Unmasking DeWine: Ohio Journalist Jack Windsor Dissects Shocking Veto and Its Potential Ripple Effect on 2024 Senate Race

Ohio journalist and entrepreneur Jack Windsor joined host Michael Patrick Leahy on Monday’s episode of The Tennessee Star Report to discuss the connections and divides behind the shocking decision by Governor Mike DeWine to veto measure that would prohibit genital mutilation of children and transgender males competing in girls’ sports.

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California Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Longest-Serving Woman in the Senate, Dies at 90

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, longest-serving woman in the Senate, dies at age 90, according to news reports Friday morning. The California Democrat has over the past several months and years struggled with health issues and was planning to retire at the end of her term this year.

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Republican US Army Veteran Sam Brown Challenges Nevada Democrat Sen. Jacky Rosen

Afghanistan war veteran Sam Brown is launching his Republican Senate bid Monday to unseat Nevada Democrat Sen. Jacky Rosen.

“In the military, no one asks you what party you’re in. They just want to know that they can count on you to fight alongside them,” Brown said Monday on Twitter. “I’m ready to lead and fight for Nevadans again.”

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GOP Targets Three Vulnerable Democrats in Quest to Win Senate, House Control Too Early to Predict

Republicans would need to win three of the 2024 toss-up Senate races to retake control of the chamber but appear to be facing a more uphill battle to keep control of the House.

Thirty-three of 100 Senate seats are up for grabs next year. Right now, Democrats have a 51-49 majority, which includes 48 party members and three independents who caucus with them.

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J6 Unmasked: Security Footage Confirms Senate Door Opened, Allowing 300 to Enter Capitol Freely

A door on the West side of the U.S. Capitol was left open and mostly unguarded for key moments during the Jan. 6 riot, allowing more than 300 people to enter the building unimpeded even as officers fought valiantly to keep protesters out of other sections of the official home of Congress, according to police security footage obtained by Just the News. The footage — which confirms concerns first raised by Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., two years ago — shows an episode in a narrow hallway in the middle of the Capitol that began around 2:30p.m. on Jan. 6, 2021 right after the first breaches were reported elsewhere in the landmark building.

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McConnell Released from Physical Therapy After Concussion, Broken Rib

Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky left an inpatient rehab facility Saturday following physical therapy, CNN reported.

McConnell, the senate minority leader, was hospitalized Mar. 9 after he tripped and fell during an event at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington, D.C., suffering a concussion and a fractured rib. He will work from home on the advice of medical professionals, according to CNN.

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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell Suffers Concussion in Fall, to Remain Hospitalized for ‘Few Days’

by Madeleine Hubbard    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is expected to remain hospitalized “for a few days” after he fell in Washington, D.C., during a private hotel dinner, a spokesperson for the Kentucky Republican said Thursday. “This evening, Leader McConnell tripped at a local hotel during a private dinner,” spokesman…

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Commentary: 2024 Is Going to Be Close

If the November midterms proved one thing, it’s that Republicans have a less-than-breezy path to a majority in Washington, D.C.

Most of the attention on the 2024 election will center around the race for president. But don’t forget to watch the down ballot congressional races because the control of Congress really matters.

Both chambers are narrowly divided and control for both is up for grabs.

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U.S. Senate to Vote on ‘Respect for Marriage Act’ as Several Groups Question its Constitutionality

Several groups argue the Respect for Marriage Act (ROMA) currently before the U.S. Senate is unconstitutional, and if enacted, will eventually be struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The bill, HR 8404, was introduced in the House by U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, on July 18 and passed by a vote of 267-157 the next day. The U.S. Senate took it up on November 14.

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GOP Senate Challenger Tiffany Smiley Now Tied with Dem Incumbent Sen. Patty Murray in Washington State

Democratic Sen. Patti Murray is now tied with her Republican challenger and nurse Tiffany Smiley in the Washington Senate race, according to the results of a new survey published on Sunday.

The survey showed that Murray and Smiley each had the support of 46% of respondents, a two percentage point shift in favor of Smiley from the same poll conducted in September, according to pollster Moore Information Group. It also showed a three percentage point decrease in Murray’s net favorability ratings, while Smiley’s net favorability increased by the same amount.

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Commentary: Democrats Prepare to Lose as U.S. Senate Race in North Carolina Is Too Close to Call

The 2022 midterms are less than a month away. With Election Day rapidly approaching, races in Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin have taken the spotlight, and according to most pundits, control of the Senate comes down to these five states. Conspicuously, political analysts in the Beltway have all but stripped North Carolina, a purple, perennial swing state, and its Senate race between Congressman Ted Budd and state Supreme Court Chief Justice Cheri Beasley of its toss up status, and Democrats seem prepared to cede the state to Republicans.

