Author: Tennessee Star Staff

Steve Gill Analysis: If Legalized in Tennessee, Medical Marijuana Users May Sacrifice Right to Own Guns

Tennessee Star Staff

On Friday, conservative political commentator and Tennessee Star contributor Steve Gill said on The Gill Report, broadcast live on WETR 92.3 FM in Knoxville, that if the bill to legalize medical marijuana currently under consideration in the Tennessee General Assembly becomes law, potential medical marijuana users in the Volunteer State may be faced with a decision: Legally purchase and use medical marijuana and lose your right to own a gun, or keep your right to own a gun and pass on using the newly legalized drug. “One of the bills that is moving through the legislature that keeps coming close. It looks like it may be advancing a little quicker this time – but with a few more weeks in the legislative session it may still fail. [The bill] is medical marijuana in Tennessee” Gill began. “Now, there are some problems with this bill, because it’s not just legalizing medical marijuana,” he noted, adding. “You’ve got some of the folks that are pushing recreational marijuana that we’ve seen embraced in states like Colorado recently. But the bill is supposedly limited to medical marijuana.” Gill continued: There are critics that say the same doctors that haven’t controlled opioids are unlikely to control…

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Due Process Rights Could Make a Comeback in Tennessee Thanks to Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Bill

Tennessee Star Staff

Americans pride themselves on a commitment to due process rights. We hold criminal defendants “innocent until proven guilty,” and believe that everyone should have his day in court. Yet, thanks to civil forfeiture laws, many innocent people have had their cash and property seized without ever being charged with a crime, and with few legal protections to rely on.

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House Ethics Committee Finds Luis Gutierrez And Bobby Rush In Violation, Orders Payments

Tennessee Star Staff

The House Ethics Committee announced two Illinois Democrats were in violation of chamber rules Thursday, ordering they both pay back thousands of dollars to the government for their actions. Illinois Democratic Reps. Bobby Rush and Luis Gutierrez were both formally reproved by the Ethics committee on the same day, but for separate violations. Both cases were…

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Democrats Busing Supporters To Student Gun Control March

Tennessee Star Staff

Democrats from nearby states are busing adults and students to Washington, D.C., for the student gun control control march Saturday. Pro-gun-control students at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School organized the march in response to the mass shooting at their school in February. Teacher’s unions and progressive groups including Women’s March and Planned Parenthood and helped…

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Steve Gill Eviscerates Biased Polling Firm During Appearance on WKRN

Tennessee Star Staff

Conservative political commentator and Tennessee Star contributor Steve Gill eviscerated the biased poll findings of PPP Polling in his regular appearance on Friday’s edition of WKRN’s “This Week with Bob Mueller.” “A second poll in a row shows Phil Bredesen leading by a 5 point lead over Marsha Blackburn [in the U.S. Senate race]. Let’s talk about the poll first. But that’s a bit of a surprise,” host Bob Mueller said. “There’s also a lot of problems in this poll,” Gill responded. “They polled registered voters rather than likely voters. And the polling company that did this is a Democrat, left leaning polling company, PPP, that did polls in the battleground states last year during the presidential election, and they missed Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Florida, that all went for Trump, contrary to what they were saying, and vastly underestimated what he was doing in Ohio,” he added. “The national eyes are on this race. Charlie Cook says it’s a tossup, do you agree with that?” Mueller asked Gill. “I think it will be a close race, but I think Marsha Blackburn wins, in large part because, while Phil Bredesen may pretend to be a moderate, he’s ‘Bill-I-Voted-For-Hillary’ Bredesen.…

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Liberal Dirty Tricks: Deceptive ‘Middle of the Night’ Phone Calls Target GOP State Senator’s Bill to Require Work for Medicare Benefits

