Month: March 2023

Former New York Times Science Editor Testifies Fauci ‘Not Too Pleased to Hear’ Virus May Have ‘Escaped from Research His Agency Had Funded’

Susan Berry, PhD

The former science editor at The New York Times testified Wednesday morning before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic there is now strong evidence the COVID-19 virus escaped from a Wuhan lab, but that “powerful scientific officials, such as [Anthony] Fauci and [National Institutes of Health Director] Francis Collins, kept researchers “in line” with their natural origins narrative with the knowledge the scientists were dependent on government grants to continue their research.

In his testimony, Nicholas Wade, who not only served as former science and health editor at the Times, but also as former editor at Science and at Nature, quickly got to the heart of the matter: the campaign to suppress the lab leak narrative.

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Poll: Plurality of Americans Believes We Are Heading for Next World War

M.D. Kittle

As the war in Ukraine and tensions with China intensify, more Americans fear we’re on the brink of World War III, according to a new Convention of States Action poll. 

The survey of more than 1,000 U.S. voters, conducted Feb. 22-26 by The Trafalgar Group, finds more than 43 percent of respondents worry that Russia’s continued war and threats against other European nations, as well as China’s aggressive actions, have put the world on the precipice of another global conflict.

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Students Demand Catholic University ‘Eliminate’ Christian Group from Campus Due to Its ‘Discriminatory’ LGBTQ Views

Admin

Students at DePaul University, a private Catholic university in Illinois, are circulating a petition demanding the elimination of a Christian group after it posted a Q&A on its now-deleted Instagram page denouncing LGBTQ lifestyles, student newspaper The DePaulia reported.

Signees called on DePaul University officials to ban the group “from meeting on campus and promoting discrimination against members of the LGBTQIA+ community,” according to the petition titled “Eliminate Vessel.” Vessel is not an official student organization on campus and appears to have deleted their Instagram page soon after sharing that they are a “non-affirming” group and “do not agree that the LGBTQIA+ lifestyle is supported by biblical text. Below are verses which support this,” according to a screenshot obtained by the DePaulia.

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Border: 205,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways in February as Gotaways Increase in West

The Center Square

More than 205,000 foreign nationals were apprehended or reported as gotaways after illegally entering the southwest border in February, according to preliminary data obtained by The Center Square from a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agent. The agent provided the information on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation; it only includes Border Patrol data and excludes Office of Field Operations data.

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Poll: Inflation Has Americans Worried About Covering Expenses After Job Loss

The Center Square

A majority of Americans polled said they couldn’t afford to pay emergency expenses or cover their living expenses for just one month if they lost their primary source of income, according to Bankrate’s latest Annual Emergency Savings Report. The main reason cited is record-high inflation.

The majority surveyed, 68%, said they’re “worried they wouldn’t be able to cover their living expenses for just one month if they lost their primary source of income.”

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Media Initially Criticized Tennessee Senator Blackburn for Her Scrutiny of Vindman

Bradley Vasoli

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) said this week that recent revelations about Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman make clear that leftists in the media and the political class should have originally scrutinized him as carefully as she did. 

Blackburn was among Vindman’s most outspoken critics after he testified in Congress’s first impeachment hearings concerning then-President Donald Trump in 2019. The Ukrainian-born retired U.S. Army officer was then serving as director for European Affairs at the United States National Security Council (NSC). Trump transferred him out of that position back to an Army command post the following winter. 

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Nunn Says Hearings on Biden’s Afghanistan Debacle a Long Time Coming

M.D. Kittle

U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA-03) served three tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, amassing some 1,000-combat flight hours. The freshman congressman said Wednesday’s House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on the debacle that was the Biden administration-led U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan was long overdue. 

“It’s unfortunate it’s taken us almost two years to get to this point,” Nunn told The Iowa Star Wednesday morning on NewsTalk 1040 WHO.

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Connecticut Sues Firearm Companies over ‘Ghost Gun’ Parts

The Center Square

Connecticut has filed a lawsuit against several gun manufacturers, accusing them of violating state law by selling components that are used to build untraceable ‘ghost’ guns.

The civil lawsuit, announced by Attorney General William Tong Tuesday, targets four out-of-state firearm companies accusing them of violating the state’s consumer protection laws, which carry fines of up to $5,000 per violation.

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Norfolk Southern CEO Pledges Pennsylvania Visit

The Center Square

Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw did not appear in front of Pennsylvania lawmakers on Wednesday, but is expected to do so later this month and provide documents that track the rail company’s response to the derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

The Senate Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee announced Shaw will testify March 20 and advanced resolutions to recognize the impact of the derailment on Pennsylvania communities along with an emergency grant program to provide financial relief to affected residents.

