Month: November 2022

Commentary: Four Issues to Unify the GOP and Realign America

Admin

If Republicans hope to unify their party and realign American politics in their favor, they will need to do more than pour billions of dollars into television ads that highlight rampaging looters and the despairing jobless. They have to offer hope tied to an achievable agenda. Americans are ready for an alternative to Democratic fearmongering and stagnation. Give it to them.

Standing in the way of Republicans developing a comprehensive agenda they can agree on is the deepening rift within the party. On one side is the legacy party, represented by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Senator Mitt Romney (R-Utah), and other so-called moderate Republicans. Opposing them is the MAGA movement led by Donald Trump and backed up by, among other groups, the Freedom Caucus, which now constitutes a majority of House Republicans.

Read the full story

Ohio Senators Portman and Brown Sponsor Senate Version of Bill Expanding Low-Income Housing Tax Credit

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio’s two U.S. senators this week proposed a Senate bill making full-time students eligible for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program. 

U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup (R-OH-2) and Danny Davis (D-IL-7) introduced a House version of the measure earlier this week. The proposed change to the program would make LIHTC, which provides tax relief to developers who build or rehabilitate low-cost rental units, allow full-time students to live on sites that were funded by the credit. The current prohibition on such students living in those buildings was intended to prevent LIHTC from aiding the construction of dormitories. 

Read the full story

WarRoom Battleground: Michael Patrick Leahy on DDoS Attack and Whether Maricopa County Will Certify Elections

Julie Carr

Host Stephen K. Bannon welcomed The Star News Network’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief of The Arizona Sun-Times, Michael Patrick Leahy on Friday morning’s War Room: Pandemic to talk about the DDoS attack at The Arizona Sun Times late Wednesday evening and to give his predictions on whether or not Maricopa County in Arizona will certify their elections.

Read the full story

NHL Boasts of Trans, ‘Non-Binary’ Hockey Tournament

Admin

On Tuesday, the National Hockey League (NHL) boasted on Twitter about its first-ever “Team Trans Draft Announcement” tournament over the weekend, pushing back on criticism that such a league would present clear disadvantages to certain players.

Fox News reports that the tournament, which took place in Middleton, Wisconsin, consisted entirely of so-called “transgender” and “non-binary” players; the league claims that up to 80 players were part of the tournament. The tweet included the hashtags #HockeyIsForEveryone and #NHLPride.

Read the full story

Commentary: People Are Fighting Back Against the Government’s Use of Drones to Spy on Americans

Admin

Americans have long been concerned about government surveillance, and rightly so. Being watched by the government is incredibly disconcerting, especially when government agents are probing into your private life.

The rise of drone technology has not helped on this front. Whereas before a government would need a plane or helicopter to get aerial views of you or your property, now they just need a small remote-controlled device.

Read the full story

Poll: Voters in Five Key States Oppose Same-Sex Marriage Bill over Religious Liberty Concerns

Admin

Voters in five Republican-leaning states oppose a same-sex marriage bill under consideration by the U.S. Senate on the grounds that it undermines religious liberty and punishes people of faith.

The survey of 2,000 likely voters in Indiana, Iowa, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming puts support for the deceptively named Respect for Marriage Act at just 41% compared to 47% who oppose the bill. The opposition is even higher among Republicans (70%) and conservatives (73%).

Read the full story

Economists: Buying a Home May Not Get Any Cheaper Even If the Economy Tanks

Admin

Despite expecting a recession and reduced inflation that would ordinarily put downward pressure on prices in 2023, a critical shortage of housing means prices are unlikely to change much, two economists told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The median sales price for existing homes increased 6.6% in October compared to the same month in 2021, jumping to $379,100, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), primarily due to demand outstripping supply, according to both Nadia Evangelou, senior economist and director of real estate research at the NAR, and E.J. Antoni, economist at the Heritage Foundation. The inventory of unsold existing homes fell to 1.22 million in October, down 10,000 from September 2022, and less than the 1.39 million unsold existing homes in December 2019, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Read the full story

San Francisco Has More than 130 Gender Options for Its Guaranteed Income for Transgender People Program

Admin

There are more than 130 gender, sexual orientation and pronoun options listed on the San Francisco’s Guaranteed Income For Transgender People (GIFT) program application.

Under the GIFT program, 55 San Francisco residents who earn less than $600 monthly and identify as one of the many genders listed will receive $1,200 per month. Aside from woman and man, some of the genders eligible for the money include “genderfuck,” “boi,” “sistergirls” and “butch.”

