Exclusive: Secret Recordings of Far-Left Activists Reveal Plans to Disrupt Lawmakers’ Special Session to Address Public Safety in August

The Tennessee Star has obtained audio of a group of far-left agitators who met over the weekend to discuss plans to disrupt the Tennessee legislature’s August special session on gun control.  

The recording, which is nearly two hours in length, provides insight into what the political left is planning, from legitimate protesting up to and including possible acts of domestic terrorism. 

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Exclusive: Radical Leftists Will Have Armed Security for August Special Session ‘Protests’

In secret audio obtained by The Tennessee Star, radical leftists who plan to “protest” the upcoming August special session of the General Assembly say they have armed security at the ready. 

“Also, like there are groups in Nashville who do this – keep in mind – who like, if at any point you need armed security at a protest, there are people who we trust as a community to show up and do that,” said an organizer of the Saturday meeting. 

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Ex-DOJ Official and Wife Had Bigger Roles in Dossier than Known: Durham Report

While it’s bad enough the debunked dossier the FBI used to spy on the Trump campaign was paid for by the Clinton campaign and authored by a foreign FBI informant and his carousing researcher, the newly released report of Special Counsel John Durham strongly suggests a top Justice Department official and his wife had an early hand in shaping the political rumor sheet.

According to the 306-page report, former Justice Department prosecutor Bruce Ohr’s wife Nellie Ohr first plowed the ground for the dossier with a series of a research reports she wrote for Fusion GPS, the D.C.-based opposition research firm the Clinton campaign commissioned to dig up dirt on Trump and Russia.

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Sens. Ron Johnson, Tommy Tuberville Join Colleagues in Defending Women’s Sports: ‘Leaving Women at a Complete Disadvantage in Activities Specifically Meant for Them’

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) joined Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) and other GOP senators Tuesday in a public comment to Biden Education Secretary Miguel Cardona that opposes the department’s proposed rule to expand Title IX to allow biological males to compete in women’s sports, and specifically points out how the rule will undermine the original intention of Title IX.

The education department’s proposed rule, titled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams” was published in the Federal Register on April 6.

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Gov. Lee’s Office Won’t Confirm Whether He Met with State Rep. Justin Jones on Gun Control

Gov. Bill Lee’s office did not respond to The Tennessee Star’s Monday inquiries seeking clarification on whether Lee met with Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and a group of students to discuss gun control last week. 

Friday, the far-left Tennessee Holler posted a video to Twitter claiming that he was marching to Lee’s office with students to stress the urgency of implementing gun control measures during the upcoming August special legislative session. 

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Planned Parenthood CEO Calls for Supreme Court Reform: ‘The Court Now Has Been Fully Captured’ on Abortion Rights

The CEO of Planned Parenthood said on Mother’s Day on MSNBC that the Supreme Court has now “been fully captured” by a “conservative supermajority” that has attacked abortion rights and, therefore, must be reformed, along with the lower courts as well.

Led by former Biden White House Press Secretary-turned MSNBC opinion host Jen Psaki, Alexis McGill Johnson said “the reality is the Court now has been fully captured in so many areas.”

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Democratic-Backed Group Files Lawsuit Against Special August Election for Ohio Constitutional Amendment Vote

A Democratic-backed group that opposes the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2, and an August special election to vote on it has filed a lawsuit on the grounds that the resolution is unconstitutional and illegal.

The group One Person One Vote, and a coalition of three Ohio residents Jeniece Brock, Brent Edwards, and Christopher Tavenor, filed the lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court in response to the passage of a resolution, the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, aimed at altering the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments on May 10th.

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Report: Wisconsin Tax Collections Projections Come in Lower Than Expected

Wisconsin state tax collections over the next three years are projected to come in more than three-quarters of a billion dollars lower than expected, according to a new report from the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. 

Republican lawmakers say the revised projections further underscore their efforts to remake a more fiscally responsible biennial budget out of Democrat Governor Tony Evers’ big-spending proposal. 

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Rural Virginia Communities to Receive Broadband Grants

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced funding to provide 20 predominantly rural, underserved communities with broadband access.

More than $59.5 million in grants will be made through the Virginia Telecommunications Initiative, supplying broadband access to nearly 30,000 homes, businesses and community institutions, such as schools, libraries, public safety centers and health care providers.

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Commentary: Can Texas Restore Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity to Higher Education?

Americans once said, “As California goes, so goes the nation.” Hopefully after this legislative session, Americans will say, “As Texas goes, so goes the nation.”

The Lone Star State’s leaders are fighting fiercely right now to restore non-discrimination and equal rights under the law. These are American values embedded in U.S. civil rights laws and the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment, but they’re no longer practiced—or enforced.

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State Senator Lauds Passage of Upcoming Tax Rebates Coming to Arizonans

Arizona State Senator Jake Hoffman released a statement Friday celebrating the upcoming tax rebates Arizonans will receive based on the State Budget passed by the Legislature and signed by Governor Katie Hobbs (D).

“Gas, groceries, housing, and energy prices have surged over the past three years since Democrats took control of the federal government,” Hoffman said. “This is the first time in at least 30 years our state lawmakers have been able to step up to the plate to provide a tax rebate of this magnitude for our citizens. I’m proud of the leadership of the Arizona Freedom Caucus, and for the support of our Republican colleagues, to dedicate $260 million to helping struggling Arizona families.”

