Tag: Democrat

Schiff Will Subpoena Mueller Report if White House Tries to Block its Release

Admin

by Chuck Ross   California Rep. Adam Schiff said Sunday that he is prepared to subpoena a report from the special counsel’s Russia investigation should the White House try to block its release. “At the end of the day, this is just — this case is just too important to keep from the American people what it’s really about,” Schiff said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” CNN host Jake Tapper had asked Schiff, a Democrat, whether he would use his subpoena power when he takes over next month as chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence to obtain the report, should the Trump administration attempt to block its release. https://youtu.be/_BY7odWtwrw?t=1591 “I’m prepared to make sure we do everything possible so that the public has the advantage of as much of the information as it can,” Schiff said. “That sounds like a yes,” said Tapper. “Well, that pretty much is a yes, from my point of view,” Schiff replied, adding that “we ought to make sure this report is public.” Special counsel Robert Mueller is reportedly planning to send his report to the Justice Department as early as mid-February, NBC News reported Friday. The Justice Department, which is…

Read the full story

Key House Lawmaker: Trump Impeachment Hearings Possible

Admin

A key U.S. lawmaker said Sunday that Democrats in the House of Representatives could pursue impeachment hearings against President Donald Trump, saying that the U.S. leader had “surrounded himself with crooks” and was part of a broad “conspiracy against the American people” to win the 2016 election. Congressman Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat set to become chairman of the House Judiciary Committee when Democrats take control of the chamber next month, told CNN that lawmakers have to decide “how important” allegations are against Trump, but should pursue impeachment charges “only for serious offenses.” Nadler offered his thoughts two days after federal prosecutors accused former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, “in coordination with and at the direction” of Trump, of orchestrating $280,000 in hush money payments shortly before the 2016 election to two women who alleged they had affairs with Trump so they would stay silent before Election Day. Nadler said that if proven, the allegations against Trump were “certainly impeachable offenses.” That could lead to his removal from office, if the Senate were to convict him by at least a two-thirds vote, a doubtful proposition with Republican control of the Senate continuing in the Congress that takes office in January.…

Read the full story

Victor Ashe Commentary: Will Knoxville’s Mayor Rogero Spend Her Last Year in Office Settling Political Scores?

Admin

by Victor Ashe   Knoxville’s liberal Democratic Mayor Madeline Rogero starts her final year in office in two weeks and it seems like anything she does now days creates problems as she reveals a streak of vindictive attacks on those she dislikes to the amazement of friends, Democrats and the general public. Rogero, who had recommended $75,000 for Legacy Parks in her most recent city budget proposal which city council easily approved has now decided she will sit on the check and insist on better behavior and a new attitude by the longtime executive director, Carol Evans.  Legacy Parks is a non profit group which includes many significant citizens on its board and as donors. Evans is widely admired as a nonpolitical person and has strong backing from her Board. The Legacy Parks annual luncheon attracts a who’s who cast of civic leaders. It is unheard of in Knoxville for a Mayor to slow walk or withhold a grant which council unanimously voted.  Park and greenway backers are mystified if not angered. No one has a clue how this will end.  Rogero is not talking despite it being public money. Rogero has also waged in the same time frame a…

Read the full story

Commentary: Limousine Liberalism Goes Mainstream

Admin

by Scott Yenar and Jackson Yenar   Suburbs are the battleground in American politics. Republicans continue to increase their hold on rural America and Democrats continue to dominate the cities. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), when it was clear the Democrats would retake the House, remarked, “We’ve got to address the suburban women problem, because it’s real.” Karl Rove sounded a similar alarm at the Washington Examiner’s Sea Island Summit. The new suburban problem defies the old logic of American politics, where we learned to expect the upwardly mobile to favor the lower taxes, limited government, and local control offered by the Republicans. Instead, the “suburban problem” appears to be limousine liberalism gone mainstream. In the 1970s, limousine liberals forced busing while sending their own kids to tony private schools. They willingly paid high taxes that crippled small business, among other things. Today’s limousine liberals have different policies, but signal their membership with similar hypocrisies. They define themselves by “values” more than by wealth, though they are mostly well off or, at least, better off than most. They bemoan the racism and other phobias in America while pricing the middle class and minorities out of their school districts; they drive SUVs;…

Read the full story

California Democratic Chair Resigns After Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Admin

by Hanna Bogorowski   California Democratic Party Chairman Eric Bauman announced his resignation Thursday after allegations of sexual misconduct and inappropriate work place behavior. A Los Angeles Times report surfaced Wednesday that said 10 California Democratic Party (CDP) staffers and political activists had accused him of making lewd, sexual comments to them in the workplace or that Bauman had touched them without their permission. Bauman, 59, said in response to this report that he’d be seeking treatment for health issues and alcohol abuse. “I have made the realization that in order for those to whom I may have caused pain and who need to heal, for my own health, and in the best interest of the Party that I love and to which I have dedicated myself for more than 25 years, it is in everyone’s best interest for me to resign my position as chair of the California Democratic Party,” Bauman said in a statement, according to the LA Times. The sexual misconduct allegations came after Bauman, the Democratic Party’s first openly gay chairman, was accused of unspecified misconduct and had taken a leave of absence. One female staffer recalled obscene comments Bauman made to her at a dinner in 2007, while a gay male…

