Washington Examiner – by Carly Roman

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton pressed charges against the city of Austin and its mayor, Steve Adler, over the city’s strict lockdown orders.

“My team and I are preparing decisive action against @austintexasgov and @TravisCountyTX,” the official Twitter account of the Texas attorney general’s office wrote. “They issued their illegal shutdown orders late last night, right before a holiday in a shameless attempt to game the system and run the clock. We won’t let them.”  Continue reading “Texas attorney general sues city of Austin and mayor over lockdown orders”

Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden

After an Israeli man reportedly died just 2 hours after receiving his first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, authorities in the Swiss Canton of Lucerne said on Wednesday that one of the first people in the country to receive the vaccine has died, though whether his death had anything to do with the inoculation hasn’t yet been determined.

The canton has yet to release any additional details about the exact amount of time that passed between the inoculation and the man’s death. Continue reading “Swiss Patient Dies Shortly After Receiving Pfizer COVID Vaccine”

The Hill – by Jordain Carney

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday blocked an attempt by Democrats to set up a stand-alone vote on increasing the amount of recently passed stimulus checks from $600 to $2,000.

Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) both tried to get consent for the Senate to bring up legislation that passed the House in a 273-134 vote on Monday. Continue reading “McConnell blocks vote on $2K checks, signals new package”

Fox News

An Oregon salon owner who opened her business in defiance of the state’s lockdown orders accused Gov. Kate Brown of “retaliating” against her family in a $100,000 lawsuit, which details the damages she sustained due to extended closures and exorbitant fines issued against her.

Glamour Salon owner Lindsey Graham reopened her salon in May and received a fine of $14,000 from the state. Graham claimed that Brown began to personally “terrorize” her family, and threatened to place her children under the care of Child Protective Services to “intimidate” her into closing her salon doors. Continue reading “Salon owner accuses Oregon governor of retaliating for resisting lockdown orders: ‘She terrorized my family’”

Heavy

A video has emerged that appears to capture a warning message that emanated from the RV that blew up in a mysterious downtown Nashville bombing. A witness told local television that the RV also broadcast a countdown.

Early on Christmas morning, officers received a mysterious shots fired call. “They encountered an RV that had a recording that said a potential bomb would detonate within 15 minutes,” police said in a noon news conference on December 25. “Officers decided to evacuate the building nearby.” A short time later, the bomb went off, causing what authorities described as a “massive crime scene.” Three people suffered minor injuries. Authorities said there were “announcements coming from the RV.” Continue reading “Warning Message Captured on Video Before the Nashville Bombing”

Fox News

An explosion that shook downtown Nashville early Friday appears to have been “an intentional act,” police said, as officers and firefighters investigated the scene with assistance from federal personnel.

The Metro Nashville Police Department said the blast occurred at approximately 6:30 a.m. local time and was connected to a vehicle in the neighborhood.  Continue reading “Explosion that rocked Nashville on Christmas morning appears to be ‘intentional act,’ police say”

KOIN

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The town of Sandy’s mayor announced his intentions to not only defy state-mandated COVID-19 restrictions, but is backing a coalition which encourages businesses to do the same.

Mayor Stan Pulliam wrote Oregon Governor Kate Brown an open letter Thursday calling the rules “arbitrary” and said the restrictions have bankrupted family businesses and sent “our neighbors to spiral into depression and anxiety.” Continue reading “Sandy, Oregon Mayor encourages coalition of businesses to defy COVID rules”

Yahoo News

A train carrying crude oil derailed and caught fire on Tuesday in Washington state near the Canadian border, prompting a major emergency response and temporarily forcing the closure of Interstate 5 in both directions.

Authorities lifted an evacuation order Tuesday evening for residents of the small town of Custer, about 100 miles north of Seattle. Continue reading “BNSF train carrying crude oil derails, catches fire in Washington state near Canadian border”

Zero Hedge – by Tyler Durden

In a move that was generally expected, on Wednesday afternoon Trump vetoed the $740.5 billion annual defense policy bill – not the covid stimulus bill which he also threatened to block last night – following through on his threat despite the legislation passing Congress with a veto-proof majority.

