Month: September 2020

Fredericksburg Slave Auction Block Set to be Displayed in Museum

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A 176-year-old stone block that was used for slave auctions in Virginia will go on display at the Fredericksburg Area Museum, with signs explaining the context of recent protests against racial injustice that left it covered in graffiti.

The knee-high stone block sat for nearly two centuries in downtown Fredericksburg until the city removed it recently. Now it’s on loan to the museum, which will put in on display by mid-November, with the graffiti still intact, The Free Lance-Star reported Sunday.

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Ohio Crime Victims Expected to Get Help From Grants

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Ohio crime victims are expected to receive additional support from groups around the state, according to Attorney General Dave Yost, who plans to award nearly $59 million in grants to groups that provide direct assistance.

Yost announced the anticipated grants, which include $13 million to help children. He expects $55 million to come from the Victims of Crime Act and another $3.5 million from the State Victim Assistance Act fund.

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Ohio State University Students Furious After the School Reports Black-on-White Hate Crime

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Ohio State University students are upset after the school published information about two Black hate crime suspects, as it is required to do under federal law. On September 3, the Ohio State University sent a public safety notice to students, which mentioned a “hate crime” perpetrated by two African-American suspects near Ohio State’s campus. The first correspondence did not mention the victims’ race.

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Whitmer Relents, Signs New Executive Order Re-Opening More Gathering Places

Jordyn Pair

Michigan movie theaters and performance venues will soon be allowed to reopen, according to an executive order signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

The order, which also amends coronavirus safety mandates in schools, will allow a variety of previously closed entertainment venues, including indoor theaters, cinemas, performance venues, arcades, bingo halls, bowling centers, indoor climbing facilities and trampoline parks, to reopen statewide on October 9.

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Former Virginia Attorney General Jerry Kilgore on Barrett: Confirm Now!

Corinne Murdock

In an interview with The Virginia Star, Kilgore shared that Barrett’s nomination was a long time coming.

“A lot of us were looking to the President, hoping he would nominate her last time instead of Kavanaugh [in 2018]. She carried herself so well during her 2017 hearing for the 7th Circuit Court, and she was a former clerk for Justice Scalia. She is a favorite justice for many conservatives throughout the nation.”

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Belmont Professor Lectures Brentwood High Students About Privilege and Social Change

Chris Butler

A Belmont University professor who specializes in social justice causes lectured Brentwood High School students Monday about how privileged and closed-minded they are and said it’s time they corrected themselves.

Brentwood High Principal Kevin Keidel invited that professor, Mona Ivey Soto, to speak.

A Brentwood High parent who said he disapproved of Soto’s lecture provided The Tennessee Star with an audio recording of her lecture.

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Records Reportedly Show Nashville Mayor John Cooper Killed Plan to Let Tennessee Titans’ Fans into Nissan Stadium

Chris Butler

  A Nashville sportswriter this week posted documents on his website that he said proves Metro Nashville Health officials were ready last month to have fans at Nissan Stadium at the start of the season. But Mayor John Cooper said no, according to those records. Paul Kuharsky, who has covered the NFL for more than 20 years, this week on his website posted emails that Metro Nashville officials sent to one another. Kuharsky said he obtained these emails from the group Nashville for a Rational COVID Policy. Officials with that organization did not return The Tennessee Star’s request for comment Friday. Tennessee Titans spokeswoman Kate Guerra said Sunday she had no information about the matter and suggested we contact the mayor’s office. No one in either the mayor’s office or the Metro Health Department returned our request for comment. Kuharsky did not return our request for comment Sunday. In his story, Kuharsky quoted a July 30 email from Metro Health Department Director Michael Caldwell to Cooper’s Chief of Staff Bill Phillips and Metro coronavirus Task Force Chair Alex Jahangir. Jahangir said in the e-mail exchange that they had discussed a proposal that was “consistent, if not more restrictive, than most…

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Carol Swain Commentary: Critical Race Theory and the Decline of American Justice

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Is racism in the DNA of white people, and is it a permanent part of American society? Critical race theorists argue that American society is structured to give white people undeserved advantages over people of color. They say people who look like me (Black) are victims. We are supposedly powerless to free ourselves from systemic racism, institutional structures, and cultural stereotypes that keep us in bondage. Systemic racism permeates every facet of our lives, including institutions and laws. The only hope is for whites to become “woke,” or conscious, of their racism and commit themselves to becoming antiracist. So, where did we get these ideas that now undergird the diversity, equity, and inclusion industry that rests on top of existing affirmative action programs that have been around since the mid-1960s?

