Unjustly incarcerated January 6 defendant Stewart Parks was moved from the Federal Correction Institute (FCI) in Memphis, a low security prison, to a halfway house in Nashville on Tuesday, Parks told The Tennessee Star on Wednesday.
Read the full storyDay: July 17, 2024
Sen. Blackburn Confronts Stonewalling Secret Service Director at the RNC over Trump Assassination Attempt Coverup
Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and John Barrasso (R-WY) on Wednesday confronted U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle on the floor of the Republican National Convention (RNC) over the Secret Service actions that preceded the Saturday assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
The Tennessee Star confirmed the confrontation happened at the Fiserv Forum in Mulwaukee, Wisconsin where the RNC is being held. Blackburn and Barrasso confronted Cheatle upstairs in a luxury suite just prior to 9 p.m., just minutes before Blackburn uploaded video to the social media platform X with the caption, “[t]he American people deserve answers from the Secret Service.”
Read the full storyAlternate Democratic Presidential Candidates Perform Better than Biden, New Polling Data Shows
The strongest potential Democratic presidential candidates in the poll were Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., Gov. Josh Shapiro, D-Pa. and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, D-Mich.
Alternate Democratic presidential candidates perform better than President Biden against former President Trump, according to new polling from BlueLabs Analytics of 15,000 voters in seven swing states.
Read the full storyMike Johnson Says He’ll Call for Secret Service Director’s Resignation After Trump Assassination Attempt
House Speaker Mike Johnson said on Wednesday he is going to urge Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign following the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump.
Cheatle said Monday that she would not be stepping down from her position after her agency received backlash over potential security failures that led to Trump being wounded by a snipper’s bullet on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania. Johnson on “America’s Newsroom” said he plans to call for Cheatle’s resignation because of the incident itself as well as her answers when facing questions from the media.
Read the full storyU.S. Senators Prohibited from Asking Questions in Secret Service Conference Call After Attempted Trump Assassination
A source familiar with the conversation confirmed to The Tennessee Star that multiple members of the U.S. Senate were prohibited from asking questions during a Wednesday conference call with the U.S. Secret Service in the wake of the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
The allegation surfaced after U.S. Senator Mike Lee revealed the Secret Service was “briefing senators” about the attempted assassination “on a conference call,” during which he claimed the federal agency provided “details that aren’t all helpful” and little information about “the failures that led to this tragedy.”
Read the full storyDemocrat Primary Candidates in TN-08 Continue with Violent Rhetoric After Trump Assassination Attempt
Just after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, Commercial Appeal published candidate profiles on the three Democratic primary challengers to Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN-8), two of whom took the deeply divisive tone that Republicans was to “end democracy.”
Sarah Freeman is running to be her party’s nominee in the race.
Read the full storyFormer Trump Aide Peter Navarro Arrives at RNC in Milwaukee Hours After Release from Federal Prison
Peter Navarro, former director of the U.S. Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy during the Trump administration, arrived at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday just hours after being released from federal prison.
Read the full storyLocal Police Sniper Photographed Attempted Trump Assassin, Who Held Laser Rangefinder Prior to Shooting
A sniper from one of the local law enforcement agencies providing assistance at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 14 saw Thomas Matthew Crooks, the 20-year-old shooter who was killed at the scene, and photographed the would-be assassin immediately prior to his attack, a Wednesday report claims.
The Pennsylvania publication Beaver Countian first reported on Monday it was a Beaver County police officer who warned his superiors of a man with a rangefinder, which is used to calculate distance when using a weapon, citing multiple local law enforcement sources who told the outlet “extremely poor planning” and a lack of manpower allowed the attempt on Trump’s life.
Read the full storyViral Video Shows Children in Uganda Recreating Assassination Attempt of Former President Donald Trump
A video of a group of Ugandan children recreating the moment former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt over the weekend has gone viral on social media.
The video, first shared by TikTok user @bloodoffical0, shows a group of school-aged children recreating the moment shots rang out at the Butler, Pennsylvania rally on Saturday, July 13.
Read the full storyFormer CIA and White House Official Indicted for Allegedly Acting as South Korea Agent
A former Central Intelligence Agency and White House National Security Council official has been indicted for allegedly working for a South Korean intelligence officials in exchange for luxury gifts, according to the Justice Department.
The indictment, which was filed on Monday in a New York federal court and made public Tuesday, charges Sue Mi Terry, who worked for the U.S. government from 2001 to 2011, for providing confidential information to South Korea’s government.