Read the full story

Growing Body of Evidence Shows ‘Social Influence’ Is Causing Teens to Undergo Sex Changes

Admin

The recent surge in transgender identification is caused in part by peer influence, a growing body of evidence suggests, and some transgender advocates are acknowledging this issue.

Many activists argue that transgenderism has become more prevalent because growing social acceptance allows more transgender people, who would otherwise keep their gender identity a secret, to live openly. Critics of youth gender transitions, however, argue that the growing rate of transgender identification in adolescents, along with rapidly changing demographics of transgender people, are evidence that peer influence is driving young people to identify as transgender who otherwise wouldn’t.

Read the full story

Commentary: Department of Health and Human Services Giving $4.5 Million to Train on Implicit Bias

RealClearWire

by Adam Andrzejewski   The Department of Health and Human Services is awarding $4.5 million in grants to public colleges to train maternal health providers in implicit bias. The grant summary states, “the purpose of this program is to address implicit bias among maternal health care providers to reduce health disparities and improve maternal health outcomes,” with public and state-controlled institutions of higher education eligible for the funding.   An HHS press release about the funding specifies that the funds will be used to support community-based doulas, a non-medical professional to support women as they give birth. They don’t deliver babies but give expectant mothers emotional and physical support leading up to and giving birth. The funding, through HHS’s Health Resources and Services Administration, said the money will be used to hire, train, certify, and pay community-based doulas “in areas with high rates of adverse maternal and infant health outcomes.” The HHS said the grant builds on the administration of President Joe Biden and VP Kamala Harris to “address the nation’s Black maternal health crisis.” Many news outlets and medical entities have reported on the high rate of Black mothers dying in or leading up to childbirth, a terrible scourge that…

Read the full story

Voters Call for New GOP Leadership in Congress After Midterm Election: Poll

Admin

A majority of Republicans want new leadership in the GOP Congress following the 2022 midterm elections, according to a new poll.

Of 1084 polled respondents, 71.6% said that Republicans need new leadership in Congress, and only 9.3% said that Republicans do not, according to the Trafalgar Group/Convention of States Action poll. The poll follows an “underwhelming” midterm election for Republicans, where candidates unexpectedly lost in swing districts, Senate races and gubernatorial races.

Read the full story

Commentary: Majority of American Voters Rightly Concerned About Vote Fraud

RealClearWire

Watching the news, you’d be led to believe that vote fraud doesn’t exist in the United States. Since the election on November 8, news article after news article has simply dismissed any claims of vote fraud as “baseless” (New York Times and CNN) and “without evidence” (NPR, New York Times, and Washington Post). Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake is lambasted for “stoking fears on mail-in ballots.” And the news coverage was no different after the 2020 election.

Read the full story

FDA Social Media Posts on COVID Under Legal, Medical Scrutiny for Misleading Claims

Just the News

The FDA’s Twitter habits are getting scrutiny in court and from medical professionals as the feds seesaw between walking back their once-confident COVID-19 assertions and making sweeping new claims without providing evidence.

Having long ago conceded that COVID vaccines can’t stop viral transmission and that assertions to the contrary by President Biden among others were based on “hope” rather than science, the feds are now downplaying the influence of their social media to escape liability for allegedly violating statutory limits by interfering in medical judgments.

Read the full story

San Francisco Fires Long-Time Elections Official to Meet Its Racial Equity Goals

Admin

The San Francisco elections commission decided last week to not renew director John Arntz’s contract, not because he failed to fulfill his duties, but because they wanted to hire a minority replacement, The San Francisco Chronicle reported.

The city commission voted to not renew Arntz’s five-year deal and instead will hire an independent recruiter to assess applicants for the position along with Arntz, should he choose to reapply, according to the SF Chronicle. Arntz, who was hired in 2002, did not receive a new contract because the commission wanted to carry out San Francisco’s “racial equity” plan that aims to maintain a “high level” of racial diversity in every government position.

Read the full story

Ohio Holiday Activities to Explore with the Family

Hannah Poling

With Thanksgiving now over and winter rapidly approaching, Ohio is full of vibrant holiday villages, Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, and activities for the whole family to participate in.

Whether enveloped in snow, aglow with hundreds of lights, or deliciously decorated Ohio is a wonderland of magical holiday traditions no matter what area of the state you are visiting. Outside of classic Christmas tree lighting’s, sleigh rides, and gingerbread houses Ohio is full of unique activities to make the season memorable.

Read the full story

Texas Company Plans New Facility in Georgia

The Center Square

A Texas-based millwork manufacturer plans to spend millions on a new facility outside Athens, and Georgia taxpayers will cover the cost of workforce training.

