Free Republic

Let's see. It's early August, and the press sees the end at hand. "Why Donald Trump’s campaign is like a speeding car with its parts falling off." (The Washington Post) "Is the Trump campaign collapsing?" (The Atlantic) "Trouble in Trump-land?" (Politico) "Trump-world frustrated by their candidate." (CNN) Forget that Trump was written off for months as a joke or that the campaign was seen heading south at multiple times, such as when "Trump, collapsing in polls, fires campaign manager." (NBR) Or, as it was also put on June 20, "Trump fires top aide in an urgent move to reboot his...

You may not have noticed the following news item, because the person who spoke did not accompany his remarks by striking a baby monkey with a ball-peen hammer. We have reached a point in this campaign where people don't pay attention unless you do something that sets civilization back. Paul Manafort, who is Donald Trump's campaign manager, at least in theory, recently said on two national news programs that he considered Connecticut in play. Connecticut has not gone Republican for president since 1988. Presidential campaigns don't usually bother with us. So what's different? Maybe nothing. As swing states slide off...

Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s newly-announced running mate, Virginia Senator Tim Kaine, has a history of embracing Islamists. He appointed a Hamas supporter to a state immigration commission; spoke at a dinner honoring a Muslim Brotherhood terror suspect; and received donations from well-known Islamist groups. Appointing a Muslim Brotherhood Front Leader Who Supports Hamas In 2007, Kaine was the Governor of Virginia and, of all people, chose Muslim American Society (MAS) President Esam Omeish to the state’s Immigration Commission. A Muslim organization against Islamism criticized the appointment and reckless lack of vetting. Federal prosecutors said in a 2008 court filing...

In an increasingly contentious presidential campaign, just a quarter of voters who support Donald Trump in the general election say they have a lot or some close friends who are supporters of Hillary Clinton. Even fewer Clinton backers (18%) say they have at least some friends who support Trump. Nearly half of Clinton supporters (47%), and 31% of Trump supporters, say they have no close friends who support the opposing candidate. The survey conducted June 7-July 5 among 4,602 adults, including 3,834 registered voters, on Pew Research Center’s nationally representative American Trends Panel finds that large majorities of both Trump...

A poll released Wednesday of likely North Carolina voters shows Donald Trump leading Hillary Clinton while at the same time gaining 32 percent of the black vote. Trump is ahead among all polled voters with 46 percent, followed by Clinton with 42 percent and Libertarian nominee Gov. Gary Johnson at six percent, according to the Civitas poll. Seven percent of likely voters polled are undecided. The GOP nominee is ahead with white voters with 47 percent, while Clinton has 38 percent of their support. While Clinton leads with black voters with 64 percent, but this poll shows Trump with larger...

Politically correct tyranny is afoot at the University of Houston. I was recently made aware of a student at the university who was suspended for 50 days by the student government association and ordered to attend diversity training over a reference she made about the Black Lives Matter crowd. (She can still go to class but she can't participate in student government activities.) “#ForgetBlackLivesMatter; more like AllLivesMatter,” wrote Rohini Sethi, the vice president of the school’s student government association. Ms. Sethi wrote those words last month just a few hours after five Dallas police officers were assassinated. Her belief that...

In an old warehouse in Newark, New Jersey, that once housed the state's biggest indoor paint ball arena, leafy green plants such as kale, arugula and watercress sprout from tall metal towers under bright lights. A local company named AeroFarms has built what it says is the world's largest indoor vertical farm, without the use of soil or sunlight. Its ambitious goal is to grow high-yielding crops via economical methods to provide locally sourced food to the community, protect the environment and ultimately even combat hunger worldwide. "We use about 95 percent less water to grow the plants, about 50...

Today, make a list of all the latest twists and turns and craziness in this election (because we are friends like this and where I come from friends help each other make lists of other people’s craziness). One of the biggest problems with politics today is how oversaturated we are with information…which causes everything to blur, fall through the cracks, get lost in the din, etc. What I’d like to do over the next 96 days is keep track of every punch the Left takes on behalf of the Globalists and evaluate how effective each was…while also charting what the...

Did Black Lives Matter Just Oust NYPD’s Police Chief? Black Lives Matter protesters call for the New York City Police Department to be disbanded. Mayor Bill de Blasio awards them a scalp. One day after Black Lives Matter protesters attempted to occupy New York’s City Hall Park, one of their central demands was met. With the resignation of Police Commissioner Bill Bratton Tuesday, the group can claim a victory in its effort to transform policing in America’s largest city. (TWEET-AT-LINK) Although Bratton’s resignation had been rumored for some time and he and the mayor deny protests influenced the move, BLM...

