Day: April 29, 2023

MNPD Tells The Tennessee Star that Covenant Mass Shooter’s ‘Dated Journals’ Will be Released, Does Not Provide Timeline

Peter D'Abrosca

In a shift from what has widely been called a “manifesto,” the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Friday told The Tennessee Star that it will release “dated journals” left behind by the mass shooter who killed six people at The Covenant School in Nashville one month ago. 

“The writings are essentially dated journals,” Don Aaron, an MNPD spokesman, told The Tennessee Star. “While the word manifesto was used on the first day, we have since referred to these as ‘writings’ or ‘journals.'”

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James Comer Pointedly Warns Against Witness Intimidation, Too Narrow DOJ Focus in Hunter Biden Probe

Just the News

The chief congressional investigator in the Hunter Biden scandal says he is deeply worried that the Justice Department has tailored its criminal investigation narrowly to protect the first family and that Democrat defenders are coming close to engaging in witness intimidation that could obstruct his probe.

House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer told Just the News on Thursday night that he is deeply troubled by legal letters and veiled threats that defenders of Hunter Biden have sent witnesses. Threats were allegedly made to cooperating banks, and political attack activities were being funded in the districts of some lawmakers who are investigating the Biden family for alleged influence peddling.

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House Passes Bipartisan Bill to Repeal Biden’s China Solar Rules

Admin

The House passed a resolution Friday morning to repeal President Joe Biden’s moratorium on solar panel tariffs to several Southeast Asian nations, where Chinese firms linked to slave labor have reportedly been assembling their products to avoid U.S. tariffs.

The resolution passed 221 to 202, with the support of most Republicans and 12 Democrats, with supporters arguing in the preceding debate that the legislation was necessary both to support the U.S. solar industry while simultaneously holding China accountable for avoiding tariffs. Democratic detractors pointed to opposition from industry trade groups, arguing that the moratorium was set to run out next summer, and that it was necessary to grow the U.S. solar industry in the interim.

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Dates Sets for Special Elections in Tennessee State House Districts of Expelled Interim State Reps

Mac Roberts

State Representatives Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) will have an opportunity to seek election victories in their respective districts after their expulsions from the State House earlier this month. Nashville Metro Council and Shelby County Commission both voted unanimously to appoint Jones and Pearson to serve as their own interim replacements in Districts 52 and 86.

These appointments are only temporary, as special elections must take place to decide who will serve the remainder of Jones’s and Pearson’s terms. 

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$400 Million Tax Cut Bill Includes Grocery Tax Holiday, Tax Cuts for Small Businesses

Peter D'Abrosca

According to the Tennessee Department of Revenue (TDOR), the state will soon begin implementing a $400 million tax cut law recently passed by the Tennessee General Assembly.

“Decades of smart fiscal stewardship have enabled Tennessee to maintain a balanced budget while cutting taxes for Tennessee families and businesses,” said Governor Bill Lee in a TDOR release. “We are proud to continue that legacy this year by putting dollars back in the pockets of Tennesseans and supporting future economic growth across Tennessee, and I thank the General Assembly for its partnership to promote future growth and opportunity for our state.”

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Congress Members Want Answers About Chinese ‘Police Stations’ in the U.S.

The Center Square

In a letter to FBI Director Chris Wray, congressional members on the U.S. Select Committee on the Chinese Community Party expressed concerns about the FBI potentially not knowing about Chinese “police stations” operating in the U.S. They also asked Wray to provide information about the FBI’s efforts to investigate Chinese transnational repression in America. 

The committee received a classified briefing on March 30 after requesting information on Feb. 24. However, the briefing didn’t answer their questions, prompting them to formally ask 12 questions they want answered in writing. They also expect to have another classified briefing once they receive additional information.

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MNPD Denies Tennessee Star Public Records Request for Covenant Mass Shooter’s Toxicology Report

Peter D'Abrosca

After the CEO of Star News Media, Inc., the owner and operator of The Tennessee Star, submitted an open records request to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on Thursday asking that Covenant School mass killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s toxicology report be made public, The Star learned Friday that that request has been denied.

