May 5, 2021 - Tennessee Star

Investigation Finds Massive Wrongdoing by Prosecutor in Case Against Ex-Missouri Governor

May 5, 2021May 5, 2021 Admin

Missouri’s chief legal disciplinary officer accused St. Louis’ top prosecutor of sweeping misconduct in the failed prosecution of former Gov. Eric Greitens, saying she lied to judges in court filings and testimony, withheld exculpatory evidence from the defense, misled her own prosecution team and violated the constitutional right to a fair trial.

St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner, one of the early local prosecutors bankrolled by liberal megadonor George Soros since 2016, engaged in 62 acts of misconduct that resulted in 79 false representations during Greitens’ now-dismissed criminal prosecution, according to Chief Disciplinary Counsel Alan Pratzel’s memo obtained Wednesday by Just the News.

Former Firefighter and Chief Earns Spot in General Election to Determine Dayton’s Next Mayor

May 5, 2021May 5, 2021 Jack Windsor

Rennes Bowers, the retired firefighter and chief vying for the Mayor’s Chair in Dayton, ousted former Mayor of Dayton Gary Leitzell to earn his spot in the race against institutional Democrat Jeff Mims in the November general election that will determine the next mayor in Ohio’s sixth-largest city.

In a phone interview just moments after the final results from Tuesday’s primary election were revealed, Bowers told The Ohio Star:

It feels really good. I am very, very happy and thankful my neighbors in Dayton have put this trust in me. The Lord answered prayers, we’ve been praying since February and our friends, family and neighbors were praying all day.

Williamson County School System in Tennessee Won’t Comment on Texas Cultural Competency Plan That Preaches All Whites Are Racist

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Chris Butler

Officials at one public school system in Texas use a cultural competency plan that teaches that all whites are racist, and it was unclear Tuesday if those ideas have made their way to Tennessee. Officials at the Williamson County School System in Tennessee wouldn’t say Tuesday if their own cultural competency plan mirrors the one that teachers use in Texas’ Southlake Carroll Independent School District. The Federalist describes the Texas curriculum in a report this week.

Commentary: The Left Will Not Let Go of COVID

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

COVID’s grip on America is relaxing, not so the Left’s. The Left seized COVID as an unprecedented statist opportunity to advance their agenda. Unsurprisingly, they now resist relinquishing it. Since the Left refuse to let go of America, America must let go of the Left.

Last week the CDC relaxed its guidelines for outdoor mask-wearing by those fully vaccinated against COVID. It was more a rearguard action than a vanguard one, but at least it was a start. Several states are well ahead in their return to normalcy.

America’s virus statistics demonstrate the remission of the virus and validate accelerating relaxation of the lockdowns. On a seven-day moving average, active cases, daily new cases, and daily deaths have been plummeting since the beginning of the year.
On the ledger’s other side, vaccinations began in the U.S. in December, averaging over two million a day since February; as a result, around 31 percent of the population is now fully vaccinated at this writing.

Former President Trump Launches New Communications Platform ‘From the Desk of Donald J. Trump’

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

Former President Trump has launched a new platform to communicate with the public, adding a page on donaldjtrump.com that looks something like a social media feed.

The page headlined “From The Desk of Donald J. Trump,” includes statements from Trump as well as a video at the very top of the feed apparently advertising the new communications outlet.

The posts have buttons for people to share to Twitter and Facebook. “This is just a one-way communication,” a source informed Fox News. “This system allows Trump to communicate with his followers.”

Commentary: Use Twitter’s New Weakness to Start Upending Big Tech

May 5, 2021May 5, 2021 RealClearWire

Twitter’s stock fell 15 percent last week apparently because they’re not getting sufficient numbers of new users to please the market. People are not as intrigued as they used to be with an allegedly open social media platform that’s not really open, in fact is something of a dictatorship.

I know you’re not supposed to kick someone when they’re down. But when that someone has been acting in the most unAmerican, peremptory ways for years, as if the Bill of Rights never existed, censoring people without explanation—even a former president—blocking free discussion of medical science, for Heaven’s sake, and treating conservatives and libertarians pretty much the way Ferdinand and Isabella treated the Jews before they finally kicked them out of Spain, it’s time to take action.

And, when that “down” is the first chink in the armor of Big Tech that has dominated discourse in this country and around the world to a degree never thought possible, it is all the more urgent to let that foot fly and jump up and down on top a little as well if necessary.

