Day: May 22, 2020

Carol Swain Commentary: Americans Should Reject Joe Biden’s Race-Baiting Tactics

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“You ain’t black if you don’t back me over Trump.” I cringed when Joe Biden, the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee, made this startling, demeaning statement about black Americans who dare think for themselves. His ugly, offensive remarks that I and other blacks who support President Trump are no longer black is a racist statement, period. It should be categorically rejected by all Americans.

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Tennessee Unemployment Rate More Than Quadrupled During COVID-19

Chris Butler

Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development officials revealed Thursday that the state’s unemployment rate was at its highest-ever, because of COVID-19, according to a TDLWD press release.

“The preliminary seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for April 2020 is 14.7 percent, which is an unprecedented spike of 11.4 percentage points when compared to March’s revised rate of 3.3 percent. This is Tennessee’s highest unemployment rate in a generation. Before the pandemic, the state’s all-time highest seasonally adjusted rate was 12.9 percent, which occurred in back to back months in December 1982 and January 1983,” according to the press release.

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FBI Offered to Pay Christopher Steele ‘Significantly’ to Dig up Dirt on Michael Flynn

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An FBI offer to pay former British spy Christopher Steele to collect intelligence on Michael Flynn in the weeks before the 2016 election has been one of the more overlooked revelations in a Justice Department inspector general’s report released in December.

The reference to the FBI proposal, which was made in an Oct. 3, 2016, meeting in an unidentified European city, has received virtually no press attention. But it might have new significance following the recent release of government documents that show that Steele peddled an unfounded rumor that Flynn had an extramarital affair with a Russian woman in the United Kingdom.

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Commentary: America’s Youth Experience a Great Awakening, Coronavirus-Style

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The Great Awakening.

History books tell us “The Great Awakening” was (according to Wikipedia), “The First Great Awakening (sometimes Great Awakening) or the Evangelical Revival was a series of Christian revivals that swept Britain and its Thirteen Colonies between the 1730s and 1740s. The revival movement permanently affected Protestantism as adherents strove to renew individual piety and religious devotion. The Great Awakening marked the emergence of Anglo-American evangelicalism as a trans-denominational movement within the Protestant churches. In the United States, the term Great Awakening is most often used, while in the United Kingdom, it is referred to as the Evangelical Revival.”

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Michigan AG Bans Trump for Not Wearing a Mask, Calls POTUS a ‘Petulant Child Who Refuses to Follow the Rules’

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Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said she is following through on a threat to keep President Donald Trump out of her state after he did not wear a face mask for part of a tour at a Michigan car plant.

The president is no longer welcome in Michigan, Nessel told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer on Thursday after saying earlier in the day on CNN that Trump would be asked “not to return” if he did not follow the state’s guidelines. Not following the guidelines on social distancing and mask wearing cannot be tolerated, she added.

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Carol Swain Describes Grassroots Movement to Stop the 32 Percent Property Tax Increase Proposal

Julie Carr

Live from Nashville, Tennessee Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.– Leahy was joined in studio by former Vanderbilt professor Dr. Carol Swain.

Towards the end of the second hour, Swain further describes elements of her recent meeting with Mayor John Cooper and notes that any Democrat mayor at this point in history is stifled by constituency groups and high levels of deep corruption. She advocated for listeners and citizens of Nashville to sign the petition for the Nashville Taxpayer Protection Act.

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Senate Confirms John Ratcliffe as Director of National Intelligence

Jordyn Pair

The Senate confirmed Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-TX-04) on Thursday as President Trump’s top intelligence official in a vote straight along party lines.

Ratcliffe became Trump’s second permanent Director of National Intelligence (DNI) in a 49-44 vote, with all Democrats opposed. The vote along party lines was the first since the position was created following the 9/11 attack as generally there are never more than a dozen senators voting against a confirmation for the position, according to CNN.

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House Democrats Urge Trump Admin to Stop Deportations, Release Immigrant Detainees

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House Democrats urged the Trump administration Wednesday to stop all deportation flights, arguing that these repatriations contribute to the spread of coronavirus in Latin America.

In a letter sent Wednesday, members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Homeland Security Acting Secretary Chad Wolf to discontinue deportation flights amid the coronavirus pandemic, and release illegal aliens currently in detention.

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Watchdog Repeatedly Warned About Nursing Home Infections Before Pandemic Struck

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Infection prevention and control deficiencies were widespread across most of the country’s nursing homes before the coronavirus outbreak, a watchdog group reported Thursday.

More than 82% of the United States’ 15,500 nursing homes were cited for infection prevention and control deficiencies between 2013 and 2017, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) wrote in a blog post Thursday.

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Governor Lee and Mayor Cooper Are ‘Depriving People of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness,’ Carol Swain Says

Julie Carr

Live from Music Row Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy was joined in the studio by former Vanderbilt professor and mayoral candidate Dr. Carol M. Swain.

At the top of the third hour, Swain discussed her disappointment in Mayor Cooper’s decision-making process by keeping Nashville shut down and acknowledging his lack of compassion. She added that it appears that his brother Jim Cooper may be the man behind Mayor Cooper pulling the strings and who’s first priority is satisfying the desires of national Democrats instead of Tennesseans.

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Carol Swain Sees Mayor Cooper as Being More Concerned About Optics Than the Lives of Davidson County Residents

Julie Carr

Former Vanderbilt professor Dr. Carol Swain joined host Leahy live in-studio on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m.

During the second hour, Swain reflected upon her recent meeting with Mayor John Cooper and a few other prominent citizens to discuss ways to cut city budget costs and eliminate the need for an immediate 32% property tax increase. She somberly expressed how Cooper seemed more concerned about optics than he did about the citizens of Davidson County.

