The mayors of Nashville, Memphis, Chattanooga, and Knoxville declined to say Monday whether they support public schools teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT). This, even though those four mayors — Jim Cooper, Jim Strickland, Tim Kelly, and Indya Kincannon — belong to the United States Conference of Mayors, which recently adopted a resolution supporting CRT in K-12 public schools.
Read the full storyTag: Tennessee
Research Shows Tennessee as Popular Destination for Big Businesses Fleeing California
According to new research by The Hoover Institution at Stanford University, Tennessee is the second most popular destination for companies fleeing California. With the top destination being Texas, Arizona and Nevada followed the Volunteer state in 3rd and 4th place.
Read the full storyFormer Tennessee Rep. Zach Wamp Reportedly Wants to Change How States Challenge Electoral Votes
Former Tennessee Congressman Zach Wamp and others reportedly want Congress to restrict the ability of a U.S. senator or U.S. representative to challenge the counting of electoral votes as submitted by individual states. This, according to the St. Petersburg, Florida-based Bay News 9.
Read the full storyTennessee Congressman Jim Cooper Silent on National Archives Bureaucrats Placing ‘Warning Label’ on Constitution, Claiming ‘Harmful Content’
Staff for U.S. Representative Jim Cooper (D-TN-05) would not say Friday whether the congressman agrees with National Archives bureaucrats who believe the U.S. Constitution should have a “warning label” due to “harmful content.” Members of Cooper’s staff did not return two requests for comment before Friday’s stated deadline.
Read the full storyThe Flu Places More Children in Jeopardy Than COVID-19, Tennessee Department of Health Data Suggests
Data available on the Tennessee Department of Health’s (TDOH) website suggests the flu endangers more children in the state versus the effects of COVID-19. One recent flu epidemic claimed the lives of about 10 Tennessee children. TDOH’s most recent data says COVID-19 has claimed the life of only one child in the state.
Read the full storyTennessee Gov. Bill Lee Pushes Back Against Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Vaccination Mandate
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee this week announced he will fight U.S. President Joe Biden’s stricter and newly-announced COVID-19 vaccine requirements. “To be clear: the vaccine is the best tool we have to combat the pandemic but heavy-handed mandates are the wrong approach,” Lee tweeted Thursday.
Read the full storyThe Entrepreneurs Corner: Refined Men’s Salon Owner Julie White Talks What She Did During the Coronavirus Shutdown
Thursday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed the Owner of Refined Men’s Salon in Franklin, Tennessee, Julie White to reflect upon the onset of coronavirus restrictions.
Read the full storyGov. Bill Lee Silent on Additional Afghan Refugees Relocating to Tennessee
The Tennessee-based Bridge Refugee Services is preparing to accept more Afghan refugees and send them to East Tennessee. The Tennessee Star twice on Wednesday contacted Governor Bill Lee’s communications’ staff to ask for comment and to ask what action, if any, he deemed necessary to respond to new Afghan refugees.
Read the full storyTennessee U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen Demands U.S. Supreme Court Justice Retire
U.S. Representative Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) has politicized the U.S. Supreme Court, calling for the court to make one radical change and also for one justice to resign before a Republican president can replace him. Cohen was angry about the U.S. Supreme Court not blocking a Texas law restricting abortion access from going into effect.
Read the full storyState Agencies Make Pitches for Spending Billions in Tennessee American Rescue Plan Act Money
Tennessee’s Financial Stimulus Accountability Group met with state agency heads this week regarding funding requests related to the second half of $3.7 billion in federal American Rescue Plan Act relief.
The group met with 17 departments over two days to hear funding requests for the $1.875 billion in what the committee is calling the Tennessee Resiliency Plan, which will cover local government technical support, health capital projects, public health and economic relief.
Read the full storyAction247.com Founder Tina Hodges Talks Innovating Sportsbook Online Betting with Personal Touch
Friday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Founder and President of Action247.com, Tina Hodges to the newsmakers line to talk about their innovation of online sports betting.
Read the full storyTennessee Democratic Party in Trouble with the FEC, Must Pay Large Fine
Members of the Tennessee Democratic Party will reportedly pay a substantial fine due to a Federal Election Commission case alleging it misreported millions of dollars in campaign funds. This, according to a report that The Daily Wire published this week.
