Day: June 24, 2019

Report: Northeast Cities the Most ‘Post-Christian’ in the Country While Tennessee’s Knoxville Appears in Top 100, Barely

Anthony Gockowski

  Cities in eight states from Maine to Massachusetts topped a list of the “Most Post-Christian Cities in America,” a new study released this month found. The Northeast region stands in stark contrast to the sole Tennessee city of Knoxville who barely cracked the top 100 – coming in at #99. The study, conducted by Barna research, is part of an ongoing survey of Americans based on a random sample of 21,378 adults conducted over a ten-year period. To be identified as post-Christian, an individual had to meet nine or more of the following factors: – Do not believe in God – Identify as atheist or agnostic – Disagree that faith is important in their lives – Have not prayed to God (in the last week) – Have never made a commitment to Jesus – Disagree the Bible is accurate – Have not donated money to a church (in the last year) – Have not attended a Christian church (in the last 6 months) – Agree that Jesus committed sins – Do not feel a responsibility to “share their faith” – Have not read the Bible (in the last week) – Have not volunteered at church (in the last week)…

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Commentary: Representative Chip Roy Takes a Stand to Force Congress to Actually Vote, Much to the Chagrin of Democrats

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by Rachel Bovard   People often question whether it’s still true that one man can make a difference in the modern Congress. This week, Representative Chip Roy (R-Texas) proved that it is. Fed up with the House passing legislation on autopilot (that is, passing amendments and bills “unanimously” without recorded votes and no one in the chamber) and outraged that House Democrats have been blocking the Trump Administration’s request for border funding, Roy used the power he has as a member of Congress to force his will on the body: he objected. Roy objected to unanimously passing amendments, to unanimously agreeing to procedural motions, and even to continuing House business altogether. He objected more than 100 times, forcing the House to take recorded votes on amendments as it processed spending bills that totaled well over $1 trillion. Roy and his colleagues lined up on the House floor demanding that these spending bills include money to address both the security and humanitarian elements of the ongoing crisis at the border. Predictably, they suffered the slings and arrows of their colleagues, many of whom had never taken this many roll call votes in a row. “Wow, who is this a—hole making me stay…

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Yet Another Alabama Resident Charged with TennCare Fraud

Chris Butler

  Tennessee officials have charged yet another Alabama resident with TennCare fraud, according to a press release from the Tennessee Department of Finance and Administration’s website. This, even though only Tennessee residents are eligible for the TennCare program. Tennessee officials said they arrested Ladreamer Garrett, 27, of Bridgeport, Ala. and charged her with TennCare fraud and theft of services. Authorities said Garrett allegedly applied for and received TennCare benefits for herself and her minor child by fraudulently reporting her residency to appear eligible for TennCare. “Authorities say records show that a month before applying for TennCare, she signed a lease for her residence in Bridgeport, Alabama, where she and her child continue to live,” according to the press release. The Office of Inspector General, with the assistance of the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, announced the arrest. District Attorney General J. Michael Taylor is prosecuting.  TennCare fraud is a Class D felony punishable by up to four years in prison per charge. “Lying about one’s residence in order to receive TennCare benefits is a crime,” Inspector General Kim Harmon said in the press release. “We work diligently to preserve TennCare benefits for its intentional use.  We welcome information of anyone abusing the system.” As…

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Trump Approved Cyberattacks Against Iran After He Backed Off a Military Assault

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by Chris White   President Donald Trump approved a series of cyberattacks targeting the systems Iran uses to launch missiles, Yahoo reported. Personnel with U.S. Cyber Command launched the attacks Thursday, the Friday report notes, citing sources within the administration. The sources told reporters that the Pentagon proposed launching them after Iran’s alleged attacks on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman. “This operation imposes costs on the growing Iranian cyber threat, but also serves to defend the United States Navy and shipping operations in the Strait of Hormuz,” Thomas Bossert, a former senior White House cyber official in the Trump administration, told The Washington Post Saturday. The White House has not responded to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment about the nature of the attack. The Pentagon also declined to comment, citing policies preventing the Department of Defense from discussing ongoing cyberspace operations. Thursday’s strikes targeting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps represents the first use of force since Cyber Command first stepped up its actions ahead of a belligerent Iran. Cyber Command used new actions that the president granted it that allow the agency to streamline approval for such measures. The Department of Homeland Security issued a warning Saturday that Iran…

