Conservative Professor Mike Adams Found Dead, Police Investigate Cause

Police in North Carolina found conservative University of North Carolina-Wilmington criminology professor Mike Adams dead in his home.

According to a local news outlet, the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office visited Adams’ home to conduct a wellness check. There, they found Adams’ body, but did not confirm a cause of death or publicize any other details. Adams was 55 years old.

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Commentary: The GOP Can Make Inroads with Hispanics by Doing These Two Things

In expected 13 percent of the electorate in the 2020 elections, American Hispanics are likely to play a crucial role in deciding contests in Arizona, Florida, and Texas. As the country’s Hispanic population grows larger, many wonder how Republicans can bring this demographic into their fold. Given that the Republican Party has dedicated a good portion of its resources to addressing this question, it’s impossible to say they’ve been ignoring Hispanics. But have they been effective?

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Portland Mayor Tear Gassed During Wednesday Protests

Democratic Mayor Ted Wheeler of Portland, Oregon was tear gassed Wednesday night while he was at the federal courthouse speaking with protesters, according to a video shared on Twitter.

“I’m not gonna lie, it stings, it’s hard to breathe. Man, uh, I can tell you with 100% honesty, I saw nothing that provoked this response. It’s absolutely stunning. I’m not afraid, but I am pissed off,” Wheeler said in a video tweeted by reporter Mike Baker of The New York Times.

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White House Drops Payroll Tax Cut After GOP Allies Object

The White House reluctantly dropped its bid to cut Social Security payroll taxes Thursday as Republicans prepared to unveil a $1 trillion COVID-19 rescue package, yielding to opposition to the idea among top Senate allies.

“It won’t be in the base bill,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, speaking on CNBC about the payroll tax cut, killing the idea for now. The cut in the tax that finances Social Security and Medicare has been a major demand of President Donald Trump.

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Movie Theater Owners to Studios: Release the Blockbusters!

by Jack Coyle   NEW YORK, New York (AP) — A long time ago in a pre-COVID universe far, far away, blockbusters opened around the globe simultaneously or nearly so. In 1975, “Jaws” set the blueprint. Concentrate marketing. Open wide. Pack them in. Since then, Hollywood has turned opening weekends into an all-out assault. Staggered rollouts still happen, of course, but the biggest films are dropped like carpet bombs. Anything less risks losing the attention of moviegoers. Global debuts north of $300 million became commonplace. Last year, “Avengers: Endgame” made well north of $1 billion in a couple days. Hollywood has now gone more than four months without a major theatrical release. While some films have found new streaming homes, the biggest upcoming ones — “Tenet,” “Mulan,” “A Quiet Place Part II” — remain idled like jumbo jets on the tarmac. The leading chains are still shuttered. Recent coronavirus spikes have forced release dates to shuffle and chains to postpone reopening to August. Now, movie houses say that despite far from ideal circumstances, it’s time for new movies. Four months of near zero revenue has brought the $50 billion annual business to its knees. While the beleaguered restaurant industry still has takeout and airlines continue…

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St. Louis Prosecutor’s Office Appears to Have Tampered with Evidence in McCloskey Gun Case

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner’s staff appears to have tampered with evidence in order to press charges against the St. Louis woman who waved a gun at the Black Lives Matter rioters who stormed her neighborhood last month.

Patricia McCloskey’s gun was inoperable when she voluntarily surrendered it to the police, but prosecutors reassembled it into working order so they could charge her with a crime.

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Study Finds That Full Lockdowns Did Not Reduce Coronavirus Mortality Rate

A study published Tuesday in The Lancet medical journal found that full lockdowns, border closures and high rates of coronavirus testing are not associated with a statistically significant reduction in the total number of critical cases or the virus’s overall mortality rate.

However, the study, which was based on data from the 50 countries with the most reported cases as of May 1, noted that lockdowns and border closures are likely associated with better overall health outcomes, as the measures helped drive down the rate of the virus’s transmission and reduce the load on hospital systems.

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Bill Hagerty’s and Manny Sethi’s Political Contributions Since 2000 Are Extensive

U.S. Senate candidates Bill Hagerty and Manny Sethi have said much about each other’s political donations in recent weeks as they seek to prevail over the other in the upcoming Republican primary.

The Tennessee Star examined both candidate’s political donations at the state and federal levels since 2000. Members of the public may review the records for themselves at the Federal Election Commission’s website and at the Tennessee Online Campaign Finance website.

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‘Walking on Eggshells’: 62 Percent of Americans Are Afraid to Express Political Views, Survey Finds

Self-censorship is on the rise according to a new Cato Institute survey that reports nearly two-thirds of Americans are afraid to share their political views.

A new CATO Institute/YouGov national survey found 62% of Americans say the political climate today prevents them from saying what they believe. This is up several points from 2017 when 58% of Americans said they were afraid to share their political beliefs.

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Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer Cuts $115 Million from State Police Budget

Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich.), the radical governor of Michigan who has come under overwhelming criticism for her excessive coronavirus lockdowns, has cut as much as $115 million from the budget for the Michigan State Police, as reported by Breitbart.

Whitmer made the budget cuts through Executive Order 2020-155, demanding that $115.07 million be taken from the state police budget, in addition to a slash of $392.67 million from Michigan’s Department of Corrections, and another $36.46 cut from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

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