Conservative Organizations Call For Next Ohio House Speaker to Have Character, Be Supporter of Faith and Family

Even as the Ohio House of Representatives looks to replace disgraced Speaker Larry Householder, a coalition of conservative organizations is urging lawmakers to be thoughtful in how they do so.

Householder and four others were arrested July 21 in connection with a $60 million federal bribery probe in connection with the Legislature’s 2019 bailout of FirstEnergy and its nuclear power plants.

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City of Detroit Seeking Photos of Coronavirus Victims for Memorial

The City of Detroit is seeking photos of those who lost their lives to the coronavirus to display as part of a city memorial event.

Detroit will host Detroit Memorial Day on August 31 to honor city residents who died because of COVID-19, Mayor Mike Duggan announced earlier this month. The city plans to install large photo boards with the submitted pictures along a route on Belle Isle.

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Ohio Supreme Court Upholds Death Penalty for Serial Killer

The Ohio Supreme Court upheld the conviction and death sentences of convicted serial killer Michael Madison last week. Madison, who was convicted of murdering three women after confessing to killing one, claimed that he did not recall killing the two others. The 2013 conviction was not without controversy however, as the defense took issue with several aspects of the prosecution including psychiatric reports, jury selection, and even the constitutionality of the death penalty.

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Minnesota’s Gov Walz to Review Extensive Police Reform Bill

Minnesota’s House and Senate approved the SSHF1 amendment last Monday, a big bill positioned to issue widespread police reform throughout the state. Since its passage 102-29 in the House and 60-7 in the Senate, the bill now rests in the hands of Governor Tim Walz. 

SSHF1 is as long as it is weighty in its impact, with around 15 action items up for approval. Not only does it endeavor to further define legal use of force, but it creates and funds an administrative host of units, councils, and boards.

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Out-of-Control Teenagers Cause Disturbance at Memphis Golf Park

A group of patrons, apparently teenagers, went on a rampage Saturday at Memphis’ Golf and Games Family Park and damaged nearly $500 worth of property, according to an employee.

This, General Manager Aaron Bos said, after several parents dropped their kids off at the park and left them unsupervised. Authorities did not arrest any of the unruly patrons, and no one was injured. But someone recorded the incident on video, and law enforcement officers are currently trying to identify the aggressors based off of that, Boss added.

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Commentary: Little-Known ‘Voter Expectation’ Predicts Another Trump Win in November

Lately, pollsters and pundits have been nervously pondering the following question: “If Trump is behind in the polls, why do most voters say, in the same surveys, that he will win the upcoming election?” As Harry Enten recently noted at CNN, “An average of recent polls finds that a majority of voters (about 55%) believe that Trump will defeat Biden in the election. Trump’s edge on this question has remained fairly consistent over time.” This is far more than mere statistical curiosity by number nerds. Several peer-reviewed studies have shown that surveys of voter expectations are far more predictive of election outcomes than polls of voter intentions.

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POLL: Three-Quarters of All Battleground Voters Say ‘No’ to Men Competing in Women’s Sports

American Principles Project and SPRY Strategies released polling results this week from 10 presidential election battleground states. In the July 2020 survey, on average 74.8 percent of voters said, “No” and only 25.2 percent said, “Yes” when asked: “Should boys and men who say they identify as transgender be allowed to compete in girls’ and women’s athletics?”

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Commentary: The Anarchists and Their Enablers in Government Should Understand that This Does Not End Well for Them

wildfire

Recapping Thursday’s madness, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany noted that “A federal agent’s hand was impaled by planted nails, another federal agent was shot with a pellet gun, leaving a wound deep to the bone, and tragically, three federal officers were likely left permanently blinded by the rioters using lasers pointed directly into their eyes.”

No wonder Brooks Brothers, Nike, Uber, and practically every other wretched business you have ever dealt with are falling all over themselves to proclaim their solidarity with Black Lives Matter and committing to end “systemic racism” in the United States.