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The New York Times Claims It Has Obtained President Trump’s Tax Returns, Trump Organization Attorney Says ‘The Facts Appear to be Inaccurate’

Christina Botteri

The New York Times published a lengthy report over the weekend based, they say, on tax documents they obtained from “sources.”

Breitbart News reports that The Times “found no evidence of any links to Russia,” as has been consistently claimed by multiple news outlets over the course of the Trump’s term in office. However, they add that the documents do show the extent of the entrepreneur’s Russia connections are limited to the 2001 Miss Universe pageant held in Moscow – which were “the most profitable Miss Universe during Mr. Trump’s time as co-owner, and that it generated a personal payday of $2.3 million.”

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Berkeley to Become First City in the Country to Ban Unhealthy Food in Supermarket Check-Out Lanes

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Berkeley, California next year will implement a first-in-the-nation ban on junk food in supermarket checkout aisles, per a regulation passed this week by the city council. 

The Healthy Checkout Ordinance seeks to “eliminate the encouragement of unplanned purchases of unhealthy foods and beverages” that proliferate at supermarket checkouts.

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Commentary: The Case for ‘Jefferson’ and ‘Greater Idaho’

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The U.S. House of Representatives in June passed a bill in favor of statehood for the District of Columbia. In response, historian Nicole Hemmer wrote, “should Joe Biden win the presidency and bring with him majorities in the House and Senate, he should make statehood for D.C.—and for Puerto Rico—a priority for his first 100 days in office.” Also in June, The New Republic published an opinion column stating “D.C. Statehood Is a Test of Biden’s Political Courage.”

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Judson Phillips Commentary: An Agenda for 2021

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In Tennessee, the election hoopla is over, even though we haven’t had the election yet. President Trump will carry the state. Bill Hagarty will destroy his unknown Democrat opponent.  The Republicans will maintain a supermajority in the Legislature. 

Conservatives need to think about 2021 and need to think about winning in 2021.  Getting conservatives united is a difficult task.  Trust me, I know from personal experience.  To say it is harder than herding cats is an understatement. 

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Richmond Bans Guns While City Collapses from Rioters

Jacob Taylor

Richmond Police Department (RPD) officers were seen at the Robert E. Lee monument on Saturday morning posting signs on the recently-passed Richmond city gun ordinance. 

The new ordinance, passed unanimously by the Richmond city council early this month, does not outright ban firearms in public spaces, but it does call for restrictions when a permitted event is taking place.

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Virginians to Decide Gerrymandering Amendment

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An anti-gerrymandering constitutional amendment that would change the way legislative districts are drawn in Virginia will be decided on the ballot.

The amendment is intended to prevent gerrymandering by establishing a 16-person bipartisan redistricting commission that would propose redistricting plans to the General Assembly. The General Assembly would be allowed to approve or decline the proposals, but would not be allowed to offer any amendments.

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TRUMPDATE: Latest from the Trump Virginia Campaign for September 28

Jordan Bondurant

Welcome to the Monday edition of our daily Virginia Trump campaign update! We will provide our readers with daily updates on the Trump Virginia campaign from today to November 3 (and after…if need be!).

It’s officially 36 days until the election on November 3 – and one day until President Trump and Joe Biden square off in the first presidential debate. Chris Wallace of Fox News will be moderating.

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Engineering Professor Under Investigation for Referring to COVID as the ‘Chinese Virus’

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The University of Cincinnati placed an engineering professor on administrative leave and launched an investigation into him after he referred to coronavirus as the Chinese virus.

