Author: Zachery Schmidt

Tennessee’s Only Democrats in House, Steve Cohen and Jim Cooper, Announce Support for Articles of Impeachment

Zachery Schmidt

  Tennessee’s only two Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives, Reps Steve Cohen (TN-09) and Jim Cooper (TN-05), have announced their decisions to support the two Articles of Impeachment against President Trump, introduced in the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. Both Cohen and Cooper represent safely Democratic districts. Cohen represents Memphis, while Cooper represents Nashville. The remaining seven members of the Tennessee Congressional delegation are all Republicans, and are all strongly behind the president. Cooper’s announcement came on Tuesday, while Cohen’s came on Wednesday night as members of the House Judiciary Commitee debated articles of impeachment. During that hearing, Cohen, who sits on that committee, declared President Donald Trump used his office “for personal political gain.” “When President Trump, for his own personal political gain, asked for a favor from a foreign leader, he did exactly what our Founders feared most — he invited the influence of a foreign power into our elections. This is one of the primary reasons the Founders placed impeachment in our Constitution. Trump’s subversive and illegal actions in seeking foreign interference is an insult to the “Constitution and to free and fair elections,” according to Cohen. Furthermore, the representative believes Trump’s “attempt to subvert…

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Protesters Gather Outside Mayor Cooper’s Office Asking Questions About Police Body Cameras

Zachery Schmidt

  Protesters gathered outside Nashville Mayor John Cooper’s office Tuesday night wanting answers to why the city hasn’t implement body cameras on its police officers yet. They want cameras to be on Metro police officers by January, WPLN reported. People expressed their frustration by shouting “three years, three mayors, still no cameras.” This referred to previous mayors not adding these cameras to the city’s budget. Back in 2016, then-Mayor Megan Barry promised she would fund body cameras in the city’s budget. However, the body cameras did not make it in Nashville’s budget. This summer former Mayor David Briley signed a deal with the Metro Police Department to roll out the cameras, but it stalled because he lost re-election to Cooper in September. The Metro Police Department scheduled to buy body cameras two weeks ago. However, Cooper put a stop to this plan after Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury Justin Wilson told Metro Council to fix Nashville’s budget problems. If the city’s budget problems are not fixed, the state could become involved Wilson warned. “None of us want to see that happen,” he said. “ You don’t want someone from the state capital to come and tell you how to run…

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Three Tennessee Congressional Members Sent a Letter to President Trump Asking Him to Support Gov. Lee’s Federal Aid Request

Zachery Schmidt

  Tennessee’s Senators Lamar Alexander and Marsha Blackburn, along with Rep. Mark Green (R-TN-07), sent a letter to President Donald Trump Monday asking him to support Gov. Bill Lee’s federal aid request for a major disaster declaration. “The storms that swept across the State of Tennessee beginning on October 26th cost two Tennesseans their lives, blew over seven commercial tractor-trailers, shutdown the Tennessee River Bridge on Interstate I-40 for several hours, left nearly 65,000 Tennesseans without power, and closed down nine school districts for nearly a week,” the letter states. Last month, Lee petitioned the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to use its Public Assistance Program on 10 Tennessee counties that experienced almost $22 million in damage after Tropical Storm Olga hit. During his announcement to seek federal disaster relief, Lee described how emergency workers worked “tirelessly” during the storm and how this money would help “lessen the financial burden” on Tennessee. Lee said the relief would go to emergency work done “during and after the response.” The Republican Congressional members’ letter “strongly urged” the president to considers Tennessee’s request “as soon as possible.” According to the letter, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency has worked with the FEMA since the…

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The History of Cyber Monday

Zachery Schmidt

  The year is 2004, both Ellen Davis and Scott Silverman, who work for Shop.org, are conducting research when they happened to stumble upon key information that would, in turn, create a new annual online shopping tradition. Research showed them that the Monday after Thanksgiving was one of the biggest shopping days of the year. With that finding, the two created a marketing campaign that would encourage people to buy more things for the holidays. A year later in 2005, the first “Cyber Monday” was announced. The first Cyber Monday saw shoppers spending $484 million. Just five years into the shopping holiday in 2010, it reached $1 billion. Ever since, the line between Cyber Monday and Black Friday has become increasingly blurred. More and more companies have started to put their exclusive deals online rather than in the shops. In 2018, people spent a record $7.9 billion on Cyber Monday, according to CNBC. This was more than was spent on Black Friday online shopping in 2018 where people spent over $6.2 billion. It is common for Americans to buy holiday presents between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. Last year, Amazon sold over 180 million items from Thanksgiving Day to Cyber…

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Mark Sanford Ends His Republican Primary Challenge to President Trump