Tennessee Star Staff

Tennessee Senate Republicans issued a statement Friday condemning deceptive “middle of the night” robocalls made to voters by the far left Tennessee Justice Center opposing a bill introduced by State Sen. Kerry Roberts (R-Springfield). The bill “directs TennCare to submit a waiver to the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to require able-bodied working age adults, without dependent children under the age of 6 to work for their benefits.” “State Senator Kerry Roberts (R-Springfield) and Lt. Governor Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge) today strongly condemned the Tennessee Justice Center for placing robocalls in the middle of the night regarding legislation Roberts is sponsoring in the Tennessee General Assembly. Roberts said the unethical calls were made by Justice Center with the ‘call back’ number going to his legislative office. The calls were made during the late hours of Thursday and the early hours of Friday morning,” the statement issued by Tennessee Senate Republicans said. “These robocalls are outrageous and the information disseminated is false and misleading,” Roberts said in the statement. “They were conducted in the middle of night with the call back number, for those who thought that it might be a dire emergency due to the late hour, going…

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Marsha Blackburn, Diane Black, Scott DesJarlais, and Jimmy Duncan Vote Against Deficit Increasing $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Budget Deal

Tennessee Star Staff

Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN-07), Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06), Rep. Scott DesJarlais (R-TN-04), and Rep. John J. “Jimmy” Duncan (R-TN-02) were the only four Republican members of the Tennessee delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives to vote against the deficit increasing $1.3 Trillion Omnibus Budget Bill to fund the federal government for the remainder of FY 2018 that passed the House on a 256-167 vote Thursday afternoon. A total of 90 Republicans and 77 Democrats voted against the bill. The bill now goes to the Senate for a vote on Friday. If it passes in the Senate, President Trump will have until midnight on Friday to either sign or veto the bill before non-essential offices of the federal government shut down. Three Republican members of the Tennessee delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of the huge spending bill: Republicans Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN-01), Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03), and Rep. David Kustoff (R-TN-08). Kustoff’s yes vote could spell trouble for him in August, as he faces a tough primary challenge from Dr. George Flinn, who is a staunch conservative on fiscal matters and is running a well funded and aggressive campaign. The two Democrats in the U.S.…

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Victory for the Rule of Law as Tennessee Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Appeal of Special Election Date Decision

Tennessee Star Staff

The Tennessee Supreme Court reaffirmed its role as champion as the rule of law in the Volunteer State on Thursday when it agreed to hear an appeal of a lower court’s decision to set the date for the Nashville mayoral election at August 2. You can read the Court’s Order Granting the Motion to Assume Jurisdiction here: [pdf-embedder url=”https://tennesseestar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Order-Granting-Motion-to-Assume-Jurisdiction.pdf” title=”Order Granting Motion to Assume Jurisdiction”] The Court granted mayoral candidate Ludye Wallace’s petition for an expedited hearing of his appeal of Chancery Court Judge Claudia Bonnyman’s decision to set the special election date at August 2 rather than May 1, the date Wallace’s attorney Jamie Hollin said was required by a plain reading of the law. Hollin has until March 29 to submit the Petitioner’s Brief to the Court. Metro Nashville Government has until April 4 to submit Respondent’s Brief. Oral arguments will be heard on Monday, April 9. “We are grateful that the Supreme Court decided to assume jurisdiction of this case as it involves the election of Metro Nashville’s most important elected office, Mayor,” Wallace’s attorneys Hollin and Daniel Horwitz said in a statement. “We are optimistic that the unambiguous terms of the Metro Charter and the clearly…

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Steve Gill Is Back on the Radio!

Tennessee Star Staff

Long-time Nashville radio host Steve Gill is back on the radio. The veteran conservative political commentator and frequent Tennessee Star contributor is hosting a 30 minute program, The Gill Report, which airs on Knoxville’s WETR 92.3 FM from 6:30 pm to 7:00 pm each weekday evening. Gill joins an all-star lineup on the conservative talk radio station that includes Laura Ingraham, Michael Savage, and Lars Larson. Here’s an example of the kind of insight listeners of The Gill Report receive: Steve’s analysis of a recent poll that says Phil Bredesen leads Marsha Blackburn by 5 points in a hypothetical general election matchup for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN). (You can listen to the program live here). Plans are currently in the works to syndicate the program to other radio stations across the state.    

