Day: December 4, 2021

Tennessee Comptroller Suspends COVID-19 Exemptions for Businesses

The Center Square

The Tennessee Comptroller’s Office this week suspended all exemptions that allowed businesses, governmental agencies, schools and other employers to impose COVID-19 vaccination as a condition to receive federal funds.

The decision, which Comptroller Jason E. Mumpower announced Wednesday, came after federal judges in Kentucky and Louisiana issued preliminary injunctions on Tuesday. It also follows a sweeping bill signed by Gov. Bill Lee on Nov. 12 that says government entities cannot require private businesses to instate COVID-19 mandates.

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Commentary: Capitol Surveillance Footage of January 6th Will Tell the Real Story

Admin

For months, Merrick Garland’s Department of Justice has tried every trick in the law books to conceal from Americans a massive trove of video evidence that captured all the activity at the Capitol complex on January 6. Federal judges have played along, approving hundreds of protective orders to keep video clips—particularly footage recorded by the Capitol Police’s extensive closed-circuit television system—out of the public eye.

Time, however, is running out for the government.

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Oklahoma Files Lawsuit to Seek Exemption from Vaccine Mandate for National Guard

Admin
National Guard on duty securing the Capitol building ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration.

On Thursday, the state of Oklahoma filed a lawsuit to exempt members of the state’s National Guard from the nationwide coronavirus vaccine mandate, The Hill reports.

The suit, filed in federal court by Governor Kevin Stitt (R-Okla.) and Attorney General John O’Connor (R-Okla.), names Joe Biden and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin as defendants. The suit requests that the courts declare the national vaccine mandate for all members of the armed services to be unconstitutional, and thus enjoin the federal government from enforcing it on the Oklahoma National Guard; the suit also seeks to prevent the federal government from imposing its penalty for refusal to comply, which would include withholding federal funds from the state’s National Guard.

“This mandate ensures that many Oklahoma National Guard members will simply quit instead of getting a vaccine,” the suit reads in part, “a situation that will irreparably harm Oklahomans’ safety and security.”

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Biden Admin Rolls Out More COVID Measures, Says Vaccine Requirements for Domestic Flights Not ‘off the Table’

The Center Square

President Joe Biden unveiled a new set of executive actions to address the Omicron variant Thursday, though how serious the threat of the variant will be remains unclear.

Biden gave an address from the White House Thursday where he urged a nationwide effort to up vaccinations and booster shots for Americans. The administration said it will extend the mask requirement for domestic flights to March 18 while increasing restrictions on inbound international travelers, requiring they receive a negative COVID test within 24 hours of departure.

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Former Spokesperson for Democratic D.C. Mayor Says Became Republican Because of Biden Leadership

Admin
Fox News interview with Juan Perez

Aformer spokesperson for Washington, D.C., Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser says he switched political parties after President Biden assumed office and that he voted for Glenn Youngkin in the Republican’s recent, successful bid to become Virginia’s next governor.

Victor Jimenez told Fox News host Tucker Carlson on Wednesday night that until recently he was “lead public information officer at [Bowser’s] office for community affairs” and worked prior to that in a similar role for Latino outreach.

“The reason I switched parties is because of everything that’s going on in the country right now,” Jimenez, an Afro-Dominican immigrant, told Carlson. “We see immigration through the roof right now, and that is affecting a lot of Hispanic families in my home state of Virginia. And those are people who are already struggling with making ends meet.”

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November Jobs Report Is One of the Worst Since Biden Took Office

Admin

The U.S. economy added 210,000 jobs in November, marking nearly the lowest number of jobs created in a month since President Joe Biden took office in January.

November’s jobs report was well below economists’ estimate of 573,000, according to CNBC. Additionally, unemployment fell to 4.2% from October’s 4.6% figure, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The U.S. economy, still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic but now subject to uncertainty related to the Omicron coronavirus variant, appeared to slow in momentum in November, The Wall Street Journal reported.

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Commentary: Christianity Did Not Cause the Fall of the Roman Empire

Admin

In The Devil’s Dictionary, the writer Ambrose Bierce offered this definition of History: “An account mostly false, of events mostly unimportant, which are brought about by rulers mostly knaves, and soldiers mostly fools.”

Before you dismiss Bierce’s cynical perspective, remember that historians are mortals. Some are very good at what they do, others are quite bad at it, and most fall somewhere in between. Even the best of them may find their way to the wrong conclusions. They may over-emphasize some factors while under-emphasizing others or allow their personal biases to color what they write.

