Outgoing Governor Haslam told reporters Thursday that he hoped President Trump would stay out of the Tennessee Republican primary to name his replacement. “I don’t think it’s helpful for the White House to be involved in primaries,” Haslam said, citing that as the current chairman of the Republican Governors Association,…
Read MoreMonth: July 2018
State Senator Thelma Harper Endorses Howard Jones as Her Successor Over Long Time Rival Brenda Gilmore
Tennessee State Sen. Thelma Harper (D-Nashville) endorsed Howard Jones Jr. as her successor to the 19th State Senatorial District in Nashville, a seat she has held for 27 years, over longtime rival State Rep. Brenda Gilmore (D-Nashville). The Tennessee Tribune reported the endorsement of Jones, a pastor and educator. “A few…
Read MoreMark West Commentary: When Men are Unwilling to Lead – Tennessee’s Gubernatorial Race
by Mark West There is a story in the Old Testament (Judges 4), where we read about two leaders in Israel, Deborah and Barak. The people of Israel were facing a serious threat from an oppressive enemy, King Jabin and the Commander of his army, Sisera. God had told…
Read MoreHouse Passes Act to Undo Supreme Court’s Kelo Ruling Which Allows Use of Eminent Domain For Private Development
The U.S. House took a stand for private property rights Wednesday when it addressed the issues from a controversial 2004 Supreme Court ruling that gives broad powers to seize private property. One writer, at least, cautions against premature celebration. Rick Moran at the blog American Thinker reported the House’s passage…
Read MoreCommentary: The RINO Carbon Tax Proposal Reminds Us the Power to Tax is the Power to Destroy
by Jeffery Rendall With all the crazy stuff coming out of Washington these days it shouldn’t be surprising to hear a liberal congressman introduced a tax to address “climate change” that he claims is an investment in the future. But when it’s a Republican doing the proposing the matter’s worth a…
Read MoreJC Bowman Commentary: Giving Tennessee Educators a Choice and a Voice
As teachers and administrators go back to school across the state, they will have a choice in what teacher association in which they want to join. We hope they will join Professional Educators of Tennessee. As an independent, Tennessee -focused professional association, we keep our membership dues low by ensuring that…
Read MoreOFF THE RECORD: John Rose Raises Money on K Street in Washington, D.C.
6th Congressional District candidate John Rose was on K Street in Washington, D.C. earlier this week raising money from a group of PACs and lobbyists. His rivals for the Republican nomination to succeed Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06) spent the time talking to constituents across the district back in Tennessee. Rose’s…
Read MoreSteve Scalise Supports Impeachment Of Rod Rosenstein: ‘Has Not Done His Job’
by Nick Givas Republican Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana threw his support behind the GOP effort to impeach Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Fox News Thursday. Scalise praised the efforts of Republican Reps. Devin Nunes of California, Jim Jordan of Ohio and Mark Meadows of North Carolina for trying…
Read MoreKenny Chesney Charts 30th No. 1 Hit as He Releases ‘Songs for the Saints’
The recent hurricane in the Virgin Islands inspired Kenny Chesney’s newly released “Song for the Saints” record. His 30th #1 hit, “Get Along” encapsulates so much of what “Songs for the Saints” is all about.