Zachery Schmidt

  Just two months in, former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford announced he suspended his 2020 presidential primary challenge to President Donald Trump. “I am suspending my race for the presidency because impeachment has made my goal of making the debt, deficit and spending issue a part of this presidential debate impossible right now,” Sanford said in a statement posted on Facebook Tuesday. “From Day 1, I was fully aware of how hard it would be to elevate these issues with a sitting president of my own party ignoring them. Impeachment noise has moved what was hard to hurulean [sic] as nearly everything in Republican Party politics is currently viewed through the prism of impeachment.” At his press conference announcing his decision, Sanford noted that “all the oxygen is leaving the room in meaningful debate” and politics has turned into a “red versus blue team.” Sanford emerged as a critic of Trump and his policies when he became president. His campaign focused on returning to “traditional” conservative values and focusing on America’s debt problem. “The purpose of this campaign is to spark a needed conversation as Republicans on what it means to be a Republican, and a larger national debate…

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A New ‘Joker,’ an Out-of-this-World Drama, and a Mountaintop Adventure Are at the Movies This Weekend

Zachery Schmidt

  A Joker, an astronaut, and group of climbers await you at the movie theaters this weekend. Joker: What some people consider the movie of the year, Joker hit the big screen Friday telling the origin story of Gotham City’s favorite villain. Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), a failed comedian, is constantly alone in the world. For a day job, he is a clown which allows him a fruitless attempt to feel apart of the world. However, as he begins to feel more isolated from society, he transforms into the criminal mastermind of the Joker. Rotten Tomatoes movie critics gave this drama a 70 percent rating, however, fans gave it a 93 percent rating. Lucy in the Sky: Astronaut Lucy Cole (Natalie Portman) returns from space after having an affair with another astronaut Mark Goodwin (Jon Hamm) outside of earth. When she returns home, things spiral out of control for her as she starts to lose connection with her family and Goodwin begins an affair with another astronaut trainee. This drama has rated badly with movie critics. Rotten Tomatoes scored it at 30 percent. Audience ratings were not available. This movie opened on Friday. The Climbers: This drama/action movie details the…

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Movies to Watch This Weekend

Zachery Schmidt

  Unbelievable: A teen (Kaitlyn Dever) reports that she was raped but later recants her rape confession. However, two female detectives investigate this case as with other similar cases to try to get to the bottom of the situation. This drama limited series based on true events became available Friday on Netflix has been received well by Rotten Tomatoes movie critics. They have scored this movie at a 92 percent.     Hustlers: This movie follows four former strip club employees who join together and try to turn the tables on former Wall Street clients after being inspired by a New York magazine article. Rotten Tomatoes movie critics gave this movie an 89 percent rating. This drama movie opened on Friday.   The Goldfinch: A teenage boy Theodore Decker’s mother died in the bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This life-altering event sends the 13-year-old down (Oakes Fegley) life events that make him feel grief, guilt, redemption and love. While experiencing these moments, he has a painting of a tiny bird chained to its perch: the Goldfinch. Rotten Tomatoes movie critics have given this movie a 30 percent rating. This drama opened on Friday. – –…

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Glen Casada and Bill Ketron Are Under Investigation for Campaign Finance Violations

Zachery Schmidt

  Former Tennessee Speaker of the House Glen Casada and current Rutherford County Mayor Bill Ketron are both being investigated for allegedly misspending campaign money, according to NewsChannel 5. The Tennessee Registry of Election Finance unanimously voted Wednesday to look into both politicians’ campaign and political action committee accounts. Registry Board Member Tom Lawless told Channel 5 he wanted two things: transparency and integrity. “It’s not something I’m thrilled to ask for by any stretch of the imagination but I think we have to,” he said. “It’s of sufficient import to the folks that put us here and to the taxpayers and to the people elected that we do this.” The state’s election finance registry has had a hard time collecting fines for violating campaign and ethics rules. As The Tennessee Star previously reported, the registry has $1.5 million in outstanding unpaid fines, including fines against Ketron, who already owes $50,000 to the state. Casada, upon learning about the upcoming investigation, issued a statement to The Tennessean. “I am confident that an independent review of my PAC and campaign finances by the registry will make it clear that I have not used any funds inappropriately, and I urge them to…

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Banks, Boogeymen, and Birds Are Waiting for You at the Movies

Zachery Schmidt

This movie tells the true story of Brian Banks (Aldis Hodge), a highly acclaimed football recruit, who had his football dreams taken away from him by a false rape accusation charge. Despite a lack of evidence, he received 10 years of prison and probation. However, years later and after an overturned conviction, Banks is released from prison and tries to fulfill his football dreams.