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Unemployment Rates Drop in Nearly Every Tennessee County

Mac Roberts

In a new release on Thursday, the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development (TDLWD) announced March 2023 decreases in the unemployment rates in all but one county. Meigs County, a rural area situated between Chattanooga and Knoxville with a population of around 13,000, was the only one of 95 counties that saw an increase in its unemployment figure – by 0.7 percent.

Meigs County also had the highest unemployment rate of any county, with 5.6 percent. Most of the other top ten highest unemployment rates were in rural counties, including Bledsoe, Haywood, Lake, Scott, Clay, Cocke, Decatur, Lauderdale, and Grundy Counties.

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Connecticut Gets $125 Million from Tobacco Settlement

The Center Square

Connecticut is receiving nearly $125 million this year as part of a nationwide tobacco settlement, according to Attorney General William Tong, who calls for increased spending on preventing youth smoking and vaping.

The money comes from a landmark 1998 settlement with tobacco companies, which calls for more than $246 billion to be funneled into states based on an annually adjusted rate per number of cigarettes sold each year. A portion of the funds are supposed to be put aside for smoking prevention and cessation programs.

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Pennsylvania’s Sent Out More than 1 Million Doses of Anti-Overdose Drug

The Center Square

The Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs announced a major milestone in its push against opioid overdose deaths: More than 1.3 million doses of naloxone, an overdose-reversal drug, have been sent out to first responders.

The program to provide naloxone to first responders has been active since 2017; almost 500,000 doses have been provided in the last two years.

The result has been more than 24,000 opioid overdose reversals, according to a press release.

“Naloxone saves lives. That is why access to and distribution of this opioid overdose reversal medication is so critical,” DDAP Acting Secretary Dr. Latika Davis-Jones said. “We are proud to work with our state and local partners every day to keep Pennsylvanians alive and decrease the chances of a fatal overdose. The Shapiro Administration is committed to making naloxone readily available.”

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Recall Effort Started to Oust WESD School Board President Who Oversaw Termination of Christian University’s Contract

Rachel Alexander

A recall has been started to remove the president of the Washington Elementary School District (WESD) Governing Board, Nikkie Gomez-Whaley. Gomez-Whaley presided over the board’s unanimous decision to terminate the district’s contract with Arizona Christian University (ACU) for student teachers due to the university’s religious viewpoints. A second recall effort is being planned to oust board member Tamilia Valenzuela, who led the move to terminate the contract, but state law provides that it cannot begin until she has been in office for six months. 

Susan Bidell, who has a son and grandchildren in the district and who volunteers in the schools, told The Arizona Sun Times, “We don’t need social justice warriors on the board. We need people who want to serve the teachers, the parents, the students, and the staff of the district. Instead they point their finger and lecture us about things at the board meetings.” 

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Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment Supporters Say They Have the Necessary Votes to Pass Legislation on House Floor

Hannah Poling

Supporters of legislation that aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments have told Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) that they have the support of at least 59 House Republicans who want a floor vote on the resolution.

It will take a three-fifths majority of the 99-member House to pass the resolution to put before voters House Joint Resolution (HJR) 1 requiring 60 percent voter approval for future constitutional amendments.

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Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman: House Debt-Ceiling Bill a ‘Big Step in the Right Direction’

M.D. Kittle

While President Joe Biden has preemptively declared the House debt-ceiling bill dead on arrival, U.S. Representative Glenn Grothman (R-WI-06) remains hopeful the budget-slashing proposal will bring big spender Biden to the negotiating table. 

“Some people question the will of Republicans to fight for a conservative bill. In my first eight-plus years in congress this was the most conservative bill that we have passed yet,” Grothman told The Wisconsin Daily Star on Thursday’s edition of the Vicki McKenna Show. 

