Author: Kaitlin Housler

Leahy Calls Supreme Court Birthright Citizenship Decision ‘Worst’ Since Plessy v. Ferguson, Praises Thomas Dissent

Kaitlin Housler
Michael Patrick Leahy

Michael Patrick Leahy, CEO and Editor-in-Chief of The Tennessee Star, criticized the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision striking down President Donald Trump’s executive order restricting birthright citizenship, calling the ruling “the worst Supreme Court decision” since the late 19th century and arguing that Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent could become one of the court’s most significant dissenting opinions.

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Pappert: SELC Leveraging Nashville Crayfish to Block Data Center Development

Kaitlin Housler
crayfish

Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, argued that the Southern Environmental Law Center’s (SELC) concerns about the endangered Nashville crayfish are part of a broader campaign against data center development, following Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s proposal to use eminent domain to acquire land slated for a DC BLOX data center near the Nashville Zoo.

On Tuesday, The Star reported that O’Connell’s eminent domain proposal followed a letter from the SELC and the Center for Biological Diversity warning DC BLOX that the project could threaten the endangered Nashville crayfish and other protected species.

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Mandatory ‘Mobile Diversity Tour’ for Metro Nashville Police Trainees Includes Stop at Drag Nightclub

Kaitlin Housler
Metro Nashville Police Department

New recruits with the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) are required to participate in a “Mobile Diversity Tour” before beginning patrol duties, a program designed to introduce future officers to a range of communities across the city.

One stop on the tour includes Play Dance Bar, a Nashville nightclub known for its drag performances.

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EJ Haust Warns ‘Peppa Pig’ AI Deal Could Open the Door to Deepfake Chaos

Kaitlin Housler
EJ Haust

EJ Haust, official guest host of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, is raising concerns over reported artificial intelligence clauses in contracts for child voice actors on the kids’ cartoon program Peppa Pig, arguing the matter extends far beyond one children’s television series and represents a warning about the future of AI-generated voices.

Speaking on Friday’s show, Haust discussed reports that Peppa Pig owner Hasbro is requiring child voice actors to sign contracts granting the company rights to “use, clone, train, and reuse” their voices indefinitely for AI-generated content.

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Leahy Predicts Another Lawsuit as Metro Nashville Struggles to Produce Records on $1.5M Grants for Immigration Nonprofits

Kaitlin Housler
MPL and Pappert

Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, said Metro Nashville has yet to determine whether it possesses records required under Tennessee law to justify nearly $1.5 million in grants approved for two immigration nonprofits, prompting The Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy to predict the city could face another lawsuit if it fails to produce the requested public records.

On Friday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pappert discussed The Star’s ongoing Tennessee Public Records Act request seeking documents related to the Metro Council’s approval of $735,000 for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) and $718,000 for Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors (TNJFON), appropriations included in Metro Nashville’s $3.8 billion Fiscal Year 2027 budget.

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Brewer: Data Centers Are ‘Non-Negotiable’ for America’s AI Race

Kaitlin Housler
data center

Public affairs specialist and veteran journalist Clint Brewer argued that opposition to data centers is being driven more by fear and uncertainty than facts, warning that widespread moratoriums could undermine America’s competitiveness in artificial intelligence (AI).

Speaking on Thursday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Brewer described data centers as “the planning and zoning boogeyman of America right now.”

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Pappert: Metro Nashville Taking Nearly a Month to Produce Records on $1.5 Million in Grants to O’Connell Allies

Kaitlin Housler
Tom Pappert

Metro Nashville estimated it will take nearly a month to produce records related to $1.5 million in grants awarded to two immigration-focused nonprofits, which raises serious transparency concerns, according to The Tennessee Star’s lead reporter, Tom Pappert, who said that the city appears to be funding political allies of Mayor Freddie O’Connell while slow-walking efforts to obtain documents justifying the spending.

During an appearance on Wednesday on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pappert discussed Metro’s response to a Tennessee Public Records Act request by The Star seeking records related to grants awarded to the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) and Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors (TNJFON) in the fiscal year 2027 budget approved earlier this month.

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Ben Crump May Be Positioning for Lawsuit over New Tennessee Driver’s License Requirements, Pappert Says

Kaitlin Housler
Ben Crump

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump’s criticism of Tennessee’s new driver’s license law may signal the beginning of a future legal challenge, according to The Tennessee Star’s lead reporter, Tom Pappert.

During an appearance on Tuesday on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pappert discussed Crump’s recent comments opposing House Bill 1708, which Governor Bill Lee signed into law earlier this year and is scheduled to take effect in January 2027.

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Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rebuke of Larry Krasner Highlights Risks of Progressive Prosecution, Pulliam Says

Kaitlin Housler
Larry Krasner

Legal commentator and retired attorney Mark Pulliam said a recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court opinion sharply criticizing Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner illustrates the dangers of progressive prosecutors who, he argues, fail to fully enforce the law and undermine the integrity of the criminal justice system.

Speaking during Monday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pulliam discussed the court’s decision and argued that prosecutors who decline to aggressively enforce criminal laws can undermine the justice system.

