Free Republic

On Tuesday night against the Cubs, Piscotty endured the worst trip around the base paths probably ever. It started with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning, when Piscotty was hit on the right elbow by a Jake Arrieta pitch.

A deeply divided Senate panel favorably recommended Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch on Monday, sending the nomination to the full Senate for what is expected to be a partisan showdown — and eventual confirmation. The 11-9 committee vote for President Donald Trump's nominee, strictly along party lines, came shortly after Democrats secured enough votes to block the nomination in the full Senate. But that Democratic success was virtually certain to be a short-lived political victory, as Republicans vowed to change Senate rules to put Gorsuch on the court and score a much-needed win for their party.

One of the “Women’s March on Washington” and “Day Without a Woman” organizers, is being kicked out of the United States. Rasmea Yousef Odeh failed to disclose on her U.S. visa form 20 years ago that she was convicted of murdering two Israeli students in a supermarket bomb attack and for an attempted bombing of the British Consulate in 1969. After a 10-year prison term, Odeh was freed in a prison swap with Palestinians.

Though mocked by some at the time, the March 30, 1867, purchase of Alaska from Russia for just $7.2 million is now regarded as a masterful deal, thanks to its architect, U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward. The treaty enlarged the United States by 586,000 square miles, an area more than twice the size of Texas, all for the bargain price of around two cents an acre. Yet because some politicians and journalists considered Alaska a barren wasteland— and inherently opposed anything supported by President Andrew Johnson—it became popularly known as “Seward’s Folly” ....

Former U.S. Sen. Jim Webb announced Tuesday night that he will not accept a Naval Academy Alumni Association award because of recent protests from other alumni.... ... it is clear that those protesting my receipt of this award now threaten to disrupt the ceremonies surrounding its issuance," Webb said in the statement.

Seven arrests have been made in raids following the Westminster attack that left four dead, police have said. Acting Deputy Commissioner and Head of Counter Terrorism Mark Rowley said hundreds of detectives have worked through the night, carrying out searches at six addresses.

The United Kingdom has followed the United States in preventing passengers on flights from some countries in the Middle East and Africa from carrying devices such as laptops and tablets in the cabin. The restrictions affect 14 airlines, six of which are based in the U.K. As in the U.S., the ban covers any electronic devices larger than a typical smartphone.

In the airport terminal the attacker assaulted a patrol of three counter-terrorism soldiers, wrestling one of them to the floor and trying to take her gun. The man was shot dead by patrol officers as they attempted to protect the women and members of the public at the airport, according to France's Interior Ministry.... ...A police source said the man was "a radicalised Muslim known to intelligence services and the justice system" and had a history of thefts and violent robberies.

As noted by Robert Satloff of The Washington Institute, a 2007 book from the Gallup press, Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think, based on a poll of more than 50,000 Muslims in ten countries, found that 7 percent of Muslims deem the 9/11 attacks "completely justified"; 13.5 percent consider the attacks completely or "largely justified," and 36.6 percent consider the attacks completely, largely, or "somewhat justified."[5]Which of these groups does one define as Islamist and which not? Islamists have fooled the White House, the departments of Defense, Justice, State, and Treasury, Congress, and law enforcement. Faced...

New York (CNN)A former reporter who was fired for fabricating sources was arrested Friday and accused of making some of the bomb threats against Jewish institutions that have so rattled Jews recently.... ...Juan Thompson, 31, was charged with one count of cyber-stalking for making at least eight threats as part of an attempt to intimidate a particular person after their romantic relationship ended, according to a criminal complaint filed in the Southern District of New York. The complaint alleges Thompson had emailed and phoned in threats to the Anti-Defamation League and other Jewish institutions. Some of those threats mentioned a...

Russia's ambassador to the United Nations has died. Vitaly Churkin, who would have celebrated his 65th birthday on Tuesday, died suddenly while at work in New York on Monday, Russia's foreign ministry said in a statement. The cause of the veteran diplomat's death is unclear.

