Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed all-star panelist Aaron Gulbransen in studio for another edition of Aaron’s Analysis.
Read the full storyDay: May 9, 2023
State Rep. Scott Cepicky: I Do Not Believe Guns Are the Problem, It’s a Mental Health Issue That We’ve Self-Created
Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed State Representative Scott Cepicky to the newsmaker line to discuss Governor Bill Lee’s gun-grabbing special session and school choice legislation.
Read the full storyMark Hemingway on Decades of Biden Family Crime and Corruption at the FBI, DOJ
Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed conservative journalist Mark Hemingway to the newsmaker line to discuss the Biden crime family and the corruption at the FBI and DOJ.
Read the full storyJury Holds Trump Liable for Battery, Defamation in E. Jean Carroll Case
A jury held former President Donald Trump liable for battery and defamation after hearing arguments in a civil trial brought by writer E. Jean Carroll, who said Trump raped her in a department store during the 1990s. Trump’s conduct was specifically determined to have been sexual abuse. The jury awarded roughly $2 million in damages to Carroll for the battery count, according to CNN. Carroll will also receive $3 million for the defamation count.
Read the full storyMorning Consult Poll Shows Trump with 41-Point Lead over Declining DeSantis, Ramaswamy’s Fortunes Rising
A new Morning Consult poll shows former President Donald Trump with his largest lead yet over Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, just as political outsider Vivek Ramaswamy’s political prospects rising.
The poll of nearly 3,600 potential Republican primary voters, conducted May 5-7, finds Trump with 60 percent support, followed distantly by DeSantis, with 19 percent.
Read the full storyMurfreesboro Police Won’t Charge Man Who Killed Home Intruders
Police in Murfreesboro say they will not charge a homeowner shot and killed an intruder after that intruder, along with a second suspect broke into the home, used a taser on the homeowner’s dog and held a gun to one of the homeowner’s children.
“MPD Criminal Investigations Division detectives are investigating a home invasion where the homeowner shoots two intruders, killing one and injuring the other on Friday night. 52-year-old Kevin Ford was pronounced dead at the scene,” according to the police department’s Twitter account.
Read the full storyRepublicans Take a Page from Democrats, Offer Novel Idea on Medicaid
Democrats are trying to paint Republicans as enemies of Medicaid, but Florida GOP Rep. Daniel Webster is gaining support for a bill that would provide a tax deduction to healthcare providers in exchange for pro bono health services for people who rely on Medicaid or CHIP, the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
Webster’s Helping Everyone Access Long Term Healthcare Act, or HEALTH Act, would amend the IRS code to allow medical professionals to take a tax deduction for the value of service performed, which he says will reduce the amount of paperwork associated with the low-income healthcare systems.
Read the full storySouth Carolina Mom Asks School Board ‘Why Are Adult Teachers Allowed to Sponsor a Group Regarding Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity with Minors?’
A South Carolina parent challenged the school board of Richland School District Two in Columbia where Blythewood High School (BHS) hosted the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) “No Place for Hate” program that invites children to “explore identity,” and “apply this understanding to recognize the relationship between identity, bias and power.”
ADL’s No Place for Hate program also seeks to “build the capacity to recognize and confront bias within oneself, others and institutions. Examine the relationship between individual biases and systemic oppression, including the impact of intersecting oppressions.”
Read the full storyTransgender and ‘Queer Theory’ Materials in K-12 Schools in All Continental United States: Map
Campus Reform surveyed the entire US and found instances of K-12 public school districts carrying children’s books with messaging about “gender identity,” some including sexually explicit material.
Read the full storyAs Juvenile Crime Skyrockets to Record Levels, States Seek to Crack Down
As juvenile crime has skyrocketed across the nation following the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, state lawmakers are looking to pass laws to curb rising youth violence and lawlessness.
Juvenile homicides nationwide increased by 44% from 2019 to 2020 and increased by 83% from 2013 to 2020, according to data from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, as school closures and police reforms have contributed to rising youth crime. Lawmakers in Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and New Jersey have introduced bills to implement measures such as penalty enhancements for juvenile gang members, as well as mandatory holding periods for juveniles charged with violent crimes, to address the rising violence.
Read the full storyMNPS High School Student Pepper Sprays Teacher for Confiscating Phone, Both Say They Were Assaulted
A video depicting a female student pepper-spraying a male teacher at Antioch High School (AHS) went viral over the weekend. The minute-and-a-half video, surfacing on Friday, shows the confrontation between the two after the educator confiscated a cell phone from the student for using it during an exam in the classroom. The student was asked repeatedly to put the phone away, The New York Post reported.
Read the full storyLawsuit Claims Tennessee Aquarium Hiring Practices Discriminated Against White Applicants
A trio of Tennesseans who applied to work at the Tennessee Aquarium were turned down because they were white, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court.
Timothy Shawn Gunn and Marni Renee Pearce, both of Hamilton County along with Zachary Chance Taylor of Catoosa County, are suing the aquarium for discrimination.