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Austin Tong Refuses to Apologize for Gun-Toting Tiananmen Square Protest Photo, Says He Plans to Sue Fordham University

Austin Tong, a Chinese immigrant, has been barred from the university campus and is required to do mandatory “implicit bias” training, the Washington Free Beacon reported. Administrators also demanded the student write a letter of apology as a consequence of  his June 4 Instagram post, according to a disciplinary letter.

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Oscar Winning Actress Olivia de Havilland Dies at 104

Olivia de Havilland, the doe-eyed actress beloved to millions as the sainted Melanie Wilkes of “Gone With the Wind,” but also a two-time Oscar winner and an off-screen fighter who challenged and unchained Hollywood’s contract system, died Sunday at her home in Paris. She was 104.

Havilland, the sister of fellow Oscar winner Joan Fontaine, died peacefully of natural causes, said New York-based publicist Lisa Goldberg.

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Commentary: Don’t Let Liberal Billionaires Buy Arkansas

As they have in the past, liberal billionaires John and Laura Arnold are once again scheming to throw their money around in other people’s states and cities to produce the far left results that they want. For years, the power couple has been on a mission “to change the country” and make things happen “by whatever means necessary.” This time, their target is Arkansas, and their goal is the passage of a state constitutional amendment to radically transform the state’s primaries and voting system.

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Senator Lindsey Graham Teases: The FBI ‘Lied Their Ass Off’ to Congress About the Steele Dossier

Sen. Lindsey Graham on Sunday teased the release of evidence showing that the FBI “lied their ass off” to Congress regarding the reliability of the Steele dossier, which the bureau used as part of its investigation of the Trump campaign.

“I will tell you next week what I found,” the South Carolina Republican said in an interview on “Fox Sunday Futures” with Maria Bartiromo.

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White House Backs Tailored Measure for Coronavirus Relief as Pelosi Blasts Republicans

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi assailed Republican “disarray” Sunday over a new pandemic relief package as the White House suggested a narrower effort might be necessary, at least for now.

The California Democrat panned the Trump administration’s desire to trim an expiring temporary federal unemployment benefit from $600 weekly to about 70% of pre-pandemic wages. “The reason we had $600 was its simplicity,” she said from the Capitol.

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Former West Virginia University Professor Qingyun Sun Admits to Wire and Tax Fraud Following Official Travel to China

Chinese national and former West Virginia University professor admitted to two counts of fraud, both of which arose from an official visit to China.

U.S. Attorney Bill Powell announced Thursday that Qingyun Sun pleaded guilty to wire fraud and filing a false tax return. According to the statement released by the Department of Justice, Sun, age 58, worked as an associate professor and the associate director of the United States-China Energy Center at West Virginia University. He additionally served as the governor’s assistant for China affairs and worked for Synfuels Americas Corporation — an energy conversion technology provider operating out of Sterling, Virginia, but based in Beijing, China.

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Critics: Changing Information about Coronavirus Transmission, Impact Leads to Backlash over Policy Decisions

Since March, when U.S. policy makers implemented restrictive policies to limit the spread of the coronavirus, government agencies have collected data and reported their findings, which have significantly varied over time. As the data comes in, agencies have amended their guidelines, often to the frustration of policy makers and media critics.

Initially, the Centers for Disease Control argued that the coronavirus could be spread via surface-based transmission. It has since changed its position on this after scientific studies have shown the opposite. It recently stated that doorknobs and other commonly touched surfaces are not consistent with transmission. Rather, spread of the virus is believed to be mostly through droplets from respiratory exchanges, it states in its revised guidelines.

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Actor John Saxon Dies

Actor John Saxon, a versatile actor with a lengthy and prolific career who starred with Bruce Lee in “Enter the Dragon” and appeared in several “Nightmare on Elm Street” movies, has died at his home in Tennessee, according to the Hollywood Reporter. He was 83.

The entertainment news outlet quotes Saxon’s wife, Gloria, as confirming that the actor died of pneumonia on Saturday in Murfreesboro.

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GOP Lawmakers Promote Potential Replacement for Householder

Ohio House lawmakers on Friday moved to address the power vacuum created by the arrest of current Republican Speaker Larry Householder amid a $60 million federal bribery probe.

