Sen. Rand Paul on Child COVID Vaccines: ‘Risks of the Vaccine Are Greater than Risks of the Disease’

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said Thursday he would not have his own children receive the COVID vaccines because of the risk of heart inflammation associated with them.

“I, frankly, wouldn’t vaccinate my children for COVID,” Paul, an ophthalmologist, told The Hill’s Rising. “I think the risks of the vaccine are greater than the risks of the disease. The risks of the disease are almost non-existent.”

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Lawsuit Forces Tennessee to Open State Court Commission Meetings

A U.S. District Court judge has granted an injunction, ruling the Tennessee state court’s Advisory Commission must open its meetings to the public either in person or via livestream after a lawsuit filed by The Center Square.

Dan McCaleb, vice president of news and content, sued the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts to open the meetings based on The First Amendment as the commission recommends rules of practice and procedure in the Tennessee state courts.

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Tennessee Representative Gets Hearing Witness to Admit CCP Could Get ‘Ongoing Criminal Enterprise’ Designation for Role in Fentanyl Crisis

The U.S. House Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions held a hearing about how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is fueling the influx of fentanyl at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Committee Member Tennessee Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) asked former U.S. Treasury Special Agent Jonathan Cassara if the CCP could “be designated as a threat to our country.” Cassara said the CCP could “very well be designated as an ongoing criminal enterprise.”

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Biden’s Approval Rating Sinks Towards Lowest Point of His Presidency: Poll

President Joe Biden’s approval rating plummets towards the lowest point of his presidency on Thursday, according to a new poll.

The president’s approval sank to 38% this month, nearly reaching the lowest point he has received in office where he received a 36% rating in July 2022, an AP/NORC poll found. Biden‘s March approval has dropped from a 45% rating since February and 41% in January.

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Biden Reaches New Illegal Migrant Expulsion Deal with Canada amid Northern Border Surge: Report

President Joe Biden and Canada’s prime minister, Justin Trudeau, have brokered a deal to address the illegal migrant surge at the U.S. northern border, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

The deal would allow federal authorities in the U.S. to return illegal migrants to Canada within 14 days of crossing, according to the Los Angeles Times, which cited internal documents and a source familiar with the discussions. The plan is set to soon take effect in an effort to “reduce incentives” for migrants to come into the U.S. illegally.

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GOP Bill Would Make Abortionists Report Victims of Trafficking

Republican North Carolina Sen. Ted Budd is leading lawmakers in introducing the Stopping Traffickers and Their Accomplices Act.

The legislation, co-sponsored by Republican senators Josh Hawley of Missouri, Roger Marshall of Kansas, and Rick Scott of Florida, would require abortionists and abortion providers to file reports with the National Human Trafficking Hotline if they question whether a woman is a victim of human trafficking.

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Oklahoma Supreme Court Allows ‘Life of Mother’ Exception to State Law Prohibiting Most Abortions

The Oklahoma Supreme Court has upheld part of the state’s ban on most abortions from the time of fertilization, ruling the state Constitution protects only a “limited right to terminate a pregnancy” in the case of saving the life of the mother.

The state Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, held on Tuesday “the Oklahoma Constitution creates an inherent right of a pregnant woman to terminate a pregnancy when necessary to preserve her life.”

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Parents Group Says Pornographic Books Available to Minnesota Students

Parents can’t assume schools have kids’ best interest in mind, said a Delano father after a parents group discovered “quite a few” books containing pornographic material in the high school library.

Parents said they found books containing sexually explicit content, including depictions of rape, in the Delano High School library, which services students in grades 7-12.

According to Jake Torola, advisor to Concerned Community of 879 (CC879) and father of six, the list is at 20 and counting.

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Norfolk Southern CEO Says ‘Unified Command Was Aligned’ in East Palestine Controlled Burn Decision

Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw faced questions about the decision to vent and burn vinyl chloride at a Wednesday hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation over a month after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) asked Shaw if anyone in the decision-making process disagreed with the recommendation to vent and burn the vinyl chloride from all five tank cars.

