Akron Mayor’s Office Responds After Drawing Criticism for Snow-Covered Streets

Wednesday, the city of Akron provided The Ohio Star with an update on the conditions of its streets after some residents found themselves unable to leave their homes three days after Sunday’s winter storm.

“We have completed all of the first, second and third priority streets as of noon today (48 hours after the snow stopped with the most event accumulation Akron’s had in the past 25 years),” Stephanie Marsh, Communications and Media Supervisor for Akron Mayor Daniel Horrigan told The Star. “All streets are open and passable.”

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Ohio’s Seven-Day Average COVID-19 Death Numbers Near Pandemic Norm Despite Omicron

Despite continued panic from some of America’s COVID-19 officials, and even though the Omicron variant has cause cases to skyrocket, Ohio’s seven day average for deaths is not much higher than it has been throughout the entire pandemic.

As of Jan. 17, Ohio’s seven-day average for COVID-19 was 121 deaths, or 17.2 deaths per day. For context, Ohio’s population is nearly 12 million. 

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Ohio U.S. Senate Candidate Vance Slams FDA for ‘Racialized’ COVID Therapeutic Distribution

JD Vance

Ohio U.S. Senate candidate J.D. Vance spoke with The Ohio Star Monday about anti-white discrimination in monoclonal antibody treatment for patients with COVID-19.

“You should not, in this country, have your fortune determined by your skin color,” he told The Star, noting the irony of having the discussion on Martin Luther King Jr. day. “It’s a fundamental principle of our Republic that we should not punish or reward people based on skin color, but we’re doing that right now.”

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MSNBC Guest: Arizona U.S. Sen. Sinema White Person ‘Martin Luther King Jr. Warned Us About

An MSNBC guest viciously attacked Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) over her renewed commitment to keeping the Senate filibuster in place, which progressive Democrats say is holding up their agenda. 

“Look, people like Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, these are the white people Martin Luther King Jr. warned us about,” commentator Elie Mystal said on Sunday’s episode of “American Voices.”

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Michigan Democrats Scramble to Walk Back Anti-Parent Facebook Post

The Michigan Democratic Party (MDP) is scrambling to walk back the messaging of a now-deleted post on its Facebook page. 

“Not sure where this ‘parents-should-control-what-is-taught-in-schools-because-they-are-our-kids’ is originating, but parents do have the option to send their kids to a hand-selected private school at their own expense if this is what they desire,” the post, which appeared to be an image with text on it, said. 

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Philly Chef Calls Out Mayor for Escaping to Maryland to Dine Without COVID Restrictions

A Philadelphia chef used his large Instagram platform to chastise Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney (D) dining in Maryland, where COVID-19 restrictions are less stringent than they are in the City of Brotherly Love. 

“Glad you’re enjoying indoor dining with no social distancing or mask wearing in Maryland tonight while restaurants here in Philly close, suffer and fight for every nickel just to survive,” Marc Vetri said, tagging Kenney in the post. “I guess all your press briefings and your narrative of unsafe indoor dining don’t apply to you. Thank you for clearing it all up for us tonight.”

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Star News Network Reports from Michigan CRT Protest at School Board

Farmington Hills – The Star News Network’s Neil W. McCabe reported from a Farmington Hills high school, where parents protested the town’s school board over a Critical Race Theory (CRT) initiative. 

“Dozens of parents came to the school board meeting held here at the North Farmington High School to protest the schools 21-day equity challenge, which is a Critical Race Theory challenge which includes having the students attend and participate in an event with Black Lives Matter.”

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Rep. Green: No Data to Suggest Massive Disparity in Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Hospitalizations

A Tennessee member of the U.S. House of Representatives appeared on Fox News’ “Varney & Co.” with host Stuart Varney to discuss the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

An incredulous Varney opened the segment asking Rep. Mark Green (R-TN-07), a physician, about Americans who are vaccinated against COVID-19, but still contracting the virus. 

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Exclusive: Anti-White LGBT TikTok Star Identified as New Jersey Charter School Teacher

A TikTok influencer who frequently posts anti-white screeds and LGBT content on social media is a middle school teacher at a New Jersey charter school, The Star News Network can reveal.

