Commentary: Eight Conservative House Candidates Who Must Win Their Primaries

GOP Congress Candidates

The 2024 election cycle will be about many things, from the Biden regime’s overt authoritarianism to retribution against political and legal persecution. President Trump’s comeback candidacy will be a perfect representation of these broader existential issues at the core of the campaign.

But the down-ballot races should be about something just as important as defeating our enemies on the Left. Just as in 2022, the races for Congress should be about an ideological purging of the Republican Party. As the already razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives has proven, a “majority” doesn’t mean much if we are still at the mercy of establishment moderates, RINOs, and outright NeverTrumpers.

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House Passes Bill to Repeal Biden’s Student Loan Repayment Plan

The House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill that would repeal the student loan plan issued by the Biden administration after its original plan was ruled unlawful by the Supreme Court.

The Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan was issued by the Department of Education on July 10, less than two weeks after the Supreme Court struck down the administration’s plan to forgive $10,000 of student debt held by all borrowers making less than $125,000 a year. House Republicans, who have opposed all student debt forgiveness plans by the administration, passed a bill that would repeal the SAVE plan on Thursday, by a vote of 210 yeas to 189 nays.

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House Passes Bill Hitting Back Against Biden’s EV Agenda

The House passed a bill Wednesday that would neutralize one of the key policies underlying the Biden administration’s electric vehicle (EV) push.

The Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act passed by a bipartisan vote in the legislature’s lower chamber, and it will now head to the Senate. The bill would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from imposing new vehicle emissions rules that either mandate the use of a specific technology or reduce the availability of new cars based on the type of engine.

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Tennessee Rep. Kustoff Introduces Resolution Condemning Rising Antisemitism

U.S. Representative David Kustoff (R-TN-08) joined Representative Max Miller (R-OH-07) this week in introducing a resolution condemning and denouncing antisemitism in the United States and around the world.

Kustoff and Miller, the only Republican Jewish members of the House, said it’s time to stand up to surging antisemitism infecting communities and institutions, including Congress.

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Middle Tennessee Socialists Rally Behind Antisemitic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib

In a show of solidarity for arguably the most antisemitic member of congress, the Middle Tennessee Chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America is rallying around U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-12) after she was disciplined by her colleagues in a rare congressional censure.

The local chapter’s X account reposted the national organization’s screed over the U.S. House of Representatives vote last week to punish Tlaib.

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Fiscal Conservatives from Arizona and Tennessee Helped Depose Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House

U.S. Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) laid it all on the line Tuesday afternoon in supporting a motion to vacate to remove Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-23) from the post he has tenuously held for less than a year.

“Speaker McCarthy has failed to demonstrate himself as an effective leader who will change the status quo. He has gone against many of the promises he made in January and can no longer be trusted at the helm,” Biggs said.

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After Facing Censorship in Congress, RFK Jr. Plans Roundtable Discussion on Censorship

After Democrats threatened to censor him during last week’s House committee hearing on censorship, Democrat presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to hold a “Roundtable on Censorship” next month.

“We’re not waiting for the election to elevate free speech in the public mind,” the campaign for the Kennedy family scion said in a mass email message sent Monday.

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Wisconsin Congressman Mike Gallagher and His Committee Want Answers from TikTok on Popular App’s Latest Controversial Activities

It seems TikTok just can’t quit its creeping ways. 

U.S. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08), chairman of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party,  is seeking answers from the controversial video hosting site on allegations of ongoing censorship and monitoring of individuals, including those who view LGBTQ-related content on the platform. 

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Wisconsin U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman: House Debt-Ceiling Bill a ‘Big Step in the Right Direction’

While President Joe Biden has preemptively declared the House debt-ceiling bill dead on arrival, U.S. Representative Glenn Grothman (R-WI-06) remains hopeful the budget-slashing proposal will bring big spender Biden to the negotiating table. 

“Some people question the will of Republicans to fight for a conservative bill. In my first eight-plus years in congress this was the most conservative bill that we have passed yet,” Grothman told The Wisconsin Daily Star on Thursday’s edition of the Vicki McKenna Show. 