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GOP Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy Barnstorms Western Iowa as His Political Star Appears to Rise

Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy is back in the Hawkeye State this weekend for several campaign stops, just as his star appears be rising in the GOP nomination chase. 

The Ohio businessman and anti-woke crusader that former President Trump has billed as “young Vivek Ramaswamy” will barnstorm western Iowa in a three-day, three-county tour beginning Friday evening with a town hall in Mills County.

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Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin’s Longest-Serving Governor, Endorses Work-First Ballot Issue

Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin’s longest-serving governor and welfare reform pioneer, is lending his support for a work-first referendum question on the Badger State’s April 4 election ballot.

The non-bonding referendum asks voters a simple question: “Shall able-bodied, childless adults be required to look for work in order to receive taxpayer-funded benefits?”

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Pennsylvania Representatives Drafting Measure to Enhance Railroad Safety Rules

Two Pennsylvania state lawmakers representing areas affected by the February train derailment less than a mile beyond the Ohio border are drafting legislation to enhance railroad-safety rules.

The emerging bill by Representatives Jim Marshall (R-Beaver Falls) and Rob Matzie (D-Ambridge) would tighten maintenance and oversight standards for wayside hotbox detectors, limit the length of trains, set a minimum number of train staff, toughen supervision of railroad-safety compliance and facilitate reporting of violations. The legislators also say their measure will create a mechanism for better communication regarding the transportation of toxic substances. 

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Kari Lake Responds to Arizona Supreme Court’s Decision Remanding Part and Rejecting Part of Her Appeal

After deliberating on whether to accept Kari Lake’s appeal of the dismissal of her election challenge in Arizona’s gubernatorial race, the Arizona Supreme Court issued an order on Wednesday that remanded the part of the case regarding Maricopa County’s signature verification process back to the trial court judge, and dismissed the other parts.

Lake issued a statement after the ruling. “I am thrilled that the Supreme Court has agreed to give our signature verification evidence the appropriate forum for the evaluation it deserves.” She said, “The violation of procedure allowed for tens of thousands of illegal ballots to be approved and counted. Aside from all other issues, including nearly 60% of polling locations being inoperable on Election Day, this issue alone casts the veracity of Katie Hobbs’ victory in serious doubt.”

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Ohio Pro-Life Group Announces First Wave of 48 Coalition Members to Fight for Parental Rights

An Ohio pro-woman and pro-parent group said that their large group of Ohio-based coalition members is a testament that Ohioans refuse to sit back and watch as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Planned Parenthood bring a war on parental rights to Ohio.

Protect Women Ohio (PWO), a new group dedicated to defeating a proposed constitutional amendment that would legalize abortion throughout the state, released a list of it’s first wave of Ohio-based coalition members on Wednesday.

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Supreme Court Rules Deaf Michigan Student Can Sue School for Damages

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously Tuesday that a deaf former student can pursue monetary damages against a Michigan school district that allegedly failed to provide an adequate education. 

Nine-year-old Miguel Perez, the plaintiff, left Mexico with his family and enrolled at Sturgis Public School District in 2004. Perez was assigned to a classroom aide and was never given a sign language interpreter – only aides who were either unqualified or absent.

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Lawmakers, Advocates Concerned About Youngkin’s Restoration of Rights Policy

Virginia lawmakers and advocates are raising concern about new policy changes regarding the state’s restoration of rights process, and arguing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration has lacked transparency by not disclosing the criteria by which a person convicted of a felony has their civil rights restored. 

Youngkin’s administration has made changes to state policy pertaining to how someone convicted of a felony in Virginia has their rights restored. Specifically, Youngkin’s administration is moving away from policy followed by previous administrations of automatically reviewing and restoring the rights of some formerly incarcerated felons. 

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Disney World Florida to Host World’s Largest LGBT+ Conference

Walt Disney World in Florida will host an LGBT+ conference this fall that organizers are calling the world’s largest  – as the resort and state GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis continue to spar over sexual-orientation and gender-identity issues.

Out & Equal, an activist group that promotes equality for LGBT+ people in the workplace, is hosting its 2023 Workplace Summit for three days in September, according to the organization’s website. The group says the summit “is the largest LGBTQ+ conference in the world, with more than 5,000 attendees every year.”

