Tag: North Carolina

North Carolina, North Dakota, Among States Phasing Out Income Tax

Just the News

Americans in search of economic freedom and opportunity are flocking to Florida, Tennessee and Texas, and at least part of the attraction is that these three states, along with six others (Alaska, Nevada, South Dakota, Washington, Wyoming and New Hampshire), don’t levy an income tax.

Other states may soon follow.

“There are 10 states that are in the process of moving their personal income tax to zero,” President of Americans for Tax Reform Grover Norquist said on the John Solomon Reports podcast.

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Google Agrees to Nearly $400 Million Settlement with 40 States over Location-Tracking Probe

Just the News

Google agreed to a $391.5 million settlement with 40 states after an investigation found that the tech giant participated in questionable location-tracking practices, state attorneys general announced Monday.

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong called it a “historic win for consumers.”

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Commentary: America’s Electoral System Is Suffering from a Credibility Crisis

Ohio Star Staff

Defying all predictions of a photo finish senate race, Pennsylvania Democrat John Fetterman won 50.3% of the vote to Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz’s 47.3%. The unexpectedly large margin helped avoid a midterm meltdown. But don’t be deceived; that margin masks major electoral system dysfunction that remains unaddressed.

If the margins had been narrower, things might have looked very different. Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf last year vetoed a commonsense measure that would have modernized Pennsylvania’s Depression-era voting laws. As a result, the Commonwealth is saddled with a ponderous mail voting system bolted onto a rickety election code that forbids routine practices like voter ID and pre-processing mail ballots. Those policies secure elections and speed tabulations, but were vetoed by Wolf last year.

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

RealClearWire

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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Parent Rips North Carolina School Board for Promoting Graphic Gay Sex Book to Seventh-Graders

Susan Berry, PhD

A mother from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District in North Carolina rebuked the school board and superintendent for allowing 7th graders access to a graphic book that promotes “the ins and outs of gay sex.”

Education investigative journalist Christopher Rufo posted the video to Twitter of the parent reading a section of This Book Is Gay by LGBTQ activist Juno Dawson.

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Four Plead Guilty in North Carolina Ballot Fraud Cases

Ohio Star Staff

Four people in North Carolina have pleaded guilty to misdemeanors for their roles in absentee ballot fraud in a rural part of the state.

The fraud occurred in the 2016 and 2018 elections, and the convictions stemmed from an investigation that in part resulted in a congressional election having to be redone, according to the Associated Press.

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Flash Cards Depicting Pregnant Man Used for Teaching Colors in North Carolina Preschool Classroom

Susan Berry, PhD

A North Carolina state representative responded to an email from a constituent alerting her to the use of LGBTQ-themed flash cards, including a card with the depiction of a pregnant man, to teach colors to preschool children in an elementary school in the Wake County Public School System (WCPSS).

Upon receiving an email containing the flash card, apparently from “Progress Pride Flag Rainbow Families Flash Cards,” that depicted a pregnant man,” state Rep. Erin Paré (R-Wake) contacted the principal at Ballantine Elementary School in Wake County, noted a press release from North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland).

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Thales College to Welcome Inaugural Class of Undergraduates This Fall at North Carolina Campus

Susan Berry, PhD

There’s a new private college in town – one with affordable tuition, accelerated degrees, and classical liberal arts and career-ready majors – and it will be welcoming its inaugural undergraduate students this fall at its new Wake Forest, North Carolina campus.

Thales College, founded by Bob Luddy, who also created the network of affordable private K-12 schools known as Thales Academy, said in an announcement the college’s students “will enjoy personalized mentorship and teaching from top-notch faculty, and they will benefit from our new campus home in Wake Forest, North Carolina, with Raleigh’s vast opportunities and amenities at their fingertips.”

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Thales Academy Opens First Rural County School in Pittsboro, North Carolina

Susan Berry, PhD

Thales Academy opened the doors of its brand new building in Pittsboro, North Carolina, Monday, as about 100 students from the academy’s Cary campus moved to the new facility in rural Chatham County.

“Chatham is the first time that Thales has been in a rural county,” Bob Luddy, the founder and chairman of Thales Academy, told The Star News Network. “So, my thought was having a facility of that quality in a rural county that’s a private initiative is going to change the way people think about K-12 education.”

