New polling released to The Tennessee Star on Friday shows U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) with a 17-point lead in the Republican Party gubernatorial primary in Tennessee with less than one week until voters head to the polls.
The internal poll by Fabrizio, Lee and Associates found Blackburn polling at 42 percent, with U.S. Representative John Rose (R-TN-06) and State Representative Monty Fritts “distantly behind,” respectively polling at 25 percent and 22 percent.
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In an exclusive interview, U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) said she will continue pushing to keep the U.S. Senate in session through its August recess to advance the SAVE Act while also reaffirming her commitment to work with Tennessee lawmakers to close the state’s primary elections if elected governor.
During a Friday appearance on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Blackburn discussed efforts to pass the SAVE America Act in Congress and expanded on her recently announced support for requiring Tennessee voters to register with a political party in order to vote in that party’s primary election.
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Legislation submitted in the U.S. House by Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) would effectively ban the controversial license plate reader (LPR) cameras released by Flock Safety, the company reportedly said in a statement on Friday.
Submitted last week, Burchett’s House Bill (HR) 9800 would prohibit federal agencies from purchasing, operating, accessing Flock cameras, or contracting with Flock Safety, for products including LPR cameras, facial recognition technology, or that which captures data for “persistent or mass surveillance.”
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The Spanish government on Friday said that most of the migrants from Morocco that stormed Ceuta this week had returned to Morocco.
The government also confirmed that the death toll had reached at least 57, CNN reported.
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Two companies in Tennessee have announced expansion plans this week that will create hundreds of new jobs for state residents.
Medacta, a Switzerland-based company, will move its American headquarters from Franklin to Spring Hill. At its new location, the company will open its American manufacturing hub.
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California’s growing network of data centers is drawing increased scrutiny from lawmakers and local communities as concerns mount over rising electricity costs.
The state contains around 300 data centers which supports online banking, video conferencing, cloud computing and artificial intelligence, according to CBS News. This comes as California lawmakers consider bills to regulate data centers.
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Ben Cunningham, founder of the Nashville Tea Party and the Tennessee Tax Revolt, and The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy questioned U.S. Representative John Rose’s (R-TN-06) recent claim that he participated in the grassroots movement that defeated a proposed state income tax in 2002, following a report by The Star that found the photograph Rose shared as evidence was taken at a 2004 reunion event rather than during the protests.
During Friday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Leahy and Cunningham discussed the four-year campaign against former Governor Don Sundquist’s proposed income tax, with Cunningham describing the public pressure campaign as the deciding factor in defeating the measure.
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Breitbart Several European leaders made open calls on Thursday and Friday for their countries to expel Spain from of the EU’s Schengen open-borders area in response to the dramatic illegal migrant wave storming the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Ceuta, a Spanish enclave in North Africa bordering Morocco and the Mediterranean Sea with about 85,000 inhabitants, is enduring its worst migrant crisis in recent times after tens of thousands swarmed the territory over the past two days, causing the widespread collapse of the enclave’s border control. About 49,000 migrants reportedly stormed into the Spanish enclave over the past hours. At least 34 people have been reported dead in Ceuta at press time. As Breitbart News reported, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced that Italy will not “stand by and watch” unprepared. As such, Meloni stressed that her government is considering suspending the Schengen Area agreement with Spain and taking other extraordinary measures to defend its borders and the safety of Italian citizens. The Schengen Area is a visa-free travel zone within the European Union’s member states. READ THE FULL STORY
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The Hill The federal government is proposing potentially steep cuts to water used by California, Arizona and Nevada, a major step toward figuring out the management of the dwindling Colorado River. The river provides water to states throughout the West, including drinking water and water for agricultural, industrial and municipal uses. As the West becomes drier, figuring out how to manage the shrinking resource has been a challenge. A final environmental impact statement released Friday by the federal government cuts to California, Arizona and Nevada, collectively known as the Lower Basin states of the Colorado River, of up to 3 million acre-feet per year. READ THE FULL STORY
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CBS News The families of four teenagers who died by suicide are suing Meta, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, alleging that using the social media platforms led to severe mental health and physical issues that resulted in their deaths. The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the Superior Court of Delaware, claims that the teens suffered years of harm from using the platforms, including social media addiction, severe sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation. The Social Media Victims Law Center, a legal advocacy firm, filed the complaint on behalf of the four families, who are from Minnesota, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. The children, who died between July 2024 and September 2025, were ages 13, 14, 17 and 18 at the time of their deaths, according to the firm. READ THE FULL STORY
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New York agreed to not enforce its assisted suicide law that ropes in Catholic nuns who provide care to terminally ill patients, which was scheduled to take effect next week, days before a scheduled emergency hearing.