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Mastriano Proposes Bill for Pennsylvania School Curriculum Transparency

Pennsylvania state Senator Doug Mastriano (R-Gettysburg) this week announced he is introducing legislation requiring public K-12 schools to post their curricula online. 

Should the policy become law, school districts and charter institutions must provide public web access to syllabi for all classes and thorough lists of the textbooks planned for use in those courses as well as commonwealth academic standards for all course offerings. Should a school make any curricular revisions, it would have 30 days to publish them. 

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Commentary: America’s Southern Border Invasion

By almost any significant metric, this is not America’s finest hour. We do not appear to be respected or feared economically, militarily, or in any other way by rival nations. Americans do not feel confident about the future, and we are seemingly more polarized along partisan lines than ever before.

Adding to our collective sense of dread is the sight of our nation’s geographic integrity slipping away. Almost daily we see untold numbers of foreign nationals trampling what used to be our southern border, demanding rights and privileges that previously were reserved for citizens and legal residents.

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Commentary: Cleveland Utilities’ Plan for Its Own Broadband System Is a Bad Bet for Local Taxpayers

On Wednesday March 8th, city leaders received an earful from local residents and the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) when they took public comments about the city’s plan to build a $72 million municipal network through its electric utility Cleveland Utilities. TPA testified that the project is duplicative and unnecessary, and that there are numerous factors that raise concerns about its viability.

The city anticipates a take rate of 30 percent. In its research, including in the 2020 report “GON with the Wind: The Failed Promise of Government-Owned Networks,” TPA has found that expected take rate percentages rarely materialize when private providers respond to competition by adjusting pricing or services. This is particularly a concern in Cleveland, given that there are already several internet options in the city and Bradley County.  

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Arizona U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly’s Support for Censoring Viewpoints on Social Media Is Taken Out of Context: Spox

During a Zoom call this past week with federal government finance officials, Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) called for censorship of unfavorable remarks on social media. He was referring to posts raising alarm about the financial stableness of banks after the recent failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, which resulted in long lines of customers attempting to take their money out and the Biden administration stepping in to guarantee deposits of over $250,000, amounts the law doesn’t insure. 

Legal scholar Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University, expressed his concern in an op-ed for The New York Post titled “Censorship addicts: Democrats seek to squelch speech on banks.” He said, “Rather than convince citizens that their deposits are safe, it is easier to just silence anyone who disagrees with you. So now ‘the expense’ of free speech is too high if it might undermine faith in our banks’ stability.”

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National Transportation Safety Board Chair Says Trains Should Be Mandated to Have More Image and Audio Recorders Following East Palestine Derailment

At a Wednesday hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said that in light of the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, freight trains should have mandates for both inward and outward-facing image and audio recorders.

According to NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy, the train involved in the East Palestine derailment was only equipped with an inward-facing camera and because it was immediately put back into service following the accident, the data from the day of the derailment was overwritten.

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Bill to Cut Grocery Tax in Arizona Arrives at Katie Hobbs’s Desk

The Arizona State House passed Senate Bill (SB) 1063 by State Sen. Sonny Borrelli (R-Lake Havasu), which aims to eliminate the grocery tax across the state, sending it off to the governor’s desk for a final decision.

“At a time when thousands of Arizonans are already struggling to make ends meet, government shouldn’t be contributing to higher costs for basic necessities like food,” said State Rep. Matt Gress (R-Phoenix) following his vote in the bill’s favor. “With Arizonans facing one of the highest inflation rates in the nation, I’ll never stop fighting to lower costs for families, seniors, and our most hard-hit fellow citizens.”

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Hillary Clinton to Teach Foreign Policy Course at Columbia

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will teach a course in foreign policy at Columbia University during the fall 2023 semester, the university announced Wednesday.

Clinton will teach “Inside the Situation Room” alongside School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) Dean Keren Yarhi-Milo, according to the announcement. The course will give students an inside look into how decisions are made in an international relations scale and use case studies and examine decisions including the search for Osama bin Laden, the “red line” in Syria and negotiations with Iran.

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