August 24, 2020 - The Virginia Star

EXCLUSIVE: ‘I’m Not Intimidated by Graffiti Attack on Church Hosting Me Sunday,’ Roger Stone Says

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Neil W. McCabe

The legendary Republican operative, targeted Saturday night by vicious graffiti spray painted all over the outside of the Mount Juliet’s Global Vision Bible Church, to The Tennessee Star he is not afraid to show up to speak at the church Sunday as invited.

“First of all, it’s disgusting,” said Roger J. Stone, who has been a friend and political advisor to President Donald J. Trump for more than three decades. “The idea of attacking a house of worship? But, if people thought this would intimidate me and I would not witness for Christ, they really just don’t understand.”

Amid a Crowded Field, Democrat Terry McAuliffe Moves to Run for Governor Again in 2021

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Eric Burk

Former Governor Terry McAuliffe filed paperwork to run for governor in 2021, joining field of four other Democrats and another four Republicans who have filed or declared serious interest in running in the 2021 primary.

Strategist and Democratic political pundit Ben Tribbett told The Virginia Star that filing to run is not the same as an official declaration as Virginia does not allow exploratory committees.

Commentary: Two Miles from North America’s Oldest Elected Body, a Richmond Neighborhood Cowers in Fear

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

It’s two miles or so down Monument Avenue from the Virginia State Capitol building in Richmond to the Robert E. Lee Memorial.

The capitol houses the oldest legislative body in North America – the Virginia General Assembly, which dates to 1619 when the Virginia Company, the private firm that controlled the state, appointed a governor and Council of State to rule along with 22 elected burgesses.

Opioids, Violence and the Supreme Court Largely Omitted from DNC Convention Speeches

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

Democrats focused on coronavirus, climate change, racial inequality and more during their party’s convention, but none pf the keynote speakers mentioned rising violence in cities across the country or the opioid epidemic during the primetime program.

The two issues have been worsening in part due to nationwide unrest and the pandemic, media reports and studies say. The Supreme Court — a large focus of the 2016 election — was also largely ignored.

Seattle Mayor to Veto City Council’s Cuts to Police, Budget

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 The Associated Press

Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said Friday she will veto City Council-approved proposals that would include reducing the police department by as many as 100 officers through layoffs and attrition.

The council’s proposals approved last week were supported by demonstrators who have marched in the city following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis but strongly opposed by the mayor and police Chief Carmen Best.

Golden State Killer Joseph James DeAngelo Apologizes at Sentencing for Victimizing 87 People

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 The Associated Press

Just before receiving multiple consecutive life sentences, Joseph James DeAngelo, the former California police officer who lived a double life as the murderous sociopath dubbed the Golden State Killer, broke his silence to tell a hushed courtroom filled with victims and their family members that he was “truly sorry” for the crimes.

It was such an unexpected moment that it brought gasps from those in the gallery, many of whom sat through an extraordinary four-day sentencing hearing filled with graphic and heart-wrenching testimony from dozens of victims. It also reinforced that nobody ever seemed to know what DeAngelo would do and who he was, which helps explain how he eluded detection for four decades while committing at least 13 killings and dozens of rapes.

President Trump Announces Plasma Treatment Authorized for COVID-19

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 The Associated Press

President Donald Trump announced Sunday the emergency authorization of convalescent plasma for COVID-19 patients, in a move he called “a breakthrough,” one of his top health officials called “promising,” and other health experts said needs more study before it’s celebrated.

The announcement comes after days of White House officials suggesting there were politically motivated delays by the Food and Drug Administration in approving a vaccine and therapeutics for the disease that has upended Trump’s reelection chances.

FBI Agents Pushed for a FISA to Investigate Foreign Government Targeting Hillary Clinton

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

by Chuck Ross FBI agents in 2015 sought authorization to surveil foreign government operatives who sought to influence Hillary Clinton, but ultimately settled for a defensive briefing given to lawyers for the Democratic presidential candidate, according to documents released on Sunday. One FBI agent involved in the investigation asked…

U.S. Department of Education Opens Investigation of Fordham University Over Punishment of Student Austin Tong

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

The U.S. Department of Education has opened an investigation into Fordham University, about two months after student Austin Tong received notification from the New York City private college that his social media posts violated university policy and that he had been placed on probation.

BOOK REVIEW: Author Jerry Kammer Exposes the Left-Right Coalition to Undermine Immigration Reform

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

The Democrats’ 2020 choice for vice-president of the United States is Kamala Harris, a U.S. senator from California who has compared our courageous, underpaid, overworked, and often Latino, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to the Ku Klux Klan. How did we get here exactly?

Let us look back and examine how immigration enforcement has been undermined for decades and then discuss what it means for the 2020 presidential election.

The Sunlight Foundation reports that between 2007 and 2012, 678 lobbying groups – including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, American Nursery and Landscape Association, the dairy industry, agribusiness, high-tech companies, major universities, the ACLU, the Service Employees International Union, the National Council of La Raza (now UnidosUS), and many other lobbyists – spent $1.5 billion to influence immigration policy.

Commentary: The Ruling Class Is Selling Out America

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Virginia Star Staff

by Angela Kelley The ruling class is selling out America, and many of us either don’t want to hear about it or just don’t care. According to recently unearthed notes from a White House meeting shortly before inauguration day in January 2017, Vice President Joe Biden raised the idea of pursuing…

Severity of COVID-19 Impact at Richmond Colleges Unclear as University of Richmond Classes Resume Monday

August 24, 2020August 24, 2020 Jacob Taylor

As Richmond area colleges start the fall semester, the impact from COVID-19 exposure and cases remains unclear.

Both Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and the University of Richmond (UR) have implemented new policy and procedures which students, faculty and employees must strictly adhere to.

VCU residential students must complete a daily health survey and there are normal COVID-19 policies such as wearing a mask, social distancing as well as cleaning and disinfecting shared spaces.