Religion and Civil Society at The Heritage Foundation, said in a written statement. At the time the review began, HHS had a contract with the University of California, San Francisco to conduct fetal tissue research and had been reauthorizing the contract with 90-day extensions. “The audit and review helped inform the policy process that led to the administration’s decision to let the contract with UCSF expire and to discontinue intramural research– research conducted within the National Institutes of Health (NIH)–involving the use of…

Read the full story

Commentary: Is the Federal Reserve Trying to Cause a Recession before 2020?

Admin

by Robert Romano   Did anyone notice the Fed inverted the yield curve? On May 23, the 10-year Treasury dipped below the federal funds rate, the benchmark interest rate set by the Federal Reserve that it currently has set for a range of 2.25 percent to 2.5 percent, and has stayed there since. As of June 4, the effective federal funds rate was 2.38 percent, while the 10-year is at 2.13 percent. There were also brief inversions on March 28 and May 15, but they immediately came back into positive territory. Unlike other inverted interest rates, which often foretell a recession in not so distant future, this is one the central bank actually has control over since it sets its own rate. But, there’s no need to panic. The last time those two rates briefly inverted and then stayed inverted, beginning in late March 2006, a recession did not follow until December 2007. It took 21 months. Sometimes it takes even longer than that. The time before that, the two rates briefly inverted in Sept. 1995, but the next recession did not begin until March 2001, almost six years. Another brief inversion occurred in Dec. 1985, but the next recession…

Read the full story

Trump: ‘Not Nearly Enough’ Progress in US-Mexico Migrant Talks

Admin

  WASHINGTON — The United States and Mexico hold more talks Thursday about migrant policy as a U.S. deadline looms for Mexico to take more action to control the number of people reaching the border or face tariffs on Mexican goods sent to the U.S. market. If no agreement is reached, U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to apply the 5% tariff beginning Monday, with monthly escalations up to as much as 25% by October. “Progress is being made, but not nearly enough!” he tweeted late Wednesday. “The higher the Tariffs go, the higher the number of companies that will move back to the USA!” He added Thursday in comments to reporters, “We’ve told Mexico the tariffs go on, and I mean it too.” Mexican Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, who has led a delegation of negotiators in Washington this week, said after talks ended Wednesday that he remains optimistic the two sides will work out a deal. “What we want to avoid is the impact of the tariffs for the two economies, for the consumers, for the people of both countries,” he told reporters. He said both countries have been able to lay out their positions and that the dialogue…

Read the full story

Report: Mexico Is Offering Major Concessions to Avoid Trump Tariffs

Admin

by Jason Hopkins   The Mexican government is reportedly offering a slate of immigration-related concessions to appease the Trump administration as it seeks to prevent the imposition of tariffs on exports to the U.S. Mexican negotiators are offering to deploy thousands of National Guard troops to its border with Guatemala and enact sweeping changes to its asylum laws, moves that are expected to prevent a significant number of Central Americans from illegally entering the U.S., The Washington Post reported Thursday. President Donald Trump set a June 10 deadline for the Mexican government to demonstrate it would do more to stem illegal immigration from its country, or else face a 5% tariff on all its goods. The threat sparked immediate negotiations between U.S. and Mexican delegations in Washington, D.C. — which are expected to continue for the rest of the week. Mexico, according to two officials who spoke with The Post, agreed to send up to 6,000 National Guard troops to its southern border with Guatemala, a major chokepoint for Central American migrants in their northbound journey to the U.S. That move is expected to immediately yield results in squashing the number of illegal immigrants. Additionally, Mexican negotiators are prepared to…

Read the full story

Senators Blackburn, Blumenthal Sound Alarm Over Chinese Telecom Giant Huawei’s Role in National Defense Technology

Jason M. Reynolds

  U.S. Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) are expressing concerns about the inclusion of Huawei in the development of next-generation sharing technology in a band of spectrum critical to national defense. The senators wrote a letter on the topic Wednesday to Patrick Shanahan, Acting Secretary of the Department of Defense, and Ajit Pai, Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. The letter was also signed by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME), John Cornyn (R-TX), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Edward Markey (D-MA) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK). “For years, alarm bells have been ringing over concerns about Huawei, especially in regards to national security and economic competitiveness,” Blackburn said in a press release. “Yet, as far back as 2016, and as recently as 2018, representatives from Huawei have been meeting with government officials regarding their work to develop next-generation spectrum sharing technologies between the United States Navy and the commercial sector. Spectrum sharing is a solution to spectrum management, but serious questions need to be answered regarding Huawei’s involvement.” Blackburn also tweeted her concerns, saying, “Alarm bells are ringing about Huawei – especially in regards to national security & economic competitiveness. That’s why @SenBlumenthal & I wrote a letter to @ActingSecDef…

