Gov. Glenn Youngkin: ‘I Don’t Think Biological Boys Should Be Playing Sports with Biological Girls’

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) delivered a straightforward response to a 17-year-old girl identifying as a boy who asked the governor about school restrooms and sports policies that place biological sex above gender identity.

During a CNN Townhall, Nico, a 17-year-old girl who identifies as a boy, asked Youngkin about his school policies requiring students to use the bathrooms and play on the athletic teams consistent with their biological sex.

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Ohio Department of Agriculture Conducts Discussion with Concerned Farmers

Farmers from the East Palestine region met with officials from the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) on Thursday to discuss the potential effects of last month’s Norfolk Southern hazardous train crash on their crops and livestock.

The conference was held in order to address any worries local farmers might have regarding the forthcoming planting season, even though the ODA has stated it has no reason to believe crops cultivated in the area would be harmful.

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At Iowa Foreign Policy Event, GOP Presidential Candidate Nikki Haley Says War in Ukraine is a War ‘We Have to Win’

Republican Presidential candidate Nikki Haley asserts the war in Ukraine is about freedom and “one we have to win.” 

The former South Carolina governor discussed national security and foreign policy with U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) Friday morning in suburban Des Moines at an event sponsored by the Bastion Institute.

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Proposed Electric Vehicle Fee Falls Short of Solving Pennsylvania’s Infrastructure Woes

As electric vehicles overtake Pennsylvania’s roads, lawmakers still have to sort out two things – how to tax them to fund roads and bridges, and how to build out reliable charging stations.

While neither issue has a quick and easy solution, a pilot tax project will grow revenue, and federal cash will expand an electric charging corridor across the state.

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Republican Appeals Court Judge Assigned to Preside over Ohio Abortion Law Injunction

Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Sharon Kennedy assigned Matthew Byrne, a Twelfth District Court of Appeals judge, this week to preside over a state appeal of a preliminary injunction on Ohio’s abortion law.

Byrne takes over for newly appointed Ohio Justice Joe Deters, who recused himself after the abortion clinic plaintiffs argued that he couldn’t rule on the state’s heartbeat bill ban because he was an original defendant on the case when serving as Hamilton County Prosecutor.

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Study Finds Extensive Flaws in Plan to Extend Sales Tax for Expanding Light Rail in Maricopa County

Arizona Free Enterprise Club released a new report criticizing the Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) proposed plan for the Prop. 400 half-cent tax.

The Prop. 400 half-cent tax, which started in 1985 to pay for public transit and then light rail in Maricopa County, faces strong opposition every time it comes up for renewal. 

The report said the MAG’s proposal fails to consider the permanent transformation of society due to COVID-19, which significantly reduced the number of workers using public transit as people shifted to working from home and remained there.

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Commentary: Seperating Fact from Fiction

The State of New Jersey recently enacted a law that requires K–12 students to learn “information literacy.” Stated plainly, this is the skills to determine what’s true and what’s not. The law is allegedly the first of its kind in the nation.

The sentiment behind the legislation is admirable, but the law itself is vague and gives the NJ Department of Education broad authority to create these standards. Given the track record of the U.S. education establishment, this could be an epic mistake.

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Commentary: The Importance of Philosophical Fiction

I must admit that I have not always been a serious reader. Like the vast majority of consumers of art, I was more interested in the escapist element of fiction and cinema. I would read a book or watch a film as a way to escape into another world for a couple hours. I was enthralled by the likes of C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia, Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane, and Stephen King’s The Shining.

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Commentary: Daylight Saving Time’s Mixed Results

This weekend, public service announcements will remind us daylight saving time is over. This means you have to set your clocks forward an hour at 2 a.m. on March 12.

This semiannual ritual shifts our rhythms and temporarily makes us groggy at times when we normally feel alert. Moreover, many Americans are confused about why we spring forward in March and fall back in November, and whether it is worth the trouble.

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Colin Kaepernick Accuses His Own White Adoptive Parents of ‘Perpetuating Racism’

Former NFL player Colin Kaepernick has released a new memoir, in which he insults the White couple that adopted him and raised him, accusing them of “problematic” behavior and “perpetuating racism.”

As reported by the Daily Caller, Kaepernick’s memoir, “Change the Game,” is written as a graphic novel. He further expanded upon what he said in the book in an interview with CBS News on Thursday.

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Lawmakers Respond to Tennessee Star Report on ETSU’s Embracing of DEI Policies, In Spite of State Law

William Block, M.D., dean of medicine at East Tennessee State University’s Quillen College of Medicine, recently sent out an email, in which he defined the words “equity” as “the quality of being fair and impartial,” and “woke” as “aware of and actively attentive to important societal facts and issues (especially issues of racial and social justice).” The email is one of several in which Dean appears to be placing the tenets of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) over those of achievement. It is a position that runs counter to recently passed Tennessee state law, raising questions and concerns with state lawmakers.

