Phil Williams
@PhilNvestigates
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Defending democracy. Confronting hate. Speaking truth to power - and the angry mob. Award-winning @NC5 chief investigative reporter. More in expanded bio.
Joined August 2010
Thank you! What an incredible shout-out from @iamjohnoliver and @LastWeekTonight! If you haven’t seen it, here are excerpts. Find the full episode at (Language warning)
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BREAKING: Controversial Millersville city attorney Bryant Kroll abruptly quits after new commission proposes cutting his fee from $200/hour to $15/hour.
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BREAKING: GOP leader, who voted to expel Tennessee Three, found guilty of sexually harassing interns
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🚨BREAKING 🚨.Six hours after we first confronted Republican Rep. Scotty Campbell, he has now RESIGNED!.
BREAKING: GOP leader, who voted to expel Tennessee Three, found guilty of sexually harassing interns
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So when is Donald Trump going to face a national press conference?.
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This is the @Newseum's Journalists Memorial, listing the 2,291 individuals who have died around the world reporting the news #NotTheEnemy
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LISTENING TIME: As a journalist who cares deeply about facts, I have struggled to understand why people did not view Donald Trump's constant lies to be repugnant. If you voted for him, how do you reconcile that issue with your vote? #HonestQuestion.
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NEW IMAGES: Incredible devastation on Nashville’s 2nd Ave. as a result of the #nashvillebombing
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PARDONED: This disturbing video has always stuck with me. Albuquerque Head of Kingsport TN was sentenced to 90 months in prison for using a stolen riot shield to attack police officers. Thanks to President Trump, he will walk free.
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BREAKING: Voters soundly reject Gabrielle Hanson, other MAGA candidates in historic Franklin, Tennessee election
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This is a photo of an actual cross burning here in Tennessee. Monday on @NC5 at 6 PM, I’ll have the disturbing results of my continuing investigation into the rise of hate in the Volunteer State!
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Oddly, Stephen Miller was overwhelmingly in favor of local federal judges reining in executive authority when the President wasn’t named Trump.
This is tyranny. A small handful of marxist judges trying to run the entire country.
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I have listened three times and he NEVER uses the word “Afghanistan.” Of course, this fact probably will not get as many retweets as the original post.
BREAKING: In newly obtained tape, then-Rep. Tim Walz tells a gold-star family during hearing on PTSD that he was deployed to Afghanistan in 2004 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, and says he and his troops suffering from mental health issues were “shown the horse
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President Trump honors a child with cancer at the same time that, according to St. Jude, his NIH cuts will “likely mean fewer new treatments will be developed for children and, therefore, fewer children will be saved.”
EXCLUSIVE: Tennessee universities, medical centers warn Trump administration cuts will 'devastate' search for cures
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After months of dealing with unhinged conspiracy theorists, I am more convinced than ever that the future of our democracy depends upon the normies getting off their butts and voting every single time - from the tiniest of towns to national elections. 🗳️.
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Another big turnout of anti-Trump protesters today outside Nashville’s Centennial Park.
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BREAKING: Drama in Tennessee House subcommittee as protesters are removed by state troopers. Their violation: quietly holding up signs.
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MUST WATCH: My investigation of the conspiracy cops in Millersville, Tennessee, gets even stranger. Asked about the reason for my investigation of his department, the chief says: "The only thing I can think is: you are a pedophile or you are covering for somebody that is."
VIDEO POSTED: TBI limits Millersville's access to sensitive law enforcement data, chief says in podcast interview
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ICYMI: This is the quickest resignation of a public official in my career. (More details in link below.)
BREAKING: GOP leader, who voted to expel Tennessee Three, found guilty of sexually harassing interns
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I would love for one of these Sunday talk show hosts to say, “Either answer this simple question or we are going to end this interview NOW.” Or just shut down the Sunday political show format. As is, it is completely useless.
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Awkward silence during opening welcome remarks in Tennessee House of Representatives as Dem Rep. @JasonAHodgesTN extends “Welcome to the FBI” - following serving of federal grand jury subpoenas to GOP members.
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Scrolling through Twitter, I have a question: Why is it that some of the same people talking about Herschel Walker being forgiven are upset about Biden pardoning people for simple possession of marijuana?.
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BREAKING: Controversial Franklin mayoral candidate Gabrielle @HansonforMayor now headed to a likely resounding defeat, based on early vote and absentee totals:.Gabrielle Hanson: 1,788.Incumbent Ken Moore: 8,364.
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What does gerrymandering look like?.In U.S. House races, 1,093,808 Tennesseans (65%) voted for the Republican candidate, 581,111 (35%) for the Democrat, according to AP results. But the GOP gets 8 out of 9 (89%) of the congressional seats.
