Category: News

A brand new investigation has found that Google interfered in American elections at least 41 times over the last 16 years.

Published on March 18, the Media Research Center Special Report traced election interference efforts by the world’s most popular search engine all the way back to the 2008 election of former President Barack Obama.

Idaho Gov Signs Bill Prohibiting Taxpayer Funding for Sex-Change Surgeries

Gov. Brad Little in front of Idaho State Capitol building (composite image)

Republican Gov. Brad Little of Idaho signed a bill Wednesday banning the state from using public funding to cover sex-change procedures.

House Bill 668 was introduced in February by Republican Reps. Julianne Young and Bruce Skaug and bars the state from using Medicaid funds to pay for sex-change surgeries or cross-sex hormones, according to the text. The legislation passed the state House of Representatives 58 to 11 and the state Senate 26 to 8, with one abstaining, in March before Little signed the legislation into law, the state legislature website shows.

Dem Megadonor Sam Bankman-Fried Sentenced to 25 Years in Prison

March 29, 2024 Just the News

Sam Bankman-Fried in courtroom (composite image)

Convicted cryptocurrency fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried on Thursday received a prison sentence of 25 years.

A jury found Bankman-Fried guilty on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy-related charges in November and the New York probation department’s sentence recommendation was 100 years in prison, according to a February court filing pleading for a lighter sentence. Bankman-Fried’s lawyer had asked for a 60-78 month sentence, citing the convicted fraudster’s philanthropic ventures and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).

States Focus on Squatting as TikToker Encourages Illegal Immigrants to ‘Invade’ Homes

State and local officials are working to prevent property owners from having their residences taken over by squatters as a social media influencer from Venezuela encouraged illegal immigrants to “invade” homes in the U.S.

The issue of squatting has arisen in both Florida and Georgia, states fighting against squatting, while a New York City resident was arrested for trying to prevent a squatter from reentering her home. Squatting has become a concern with the influx of illegal immigrants as a Venezuelan national encouraged others to squat in Americans’ homes.

Commentary: The Ever-Continuous Villaining of Joe Biden and His Minions

March 29, 2024 Bethany Bowman

I’ve discussed the “hero’s journey of Donald Trump” here in this column multiple times — and it turns out I couldn’t get away from it even if I wanted to. Every day we hear a drumbeat of evidence that the Left — the media-governmental-intelligence Deep State complex that has declared war on the entire world, with the free American people its primary enemy — has gone absolutely off the deep end.

Villains gonna villain, y’all. And these villains are villaining like the clock is running out on them.

Music Spotlight: Cicely Mason

Cicely Mason is an American singer/songwriter from Milan, Tennessee. She comes from a singing family and is the youngest of six children. One of her earliest memories is singing for a talent show.

“It wasn’t for the competition. I just wanted to sing,” she recalled.

Commentary: My Friend Joe

March 28, 2024 RealClearWire

I write now, in the worst pain and shock, with news of my friend Joe Lieberman’s death just moments ago. I write because I know what his critics will be quick to write, what news reports have already re-circulated.

Mandatory State Training Steers Judges to Question Fitness of Parents Who Don’t Affirm Gender-Confused Kids

March 28, 2024March 27, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

Judges who handle child abuse and neglect cases in California are required to take a training on LGBT issues that pushes them to consider whether parents who object to their child’s preferred pronouns should have custody.

The Judicial Council of California’s “LGBTQ+ Considerations” training, offered twice annually for judges working on juvenile dependency cases, instructs judges on how to handle youth gender identities, advising them to “be aware that LGBTQ youth may be at risk of harm at home, school and in other settings due to biased or uninformed attitudes or conduct by peers/adults,” according to a presentation from June 2023 obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation via a public records request. After citing statistics on mental health problems among LGBT youth and warning judges to stay alert about “physical or emotional abuse” by parents that does not have a “clear reason,” the presentation puts forward three hypothetical scenarios for the judges to sort through.

Commentary: The Plague That Besets Our Schools Is Extensive

March 28, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

The year, now a quarter old, reveals that the country’s rapid slide into educational purgatory is moving apace. Leading off the grossness parade is a school in Oklahoma where students lick and suck the armpits and toes of their fellow students in the name of charity. (This may garner a shrug in San Francisco, but Oklahoma?!)