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Parents of Alleged 15-Year-Old Michigan High School Shooter Charged with Involuntary Manslaughter

Admin
Oxford High School

A Michigan prosecutor on Friday filed involuntary manslaughter charges against the parents of 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley who, earlier this week, allegedly killed four students at Oxford High School and injured several more. Prosecutor Karen McDonald says the actions of the parents went “far beyond negligence.”

Both James and Jennifer Crumbley has been charged with four counts each of involuntary manslaughter, which potentially carry sentences of up to 15-years in prison.

“The parents were the only individuals in the position to know the access to the weapons,” said McDonald. The gun Ethan allegedly used had been purchased by his father, James, just four days before the rampage.

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Stunning Waste: Unemployment Fraud During COVID Cost More Than Triple Total Benefits Paid in 2019

Admin

Unemployment fraud exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the U.S. Labor Department Inspector General’s semiannual report to Congress.

Approximately $872 billion in federal funding was allocated to unemployment benefits in the last year, and at least 10% was estimated to be paid “improperly, with a significant portion attributable to fraud.”

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Scottsdale Police End Investigation into School Board Head over ‘Dossier’ of Protesters

The Center Square

Scottsdale police have closed their inquiry into a former head of a school district there facing accusations that he kept and shared an online repository of sensitive data belonging to parent protesters who attended board meetings.

SPD announced Thursday afternoon that their investigation into Scottsdale Unified School District board member Jann-Michael Greenburg has reached a conclusion without referring any charges. 

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Republicans Head to Mountain Resort to Celebrate Virginia Victories, Plan Governance: ‘No Battle Will Go Unfought by Virginia Republicans’

Eric Burk

Elected officials, activists, and operatives from the Republican Party of Virginia (RPV) are meeting in the mountains of Bath County to celebrate their major wins in the 2021 elections and to plan the rejuvenated party’s future.

“Every state party across the country has its signature event,” former RPV Chair John Whitbeck said. “Virginia GOP’s signature event has always been this weekend.”

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Kellogg Workers Vote to End Strike After Two Months

Morgan Nicole Veysey
Kelloggs Warehouse

The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union, and Kellogg Company have met at a tentative agreement. Both the BCTGM and the Kellogg Company said that they would also meet at the end of the week to further discuss a resolution. 

Anthony Shelton, president of the BCTGM, said in the organization’s news release, “I want to thank and commend all of the members of the bargaining committee for their many, many hours of extremely hard work to reach this tentative agreement. As always in our Union, the members will have the final say on the contract.”

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Governor DeSantis Proposes $100 Million for Military Budget and the Florida State Guard

Casey Owens
Gov. Ron DeSantis giving a speech

Florida’s military budget could receive more than $100 million in funding as Governor Ron DeSantis announced multiple proposals on Thursday that aim to support Florida’s National Guard, and establish a “civilian volunteer force,” known as the “Florida State Guard.”

According to the Governor’s Office, his proposals would further support the National Guard in giving them extras hands in helping with state-specific emergencies such as natural disasters.

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Former Georgia State Rep. Beth Beskin Launches New Talk Radio Program to Discuss Atlanta and Georgia Politics

Chris Butler

Former Georgia State Representative Beth Beskin is scheduled to launch a new weekly talk radio show on Saturday, December 4, where she promises to give listeners a front row seat to Peach State politics. The Beth Beskin Show will broadcast live each Saturday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. on WMLB AM 1690 in Atlanta. Listeners who live outside of the Metro Atlanta area may listen by downloading the Freedom WMLB AM 1690 App.

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Stacey Abrams Says She Never Challenged 2018 Georgia Governor Election Results

Peter D'Abrosca

Stacey Abrams, Georgia’s high-profile 2022 Democrat gubernatorial candidate, told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow Thursday night that she never challenged the results of her 2018 gubernatorial bid, which she lost to Gov. Brian Kemp (R).

“On the night on November 16, when I acknowledged I would not become governor, that he had won the election, I did not challenge the outcome of the election unlike some recent folks did,” Abrams said on “The Rachel Maddow Show,” referring to former President Donald J. Trump. 

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Mailchimp Suspends Child Protection League for ‘Violating Terms of Use’ After Newsletter Questions COVID Vaccines

Hayley Feland

Mailchimp suspended a local Minnesota group, Child Protection League (CPL), for “violating” their “terms of use” after they tried to send a newsletter asking questions of the “rush to inject children” with the COVID vaccine. CPL is an activist group that is “committed to promoting the welfare of children and protecting them from exploitation, indoctrination and violence.”

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Florida Court Rules Against FDLE in Firearm Case

Casey Owens
Black revolver with ammo

A three-judge panel in the 1st District Court of Appeal ruled against the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) Wednesday, in a case regarding an individual who was denied the purchase of a firearm by the Department based off an unapproved background check.

