Tag: Attorney General

TIME’S UP CEO Resigns over Ties to Cuomo Investigation

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Tina Tchen

The second TIME’S UP co-founder has resigned from her position following backlash over reports that she worked against Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s accusers.

“Now is the time for Time’s Up to evolve and move forward as there is so much more work to do for women,” TIME’S UP co-founder Tina Tchen said in a statement, according to The Washington Post. “It is clear that I am not the leader who can accomplish that in this moment.”

“I am especially aware that my position at the helm of Time’s Up has become a painful and divisive focal point, where those very women and other activists who should be working together to fight for change are instead battling each other in harmful ways,” she added.

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Former State Attorney General Adam Laxalt Launches Senate Bid in Nevada

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Adam Laxalt

Former Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt launched a long-expected Senate bid Tuesday, becoming the highest-profile Republican to take on Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto.

“The radical left, rich elites, woke corporations, academia and the media, they’re taking over America,” Laxalt said in an announcement video likening them to Star Wars’ Galactic Empire.

Laxalt served as attorney general from 2015-2019. In 2018 he lost his bid for governor to Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak.

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Commentary: Letters from a D.C. Jail

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This week, five Republican senators sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland regarding his office’s handling of January 6 protesters. The letter revealed the senators are aware that several Capitol defendants charged with mostly nonviolent crimes are being held in solitary confinement conditions in a D.C. jail used exclusively to house Capitol detainees.

Joe Biden’s Justice Department routinely requests—and partisan Beltway federal judges routinely approve—pre-trial detention for Americans arrested for their involvement in the January 6 protest. This includes everyone from an 18-year-old high school senior from Georgia to a 70-year-old Virginia farmer with no criminal record.

It is important to emphasize that the accused have languished for months in prison before their trials even have begun. Judges are keeping defendants behind bars largely based on clips selectively produced by the government from a trove of video footage under protective seal and unavailable to defense lawyers and the public—and for the thoughtcrime of doubting the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.

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Second Republican Enters Race to Challenge Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison

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Dennis Smith

Dennis Smith, an attorney and former Republican state legislator, announced his campaign for attorney general last week.

“I’m running for Attorney General to build a future Minnesotans deserve,” Smith said in a press release. “For too long, the office of Attorney General has been used for politics, and that must end!”

The position is currently occupied by Democrat Keith Ellison, whose office led the successful prosecution of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.

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Republican Senators Say Independent Investigation Firm Is Biased

Eric Burk

Republican senators are criticizing the choice of law firm Nixon Peabody to investigate the investigation into the Virginia Parole Board (VPB). An appointment letter published by the Office of the Attorney General states that the firm was chosen in part to avoid any firms with a strong connection to Virginia. But a week after the announcement, Senators Mark Obenshain (R-Rockingham) and Stephen Newman (R-Bedford) suggested that the Nixon Peabody team is politically biased.

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Vanita Gupta, Former Obama DOJ Official and Civil Rights Lawyer, Narrowly Confirmed as Associate Attorney General

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Vanita Gupta

The Senate confirmed civil rights lawyer Vanita Gupta to be the Associate Attorney General Wednesday.

Gupta, who will be the third-ranking official at the Department of Justice, was confirmed 51-49, with Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski joining all 50 Democrats voting in favor.

“I have looked at her record, I have had an extensive sit down with her,” Murkowski said before the vote. “I am impressed with her credentials … and the passion that she carries with her with the work that she performs.”

Murkowski acknowledged Gupta’s confirmation was contentious, but said her passion was “impactful.”

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VPAP Provides Infographic Explaining Complex Process of Becoming a Delegate to Virginia GOP Convention

Matthew Hall

The Virginia Public Access Project has provided additional information about the delegate registration and vote counting processes for the 2021 Republican Party of Virginia unassembled convention. The May 8th convention will determine the Republican nominees for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General.  The Virginia Star has previously covered the process, and VPAP provided additional detail about changes made to the delegate selection and counting process.