Read the full story

Democratic 2020 Candidate Wants Government-Sponsored Social Credit System Comparable to China’s

Admin

by Peter Hasson   New York entrepreneur and Democratic 2020 candidate Andrew Yang wants to implement a system in which a government-run mobile app rewards Americans with “digital social credits’ (DSCs) for good behavior. Americans would receive DSCs under Yang’s system for things such as “participating in a town fair,” “fixing a neighbor’s appliance” or “tutoring a student,” his presidential campaign website explains. “As individuals rack up DSCs, they would have both a permanent balance they’ve earned over their lifetime and a current balance. They could cash the points in for experiences, purchases with participating vendors, support for causes, and transfer points to others for special occasions,” Yang states on his website. “As their permanent balance gets higher, they might qualify for various perks like throwing a pitch at a local ballgame, an audience with their local Congressperson or meeting their state’s most civic-minded athlete or celebrity.” “The most socially detached would be the most likely to ignore all of this,” he added. “But many people love rewards and feeling valued.” Yang’s social credit plan bears some similarities to the social credit system implemented by China’s authoritarian government. Every citizen in China is assigned a social credit score that determines whether they…

Read the full story

Democrat at Risk of Losing Seat Now Open to Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Change

Admin

by Jason Hopkins   Indiana Democratic Sen. Joe Donnelly said birthright citizenship should be handled by Congress, a move that appears to be a shift to the right as he fights sinking poll numbers amid the waning days of the midterms. “I’m the only person on this stage who voted three times for a border wall. I voted against sanctuary cities. I’ve stood for secure borders with John McCain when in 2013, we passed legislation that would have provided an additional 20,000 border agents to the border,” Donnelly said during a Tuesday night debate. The topic of birthright citizenship — a law that grants citizenship to any child born on U.S. land — has been heavily discussed after President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced that he plans to attempt signing an executive order ending the law. While both Donnelly and his Republican challenger Mike Braun, a businessman and former state representative, both did not commit to supporting an executive order, they were open to reform at the congressional level. “How this should be handled is by the Congress. I heard you say that Lindsey Graham is going to put legislation forward” to terminate it, Donnelly continued. “We have to take a look at that legislation.” Donnelly’s tough immigration…

Read the full story

Senator Elizabeth Warren Says Migrants in U.S.-Bound Caravan Need to Enter Legally and ‘Follow Those Laws’

Admin

by Henry Rogers   Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign said she believes the thousands of migrants in the caravan headed toward the U.S. need to enter the country legally. Warren, who is up for re-election, has previously called for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and replacing it, and is now saying the migrant caravan filled with thousands of people from Central America traveling through Mexico toward the U.S. should be handled according to the law, in a statement from her campaign to The Daily Caller News Foundation, despite her lax views on immigration. “In regards to the caravan, we have laws for people who come to the border seeking asylum, and Senator Warren believes that we should follow those laws. However, she also knows that we should never have been in this situation. The real problem is Donald Trump’s chaotic foreign policy and lack of a long-term strategy in the region,” Warren’s campaign said in the statement. Despite Warren saying the migrants need to follow the law and enter the country legally, she blamed Trump for the caravan, saying the reason the immigrants are fleeing Central America is due to Trump and his funding to the region. “Trump has hollowed out…

Read the full story

Senator Elizabeth Warren Says Migrants in U.S.-Bound Caravan Need to Enter Legally and ‘Follow Those Laws’

Admin

by Henry Rogers   Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign said she believes the thousands of migrants in the caravan headed toward the U.S. need to enter the country legally. Warren, who is up for re-election, has previously called for abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and replacing it, and is now saying the migrant caravan filled with thousands of people from Central America traveling through Mexico toward the U.S. should be handled according to the law, in a statement from her campaign to The Daily Caller News Foundation, despite her lax views on immigration. “In regards to the caravan, we have laws for people who come to the border seeking asylum, and Senator Warren believes that we should follow those laws. However, she also knows that we should never have been in this situation. The real problem is Donald Trump’s chaotic foreign policy and lack of a long-term strategy in the region,” Warren’s campaign said in the statement. Despite Warren saying the migrants need to follow the law and enter the country legally, she blamed Trump for the caravan, saying the reason the immigrants are fleeing Central America is due to Trump and his funding to the region. “Trump has hollowed out…

Read the full story

Obama, Nevada Democrats Silent After Ex-Wife Said Gubernatorial Candidate Bruised Her During Divorce