Read the full storyIn Bid to Cut Higher Education Costs, Virginia House Speaker Requests JLARC Study
House of Delegates Speaker Todd Gilbert has requested the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC) to look into the rising cost of public higher education in Virginia – particularly the increase of administrative staff positions tied to diversity, equity and inclusion.
In a letter addressed to Hal Greer, executive director of the commission, Gilbert cites a November 2014 report from the commission entitled, “Addressing the Cost of Public Higher Education in Virginia.” In it, the commission adopted 16 recommendations. The speaker says it is “unclear which, if any,” of the recommendations were adopted from the 168-page report.
Read the full storyWisconsin Congressman Mike Gallagher Raises Red Flags About Nike’s, Adidas’ Alleged Use of Forced Labor
Leading corporate woke warriors Nike and Adidas, which have made virtue signaling an art form, are now facing more questions about benefitting on the backs of forced laborers in China.
Lawmakers on the House’s Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party want answers.
Read the full storyOhio Republican State Central Committee Unanimously Votes Raise the Threshold to Amend the State Constitution, Special August Election
The Ohio Republican State Central Committee has unanimously voted to support a resolution and implore lawmakers to pass the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment which aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments and to allow for a special August election to vote on the amendment.
The Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2 would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
Read the full storyState Lawmakers Urge Gov. Hobbs to Protect Arizona’s Water Supply from the Colorado River
A group of Republican lawmakers, including Representatives Gail Griffin (R-Hereford), Lupe Diaz (R-Benson), and Senator Sine Kerr (R-Buckeye), sent Governor Katie Hobbs (D) a letter Friday, demanding that she stick up for Arizona’s water future and defend access to the Colorado River.
“Under the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation’s (“BOR”) Action Alternative 1 for allocating cuts on the Colorado River, which allocates cuts based strictly on the seniority of rights, Arizona’s citizens that rely on the Central Arizona Project will see dramatic reductions, potentially cutting them off from the Colorado River completely,” the legislators wrote. “With our state’s population and economic prosperity on the line, protecting our state’s share of the Colorado River from the looming risk of complete disconnection is paramount.”
Read the full storyVictor Davis Hanson Commentary: The Impending Thermidor Reaction in Jacobin America
The decade-long French Revolution that broke out in 1789 soon devolved into far more than removing the monarchy, as it became antithetical to the earlier American precedent. American notions of liberty and freedom were seen as far too narrow, given the state, if only all-powerful and all-wise, could mandate “equality” and force “fraternity” among its subjects.
Each cycle of French revolutionary fervor soon became more radicalized and cannibalistic — until it reached its logical ends of violent absurdity.
Read the full storyMinneapolis Residents Plan ‘Pilgrimage’ to George Floyd Square
Two Minneapolis neighborhood organizations are inviting residents to participate in a “pilgrimage to George Floyd Square” along with a visit to the nearby “Say Their Names” cemetery.
George Floyd Square is the name given to 38th Street and Chicago Avenue, the intersection where Floyd died in May 2020. The intersection, officially recognized as “George Perry Floyd Square” by the city of Minneapolis last year, is revered by left-wing activists as a “sacred space” where baptisms and even “miracles” have taken place.
Read the full storyDeSantis Signs Bill Blocking Chinese Property Ownership Near Military Installations
Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed into law Monday a bill that would block Chinese ownership of agricultural land and property near military installations, the latest state to crack down on Communist Party control of U.S. sites.
The law prohibits anyone from China and other totalitarian regimes, including Iran, Russia, Venezuela, Syria, Cuba and North Korea, from having a stake in any property within 10 miles of Department of Defense installations or critical infrastructure. A separate bill, also signed into law Monday, creates additional hurdles for foreign ownership of private schools after federal lawmakers raised red flags over Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ties to a private Florida high school operating a military pre-enlistment program.
Read the full storyWhitmer Opposes Transparency in Michigan’s Budget Process
Lawmakers are crafting the next budget, but Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office is trying to hide accountability measures while boosting spending.
In 2018, Whitmer made a transparency pledge while running for office. Now, in her second term, her office is trying to hinder transparency efforts in the next budget process.
Read the full storyLaw Enforcers in Philadelphia Suburbs Blame Krasner’s Performance on Spreading Crime
In Delaware County on Monday, law-enforcement experts asked Pennsylvania GOP state lawmakers to consider a variety of responses to the state’s crime epidemic… and to one left-wing official’s lack of urgency about it.
Speakers suggested various ideas like increased resources for detention facilities and youth courts. Over the course of the hearing, numerous testifiers complained that the leniency of Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner (D) remains a major hindrance to public safety in the City of Brotherly Love and nearby communities.
Read the full storyKemp Signs Bill to Create Commission to Investigate, Potentially Remove District Attorneys
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a measure to establish a commission with the power to investigate and potentially remove district attorneys from office.
But critics argue the measure attacks progressive prosecutors, saying it’s a “national right-wing coordinated effort to undo the will of voters,” particularly minority voters.
Read the full storyCommentary: Mr. President, the Debt Ceiling and Spending Cuts Were Linked in 2011 and 1996
“You just can’t. No one’s ever tied them together before.”