The process is very different from a traditional primary with a polling location in each neighborhood. For one to become a delegate to the convention, one must file a pre-file form with your local Republican committee. Then, one must show up to one of the 30+ voting locations across the Commonwealth as assigned per voting locality.

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Michigan Attorney General Nessel Won’t Investigate Gov. Whitmer’s Nursing Home Policy

The Center Square

Attorney General Dana Nessel rejected Republicans’ request to investigate Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s COVID-19 nursing home policy. 

A Republican state senator said Monday that Attorney General Dana Nessel is expected to announce by the middle of the week whether she will investigate Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s COVID-19 nursing home policies.

“I called on the attorney general to carry out an honest investigation into Michigan’s nursing home policies weeks ago,” Sen. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, said in a statement. “I’ve learned from the attorney general’s office that they intend to announce a decision by Wednesday. Attorney General Nessel knows the right thing to do – and that is to get answers for every family who lost a loved one to COVID-19 in a nursing home.”

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Biden to Pick Merrick Garland for Attorney General

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Joe Biden will nominate federal appeals court judge Merrick Garland to serve as attorney general, according to Politico.

Biden’s decision comes after Democrats appear in striking distance of taking control of the Senate following runoff elections in Georgia on Tuesday. Raphael Warnock is projected to defeat Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler. Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff is currently leading David Perdue, a Republican incumbent who holds the other seat in Georgia.

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Supreme Court Declines to Hear Tennessee’s Challenge to Federal Refugee Resettlement Program

Jason M. Reynolds
Supreme Court of the United States

The U.S. Supreme Court said this week it will not hear Tennessee’s challenge of the federal refugee resettlement program, which claimed it violated the 10th Amendment.

Tennessee’s Republican-led government had asked for the review, The Associated Press reported. The court filed its denial earlier, letting a lower court ruling stand.

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Data Shows Long History of Pay-to-Play Among Ohio Republican Party, DeWine, Householder and FirstEnergy

Jason M. Reynolds

Mike DeWine, as former Ohio attorney general, often awarded no-bid contracts to lawyers and collections agencies to do state work. Many of those chosen vendors also happened to be his campaign donors.

The Dayton Daily News in July 2014 reported on the connections between Attorney General DeWine’s awarding of collections contracts to vendors who also just happened to be campaign donors.

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‘Stunning’: William Barr Hits Establishment Media for ‘Bovine Silence’ on Collapsed Russiagate Narrative

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Attorney General William Barr hit the establishment media in an interview aired Sunday for what he called its “bovine silence” regarding the debunked narrative of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian government.

In an interview on “Fox Sunday Futures,” Barr also asserted that the various government investigations into the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Kremlin were the “closest we have come to an organized effort to push a president out of office” since the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

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Atty Gen Barr Says Regional Joint Terrorism Task Forces Directed to Locate, Apprehend Antifa Leaders, Other ‘Radical Agitators’

Anthony Gockowski

U.S. Attorney General William Barr said in a Sunday statement that the regional Joint Terrorism Task Forces of the FBI  have been directed to locate and apprehend Antifa leaders.

His statement was issued after President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would be declaring Antifa a domestic terrorist organization for its alleged involvement in the terrorizing of major cities after the death of George Floyd.

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Ohio and Minnesota Join Lawsuit Against ‘Corporate Drug Cartel’

Anthony Gockowski

  Attorneys General from 44 different states announced their participation Monday in a lawsuit against 20 of the nation’s leading generic drug manufactures. Both Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison have joined the lawsuit, highlighting the bipartisan nature of the issue. “Ohioans who need medicine might think generic drugs would be their cheapest option, but some manufacturers have rigged the system to avoid competition,” Yost said Monday. “That’s not how a free market works, and the conspiracy to avoid competition makes prices higher – and it’s against the law. This lawsuit is the prescription for lower medicine prices in a free market.” The lawsuit, led by the state of Connecticut, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut and explicitly names 15 defendants who are senior level executives responsible for sales and marketing. The lawsuit alleges that they “engaged in a broad, coordinated and systematic campaign to conspire with each other to fix prices, allocate markets and rig bids for more than 100 different generic drugs.” The complaint also details an “interconnected web” of top executives who frequently met with each other and communicated via text messages to sow “the seeds…