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North Dakota Based Company Awarded Largest Border Wall Construction Contract Ever Given

Zachery Schmidt

  Federal officials gave Fisher Sand and Gravel a $1.28 billion deal to build 42 miles of the border wall along the southern border in Arizona, The Arizona Daily Star reported. This May 6 deal is the biggest contract ever given for border wall construction, according to CBS News. The wall will stretch between Nogales, Arizona and Tohono O’odham Nation’s eastern boundary, The Daily Star said. The per-mile cost of this project will be $30 million, which is more than normal due to the difficulties with the land contours of this 42-mile stretch. “While there may be similarities between projects, each project cost is contingent upon its unique characteristics, such as geotechnical, topographical, hydrological and hydraulic, underground utilities, final real estate access, and the cost of materials and labor,” Army Corps of Engineers spokesman Jay Field told The Daily Star.  Tommy Fisher, who runs the North Dakota-based company, successfully launched a campaign to get President Donald Trump and federal officials to award him the contract. Republican North Dakota Senator John Hoeven said in a statement, according to KFYRTV, “Fisher Industries is a large employer in North Dakota and we appreciate the contributions this company is making to strengthen our border…

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Dr. Manny Sethi’s ‘PPE in Tennessee’ Campaign Would Bring Manufacturing Jobs to Tennessee

Julie Carr

Live from Music Row Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – Leahy was joined on the newsmakers line by Tennessee Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Manny Sethi.

During the third hour, Sethi explained how he has been campaigning throughout Tennessee and witnessing people filled with anxiety about the coronavirus yet recognizing that we need to get back to work. Nearing the end of the segment he called for a second industrial revolution in his Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in Tennessee by which would bring back supply chains and medication manufacturing the state.

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Marsha Blackburn Urges Bill Barr to Investigate Planned Parenthood

Chris Butler

Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) joined Senator Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) in sending a letter on Thursday to Attorney General Bill Barr urging the Department of Justice to investigate Planned Parenthood.

Specifically, they asked Barr to investigate whether dozens of Planned Parenthood affiliates across the country fraudulently applied for and received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) despite knowing they were ineligible to apply.

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Republicans Criticize ‘Alarming’ Interpretation of Executive Authority in Letter to Walz and Ellison

Anthony Gockowski

The Senate Republican Caucus expressed concern over the governor’s “alarming” interpretation of executive authority in a letter sent this week to Gov. Tim Walz and Attorney General Keith Ellison.

“Your interpretation of the scope of the Governor’s authority under Minnesota Statutes, section 12.45, is incorrect and inconsistent with legislative intent and with a more measured reading of the law. Most importantly, it is an infringement on the Legislature’s fundamental and exclusive authority to define and prescribe the punishment for a crime,” states the letter.

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Ohio Sees Slight Decrease in Unemployment Numbers, More Than 1.2 Million People Have Filed Claims Over the Last Nine Weeks

Zachery Schmidt

  Ohio saw more than 46,000 people file for unemployment benefits last week, according to numbers released by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS). This marks the first time Ohio’s unemployment weekly claims have been under 50,000 when the coronavirus hit the state two months ago, and Gov. Mike DeWine shut down the economy. Even though last week’s data reached this milestone, the weekly filings from the week ending May 16 only went down by 5,000 claims from the week ending May 9. Ohioans asking for government assistance should continue to go down as of last weekend, 90 percent of Ohio’s economy had opened up, the Associated Press reported. Since mid-March, more than 1.2 million people have filed for unemployment benefits in Ohio. Nationally, America has seen 38.6 million people claim unemployment during the same nine-week span. Ohio has accounted for three percent of America’s unemployment benefit claims during this time period. According to WBNS, ODJFS has given benefits to 619,000 Ohioans totaling over $2.8 billion. This accounts for 52 percent of people who asked for government assistance. ODJFS continues to deal with hackers trying to infiltrate its system. This time, around 24 people who claimed unemployment…

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Foundation Says Breach of Unemployment Claimants’ Data Causes Loss of Public Trust in Ohio Government

Jason M. Reynolds

With the data breach exposing the information of unemployed Ohioans, one foundation is saying that the government’s failure to address known flaws with the benefits system means the public has lost trust in the state.

Deloitte Consulting is handling pandemic unemployment assistance claims for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. At least 130,000 independent contractors who filed 1099 forms but have not yet received benefits had their information, including addresses and social security numbers exposed on the Deloitte system, WLWT reported.

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Michigan Autodealerships, Medical Care, Retail to Reopen Next Week

Jordyn Pair

Michigan retail businesses, autodealerships and medical services will begin to reopen next week, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced on Thursday.

The latest executive order allows retail businesses to reopen on Tuesday with health and safety guidelines, including providing COVID-19 training to workers. The training must include the proper use of personal protection equipment and steps to take if a worker suspects he or she has symptoms of the coronavirus, among other information.

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Vanderbilt Poll Claims ‘Sky High’ Approval for Mayor Cooper, Just 19 Percent of Participants Were Republicans

Anthony Gockowski

A new poll from Vanderbilt University claims the approval rating for Mayor John Cooper is “sky high,” but only 19 percent of respondents said they identify as Republicans.

Another 45 percent of respondents said they identify as Democrats, while 26 percent said they are Independents and 10 percent said they are “something else.” Only 21 percent said their political views are “very conservative” or “conservative,” compared to 30 percent who said they are “liberal” or “very liberal.” Forty-eight percent said their political views are “moderate.”

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