Free Republic

The first rule in crisis communications is this: Protect the brand. When faced with a crisis that could explode in the media, crisis communicators work to minimize damage to the brand. But should Amazon be running the violent abduction of its employee, Alexander “Sasha” Troufanov, like a classic crisis communications scenario instead of exhausting all means and resources to free him? Shortly after the New York Post reported in November that Sasha, an Amazon employee in its Tel Aviv lab, had been kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7, I did a round of pro bono media outreach to offer Sasha’s...

Steven Piluso, 52, has worked for many years as a marketing operations and strategy consultant. He says the initial social contract that created loyalty to jobs was broken by the employers, not employees. To fix the problem, companies should focus on giving Gen Z and millennials benefits that matter to them. After college graduation at age 22, I got my first job at an advertising agency. At the orientation, sitting with mostly entry- or low-level employees, an HR rep went over a lot of confusing information — stuff about common stock, benefits, and a pension plan. I thought to myself,...

We were once a nation of builders—from the toll roads and canals of the early nineteenth century and the railroads of the second half of that busy century, to the construction of power, energy, and water systems that were the envy of the world. Even Stalin hired American engineers and planners to build hydroelectric plants and car and other large-scale factories, some planned and developed by people from Detroit. As Stalin knew, infrastructure is one of the keys to imperial power. Ancient Rome, the imperial dynasties of China, the Mesoamerican empires, the Islamic empire of the Caliphs, the British Empire,...

Prominent business executives have warned that more New York enterprises and their leaders may fall victim to "no rule of law" in the wake of Donald Trump’s guilty verdict. "If they can do this to a business person like Donald Trump, they could do it to anybody in New York and a lot of businesses. A lot of people are concerned that there is no rule of law," billionaire CEO John Catsimatidis said Friday on "Mornings with Maria." ... Cardone recently pulled his business out of the Empire State and cautioned that Trump’s legal troubles — including a previous $355...

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — The African National Congress party lost its parliamentary majority in a historic election result Saturday that puts South Africa on a new political path for the first time since the end of the apartheid system of white minority rule 30 years ago. With more than 99% of votes counted, the once-dominant ANC had received just over 40% in Wednesday’s election, well short of the majority it had held since the famed all-race vote of 1994 that ended apartheid and brought it to power under Nelson Mandela. The final results are still to be formally declared by the...

On Friday’s edition of NBC’s “MTP Now,” NBC News White House Correspondent Mike Memoli stated that “the Biden team has seemed to concede that there’s nothing they’re going to be able to do to fix the inflation problem” and are trying to reframe things to a “stylistic” argument. Memoli said, “Every single demographic, every poll shows the number one issue, cost of living, inflation. And the Biden team has seemed to concede that there’s nothing they’re going to be able to do to fix the inflation problem. So, they’re trying to make this a whose side are you on, who...

After years of trying — in the words of the judge — “to get the damned rascal in this court,” it was a conviction that many welcomed. But those words were not from Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, and the conviction was not that of former President Donald Trump. Rather they were from US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase, at the end of the 18th century, when America embraced political prosecutions to target critics and opponents. The man on trial then was James T. Callender, a muckraking writer critical of President John Adams. For accusing politicians of corruption, Callender...

Dollar Tree has saved 170 shops that were set to be shuttered by rival 99 Cents Only after it went bankrupt.It is a boost for budget shoppers in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Texas - who have been mourning the loss of the popular chain.Dollar Tree announced on Wednesday that it had bought rights to the leases for the stores.At the same time, it has paid for the 99 Cents Only's 'intellectual property,' meaning it has the option to keep some stores open under the brand or even open new ones using it.West Coast-based 99 Cents Only had a cult following...

BREAKING: The Trump campaign has raised a total of $52.8 million in the 24 hours following Trump's conviction in New York. The amount means the Trump campaign is raking in over $2 million an hour. The Trump campaign also reported that over a third of the donations came from new donors. "With more than one-third of these donors being new to the campaign, it is clear that more and more Americans are seeing through the Biden election interference and joining President Trump in the movement to save our nation," the campaign announced. Insane.

Gov. Gavin Newsom announced this week that 5.8 million fentanyl-laced pills have been confiscated throughout California since January by the state’s Counterdrug Task Force in collaboration with local and federal law enforcement agencies. As state officials celebrate consistently increasing confiscations of the synthetic opioid, though, experts say that the seizures will likely not affect the illicit drug market significantly. Over the last three years, the number of fentanyl-laced pills confiscated statewide has increased dramatically. In 2021, only 1.5 million pills were seized statewide. That number jumped almost sevenfold to 10.3 million pills seized in 2022, and then more than doubled...