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Commentary: Time for House to Join Senate, Reclaim Congress’ War Powers

The Senate voted overwhelmingly, and on a bipartisan basis, last week to repeal the obsolete 1991 and 2002 Iraq Authorized Use of Military Force resolutions by a vote of 66-30.

That is sound policy, as I previously wrote here. It’s time for the House of Representatives to debate the Senate-passed repeal, and while doing so, keep in mind the many reasons why it should repeal these vestigial AUMFs, given the current threat environment.

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Conservative Senators Demand Spending Cuts, Fiscal Reform in Debt Ceiling Deal

Fiscal hawks in the Senate reiterated their demands for fiscal reforms and spending cuts Tuesday as they voiced their support for House Republicans to lead the heavy-lifting on addressing the nation’s debt ceiling crisis. 

“We have an opportunity to stop the madness, and it’s incumbent on the Republican majority in the House and Republicans in the Senate to use every lever point we have,” said Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) at a press conference on the debt ceiling and runaway spending. 

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McCarthy Confirms He Will Strip Democrat Reps Omar, Swalwell and Schiff of Their Committee Assignments

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) confirmed on Monday that he would strip several high-profile Democrats of their highly coveted committee assignments as Republicans take control of the House.

McCarthy told the Associated Press that Representatives Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Adam Schiff (D-CA), and Eric Swalwell (D-CA) will be booted off their assignments: Omar from the Foreign Affairs Committee, Schiff and Swalwell from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI).

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Six Policies That Anti-Abortion Leaders Expect a Pro-Life House Majority to Prioritize

A letter signed by leaders of more than 40 pro-life organizations has been sent to every Republican member of Congress, urging action on eight related bills.

“We write to urge you to exercise Congress’s constitutional authority to legislate abortion policy at the federal level and pursue a robust pro-life agenda,” reads the letter to House and Senate Republicans authored by organizations ranging from March for Life and Live Action to The Heritage Foundation. (The Daily Signal is Heritage’s multimedia news organization.)

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Commentary: With Republicans Poised to Take Back the House, a Key Opportunity to Reverse Dems’ Insanity Emerges

Candidates who ran on an America First agenda fought a close fight in Tuesday’s congressional elections, with at least the House poised to fall into the GOP’s hands and possibly the Senate flipping out of the left’s control.

With America First candidates from states like in Michigan, California, New Jersey and Florida picking up seats, conservatives must not squander their goodwill from voters and instead immediately enact an economic agenda to reverse course away from the crushing policies that pushed record inflation on American families.

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Proposed Ohio House Bill Looks to Eliminate ‘Third Grade Reading Guarantee’

House Bill 497 sponsored by Representatives Gayle Manning (R- North Ridgeville) and Phil Robinson (D- Solon) would eliminate student retention under Ohio’s Third-Grade Reading Guarantee.

Ohio’s Third-Grade Reading Guarantee is a program utilized to identify students who are behind in reading from kindergarten through third grade. Since the 2013-14 school year, third graders must obtain a 685 score or higher on a standardized reading test or they will be held back a grade.

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Commentary: The 2022 House Midterm by the Numbers

Midterm elections involve high stakes, a great deal of groundless guessing, and lots of numbers – oddly similar to lotteries. Unlike lotteries, though, the many numbers associated with midterm elections are meaningful. The six meaningful midterm “lotto” numbers below should help historically ground your anticipation of what is likely or unlikely to happen in this year’s House elections, as well as set the eventual outcome in its historical perspective. You will have to use your imagination about the numbered ping-pong balls and the machine mixing them up. On to the all-important numbers.       

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Legislation Could Create Licensure Reciprocity in Ohio

Ohio moved a step closer to recognizing business licenses from other states, which could help with an ongoing labor shortage, a Columbus-based policy group believes.

The House and Senate each passed versions of bills that would adopt universal occupational license recognition before the summer recess, a move The Buckeye Institute believes will make the state more attractive to newcomers and allow employers more options to fill open spots.

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Georgia Bill Requires Superior Court Judge to Grant Bail in Human Trafficking Cases

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation to keep defendants facing human trafficking charges from immediately returning to the streets after their arrest.

Senate Bill 461 adds human trafficking to the list of violent and sexual offenses that require a Superior Court judge to grant bail. The list also includes treason, rape, murder and aircraft hijacking.