San Antonio-based Steves & Sons plans to invest more than $100 million over the next three years on a new 310,000-square-foot facility in Jackson County. It plans to produce molded door skins annually for new housing construction, repair and remodeling. According to a release, the company will create 170 jobs as part of the project.

Read the full story

Minnesota Department of Agriculture Asks Public to Weigh In on Food Purchase Assistance Program

The Center Square

Taxpayers have until Dec. 12 to tell the Minnesota Department of Agriculture how they want it to distribute $3.16 million in grants through a community food procurement and distribution program.

In September, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced its Agricultural Marketing Service signed an agreement with Minnesota under the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program. The American Rescue Plan authorizes the program to maintain and improve supply chain resiliency, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s Sept. 7 news release said. The program’s goal is to buy local food from socially disadvantaged farmers and distribute it to the state’s underserved communities. Nationally, the USDA is awarding up to $400 million to states and Tribal governments to buy food from producers in the state or within 400 miles of delivery destination.

Read the full story

University of Wisconsin System Closing Richland Campus, Just 60 Students Enrolled

The Center Square

by Benjamin Yount   The University of Wisconsin is all but closing one of its smallest campuses. UW President Jay Rothman said in a letter Tuesday the UW-Platteville will end all in-person classes at its Richland campus. Rothman ordered Platteville’s chancellor to end the degree program at the Richland campus because only 60 students are taking classes there right now. “While the University of Wisconsin System remains committed to the branch campuses and to providing as broad of access for students as possible, there comes a time when financial pressure and low enrollment makes in-person degree level academic instruction no longer tenable,” Rothman wrote in his letter. Next year the 60 Richland students will be transitioned to either the Platteville or Baraboo campuses. No one is saying what will happen to the faculty and staff members teaching at the Richland campus. And Rothman isn’t saying if this will be the last or only small UW campus to close. “Each of the branch campuses have a different strategy about what it’s going to look like going forward,” Rothman said earlier in the week. “But we’ve got to address [enrollment], and we have to have the branch campuses be sustainable in the…

Read the full story

Kari Lake Files First Election Challenge Lawsuit, Vows More Action Ahead

Just the News

Arizona GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake said Wednesday that she sued Maricopa County to force it to release documents about voting irregularities in the midterms, a prelude to a larger legal challenge where she’s planning to challenge the election results.

“Every single rule was pretty much broken when it came to Election Day voting where they punish the people who chose to show up on Election Day,” Lake said on the Wednesday edition of the “Just the News, No Noise” TV show. “So we filed this lawsuit in court today asking the county to cough up some of the public documentation we need for our bigger lawsuit.”

Read the full story

Columbus City Council Holds First Public Hearing on ‘Common Sense’ Gun Legislation

Hannah Poling

Columbus City Council members Shayla Favor, Emmanuel Remy, and Council President Shannon Hardin hosted a public hearing Tuesday to discuss the proposed “common-sense” gun reform legislation to reduce gun violence.

Democratic leaders Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther and City Attorney Zach Klein, and Assistant Police Chief Greg Bodker also participated in the hearing which came after Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Steven McIntosh sided with the city of Columbus in a ruling that deals in part with Ohio’s “preemption” laws, which forbid cities and other political subdivisions from regulating firearms.

Read the full story

Survey: Virginia Job Openings Increased by 40,000 in September

The Center Square
man in yellow hardhat and work jacket

The number of job openings in Virginia increased by 40,000 in September, according to the recently released Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Job openings increased from 317,000 in August to 357,000 in September. In addition to job openings, the number of hires also went up. According to the Virginia Employment Commission, there was one unemployed person for every three job openings in the commonwealth.

Read the full story

Study Concludes Michigan Charter School Enrollment Increased During Pandemic

The Center Square

Student enrollment for Michigan charter schools increased each year during the pandemic while traditional public-school enrollments dropped.

Data compiled by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools tracked three years of enrollments during the pandemic and show Michigan’s charter schools had a 2.14% increase, or 3,147 students, between 2019 and 2022. NAPCS researchers relied on available public records for its study of 41 states, concluding charter school enrollment increased in 39 of the 41 states covered by the study during the three years of the pandemic.

Read the full story

Maricopa County Republican Committee Chair Mickie Niland Refuses to Sign General Election Logic and Accuracy Test

Neil Jones

Mickie Niland, chairwoman of the Maricopa County Republican Committee, stated Tuesday she would not be signing the Post-Election Logic and Accuracy test results of the 2022 General Election because she says the test is inadequate.

