Author: Peter D'Abrosca

Tennessee Equality Project Criticizes New Law Requiring Parent Notification of Student Pronoun Changes

Peter D'Abrosca
Parents

In a new online form electing feedback from students, teachers, staff, administrators, school counselors, parents or legal guardians, and LGBT allies, the LGBT group Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) bemoans a new state law that requires school officials to give parental notice of a student wishes to change their pronouns or “gender identity.” 

“Tennessee Equality Project is tracking how school districts and schools are implementing the new state law (SB 1810) that targets transgender and gender expansive students: the requirements of the law are triggered when a minor-aged student makes a request to a teacher to use a name and/or pronouns that may not align with their medically assigned sex on their birth certificate,” the form says. 

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Knoxville Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for ‘Heave-Ho’ on January 6

Peter D'Abrosca

A Knoxville man who was sentenced to four months in prison and two years of supervised release, including, the first four months in the form of home detention, “heave-ho’d’ his way to prison, according to the United State’s District Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia (USADC). 

The sentence was levied against Michael Asbury, 44, of Knoxville, after he pleaded guilty to one felony count of obstruction of justice during a civil disorder, an obscure federal charge that has been levied against many people who attended the riot at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. 

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Tennessee’s Faith-Based Foster Care Initiative Will Start in 95 Counties

Peter D'Abrosca
Parent and Child

A faith-based foster care initiative started by former Gov. Bill Haslam (R) and continued by Gov. Bill Lee (R) will be implemented in 95 Tennessee counties, according to the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services (DCS).

The program is called Every Child TN, and is the next iteration of Haslam’s Tennessee Fosters and Lee’s Tennessee Fosters Hope. 

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Trump Campaign, Blackburn Hit Biden Administration over Botched Afghanistan Withdrawal

Peter D'Abrosca
Joe Biden

As the third anniversary of the Biden administration’s botched withdrawal from Afghanistan that left 13 American soldiers dead and hundreds of Americans stranded nears, both former President Donald Trump’s campaign and Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) criticized Democrats for the failed operation.

“On this day 3 years ago, Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss of Tennessee was tragically killed because of Biden & Harris’ colossal failure in pulling out of Afghanistan,” Blackburn said on X. “May we never forget the 13 brave servicemembers who lost their lives because of this administration’s negligence.”

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TBI Busts Six Men During Human Trafficking Investigation

Peter D'Abrosca

As part of an investigation into human trafficking, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) arrested six men who were attempting to have sex with minors, while also rescuing seven underage girls who were suspected to be at risk of being trafficked. 

“Over a two-day period starting August 16th, as part of an undercover operation aimed at addressing human trafficking in the Montgomery County area, officers placed several decoy advertisements on websites known to be linked to prostitution and commercial sex,” TBI said in a release. “The focus of the operation was to identify individuals seeking to engage in commercial sex acts with minors.” 

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Federal Judiciary Panel Tosses Lawsuit over Alleged Gerrymandering in Tennessee

Peter D'Abrosca
Gavel court judge order

A federal lawsuit filed by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and others against the state of Tennessee and Gov. Bill Lee (R) has been dismissed by a panel of federal judges. 

Tennessee State Conference of the NAACP, et.al. v. William B. Lee was filed by a “coalition of civil rights organizations and Tennessee voters filed a federal lawsuit against Tennessee’s Governor, Secretary of State, Coordinator of Elections, and the State Election Commission and its members challenging the state’s enacted congressional and state Senate districts as unconstitutional racial gerrymanders and as intentionally racially discriminatory,” according to a case summary.

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Man Drowns After Shootout with Tennessee County Deputies

Peter D'Abrosca
Crime Scene

A man drowned after a highway pursuit and gun fight with Chester County and other law enforcement entities, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). 

“Preliminary information indicates the incident originated in Chester County near Henderson when a Chester County Deputy initiated a traffic stop of a vehicle driving recklessly at approximately 9:15 a.m.,” according a TBI release. “The driver refused to stop, and a pursuit ensued. During the pursuit, the driver briefly stopped and presented a weapon, pointing it at deputies, and causing the deputies to fire their service weapons.”

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Over 220 Rounds Fired During Accused Domestic Abuser’s Shootout with Blount County Deputies, TBI Says

Peter D'Abrosca
Ronald Millsaps

According to the testimony of a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) agent, more than 220 rounds were fired during a June shootout between two Blount County Sheriff’s deputies and a man who was involved in a domestic dispute at his home. 