Merkel said Germany is committed to spending more, but will do so at its own pace. Berlin is set to increase expenditures by 8 percent this year and aims to reach the NATO benchmark of 2 percent of gross domestic product in about eight years. “We will do everything we can in order to fulfill this commitment,” Merkel said, adding that a strong Europe is also in America’s interest.

...Most important, in our complex federal system, where the policies of the national government depend on cooperation by state and local authorities, these local movements have the potential to block initiatives by the incoming Trump regime.... ... Now the protests will have to aim not at winning, but at halting or foiling initiatives that threaten harm—either by redistributing wealth to the very top (the Trump tax and energy plans), or by eliminating existing political rights (the cancellation of DACA, the Obama executive order that protected undocumented-immigrant children, known as Dreamers), or by jeopardizing established protections and benefits (the looming prospect...

Sean Spicer Verified account ‏@PressSec .@POTUS has named Dana Boente, US Attorney for the Eastern District of VA as Acting Attorney General. Sally Yates has been relieved.

He also called it "complete nonsense" that Russian security services would "chase after every American billionaire." "[Trump is] a grown man, and secondly he’s someone who has been involved with beauty contests for many years and has met the most beautiful women in the world,” Putin said, per Bloomberg. “I find it hard to believe that he rushed to some hotel to meet girls of loose morals, although ours are undoubtedly the best in the world.”

(CNN) A truck plowed into a group of soldiers in Jerusalem, killing four people and injuring at least 13, Israel's emergency services said Sunday. Three of the four killed were female soldiers, Israeli Education Minister Neftali Bennett said. The fourth person killed was a young man, but it was not immediately clear whether he was a soldier. All of the slain victims were in their 20s. "A group had gotten off the bus and were getting organized with their bags when the terrorist took the opportunity, ramming his truck into the group," Israel Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. "Then he...

The U.S. Navy and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency successfully launched a salvo of two Raytheon Standard SM-6 Dual I missiles against a medium-range ballistic missile target earlier this week. USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53)—an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis destroyer—conducted the test shortly after midnight on Dec. 14 to demonstrate a Sea Based Terminal endo-atmospheric defensive capability. "This test demonstrated the capabilities MDA and the Navy are delivering to our fleet commanders," Vice Adm. Jim Syring, director of the MDA said in a statement. "The SM-6 missile and the Aegis Weapon System continue to prove that they are critical components of...

Despite the substantial documentation assembled by Peters, demonstrating massive Arab immigration into Palestine, anti-Israel propagandists continue to deny it. Based on what we know today, and the simple truths of basic math, the issue has become clear and unambiguous. All historic records indicate that only insignificant number of long-term settled Muslims were present in Palestine before 1882, when the large Jewish immigration began. Muslim Arab numbers increased dramatically as Jewish settlements developed infrastructure and provided work opportunities to Arabs from the neighboring countries. Also worth noting is that the “indigenous” 4.3% comprised many non-Arab nationalities. All of them were swamped...

Donald Trump is tapping Gen. John Kelly to run the Department of Homeland Security, CBS News confirms. The final request and acceptance, sources told CBS’ Major Garrett, occurred while Kelly was traveling in Europe. His pick for DHS secretary will be announced by the transition staff in the coming days. Kelly is the third general tapped by the president-elect, joining Gen. James Mattis, Mr. Trump’s pick to become the next secretary of Defense, and Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, Mr. Trump’s incoming national security advisor. Like Mattis, Kelly is a Marine with a reputation for bluntness.

When John D. Anderson reached his battle station in the USS Arizona's No. 4 turret that morning, he realized the gigantic guns could do nothing against the swarms of attacking Japanese airplanes. But his twin brother, Delbert "Jake" Anderson, was manning an antiaircraft gun out on deck, and was in the thick of the action. "He needs help," John told his turret commander, and asked if could join his brother. Both men were 24. The sons of a judge, they were born in Verona, N.D., in 1917. Both had joined the Navy in 1936. John was a boatswain's mate second...