Admin

by Andrew Kerr   Former President Barack Obama and other Democrats won’t comment on allegations levied against gubernatorial candidate Steve Sisolak by his ex-wife, including one that the Nevada Democrat bruised his former spouse. Lori “Dallas” Garland told The Daily Caller News Foundation that she felt like a total prisoner throughout her 13-year marriage with Sisolak, and said the single-father backstory he has leveraged throughout his gubernatorial campaign is bull. Garland also said Sisolak bruised her neck in an August 2000 incident. The DCNF reviewed pictures of Garland’s bruised neck and a contemporaneous diary entry detailing the incident. The Sisolak campaign provided sworn statements from the candidate’s daughters, who say the saw the event when they were children, denying that he assaulted Garland. Obama appeared alongside Sisolak at a campaign rally in Las Vegas on Monday, along with senatorial candidate Jacky Rosen, congressional candidate Susie Lee, and lieutenant governor candidate Kate Marshall. None of the Democrats returned repeated request for comment regarding the allegations. The DCNF first reported Garland’s allegations against Sisolak the Friday before the rally. Rosen issued a blanket statement on Twitter in September to “Believe women. Believe women. — Jacky Rosen (@RosenforNevada) September 28, 2018 Sisolak stands to be…

Read the full story

Phil Bredesen’s Connections to Hillary Clinton Go Back Decades to Their Work Together for Liberal Democrat Presidential Candidate Eugene McCarthy in 1968

Steve Gill
Phil Bredesen and Hillary Clinton

These days former Tennessee Governor and Democratic Party nominee Phil Bredesen is working overtime to distance himself from his huge donations to liberal Democratic political candidates, including over $44,000 to help elect Hillary Clinton.  A Tennessee SuperPAC is working to remind voters about that. Bredesen recognizes that his partisan political past doesn’t really fit his rebranding as a “non-partisan” who is “willing to work with President Trump.” The fact that Tom Steyer, the liberal Democrat billionaire from California who is spending $100 MILLION to impeach Trump, has made financial contributions to the Bredesen campaign also tends to undercut his “media makeover.” But Bredesen’s close connections to Hillary Clinton predate his financial support for her failed Presidential run in 2016. While the media hasn’t paid much attention to the fact, the truth is that Hillary and Bredesen worked together in New Hampshire in 1968 for liberal Democratic Presidential candidate Eugene McCarthy. Bredesen worked as a volunteer for McCarthy that year.  He wasn’t alone, as the New York Times says Hillary “found her voice” in the tumultuous political arena of 1968 when she ALSO worked for McCarthy in New Hampshire. Liberal birds of a feather flocked together in 1968. They still do. Another…

Read the full story

Georgia Democrat Gubernatorial Candidate Stacey Abrams Refuses To Reveal Source Of Million-Dollar Donations

Admin
Stacey Abrams

by Jason Hopkins   Stacey Abrams, the Democratic nominee in Georgia’s gubernatorial election, is refusing to disclose the origin of millions of dollars donated to two foundations that helped propel her political career. Former Georgia House of Representatives Minority Leader Stacey Abrams is remaining mum on who funded two tax exempt non-profit organizations. Voter Access Institute and Third Sector Development, both created and led by the Democrat, received a total of $12.5 million in donations from 2013 to 2016. The purpose of Voter Access Institute was to locate “low-propensity” voters and persuade them to go to the polls. Third Sector Development organized a voter-registration initiative that targeted people of color. The two foundations paid Abrams nearly half a million dollars over the course of three years and introduced the former state representative to a national fundraising network. However, the gubernatorial nominee has refused to publish the names of donors involved in her non-profit work. In response to media inquiry, the campaign wouldn’t explain the reasoning behind withholding the names, but instead took a swipe at Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, her Republican opponent in the election. “I’m proud of New Georgia Project’s efforts to register, advocate for, and mobilize…

Read the full story

Thaddeus McCotter Commentary: We’re All Gonna Die! Vote Democrat!

Admin
Nancy Pelosi

by Thaddeus G. McCotter   Around 1994, R. J. Rummel offered the term “democide” to define the “intentional killing of an unarmed or disarmed person by government agents acting in their authoritative capacity and pursuant to government policy or high command.” Victims of democide include: “forced labor and concentration camp victims; killings by ‘unofficial’ private groups; extrajudicial summary killings; and mass deaths due to the governmental acts of criminal omission and neglect, such as in deliberate famines, as well as killings by de facto governments, i.e. civil war killings.” In sum, this is governmentally sanctioned murder that is not based upon race or nationality (“genocide”) or political beliefs (“politicide”), but rather it is equal opportunity oppression for the purpose of advancing a “public policy” whereby members of said public are to be killed “for the common good” (as defined by rulers who never believe their deaths should be part of the policy). Rummel believed that “democide surpassed war as the leading cause of non-natural death in the 20th century”; and its heinous practitioners names have been recorded in the annals of infamy—Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and others of their murderous and sadistic ilk. Now, the seers in the media warn that the 21st…

Read the full story

Democrat Abigail Spanberger Unhappy Her Past Was Revealed

Admin
Abigail Spanberger

by Richard McCarty   Abigail Spanberger is mad. Real mad – and threatening legal action against the Congressional Leadership Fund. Spanberger is the Democrat candidate for Congress in Virginia’s 7th District. The Congressional Leadership Fund, a Republican super PAC, recently obtained a document showing that Spanberger worked at the controversial Islamic Saudi Academy in Northern Virginia. Apparently, she didn’t want voters to find that out. How was this fact uncovered? Earlier this summer, a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request was filed with the National Personnel Records Center seeking “access to certain records contained in the official civilian personnel file of former federal employee Abigail Spanberger. Specifically, this request seeks records reflecting Ms. Spanberger’s employment dates, annual salaries, title, and position description.” This request was forwarded to the Postal Service, which also employed Spanberger. In its response to the FOIA request, the Postal Service included a document disclosing her employment at the Islamic Saudi Academy. Why might Spanberger have wanted to hide the fact that she worked for the school? The school, which was funded by the Saudi embassy, was dubbed “Terror High” by its critics. It had problems before she began working there, and those problems continued after she left. In 2001, two graduates of the…