Former Democratic Oregon House Speaker Arrested in Sex Trafficking Sting

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

Former Democratic Oregon House Speaker Dave Hunt is facing charges after being arrested in an April sex trafficking sting, the Portland Tribune reported.

Dave Hunt and seven other men were arrested after clicking on decoy advertisements, which Portland police posted on popular human trafficking websites, the Portland Tribune reported. The men were charged with commercial sexual solicitation after contacting undercover police officers to pay for sexual acts.

Hunt voted in favor of legislation that made commercial sexual solicitation illegal in 2011, according to the Portland Tribune. He sponsored a separate bill that was designed to combat sex trafficking in 2007.

Gov. Abbott: Smugglers Transporting 2,000 People Every Day Through Texas

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 The Center Square

Gov. Greg Abbott gave Americans a view of the Texas border area being breached every day by cartels and human smugglers in an interview on Sunday with Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo. Flying above the Rio Grande River, he said 2,000 people are entering Texas every day in rafts, boats, and through gaps in the unfinished border wall.

Abbott said known criminals are entering Texas and the U.S. illegally as a result of the Biden administration’s open border policies. In the month of March alone, the Texas Department of Public Safety made 598 criminal arrests and 16,000 referrals to U.S. Border Patrol. Many being arrested are known criminals, sex-offenders and gang members, he said.

Abbott said the Biden administration’s border policies “have created an open season for human traffickers, for drug smugglers, for drug cartels and gangs.

Biden Promotes ‘Free’ Community College for Americans, ‘Dreamers’

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 The Center Square

President Joe Biden touted a key part of his education initiative Monday, pushing for two years of free community college nationwide, but some critics question the long-term efficacy of his plan.

Biden spoke at Tidewater Community College in Norfolk, Virginia, to promote his proposal, which would provide, among other things, $109 billion for two years of tuition-free community college.

“Do we want to give the wealthiest people in America another tax cut, or do you want to give every high school graduate the ability to earn a community college degree?” Biden asked during his speech, arguing that 12 years of schooling is not long enough in the modern economy. “That’s why the American Families Plan guarantees four additional years of public education for every person in America – two years of universal, high-quality pre-school and two years of free community college.”

Biden Regime Poised to Use Private ‘Research Firms’ to Surveil American Citizens Online

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

The Biden administration is reportedly planning to revive an Obama-era surveillance work-around that will allow the government to spy on American citizens (under the pretense of “tracking extremist chatter” online). Because privacy laws prevent the Department of Homeland Security from infiltrating private chat groups of political adversaries, DHS is considering a plan to use outside entities to legally access private groups on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, according to CNN.

This wouldn’t be the first time a Democrat administration has used outside actors to target political adversaries.

The Obama administration infamously used intelligence gathered by former British spy Christopher Steele—who was working for the opposition research firm Fusion GPS—to obtain surveillance warrants on Donald Trump in 2016.

Federalist Executive Editor Joy Pullmann on Southlake Texas Battle with Critical Race Theory

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Julie Carr

Tuesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Executive Editor at The Federalist and Author Joy Pullmann to the newsmakers line to discuss her recent article addressing the demonization of Southlake, Texas parents speaking up against racist cultural competence plans in their community.

Craig Huey of the Huey Report Discusses Demonic Leftwing Messaging and How Conservatives and Republicans Can Compete

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Julie Carr

Tuesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Craig Huey of The Huey Report in studio to discuss the well-mobilized demonization messaging used by the left and how Republicans and Conservatives can push back.

Tennessee Legislature Stalls on Bill Prohibiting COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates for K-12 Students

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Corinne Murdock

The Tennessee legislature stalled on legislation prohibiting mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations for K-12 students. The bill was removed from the Health Committee calendar last month. In the Senate, it was last referred back to the Calendar Committee after making it to the floor on Monday.

State Senator Joey Hensley (R-Hohenwald) and State Representative Rusty Grills (R-Newbern) were the sponsors on the bill. Hensley’s legislative assistant Allison Wilson clarified with The Tennessee Star that the Senate won’t be hearing the bill this year.

Chauvin Juror Says He Attended BLM Protest Before Trial Because He’d ‘Never Been to DC’

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

A man who served on the jury that voted to convict former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin defended his participation in a Black Lives Matter protest prior to the trial.

Brandon Mitchell said he attended the Aug. 28 “Get Your Knee Off Our Necks!” protest organized by activist Al Sharpton because he had never been to Washington, D.C., according to the Associated Press. Photos recently circulated online show Mitchell wearing a Black Lives Matter shirt at the event.

