April 20, 2023 - The Michigan Star

Ex Spy Chief Admits Hunter Biden Laptop Letter Designed to Influence 2020 Election, Blinken Involved

April 20, 2023April 20, 2023 Just the News

A former acting CIA director has admitted to Congress that he organized the letter that falsely portrayed Hunter Biden’s laptop as Russian disinformation in an effort to influence the 2020 election in favor of Joe Biden and that he did so at the direction of current Secretary of State Antony Blinken, according to a letter released Thursday by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan.

Mississippi Governor Signs Series of ‘Pro-Mom, Pro-Life’ Bills to Strengthen Adoption, Pregnancy Care Centers, and Foster Care

April 20, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed multiple pieces of legislation Wednesday that provide support for mothers and babies, particularly in the areas of adoption, foster care, pregnancy care centers, and parental rights.

Report: Only Three Americans Who Suffered Injuries or Death from the COVID Shots Have Been Compensated Thus Far

April 20, 2023April 19, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

As of April 1, the United States government has compensated only three Americans who suffered injuries or death due to the COVID-19 injections, a report from the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) shows.

The payments to the three individuals, who were compensated through the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program (CICP), were listed as $2,019.55 for anaphylaxis, $1,582.65 for myocarditis, and $1,032.69 for myocarditis.

Haley’s Campaign Haul Considerably Less than the $11 Million Originally Reported

April 20, 2023 M.D. Kittle

Earlier this month, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s campaign boasted the former South Carolina governor had outraised former President Donald Trump, that Haley was a fundraising “force to be reckoned with.”

Turns out the $11 million Haley was said to have raised didn’t quite pan out.

Lawsuit Demands National Archives Obtain Secret Service, DHS January 6 Texts

April 20, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

A new lawsuit in federal court is suing the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) to obtain text messages between Secret Service and Homeland Security officials about former President Donald Trump.

Ken Klippenstein, a reporter for The Intercept, filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday. It asks the Court to order NARA to seek the Department of Justice’s subpoena power to obtain all text messages “sent or received by 24 Secret Service personnel during the period of December 7, 2020, through January 8, 2021,” as well as those sent by top Trump DHS officials at the time, according to the complaint.

Democrats Join ‘Patriotic Millionaires’ Group to Call for 90 Percent Tax on Income Above $100 Million

April 20, 2023 Just the News

A group of Democratic lawmakers and the Patriotic Millionaires, an organization of high-income and high net worth individuals favoring higher taxes on the wealthy, are calling on Congress to pass a 90% income tax on incomes above $100 million as fears of a recession are growing.

Abigail Disney, a documentary filmmaker who is the granddaughter of Roy Disney, cofounder of The Walt Disney Company, joined the lawmakers to call for higher taxes on “extremely high income.”

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Announces Presidential Bid with Potentially More Popularity Among Conservatives

April 20, 2023April 20, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. announced his bid for the 2024 Democrat presidential nomination Wednesday by promising to end the “toxic” polarization in America that has grown so “dangerous,” he said, “than at any time since the Civil War.”

The lifelong Democrat, whose family was portrayed for decades, by an infatuated media, as American royalty, now appears to be an outlier in his party’s current far-left worldview, and is even attracting some conservatives.

Nearly 270,000 Apprehensions, Gotaways at Southern Border in March

April 20, 2023 The Center Square

There were nearly 270,000 apprehensions and gotaways reported of foreign nationals who illegally entered the U.S. at the southern border last month, according to official data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection and data The Center Square obtained from a Border Patrol agent.

CBP reported that encounters of illegal foreign nationals processed at ports of entry in all nine southwest Border Patrol sectors in March totaled 191,900, up nearly 23% from 156,138 in February.

Bill Proposal Would Allow Alcohol Sales at Michigan University Sporting Events

April 20, 2023April 19, 2023 The Center Square

A bipartisan plan in Lansing seeks to allow Michigan universities to sell alcohol at certain on-campus sporting events.

Rep. Graham Filler, R-Clinton County, and Sen. Sean McCann, D-Kalamazoo, introduced measures in the House and Senate that would allow university governing boards to apply for liquor licenses to sell alcohol at basketball, football, and hockey games.

Commentary: America Is a Land of Systemic Justice

April 20, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

Abraham Lincoln described America as a nation “conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” Today’s Left portrays America as a nation conceived in slavery, and dedicated to the perpetuation of racial oppression. When CBS News’ Norah O’Donnell asked Joe Biden in the summer of 2020, “Do you believe there is ‘systemic racism’ in law enforcement,” Biden answered, “Absolutely. But it’s not just in law enforcement. It’s across the board. It’s in housing. It’s in education. It’s in everything we do.”

Court Blocks Nation’s First Gas Stove Ban

April 20, 2023 Just the News

A federal court on Tuesday has overturned a citywide ban on natural gas implements in new buildings that Berkeley, Calif., had implemented in a first of its kind decision.

The appeals court took the side of Berkeley’s restauranteurs who challenged the ban on grounds that it would adversely impact their businesses, according to the Washington Times. The California Restaurant Association had brought the suit, asserting that “Cities and states cannot ignore federal law in an effort to constrain consumer choice, and it is encouraging that the 9th Circuit upheld this standard.”

Twitter Ends Ban on ‘Misgendering’ and ‘Deadnaming’ Transgenders

April 20, 2023 Michigan Star Staff

On Tuesday, the social media platform Twitter made several major changes to its “hateful conduct policy,” determining that users are now allowed to refer to so-called “transgender” people by their actual genders and their original, gender-appropriate names.

The Daily Caller reports that the original policy, first enacted in 2018, forbade users from engaging in “targeted misgendering or deadnaming of transgender individuals.” The new guidelines have removed this sentence altogether from the “Slurs and Tropes” section.

ATF Director Says He’s ‘Not a Firearms Expert’ When Asked to Define Assault Weapons He Wants to Ban

April 20, 2023 Just the News

Steve Dettelbach, director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, would not define what an assault weapon is and said he is “not a firearms expert” despite saying he would support an assault weapons ban.

At a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing Tuesday on the ATF’s 2024 fiscal year budget, Rep. Jake Ellzey (R-Texas) asked Dettelbach: “In 15 seconds, would you define an ‘assault weapon’ for me?”

Commentary: Tax Armageddon Day Is Coming

April 20, 2023 RealClearWire

Benjamin Franklin famously wrote in 1789 that “our new Constitution is now established and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Death and taxes are fated. However, are enormous tax hikes also a fait accompli? Is it a certainty – ‘an accomplished fact’ – that the White House and Congress will repeal tax reforms that worked? Tax breaks that helped small business owners and families.

For the past several days Americans have been scrambling to make the deadline to complete their 2022 tax returns. Most taxpayers will be relieved once the ordeal is done. However, here’s an unfortunate reality: if Washington fails to act, the federal tax code is headed for major changes in just a couple of years, including massive tax hikes on families and small businesses.