Tennessee Senate Approves Adding Hamilton County to ESA/Voucher Program

A bill to add Hamilton County schools to Tennessee’s pilot education savings account program was approved by the Senate on Thursday and is scheduled to be discussed in House committee next week.

Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, explained Hamilton County was taken out of the original pilot as the school district put an additional $20 million in funding into the district’s schools and hired a new superintendent, but that has not solved the district’s issues.

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Despite Comprehensive Study Showing Masks Ineffective Against COVID and Flu, CDC Director Tells Congress, ‘Our Masking Guidance Doesn’t Really Change with Time’

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky testified during a recent House committee hearing that, despite the recent release of an international research review that found masks are ineffective against COVID-19 and the flu, her agency’s masking guidance “doesn’t really change with time.”

During a hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) asked Walensky to explain how the CDC uses evidence to update or change its guidance.

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Number of Troops Dying from Fentanyl More than Doubles

The number of American troops dying from fentanyl more than doubled between 2017 and 2021, according to Department of Defense (DOD) data released Wednesday.

The data show that fentanyl was to blame for 54 overdose deaths in 2021, which account for 88% of drug deaths that year, according to DOD’s response to a bipartisan congressional inquiry. The number is a staggering increase from the 22 overdose deaths caused by fentanyl in 2017.

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U.S. Projected to Tack on $19 Trillion in Debt over Next Decade as Spending Soars

The U.S. is likely to add $19 trillion more to the national debt in the next 10 years, which is $3 trillion higher than previously expected, new Congressional Budget Office (CBO) predictions show.

By the end of 2023, the CBO projects the deficit to be $1.4 trillion, and it will continue to average about $2 trillion annually, raising the debt to about $52 trillion. The CBO report indicates that the rise in the deficit is a result of bipartisan legislation coupled with the Federal Reserve’s hike in interest rates.

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YouTube CEO Steps Down After Nine Years

Youtube CEO Susan Wojcicki will be stepping down after a nine year stint as head of the company, Wojcicki announced in a blog post Thursday.

Wojcicki initially joined Google, Youtube’s parent company, nearly 25 years ago and worked on several projects for the company — including co-creating Google’s Image Search function and advertising technology — before joining Youtube in 2014 as its CEO, according to the blog post. Chief Product Officer Neal Mohan will be taking over as the new CEO of YouTube, while Wojcicki will step into an advisory role at YouTube’s parent companies, Google and Alphabet.

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Democrats Celebrate 100 Federal Judicial Nominee Confirmations But Michael Delaney ‘Problematic’ for Biden and Schumer

The Democrat-controlled Senate is celebrating the confirmation of 100 of Joe Biden’s judicial nominees, approved by radical left-wing organizations, but Wednesday’s Judiciary Committee hearing saw Biden nominee Michael Delaney struggling against an onslaught of confrontation over his move in 2015 to publicly release the name of a minor female victim of sexual assault while he represented her school.

By nominating representatives of these radical positions, Biden is “paying back the left-wing dark money groups who spent over a billion dollars to help elect him and Senate Democrats,” Carrie Severino, president of JCN, formerly known as Judicial Crisis Network, told Fox News Digital.

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Just Saying Jeb Bush’s Name Fails to Get Data Science Bill Moved Out of House Subcommittee

At this week’s House Education Instruction Subcommittee meeting, State Representative Antonio Parkinson (D-Memphis) introduced a bill, HB 0691, that would allow students to earn one credit in data science to satisfy one of the four mathematics credits required for high school graduation. The idea, Parkinson told lawmakers, came from a recently attended conference held by ExcellinEd, the education non-profit founded by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.  

At that conference, Dr. Steven Strogatz told attendees, “Our current curriculum is rooted in a different era…our current math curriculum is rooted in the 1950s Space race. We have to make room for data science for 21st-century skills.”

