February 23, 2023 | The Ohio Star

Pennsylvania Residents Speak to State Senate About Ill Effects of Train Burn

February 23, 2023 Patrick Ahern

Western Pennsylvanians who live near the site of the February 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment and subsequent burn went before a State Senate Committee Thursday to state that the event is causing deleterious health consequences. The 53-car train derailed in the village of East Palestine, Ohio, less than a mile from where the Buckeye State abuts Beaver County in Pennsylvania. In the crash’s aftermath, the train company proceeded to burn five rail cars containing vinyl chloride, a course of action company officials said would avert a potentially disastrous explosion. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro (D) initially supported what has been called the “controlled burn” but has subsequently blasted Norfolk Southern for its handling of the incident, particularly its decision to burn five cars; Shapiro asserted he was only told one car would be incinerated.

Pennsylvania State Senator Holds Hearing with Testimony from Those Affected by East Palestine Disaster

February 23, 2023 Admin

State Senator Doug Mastriano (R-Adams/Franklin), along with fellow lawmakers held a bipartisan hearing Thursday in order to gather testimony directly from those Pennsylvanians affected by the train derailment in nearby East Palestine, Ohio.

Commentary: Pleas from East Palestine, Ohio

February 23, 2023 Admin

We are broadcasting live today from a packed house of about 300 local western Pennsylvania residents at the Community College of Beaver County in Monaca, just 21 miles from the site of East Palestine, Ohio’s toxic chemical spill disaster. This is the scene of the first public hearing on the East Palestine chemical catastrophe, led by PA State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Gettysburg), Chairman of the Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness Committee.

Secretary of State LaRose and Senator Gavarone Introduce DATA Act to Increase Ohio Election Transparency

February 23, 2023February 23, 2023 Hannah Poling

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose in collaboration with state Senator Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) introduced legislation on Wednesday to increase transparency in Ohio’s elections.

Senate Bill (SB) 71 known as the Data Analysis Transparency Archive (DATA) Act aims to codify standard definitions of key election data, create within the Secretary of State’s Office an office of data analytics and archives which will serve as a clearing house for retention and review, publish standardized data and results online, and codifies a process for county Board of Elections to transfer election data to the Secretary of State’s Office.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Visits East Palestine, Ohio

February 23, 2023 Hannah Poling

Pete Buttigieg, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, visited East Palestine, Ohio, on Thursday as the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced the preliminary findings of its investigation into the derailment of a Norfolk Southern train transporting hazardous materials. The February 3rd derailment has caused significant health and environmental concerns for the locals, who have expressed dissatisfaction at how slowly the federal government has responded to the emergency.

Ohio Congressmen Latta and Balderson Introduce Bill to Boost Energy Refining Capacity

February 23, 2023February 22, 2023 Bradley Vasoli

Two Ohio congressmen are spearheading legislation to boost U.S. fossil-fuel-refining capacity which has declined since 2020.

Representatives Bob Latta (R-OH-5) and Troy Balderson (R-OH-12) are sponsoring the Researching Efficient Federal Improvements for Necessary Energy Refining (REFINER) Act alongside Congressmen Greg Pence (R-IN-6), and Randy Weber (R-TX-29). The measure would commence a federal effort to study factors that have led to lessened refinery capacity and recommend policies to increase fuel refining.

Gaetz Introduces Resolution Forcing House Vote on Removing U.S. Troops from Syria

February 23, 2023 Just the News

Rep. Matt Gaetz introduced a resolution to force the House to vote on directing President Joe Biden to remove the U.S. military from Syria, where they have been involved since 2014, the Florida Republican congressman’s office announced Wednesday.

Gaetz, a House Armed Services Committee member, filed the one-page War Powers Resolution on Tuesday after four U.S. servicemembers and a working dog were wounded in a raid that resulted in the death of a senior Islamic State leader.

Biden to Implement an Asylum Policy Similar to Trump-Era Policies

February 23, 2023 Ohio Star Staff

Despite Joe Biden’s campaign rhetoric frequently attacking President Donald Trump for his strict immigration policies, the Biden Administration is set to implement asylum rules that echo Trump-era policies.

As reported by Politico, Biden’s Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a proposal that would forbid illegal aliens from applying for asylum if they crossed the border illegally, or if they failed to apply for safe harbor in the first safe country in which they arrived. The rule is set to be implemented on May 11th after a 30-day period for public comment, and would remain in place for at least two years.

Biden Still Hasn’t Made a Decision About a 2024 Run: Report

February 23, 2023 Ohio Star Staff

President Joe Biden has yet to make a decision about running for a second term in 2024, and potential Democratic hopefuls and party donors are bracing for an open primary, according to Politico.

