Free Republic

Track Palin, son of former Gov. Sarah Palin, has entered a plea agreement with the state in a special court for veterans for charges of punching a woman in the face at the family's Wasilla home in January. Kevin Fitzgerald, Track Palin's attorney, said Friday his client had opted into Anchorage Veterans Court — a move Palin had been considering since May — during a Monday proceeding. Court records show the agreement involved the state dropping two of three misdemeanor charges against Palin, including domestic-violence assault and interfering with the report of a domestic-violence crime. "As a condition of his...

The news reports coming out of Chicago indicate that the Windy City is more of a war zone than most of the United States. There's a reason some folks like to call it Chiraq, after all. It's downright ugly.However, that's not going to stop the editorial board of the Chicago Sun-Times from lecturing Cleveland on the dangers of gun violence as the Ohio city is about to play host to the Republican National Convention. On the streets outside a national political convention, citizens should have the right to give thundering voice to issues they care about. But how free will...

Shortened title. Full title: Frm. NYPD Commish Ray Kelly: ‘No Question’ That Protest Groups Are Going to Cleveland ‘to Cause Trouble’ Former NYPD commissioner Ray Kelly, whose experiences are chronicled in his book Vigilance: My Life Serving America and Protecting Its Empire City and a new six-part series on SiriusXM channel 124, talked about the security challenges of the upcoming Republican National Convention on Friday’s Breitbart News Daily. SiriusXM host Stephen K. Bannon mentioned that Breitbart News would be sending a 35-person team to the convention, including five security personnel. “My colleague last night, he’s been on these al Qaeda...

(Full title):Black Delegate Rips Movement to Unbind Delegates: I'm Only As Good As My Word And Ask The Same Of You After the RNC Rules Committee decided to vote down a measure to unbind delegates using the "conscience clause" via a voice vote, a delegate made a plea for unity. Conversely, Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) made an impassioned plea for delegates to vote their conscience. "I think our elections are important," Lee said to the committee. "They are essential and fundamental. Delegates traditionally have been considered honorbound to follow the decision of their state and they overwhelmingly have done so....

Tim Tebow, the celebrated pro-life football player, won’t speak at the Republican convention after all. He says early news reports that he would be speaking at the convention which will nominate Donald Trump for president are “a rumor.”

Why Cleveland Police, Not Outside Officers, Will Be Handling Arrests During RNC CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Thousands of police officers from departments around the country will help Cleveland police provide security during the Republican National Convention, but those police officers won't be arresting anyone. While those officers can detain anyone they feel has broken the law, a Cleveland police officer will actually make the decision whether to make a formal arrest, Deputy Cleveland Police Chief Ed Tomba told cleveland.com Wednesday. Cleveland police will take the lead, partly because it's Cleveland's convention, Tomba said. But it also makes more sense to have...

"The organization that responds after natural disasters, Heart to Heart International, is going to Cleveland ahead of the Republican National Convention in case violence erupts." "This is the first time Heart to Heart has been to a political convention." "Heart to Heart physicians have a mobile medical unit that will be going up to Cleveland as well in case patients need more than a bottle of water or a bandage."

CLEVELAND — Republicans are bracing for the possibility of a drawn-out fight over Donald J. Trump’s nomination that could stretch into the convention next week, a spectacle party leaders are desperate to avoid. As the party’s leadership convened in Cleveland on Wednesday for a series of organizational meetings, the possibility that the smoldering dissent over Mr. Trump could become a full-blown eruption on the convention floor was a top concern.

CLEVELAND - Get ready for a large group of biker enthusiasts to patrol Cleveland streets during the Republican National Convention and protect Trump supporters. “We’re going to do our best to see that our delegates stay safe, that women and elderly people aren’t having eggs thrown in their face, that they’re not being accosted and subject to civil disobedience,” said Chris Cox, founder of Bikers for Trump. Cox, a South Carolina resident who arrived in Cleveland this week, said Bikers for Trump is not looking for a fight during the RNC. Rather, he said he and his fellow bikers will...

Stephen Loomis, President of Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association, thinks the "store-bought apology" isn't enough. "He needs to go to Dallas, help the families who lost their loved ones last week, write them a check, look them in the eyes and give a heartfelt apology." Loomis says Crowell's post was as "offensive as putting a picture of historical African-American men being hung from a tree in the 60s." He adds that if Crowell doesn't go to Dallas and make a donation, "I will pull Cleveland officers, sheriffs, state troopers out of First Energy Stadium this season if he doesn't make it...