The names of potential candidates to take the reins of the House of Representatives are spilling out — two days after federal officials arrested Householder and four associates over alleged bribes to shepherd an energy bill into law.

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Testing Supply Chain in Minnesota Re-Emerges as Concern

Minnesota health officials are concerned about renewed pressure on the testing supply chain, which could affect the state’s response to a recent growth in cases and plans to continue to ramp up testing.

Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm said during a press call Friday that state officials have received reports of delays or reductions in testing supplies like reagents and pipettes from some health systems across the state, which rely on their own supply channels for weekly shipments of testing equipment.

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Nashville Mayor John Cooper Fights for Paris Climate Agreement, Alongside Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti

Nashville Mayor John Cooper joined hundreds of other U.S. mayors late last week, including Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, and urged Congress to fight climate change and uphold the Paris Climate Agreement.

This, according to a press release that Metro Nashville officials published on the city’s website.

“As mayor, I see first-hand the urgent issues facing our communities today: the ever-present threat of climate change, the challenges to public health and prosperity caused by COVID-19, and racial and economic disparities,” Cooper said.

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Rep. Bruce Griffey Questions Lee Administration About Not Sharing Data with the U.S. Census Bureau That Would Help Estimate Illegals in Tennessee

State Representative Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) sent a letter to Governor Bill Lee on Friday questioning why Tennessee was not sharing data with the U.S. Census Bureau that would help estimate the number of illegal aliens living in Tennessee.

The issue arises out of President Trump’s memorandum this week to the Secretary of Commerce that excludes illegal aliens from the apportionment of the U.S. House of Representatives that follows the decennial census.

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Commentary: ‘Pandemic Pods’ Make Homeschooling Easier for Parents and Profitable for Teachers

This tumultuous back-to-school season has parents and teachers alike scrambling to make sense of the madness: from ever-changing district directives to COVID-19 response protocols. Some school systems have announced that the academic year will start with remote-learning-only. Others are pursuing partial reopening options with both online and in-person instruction. Still others are planning to fully reopen for in-person learning.

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Indictment of Former Democrat Congressman Widens Voter Fraud Case in Philadelphia

A voter fraud scandal in Philadelphia appears to be expanding with the indictment this week of a former Democratic congressman and more charges expected.

U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced Thursday that former Rep. Michael “Ozzie” Myers, 77, had been indicted on multiple counts, including conspiracy to violate voting rights by fraudulently stuffing ballot boxes.

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Worldwide Pediatric Experts Argue Schools Should Reopen

Several reports published in western countries worldwide argue that children should be returning to in-person classrooms in the fall.

Reports by the top pediatric hospital in Canada and by a leading expert in the British government argue that schools should reopen with relatively few restrictions because of growing evidence that indicates that children appear to be at little risk of contracting or spreading COVID-19.

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Not A Single Minneapolis Police Recruit Dropped Out of Training Amid Riots, Unrest and Defunding

Not one of the most recent Minneapolis Police Academy recruits dropped out of the training process, despite massive riots in the Minnesota city and calls to defund their department.

Every individual enrolled and set to graduate on June 29 finished the process, Minneapolis Police director of public information John Elder told the Daily Caller News Foundation in an email. Elder said he’d noticed a decrease in the number of people looking to become police officers since the 1980’s, but reported that “no one dropped out” in the most recent class.

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Two Christopher Columbus Statues Removed in Chicago After Violent Clashes Between Protesters and Police

Two Christopher Columbus statues were removed at the direction of Democratic Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Friday morning after protesters and police sparred outside the monuments last week.

Crews dismantled the statues in Grant Park and Arrigo Park under the cover of darkness, and the monuments had been removed from their pedestals by 6 a.m., according to NBC 5.

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Sierra Club Will Address History of Racism, White Supremacy, Restructure Leadership

Environmental group. The Sierra Club, pledged to examine its “substantial role in perpetuating white supremacy” and to remove or rename monuments of founder John Muir, Fox News reports.