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Tennessee Lawmakers Approve Sales Tax Deal for New Chattanooga Lookouts Stadium

State sales tax funding for a new baseball stadium in Chattanooga was passed in the last week of Tennessee’s legislative session.

House Bill 2609 was approved 79-11 by the House and 28-0 in the Senate. It would allow the Chattanooga Lookouts to move to a new stadium in the city and retain a sales tax deal where the Lookouts keep the first 5.5% of the state’s 7% sales tax for sales at the stadium and would extend the deal to apply to non-baseball events at the stadium.

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Minnesota House and Senate Pass $25 Million Broadband Expansion Bill

It will cost Minnesota taxpayers $25 million in fiscal year 2023 to expand high-speed broadband access across the state if the governor signs a bill both legislative houses passed this week.

HF 4366, an omnibus agriculture and housing bill, includes increasing availability of grant funding for broadband from 50% to 75% of the total cost of a project, or up to $10 million, rather than a $5 million limit. Under the bill, the Office of Broadband Development must report to broadband policy and finance committees’ leaders by the end of 2022 how the bill changes the number and amounts of grants awarded.

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Carbon Reduction Bill for Connecticut’s Electric Grid Awaits Governor’s Signature

A plan to phase the Connecticut’s electric grid to zero-carbon status by 2024 is the focus of a bill that now awaits Gov. Ned Lamont’s signature.

The governor announced Senate Bill 10 focuses on a reduction on carbon emissions, which was established through an executive order in 2019, that allows state policymakers and companies in the electric sector to fully transition the grid away from natural gas and oil.

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Tennessee’s Proposed Public School Funding Formula Will Not Increase Local Taxes, Commissioner Schwinn Insists

Local taxpayers should not be worried about a large local tax increase in four years if a new public school funding formula is enacted, Tennessee Department of Education (DOE) Commissioner Penny Schwinn said.

An introductory overview of the proposed new formula, which would replace the current Basic Education Program (BEP) created in 1992, from the DOE showed “local contributions are set to be lower in FY24, FY25, and FY26 and begin to increase again in FY27, in an amount similar to prior years so that the new state investment does not overwhelm local requirements.”

During discussion in the House K-12 Subcommittee, however, Schwinn pushed back on the notion there would be a four-year cliff where local governments would see a heightened required local expense for public schools.

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Opponents Blocked from Testifying on DFL’s Clean Fuel Bill, Say It Will Increase Prices

Representative Mary Franson

A Republican representative blasted a House committee chair this week for not allowing groups with opposing views to testify against a clean fuel standards bill.

House File 2083 seeks to bring California’s clean fuel standard to Minnesota in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% by 2035. Enforcing the standard could raise gas prices by 20 cents a gallon, according to research from the Center of the American Experiment.

The House Climate and Energy Committee held an informational hearing on the bill Tuesday and allowed several pro-climate justice groups to testify in favor of the bill.

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Democratic Virginia State Sen. Joe Morrissey Says He’ll Vote for Gov. Youngkin Massive Tax Cut

Live from Virginia Wednesday morning on The John Fredericks Show – weekdays on WNTW AM 820 / FM 92.7 – Richmond; WJFN FM 100.5 – Central Virginia; WMPH AM 1010 / FM 100.1 / FM 96.9 (7-9 p.m.) Hampton Roads; WBRG AM 1050 / FM 105.1 – Lynchburg/Roanoke; and weekdays 6-10 a.m. and 24/7 stream –  host Fredericks welcomed State Senator of Petersburg, (D) Joe Morrissey to discuss Governor Glenn Youngkin’s pressure on Virginia House and Senate members to pass a budget.

Fredericks: Joining us now is State Senator, Petersburg Democrat Joe Morrissey. Joe, great to have you with us.

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Virginia Democrats Encourage House GOP to Back Felon Voting Rights Constitutional Amendment

Virginia House and Senate Democrats are urging House Republicans to support resolutions to allow voters to decide the fate of two proposed constitutional amendments: the automatic restoration of voting rights for felons and same-sex marriage rights.

To adopt a constitutional amendment, both chambers of the General Assembly must pass two identical resolutions two years in a row, with a House of Delegates election in between those years. If approved in the Legislature, the proposed amendment would appear on the general ballot during the fall elections. If supported by the majority of voters, the proposed amendment would be adopted.

