Free Republic

...Romney keeps his focus simple: fix the economy. But others are fixated on something else: his faith. SNIP Some call it a cult... Yet Mormons call themselves Christians, which raises eyebrows, especially within evangelical circles. Shawn McCraney is a former Mormon who now hosts a show called, 'Heart of the Matter," where he witnesses to Mormons in Salt Lake City. "...I didn't know the Lord and that led me to an internal angst." "What happened was I came to realize that there was nothing I could do to get myself right before God -- where with Mormonism...it's you have to...

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their...

From The Copenhagen Post National broadcaster DR will mark the end of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting, next week by organising a festive event that includes music and workshops inside Koncerthuset, as well as several radio programs. But not everyone is in a festive mood. Ole Hyltoft, DR’s deputy chairman, calls it a terrifying gamble and contends that Islam has political and warlike beliefs aimed at all non-Muslims. “I keep thinking about the many ignorant and naïve Danes who celebrated the Hitler Youth in the 1930s for the healthy lifestyle, good food and fresh music that the young Germans...

Governor Romney has made an inspired choice. Paul Ryan will make an excellent running mate and, if elected, vice president. What is most gratifying about the decision is, however, what it says about Romney himself. Romney could have decided to run a vague and vacuous campaign based on the idea that the public would default to the out party in a bad economy. By selecting Ryan, he has ensured that the campaign will instead to a significant degree be about a conservative governing agenda. Romney could have rested his argument against Obama on the poor economic results of his time...

This morning Mitt Romney delivered what TEA party conservatives across the nation have wanted: a solid conservative as his running mate. His selection of Republican Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin to help him recapture the America we yearn to see again is superb. The attacks from the Left have started already. The red and pink parrots have started calling this a “risky pick.” Nevertheless, make no mistake Paul Ryan scares the life out of the Left. Immediately after the news broke Obama Chicago thug David Axelrod tweeted “Who's calling the shots? The base sends Mitt his marching orders on VP.”...

A South African company in the spotlight for paying $100,000 in speaking fees to White House adviser David Plouffe is also in business with a Liberian official under U.N. sanctions for his ties to convicted war criminal and former Liberian dictator Charles Taylor. That's among the latest details to emerge on the connections involving MTN Group, a subsidiary of which paid President Obama's former campaign manager for engagements in late 2010, shortly before he joined the White House. The ties to Liberia's bloody Taylor era center on Benoni Urey, who was commissioner of maritime affairs in Liberia during Taylor's reign....

Delegates from Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Europol -- the European Union's criminal intelligence agency -- will gather in London this September as part of a project to cleanse the Internet (or at least the European section of the Internet) from "terrorist websites." And they have European Union money to do it. The CleanIT project hopes to develop a flagging system for "terrorist" content. It wouldn't be mandatory, but Internet providers would be encouraged to take down or block the flagged material. The aim is to create "a non-legislative 'framework' that consists of general principles and...

President Barack Obama recently received a new National Intelligence Estimate report on the Iranian nuclear program, which shares Israel's view that Iran has made surprising, significant progress toward military nuclear capability, Western diplomats and Israeli officials have informed Haaretz. This NIE report on Iran was supposed to have been submitted to Obama a few weeks ago, but it was revised to include new and alarming intelligence information about military components of Iran's nuclear program. Haaretz has learned that the report's conclusions are quite similar to those drawn by Israel's intelligence community. The NIE report contends that Iran has made surprising,...

‘You know you’ve arrived in politics when you have an urban legend about you, and this one is mine,” chuckles Representative Paul Ryan, the Budget Committee chairman, as we discuss his purported obsession with author and philosopher Ayn Rand. Paul Krugman, the New York Times columnist, recently called Ryan “an Ayn Rand devotee” who wants to “slash benefits for the poor.” New York magazine once alleged that Ryan “requires staffers to read Atlas Shrugged,” Rand’s gospel of capitalism. President Obama has blasted the Ryan budget as Republican “social Darwinism.” These Rand-related slams, Ryan says, are inaccurate and part of an...

