Day: November 12, 2022

Virginia Department of Education Announces $12 Million in School Security Equipment Grants

Eric Burk

Virginia’s schools will get $12 million from the commonwealth’s School Security Equipment Grant program; the money will go to schools in 90 divisions to help purchase security systems including surveillance cameras, two-way radios, visitor ID badges, security card access systems, and radios for buses.

“The systems and equipment purchased through these grants will help school divisions control access to school buildings, respond quickly to emergencies and maintain orderly learning environments for students,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow said in a Thursday Virginia Department of Education announcement. “Every student and every teacher should feel safe in their classrooms, during school activities and when traveling to and from school. In many cases, the equipment purchased addresses vulnerabilities identified in annual school security audits.”

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After Virginia Lieutenant Governor’s Remarks, Trump Takes Dig at Youngkin: ‘Couldn’t Have Won without Me’

Just the News

Former President Donald Trump on Friday took a sly but pointed dig at Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, one day after Youngkin’s running mate suggested the Republican party should move on from Trump himself. 

The former president took to Truth Social on Friday morning and claimed in his usual freewheeling style that Youngkin’s historic upset in the Virginia gubernatorial race last year was thanks to Trump’s support.

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Commentary: A Post-Election Reflection

Virginia Star Staff

I am an American, but I haven’t set foot in the states for years. Yes, my daily Internet access provides me with the illusion that I’m in touch with life back home and that I know how people are thinking and feeling. But I can’t really be sure at all that I’m getting the right bead on things. 

So when a great many of the American political commentators and podcasters whom I most respect predicted a “red wave” or even a “red tsunami” on Election Day, I thought: Well, I hope so. How could I demur? After all, they’re at the center of the action. I’m not. 

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Federal Judge Blocks Biden’s ‘Unconstitutional’ Student Loan Forgiveness Plan

Virginia Star Staff

A Texas federal judge blocked President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program on Thursday, calling it an “unconstitutional exercise of Congress’s legislative power.”

U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman ruled that the Department of Education’s student loan forgiveness program is illegal following a lawsuit by the Job Creators Network Foundation, which argued the program violated federal procedures because borrowers were not able to comment on the program. The student debt relief program unveiled in August would cancel $10,000 worth of student debt to those making under $125,000 per year.

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Musk Tells Twitter Staff ‘Bankruptcy Isn’t Out of the Question’ as Executives Leave over Privacy Concerns: Report

Virginia Star Staff

At an all hands meeting with Twitter employees following the departure of several top executives over user privacy concerns, CEO Elon Musk told employees that he was not sure of the company’s financial prospects, saying that “bankruptcy isn’t out of the question,” according to multiple reports.

At the same meeting, Musk also told employees that if they can “physically make it to an office and you don’t show up, resignation accepted,” Zoë Schiffer, the managing editor of tech newsletter Platformer, alleged in a thread on Twitter Thursday afternoon. The news comes after reports that a variety of high-level executives, including Chief Privacy Officer Damien Kieran, Chief Information Security Officer Lea Kissner — who also confirmed her departure in a Thursday tweet — and Chief Compliance Officer Marianne Fogarty all resigned Thursday in response to concerns that Musk was sacrificing user’s data security for profits, according to The Verge, citing anonymous sources and the company’s internal messages.

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Democrats Flip Several State Legislatures

Virginia Star Staff

Adding to the list of disappointments for the GOP in the 2022 midterm elections, Democrats appear to have mostly made gains in state legislative chambers across the country, as well as fending off Republican challengers to several key swing state governors.

According to Axios, Democrats are currently fighting to hold both state houses in Nevada; if they manage to do so, it will mark the first time that the presidential party has not lost any state legislative chambers in a midterm election since 1934.

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Woman Sues Hospital That Allegedly Gave Her Mastectomy, Testosterone as a Child

Virginia Star Staff

A young woman is suing Kaiser Permanente over cross-sex medical interventions allegedly she received there as a minor, including a double mastectomy and cross-sex hormones, according to her attorneys.

Chloe Cole went on puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones and received a double mastectomy to remove her breasts between ages 13 to 17 before she stopped identifying as transgender, according to her attorneys. Cole’s lawsuit alleges that Kaiser Permanente falsely told her and her parents she was at high risk for suicide if she didn’t socially and medically transition to the opposite sex; she is seeking damages for oppression, malice and fraud.

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Kevin McCarthy May Not Have the Votes to Become Speaker

Virginia Star Staff

In the aftermath of the disappointing 2022 midterm election results, conservative Republicans in the House of Representatives have signaled that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) may not have the support he needs to become the next Speaker of the House.

As reported by The Hill, some Republicans have asked that the party’s closed-door leadership election be delayed while the results of the outstanding races come in.

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Commentary: Welcome to Ukrainistan

Virginia Star Staff

There’s lots not to like about the war in Ukraine, and people should be allowed to argue the case without being demonized by those who have a different opinion. But the more those who urge caution are demonized as pro-Putin by the pro-war people, the more they, and probably their audience, become suspicious, or should become suspicious, of the pro-war faction.

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CIA Director’s Former Think Tank Hired Experts from Nonprofits Controlled by Chinese Spy Agencies

Virginia Star Staff

An elite Washington, D.C., think tank has employed individuals who’ve worked for front groups controlled by Chinese spy agencies, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation found.

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace has employed over a dozen individuals who’ve worked in a range of capacities at China-based nonprofits set up or co-opted by Chinese intelligence agencies, including the Ministry of State Security (MSS) and the intel arm of the People’s Liberation Army.

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