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Democrats, Environmentalists Stay Silent on U.S. Energy Independence Amid Ukraine Crisis

Democrats and environmental groups were silent when asked about the importance of U.S. energy independence in light of the energy market volatility caused by the Ukraine crisis.

Several Democratic leaders in the House and Senate who hold leadership roles on committees or subcommittees tasked with overseeing energy policy ignored requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation on Friday about the importance of promoting U.S. energy independence. In addition, five major environmental groups chose not to address the issue or stayed silent when asked about the issue.

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Michigan Governor Whitmer Signs into Law Savings Program for ‘First-Time’ Homebuyers

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday signed into law two bills ostensibly aimed at assisting first-time homebuyers.

House Bill 4290 and Senate Bill 145 will allow first-time homebuyers to save down payments and closing costs tax-free. The bills establish the Michigan First-Time Home Buyer Savings Program within the state’s Department of Treasury.

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Georgia Lawmakers Ban State Contracts with Business Boycotting Israel

State agencies would be barred from doing business with any company or contractor unless they vow not to boycott Israel under a bill approved by the Georgia General Assembly.

The House voted, 146-9, to approve the Senate’s changes to House Bill 383. The amended bill was approved by the Senate, 47-2, last March, but it did not make it back to the House for a final vote before the end of the 2021 legislation session.

“Trade with Israel is a compelling state interest for the state of Georgia, I would argue, and this bill preserves free speech rights for individuals and sole proprietorships,” said Rep. John Carson, R-Marietta, who presented the bill Thursday on the House floor. “But it also says we as a state are not going to contract – we’re updating our statute to say we are not going to contract with groups that embrace boycott, divestment and sanctions against the state of Israel.”

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Measure Directs $225 Million to Recruit, Retain Pennsylvania Health Care Workers

Pennsylvania Republicans highlighted legislation Wednesday that is moving through the General Assembly to direct $225 million to recruit and retain health care workers for hospitals and behavioral service providers.

Leaders of the House and Senate gathered on the lieutenant governor’s balcony between the two chambers for a news conference on House Bill 253, sponsored by Rep. Clint Owlett, R-Tioga.

The legislation allocates $225 million to hospitals and behavioral and psychiatric service providers for retention and recruitment programs for staff. The bill is targeted specifically at nurses and other hospital employees, and it excludes hospital executives, administration, contracted staff and physicians.

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Gingrich Says January 6 Commission Members Could Face Jail Time if GOP Retakes House

Former GOP House Speaker Newt Gingrich is warning of possible jail time for Jan. 6 committee members should Republicans reclaim the House majority during the upcoming midterm election.

“You’re gonna have a Republican majority in the House, a Republican majority in the Senate. And all these people who’ve been so tough and so mean and so nasty are going to be delivered subpoenas for every document, every conversation, every tweet, every email,” Gingrich told Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo on Sunday.

“I think when you have a Republican Congress, this is all going to come crashing down. The wolves are gonna find out they’re now sheep, and they’re the ones who are, in fact, I think, going to face a real risk of going to jail for the kind of laws that they’re breaking,” said Gingrich, though he did not specify which laws he believes have been broken.

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Legislative Committee Members Grill Michigan Health Director over Nursing Home COVID Deaths

Michigan may never know the actual number of deaths resulting from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s executive order to place COVID-19 patients in long-term care (LTC) facilities.

That conclusion was the only verifiable takeaway from Thursday’s Senate and House Joint Oversight Committee meeting, where state senators and representatives grilled Michigan Auditor General Doug Ringler, Deputy Auditor General and Director of Audit Operations Laura Hirst, and Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Elizabeth Hertel.

The committee meeting spotlighted sharp differences between the Democratic Whitmer administration and the nonpartisan Auditor General (AG). It also brought into stark view thepartisan divisions between Senate and House legislators; namely, Democrats who either disparaged the AG’s methodology or defended Whitmer’s EO 2020-50; and Republicans, who argued the governor erred when she issued the order, and depicted the administration’s underreporting of the number of LTC deaths as a cover-up for her failed policy.