Read the full story

Bredesen Fundraiser Features Anti-Trumper Who Condemns Christians That Support the President

Admin
Phil Bredesen, Jason Isbell, Ben Folds

Despite his claims to be a different kind of Democrat who will work with President Donald Trump when it helps Tennessee and oppose the partisanship that divides Washington DC along political lines, Phil Bredesen continues to align himself with the most partisan and extremist elements of the Democratic Party. Bredesen has accepted donations from Tom Steyer, a California billionaire who is spending $100 million in an effort to impeach President Trump. And he has made over $460,000 in contributions himself to liberal Democratic candidates across the country, including Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and the Presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton. Yet, his campaign continues to promote him as an example of bi-partisanship and working across the political divide. Monday evening Bredesen is holding a fundraiser featuring singer-songwriters Jason Isbell and Ben Folds at the Marathon Music Works in Nashville in what is billed as outreach to Tennesseans of “all political stripes.” Neither of the headliners for the event have any history of political activism that is not limited to liberal and progressive causes. Folds endorsed Bernie Sanders in the 2016 Democratic presidential primary.  Clinton trounced Sanders in the Tennessee presidential primary contest; she was then soundly defeated by Trump by a…

Read the full story

Liberal Women’s Group: Ellison Must Resign, Drop Out Of AG Race Following Domestic Abuse Allegations

Admin
Keith Ellison

by Peter Hasson   A liberal-leaning women’s group is calling on Democratic Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison to resign from Congress and end his attorney general campaign following allegations that he physically abused his ex-girlfriend. “We believe women. We believe Karen Monahan,” UltraViolet executive director Shaunna Thomas said in a statement Monday. “A domestic abuser does not belong in any position of power but particularly not as the top prosecutor in the State.” “Keith Ellison should withdraw his candidacy for Minnesota’s Attorney General and resign from the House of Representatives.” Ellison, the deputy chair of the Democratic National Committee, denied he physically abused Monahan, an activist for liberal environmental organization, Sierra Club. Karen Francis Monahan especially loved "Little Red Corvette" at the Revolution Reunion @FirstAvenue . pic.twitter.com/zbSgWDogUZ — Keith Ellison (@keithellison) September 3, 2016 Monahan’s son, Austin, on Saturday first accused Ellison of beating his mother in a viral Facebook post. Austin claimed to have uncovered a video on his mom’s laptop that showed Ellison dragging her off a bed and screaming expletives at her. “Karen and I were in a long-term relationship which ended in 2016, and I still care deeply for her well-being,” Ellison declared in a statement Sunday. “This video does not exist because I never behaved…

Read the full story

Minnesota Activist’s Son Accuses DNC Co-Chair Rep. Keith Ellison Of Physically Assaulting His Mom

Admin
Keith Ellison

by Chris White   A person claiming to be the son of a prominent Minnesota-based environmental activist is accusing Rep. Keith Ellison of physically assaulting his mother while the two were in a relationship. Ellison physically assaulted and psychologically abused Sierra Club activist Karen Monahan while the two were in a relationship, according to Austin Aslim Monahan, who claims to be Karen’s son. Austin Monahan also claims his mother convinced him not to make the incidents public because it would not be in her best interests. “My brother and I watched our mom come out of pure hell after getting out of her relationship with Keith Ellison,” Austin wrote in a Facebook post Saturday before detailing the nature of the abuse. His post comes as Ellison runs attorney general in Minnesota. “I was using my moms computer trying to download something and I clicked on a file, I found over 100 text and twitters messages and video almost 2 min long that showed Keith Ellison dragging my mama off the bed by her feet, screaming and calling her a ‘fucking bitch’ and telling her to get the fuck out of his house,” he wrote. Austin added: “We were ready to go public but…

Read the full story

UPDATE: Woman Whose Son Accused Keith Ellison of Abusing Her: ‘What My Son Said Is True’

Admin
Keith Ellison

The woman who was allegedly the victim of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of Representative Keith Ellison tweeted Sunday afternoon that her son’s account of Ellison’s acts were true. What my son said is true. Every statement he made was true.@keithellison, you know you did that to me. I have given every opportunity to get help and heal. Even now, u r willing to say my son is lying and have me continue to leak more text and info just so others will believe him — Karen Monahan (@KarenMonahan01) August 12, 2018 As The Tennessee Star reported: Ellison physically assaulted and psychologically abused Sierra Club activist Karen Monahan while the two were in a relationship, according to Austin Aslim Monahan, who claims to be Karen’s son. Austin Monahan also claims his mother convinced him not to make the incidents public because it would not be in her best interests. “My brother and I watched our mom come out of pure hell after getting out of her relationship with Keith Ellison,” Austin wrote in a Facebook post Saturday before detailing the nature of the abuse. His post comes as Ellison runs attorney general in Minnesota. Read the full story here. Ellison is…