Read the full storyTennessee Legislators Must Convene Special Session to Address Urgent Issues, Williamson County-Based Group Says
Members of the Williamson County-based Tennessee Stands have said members of the Tennessee General Assembly should still hold a special session. Tennessee Stands Executive Director Gary Humble said in an emailed message to his supporters that Tennesseans and a majority of members of the Tennessee House of Representatives want a special session. This, Humble said, “to address a host of issues currently plaguing our state.”
Read the full storyTennessee Congressman Says Democrats Will Not Hold Joe Biden Accountable on Afghanistan
Members of Tennessee’s GOP delegation said Tuesday that U.S. President Joe Biden has behaved in an untrustworthy manner on the matter of Afghanistan.
Just the News reported Tuesday that Biden, in June, waived an important congressional mandate. That mandate would have forced members of the Pentagon to inform Congress, in depth, about the risks of withdrawing U.S. forces from Afghanistan.
Read the full storyCrom Carmichael Unwinds Shelby County Lawsuit Against Lee’s Executive Order Citing Sly State Law
Monday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed the original all-star panelist Crom Carmichael in studio to discuss the course events of Shelby County’s mask mandate lawsuit against Governor Lee.
Read the full storyTennessee State Legislators Push Back Against Biden Administration Claim Parents Opting Out of Mask Mandates Is a Civil Rights Violation
U.S. Department of Education (USDE) officials announced Monday they will investigate Tennessee and five other states that allow parents the right to opt out of a public school’s COVID-19 mask mandates. In a press release, USDE officials said such policies could discriminate against students who are disabled and at heightened risk for severe illness.
Read the full storyTennesseans Rally at the Capital for Vaccine Choice, Medical Freedom
A crowd of about 50 people gathered at the Capital Lawn in Nashville on Saturday to rally for vaccine choice on Saturday.
The issue, the group said via a Facebook post leading up to Saturday’s rally, is “pretty simple.”
“There are plenty of other things we can talk about,” the one graphic reads, “but the core is MEDICAL TYRANNY vs MEDICAL FREEDOM.”
Read the full storyHost Leahy and All-Star Panelist Carmichael Discuss the Legacy of Phil Valentine
Monday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed all-star panelist Crom Carmichael in studio to reminisce about the talk radio stylings of recently passed conservative talk radio host Phil Valentine.
Read the full storyPolitical Commentator Jeri Thompson Joins Host Leahy in Studio to Discuss Mask Mandates and Bill Lee’s Executive Order
Monday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed American radio talk show host and political commentator, Jeri Thompson in studio to discuss mask mandates imposed by local school boards and the challenge facing Governor Bill Lee’s executive order.
Read the full storyTennessee Freedom Matters Tour a Success, Organizers Say
A statewide tour that organizers say will promote Constitutional values and personal liberties is getting results. Organizers say that this Freedom Matters Tour has attracted consistent crowds of 400 to 600 people.
Read the full storyCrom Carmichael: ‘Masks Are Just the Latest Way of Trying to Force Governors and Individuals to Bend a Knee’
Live from Music Row Friday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy welcomed the original all-star panelist Crom Carmichael to the studio to weigh in on the recent federal civil rights lawsuit charging governors who block mask mandates in their state. Leahy: In-studio, the original all-star panelist, Crom Carmichael. Crom, the federal government is suffering from mask madness or perhaps mask hysteria. Carmichael: It’s really more command and control. Masks are just the latest way of trying to force governors and individuals to bend a knee. Leahy: Exactly. Now we have a story up at WKRN that just broke late last night. The Biden administration is taking aim at states that are blocking mask mandates for school districts. U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona wrote a letter to Governor Bill Lee and Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn regarding Tennessee’s decision or the executive order from Bill Lee to allow parents to opt-out of local mass mandates. Of course, Williamson County Schools had a mask mandate. They appear to be complying with the governor’s executive order. But Metro Nashville Public…
Read the full storyFormer Congresswoman Diane Black Reflects on Her Start in the Tennessee House and Successes
Thursday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed former Congresswoman Diane Black in studio to discuss her success and contribution to changing some American history in Tennessee.