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Virginia’s Loudon County School Board Won’t Release Report on 2021 High-Profile Bathroom Assaults

The Loudoun County School Board in northern Virginia has decided not to release the findings of an independent report on the 2021 sexual-assault cases at two high schools that attracted national attention and was a focal point in parents’ quest during the height of the pandemic for more transparency in public schools. 

The board voted 6-3 on Tuesday night, citing attorney-client privilege, which can protect the identify of the accused and victims, despite a grand jury report that concluded school officials mishandled the situation.

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Arizona State Senator Sponsors Bills to Call for a Convention of States

Sen. Anthony Kern (R-Glendale) is proposing three bills that ask Congress to call for a Convention of States as allowed for in Article V of the U.S. Constitution, so the states can vote on and adopt amendments to the Constitution. Once two-thirds of state legislatures demand a Convention of States, also known as an Article V Convention, the Constitution mandates it. The states then run the convention, passing and ratifying amendments with a three-quarters majority — without Congress, the president, or governors involved.

SCR 1014 would propose a “federal fiscal responsibility” amendment, and states that enough states met the threshold in 1979 but Congress failed to order a convention. 

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Florida’s Medical Marijuana Program Has Grown 71 Percent in the Past Two Years

According to the official in charge of Florida’s medical marijuana program, the number of active patients has increased 71% over the past two years.

Christopher Kimball, the Director of the Office of Medical Marijuana Use, provided statistics to the Florida House Healthcare Regulation Subcommittee Tallahassee Wednesday as they discussed the medical marijuana industry in the Sunshine State.

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Minnesota Democrats Raise Reimbursement Rates for Fraud-Prone Child Care Program

On Monday the Minnesota House of Representatives voted to pass a bill raising reimbursement rates for a child care program once at the center of a fraud investigation.

The Democrat-controlled chamber passed HF 13, which will fund increased reimbursement rates for providers who participate in the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), by a 69-59 vote. The program exists to help low-income families afford child care, which is more expensive in Minnesota than most states.

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Study Recommends Michigan Update Telehealth Laws

A new report from the Reason Foundation recommends Michigan update its telehealth laws from temporary pandemic policies to permanent status.

When COVID started, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-86, which expanded telehealth options for Michiganders by authorizing and encouraging health care providers to use these services when appropriate and after getting consent from patients. The order took effect immediately and continued through June 10, 2020.

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Connecticut Gov. Lamont Signs Fiscal Controls, Free Lunch Bill

Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont has signed a bill extending “guardrail” fiscal reforms that have been credited with helping turn the state’s once-troubled finances around.

The measure, which was approved by the state Legislature last week, will keep in place a raft of spending “guardrails” that were initially approved as part of the 2017 fiscal year budget for at least another five years.

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Arizona Court of Appeals Sides with Katie Hobbs in Election Challenge

The Arizona Court of Appeals officially sided with Go. Katie Hobbs (D) in the ongoing election challenge filed by Republican Kari Lake. However, Lake has already said this is not the end and that the Arizona Supreme Court is her next destination.

“BREAKING: I told you we would take this case all the way to the Arizona Supreme Court, and that’s exactly what we are going to do. Buckle up, America,” Lake tweeted.

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Arizona House Majority Announces New Committee on International Trade

Arizona State House Speaker Ben Toma (R-Peoria) announced Thursday the formation of the House Committee on International Trade to help improve Arizona’s economic footprint.

“Trade is essential to Arizona’s success,” said Toma. “It fuels our state’s economic growth, generating business and job opportunities – all which is also critical for the prosperity of Arizona families. Our state has tremendous opportunity to grow our trade footprint with international partners, and that is the intention behind this new committee.”

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Ohio Congressman Wenstrup Starts Probe of Wuhan Institute of Virology Funding and COVID Origins

Congressman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH-2) this week commenced a House of Representatives investigation concerning the genesis of the novel coronavirus that hit U.S. shores in winter 2020.