Read the full story

Craig Fitzhugh Waits A Week To Endorse Karl Dean After Getting Crushed In Primary

Jason M. Reynolds
Craig Fitzhugh, Karl Dean

State Rep. Craig Fitzhugh on Friday endorsed Karl Dean, the candidate who crushed him in the Democratic primary for the governor’s race last week, trying to show they are now best buds. Former Nashville Mayor Dean took 75.1 percent of the vote to the outgoing Democratic House minority leader’s 19.5 percent, Ballotpedia reported. Fitzhugh (D-TN-82) must have decided one week and one day was enough time to heal all wounds, as he tweeted his endorsement on Friday: “I’m all in for @KarlFDean and you should be, too. For more #jobs, higher wages, for #educators & #MedicaidExpansion—there’s only one choice. #TeamDean” A Republican leader pointed out the brittle Democratic coalition. Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden said in a statement, “More than a week after the primary elections, Tennessee Democrats have just now managed to get their two candidates on the same stage. Their delay stands in stark contrast to the quick unity shown by the Republican party, where all four of gubernatorial candidates came together in a strong show of support for Bill Lee just two days after his nomination. While Dean and Fitzhugh scramble to bring their supporters together, Bill Lee continues to energize Tennesseans from all walks of…

Read the full story

Phil Bredesen Claims Fellow Democrats ‘Too Elitist,’ While Owning 5 Homes, Private Jet

Jason M. Reynolds
Phil Bredesen

Phil Bredesen wants the voters to know he’s one of them, a working-class guy just working to earn a living — but that’s far from the truth. The former governor who hopes to flip Bob Corker’s seat from Republican to Democrat shares one thing besides friendship with the former Chattanooga mayor: they’re both extremely rich. Bredesen has reported assets between $88.9 million and $358 million, The Washington Free Beacon said. CBS News reported that Corker is one of the wealthiest senators, with an average net worth of $50.7 million. In replacing Corker, Bredesen would also become one of the richest members of Congress. Public records show he is the owner of five homes—two homes in Nashville, two lakefront properties in upstate New York, and a five-bedroom home in Jackson, Wyoming. Like finding a place to hang his hat at night, traveling is no issue for Bredesen: He is one of the registered owners of an Embraer Phenom 300 private jet, according to Federal Aviation Association records. The Embraer Phenom 300 sells for $10 million, according to CNBC. And yet Bredesen says the Democratic Party is  “too elitist and too distant from the concerns of the very down to Earth people that…

Read the full story

Bredesen Makes His Case for Republican Votes in New Ad Featuring Favorable Republican Comments

Admin
Scottie Hughes, Phil Bredesen

A new sixty second digital ad from the Phil Bredesen campaign is targeting Republican votes by promoting carefully selective clips of Republicans saying good things about his time as Governor. The ad features comments from former Trump surrogate and conservative commentator Scottie Hughes, Tennessee Congressman Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN-03), frequent Trump critic Senator Bob Corker (R-TN), lobbyist and former Hendersonville State Representative Debra Maggart (R-Hendersonville), and lobbyist Bill Phillips (who served as Chief of Staff and Deputy Mayor under Democrat Mayor of Nashville, Bill Purcell). Phil Bredesen ad “Republicans” transcript: Scottie Hughes: “Folks do not realize this, a lot of Trump supporters are also Phil Bredesen supporters. And we have two Republican Governors who fought for an income tax and fought for a gas tax but you never saw a tax being fought for by Phil Bredesen.” Bob Corker: “Phil Bredesen is a friend of mine. I mean, OK. I have worked with him for 23 years. We worked together to bring the Titans to our state. When I became a Senator and he was Governor we worked to bring Volkswagen to our state. He was a very good Mayor; very good Governor; very good business person.” Chuck Fleischmann: “He had…

Read the full story

Commentary: GOP Rule Number One: Never Take Agenda or Voting Tips from a Democrat

Admin
President Trump w White House Press

by Jeffery Rendall   Don’t you just love it when someone who has no expertise or authority into your (personal or professional) business gives you advice on how to conduct yourself and run your life? Such was the case when former New York Democrat congressman Steve Israel wrote about the gloomy prospects for the Republican Party last week. In a piece titled “Requiem for the Republican Party,” Israel grumbled at The Hill, “…Republican leaders rightly rebuked Trump’s kumbaya with the Kremlin. House Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and others expressed, in proper Washington parlance, their disagreements with the president’s moral equivocations. But it may be too late. They have planted the invasive seeds of demagoguery, and now they cannot prune them with a few soft ‘tsk-tsks.’ “I never agreed with the Grand Old Party on everything when I served as a member of Congress. But I found accord with it on promoting a Western democratic order in the world, maintaining a strong military to defend freedom, and opposing authoritarianism. I supported the global leadership of the Bush administration in combating AIDS. “I hope that party is not over and replaced by a frothing coalescence of our worst instincts. I…

