Free Republic

Two members of the Senate are pressing for significant changes to how presidents consult with Congress on sending the military into war. Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Tim Kaine, D-Va., unveiled legislation on Thursday that would repeal the 1973 War Powers Resolution, often ignored by presidents of both parties, and replace it with a new law that requires greater consultation and a congressional vote within 30 days on any significant armed conflict. …

Senator Ted Cruz, the boat-rocking limited government constitutional conservative Senator from Texas, provided another one of his patented cross examinations of a smoke-blowing government official at a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. Cruz, the son of legal immigrants from Cuba, asked Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano about border security measures – the so-called “triggers” – contained in the “Gang of Eight's” immigration bill. Specifically, Senator Cruz asked, “If there are no objective metrics, if it is simply the subjective assessment of a host of factors, how can we have any confidence that the border will be secured and that any...

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Controversial Arizona lawman Joe Arpaio and his top lieutenants will face a civil contempt-of-court hearing in April for repeatedly ignoring judicial orders arising from a 2007 racial-profiling case, a federal judge ruled on Thursday. U.S. District Court Judge Murray Snow ordered the evidentiary hearing to be conducted after determining there was sufficient evidence to move ahead with the proceeding that could result in penalties against Arpaio, four other individuals, and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.

House Speaker John Boehner’s on-staff amnesty advocate Becky Tallent is in talks with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush’s potential presidential campaign for a job, meaning if she takes it she’d leave Boehner’s office. Tallent is former chief of staff to Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)—having personally crafted the amnesty bill McCain and the late Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) introduced in the twilight years of the George W. Bush administration—and then also worked on immigration policy for the Bipartisan Policy Center. “Jeb’s team is looking to hire Rebecca for policy,” a former George W. Bush White House aide told Breitbart News. “The...

The Obama administration has ordered federal agents responsible for protecting one of the nation’s busiest and most crime-infested regions near Mexico to stop apprehending drunk drivers, according to an internal government memo that also concedes an officer that elects to detain them is “acting within the course and scope of his employment.” Obtained by Judicial Watch this week, the notice is titled “Enforcement Options With Alcohol-Impaired Drivers” and directs the 4,000-plus U.S. Border Patrol agents in the Tucson, Arizona sector to “release” individuals under the influence and “allow them to go on their way.” The document acknowledges that this feels...

State schools Superintendent Diane Douglas lashed out at Gov. Doug Ducey after he overturned her attempted firing of two state Board of Education employees, accusing him of infringing on her statutory and constitutional duties and of surrounding himself with a cabal of Common Core supporters.Douglas asserted that she has the right to hire or fire Board of Education employees. She noted that a law says the Board of Education can hire staff “on the recommendation” of the superintendent of public instruction. “Governor Ducey apparently views himself as both governor and superintendent of Schools,” Douglas said in a press statement.On Wednesday,...

PHOENIX — Declaring state law to be above all others, a Senate panel voted Tuesday to both block federal gun laws they believe violate the Second Amendment and punish the city of Tucson for enacting its own restrictions. They also agreed to bar state and local governments from helping any federal agency that collects metadata like phone and email records without a warrant. Any official who cooperated would be forever barred from holding public office. And if that isn’t enough, the same committee declared that county sheriffs are supreme, meaning they can arrest federal officials — including police — who...

Senate Democrats’ filibuster of a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security that would block deportation amnesty is not about the immigration issue but about respecting President Obama, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Thursday. “This is not a question of protecting illegal people in our country, it’s a question of respecting the authority of the president of the United States,” Mrs. Pelosi, California Democrat, told reporters at her weekly press conference at the Capitol. Current funding for the Department of Homeland Security runs out Feb. 27, but Senate Democrats are blocking the spending bill that includes a prohibition...

PHOENIX — Gov. Doug Ducey urged the "faith-based community" and abortion foes to step up to help the state deal with the thousands of children born who now in state care. "I am proudly pro-life" the governor told a rally of members of the anti-abortion Center for Arizona Policy. "And I look forward to working with you on those issues." But Ducey said there are things that need to happen. "We have 16,900 children that are now outside of the womb and are wards of the state," he continued. "And I'm asking for your help as an organization, the faith-based...

‘ISIS Is Here’: Islamic State Graffiti in AmericaPosted By Dawn Perlmutter On February 10, 2015 @ 12:45 am In Daily Mailer,FrontPage | 6 Comments On February 4, 2015 the head of the FBI’s counterterrorism division, Michael Steinbach said that the FBI has seen children as young as 15 recruited by the Islamic State aka ISIS, ISIL. Two days later FBI Director James Comey said there are open cases looking into individuals who may be connected to ISIS in every state in the Union except Alaska. Evidence of the Islamic State’s successful recruiting efforts in America is literally written on...