During a preliminary hearing for Ronald Millsaps, who was charged with aggravated assault, attempted criminal homicide, especially aggravated kidnapping and reckless endangerment after the shootout, a TBI agent revealed a bit about the aftermath of the shootout. 

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Blackburn Introduces Resolution to Condemn for ‘Border Czar’ Failure

Peter D'Abrosca
Kamala Harris

Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) introduced a resolution to formally condemn Vice President and Democratic Party presidential nominee Kamala Harris for her failures as President Joe Biden’s appointed “border czar.”

“Since her very first day in office, Vice President Harris – President Biden’s designated Border Czar – has refused to take the national security and safety crisis at our southern border seriously,” Blackburn said in a press release announcing the resolution. “The Biden-Harris administration has presided over more than 10 million illegal border crossings and has released nearly 100 individuals on the terrorist watchlist into our country. Vice President Harris can run, but she cannot hide from her disastrous record that has killed countless innocent Americans.”

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Ogles Challenger Accused Nashville Families of ‘White Flight’ During COVID-19

Peter D'Abrosca
Maryam Abolfazli

The Democratic Party challenger to Rep. Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) in the November election wrote a column accusing white families of “white flight” when Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“White flight, a phenomenon where white people leave significantly high-minority areas, is happening in our public schools,” wrote Maryam Abolfazli in a guest column in The Tennessean. “Reacting in frustration to the decision of Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools to halt in-person teaching, white parents who can afford to are transferring their children to private schools.”

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Unemployed Man in Franklin, TN ‘Donated’ Nearly $16,000 to ActBlue Through More than 2,600 Individual Contributions

Peter D'Abrosca
ActBlue

According to Federal Election Commission (FEC) records, Gerald McAteer, an unemployed man in Franklin, Tennessee, made 2,629 individual contributions to Democrat PAC ActBlue, totaling $15,928.24, since the beginning of 2024.

At the time of this writing, McAteer, over the past 588 days, has contributed to ActBlue an average of 4.47 times per day for an average of just over $6 per donation, or a little more than $27 per day.

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Embattled Lynchburg Mayor Faces More Allegations of Bullying, Verbally Abusing Constituents

Peter D'Abrosca
Lynchburg Mayor Stephanie Reed

After an story published Sunday by Just The News accusing Lynchburg Mayor Stephanie Reed of bullying constituents whom she believes have wronged her, well as employing the same tactics against members of the Lynchburg City Council, The Virginia Star has received similar allegations from more Lynchburg residents. 

Just The News reported that last November, Reed attempted to have Jacob Landrun, the son of Lynchburg GOP chair Veronica Bratton, fired from his job at Americans for Prosperity (AFP) for posting a meme to his personal Facebook page that was critical of her. 

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Drug Dealer with Long Criminal History Charged with Murder in Death of Customer Under Tennessee’s ‘Death by Distribution’ Law

Peter D'Abrosca

A fentanyl dealer from Crossville has been arrested and charged with Second Degree Murder after one of her customers overdosed and died.

“On September 14, 2021, officers with the Crossville Police Department responded to a 911 call at a home on Willow Street in Crossville. Samuel Mashburn … was found deceased in the driveway,” according to a press release from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). “An autopsy determined Mashburn died from acute combined multiple drug intoxication.”

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Kamala Harris Lobbied for Gun Control in Tennessee After Covenant School Shooting

Peter D'Abrosca
Kamala Harris and Tennessee Three

In the wake of the Covenant School shooting in 2023, Vice President Kamala Harris, now the Democratic Party’s nominee for president, held a rally in Tennessee in support of the infamous “Tennessee Three” and to push gun control.

“We are here because [The Tennessee Three] and their colleagues, the Democratic caucus of the state legislature — and I’d ask you to stand as well, please, because they chose to show courage in the face of an extreme tragedy, which is that 11 days ago, six people, three educators and three babies, nine years old, were murdered senselessly due to gun violence,” she told students at Fisk University, a historically black college in Nashville.

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Exclusive: Sen. Blackburn Releases Kids Online Safety Guide Ahead of New School Year

Peter D'Abrosca
Kid on tablet

After the resounding success of Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act, she has exclusively released to The Tennessee Star a guide for parents to keep their children safe online as they head back to school. 