If this analysis is anything like Hugh's constitutional knowledge, follow this analysis closely. That means Hugh is on to something. On the other hand, if this analysis is anything like Hugh's sports picks, stop reading this post immediately. Hugh realizes that some of the polls out there are basically meaningless, as they are using only registered voters with a big overwhelming sample of Democrats. That just doesn't meet the reality of the political landscape today. So, those polls following that model cannot be anywhere close to accurate. Hugh knows that Governor Romney has his own internal polls that clearly give...

Andrea Mitchell loses her voice while reacting to the Paul Ryan speech: "This is a base election. This is not a pick for suburban moms, this is not a pick for women."

Newspapers reported that "only a few" same-sex couples showed up at Chick-fil-A to "counteract the hundreds ... against same-sex marriage." There are two major reasons for this. The reason there was such a large turnout at the Chick-fil-A "buycott" was not in opposition to same-sex marriage or in support of those who do oppose it, but to protest the dishonest, vicious and unconstitutional outbursts of those who are leading and joining the attack on Chick-fil-A. I can't deny that many do oppose marriage for same-sex couples, but American history is replete with other situations in which defenders of the First...

Mitt Romney announced this morning that Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan will be his running mate. Earlier polling found that 39% of all voters had a favorable opinion of Ryan, while 25% offered a negative review. Thirty-five percent (35%) express no opinion of Ryan. The congressman is relatively unknown to the nation at large. Only a third of voters have a strong opinion in either direction. Wisconsin is a state both sides consider key to the presidential election. Right now, President Obama has a modest three-point lead over Romney in the state, and it remains a Toss-Up in the Rasmussen Reports...

As NewsBusters has been noting all Saturday morning, now that Paul Ryan has been chosen as Mitt Romney's running mate, the goal of the Obama-loving media is to rip him to shreds. Doing her part Saturday was CNN's Candy Crowley who said that this "looks a little bit like some sort of ticket death wish" (video follows with transcript and commentary): CNN's Candy Crowley: Ryan Pick 'Looks a Little Bit Like Some Sort of Ticket Death Wish' CANDY CROWLEY, CNN: We’ve already had this debate. All they have to do at Obama Reelect is open up the files because this...

High-ranking cartel member speaks on Operation Fast and FuriousVincent Zambada-Niebla of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel was arrested for drug trafficking, but claims he should not have been because of an arrangement with the US government. Michael Kelley, Business Insider August 10, 2012 16:55 A high-ranking member of the Sinaloa drug cartel currently in US custody alleges that Operation Fast and Furious was part of an agreement to finance and arm the Sinaloa cartel in exchange for information used to take down rival cartels, according to court documents. **SNIP** From the court document: "[T]he United States government at its highest levels entered...

(Reuters) - Actor Al Freeman Jr., perhaps best known for his portrayal of Nation of Islam leader Elijah Muhammad in Spike Lee's 1992 film "Malcolm X," has died, Howard University said on Friday.

Fellow FReepers Looking to buy an AR style rifle....suggestions for a reasonably priced, reliable choice? looking at .223/5.56 any feedback is appreciated!

The first message to supporters from President Barack Obama‘s campaign following Mitt Romney’s announcement of Paul Ryan as his running mate was tepid at best. Jim Messina, Obama’s campaign manager, framed Ryan as a purveyor of “failed policies“ who would ”slash the investments we need” in the economy. The Obama team attacked the Wisconsin congressman and House Budget Committee chairman as “radical” and “extreme” by quoting the New York Times. The campaign then asked supporters to stand with the president “at another major moment” and solicited donations:

U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan will be on the ballot twice Nov. 6 now that he has been picked by Republican Mitt Romney as his running mate. Ryan will remain on the ballot for re-election to his seat in the House of Representatives, said Susan Jacobson, finance director/campaign manager for his House campaign. Ryan represents the 1st Congressional district that includes Janesville, Kenosha and much of southeastern Wisconsin, including portions of Waukesha and Milwaukee counties. He has been won election to the seat seven times. Ryan (R-Janesville) could run both for vice president and for re-election to Congress thanks to a 1968...

