The Virginia Star - Leading the Way in News and Education

April 21, 2021

Wise County Satellite Internet Success for Students Leads to Expansion to Neighboring Counties

Wise County Public School's (WCPS) pilot program with SpaceX Starlink to provide satellite internet to rural students has been a success so far, and area officials and legislators are considering expanding the program to neighboring counties. In an April 8...

April 21, 2021

Commentary: Election Integrity and the Jim Crow Slur

Not too long ago, a good friend of mine took umbrage at a Facebook post that compared a proposed “vaccination passport” to the requirement that Jews in Nazi Germany carry papers identifying them as such. As a Jew, my friend...

April 21, 2021

Commentary: From ‘Insurrectionists’ to ‘Interruptionists’

Well, this is a bummer for the sedition-baiting crowd. The Biden Justice Department last week announced its first plea deal related to the January 6 protest on Capitol Hill: Jon Ryan Schaffer pleaded guilty to two charges—obstruction of an official...

April 21, 2021

U.S. Issues ‘Do Not Travel’ Guidance to 80 Percent of Countries, Cites COVID-19

The State Department is expanding the “Do Not Travel” guidelines for U.S. citizens to include nearly 80% of countries because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency announced Monday. The travel advisories will be updated to align with the Centers for...

April 21, 2021

Pro-Life Student Group Exposes Christian Universities with Ties to Planned Parenthood

Students for Life of America, a pro-life organization that aims to “recruit, train, and mobilize the pro-life generation to abolish abortion,” recently released a list of Christian universities with ties to Planned Parenthood. The group announced in a press release that they investigated over...

April 21, 2021

‘Enemy of the People’: Minneapolis Star-Tribune Publishes Biographical Information of Derek Chauvin Trial Jurors

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune is being blasted online for releasing biographical information of all twelve jurors plus two alternates in the Derek Chauvin trial in the killing of George Floyd. Without naming the jurors, reporters Paul Walsh and Hannah Sayle on Tuesday...

April 21, 2021

Commentary: Manchin Saves the Filibuster for Now, so House Democrats Call Supreme Court Packing ‘Infrastructure’

On April 7, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) penned an oped for the Washington Post entitled, “I will not vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster,” appearing to foreclose any possibility of President Joe Biden ramming through major changes to law on a...

April 21, 2021

American Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan Returning to Washington as Tensions Heighten

United States Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan said Tuesday that he was returning to Washington for “consultations” with top American officials as tensions increase between the two countries. The former deputy secretary of state and appointee of former President Donald...

April 21, 2021

21 Black Leaders Denounce the Left’s Lies About Georgia Election Law

Twenty-one civil rights leaders and prominent black conservatives defended Georgia’s new election law in a letter to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, rejecting opponents’ comparisons to Jim Crow laws. “It has become clear that even well-intentioned critics of the law simply...

April 21, 2021

Music Spotlight: Nashvillains

NASHVILLE, Tennessee- When I interviewed the Nashvillains I mentioned that they were like a modern country music supergroup. Turns out they agree. Signed to Fate Entertainment, the newly formed country-rock-infused band is made up of veteran musicians Troy Johnson, Brett...

April 21, 2021

Poll: Majority of Americans Oppose Expanding the U.S. Supreme Court

Democrats enthralled their base and alarmed Republicans with the recent announcement of a new push to add four justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the latest polling suggests the majority of Americans don’t favor expanding the highest court in...

April 21, 2021

Bill Thwarting Big Tech Censorship Headed to Florida Senate Floor

A bill that would limit the ability of Big Tech platforms like Facebook and YouTube to ban political candidates passed the Senate Appropriations Committee Monday, and will head to the Senate floor. SB 7072, which according to its summary is...

April 21, 2021

Roanoke Postpones Decision on Plastic Bag Tax to Gather More Information, Public Comment

The Roanoke City Council is seeking more information and public input before making a decision on a 5-cent single-use plastic bag tax. In a public hearing at Monday evening's city council meeting, only three speakers spoke, all in favor of...

April 20, 2021

Jury Finds Derek Chauvin Guilty on All Counts in the Death of George Floyd

Less than a year after the death of George Floyd in police custody, a jury found former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on charges of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. Anger from the tragic death in...

April 20, 2021

Virginians 16 and Older Eligible for COVID-19 Vaccine

All Virginians 16 years old and older are now eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, as of Sunday. "Over the past few months, we have made tremendous progress vaccinating Virginians as quickly, safely, and equitably as possible, and we need...