Read the full storyRep. Adam Schiff Calls for Biden to End His 2024 Candidacy
Axios Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) on Wednesday joined the ranks of Democratic members of Congress calling for President Biden to exit the 2024 presidential race. Schiff is the most high-profile elected Democrat to call for Biden’s withdrawal and the first to do so publicly since former President Trump was shot in an assassination attempt on Saturday. “While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden’s alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch,” Schiff said in a statement, which was first reported by the Los Angeles Times. READ THE FULL STORY
Read the full storyChicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Knocked for Plan to Remove George Washington Statue from City Hall
Breitbart Chicago’s leftist Mayor Brandon Johnson expressed a desire on Tuesday to eliminate the statue of President George Washington that sits in the hallway outside his City Hall office. But now that plan seems to be on hold. Early on Tuesday, word reached the press Johnson intended to remove the statue which was dedicated back in 1984 and sits outside his fifth floor offices. The removal plan was initially said to be merely part of Johnson’s attempt to make “updates to some areas in and around City Hall,” according to Mayoral spokesman Ronnie Reese, the Chicago Tribune reported. READ THE FULL STORY
Read the full storyDNC Virtual Roll Call to Nominate Biden Won’t Happen Until August
Washington Examiner The Democratic National Committee will move forward with a virtual roll call to establish President Joe Biden as the party’s presidential nominee in early August, according to a letter sent to committee members on Wednesday that was obtained by the Washington Examiner. It’s not entirely clear what day the roll call will take place, but DNC officials say it will occur after Aug. 1 but before Aug. 7, which was originally Ohio’s filing deadline that threatened to keep Biden off the 2024 ballot before it was extended by state leaders. The date comes as some reports suggested the DNC would begin early voting as soon as next week despite calls from inside the Democratic Party for Biden to step aside. “None of this will be rushed. Unlike our nation’s other major political party, our rules are set in public meetings, anchored in the Party’s charter and its traditions,” the letter states. “That will continue in the 2024 cycle, as it must with so much at stake.” READ THE FULL STORY
Read the full storyDad of Trump Shooter Called Police After Attack with Concerns That His Son and Gun Were Missing, Report Says
The Independent The father of the gunman who shot Donald Trump called police after the rally shooting, worried that his son and a firearm were missing, according to reports. Matthew Crooks realized his 20-year-old son, Thomas Matthew Crooks, and an AR-style rifle were missing shortly after shots were fired at the former president at a campaign rally on Saturday in Butler, Pennsylvania. Three senior law enforcement officials told NBC News that the father then called police. Law enforcement officials then went to the home where Crooks lived with his parents in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania. READ THE FULL STORY
Read the full storyCommentary: Getting to Know the Hillbilly Conservative
Some quick polling numbers that should give people pause. The New York Times reports that 1 in 10 Americans believe “use of force is justified to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president.”
Statistics being a slippery and funny thing — one suspects Republicans aren’t echoing this statement — by extrapolation this means roughly 1 in 5 Democrats see the option for violence as a valid and legitimate path forward.
Read the full storyTennessee Congressional Delegation Members Seek Answers on DOJ’s Plan to Prevent Illegal Aliens from Voting in Federal Elections
Eight members of the Tennessee congressional delegation were among a group of congressional Republicans who sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland seeking information on how the Department of Justice (DOJ) will work to prevent illegal aliens from voting in federal elections.
Read the full storyBiden’s Secret Service ‘Created the Conditions’ for Trump Assassination Attempt and Truth Must Be ‘Devastating,’ Argues The Federalist Co-Founder
The U.S. Secret Service last Saturday “created the conditions” for 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks to climb onto the roof of a building and take aim at former President Donald Trump at his Butler, Pennsylvania rally “deliberately and with malice aforethought,” argued The Federalist co-founder Sean Davis, who led a series of criticisms against the agency on Tuesday.
Davis wrote in a Tuesday post to the social media platform X that the “security regime” created by President Joe Biden “deliberately and with malice aforethought created the conditions that led to an assassin shooting Donald Trump in the head.”
Read the full storyMetro Nashville Council Rejects Resolution Condemning Assassination Attempt of Former President Donald Trump
Two members of the Metro Nashville Council blocked a resolution condemning the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump and all political violence from being discussed at Tuesday’s meeting.
Read the full storyTennessee Employers Sound the Alarm on Big Pharma Push to Drive Up Drug Costs
Tennessee employers are raising concerns with policies being considered in Washington they say would undermine business’ ability to sponsor high-quality and cost-effective prescription drug benefits for their employees.