“When children are online, they are the product, and Big Tech is trying every method possible to keep them scrolling, clicking ads, and sharing every detail of their lives,” the guide says. “Social media platforms put children at risk of being exposed to eating disorders, suicidal ideation, sexual exploitation, and advertisements for illegal substances. Now is the perfect time to study up on how you can keep your kids safe online.”

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Planned Parenthood Says It Has a Plan to Break Tennessee General Assembly Supermajority

Peter D'Abrosca

The leaders of Tennessee Advocates for Planned Parenthood (TAPP), Planned Parenthood’s electioneering arm, held a press conference at the Tennessee Capitol saying that it has a plan to break the Republican supermajority in the state’s general assembly, thus making it easier to accomplish its pro-abortion work. 

“Stopping the supermajority in Tennessee is not going to be easy,” TAPP CEO Ashley Coffield said during the press conference. “We have a plan this year to flip four seats and three after that so we break the supermajority before redistricting in 2030.”

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X Sues Global Alliance for Responsible Media over ‘Illegal Boycott’

Peter D'Abrosca
Linda Yaccarino Madrazo

Linda Yaccarino, the Chief Executive Officer of Elon Musk-owned X, announced Tuesday that the company is filing a lawsuit against a group called Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM).

“After a career in media and advertising, I thought I had seen everything. Then I read the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee’s report entitled ‘GARM’s (Global Alliance for Responsible Media) Harm’ last month. The report disclosed that their investigation had found evidence of an illegal boycott against many companies, including X,” Yaccarino said. 

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TBI Investigating Officer-Involved Shooting of Alabama Fugitive

Peter D'Abrosca
crime scene

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) Sunday announced that it is investigating an officer-involved shooting of a wanted Alabama fugitive in Hardin County.

“Preliminary information indicates that deputies encountered an Alabama robbery suspect, later identified as Jonathan Schutte, in a parking lot … in Savannah,” TBI said in a release. “When [Hardin County] deputies approached the vehicle, Schutte reportedly exited his vehicle and fired his weapon at deputies, resulting in the deputies returning fire, hitting and killing 33-year-old Schutte.  No law enforcement officers were hurt in the incident.”

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Memphis High School Student Charged, Immediately Expelled for Possession of Handgun on School Property

Peter D'Abrosca
Power Center Academy

A high school student in Memphis who was arrested Monday morning for possessing a firearm at school has been charged with carrying a weapon on school property and has been expelled. 

The unnamed 17-year-old attended Power Center Academy Hickory Hill High School, which is a charter school under the umbrella of Gestalt Community Schools, in Memphis.

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Memphis Police Officer Killed in Crash After Responding to Shooting

Peter D'Abrosca
Demetrice Johnson

A Memphis Police officer died after a crash with an alleged suspect in a shooting early Friday morning.

“At 3:06 a.m., officers responded to a two-vehicle crash at Mississippi Boulevard and Danny Thomas Boulevard involving a gray Nissan and an MPD squad car,” MPD said in a statement. “Responding officers located three injured males, two of which are MPD officers, and the third male was the occupant of the Nissan. All were transported to Regional One Hospital in critical condition. An MPD officer and the driver of the gray Nissan were pronounced deceased at the hospital. The second MPD officer remains in critical condition.”

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State Rep. Gloria Johnson Celebrates U.S. Senate Primary Victory

Peter D'Abrosca
Gloria Johnson

A far-left member of the Tennessee House of Representatives Thursday night won her primary election, and now faces an uphill battle against incumbent U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN).

“Thank you, Tennessee. I am running for office to represent you, to fight for you, and make life easier for all who call Tennessee home. I have never felt more ready to fight for a Tennessee that works for all of us. Let’s do this!” said State Representative Gloria Johnson (D-Knovxille) when the primary results rolled in. 

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ACLU Sues Tennessee over New Bail Law

Peter D'Abrosca
Attorney Trisha Trigilio

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is suing Tennessee over a recently-enacted law bars judges from considering whether an alleged criminal can afford bail when making the decision on whether grant bail. 

“Today, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Criminal Law Reform Project, ACLU of Tennessee, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP filed a lawsuit on behalf of Just City Memphis to challenge the constitutionality of Tennessee’s unprecedented new bail law, arguing that the law violates the Fourteenth Amendment by mandating unfair bail hearing procedures and discriminatory wealth-based detention,” according to the ACLU. 