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Republicans Enter Final Stretch Acutely Aware They Must Deliver Big After Election Day

Buoyed by rising popularity in the polls, Republican candidates for Congress are acutely aware their easiest job right now may be winning the midterm elections and that the harder work will be delivering afterwards — with Democrat Joe Biden still in the White House — on voters’ high expectations for fixing inflation, crime, insecure borders, the fentanyl crisis and crippling budget deficits.

From longtime lawmakers to first-time candidates, Republicans sounded consistent themes during a frank conversation with Just the News about what voters expect if they put the GOP in control of one or both chambers of Congress.

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Commentary: As Ex-Democrat Tulsi Gabbard Stumps for Republicans, Many Ask If She Has Coattails

On polls taken up to Oct. 17, Arizona Republican nominee for Governor Kari Lake was leading her opponent Katie Hobbs by 3 and 4 points respectively in Daily Wire/Trafalgar and Data for Progress polls. And then she got the endorsement of former Democratic U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, fresh off leaving the Democratic Party, on Oct. 18 in a Twitter post.

“For too long, establishment leaders from both parties have sought to enrich themselves, play games, and build up their power while ignoring and even enabling the suffering of millions of hard-working Americans,” Gabbard said in a press release, adding, “Kari Lake is a leader who puts people first, fighting for border security, energy independence, public safety, and other policies that actually make life better and more affordable for the American people.”

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Commentary: Yes, It’s Harder to Win the Senate – But That’s Always True

“I think there’s probably a greater likelihood the House flips than the Senate.”

That was Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Aug. 18 at the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, handicapping the Nov. 2022 Congressional midterms, giving Republicans greater odds to win back the House than the Senate.

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Commentary: This Is No Time for Bipartisanship

“The Left, in revolutionary fashion, has waged a sustained and unapologetic attack on constitutional norms and long-held institutions—whenever it senses they no longer prove conducive to its own radical agendas.” So begins a trenchant commentary by Victor Davis Hanson on the repeated efforts of Democratic Party leadership to overthrow America’s constitutional republic. Hanson’s remarks stand in stark contrast to a famous interview given to Salon by Dana Perino in 2018, in which the former presidential press secretary was hailed as the “voice of reason.” Perino expressed disappointment that neither party “was talking civility” and considered her own party as much to blame for this incivility as the other one. 

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Tennessee Star National Political Editor Neil McCabe Talks Build Back Better Bill and Nancy Pelosi’s Future

Wednesday morning on the Tennessee Star Report, host Michael Patrick Leahy welcomed National Political Editor for The Tennessee Star Neil McCabe to the newsmakers line to weigh in on the status of the Build Back Better bill and the fate of Nancy Pelosi.

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Senate Republicans Filibuster Government Funding Bill Over Debt Ceiling Provision With Three Days Until Shutdown

Senate Republicans Monday filibustered Democrats’ bill to fund the government and suspend the debt ceiling, days before a potential federal shutdown and possible debt default.

Republicans vowed for weeks to oppose a debt ceiling increase and urged Democrats to put the provision in their filibuster-proof $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill. But Democrats have thus far refused to do so, and with their bill’s failure Monday, Congress now has just three days to pass a new funding bill to avoid a government shutdown set to begin Friday at midnight.

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Infrastructure Bill Features Per-Mile User Fee Pilot Program

Highway Traffic

The recently passed U.S. Senate infrastructure bill includes controversial provisions such as a vehicle per-mile user fee pilot program as the bill faces uncertainty in the U.S. House.

The $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, which includes $550 billion of new spending, passed in the Senate on Tuesday by a 69-30 vote. The bill authorizes spending for improvements to roads, bridges, rail, transit and broadband, among other forms of infrastructure. 

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McConnell, Schumer Strike Deal on Impeachment Trial Rules

Senate leaders said on Monday that a deal has been agreed upon regarding the framework for former President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial slated to begin on Tuesday.

“For the information of the Senate, the Republican leader and I, in consultation with both the House managers and former President Trump’s lawyers, have agreed to a bipartisan resolution to govern the structure and timing of the impending trial,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Monday on the Senate floor. “All parties have agreed to a structure that will ensure a fair and honest Senate impeachment trial of the former president,” the New York Democrat said.

