Month: September 2020

Injured Illegal Immigrant Moved to Long-term Care Facility Instead of Being Deported After Activists ‘Made a Stink’

Virginia Star Staff

A hospitalized illegal immigrant was transferred to a long-term healthcare facility instead of being deported after activists “raised a stink,” the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

The 48-year-old illegal immigrant from Guatemala, identified by his family as A.V., was originally taken to the Jefferson Torresdale Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia where he was treated for a neurological trauma, two broken legs, and fractured ribs after a motorcycle hit him, the Inquirer reported. Activists reportedly organized at the hospital to physically block any potential efforts to medically repatriate A.V.

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Liberty University Hires Outside Firm to Investigate Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Tenure

Jason M. Reynolds

Liberty University says it is conducting a forensic investigation of Jerry Falwell Jr. a week after he resigned as president.

Falwell resigned last Tuesday after amid conflicting claims about a sexual relationship his wife Becki Falwell had with a business partner, The Associated Press reported. Falwell reportedly participated in some of the liaisons as a voyeur.

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Kenosha Sees Nearly $2M in Damage to City Property

Virginia Star Staff

Fox News reports, destruction to city-owned property caused by rioters over the last week following the police shooting of Jacob Blake has climbed to nearly $2 million, city officials said Monday night.

“Right now, we’re estimating between lost equipment, lost street lights, lost traffic signals, and miscellaneous sign damage – we’re estimating a cost of approximately $1.9 million,” said Kenosha Public Works Director Shelly Billingsley, in an update reported to the Public Works Committee.

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Commentary: D.C. Mayor’s Committee Recommends Removing Jefferson Memorial and Washington Monument

Admin

Holy Cow, the cancel culture has sunk even further. Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, Alexander Graham Bell, Ben Franklin, Woodrow Wilson, and many more names from American history are now personas non grata in Washington DC. A committee formed by the mayor has recommended taking their name off city-owned buildings.  They also recommended removing federal assets such as the Jefferson Memorial and Washington Monument.

D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser formed the District of Columbia Facilities, and Commemorative Expressions Working Group, also known as the DC FACES Working Group.

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Music Spotlight: Cory Marks

Bethany Bowman

As a kid from Canada who played hockey and wanted to become a pilot, Cory Marks might be the last person who you would expect to explode on the Southern Rock/Country Music scene. But after listening to his unapologetic, raw, yet real song, Outlaws and Outsiders, I wanted to find out what he was about.

Marks grew up in North Bay Ontario, Canada, about three hours north of Toronto. North Bay was a big hockey town and also a prominent military city hosting an important Air Force base in North America. Every summer Marks and his family attended the air shows in August which provided the young boy driven desire to become a pilot. Not only that, but he was also on hockey skates at age three. (His brother plays professional hockey.)

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Suspect in Fatal Portland Shooting Has Pending Gun Charges, Expressed Support for Antifa

Virginia Star Staff

Portland police are investigating whether a self-identified member of Antifa with two pending firearms charges was involved in the fatal shooting of a Trump supporter at a Black Lives Matter event on Saturday, one of his family members told reporters.

The Oregonian reported that Michael Forest Reinoehl, 48, is a suspect in the shooting death of Jay Bishop, a member of Patriot Prayer, a conservative organization that has appeared at protests in the Portland area.

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State Commission Issues Recommendations to Improve African American History Teaching

Eric Burk

A state commission examining African American history education has published its report, issuing four broad recommendations for state educational standards, and six broad recommendations for professional development of teachers. The “Final Report of the Virginia Commission on African American History Education in the Commonwealth” is the result of a year-long effort started by Governor Ralph Northam.

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Liz Peek on Violence in Leftist-Run Cities: It No Longer Benefits the Biden Campaign and Democrats Know It

Julie Carr

Tuesday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host John Fredericks welcome special guest contributor and columnist Liz Peek to discuss her latest column and weighed in on Joe Biden’s recent visit to Pittsburgh, which she describes as an embarrassment because he didn’t engage with the press.

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Governor Northam, Richmond Political and Business Elite Line-up Behind Mayor Levar Stoney

Jacob Taylor

At a campaign kick-off event in Church Hill Tuesday, Governor Northam announced that he is endorsing Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney for re-election.

On Monday, Stoney announced via his Twitter that the Virginia legislative Black Caucus Chair Del. Lamont Bagby (D-Henrico County) endorsed him for re-election.

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Democrat Candidate Cameron Webb Joins John Fredericks to Discuss His Run for Congress in Virginia’s Fifth District

Julie Carr

Tuesday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host John Fredericks welcomed Dr. Cameron Webb who is a candidate for Virginia’s Congress from the fifth district to discuss his campaign and previous experience in the White House.

