Day: April 14, 2020

Mark Green Describes Plan to Bring American Companies Back from China

Chris Butler

U.S. Rep. Mark Green (R-TN-07) said Monday he has sent a letter to Congressional leadership urging them to include incentives for American companies to move back from China.

Specifically, Green said in the letter that members of Congress should do this through any upcoming legislation they might consider while fighting COVID-19.

“Prior to the coronavirus outbreak, many American companies had moved their operations to the People’s Republic of China (PRC), lured by incentives like lower costs and an abundance of cheap labor. However, over the past three years, the Trump Administration and U.S. Congress have gone to great lengths to make the United States the best place in the world to do business. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act slashed taxes, the President’s energy agenda has led to cheaper utilities, and right-to-work laws have made many states more attractive,” Green said in the letter.

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Carol Swain Commentary: Ditching Rep. DeBerry Shows the True Colors of the Tennessee Democratic Party

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Tennessee State Rep. John DeBerry, a black Shelby County Democrat, is an independent thinker, which at the moment makes him Public Enemy No. 1 in the eyes of the state’s Democratic Party.

Earlier this month, with most Americans distracted by the media’s nonstop coronavirus coverage, Janeita Lentz, another Shelby County Democrat and co-chair of the Memphis-Mid South Democratic Socialists of America, advanced a racist, cultist agenda. Her mission: to oust a black Democratic incumbent deemed too uppity for the Tennessee Democratic Party (TNDP) and its white overseers.

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Senators Ask State Department to Monitor Free Speech Violations Concerning Coronavirus in China, Other Countries

Jordyn Pair

Several senators across the United States have called on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the U.S. Representative to the United Nations Kelly Craft to address concerns about free speech violations in several countries around the world.

Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Kelly Loeffler (R-GA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) submitted the letter on Monday, pointing to crackdown on free speech concerning the coronavirus in China, as well as in Turkey, Bangladesh, Niger and Cambodia, as a reason for concern.

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Americans Overwhelmingly Favor a Pause on Immigration During Coronavirus Pandemic

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A vast majority of Americans – 8 in 10 – now favor dramatic restrictions on immigration amid the coronavirus pandemic, a new survey has found.

American attitudes about the coronavirus and its impact on our way of life has changed dramatically over the course of one month, a USA Today/ Ipsos poll discovered. The survey had asked voters questions about their feelings on the coronavirus March, when the virus first began spreading through the U.S., and then posed the same questions roughly one month later.

With more than 95% of the country under lockdown orders, millions filing for unemployment benefits, and more than 22,000 deaths from the virus, the U.S. population is, by leaps and bounds, more willing to implement strong measures to combat the pandemic.

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House Republicans Request Hearing on ‘Potentially Flawed’ Coronavirus Modeling Platforms

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A group of House Republicans led by Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX-21) are calling for a review of the “modeling platforms” the government has been using to make projections on the impacts of the coronavirus during the pandemic.

In a letter to House Oversight Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY-12), the Republicans urged her to schedule a “formal hearing” to review the “conflicting data” that led to draconian decisions like the stay-at-home orders across the country.

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Clint Brewer: The Tennessee Democratic Party Needs to Take a Look at Who Represents Them in Response to DeBerry Coup

Julie Carr

At the top of the second hour on Monday’s Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy, all star panelist Clint Brewer weighed in on the recent coup against Memphis State Representative John DeBerry and commented that he finds the whole situation to be very troubling. He further went on to express his concern stating that we may have reached a point in this country where you could be removed from your party because you are working across the aisle with other legislators.

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Commentary: Wisdom In a Time of Botched Models, Bad Advice, and Deadly Illness

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President Trump with Drs. Fauci and Birx

The virus will teach us many things, but one lesson has already been relearned by the American people: there are two, quite different, types of wisdom.

One, and the most renowned, is a specialization in education that results in titled degrees and presumed authority. That ensuing prestige, in turn, dictates the decisions of most politicians, the media, and public officials – who for the most part share the values and confidence of the credentialed elite.

The other wisdom is not, as commonly caricatured, know-nothingism. Indeed, Americans have always believed in self-improvement and the advantages of higher education, a trust that explained broad public 19th-century support for mandatory elementary and secondary schooling and, during the postwar era, the G.I. Bill.