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Bills to Shift Nashville Airport, Sports Authority Power from City to State Proceed

A pair of bills to change the way two Nashville boards are chosen advanced in committee Wednesday.

The Senate Government Operations Committee recommended bills to change the way the Nashville’s Metropolitan Sports Authority and the Metropolitan Airport Authority are selected from local selections to selections from Tennessee government, including the governor, lieutenant governor and house speaker.

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Red Cross Packets Show Migrants Where to Cross the U.S. Border

The American Red Cross has maps and guides for migrants to make the dangerous journeys to the U.S.-Mexico border, according to documents exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The map, which is part of a packet stamped with the International Committee of the Red Cross and American Red Cross logos, shows a list of resources, including hotels, clinics and shelters where migrants can get support in Mexico and Central America. The maps include clearly defined lines leading to cities along the U.S. border. The organization also has a guide to “self care” along the journey, which includes tips on how to survive the desert and disease, how to safely jump on trains, and how to obtain contraceptives.

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Slave Labor Clouded Plunging U.S. Solar Market in 2022

U.S. solar panel installations plummeted in 2022 as lingering supply chain issues hindered the industry, although forecasters anticipate a bounceback and significant growth over the next decade, according to a joint report from the industry trade group Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and research analytics firm Woods Mackenzie released Thursday.

The primary cause of the decline was a significant disruption in the solar panel supply chain caused by detentions of Chinese solar panel materials by U.S. Customs and Border Protection over concerns that the products were developed by the forced labor of Uighur muslims, according to the report. While 2022 was a “tough year” for solar, supply chain issues are expected to be resolved in 2023, leading to a 41% surge in installations, Michelle Davis, principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie and lead author of the report, said in a press release Thursday.

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Florida Judge Strikes Down Biden Administration ‘Catch and Release’ Border Policy

A federal judge in Florida ruled Wednesday that the Biden Administration’s “catch and release” border policy is illegal.

Federal Judge T. Kent Wetherell, of the Pensacola Division of the Northern District of Florida, entered a 109-page ruling ruling that the policy that allows Border Patrol agents to release undocumented immigrants who cross the border to the United States instead of deporting them is illegal and “should be struck down.”

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Norfolk Southern CEO Tells US Senate Committee Vinyl Chloride Controlled Burn Decision ‘Made by a Unified Command Under the Direction of the Incident Commander,’ East Palestine Fire Chief Drabick

Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw faced questions about who authorized the controlled burn at a Senate hearing on Thursday as Washington lawmakers held their first hearing on railroad safety about a month after a train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio.

U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullins (R-OK) asked Shaw “when the vent and burn process was being made, who made those decisions and what were the considerations other than just burning it and letting the material burn off.”

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Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes Sues Cochise County for Assigning Election Duties to Recorder Like Maricopa County Did for Years

Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the Cochise County Supervisors for delegating election duties to Cochise County Recorder David Stevens, an election integrity proponent. However, from the 1950s to 2019, Maricopa County had an agreement with its county recorder to oversee elections. Three other counties delegate those responsibilities to their recorders as well. 

Jennifer Wright, who served as the Election Integrity Unit’s civil attorney under previous Attorney General Mark Brnovich, tweeted, “So, will @krismayes also be suing @maricopacounty for their MOU delegating BOS responsibilities to the CR? Anyone remember when Fontes was stripped of BOS delegated responsibilities, the press lamented how elections were 100% the CR’s job? Oh, the hypocrisy. #AbuseOfPower”

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Pennsylvania House Republicans Unhappy Special Election to Replace Accused Harasser Zabel Is Delayed

Some Pennsylvania state House Republicans are unhappy with the timetable their legislative rivals have set forth to replace Representative Mike Zabel (D-Drexel Hill) who is resigning in light of sexual harassment allegations. 

Representative Craig Williams (R-Chadds Ford) tweeted his reaction to these events, excoriating the Democrats for asserting they have majority control of the House of Representatives, even though their number would tie that of Republicans at 101. He furthermore blasted them for failing to schedule a special election for the May 16 primary, something that could happen if Zabel made his resignation effective before March 16. A special election will instead take place this fall. 

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Iowa Republicans Advance Bill to Block Spending on ‘Woke Agenda’ in State Universities

A bill passed by an Iowa House committee and currently making its way through the state House aims to put a stop to the woke agenda in state colleges and universities by prohibiting the schools from spending on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) offices and personnel working in roles associated with such ideology.

