Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery Sues Biden Administration to Stop Federal Guidance That ‘Threatens Women’s Sports and Student Privacy’

Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery announced on Monday that he will lead a coalition of 20 states in a lawsuit against the Biden administration.

In the suit filed Eastern District of Tennessee, Slatery and the other attorneys general seek to prevent the Biden administration from enforcing specific federal guidance that “threatens women’s sports and student and employee privacy.”

Read the full story

Commentary: Envy as the Path to Political Power

Bernie Sanders

Demagogues appeal to envy because they believe that promising to destroy the advantages enjoyed by others will win votes and inspire loyalty. Sometimes it does. As the envy-driven horrors of Rwanda and Nazi Germany demonstrate, pledging to disrupt the envied lives of a despised “other” can be a ticket to victory for a political candidate savvy enough to convince voters that he has their best interests at heart.

More than 25 years ago, Doug Bandow, a senior fellow at the Cato Institute, pronounced in his book The Politics of Envy: Statism as Theology that we “live in an age of envy.” Pointing out that “people don’t so much want more money for themselves as they want to take it away from those with more,” Bandow suggested that although “greed is bad enough, eating away at a person’s soul, envy is far worse because it destroys not only individuals, but also communities, poisoning relations.” A Christian libertarian, Bandow wrote that 

those who are greedy may ruin their own lives, but those who are envious contaminate the larger community by letting their covetousness interfere with their relations with others. 

One can satisfy greed in innocuous, even positive ways—by being brighter, working harder, seeing new opportunities, or meeting the demands of others, for instance.

Read the full story

Rutherford County Parents Fume, Say Local School System is Mishandling COVID-19

A group of parents said Monday they are seething after Rutherford County Director of Schools Bill C. Spurlock decided his month to unilaterally remove and then quarantine non-symptomatic and non-COVID-19 positive students from schools. The parents said Spurlock did this without consulting with members of the Rutherford County School (RCS) Board. RCS Board members had previously approved a procedure that would have prevented COVID-19-free or symptom-free students and staff from quarantine, parents said.

Read the full story

Uzbekistan Says Afghan Refugees Can’t Stay

Uzbekistan, a Middle Eastern nation that borders Afghanistan, warned the U.S. that refugees fleeing the Taliban wouldn’t be granted asylum, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Uzbekistan government recently urged the U.S. to take action and transport the refugees to a third nation, according to the WSJ. The small Middle Eastern country reportedly doesn’t want t0 create tension with the incoming Taliban-controlled Afghan government by housing refugees including soldiers who fought alongside and were trained by American troops.

Read the full story

Biden’s Education Department Won’t Enforce a Key Due Process Protection for Students Accused of Sexual Assault

The Department of Education announced it would stop enforcing a Trump administration rule designed to protect those accused of sexual assault on college campuses.

A district court in Massachusetts upheld most of the Title IX 2020 amendments in a July ruling, maintaining new regulations related to public institutions managing allegations of harassment, assault, violence, and more. Although, the court struck down one procedural regulation related to what evidence a “Decision-Maker,” or the employee who is designated to adjudicate the case, may consider in making rulings.

Read the full story

Ida Leaves More Than a Million Without Power, at Least One Dead in Louisiana

Over 1 million Louisiana residents are without electricity Monday morning, after Hurricane Ida came ashore Sunday afternoon with 150 mph winds and relentless rain.

At least one person is reported dead, with winds having sheered off roofs and flooded roads having kept rescue teams from responding.

“Nobody should be expecting that, tonight, a first-responder is going to be able to answer a call for help,” said Gov. Jon Bel Edwards at a news conference Sunday afternoon.

Read the full story

Stanford Professor Says ‘Whiteness’ Explains Parents’ Opposition to School Mask Mandates

On August 17, Hakeem Jefferson, a professor of political science at Stanford University, launched a series of tweets that claimed protestors of school mask mandates are doing so because of their “Whiteness”.

Hakeem’s tweets claim that the protests and opposition to mask-wearing are caused by “Whiteness” and that comprehensive discussions about these protests cannot be had without acknowledging that.

Read the full story

CNN Confirms Biden Administration is Bringing Afghan Refugees to the U.S. with No Paperwork or Vetting

The Biden Administration’s hasty extraction of Afghan refugees to the United States has been so rushed and so sloppy that many are arriving into the country with no documentation to confirm who they even are, Breitbart reports.

