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Author: Mary Chastain

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Mary Chastain

Mary is the resident libertarian. She covers stories in every vertical, but her favorite thing to do is take on the media. She saw its bias against the right when she was a socialist.

Mary loves the Chicago Cubs, Chicago Blackhawks, tennis, cats, Oxford comma, Diet Coke, and needlework.

Stephen Gutowski at The Washington Free Beacon reported that since siding with those who support gun control, business has gone down at Dick's Sporting Goods and the company may have to close Field & Stream:
Edward Stack, chairman and CEO of Dick's, said during the event that the sporting goods chain's recent 3.9 percent drop in same-store sales was the result of a mix of factors beyond their control as well as some he called "self-imposed." Specifically, he said, "the decisions we made on firearms" negatively affected their bottom line but the drop in sales was something they expected. They did not, however, regret their decision to change a number of their gun-sales policies and back new gun-control legislation.

Outgoing Broward County Supervisor of Elections has vowed to fight in court after Gov. Rick Scott suspended her "due to misfeasance, incompetence and neglect of duty." A report from The Tampa Bay Times may not help Snipes since a Broward County self-evaluation shows during the election, the county had problem after problem like mechanical errors, staffing shortages, and procedural violations.

Wisconsin Republicans passed legislation early Wednesday morning that will limit the powers of the incoming Democrat Governor Tony Evers and Attorney General. From The New York Times:
The package of bills, which now awaits Mr. Walker’s signature, would limit early voting and, for the coming months, give lawmakers, not the governor, the majority of appointments on an economic development board. They also prevent Mr. Evers from banning guns in the Wisconsin Capitol without permission from legislators.

The government needs to come up with spending bills by Friday or the government will shut down. Border wall funding has halted the talks as disagreements between the Democrats and President Donald Trump continue. Trump wants $5 billion, but the Democrats will not budge from their demand of only $1.6 billion.

Now that midterms have ended our eyes have strayed to the 2020 presidential election. The Democrats have shown eagerness to do all they can to unseat President Donald Trump. That eagerness means anyone with a D after their name will say anything to get their name out and most of us respond, "Who are you?" For example: Former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick announced he will not run for president in 2020.

CNN fired contributor Marc Lamont Hill after he pushed people to boycott Israel in a speech at the United Nations meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. From Mediaite:
“Marc Lamont Hill is no longer under contract with CNN,” a CNN spokesperson told Mediaite. Hill urged countries to boycott Israel in a speech on Wednesday, calling for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea.” His comments sparked an immediate backlash, with many noting “from the river to the sea” is a phrase used by Hamas and other anti-Israel terror groups. The phrase implies the replacement of Israel by a Palestine stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea — though Hill disputes this characterization of his comments.

President Donald Trump abruptly canceled his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin over the increased tensions in Ukraine after Russia attacked and seized Ukrainian vessels in the Black Sea. From Fox News:
"Based on the fact that the ships and sailors have not been returned to Ukraine from Russia, I have decided it would be best for all parties concerned to cancel my previously scheduled meeting in Argentina with President Vladimir Putin,” he tweeted Thursday.

Broward County Elections Supervisor Brenda Snipes submitted her resignation a few weeks ago after she faced criticism over how the county handled the vote counting on November 6. This latest election is not the only controversy she had during her tenure. It looks like she won't suffer much without her job because reports have come out that Snipes will receive over $130,000 in pensions. From Fox News:
Snipes, 75, already receives a pension of more than $58,000 from her time as an educator and is poised to collect another $71,000 for 15 years as an elected official, the Sun-Sentinel reported.

Christine Blasey Ford, the woman who accused now Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct over 30 years ago, emerged and released a statement to end the fundraising someone set up for her a few months ago. The GoFundMe account raised $647,610 in the past two months with the last donation coming in at $50 five days ago. Ford wrote on the page:
The funds you have sent through GoFundMe have been a godsend. Your donations have allowed us to take reasonable steps to protect ourselves against frightening threats, including physical protection and security for me and my family, and to enhance the security for our home. We used your generous contributions to pay for a security service, which began on September 19 and has recently begun to taper off; a home security system; housing and security costs incurred in Washington DC, and local housing for part of the time we have been displaced. Part of the time we have been able to stay with our security team in a residence generously loaned to us.

Special Counsel Robert Mueller claims that Paul Manafort, the former chairman for then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, lied to the FBI and investigators "on a variety of subject matters," which means he broke his plea agreement. NBC News continued:
Manafort, 69, was convicted of eight counts of tax evasion and bank fraud in August. In September, he agreed to cooperate with Mueller's investigation when he pleaded guilty to two new counts and admitted his guilt to 10 counts outstanding from the earlier trial in Virginia.

Mississippi citizens hit the polls today to vote in the special election for the senate seat after Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, who took over in April after Thad Cochran retired, and Democrat Mike Espy tied on Election Day. President Donald Trump went to Mississippi on Monday night in one final attempt to keep the seat red after controversies swamped Hyde-Smith for the past few weeks. However, recent polls showed Hyde-Smith with a 10 point lead.