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North Carolina Congressman Introduces Bill to Restart Building Border Wall

Ohio Star Staff

A North Carolina congressman has introduced a bill to require the federal government to restart rebuilding the border wall, which was halted by President Joe Biden.

U.S. Rep. Ted Budd, R-NC, introduced the Build the Wall Now Act, which removes all legal impediments to building the border wall. Among other things, it unlocks an additional $2.1 billion that was appropriated in fiscal years 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 that weren’t spent.

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Two Key Senate Races Moved in GOP’s Direction by Noted Election Handicapper Cook Political Report

Admin
Richard Burr and Michael Bennet

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report on Friday shifted its forecasts for two 2022 Senate races in the direction of Republicans.

The report moved the North Carolina Senate race to replace retiring GOP Sen. Richard Burr moved from “toss-up” to “likely Republican.” And moved the Colorado Senate race, in which Democrat Sen. Michael Bennet is seeking a third term, from “solid Democrat” into the “likely Democrat” catagory.

The North Carolina GOP primary is now a competitive race between former President Trump-endorsed Rep. Ted Budd, former Gov. Pat McCrory and former Rep. Mark Walker, with (with Budd and McCrory currently deadlocked).

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Republicans Notch Big Win as Court Upholds North Carolina’s New Congressional Map

Ohio Star Staff

A North Carolina court Tuesday upheld the state’s new congressional and state legislative lines, rejecting claims from Democratic groups that it was an unfair gerrymander giving Republicans in the state a big win.

While the case may be appealed, the decision as it stands now could impact the 2022 midterm elections, where Republicans are seeking to reverse Democrats’ narrow House majority. North Carolina is gaining a 14th seat, and the new congressional lines could give Republicans an 11-3 advantage, up from the 8-5 split now.

The Democrats’ lawyers argued during last week’s trial that the map chosen was an extreme outlier that Republicans picked solely for political gain. Republicans, however, said that the new lines were drawn legally and that the court was incapable of determining whether it was too partisan to stand.

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Trump Makes Deal to Clear North Carolina GOP Senate Field So His Candidate Can Win

Ohio Star Staff
Donald Trump smiling

Former President Donald Trump struck a deal this past weekend to clear the crowded field in North Carolina’s Republican primary for Senate for Rep. Ted Budd, his preferred candidate, a source close with Budd and familiar with the meeting confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Budd, who joined the fray in April and received Trump’s endorsement two months later, has failed to emerge as the frontrunner in a GOP primary that includes former Gov. Pat McCrory and former Rep. Mark Walker. One recent poll conducted for the conservative group Club for Growth, which has also backed Budd, found the congressman slightly behind McCrory even as Budd’s popularity rose in recent months, while Walker remained in a distant third.

An internal poll from McCrory’s campaign, however, showed the former governor up by 15 points.

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North Carolina Adopts New Congressional Map That Favors Republicans

Ohio Star Staff

The North Carolina General Assembly on Thursday finalized the state’s new U.S. House map that gives Republicans a distinct advantage over Democrats.

The map creates 10 safe Republican seats, three safe Democratic seats and one competitive seat, up from the current 8-5 map now. North Carolina is the only state where the legislature has full control over the redistricting process, meaning that the new lines can skirt what would be an all but certain veto from Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper and go into effect.

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North Carolina School District to Discipline Educators Who Teach America is Racist

Ohio Star Staff

A North Carolina county school board has passed a policy that will discipline or fire teachers who undermine the U.S. Constitution, tell students that American historical figures weren’t heroes or portray racism as systemic in America.

The vote Friday by the Johnston County school board is part of a larger campaign to stamp out critical race theory from American schools.

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North Carolina Senate Votes to Ban Critical Race Theory Concepts in Schools

Ohio Star Staff

The North Carolina Senate has approved legislation that prohibits K-12 schools from promoting more than a dozen concepts about racism and discrimination.

The legislation bans school districts from pushing critical race theory, which is centered around the idea that race is a social construct used to oppress people of color. The theory, developed by legal scholars in the late 1970s and 1980s, concludes racism in America is systemic.