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Commentary: Bill Lee Attacks the Second Amendment with a Red Flag Proposal

Admin

Governor Bill Lee called on the Tennessee Legislature to pass a Red Flag law – one that he proposed – before the 2023 Legislative session ended. The Legislators did not consider his proposal but instead they wrapped up business – they thought – and adjourned until January 2024. Governor Lee, apparently thinking of himself as perhaps the “master” of the Legislature, has now stated that he will call a special session to force the Legislature to take up his call for a Red Flag law.

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Minnesota House Passes Red-Flag, Universal Background Check Proposals

Admin

The Minnesota House passed an omnibus judiciary and public safety bill Wednesday that contains two controversial gun-control measures.

The Senate version of the omnibus bill, which passed earlier this month, doesn’t include the gun-control proposals and the differences between the two bills will have to be sorted out in a conference committee in the coming days, Session Daily reported.

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Florida House Passes Bill That Would Change How Unions Operate in the State

The Center Square

Florida could change the way unions operate through legislation that proponents say would force union representatives to be more involved and available to their members while ensuring non-members don’t face discrimination.

Senate Bill 256 is sponsored by Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, R-Spring Hill and it would require union members to sign a membership authorization form recognizing Florida as a right to work state before they join.

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State Senate Launches Intergovernmental Committee to Investigate Arizona COVID Response

Neil Jones

The Arizona Senate Majority Caucus announced the creation of a new committee Friday that will review Arizona’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The pandemic was a heartbreaking period for so many people on so many different levels,” said State Senator Janae Shamp (R-Surprise), who will chair the committee. “I lost my job as a Perioperative Nurse because I refused to take the experimental vaccine that we now know has produced serious side effects in a number of otherwise healthy individuals. We’ve witnessed lives and livelihoods lost for no other reason than the mismanagement of COVID-19, and we are determined to hold those accountable for the injustices experienced.”

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House Rejects Matt Gaetz’s Resolution to Remove Troops from Somalia

Admin

The House of Representatives has rejected a war powers resolution introduced by Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida to remove U.S. military personnel from Somalia.

The recorded vote, held on Thursday afternoon, yielded 321 members voting against the bill with 102 voting in favor. The resolution, designated H.Con. Res. 30 and co-sponsored by Republican Reps. Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona as well as Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, would have directed President Joe Biden to order all American troops to leave the country, with the exception of Marine Security Guards who protect the U.S. Embassy in Mogadishu.

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Regulators Knew Silicon Valley Bank Was in Trouble Since 2021, Did Not Step In

The Center Square

A closer look at the months leading up to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, the second-largest bank collapse in history, shows that regulators saw the warning signs since last year but did not step in.

SVB’s collapse sent shockwaves through the markets, destabilized the economy, and raised fears of a domino effect of other banks. Seemingly backing those fears, other banks have recently collapsed as well.

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Commentary: Outcome of Proud Boys Trial Could Decide Trump’s Fate

Admin

Of the hundreds of video clips used as evidence in the marathon trial of five members of the Proud Boys, prosecutors began closing arguments not with a clip of the defendants engaged in criminal activity but with a clip of Donald Trump.

The government showed the jury a portion of the September 2020 presidential debate; goaded by Joe Biden and then-Fox News host Chris Wallace to condemn “white supremacists and militia groups” in an effort to downplay Black Lives Matter and Antifa violence, Trump asked them to “give me a name.” Biden quickly answered, “the Proud Boys.”

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Commentary: Iowa Senator Joni Ernst Says It’s Time to Hit the Brakes on Biden’s Boondoggle Gravy Train

Admin

If you paid a contractor to build a house and you agreed to a price and timeline, but the builder blew through the timeline and racked up the price tag, you’d be pretty upset. I bet you’d demand accountability, maybe even a discount.  

Well, when it comes to the federal government and your tax dollars, President Biden seems to be okay with projects that bust the budget, fly past the deadline, and are completely derailed.

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