Free Republic

A key Senate committee is vowing to press forward with its investigation targeting former Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter, despite logistical challenges posed by the global coronavirus pandemic. The probe, which Democrats vigorously oppose, has fueled tension among the Senate’s ranks, even breaking out into a rare and previously unreported verbal altercation between senators during a classified briefing. **SNIP** Democrats have said the investigation targeting Hunter Biden threatens the integrity of the 2020 election and undermines U.S. national security, saying it could aid Russian intelligence. The briefing also featured several back-and-forth interactions between senators, which is highly unusual for...

As the Trump administration sent warplanes and an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf, a small group of former Obama administration officials reached out to their contacts in the Iranian government, including Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. Their message to Iran: Don’t take Trump’s bait. Stay calm. Conversations between former Obama officials and Iranian government officials have been ongoing since November 2016. Zarif, who visits the U.S. every year for the U.N. General Assembly in New York, usually meets with lawmakers, think tanks, journalists, and former officials when he is in town. But the recent round of conversations, which took...

Erik Prince, the founder of private security company Blackwater, has found himself embroiled in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of potential coordination between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin. During the campaign, Prince reportedly met at Trump Tower with Donald Trump Jr., operative George Nader, and social media specialist Joel Zamel to discuss a potential pro-Trump social media influence operation. He also met with Russian sovereign wealth fund manager Kirill Dmitriev during the transition period—a meeting reportedly planned to set up a backchannel between the Trump administration and Russia. Those revelations raise questions about his relationship to the Trump administration—questions...

The Trump transition team may demand an investigation after tens of thousands of emails were handed to the Mueller probe without consent or warrants Late last year, news broke that a federal agency turned over tens of thousands of private emails of Trump transition team officials to the special counsel’s team—without a warrant, and without getting the officials’ permission. Now, according to communications reviewed by The Daily Beast, the transition team is fighting back. They are threatening to call for an inspector general’s investigation of the General Services Administration (GSA), which gave the emails to Mueller, and to potentially try...

The Daily Beast's headline, subheadline, and lede about the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee refusing to answer a question are all false.Once again, reporters got burned by believing anonymous Democrats on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.Betsy Woodruff and Spencer Ackerman of The Daily Beast credulously believed their “sources familiar with the exchange,” who said Republican Rep. Devin Nunes, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, refused to deny he had coordinated with the White House when putting together a memo alleging surveillance and law enforcement abuses at the FBI.In fact, Nunes explicitly denied the charge before shutting...

It wouldn’t be a Republican primary without charges of foul play levelled at Ted Cruz. And New York is no exception. A few hours before polls closed in the Empire State, John Kasich’s strategist John Weaver tweeted that the Texan was responsible for misleading robocalls—which falsely claimed that New York’s Democratic governor had endorsed Kasich.

Glenn Beck has been one of Ted Cruz’s most high profile surrogates—but Beck’s support could become a little less desirable when he heads to court this summer for allegedly defaming a victim of the Boston Marathon bombing…… One of Ted Cruz’s most prominent supporters could be headed to court soon to defend his Islamophobic falsehoods about a victim of terrorism. “…But come this summer, it’s Beck who could face judgement. The radio talker currently faces a defamation lawsuit—because he doubled and tripled down on charges that a victim of a terrorist attack was actually the real terrorist. “… previously unnoticed...

The senator's super PACs have launched an unprecedented ground effort in South Carolina and seem intent on going where few super PACs have gone before--door knocking. We all know super PACs have permanently changed the face of American politics. But in South Carolina, right now, we're getting a preview of the unprecedented ways they can alter a campaign. South Carolina, as you may know, is kind of a big deal. It has a large population--4.8 million people--and a bad reputation because it's a place where candidates love to break out their dirtiest tricks. Or, in the case of Ted Cruz's...

Pandering Is Hard. Suffice it to say the Wisconsin governor and 2016 hopeful has a hard time explaining his views on the subject. It’s safe to say LGBT issues are not Scott Walker’s favorite conversation topic. Questions about various aspects of the gay rights debate have frequently tripped him up on the campaign trail - most recently during an interview on CNN when he was asked whether being gay was a choice. “Oh, I mean, I think that’s -- that’s not even an issue for me to be involved in,” the Wisconsin governor said. “The bottom line is, I’m going...

Sen. Ted Cruz’s piece in Politico Magazine on Wednesday has drawn a lot of attention, not all of it kind. In the piece, the Texas Senator charges that President Obama’s impending executive action on immigration “is lawless” and that if he makes the move, “he will be acting as a monarch.” Since his election in 2012, Cruz has vocally opposed comprehensive immigration reform. A fellow Republican in the Texas congressional delegation said that Cruz’s energetic opposition to comprehensive immigration reform doesn’t adequately represent his constituents. “I don’t think it’s reflective of Texas as a whole,” said Rep. Gene Green, chuckling....