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Steve Gill Analysis: Beware of Polls That Hide Key Details

Tennessee Star Staff

On the Wednesday edition of The Gill Report, broadcast on Knoxville’s 92.3 FM WETR, Steve Gill explained the perils of giving too much credence to polls that hide key details about their methodology. Case in point: A recent poll conducted by the Democratic polling firm PPP on the U.S. Senate race in Tennessee between Democrat Phil Bredesen and Republican Marsha Blackburn. “I mentioned at the outside of the show that PPP had done a new poll that is being reported across the state showing that former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen, a Democrat, is leading Congresswoman Marsha Blackburn, the front runner for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate, 46 percent to 41 percent in a new poll that they’ve conducted,” Gill said. “I just wanted you to be aware of some of the problems that may be contained in that poll,” he added, noting: This particular polling company is a Democrat polling company, a left leaning polling company, that is paid to do a poll by a group that supports Obamacare. So they produce a poll that shows that Phil, ‘I Voted for Hillary’ Bredesen leads Marsha Blackburn by 5 points. Not surprisingly, their poll shows that Tennesseans oppose repeal…

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Trump Says Hillary Clinton’s Gaffes Prove Democrats ‘Lost Touch’ with Regular Americans

Tennessee Star Staff

Few things delight President Trump more than watching Democrats run away from Hillary Clinton. And the president believes Republican candidates in this year’s midterm elections should put Democrats’ aversion for their party’s former standard-bearer to the test. “Democrats never have been more vulnerable because they’ve lost touch with normal, everyday working people,” the president said at…

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Joe Biden: I Would Have ‘Beat the Hell Out of’ Trump in High School

Tennessee Star Staff

Former Vice President Joe Biden boasted to a crowd of University of Miami students Tuesday that he would have “beat the hell out of” President Trump in high school. Speaking during an anti-sexual assault rally at the private university in Coral Gables, the Democrat mentioned Mr. Trump’s infamous “Access Hollywood” recording that captured the real estate…

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Real Estate Magnate Bill Freeman Will Not Run for Mayor of Nashville in Special Election

Tennessee Star Staff

Real estate magnate Bill Freeman, who finished third in the 2015 election for Mayor of Nashville behind David Fox and eventual winner, former Mayor Megan Barry, said on Wednesday he will not be a candidate for Mayor of Nashville in the upcoming special election. “I think Nashville will be best served by having Mayor Briley focused on what’s best for our city for the remainder of this term. As a result, I’ve chosen to refrain from entering the race,” Freeman said, as NewsChannel 5 reported: Freeman said he considers his decision a personal one and did not discourage others from entering the race. “It is certainly within the capability of Nashvillians to determine what’s best for Nashville. To discourage anyone from running for office is downright un-American,” stated Freeman. “I simply feel that Mayor Briley is the right person for Nashville right now. I’ve weighed the options, and I feel that my continued role with Freeman Webb will serve Nashville well, with our strong initiatives to meet Nashville’s needs for affordable housing.” Freeman also added Mayor Briley must “remain balanced in his approach,” and he cautioned against allowing undue influence on key decisions from outside interests. The co-founder of Freeman…

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Laura Ingraham Rips House GOPers Pushing ‘Freddy Krueger-Like’ Spending Bill

Tennessee Star Staff

Fox News host Laura Ingraham challenged House Republican leaders Tuesday on “The Ingraham Angle” to “start really helping President Donald Trump drain the swamp” instead of adding to it by passing their $1.3 trillion spending bill by Friday to avoid another government shutdown. If bitterly divided Republican and Democratic lawmakers don’t reach an agreement ahead of…

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FBI Director Christopher Wray Rejects McCabe’s Accusations About His Firing

Tennessee Star Staff

FBI Director Christopher Wray dismissed former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe’s claims that his firing was politically motivated, telling NBC News in an interview Wednesday that it wasn’t “based on political or partisan influence.” McCabe oversaw the FBI’s investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server and address to conduct official U.S. diplomatic business. Attorney General Jeff Sessions accepted the recommendation from the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) that he fire McCabe Friday — just two days before McCabe was to retire with full pension benefits.