Even CNN’s coverage of the debacle confirms the lack of preparation and failure to properly vet refugees. Sources from within the evacuation process told CNN that the goal of the Biden Administration has been to “get as many people on the plane as you can, and we’ll sort out the [paperwork] stuff later.” The same sources added that “some people have landed with no documents whatsoever, creating a very challenging work environment for the officers.”

Read the full story

Big Tech, Woke Finance Crack Down on Flynn, Gateway Pundit, Berenson in Cancel Culture Purge

Person holding phone up in Times Square.

With national attention riveted over the weekend on two major stories — the frantic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan amid its fall to the Taliban and category 4 Hurricane Ida slamming into the Louisiana coast — Big Tech and woke finance dramatically extended the reach of cancel culture with brazen moves to silence and harass three high-profile voices of political and scientific dissent: independent journalist Alex Berenson, popular conservative news and opinion website The Gateway Pundit, and Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn.

On Saturday, Twitter permanently banned Alex Berenson, who has built a large social media following challenging public health establishment orthodoxy on COVID issues ranging from lockdown to vaccine mandates.

“The account you referenced has been permanently suspended for repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation rules,” a Twitter spokesperson responded to an inquiry from Fox News.

Read the full story

States, Not Congress, Could Pose the Biggest Threat to Tech Companies

Despite calls for increased regulation of the tech industry, Congress has yet to pass any major legislation, leaving it up to the states to take action curbing tech companies’ power and influence.

Meanwhile, state legislatures have introduced and enacted legislation on data privacy, antitrust, and content moderation, while state attorneys general have issued a number of legal challenges alleging anticompetitive business practices.

Read the full story

Sugar Growers Sue Army Corps of Engineers Over Water Levels

Florida Crystals’ Okeelanta Corp., U.S. Sugar, and the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative filed separate lawsuits and are suing the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers over proposed reservoir water levels. The sugar companies say the proposed levels will be too low to supply enough water to their fields.

The Corps are attempting to keep the water low as part of an Everglades restoration project, but the growers would want to see the levels returned to a standard adopted in 2000.

Read the full story

Minnesota Student Reading and Math Scores Suffer During COVID-19

Statewide assessment results for 2021 show declines in the number of students meeting or exceeding grade-level standards compared to 2019 after a year of virtual learning and disruptions from COVID-19.

In math, 44% of students in grades three to eight and 11 who took the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCA) or Minnesota Test of Academic Skills (MTAS) met or exceeded grade-level standards, down from 55% in 2019. Student reading proficiency dropped seven percentage points to 53% from 2019, while science proficiency dropped eight percentage points to 43%.

ACCESS for ELLs (English language learners) measures students’ English language proficiency. Of the students who took the ACCESS for ELLs in 2021, 9% were proficient in English, a three percentage point decrease from 2019.

Read the full story

Residents of Democratic Stronghold Genesee County, Michigan Speak to Commissioners Overwhelmingly Against School Mask Mandate

An informal meeting of the Genesee County, Michigan Board of Commissioners on Monday saw residents turn out heavily against a school-mask mandate for students in grades K-6. 

County Medical Health Officer Pamela Hackert told attendees she imposed the requirement only on those lower grades because she wanted to provide protection to students who do not yet have the option of receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.

Read the full story

Another Georgia Professor Quits Over COVID-19 Concerns

University of North Georgia arches

Just days after two professors at the University of North Georgia resigned instead of teaching classes in person, another professor at a public university in Georgia has decided to call it quits over COVID-19 concerns.

Irwin Bernstein, am 88-year-old retiree-rehire at the University of Georgia, abruptly quit his position in the middle of a class after a student refused to pull her mask over her nose, according to WSBTV.

Read the full story

Drive to Legalize Recreational Marijuana in Ohio Begins as Ballot Panel Approves Petition

The Ohio Ballot Board has approved an initiative petition drive seeking to legalize marijuana for adults 21 years old and older, clearing the way for supporters to collect signatures for presentation to the Ohio General Assembly later this year.

The five-member panel certified the proposed “Act to Control and Regulate Adult-Use Cannabis” in a 5-0 votes as meeting the one-law standard for proposed ballot measures.