A budget resolution based on President Obama’s 2013 budget failed to get any votes in the Senate on Wednesday. In a 99-0 vote, all of the senators present rejected the president’s blueprint. It’s the second year in a row the Senate has voted down Obama’s budget. Obama's 2012 budget failed 97 to 0 last May after Obama himself last April said he wanted deeper deficit cuts. The House earlier this year unanimously rejected Obama's budget.

BREAKING NEWS: Romney just named Paul Ryan as his Vice Presidential nominee Yeah -- THAT Paul Ryan. The architect of the Republican plan to kill Medicare. But here's the thing: in a poll this week, only 46% of Americans even had an opinion of Ryan (38% had never heard of him). These next hours are critical. We need to contact key voters immediately and make sure they know about the Romney-Ryan plan to put millionaire tax cuts over Medicare for seniors. We might not be able to out-spend Romney and the Koch Brothers but we have to reach every last...

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — The worshipers bowed low, their heads touching the freshly laid carpet, as the new mosque filled with echoes of exultation. “God, thank you for the ability to worship here today,” said Remziya Suleyman, 27. “Thank you, thank you.”

I might find myself investing in popcorn companies beforehand...

The spending plan proposed by Rep. Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin, Mitt Romney’s pick as the Republican vice presidential candidate, has drawn strong opposition from federal employees. Under the proposed House Republican budget, which Ryan sponsored as chairman of the Budget Committee, savings from the federal workforce would total $368 billion over 10 years. The two-year freeze on basic federal pay rates, scheduled to expire at the end of this year, would be extended through 2015 for a total of five years. “The Path to Prosperity,” as the budget plan is named, also calls on federal workers to make an...

I wish I could say I came up with the line, but it's actually from a tweet (here) from Resist Tyranny.

ST. LOUIS - American nuns described as dissenters in a Vatican report that ordered an overhaul of their group said Friday they will talk with church leaders about potential changes but will not compromise on the sisters' mission.Sister Pat Farrell, president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, called the Vatican assessment of the organization a "misrepresentation." But she said the more than 900 women who attended the group's national assembly this week decided they would for now stay open to discussion with three bishops the Vatican appointed to oversee them."The officers will proceed with these discussions as long as...

An 81-year old Marion man, slain in his own home last month, begged for his life, before two suspects killed him and made off with more than $100,000 worth of cash and valuables. ... a cold-blooded killing. 21-year old Lacy Bradley and 33-year old James Griffith of Rockford Ohio are awaiting extradition to face multiple charges in the beating death of 81-year old Duwayne Lindsey... Bradley and Griffith knew Lindsey was an avid coin collector and came to his residence in the early morning hours of July 21st, under the ruse that they wanted him to check out some old...

snip ...On Tuesday, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., released a budget blueprint that tackles the three big health care challenges facing the federal budget -- ObamaCare, Medicare and Medicaid - with a strategy of repeal, vouchers and block grants. Done properly, those steps would simultaneously improve health care and help balance the budget within a decade. As it should, Ryan's budget would repeal ObamaCare. With a national debt roughly three-fourths the size of the entire economy, we simply cannot afford that law's two new entitlement programs or its trillion-dollar price tag. Repeal would also relieve states of the...

Do you wanna know how Paul Ryan has voted during his tenure in the house - here it is.

But Mr. Ryan has shown he’s not shy about firing back at the president, bringing both budget numbers and sharp rhetoric to the fight. “Rather than building bridges, he’s poisoning wells,” the usually mild-mannered Mr. Ryan said. “Exploiting people’s emotions of fear, envy and anxiety is not hope; it’s not change. It’s partisanship. We don’t need partisanship. We don’t need demagoguery. We need solutions. And we don’t need to keep punting to other people to make tough decisions.” Mr. Ryan’s first go-around with Mr. Obama came even before he became Budget Committee chairman. He was one of the Republicans invited...

"Mitt is doing well. He is a more responsible citizen this year."