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Commentary: We Need a Higher Education Reformation

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by Emina Melonic   American higher education, once the envy of the world, is suffering a crisis of confidence and a loss of purpose. “Once upon a time, universities were institutions dedicated to the pursuit of truth and the transmission of the highest values of our civilization,” writes New Criterion editor and publisher Roger Kimball. “Today, most are dedicated to the destruction of those values. It is past time to call them to account.” What would accountability look like? The distinguished British philosopher Roger Scruton, a conservative through and through, recently proposed a radical solution: “get rid of universities altogether.” Have these men taken leave of their senses? Not at all. Both have been keen observers for decades of the slow-motion catastrophe unfolding in academia. It may be we’ve reached a turning point. Behind most of the problems plaguing education is a noxious identity politics. This is particularly true in the humanities because these subjects easily lend themselves to manipulative interpretation and reshaping by those with an ideological agenda. Take a piece of classical literature, such as Homer’s The Iliad, slap a theory on the text, and bingo, you have just rid yourself of the chore of trying to understand this magnificent piece of dramatic poetry…

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Memphis EDGE Reportedly Gives Corporate Welfare to AutoZone

Chris Butler

  Memphis’ Economic Development Growth Engine has reportedly bestowed a generous amount of corporate welfare upon Auto Zone’s headquarters. This, according to The Daily Memphian, which reported the auto parts retailer will receive a 15-year payment-in-lieu of-taxes (PILOT) incentive, via EDGE. The paper also reported the company will expand its downtown Memphis presence. “The PILOT will save AutoZone $11.2 million and generate $14 million in local taxes over the 15-year term,” according to The Daily Memphian. “The property tax abatement is to incentivize the company to choose Memphis for an investment of $145 million in new technology and customer support operations that will create 130 new jobs with an average base salary of $80,439.” The paper reported the company will house new operations about a block north of AutoZone’s main headquarters building at the 100th block of South Front Street. AutoZone bought the property for $2.2 million in May 2018, according to The Daily Memphian. EDGE board members Tom Dyer and Johnny Moore recused themselves from the vote because their companies do business with AutoZone. As The Tennessee Star reported, EDGE is an unelected board of 11 people who have enough power to grant millions of dollars in tax abatements to corporations. As The…

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Senator Tom Cotton Fires Back at Fellow Senator Chuck Schumer: ‘Democrats Have A Radical, Open-Borders Position’

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by Jason Hopkins   Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton had a response of his own after Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused the president of threatening to “tear families apart” with his upcoming illegal immigration raids. “When things aren’t going well, [President Donald Trump] plays to his base. Instead of putting forth solutions to fix our broken immigration system, instead of pursuing criminals, he threatens to tear families apart,” Schumer tweeted Friday. “This isn’t leadership. This is inhumane & unwise.” When things aren’t going well, @realDonaldTrump plays to his base Instead of putting forth solutions to fix our broken immigration system, instead of pursuing criminals, he threatens to tear families apart This isn’t leadershipThis is inhumane & unwisehttps://t.co/WZgtUsF6Ub — Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) June 22, 2019 The New York Democrat’s tweet linked to an article about Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) plan to apprehend over 2,000 illegal aliens across the country Sunday, the first day of the Trump administration’s directive to execute mass deportations of foreign national living in the country illegally. Cotton responded to Schumer, pointing out a detail the minority leader left out about the upcoming raids. “[Schumer] conveniently omits that these illegal aliens’ cases have been heard & rejected, hence they’re under valid…