April 20, 2021

General Assembly Republicans Call for Special Session to Investigate Virginia Parole Board

General Assembly Republicans renewed calls for a special session to investigate the Virginia Parole Board (VPB) after media obtained recordings of a call held last summer between Northam administration officials and State Inspector General Michael Westfall. House of Delegates Minority...

April 20, 2021

Commentary: Proposed Education Department Rule Would Prioritize Funding Critical Race Theory Grant Applications

The Biden Administration is wasting no time in working to promote highly controversial critical race theory and anti-racism concepts into curriculums nationwide. A proposed rule from the U.S. Education Department seeks to prioritize funding grant proposals that support diversity and...

April 20, 2021

NASA Makes History with First Helicopter Flight on Another Planet

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration made history Monday morning when it conducted the first ever powered and controlled flight on a different planet. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Ingenuity, a solar-powered helicopter, took flight on Mars for...

April 20, 2021

YouTube CEO Honored with ‘Free Expression’ Award as Big Tech Silences Conservatives

Despite its ongoing censorship and banning of prominent conservatives from its platform, the CEO of Google-owned YouTube collected an award for "free expression" last week. The nonprofit Freedom Forum, which describes itself as "celebrating the world's champions of free expression,"...

April 20, 2021

Virginia Tech Claims to Follow the Science on COVID, But Does Just the Opposite

Virginia Democratic Gov. Ralph Northam amended a previous executive order to ease up on COVID-19 restrictions, effective on April 1, allowing up to 50 people to gather for indoor events and up to 100 people to gather for outdoor events. However, Virginia...

April 20, 2021

Vandals Target Chauvin Defense Witness and Vandalize Wrong House

Far-left domestic terrorists attempted to intimidate one of the key witnesses in the defense of Derek Chauvin over the weekend, but instead ended up vandalizing the wrong house, according to ABC News. Barry Brodd, a former training officer with the Santa...

April 20, 2021

Commentary: The Joe Biden Who Never Was

These are the most radical first three months of a presidency since 1933, the most divisive—and certainly the most dangerous. And its catalyst is the myth of ol’ Joe from Scranton who has unleashed furies and hatreds never quite seen...

April 20, 2021

‘This is What Open Borders Agenda Looks Like,’ Trump’s ICE Chief Says

Tom Homan, former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said Monday that President Joe Biden sacrificed the U.S.’ safety at the southern border in order to win the 2020 election. “This is open borders agenda, Joe Biden...

April 20, 2021

Arizona Senate on the Verge of Beginning Major Audit of Maricopa County Ballots

The Arizona Senate is poised to begin a major audit of over two million ballots cast in the 2020 election in the state's largest county, a process the state Senate president claims has been stymied by county officials and which...

April 20, 2021

Commentary: Too Much Data, Too Little Wisdom

Every day, we are bombarded with information. A police shooting under questionable circumstances. A tense encounter between people of different races. A flood of statistics on COVID-19 cases, mortality, and vaccine effectiveness. We receive the data in the form of...

April 20, 2021

Biden Administration Won’t Define ‘Sex’ as Biological as Title IX Review Starts

The Biden administration has rejected a petition to define sex in biological terms as it reviews the Trump administration's Title IX policies on women's sports and sexual misconduct proceedings. The rejection came a day after the Department of Education announced...

April 20, 2021

Proposed Florida Vote-By-Mail Restrictions Scaled Back, But Opponents Not Swayed

A key Senate panel Wednesday amended a controversial bill imposing a range of restrictions on the state’s vote-by-mail (VBM) laws but did not vote on the measure after an exhaustive debate. The Senate Rules Committee ran out of time before...

April 20, 2021

Virginia Republican Gubernatorial Candidates on Best Behavior at Liberty University Forum

The College Republicans of Liberty University hosted a forum for the Republican candidates for Governor of Virginia. Delegate Kirk Cox (R-Colonial Heights), State Senator Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield), Colonel Sergio De La Pena, Glenn Youngkin, and Peter Doran participated in the...

April 19, 2021

Commonwealth’s Attorney Deghani-Tafti Partners with Vera Institute of Justice

The Vera Institute of Justice announced that Arlington County and Falls Church Commonwealth's Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti and St. Louis, Missouri Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner would be the first of ten new prosecutors in a program designed to provide support and...

April 19, 2021

Commentary: Keep Nine to Keep the Independent Judiciary

Congressional Democrats have introduced legislation that would add four more justices to the U.S. Supreme Court, boosting the number of justices on the bench from nine to 13, as Democrat congressional leaders are going all-in on packing the Supreme Court....