Read the full storyBill Lee Won’t Say Whether He Wants Afghan Refugees in Tennessee, but Other Powerful GOP Politicians Have Spoken
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has not publicly stated whether he wants the state to take in Afghan refugees, but two of the state’s other top Republicans on Friday made their opinions known. Lee did not return two requests for comment Friday.
Read the full storyCommentary: Teacher Codes of Conduct Offer Alternative to Critical Race Theory Bans
The firing of Matthew Hawn, a high school teacher in Sullivan County, Tennessee, recently made national news and seemed to confirm fears that newly-enacted state bans on critical race theory (CRT) would have a chilling effect on teacher speech. Hawn, a 16-year veteran tenured teacher and baseball coach, had assigned students in his contemporary issues class Ta-Nehisi Coates’s essay, “The First White President,” and a spoken word poem from Kyla Jenée Lacey called “White Privilege.” One headline declared, “A Tennessee teacher taught a Ta-Nehisi Coates essay and a poem about white privilege. He was fired for it.” A Georgetown professor tweeted, “This really seems extreme and a harbinger of what is to come.”
But contrary to news coverage and social media chatter, Hawn wasn’t fired for violating the state’s newly passed CRT ban. Really, he was dismissed for failing to adhere to the Tennessee “Teacher Code of Ethics,” a seldom-invoked but sensible state requirement for teachers to provide students access to varying points of view on controversial topics. Not only did Hawn fail to follow this code when he assigned the contentious poem and Coates’ essay from The Atlantic, which contains claims such as, “With one immediate exception, Trump’s predecessors made their way to high office through the passive power of whiteness,” he also later asserted that “there is no credible source for a differing point of view.” (Hawn recently denied making such a claim, though he declined to explain why the district attributed this statement to him.)
Read the full storyGovernor Bill Lee Claims ‘Our Executive Order Gives the School District Authority to Impose a Mandate, but Gives the Parent the Ability to Opt Out’
On Tuesday Governor Bill Lee told Clay Travis and Buck Sexton on their nationally syndicated radio program, “our executive order actually gives the school district the authority to impose a mandate, but it gives the parent the ability to opt out of that if they choose it.” “I have always been a really strong believer that parents know best what their children need. So I’m a parent. I raised four kids, got eight grandkids. No one knows their kid like the parent. No one cares about their children more than their parents, and so in the middle of all of this covid world that we’re living in, which is people,” Lee told Travis when asked about Executive Order No. 84, signed by the governor on Monday.
Read the full storyTennessee Law Puts Up Several Barriers to Keep Tennesseans from Recalling Their Local School Board Member
If you live in Tennessee and you’re so upset with your local school board member that you want to recall him or her then you’re not going to like what state law has to say about the subject. One of Tennessee’s largest cities will apparently permit you to recall your local school board members, but the state’s vast other regions will not.
Read the full storyTennessee Lt. Gov. McNally Warns Davidson and Shelby Counties on Mask Opt-Outs: General Assembly ‘Will Not Allow Lawful Orders to be Defied’
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s executive order granting public school students the right to opt out of COVID-19 mask mandates has prompted Nashville and Memphis school administrators to announce they will not comply with Lee’s latest directive. That, in turn, prompted a response on Tuesday from Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally (R-Oak Ridge). On Facebook, McNally said Metro Nashville Public Schools’ (MNPS) and Shelby County Schools’ (SCS) officials’ apparent defiance against Lee left him “appalled and alarmed.”
Read the full storyTennessee’s and Georgia’s COVID-19 Policies Protected Lives and Also Minimized Damages to Both States’ Economies, Report Says
During COVID-19, Georgia and Tennessee have both fared substantially better economically than Kentucky and Michigan with no significant increase in cases from reopening their economy. This, according to a report that members of the Nashville-based Beacon Center of Tennessee published this month. Beacon is a free market think tank.
Read the full storyDr. Carol Swain: ‘The National Agenda Is to Keep Everyone in Masks to Strike Fear in the Hearts of People and Manipulate the Population’
host Leahy welcomed all-star panelist, Dr. Carol Swain, in studio to advise of her upcoming in-store appearance at Puffy Muffin where she will be signing her new book Black Eye for America this Saturday, and governor Lee’s lack of Republican leadership.