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Task Force Busts Ringleaders of Central Ohio Sex Trafficking Operation

Anthony Gockowski

Attorney General Dave Yost along with law enforcement partners announced Friday that two individuals behind a human sex-trafficking ring in central Ohio were convicted and sentenced. The Central Ohio Human Trafficking Task Force charged Curtis Gossett and Jeffrey Bagley in the bust. The two men led an operation that involved recruiting women from the streets and jails, and drugging them with narcotics to maintain control over them. They trafficked dozens of women for commercial sex in Columbus, according to a press release from Yost’s office. “Women who are sold in the sex trade often think no one will believe them. These convictions are proof positive that there is justice,” Attorney General Yost said. “Our work here is not done.” Gossett received a 13 year sentence while Bagley was handed down a sentence of 10 years. Both will be required to register as sex offenders upon release. “I am very proud of the efforts of the Human Trafficking Task Force,” Columbus Police Deputy Chief Deputy Tim Becker said. “The outcome of this investigation demonstrates the commitment of the Columbus Division of Police to actively support the eradication of trafficking humans in our community and CPD will collaborate with our partners to…

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DOJ: The Long-Awaited Mueller Report Will Be Released Thursday Morning

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by Chuck Ross   Attorney General William Barr plans to release a redacted version of the special counsel’s Russia report on Thursday morning, a Justice Department official told reporters. The report is expected to contain redactions for classified information as well as information provided to a grand jury that special counsel Robert Mueller used in his 22-month investigation. The Justice Department is planning to release the 400-page report to both Congress and the public. White House lawyers have reportedly been briefed on the Mueller report, but are not expected to invoke executive privilege to block other information from being released. Barr sent Congress a letter on March 24 summarizing Mueller’s main conclusions. In the letter, Barr said that Mueller did not establish that the Trump campaign conspired with the Russian government during the 2016 presidential campaign. Mueller was less decisive on the question of obstruction of justice. Barr said that while Mueller’s team did not recommend charges for obstruction, they also did not exonerate Trump on that question. Barr said that after consulting with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein and Justice Department lawyers, he decided not to pursue an obstruction case. One of his arguments was that since nobody was being charged…

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Mark Meadows Expects Criminal Referrals In DOJ Inspector General’s Report

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by Chuck Ross   North Carolina Republican Rep. Mark Meadows said Sunday that he expects the Justice Department’s inspector general to issue criminal referrals as part of an investigation into the FBI’s possible abuse of the surveillance courts during the Trump-Russia probe. “We’re fully anticipating that the [inspector general’s] report will come out as Attorney General Barr said in the next four to six weeks, and I think it’s highly likely that we’ll see criminal referrals coming from them that will correspond with what Chairman [Devin] Nunes has already put forth,” Meadows said in an interview on Fox’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” Attorney General William Barr told Congress on Tuesday that he expects Michael Horowitz, the inspector general, to issue a report in late May or June. On March 28, 2018, Horowitz opened an investigation into whether the FBI and Justice Department complied with legal requirements to obtain a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) warrant against Trump campaign adviser Carter Page. Meadows, a close ally of President Trump’s, said that he and Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan met earlier this week with Horowitz. Both have expressed confidence in Horowitz’s work, and have heightened expectations that the investigation will be favorable to Republicans. Meadows…

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Ohio Attorney General Opposes Scrapping All of Obamacare, Breaking With President Trump