Read the full storyMore than 205,000 Illegal Border Crossers in June, 2.5 Million in Fiscal 2024
There were more than 205,000 illegal border crossers apprehended in June, according to new U.S. Customs and Border Protection data released on Monday.
June’s numbers bring the total number of illegal border crossers this fiscal year to more than 2.4 million.
Read the full storyDemocrats’ Plan B Whitmer Sued for Forcing Therapists to Help Kids Get Sterilizing Drugs Disavowed by UK
The U.K.-based Economist speculates that Michigan Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer could save her party from defeat in November if she replaces “doddering” President Biden on the ticket, by nationalizing her Great Lakes State strategy of “relentless targeting of suburban swing voters with simple messages: abortion rights, jobs and infrastructure.”
Voters might ask this scion of a political family, who acted out her motto “get sh*t done” by shutting down in-store gardening sections and in-state travel to second homes to defeat COVID-19, why she’s allegedly forcing counselors to help mentally fragile children “undergo permanent, life-altering medical procedures that many will come to regret.”
Read the full storyRetired Sheriff Says Putting Men in Women’s Prisons is Causing ‘Unprecedented Rise in Violence’
A retired California sheriff says in a newly-released documentary series that state and federal transgender inmate policies have led to an “unprecedented rise in violence” in women’s prisons.
In September 2020, Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Transgender Respect, Agency and Dignity Act, which allowed women’s prisons to accept biological males as inmates if they identified as “transgender women.”Retired Los Angeles County Sheriff Detective Sergeant Richard Valdemar claims that he has witnessed an “unprecedented rise in violence” in not just California prisons but around the country due to recent policy changes regarding inmates that identify as the opposite sex that have so far been obscured from the public in an episode of a new docuseries titled “Cruel and Unusual Punishment” by the Independent Women’s Forum (IWF) exclusively obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Read the full storyMiddle Tennessee State University Earns ‘Green Light’ FIRE Rating for Respecting Free Speech
Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) last week earned a “green light” rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Freedom (FIRE), a nonprofit organization that gained fame by defending freedom of speech on college campuses.
A FIRE press release confirms MTSU became the latest university to receive the rating, with the organization noting just 68 other institutions throughout the country have qualified for the “green light” rating it explains” is reserved for institutions with no written policies that seriously imperil student free speech rights.”
Read the full storyCommentary: The Power of Courage
The iconic photo of Donald Trump standing tall and defiantly after an attempted assassination speaks volumes. It reminds the whole world that Trump is a fighter. In his case, it is more than a metaphor, as “fighter” is for most of the political class. He showed real physical courage, and this cannot fail to impress.
As society has gotten more modern and organized, physical courage has become less necessary and less valued. Physical ability in general, such as the brawn and endurance required to be a cowboy or coal miner, doesn’t have much to do with the ability to analyze Excel spreadsheets, run a cash register, or do any number of office jobs. Softer skills are in higher demand and are rewarded accordingly.
Read the full storyFlorida Report Finds Decrease in Number of Victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation
A new report from the Florida Legislature’s research arm found a significant decrease in the number of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation in the Sunshine State, but some services still sorely need improvement.
The Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability published its annual report on the sexual exploitation of minors in Florida and the data shows there has been an 11% decrease overall since 2020 in child victims of exploitation.A new report from the Florida Legislature’s research arm found a significant decrease in the number of child victims of commercial sexual exploitation in the Sunshine State, but some services still sorely need improvement.
The Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability published its annual report on the sexual exploitation of minors in Florida and the data shows there has been an 11% decrease overall since 2020 in child victims of exploitation.
Read the full storyPotentially Dangerous Minnesota County Court Order Reversed Just Three Weeks After Being Issued
A recently enacted Hennepin County Court policy that could have had deadly or dangerous results for domestic abuse victims was suddenly reversed over the weekend.
In mid-June, Hennepin County District Court’s Chief Judge Kerry Meyer issued a Standing Order altering the pre-appearance release procedures and bail for some domestic abuse suspects. The order replaced a prior Standing Order that had been in place since 2019 that required suspects arrested on probable cause misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor domestic assault charges to be held without bail until they were brought before a judge to have bail and/or conditions set, such as a no-contact order with the victim.
Read the full storyGeorgia Lawmakers Propose Federal Dollars for Atlanta Water
Federal lawmakers from Georgia announced legislation they said would help pay for Atlanta’s water infrastructure upgrades.
U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, both D-Georgia, introduced the City of Atlanta Water Infrastructure Enhancement Act. U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Georgia, introduced a companion piece in the U.S. House.