Nairobi Colon teaches at KIPP Whittier Middle School in Camden, New Jersey. KIPP, which stands for Knowledge is Power Program, is a nationwide nonprofit network of charter schools, funded in part by private donors.

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As Virginia Legislative Session Begins, Bills to Increase School Security Weighed

As the 2021-2022 legislative year begins in Virginia, one bill would mandate security protocols for school board meetings statewide.

HB 12 says schools would be required to “limit to the lowest feasible number the entry points in each public school building in the local school division” and “ensure that each individual who seeks to enter any school building in the local school division is screened with a handheld metal detector wand by a school security officer or another appropriate school board employee who is appropriately trained in such method of screening.”

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Columbus Teachers Union Lobbying for Two Weeks of Remote Learning

A Columbus Teachers Union wants two more weeks of remote learning as Ohio and the rest of the country deal with the latest COVID-19 outbreak.

“We know we keep asking the district what are the metrics and how is it determined whether schools are closed. And they can’t tell us what they use or how they close schools. There’s no metrics or data that they will share with us in how they determine whether or not a school closes,” Columbus Education Association (CEA) president John Coneglio reportedly said.

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Ohio Senate Hopeful Supports First Ohio Starbucks Unionization Effort

A Democrat U.S. Senate hopeful from Ohio declared his support for a Cleveland Starbucks store, which aims to become the retail giant’s first unionized coffee shop in the state. 

“Something big is brewing in Cleveland. Congratulations and solidarity to the workers taking this critical step to get the fair treatment and respect you deserve,” Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH-17).

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McCarthy Vows to Remove Omar from Foreign Affairs Committee If Republicans Take Back House

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (D-CA-23) vowed to remove a Minnesota congresswoman from her House Foreign Affairs Committee assignment if Republicans take back the lower chamber of Congress in 2022. 

“The Democrats have created a new thing where they’re picking and choosing who could be on committee. Never in the history have you had the majority tell the minority who could be on committee,” McCarthy told Breitbart. 

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Tennessee Lawmaker Makes the Case for Paper-Only Ballot Mandate

Bruce Griffey

A bill introduced in late December by a member of Tennessee’s House of Representatives would mandate that only paper ballots can be used for voting.

House Bill 1662 would mandate. “the use of paper ballots instead of voting machines, and would require such ballots to have a non-visible, non-producible security feature such as a watermark, fluorescence, or digital hologram changed from election to election to prevent fraudulent duplication,” and would also allow poll watchers to video record proceedings at polling locations, according to a Monday press release.

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CDC Says ‘Majority’ of COVID Deaths Among People Who Were ‘Unhealthy to Begin With’

Doctors talking with masks on

For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is acknowledging that comorbidities are behind a vast majority of deaths from the virus.

“The overwhelming number of deaths – over 75 percent – occurred in people who had at least four comorbidities, so really these are people who were unhealthy to begin with,” Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the CDC’s director, said on “Good Morning America.”

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Exclusive: J.D. Vance Launching Campaign Tour Thursday

J.D. Vance during tour

Author, attorney and venture capitalist J.D. Vance, a candidate for U.S. Senate in Ohio, will launch a statewide tour to connect with voters before this year’s primary election.

“The No BS Townhall Tour is about being honest with Ohioans and answering all of their questions directly,” Vance said. “Every day, we’re fed fake news by the corporate media and the ruling class they cover for. We’re going to correct the misinformation and answer the voters’ questions directly. Ohioans deserve no less, and I’m excited to kick off this statewide tour.”

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Ohio Gubernatorial Candidate Jim Renacci Stands with Trump After Biden’s January 6 Attacks

In a press release Thursday, Ohio gubernatorial candidate and former congressman Jim Renacci made it clear that he stands with former President Donald J. Trump after President Joe Biden’s disparaging remarks. 

“It’s a shame that Joe Biden is using this day to divide Americans, distract from his disastrously failed presidency, and take cheap shots at President Trump. The liberal media may eat it up, but Ohioans, who voted against Joe Biden and for President Trump in the biggest landslide in our state in over thirty years, see right through it,” Renacci said in a press release on the anniversary of the mostly peaceful protests at the Capitol.