Read the full story

Youngkin Announces Major Policy Goals in His ‘Day One Game Plan’

GOP gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin unveiled a long list of policy priorities prominently featuring tax breaks alongside spending on law enforcement and schools in his “Day One Game Plan.” His Monday announcement in Falls Church also included a declaration that he would ban Critical Race Theory (CRT) from being taught in schools or used in teacher training, and he said he wouldn’t implement COVID-19 shutdowns.

“I will not allow COVID lock downs to ever occur in Virginia again,” Youngkin said to loud cheers and applause from the crowd.

Read the full story

Gov. Walz, Angie Craig Oppose Minneapolis Effort to Defund Police

Minneapolis City Council Pledges to Dismantle Police Department

Two prominent Democrats have come out against the ballot effort to defund the Minneapolis Police Department, saying police reform, not defunding, is needed.

Gov. Tim Walz revealed in an interview at the Minnesota State Fair last week that he thinks the ballot question does not provide enough detail and will leave residents “confused” on what they’re voting for or against, Fox 9 reported.

“It’s been distilled down to this: defund police or fund police? I know it’s more complex than that, but I think that poses problems,” Walz said.

Read the full story

Gun Control Activist to Speak at Georgia House Hearing on Atlanta’s Soaring Crime Rates

Members of the Georgia State House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee are scheduled to meet Tuesday to address Atlanta’s rising crime rates, and a representative from a gun control group plans to speak. Committee members are scheduled to meet at 1 p.m., Tuesday, August 31, in room 406 of the Coverdale Legislative Office Building at 18 Capitol Square Southwest in Atlanta.

Read the full story

Florida COVID Hospitalizations Continue Downward Trend

empty hospital room

Floridians hospitalized for COVID has decreased for a fourth day in a row, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data.

The data shows Florida’s hospitals are taking care of 15,778 COVID patients which accounts for only 27.5 percent of all Floridians hospitalized. Similarly, Florida’s ICU’s are helping 3,477 COVID patients, which was over 200 less COVID patients than Thursday, last week.

Read the full story

Ohio Bill Would Close Teacher Misconduct Loophole

Two Ohio lawmakers want to close a loophole in state law that allows teachers who are under investigation for misconduct to retire and school districts to not file a report with the Ohio Department of Education.

The legislation, filed this week by Reps. Adam Miller, D-Columbus, and Sarah Fowler-Arthur, R-Geneva-on-the-Lake, was proposed after five Rocky River School District teachers resigned and one retired in the spring as the district investigated alleged inappropriate contact.

Read the full story

Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Whitmer Kidnapping Plot

A man upset over Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s COVID-19 policies plead guilty to one count of a kidnapping conspiracy and accepted a plea deal to serve six years and three months in prison.

Ty Garbin, 25, is the only known member of the Michigan militia group “Wolverine Watchmen” to plead guilty to the alleged plot.

Federal prosecutors suggested he serve a nine-year sentence, citing his cooperation with authorities and plans to testify against other alleged kidnappers.

Read the full story

Arizona School Officials Pushing Mask Mandate Caught Not Wearing Masks

Some Arizona school officials are in a feud with Governor Doug Ducey and the Arizona Legislature over implementing mandatory mask policies, but some of those officials have been caught not wearing masks themselves. Arizona Superintendent of Schools Kathy Hoffman, a Democrat, was spotted not wearing one along with others at a baby shower. Not a single person present had a mask on or was social distancing. Amphitheater Public Schools, which mandated masks on August 16, posted a photo of their Communications Director Michelle Valenzuela, posing without a mask on, clearly standing within a couple of feet of the photographer. They deleted the tweet.

Ducey is confident the school mask mandates will not hold up in court. He said earlier in August, “COVID has been with us for well over a year and a half now, and Arizonans are educated about it. If they want to wear masks, they should absolutely do so. It’s an individual choice. No one and no law anywhere in Arizona is stopping anyone from wearing masks. Ultimately, these mandates are toothless, unenforceable and will not hold up in court.”

Read the full story

Tennessee State Legislators Push Back Against Biden Administration Claim Parents Opting Out of Mask Mandates Is a Civil Rights Violation

U.S. Department of Education (USDE) officials announced Monday they will investigate Tennessee and five other states that allow parents the right to opt out of a public school’s COVID-19 mask mandates. In a press release, USDE officials said such policies could discriminate against students who are disabled and at heightened risk for severe illness.

Read the full story