But the other wisdom also puts a much higher premium on pragmatism and experience, values instilled by fighting nature daily and mixing it up with those who must master the physical world.

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‘Never Trumper’ Historian Jon Meacham Continues His Sour Patterns of Predictable Thought

Julie Carr

During the second hour of Monday’s Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy, all star panelist Crom Carmichael discussed historian Jon Meacham’s recent comments on Meet the Press where he again referenced Trump as being a monarchical ruler. Carmichael observed Meacham as a person filled with contempt and arrogance as he continues his repetitive anti-Trump narrative. He added that he thought Meacham would never speak with those who disagree with him and that for someone so intelligent, he lacks adding anything new to the conversation.

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Cuomo: Coalition of Six Northeast States Set to Announce Regional Reopening Plan

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday morning that he feels “the worst is over” when it comes to the ongoing coronavirus crisis that has enveloped his state and the nation, and he suggested that a coalition of six Northeast states would be making a joint announcement at 2 p.m. on plans to reopen the economy in the weeks and months to come.

Speaking at his daily briefing on the pandemic, Cuomo said he had been in contact with the governors of Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Rhode Island about a regional approach to returning to normalcy.

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Crom Carmichael: Washington Journalists Ask Questions of the President of Which They Know Nothing About

Julie Carr

On Monday’s Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy, all star panelist Crom Carmichael commented on how he saw Washington journalists asking questions of the President that they themselves know nothing about. Towards the end of the show, he speculated how we would see Joe Biden as merely a prop and, if elected, would have his presidential decisions made by others with criminal intent.

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Wisconsin’s Largest Business Group Wants a Re-Opening Plan

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Wisconsin’s largest business group is asking Gov. Tony Evers for a plan to reopen the state. 

Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce sent a letter to the governor asking him what comes next after his Safer at Home order ends April 24.

“To be clear, no one expects that our economy would go back to ‘business as usual’ on April 24,” WMC’s letter said. “We understand that reopening will require a very strategic and well-planned approach that, over time, phases our economy back to an operational level that existed prior to any social distancing requirements.”

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Commentary: It Took 50 States to Get to a National Lockdown and It Will Take 50 States to Open it Back Up Again

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In order to combat the Chinese coronavirus and to save as many lives as possible, 42 states have issued stay at home orders, and another three have some parts of their states closed, in order to combat the Chinese coronavirus. All 50 states have schools closed. In addition, with the national emergency declared by President Donald Trump, including the overseas travel bans to China and Europe, social distancing, private sector testing and treatments being authorized on an emergency basis, the White House coronavirus task force has credited these closures in part with helping to slowing the total number of cases, which in turn has, according to the models touted by the medical community, already saved hundreds of thousands of lives.

Countries all over the world have resorted to similar national lockdowns in order to win the war on the virus. The unfortunate side effect of the closures is the U.S. and global economies have effectively been shut down except for essential services, resulting in exceptionally high levels of unemployment. In the U.S., anywhere from 17 million to 20 million jobs have already been lost, with many more to come for every week the economy remains closed.

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Ocasio-Cortez Says She Has Never Spoken to Biden, Nor Has He Asked for Her Support

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said she’s never met former Vice President Joe Biden, nor has the Democratic presidential frontrunner’s campaign reached out to the New York lawmaker for advice.

A Biden-Ocasio-Cortez rally could happen in the future, but there is a lot of fence-mending that needs to happen before such an event transpires, Ocasio-Cortez said in a New York Times interview published Monday. The progressive lawmaker intends to pressure Biden on several issues.

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Gov. Bill Lee Describes Encouraging Signs with Tennessee’s COVID-19 Situation

Chris Butler

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said Monday that Tennessee had exactly 5,610 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and that 109 state residents had died after contracting the virus.

But Lee also said exactly 1,671 Tennesseans had recovered from the illness.

At a press conference Monday, Lee said there were reasons for optimism — but he still preached caution.

“It is encouraging as Tennessee has now had more than 10 days of single digit percentage case growth,” Lee said.

“Our aggressive testing of more than 76,195 tests has uncovered an average positivity rate between 6 percent to 8 percent consistently. Our hospitalization rate continues to be stable with 579 hospitalizations to date.”