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State to Fund Public Safety Office in Atlanta’s Buckhead Community

The Center Square

A week after state lawmakers killed a proposal to de-annex and incorporate a portion of Atlanta as Buckhead City, state leaders announced they plan to fund a state patrol office in the community.

Last week, the state Senate voted 33-23 against Senate Bill 114, which would have allowed residents of the proposed Buckhead City to vote on the measure in November 2024. This week, House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, announced the proposed fiscal 2024 budget will include nearly $1.3 million for the state patrol’s “satellite post.”

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Top American High School Received More than $1 Million from Groups Tied to China

Just the News

A prestigious U.S. high school reportedly received more than $1 million in donations from Chinese-linked organizations, a report from watchdog group Parents Defending Education indicates.

Thomas Jefferson High School, situated in Fairfax County, Va., focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education and ranks among the nation’s best high schools.

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Commentary: The Difficult Truths About Unrenewable ‘Renewables’

Admin

Today in America, there are obvious disconnects between observable reality and the narratives we get from the corporate special interests controlling the news we consume, along with politicians who are supposedly elected to represent us.

This is nothing new. Elites have defined America’s destiny throughout its history. The only difference today is that the internet, despite ongoing crackdowns, still manages to deliver an unprecedented volume of contrarian perspectives to millions of people. We aren’t any freer or less manipulated today than we ever were, we’re just more aware of it.

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Battery Supplier Asserts: Michigan Taxpayer Subsidies Imperative for North American Supply Chain

The Center Square

Electric vehicle battery supplier Our Next Energy says taxpayer subsidies are key to “accelerating” the buildout of a North American battery supply chain, stabilizing Michigan’s grid, and declaring energy independence from China.

Deeana Ahmed, Our Next Energy’s vice president of strategy and sustainability, testified Wednesday in front of the House Appropriations Committee.

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New Bill to Crack Down on Fentanyl Peddlers Passes Arizona State Senate

Neil Jones

A new bill from State Sen. Anthony Kern (R-Glendale) aims to bring harsher punishments on those who traffic fentanyl passed through the Senate floor Tuesday with bipartisan support.

“The numbers speak for itself. Trafficking fentanyl is a deadly issue in our state that is only growing and tearing families apart,” said Kern. “These lethal pills are infiltrating our schools and communities. As a result, young and innocent people are losing their lives.”

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Mark Finchem Responds to Sanctions for Bringing Election Challenge over Voter Disenfranchisement in His Race

Rachel Alexander

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Melissa Julian awarded sanctions last week against Mark Finchem and his attorney Tom McCauley over Finchem’s lawsuit challenging his election loss in the secretary of state’s race. Democrat Adrian Fontes, who won the race, asked the court for sanctions in December. Finchem and McCauley will be required to pay attorneys fees; the legal costs of Fontes’ and then-Secretary of State Katie Hobbs’ office defending against the lawsuit. 

Finchem issued a statement after the ruling. “The 6-page order by Judge Julian to award lawyer reimbursement to leftist litigators who represent the Sinaloa Cartel, now the installed Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, and Katie Hobbs, the installed Governor of Arizona, is contemptible judicial overreach beyond all statutory and Rules of Civil Procedure for the Superior Courts of Arizona,” he said. “This award is designed to quash any and all dissent where elections are in question. The Maricopa County 2022 election was the most embarrassing election in American history. As a result, 70% of Americans doubt the outcome of the 2022 elections in Arizona (Rasmussen Poll).” 

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National Transportation Safety Board to Investigate Norfolk Southern Following Train Derailments

Hannah Poling

After a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed last month in East Palestine, Ohio, and a number of other “significant accidents,” the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced Tuesday that it will begin an investigation into Norfolk Southern.

The organization declared that it would investigate the railroad’s safety procedures and culture.
Only a few hours earlier, the railroad had reported that a conductor had been fatally injured at a steel mill in Ohio.

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Florida Republican Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Limit After Six Weeks

Admin

Republican lawmakers in Florida filed bills Tuesday that would ban abortion after six weeks pregnancy.

On the first day of the legislative session, GOP legislators introduced such bills to the House and Senate – with a Republican supermajority – that would cut down the abortion window from the previously approved 15-week mark. The bills also allow for exceptions in the case that a mother was raped or fell victim to incest so long as they could prove such a crime.

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Virginia County Board Members Advance Plan to Hike Their Pay 45 Percent amid Police Shortage, Crime Surge

Just the News

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to move forward with consideration of a proposal to give themselves salary increases of up to 45 percent, even as the county, located just outside of Washington, D.C., faces a shortage of police in the midst of a crime surge.