Read MoreZinke Ends Obama-Era Policy Requiring Energy Companies Fund Environmental ‘Mitigation’ Projects
by Tim Pierce The Department of the Interior (DOI) is scrapping an Obama-era policy mandating energy companies mitigate development on federal land by funding offsite environmental projects. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) — a DOI-controlled agency and the largest land-owning agency in the U.S. — began forcing oil,…
Read MoreIgnore the Man Behind The Curtain: Haslam Conspires to Block Diane Black Endorsement by Trump
In the audio below, conservative political commentator and Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill of The Gill Report, broadcast live on WETR 92.3 FM in Knoxville, called out “Never-Trumper” Bill Haslam for his attempts to block a Trump endorsement for Tennessee’s Diane Black in the Tennessee Governor’s race and whether…
Read MoreCorlew Campaign Releases Poll Showing Statistical Tie in 6th Congressional District Race with John Rose
The Judge Bob Corlew for Congress campaign released the results of a new internal poll on Tuesday that shows Corlew is in a statistical tie with former Agriculture Commissioner John Rose in the race for the Republican nomination for the 6th Congressional District to replace Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06), who…
Read MoreMan Arrested and Indicted for Allegedly Threatening to Assault and Murder Diane Black
A man was arrested and indicted for allegedly threatening to murder Rep. Diane Black (R-TN-06). “According to an indictment, Clifton Ward threatened to assault and murder Congressman Black, who is also a candidate for governor,” WKRN reported: Officials said the threats were left in a voicemail at one of the congressman’s…
Read MoreBeacon Center Calls ‘Cut’ on Wasteful Tennessee Film, TV Subsidies Such as ‘Nashville’
The TV show “Nashville” may finally be ending, but taxpayers have been stuck with the tab for this and other “flops,” conservative think tank says in a new report. The Beacon Center of Tennessee released the “Calling Cut on Film Incentives” report Wednesday to decry the bad “investments” the state…
Read MoreCan’t We All Just Get Along? Republican Candidates Sling Mud Before Election
On Monday’s edition on The Gill Report – broadcast on Knoxville’s 92.3 FM WETR – Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill discussed the unscrupulous battle between Republican nominees for Governor elections August 2nd in Tennessee and the support that the winning candidate may or may not receive from members of their…
Read MoreHouse Republicans Move to Impeach Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein
Eleven House Republicans have introduced articles of impeachment against Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who oversees special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference and President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. The Republicans who introduced the resolution have criticized Rosenstein for not being responsive enough to their requests for documents…
Read MoreFlinn Hits Kustoff for His Attack on Pregnant Women
George Flinn aired a campaign ad several weeks ago that featured three visibly pregnant women who said they were voting for Finn for Congress in West Tennessee’s 8th Congressional District. Flinn is challenging incumbent Congressman David Kustoff in the Republican Primary. The women pointed out that Kustoff had voted for…
Read MoreMattis Backs Up Trump’s Strong Words On Iran
by Evie Fordham Secretary of Defense James Mattis backed up President Donald Trump’s fiery message about Iran at the Hoover Institution in Stanford, California, on Tuesday. “[Iran] cannot continue to show irresponsibility as some revolutionary organization that is intent on exporting terrorism, exporting disruption across the region,” Mattis said, reported The…
Read MoreSenate GOP Draws Line On Kavanaugh Vetting Ahead Of Confirmation Hearings
by Kevin Daley Senate Republicans are increasingly of the mind that documents Judge Brett Kavanaugh produced as White House staff secretary should not be reviewed in connection with his nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. Instead, GOP lawmakers believe the Senate is best served by confining its review of…
Read MoreThings That Make You Go Hmm: Independent Polling Firm Puts Lee in the Lead While Tied to Campaign Consultants
On Tuesday’s Gill Report, broadcast live on WETR 92.3 FM in Knoxville, conservative pundit and Tennessee Star Political Editor Steve Gill baffled at a recent independent poll that stated Bill Lee was leading Tennessee’s GOP primary race. The question remains to be answered of whether or not Lee knew the…
Read MoreTrump, EU Leader Agree to Work Toward ‘Zero Tariffs’
by Fred Lucas In what President Donald Trump called “a very big day for free and fair trade,” he and the leader of the European Union agreed Wednesday to work to end tariffs on nonautomotive products. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Trump met at the White House, then…
Read MoreCommentary: Trump Asks ‘Why Can’t We Be Friends?’ and Critics Won’t Stop Ripping Him
by Jeffery Rendall Why can’t we be friends, Why can’t we be friends, Why can’t we be friends, Why can’t we be friends?… I’d kinda’ like to be the president So I could show you how your money’s spent… ~ War, 1975 This classic War (the musical group) song came…
Read MoreICE Arrests Illegal Immigrant Sex Offender After NC Local Custody Released Him While On A Detainer Order
by Neetu Chandak Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested an illegal immigrant and sex offender Monday who was released by North Carolina jail even though he was on an immigrant detainer. Mexican national Udiel Aguilar-Castellanos, 44, pleaded guilty for two counts of sexual battery on June 27, ICE reported Wednesday. ICE…
Read MoreThe $36 Billion Multi-Employer Pension Time Bomb Is Almost Ready to Go Off
By Robert Romano 114 out of the nation’s 1,400 multi-employer pension plans covering 1.3 million workers are underfunded to the tune of $36.4 billion, with plans expected to start going insolvent in the next 5 years or so, an Aug. 2017 analysis by Cheiron has found. This is the end result…
Read MoreDesJarlais Touts Passage of Bill to Delay ObamaCare Tax For Two Years
The House on Wednesday passed a measure to delay ObamaCare’s health insurance tax for two years and expand Health Savings Accounts, The Hill reported. The bill, which passed 242-176, is part of a Republican effort to blunt Democratic attacks on the GOP for rising premiums – a key argument in…
Read MoreBill Lee Agrees With Gov. Haslam That Transgender Bathroom Issue Does Not Need Leadership From the State
Governor Haslam and Bill Lee propose the same approach to the use of school bathrooms and locker rooms by students whose choice of gender and anatomy may not match. Both Haslam and Lee have said that this issue does not require leadership from the state but instead, should be problem-solved…
Read MoreHouse Votes Overwhelmingly To Kill Obamacare’s Tax On Medical Devices
by Julia Cohen A bipartisan majority in the House voted to repeal President Barack Obama’s 2.3 percent medical device tax Tuesday. The repeal passed 283-132, with 57 Democrats and all but one Republican voting in favor. North Carolina Republican Rep. Walter Jones was the sole Republican against the bill. “Minnesota’s innovators can breathe…
Read MoreFirst Lady Melania Trump Visits Vandy Children’s Hospital, Shines Light on Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
First Lady Melania Trump visited Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt on Tuesday. The first lady’s visit was part of her “Be Best” campaign, an initiative focusing on the major issues children face, WSMV said. It was Trump’s first domestic trip to highlight the effort, NewsChannel 5 said. She…
Read MoreVolkswagen’s ‘Diesel-Gate’ Hits Tennessee As Company Plans to Dump Hundreds of Thousands of ‘Fixed’ Cars in U.S.