Andrew Shirley

Ohio Republican Attorney General Dave Yost announced Wednesday he would oppose President Donald Trump’s plan to completely repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as Obamacare. On December 14, 2018, shortly before the 2019 open enrollment period ended, a contentious and controversial case was finally ruled on by the U.S. Supreme Court. Texas v. Azar challenged that the entire Affordable Care Act was unconstitutional. The case noted that the Supreme Court previously ruled “the Individual Mandate was unconstitutional under the Interstate Commerce Clause but could fairly be read as an exercise of Congress’ Tax Power because it triggered a tax.” However, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act “eliminated that tax,” and “thus compels the conclusion that the Individual Mandate may no longer be upheld under the Tax Power.” “And because the Individual Mandate continues to mandate the purchase of health insurance, it remains unsustainable under the Interstate Commerce Clause—as the Supreme Court already held,” the case added. Based on this, Texas Federal District Court Judge Reed O’Connor made three conclusions: First, the Court finds the Parties satisfy the applicable standing requirements. Second, the Court finds the Individual Mandate can no longer be fairly read as an exercise of Congress’s Tax Power and is…

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Federal Judge Temporarily Halts Ohio Abortion Limit Passed Last Year

Andrew Shirley

A Senior District Judge is placing a two-week hold on a key provision of an Ohio abortion limit passed in December of last year. On December 13, 2018, then-Governor John Kasich signed Senate Bill 145 (SB 145), commonly referred to as a Dismemberment Abortion Ban into law. It is, as reported at the time, “an act that restricts one of the most common methods in which second-trimester abortions are performed.  The Dismemberment Abortion Ban, as the bill is known, restricts doctors from performing procedures in which dismemberment of the fetus occurs.” Mike Gonidakis, president of Ohio Right to Life, hailed the decision, stating: “Ohioans can sleep easier tonight, knowing that the horrendous practice of dismemberment abortions is behind us…Pro-Life Ohio will not stop until the Abortion Report reads: Zero. Nothing to report” That same day, Kasich vetoed an abortion bill that would have banned all abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected. Shortly after being signed, Planned Parenthood filed suit against the state on the grounds that the law was unconstitutional. They argued that this law places an “undue burden” on women, one that is explicitly outlawed by Roe v. Wade, stating: Should the Act be allowed to take effect, Plaintiffs’ patients’ health…

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Eric Holder Is Out of the Running for 2020

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by Evie Fordham   Former Attorney General Eric Holder announced he will not be throwing his hat in the ring for the 2020 presidential race Monday. “Though I will not run for president in 2020, I will continue to fight for the future of our country through the National Democratic Redistricting Committee and its affiliates,” Holder wrote in a Washington Post op-ed. Holder, who was appointed attorney general by then-President Barack Obama in 2009, had been floating a potential run as early as February 2018. He wrote on Twitter Feb. 26 that he supports a plan to create “real democracy” by doing away with the Electoral College’s process. “Change the Electoral College by having a state’s electoral votes go to the national popular vote winner — not the person who won the state. The candidate who gets the most votes — nationally — is elected. Real democracy,” he tweeted. A good reform measure to support. Change the Electoral College by having a state’s electoral votes go to the national popular vote winner – not the person who won the state. The candidate who gets the most votes – nationally – is elected. Real democracy. https://t.co/tPfNWdKQ46 — Eric Holder (@EricHolder) February 26, 2019…

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Ohio Attorney General: Negligence Leaves One Patient to Rot at Whetstone Gardens and Care Center

Andrew Shirley

A Grand Jury in Franklin County has indicted seven nurses – formerly employed by Whetstone Gardens and Care Center in Columbus – on a litany of charges surrounding the mistreatment of multiple nursing home patients in 2017. Six employed nurses and one contracted nurse practitioner have been indicted on 34 separate changes. The charges include involuntary manslaughter, gross patient neglect, patient neglect, tampering with evidence, and forgery. The most extreme offense was a result of a patient developing “serious wounds on his body progressing to gangrenous and necrotic tissue.” This was a direct result of not maintaining the most basic levels of resident care.  The staff took no measure to address this and the resident died of septic shock shortly after developing these conditions. A second patient also suffered direct physical harm. To hide the negligence, the nursing staff “repeatedly” documented treatments that were never actually provided to the patients. In a public statement Attorney General Yost stated; This case goes to the heart of protecting the unprotected,…These victims were completely dependent on others for day-to-day care, which their families trusted Whetstone Gardens to provide. Instead of providing that care, evidence shows these nurses forced the victims to endure awful mistreatment and then lied about it. This…