Read the full story

Former New York Assembly Speaker Gets 7 Years in Prison

Admin
Sheldon Silver

Sheldon Silver, the former New York Assembly speaker who brokered legislative deals for two decades before corruption charges abruptly ended his career, was sentenced Friday to seven years in prison. The punishment, announced by U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni, was five years less than the 12-year sentence she gave to Silver after he was initially convicted in the case in 2015. That conviction was tossed out by an appeals court, but the 74-year-old Democrat fared no better at a second trial this spring. A jury once again found him guilty of taking nearly $4 million in return for legislative favors he performed for a cancer researcher and real estate developers. In a letter to the judge, Silver had begged for mercy. His lawyers had asked that he be given a shorter sentence with a community service component that would allow him to get out from behind bars. “I pray I will not die in prison,” Silver wrote, saying he was “broken-hearted” that he damaged the trust people have in government. “The work that has been the focus of most of my life has become dirty and shameful,” Silver had said in his letter. “Everything I ever accomplished has become a…

Read the full story

California Congresswoman Says There’s No Bias Against Conservatives In Tech – Here’s Why She’s Wrong

Admin
Zoe Lofgren

by Kyle Perisic   A Democratic congresswoman said on Tuesday that conservatives and Republicans’ concerns over bias on the Facebook, Google, and Twitter platforms are unjustified. Here’s proof she’s wrong. Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren of California said at a hearing addressing political discrimination against conservatives and Republicans on Facebook, Google, and Twitter, which dominant Internet traffic, is “motivated by a sense of persecution, on the part of Republicans and conservatives that somehow they’re being unfairly treated when they have a majority in House, the Senate, the White House.” Despite the hearing specifically addressing discrimination against conservatives on the Facebook, Google, and Twitter platforms — not on their conservative news sites — Lofgren brought up “conservative news sites have three times more user engagement that liberals do.” “There’s been no evidence whatsoever that I have seen and that the majority has been able to provide that there’s any bias whatsoever,” she added. YouTube, a subsidiary of Google’s parent company Alphabet, admitted in March it “may misapply some of our policies resulting in mistaken removals,” which in this case involved a number of conservative channels being removed from the platform, The Daily Caller News Foundation reported. Additionally, Google, utilizing Wikipedia, mislabeled a Republican candidate…

Read the full story

Dershowitz: Democrat Cohen’s Insult to Purple Heart Recipients ‘Low Point’ of Anti-Trump FBI Lovebird’s Congressional Testimony

Admin
Maria Bartiromo, Alan Dershowitz, Steve Cohen

Harvard Law Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz appeared on Maria Bartiromo’s ‘Mornings with Maria‘ on Fox Business Friday to discuss the public hearing of anti-Trump FBI lovebird Peter Strzok. However, the two wound up spending much of the segment on Rep. Steve Cohen’s (D-TN-09) deeply insulting suggestion that the embattled Strzok should receive a Purple Heart – an award established by George Washington himself nearly 236 years ago for soldiers wounded in battlefield injuries that dates back to the country’s founding. “Well it was a disaster. Everyone looked terrible,” Dershowitz said, when Bartiromo asked what his main takeaway from the day’s events was. Dershowitz added, “The low point, of course, was when a congressman said he deserved a Purple Heart. A Purple Heart you get when you put your life at risk, not for answering some questions in from of some congress people.” He continued, “It proves the point I make in my book [The Case Against Impeaching Trump] that there should have been a neutral, non-partisan, 9-11-type of commission investigating all of this.” As Dershowitz spoke, viewers could see the Harvard Law Professor become more outraged as he completed each sentence. “The 2016 election was filled with problems – Russia…

Read the full story

California Dems Snub Feinstein, Endorse Liberal Challenger For Senate

Admin
Dianne Feinstein, Kevin de Leon

by Will Racke   California Democrats have declined to endorse Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s bid for re-election in 2018, rebuking a powerful senator the party’s activist base sees as too conservative for the famously liberal state. Instead, the state party’s executive committee voted late Saturday to endorse her challenger, state Sen. Kevin de Leon, in the general election. Currently the 51-year-old leader of the state senate, De Leon is held in high esteem by the party’s far left as the principal author of SB54, California’s controversial sanctuary state law. De Leon won 65 percent of the 333 board members, easily clearing the 60 percent threshold needed for an endorsement. Another 28 backed a “no endorsement” option, while just 7 percent voted for Feinstein. Prior to Saturday’s vote, Feinstein’s team had urged party delegates to support the “no endorsement” policy in a nod to party unity. Feinstein recruited Democratic heavyweights to plead her case, including Gov. Jerry Brown, Sen. Kamala Harris and two former state party chairmen. The push was not enough to sway the executive committee, which has been moving away from Feinstein’s brand of center-left politics for years. Although the board represents a small fraction of a state party with…