Read the full story

Republican Star John James Announces Senate Run on D-Day

Anthony Gockowski

  Veteran John James, one of Michigan’s rising Republicans stars, announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate Thursday morning, the 75th anniversary of D-Day. “I would like to announce that I am running for U.S. Senate after careful deliberation and thoughtful prayer,” James said during an appearance on “Fox & Friends.” “I believe that the time, again, is to serve,” James continued. “I understand what we need to do because I have experience as a business leader, as a job creator—how to protect our economy from socialism, how to bring people together and unite people to make sure that we can defeat the evils that face us today.” James, who lost to incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) in 2018 by seven points, will challenge first-term Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) in 2020. “I’m focused on continuing to deliver results for Michigan,” Peters said in a statement provided to Fox News. “I’ll keep working with anyone to improve life for Michiganders, whether it’s to expand training programs so everyone has the skills needed to find good-paying jobs, protect our Great Lakes or lower the cost of health care and prescription drugs.” President Donald Trump endorsed James during his 2018 bid and called…

Read the full story

No Protesters at Ohio’s Drag 101 Event Despite Library’s Claim it Received ‘Threats’

Beth Lear

  Dozens of supporters stood outside Secret Identity Comics in Delaware, Ohio Wednesday to welcome the controversial “Drag 101″ class, which was canceled by the Delaware County Library. Originally scheduled for Wednesday, June 5 at the Delaware County Library’s Orange Branch, the class was moved to Secret Identity Comics and funded by an anonymous donor. It took place on the same day and time as originally planned. Kyle Gale, who performs on-stage as “Selena T. West,” appeared in full costume as he was greeted by dozens of supporters. There were no signs of protesters, despite the fact that the library canceled the event on the grounds that it had received “threats.” There was a significant law enforcement presence nearby, and several Delaware City Police cars were seen at Frank B. Willis Intermediate School, less than a block from the event. Additional officers rode by the crowd multiple times on bicycles. Delaware City Police Sergeant Adam Willauer told The Ohio Star there was no trouble or protesters present. “No one has filed any reports about threats,” he said. “We were there because whenever a large crowd is expected, we want to be present for safety.” Speaking on camera with WCMH reporters, Gayle responded to…

Read the full story

Ilhan Omar Filed Joint Tax Returns with Man She Wasn’t Married to, Media Ignores Bombshell

Zachery Schmidt

  An investigation by Minnesota’s Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board into Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) found she violated campaign finance laws dating back to when she served a single term in the State House of Representatives from 2016-2018. But conservative Twitter quickly uncovered a more shocking detail in the report: she filed joint tax returns with a man she wasn’t married to. The report states that Omar filed joint tax returns in 2014 and 2015 with Ahmed Hirsi, even though she was married to Ahmed Nur Said Elmi from 2009-2017. “One payment of $750 was made to De Leon & Nestor, LLC for obtaining immigration records and one payment of $1,500 was made to Frederick $ Rosen, Ltd. for services related to Mr. Hirsi’s and Rep. Omar’s filed joint tax returns of 2014 and 2015,” Thursday’s report states. The Star Tribune, Minnesota’s most popular media outlet, picked up the story, but made no mention of the fact that Omar filed joint tax returns with Hirsi. “Media has hid the truth about Ilhan Omar for three years. It’s about to ruin them all,” said PJ Media‘s David Steinberg, who explained the bombshell in a Twitter thread Thursday. BREAKING — Important Ilhan…

Read the full story

Mark Green of Tennessee Visits Normandy for D-Day, Remembers the Cost of Freedom

Chris Butler

  U.S. Rep. Mark Green of Tennessee’s Seventh Congressional District was in Normandy this week to observe the 75th anniversary of D-Day. While there, Green also mingled with some of the surviving men who participated in that historic event. He also took time to reflect upon why we must never forget that day. Green shared some of his observations by phone from France on Thursday’s edition of The Tennessee Star Report. Green told radio hosts Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy that the D-Day soldiers he’s met this week “are harder than Superman’s kneecap.” “They are just tough guys. I got to talk with a bunch of them this morning. I went in and heard their stories. Fascinating. Chills up and down my spine since early this morning,” Green said. “The guys who came home with a flag over their coffin, they are the heroes, and they are the ones that we must never every forget.” Another takeaway from Green’s trip — the cost of freedom. “I think the thing most important is to remember the price that freedom cost us and to always remember we have to be ever vigilant to any encroachments in freedom,” Green said on Thursday’s program.…

Read the full story