Washington — John McCain might want to watch his back. The Republican senator from Arizona says he’s leaning toward running for reelection next year. And if he does, the Club for Growth is on the case. The club is famous for backing successful conservative primary challengers to more-moderate Republicans, such as Sen. Richard Lugar (R) of Indiana in 2012. Two conservative House Republicans are eyeing a possible challenge to Senator McCain, and the club’s new president sounds interested. “We will watch that carefully,” David McIntosh, the new president of the Club for Growth, told reporters Tuesday at a breakfast hosted...

And now for a lighter moment from last night’s debate, or at least the weirdest moment. Jim Hoft calls this Ron Paul’s Checkpoint Charlie moment, but it’s really more like an apex of Paul’s paranoid band of libertarianism. In this exchange, Paul opposes building a border fence because he doesn’t believe it represents American values, which is a fair enough argument that one usually hears from Democrats. He then tips over into hilarity when he suggests that the US government might use it to stop Americans from fleeing to, er, Mexico:CLICK ABOVE LINK FOR THE VIDEO I immediately noted on...

Rep. Ron Paul has a problem with the idea of a U.S. border fence.“The people that want big fences and guns, sure, we could secure the border,” the congressman noted. “A barbed wire fence with machine guns, that would do the trick. I don’t believe that is what America is all about.” “Every time you think about this toughness on the border and ID cards and REAL IDs, think it’s a penalty against the American people too. I think this fence business is designed and may well be used against us and keep us in. In economic turmoil, the people...

(CNSNews.com) -- Speaking before the House Judiciary Committee on the issue of illegal immigration, Sheriff Paul Babeu, from Pinal County, Ariz., said up to 30 percent of the roughly 120,000 illegal aliens apprehended every year at the southwest U.S. border around his county have some kind of criminal record in the United States, adding that “the border is not more secure than ever” as President Barack Obama has stated. Pinal County, Arizona Sheriff Paul Babeu. (CNSNews.com/Penny Starr) He also said the situation is so lawless in some areas it is like a war-zone on American soil, where “local law enforcement...

Apple will build a $2 billion global command center in Mesa, Arizona, the company announced Monday. The new facility is expected to employ 150 full-time Apple employees and will hire 300 to 500 construction and trade jobs, according to a news release from Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey. The tech giant said it would be one of the largest investments it has ever made. Apple has pledged to completely power the facility with renewable energy, building out solar projects in the process. "This multibillion-dollar project is one of the largest investments we've ever made, and when completed it will add over...

Eli Jacks is too young to be vaccinated; his sister has leukemia Measles cases that have spread to Arizona have put the children at risk (CNN)Anna Jacks checks her baby's forehead over and over again. Is he hot? Does he have a rash? Is his nose still runny? Her son has been sick before, but this time it's different: Last week Eli was at a Phoenix Children's Hospital clinic with a woman who had the measles, which spreads easily from person to person. Now he's showing signs of the virus, such as runny nose and cough and fatigue. At 10...

How would Sarah Palin do if she decides to run for president? According to her former top-of-the-ticket running mate, quite well. "She's very interesting. And I'm sure she'd do great," Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) told The Washington Post Wednesday in a brief interview. After the 2008 presidential election, McCain has consistently praised Palin, despite her clash with his campaign team. Palin has also defended McCain. The former Alaska governor campaigned for the senator in his 2010 reelection bid....

- 4:42 PM (CNSNews.com) - Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said Thursday that contrary to what attorney general nominee Loretta Lynch said in her confirmation hearing on Wednesday that illegal aliens do not have a right to work in the United States and that by printing work authorizations for them the Obama administration is effectively “counterfeiting immigration papers.” CNSNews asked asked Cruz: Do you believe illegal aliens should have a right to work in the United States as Loretta Lynch told Senator Sessions? Cruz responded: Federal law is unequivocal. Those who are present in this country illegally are barred from working....

Health officials in Arizona, host state of Sunday's Super Bowl, have asked people who may have been exposed to measles to isolate themselves ... Seven cases have been confirmed and 1,000 people across three counties may have been exposed .. Two of the seven confirmed cases are in Maricopa County, which is hosting the NFL championship game, the county's health department confirmed Tuesday. Because the highly contagious virus can linger in the air for two hours, health officials have asked those who may have been exposed to avoid doctors' offices, emergency rooms or urgent-care centers

SIERRA VISTA — A recent study by a New York-based personal finance research firm has found that Sierra Vista residents pay the lowest homeowners insurance premiums in the state. With an average annual premium of $990, Sierra Vistans pay a full 23 percent less than the state average of $1,275 for a $200,000 house, according to the study by ValuePenguin.