"Bitcoin is illegal" is all I've heard over countless years. But that is now officially a statement of the past. The approval of bitcoin has sealed it's future as tender that can no longer be looked at as 'dodgy'.The USG is now moving to legalize Bitcoin. Trump came all out for BTC last week. Many political analysis are saying that the election may hinge on which candidate supports Bitcoin. In the US there are over 50m people who own or have invested in the ETFs (BTC) or own other crypto currencies. Last week Elizabeth Warren and her crew were out...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis hopes to raise at least $10 million as part of a multistate fundraising swing for former President Donald Trump, a man he fought in a bitter primary race but with whom he has now found a cautious truce. “I think we believe Biden needs to be beat, and the governor is willing to put the sword down,” a top DeSantis adviser said. “They have had several good conversations as recently as last week.” The fundraising events will begin as soon as July and likely run through September, the DeSantis adviser said, with multiple...

President Biden announced Friday he planned to appoint two key union leaders to an advisory committee on international trade, including United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain. The White House announced Fain and Brian Bryant, who serves as the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) president, would be appointed to the advisory group. The President’s Export Council serves as the main national committee advising the White House on matters of international trade. The group discusses and works to resolve trade-related issues around business, agriculture and labor.

The 2024 Atlantic hurricane season is here and forecasters and meteorologists agree that it could be an extremely active season with the potential for more tropical storms and hurricanes due to weather patterns and warmer ocean waters. "Prepare, not panic" is the message the FOX 35 Storm Team wants you know. What is a hurricane and how does one form? How many tropical storms or hurricanes are predicted this year? What factors are contributing to the increased prediction forecast? What changes have been made to the so-called forecast cone – and what do you need to know? What can you...

Vermont’s Republican governor has allowed the state to become the first to require oil companies to pay for “costs associated with climate change” without his signature, pushing the law through despite his hesitation about the policy. S.259, passed by Gov. Phil Scott (R) on Thursday, will establish a method to assess the responsibility for greenhouse gas-related costs of any entity that was engaged in extracting fossil fuel or refining crude oil between December 31, 2019, and January 1, 2000.

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker is expected to join his team Friday on a visit to the White House to celebrate their Super Bowl championship despite the player’s strident criticism of Joe Biden’s presidency. Biden is set to visit with the team and when asked if Butker would be joining them, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters, “Oh, I’m sure he will, yeah,” CNN reported. All will be watching the event, though, for any uncomfortable moments between Butker and the president after the kicker had very harsh words for Biden’s destruction of the country during his May 11...

A popular carrier is giving women the option of selecting seats next to other women. IndiGo, one of India’s biggest airlines, recently launched the new feature on a pilot basis. The budget airline will allow female travelers to see where other women are sitting when they select their seats online. SNIP “Typically, men are the perpetrators, and women and unaccompanied minors are the victims,” the report stated.

NFL Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher has announced his full-throated support for Donald Trump in the wake of the verdict in the former president’s Manhattan business records trial. After Trump was convicted in the controversial trial, the former Chicago Bears star jumped to his social media to pledge his support for the former president. Urlacher wrote, “Doesn’t matter how many fake charges they find him guilty of he’s still got my vote. Trump 2024.” . He also posted a selfie with Trump showing the two standing on a golf course.

Members of the establishment media appeared enthusiastically overjoyed after a jury convicted former President Donald Trump on Thursday. The media’s excitement about the conviction appears to unmask its bias towards President Joe Biden and his campaign for reelection against Trump, who leads in the polls. “When there is a verdict, there is a DC bar special for that,” Washingtonian magazine posted on Instagram. “Trump guilty bar deals have begun,” the publican said, touting the bars celebrating the conviction. Washington Post’s columnist Ruth Marcus “resoundingly” approved of the conviction based on “serious consideration of the evidence.

DEERFIELD, Ill. - Walgreens is lowering prices on hundreds of products this summer, joining other retailers like Target, Walmart, and Amazon who have announced similar promotions in an effort to lure in more cost-conscious shoppers. The company on Wednesday announced plans to cut prices "on more than 1,300 national and store-brand products across health and wellness, personal care and seasonal categories." In an attempt to boost its loyalty program, Walgreens said it will also bring back its "myW Days" in mid-July – a deal offering exclusive promotions for myWalgreens members. Global Chief Financial Officer Manmohan Mahajan told analysts during a...