Day: April 15, 2025

Study Finds Tennessee Child Autism Rate Doubled over Last Decade as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump Admin Seek Answers

Tom Pappert

A Vanderbilt University Medical Center study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Tuesday found the rate of children diagnosed with autism in Tennessee doubled over the last decade, with researchers pointing the finger to greater awareness and modern diagnostic practices, while leaving open the possibility of an external factor resulting in a higher rate of autism spectrum disorder in young people.

According to VUMC, the research focused on the rate of autism diagnosis among four and eight-year-old children in Middle Tennessee, determining that 3.4 percent of those in the age group have been diagnosed with autism, or one in 29 children.

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Republicans Lose Edge on Inflation, Economy: Poll

Just the News
Donald Trump

Republicans have seen their polling advantage on the economy and inflation disappear in the fallout from President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, according to a recent survey.

While they maintained a narrow advantage on the economy generally, voters broke for the Democrats on inflation in the latest iteration of the Napolitan News Survey. Only 41% favored the GOP on the economy, compared to 40% who backed the Democrats. Only inflation, however, Democrats led with 42% support to the GOP’s 38%.

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Democratic State Rep. Justin Pearson Leads Charge Against xAI in Memphis as State House Honors Elon Musk for Saving Astronauts

Tom Pappert
Elon Musk Super Computer

State Representative Justin Pearson (D-Memphis) on Saturday spoke at a Memphis town hall event in opposition to the plan by xAI, the artificial intelligence (AI) company owned by Elon Musk, just two days before his colleagues in the Tennessee State House passed a resolution honoring the “brilliant businessman” for his successful effort to return astronauts stranded at the International Space Station.

The AI company is currently building the world’s largest supercomputer in Memphis, where xAI has said it will request no state or local tax breaks, and recently asked the Shelby County Commission to approve plans to install new gas turbines to help power the facility.

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Judge Temporary Blocks Trump from Terminating Legal Status for 530,000 Illegal Aliens

The Daily Signal
illegal immigrants

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from revoking legal status and work permits for over 530,000 illegal aliens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani, an Obama appointee, ruled Monday that the Trump administration cannot terminate the legal status of the migrants “without case-by-case review.”

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Before Weaponizing Russia Against Trump, Biden and Other Democrats Reaped Lucrative Benefits

Just the News
Obama white house

While Democrats weaponized invented Russia collusion claims in an attempt to sink President Donald Trump’s first term, in retrospect the party’s leaders have often gone soft on Russia when it wanted to reap financial or political benefits for themselves or allies.

From the Obama-era “Russian Reset” and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s Skolkovo investment project to Hunter Biden’s business in Moscow and President Joe Biden’s waiving of sanctions against a Russian pipeline, key Democratic figures reaped political and financial benefits from going soft on Moscow.

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Conservative School Districts Beg Trump to Save Them from Blue State’s Gender Identity Mandates

Just the News
women's basketball

Deep-blue states and school districts are facing perhaps unprecedented scrutiny from the feds for using gender identity to determine access to intimate spaces, sex-segregated sports and parental rights, with billions in education funding on the line.

But more conservative districts in those same states face their own uphill battle, and some are now seeking Trump administration intervention to protect their sex-first policies.

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Trump Appointee Saves Tens of Millions by Cutting Funding for Child Sex Changes

The Daily Signal
surgery

The Trump administration’s decision to prohibit Medicaid coverage of child sex-change procedures will save taxpayers at least $18.5 million.

Between 2019 and 2023, the total submitted charges for child sex-change surgeries in the U.S. amounted to $108,516,134, of which $18,476,978 were submitted to Medicaid, including traditional Medicaid and managed Medicaid, according to data from medical watchdog Do No Harm shared with The Daily Signal.

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Another Chips Giant Commits to Manufacturing in U.S.

Daily Caller News Foundation
computer chip

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) will begin chip production at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s (TSMC) facility in Arizona, marking the first time the company’s processors will be made on U.S. soil.

The announcement, delivered Tuesday by CEO Lisa Su in Taipei, signals a sharp pivot in AMD’s manufacturing strategy as the Trump administration ramps up scrutiny of foreign-made semiconductors. With Washington eying tariffs on chip imports over national security concerns, AMD joins a growing list of tech giants racing to localize operations amid mounting trade risks.