“For too long, the DEI bureaucracies at our institutions of higher education have been used to push a woke agenda on the faculty, staff and students,” Iowa state Rep. Taylor Collins told Fox News. “Under the guise of diversity and inclusion, these programs work to indoctrinate students into their preferred political ideology.”

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Virginia’s Temporary COVID-19 Benefits Assistance Programs Ending Soon

Temporary benefits enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic attached to medical coverage and food assistance programs are set to end soon due to recent federal action, raising concerns from advocates about the impact the loss of additional support will have on Virginians. 

The recent passing of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 and the approaching May 11 end date for the federal COVID-19 public health emergency means the expiration of temporary benefits associated with several Virginia assistance programs, according to the Virginia Department of Social Services and the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services. 

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Georgia Senate Says Kids Don’t Need Permits or to Pay Taxes on Lemonade Stands

As a parent, T.L. Matthew knows setting up a lemonade stand can be fun and educational.

“In my personal experience, setting up a lemonade stand with my daughter was a fun and rewarding bonding experience that taught her valuable skills in communication, entrepreneurship, and money management,” Matthew, the CEO and founder of Fayetteville-based SumFoods, told The Center Square via email. “Unfortunately, in many states, kids who try to set up their own businesses have been bogged down by unnecessary regulations and taxes, forcing them to obtain permits and licenses or risk being shut down or fined.”

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Wisconsin Senator Baldwin Introduces Codification of Roe v. Wade

U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) this week introduced legislation to codify the legality of abortion everywhere on American soil. 

Twelve states currently have laws that prohibit abortion during much or all of a woman’s pregnancy and many other states have restrictions that the Baldwin-Blumenthal legislation could threaten. The senators, who count 47 Democratic senators as cosponsors of their bill, want to act federally to reverse these statutes which were allowed to go into effect when the Supreme Court overturned the 1973 pro-abortion Roe v. Wade ruling last year. 

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GOP Presidential Candidate Nikki Haley Floats a Social Security Reform Trial Balloon in Iowa

In her latest swing through Iowa, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley took aim at the nation’s financially troubled safety nets for seniors, telling Council Bluff Republicans it’s time to change the retirement age and check Social Security and Medicare benefits for wealthier Americans.

If the former South Carolina governor was sending out a trial balloon to see how reform ideas would fly in the first-in-the-nation caucus state, it seems said balloon may have hit the third rail.

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Florida House Committee Approves Two Election-Related Bills

The Florida House Ethics, Elections and Open Government Subcommittee approved two election-related bills and another bill that would allow the recall of county officials by voters at their meeting on Wednesday.

House Joint Resolution 31 was presented by state Rep. Spencer Roach, R-North Fort Myers, who said the resolution would allow voters to change the Florida Constitution to require members of a district school board to be subject to a partisan election.

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Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne Announces ‘Empowerment Hotline’ to Report CRT in Schools

Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne announced Thursday that he is launching the “Empowerment Hotline” (EH) so constituents can call in reports of students receiving alleged inappropriate teachings in the classrooms.

“I promised to establish this hotline so that anyone could report the teaching of inappropriate lessons that rob students of precious minutes of instruction time in core academic subjects such as reading, math, science, history and the arts. That promise is being kept,” Horne said.

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Emergency Personnel and Community Health Major Topics of Second Ohio Senate Rail Safety Hearing

On Wednesday, health was a major topic of conversation during the second Ohio Senate Select Committee Hearing on Rail Safety, especially the health of the East Palestine community and the emergency personnel that responded to the wreck there.

The East Palestine incident in early February served as the catalyst for the hearing, which featured testimony and questions from the departments of transportation, health, and mental health and addiction services in Ohio.

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Householder, Borges Guilty in Ohio’s Largest Public Corruption Trial

A federal jury found former Ohio Speaker of the House Larry Householder and former state Republican Party leader Matt Borges guilty of racketeering conspiracy in what federal prosecutors have called the largest public corruption case in state history.

The two each face up to 20 years in prison and will be sentenced in the coming months. Appeals could also be filed.

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Judge Rules State Legislative Leaders Can Intervene in Lawsuit to Protect Arizona Abortion Ban

U.S. District Judge Douglas Rayes released an order Wednesday stating that Arizona Senate President Warren Petersen (R-Mesa) and House Speaker Ben Toma (R-Peoria) may intervene in a court case involving an abortion ban law enacted in 2021.

“When it became clear that Attorney General [Kris] Mayes [D] would not defend Arizona’s law prohibiting discriminatory abortions, the Legislature had to step in. I applaud the federal court’s order recognizing our legislative authority and granting our motion to intervene to defend the constitutionality of this law,” Toma said in a statement emailed to The Sun Times.

