October 7, 2021 - The Virginia Star

Virginia Ranks Among Top States Most Prepared for Public Health Emergencies

October 7, 2021October 6, 2021 Eric Burk

Doctor with arms folded, holding stethescope

Virginia’s preparedness for public health emergencies ranks it among the top four in the U.S., according to the 2021 National Health Security Preparedness Index (NHSPI). The index looks at data from 64 sources across the public and private health sectors, creating an overview of health protections in place in each state; the national preparedness level is 6.8, but Virginia scored 7.4 out of ten.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has been a real-world stress test of the readiness of Virginia governmental, health care delivery, and emergency management systems to respond to a major public health threat. Throughout this time, Virginia’s hospitals, public health and emergency management agencies, and other public and private sector stakeholders have effectively navigated this unprecedented crisis while facing many pandemic-related challenges,” states a Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association (VVHHA) press release.

Commentary: Biden’s Attack on Public School Parents Cannot Stand

October 7, 2021 Admin

President Joe Biden’s Attorney General, Merrick Garland’s memo directing the FBI to investigate parents who speak out at school board meetings has shocked the nation.

The Biden administration has gone into full attack mode against the First Amendment right to petition the government as Attorney General Merrick Garland has declared that parents opposing Critical Race Theory before their local school boards should be treated as terrorists under the Patriot Act.

Commentary: The Left Can Finally Admit What It Wants

October 7, 2021 Admin

I remember a staggering conversation with my high school lunch table in the early 2000s. Everyone agreed with one kid’s statement that there was nothing special about living in America: Life in Canada, or anywhere else, would be identical except for maybe the weather.

At the time, I wondered what was going to happen to America when all these kids grew up. What happens when America’s young adults, far from having any intellectual commitment to freedom, don’t even understand what life would be like without it?

Zuckerberg Responds to Whistleblower, Says Claims ‘Don’t Make Any Sense’

October 7, 2021 Admin

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg broke his silence on Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen late Tuesday, rebutting several of her allegations in a Facebook post.

“At the most basic level, I think most of us just don’t recognize the false picture of the company that is being painted,” Zuckerberg wrote in a letter to Facebook employees posted to his account. “Many of the claims don’t make any sense.”

Charges Dropped Against Illegal Migrants Who Said They Were Transported to Private Property and Arrested for Trespassing

October 7, 2021 Admin

Criminal charges were dropped against 11 illegal migrants who said they were transported to private property and then arrested for trespassing in Val Verde County, Texas, The Texas Tribune reported on Tuesday.

The migrants told Democratic Val Verde County Attorney David Martinez that they were apprehended, restrained with zip ties, walked around 20 minutes to a fenced-in ranch and arrested by border officials for trespassing, according to The Texas Tribune. The migrants said border officials cut the fence around the private ranch to allow a police dog onto the property after making the migrants scale the 10-foot fence.

GOP Governors Ignored by Biden Offer Solutions to Border Crisis Anyway

October 7, 2021 Peter D'Abrosca

After a group of 26 Republican governors, spearheaded by Gov. Doug Ducey (R), sent a letter to the Biden Administration requesting to meet and discuss the ongoing crisis at the border, the group is pushing forward with solutions.

That letter, sent in late September, was ignored by the White House.

Commentary: Hyde Amendment Is New Obstacle to Biden Spending Plan

October 7, 2021October 6, 2021 RealClearWire

The White House is once again at odds with the senior senator from West Virginia.

Joe Manchin has made clear for months that the administration’s sprawling $3.5 trillion social spending package is too large, and just as progressives seemed to agree that the top-line number could be whittled down somewhat, the moderate Democrat drew another line in the sand, this one underscoring the Hyde Amendment.

The amendment represents a decades-long agreement by both parties that prohibits federal dollars from funding abortion, except in cases of rape, incest, or when the life of the mother is in danger. Manchin wants it included in the spending bill. The White House does not. Thus has emerged another obstacle to passing the president’s legislative agenda.

GETTR CEO Jason Miller Blasts Facebook After Whistleblower Testimony

October 7, 2021 Peter D'Abrosca

After Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen testified before the Senate Commerce Committee Monday, a hearing which focused largely on Facebook’s negative impact on children, GETTR CEO Jason Miller released a statement.

In a press release, Miller said the following:

Democrats Push to Make Child Tax Credit Permanent Despite a Lack of Taxpayer Support

October 7, 2021 Admin

Democrats are pushing to permanently expand monthly child tax credits in their spending package, but a new poll shows that just 35% of Americans support extending the payments beyond July 2022.

The expanded payments began in July as a part of President Joe Biden’s coronavirus relief package signed in March. While the Politico/Morning Consult poll released Wednesday found that 50% of Americans supported the increase in payments, 12 points higher than those who opposed them, 52% of Americans said the payments should not be extended beyond their set expiration.

