Ex-Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson Says He’s Running for President

Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Sunday he has decided to run for president and plans on formally announcing his campaign in April. 

“My decision is, I’m going to run for president of the United States,” he told ABC News’ “This Week” during an interview. He said he will formally announce his campaign in his hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas, later this month.

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Hospitality Job Fair to Host 48 Employers at Nissan Stadium on Tuesday

The Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp, in partnership with the Greater Nashville Hospitality Association, is hosting a hospitality industry job fair at Nissan Stadium on Tuesday. The job fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Central Standard Time) and will host 48 regional employers – some with current job openings ready to hire on the spot.

The hiring event comes as the hospitality industry in Nashville continues to grow. The city has 273 hotels, with an additional 2,544 rooms under construction, according to data by the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. In addition, 66 new restaurants opened in 2022, with 765 restaurants and bars opening since 2015.

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63 Christians Face Deportation Back to China

Influential members of Congress and top human rights advocates in Washington are urging the Biden administration to take immediate action to ensure the safety of a group of Chinese Christian dissidents and two Americans detained by Thai authorities Thursday.

The group of refugees, including 35 children and 28 adults, fled China in 2019 to escape persecution. They initially sought refuge in South Korea and then Thailand while seeking emergency asylum in the United States. But the U.S. State Department and Department of Homeland Security have declined to grant the church members emergency asylum, as it has done for many others, including tens of thousands of Ukrainians fleeing their war-ravaged countries, and the first group of Afghans airlifted into the United States amid the chaotic U.S. evacuation in August 2021.

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Commentary: McNally Joins Democrats in Support of Red Flag Law, But He Shows No Support for Real Constitutional Carry

On March 30, 2023, reportedly hundreds to thousands (depending on the news source) of gun control zealots marched on the state capitol and interrupted House legislative proceedings to demand more gun control including passage of Red Flag laws.

Against that public onslaught there was no evidence form watching the proceedings on the House or Senate floors that these elected officials in Tennessee were prepared to advance pro-2nd Amendment Legislation in order to further enable Tennesseans – potential victims of violent crime and mass shootings – to be able to defend their lives, the lives of their families, children or even other innocent victims.

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Biden Admin’s Sweeping New Rules Would Let Green Groups Lease Federal Land Away from Oil, Ranching

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) proposed new rules Thursday that would allow public land to be leased for conservation efforts, among other major changes to promote land health.

The proposal would expand land-health standards to the entirety of the 245 million acres managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), prioritize the designation of Areas of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) and establish a leasing framework for private partners to perform climate restoration and mitigation efforts on public land, according to the DOI. The new rule would make proposed leases for conservation efforts a valid “use” of public land, similar to mining, ranching and other energy projects under the Federal Land Policy Management Act (FLPMA) of 1976, according to the BLM.

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Social Media ‘Troll’ Douglass Mackey Convicted of ‘Election Interference’ for Posting Memes

The Justice Department announced Friday that a jury convicted social media “troll” Douglass Mackey over internet memes posted during the 2016 presidential election.

Legal experts raised concerns about the trial of the 33-year-old Mackey, who posted under the alias “Ricky Vaughn 99,” earlier this year on First Amendment grounds. The Department of Justice indicted Mackey in January 2021, claiming he conspired “to injure, oppress, threaten, or intimidate any person … in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him by the Constitution.”

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Nashville Airport Board Appointment Change Bill Heads to Tennessee House

The Tennessee Senate approved a bill to give the state the majority of power appointing board members for the Metro Nashville Airport Authority on Thursday.

The airport authority currently has seven members, all appointed by Nashville’s mayor and approved by the Metro Nashville council. If signed into law, Senate Bill 1326 would make it an eight-member board with two appointees each for the mayor, governor, House speaker and Senate speaker.

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Florida Lawmaker Denies Draft Elections Bill Will Greenlight DeSantis’ Presidential Run

The Florida Senate President said the draft elections shell bill filed Thursday won’t include changes to the resign-to-run law that could stand in the way of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential run.

Senate proposed Bill 7050, filed by the Senate Committee on Ethics and Elections, will “revise bills relating to elections,” and Florida’s resign-to-run law might require the governor to resign from office before he can run for president. Senate President Kathleen Passidomo said in a press conference Thursday evening that the bill won’t address that law, and that she’s still mulling it over.

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Wisconsin Congressman Mike Gallagher Introduces Bill Banning Gain-of-Function Research

As increasing evidence suggests the COVID-19 virus likely leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China, U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) is introducing a bill that would ban taxpayer dollars from funding so-called gain-of-function research — or at least pause funding.  

Gallagher joined U.S. Representatives Henry Cuellar (D-TX- 28) and Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA-01) this week introduced the Pausing Enhanced Pandemic Pathogen Research Act, which would stall taxpayer-funded gain-of-function research for five years, providing time to evaluate the risks and for proper safety standards and protocols to be implemented, the lawmakers say. 

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Virginia Gov. Youngkin’s Administration Seeks Changes to Bills Setting Hemp Regulations

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin is requesting changes to a pair of bills dealing with the regulation of hemp-derived products in the commonwealth, proposing an exemption that would allow some CBD products with THC to remain on store shelves. 

After weeks of debate and several amendments, lawmakers in the General Assembly voted to pass a pair of bills that limits the amount of THC – a chemical found in the marijuana plant that can be intoxicating to consumers – included in a hemp product to a concentration of 0.3% and two milligrams per package. The bills also establish labeling, testing and packaging requirements for hemp-derived products. 