Read the full story

Statewide Early Voting Numbers Are Starting with a Bang

Admin
early voting

In the first two days of early voting there are signs that turnout may be higher than normal in both the Democratic and Republican primaries. Early voting started on Friday and continued on Saturday, though the locations and schedule for the Saturday voting was limited in several counties. Additionally, some counties have only reported their Friday totals at this point. Nevertheless, 30,262 votes have already been cast in the Republican Primary and 12,205 in the Democratic Primary. Early voting continues until July 28 with Election Day on August 2. There were 668,039 total GOP Senate Primary votes cast in August 2014.  That election featured a contested primary between Senator Lamar Alexander (331,705 votes) and Joe Carr (271,324). Alexander prevailed by a closer than expected 49-40% margin. A third Republican, Dr. George Flinn received a little over 34,000 total votes. That race may give guidance in predicting final turnout as we move through the early voting period. Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill expects the turnout to increase dramatically over the next few weeks. “Not only do we have a hotly contested Republican Primary for Governor, in which we will see perhaps $10 million in spending in the next few weeks…

Read the full story

Democrat SuperPAC Releases Poll (Lacking Backup) Showing Phil Bredesen with a 44-41 Lead Over Marsha Blackburn

Admin
Phil Bredesen, Marsha Blackburn

Duty and Country PAC, a Washington DC based political action committee that is aligned with the Democratic Party, has released a poll conducted by Public Policy Polling that shows Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Phil Bredesen with a narrow 3 point lead over his Republican opponent Marsha Blackburn. The poll was conducted among 583 likely voters June 10-11 and has a margin of error of 4 points, placing Bredesen’s lead within that margin of error. The poll indicates that Bredesen leads Blackburn 44 percent to 41 percent with 15 percent undecided. In the release, Duty and Country PAC did not include a topline summary providing data in the demographic and political affiliations of poll respondents, which is customary among most professional polling firms. Nor did they include a detailed description of the poll’s methodology, which is also customary, or more detailed crosstabs, which is a common practice among professional polling firms. The poll stands in marked contrast to the Axios-Survey Monkey Poll released earlier this week that shows Blackburn leading Bredesen by 14 points, 55 percent to 41 percent. Duty and Country PAC has raised about $2 million this year according to their latest Federal Election Commission filings.  Their latest report…

Read the full story

Commentary: The Cautionary Tale That Is the State of California

Admin
California liberalism

by Jeffrey A. Rendall   “Are you crazy, or just plain stupid?” – Bubba’s mother in Forrest Gump. Living in California certainly is crazy but it’s never boring. I should know having spent my first 27 years of life in the Golden State, most of which were lived under semi-sane Republican rule and governmental policies that made sense. Coming of age in the 80’s on the west coast with favored son President Ronald Reagan frequently extolling the virtues of his adopted home state (in addition to vacationing at Rancho del Cielo near Santa Barbara) and leading the country with lofty “Shining City on a Hill” rhetoric was about as good as it got for an American kid. Back then California was a grand mix of everything – different peoples, varied topography, a burgeoning economy, growing communities, incredible weather, endless recreational possibilities and perhaps worthiest of all, a “we are the best of the best” attitude that was contagious. Everyone wanted to be a Californian – or at least to know or be related to one. Remember the Randy Newman song, “I Love L.A.?” It was our mantra. California was the stuff of dreams – and if it wasn’t found there Hollywood would most certainly create it in…

Read the full story

Bill to Close Tennessee’s Primaries Gains Steam

Admin

The Williamson County Republican Party Executive Committee announced Friday they passed a resolution to strongly support HB0887 and its companion Senate bill SB0772.  The proposal’s summary – sponsored by Rep. Ryan Williams (R-Cookeville) and Sen. Mark Pody (R-Lebanon) – simply states: As introduced, requires a person to declare a statewide political party affiliation before voting in a primary election. – Amends TCA Title 2. (emphasis added) Williamson County Republican Party Chair Debbie Deaver said the measure, which passed overwhelmingly 10-0, would be a welcome change. “It’s a little disingenuous to allow someone to select a candidate for a party they don’t identify with and who they will not vote for in the general election. Just like Alabama doesn’t let Tennessee pick its head coach, and Apple doesn’t have the board of Microsoft select its CEO, we should not let non-Republicans pick our nominees.” The next stop for the bill proposal is the Senate State and Local Government Committee, where it is scheduled to be heard.

Read the full story

In Shocking Move, Feds Drop All Charges Against Senator Bob Menendez

Admin

In a shocking turnaround, the U.S. Justice Department has dropped its case against Sen. Robert Menendez. In a court hearing in Newark today, federal prosecutors moved to dismiss the corruption indictment against the New Jersey Democrat. Last week, a federal judge had acquitted Menendez and his co-defendant, Salomon Melgen, of seven of the 18 counts against them after a deadlocked jury could not reach a verdict in the high-profile case in November.