The background check in question was issued through the National Instant Criminal Background Check System, or NICS, which FDLE states denied Leonardo Lynch the purchase of a gun because he had a record of mental incompetency or a court-ordered substance abuse treatment – both of which Lynch denied.

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Minnesota Family Advocates for Father Hospitalized with COVID, Says Hospital Won’t Allow ‘Non-Protocol’ Treatment

Hayley Feland

A Minnesota family has been advocating for their father and husband, David Dentz, in the Methodist Hospital ICU with COVID, where Justin Dentz says his father is failing because of the hospital’s refusal to allow ‘non-protocol’ treatments. Dentz told The Minnesota Sun that his grandfather passed away at the end of November due to similar issues and he doesn’t want to see the same thing happen to his father. Dentz says his father has been on a ventilator and despite multiple meetings, the hospital refuses to try treating him with Ivermectin or supplements.

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Youngkin Lists Key Factors of His Victory, Reiterates Promises at Republican Party of Virginia Advance

Eric Burk

Governor-elect Glenn Youngkin kicked off the Republican Party of Virginia’s (RPV) Advance (Republicans don’t retreat) by reviewing the party’s recent win and expressing hopes for future political and legislative wins.

“We did it,” Youngkin told the crowd. “Friends, after a long day of pain, let’s just be clear: we turned Virginia red.”

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‘Woke’ Professor Fired After Mixing up Names of Black Students

Peter D'Abrosca

A professor at Fordham University in the Bronx has been terminated after showing off his “woke” credentials to students in order to excuse himself from mixing up the names of two black students. 

“A former lecturer in the English Department, Christopher Trogan, was terminated by Fordham on Oct. 25 after a series of communications with students that stemmed from an incident where he confused the names of two Black students,” The Fordham Observer, the school’s newspaper, said. 

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Paduchik Gavels Short Unruly Ohio GOP Central Committee Meeting; Two Resolutions Left Unaddressed

Neil W. McCabe

The Ohio Republican Party chairman gaveled shut the December 3 meeting of the Ohio Republican Party Central Committee held at the Nationwide Conference and Hotel Center here roughly 90 minutes in, leaving two resolutions unaddressed on the agenda.

“We are taking a recess until the hall is cleared,” said Robert A. Paduchik, who took over leadership of the state party from Jane E. Timken in February, shortly after 11:30 a.m., after members of the committee complained that individuals in the public gallery participated in voice votes.

The public gallery had two dozen chairs in a roped-off section in the back of the room for the roughly 100 people who showed up for the open to the public meeting. A handful of protesters held signs and during the meeting and burst into applause or cheers.

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Arizona Republic Employees Say They Lament the Gradual Decline of the Newspaper

Rachel Alexander

Employment in journalism has taken a hit in recent years, and The Arizona Republic, known as AZCentral online, is no exception. The Republic was bought by the left-leaning publisher Gannett in 2000, which bought up several large newspapers in the 2000s. The paper took a sharp lurch to the left politically, and since then, there have been numerous high-profile layoffs and furloughs as the paper shrank faster than most other large newspapers.

Rebekah Sanders, a consumer protection reporter and the president of the paper’s union, Arizona Republic Guild, tweeted about the latest cutback on Dec. 2. “The company is planning to discontinue work cell phones,” she complained. “A [bat sh*t crazy] idea for a company whose entire workforce depends on phone calls! But we will push back and make sure our members are taken care of.”

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Ohio House Republicans Dispute Claim That They Voted for Federal Vaccine Database

Peter D'Abrosca

Five U.S. House Republicans from Ohio Thursday voted in favor of a bill that, according to its critics, will fund a federal vaccination database. 

H.R. 550, also known as the Immunization Modernization Act, will modernize and expand “a confidential, population-based, computerized database that records immunization doses administered by any health care provider to persons within the geographic area covered by that database,” according to its text.

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Bridgestone Suing Tennessee over Tax Credits

Peter D'Abrosca

In an effort to collect on tax credits it says it is owed, Bridgestone Americas, one of the world’s largest tire companies whose American headquarters is located in Nashville, is suing the state of Tennessee. 

“Bridgestone has filed a complaint in Tennessee Chancery Court regarding corporate tax credits accrued in 2017 and 2018,” Bridgestone Americas Communications Director Sara Cooper confirmed to The Tennessee Star. “The complaint was filed as a procedural protection of the company’s interest while the Tennessee Department of Revenue completes its review of these credits. Bridgestone cannot comment further on on-going legal matters.”

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