Day: February 11, 2021

Impeachment Blunder: Author of Tweet Introduced at Trial Says It Was Falsified, Misinterpreted

Admin

The author of a tweet introduced by Democrats at the Senate impeachment trial said Thursday her statement “we are bringing the Calvary” was a clear reference to a prayer vigil organized by churchgoers supporting Trump and not a call for military-like violence at the Capitol riot as portrayed by Rep. Eric Swalwell.

Jennifer Lynn Lawrence also said she believes the California Democrat and House impeachment manager falsified her tweet, adding a blue check mark to the version he introduced at the trial suggesting she was a verified Twitter user with more clout when in fact her Twitter account never had a blue check and has never been verified.

“I noticed when they put my tweet on the screen that all of a sudden my tweet had a blue checkmark next to it,” she said during an interview on the John Solomon Reports podcast. “… This way, if he entered that into congressional testimony, it’s a verified account, and it has, it could be applicable in law. Secondly, he wanted to show that my Twitter account had more gravitas than it actually did. He wanted to show that the president was trying to use me to bring in the cavalry.”

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Biden Recruits Meharry Medical College CEO for COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force

Corinne Murdock

Meharry Medical College CEO and President Dr. James Hildreth was appointed to President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force. Hildreth and 11 other appointees’ responsibilities will include issuing recommendations on the equitable allocation of COVID-19 resources and relief funds. According to the Biden administration, the task force’s purpose is to remedy unspecified health inequities caused by the pandemic and prevent those inequities in the future.

Since the pandemic began, Hildreth played a central role in advising Metro Nashville officials on COVID-19 responses. This included his support for Metro Nashville Public Schools’ (MNPS) to remain closed for in-person learning last fall. Other doctors and health officials had reportedly informed Metro Nashville and MNPS officials that in-person learning last fall wasn’t only safe, it was necessary for students’ health and well-being. 

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Troops Fear SecDef Austin’s Stand-Down Will Single Out One Form of Extremism, Ignore Others

Admin

The pending military stand-down to address “extremism in the ranks” may bring results that go beyond what Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin expected to achieve, according to active duty service members who are scheduled to attend the mandatory sessions.

Austin on Friday ordered all uniformed and civilian leaders in the Defense Department to set aside a day soon to discuss “impermissible behaviors” related to extremism.

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Commentary: Congress vs. Normal People

Admin

In the 1960s, Moscow inaugurated special “ZiL Lanes” or “Chaika Lanes.” Named after the Soviet limousines reserved for high government officials (the ZiL was a copy of the ’63 Lincoln, the Chaika a copy of the ’56 Packard) these were roads that, like the limousines, were reserved for high government officials. ZiL Lanes allowed the Nomenklatura to whiz from the Kremlin to their country dachas in comfort, while their inferior comrades were stuck in jams on the Kutuzovsky Prospect. The Soviets built several ZiL Lanes, and the one along the Kutuzovsky Prospect is still in use today serving Putin’s pals. 

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House Oversight Chairwoman Demands Information About Financing of Parler

Admin

Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), the chairwoman of the House Oversight Committee, is demanding information from the alternative social media company Parler with regards to its finances, as reported by The Hill.

Maloney sent a letter to the tech company baselessly accusing Parler of having a role in the organization of the mostly peaceful protests that took place at the United States Capitol on January 6th. In the letter, she claims that “numerous Parler users have been arrested and charged for their roles, with the Department of Justice citing in several instances the threats that individuals made through Parler.”

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Pentagon Estimates D.C. Security Costs at Nearly $1 Billion by March 15

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The Defense Department estimates the National Guard deployment at the Capitol through March 15 will cost nearly $483 million, in addition to $500 million it has already spent, Fox News reported Monday.

Approximately 26,000 National Guard troops from across the country were sent to Washington D.C. after the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol. The number has gradually reduced, however there are still more than 7,000 troops guarding the Capitol building with plans to gradually decrease its presence through the end of March, to fewer than 3,000 troops, according to Fox News.

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Safety Concerns Make a Third of Americans Hesitant to Receive the Coronavirus Vaccine, Poll Shows

Admin

Approximately a third of Americans say that they are unlikely to receive the coronavirus vaccine due to perceived safety concerns, according to an Associated Press poll released Wednesday.

While 67% of Americans said that they either planned to receive the vaccine or had already done so, 17% said that they were unlikely to receive it and 15% said that they were definitely not going to receive it, the poll showed. Among those who expressed vaccine hesitancy, the majority cited concerns over possible side effects and doubts over whether it was really safe, and nearly 40% said that they did not believe that they needed a vaccine.

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Fourteen Republican Attorneys General Reviewing Legal Options over Biden Keystone Pipeline Action

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Fourteen Republican state attorneys general wrote a letter to the White House, informing the president they were reviewing all legal options over his decision to nix the Keystone XL Pipeline permit.

The officials told President Joe Biden they were writing to him “with alarm” and urged him to reconsider his Keystone XL Pipeline executive order in the letter sent Tuesday.

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Michigan Woman Who Gave Viral Testimony During Voter Fraud Hearing Running for State Office

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Melissa Carone, the Michigan woman whose testimony during an election fraud hearing went viral, plans to run for a seat in Michigan’s House of Representatives.

Carone claims about widespread voter fraud were spoofed by Saturday Night Live, and after her testimony, she clarified that she was not drunk while speaking. She filed to run in Michigan’s 46th House district in the outskirts of metro Detroit.