“I would like a more comprehensive test. I feel the on demand printers, which are now an integral part of the vote center model, need to be part of any accuracy test,” tweeted Niland.

Read the full story

Pfizer and Moderna Conducting Studies to Assess Long-Term Impacts of Myocarditis

Admin

Nearly two years after their mRNA “vaccines” were released to the public, both Pfizer and Moderna are finally conducting clinical trials to track long-term adverse health effects following a diagnosis of vaccine-associated myocarditis and pericarditis in teens and young adults under the age of 21. Myocarditis  can cause permanent damage to heart muscle and even death.

Read the full story

Woke Ideology Eroding War-Fighting Capability Inside Pentagon, New Congressional Report Warns

Just the News

A report released Monday by two Republicans in Congress alleged the Biden administration’s injection of liberal ideologies like Critical Race Theory into the Pentagon is harming military readiness and the safety of troops.

“President Joe Biden and his administration are weakening America’s warfighters through a sustained assault fueled by woke virtue signaling,” Sen. Marco, Rubio, of Florida, and Rep. Chip Roy, of Texas, wrote in the new report, titled “WOKE WARFIGHTERS: How Political Ideology is Weakening America’s Military.”

Read the full story

Investors Flee the Housing Market in Troubling Sign for the Economy

Admin

Investors bought 30% fewer homes in the third quarter of 2022 compared to the same time period last year, as high borrowing costs pressured investors out of the housing market, according to real estate brokerage Redfin Tuesday.

Besides a brief plunge in the second quarter of 2020 in response to the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the decline was the steepest since 2008, and surpassed the 27.4% overall decline in home purchases nationwide, Redfin reported. The pandemic ultimately boosted demand for homes in suburban areas, sending investors on buying spree as they raised rents in those areas, in some cases by double digits, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

Read the full story

Republican States Move to Keep Major Trump-Era Border Policy amid Surge in Illegal Immigration

Admin
President Donald J. Trump prepares to sign a plaque placed along the border wall Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021, at the Texas-Mexico border near Alamo, Texas.

Over a dozen Republican states are attempting to stop a federal judge from ending Title 42, a major Trump-era border policy, according to court documents filed Monday.

Arizona, Louisiana, Alabama, Alaska, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming asked D.C. Judge Emmet Sullivan if they could intervene in the case in which Title 42, which has been used to expel over one million migrants to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic, was overturned, according to the request. Sullivan ruled on Nov. 15 that the Biden administration must end the policy in late December, giving them time to prepare for an expected influx of illegal migrants at the southern border.

Read the full story

Franklin Gun Shop Owners Plead Guilty to Federal Charges

Peter D'Abrosca

Three Franklin-area family members pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice and making false entries regarding the disposition of firearms, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).

“Alan Hassler, 49, Brian Hassler, 52, and Michael Hassler, 45, all of Franklin, Tennessee, and co-  owners of Franklin Gun Shop, a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL) in Williamson County, Tennessee, were charged in September following a federal regulatory inspection by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF),” said a DOJ release. 

Read the full story

Sumner County Commission Votes to Return Comer Barn to Rogers Group and $250,000 Grant to the State

Laura Baigert

At the regularly scheduled meeting on November 14, the Sumner County Board of Commissioners in an unprecedented move voted to return the Comer Barn to the Rogers Group and give back a $250,000 grant to the State of Tennessee.

The resolution rescinds all previous actions and resolutions accepting ownership of the Comer Barn, relinquishing previous deeds so that ownership and control is given back to the Rogers Group.

Read the full story

Pennsylvania’s Thanksgiving Turkey Prices 21 Percent Higher than Last Year

The Center Square

The cost for Thanksgiving dinner has crept up, as has the gas Pennsylvanians buy to get to their relatives.

“The centerpiece on most Thanksgiving tables – the turkey – costs more than last year, at $28.96 for a 16-pound bird,” the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau said in a price report. “That’s $1.81 per pound, up 21% from last year, due to several factors beyond general inflation.”

Read the full story

McCarthy Says GOP Will Remove Omar from Committee Assignment

Admin

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said he will follow through on his promise to remove Rep. Ilhan Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee when Republicans retake control of Congress.

“Last year, I promised that when I became Speaker, I would remove Rep. Ilhan Omar from the House Foreign Affairs Committee based on her repeated anti-semitic and anti-American remarks. I’m keeping that promise,” McCarthy said on Twitter.