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Despite Letter from Virginia Beach Mayor, Northam Opts to Keep Eastern Virginia’s Enhanced COVID-19 Restrictions Through Labor Day

Eric Burk

Governor Ralph Northam will not relax COVID-19 restrictions in Eastern Virginia before Labor Day. In a Tuesday press conference, Northam said he wants to avoid a post-holiday surge of cases, like those following Memorial Day and the Fourth of July earlier this year.

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Democratic Delegate Calls Republican Opposition Comments Racist as Bill to End Qualified Immunity Advances

Jacob Taylor

Before a bill to end qualified immunity was advanced out of the House Appropriations Committee Tuesday, Delegate Jeffrey Bourne (D-Richmond City) called the language used by Republican opposition to the legislation examples of systemic and institutionalized racism.

“I hope everyone on this committee has listened to the type of language that has been used, the types of language that has been used to talk about why we should oppose this bill is exactly the types of systemic and institutionalized racism we are trying to dismantle,” Bourne said during the committee meeting.

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Leahy and Brewer on The Tennessee Star Report This Morning: President Trump’s Speech in Kenosha, Wisconsin Today May Be the Turning Point in the 2020 Presidential Election

Julie Carr

Tuesday morning on The Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed all-star panelist Clint Brewer to weigh in on how Trump will message in Kenosha, Wisconsin today.

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Loudoun County Decides to Turn Libraries Into Child Care Centers Without Consulting Library Staff

Eric Burk

Loudoun County is closing two libraries to create space for child care centers for county employees. The move is a response to child care needs caused by the 100 percent virtual learning model embraced by the Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS). On Monday, the Ashburn and Rust Libraries began curbside pickup only operations.

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Virginia State Senator Locke, Others, Move to Block Kanye West From Virginia Ballot

Eric Burk

Senator Mamie Locke (D-Virginia Beach) is part of a group trying to remove Kanye West from Virginia’s upcoming presidential election, according to reporting by WTKR. Leaders of the group claim that West’s 13 Virginia electors were registered deceptively, according to The Washington Post.

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Commentary: Lowering the Cost of Prescription Medicines for Seniors Is Not Impossible

Virginia Star Staff

Earlier this year James Payne, a 73-year-old retired attorney in Utah, was so fed up with the high cost of a blood thinner medication he takes, he researched prices in Canada, where he found it was cheaper.

“Under Medicare, I am now paying $225 for a three-month supply,” Payne explained. “That’s $25 more than I was paying last year. Under my employer’s insurance I was only paying $20.” Payne says he is not sure why the costs are so much higher and continue to climb under Medicare, but he thinks there must be ways to make life-saving medications more affordable.

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Trump Campaign Discusses Biden’s Hands-Off Approach to Violent Rioters

Jason M. Reynolds

President Donald Trump’s campaign issued a statement addressing Joe Biden’s reluctance to take on violent leftist rioters.

“Joe Biden just yesterday indicated he would not send the National Guard into cities and states where left-wing mobs are rioting – in Portland’s case, for more than three months. Last month he issued a written statement specifically about Portland, in which he called the rioters ‘peaceful protestors’ and accused federal law enforcement officers of ‘stoking the fires of division’ while the mob was literally setting fire to the federal courthouse. …”

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Appeals Court Won’t Order Flynn Dismissal, Returns Case to Lower Court

The Associated Press

A federal appeals court in Washington declined Monday to order the dismissal of the Michael Flynn prosecution, permitting a judge to scrutinize the Justice Department’s request to dismiss its case against President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser.

The decision keeps the case at least temporarily alive and rebuffs efforts by both Flynn’s lawyers and the Justice Department to force the prosecution to be dropped without any further inquiry from the judge, who has for months declined to dismiss it. The ruling represents the latest development in a criminal case that has taken unusual twists and turns over the last year and prompted a separation of powers tussle involving a veteran federal judge and the Trump administration.

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Fatal Overdoses and Emergency Calls Rise in Virginia, Highlighting Impact of COVID-19 on Substance Abuse

Jacob Taylor

Fatal drug overdoses and non-alcohol overdose calls have increased in Virginia since the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, highlighting a troubling trend and fallout from the deadly virus.

“[COVID-19] has undoubtedly increased the overdoses as well as overdose death as well as relapse for those who were in recovery from addictions,” John Shinholser, president and co-founder of the McShin Foundation, said in an interview with The Virgina Star. 

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Ratcliffe Says He Is Coordinating with John Durham, Plans to Declassify More Trump-Russia Documents

Virginia Star Staff

John Ratcliffe, the director of national intelligence, has been coordinating with U.S. Attorney John Durham and plans to soon declassify more documents related to the Trump-Russia probe, he said Sunday.