Will hundreds of thousands of Volkswagen diesel vehicles that have been the subject of U.S. and international criminal and civil actions after it was discovered that the vehicles had been rigged to “cheat” emissions testing soon be sold in Tennessee? It appears so, though few state or federal officials seem…
Read MoreReport: Phil Bredesen Supported Using Taxpayer Dollars to Abort Down Syndrome Babies
According to a report in The Daily Caller citing an old news item, Democrat Phil Bredesen “once supported using taxpayer money to abort babies with Down syndrome.”
Read MoreCandidate Endorsed by President Trump Wins Georgia GOP Gubernatorial Primary Runoff in a Landslide
The candidate President Trump endorsed last week won the Georgia Republican gubernatorial primary runoff last night in a landslide.
Read MorePresident Of Judicial Watch Tom Fitton Trashes DOJ And FBI For Abusing ‘Awesome Powers’ Without Accountability
by Nick Givas Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton trashed the FBI and Department of Justice for abuse of power on “Fox & Friends First” Tuesday and said they are not being held accountable for their actions. Fitton’s group sued under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain surveillance warrant documents related…
Read MoreCommentary: The ‘Self Licking Ice Cream Cone’ of Mueller’s Russia Probe
by George Rasley Senator Rand Paul met with President Donald Trump Monday and asked him to consider revoking former CIA Director John Brennan’s security clearance. Our friend Sara Carter reports the Kentucky Senator later took to Twitter and wrote, “Just got out of WH meeting with @RealDonald Trump. I…
Read MoreNorm Partin Commentary: Bill Lee for Governor
by Norm Partin Are you the person that says to yourself, “If I were Governor, this is what I would do…”? Do you tend to vote AGAINST people instead of FOR someone? Are you constantly disappointed by politically influenced legislation on both national and state levels? Are you “that…
Read MoreLetter to the Editor: We Need a Senator Who Will Be an Ally to President Trump
Dear Tennessee Star, Congressman Marsha Blackburn should be elected to the Senate in November so President Trump will have an ally in Washington. As I have been volunteering for Marsha this summer, I have acquired insight as to what it looks like to be a leader. I am not…
Read MoreChina’s Unconventional Multi-Front War on the United States
by Printus LeBlanc China has a strategy unlike any the U.S. has faced. In the Cold War with the Soviet Union, it was military force versus military force. China learned a lesson from the USSR and is taking an asymmetrical approach in dealing with the U.S. Yes, China is…
Read MoreRepublicans Unveil Tax Cuts Round Two On The Same Day Progressives Release Plan For Tax Increases
by Julia Cohen House Republicans announced they are working on a second iteration of tax cuts on Tuesday, the same day the Congressional Progressive Caucus announced a proposal for raising taxes. “The tax cuts have been working incredibly well to get this economy moving, to create more jobs, to…
Read MoreGlen Gaugh Commentary: Why I Support Chris Todd in District 73’s State House Race
I made my personal decision to vote for Chris Todd after speaking with both he and his opponent, County Commissioner Jay Bush. When negative ads started showing up on Facebook, sponsored by House Majority Leader Glen Casada’s CAS-PAC, attacking Commissioner Bush for his vote to raise property taxes, I had to look deeper into Chris’ character. Here are the reasons why my support remains with Chris Todd.