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Confirmed: William Barr Is Now the Attorney General of the United States

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by Kevin Daley   The Senate confirmed William Barr as the new attorney general Thursday afternoon, returning Barr for a second tour atop the Department of Justice. The confirmation vote largely followed party lines — GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky voted against confirmation given Barr’s views on domestic surveillance and the Fourth Amendment. Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, Doug Jones of Alabama, and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona broke with their party and supported Barr. Barr previously served as attorney general in the George H. W. Bush administration from 1991 to 1993. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders called Barr’s confirmation “a major victory for justice and the rule of law in America” in a Thursday afternoon tweet. Conservative groups were equally enthusiastic. The Judicial Crisis Network’s Carrie Severino predicted Barr would serve “with integrity and independence, bringing a wealth of experience to this position.” Democratic opposition to Barr was largely a function of his refusal to commit to releasing the special counsel’s comprehensive report of his two-year probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 election. Democrats fear Barr could redact significant portions of the report, or support White House efforts to invoke executive privilege over other…

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Commentary: The Real Reason Democrats Have Postponed Barr’s Confirmation Is All About ‘Russia’ and 2020

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by Julie Kelly   After what seemed to be a done deal following a relatively smooth public hearing last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee now has delayed until February 7 the vote to confirm William Barr, President Trump’s nominee for attorney general. The reason, according to news reports, is lingering concerns about how Trump’s incoming attorney general would manage the investigation of Special Counsel Robert Mueller, which is soon expected to conclude. Despite Barr’s repeated assurances that he will follow Justice Department rules in his handling of Mueller’s final report, as well as a pledge to resist any attempted interference by the White House, Democrats on the committee remain unconvinced. “[Barr’s] answer was not particularly reassuring or clear as to the public disclosure of the Mueller report,” Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) told MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell earlier this week. Democrats also have accused Barr of bias against the Mueller investigation based on a detailed memo he authored last year that objected to the special counsel’s reported interest in whether President Trump obstructed justice. Some have suggested Barr should recuse himself from the investigation, which would be a repeat of a terrible mistake made by former Attorney General Jeff Sessions in 2017. The committee’s vote is scheduled to take…

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Supreme Court Turns Down Challenge To Matthew Whitaker’s Appointment As Acting AG

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by Kevin Daley   The Supreme Court rejected an unusual challenge to Matthew Whitaker’s appointment as acting Attorney General on Monday. The challenge arose in the context of a Second Amendment case from Nevada, where an independent political activist named Barry Michaels challenged a provision of the Federal Gun Control Act which prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms. Michaels’ convictions were for non-violent crimes and he has lived in accordance with the law for 20 years. Whitaker became the named defendant in Michaels’ case when he was appointed acting AG. Shortly thereafter, Michaels and his attorneys filed a motion at the Supreme Court challenging Whitaker’s appointment. The motion argued that a federal law called the Attorney General Succession Act controls the accession of leadership at the Department of Justice. That law provides that the Deputy Attorney General should become the acting AG when a vacancy in that office arises. As such, Michaels said Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein is the rightful acting AG, not Whitaker. Michaels also raised a constitutional issue, arguing that the appointments clause requires Senate confirmation for all principal officers of the government, even those serving in an acting capacity. Whitaker was chief of staff to former Attorney General Jeff Sessions…

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President Trump: John Kelly Will Be Leaving at the End of the Year