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Majority of Nashville Metro Council Wants Tennessee Supreme Court to Accept Special Election Date Appeal

Tennessee Star Staff

Twenty-one members of the Nashville Metro Council signed a letter to Metro Legal Director Jon Cooper on Tuesday asking him to request of the Tennessee Supreme Court that it “reach down” and hear the plaintiff’s appeal of a Chancery Court Judge’s decision to hold the special mayoral election on August 2, rather than May 1. The Tennessee Star reported that earlier this month the Davidson County Election Commission ignored the plain meaning of the law and voted 3 to 2 to hold the special mayoral election on August 2, rather than May 2. Last week, attorney Jamie Hollin filed an appeal of that decision on behalf of his client, mayoral candidate Ludye Wallace in Davidson Couny Chancery Court. Later that week, Judge Claudia Bonnyman ruled against Wallace and in favor of the Davidson County Election Commission, and confirmed August 2 as the date for the special election. The Star subsequently reported that, according to Arizona State University Law School Professor Judith M. Stinson, a national expert on “dicta” and legal holdings, if Judge Bonnyman’s decision was based on “dicta”–that is, facts cited in an opinion that are not directly relevant to the legal holding of the court–the legitimacy of the…

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Diane Black Marches in Houston County Irish Day Parade on St. Patrick’s Day

Tennessee Star Staff

On Saturday Republican gubernatorial candidate Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06) marched in the Irish Day Parade in the Houston County community of Erin, an annual celebration of St. Patrick’s Day. The parade was the final event of a week long festival of all things Irish in the community that takes it name from the Emerald Isle. Participants and parade watchers wore green, the color long associated with Ireland, which is known for its lush green countrysides. Houston County is a small rural county just west of Dickson County, the western edge of the Nashville Metropolitan Statistical Area, with a population of a little more than 8,000. Erin, the county seat, has a population of 1,300. St. Patrick’s Day Parades in which politicians march have long been associated with large northeastern cities with large Irish populations dominated by the Democratic Party, such as New York City and Boston. The first St. Patrick’s Day celebration in the United States was held in Boston in 1737, organized by the Charitable Irish Society. New York City soon followed suit, organizing its first St. Patrick Day celebration in 1762. Chicago, which began celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in 1843, adds a little flavor to the celebration by…

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Senate Panel Calls for Special Counsel to Investigate DOJ Handling of Dossier

Tennessee Star Staff

Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee are formally calling for a second special counsel to investigate the FBI and Justice Department’s handling of the Steele dossier. The Republicans, led by Chairman Chuck Grassley, last month called on the Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General to explore the FBI and DOJ’s handling of the salacious document.

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Trump’s Personal Lawyer John Dowd Calls for End to Mueller Probe After McCabe Firing

Tennessee Star Staff

President Trump’s personal attorney called on the Justice Department Saturday to immediately shut down special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, after Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ firing of FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe. Attorney John Dowd said Mr. Mueller’s investigation has been “corrupted” by political bias since the beginning.

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Facebook Suspends Trump Campaign Data Firm Cambridge Analytica

Tennessee Star Staff

Facebook says it has suspended the account of Cambridge Analytica, the data analysis firm that helped Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, for failing to delete user data. Also suspended were the accounts of its parent organization, Strategic Communication Laboratories, as well as those of University of Cambridge psychologist Aleksandr Kogan and Christopher Wylie, who runs Eunoia Technologies.