“I am returning, without my approval, H.R. 6395, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021,” Trump said in a statement to the House of Representatives, saying the NDAA “fails to include critical national security measures, includes provisions that fail to respect our veterans and our military’s history, and contradicts efforts by my Administration to put America first in our national security and foreign policy actions. It is a “gift” to China and Russia.”  Continue reading “Trump Vetoes Defense Authorization Bill, Calling It A “Gift” To China And Russia”

Washington Examiner – by Mike Brest

The city of Detroit is suing Black Lives Matter protesters after a group of organizers sued the local government.

Detroit’s suit alleges that demonstrators who participated in the racial justice protests this summer were a part of a “civil conspiracy” in which they attempted “to disturb the peace, engage in disorderly conduct, incite riots, destroy public property,” and resist police orders, among other “illegal acts.” The suit was filed in September, about a month after activists filed their own suit, alleging Detroit police officers “repeatedly responded with violence,” according to the Intercept. Continue reading “Detroit is countersuing Black Lives Matter protesters for ‘civil conspiracy’”

Gateway Pundit – by Brock Simmons

In a move that would make the Chinese Communist Party gush with envy, the Oregon state legislature took the bold move of holding secret floor sessions on Monday to pass a few bills involving the Covid shutdown. Patriots were having none of that.

Though the capitol was closed to the public and main entrance fenced off, a large group of patriots descended on the building to try and make their way in to participate in the legislative process. They were met by riot squads from the Oregon State Police and Salem Police Department. These officers essentially did the bidding of the corrupt politicians and worked to keep the public out. The riot cops deployed pepper spray and shot several people with rubber pellets, many of whom were seniors and petite women. Continue reading “Patriots Storm Oregon Capitol As Legislature Meets In Secret, Public Excluded, Police Protect Corrupt Politicians”

Fox News

Startling footage has emerged of a truck carrying hundreds of propane tanks bursting into flames following a crash early Tuesday morning in New York City.

Investigators told the New York Post that the truck likely overturned on the Long Island Expressway around midnight after passing over black ice.   Continue reading “Massive inferno in New York City after truck carrying propane tanks bursts into flames”

Washington Examiner – by Tim Gruver

Oregon lawmakers saw protests inside and outside of the state Capitol building as they convened on Monday to vote on pandemic relief amid the waning days of 2020.

Oregon Sen. Dallas Heard, R-Roseburg, held his own protest on the floor of the Senate as the day began, removing his mask before his fellow lawmakers in defiance of health restrictions requiring facial coverings in the building.  Continue reading “Protests rock Oregon Capitol as lawmakers convene hectic special session”

MSN

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The manhunt continues today for Koby Francis, who Allegheny County Police say is a “danger to the community” after shooting a McKeesport police officer on Sunday.

According to court paperwork, Francis, 22, is accused of shooting Officer Geriasimos Athans, who is 32-years-old and is a four-year veteran of the McKeesport Police Department. Continue reading “Manhunt Intensifies For Koby Francis After Shooting Of McKeesport Officer Geriasimos Athans”

CBS DFW

Just because you’re off the clock over the holidays, doesn’t mean your boss can’t ask where you’re off to. Employees may face questions about their travel plans, and labor law experts say, for the most part, companies have a lot of leeway about what they can ask about and enforce

Making travel to virus hotspots off limits, requiring quarantine upon return and recommending a testing protocol could all be allowable according to Dallas attorney Rogge Dunn. Continue reading “Workers Expected To Face Questions About Holiday Travel Plans From Employers”

AP

CONCORD, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina police officer and a person with a weapon were killed in an exchange of gunfire that wounded a second officer, police said.

The wounded officer was taken to a hospital for non-life threatening injuries following the shooting in Concord late Wednesday evening, the city’s police department said in multiple posts on their Twitter page. The city’s about 23 miles (37 kilometers) northeast of Charlotte.

Continue reading “North Carolina officer, armed person both killed in gunfire”

Daily Caller – by Jake Dima

A New Jersey gym owner who repeatedly defied coronavirus lockdowns and was fined roughly $1.2 million told the Daily Caller News Foundation that he doesn’t plan to pay a cent.

Ian Smith, co-owner of Atilis Gym, has incurred roughly 60 citations and is charged nearly $15,500 per day that he remains open in defiance of Democratic New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy’s COVID-19 closures, he told Fox News. Smith alongside Frank Trumbetti, another owner of the fitness facility, were arrested in late July after the pair refused to close their business following a weeks-long fight with state, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Continue reading “New Jersey Gym Owner Fined $1.2 Million for Defying COVID-19 Lockdowns Vows Not to Pay”