That was President Joe Biden on MSNBC on May 6, claiming that Congress has never increased the debt ceiling in exchange for budget, spending and regulatory changes.
There’s only one problem. It’s completely false.
Read the full storyOhio Marijuana Legalization Advocates Begin Collecting Signatures to Place Issue on November Ballot
An activist-led petition for marijuana legalization in Ohio could be on the November ballot now that state lawmakers have declined to evaluate the change.
The 34-page bill proposed by The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol aimed to impose a 10 percent tax on the sale of all cannabis products and legalize the possession, purchase, and sale of marijuana by Ohio residents aged 21 and older.
Read the full storyOhio to Award Nearly $500,000 to Boost Law Enforcement Recruitment
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and his Department of Safety Director Andy Wilson have announced that the state of Ohio is awarding nearly $500,000 in funding to law enforcement agencies throughout the state to help aid in the recruitment of new officers.
31 law enforcement agencies in 21 counties will receive the grant funding totaling $445,449 as part of the second round of funding offered as part of the new Ohio Law Enforcement Recruitment Grant Program. The program was created by Gov. DeWine in 2020 to enable police departments throughout Ohio to focus on recruiting efforts.
Read the full storyNew Law Blocks Nashville’s Supermajority Requirement for Speedway Demolition
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has signed a bill to block Metro Nashville’s requirement for a council supermajority vote on demolition at the Fairgrounds Speedway.
Nashville’s council is expected to soon hear a proposal on Bristol Motor Speedway rebuilding the grandstand and track at the Fairgrounds Speedway in order to bring a NASCAR race back to the fairgrounds.
Read the full storyShapiro Takes Property Tax and Rent Rebate Plan on the Road
Gov. Josh Shapiro visited Erie recently to highlight his plan to grow the state’s property tax and rent rebate program for the first time in nearly two decades.
It’s the most recent stop in an unofficial statewide budget tour touting many of the administration’s key spending proposals meant to build the workforce and, by extension, a bank account flush enough to keep Pennsylvania from falling off a “demographic cliff.”
Read the full storyRepublican State Representative Applauds Increased Access to Childcare Coming to Arizona
Arizona State Representative Matt Gress (R-Phoenix) released a statement Friday applauding the new executive rulemaking from Governor Katie Hobbs (D) that aims to increase access to childcare services in the state.
“This policy is designed to expand opportunities for Arizona’s working families and provide more options for their children when they are not in school,” Gress said. “Given the lack of providers for school-age children, it is crucial that we increase the supply of childcare centers to better serve our communities. For parents that qualify for federal subsidy, this effort will help ensure that parents can continue to work and provide for their families. I applaud the Governor for taking action on this important issue.”
Read the full storyBallot Signature Matching System in Maricopa County Is ‘Almost Illegal,’ Says Longtime FBI Expert
As Kari Lake’s lawsuit returns to the trial court for consideration of alleged violations of Maricopa County’s signature verification rules in the Arizona 2022 general election, a retired FBI counterintelligence agent with longtime expertise in signature analysis says that matching ballot signatures with little time to review is “almost illegal.”
If election workers have a limited amount of time to review signatures on early ballots to ensure they match with voters’ files, it’s “almost illegal to have it work that way,” said retired FBI Special Agent Wayne A. Barnes, adding, “almost pathetic.”
Read the full storySchool District Pays Thousands for Controversial Emotional Survey Program with Ties to Merrick Garland
A Massachusetts school district has spent more than $30,000 to conduct “social-emotional learning” (SEL) surveys on students and staff led by an educational organization founded by U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland’s son-in-law, according to a public records request by Parents Defending Education (PDE), a parental rights in education group.
From 2018 to 2023, Old Rochester Regional School District spent $30,620.25 to partner with Panorama Education through January 2024 to conduct SEL surveys and trainings, a learning concept that has been accused of laying the foundation for Critical Race Theory (CRT), according to a public records obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. Panorama Education has previously come under fire by parents for its connections to Garland, who directed the FBI in 2021 to “use its authority” on parents who protested at school board meetings.
Read the full storyDHS ‘Bystander’ Training Singles out Pro-Lifers, Government Critics as ‘Radicalization’ Suspects
Nine days after President Biden’s inauguration, a Department of Homeland Security office proposed creating several “Choose Your Own Adventure” videos to show Americans how to identify and mitigate “radicalization and potential violence.”
Among the Americans that worry the sprawling bureaucracy created in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks: middle-aged pro-life women, white men who question the government, and divorced mothers who suspect “government connections to child abuse and trafficking.”
Read the full storyU.S. Crude Oil Production Approaches Pre-Pandemic Levels
For the first two months of 2023, production of crude oil in the U.S. neared pre-COVID levels, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The production of crude oil in the U.S. in January and February was the most since March 2020 when the pandemic hit.
The U.S. produced 12.54 million barrels of crude oil per day in January and 12.48 million barrels per day in February. That represented the highest levels since 12.80 million barrels per day in March 2020.
Read the full story