While no district personnel were directly involved, video footage from Deer Creek High School in Edmond, OK, showed mid-teens participating in and watching the disgusting events unfold.

Three Sue National Park Service for Refusing to Accept Cash for Park Entrance Fees

March 28, 2024 The Center Square

Wildrose Peat at Death Valley National Park

Three people have filed a lawsuit against the National Park Service for refusing to take cash for park entrance fees alleging its NPS Cashless program violates federal law.

The complaint, filed in federal court earlier this month, seeks to have a judge declare NPS Cashless unlawful. The suit alleges that three visitors were denied entrance to national parks in Arizona, New York and Georgia. The complaint further alleges that the “National Park Service no longer accepts American money at approximately twenty-nine national parks, national historic sites, national monuments, and national historic parks around the country.”

Commentary: Trump’s Three-Peat Foretells Nationwide Victory

March 28, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

Last Tuesday in Arizona, former President Donald Trump continued his 2024 domination of President Joe Biden in battleground states. So far this year, both parties have held primary elections in three of the six states that decided 2020’s presidential outcome. Trump has out-polled Biden in all three. Handily. While pollsters may give insights into how people will vote, primary voters offer outcomes as to how they have voted. Right now, it’s not close.

Despite both men having already sewn up their nominations, each faced some drama in Arizona’s primary election. Biden faced a protest vote over his policy in the Israel–Hamas conflict. Trump still faced numerous challengers who garnered over 20 percent of the Republican votes.

From DACA to Deportation to Murder: Michigan the Latest State Hit by Immigration Enforcement Lapse

March 28, 2024March 27, 2024 Just the News

Brandon Ortiz-Vite in front of other illegal immigrants (composite image)

An illegal immigrant, who once lived in the country as a DACA recipient before he was deported in 2020, was arrested over the weekend as a suspect in the slaying of a 25-year old Michigan woman. The incident is the second shocking murder of a young woman by an illegal immigrant this year, following the killing of Laken Riley in Georgia.

Michigan State Police began investigating the murder of Ruby Garcia, from Grand Rapids, after her body was found on a major highway that cuts through the city’s downtown. The body was discovered at 11:38 pm on Friday evening with apparent gunshot wounds, according to The Midwesterner.

FISA Renewal Deadline Fast Approaching amid Bipartisan Call for Ending Warrantless Surveillance

March 28, 2024March 27, 2024 Just the News

Mike Lee and Dick Durban in front of FISA court (composite image)

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) renewal deadline is fast approaching as conservative lawmakers and some Democrats continue their push for ending warrantless surveillance.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including conservative and progressive legislators, have called for reforming section 702 of FISA ahead of the April 19 deadline.

Poll: Voters Want Schools to Focus on Basics Instead of Critical Race Theory

March 28, 2024 The Center Square

The vast majority of people think schools should focus on traditional subjects like math, reading and science, and a majority also say critical race theory should not be taught, a new poll shows.

According to The Center Square Voters’ Voice Poll conducted by Noble Predictive, most surveyed said they want schools to focus on core subjects instead of hot-button topics like critical race theory.

Kansas Lawmakers Pass Bill Banning Chinese Land Purchases Near Military Sites After DCNF Investigation

March 28, 2024March 27, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

Jake LaTurner in front of farm land (composite image)

The Kansas House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday preventing foreign adversaries from buying up land near sensitive military sites following a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation.

In an 84-39 vote, the Kansas House passed SB172, which prevents firms and entities linked to China and other countries identified as foreign adversaries from purchasing agricultural land within 150 miles of a military installation. The bill’s passage follows on the heels of a DCNF investigation that discovered the parent company of a firm that planned to buy land in Kansas is extensively tied to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The DCNF’s investigation was based on research conducted by The Heritage Foundation Oversight Project and Heritage Action.

Analysis: Polls Shows Worrying Shift Among Older GOP Voters but Gains with Youth and Minority Conservatives

March 28, 2024 Michigan Star Staff

While we have been extensively reporting on former President Donald Trump’s significant increase in support compared to 2020 among working class voters, minorities, and young people, one group of Americans appears to be shifting away from Trump at the margins – seniors. Voters over age 65 have shown a shift away from Trump in recent polls that amounts to as much as ten percentage points compared to 2020.