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Commentary: Democrats and RINOs Driving 2018 Omnibus Spending

Tennessee Star Staff

by CHQ Staff   If you thought electing a Republican majority in Congress would usher in an era of fiscal responsibility, think again. While the tax cuts championed by President Trump have so far kept revenue at record levels – even with lower Money burningtax rates – Congressional spending is skyrocketing, in large measure because Democrats’ big government policies and programs are still driving spending. For fiscal 2019 year the Pentagon’s budget will be $647 billion and the nation’s domestic budget will be $597 billion. Here are just a few of the areas where conservatives think federal spending could be eliminated entirely that, according to our friend Rachel Bovard writing for the Federalist, look like they will be included in this year’s omnibus spending bill: Full funding for Planned Parenthood Republicans have made it a central campaign promise for years now to end taxpayer funding for America’s largest abortion provider, Planned Parenthood. This issue has gained urgency in light of the Department of Justice investigation into the organization’s dealings in fetal tissue. Yet, drafts of this latest funding bill preserve the $10 million a year that Planned Parenthood receives from taxpayers. Conservative House Republicans are making an admirable play to…

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British Court Orders Christopher Steele To Appear For Deposition In Trump Dossier Lawsuit

Tennessee Star Staff

The former British spy who wrote the infamous dossier has been ordered to appear for a deposition in a lawsuit over the salacious document filed in the U.S. A British court ordered Christopher Steele to testify about his role in compiling the dossier, which alleges that the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government during the…

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Mae Beavers Confirms She Is Running for Wilson County Mayor

Tennessee Star Staff
Mae Beavers

In an exclusive interview with The Tennessee Star on Saturday, former gubernatorial candidate and former State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) has confirmed she is running for Mayor of Wilson County. “I met with a group of citizens last week and they were asking me to run for County Mayor. We took the week and thought about it, and decided to go for it,” Beavers told The Star. “I just picked up a petition at 3 p.m. Friday, and it kind of snowballed from there,” Beavers added. The Lebanon Democrat first reported Saturday morning that Beavers had pulled a petition Friday afternoon to run for Mayor of Wilson County: After less than two months away from politics, former state Sen. Mae Beavers has pulled a petition and set her sights on the Wilson County mayor’s office. Beavers pulled the petition Friday afternoon, and will challenge incumbent Randall Hutto, who has filed his petition ahead of the April 5 deadline, and Bob Richie, who has not filed his petition. If elected, Beavers will be returning to the same Wilson County Government where she began her political career in 1990 when she was elected to the Wilson County Commission. In 1994 she was…

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Democrat Phil Bredesen Claims ‘I’m Not Running Against Donald Trump,’ But Heads to New York City to Raise Big Money from Never Trump Liberals

Tennessee Star Staff
Democrat Phil Bredesen Claims ‘I’m Not Running Against Donald Trump,’ But Heads to New York City to Raise Big Money from Never Trump Liberals

Former Gov. Phil Bredesen, the 74-year-old “new hope” for Democrats in Tennessee who is running unopposed for his party’s U.S. Senate nomination, launched a television ad last week in which he said “I’m not running against Donald Trump.” Despite that claim, Bredesen is headed to a high end restaurant near New York City’s Central Park in Manhattan to raise big money from Never Trump liberals who want to destroy Trump’s presidency and the GOP. “Pols Love New York City,” reads the headline from a recent New York Post article, which adds the details Tennesseans will find of interest: Democrats from the heartland come to New York for the same reason Willie Sutton said he targeted banks: “Because that’s where the money is.” Former Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen, looking to move to the US Senate, will have a fundraiser at Bobby Van’s on Central Park South on April 19. The New York Times reported in November that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) helped persuade Bredesen, whom he “courted personally,” to run for the U.S. Senate in Tennessee. You can see the New York Post article here:   A multi-millionaire, Bredesen has said that it will take at least $50 million…

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Randy Boyd: Immigration Status Is Irrelevant to Filling Seats in Our State Colleges

Tennessee Star Staff

Speaking to a Mount Juliet Chamber of Commerce meet and greet on Thursday morning, Republican gubernatorial candidate Randy Boyd said that while he does not support the current in-state tuition bill under consideration in the Tennessee General Assembly, immigration status of student should be irrelevant when it comes to filling seats in Tennessee’s state colleges and universities. Kicked off a full day in Wilson County at the @MJChamber. Look forward to seeing more friends and supporters! Check out our full list of stops via the @wilsonconews https://t.co/1KJt7MgOpx pic.twitter.com/bqZEkDWQpW — Randy Boyd (@randyboyd) March 15, 2018 “Do you support the legislature’s bill on in-state tuition?” one of the attendees at the meet and greet asked the Knoxville businessman. “No. I don’t think the state of Tennessee should be supplying or paying in-state benefits to people that are not in-state,” Boyd responded. The current bill proposed by State Rep. Mark White actually provides in-state tuition rates to illegal immigrant students by redefining what a public benefit is. “Having said that, though, I think, it’s the kind of nuance that, I want to bring more people from all over the country and all over the world to the state of Tennessee, and our…