Read the full story

Top Democratic Candidate for Governor of Tennessee Earned $19 Million Over 4-Year Stretch, Tax Documents Show

Tim Dukeman
Karl Dean Tax Summary

Former Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, a Democratic candidate for governor, had $19.2 million in taxable income from 2013 to 2016, according to documents reviewed by The Tennessean, which reported: Last year alone, Dean and his wife, Delta Anne Davis, who used to work for the Southern Environmental Law Center, earned nearly $2.7 million. The release from the former Nashville mayor — after declining to do so during an initial request of all seven gubernatorial candidates — provides additional insight into the wealth of the numerous candidates in the 2018 Tennessee governor’s race. This puts Dean far ahead his leading challenger for the Democratic nomination in terms of income. He made almost 9 times as much as House Minority Leader Craig Fitzhugh — the only other Democrat in the race ($2.7 vs. $313,000 in 2016).  This is significant because Dean has already demonstrated a commitment to funding his own campaign, when necessary: “During his first run for Nashville mayor in 2007, Dean pumped around $1.5 million in personal dollars toward his run,” reports The Tennessean.  However, Dean was less forthcoming with financial information than other candidates: While Black and Fitzhugh provided copies of their 1040s from 2016, Dean did not. Instead, like Harwell, he provided an income tax summary…

Read the full story

Senator Al Franken Will Resign ‘In a Couple of Weeks’ Amid Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Admin

Sen. Al Franken on Thursday announced he was quitting the austere upper chamber amid mounting accusations that he forcibly kissed or groped women, bowing to resignation calls from at least 32 of his fellow Senate Democrats. However, he said he was stepping down despite knowing he was not guilty of the behavior described by his accusers. He said it was the right thing to do for the people of Minnesota.

Read the full story

California Democrat Adam Schiff States the Obvious: Russia Probe Indictment Likely Tied to Paul Manafort or Michael Flynn

Admin

The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee said Sunday that he suspects a reported grand jury indictment in the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election is tied to either former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort or retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, President Trump’s former national security adviser. Rep. Adam Schiff said on…

Read the full story

Former Governor Phil Bredesen Eyes U.S. Senate Run

Admin

Former Governor Phil Bredesen, the man who was the last Democrat to run and win a statewide campaign in Tennessee, is now eyeing a run for the U. S. Senate to replace the retiring Bob Corker, the AP reports: In a statement Monday to The Associated Press, Bredesen said he is mulling an entry into the race after several people urged him to reconsider his initial statements that he had no interest in running. “In the days ahead, I’m going to do some research, talk with people and carefully think this through,” he said. “I’ll make a decision quickly.” The former governor has led a relatively quiet private life since leaving public office – a time before social media. He does not appear to have a Twitter account, and an unverified ‘Phil Bredesen’ Facebook account has no entries, but the profile picture is of him, fishing. Breseden has been complementary of incumbent Corker’s tenure, telling the AP: “We are of different parties and don’t always agree on issues, but I have long admired the way in which he puts the interests of Tennesseans and our nation ahead of political gamesmanship,” Bredesen said. “He educates himself on the issues and thinks independently…

Read the full story

Possible Democratic 2020 Contender Fundraises Off Vegas Slaughter

Admin

Sen Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), one of the leading gun control advocates in Congress and a potential 2020 presidential candidate, wasted no time trying to leverage financial support from this week’s mass shooting in Las Vegas. Murphy’s re-election campaign blasted out an email to supporters asking for contributions to three gun control groups, according to the Connecticut…

Read the full story

Bill Hennessy Commentary: Missouri’s Governor Greitens Signs Executive Order Protecting Patients’ Prescription Privacy

Admin
Tennessee Star

  By: Bill Hennessy   In case you haven’t heard, Governor Greitens signed an executive order on July 17. The EO made Missouri the 50th state to establish some sort of prescription drug tracking. Most states track everything about prescriptions. And hyperactive federal judges have already opened those state databases to the unmasking eyes of the Deep State. So what makes Greitens’s plan unique and amazing? First, let’s look at the threat to privacy posed by most states’ plans. A threat the Missouri legislature almost brought to Missouri. From Business Insider: Federal courts in Utah and Oregon recently ruled that the Drug Enforcement Administration, in its effort to investigate suspected drug abusers or pill mills, can access information in those states’ PDMPs without a warrant, even over the states’ objections. That means the federal government can look in your medicine cabinet. Anytime. Without a warrant. Unless you live in Missouri. The bills that failed in the Missouri legislature (narrowly) looked like laws in those other states. The legislature would have tracked patients and prescribers and dispensers. But the legislature failed. So Greitens acted. Greitens’s EO is different. Very different. So different, Democrat Claire McCaskill is screaming for more intrusion. Like they…

Read the full story

Letter to the Editor: Mandatory Union Dues Fund Leftist Causes at the Expense of Conservative Union Members

Admin
Tennessee Star

  Dear Tennessee Star, It really is simple the more members who pay union dues affords greater political clout for that union and feed the union bureaucracy. Most people still have a lot to learn about unions, especially in education. Many have likened unions to being an ATM to left-wing politicians and causes. Too many people vaguely equate the union with that classroom teacher whom they know and respect, not with the hard-as-nails political entity that dictates bad school policy. It makes little sense for teachers to contribute their hard-earned dollars to political and ideological causes they oppose. For example, a teacher union’s goal, of course, is political power, not education. This means of course they funnel union money to politicians who support their agenda. So how do the government unions, whose leaders run to the left of the average worker, get away with spending dues dollars on candidates and causes that so many of its members revile? The answer very simply is because its members let them. In fact, in all elections since 1989, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) has given $76,446,797 to Democrats and liberals and just $363,000 to Republicans and conservatives. In other words, less than…

Read the full story