House Passes Funding Bill, Clearing the Way to Keep Government Open

A short-term funding bill is set to land on President Joe Biden’s desk after it was overwhelmingly approved in the House Thursday afternoon.

The continuing resolution, which funds the federal government through Dec. 3, passed the House on a 254-175 bipartisan vote less than two hours after it cleared the Senate. Biden plans to sign the bill later Thursday, avoiding a devastating government shutdown.

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Commentary: Defund Police Movement to Blame for Record 30 Percent Surge in Murders Across America

Police advocates say the Defund the Police movement is responsible for the nearly 30 percent increase in murders in 2020, the largest single-year jump since the FBI began recording crime statistics six decades ago.

The change in murder was widespread — a national phenomenon and not a regional one. Murder rose over 35 percent in cities with populations over 250,000 that reported full data.

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Tennessee Man Participates in ‘ACTIV-6’ Study as Feds Work on Finding COVID Therapeutics

A Tennessee man who contracted COVID-19 recently participated in a study by the National Institute of Health (NIH) that seeks to identify and repurpose approved drugs to be used as therapeutics for the virus.

Brent Hendrickson is has now mostly recovered from COVID-19, according to News4, and had a unique opportunity to partake in the NIH’s trial of the inhaled steroid Fluticasone, the anti-depressant Fluvoxamine, and the Nobel Prize-winning anti-parasitic Ivermectin.

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Rumors Suggest Nashville Christmas Day Bomber Might Have Originally Targeted Hermitage Hotel

Members of the Special Bombing Review Commission on Tuesday discussed rumors that the man accused of setting off a bomb on Second Avenue North on Christmas morning last year originally might have targeted Nashville’s Hermitage Hotel. That man, Anthony Quinn Warner, died in an explosion that authorities accused him of setting off last year on Second Avenue around 6:30 a.m. on December 25. The explosion also damaged at least 41 businesses and collapsed one building.

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Kamala Harris Praises Anti-Semitic College Student Who Accused Israel of Genocide

On Tuesday, while addressing students at George Mason University, Vice President Kamala Harris praised a female student who made false and anti-Semitic claims about the state of Israel, accusing the U.S. ally of “ethnic genocide,” as reported by the New York Post.

Harris’s remarks to the gathering of students were in commemoration of National Voter Registration Day; after her brief speech, the masked Vice President called on the students for a question-and-answer session.

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Unions and Businesses Nationwide Split on Biden’s Vaccine Mandate

President Joe Biden’s wide-ranging vaccine mandate will affect tens of millions of U.S. workers, but experts, labor unions and business groups are divided on what impact the rule will have.

While experts disagree on whether the federal mandate, which applies to the majority of the U.S. workforce, may lead to mass resignations, the rule will at the very least disrupt workplaces nationwide, Erik Eisenmann, a partner at the national law firm Husch Blackwell, told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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Former Acting Commissioner for U.S. Customs and Border Mark Morgan Weighs in on Biden Administration: ‘This Is About Perpetual Political Power and It’s Disgusting’

Wednesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Mark Morgan, Former Acting Commissioner of US Customs and Border Protection to the microphones to discuss the borders effect on all of America and leadership differences of former President Trump and President Biden.

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Marine Officer Who Demanded Accountability for Afghanistan Debacle Jailed Awaiting Military Trial

The Marine officer who received viral attention in August for posting a video on social media blasting military leadership over the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan, has been thrown in the brig, the United States Marine Corps has confirmed.

Lt. Col Stuart Scheller was taken to a military brig on Monday for violating a gag order, his father told the military blog Task & Purpose.

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Judge Blocks Key Part of Arizona Law Banning Doctors from Aborting Babies Based Solely on Genetic Abnormality

An Arizona judge blocked part of an abortion law Tuesday that banned doctors from knowingly aborting a baby if the abortion is based solely on a genetic abnormality like Down Syndrome.

Former President Barack Obama appointee, U.S. District Judge Douglas Rayes, wrote that the provision “essentially requires providers to mislead their patients into believing that their constitutionally protected choice is unlawful,” according to the Associated Press.

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Orlando Magic Player Rips Mainstream Press After Being Dubbed ‘Anti-Vax’

Orlando Magic forward Jonathan Isaac this week responded to criticism he received in Rolling Stone for his personal decision not to take the COVID-19 vaccine. 

The article, called “The NBA’s Anti-Vaxxers Are Trying to Push Around the League — And It’s Working,” chastised the 23-year-old basketball pro, who has had COVID-19, and recovered from the virus.