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Immigration Expert Urges Congress to Pass Special Interest Aliens Bill

Kaitlin Housler
illegal immigrants

Todd Bensman, a senior national security fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies, supports a bill sponsored by U.S. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA-14), which would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to report how many special interest aliens are illegally crossing the border each month and their countries of origin.

A special interest alien, according to DHS, is “a non-U.S. person who, based on an analysis of travel patterns, potentially poses a national security risk to the United States or its interests.”

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Court Upholds Nashville Transit Plan Except for Funds to Be Used for Land Purchases

Kaitlin Housler
Freddie O'Connell

The Tennessee Court of Appeals issued a ruling in the case Committee to Stop an Unfair Tax v. Freddie O’Connell on Tuesday which upheld a majority of a lower court’s previous ruling finding that the multi-billion dollar Nashville transit plan can be legally implemented.

In November, Davidson County voters approved a half-cent increase to the city’s sales tax to fund the “Choose How You Move” transit plan.

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Matt Boyle Details How President Trump Is Using Tariffs to Build a Global Anti-China Coalition

Kaitlin Housler
Trump meeting

Matt Boyle, the national political editor at Breitbart News, said he believes part of President Donald Trump’s endgame strategy through his reciprocal tariffs trade plan is to build a “global coalition” against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

On April 2, deemed by the Trump administration as “Liberation Day,” Trump unveiled his trade plan, which included the U.S. charging 10 percent baseline tariffs on nearly all goods imported from other countries, reciprocal tariffs on nearly 90 countries that have the highest trade deficits with the U.S., and a 25 percent tax on all imported vehicles.

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Memphis Nonprofit Accused of Donor Fund Misuse Tied to $260,000 in Forgiven PPP Loans

Tom Pappert
surgery

The Memphis-based nonprofit accused of mishandling money donated prior to its abrupt decision to permanently close earlier this month previously received more than $260,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the federal government’s Pandemic Oversight portal.

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti on Monday announced his office filed a lawsuit in Davidson County to seek the judicial dissolution of the National Foundation for Transplants (NFT), a Memphis-based nonprofit that abruptly announced it would end its operations earlier this month, reportedly leaving some patients unable to access thousands of dollars donated to the organization to defray the cost of their medical expenses.

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Libertarian Group Sues President Trump over ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs

Just the News
Donald Trump

A libertarian group on Monday sued President Donald Trump over his “liberation day” tariffs, claiming the president overstepped his authority to do so.

The filing marks the first lawsuit the president has faced over the wide-reaching tariffs. Trump announced steep tariffs on certain U.S. trading partners on April 2, which he later changed to temporarily imposing 10% tariffs on all trading partners for 90 days. 

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Commentary: China Would Lose a ‘Trade War’ with the US—’Gradually, Then Suddenly’

American Greatness
Xi Jinping

No one wants a “trade war” with China, or for that matter with any nation. Nonetheless, China has been waging one for years and is now locked in a tariff recalibration with the Trump administration.

In this American effort to find trade parity and equity, China can do some short-term damage to the U.S., especially in terms of ceasing exports of some pharmaceuticals, phones, and computers. But ultimately, it cannot win—and will eventually lose catastrophically. It will likely accept that reality sooner rather than later.

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Tennessee Attorney General Files Lawsuit Seeking Judicial Dissolution of Memphis-Based Organ Transplant Charity

Kaitlin Housler
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti’s Office filed a lawsuit in Davidson County Chancery Court on Monday against a Memphis-based nonprofit that fundraised for organ transplant patients.

According to Skrmetti’s office, the National Foundation for Transplants, Inc. (NFT) ceased operations in April 2024 due to financial difficulties, which prompted complaints from patients and donors.

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Tennessee Lawmakers Push Fines Critics Warn Would Penalize Transparency Efforts in Federal Discount Drug Program

Tom Pappert

Legislation under consideration in the Tennessee General Assembly would prohibit efforts to increase the transparency of the federal program, which requires drug manufacturers to sell discounted drugs to specific entities with the goal of expanding affordable healthcare but does not require hospitals to transfer these savings directly to the prices consumers pay for drugs.

The legislative summary for Senate Bill (SB) 1414, by State Senator Richard Briggs (R-Knoxville), claims the legislation would expand an existing law that prohibits “discrimination against 340B entities. ” 340 B entities are specific hospitals and clinics that receive lower prices for prescription drugs under the federal 340B Drug Pricing Program established under the Public Health Service Act of 1992.

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