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Saturday, President Trump told reporters Chief of Staff John Kelly and he would be parting ways at the end of the year. President Trump added the White House would be making an announcement “in the next day or two” with who would replace the retired Marine general – but added that replacement may be temporary. The staff announcement comes on the heels of other high-profile personnel changes as the president faces a new Democrat majority in the House of Representatives in January, while also gearing up for what political experts promise will be an all-out politial war for the Senate and the Presidency in 2020. News broke last week that Army General Mark Milley will replace Marine General Joseph Dunford as President Trump’s top military advisor. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert is set to replace outgoing United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, while former Bush 41 Attorney General William Barr will be nominated to serve as the nation’s ‘top cop’ once again. President Trump’s remarks were made on the White House lawn at an informal press gaggle as he was leaving to attend the annual Army-Navy football game being held in Philadelphia. A short time later Trump – an avid sports…

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Commentary: Double Standards Galore in the Attorney General Fracas

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by John C. Eastman   So let me get this straight. In his November 8 New York Times op-ed (“Trump’s Appointment of the Acting Attorney General Is Unconstitutional,” co-authored be George Conway), Neal Katyal writes that President Trump’s designation of Matthew Whitaker as acting attorney general is unconstitutional because the office of attorney general is a “principal office,” which can only be filled by someone who has been confirmed by the Senate. That would be the same Neal Katyal who served as acting solicitor general, also a Senate-confirmed position. And the same Neal Katyal whose boss, Attorney General Eric Holder, had served as acting attorney general at the end of the Clinton Administration and in the early days of the George W. Bush Administration. And the same Neal Katyal who served in an administration that closed out with another acting attorney general, Sally Yates, who acted like an embedded enemy within the Trump Administration until she was finally fired by the president for refusing to defend the president’s travel ban executive order—she claimed that there was no plausible defense for it, even though the policy was ultimately upheld by the Supreme Court. The double standard is so palpable as to…

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Leftist Groups Have Meltdown Over Whitaker Appointment as Acting Attorney General, Organize Protests Around Nation, Including Tennessee Cities

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Leftist groups organized protests in hundreds of cities across the nation, including Tennessee, Thursday to protest the appointment of Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, citing fears he might interfere with special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe. Many protests used similar words and slogans. Demonstrators marched on Nashville, Chattanooga and Murfreesboro, among other cities. They packed the streets of Nashville Thursday night in support of Mueller, NewsChannel 5 reported. Whitaker has assumed the role of overseeing Mueller. In Murfreesboro, the Women’s March descended on downtown with signs bearing such slogans as “TIME TO IMPEACH.” The Women’s March on Nashville Facebook page called the protest “Nobody Trumps the Law” and “Rod Rosenstein Removal Protest.” Crowds also turned out in Chicago; Greensboro, North Carolina; Chattanooga, WRCB said, citing the Associated Press. Breitbart reported that Public Citizen tweeted “In firing Jeff Sessions, Donald Trump has crossed a red line and started a constitutional crisis. We are activating our rapid-response network, launching mass protests nationwide TOMORROW (11/8) at 5pm local time.” (Sessions actually resigned by President Trump’s request.) In firing Jeff Sessions, Donald Trump has crossed a red line and started a constitutional crisis. We are activating our rapid-response network, launching mass protests nationwide TOMORROW…

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Trump Forces Out Attorney General Jeff Sessions

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Trumo FBI with Docs

by Maswood Farivar   President Donald Trump forced his controversial Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign on Wednesday, setting the stage for a potential showdown with newly energized Congressional Democrats over the investigation of Russia’s involvement in the 2016 presidential election. Sessions, in a letter to Trump, wrote that he was resigning at “your request,” accepting a fait accompli he’d long sought to avert despite being repeatedly chastised and publicly belittled by Trump over his recusal from oversight of the Russia probe. In a pair of tweets announcing Sessions’ resignation Wednesday afternoon, Trump thanked the attorney general for his service and said Matt Whitaker, Sessions’ chief of staff and vocal critic of the Russia investigation, would take over as acting attorney general. A permanent replacement would be announced later, Trump said, without indicating whether he’d tap Whitaker for the top job at Justice send his name to the Senate. The forced departure of Sessions, a 71-year-old former Republican Senator and early supporter of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, capped a turbulent tenure that hit a rough patch just weeks after Sessions took office in February 2017 and recused himself because of conflicts of interest. Trump blamed the recusal for the appointment…