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Tractor Supply Headquarters: Will Pay Workers to Get COVID-19 Vaccine, Provide Time Off

Corinne Murdock

Tractor Supply is incentivizing its workers with $50 additional pay and any necessary time off to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The company, headquartered in Brentwood, clarified that they wouldn’t be mandating the vaccine. Instead, Tractor Supply stated that the decision to be vaccinated should remain between the employee and their primary care physician. This arrangement would also extend to its workers in Petsense, another retailer owned and operated by the company. 

Additionally, Tractor Supply announced that it had partnered with an undisclosed third-party provider to host vaccination clinics at their eight distribution centers and their store support center.

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Cotton, Rubio Blast Biden over Decision on China’s Confucius Institutes

Admin

Two Republican senators on Tuesday blasted President Joe Biden for withdrawing a proposed rule that would require U.S. schools to disclose their partnerships with Confucius Institutes, which some U.S. officials and lawmakers have alleged serve as front groups for the Chinese Communist Party.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, both known as China hawks, criticized Biden on Tuesday following reports that the administration had withdrawn the rule, which the Trump administration proposed to the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Dec. 31.

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Jason Knight Commentary: Now Is Not the Time for a Pay Raise for the School Board Director

Admin

With the Covid-19 Pandemic causing many to be out of work, and without financial means to take care of their families. With individuals who are still contacting me asking for assistance on how they can go about collecting unemployment benefits provided by the state. With Teachers who work hard juggling between virtual and classroom environments while maintaining menial pay. There is no reason why any individual should be receiving an increase in pay in Montgomery County that is almost more than both city and county mayor combined.

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Senator Chase Sues the Republican Party of Virginia

Eric Burk

Senator Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield), who is running for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, announced Tuesday that she is suing the Republican Party of Virginia (RPV). Chase has been critical of the RPV decision to hold a nominating convention since the decision was first announced in December. Now, after months of fractious debate in the RPV over that decision, Chase is suing, arguing that she is harmed by the RPV choosing a nominating method currently illegal under Executive Order 72, which bans large gatherings like an in-person convention.

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Minnesota Health Coalition Wants Minority Groups to Get Vaccinated First

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A coalition of Minnesota doctors wants the governor to prioritize minority groups for the COVID-19 vaccine.

Minnesota Doctors for Health Equity sent a letter Monday to Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan asking for “ethical, evidence-based, and equitable action” surrounding the state’s COVID-19 vaccine distribution, particularly regarding Phase 1b of the vaccine rollout.

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Half of Rep. Omar’s Campaign Donations Funneled to Husband’s Company

Peter D'Abrosca

Federal Election Commission (FEC) records show that more than half of all donations made to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN-05) in her 2020 re-election bid were paid to her husband’s business in the form of consulting fees. 

Omar’s 2020 FEC report shows a total of 146 payments made to the E Street Group, her husband Tim Mynett’s firm. Those payments total $2.9 million. As reported by The Washington Free Beacon, that $2.9 million Mynett made from his wife’s re-election campaign accounted for about 80 percent of his firm’s revenue during the last election cycle. 

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New Bill in Georgia Legislature Imposes Restrictions on Ballot Counting

Chris Butler

Fifteen members of the Georgia General Assembly have filed a bill that, if enacted into law, would require that election officials immediately count and tabulate ballots when the polls close. “After the close of the polls on the day of a primary, election, or runoff, the board of registrars shall notify the election superintendent of the total number of absentee ballots received by the close of the polls that were certified by the board of registrars, and the election superintendent shall post such information publicly,” according to the language of the bill.

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Another Guilty Plea Entered in Ohio House Bill 6 Corruption Scandal

The Center Square

A nonprofit organization has become the latest to enter a guilty plea in a $60 million bribery and racketeering scheme involving Ohio’s taxpayer-funded energy company bailout and the former speaker of the House.

Generation Now pleaded guilty in federal court, admitting it was used to funnel millions of dollars in bribes from a utility company to former Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glenford, in relation to the passage of House Bill 6. In the plea agreement, Generation Now allowed the government to take nearly $1.5 million from two bank accounts and received five years of probation.

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Georgia Legislators Want to Grant Broad Powers to Law Enforcement Review Council

Chris Butler

Georgia legislators have put forward a bill to create a nine-member citizen-review panel to investigate law enforcement after officer-involved shootings and also after someone complains about an officer’s alleged inappropriate use of force. State Sen. Nikki Merritt (D-Grayson), the lead sponsor, refers to this as the Georgia Law Enforcement Citizen Review Council.

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Michigan State Senator Demands Apologies So She Can Forgive Republican Colleagues, Suggests They’re All Racists and Sexists

Peter D'Abrosca

In a bizarre speech on the floor of the Michigan legislature, a Democrat state Senator fought back tears while demanding apologies from unspecified Republican colleagues, while insinuating that they were racists and sexists. 

The following is a transcript from the speech, given by Sen. Stephanie Chang (D-1st District: 

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Bill Proposes Protections for Private Businesses Against Repercussions for Violating Executive Orders

Corinne Murdock

A new bill would prohibit governors or mayors from using law enforcement to force closure of private businesses under executive orders. Additionally, the bill would bar these government officials from using law enforcement to restrict the right to peaceably assemble or freely travel.

The legislation noted that curfews issued by executive order would still be enforceable, as well as the ability for state and local agencies and departments to maintain their health inspection standards.

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