Thank you Governor Romney, Ann. I am deeply honored and excited to join you as your running mate. Mitt Romney is a leader with the skills, the background and the character that our country needs at a crucial time in its history. Following four years of failed leadership, the hopes of our country, which have inspired the world, are growing dim; and they need someone to revive them. Governor Romney is the man for this moment; and he and I share one commitment: we will restore the dreams and greatness of this country. I want you to meet my family....

Pray For the Salvation of America My fellow Freepers, It is a very serious time in our nation's history and our future looks very uncertain and every day the news is full of stories that cause us to fear as it looks like we are teetering towards the edge of a cliff. It is quite obvious to even the casual observer that our great country is under a tremendous spiritual assault by the forces of darkness and hell that is causing great distress to many across this land and in other free nations. This is largely our own fault as...

Charles Krauthammer on Paul Ryan for VP: “The best analogy I think is the late 1970′s when Reagan became the candidate and people thought, Democrats thought this was a real opportunity for us. Look at all the wild stuff he’s done. He’s a guy far out on the right. He’s an easy target. And it turned out to be different. I think Paul Ryan has that Reagan-like quality.” VIDEO

POLICE CHIEF ALLOWS FALLINGDOWN DRUNK TO GET IN HIS CAR AND DRIVE. STATE ATTORNEY HOPES TO SETTLE THE CASE AGAINST OMAR WITHOUT A TRIAL Several weeks ago, we reported to you that 22-year-old Omar Antonio Garcia Barrera’s planned sleep-over at Police Chief Donie Lee’s home last May 28 did not turn out as may have been planned. Although Chief Lee says that he did not serve Omar any alcohol, Omar was reportedly falling-down drunk and had become “disorderly,” Lee said. After several warnings, Chief Lee said that, about 2:30 am, he personally escorted Omar out the door and to his...

“I sent you to reap what you have not WORKED for. Others have done what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard WORK, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”… John 4:38 Once again we are about to see gas prices rise thanks to the American hating political class who want a more Marxist Progressive agenda enslaving Americans to artificially inflated energy prices. If you look at every problem in America you will find a Democrat policy or series of regulations behind it. We have now had a fire in a refinery in California which...

Friend -- Paul Ryan will be Mitt Romney's running mate. What you need to know right now: This election is about values, and today Romney doubled down on his commitment to take our country back to the failed policies of the past. Congressman Paul Ryan is best known as the author of a budget so radical The New York Times called it "the most extreme budget plan passed by a House of Congress in modern times." With Mitt Romney's support, Ryan would end Medicare as we know it and slash the investments we need to keep our economy growing --...

Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan says President Barack Obama blew it when he effectively rejected the Simpson-Bowles 2010 deficit-reduction proposal. "The worst mistake the president made was not embracing that vehicle right away," Greenspan said at the Bloomberg Washington Summit, The Wall Street Journal reports. The proposal, written by former Republican Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming and former Clinton White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles, would use a combination of spending cuts and tax increases to reduce the growth of the deficit by roughly $4 trillion over 10 years.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney will name Rep. Paul Ryan as his vice presidential nominee Saturday morning in Norfolk, Va. Here are 10 interesting facts about the Wisconsin congressman:10.) Ryan’s father died of a heart attack at 55 when Ryan was 16. Both Ryan’s grandfather and great grandfather died of heart attacks in their late 50s.9.) Ryan worked for Oscar Meyer while in college and even drove the Wienermobile.8.) He was elected to Congress in 1998 at the age of 28.7.) He’s a big fan of Objectivist philosopher Ayn Rand — even saying that he has made Rand’s magnum...

Pelosi Statement on Congressman Paul Ryan August 11, 2012 San Francisco – Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi released the following statement this morning on Governor Romney’s selection of Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate: “There is no question that former Governor Romney now owns the Republican, Ryan budget that puts millionaires ahead of Medicare and the middle class. Congressman Paul Ryan led House Republicans in voting to end the Medicare guarantee, which increases costs on seniors and weakens America's great middle class in order to give tax breaks to millionaires, Big Oil and corporations that ship jobs overseas. “As Democrats,...