U.S. District Judge Anne Nardacci approved a consent order for temporary restraining order, dated Thursday but made public by the nuns’ lawyers Friday morning.
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The Italian government on Friday announced the suspension of free travel with Spain amid the storming of the country’s African exclaves by migrants from Morocco.
Tens of thousands of people have overrun the borders between Spain and Morocco and Melilla and Ceuta this week, with footage of violent riots going viral. Italy, which has sought to curb illegal immigration to Europe, previously warned that it could suspend freedom of movement if Madrid failed to deal with the situation.
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The ex-wife of Republican Ohio Rep. Max Miller filed a restraining order against the congressman Thursday after accusing him of domestic violence.
Emily Moreno, the daughter of Republican Ohio Sen. Bernie Moreno, alleged that Miller physically grabbed one of her attorneys, Andrew Zashin, during a recent court hearing and also used a profane slur to insult Zashin’s fiancee as they left the courtroom during a separate hearing in May. The couple already have restraining orders filed against one another.
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The Smithsonian Institutional secretary who said that DEI is “integral to excellence in museum practice” was pulling in $4.4 million from 2020-2024 in base salary and added benefits, according to the Smithsonian’s public nonprofit tax forms.
Lonnie Bunch III stated during a 2019 interview with Smithsonian Magazine that he wanted the Smithsonian to make DEI central to the institution’s mission. His goal, he said, would be to normalize the practice to the point “it’s no longer talked about,” he said, Fox News reported.
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Music legend Kid Rock endorsed State Sen. Brent Taylor (R-Memphis) in the Republican primary for Tennessee’s newly redrawn 9th Congressional District.
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Wisconsin Democrats lost a last-ditch effort to re-cast absentee ballots for voters after some of their candidates dropped out.
Dane County Circuit Judge David Conway ruled that voters cannot “spoil” an absentee ballot after it has been returned to their local election office, according to the court order filed Wednesday. Three Dane County plaintiffs, Joseph Alan Bins, Thomas Elert and Susan Roberts, alleged they could no longer vote for a new Democrat candidate.
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For the most part, I’ve been open about supporting Marsha Blackburn and have intentionally avoided criticizing the other candidates. But after this week, I can’t stay silent any longer.
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U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) has pledged to support legislation requiring Tennessee voters to register with a political party in order to participate in that party’s primary elections if elected governor.
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“The purpose of a university should be to make a son as unlike his father as possible.” These radical words were spoken in 1909 by Woodrow Wilson, then president of Princeton, four years before he became the 28th president of the United States.
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Tesla’s ongoing electricity usage prompted two energy agreements related to solar projects in Arizona and Texas.
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The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition (ITC) PAC this week announced it would spend $700,000 in new advertisements to unseat U.S. Representative Andy Ogles (R-TN-05), who received endorsements from Turning Point USA and President Donald Trump, amid polling they claim shows him narrowly leading his primary challenger, former Tennessee Commissioner of Agriculture Charlie Hatcher.
According to primary results shared in a press release by ITC PAC, a recent survey found Ogles leading at just 36.9 percent, with Hatcher narrowly trailing at 32.7 percent, and 30.3 percent of voters still undecided after early voting began.
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Former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline said former White House COVID-19 adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci could have been compelled to testify before the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee if the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) had approved granting him “use immunity,” arguing the legal mechanism would have prevented Fauci from invoking his Fifth Amendment rights during Wednesday’s hearing.
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U.S. Representative John Rose (R-TN-05) on Wednesday claimed he participated in the Tennessee Tax Revolt that paralyzed the Tennessee General Assembly as it considered enacting a statewide income tax in 2002, but The Tennessee Star has confirmed the photo Rose uploaded to social media was taken at a 2004 reunion event.
In a portion of a social media post extolling his conservative credentials, Rose wrote Wednesday to X, “This red truck is what my friend John and I drove around the State Capitol during the income tax debates. The locomotive horn on the back was so loud, it shook the glass inside the Capitol!”
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The U.S. Department of Justice activated a long-dormant specialized court for the first time, filing its inaugural case in the Alien Terrorist Removal Court (ATRC) to seek the deportation of Nazira Haji Zada, a 47-year-old Afghan lawful permanent resident living in Fort Worth, Texas.
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Tea Party Nation founder and former prosecutor Judson Phillips said U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) could pursue additional legal action against former White House COVID-19 adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci after Fauci repeatedly invoked his Fifth Amendment rights during a Senate hearing on Wednesday.