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Analysis: EPA’s Repeal of the Clean Power Plan Falls Short by Allowing the ‘Carbon Endangerment Finding’ to Remain

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by Robert Romano   The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President Donald Trump has finally rescinded the Obama era Clean Power Plan that sought to end coal as a form of electricity and puts states in the driver’s seat in terms of regulating carbon emissions rates. But because Congress has left the 2009 carbon endangerment finding in place the probability is that carbon emissions will once again be regulated nationally as a harmful pollutant under the Clean Air Act as soon as Democrats are back in power. Per the EPA release on June 19, the Affordable Clean Energy rule “establishes emissions guidelines for states to use when developing plans to limit carbon dioxide (CO2) at their coal-fired power plants. Specifically, ACE identifies heat rate improvements as the best system of emission reduction (BSER) for CO2 from coal-fired power plants, and these improvements can be made at individual facilities. States will have 3 years to submit plans, which is in line with other planning timelines under the Clean Air Act.” The Clean Power Plan, initially proposed in 2014 and finalized in 2015, was designed to reduce carbon emissions by retrofitting existing coal power plants and making the costs of building new ones so onerous that it…

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Trump Settles Speculation About Mike Pence, and Whether He Wants a Third Term in Office

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by Chuck Ross   President Donald Trump said in an interview airing Sunday that he is “100%” certain Vice President Mike Pence will be his running mate in 2020, and he will accept the results of the election if he loses. “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd asked Trump about the two topics, which have been a source of recent speculation because of the president’s public remarks. Trump’s comments in an interview on “Fox & Friends” on June 14 led to speculation among some political observers and pundits that he is considering replacing Pence. Trump has also made off-hand remarks over the past several months about remaining in office beyond a second term, leading to speculation among some Trump critics that he might refuse to leave office if he loses in 2020. Trump shot down the idea in the interview with Todd. “I only joke,” Trump told Todd, adding moments later that “there won’t be a third term.” “You will accept the results?” Todd asked. “One hundred percent. Sure,” the president replied. Trump said at an event on April 18 that he may remain in office for another “10 or 14 years.” Trump wondered on Twitter on June 16 whether voters would “demand” that he stay in…

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Former Pennsylvania Rep. Joe Sestak Joins 2020 Presidential Race

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by Matt Miller   Former Rep. Joe Sestak announced his 2020 presidential bid Saturday on his campaign’s website, making him the 25th prominent Democrat to step into the race, NBC reported. Sestak, a former congressman and Navy admiral, said Saturday in the announcement that he wants “to be that president who serves the American people the way they deserve to be served.” Sestak, 67, explained the reason for his entry “later than others” into the race. “And while my announcement may be later than others for the honor of seeking the presidency, the decision to delay was so I would be there with Alex, our daughter, as the brain cancer she had courageously beaten at four years old returned this past year,” he said. “But with her same team of medical heroes, she has again overcome the single digit odds.” Former Pennsylvania Rep. Joe Sestak has announced that he is running for president, becoming the 24th Democrat to join the race. https://t.co/TIkpJ7euSi — Axios (@axios) June 23, 2019 Sestak says that military health care saved his daughter during her struggle with brain cancer, and now he feels accountable to the American people who financed his daughter’s health care through tax dollars. “I had…

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Hidden Clue On Website Belonging To Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Sister Adds To Evidence About Marriage History

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by Luke Rosiak   Rep. Ilhan Omar swore under oath in a 2017 divorce filing that she hadn’t seen her husband Ahmed N. Elmi in six years and didn’t know anyone who might be able to locate him — yet he appears to have designed a website for Omar’s sister this year, according to data hidden in the source code of that website. The Democratic Minnesota congresswoman swore that she had not been able to locate the man she married — who the Minneapolis Star Tribune says may or may not be her brother — since 2011. She swore she didn’t know the names of anyone in her husband’s family and that the two had no mutual acquaintances who might know how to contact him. According to Elmi’s Facebook profile, after attending college in North Dakota he moved to England and then to Nairobi, Kenya — the same city where Omar’s sister, Sahra Noor, lives and works as CEO of Grit Partners. Grit Partners’ website code contains data that indicates Elmi was involved in the creation of either the company’s website or its Instagram account. The ties between Omar’s supposedly long-lost ex-husband and Omar’s sister appear to contradict Omar’s sworn…