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Maricopa County Added 130,000 People Since Pandemic Began, Nation’s Highest

Since the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Arizona’s most-populous county has added tens of thousands more residents than any other county in America.

U.S. Census data released Thursday shows the county population increased by an estimated 130,950 since the April 1, 2020, decennial Census count. It was the only county to have added more than 100,000 people in that time.

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Bill Would Let Georgia Hospitals Form Police Departments

Georgia lawmakers have signed off on legislation allowing hospitals to start police departments using certified law enforcement officers, similar to the approach many colleges take.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle overwhelmingly voted in favor of House Bill 383, the Safer Hospitals Act, to send the measure to Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican. The new law would take effect in July if signed into law.

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Bipartisan Lawmakers Introduce Legislation to End the Death Penalty in Ohio

A bipartisan group of lawmakers have introduced legislation to end the death penalty in Ohio.

Senate Bill (SB) 101 sponsored by state Senators Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City), Michele Reynolds (R-Canal Winchester), Hearcel Craig (D-Columbus), and Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) aims to remove the death penalty in Ohio and instead pursue life without parole for capital crimes.

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Speaking to Pennsylvania Conservatives, DeSantis Says His Record Exemplifies ‘Victory’

Camp Hill, PA — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Saturday addressed a vast roomful of Pennsylvania conservatives, reviewing his record, asserting it has meant boldness and — crucially for his possible future presidential campaign — victory.

The governor has not declared himself a candidate for the White House but many expect he will become a robust rival against former President Donald Trump in a 2024 primary campaign. He spoke at length to attendees of the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference just outside of Harrisburg about the work he has done in the Sunshine State. It’s a story, he observed, of success after success. 

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University of Minnesota Report: Evidence Doesn’t Support Claims of Ranked Choice Voting Advocates

There is little evidence to support the claims of ranked choice voting (RCV) advocates, according to a new report from the University of Minnesota.

Professor Larry Jacobs and PhD candidate Penny Thomas with the Humphrey School of Public Affairs said they have “carefully reviewed the track record” of RCV and it “fails to support four of the advocates’ promises for improvements over today’s system.”

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Center for Arizona Policy Urges Gov. Katie Hobbs to Sign Anti-Infanticide Bill

The Center for Arizona Policy (CAP) is urging Governor Katie Hobbs to sign Senate Bill (SB) 1600, sponsored by Senator Janae Shamp (R-Surprise), which aims to protect all children born alive.

“Withholding reasonable care to a living newborn just because doctors don’t expect her to live long is, indeed, heartless and cruel. @GovernorHobbs can prevent this evil by signing SB 1600,” CAP tweeted.

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FOX and Townhall’s Benson to Pennsylvania Conservatives: Trump Aided Politically By Indictment

Camp Hill, PA — Townhall.com political editor and FOX News commentator Guy Benson told Pennsylvania conservatives on Saturday the left-wing prosecutorial crusade against Donald Trump is actually bolstering the former president politically.

In recent months, Benson explained to attendees of the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference at the Penn Harris Hotel just outside of Harrisburg, Trump occasionally underperformed in GOP-primary polling matchups against Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. But the pundit said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D), by indicting Trump on charges connected to alleged “hush money” payments to pornographic performer Stormy Daniels, has bolstered sympathy for the ex-chief executive. 

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Holy Week Starts Off with Lots of Palms – but Palm Sunday’s Donkey Is Just as Important to the Story

For the Catholic Church and many other Christian denominations, the Sunday before Easter marks the beginning of the most important week of the year – “Holy Week,” when Christians reflect on central mysteries of their faith: Christ’s Last Supper, crucifixion and resurrection from the dead.

Palm Sunday commemorates the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem shortly before the Jewish holiday of Passover. According to the Christian Gospels, people lined the streets to greet him, waving palm branches and shouting words of praise.

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Conway Urges Pennsylvania Republicans to Play by ‘New Rules’ on Absentee Voting

Camp Hill, PA — Kellyanne Conway, a nationally renowned pollster and senior counselor in the Trump White House, called upon movement conservatives in Pennsylvania on Friday to adjust to mass absentee voting if they want to win tough elections.

“My theme tonight is about winning, not whining,” she told attendees of the annual Pennsylvania Leadership Conference (PLC) at the Penn Harris Hotel just across the Susquehanna River from Harrisburg. 

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California’s Reparations Plan Could Cost over $800 Billion

After economists estimated that California’s reparations plan could spend as much as $800 billion, the leader of the state’s “reparations task force” has refused to commit to such a staggering amount.

According to ABC News, the $800 billion figure would be paid to all black residents in the state in return for past historical circumstances such as slavery and segregation, as well as alleged “racism” in policing, incarceration rates, and housing.

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Commentary: New Study Shows American Religious Divides

America is a diverse country. In most cities, you can find people from nearly every ethnic or racial background imaginable. This is becoming the case in rural areas as well. But America is host to a considerable amount of religious diversity as well. And while race relations are often the subject of considerable discussion, understanding interreligious relations is a necessary part of understanding the country as a whole.

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Hundreds of Millions of COVID-19 Aid Never Reached K-12 School Districts: Report

More than $736 million of federal COVID-19 funds did not reach the K-12 schools and students it was meant for, with some states putting the money towards “slush funds” and “pet projects,” according to a March report by the National Opportunity Project.

In 2020, Congress gave $5.5 billion in COVID-19 aid to nonpublic schools with low-income students through its Emergency Assistance to Nonpublic Schools (EANS) program, according to a report by the National Opportunity Project. Of the aid, $736 million did not go to the schools with at least $157 million within 27 states going towards programs to teach video game coding and “I Got Vaxxed” competitions.

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