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Plaintiff Appeals Decision Setting August 2 Date for Special Mayoral Election to the Tennessee Supreme Court

Tennessee Star Staff

On Thursday attorney Jamie Hollin appealed directly to the Tennessee Supreme Court a ruling by Chancery Court Judge Claudia Bonnyman against his client, mayoral candidate Ludye Wallace, who argued the law says the special Nashville mayoral election should be held on May 1, and in favor of the Davidson County Election Commission, which set August 2 as the date for the special election. “This case involves a pure question of law regarding a matter of unusual public importance: When the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County—Tennessee’s capital city and most populous municipality—must hold an election to fill a vacancy in the office of Mayor,” the plaintiff’s brief began. “Even more significantly, this case seeks to determine whether the citizens of Nashville are entitled to have their government faithfully adhere to the text of a Charter provision that they collectively enacted with overwhelming support by popular referendum,” the brief continued. The appeal is not automatically heard by the Tennessee Supreme Court. Instead, they must actively decide to “reach down” to hear the case. You can read the entire plaintiff’s brief here: [pdf-embedder url=”https://tennesseestar.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/L.-Wallace-Motion-for-Direct-Review-Exhibits.pdf” title=”L. Wallace Motion for Direct Review & Exhibits”]

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Lack of Transparency Surrounds Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney’s Medical Condition

Tennessee Star Staff

A lack of transparency on the part of the Williamson County Schools (WCS) surrounds the medical condition of Superintendent Mike Looney. The Tennessee Star broke the story on Tuesday that Looney told WCS staffers earlier in the day that he has a tumor on his pancreas. The language of that communication suggested that he was going to go on medical leave during his treatment period: I need to share a little bit of news so that you can learn it from me rather than another source. I would much rather not share things of a personal nature, but given my role in the district, it really can’t be avoided. I very recently learned that I have a tumor in my pancreas. At this point, I am planning on having surgery toward the end of this month and unfortunately will need to take several weeks off for recovery. (emphasis added) The central office staff is wholly prepared to support your work without me. Jason Golden will act on my behalf during my absence. I will enjoy watching from a distance and will continue to cheer you on as our work progresses. However, Carol Birdsong, director of communications for WCS, told The…

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Legal Expert: If Decision by Judge Was Based on ‘Dicta,’ That Would Place Integrity of Special Mayoral Election and Judicial System in Question

Tennessee Star Staff

Professor Judith M. Stinson, Executive Associate Dean of the Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law at Arizona State University and a recognized national expert on the distinctions between legal holdings and “dicta,” told The Tennessee Star that if the decision by Chancery Court Judge Claudia Bonnyman to set the date for the special mayoral election in Nashville at August 2 treated dicta as binding, that places the integrity of that election, as well as the entire judicial system in the state of Tennessee, in question. Only a legal holding in a case on the issue argued by both sides establishes legal precedent, Stinson told The Star in a phone interview on Thursday. “Dicta” is entirely irrelevant and is not solid grounds for a legal precedent. Last Friday, the Davidson County Election Commission ignored the plain meaning of the law and voted 3 to 2 to set August 2 as the date for the special mayoral election. On Wednesday, Judge Bonnyman sided with the commission and ruled that August 2 should be the date for the special mayoral election. On Thursday, Jamie Hollin, attorney for plaintiff and mayoral candidate Ludye Wallace, appealed Judge Bonnyman’s ruling to the Tennessee Supreme Court, The Tennesseean reported. Here is the…

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Judge Rules Nashville Mayoral Special Election Will Be Held August 2, Appeal to State Supreme Court Possible