With inflation still high, county residents are facing real estate taxes that have risen 7 percent on average. In addition, Virginia counties assess the value of personal vehicles and send “personal property tax” bills that residents must pay each year. These bills are at record levels due to the high values of used vehicles.

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Commentary: Gender Ideology is Losing and the Equal Rights Amendment Should, Too

RealClearWire

Medical professionals and the public are pushing back against radical gender ideologies that have claimed the minds, bodies, and lives of too many children. Those at war against biological sex are losing — but only if the ERA is defeated, too.

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee hosted its latest hearing on the Equal Rights Amendment. This time, to consider the merits of removing the amendments’ pesky expiration date.

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Third Party ‘No Labels’ Qualifies for Arizona 2024 Ballot, Causing Dems to Fret

Admin

A third party has qualified for Arizona’s 2024 election ballot, spurring concern and pushback from Democrats who view it as a “spoiler” party that could potentially harm Democratic election prospects, according to the Hill.

Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes announced Tuesday that the third party, the No Labels Party, has garnered enough signatures to appear on the ballot and qualify for federal and state races in the 2024  primaries and general election. Democratic think tank Third Way released a memo earlier in the day criticizing the party, stating that it would only serve as a spoiler for Arizona Democrats.

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Some January 6 Defendants Seek Trial Delays over Emergence of Capitol Video Footage

Just the News

Amid the public emergence of new video from the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot, multiple defendants have sought to delay their trials so they can access and review the footage for possible exonerating evidence.

At least five alleged participants in the demonstrations have sought trial delays citing a lack of access to all the relevant evidence in recent weeks, the Epoch Times reported.

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Justice Department to Review Memphis Police Department After Tyre Nichols’ Death

Just the News

The Justice Department on Wednesday announced that it will review the Memphis Police Department’s procedures and produce a national guide for officials to use in assessing specialized policing units in the wake of Tyre Nichols’ death.

The review, which was requested by Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis, will be conducted through the agency’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). It will “cover policies, practices, training, data and processes” relating to the department’s “use of force, de-escalation and specialized units,” the Justice Department said.

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Civil Rights Commissioners Urge Speaker Kevin McCarthy to Hold Hearings on Title IX to Assure ‘Biological Sex’ Is Protected

Susan Berry, PhD

In a letter obtained by The Star News Network, four members of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (USCCR) are calling upon House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to hold hearings on the Biden administration’s “radical and legally unsupported proposals to change Title IX” to require that its prohibition on sex discrimination be interpreted to bar discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The letter, signed by USCCR Commissioners labor attorney Peter Kirsanow, University of San Diego law professor Gail Heriot, Public Interest Legal Foundation President J. Christian Adams, and South Carolina African American Chamber of Commerce CEO Stephen Gilchrist, asserts to McCarthy that the Biden Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has erred in its claim that the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County “requires that Title IX’s prohibition on sex discrimination be interpreted to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.”

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Biden Considers Adopting Trump-Era Immigration Policy He Once Criticized: Report

Admin

The Biden administration is considering detaining illegal migrant families after criticizing a similar program under the Trump administration, according to The New York Times.

The possible policy change would mean the Biden administration might be reversing course on its promises to end many Trump-era immigration policies, according to the NYT. Nothing has been finalized, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson told the Daily Caller News Foundation.

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GOP Presidential Candidate Vivek Ramaswamy Wants to Fire ‘At Least Half the Federal Workforce’

Just the News

Arguing that a lot of the U.S. government’s “civil service protections” for federal employees are unconstitutional, entrepreneur and 2024 GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has vowed to end public sector unions. 

“I take a strong view of Article Two of the Constitution,” Ramaswamy said in an interview at CPAC. “It says the president of the United States runs the federal government, runs specifically the executive branch of the federal government. That means, I think, a lot of those civil service protections are unconstitutional.”

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Pentagon, FBI Collaborated on AI, Facial Recognition Tech for Federal Agencies, Documents Show

Admin

The Department of Defense (DOD) and the FBI collaborated on an artificial intelligence-driven facial recognition technology program provided to at least six federal agencies and a Pentagon agency that supports civilian police forces, The Washington Post reported.

The facial recognition software could be used to identify individuals whose features were captured by drones and CCTV cameras, the Post reported, citing documents obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request as part of an ongoing lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed against the FBI.  The documents reveal federal authorities were more deeply involved in development of the technology than was previously known, sparking concerns over Americans’ privacy rights.

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East Tennessee State University Medical School Dean Doubles Down on Equity Ideology in Response to Do No Harm Report

Susan Berry, PhD

In an internal email obtained by The Tennessee Star from two individuals asking for anonymity, the dean of medicine at East Tennessee State University’s Quillen College of Medicine ridiculed an article published last week highlighting how woke equity policies have infiltrated Tennessee medical schools, claiming it is a “fact” that such diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) ideology has been “repeatedly proven to improve outcomes for our patients and make[s] us better doctors.”

