Author: Chris Butler

Secretly-Recorded Audio Reveals Oconee County Teacher, in Class, Railing Against Donald Trump

Chris Butler
Oconee County High School

A now-retired English instructor at Oconee County High School in Watkinsville used her platform to proselytize to captive students last January in an attempt to turn them against former U.S. President Donald Trump and his supporters. The teacher, Lynne Ely, did not return The Georgia Star News’ requests for comment Wednesday. But angry Oconee County residents uploaded a nearly-45 minute recording of Ely ranting against Trump and the events of January 6 on the Facebook group Oconee County 411 (GA).

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Democrat Claim of ‘Smoking Gun’ at U.S. Senate Rules Hearing Immediately Debunked as Quote Taken Out of Context

Chris Butler
Amy Klobuchar Atlanta

ATLANTA, Georgia —  U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) came to Atlanta Monday to bash Georgia’s Senate Bill 202, and she left believing she had uncovered “a smoking gun” that proved the law was a case of overreach.

That “smoking gun” was testimony from Georgia State Sen. Sally Harrell (D-Atlanta). But Harrell’s words were refuted by another state legislator — a Republican — when The Georgia Star News contacted that man Monday.

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Tennessee U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen Demands Equity Programs in All State Departments of Education

Chris Butler

U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) this week introduced a bill that he said will increase diversity in Advanced Placement (AP) and Gifted and Talented Elementary (GT) classes. In a press release, Cohen also said his bill would use Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) funding to create equity offices in state departments of education to increase diversity in AP and GT programs.

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Former Cumberland County Solid Waste Director Indicted for Alleged Kidnaping, Sexual Assault

Chris Butler
Michael Harvel

Federal officials on Friday unsealed a nine-count indictment Friday charging the former Cumberland County, Tennessee Solid Waste Director with civil rights violations, including kidnapping and sexually assaulting women he supervised. This, according to a press release that officials with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee published on their website.

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Convicted Felon Sentenced to Prison for Robbing Traveler at Georgia I-75 Rest Area

Chris Butler
James Clemente Holloway

Federal officials have sentenced a Florida man — also a convicted felon — to federal prison following a high-speed chase along Interstate 75 after he robbed a traveler at gunpoint. U.S. District Judge Louis Sands sentenced that man, James Clemente Holloway, 43, of Jacksonville, Florida, to serve 80 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. This, after Sands previously pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

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RNC Reminds MLB All-Star Game Viewers That Democrats Got Game Pulled Out of Georgia

Chris Butler

The Republican National Committee (RNC) released a television ad during Tuesday night’s All-Star Game and told Atlanta residents that Democrats stole the game from their city, all to push a divisive political agenda. The ad features former Georgia State Rep. Melvin Everson. Everson, according to Ballotpedia, is a Republican who served in the legislature from 2005 to 2011.

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Southwest Georgia Resident Criminally Charged with CARES Act Fraud

Chris Butler

A federal grand jury has returned a 12-count indictment charging a Sycamore, Georgia, resident with bank fraud, money laundering and making false statements related to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Officials indicted Anthony C. Boncimino, 46, this month with four counts of bank fraud, four counts of money laundering and four counts of making false statements.

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Carol Swain Says Facebook Has Shadow Banned Her Politically Conservative Posts

Chris Butler

Carol Swain said Facebook staff members shadow banned her last week and restricted her from communicating her ideas to her more than 77,000 social media followers. Shadow banning occurs when someone posts something and that same person can see what he or she published on a social media network. No other person, however, can see or respond to the post. Swain said she saw her published posts and asked her friends if they also saw what she posted. They did not.

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Mexican National Pleads Guilty to Employing and Exploiting Illegal Aliens in Georgia

Chris Butler

A Bartow County, Georgia businessman has pleaded guilty in federal court to harboring illegal aliens for financial gain. That man, Juan Antonio Perez, 48, of Rydal, illegally encouraged and induced aliens to reside in the United States where they worked for his own commercial advantage and private financial gain. This, according to a press release the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia published this week.

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Augusta Commissioner Charged with Destroying Records, Lying to Federal Investigators

Chris Butler
Augusta-Richmond County Municipal Building

Federal officials have charged an elected official in the Augusta city government with a two-count indictment charging him with destroying records in a federal investigation and lying to federal investigators researching the case. That elected official, Sammie Lee Sias, 66, serves as District 4 commissioner on the Augusta Commission. Officials have charged Sias with destruction, alteration, falsification of records in federal investigations, and false statement or representation made to a department or agency of the United States.