Read the full story

Former Rep. Tom Garrett Announces Campaign for GOP Nomination in House District 56

Eric Burk

Former U.S. Representative Tom Garrett has announced his campaign for the GOP nomination in Virginia’s House of Delegates district 56, where he’ll face Jennie Wood, a marketing director and fundraising consultant with experience in the Goochland GOP unit and Senator Mark Peake’s (R-Lynchburg) legislative office.

In 2018, Garrett announced he wouldn’t seek reelection to Congress, citing problems with alcoholism, according to Politico, which reported the congressman and his wife had used official staff for personal errands and chores. At the time, Garrett partially denied the allegations, but said, “there’s one area where I haven’t been honest. The tragedy is that any person Republican, Democrat or independent who’s known me for period of time and has any integrity knows two things: I am a good man and I am an alcoholic.”

Read the full story

Connecticut Gets Boost from Credit Rating Agency

The Center Square

A Wall Street credit rating firm has bumped up Connecticut’s score for its general obligation bonds, citing the state’s ever improving financial outlook. 

Standard & Poor’s announced Monday, it is upgrading Connecticut’s general obligation bond credit rating from A+ (positive) to AA- (stable), as the state prepares to issue more than $900 million in bonds next week for school construction and other public projects. 

Read the full story

VoterGA Reports ‘Serious’ 2022 Election Abnormalities, Over 20,000 Votes ‘Subtracted’ from Totals for Republican Senate Candidate Herschel Walker

Susan Berry, PhD

Voters Organized for Trusted Election Results in Georgia (VoterGA) reports it has identified significant abnormalities in the 2022 Georgia general election, including results that show over 20,000 votes were “inexplicably subtracted” from the vote totals for U.S. Senate Republican candidate Herschel Walker.

The organization, a coalition of citizens seeking to restore voter integrity in Georgia, presented at a press conference Wednesday a sworn affidavit, corroborated by the Edison media line feed, showing the “subtracted” votes.

Read the full story

Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer’s Founding of Partisan PAC Raises Ethical and Legal Questions of Possible Misconduct 

Michael Patrick Leahy

Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer is coming under increasing scrutiny after the botched election in Maricopa County, leading some to question his founding and operation of the Pro-Democracy Republicans PAC, whose stated mission is “to support pro-democracy Arizona Republicans” who reject “conspiracy theorists and demagoguery” from candidates who maintain the 2020 presidential election in Arizona was stolen. In the context of the 2022 election, this is an indication of Richer’s direct opposition to GOP gubernatorial nominee Kari Lake, GOP Secretary of State nominee Mark Finchem, several state legislators and candidates for Maricopa County Supervisor.

Read the full story

Whitmer Appoints Kyra Bolden to Michigan Supreme Court

The Center Square

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said she will appoint Kyra Harris Bolden to fill a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court, making her the first Black woman to serve on the state’s high court.

Justice Bridget McCormack resigned this year, leaving an open seat. Bolden, a current state Representative, was a Democratic pick for a seat on the Michigan Supreme Court during the Nov. 8 election but lost.

Read the full story

State, National Republicans Taking Appeals Court Ruling to Georgia Supreme Court

The Center Square

A Georgia appeals judge has declined to overturn an early voting ruling, and Republican leadership groups have taken their appeal to the Georgia Supreme Court.

Voters will return to the polls for a U.S. Senate runoff between Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock and Republican challenger Herschel Walker. Election Day is Dec. 6, and the appellate ruling allows early voting to commence Saturday.

Read the full story

Abe Hamadeh and RNC Lawsuit Calls Out Issues Seen on Election Day

Neil Jones

Republican Attorney General nominee Abe Hamadeh, along with the Republican National Committee, filed a lawsuit Tuesday against his Democrat opponent Kris Mayes and the counties of Arizona, alleging that errors in the 2022 General Election should prevent a winner from being named in this race.

“Arizonans demand answers and deserve transparency about the gross incompetence and mismanagement of the General Election by certain election officials. I will not stop fighting until ALL voters receive justice. See you in court,” Hamadeh tweeted when announcing the suit.

Read the full story

Ohio Supreme Court Halts State’s Attempt to Collect More Taxes from NASCAR

Hannah Poling

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday morning that revenue earned by NASCAR from selling the rights to broadcast stock car races and merchandise to Ohio fans is not subject to state business taxes.

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court rejected the Ohio Tax Commissioner, Jeffrey McClain’s, order that NASCAR owes the state almost $550,000 for money earned from broadcasting races, online marketing, and sponsorship fees.

Read the full story