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‘You’re Getting a Paycheck, We’re Not,’ Protestors Say of DeWine, Acton

Jason M. Reynolds

Approximately 150 people gathered outside the State Capitol in Columbus Monday to tell Gov. Mike DeWIne and Health Department Director Amy Action that it’s past time to reopen the state.

Tom Zawistowski, president of Ohio Tea Party group We the People Convention, estimated the attendance, in an interview with The Ohio Star. This was the second such protest since last Thursday.

Many of the protestors called out, “You’re getting a paycheck, we’re not,” Zawistowski said.

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Michigan Becomes First State to Offer Emergency Food Assistance for Students Through EBT

Jordyn Pair

Michigan has become the first state to gain federal approval for a program that helps families feed students who were previously relying on schools for meals.

Through the Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer Program, food assistance benefits will be given to students ages 5 to 18 who would normally be eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.

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Amash to Whitmer: ‘Immediately Reassess’ Restrictive Order; Other Resistance Grows

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U.S. Rep. Justin Amash says Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s recent executive order “goes too far and will erode confidence in her leadership.”

The libertarian is referencing Whitmer’s extended and expanded executive order that banned Michiganders from traveling to a second residence inside the state through April 30, operating a motorized boat and buying furniture, paint and plants from stores larger than 50,000 square feet.

That includes the “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” pillows in one Lansing Walmart.

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An American Instinct for Civil Society Powers an Ohio Assisted Living Facility

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Amy Lynn Twyman Smith is the executive director of an assisted living network in Newark, Ohio. Her father died when she was 10 years old. Growing up, she was close with her father’s mother, who eventually developed Alzheimer’s disease. Amy saw first-hand just how important quality care was for her grandmother and her family. Her connection with her grandmother cultivated a passion in Amy that led her to work in assisted living for the entirety of her career.

“It can be hard on families,” she expressed. “I want our care to be the most wonderful experience anyone could have. And especially for our residents, I want every day to be wonderful, as if it was their last.”

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Whitmer Receives Backlash From Amash, Others Over New Order

Jordyn Pair

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has received backlash from politicians and citizens alike after she extended and added to the “Stay Home, Stay Safe order” that requires Michigan residents to stay at home.

Whitmer extended the order to the end of April. In addition to banning “nonessential” businesses and asking residents to stay at home, the new order also places restrictions on stores, blocks the sale of certain items and prohibits travel between two residences in the state.

The order restricts stores that are more than 50,000 square feet from selling items related to carpet or flooring, furniture and paint, as well as garden centers. It also bans travels between two Michigan residences except for activities that are considered essential, such as caring for a family member or to fulfill custody agreements.

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DeWine: No Flip of the Switch Will Restore Ohio to Pre-COVID Conditions

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Returning Ohio to normal following the COVID-19 outbreak will take some time, Gov. Mike DeWine said, even as it appears Ohio’s economy hasn’t yet seen the full impact of the pandemic.

 It’s “not going to happen overnight. That’s not going to happen … like flipping a switch, and everything’s going to be back to normal,” DeWine said. “I wish I could do that. I wish the reality of life was that,” he said.

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Republican Lawmakers Grow Restless, Call for DeWine to Reopen Ohio

Jason M. Reynolds

Some Ohio Republican lawmakers are calling for Gov. Mike DeWine to reopen the state.

The governor said Friday he would create a plan to gradually reopen the state, The Plain-Dealer said.

House Speaker Larry Householder convened a task force that will study how to reopen the economy. State Rep. Paul Zeltwanger (R-OH-54) said Ohio needs to plan for controlling the disease for when segments of the economy reopen. He pointed out that some question whether 253 deaths as of Sunday justify the closures.

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Minnesota Republicans Introduce Bill to End Peacetime Emergency, Return Power to Legislature

Anthony Gockowski

Minnesota House Republicans introduced a resolution Monday that would end Gov. Tim Walz’s peacetime emergency declaration and restore power in responding to the pandemic to the State Legislature.

The resolution was introduced shortly after Walz announced that he has extended the state’s peacetime emergency for 30 days, which allows the governor to act unilaterally in adopting “necessary orders and rules.”

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