According to the organization’s website they plan future blog posts to talk more about the struggles Indigenous people, people of color, and their white allies went through to get this organization to evolve on issues like immigration and environmental justice. The posts will also include the viewpoints of its founder, famed conservationist John Muir. In an open letter entitled “Pulling Down Our Monuments,” Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune said it was time for the Sierra Club to reckon with the words of Muir and other early members.

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Regis Philbin, Television Personality and Host, Dies at 88

Regis Philbin, the genial host who shared his life with television viewers over morning coffee for decades and helped himself and some fans strike it rich with the game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” has died at 88.

Philbin died of natural causes Friday night, just over a month before his 89th birthday, according to a statement from his family provided by manager Lewis Kay.

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Marsha Blackburn Joins Healthy Workplaces Tax Credit Act to Help Businesses Safely Reopen

U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) this week joined U.S. Sen. Rob Portman’s (R-Ohio) Healthy Workplaces Tax Credit Act.

Blackburn said in an emailed press release that the legislation will help businesses and nonprofits continue to safely reopen while ensuring the safety of employees and consumers. This, through a refundable tax credit against payroll taxes for 50 percent of the costs a business incurs for increased testing, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), disinfecting, and reconfiguring workspaces to follow social distancing guidelines.

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Attorney General: Mask Mandates Are Legally Defensible

Tennessee’s attorney general says mask mandates are constitutionally defensible in an opinion that comes as some county mayors have moved to enact the requirements.

Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III wrote in an opinion Friday that for more than a century, the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized that “a community has the right to protect itself against an epidemic of disease which threatens the safety of its members.”

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Three of Four Democratic Toledo City Council Members Arrested for Alleged Bribery Temporarily Step Down

Three of the four Democratic Toledo City Council members accused of taking part in a bribery and extortion scheme have agreed to temporary suspensions, according to the state attorney general’s office.

Tyrone Riley, Yvonne Harper and Larry Sykes will continue to get their annual $27,500 council salaries, and their temporary replacements will be paid the same salary on a prorated basis. If the council members plead guilty or are convicted of the charges, the city could recover any funds paid to them during their suspensions.

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Ex-Police Officer in Floyd’s Death Faces Nine Tax Evasion Counts

Derek Chauvin

The former Minneapolis police officer charged with murder in the death of George Floyd was charged Wednesday with multiple felony counts of tax evasion, according to criminal complaints that allege he and his wife didn’t report income from various jobs, including more than $95,000 for his off-duty security work.

Derek Chauvin and his wife, Kellie May Chauvin, were each charged in Washington County with six counts of aiding and abetting filing false or fraudulent tax returns in the state of Minnesota and three counts of aiding and abetting failing to file state tax returns.

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Newt Gingrich Commentary: Cheating the Children or Empowering the Parents

The United States is gradually grinding to an educational collapse as the giant bureaucracies and extraordinarily powerful teachers’ unions ignore children and education in pursuit of power.

Many of the wealthiest school systems have decided that they simply will not go back to school this fall. They will offer virtual classes even though the evidence is overwhelming that for younger children virtual classes are dramatically less effective than in person instruction.

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Bipartisan Vote in the House Rules to Remove Confederate Statues from the Capitol

A bill to remove statues of Confederate leaders and figures who advocated for white supremacy from the Capitol passed the House on a bipartisan vote Wednesday, the New York Times reported.

The House voted 305 to 113 to remove the statues as part of a broad effort to take symbols of racism out of public spaces, the Times reported. The legislation was introduced by House Majority Leader and Democratic Maryland Rep. Steny H. Hoyer.

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US Supreme Court Denies Nevada Church’s Appeal of Virus Rule

A sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court denied a rural Nevada church’s request late Friday to strike down as unconstitutional a 50-person cap on worship services as part of the state’s ongoing response to the coronavirus.

In a 5-4 decision, the high court refused to grant the request from the Christian church east of Reno to be subjected to the same COVID-19 restrictions in Nevada that allow casinos, restaurants and other businesses to operate at 50% of capacity with proper social distancing.

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