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Georgia Attorney General Blasts Biden Administration’s ‘Unconstitutional Changes’ Regarding Pronoun Policies

Chris Butler

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr and other state attorneys general this week told U.S. President Joe Biden they formally oppose new federal guidelines they say will force radical changes on employers and schools nationwide. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the U.S. Department of Education issued these guidelines. The group of attorneys general responded to the federal agencies’ claim that using biologically accurate pronouns could violate the law.

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Spring Hill Lab Owner Charged in Massive Medicare Fraud Scheme

Chris Butler
Person in lab gear

Federal officials have charged the owner and chief executive of the Spring Hill-based Crestar Labs, with aiding and abetting and violation of the anti-kickback statute for allegedly orchestrating a fraudulent Medicare billing scheme. This scheme, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, related to genetic testing in cancer patients.

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Georgia U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter Accompanies Donald Trump to Border, Describes Mayhem

Chris Butler

U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA-01) traveled with former U.S. President Donald Trump to the U.S.-Mexico border last week and said he saw “the opposite of progress.” “When Vice President Kamala Harris claimed the Biden Administration, ‘made progress,’ during his visit to our southern border last week, I was intrigued.  I was appalled by what I saw when I visited the border in May and hopeful that the Biden Administration was finally taking this situation seriously,” Carter told his constituents in an emailed newsletter Sunday.

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Tennessee Stands Will Soon Launch Statewide Tour to Promote Liberty

Chris Butler

Members of the Williamson County-based Tennessee Stands announced Sunday they will soon launch a statewide tour to promote individual liberty, and their first stop is in northeast Tennessee. “There is a growing movement across the state of Tennessee for those who understand the state and nation’s Constitution. These people are no longer willing to allow their rights to be eroded or infringed upon. With these rights and values in mind, Tennessee Stands is launching the Freedom Matters Tour to promote constitutional values and to encourage Tennesseans to STAND UP for their personal liberties,” according to an email that members of the group sent to their followers Sunday.

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Americans for Prosperity Talks Future Strategy After Nashville Taxpayer Protection Act Cancelled

Chris Butler

The cancellation of the Nashville Taxpayer Protection Act referendum has prompted officials with Americans for Prosperity – Tennessee (AFP-TN) to renew their efforts to pass a state law to control a city or county’s reckless spending habits. AFP-TN Grassroots Engagement Director Grant Henry explained the proposed law this week on YouTube.

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Prosecutors Say Atlanta Man Who Illegally Obtained Firearms Fueled City’s Crime Problem

Chris Butler

Federal officials in Atlanta have sentenced a man to prison for unlawfully acquiring dozens of firearms, several of which Atlanta Police officers later recovered at various crime scenes. That man, Ben’Andre Javon Goolsby “helped fuel the violence in our community,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine in a press release for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia.

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Andrew Delke Takes Plea Deal in Daniel Hambrick Shooting Case; Hambrick’s Enraged Family Members Disrupt Court

Chris Butler

Former Nashville Police officer Andrew Delke on Friday accepted a plea deal to serve three years in prison for shooting and killing Daniel Hambrick, but the agreement infuriated members of Hambrick’s family, who yelled profanities. Members of Hambrick’s family said they adamantly opposed the plea agreement. An attorney read a statement in court on behalf of Vickie Hambrick, who is Daniel Hambrick’s mother. The attorney, who did not seem to identify herself, said that Vickie Hambrick was “angry, mad, and disgusted.”

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Georgia’s Timber Industry Problems Could Impact Economy, Panel Members Told

Chris Butler
Close up of wood after being cut down - lumber yard

Timber is one of Georgia’s largest industries, but some aspects of the industry are suffering, which prompted U.S. Rep. Jody Hice (R-GA-10) to participate this week in a forum on lumber prices. Republicans on the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources held the forum. Their purpose was to examine the rising prices of lumber and home production, as well as the closing of more than 1,000 sawmills between 2004 to 2018, Hice told his constituents in an emailed newsletter.

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Brian Kemp Announces People Who Will Serve on Georgia Jobs and Infrastructure Committees

Chris Butler

Gov. Brian Kemp this week named members of the Georgia Jobs and Infrastructure Committees, responsible for receiving applications and making recommendations regarding federal COVID-19 relief funds allocated to the state through the American Rescue Plan. State government entities and units of local government, as well as industries and nonprofits are eligible to apply, Kemp said in an emailed press release.

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