California Democrats joined Jerry Brown in passing an illegal fire fee for every habitable structure found on a land owners property. Most Californians were under the belief that fire protection was a basic government service? Well, not if you are a Democrat. The unusual fire charge for rural areas, was pushed through by Gov. Jerry Brown, and styled as a fee and not a tax to avoid a ballot measure requiring a two-thirds vote of approval. Called "The State Responsibility Area Fire Prevention Benefit Fee", it was signed into law last year. The law requires homeowners in designated fire-prone...

U.S. regulators directed five of the country's biggest banks, including Bank of America Corp and Goldman Sachs Group Inc, to develop plans for staving off collapse if they faced serious problems, emphasizing that the banks could not count on government help. The two-year-old program, which has been largely secret until now, is in addition to the "living wills" the banks crafted to help regulators dismantle them if they actually do fail. It shows how hard regulators are working to ensure that banks have plans for worst-case scenarios and can act rationally in times of distress. Officials like Lehman Brothers former...

Before responding to a May 2012 interview request from conservative news organization Media Trackers Ohio, an employee of Columbus, Ohio Mayor Michael Coleman forwarded the request to New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s office and a liberal D.C. consultant, who immediately alerted liberal organization Media Matters for America. The Coleman staffer, R. Lee Roberts, is the Ohio chairman of Mayor Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG), a pro-gun control lobbying group. Coleman, a Democrat, receives a salary from MAIG but works from Coleman’s office and participates in a taxpayer-funded retirement plan. Media Trackers has since used public records to prove Roberts...

JANESVILLE, Wis. (AP) — Even before Wisconsin sent Paul Ryan to Congress, he was meticulously carving a path that seemed to point only upward. As a young Capitol Hill staffer, he impressed Republican lawmakers with his hustle and intellectual curiosity. He blended quickly with an elite crop of conservative thinkers. By his 30s, he was a congressman on his way to becoming a GOP name brand with his push-the-edge budget proposals. Ryan’s climb reached new heights Saturday when Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney announced him as his running mate.

Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is coming out swinging against President Obama’s “record of failure” by attacking his belief in the role of government in the economy. “I’m proud to stand with a man who understands what it takes to foster job creation in our economy, someone who knows from experience, that if you have a small business—you did build that,” Ryan will say, according to excerpts of his speech released by the campaign. Ryan then praised Romney for his career at Bain Capital — mentioning that company’s role in launching Staples, especially — before offering this implicit rebuke of Obama’s...

If there was any doubt that the presidential campaign is starting fresh with today's announcement that Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) will be presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney's running mate, one need only look at the results of a poll taken days ago. According to that CNN/ORC International survey, 27% of Americans have a favorable view of Mr. Ryan, 19% view him unfavorably and a whopping 54% say they don't know enough about Ryan to form an opinion. Even among Republicans polled, 45% fall into that don't know enough to form an opinion category. These numbers say less about Congressman Ryan...

--------------- Class ------------- or -------- Class warfare?

Good investment idea? But too late www.paulryan2020.com seems to have been purchased yesterday.

Mitt Romney announced Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate this morning, giving us a 2012 GOP ticket that could roll back much of the progress we've seen toward full equality. Ryan’s voting record in Congress – and his public remarks – make it clear that he does not support the dignity of LGBT Americans; a matter on which he is out-of-touch with the majority of Americans – even those within the Republican Party. Paul Ryan does not support LGBT families, and has voted against allowing gay and lesbian couples to adopt. He voted against hate crime protections. He...

Last week during an East Asia Summit meeting in Phnom Penh, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tried to stand fast and use diplomacy to resolve claims over territorial waters in the South China Sea. China has insisted that it had “’indisputable sovereignty’ over Islands that are claimed by Vietnam to the Scarborough Shoal near the Philippines. They include Islands near Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. Secretary Clinton urged the nations to collectively negotiate with the Chinese regarding territorial waters. China wanted bilateral talks with each country where they felt they can intimate the nations into surrounding territorial claims without much...