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Memo Reveals University of North Carolina Plan to Sideline ‘Diversity of Thought’ Ahead of Nikole Hannah-Jones Appointment

Ohio Star Staff
Nikole Hannah Jones

A memo obtained by Campus Reform reveals that the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media considered “diversity of thought” to be in conflict with its efforts to achieve social justice objectives.

Hussman Dean Susan King wrote the August 1, 2020 memo to university Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz. She stated, “There is a fundamental conflict between efforts to promote racial equity and understandings of structural racism, and efforts to promote diversity of thought. These two things cannot sit side by side without coming into conflict.”

King wrote the memo in anticipation of Nikole Hannah-Jones joining the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty and teaching a class based on the “1619 Project.” 

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Davidson College Spends $1 Million Telling White Churches How Not to Be Racist

Ohio Star Staff
Davidson College

Davidson College in Davidson, North Carolina will spend $1 million teaching “white dominant” churches how to strive for racial equity.

According to Davidson’s official news service, the college received a $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., a private philanthropic foundation that donates to race and faith-related charitable projects. 

The partnership with Davidson is a fraction of the $93 million in grants the Lilly Endowment will offer throughout North America via its Thriving Congregations Initiative.

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North Carolina GOP Adds A Ban on Teaching the U.S. ‘Should Be Violently Overthrown’ to Anti-CRT Bill

Ohio Star Staff
Phil Berger in front of North Carolina State Capitol

North Carolina Republicans amended a bill Wednesday that would prevent educators from teaching critical race theory in the state’s public schools, adding five provisions, according to an updated copy of the legislation obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Republican Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger added five provisions to House Bill 324 following worries that North Carolina students would be taught CRT in schools, the AP reported.

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Trump Endorses Ted Budd for NC Senate Seat after Daughter-In-Law Lara Opts Against Running

Ohio Star Staff
Donald Trump smiling

Former President Donald Trump on Saturday night offered his “complete and total endorsement” of Congressman Ted Budd for next year’s Senate race in North Carolina after his daughter-in-law Lara ended months of speculation by declining to run for the seat.

The Trumps made the surprise announcement at the state’s Republican convention. The former president said Budd had found out about the endorsement just minutes before the speech began.

Lara Trump said she was “saying no for now” to running for Senate in the state where she grew up but left open the possibility for the future. She said having two young children, ages 1 and 3, was a major consideration in her decision

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Census Bureau Announces Ohio Will Lose a Congressional Seat as Florida and Texas Each Gain

Ohio Star Staff

Texas and Florida are slated to gain congressional seats during the decennial redistricting process, while California and New York are set to each lose one, the U.S. Census Bureau announced Monday.

The U.S. Census Bureau released the decennial state population and congressional apportionment totals Monday, outlining how many districts each state will have for the next decade. The data also determines how many Electoral College votes each state will have through 2032, and allocates how federal money is distributed to each state for schools, roads and other public projects.

The release was originally scheduled for December, but faced delays due to the coronavirus pandemic and the Trump administration’s unsuccessful effort to exclude non-citizens from the count.

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Public Notice to GOP Senators, Congressman: State Parties Will Rebuke You for Disloyal Votes Against Trump

Neil W. McCabe

Republican lawmakers, who voted to impeach or convict President Donald J. Trump, earned rebukes from their home states – a new trend of holding GOP legislators accountable for their actions in Washington.

“Wrong vote, Sen. Burr,” Tweeted former congressman Mark Warner. “I am running to replace Richard Burr because North Carolina needs a true conservative champion as their next senator.”

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Madison Cawthorn Says He’s Contesting the Election, Will Fund Primary Opponents Against GOP Reps Who Don’t Speak Out

Ohio Star Staff

Incoming Republican North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn said at a Turning Point USA conference Monday that he will contest the election and fund primary opponents against GOP members not publicly urging “for fair, free and just elections.”

Cawthorn said the Constitution says “that state legislators are the only body that can change election law within their own states,” video of the conference shows. He said numerous governors and state secretaries in swing states have violated the law.