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Iowa Roundup: Tim Scott’s Tennessee Champion, Joe Manchin Courts Iowans Amid Speculation of Third-Party Run

U.S. Senator and presumptive GOP presidential candidate Tim Scott has tapped a former popular Republican governor to head up his national campaign. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis gets a little help from Mother Nature on Mother’s Day weekend. And is Joe Manchin opening doors in Iowa for a third-party presidential run? 

Here’s the roundup from the Hawkeye State presidential campaign trail. 

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Florida Students Plan ‘Alternative’ Commencement to Oppose DeSantis’ ‘Hostile Takeover’

New College of Florida (NCF) students raised more than $90,000 to hold an alternative commencement ceremony to oppose the “hostile takeover” prompted by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointment of conservative trustees earlier this year, according to its GoFundMe page.

The alternative commencement, titled “[NEW] Commencement: On Our Terms,” is scheduled to be held on May 18 at an alternative venue to recognize graduates on the students’ “own terms, separate from the official commencement ceremony,” its GoFundMe description reads. DeSantis appointed six new members to the Board of Trustees, which led to backlash from students who disagree with the conservative members.

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Pennsylvania State Senators Propose Withdrawal from Multi-State Voter-Data System

Pennsylvania State Senators Cris Dush (R-Bellefonte) and Jarrett Coleman (R-Allentown) are preparing legislation to withdraw the commonwealth from the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC). 

Over two dozen states and the District of Columbia participate in the election data-sharing system which they use to identify errors in their voter rolls. But seven states — Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Ohio, Louisiana, Missouri and West Virginia — recently cancelled their membership in the program. 

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Arizona Department of Education Pushes for Phoenix School Safety Grants Despite Delays from District Board

The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) announced Friday it would be recommending the State Board of Education (SBE) approve public safety grant requests presented by six Phoenix schools, despite inaction from the district board.

“Our first responsibility is to protect the safety and the lives of students and staff. The worst tragedy would be for a maniac to invade a school and kill students with no police officer there to protect them. In addition, the police officers are there all year, befriend the students, so students view them as friends rather than as the enemy, and the police officers also teach courses,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne (R).

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Ohio House Committee Passes Legislation Preserving the Integrity of Women’s Sports

The Ohio House Higher Education Committee has passed the “Save Women’s Sports Act” that ensures that biological males cannot compete in female-only sports statewide propelling the legislation forward towards a full House vote.

The Ohio House Higher Education Committee passed the legislation by an 8-6 vote with all five Democrats on the committee and State Representative Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) voting against the bill.

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Georgia Libertarian and Presidential Hopeful Calls for Elimination of the U.S. Department of Education

Georgian Chase Oliver, a Libertarian who unsuccessfully ran for U.S. Senate in 2022 and has launched a 2024 presidential bid, wants to end the U.S. Department of Education and return the money to the states.

Oliver said schools have turned into a political hot potato, and conversations have turned to whether school libraries should allow certain books.

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Gov. Lee to Decide on Tennessee Airports, Teacher Pay and Sports Gambling Bills

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee will be facing a decision on whether to sign several key pieces of legislation this week that were sent to him May 9, following the end of the legislative session.

That legislation includes a change to the way the state’s sportsbooks are taxed, how the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority board members are appointed, an increase in teacher pay in the state, lowering the airplane corporate fuel tax cap and a bill related to posting rules related to partisan primary Election Days.

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Pennsylvania Democrats Want Prisoners Included In Minimum Wage Hike

A Pennsylvania state correctional-facility inmate can expect to earn between $0.23 and $0.50 per hour  at his prison job — not counting free room and board. Sixteen Pennsylvania House Democrats now want the state government that feeds and shelters these prisoners to pay them $21 an hour for their work. 

Led by Representative Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia), these lawmakers are spearheading legislation to dramatically increase the state minimum wage and apply the new rate to prisoners. 

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More Than 100 Known, Suspected Terrorists Apprehended at Southern Border Fiscal Year to Date

An Afghan national on the federal Terrorist Screening Dataset (TSDS) was apprehended attempting to enter the U.S. illegally near the Otay Mesa Port of Entry in San Diego, California.

The TSDS is the federal government’s database that includes sensitive information about terrorist identities. It originated as a consolidated terrorist watch list “to house information on known or suspected terrorists (KSTs) but has evolved over the last decade to include additional individuals who represent a potential threat to the United States, including known affiliates of watch listed individuals,” CBP states.

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Huge Number of Border Agent Candidates Fail DHS Polygraphs, Union Suggests it’s Intentional

More than half of the job candidates seeking to become U.S. border patrol agents are failing the Homeland Security Department’s polygraph, though many passed such tests in other jobs, a pattern that is alarming some in Congress and leading a prominent union to suggest something sinister is happening.

Brandon Judd, president of National Border Patrol Council union, told Just the News that half to two-thirds of applicants continue to fail the lie detector test, and it is crippling the Customers and Border Protection (CBP) agency’s ability to keep staffed with the ongoing border crisis.

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