It's a 'Duck Dynasty' vs. Lena Dunham election: Yes, Donald Trump's D-list convention was a flop by usual media standards, but Hillary Clinton's revisionist celebration actually was more tone-deaf as the disliked candidates careen toward November, their supporters dangerously oblivious. The Nation divides over many lines, but a basic split is between Lena Dunham, who made a primetime appearance July 26 at the Democratic National Convention, and Willie Robertson, a star of Duck Dynasty and a celebrity endorser at the Republican convention. No longer an actual aspect of political decision-making, party conventions are wholly symbolic affairs, an elaborate messaging apparatus...

Wednesday on his syndicated radio show, conservative talker Sean Hannity criticized several high-ranking Republicans for how they have treated their party’s nominee Donald Trump. According to Hannity, if Trump loses in November, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) will be to blame for the loss because they have spent more time criticizing Trump than President Barack Obama....

Loving Hillary Clinton has rarely been popular - when she was first lady she was widely criticised for being too liberal, for refusing to bake cookies or drop her maiden name. Now, she's under fire for being too establishment, too untrustworthy and not progressive enough - and her hair, clothes, and lack of charisma have always been targets. She's had peaks of high ratings - as secretary of state, her approval rating was at 65%, and she's been voted the most admired woman in the world 20 times. But as soon as she runs for office, those numbers drop. Throughout...

Following GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump’s praise of House Speaker Paul Ryan’s primary opponent, the Wisconsin Republican confirmed he never sought the billionaire’s help in retaining his seat. Trump told The Washington Post he refused to endorse Ryan or Arizona Sen. John McCain in their re-election bids. “Neither Speaker Ryan nor anyone on his team has ever asked for Donald Trump’s endorsement. And we are confident in a victory next week regardless,” Zack Roday, a Ryan campaign spokesman, said in a statement...

There’s always been this notion the Libertarian Party is just full of Republicans who want to smoke pot. It’s one of the dumbest stereotypes out there because there’s so much more to libertarianism than people realize. Libertarians believe in a much smaller federal government than the GOP does, focusing on free trade vs. endless wars, and letting consenting adults do what they want to do in the bedroom. This isn’t stopping Republicans from pushing the entire, “A vote for Gary Johnson is a vote for Hillary Clinton,” claim. Even Larry O’Connor (who is a smart guy, and has a great...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Washington, D.C. Metro Transit police officer who was a convert to Islam and once dressed up as Jihadi John for Halloween was charged on Wednesday with trying to provide material support to ISIS -- the first time a law enforcement officer has been charged with an ISIS-related crime. Virginia resident Nicholas Young, 36, who has served with the department since 2003, was arrested Wednesday morning by FBI agents. Authorities allege in a criminal complaint unsealed Wednesday that Young attempted to send money to ISIS through a mobile-based gift card using an unnamed messaging service the terror...

Donald Trump may have had a rough week campaigning nationally, but that didn't sway voters at a straw poll sponsored by the Lakeland Area Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday. Trump defeated Democrat Hillary Clinton 161 votes to 98 at the Chamber's Political Hob Nob event at Sun 'n Fun. It was one of 17 straw polls 292 people voted in during the event, which featured brief speeches by local candidates running in the Aug. 30th primary and the Nov. 8 election. School Board District 2 candidate Ronnie Clark won the closest race, defeating incumbent Lori Cunningham, 101 to 99 in...

Whether they are in the U.S. legally or not, more than 8,000 Syrian refugees in the country were just granted asylum by the federal government. The Department of Homeland Security granted temporary protected status to the Syrian citizens, despite fears of ISIS terrorists slipping in through the program, Fox News reported. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson said the “humanitarian crisis” the refugees face in their homeland has made it impossible for them to return. Though the program, which was created in 1990, is supposed to grant the protected status to refugees temporarily, critics have argued there is nothing temporary...

Natasha Marin is a Seattle artist who noticed a divide on her Facebook feed: her black friends were angry and frustrated about police shootings of black men, and her white friends were saying they wanted to help, but didn’t know what to do. “There is a discrepancy in the lives of people of color and white-identified people in the United States,” Marin said. Marin put together the Reparations site and accompanying Facebook event. It was a place where people of color could post needs and white people could help meet those needs. (AUDIO-AT-LINK) “I feel like a lot of my...

Link only due to copyright issues: http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/08/why-clinton-cant-shake-trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on the U.S. presidential campaign. (all times EDT): 3:05 p.m. Two more Democratic Party officials have resigned in the wake of an embarrassing email hack. Chief finance officer Brad Marshall and communications director Luis Miranda left their jobs on Tuesday, the Democratic National Committee says. Earlier Tuesday, The Associated Press reported that DNC chief executive Amy Dacey had resigned. Dacey has been hired to work for a Democratic communications firm, AP reported....