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Trump Calls Tlaib a ‘Lunatic’ After Watching 2016 Video Showing Her Being Removed from His Rally

Zachery Schmidt

  President Donald Trump criticized Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-13) Tuesday during a speech where he called her a “lunatic” after watching a video of her being thrown out of a 2016 Trump rally. The video showed Tlaib being removed by security guards at Detroit’s Cobo Center. While leaving, she yelled “you guys are crazy” at Trump supporters. In response, a person called her an “animal” and told her “to get a job.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EI6Nmhz2PSY&feature=youtu.be “There is no way she stands for the values of the people of Michigan. But I watched her this morning. She’s vicious. She’s like a crazed lunatic,” Trump said at the Turning Point USA’s Teen Student Action Summit. “She starts screaming, and this is not a sane person, folks, when you look at that. And this is what we’re up against,” he added. Donald Trump took jabs at Freshmen Democrats Rashida Tlaib, AOC and Ilhan Omar when speaking to young conservatives at the Turning Point USA Teen Action Summit. Earlier today, he predicted Omar’s remarks would give him the edge to win Minnesota in 2020 https://t.co/XlmbeYUwbD pic.twitter.com/H0QMFQphdj — POLITICO (@politico) July 23, 2019 At the 2016 Trump rally, Tlaib and at least 14 other protesters were…

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Movies to Watch This Weekend

Zachery Schmidt

  The Lion King: The long-awaited “live-action” re-imagining of The Lion King is here. Simba (JD McCrary) and King Mufasa (James Earl Jones) are returning to the big screen after a 25-year hiatus. In this Disney version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Simba questions what his royal destiny will be on the wide-open plains of Africa.  Mufasa’s brother, Scar (Chiwetel Ejiofor) has his own plan to take the throne. Eventually, Simba and Scar battle it out, and Simba is exiled after the Battle of Scar. He must figure out how to grow up and get back what is rightfully his. Unlike it’s animated predecessor, 2019’s The Lion King has not been received well at the box office by movie critics. Rotten Tomatoes scored it a 55 percent. However, fans scored it a 90 percent. Into the Ashes: An ex-con name Nick (Luke Grimes) is adjusting to life in rural Alabama with his new wife and job. However, Nick was not able to escape his past violent life for long. His past crew has not forgotten about the money he stole, so they take his wife. Nick must decide if he wants to go the lawful route or the outlaw route. Critics have given…

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Michigan Beauty Pageant Winner Stripped of Title Over Past ‘Insensitive’ Tweets

Zachery Schmidt

  A model who supports President Donald Trump had her beauty queen crown removed after “inappropriate” past social media posts were discovered. Kathy Zhu, a Chinese immigrant, believes her Miss Michigan World America title was stripped because of her conservative beliefs. The former beauty pageant winner has a large social media following with almost 90,000 followers on Twitter (76,100) and Instagram (13,300) combined. Miss World America (MWA) sent an email to Zhu on Thursday explaining that her past social media posts violated its rules and conditions of “being a good character and whose background is not likely to bring into disrepute Miss World America or any person associated with the organization.” Zhu posted the email and her reaction to it on Twitter. “Miss World America’s State/National/Chief Director accused me of being racist, Islamaphobic, and insensitive. They stripped me of my Miss Michigan title due to my refusal to try on a hijab in 2018, my tweet about black on black gun violence, and ‘insensitive’ statistical tweets,” she said. https://twitter.com/PoliticalKathy/status/1152044590645616640 The former pageant winner had two 2018 social media posts come under question. In 2018, when she was a Central Florida University freshman, Zhu approached the Muslim Student Association booth celebrating…

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Marsha Blackburn and Joe Manchin Introduce Bill to Help Student-Veterans

Zachery Schmidt

  Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn introduced legislation along with West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin that would give student-veterans access to in-state tuition rates at public colleges regardless of if they are in-state residents who receive GI Bill payments. “We should give our veterans every opportunity to succeed after they have finished their service,” Blackburn said. “This legislation would eliminate existing obstacles that prevent our men and women in uniform from a smooth transition into civilian life. I am glad that Tennessee is currently one of the 27 states that currently waives the three-year cap. Let’s make it one of 50.” Right now, the GI Bill has a provision that requires veterans to be within three years of discharge from active duty to access in-state tuition rates. Manchin explained why this bill helps veteran students. “In the United States, Veteran students tend to outperform and out-earn their non-veteran counterparts. Veterans not only defend our freedoms and sacrifice for our country, they continuously work hard and search for opportunities to succeed here at home. Improving the Forever GI Bill will help Veteran students gain access to in-state tuition without having a ‘three-year rule’  that limits their opportunity to receive an education in…

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‘Anti-Fascist’ Man Killed After Attempting to Burn Down ICE Detention Center

Zachery Schmidt

  A man described as an “anarchist” and “anti-fascist” was killed Saturday morning at a Washington State ICE detention center when he showed up armed with a rifle and incendiary devices. Willem Van Spronsen, 68, lit a car on fire and tried to ignite a propane tank in order to burn the building down. Last year, police arrested Spronsen when he protested at the exact same center. During that encounter with the police, he put his hands around a law enforcement officer’s throat while trying to free another protester. Deb Bartley, a friend of Spronsen, spoke to The Seattle Times and described him as an “anarchist” and “anti-fascist.” She thought he was trying to invoke “fatal conflict.” “He was ready to end it,” Bartley told the Times. “I think this was a suicide. But then he was able to kind of do it in a way that spoke to his political beliefs … I know he went down there knowing he was going to die.” Police first responded to the scene at 4:00 a.m. after an ICE employee saw a man outside armed with a rifle, according to the Tacoma Police Department. The Tacoma Police Department said the four officers who…

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