As the new chair of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, the southern-Ohio legislator formally requested an on-the-record conversation with former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases director Anthony Fauci and other senior federal health administrators as well as security officials. Wenstrup’s subcommittee is working on the matter alongside House Committee on Oversight and Accountability which is chaired by James Comer (R-KY-1) who last month made initial requests for federal documents pertaining to COVID-19’s origins.

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Evers Unveils Record $104 Billion Budget Plan, Republicans Get Ready to Rewrite

Billing it a “breakthrough budget,” Governor Tony Evers rolled out a massive two-year spending plan on Wednesday that would dump billions more taxpayer dollars into a host of new programs, raise taxes by $1 billion-plus on businesses, deliver a sweetheart deal to the Milwaukee Brewers, and gobble up much of the state’s historic $7.1 billion surplus. 

At approximately $104 billion, Evers’ budget proposal is the first to break the $100 billion mark and comes in at about $13 billion more than his 2021-23 plan and more than $16 billion higher than the current budget he signed into law in June 2021. 

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State Senator Justine Wadsack Bolsters Vote Against Katie Hobbs’s Health Services Director Nominee as Support for Constituents

The Arizona State Senate turned down Gov. Katie Hobbs’s nomination for the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) Director, Dr. Theresa Ann Cullen, in a vote Tuesday. Following the rejection, freshman State Sen. Justine Wadsack (R-Tucson) celebrated her vote against Cullen as a push for her constituents.

“When I decided to run for the Senate and represent Legislative District 17, I had one objective in mind: to improve and ease the lives of my constituents while protecting their constitutional right to freedom,” said Wadsack.

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Ohio House Speaker Stephens Sets Legislative Priorities

Following several weeks without any measures being formally submitted with bill numbers, the Ohio House Speaker and his leadership team have announced their legislative priorities, which range from adjustments to property taxes, to adoption, to protecting the integrity of girls’ sports.

Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) was joined by his allied House Republicans as he listed 12 of the more than 50 bills that were assigned numbers and sent to committees as priorities. These bills ranged from changes to property and income taxes to an affordable housing tax credit, the “Backpack Bill” universal voucher program, and making certain that biological males cannot compete in female-only athletics.

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Idaho State House Passes Ban on Transgender Surgery for Minors

On Tuesday, the Idaho House of Representatives passed a bill that would implement a statewide ban on so-called “transgender” surgeries for minors, as well as medications that are meant to indulge delusions of gender dysphoria.

According to the Washington Free Beacon, the “Vulnerable Child Protective Act” was introduced by State Rep. Bruce Skaug (R-Idaho), and will now head to the Republican-controlled State Senate. The bill expands upon an already-existing state ban on “female genital mutilation,” and makes it a felony to give puberty blockers or other forms of hormone treatment to children; the bill also makes it a felony to perform genital mutilation surgery that “alters the appearance of or affirms the child’s perception of the child’s sex.”

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Commentary: After Affirmative Action

The betting odds are that the Supreme Court will soon rule against affirmative action. It is worth asking how we got here, and what we should do about it.

Why is affirmative action in jeopardy? The main reason, ironically, might be the increasing ethnic diversity of the United States. In 1960, the U.S. was roughly 88% white and 12% black. The census category “Hispanic” did not yet exist. Similarly, the U.S. did not have a separate “Asian” category for the less than one million Americans from various nations in Asia, though the 1960 census had separate boxes for some, but not all, Asian countries. Today the U.S. is 61% white and dropping. Among American children, the white/nonwhite population is rapidly approaching 50-50.

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Documents: U.S. and UK Had ‘Confidentiality Agreement’ to Hide Vaccine Adverse Events

Newly obtained documents from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reveal that before the FDA approved the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 shots, the United States and United Kingdom health regulators struck a deal to keep information about vaccine injuries hidden from the public.

Judicial Watch obtained the 57 pages of heavily redacted records through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against HHS.

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