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Cincinnati Border Patrol Says City’s Port Is Among Busiest for Smuggling

In a Wednesday press release, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released a press release detailing its efforts to curb smuggling through the port in Cincinnati, which it says ranked fifth in the nation for smuggling busts in fiscal year 2021. 

“From October 1, 2020 through September 30, 2021, Cincinnati seized 6,738 shipments, ranking the port in fifth-place for seizures among all 328 CBP ports of entry nationwide,” the release said. “Additionally, Cincinnati agriculture specialists issued 7,240 Emergency Action Notifications (EANs), the highest number of agriculture seizures ever recorded at the port.”

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Knoxville Fire Department Says Fire that Destroyed Planned Parenthood Was Set Intentionally

Burned down building with Planned Parenthood sign in front

The cause of a New Years Eve fire that burned down a Knoxville Planned Parenthood was arson, according to the Knoxville Fire Department (KFD) and federal investigators. 

Knoxville Fire Department investigators, along with assistance from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), have conducted a thorough scene investigation of the December 31st 710 N. Cherry Street – Planned Parenthood fire and determined the fire to have been purposely set by an individual or individuals who, at this time, remain unidentified,” KFD announced Thursday on its Facebook page. 

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Northam Says Virginians Should Thank Government After 24 Hour Traffic Jam

Days after blaming Virginia motorists for a more than 24 hour pileup on I-95 in the northern part of the state, Gov. Ralph Northam (D) now wants Virginians thank the state government for the pleasure. 

“I hate to vent on you right now, Matt, but I am getting sick and tired of people talking about what went wrong. I think we ought to be very thankful that nobody got hurt, nobody lost their lives, Interstate-95 is up and running, and people are back at home and back at work,” Northam told WRVA reporter Matt Demlein.  

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DeWine ‘Not Happy’ Only Half of National Guard Vaccinated as He Deploys Them to Ohio Hospitals

Amid their deployment to assist healthcare professionals during a surge of COVID-19 cases in Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) says he’s not happy with the vaccination numbers among the state’s National Guard.

“This is a high-risk operation, you need to be protected,” DeWine said in a Thursday visit with National Guard members. “The best way for you to be protected is to get the vaccination. So, look, we’re not happy with where we are. We’re going to continue to push that with our troops.”

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NIH Declines to Comment About Availability of Pfizer’s Fully FDA Approved Vaccine

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Thursday declined to comment recently revealed revelations that Pfizer is not currently shipping its fully Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved vaccine called Comirnaty in the United States.

Instead, Pfizer continues to ship – and healthcare providers continue to distribute – the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, which has only received Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) approval from the FDA. 

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Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine Blames Capitol Protestors for Officers’ Suicides

A U.S. Senator from Virginia, known for his far-left anti-police sentiment, finally began supporting police officers Thursday. 

“Officer Howie Liebengood and Officer Jeffrey Smith, Virginians who died because of the insurrection, deserve the official officer’s line-of-duty death designation,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said on Twitter, attaching a column from The Washington Post.

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Minneapolis Mayor Says Violent Juvenile Crime Increasing During Pandemic

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) says schools must stay open despite the latest surge in COVID-19 cases in order to keep youth residents from committing violent crimes. 

“We’ve gotta keep the schools open. This is very clear to me,” Frey reportedly said. “Yes, we need to make sure we’re abiding by the necessary safety precautions. Yes, we need to make sure anyone from parents to teachers to students are protected in full from the dangers associated with a global pandemic, and we need to make sure the students are in the schools and that they’re able to learn.”

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Virginia Gov. Northam Blames Drivers for Days-Long I-95 Traffic Jam

Outgoing Gov. Ralph Northam (D) has not taken any responsibility for Monday and Tuesday’s massive pileup on I-95 in the northern part of the state, choosing instead to blame motorists. 

“We gave warnings, and people need to pay attention to these warnings, and the less people that are on the highways when these storms hit, the better,” Northam told The Washington Post.

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Discrepancies in Ohio’s Official COVID-19 Data and Data from Other Sources

There are discrepancies in COVD-19 data provided by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and other prominent sources of information, The Ohio Star has learned. 