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Tech billionaire Elon Musk “reactivated” his super PAC, America PAC, for a substantial investment aimed at boosting Republican voter turnout in the November 2026 midterm elections
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Wall Street Journal The migration from high-tax to low-tax locations continues, and more states are trying to reduce or eliminate their income tax to stay competitive. The next may be Missouri, where voters will consider a ballot measure on Aug. 4 to phase it out. Amendment Five would change the Missouri constitution to require lawmakers to cut income taxes if the state hits certain revenue triggers. Once the tax is eliminated, the constitution would prohibit reinstating it. The measure would also require local tax rate cuts “if local sales tax revenue increases” and let lawmakers expand state sales and use taxes. Missouri’s income tax generates some $9 billion a year or about 61% of general revenue. Amendment Five aims to phase out the income tax in part by replacing revenue with sales taxes, ideally by 2032. It requires lawmakers to create revenue targets and a trigger mechanism for income-tax cuts with that schedule in mind. READ THE FULL STORY
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Axios People Incorporated, formerly known as IAC, is exploring a possible sale of The Daily Beast as it looks to focus its portfolio around People Inc. and MGM, sources told Axios. The company was looking to sell the outlet several years ago, but instead installed new leadership to try to turn the business around. Now that the site is profitable, it’s taking the venture back to the market. READ THE FULL STORY
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Author and retired college professor Dr. Carol Swain endorsed U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn’s (R-TN) bid for governor this week, while criticizing U.S. Rep. John Rose’s (R-TN-06) campaign tactics and questioning whether State Rep. Monty Fritts’ (R-Kingston) policy proposals are constitutional.
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Former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci appeared in front of the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday, where he was grilled about his work during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Two Tennessee cities ranked among the 10 least safe large cities in the United States in a new study released Monday by financial technology company SmartAsset, with Memphis finishing last overall and Nashville also appearing near the bottom of the rankings.
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The U.S. Immigration and Enforcement agency sent out a request for information seeking contractors who could operate detention facilities near Denver, Miami and Seattle, and central Pennsylvania.
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I have served alongside government civilian employees for more than 40 years in varying capacities and watched too many good people in uniform and the civil service choose to not speak out instead of putting the mission first.
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Foreign buyers pulled back from the U.S. housing market over the past year, buying $45.3 billion worth of existing homes, the second-lowest level on record, according to a new report.
Foreigners bought those homes from April 2025 through March 2026, according to the National Association of Realtors 2026 International Transactions in U.S. Residential Real Estate report. That’s a 19.1% decrease in dollar value and a 14% drop in the number of properties purchased from the previous 12-month period.
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World Cup visitors discovered something many Americans already know: The United States does not feel like the dangerous place they’ve been led to expect. That’s because America’s murder problem is not spread evenly across the country. Does the United States have a higher murder rate than its peer countries? Yes – but new research shows that statistic obscures how murders in the U.S. are extremely concentrated in very tiny areas.
In 2025, the U.S. murder rate fell to just under 4 murders per 100,000 people. During the first six months of 2026, data compiled by the Council on Criminal Justice shows that murders in the nation’s 30 largest cities declined by another 18%. If that decline reflects the national trend, and that is likely, the U.S. murder rate will fall to approximately 3.25 per 100,000 people this year.
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A new congressional bill seeks to prevent biological males from joining an organization dedicated to the American Revolution.
Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced the Daughters of the American Revolution Membership Integrity Act, which would amend the Daughters of the American Revolution’s federal charter to ensure only biological females can become members.
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President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced plans for a major overhaul of Dulles International Airport, the main international airport near Washington, D.C.
Trump made the announcement in the Oval Office with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
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The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced on Tuesday that Tennessee ranked among five states selected as potential homes for Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses, which the agency said are part of a federal “effort to strengthen and modernize the nation’s full nuclear fuel cycle.”
According to the Tuesday press release, a total of 28 applications were submitted from 28 states, and Tennessee was selected as a “potential host” along with Idaho, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Utah. The federal agency reported that each state’s governor has already signed a memorandum of understanding with the DOE.
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Author and retired college professor Dr. Carol Swain and The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy weighed in Wednesday on former White House COVID-19 adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci’s decision to repeatedly invoke his Fifth Amendment rights during a U.S. Senate hearing led by U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), arguing the testimony raised additional questions about Fauci’s conduct during the pandemic.
Fauci, who was pardoned by former President Joe Biden on his final day in office, declined to answer questions before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, invoking his constitutional right against self-incrimination after stating he believed Paul was attempting to entrap him in a “perjury trap.”