“I’d never been to D.C.,” Mitchell told the AP. “The opportunity to go to D.C., the opportunity to be around thousands and thousands of Black people; I just thought it was a good opportunity to be a part of something.”

‘Deplorable’ Professor Creates ‘Anti-Indoctrination Mill’ with New Education Startup

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Admin

Michael Rectenwald got himself chased out of New York University when the self-identified communist copped to tweeting against trigger warnings, safe spaces and bias reporting under the pseudonym “Deplorable NYU Prof.”

The professor left two years ago with a golden parachute — the result of a legal settlement with the private university that included a retirement package.

He’s not content anymore with just writing polemical books and fiction in retirement. Now Rectenwald is scouting for academics to join an educational startup, American Scholars, that is launching this summer.

Tennessee Senate Passed Bill to Bar Discrimination Based on Certain Hairstyles; House Deferred to 2022

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Corinne Murdock

The Tennessee Senate passed a bill determining that discrimination shouldn’t occur based on certain hairstyles. The “CROWN Act: Creating Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair” would place “protective hairstyle,” a reference to styling of Afro-textured hair, within the Human Rights chapter of the Tennessee Code. Ultimately, the bill would prevent discrimination based on hairstyles such as braids, dreadlocks, cornrows, or Afros. Enactment of this legislation likely won’t come soon, however: the Tennessee House deferred action on this bill until 2022.

State Senator Raumesh Akbari (D-Memphis) first introduced the CROWN Act, but the idea didn’t originate with her. A coalition dedicated to ending “hair discrimination” is advancing this type of legislation throughout the country. The coalition consists of Dove, the personal care brand, and several social justice organizations: National Urban League, Color of Change, and the Western Center on Law and Poverty. However, the Tennessee Senate version differs slightly from the model legislation. Tennessee senators struck a provision including race as a factor for determining discrimination.

Michigan Reaches 50 Percent of Those 16+ with First Vaccination, Must Inject Another 1.6 Million to Drop Restrictions

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 The Center Square

a health care provider places a bandage on the injection site of a patient, who just received a vaccine

Michigan surpassed a milestone of injecting 50% of residents ages 16 and older with a first vaccine, but is still roughly 1.6 million people short of hitting the goal needed to drop all restrictions.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer laid out the plan last week.

The state must reach 55% of Michiganders ages 16 and older, or another 408,594 people, plus two weeks to reach complete immunity for the Whitmer administration to allow in-person work for all business sectors statewide.

Florida Teachers’ Unions Fought Against Raises

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 RealClearWire

The pandemic has made it clear to parents that teachers’ unions don’t represent the interests of students. And while, in theory, the union should serve the interests of teachers, in practice they have another master: the Democratic Party. When these interests don’t align, the result can be fascinating political contortions – as when Florida teachers’ unions fought against pay raises provided by the state’s Republican governor, Ron DeSantis.

In October 2019, DeSantis declared that 2020 would be the “year of the teacher.” Despite the massive budgetary uncertainty presented by COVID, in March 2020 DeSantis requested $600 million for teacher raises and $300 million for teacher bonuses. The legislature delivered $500 million for raises and $100 million for bonuses, which Jacob Oliva, chancellor of the Division of Public Schools in the Florida Department of Education, described as “the single largest compensation increase ever in Florida and a statement to the nation that Florida is elevating the teaching profession.”

One might expect teachers’ unions to applaud DeSantis and call on other governors to follow his lead. Instead, some local teachers’ unions actually fought against the raises, effectively keeping money out of their own members’ pockets.

Minnesota Set for ‘Very Normal’ Summer, Governor Says

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Peter D'Abrosca

According to Minnesota’s governor, who held a Tuesday press conference announcing that he has a plan to reopen the state which will be announced Thursday, the state should prepare for a “very normal” summer.

“We are going to, potentially by June, have 70 percent of our people, 12 or 16 and above – whichever is authorized by CDC – vaccinated, and that changes the entire calculus,” Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) said Tuesday. “At that point in time, as I’ve said, I think Minnesotans should start assuming that they’re going to have a very normal looking summer.”

Rally to Support Law Enforcement Postponed Because New Rules Made Event Unsafe, Organizers Say

May 5, 2021May 5, 2021 Jack Windsor

A rally organized by Ohio Gun Owners (OGO) to support law enforcement was postponed by its organizers who allege they were denied protections they’d previously received at rallies despite being warned that BLM and Antifa counter-protestors would attend the event scheduled for last Saturday.