William Block, M.D., dean of medicine at East Tennessee State University’s Quillen College of Medicine, 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).”

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Arizona Freedom Caucus Calls for Removal of ‘Racist’ Scottsdale School District Superintendent Who Still Hasn’t Been Fired

Rachel Alexander

Last month, all three Scottsdale legislators called for the termination of Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Superintendent Scott Menzel after “racist” comments he made about white people in 2019 were reported in the media. Since no action has been taken, the Arizona Freedom Caucus (AFC) held a press conference last Thursday demanding the school board fire him. 

State Sen. Joseph Chaplik (R-Scottsdale), said, “Superintendent Menzel has chosen to publicly conduct himself in such an unbecoming manner that a critical mass of parents in the district do not have confidence in his ability to be responsible and effectively lead our children.” 

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Norfolk Southern Faces New Pennsylvania Lawsuit over Ohio Derailment

Bradley Vasoli

The Pittsburgh-based law firm Lynch Carpenter and the Philadelphia-based firm Seeger Weiss this week announced new class-action litigation against the Norfolk Southern rail company for the aftereffects of the February 3 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.

After the accident, Norfolk Southern personnel ordered the venting and burning of five of the train’s cars containing toxic vinyl chloride. The release-and-burn strategy has since drawn widespread denunciation after citizens and public officials pointed out apparent deleterious health and environmental consequences. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro (D) initially supported the “controlled burn” but later reversed himself, claiming he was not informed that the rail corporation would incinerate five cars instead of one.

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Norfolk Southern Agrees to Limited Relocation Plan in East Palestine, Activists Say It’s ‘Not Enough’

Hannah Poling

Local activists in East Palestine, Ohio claimed on Monday that their activism has persuaded Norfolk Southern to accept a restricted relocation plan for some residents impacted by the train derailment last month. However, they added that they have no intention of abandoning their demand for justice for the thousands of residents in the area who are struggling as a result of the accident.

The company’s proposal to offer financial help to residents who live within a one-mile radius of the accident site “is not enough,” said River Valley Organizing (RVO), which last week produced a list of five requests for the people of East Palestine and the surrounding area.

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Commentary: Secret Surveillance Video Dismantles January 6 Narrative

Admin

Fox News host Tucker Carlson aired the first set of previously-unseen surveillance video captured by Capitol police security cameras on January 6, 2021 that undermines several aspects of the reigning narrative about what happened that day.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) last month gave Carlson’s team “unfettered” access to 41,000 hours of footage the government kept hidden from the American public and individuals charged in the Justice Department’s unprecedented and ongoing investigation into the events of January 6. Capitol Police and the Justice Department designated the recordings as “highly sensitive” material in March 2021; the trove remains under tight protective orders and defendants must agree to strict rules before gaining access to clips entered as evidence against them.

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Liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court Candidate Janet Protasiewicz Set a Very Violent Felon Free

M.D. Kittle

Aliyah Perez “brought an abundance of love, laughter and light to the world,” the 26-year-old woman’s family wrote in her obituary. Perez, the niece of Milwaukee Common Council President Jose Perez was found dead near 26th St. and Clayton Crest Ave.  on Sunday, Feb 26 — a victim of domestic abuse, her family said. 

But the young woman might very well be alive today had liberal Milwaukee County judge and Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Janet Protasiewicz not set Perez’s killer free. 

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Connecticut Weighs Plan to Tax Private College Endowments

The Center Square

Connecticut lawmakers are considering a proposal that would authorize local governments to tax the endowments of private universities and colleges. 

The proposal, which is pending before the Legislature’s Committee on Planning and Development, is the latest effort by Democratic lawmakers to tap into multi-billion dollar private endowments to divert more money to cities and towns that host sprawling private higher education campuses and facilities.  

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In Florida County, Felons Vote Illegally, Ballots Cast on Behalf of Long-Dead, Whistleblower Claims

Just the News

Election issues continue in Orange County, Fla., where, a whistleblower alleges, felons illegally voted, deceased voters requested and received mail-in ballots, voter addresses are changed without the voters requesting it, and multiple ballots are allowed to be dropped off without question. 

In a new affidavit filed with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE), Brian Freid, a whistleblower in the Orange County Supervisor of Elections (SOE) office, alleges that since the SOE was notified last year by the state’s Office of Election Crimes and Security that felons illegally voted in the county in the 2020 election, there have been “no apparent changes implemented … to effectively ensure this does not happen again in the future.”

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