The public university told Professor John Ucker that he is on administrative leave with pay as of September 18 after a student, Evan Sotzing, posted a screenshot of an email from Ucker.

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Interim Ohio Health Director Himes Succeeds in Moving Mask Lawsuit to His Home Turf

Jason M. Reynolds

Interim Ohio Health Director Lance Himes succeeded in requesting that a lawsuit to overturn the use of masks in public schools be moved out of Putnam County Common Pleas Court and into his home turf, The Lima News reported.

The case has moved to Franklin County. The plaintiffs live largely in Northwest Ohio, in communities including Leipsic, Berkey and Perrysburg.

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Virginia Society of Human Life Fights Potential Right-To-Abortion Amendment

Eric Burk

Delegate Kathy Byron (R-Lynchburg) gave an insider’s view of Virginia right-to-life politics at a Zoom fundraiser for the Virginia Society of Human Life (VSHL) on Saturday evening. 100 people tuned in to the event, filling it to capacity. The fundraiser is part of a broader effort within the VSHL to motivate voters for the November election and raise awareness of a likely proposed amendment to Virginia’s constitution coming in 2021.

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Attorney: Nashville Mayor John Cooper Distorted Facts When He Said White House Influenced Him to Close Bars Due to COVID-19

Chris Butler

A Nashville attorney who represents Kid Rock’s Big Honky Tonk owner Steve Smith said Mayor John Cooper misstated facts when he said White House officials influenced him to close bars on lower Broadway to contain COVID-19.

That attorney, Kirk Clements, said so to The Tennessee Star and in a document he said he’s already disseminated to the public.

“He [Cooper] claims the White House told him to shut down bars, but they [members of the White House] didn’t make that phone call to the cities until July 22. Cooper shut the bars on July 2,” Clements told us.

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New York City Says Outdoor Dining Will Become ‘Permanent and Year-Round’

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New York City plans to make its flourishing outdoor dining economy a permanent fixture of the city’s landscape going forward, municipal officials said in a press release on Friday. 

The city’s “Open Restaurants” program, which has enrolled thousands of establishments since it debuted in June, “will be extended year-round and made permanent,” the city announced in the press release.

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Commentary: ‘Never Trump’ Now Means ‘Never Constitution’

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We went from Never Trump to Never Constitution in a nanosecond, it seems.

Entrenched foes of the president base their opposition on the unproven allegation Donald Trump is staining our democracy and defiling the Constitution. That arc now has reached almost full circle as the president’s enemies, desperate to deprive him of any victory, are concocting harebrained compromises outside the clear boundaries of the Constitution related to the next Supreme Court justice.

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Swing State Democrats Worry Biden’s Low-Key Campaigning Could Backfire

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Some Democrats in critical battlegrounds worry that Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is not campaigning vigorously enough in their states.

While Biden has taken a low-key approach to campaign across the country amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Democratic figures in Texas and North Carolina remarked that his method may not be enough to get him 270 electoral votes.

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San Francisco Sees Rise in Home Burglaries, Homicides

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San Francisco, California, has seen increases in burglary and homicide for the first nine months of 2020 amid nationwide unrest compared to 2019, according to police data.

The city, which boasts nearly double the U.S. household median income, has seen a nearly 42% increase in burglary, around a 33% increase in homicide and 31% uptick in vehicle thefts, statistical comparisons to 2019 from the San Francisco Police Department show.

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California Braces for Power Shutoffs and Warm, Windy Weekend

The Associated Press

Firefighters and officials at California’s largest utility company braced for hot, dry and windy weather in northern and central areas of the state this weekend that may fan the flames of several major wildfires or ignite new ones.

Pacific Gas & Electric warned Friday it may cut power from Sunday morning to Monday, potentially affecting 97,000 customers in 16 counties, during which forecasters said a ridge of high pressure will raise temperatures and generate gusts flowing from the interior to the coast.