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Republicans Notch Big Win as Court Upholds North Carolina’s New Congressional Map

A North Carolina court Tuesday upheld the state’s new congressional and state legislative lines, rejecting claims from Democratic groups that it was an unfair gerrymander giving Republicans in the state a big win.

While the case may be appealed, the decision as it stands now could impact the 2022 midterm elections, where Republicans are seeking to reverse Democrats’ narrow House majority. North Carolina is gaining a 14th seat, and the new congressional lines could give Republicans an 11-3 advantage, up from the 8-5 split now.

The Democrats’ lawyers argued during last week’s trial that the map chosen was an extreme outlier that Republicans picked solely for political gain. Republicans, however, said that the new lines were drawn legally and that the court was incapable of determining whether it was too partisan to stand.

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Republican Members of Congress Oppose Kevin McCarthy’s Proposal to Limit Insider Trading

After House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) proposed possible new legislation to limit the practice of insider stock trading among members of Congress, even some within his own ranks have anonymously voiced their opposition to such a plan.

As reported by the New York Post, McCarthy first made the suggestion to Punchbowl News, suggesting such a bill as one of many things he would want to see introduced if the GOP retakes the majority in November. Among other things, his proposal would restrict members to only holding professionally managed funds, as well as prohibit lawmakers from owning stocks in companies that are overseen by committees they serve on.

McCarthy pointed to the example of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who has a net worth of over $100 million, and whose husband was found to have traded millions more worth of tech stocks. “I just think if you’re the Speaker of the House, you control what comes to the floor, what goes through committee, you have all the power to do everything you want,” McCarthy said on Tuesday. “You can’t be trading millions of dollars.”

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House Passes Democrats’ Social Spending Bill After Congressional Budget Office Score

Kevin McCarthy and Nancy Pelosi

Congressional Democrats passed a $1.75 trillion social spending plan Friday, putting the bill’s fate in the hands of a deeply divided Senate.

The bill funds universal pre-kindergarten, climate change spending, Obamacare subsidies, an extension of the monthly child tax credit payment and more wide ranging spending items. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy spoke more than eight hours on the House floor overnight to delay the vote until Friday morning, but afterward it passed 220-213 along party lines with one Democrat opposed.

“We are very excited for what it does for the children, for the families,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a press conference after the bill’s passage.

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Commentary: The Data Mining of America’s Kids Should Be a National Scandal

As U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland sat down for his first hearing before the House Judiciary Committee, denying a conflict of interest in his decision to investigate parents for “domestic terrorism,” there is a mother in the quiet suburb of Annandale, N.J., who found his answers lacking. And she has questions she wants asked at Garland’s hearing with the Senate Judiciary Committee this Wednesday.

On a recent Saturday night, Caroline Licwinko, a mother of three, a law school student and the coach to her daughter’s cheerleading squad, sat in front of her laptop and tapped three words into an internet search engine: “Panorama. Survey. Results.”

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Proposed Law Would End Ohio Sales Tax on Guns, Ammunition, Knives

Sales tax would no longer be collected on guns, ammunition and knives in Ohio if a bill planned for introduction in the state House of Representatives becomes law.

State GOP Rep. Al Cutrona recently announced he will introduce legislation that would exempt those items from sales tax, saying the move would help make gun, ammunition and knife retailers and manufacturers more competitive with neighboring states.

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Stauber Resolution Condemns Biden’s ‘Weaponization’ of Federal Agencies Against Parents

Twenty-five House members have introduced a resolution to support the free-speech rights of concerned parents speaking at school board meetings nationwide.

The chief proponent of the resolution is Rep. Pete Stauber of Minnesota. Its stated purpose is to “express the sense of the House of Representatives that the First Amendment rights of parents at school board meetings shall not be infringed.”

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Report: Coal Subsidies Bad for Ohio Taxpayers

A group of Ohio economists believes government subsidies for coal power plants create distortions in the market, eliminates competition and does not produce positive results, according to a new survey from Scioto Analysis.

State leaders continue to pick apart House Bill 6, the scandal-ridden energy bill passed two years ago that produced billions of dollars for two state nuclear power plants but also included subsidies for coal plants and renewable energy producers. It also led to what federal prosecutors call the largest government corruption scandal in state history and the ouster of indicted former Speaker of the House Larry Householder.

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