New York | September 22, 2021
Donald Trump sues NY Times, his niece for uncovered tax documents
New York | September 22, 2021
Donald Trump filed a lawsuit Tuesday against his niece Mary Trump and the New York Times stemming from explosive news articles about the former president’s taxes and finances. Trump is seeking no less than $100 million in damages, accusing Mary of breaking a non-disclosure agreement by leaking his personal tax documents to the Times. “The defendants engaged in an insidious plot to obtain confidential and highly-sensitive records which they exploited for their own benefit and utilized as a means of falsely legitimizing their publicized works,” Trump attorney Alina Habba alleges in the 27-page complaint, filed in Dutchess County, New York, Supreme Court. (Excerpts from the New York Post)
Tennessee | July 22, 2021
Tennessee will be 7th state sued for cutting off federal unemployment benefits
Tennessee | July 22, 2021
A group of Tennesseans are suing Gov. Bill Lee and Tennessee for stopping federal unemployment benefits more than two months before the program expires.
Already, people in Indiana and Maryland have sued and won, getting their federal help reinstated And cases are pending right now in Ohio, Oklahoma, Florida, and Texas.
They’re 1,800 strong. The grassroots Facebook group Tennesseans Against Ending Benefits Early say they aren’t stopping without a suit.
Mom and member Dee Bowen of Jonesboro’s been tracking how people in Indiana and Maryland sued to get what they say is rightfully theirs.
“Them winning gives us a little hope that we can win too because we have similar laws,” says Bowen.
Nashville Attorney Gary Blackburn confirms held his first legal consultation with them Wednesday evening and confirms with me he is moving forward with litigation against Governor Bill Lee. Blackburn says, “These are represented to me to be people not people who simply don’t want to go back to jobs because of this. but people who have physical impairments that keep them from doing this.”…
(Excerpts from the Fox 17)
District of Columbia | May 24, 2021
Republicans Reject Tax Increases After Meeting With Biden on Infrastructure
District of Columbia | May 24, 2021
Top Republicans told President Joe Biden during an Oval Office meeting on May 12 that they won’t support tax increases in a major infrastructure package.
Biden, a Democrat, has proposed reversing key portions of the 2017 tax bill which had been approved by the GOP and signed by then-President Donald Trump.
“We’re not interested in reopening the 2017 tax bill. We both made that clear to the president. That’s our red line,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told reporters in Washington after the meeting.
The economy was strong in early 2020, before being derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic, because of the tax cuts in the bill, McConnell asserted.
“Raising taxes would be the biggest mistake you could make,” added House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), citing the rise in gas, food, housing, and lumber prices and surging inflation. “That, to us, is a nonstarter.”..
(Excerpts from the Epoch Times)
District of Columbia | May 17, 2021
39M Families to Receive Monthly Child Payments in July
District of Columbia | May 17, 2021
The Treasury Department said Monday that 39 million families are set to receive monthly child payments beginning on July 15.
The payments are part of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, which expanded the child tax credit for one year and made it possible to pre-pay the benefits on a monthly basis. Nearly 88% of children are set to receive the benefits without their parents needing to take any additional action.
Qualified families will receive a payment of up to $300 per month for each child under 6 and up to $250 per month for children between the ages of 6 and 17. The child tax credit was previously capped at $2,000 and only paid out to families with income tax obligations after they filed with the IRS…
(Excerpts from Newsmax)
Tennessee | May 14, 2021
State Rep. Michael Sparks Talks Finishing Up Legislative Session and Passing the Sales Tax Exemption Bill
Tennessee | May 14, 2021
Live from Music Row Thursday morning on The Tennessee Star Report with Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 a.m. – host Leahy welcomed Tennessee State Representative (R) Mike Sparks of Smyrna to the studio to discuss the end of the legislative session and the passing of the bill for gun safety and the Sales Tax Exemption.
Leahy: In studio with us, State Representative Michael Sparks from Smyrna. So the Tennessee General Assembly has just finished just wrapped up adjourned its regular session on Thursday. Are you tired?
Sparks: Yes.
Leahy: The last week seemed to be just non-stop work. What is it like up there as you push towards the end and there are things you want to accomplish? What’s that like?
Sparks: For me, it gets a little frustrating. Tempers start to flare and committees are starting to shut down. You want to get your bills out of committee and you’re trying to lobby for your own bills and get with folks, get with the chairman, and rally if you will, the troops to support it.
I know one of the last days June Assembly. I think it was a 12 hour day for me because my wife was like, hey, what took you so long? And I got home about 9:30 pm. But it does get a little frustrating for folks. Anytime you’re working, you’re in a budget meeting for four or five hours. Those lengthy meetings start to wear on you…
(Excerpts from the Tennessee Star)
Mississippi | May 2, 2021
Hawley Cites ‘Culture War’ in Proposal for Monthly Payments to Families with Children
Mississippi | May 2, 2021
Rising Republican star U.S. Rep. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., is sponsoring a new measure that would give unprecedented tax cuts to parents with children, and now he is saying his bill is on the front line of the nation’s “culture war.”
The plan in question would give a fully refundable tax credit of $12,000 for married parents and $6,000 for single parents who have children under the age of 13.
“Starting a family and raising children should not be a privilege only reserved for the wealthy,” Hawley said. “Millions of working people want to start a family and would like to care for their children at home, but current policies do not respect these preferences. American families should be supported, no matter how they choose to care for their kids.”
Hawley announced the bill earlier this week, appealing to the importance of families and raising children, but later his messaging intensified. On Wednesday, “Josh Hawley for Senate” sent out a fundraising email saying his latest legislation is key to winning the culture war.
The email went out Wednesday afternoon with the subject line, “fighting to win the culture war.”
“American families are on the frontlines of a culture war,” the email reads. “The left is working to undermine the traditional family through a whole host of social issues. We should do the opposite, which is why I’m introducing legislation that helps working parents and is pro-family and pro-work.”…
(Excerpt from The Virginia Star)