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Three GOP Gubernatorial Candidates Say Uphold the Constitution, But Tennessee Attorney General Disagrees and Randy Boyd Is Silent

Chris Alto
Bill Lee, Diane Black, Herbert Slatery

This past May, seven states, led by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, sued the federal government to stop Obama’s unconstitutional DACA administrative amnesty program once and for all. To date, Tennessee’s Attorney General Herbert Slatery has not joined the lawsuit. In fact, it appears that Slatery has done an about face choosing instead to support amnesty and a path to citizenship for DREAMER illegal aliens. The Tennessee Star asked each GOP gubernatorial candidate whether as governor would they support having Tennessee join the other states suing to challenge “whether the 2012 executive action unilaterally creating DACA was itself lawful” as stated in the lawsuit? Speaker Harwell responded that she would support the lawsuit. Bill Lee’s campaign spokesman responded: As Mr. Lee stated in the June 20 debate regarding his support of deploying national guard troops to border ‘we cannot be a nation without borders. We are a part of this nation and we should commit our resources to defending the border.’ The same goes for legal resources. Mr. Lee would join this lawsuit to defend our constitution and enforce the rule of law. Diane Black’s campaign spokesman stated affirmatively that Diane “absolutely would join the lawsuit” and that as Diane has…

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Diane Black is Only Gubernatorial Candidate Willing to Change Attorney General Selection Process, Victor Ashe Says

Jason M. Reynolds
Diane Black Would Veto in-state tuition benefits for illegal immigrant students

Victor Ashe noted in his weekly column that Diane Black is the only gubernatorial candidate who supports bringing more transparency to the attorney general selection process. The Black campaign touted Ashe’s column in a press release. The former Knoxville mayor wrote in the Knoxville News-Sentinel that Democratic candidates Craig Fitzhugh and Karl Dean, along with Republicans Beth Harwell (state House speaker) and Randy Boyd all said they support the status quo. Ashe wrote, “Surprisingly, no one is a change agent here as the selection process for state AG is unique to Tennessee with the Supreme Court (only five people) meeting behind closed doors once every eight years to pick a Tennessean to be the chief legal officer. The open meetings laws do not apply to this meeting of a public body.” Black supports voter input Black, however, believes the voters should have a say. “Whether through direct election or legislative appointment, Diane supports changing this process and will push for that change as governor.” Tennessee’s attorney general is Republican Herbert H. Slatery III. He was sworn in as the attorney general and reporter on Oct. 1, 2014, according to the attorney general’s website. Prior to his appointment, Slatery served as…

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Senate Passes Joint Resolution to Elect Tennessee’s Attorney General

Christina Botteri
Tennessee Star

State Senator Mae Beavers (R-Mt. Juliet) successfully began the process to amend the Tennessee Constitution to allow the State Attorney General to be elected by a popular vote, with the passage of Senate Joint Resolution 57. “Currently, the attorney general is twice removed from those he or she is supposed to represent – the people of Tennessee,” said Senator Beavers aid in a statement disseminated to media by Republican Press Secretary Darlene Schlicher.  “It is time we let the citizens have more of a say in their government.” The Senate Join Resolution passed overwhelmingly 22 – 8. To amend the Tennessee Constitution, the proposal will require a simple majority by the 110th General Assembly currently in session, and then a two-thirds majority in the 111th General Assembly elected in 2018. After passage in 2018, the amendment would go to a statewide referendum in 2022. Finally, in order to be adopted, a proposed constitutional amendment needs 50 percent-plus-one votes more than the number of votes cast in the gubernatorial election. The statement reads: [pdf-embedder url=”https://tennesseestar.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Beavers-elected-AG-2017-floor-vote.pdf” title=”Beavers elected AG 2017 floor vote”]  

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