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Two Massachusetts Doctors Charged with Criminal Neglect for 76 Coronavirus Deaths at Veterans’ Home

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The Massachusetts Attorney General has indicted two doctors on charges of criminal neglect in connection to the deaths of at least 76 veterans’ home residents who died of the novel coronavirus. 

Bennett Walsh, 50, and David Clinton, 71, were indicted by a state grand jury on Thursday in connection to their work at the Holyoke Soldiers’ home in Massachusetts. Each man was indicted on five counts, specifically for charges including “wantonly or recklessly” permitting or causing bodily harm and mistreatment of an older or disabled individual.

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Oregon Governor Sends State Police to Portland for Protests

The Associated Press

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown declared a state of emergency Friday as she announced that state troopers and sheriff’s deputies would be sent to Portland through the weekend to help police, in the state’s largest city, monitor a weekend rally by the right-wing group Proud Boys and counter protests by liberal groups

Portland has been roiled by often violent protests for more than three months following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

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Northam to Stand Down on Church Ban: God Wins

Eric Burk

After losing in court last week, Governor Ralph Northam agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by four Madison County men who argued that the governor’s restrictions on churches violated the Virginia Constitution, Bill of Rights, and the Virginia statute for religious freedom. According to The Roanoke Star, the only COVID-19 restrictions remaining against Virginia churchgoers after the Tuesday decision is the mask mandate.

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Senator Mark Warner and Republican Challenger Daniel Gade to Debate at Norfolk State University

Corinne Murdock

Senator Mark Warner and his Republican challenger Daniel Gade will convene for a second debate at Norfolk State University (NSU) on Saturday.
According to NSU’s press release, the candidates will debate on “racial disparities and inequities in education, healthcare, economic mobility and the criminal justice system.” NSU is the state’s largest “Historically Black College and University” (HBCU).

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Minnesota Department of Health No Longer Reporting Current COVID-19 Hospitalizations

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The Minnesota Department of Health abruptly stopped reporting the current number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 or in an intensive care unit in its daily situation update Thursday.

The Department of Health (MDH) publishes a situation update every morning at 11 a.m., but Thursday’s update was lacking one standard piece of information: current hospitalizations and ICU patients.

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Ohio Restaurant, Bars May Get More Flexibility for Consumers

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Ohio restaurant and bar owners will have more flexibility and a chance to generate more revenue if Gov. Mike DeWine signs a recently passed bill into law.

The Business Expansion and Safety Act, passed by both the Ohio House and Ohio Senate, heads to DeWine. It intends to help bring revenue and safety back to businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to bill sponsor State Rep. D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron.

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Senate Bill on Budget Includes Details on the Proposed Virginia Redistricting Commission

Jacob Taylor

As part of the Senate’s bill for the biennial budget, one amendment offers details and more specifics on the proposed Virginia Redistricting Commission. 

Included in the budget amendment item 4-14 is eligibility criteria for citizen commission members, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and public participation in the redistricting process. 

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Nashville Mayor John Cooper Has a Vendetta Against Bar Owners on Lower Broadway, Attorney Says

Chris Butler

Nashville Mayor John Cooper is feuding in court with Nashville’s bar and restaurant owners on Lower Broadway.

And for that reason, Cooper wouldn’t hesitate to use the COVID-19 pandemic as a means to incapacitate those businesses.

This, according to an attorney who represents, among others, Nashville businessman Steve Smith, who owns Kid Rock’s Big Honky Tonk and Steakhouse.

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Trump Picks Conservative Amy Coney Barrett for Supreme Court

The Associated Press

President Donald Trump nominated Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court on Saturday, capping a dramatic reshaping of the federal judiciary that will resonate for a generation and that he hopes will provide a needed boost to his reelection effort.

Republican senators are already lining up for a swift confirmation of Barrett ahead of the Nov. 3 election, as they aim to lock in conservative gains in the federal judiciary before a potential transition of power. Trump, meanwhile, is hoping the nomination will serve to galvanize his supporters as he looks to fend off Democrat Joe Biden.

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