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Has any political party convention ever had so many people from the opposite party? I don’t think so!
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MUST WATCH! Confronting the hate, Phil Williams tells neo-Nazis: 'When I look at you guys, I do not think master race.'
Confronting the hate, Phil Williams tells neo-Nazis: 'When I look at you guys, I do not think master race.'
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EXCLUSIVE: 'Now is the time!' Sheryl Crow, Amy Grant push Tennessee lawmakers, governor for action on gun violence
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Hello, Tennessee Highway Patrol! Have you heard of the Hatch Act???
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BREAKING: FBI agents execute search warrant on Tennessee Congressman Andy Ogles, NewsChannel 5 confirms
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WATCH: To better understand Democratic frustrations surrounding how business is conducted in Tennessee's GOP supermajority House, watch this segment from our award-winning Revealed investigation - long before #TheTennesseeThree made national news. (Please like and share.) 1/2
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Confronting the hate, Phil Williams tells neo-Nazis: 'When I look at you guys, I do not think master race.'
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Hillary Clinton: “I’m sorry that we did not win this election.”.Kevin McCarthy: “Has Hillary Clinton ever said she lost the 2016 election? She never says it to the press.”
McCarthy: They are the danger to try to deny democracy… I mean, has Hillary Clinton ever said she lost the 2016 election?. Kurtz: Yeah, she called Trump and conceded . McCarthy: But she never says it to the press
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Some on the far-right are desperately trying to find ONE case of a migrant eating cats/dogs to "prove" that MIGRANTS (plural) are doing the same - which would be like finding one MAGA person who committed a violent crime to prove all Trump supporters are criminals. 1/2.
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President Trump’s Kennedy Center announcement appears to be blatantly illegal. U.S. Code says general trustees “shall hold office … for a term of 6 years” - nothing about the President having power to remove - and the Chairperson is appointed by the Board. A president cannot
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BREAKING: FBI arrests Nashville zip-tie suspect from U.S. Capitol riot, NewsChannel 5 has learned
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A white supremacist warned me to comply with his demands or else. Now, he's in federal custody
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Just going to put this out there to see who wants to defend this approach to “science.” Ready. set. GO!!!
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CALLER: "This is @Verizon security. We have an order in your name. Did you order 3 iPhone 15s?".ME: "What's my name?".CALLER: "It's in the name of Jason Suddarth.".ME: "This is a pretty good scam you're running.".CALLER: "Did you say 'scam,' sir?".ME: "Yes, you don't even know my.
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BREAKING: Franklin’s Westhaven Conservatives group has withdrawn its endorsements of their neighbors, Gabrielle Hanson for mayor and Jeff Feldman for alderman, following NewsChannel 5’s investigations. 1/
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Gaby has apparently left the building!!! .Multiple sources confirm that, after losing the Franklin mayor’s race, alderman Gabrielle Hanson’s husband dropped off her computer and ID badge at City Hall!.Her term doesn’t end until Nov. 14th.
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ABC pays $15M to Trump for saying exactly what the judge in the E. Jean Carroll case said! Stunning capitulation!
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This scene - “send them back, send them back” - is eerily similar to hate group marches that I’ve covered in recent months! (See below.) 1/2.
Trump attacks (legal) Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, prompting "send them back!" chants from his fans in Pennsylvania
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This did not go as @WhitlockJason anticipated! (I would much rather have this than the situation I experienced a couple of weeks ago where a single dad had to bring his little girl into a much more open men’s room!)
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Check out this photo by my friend John Partipilo! This was NOT an angry African-American protester who set fire to the historic Nashville Courthouse. Does anyone know who this is? (Used by permission of John Partipilo)
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This is Chauncey Bailey, an Oakland journalist, murdered in 2007 as a result of his reporting on corruption in his community #NotTheEnemy
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Sen. Josh @HawleyMO: "Some will say now that I am calling America a Christian Nation. So I am. And some will say that I am advocating Christian Nationalism. And so I do."
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GOP FALLOUT IN TENNESSEE: Rep. Paul Sherrell, who recently suggested bringing back lynching as a form of capital punishment, has been removed from the House Criminal Justice Committee by Speaker @CSexton25. Sexton's office claims Sherrell was "very agreeable to this change." 1/
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BREAKING: Explosion in downtown Nashville, apparently from parked vehicle on 2nd Ave. Fire department personnel being told to pull back two blocks from explosion site, concerned about potential vehicle bombs. Police bomb squad and fire hazmat team on scene.