Oil Prices Hit a Seven-Year High as Industry Feud with Biden Administration Continues

October 7, 2021 The Center Square

Oil prices hit a 7-year high this week as American oil and gas companies continue to fight the Biden administration over policies restricting production.

As the economy began to reopen this year and the demand for fuel increased, President Joe Biden, through executive order, halted and restricted oil and gas leases on federal lands, stopped construction of the Keystone Pipeline, and redirected U.S. policy to import more oil from Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia (OPEC+) instead of bolstering American oil and gas exploration and production.

Border Officials Arrested Around 9,000 Criminal Migrants in Fiscal Year 2021

October 7, 2021 Admin

Border Patrol officials made nearly 9,700 criminal arrests from October 2020 through August 2021, according to Customs and Border Protection data.

Of the nearly 9,728 arrests, 325 individuals were associated with gang organizations, according to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Over 100 of those arrested with connections to gangs were affiliated with MS-13, and border officials arrested at least nine individuals associated with the group in August, according to CBP.

Qualified Immunity Becomes One of the Deciding Factors of 2021 Virginia Elections

October 7, 2021October 7, 2021 Matthew Hall

The rise in violent crime across Virginia combined with increases in law enforcement officers leaving the field have started to raise questions from voters about the once-popular push from Leftist activists and Democrat lawmakers to “reimagine policing” and essentially end qualified immunity, a legal protection mechanism for law enforcement officers.

Montgomery County Sheriff Hank Partin told The Virginia Star “absolutely, without a doubt” that Democrats’ threats to end qualified immunity are affecting law enforcement’s ability to keep and retain officers. He spoke at length about how law enforcement would be negatively affected if Virginia Democrats were to end qualified immunity. He discussed these protections are in place to protect law enforcement who are trying to follow the law.

Report: Private Job Hirings Beat Expectations Amid COVID-19 Scares, Slow Economic Growth

October 7, 2021 Admin

Private companies added 568,000 jobs in September, exceeding expectations as the country faced growing numbers of delta variant cases and slow economic growth, according to a major payroll report.

The 568,000 jobs added is a sharp increase from the 340,000 jobs added in August, the ADP National Employment Report showed. Experts predicted private companies would add 425,000 jobs in September, CNBC reported.

COVID Case Numbers Surge in New England, Despite Region Having Highest Vaccinate Rate in U.S.

October 7, 2021 Admin

Hospitals across New England are reporting full intensive care units and staff shortages as a result of COVID- related illnesses that are starting to impact care, despite the region having the highest vaccination rates in the country.

Public officials say the record case counts, hospitalizations and deaths that rival pre-vaccine peaks are largely among the unvaccinated and are pleading with the part of the population to get the shots, according to the Associated Press.

Taiwan Defense Minister Says Tensions with China Have Hit 40-Year High

October 7, 2021 Admin

Chiu Kuo-cheng, the defense minister of Taiwan, said Wednesday that tensions between his country and China are at their worst point in four decades.

The minister was speaking to lawmakers as he promoted a new $8.6 billion military spending package, telling them that the current situation with China was “the most serious” he has seen throughout his more than 40-year military career.

GOP Governors Gather in Texas to Address Border Crisis

October 7, 2021 The Center Square

Nine Republican governors are joining Govs. Greg Abbott of Texas and Doug Ducey of Arizona in Mission, Texas, Wednesday to discuss the ongoing border crisis and President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.

Ducey and Abbott will be joined by Govs. Brian Kemp of Georgia, Brad Little of Idaho, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, Greg Gianforte of Montana, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, Kristi Noem of South Dakota and Mark Gordon of Wyoming.

Surveillance on Campus: Universities Give Students Tools to Report on Each Other’s COVID Violations or ‘Bias Incidents’

October 7, 2021October 6, 2021 Virginia Star Staff

Michigan State University provides students with reporting system to achieve what the school describes as a “safe and supportive environment” for its community members.

The school’s Culturally Inclusive College Sharing System (CIC) is an online submission form allows the university to “track and respond to behaviors and situations that work to support or detract from [its] goals of a safe and supportive environment.”

Emerson College Poll Has Youngkin Down One Percent Against McAuliffe

October 7, 2021October 7, 2021 Eric Burk

A new Nexstar/Emerson College poll conducted at the beginning of October has GOP gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin one point behind Democrat Terry McAuliffe, 48 percent to 49 percent. A Fox News poll conducted at the end of September found 48 percent support for McAuliffe and 44 percent support for Youngkin.

“The new poll by Emerson demonstrates clearly that all the momentum is on Glenn Youngkin’s side and he is poised to win this race in Virginia on November 2,” said The Virginia Star’s Publisher, radio talk show host John Fredricks.