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Trump Responds to Charges in Senate Impeachment Trial

Former President Donald J. Trump Tuesday, through is attorneys Bruce L. Castor, Jr., and David Schoen, responded to the article of impeachment against him, for which he faces a trial in the U.S. Senate. 

The 45th president was accused of “inciting an insurrection” over the mostly peaceful protests at the Capitol Building on January 6. 

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Durbin Says Members ‘Have to Follow Their Own Conscience’ on Trump Impeachment

Democratic Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin told CNN anchor Jake Tapper on Sunday that Senate members “have to follow their own conscience” on President Donald Trump’s impeachment.

Durbin told Tapper on CNN’s “State of The Union” that he doesn’t know how members of his own caucus will vote to convict Trump.

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Democrats Set to Control the Sentate as David Perdue Concedes to Jon Ossoff

In a move that will effectively give Democrats the majority in the U.S. Senate, incumbent U.S. Senator David Perdue (R-GA) has conceded his reelection bid to his Democrat challenger.

In a concession statement, Perdue did not mention his opponent, Senator-Elect Jon Ossoff, by name.

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Congress Affirms Biden Electoral College Votes; Trump Agrees to ‘Orderly Transition’

A joint session of Congress, completing its work in the early morning hours of Thursday after lawmakers had been forced to flee their chambers by a violent invasion of the Capitol, affirmed that Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States.

The proceedings concluded shortly after 3:30 a.m. EST, drawing to a close an chaotic day in the nation’s house of laws that saw one person shot dead inside the building after some rioters breached its security during a massive rally to support President Trump.

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Raphael Warnock Hit with Multiple Tax Liens After Failing to Pay His Trash Bills

Democratic Georgia Senate candidate Raphael Warnock received four tax liens for failing to pay for trash collection services at a property he owns in Atlanta, Fulton County records show.

The records, which were first reported by National Review, show that the county imposed tax liens against Warnock totaling $2,595 for unpaid waste disposal services in 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2016.

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Commentary: The Most Important Week of the Century

Three big things are happening this week that could decide America’s fate. First, a run-off election in Georgia on Tuesday for two U.S. Senate seats that will determine the balance of power in the Senate. Second, Congress meets for a joint session on Wednesday to formally count the votes of the electoral college. And third, Americans from across the country will rally in support of election integrity on Wednesday on the lawn of the U.S. Capitol. Here’s a quick look at all these moving parts and ways you can make a difference in the saving America from a Marxist-Socialist takeover.

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Vice President Mike Pence Welcomes the Efforts of Representatives and Senators to Object to Electoral College Votes

  In a statement Saturday, Vice President Mike Pence issued a statement through his Chief of Staff Marc Short that he welcomes the actions of some members of the House and Senate, who say they will object to the final certification of the Electoral College vote on Wednesday. “Vice President…

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Raphael Warnock Refused to Say if He Supports Expanding the Supreme Court During Georgia Senate Debate

by Chuck Ross   Democratic senate candidate Raphael Warnock refused to say during a debate Sunday whether he supports “court packing,” or adding seats to the Supreme Court. “As I move all across the state … people aren’t asking me about the courts and whether we should expand the courts,”…

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U.S. Senate Confirms Barrett to Supreme Court, Giving Conservatives a 6-3 Majority

The U.S. Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to be an associate justice on the nation’s highest court Monday. 

Barrett fills the vacancy of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September at the age of 87 from complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer. 

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U.S. Senate Candidate Jason Lewis and Incumbent Tina Smith Square Off on the Issues

Incumbent Democrat Tina Smith will battle Republican Jason Lewis for a U.S. Senate seat in November.

Real Clear Politics polling places Smith in front of Jason Lewis 48-39.9, an 8.7% spread.

Republicans haven’t won a Minnesota U.S. Senate seat since Richard Nixon won the 1972 presidential race against Sen. George McGovern by a landslide.

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Congressional Leaders Receive at Least $1 Million in Pension Payouts Paid for by Taxpayers

As the nation struggles with record high unemployment, extended job losses, continued statewide shutdowns, and crippling national debt, a new report reveals that congressional leaders will receive an estimated $1 million each in retirement payouts on top of their lifetime pensions, fully funded by taxpayers.

First published by Forbes, OpenTheBooks.com’s report, “Why Are Taxpayers Providing Public Pensions To Millionaire Members Of Congress?” compares the financial benefits that both top leaders in Congress receive.