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Do you know how much I love secret recordings that get dropped into my lap? Especially when they involve the Tennessee legislature? #StayTuned
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If it were indeed a bullet, I presume the Trump campaign would have brought out the attending physicians already. Thoughts?.
FBI Director Wray on Trump's injury from the assassination attempt: . “There’s some question about whether or not it’s a bullet or shrapnel that hit his ear.”.
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Flipping around, it appears @FoxNews is the only network to carry none of the women telling their abortion/reproductive health stories.
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ICYMI: A white supremacist warned me to comply with his demands or else. Now, he's in federal custody
A white supremacist warned me to comply with his demands or else. Now, he's in federal custody
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“Netanyahu was further embarrassed when photos of suitcases full of cash going to Hamas became public. Liberman finally resigned in protest over Netanyahu's Hamas policy which, he said, marked ‘the first time Israel is funding terrorism against itself.’"
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Do Tennessee lawmakers not know that taxpayer-funded school vouchers are already going to Islamic schools TODAY? .If you are going to fund religious schools, you CANNOT limit it to Christian schools!
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More than two hours after the @AP story was posted - and the Trump campaign distanced itself from the video - it is still on Trump’s Truth Social. 1/2
NEW YORK (AP) — A video posted to Donald Trump’s account on his social media network Monday included references to a “unified Reich” among hypothetical news headlines if he wins the election in November. @AP
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MUST WATCH: This call from @HansonforMayor - asking about the pic she posted of "supporters" who say they don't know her - is one of the more unusual phone calls I've ever received. Franklin, Tennessee, this is one of your candidates for mayor. (Details in story below.)
BREAKING: 'Appalled!' Women say #MAGA mayoral candidate ripped off their images to claim them as supporters
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The shooter was scared and, instead of calling police, he believed he and his gun could handle the situation. An innocent woman is dead.
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Oh, my!!! The news gods are smiling on me again!!! #StayTuned.
Do you know how much I love secret recordings that get dropped into my lap? Especially when they involve the Tennessee legislature? #StayTuned
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BREAKING FROM TENNESSEE: "There are no beds. In Middle Tennessee right now it is impossible to find an empty, staffed ICU, ER, or med/surg bed," says chief medical officer for Sumner Regional Medical Center in Gallatin. #COVID19
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Strong reporting! WPXI exclusive photos show cell phone, transmitter found next to Trump shooter’s body
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GET THIS! Ivan Raiklin, who calls himself Trump’s “future secretary of retribution,” posts about the assassination attempt against the GOP nominee. “Now it’s [our] turn.”
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After several tough weeks covering elections in Franklin TN, anonymous Westhaven residents take out a full-page ad in the @wherald, thanking local media who displayed “utmost professionalism, even when they encountered threats to their personal safety.” .Thank you! 🙏
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Privately, some Republicans express concern to me that these events are not only alienating independents, but also GOP women who don’t want their kids getting killed at school.
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What a nice gesture! An incredible card signed by a group of Franklin residents!!! ❤️❤️❤️
BREAKING: Voters soundly reject Gabrielle Hanson, other MAGA candidates in historic Franklin, Tennessee election
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EXCLUSIVE: He doesn't report having checking or savings. So where did Andy Ogles get $320,000 he claimed he loaned his campaign?
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REVEALED: Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles faces ethics complaint, comparison to George Santos
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This Kash Patel interview shared by Musk is absolutely insane! It is NOT FBI “government gangsters” blocking Metro Nashville PD from releasing the shooter’s writings! It is a lawsuit filed by the Covenant families! (And it’s NOT a Catholic school, btw.) Patel has no clue!
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"It's f---ing racist," one active-duty Army general told on the condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation. "For the Army now, it's 'Blacks need not apply' and it breaks my heart.".
The Army and other service branches are abandoning recruiting efforts at a prestigious Black engineering event this week, turning down access to a key pool of highly qualified potential applicants.
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For those who claim Jan. 6 was not an insurrection, listen! They talk about their desire to replace the government “with real governors” and about “civil war.” 1/.
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Had dinners this week with two different GOP sources/friends. The personal agonizing over the future direction of their party is real.
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A Hmong American woman who has lived in the Milwaukee area since she was 8 months old was deported last week to Laos, a country she has never visited, and says she is stranded in a rooming house surrounded by military guards.
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WATCH: I never dreamed that all of this would happen as a result of my investigation of Millersville, Tennessee's #ConspiracyCop. Attempts to smear me or intimidate me only make me more determined to get to the truth. #StayTuned
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Rather than asking “do you acknowledge,” questions like this should be posed with facts: “the conservative Heritage Foundation says this is a tax on Americans,” etc. And when he says economists disagree: “name one!”.