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Tillis Wins After Cunningham Concedes Race

Ohio Star Staff

Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham conceded the North Carolina Senate seat to Republican incumbent Sen. Thom Tillis Tuesday.

Cunningham conceded the race Tuesday, a week after Election Day, after Decision Desk HQ projected that the 47-year-old challenger had lost the race for the only North Carolina Senate seat up for grabs in 2020.

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North Carolina Lawmakers Demand State Board of Elections Release Data on How Many Ballots are Outstanding

Jason M. Reynolds

North Carolina legislative leaders are demanding that the State Board of Elections release data on total outstanding ballots to provide transparency.

The co-chairs of the State Senate and House Elections Committees sent the demand in a letter Friday to Karen Brinson Bell, executive director of the North Carolina State Board of Elections, which is controlled by Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper. The announcement was made by N.C. Senate Leader Phil Berger.

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Early Vote Count Passes 2016 Total with 11 Days Until the Election

Ohio Star Staff

Over 50 million Americans have voted early with 11 days remaining until Election Day, far surpassing the 47 million early ballots cast in 2016.

While nearly every state has begun early voting, Texas, California and Florida lead the way, with 6.3 million, 5.8 million and 4.2 million ballots cast in each state, according to the U.S. Elections Project.

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Appeals Court Rules North Carolina Absentee Ballots Postmarked By November 3 Are Valid If They Arrive Before November 12

Ohio Star Staff

The 4th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the North Carolina State Board of Elections on Tuesday, allowing it to count absentee ballots that arrive before Nov. 12 as long as they were postmarked by Nov. 3.

“All ballots must still be mailed on or before Election Day,” said Circuit Judge James Wynn in the court’s 12-3 ruling. “The change is simply an extension from three to nine days after Election Day for a timely ballot to be received and counted. That is all.”

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Federal Prompts for Gov. Bill Lee to Issue Statewide Mask Mandate Begs Question of Who Is Behind the Idea

Jason M. Reynolds

Tennessee is ranked fourth in the nation for COVID deaths per 100,000 people, WUOT reports, citing the White House Coronavirus Task Force’s red zone report, which calls for Gov. Bill Lee to implement a statewide mask mandate.

The controversial report is from earlier this month. The task force issues frequent red zone reports.

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Trump Campaign Sues to Block Mail-in Expansions in North Carolina

Ohio Star Staff

President Donald Trump’s campaign and the Republican National Committee on Saturday filed suit to prevent North Carolina officials from adopting measures that would allow a greater number of absentee ballots to be counted in November.

The State Board of Elections said Tuesday that it would allow November ballots with incomplete information to be fixed without requiring the voter to redo their ballot, leading Republicans to file suit arguing that the system would lead to “fraud, coercion, theft, and otherwise illegitimate voting,” the Associated Press reported.

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Free Speech Group Warns University After it Allowed Black Lives Matter Protest but Banned Other Gatherings

Ohio Star Staff

A free speech advocacy group has sent two letters to East Carolina University after the public college banned gatherings of more than 50 students, but allowed a Black Lives Matter protest on campus.

Southeastern Legal Foundation sent a letter to the North Carolina public university on September 16 seeking information on its enforcement of its coronavirus policies. After receiving no response, the public interest law group sent a follow-up letter on September 24.

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Commentary: President Trump Is the Only Choice for North Carolina

Ohio Star Staff

On September 29, President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden will face off in Cleveland, Ohio for the first of three nationally televised debates. Unfortunately, by that time, some North Carolinians will already have started voting, as the first batch of absentee ballots were sent by the state on September 4th. That means that some North Carolinians won’t have the benefit of seeing the candidates on stage together to debate their visions for America prior to casting their vote. As you make your decision, it is important that you have the facts: President Trump’s leadership and policies built the world’s strongest economy once already, and he’s doing it again, providing opportunity and prosperity for North Carolina’s families and seniors.

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In the Final Weeks Leading to November, Biden’s Lead in the Top Six Battleground States Narrows

Ohio Star Staff

Democratic nominee Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump in six of the most competitive battleground states as both candidates amp up their fundraising efforts and place multimillion dollar ad buys just over seven weeks out from the election, according to a Daily Caller News Foundation review.