Read the full storyMayor Andy Ogles Questions Governor Lee’s Emergency and Statutory Powers
Tuesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Maury County Mayor Andy Ogles in studio to examine the Tennessee state constitution relating to whether or not Governor Bill Lee has the authority to extend emergency powers.
Read the full storyThree U.S. Representatives From Georgia and Tennessee Say Joe Biden Must Resign After Afghanistan Catastrophe
Three members of Congress who represent Georgia and Tennessee in the U.S. House of Representatives said Monday that U.S. President Joe Biden must resign from office. This, after Biden decided to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan.
Read the full storyFormer Tennessee Health Official Michelle Fiscus Allegedly Bought Dog Muzzle She Says Someone Else Sent to Intimidate Her
Former Tennessee Department of Health (TDOH) official Michelle Fiscus said someone mailed her a dog muzzle to intimidate her to stop talking about COVID-19 vaccinations, but Axios reported Monday that she allegedly purchased that muzzle herself. “The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security found through a subpoena that the Amazon package containing the muzzle traced back to a credit card in Fiscus’ name,” Axios reported.
Read the full storyTennessee Governor Bill Lee’s New Executive Order Grants Students the Right to Opt Out of COVID-19 Mask Mandate
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee on Monday issued an executive order that grants parents the right to opt their children out of a school’s COVID-19 mask mandate if a school board or a health board enacts one over a district. Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) had requestedthat Lee convene a special session of the state’s General Assembly to address school districts who impose mask mandates upon students. Lee said Monday he would not call for such a session.
Read the full storyThe Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh Told Metro Nashville School Board ‘No Mask Mandates’ Last Week
The Daily Wire’s Matt Walsh of The Walsh Show confronted the Metro Nashville Public School Board last Tuesday night in Williamson County regarding the newly decided reimplementation of mask mandates for elementary students. Walsh in turn schooled the board with his speech of facts and referenced mask-wearing as a form of child abuse which gained cheers from other parents.
Read the full storyTennessee Woman Indicted for Alleged COVID-19-Loan Scheme
Federal officials have arrested and arraigned a Benton, Tennessee woman and charged her with wire fraud, money laundering, and operating an unlicensed money transmittal business, commonly known as a “money mule” operation. This, according to a press release that staff members for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee published this week.
Read the full storyWilliamson County Parent and Talk Show Host Clay Travis Describes the ‘Mom-Led Revolution’ With Tucker Carlson
Fox News host Tucker Carlson welcomed Williamson County, Tennessee parent and co-host Clay Travis of The Clay Travis and Bux Sexton Show Thursday morning regarding the outpouring of parental concern as local school boards push anti-American curriculum on elementary students. Travis stated that this was a “mom-led revolution” and hinted that it will grow with speed around the country.
Carlson: The speech that you gave and God bless you for doing it. And it was entirely fact-based. The reaction from the other people in the room really struck me. What is your sense of where parents are right now with what’s happening in schools?
Travis: First, Tucker, thanks for having me.
Carlson: Of course.
Read the full storyAmericans for Prosperity-Tennessee’s Grassroots Director Grant Henry Discusses the Governed, the Government, and Bill Lee’s Executive Order
Tuesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed Americans for Prosperity’s Grant Henry in studio to weigh in on the laws and liberties of American citizens, dangerous precedence, and Governor Lee’s disturbing executive order.
Read the full storyTennessee Gov. Bill Lee’s New COVID-19 Executive Orders Threaten Liberty, Observers Warn
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed an executive order late last week regarding the state’s continued response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but some people worry it infringes upon basic liberties. Among other things, Lee’s executive order permits more flexibility in behavioral health care to relieve capacity strain and allows medical laboratory directors to monitor facilities remotely. But the order also gives the state government discretion to use the National Guard in connection with certain health care and emergency services operations.
Read the full storyConservative Activist and Retired Attorney Mark Pulliam Fights Woke Pedagogy in Maryville Tennessee Schools
Monday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed retired attorney Mark Pulliam to the newsmakers line to discuss his efforts to stop woke curriculum from permeating the Maryville, Tennessee school system.