Welker: Do you acknowledge that consumers will ultimately pay more if there are more tariffs. Do you acknowledge that?. Vance: No, I don’t. Economists disagree about the effects of tariffs.
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Sharing this recent voicemail as an example of what is at stake in our current political climate. Hate creates hate. Labeling journalists as the “enemy of the people” emboldens those who are inclined to treat us as less than human. As for me, I will NOT be intimidated!
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Rep. Justin Jones to remain on Nashville ballot after challenge of petition signatures
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REVEALED: Secret recording shows school voucher proponent talking of 'public hangings' of lawmakers
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Canadian neo-Nazi Ryan McCann back in a Nashville court for assaulting a bartender with the flagpole of his swastika flag. His Goyim Defense League buddies have left town and left him behind. 1/
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Because “a lot of Christians in Tennessee” want to impose their particular religious views through the political process, I should not report that “a lot of Christians in Tennessee” want to impose their particular religious views through the political process?.
@NC5PhilWilliams there are a lot of Christians in Tennessee that believe the strongest Way Forward is a secure nation, defined by borders, with Judeo-Christian values. It pains me to see Democrats masquerading as journalists - attempting to influence elections.
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In Tennessee House committee last night, GOP leadership did NOT have the necessary two-thirds vote to end debate on school vouchers. They did it anyway.
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Did not have this on my bingo card! Tennessee House votes 89-0 to commend me for the John Chancellor Award (resolution sponsored by my rep)! Thank you!.Now, I have some questions for you! 😉
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My goal: get to 100K followers by Jan. 1st! (You can check my profile to see how close I am.) Would you please recommend me to your friends?.Thanks in advance!.
Thank you! What an incredible shout-out from @iamjohnoliver and @LastWeekTonight! If you haven’t seen it, here are excerpts. Find the full episode at (Language warning)
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George Santos is gone, but Tennessee Congressman Andy Ogles remains - as do the MANY questions raised by our @NC5 investigations! .Catch the video highlights in this thread! 🧵@AndyOgles @RepOgles
ICYMI: He doesn't report having checking or savings. So where did Andy Ogles get $320,000 he claimed he loaned his campaign?
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Far-right Patriot Front paraded through downtown Nashville today. Unfortunately, such demonstrations are no longer uncommon - and may get worse in the months ahead. (H/t @headspacehouse) 1/2
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REVEALED: Confidential documents describe secret effort to elect lawmakers for school privatization
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MUST WATCH: 'Disturbing' recordings from inside child-predator sting shows police, MAGA operatives ignoring laws. (Watch, listen to secret recording excerpts in link below. Videography by @BryanStaples.)
BREAKING: 'Disturbing' recordings from inside child-predator sting shows police, MAGA operatives ignoring laws
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BREAKING: TBI agents raid Millersville Police Department as criminal probe of troubled agency intensifies
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Thanks to @iamjohnoliver and @LastWeekTonight, a source has changed my contact information in her phone! 😂🤣😂
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BREAKING: Nearly 30,000 firearms stolen from vehicles since Tennessee GOP relaxed gun laws
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There was no missile! There were no voting machines inside the AT&T building! There was no secret plan to finance the redevelopment of 2nd Ave. Want proof that we have serious issues in this country? Read social media comments! #NashvilleBombing #GetALife.
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Walter Cronkite: “We can be certain that the first target of the demagogues is to destroy the effectiveness of the free press that prevents them from doing their dirty deeds in the dark corners that they would prefer.”.
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Sensing a lot of frustration here on X tonight from my Republican friends and GOP accounts that I follow!.
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TELL ME WHERE I’M WRONG!.For years, “education reform” forces (aka school privatizers) demanded “accountability” testing, which (public education advocates argued) required educators to “teach to the test” at the expense of real learning. Those privatization forces then used
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I ***LOVE*** it when subjects of my investigation think they have played me. It was a much-needed day off today, but I cannot wait to tell you next week what I now know!
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🚨BREAKING: 🚨.Two key GOP lawmakers threaten 'political fallout' if TBI continues investigation of Millersville police
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Was it something I said? 🤷♂️ (Please reply with screenshots of anything she has posted in last couple of days - and in future days.)
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FACT CHECK: Canada has already announced this plan BEFORE Trump announced his tariffs.
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I was so touched by the emotions of the Walz family as they teared up with pride over Tim Walz accepting the VP nomination. Others reacted with inhumanity.
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CONTEXT: Often lost in the conversation about U.S. inflation is the role of corporate profits in driving up prices. #themoreyouknow
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