Biden aides noted that the president’s decision will likely come in April, despite being previously slated for February, Politico reported. Those close to the president still believe he will run, and that his decision has been prolonged due to current events, but others in the party aren’t so sure.

New York Democrat Steers Legislative Effort to Remove ‘Cuomo’ Name From Tappan Zee Bridge

February 23, 2023 Susan Berry, PhD

New York Democrat State Senator James Skoufis (D-Woodbury) became the lead sponsor of a bill that would restore the name of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge back to its original Tappan Zee Bridge.

“Everyone in the Hudson Valley still calls the bridge the Tappan Zee for a reason,” Skoufis told The New York Post Monday of the span that was newly completed in 2018 and renamed by disgraced former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for his father, Mario, who also served as governor.

Dem Reps Seek to Restrict Ammunition Sales to Americans

February 23, 2023 Ohio Star Staff

Democratic lawmakers are seeking further restrictions on ammunition sales after submitting the “Stop Online Ammunition Sales Act of 2023” in late January, which would block online sales of ammunition and issue new guidance for brick-and-mortar stores.

The bill, H.R. 584, would require ammunition dealers to receive updated licenses and confirm the identity of any customer who attempts to purchase ammunition, further saying that online sales will be blocked and bulk purchases must be reported. Democratic New Jersey Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, a lawmaker backed by Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun group Everytown for Gun Safety, introduced the bill alongside 23 House Democrats who co-signed the legislation.

Commentary: The Right Cannot Afford to Abandon Public Education

February 23, 2023 Ohio Star Staff

In his latest offensive to rid Florida’s educational system of revolutionary Marxism, Governor Ron DeSantis announced what amounts to a new direction for one of the most liberal educational institutions in the state: the New College of Florida. DeSantis appointed a slew of new trustees to the college, including the anti-Marxist journalist Christopher Rufo, Claremont Review of Books Editor and political scientist Charles R. Kesler, and Matthew Spalding of Hillsdale College. The president of the New College, Patricia Okker, appeared before the board and said that she could not cooperate with the board or with DeSantis’ plan for the institution, and she was promptly terminated.

‘So Creepy’: Pete Buttigieg Taking Photo of DCNF Reporter Sparks Backlash

February 23, 2023 Ohio Star Staff

Twitter users reacted to a Tuesday evening confrontation between a Daily Caller News Foundation reporter and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, with some calling Buttigieg out for taking a photo of the reporter.

DCNF investigative reporter Jennie Taer posted a 45-second video on social media of her asking Buttigieg if he had a message for residents of East Palestine, Ohio, the location of a train derailment that resulted in the spilling of toxic chemicals. Buttigieg referred her to comments he made in press interviews, said he was taking “some personal time” and took a photo of Taer at the end of the interaction.

Commentary: Oversight Committee Demands Account of All Economic, Military Aid to Ukraine

February 23, 2023 RealClearWire

As President Biden boarded a European train destined for Kyiv, back in Washington, Rep. James Comer and his team drafted a long-expected letter.

Standing next to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Biden pledged Monday that the lifeline of economic and military aid to that nation, support already well in excess of $100 billion, would not slack, and that the United States would stand with Ukraine “as long as it takes.”

Key Dominion Exec Admitted Company Products ‘Riddled with Bugs’ Days Before 2020 Vote: Fox Lawyers

February 23, 2023 Just the News

Dominion Voting Systems employees have acknowledged serious problems with the company’s technology, saying, for example, that a bug led to “INCORRECT results,” according to discovery cited in the defense brief in Dominion’s defamation lawsuit against Fox News.

Dominion is suing Fox News for $1.6 billion for defamation after becoming a target of alleged conspiracy theories regarding its voting machines being hacked and flipping election results.

FDA Panel OKs Making Narcan Available for Over-the-Counter Use

February 23, 2023 The Center Square

A Food and Drug Administration advisory panel unanimously voted to recommend the agency approve Narcan, a life-saving drug for opioid overdoses, be made available to purchase over the counter without a prescription.

Narcan is accessible for free and low cost online, through a range of community organizations, and through pharmacies with and without a prescription and with or without insurance.

Ohio Pro-Abortion Activists Announce Language for November Ballot Initiative

February 23, 2023February 22, 2023 Hannah Poling

The Ohioans for Reproductive Freedom, a coalition of radical pro-abortion activists that includes Planned Parenthood, Pro-Choice Ohio, the Abortion Fund of Ohio, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Ohio, along with the Ohio Physicians for Reproductive Rights, unveiled the language of their ballot initiative to enshrine abortion in the Ohio Constitution in the November general election on Tuesday.

The proposal would remove Ohio’s parental notification legislation when a minor wants an abortion, as well as the requirement that abortionists adhere to fundamental hospital health and safety standards. The proposal also aims to permit abortions far after babies have heartbeats and can feel pain.