Free Republic

Earlier this month there was tremendous press attention to new data indicating that enrollment in the Affordable Care Act (ACA)’s health insurance exchanges had surpassed 7 million. The White House took a victory lap while much of the press, desperate to write something positive after months of reporting on website glitches and insurance plan cancellations, characterized the milestone as good political news for ACA supporters. Our national discussion, however, is missing the truly significant story here; what is unfolding before our eyes is a colossal fiscal disaster, poised to haunt legislators and taxpayers for decades to come. It is quite...

It seems like only yesterday that the federal government assured us that none of its big public websites - and especially not HealthCare.gov, the ObamaCare exchange site - were at risk from the Heartbleed security flaw, which can allow hackers to steal passwords and personal data. Actually, those assurances came last Friday, April 11, in the form of a blog post from the Department of Homeland Security. "The government's core citizen-facing websites are not exposed to risks from this cybersecurity threat," we were assured by DHS National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center director Larry Zelvin, as quoted at Nextgov. One...

When Woodrow Wilson signed into law the Revenue Act of 1913, it probably sounded like a good idea. Most people would pay less in taxes and the prices of everyday goods would drop, he promised. And the rich would — finally! — start paying their fair share. In those days, tax collection was a highly diffuse business with various states and localities collecting taxes at various rates. The federal government mostly skidded by on exorbitant and uneven tariffs, and on booze and tobacco taxes. This was always tough and disorganized business for the federal government. Those hardships became especially acute...

The 3D printer has been revolutionizing everything from art to medicine to accessories, and its latest foray has been into the field of architecture. Peter Ebner, architect and UCLA professor, tasked his architecture students with a homework assignment for the ages: develop a 3D-printed apartment that’s easy to transport and manage. The class rose to the challenge and then some, constructing mini mobile homes that measure 50 square feet and are equipped with thermal insulation, electricity, water, heating, and sewage systems (which are also 3D printed). The living area comes with a collapsible counter, a foldaway toilet, a pullout bed,...

Less than a few prominent and influential organizations have been working very diligently to advance their power of persuasion. Most notable are SPLC (Southern Poverty Law Center) and RWW (RightWingWatch). Sure, they expose some legitimate hate groups, but lately it's been difficult to separate the haters from the baiters. Nobody would argue that there are many groups that must rightly be considered legitimate threats to society in our day (i.e. Westboro Baptists, Nazi Skinheads ). But what are we to make of the growing tendency to falsely accuse and mischaracterize those who are simply offering factual, rational and justifiable concerns...

If Texas Tech University’s numbers are any indication, the race for Texas governor won’t be all that competitive. According to a poll released last week by Tech’s Earl Survey Research Lab, GOP gubernatorial candidate and Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has about lapped Democratic candidate state Sen. Wendy Davis. Granted, there is a long way to go before the Nov. 4 election, but with 54 percent of respondents saying they would vote for Abbott — and only 25 percent backing Davis — the attorney general has reason for optimism, at least according to this poll. (And before Davis supporters contend...

President Obama on Friday signed into law a bill authored by Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz that would bar an Iranian diplomat from entering the United States, but immediately issued a statement saying he won't enforce it. Obama decided to treat the law as mere advice. "Acts of espionage and terrorism against the United States and our allies are unquestionably problems of the utmost gravity, and I share the Congress's concern that individuals who have engaged in such activity may use the cover of diplomacy to gain access to our Nation," Obama said in his signing statement. "Nevertheless, as President...

In five years, the tea party has launched some of the most charismatic and controversial Republicans in office today, including Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Rand Paul of Kentucky. Who are the movement’s top candidates this cycle, and what are their prospects? Here’s a look: 1. Mississippi: Chris McDaniel vs. Thad Cochran In the early going, tea party-backed state Sen. Chris McDaniel was seen as the strongest challenger to a sitting US senator this cycle. He’s a young (early 40s), energetic trial lawyer and former talk radio host, with six years' service in the state legislature – and he...

Michelle Obama should not receive a salary as First Lady according to Laura Bush, who could definitely be said to be an expert on the subject. But these comments happen to stray into the political mine field of income inequality and the gender pay gap. In a related report by The Inquisitr, Michelle Obama’s school lunch portions have been criticized heavily by students who are actually forced to eat her school cafeteria plans. In recent times, Barack and Michelle Obama have spoken about their plans for ending income inequality in America. The White House also came under fire when it...

