Politics
U.S. House to intervene in rail workers strike, heeding Biden call
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Monday said the House will take up legislation to ratify an agreement between rail workers and operators in order to avert a nationwide rail strike. “This week, the House will take up a bill adopting the Tentative Agreement — with no poison pills or changes to the […]
Department of Children’s Services housing children–many disabled–in hospitals for 8+ months
Children taken into the custody of the Department of Children’s Services are spending upwards of eight months in hospital beds across Tennessee because the agency has nowhere else to put them. The children typically land in DCS custody after being removed from homes on allegations of abuse or neglect and often carry the dual weight […]
Tennessee politics has become a one-sided boxing match that exhausts all participants
Three years ago — three months into my 40’s — I had my midlife crisis. A friend of mine had mentioned a boxing gym that he really liked, so I decided to try it out. I went to the heavy bag classes and even learned a few combinations. Some jabs, hooks and kicks to a […]
Nashville Rep. Clemmons takes over House Democratic Caucus
After one term as chair of the Tennessee House Democratic Caucus, Rep. Vincent Dixie of Nashville is out and Nashville Rep. John Ray Clemmons is in after being elected chair on Sunday by a 11-10 vote. “Moving forward I have the opportunity to build upon the things my predecessors did in the caucus,” Clemmons said […]
Congress knows how to slash child poverty. It just needs to do it.
If you could prevent millions of children from falling back into poverty, would you? Most of us, I imagine, would answer “yes” without hesitation. But not Congress. For nearly a year, lawmakers in Washington, D.C., have dithered as the policy directly responsible for a dramatic decline in poverty last year lapsed. It’s time for Congress […]
Gay bar owners seek to increase security in the wake of shooting of a gay nightclub in Colorado
Over the past year, Wendy McCown-Williams has noted how heated political discussions about the transgender community had affected her business. McCown-Williams, a transgender woman, has owned a gay bar in rural Tennessee for six years and welcomed everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or political leanings. Drag shows have been a common occurrence at her bar, […]
Student loan repayment pause extended by White House amid legal battles over relief plan
WASHINGTON — The Department of Education announced on Tuesday it is extending the pandemic-era pause on federal student loan repayments until June 30 while legal challenges to the administration’s student debt relief program are fought over in the courts. The agency said if the student debt relief program has not been put in place by […]
Biden appoints Nashville businessman Bill Freeman to Fulbright Board
President Joe Biden announced on Tuesday the appointment of Nashville businessman William H. “Bill” Freeman to the board of the J. William Fulbright Scholarship Awards. Freeman co-founded the Freeman-Webb Co. with the late Jimmy Webb. The company is a private real estate investment firm specializing in multi-family and commercial properties. In 2018, the pair bought […]
Ex-Sen. Brian Kelsey pleads guilty to two counts of federal campaign finance violations
Nearly a year after proclaiming he was a victim of a political “witch hunt,” former Republican Sen. Brian Kelsey pleaded guilty Tuesday to violating federal campaign finance laws in a scheme to bolster his failed 2016 congressional campaign. Kelsey, 44, entered guilty pleas to two counts of a five-count federal indictment, one for conspiracy to […]
As utilities spend billions on transmission, support builds for independent monitoring
An aging electric grid, fossil fuel power plant retirements and a massive renewable electricity buildout are all contributing to a boom in transmission and distribution wire projects by electric utilities across the country. In 2020, investor-owned electric utilities spent $25 billion on transmission, up from $23.7 billion in 2019, figures that the Edison Electric Institute, […]
Stockard on the Stump: Outrage over TSU was outrageous
Call it a historic attack on a historically Black institution — or at least its management. Tennessee State University officials hoped for a sympathetic ear and help in expediting the use of state funds to provide new housing for overflow enrollment when they went before a Senate committee this week. Instead, they received a shellacking […]
Nancy Pelosi, first woman to serve as speaker of the U.S. House, steps down from leadership
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who became the first woman in history to hold the gavel, shepherding landmark bills across four presidencies, announced Thursday she’ll step aside from leadership though she’ll remain in Congress. “With great confidence in our caucus, I will not seek reelection to Democratic leadership in the next Congress,” she […]