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Freedom From Religion Foundation Forces Chester County Sheriff’s Office to Remove ‘Religious Imagery’ from Website

Peter D'Abrosca
Chester County Sheriff's Office Sherriff Deputies

The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) says a tip from a “concerned citizen” led them to demand that an image on the Chester County Sheriff’s office be removed from the law enforcement entity’s website. 

The image was a “Thin Blue Line” flag with a bible verse on it that reads, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” 

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Reps. Ogles, Burchett, Labeled ‘Far-Right Obstructionists’ by FiveThirtyEight

Peter D'Abrosca
Andy Ogles and Tim Burchett

Poll aggregation website FiveThirtyEight said that U.S. Reps Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) and Andy Ogles (R-TN-05) are “Far-Right Obstructionists.”

“In a Congress largely defined by Republicans’ struggle to govern in harmony with their far-right flank, it’s no surprise that a cluster of hardline, obstructionist conservatives emerged as a cohesive voting cluster,” FiveThirtyEight said.

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FBI, Secret Service Silent After Nashville Woman Threatened to Assassinate President Trump

Peter D'Abrosca
IreYanna Thomas

Neither the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) nor the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) was willing to confirm whether they are investigating a Nashville woman who threatened to kill former President Trump at while he gave a keynote speech at Bitcoin 2024, the largest Bitcoin conference in the world. 

The conference was held over the weekend in Nashville. 

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Fisk University Professor Decries Increase in White Population in Nashville

Peter D'Abrosca
Shirley Rainey-Brown, PhD

A Fisk University professor decried the fact that Nashville’s population oof “whites” increased last year.

“Yes, the Nashville demographics are changing,” Shirley Rainey-Brown, the dean of Fisk University’s School of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences, told The Tennessean. “We are seeing an influx of whites over other minorities, and I think it has to do with the type of jobs and industries that are coming here.”

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Another Left-Wing News Outlet Tries to Re-Write History to Help Kamala Harris

Peter D'Abrosca
Kamala Harris

Another left-wing news outlet is scrambling to re-write history to prevent Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic Party nominee for president, from attacks by her opponent, former President Donald Trump.

“Trump claims Harris helped raise millions and personally donated to a fund that got extra support to bail out protestors in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death,” says a report by WCCO, the Minneapolis affiliate of CBS, titled “Trump falsely accuses Harris of donating to Minnesota Freedom Fund, bailing out “dangerous criminals.”

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Tennessee School Resource Officers to Receive $800 Bonuses From State Grant Program

Peter D'Abrosca
SRO Class

Thanks to a state grant program, eligible school resource offers will receive an $800 retention bonus payment this summer, according a release from the The Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (TDCI) and the Tennessee Peace Officers Standards Training (POST) Commission.

“This summer, each eligible law enforcement officer will receive an $800 retention bonus payment if they have completed their 2023 in-service hours and are still employed as a law enforcement officer at the time of the application,” th release said. “An additional $800 will also be awarded to all SROs who have completed the 2023-24 academic year, as well as all applicable training. Eligible officers already receive an $800 salary supplement payment from the POST Commission for completion of annual training requirements.”

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Rep. Burchett Responds to Criticism After Calling Kamala Harris ‘DEI Vice President’

Peter D'Abrosca
Tim Burchett and Kamala Harris

Representative Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) has drawn the ire of the left-wing media this week, first for calling former U.S. Secret Service (USSS) Director Kimberly Cheatle a “DEI horror story,” and now for calling Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, a “DEI Vice President.”

Wednesday, Burchett responded to the criticism he has faced from the left-wing media, which has labeled him as a “racist” among other typical tropes.

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Blackburn’s ‘Kids Online Safety Act’ Heading for Vote on Senate Floor

Peter D'Abrosca
Kids on Phone

Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) Tuesday announced that a bipartisan bill she cosponsored with Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) called the “Kids Online Safety Act” is headed to the Senate floor for a vote.

“It’s official: the Kids Online Safety Act is getting a vote on the Senate Floor. This progress is a testament to the incredible work of parents and young people whose personal experiences are the heart of this bill,” Blackburn said in a press release. “They came to DC over and over again, told their stories to lawmakers, wrote letters, and never gave up on demanding change. We are grateful to be in this fight with such brave and tenacious friends and allies.”