Trump’s highest level of success in 2020 was among voters over 65, with the former President winning seniors by five points, 52 percent to 47 percent. However, several recent polls show Trump losing seniors to Biden by around ten points. The March New York Times/Siena College poll shows President Joe Biden leading with seniors 51 percent to 42 percent.

Judge Recommends Disbarment of Attorney John Eastman over Efforts to Challenge 2020 Election

A California judge has recommended disbarring attorney John Eastman, determining that he violated ethics rules by pushing former President Donald Trump’s election fraud claims.

Former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman Dead at 82

March 27, 2024March 26, 2024 The Center Square

Former Connecticut Democratic Sen. Joseph Lieberman died Wednesday at the age of 82, his family confirmed.

Report: Record 10 Million Immigration Cases Completed in Fiscal 2023

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) completed an unprecedented 10 million immigration cases in fiscal 2023, reducing its backlog for the first time in over a decade, according to a newly released end of fiscal year 2023 report.

“We’ve completed a record number of cases, responded to emerging crises around the globe with essential humanitarian relief, and applied innovative solutions to improve customer experience and reduce backlogs,” USCIS Director Ur M. Jaddou said of the milestone.

Chinese-Owned Chemical Giant Expanding Into US Heartland Led by Members of Communist Party, Influence Orgs

Top executives behind a Chinese chemical manufacturer planning to build two U.S. factories belong to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and affiliated influence outfits, a Daily Caller News Foundation investigation has found.

Capchem Technology USA, the wholly-owned subsidiary of China-based Shenzhen Capchem Technology (Capchem), is slated to build a $120 million factory in Ohio and a $350 million plant in Louisiana. At the same time, Capchem records and social media posts that the DCNF translated show the company employs dozens of CCP members. Executives at Capchem and Capchem USA have also held positions at organizations affiliated with CCP influence operations, a DCNF review of Capchem’s website, Chinese social media account and executives’ social groups found.

Republicans Take on Ballot Harvesting, Drop Boxes but Legally Using them in 2024 Election Cycle

March 27, 2024 The Center Square

As Alabama has banned ballot harvesting and Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania are fighting ballot drop boxes, GOP campaign efforts are using those same tools where legal.

Democrats have long focused on mail-in and early voting while Republicans have warned of potential insecurities of those methods. Now the GOP is starting to embrace it this election cycle. However, the acceptance of mail-in voting as a tool isn’t preventing Republicans from looking to secure or ban certain aspects of it, such as ballot harvesting and ballot drop boxes.

More than 100 Sheriffs Express Support for Operation Lone Star

More than 100 sheriffs in Texas expressed support for Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security effort, Operation Lone Star. They also are calling for the border crisis to be declared a “United States constitutional crisis and crimes against humanity.”

In a letter to the governor, the sheriffs “respectfully request that our Texas border be immediately secured by any lawful means.”

Moody’s Increases Detroit’s Bond Rating

March 27, 2024March 26, 2024 The Center Square

Over 10 years, the city of Detroit went from the nation’s largest municipal bankruptcy to investment-grade status.

Moody’s Investors Services gave Detroit a rare two-notch bond rating increase from Ba1 to Baa2 with a positive outlook, returning Motor City to investment-grade status for the first time since 2009.

Commentary: Americans Don’t Know About Laken Riley’s Murder

How do we stop tragedies like the murder of Laken Riley if Americans do not even know the details of her horrific yet completely preventable homicide?

Thankfully, highly politically engaged citizens know well the details of Laken’s vicious murder on the University of Georgia campus one month ago. In broad daylight, the 22-year-old nursing student was out jogging when she was brutally slain in an unprovoked attack. Jose Antonio Ibarra has been charged with her murder.

Commentary: ‘Vice President J.D. Vance’ Could Be Just the Ticket We Need

March 27, 2024 RealClearWire

Donald Trump has locked up the necessary delegates for the Republican presidential nomination, which means it’s time for every political junkie’s favorite quadrennial game: Veepstakes!