Three years before Matt Drudge changed the world and how news would be consumed, President Bill Clinton's White House feared that the Internet was allowing average citizens, especially conservatives, to bypass legacy gatekeepers and access information that had previously been denied to them by the mainstream press. The infamous 1995 "conspiracy commerce memo" tried to demonize and discredit alternative media outlets on the right to mainstream media organizations and D.C. establishment figures. The memo notes that the "Internet has become one of the major and most dynamic modes of communication" and "can link people, groups and organizations together instantly." "Moreover,...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called supporters of rancher Cliven Bundy “domestic terrorists” Thursday, turning up the rhetorical heat on the already tense situation at the Nevada cattle operation. “Those people who hold themselves out to be patriots are not. They’re nothing more than domestic terrorists,” Mr. Reid in remarks at a luncheon, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which sponsored the event. “… I repeat: What went on up there was domestic terrorism.” The Nevada Democrat was referring to the hundreds of Bundy backers — some armed, some from out of state — who congregated at the ranch last...

The Wall Street Journal reported last night that House Speaker John Boehner told donors at a fundraiser last month in Las Vegas that he was “hellbent on getting this done this year,” in reference to an amnesty/immigration bill. His spokesman did not dispute the account. In related news, President Obama is meeting with the National Commander of the American Legion this morning. Ordinarily, that would mean little, but the meeting comes just days after the Legion came out against a plan to amnesty illegal aliens who join the military. The number of people who would benefit from such an amnesty...

This story comes to us courtesy of The Right Scoop. (Which makes sense since I don’t watch any of the cable news evening lineup and haven’t seen Chris Hayes on the small screen in ages.) While people gathered at Cliven Bundy’s ranch in protest of the BLM’s handling of affairs there, the protesters were joined by Nevada Assemblywoman Michele Fiore. This prompted MSNBC host Hayes to interview her, and the Scoop captures the video for us. Let’s just say that Fiore wasn’t about to have the conversation steered to any Left side talking points.(VIDEO-AT-LINK) Hayes tries his very best to...

There's a reason why overwhelming evidence hasn't spurred public action against global warming. In the run-up to Earth Day this year, two major reports were released by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the largest such body in the world. On March 31, Working Group II released its report, Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability, and on April 13, Working Group III released its report, Climate Change 2014: Mitigation of Climate Change. Both reports cited substantially more evidence of substantially more global warming and related impacts than past reports have, and they did so more lucidly than in...

Thirty-seven percent (37%) of Likely U.S. Voters now fear the federal government, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Forty-seven percent (47%) do not, but another 17% are not sure. Perhaps in part that’s because 54% consider the federal government today a threat to individual liberty rather than a protector. Just 22% see the government as a protector of individual rights, and that’s down from 30% last November. Slightly more (24%) are now undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.) As recently as December 2012, voters were evenly divided on this question: 45% said the federal government...

Knoxville, Tenn. (CBS DC) – Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia told a crowd of law school students that if taxes in the U.S. become too high then people “should revolt.” Speaking at the University of Tennessee College of Law on Tuesday, the longest-serving justice currently on the bench was asked by a student about the constitutionality of the income tax, the Knoxville News Sentinel reports. Scalia responded that the government has the right to implement the tax, “but if it reaches a certain point, perhaps you should revolt.”(continued)

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)BUNKERVILLE, Nev. -- Armed civilians continue to guard the Cliven Bundy ranch. They have traveled from afar, are camped out, and remain at their posts for hours in an effort to provide security for the cattle rancher. Bundy supporters drove to Bunkerville from West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and other states to show they believe in Bundy's cause. The rancher has been in a battle with the federal government over the illegal grazing of his cattle for the past two decades. "I'm just here to help them sleep easy and rest at night," said Booda Cavalier, who says he is providing security...

We are pretty familiar with this story: A perfectly sensible if slightly boring idea is walking down the street. Suddenly, the ideological circus descends, burying the sensible idea in hysterical claims and fevered accusations. The idea’s political backers beat a craven retreat. The idea dies. This is what seems to be happening to the Common Core education standards, which are being attacked on the right because they are common and on the left because they are core. About seven years ago, it was widely acknowledged that state education standards were a complete mess. Huge numbers of students were graduating from...

Ted Cruz is the most popular politician in Texas, according to a Public Policy Polling Texas poll. Cruz has a 47 percent approval rating – better than both Rick Perry and John Cornyn, with only 35 percent who disapprove of him. He also continues to lead the Republican primary field for presidential candidates in Texas with 25 percent willing to support his campaign compared to Jeb Bush at 14 percent and Mike Huckabee, Rand Paul and Rick Perry each at 10 percent. Chris Christie and Paul Ryan received support for a potential presidential campaign from 5 percent of Texans polled,...

When I wrote about Adam Weinstein of Gawker and his proposal to literally imprison people for their political views, most of the pushback from the left and from David Frum, America’s Hall Monitor™, consisted of hand-waving, e.g. “You can’t generalize from the position of one crank with a blog, etc.” And while I am sympathetic to the emerging bipartisan consensus that no sentient being could possibly take Adam Weinstein seriously, the fact is that Gawker has a larger readership than The Nation and The New Republic combined. Sure, it’s 99.44 percent pure riff-raff, but the damnable thing about democracy is...