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Report: Facebook Researched How to Market to ‘Tweens,’ Studied Kids’ Playdates

Facebook researched how to market its products and services to preteen users, studying kids’ playdates and developing strategies to address parents’ concerns, according to an investigation by The Wall Street Journal.

The tech giant established a three-year project beginning in 2018 to study and develop marketing strategies geared towards preteen users, company documents seen by The Wall Street Journal revealed. Facebook conducted over a dozen studies to figure out which services most appeal to children under the age of 13, and what are parents’ chief concerns.

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Commentary: Thinking Critically About China’s Responsibility for COVID-19

When the Chinese authorities last year arrested the late Dr. Li Wenliang, along with seven others, for warning his fellow citizens about a deadly new coronavirus, those authorities, as usual, were engaged in a cover-up.

What were they seeking to hide? A naturally occurring zoonotic disease that had leapt to humanity in a Wuhan wet market? Or a virus that had escaped from a supposedly secure facility where it was being studied and modified?

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Third Lawsuit Filed to Stop Ohio’s New Legislative District Map

Two more lawsuits have been filed with the Ohio Supreme Court challenging Republican drawn legislative district maps, claiming they are unconstitutional and gerrymandered.

The most-recent challenge came Monday from the Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations and was filed by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law and the law firm Reed Smith.

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Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Vetoes Funds ‘Encouraging Adoptions as Alternative to Abortion’

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on Wednesday vetoed over $16 million in funds in the new state budget allocated to programs promoting adoption over abortion.

Whitmer, a staunch abortion proponent, nixed spending “that either prohibits pregnancy service programs from providing referrals for abortions or would be allocated to programs aimed at steering pregnant people toward abortion alternatives,” according to Mlive.

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Florida’s Office of Safe Schools Facing Personnel Shortages, Extended Safety Needs

In 2018, the State of Florida launched the Office of Safe Schools within the Department of Education to determine the best practices to ensure Florida’s schools remain safe in the years following the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla.

The office is scheduled to sunset in July 2023, and the chairman of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission in concerned about the office going forward regarding personnel and safe plans not being executed.

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Florida Democrats File All-Green Energy by 2040 Bill

Two progressive Florida Democrats filed legislation to require all of Florida’s energy to be generated by renewable energy by 2040. State Sen. Lori Berman (D-FL-32) and State Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-FL-47) filed SB 366 and HB 81, respectively.

Each bill contains language including “prohibiting the drilling or exploration for, or production of, oil, gas, or other petroleum products” and that the state has to put together a plan to “generate 100 percent renewable energy.”

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Giffords Policy Advisor, Former Nominee to Lead ATF, Blasts Biden Administration

The Senior Policy Advisor to Giffords, a group founded to push gun control after former Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot during a campaign rally, has turned on the Biden Administration after being dropped from consideration to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). 

David Chipman, an ardent gun control supporter who advocated for Congress to ban Americans from purchasing so-called “assault weapons” like the AR-15, was once nominated to head the ATF. He worked for the federal law enforcement agency for 25 years the nomination, and before joining Giffords. 

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More Than 180 Minnesota Health Care Workers Sue over Vaccine Mandate

More than 180 Minnesota health care workers spanning statewide hospital systems filed a federal lawsuit over the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, seeking an injunction to block the upcoming rule.

The lawsuit follows weeks after President Joe Biden announced a vaccine mandate for employers with more than 100 employees and facilities that receive Medicaid or Medicare. Defendants named include St. Mary’s Duluth, University Of Minnesota Physicians; Mayo Clinic; North Memorial Health Care; Park Nicollet Methodist Hospital; St. Luke’s Hospital Of Duluth; and Minneapolis Radiation Oncology.

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Loudoun County Teachers Speak Against Transgender Policy at Rally

child running with trans flag

Loudoun County teachers Tanner Cross, Monica Gill, and Kimberly Wright spoke at a rally before the Loudoun County School Board meeting Tuesday evening. They are suing the school district over its transgender policy 8040 that includes a requirement that teachers use students’ preferred pronouns. Previously, the lawsuit focused on Cross’ termination after he spoke out at a school board meeting; an injunction in that case forced the district to allow him to return to work.

“I cannot thank this community enough for you support and unwavering dedication to stand alongside me in the fight to speak freely in a continued effort to protect our students and our children from harmful ideologies,” Cross said at the rally. “Now, the battle turns to policy 8040 itself.”