“The question now is did the FBI have a proper predicate to begin a counterintelligence investigation at all, and that’s the issue that John Durham is looking at, and also the issue that I’m continuing to look at,” Ratcliffe said in an interview on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.”

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Former Obama AG Loretta Lynch Is Conducting ‘Independent Review’ of Syracuse University Police

Virginia Star Staff

Former Obama Attorney General Loretta Lynch is asking Syracuse University student organization leaders to share their opinions and testimonies about the campus police department, of which Syracuse hired her to launch a review.

Campus Reform obtained an August 19 email from Lynch to student organizations on campus, in which she asked students to share their views on DPS.

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CIA Conduct During Russia Assessment May Be Next Boomerang in Probe of Investigators

Virginia Star Staff

By his own admission, ex-CIA Director John Brennan chafed at being questioned earlier this month by federal prosecutor John Durham about the Obama administration’s intelligence assessment that Russia’s meddling in 2016 election was designed to help Donald Trump.

Brennan “questioned why the analytic tradecraft and the findings of the ICA are being scrutinized by the Department of Justice, especially since they have been validated by the Mueller Report and the bipartisan Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Review,” a statement issued by his spokesman Nick Shapiro said.

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Commentary: Can Trump Win Minnesota?

Virginia Star Staff

How bad do things look for Joe Biden’s campaign right now? Consider this: Democrats are worried about Minnesota, a state no Republican presidential candidate has carried since Richard Nixon’s 1972 landslide. Yet polls show President Trump gaining ground in Minnesota, and Democrats are worried because they haven’t seen any appearances by Biden or his running mate Kamala Harris. “Why aren’t they here?” one Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party official told Minnesota Public Radio last week. “We need to hear from them. We need to see their presence on the ground.”

Biden’s peril in Minnesota is in many ways emblematic of everything that’s gone wrong for Democrats in this campaign. While the Real Clear Politics average of Minnesota polls still shows Biden leading Trump by more than five points, a poll by Emerson College earlier this month had Trump within three points, and a poll by the GOP-affiliated Trafalgar Group two weeks ago showed a tie in Minnesota. How could a state that twice gave majorities to Barack Obama, a state that not even Ronald Reagan could win in his 1984 landslide, be in play for Trump this year? Well, in a word, riots.

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Poll Shows Likely Voters in Virginia Support Police Union Reform

Virginia Star Staff

A recent poll of likely voters in Virginia shows most Virginians across party lines oppose granting unions the authority to protect police from disciplinary action or create policies that threaten accountability.

Virginia lawmakers passed legislation earlier this year that allows collective bargaining for public-sector unions, including police unions, if local governments pass ordinances that allow it. The bills permit local policies that allow disciplinary and policy decisions to be settled through binding arbitration, meaning an arbiter could overrule a police department’s disciplinary actions and policies designed to hold officers accountable.

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Donald Trump Jr. on Joe Biden: He Took Your American Dream and Sent it to China

Julie Carr

Monday morning on The John Fredericks show, host John Fredericks welcomed special guest Donald Trump, Jr. to discuss his latest book Liberal Privilege and how Joe Biden has done nothing of significance in his 50 years of government service.

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Virginia House Delegate Member Marcus Simon Weighs in on Amendment One and What it Really Means

Julie Carr

Monday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host John Fredericks welcomed special guest and Virginia House of Delegates member Marcus Simon to talk about Amendment One and the issues surrounding it for the re-districting in Virginia.

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The Art and History of the Lee Monument

Eric Burk

Standing 21 feet tall on top of a 40 foot base and weighing 12 tons, the statue of Robert E. Lee and his horse is literally larger than life as the General presides over Richmond.

French Beaux-Arts sculptor Marius Jean Antonin Mercié cast the bronze statue in nine pieces – seven for the horse, and two for the rider, according to the monument’s National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) registration form.

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Virginia House Delegates Member Glenn Davis Weighs in on New Zoom Meeting Process for House Meetings and the Continued Closing of Virginia Beach

Julie Carr

Monday morning on The John Fredericks Show, host John Fredericks was joined by the Virginia House of Delegates 84th District member Glenn Davis who commented on the inefficiency of the Zoom meetings for the House of Delegates and the inability for businesses to open up in Virginia Beach.

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Bill to End Qualified Immunity for Law Enforcement Officers Defeated in House Appropriations Committee

Jacob Taylor

Delegates in the House Committee on Appropriations voted against a bill Monday that removed qualified immunity for law enforcement officers, making them liable to lawsuits. 

The Bill, HB 5013, sponsored by Del. Bourne (D-Richmond City), was defeated in Committee after failing to get enough votes to advance to the House floor.

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