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As Arizona Looks to Defund Border Security, Cartels Move Smuggling Efforts West

Since Gov. Katie Hobbs was sworn into office in January, the number of foreign nationals illegally entering Arizona has increased primarily in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Tucson Sector. And as several factors, including Texas expanding border security efforts, are resulting in illegal border crossings increasing further west, law enforcement officials say Arizona can expect greater numbers.

Arizona’s 378 miles of shared border with Mexico is patrolled by agents in two CBP sectors of Tucson and Yuma. Last month, agents in both sectors combined apprehended 36,296 foreign nationals, up from 33,193 in January.

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Commentary: The Right’s Long Countermarch Through the Institutions

Is the Right commencing a long countermarch through the institutions, including the very one – the academy – from which the Left’s own long march began? 

Judging by the distress shown by some in the educational establishment, and like-minded corporate media, regarding higher-education reform efforts in North Carolina and Florida, one might get the impression that the countermarch is not only underway but rapidly advancing – threatening progressives’ stranglehold over schools and virtually every other American power center. 

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Suffers Concussion in Fall, to Remain Hospitalized for ‘Few Days’

by Madeleine Hubbard    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to remain hospitalized “for a few days” after he fell in Washington, D.C., during a private hotel dinner, a spokesperson for the Kentucky Republican said Thursday. “This evening, Leader McConnell tripped at a local hotel during a private dinner,” spokesman David Popp told news outlets after the fall Wednesday. “He has been admitted to the hospital where he is receiving treatment.” McConnell fell at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel, formerly known as the Trump International Hotel, in Washington, D.C. He is being treated for a concussion, Popp said. McConnell, 81, tripped and fell at his home in Kentucky in 2019 and underwent surgery for a shoulder fracture.  Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell suffered a concussion after a fall at a local hotel and remains hospitalized “for a few days of observation and treatment,” a spokesman said Thursday. The Kentucky senator, 81, was at a Wednesday evening dinner for the Senate Leadership Fund, a campaign committee aligned with him, when he tripped and was admitted to the hospital, his office said. The dinner was at the Waldorf Astoria Washington DC, formerly the Trump International Hotel, Washington D.C. Spokesman David Popp said McConnell is being treated for a…

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Eco-Conscious ESG Investors Among Top Shareholders in Rail Giant Under Fire for Toxic Spill

Three of the five top shareholders in Norfolk Southern — the freight rail carrier under the spotlight for its saftey and environmental record following last month’s toxic train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio — have been aligned with the eco-conscious, socially aware ESG (environmental, social, governance) investing framework embraced by many leading financial firms in recent years.

Asset management firms BlackRock Fund Advisors, JPMorgan Investment Management, and The Vanguard Group were all part of the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative, a coalition of ESG-minded money mangers committed to channeling investment capital to firms working toward the goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, as outlined in the Paris Climate Accord.

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Rep. Mark Green Re-Introduces Bill to Kick Communist China Out of Hollywood

U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07) on Wednesday re-introduced the Stopping Communist Regimes from Engaging in Edits Now or SCREEN Act to discourage Hollywood from bowing to censorship from Beijing.

Green originally introduced the SCREEN Act just over a year ago on February 28, 2022, during the second session of the 117th Congress as H.R. 6855. Around the same time, the combat veteran of Afghanistan and Iraq issued a scathing op-ed calling on the Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin to put an end to Hollywood using the U.S. military for censorship by the Chinese.

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Ohio Middle School Scrubs Fifth Grade Gender Identity Lesson After Exposé

A middle school in Copley, Ohio, has eliminated a fifth-grade gender identity lesson from its health curriculum following exposure of the lesson at Libs of TikTok, a report Tuesday revealed.

At the outset of a letter sent to parents that was printed on the letterhead of Akron Children’s Hospital, Rachel O’Donnell, fifth-grade health teacher at Copley-Fairlawn Middle School, wrote the program would “cover the physical and emotional changes that can be expected during puberty” and would be taught in a way that was “age-appropriate, scientifically accurate, and non-judgmental.”

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THREATTOSCOTUS2022: FBI Whistleblowers Say Threat Tags Were Used to Target Conservatives

What do school parents, Catholic attendees of Latin Mass and pro-life activists have in common? They’ve all been branded by the FBI as potential domestic terrorist threats in what whistleblowers say is a growing trend of using intelligence threat tags to enforce cancel culture.

The latest revelation came this past weekend when House Republicans released testimony from an FBI whistleblower who alleged colleagues in the bureau flipped a terrorist threat tag originally created to flag threats against pro-life Supreme Court justices into a signifier that anti-abortion protesters were somehow a threat.

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