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Arizona Democratic Party Approves Resolution Threatening to Censure Kyrsten Sinema

The Arizona Democratic Party (ADP) is putting pressure on Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) in order to coerce her into opposing the Senate filibuster, voting for President Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion “human infrastructure” bill, and supporting multiple voting related bills. They issued a resolution which threatens to give her a vote of no confidence, censure her, and withdraw support of her reelection if she fails to comply by the next state committee meeting in January 2022. 

The resolution states in part:

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED – that the Arizona Democratic Party will closely watch Senator Sinema’s votes in the coming weeks and if Senator Sinema, does not vote in favor of Filibuster reform to change the Senate rules in order to allow the passage of The For The People Act – voting rights bill, the John Lewis Voting Rights Bill, or other urgent legislation, for example the PRO ACT, that has already passed by the House or if she votes against the Senate Reconciliation Budget Bill, also referred to as the Human Infrastructure Package or the American Families Plan supported by President Biden and the vast majority of Democrats in both the House and the Senate, or if she continues to delay, disrupt, or votes to gut the Reconciliation Package of its necessary funding, then the Arizona Democratic Party State Committee will go officially on record and will give Senator Sinema a vote of NO CONFIDENCE.

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Commentary: McAuliffe Says the Quiet Part Out Loud: ‘I Don’t Think Parents Should be Telling Schools What They Should Teach’

Terry McAuliffe

Remember the old adage — the goal isn’t to win the debate, but to make sure you don’t lose the debate.

Former Democratic governor Terry McAuliffe was pressed on graphic textbooks — and I mean graphic — of a sexual nature being included in government school libraries, and McAuliffe exploded with rage.

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Michigan Missing Out on Ford’s Joint $11.4B Electric Vehicle Factories in Tennessee, Kentucky

Despite Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s claim that Michigan is the future of electric vehicles (EVs), Ford Motor Company and battery maker SK Innovation announced plans to build three new plants in Kentucky and Tennessee.

The new plants, which will host production of electric vehicles and advanced lithium-ion batteries by 2025, will cost roughly $11.4 billion to build and create a projected 11,000 jobs.

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Crowds Gather with Matt Walsh to Protest Loudoun County School’s ‘Indoctrination and Psychological Abuse of Kids’

A few hundred protestors gathered Tuesday evening outside of a Loudoun County Public Schools board meeting to push back against what they say are far-left Critical Race Theory and transgender policies.

Many of the protestors told the Daily Caller News Foundation that they were inspired to attend the rally by The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh, who flew in from Tennessee to speak to the the school board of Loudoun County, a battleground for progressive education policies including LGBT issues, Critical Race Theory, and racial reparations.

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Youngkin Campaign Rebukes McAuliffe After Vow to Strip Parents of School Input

Former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D), running for his second non-consecutive term as Virginia’s most senior elected official, has become the subject of criticism after remarks from a Tuesday night debate. 

During the debate, McAuliffe claimed he thought parents should have little to no input on what they’re children are being taught in schools. 

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Virginia Redistricting Commission Starts on State House Map

The Virginia Redistricting Commission turned to drafting a House of Delegates map Wednesday, after working on a Senate map Monday. The commission compared Republican and Democratic proposals in southwest Virginia, Southside, and part of Hampton Roads. As with the first look at Senate maps a week ago, the commissioners spent a significant time in southwest Virginia, and weren’t able to keep up with a schedule that would have allowed them to consider all of Hampton Roads or Eastern Virginia Wednesday.

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Renacci Launches Sixth Digital Attack Ad Against Ohio Governor DeWine as Broadcast Strategy Simmers

GOP gubernatorial candidate Jim Renacci has launched his sixth digital campaign ad as advisers contemplate when to move the media strategy to television.

Renacci’s latest social media ad continues the campaign’s central theme of state government corruption as it focuses on the Sept. 24 resignation of Dan McCarthy, the legislative affairs director of incumbent Governor Mike DeWine who also will seek the Republican nomination in the May 3 primary.

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Florida Governor DeSantis Announces Actions to Address the ‘Biden Border Crisis’

Governor DeSantis, along with Florida Attorney General, Ashley Moody, joined together on Tuesday to announce three actions Florida is taking to address what they call the “Biden Border Crisis.”

The three actions include the Biden Border Crisis Executive Order 21-223 (EO 21-223), the appointment of Larry Keefe, former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, as Public Safety Czar to carry out the order, and lastly, a lawsuit that was filed against the Biden Administration challenging its “catch and release” policy.

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