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Opioid Prescriptions Drop 15 Percent in Michigan

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by Tyler Arnold   Opioid prescriptions dropped 15 percent in 2018 from the previous year in Michigan, according to numbers released by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). The number of opioid prescriptions dropped from 9.7 million to 8.2 million in that timespan. “The decrease in dispensions could be attributed to a number of things such as prescribers weaning patients off of opioids or perhaps using treatment alternatives, to not prescribing the opioids due to the patient risk based on what the patient had been prescribed previously,” Matthew Erickson, public information officer for LARA, told The Center Square in an email. The increased awareness among doctors through the participation in the government-sponsored Michigan Automated Prescription System (MAPS) has significantly contributed to the decline of prescribing these drugs, according to Erickson. MAPS is a monitoring program that tracks controlled substances and helps prescribers and dispensers see potential risks in patients to prevent drug abuse. “MAPS has played a critical role in both combating the opioid epidemic here in Michigan and in ensuring patients who need prescription drugs have access to them,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said in a news release. “As leaders, we have a responsibility to help patients…

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Incoming Texas Freshmen Threatened with Doxxing if They Join Conservative Campus Groups

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by Jon Street   The Autonomous Student Network in Austin, Texas, a group that was previously suspended from Twitter after posting private information belonging to supporters of then-Supreme Court Justice nominee Brett Kavanaugh, is now threatening to do the same to incoming University of Texas-Austin freshmen who join conservative student organizations. “Hey #UT23! Do you wanna be famous? If you join YCT [Young Conservatives of Texas] or Turning Point USA, you just might be. Your name and more could end up on an article like one of these,” the group tweeted earlier in June, linking to a page on its website, on which it previously posted the private information, including emails and phone numbers, of Kavanaugh supporters. Hey #UT23! Do you wanna be famous? If you join YCT or Turning Point USA, you just might be. Your name and more could end up on an article like one of these 👇https://t.co/kJq6zJHwEGhttps://t.co/AGa4n2tHfC So be sure to make smart choices at #UTOrientation — ATX Autonomedia kolektiva.social/@ATX_Autonomedia/ (@Bevo1312) June 6, 2019 “So be sure to make smart choices at #UTOrientation,” the group added. A separate tweet read, “the best #LonghornStateOfMind is an antifascist one. If you begin to spot the young racists trying to join YCT or…

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Sumner County School Director Ridicules Citizens and County Commissioners Opposing Eminent Domain Land Grab for New School Campus

Laura Baigert

  At a Sumner County School Board meeting on June 18, one day after Sumner County citizens overflowed the County Commission chambers of the legislative body to criticize a plan for a new Sumner County school campus that requires a paved greenway and sewer line cutting through landowners’ properties by an act of eminent domain condemnation, Sumner County School Director Dr. Del Phillips ridiculed those citizens and County Commissioners supporting them. Phillips, who has held his Sumner County position since 2011, complained to the School Board members in attendance about the length of the June 17 County Commission meeting and the objections to his plan that may cause a delay in the new school campus opening. Dr. Phillips minimized the number and called attendees “really, really, really mad folks,” made reference to a County Commissioner being an  “armchair civil engineer” and “untrained,” said it was a “glorious discussion” and “it was a fun, fun, fun, fun time.” The property to be taken by eminent domain, if an easement agreement can’t otherwise be reached with the 19 landowners by the public utility, White House Utility District, will be for a sewer line to serve Sumner County Schools new 265-acre elementary-middle-high school campus…

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