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Abe Hamadeh holds a commanding, 23-point lead in the Republican primary race for the election for the House seat being vacated by Representative Debbie Lesko (R-AZ-08) according to an internal poll published on Wednesday. The pollsters suggest Hamadeh's early endorsements from former President Donald Trump and U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake may prove instrumental in securing the support of Arizona Republicans. The National Public Affairs poll, published by German-owned Politico, found Hamadeh, who last ran to become Arizona Attorney General, has the support of 37 percent of Republicans in the district. Former Senate candidate Blake Masters was the only other candidate to reach double digits, polling in second with 14 percent.

The budget Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) proposed on Wednesday includes nearly $95 million in funding for the Norfolk Coastal Storm Risk Management Project, also known as the Norfolk Sea Wall, but tied $21 million of the funding to the completion of a long-delayed casino. Youngkin's budget includes $73.8 million for the project, a series of improvements that includes levees, storm surge barriers, pump stations, and other improvements to manage the flow of water during storms. However, the budget calls for an additional $21 million in funding that is "contingent upon the City applying revenues generated by a casino gaming establishment."

The Memphis City Council voted on Tuesday to pass a resolution to formally transfer the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium to the University of Memphis, but the vote was only held after Memphis City Councilor JB Smiley withdrew a second resolution that would have established city oversight over the stadium under the university's ownership. Additionally, Memphis will direct $120 million of funds granted by the Tennessee General Assembly to the university to improve the stadium's facilities. The Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium hosts the University of Memphis Tigers, Southern Heritage Classic, and AutoZone Liberty Bowl. 

A 206-page audit of public and private prisons in Tennessee was released last week, revealing both state and private facilities in the state remain understaffed and face high employee attrition rates while struggling to offer sufficient beds and services for inmates. The audit, conducted by the Tennessee Comptroller's Office, found that the Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC) "has taken action to address critical staffing shortages," but warned both TDOC and CoreCivic, which manages private prisons in Tennessee, "are facing an ongoing and deeply rooted challenge of attrition within their ranks."

The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) is investigating after reports of shots fired at the LEAD Brick Church Middle School during a basketball game on Friday night. Police were called to the middle school due to a fight that began inside, where students were competing in a basketball game, before the participants eventually left the building and continued the altercation outside, according to WKRN. Quoting law enforcement present at the scene, the outlet reported "one person shot at the victim," who was not struck by the bullet.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis asserted in a Tuesday interview that Georgia state senators investigating the conditions at the Fulton County Jail should instead investigate the state prison system, though she said she "is not responsible" for the jail. Willis made the remarks to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in response to an investigation launched in the Georgia Senate earlier this year over the conditions at the Fulton County Jail, where 10 inmates have died in 2023. One of the defendants in Willis' high-profile Young Slime Life (YSL) racketeering case was stabbed in the jail this week, delaying the ongoing trial until 2024.

The Roswell City Council issued a temporary moratorium on Monday to prohibit the city from granting new licenses for massage parlors in the Fulton County suburb located north of Atlanta. The moratorium follows a number of September human trafficking arrests and law enforcement actions at six massage parlors. The city approved a resolution "instituting a temporary moratorium on new massage establishment licenses and occupational tax certificates" for 90 days "or until the City has properly amended its ordinances regarding massage establishments."

State Senator Brent Taylor (R-Memphis) issued a formal request on Tuesday to obtain agreements between Shelby County District Attorney Steve Mulroy's Office and three "restorative justice organizations" with the Tennessee District Attorneys Conference (TDAC). Taylor highlighted Mulroy's agreements with three groups seeking to eliminate bail or decrease the number of his office's prosecutions. Taylor charged that "Memphians have a right to know if the agreements between the DA's office and these outside groups are inconsistent with state laws and policies" in a press release and stressed that Mulroy's "job is to further his prosecutorial duties, not embark on a restorative justice campaign."

The Covenant School delayed the return of students and faculty to its Burton Hills campus until April 15 in a letter sent to parents that was published by Nashville media on Monday. Though not referenced in the letter, the delay follows the November publication of three leaked pages from the manifesto written by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, which were cited in an ongoing lawsuit seeking to compel the release of Hale's full manifesto. In the letter Covenant School officials sent to parents, reported by NewsChannel 5, officials cited concerns over safety and security, learning disruption, and teacher and student readiness. They also cited a desire to reopen the campus after the March 27 anniversary of the Covenant School shooting, during which Hale, a biological female who identified as a transgender male, fatally shot three 9-year-old students and three faculty.

Former President Donald Trump has expanded his lead over President Joe Biden in Georgia, according to a new CNN-SRSS poll, which suggests the current president is struggling with voters in key demographics. The poll showed Trump winning with 49 percent of the vote, while just 44 percent of voters said they would vote for Biden. The polling was conducted between November 30 and December 7, and pollsters reported a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percent.

The Tennessee Student Solidarity Network (TSSN) urged activists to "disrupt" a number of Nashville businesses on Saturday over their purported pro-Israel stance as part of the controversial Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement. Community organizing group Nour Nashville distributed a flyer on social media revealing a "BDS Direct Action" event scheduled for December 9. The group explained the post is a "call for action to disrupt businesses in support of genocide," and urged its followers to message the TSSN "for details." Neither Nour Nashville nor TSSN posted updates about their planned disruptions by press time.

Nick Leonardo, who is a legal analyst for NewsChannel 5, is the subject of an order of protection filed with Davidson County General Sessions Court, a court official confirmed to The Tennessee Star on Friday. The chief clerk for the General Sessions Court told The Star that the release of the order of protection filed against Leonardo was pending "clearance from Metro Legal," as there is "a juvenile involved in this case," which he stated meant the clerk's office had "to make sure that this is not going to be placed under seal."

The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) reached an agreement with the Arizona Building and Construction Trades Council (AZBTC) on Wednesday, resolving a labor dispute that began when TSMC brought Taiwanese workers to complete the facility after claiming Arizona lacked the necessary skilled workforce. An agreement struck between the parties after months of negotiations will see the number of Taiwanese professionals involved in building the TSMC semiconductor facility in Phoenix severely limited, with the union acceding that "circumstances may require" Taiwanese officials with "specialized experience," according to a Bloomberg report citing a joint statement.

If funding for a new jail in Fulton County is approved next year, the facility could open in 2029, but will not be finished until 2031, according to a presentation received by Fulton County commissioners on Wednesday. The county considers a new jail as the Georgia State Senate investigates the conditions at the troubled Fulton County Jail. The proposed facility will cost nearly $1.76 billion, and will boast enough room to provide accommodations and services for 4,416 inmates, according to the presentation delivered by consultants from architecture firms TreanorHL and STV.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) released a new Human Trafficking Statistical Report last week, revealing a sharp increase in human trafficking of minors in Tennessee in a five-year period. The report, which was the first of its kind released in more than a decade, revealed there were 518 minor sex trafficking reports by November 5, and the agency notes that reports of minor sex trafficking "dramatically increased from 66 in 2016 to over 600 by 2021," which is an increase of 809 percent. Similar numbers were reported in 2022 and 2023.