Read the full storyWisconsin MPS Recall Group Threatens Class Action Lawsuit
The group driving the Milwaukee school board recall is now looking to file a class-action lawsuit.
The MPS School Board Recall Collaborative said it has filed formal complaints against the city’s school board with the Wisconsin Board of Ethics, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Department of Education against Milwaukee’s elected school board members. The group is alleging “malfeasance, illegal and unethical activities that cannot be denied by any of the Board members.”
Read the full storyNew Pre-Shooting Poll Shows Narrow Lead for Biden in Virginia
The New York Times/Siena College poll just released results from a voter survey taken before the Trump rally shooting, showing President Joe Biden leading former President Donald Trump by just a few percentage points.
The results are causing more chatter about the role Virginia could play in the upcoming election since Biden won Virginia by 10% in 2020. Prior to a May poll by Roanoke College that showed the presidential candidates tied 42%-42%, Virginia was considered reliably blue for Biden – due to his previous performance and to the fact that George W. Bush was the last Republican presidential candidate to win the commonwealth in 2004.
Read the full storyYost Rejects Proposed Ohio Amendment for No Title
A plan to ask Ohio voters to strip away immunity from government and public employees for civil rights violations didn’t make it past the first step.
Attorney General Dave Yost rejected a petition for a constitutional amendment because it did not contain a title.
Read the full storyDave McCormick, Sen. Bob Casey Each Raise $8 Million amid Pause in Advertising After Attempted Trump Assassination
Republican U.S. Senate nominee Dave McCormick and Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) both raised over $8 million over the last quarter, even as both candidates pause at least some of their advertising in the wake of the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump last Saturday.
McCormick raised slightly more than the Democratic incumbent, with his campaign reporting $8.4 million in receipts between April and June to the Federal Elections Commission. This includes a $2.06 million loan the former Trump administration official made to his own campaign.
Read the full storyDNC Sends $15 Million to Battleground States Pennsylvania, Arizona and Georgia After Trump Selects Vance for VP
The Democratic National Committee confirmed the transfer of $15 million to battleground states after former President Donald Trump selected Senator JD Vance (R-OH) to serve as his vice president on the Republican ticket for president in 2024.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the party claimed the transfers to local parties would increase state coordination and give President Joe Biden a better shot at retaining the White House in November.
Read the full storyMusic Spotlight: Danielia Cotton
Danielia Cotton has made a name for herself in the Americana/Roots Rock world. When I heard that voice, I knew exactly why. She has opened for Gregg Allman, Bon Jovi, Robert Cray, Robert Randolph, Cristone “Kingfish” Ingram, Derek Trucks Band, and Aimee Mann.
Cotton comes from a musical family. Her mother was one of ten children, four boys and six girls. The girls formed a capella band. (Her aunt Jeannie Brooks also has a remarkable jazz solo career and is quite popular in Philadelphia.)
Read the full storySeismic Shift for Trump in 2024 Race as Democrats’ Rhetoric, Presidential Debate, Lawfare Backfire
A seismic shift has occurred in the 2024 presidential race as the Democrats’ rhetoric, debate performance, and persistent lawfare against former President Donald Trump have appeared to backfire on them, with support for him continuing to increase, including after the assassination attempt.
Trump has been called a “threat to democracy” by Democrats, charged with numerous felony counts in federal and state cases, debated President Joe Biden with CNN moderators, and survived an assassination attempt, all of which have appeared to backfire on Democrats in the presidential race and increase the former president’s popularity as he runs to return to the White House.
Read the full storyCommentary: The Economics of Early Voting
After the recent assassination attempt on Donald J. Trump, some think the race is Trump’s to lose. I tend to agree that the race is in some ways Trump’s to lose, while at the same time feel very strongly that the left is not going to simply roll over and give up on trying to keep Trump from a second term.
So it’s important to not be over-exuberant; Trump is absolutely riding high right now, from the debacle of a debate for Biden to Judge Cannon dismissing the Jack Smith documents case to surviving an assassination attempt. But the right needs to focus on what takes place between now and November 5th, specifically on how every Republican and conservative can help Trump win by doing one simple thing: casting your ballot early.
Read the full storyAnalysis: Trump Looks to Appeal to Reagan Democrats and Independents with Vance Pick, Convention Speakers
Former President Donald Trump wants to engineer a landslide in 2024.
In 1972, 1980, 1984 and 1988, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush won monumental 49-state, 44-state, 49-state and 40-state landslides in their respective re-election and election bids.
Read the full story