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Suspect in Tennessee Highway Patrol Shooting Had Violent Criminal History

Peter D'Abrosca
Braze Rucker

A man accused in taking part in the shooting of a Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) officer in Putnam County had a history of violent crime, according to court records. 

Braze Rucker was charged with a litany of crimes committed during a robbery attempt in Nashville in 2013. The charges stemmed from a robbery in which Rucker shot one person, leaving her paralyzed. 

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Rep. Burchett Blasts Secret Service Director as ‘DEI Horror Story’

Peter D'Abrosca
Tim Burchett

In a testy hearing before of the House Oversight Committee on Monday, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) slammed U.S. Secret Service (USSS) Director Kimberly Cheatle after the near assassination of former President Donald Trump on her watch. 

On July 14, Trump was hosting a campaign rally in Butler, PA, when shots rang out from a nearby rooftop, with only bullet grazing Trump’s ear and narrowly missing his head. 

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Republican Mayor of Knox County Blasts Media for Calling Concerns Over Biden’s Decline ‘Conspiracy Theories’

Peter D'Abrosca
Knox Mayor Glenn Jacobs

Knox County Mayor Glenn Jacobs (R) joined Sky News Monday where he blasted the media for referring to Republicans as “conspiracy theorists” for questioning President Joe Biden’s mental acuity. 

“What did Kamala Harris know [and] when did she know it, and who is actually president of the United States and who is making those decisions,” Jacobs said on “News Hour with Mark Austin.” “The thing about the vice president’s job, one of their primary duties is if something happens to the president, the vice president has to step in, yet Mrs. Harris said she didn’t know there was anything wrong with the president. However, a month ago, right after the debate with President Trump, she said on TV that everything was fine, that he was thinking clearly, [and] that he was giving good advice to leaders around the world. So, she either knew and is basically covering that up, or she is willingly ignorant of the situation. Either way, that’s a bad place to be.” 

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TN-08 Democratic Primary Candidate Stands by Violent Rhetoric Against Trump, Republicans

Peter D'Abrosca
Sarah Freeman

In the days after the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, Commercial Appeal published candidate profiles on the three Democratic primary challengers to Representative David Kustoff (R-TN-8), two of whom took the deeply divisive tone that Republicans were to “end democracy.”

As reported by The Tennessee Star, one of those candidates, Leonard Franklin, doubled down on his dark rhetoric in an exchange with The Star. 

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Tennessee Returns $68 Million in Unclaimed Property to Residents

Peter D'Abrosca
Tennessee State Capitol building

The Tennessee Department of Treasury (TDOT) said Wednesday that it returned more than $68 million in unclaimed property to Tennesseans in Fiscal Year 2023, a record for the state department. 

“Unclaimed property is money that has been turned over to the State by businesses and organizations unable to locate the rightful owners, such as utility refunds, uncashed paychecks, credit balances for overpayments, rental deposit refunds, gift certificates, securities, and abandoned bank accounts,” the department explained. “The Unclaimed Property program is a consumer protection program of the Department of Treasury that works to reunite this missing money with its rightful owner.”

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Minnesota Public School System in Hot Water over DEI, Social Justice Trainings Kept Secret from Parents

Peter D'Abrosca
Teacher in Class

One Minnesota school system has found itself at the center of controversy over staff trainings regarding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI), along with social justice. 

“Rochester Public Schools provides training that has staff participate in a “Social Justice Stretch” [and] staff are taught to embrace LGBTQ ideology with the ‘Genderbread Person,’ [and] staff are told not to tell parents about their children’s gender identity,” according to a watchdog group called Parents Defending Education (PDE). 

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Attorney General Skrmetti Files Motion to Dismiss Lawsuit on Abortion Trafficking

Peter D'Abrosca

Tennessee’s Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti Wednesday filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit by State Representative Aftyn Behn (D-Nashville), Nashville abortion activist and attorney Rachel Welty, and others to stop a bill banning the practice of abortion trafficking to take effect. 

HB 1895, introduced by State Representative Jason Zachary (R-Knoxville) and signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee (R) in May bans  minor seeking a abortions to be transported across state lines by people unrelated to them in order to obtain an abortion.

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Democrat Primary Candidates in TN-08 Continue with Violent Rhetoric After Trump Assassination Attempt

Peter D'Abrosca
Perkins and Freeman

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. 

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