“According to our data, 1,704 Ohio residents died from COVID-19 in December,” Michelle Fong, a Public Information Officer for ODH said Wednesday. “Our report information is based on date of death when reported residence was inside Ohio.”

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Recently-Enacted Tennessee Law Requires Hair Stylists to Complete Domestic Violence Training

A new law took effect on Jan. 1 that will require cosmetologists to learn about the signs of domestic violence, in hopes that some will recognize those signs in their clients.

SB 216, passed in July, mandates that an applicant for a cosmetology license “successfully complete[s] up to one (1) hour of online or in-person training, at no cost to the applicant, by a nonprofit anti-domestic violence organization recognized by the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault on domestic violence that focuses on how to recognize the signs of domestic violence, how to respond to these signs, and how to refer a client to resources for victims of domestic violence.”

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Attorney Says January 6 Detainee Being Denied Proper Diet, Medical Care

According to a Tuesday report, a defendant from the Jan. 6 protest at the Capitol who is being held in a Virginia jail is being denied medical care, and the special diet he needs due to an autoimmune disease. 

According to his attorney Joseph McBride, Jan. 6 participant Christopher Quaglin, charged with assaulting police officers, has lost 20 pounds at Northern Neck Regional Jail. 

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Sen. Kaine Stuck in Blizzard Traffic in Northern Virginia

A Virginia Senator was among thousands of travelers stranded overnight on 1-95 after a large snowstorm caused several car wrecks on the interstate. 

“I started my normal 2 hour drive to DC at 1pm yesterday. 19 hours later, I’m still not near the Capitol. My office is in touch with [the Virginia Department of Transportation] to see how we can help other Virginians in this situation. Please stay safe everyone,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said Tuesday morning on Twitter. 

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Arizona Mayor Declares State of Emergency over Border Crisis

Yuma’s mayor has declared a state of emergency in the city over the border crisis, which has overwhelmed much of the American southwest. 

“Well, it’s not surprising because in 2019, if we go back for a little history, we were having a similar surge during the Trump administration and there were policies put in place that mitigated those numbers to nearly… below 10,000 a year,” Mayor Douglas Nicholls said on Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom.”

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Biden Appoints Far-Left Judge for 11th Circuit Court of Appeals

Nancy Abudu

President Joe Biden has nominated a far-left judge for a seat on the bench of the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. 

From Georgia, Nancy Gbana Abudu is a deputy legal director at the far-left Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit known for listing conservative organizations as “hate groups,” which once inspired a violent attack against the Family Research Council. 

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Arlington Public Schools Shares Plan to End Teachers’ ‘Implicit Bias’ in Grading

Teacher interacting with group of kids

Arlington Public Schools (APS) Monday shared with The Virginia Star its proposed plan to eliminate “implicit bias” among its teachers by eliminating graded homework, homework deadlines and extra credit, along with providing students unlimited redoes. 

“APS is in the early stages of revising the grading and homework policies and policy implementation procedures (PIPs). This work is being done as part of the School Board’s work to update all policies and PIPs,” Frank Bellavia, a spokesman for the school system, told The Star. “As of right now, we are having preliminary conversations with instructional staff as to what makes sense in policy and what makes sense in practice at schools. There are two phases of the process before the School Board is scheduled to act on any recommendations in May.”

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Ohio State University Medical Center Opens Drive-Thru COVID Testing Site

COVID Vaccine Parking sign

Ohio State University along with CAS, a division of the American Chemical Society, teamed up to open a new drive-thru COVID-19 testing facility capable of administering 1000 tests per day to students at the school.

“We know that testing is an important tool in our battle against COVID-19,” said Dr. Andrew Thomas, interim co-leader and chief clinical officer at Ohio State Wexner Medical Center said in a press release. “We remain committed to supporting the central Ohio community and to meeting the increased demand for COVID-19 testing. At this point, our focus is testing individuals with COVID-19 symptoms and those with significant exposures to people known to have COVID-19. Knowing your COVID status can help prevent you from spreading this virus to family members, friends and others you come in close contact with.”

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