Read the full storyTennessee Gov. Bill Lee Mum on If He Will Call Special Session on COVID-19 School Mask Mandates
If Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee favors a special legislative session to fight COVID-19 mask mandates in public schools then he has not yet put out a forceful enough statement saying as much. Lee’s office though, has released the following remarks:
Read the full storyAspects of Tennessee’s New ‘Anti-Critical Race Theory’ Law Worry Some
A Spring Hill woman who says she helped craft a new state law that limits teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public schools said she objects to certain guidelines state officials have proposed on the matter. Tricia Stickel told The Tennessee Star Sunday that she is not an activist. Instead she describes herself as “an effectivist” — someone she said is effective at making positive changes.
Read the full storyTennessee State Rep. Bruce Griffey Says Special Session Should Restrain Governor’s Emergency Powers
Tennessee State Rep. Bruce Griffey (R-Paris) said Sunday that if he and other state legislators hold a special session then they should consider restraining the governor’s emergency powers. Griffey said legislators should take up the governor’s authority to declare and extend public health emergencies. The governor can do this without oversight by the Tennessee General Assembly.
Read the full storyTennessee Tourism Spending Dropped by More than 30 Percent in 2020
Tourism spending in Tennessee dropped in 2020 for the first time in 10 years, according to data from the U.S. Travel Association and Tourism Economics.
Tennessee tourism spending fell 31.6%, less than the 42% decline nationally.
Within that decline was a 78.7% drop in spending from international visitors during a year that was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and travel restrictions, according to a report compiled by the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development.
Read the full storyTennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton Drafting Letter Requesting Special Session on COVID-19 School Mask Mandates
The Metro Nashville Public School (MNPS) Board’s decision to impose a COVID-19 mask mandate upon their students has prompted Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) to, as promised, call for a special legislative session. “We are starting discussions with House members,” Sexton told The Tennessee Star by text Friday.
Read the full storyMAGA Rapper Bryson Gray in Studio Reflects on Career Cancel Culture and Getting Kicked Out of Studio for Conservative Beliefs
Friday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed MAGA rapper and Nashville Transplant Bryson Gray in studio to talk about the pushback he’s been given in his career for being a conservative hip hop artist.
Read the full storyTennessee Officials Propose Rules on Teaching Critical Race Theory in Public Schools
A new state law that limits teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) has prompted the Tennessee Department of Education (TDOE) to propose new rules as it pertains to teaching on the subject of race in public schools. According to state of Tennessee’s website, educators may not teach that one race is superior to another race. They also cannot teach that an individual is privileged due to race or sex, whether consciously or subconsciously. They also may not teach that the United States is fundamentally or irredeemably racist or sexist.
Read the full storySpeaker Cameron Sexton Weighs In on Parent Centered News Conference Monday with Lee and Schwinn
Tuesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, guest host Ben Cunningham welcomed Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton to the newsmakers line to reiterate Monday’s press conference as Tennessee stands united on COVID and education.
Read the full storyTennessee May Need Special Session to Deal With School-Related COVID-19 Matters, Speaker Cameron Sexton Says
Tennessee Speaker of the House Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) said Monday that it’s time for students to put their virtual learning behind and walk back into their classrooms — without a COVID-19 mask mandate. And Sexton also said he and other state legislators have a plan to restrain public school district officials who think otherwise.
Read the full storyReport: Many Tennessee Economic Indicators Trend up, Others Mixed
How is Tennessee’s economy doing? A lot of it is doing well when compared to the COVID-19 lows on many economic indicators such as employment, a new Sycamore Institute report shows.
But other items are troubling, such as there being 40% fewer small businesses in Tennessee as of late June data than there were before the pandemic. That’s considering that 99% of private sector workers in the state work for small businesses, defined as companies of 500 employees or less.
“There are a lot of things going on here,” said Brian Straessle, the Sycamore Institute’s Director of External Affairs. “There isn’t like one nice neat narrative of the economy right now.”
Read the full storyU.S. Rep. Steve Cohen Announces More Taxpayer-Funded Goodies for Memphis
U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) this week voted for a seven-bill “minibus” that he said increases spending for several government social programs. The bill increases spending for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), and other school nutrition programs. Cohen said in a press release that the money also increases spending on the Small Business Administration, consumer protection agencies, veterans affairs and veterans medical services.
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