April 19, 2021

BLM Blocks Stillwater Man from Getting Home, Police Intervene and Detain Him

When Black Lives Matter (BLM) blocked a Minnesota man from his home, police intervened — arresting the man. BLM protested Saturday outside the home of a county attorney responsible for bringing charges against former Brooklyn Center police officer Kim Potter,...

April 19, 2021

Trump’s Post-D.C. Plan Takes Shape with Rollout of America First Funding, Policy, Messaging Arms

Nearly three months after Donald Trump's departure from the White House, his plans for a politically active post-presidential role are coming into public focus After a comparatively quiet first five weeks in Palm Beach, Fla., following a final five in...

April 19, 2021

Fauci Admits Biden Administration is Flouting CDC Guidance in Border Facilities

White House chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci on Thursday conceded in a tense exchange with Louisiana Republican Rep. Steve Scalise that the Biden administration is violating major Centers for Disease Control and Prevention coronavirus guidelines by packing countless illegal immigrants into...

April 19, 2021

Biden’s Court Packing Committee Contains an Army of Professors Open to Altering Supreme Court

President Joe Biden unveiled a new commission to explore the possibility of packing the Supreme Court. Although the commission does contain some constitutional originalists, it is heavily staffed by legal professors with revisionist views on the nation’s top judicial body....

April 19, 2021

Medical Journal Forces Out Editor Who Questioned ‘Structural Racism,’ Professors Rejoice

A leading medical journal terminated an editor who questioned the existence of structural racism. His fellow medical professors expressed approval of the firing. The American Medical Association wrote in a statement that it was “deeply disturbed” and “angered” by a recent Journal...

April 19, 2021

West Virginia Governor Will Not Veto Bill Banning Biological Males from Women’s Sports

The governor of West Virginia signaled that he will not veto a bill banning biological males from women’s sports. Republican West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice discussed HB 3293 during a coronavirus briefing Wednesday saying that he would either “let it become law...

April 19, 2021

Commentary: Biden Intelligence Community Breaches Authority to Target the Right

The freshly reelected Republican senator from Nebraska had kind words this week for Joe Biden’s intelligence chiefs. “The American people are blessed to have an as serious as ours,” Senator Ben Sasse said during Wednesday’s Senate Intelligence Committee hearing. He called...

April 19, 2021

Abbott Calls for Biden to Label Mexican Cartels as Terrorist Organizations as Texas Ranchers Fend off Criminals

Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday sent a letter to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris asking them to designate Mexican drug cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. The cartels are bringing terror into Texas communities, Abbott said in his...

April 19, 2021

Andrew Yang Has Commanding Lead in NYC Mayoral Race, Poll Shows

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang holds a commanding lead over his Democratic opponents in New York City’s mayoral race, according to a Thursday Data for Progress poll. The poll found Yang with 26%, double the support of Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams....

April 19, 2021

Music Spotlight: Exit 216

New Nashville Country Soul Duo EXIT 216 find harmony in their debut song, “Brothers.” Also listen to their newest song, “Robbery” and learn what they have planned for the future.

April 19, 2021

Defund the Police Movement Contributed to Rise in Violence, Experts Say

Calls to defund the police have once again been thrust into the national spotlight after a string of high profile police shootings, but data show the rallying cry for police reformers may not hold water. After the death of Daunte...

April 19, 2021

Maxine Waters Shows up in Brooklyn Center, Tells Protesters to Get ‘More Confrontational’

U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters made a brief appearance Saturday night outside a police station in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, where crowds have gathered for seven consecutive nights to protest the shooting of Daunte Wright. Wright was killed last Sunday by former Brooklyn Center...

April 19, 2021

Loudoun Parents Group Forms Fight for Schools PAC to Recall Most of the Loudoun School Board

Loudoun Parents for Education (LPE) is launching a recall effort targeting six out of nine school board members as the latest in a conflict between parents and school leadership. On Tuesday, LPE launched the Fight for Schools PAC to engage...

April 18, 2021

Warner, Kaine Introduce Red-Flag, Other Federal Gun Control Changes to Mirror Virginia Law

U.S. Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner introduced federal gun control legislation Thursday to mirror some of the laws that recently passed their home state of Virginia. The policies include expanding background checks, limiting handgun purchases and enacting red flag...

April 18, 2021

Commentary: The Washington Post Fact-Checker and Holding Biden Accountable

After four years of relentless fact checks of statements by President Trump, many wondered whether fact-checkers would apply similar scrutiny to President Biden. Responding to right-leaning critics who “have been urging fact checks of ‘Biden lies,’” Glenn Kessler, editor and...

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
				1	2	3
4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17
18	19	20	21	22	23	24
25	26	27	28	29	30