Florida Chief Financial Officer Patronis Announces Reelection Bid

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Grant Holcomb

Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis announced his reelection bid for 2022. Patronis made the announcement by posting a video entitled “Let’s Keep Florida Open,” where he touted his work to get Florida’s economy back open after the COVID pandemic. Patronis and his family own the famous Capt. Anderson’s restaurant in Panama City, a point he made in the video while highlighting the work his family did to provide all they could for the families they employed during the pandemic.

Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association Starts Podcast Series on 2021 Candidates and Healthcare

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Matthew Hall

Set up of podcast with microphone and desktop computer with editing software.

The Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association (VHHA) have announced a podcast series focusing on the 2021 candidates for office and their stances on healthcare. The series features statewide candidates from both parties addressing the healthcare issues of the Commonwealth.

Florida Democrats Criticize DeSantis for Banning Mask Mandates

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Peter D'Abrosca

Despite the fact that every American over the age of 15 is eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, Florida’s Democrats are not ready to return to normal.

Instead, they are bashing Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who Monday signed an executive order banning local governments from requiring mask mandates.

Lieutenant Governor Candidate Glenn Davis Sues over Text Message Sent to Convention Delegates

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Eric Burk

Lieutenant governor candidate Delegate Glenn Davis (R-Virginia Beach) is suing “Jane Doe” over an anonymous text message sent to voters in April. Davis is seeking a subpoena against telecommunications provider Onvoy, LLC to reveal the sender of the text, which the lawsuit argues is defamatory.

“The text message sent out essentially says that if you are gay then you are disqualified from being a Republican candidate. That is not what our party believes. That is not what our party stands for,” Davis told The Virginia Star on Tuesday.

Ohio Black Caucus Concerned About Redistricting Deadlines

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 The Center Square

The U.S. Census Bureau and the COVID-19 pandemic have created a constitutional issue for Ohio, and a possible change has members of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus concerned the public will be excluded.

Senate President Matt Huffman, R-Lima, proposed asking voters to approve a constitutional amendment that gives the state options with critical Census Bureau information not expected until September and Ohio facing a constitutional deadline of Sept. 30 to redraw state House, state Senate and congressional district maps.

That has Black Caucus leaders worried public input could be reduced or eliminated.

Former State Attorney Aramis Ayala Looks to Challenge Senator Marco Rubio

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Casey Owens

On Monday, May 3rd, former Florida State Attorney Aramis Ayala announced on Twitter that she will be running for the U.S. Senate against current Senator Marco Rubio in 2022.

With the help from George Soros, a billionaire who contributed $1.4 million into political committees supporting her, Ayala was the first African American State Attorney in Florida’s history after a surprising defeat over former State Attorney Jeff Ashton in 2016. Once in office, controversy swarmed as she banned prosecutors from pursuing the death penalty in her district. Although Ayala was seen as a pioneer in anti-death penalty reform to Democrats, Republicans criticized her actions and pushed for the Florida Supreme Court decision in 2017 that established that the death penalty may not be refused in capital murder cases.

New Ohio Legislation Could Bar Use of Phones While Driving

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Jordyn Pair

Two Ohio representatives have introduced legislation that would bar Ohio drivers from holding a phone while driving, making Ohio a “hands-free” state.

Georgia U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter Proposes FairTax as Alternative to Democrats’ Tax Increases

May 5, 2021May 4, 2021 Chris Butler

U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA-01) this week proposed a solution to Democrats’ tax increases, and he referred to that solution as the FairTax. Carter proposed the FairTax in an emailed newsletter to his constituents.

Tennessee House Passes Bill Banning Critical Race Theory from K-12 Schools

May 5, 2021June 9, 2021 Corinne Murdock

On Tuesday, the Tennessee House passed a bill effectively banning critical race theory (CRT) in K-12 schools. The bill doesn’t mention CRT explicitly, but it does prohibits CRT’s main tenets – such as the belief that America is fundamentally and systemically racist, and that an individual can be inherently privileged, racist, sexist, or oppressive based on their race or sex. The amended version of the bill will now head to the Senate for review. During the third and final hearing before the House, State Representative John Ragan (R-Oak Ridge) gave a lengthy speech expounding on the fundamental founding principles of our country.

“[I]t is time that we support educating our children in fixing what is wrong with America with what is right with America,” said Ragan. “We must create an educational climate where every student is an individual, not just part of some group. Moreover, that educational climate must teach students that they can realize their own unique dreams through hard work and meritorious achievement.”