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Following the Shelby County Commission’s decision to borrow more than $100 million to meet its payroll expenses, State House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) questioned whether Memphis voters were “tired of being blue” in a social media post.
“This is what happens when liberals are in charge: higher taxes, more debt, and budgets so poorly managed they have to borrow money just to make payroll,” Sexton wrote in a post to social media.
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Federal agencies are creating pointless cybersecurity risks and violating the First Amendment rights of nonprofits and investors through routine yet sweeping data dragnets that also violate the latter’s Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights, according to lawsuits against the IRS and Securities and Exchange Commission.
Young America’s Foundation is targeting mandatory disclosure of donor information on Form 990, required of most 501(c)(3) tax-exempt groups, after the IRS told the conservative nonprofit that convicted contractor Charles Littlejohn may have leaked its own information.
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The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Tuesday endorsed State Representative Johnny Garrett (R-Goodlettsville) in the Republican primary for Tennessee’s 6th Congressional District.
In a post on X, CPAC announced, “CPAC is proud to endorse Johnny Garrett for Congress. He is a proven conservative who delivered real wins in Nashville and will do the same in Washington. Early voting ends August 1st, so get out and vote in the August 6 primary!”
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U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) on Tuesday joined more than a dozen of her colleagues who have argued the Senate should remain in session, skipping its normal summer recess, in order to pass the Safeguard America Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act.
Blackburn made the comments during an appearance on Newsmax TV after being asked whether President Donald Trump was driving a wedge between Republican voters and the Senate by repeatedly calling for the passage of the election integrity legislation.
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The Trump administration announced Tuesday it has officially banned gain-of-function research, claiming it has the potential to threaten lives and undermine national security if not properly restricted and controlled.
The State and Health and Human Services departments claim that although biomedical research has produced lifesaving vaccines and medical breakthroughs, it must never come at the expense of public safety or national security.
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Breitbart President Donald Trump’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will fast-track decisions on asylum cases in an effort to cut down the massive backlog left by former President Joe Biden’s administration. On Monday, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joe Edlow announced a rule change that allows the agency’s adjudicators to refer asylum applications to federal immigration judges without first interviewing the applicant. “This rule will shorten the total time that it takes asylum officers and Immigration Judges to adjudicate asylum applications,” a news release from USCIS states. “Among other reasons, USCIS is making this change to reduce the asylum backlog.” READ THE FULL STORY
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CBS News Recent reports of immigration arrests at U.S. airports, some of them captured in videos that have gone viral, stem from increased collaboration between the Transportation Security Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE sources tell CBS News. TSA has been sharing more information about noncitizen travelers with ICE, including on immigrants who lack criminal records but are suspected of civil immigration violations, like overstaying their visas, the sources say. TSA agents are increasingly giving ICE “tips” or “leads” so that agency can arrest, detain and process for deportation individuals who are deemed deportable by the federal government. READ THE FULL STORY
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Department of Education The U.S. Department of Education (ED) launched an investigation into the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) to ensure compliance with the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) after a complaint was received on behalf of parents regarding the use of “transgender dolls” in schools. In a complaint sent to ED’s Student Privacy Policy Office (SPPO) by Defending Ed, Minnesota parents expressed their concern that their statutory and constitutional rights were violated as they were not notified or given the opportunity to opt their children out of an activity that used “transgender dolls” in the classroom. According to news reports, “MyGenderDolls” will be available to Minnesota educators for use in classrooms with students as young as four years old this fall. The dolls – developed via a taxpayer-funded University of Minnesota program – feature removable, interchangeable internal and external genitalia, gender-neutral names, and clothing (including undergarments) for both sexes. READ THE FULL STORY
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Two House members are engaged in a bipartisan effort to allow the federal government to slow down or shutter AI models that threaten to cause security breaches and other issues.
The measure, introduced last week, follows an incident in which OpenAI’s models GPT-5.6 Sol and an unreleased model escaped its secure testing environment and hacked the widely used, open-source model AI platform Hugging Face, where developers from around the world share their code, datasets and AI models for free, according to the Associated Press.
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The Federal Reserve on Wednesday opted to keep interest rates steady, despite the installation of Kevin Warsh as Fed chairman, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Trump had appointed Warsh to replace Powell, whom he repeatedly criticized for his hesitance to lower interest rates.
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A canceled meeting between Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn and acting Attorney General Todd Blanche might slow his confirmation process.
Cornyn and Republican North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis demanded that the Department of Justice (DOJ) formally end the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund and rewrite language in an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) settlement that currently restricts Trump and his family from tax audits. Blanche’s scheduled meeting with Cornyn was abruptly called off Wednesday, endangering Cornyn’s support for advancing Blanche’s nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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