Tennessee Star Staff

Davidson County Chancery Court Chancellor Claudia Bonnyman sided with the Davidson County Election Commission and the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County on Wednesday, ruling that the special mayoral election will be held on August 2 rather than May 1. Jamie Hollin, the attorney for mayoral candidate Ludye Wallace, “argued that ‘general Metropolitan elections’ only occur once every four years, during the regularly-scheduled mayoral election. The next one of those has been scheduled for August 2019. Under that interpretation, a special election would need to be held in May because August 2019 is more than a year after Mayor Barry resigned,” News Channel 5 reported, adding: But attorneys for Metro’s legal department argued that the upcoming August 2018 General Election also qualifies as a “general Metropolitan election,” saying that the term is not exclusive to the Mayoral election held every four years. Under that interpretation, the mayoral election question would be added to the ballot this August. In her ruling, Chancellor Bonnyman said previous court rulings have used the broader interpretation of the election term, indicating that it can apply to more than just the mayoral elections held every four years. You can watch the complete video of the…

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Home Schoolers Compete in Davy Crockett Statesman’s Debate Tournament at State Capitol

Tennessee Star Staff

NASHVILLE, Tennessee–Home schooled students from around Tennessee competed in the Davy Crockett Statesman’s Student Congress Debate Tournament at the State Capitol on Wednesday. The Student Congress consisted of two separate legislative bodies: The Gold House, which debated bills for consideration in the Tennessee State Senate chambers, and the Silver House, which debated bills for consideration in the Tennessee House of Representatives chambers. Debate in each house was governed by a presiding officer, a home schooled student who had excelled in previous Davy Crockett Statesman’s Debate Tournament events. The presiding officer observed Robert’s Rules of Order, which governed the conduct of participating student legislators who debated the proposed bills prior to voting on them, similar to the manner in which floor debates are managed in both the Tennessee State Senate and the Tennessee House of Representatives. Among the bills the students debated and voted on were: A proposal to cut off federal funding to the state of California (which failed) A proposal to legalize medical marijuana (which failed) A proposal to repeal the Davis Bacon Act (which passed) A proposal to defund the National Endowment for the Arts (which failed) Three volunteer judges in each legislative body rated each participating student legislator’s debating…

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Shane Reeves Wins 14th State Senate District Special Election in 2 to 1 Blowout Victory

Tennessee Star Staff

Murfreesboro businessman Shane Reeves, a Republican, won a crushing victory over Democrat Gayle Jordan in the 14th State Senate District special election on Tuesday by more than a two to one margin. The final numbers were a blowout victory for Reeves, who won 71 percent of the vote to 28 percent of the vote for Jordan, according to the Tennessee Secretary of State’s election website. Reeves received 13,139 votes, while Jordan received only 5,179 votes. He is expected to be sworn in as a member of the Tennessee State Senate this week, and will join the deliberations of the Tennessee General Assembly, which is now in session. With Reeves’ victory, Republicans now hold 28 seats in the 33 member Tennessee State Senate, while Democrats hold only five. Tennessee Republican Party Scott Golden introduced Reeves at the victory celebration held at the Five Senses Restaurant in Murfreesboro Tuesday evening. “We had an amazing team. Matt Herriman, my campaign chairman, has an amazing future with this party,” Reeves said. “Gregory Gleaves did a lot of great mail for us,” he added. “We had an amazing ground team. Daniel,Tyler, Taylor, raise your hands guys! Thousands and thousands of phone calls, thousands and thousands…

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Sources: Embattled Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney to Take Medical Leave

Tennessee Star Staff

5:13 PM Williamson County Schools director of communications Carol Birdsong confirmed to The Tennessean the story The Tennessee Star broke earlier in the day that Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney will be taking a medical leave: Williamson County Director of Schools Mike Looney will take medical leave due to an upcoming surgery. Looney has recently learned that he has a tumor in his pancreas, according to WCS Spokeswoman Carol Birdsong. Over the next several weeks, he will be having surgery and undergoing treatment. The district does not know when exactly Looney will take medical leave, she said.   4:08 PM Sources tell The Tennessee Star that embattled Williamson County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney will be taking a medical leave. The Star has asked Williamson County Schools director of communications Carol Birdsong for comment, but has not yet received a reply. According to a source, Looney sent this message out today:   I need to share a little bit of news so that you can learn it from me rather than another source. I would much rather not share things of a personal nature, but given my role in the district, it really can’t be avoided. I very recently learned…