In 2016, Trump pulled off an upset win after flipping Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Now, those three states, in addition to Arizona, Florida and North Carolina, are likely to decide the winner of November’s presidential election.

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School District Closes Schools, Charges Students $140 per Week to Attend ‘Learning Centers’

Ohio Star Staff

Shortly after announcing that the fall semester would begin online, the board of education of the Durham, North Carolina public school department said it will charge families $140 per week to send their children to “learning centers” at various local schools.

The school board, which last month said it planned to activate its “Plan C” and start school in the fall with virtual learning, this week “authorized the opening of six learning centers to provide support for students who need supervision” while schools remain online, according to the school district’s website.

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DeWine’s Baseball Team’s Paycheck Protection Program Loan Nets Millionaire Governor $189K of Forgivable Taxpayer Handout

Jason M. Reynolds

With news that Gov. Mike DeWine’s minor league baseball team cashed in on the Paycheck Protection Program, one may ask how Ohio’s top executive came to own a team in North Carolina or why he needed a taxpayer handout.

DeWine has a 32 percent stake in the Asheville Tourists minor league team, The Ohio Star reported this week.

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Gov. DeWine’s Company, Which Owns a Minor Baseball Team in North Carolina, Gets Loan from Federal Virus Aid Program

The Associated Press

A company partly owned by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine is among those that received loans from a $600 billion-plus coronavirus aid program.

The data released Monday shows DeWine Seeds-Silver Dollar Baseball received a loan under the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program for a range of $150,000 to $350,000.

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While Confederate Statues Come Down, Other Symbols Targeted

The Associated Press

Spectators in North Carolina’s capital cheered Sunday morning as work crews finished the job started by protesters Friday night and removed a Confederate statue from the top of a 75-foot (232 meter) monument.

Across the country, a peaceful protest in Portland, Oregon, against racial injustice turned violent early Sunday after baton-wielding police used flash-bang grenades to disperse demonstrators throwing bottles, cans and rocks at sheriff’s deputies near downtown’s Justice Center.

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North Carolina Gov. Stands Ground, Says GOP Conditions for Convention Are ‘Very Unlikely’

Ohio Star Staff

Uncertainty surrounding the 2020 Republican National Convention increased Tuesday as Democratic North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper rejected the GOP’s request to have a full, in-person convention.

In a letter addressed to the Republican National Committee (RNC), Cooper cited his concerns about the coronavirus pandemic.

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Florida, Georgia Would Happily Play Host to Republican National Convention If It Leaves North Carolina

Ohio Star Staff

After President Donald Trump took to Twitter to threaten pulling the Republican National Convention out of Charlotte, N.C, other southeast states with Trump allies as governor have offered to host the convention.

The GOP convention is scheduled for late August in Charlotte. North Carolina entered phase two of its reopening plan amid the coronavirus pandemic last week under Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who has been cautious in lifting restrictions.

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Commentary: Rigid Lockdowns vs. Relative Freedom

Ohio Star Staff

In North Carolina, Gov. Roy Cooper has adopted the policy premise that anything done in the name of safety from the coronavirus trumps all other interests, including economic, religious, or other health considerations. Despite comparatively low numbers in the Tar Heel state, the ninth most populous state in the United States, and with no evidence of the healthcare system being overwhelmed, North Carolina has been in full lockdown for over a month.

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3D Printing Presents Possible Solution to Personal Protective Equipment Shortage

Anthony Gockowski

Mayo Clinic announced last week that it is exploring the possibility of 3D printing face masks and other personal protective equipment items to employ in the national fight against COVID-19.

The famous clinic said its 3D Anatomic Modeling Laboratories across the country as well as its Division of Engineering are working together to “reverse-engineer, 3D-print and machine solutions for patient care.”

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

Ohio Star Staff

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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Sheriff Sam Page Says, ‘A Country That Doesn’t Define Its Borders and Doesn’t Know Who’s Coming in and Out of the Country, Won’t Last Very Long’

Julie Carr

On Wednesday’s Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – host Leahy welcomed Rockingham County, North Carolina’s Sheriff of 20 years, Samuel ‘Sam’ Page to the show to speak about illegal immigration and how it’s affecting his county and those across the nation.

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