Other GOP elected officials may be avoiding the Republican National Convention later this month, but Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst sees an opening night speech as an opportunity “to give Iowans a voice on the national stage.” “Right now, Iowans are pretty darned frustrated — just like when I ran for election,” said Ernst, whose 2014 campaign caught fire with a “Make ’em Squeal” promise to cut federal spending. National security is to be her focus when she addresses the Cleveland convention on Monday, July 18. “There’s a real pushback against the failed policies we have right now,” Ernst said Tuesday....

Jul. 12, 2016 - 5:02 - Trump presidential campaign chairman discusses the road to the convention and the VP shortlist

CLEVELAND (CBSNewYork) — An NFL player is apologizing for posting a graphic image on Instagram showing a man dressed in all black slitting the throat of a police officer. Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell, 23, deleted the image he posted on Instagram showing blood gushing out of the officer’s neck.

Over the weekend, The Daily Wire had the opportunity to speak with Kendal Unruh, a member of the Colorado Republican delegation to the Republican National Convention. Unruh is also a member of the Rules Committee at the RNC, and a leading advocate for a vote that would unbind the delegates from the candidates to which their state primaries are pledged. Unruh explained that "28 committee members are required to pass a minority report, which then goes to the convention floor for all delegates to vote on. It then requires a simple majority to pass." She added that she does "have...

Donald Trump steered clear of his characteristic bombast in responding to the massacre of five police officers patrolling a Black Lives Matter protest in Dallas on Thursday night, ditching the self-congratulations he put forth after last month's attack on Orlando's Pulse nightclub in favor of a somber statement lamenting national division and racial tension. But while the presumptive Republican presidential nominee sought to avoid the appearance of nakedly capitalizing on the latest tragedy to boost his White House hopes, an upsurge in law-and-order sentiment may yet deliver him the presidency. An eerie echo: To some observers, the potential fallout from...

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - Cleveland police on Friday tightened their security plan for the Republican National Convention after the deadly shootings of police officers in Dallas, increasing surveillance and intelligence operations just 10 days before the convention. Other police departments across the country required officers to patrol in pairs rather than alone following the ambush in Dallas, the deadliest day for police in the United States since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington. In Cleveland, the attack raised another potential threat during the July 18-21 convention, when Donald Trump is expected to receive the Republican nomination for...

Donald Trump has promised to liven up this year's Republican National Convention. But some of America's biggest corporations are bailing on the party. Apple recently became the latest company to give the GOP's presumptive nominee the cold shoulder; it won't contribute money or products to the Republicans' big shindig in Cleveland this month. HP Inc. is also withholding support, while Microsoft is giving products only, not cash. Beyond the tech industry, Ford, JPMorgan Chase and United Parcel Service have opted to withhold support.

Donald Trump’s private meeting Thursday with Senate Republicans — designed to foster greater party unity ahead of the national convention in Cleveland — grew combative as the presumptive presidential nominee admonished three senators who have been critical of his candidacy and predicted they would lose their reelection bids, according to two Republican officials with direct knowledge of the exchanges. Trump’s most tense exchange was with Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), who has been vocal in his concerns about the business mogul’s candidacy, especially his rhetoric and policies on immigration that the senator argues alienate many Latino voters and others in Arizona....

Donald Trump met with Sen. Ted Cruz on Capitol Hill Thursday -- the first meeting between the two former bitter campaign rivals since Cruz suspended his presidential campaign. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus was also in the meeting, according to sources. This was Trump's second trip to Capitol Hill in two months. With less than two weeks before the Republican National Convention commences in Cleveland, Trump is looking to shore up support with the GOP's rank-and-file even as he faces backlash from members of his party. Some Republicans who are facing a tough re-election battle have chosen to skip...

CLEVELAND — (CNN) Donald Trump’s campaign still lacks a sufficient number of supportive delegates to guarantee that any revolt at the Republican National Convention could be put down, a key committee delegate says. RNC Committeeman from Georgia and Rules Committee delegate Randy Evans, a lawyer who also works with the RNC and the Trump campaign, estimates that Trump has the support locked up of 888 delegates to Cleveland this month in the event of an effort to unbind delegates, leaving them free to vote for any candidate.