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Kentucky Democrats Still Looking for the Winner in Last Week’s Primary

One of Kentucky’s most unpredictable political races in years is headed toward the wire Tuesday, but it’s taking a full week after the June 23 primary to sort out a possible photo finish in the Democratic U.S. Senate contest.

Absentee ballots that stacked up amid the coronavirus pandemic have delayed the vote count in the neck-and-neck race between progressive candidate Charles Booker and establishment-backed Amy McGrath. Both are vying for the chance to take on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who coasted to victory in the GOP primary in his bid for a seventh term.

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Black Candidates Tap Protest Energy to Challenge Incumbent Democrats

Amy McGrath and Eliot Engel live hundreds of miles apart in states with dramatically different politics.

Yet they’re the preferred candidates of the Democratic Party’s Washington establishment as voters in Kentucky and New York decide their congressional primary elections on Tuesday. And both may be in trouble.

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Commentary: Seven Specific Policy Ideas for Republican Congressional Candidates

Washington DC

This year, hundreds of Republican candidates for federal office will be on the ballot this fall, and many of them lack the resources to put together a strong policy team. While taxes, abortion, guns, school choice immigration, and defense are all very important issues, they have limited reach beyond the usual Republican voters. Here are seven policy ideas for House and Senate candidates who would like to expand their platform to try to appeal to more voters – without alienating key elements of the Republican base.

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Commentary: The Great, Steaming Heart of ‘The Swamp’ Beats in the U.S. Senate

by Rachel Bovard   Donald Trump was elected in 2016 on a platform that, broadly, called for draining “the swamp.” The definition of swamp, for the most part, was left to the listener, but generally, it was assumed to represent the established interests that dictated federal policy toward the ends…

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Commentary: The Sour Revolution of Bernie Sanders

Truly transformative social movements usually complete cycles. They start with a crisis, build momentum, organize, gain power, and then institutionalize. The French Revolution combined intellectuals, peasants, and convicts into a force that the mighty King Louis XVI and his professional army could not stop. Their effort culminated with the king’s execution on the guillotine in 1793.

After this, the various revolutionaries had to face the question of which vision of that revolution would be imposed. Many of them did not survive that stage of their revolution. Like their former king, many of them were guillotined and, eventually, all of the elements they detested about the monarchy were restored under Napoleon Bonaparte.

This cycle isn’t unique to the history of France and, indeed, it’s the template for most “revolutions.”

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The Department of Justice Is Probing Senator Richard Burr’s Stock Trades: Report

The Justice Department is probing a series of stock trades that Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-NC) made in the weeks after receiving briefings about the coronavirus pandemic, CNN reported.

The Justice Department is coordinating with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the matter, and the FBI has contacted Barr, a North Carolina Republican, according to CNN, which cited two people familiar with the matter.

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Commentary: Remembering Senator Tom Coburn – He Stood Tall for Taxpayers

Former Sen. Tom Coburn was a hero among fiscal conservatives and endless source of inspiration and courage. The Oklahoma Republican embodied financial stewardship, always showing great respect for the hard-earned tax dollars of working Americans.

Coburn, who died late Friday at 72, helped the American people better understand the size and scope of Washington’s spending problem by highlighting government waste.

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President Trump’s Lawyers Resume Defense in Impeachment Trial

President Donald Trump’s lawyers resumed their impeachment defense Monday, as majority Republicans in the Senate weighed how to respond to a former Trump national security adviser’s allegation that the U.S. leader told him he wanted to withhold military aid to Ukraine until it launched an investigation of former Vice President Joe Biden.

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Commentary: A Copious Compendium of Adam Schiff’s Lies

Rep. Adam Schiff

With the establishment media in a disgusting bromance with Democrat impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, we thought we’d wrap-up the first few days of the impeachment farce – we mean Senate trial – by collecting as many of Schiff’s lies as we could find into one well-sourced document.

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Commentary: A ‘Fair’ Senate Impeachment Trial Is Exactly What Democrats Are Afraid Of

On January 7, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) wrote her Democratic colleagues to explain her strategy and to respond to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) announcement that he would not negotiate impeachment trial procedures with the House. Instead, McConnell simply plans to use the procedures employed in the Clinton impeachment

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Trump Spars with Democrats as Impeachment Vote Nears

President Donald Trump, facing impeachment this week, sparred Monday with House Democrats who accused him of “multiple federal crimes” in the abuse of the presidency.

“The Impeachment Hoax is the greatest con job in the history of American politics!” Trump contended on Twitter. “The Fake News Media, and their partner, the Democrat Party, are working overtime to make life for the United Republican Party, and all it stands for, as difficult as possible!”

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