Read MoreIvanka Trump to Shutter Fashion Line, Focus on Government
Reuters President Donald Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, is closing her fashion line to focus her energies on advising her father’s White House, she said through a representative on Tuesday. Trump, whose fortune comes from real estate development, came into office carrying a broad family business portfolio that trades…
Read MorePortland Food Cart That Helps The Homeless Shut Down After Alleged Harassment From Occupy ICE Protesters
by Neetu Chandak A Portland non-profit food cart was shut down after the owners faced alleged harassment from Occupy ICE protesters Friday. The Happy Camper Food Cart, founded by Scott and Julie Hakes in 2017, raised funds to help the homeless through the project Operation Off The Grid. The stand was across…
Read MoreCorker Likens Trump Administration to ‘Banana Republic’ For Wanting to Yank Security Clearances of Misbehaving Ex-Officials
U.S. Sen. Bob Corker likened the Trump Administration to a “banana republic” for wanting to yank security clearances of ex-government hacks who are using their positions to attack the president. The administration’s proposal is “the kind of thing that happens in Venezuela,” Tennessee’s junior senator told MSNBC, as reported by…
Read MoreTennessee Star Poll: ‘Karl Marx’ Dean Leads Craig Fitzhugh by 68 Points Among Davidson County Democrats
A new Tennessee Star Poll of likely Democrat primary voters in Davidson County shows that former Nashville Mayor “Karl Marx” Dean leads State Rep. Craig Fitzhugh (D-Ripley) by 68 points, 79 percent to 11 percent.
Read MoreThe Carter Page FISA Application: Four Key Takeaways (Plus One More)
As experts comb through the newly-released, heavily redadcted FISA application to surveil former Trump campaign volunteer Carter Page, John Hinderaker at PowerLineBlog noticed four key takeaways. First, he notes, the application – which was renewed several times by the Obama-Holder-Lynch Department of Justice – strongly suggests Page is a Russian…
Read MoreTennessee Senate Candidate Phil Bredesen Accused of Falling Straight Into Chuck Schumer’s Pocket
by Grace Carr Tennessee Democratic senatorial candidate Phil Bredesen has wavered on issues from abortion to campaign financing throughout his political career, leaving some critical about what he will offer to Tennesseans if elected in November. “Tennesseans can’t get a straight answer out of Phil Bredesen,” National Republican Senate…
Read MoreRep. Steve Cohen Makes Another Stupid Statement, Says ‘Survival’ Is At Stake
Oops! Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) has made another stupid statement. Cohen told PJ Media that “survival” is the greatest challenge for Jewish and African-American communities in the Trump Administration era. “As far as tolerance and human rights, civil rights, voting rights they’re all not on the front burner,” he said. “If…
Read MoreThis New Health Plan Expansion Is a Godsend for Small Businesses Like Mine
by Kalena Bruce Last month, the Trump administration took a concrete step to lower skyrocketing health care costs for middle-class families like mine. The Department of Labor issued a final rule expanding association health plans, which allow small businesses like my farm to band together with others to negotiate bulk rates…
Read MoreOFF THE RECORD: Randy Boyd Skips Knoxville Debate . . . For ‘Pricey Steakhouse Dinner’?
Randy Boyd set off a chain reaction when he cancelled Sunday night’s GOP gubernatorial candidate primary debate in Knoxville. Now, one reporter says the cancellation was due to a “pricey steakhouse dinner,” as first reported at TNJ: On the Hill. Boyd had cited an unspecified scheduling conflict as his reason…
Read More‘She Hates Me:’ WaPo Reveals Why Evangelicals Jumped Aboard The Trump Train
by Chris White The Washington Post asked locals at a southern Baptist church in Alabama why they voted for President Donald Trump despite that the former reality TV star’s conduct. Their answer was short and to the point. Members of the First Baptist church of Luverne, Alabama say former…
Read MoreState Rep. Andy Holt Commentary: Conservatives Need to Reject the Fake News and Unite Behind Bill Lee
by State Representative Andy Holt (R-Dresden) With just a little more than a week left in this election, the polling is clear: Bill Lee is leading Randy Boyd and Diane Black. It’s why they are both spending millions to attack him. And I can’t help but shake this feeling…
Read MoreDr. J. Lee Douglas Commentary: Can We Conservatives Be Smarter This Governor’s Race and Unite in Support of Diane Black?
When it was obvious in 2010 that we had influenced our first big election, do you recall feeling powerful, that we could shake things up? Then within another year, disgusted and disheartened because our victorious candidates seldom represented our wishes? They did it to us again, didn’t they? No. Here’s how we did it to ourselves.
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