Every four years, commentators, political consultants, and elected officials all chime in with their takes on who a presidential candidate’s running mate should be. Perhaps the candidate ought to select a veep from a swing state. Perhaps the candidate ought to select someone who fits a certain demographic box. Maybe the candidate ought to pick someone with a very similar political philosophy—or perhaps someone whose ideological bona fides assuage any lingering concerns that party loyalists might harbor about the man at the top of the ticket. Or maybe it’s really as easy as picking someone who the presidential nominee simply likes and vibes with on a personal level.

Commentary: The Many Ways a Porous Border Means Crime Without Boundaries

When President Biden’s supporters attacked him for describing the man who allegedly murdered Georgia co-ed Laken Reilly as an “illegal,” they shined a light on one of the most contested words in American politics.

The progressive push to describe border crossers as undocumented or unauthorized can also serve to downplay and obscure the massive issue of crime perpetrated and spawned by the influx of millions of migrants since Biden was elected – often in ways that leave the migrants themselves as victims.

House Members of Progressive ‘Squad’ Grab More than $220 Million of Earmarks Since 2023

Rep. Rashida Tlaib and Rep. Ilhan Omar standing in front of the US capitol (composite image)

Members of the “Squad” of progressive lawmakers in the House of Representatives, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., wrangled more than $220 million worth of earmarks included in spending bills since the start of fiscal year 2023, according to a watchdog group.

“These eight members, up from 6 last year, have put almost $220 million worth of earmarks into the last two years of congressional spending packages, for causes like environmental justice, diversity, and immigration assistance,” read a new report from OpenTheBooks.com.

Feds Crack Down on Pernicious Chinese Hacking Group that Targeted U.S. Gov’t, Dissidents

The U.S. on Monday announced actions aimed at exposing a sweeping Chinese hacking campaign that has targeted U.S. government institutions, critical infrastructure, media and political dissidents for more than a decade.

Wuhan Xiaoruizhi Science and Technology Company, Limited (Wuhan XRZ), served as a front company for China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS), which deals with overseas policing and espionage, allowing Chinese hackers to hide a multitude of malicious cyber operations, the Treasury Department said after sanctioning the organization on Monday in a statement alongside other U.S. agencies and the United Kingdom. In an indictment unsealed separately, the Department of Justice accused Chinese nationals Zhao Guangzong, Ni Gaobin and five others for their role “in furtherance of [China’s] economic espionage and foreign intelligence objectives” over the past 14 years.

Washington State Violated Court Order by Forcing Foster Parents to ‘Affirm’ Gender ID: Lawsuit

The Pacific Northwest has a message for foster and adoptive parents: Agree to affirm a child’s self-determined “sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression,” including using their preferred pronouns and taking them to Pride parades, or leave the program.

Washington state adopted new Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity/Expression (SOGIE) regulations after accepting a permanent injunction against the “nearly identical” Policy 6900 to settle a First Amendment lawsuit by would-be foster parents in July 2021, non-renewed foster parents claim in a new lawsuit.

Government Releases Another Batch of Data That Wipes Out Previous Economic Gains

March 27, 2024 Bethany Bowman

New orders for manufactured durable goods, which serve as an indicator for longer-term investments from businesses and consumers, had a huge downward revision for January, following similar revisions seen in jobs data.

Orders for durable goods increased 1.4 percent in February to $277.9 billion, but January’s gains were revised down to -6.9 percent from an initial estimate of -6.1 percent, taking a huge chunk out of previously reported gains, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The revisions for durable goods orders mirror revisions in employment figures, which have repeatedly reported high growth figures that are later revised down, most recently being revised down for January by 124,000 while job growth for February was reported as 275,000.

Music Spotlight: Bryce Leatherwood

When I heard the buttery twang that encapsulates Bryce Leatherwood, I knew exactly why he won Season 22 of NBC’s “The Voice.” Even before he sang a word, you knew he had it.

Leatherwood is a 23-year-old singer/songwriter who aims to carry the torch of the country music he grew up with. He was born and raised in Woodstock, Georgia, and spent every summer working on his grandpa’s farm and listening to his grandpa’s music.

‘Cruel’: Franklin and Marshall Faculty Denounce ‘Transphobic’ Lia Thomas Teammate Speech