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Tillerson Out at State Department, Pompeo In

Tennessee Star Staff

In a surprise announcement made on his Twitter account at 7:44 am central time on Tuesday morning, President Trump announced that Rex Tillerson is out as Secretary of State and CIA Director Mike Pompeo is in.   Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of State. He will do a fantastic job! Thank you to Rex Tillerson for his service! Gina Haspel will become the new Director of the CIA, and the first woman so chosen. Congratulations to all! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 13, 2018   The former Exxon CEO served in his post as Secretary of State for barely a year, and was said to be frequently on the outside of major foreign policy decisions made by President Trump. Reports indicated that he was not aware that President Trump had arranged to meet with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un in person until after the announcement was made public last week.

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Senator Bill Ketron Confirms ‘Friends of Megan Barry’ Donated $250 to His Campaign Fund, Will Now Give the Contribution to Charity

Tennessee Star Staff

The fallout from the Nashville Mayor Megan Barry scandal continues to reverberate. As The Tennessee Star reported in February, Republican candidate for Governor Bill Lee made a $500 donation to the Megan Barry mayoral campaign in 2015. Now, The Star has learned that the Barry campaign made a donation to the reelection campaign of Republican State Senator Bill Ketron on January 9, 2017. The $250 donation to the Ketron campaign from “Friends of Megan Barry” is contained in Ketron’s Amended 2018 Yearly Supplemental Report filed with the Tennessee Registry of Election Finance on 3/31/2017. Ketron confirmed the contribution in a statement emailed to The Star on Monday. “I did receive a contribution from her, but do not approve of the way she conducted her office,” Ketron said. “Therefore, I will be taking that contribution and giving it to charity,” he added. Ketron was an early supporter of Megan Barry’s transit plan for Nashville and has expressed his hopes to expand it to Murfreesboro.  The nearly $9 billion Nashville transit plan and the tax increases needed to pay for it are scheduled for a referendum vote on May 1, 2018 in Davidson County. Ketron is currently running in the Republican primary…

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions Blasts Slew of Nationwide Injunctions Imposed by Left Wing Courts

Tennessee Star Staff

In a speech to a conservative legal group Saturday, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions blasted federal judges for issuing nationwide injunctions that have blocked President Donald Trump from enacting his policies on everything from sanctuary cities to transgender troops serving in the military. “In truth, this is a question of raw power-of who gets to decide the policy questions facing America: our elected representatives, our elected president or unelected lifetime-appointed federal judges,” Mr. Sessions told a gathering of the Federalist Society.

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Commentary: How Many Laws Did the Mayor of Oakland, California Break?

Tennessee Star Staff

by Printus LeBlanc   Anyone that paid attention to the 2016 election knows the issue of illegal immigration was one of the core issues that drove President Trump to victory. For good reason, the American people were tired of open borders and criminal illegal immigrants roaming freely through their streets. President Trump is keeping his promise to deport criminal illegal immigrants, but many local politicians care more about convicted criminals than they do their own citizens. Since President Trump took office, ICE has increased arrests by 40 percent, a far cry from the Obama administration that had a habit of releasing criminal illegal immigrants into the community. The Obama administration was so inept, or corrupt, at security it released over 19,000 criminal illegal immigrants into U.S. communities. The 19,000 had over 64,000 convictions, including hundreds of guilty of murder, kidnapping, and sexual assault. For some reason, the Obama administration didn’t believe in deporting violent criminals; the administration felt it was more appropriate to let them roam streets. Last week, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched a series of raids across Northern California targeting hundreds of criminal illegal immigrants. It is important to note; these are illegal immigrants that have…

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