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Pulliam: Supreme Court’s Hemani Decision a Victory for Second Amendment Rights

Kaitlin Housler
SCOTUS

Legal commentator and retired attorney Mark Pulliam said the U.S. Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in United States v. Hemani represents an important victory for Second Amendment rights while leaving unanswered questions about how Congress should regulate gun ownership by drug users.

Discussing the case during Monday’s edition of The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pulliam explained that the Court’s ruling struck down a federal law used to prohibit certain drug users from possessing firearms. The decision was authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch.

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Pappert Details Unanswered Questions Surrounding Convicted South African Agent at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Kaitlin Housler
Tom Pappert

Following the sentencing of former South African Air Force Brigadier General Portia Anyamba for acting as an unregistered agent of South Africa while working at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), The Tennessee Star’s lead reporter Tom Pappert said the case leaves critical questions unanswered.

Speaking during an appearance Monday on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Pappert pointed to lingering uncertainty surrounding Anyamba’s immigration history, citizenship status, security-clearance eligibility, and how a foreign intelligence asset was able to work inside one of the nation’s most sensitive U.S. Department of Energy facilities before federal investigators intervened.

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McCabe: Israel-Hezbollah Fighting Threatens to Derail U.S.-Iran Agreement

Kaitlin Housler
Trump and Bibi

Veteran Washington correspondent Neil W. McCabe said Friday that continued fighting between Israel and Hezbollah remains the greatest threat to the newly signed U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding.

Appearing on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, McCabe discussed reports that planned U.S.-Iran negotiations in Switzerland had been postponed and argued that the conflict in Lebanon could undermine progress made by Washington and Tehran.

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Davis Hunt: Nashville Political Establishment Maintains Power Through Low-Turnout Elections

Kaitlin Housler
Davis Hunt

Davis Hunt, founder of the Nashville-based publication The Pamphleteer, said during an interview Thursday with The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy that low voter turnout in Metro Nashville elections has allowed progressive political organizations to exert outsized influence over city government, while arguing that increased participation could reshape the city’s political landscape.

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Luigi Mangione’s Extreme Emotional Disturbance Defense Unlikely to Lead to Acquittal, Former Prosecutor Says

Kaitlin Housler
Luigi Mangione

Judson Phillips, Tea Party Nation founder and former prosecutor, said the defense strategy reportedly being pursued by accused killer Luigi Mangione is a mental-health-based legal defense that rarely succeeds and is typically used when other legal options are limited.

As reported by Just The News, Mangione’s attorneys indicated in a New York court hearing Wednesday that they plan to argue he was suffering from an “extreme emotional disturbance” at the time of the 2024 fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

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EXCLUSIVE: Blackburn Co-Sponsors Election Security Bill Offering Bonus Funding to States That Verify Voter Citizenship

Kaitlin Housler
Voting booth

U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) spoke exclusively to The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy on Tuesday, promoting a new bill that would provide additional federal election security funding to states that submit voter registration data to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for citizenship verification.

During an interview on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Blackburn discussed the Election Security Partnership Act, legislation she introduced with U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) that would provide bonus election security funding to states that participate in DHS’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program.

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New Chattanooga Courthouse Project Reflects Trump’s Push for Classical Federal Architecture

Kaitlin Housler
Chattanooga Courthouse Renderings

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) unveiled the design concept for a new federal courthouse in downtown Chattanooga, marking the first renderings of a project to reflect the Trump administration’s emphasis on traditional civic architecture.

The approximately 191,000-square-foot courthouse, planned for Vine Street, will consolidate several federal judicial functions into a single secure facility, including the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, and the Circuit Library.

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Pulliam: Obama-Appointed Judge Ross Faces One of the Worst Judicial Scandals in Memory

Kaitlin Housler
Eleanor Ross

Legal commentator and retired attorney Mark Pulliam said the misconduct allegations surrounding U.S. District Judge Eleanor Ross represent “one of the worst” scandals he’s seen involving a federal judge and predicted that the Georgia jurist will ultimately resign rather than face a congressional impeachment battle.

Ross, a federal judge in the Northern District of Georgia appointed by former President Barack Obama in 2014, was the subject of a lengthy investigation by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after complaints from former law clerks.

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Don Palmer: Pending Supreme Court Case May Require States to Overhaul Mail-in Ballot Laws

Kaitlin Housler
Supreme Court

Don Palmer, a senior legal fellow for election integrity with the Heritage Foundation Institute for Constitutional Government, sat down for an exclusive interview Friday with The Tennessee Star’s CEO and Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy, where he detailed how a pending U.S. Supreme Court decision could compel several states to overhaul their election laws by requiring mail-in ballots to be received by Election Day.

During an appearance on The Michael Patrick Leahy Show, Palmer discussed election administration, voter confidence, citizenship verification, civic education, and concerns about the federal judiciary.

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High School Student Who Has ‘Deep Commitment to Social Justice’ Appointed to Serve on Metro Nashville Public School Board

Kaitlin Housler
Hannah Said

Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) announced Friday it has selected Hume-Fogg Academic Magnet High School student Hannah Said to serve as the next student member of the Metro Nashville Board of Education, placing a student who has pledged a “deep commitment to social justice” in a prominent advisory role on the district’s governing body.

She succeeds Hannah Nguyen, who graduated from John Overton High School in May.

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