Free Republic

On May 19, 2024, United States District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk issued a temporary restraining order against the Biden administration, forbidding them from enforcing the parts of the ATF “final rule” having to do with a re-definition of “engaged in the business” as part of federal firearms law. From the order: CONCLUSION Defendants are TEMPORARILY RESTRAINED from enforcing the regulations — “Definition of ‘Engaged in the Business’ as a Dealer in Firearms” — published at 89 Fed. Reg. 28968 (April 19, 2024) (to be codified at 27 C.F.R. pt. 478) against Plaintiffs Texas, Jeffery Tormey, the Gun Owners of America,...

This photo shows BYD electric cars awaiting to be loaded onto a ship at the international container terminal of Taicang Port at Suzhou Port, eastern Jiangsu Province, China, Sept. 11, 2023. (AFP Photo) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Biden administration is reportedly set to impose major new tariffs on electric vehicles (EVs), semiconductors, solar equipment and medical supplies imported from China, according to a U.S. official and another person familiar with the plan. Tariffs on electric vehicles, in particular, could quadruple from the existing 25% to 100%. The people described the plan on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide...

States like California, New York, and Massachusetts have passed climate policies specifically intended to jump-start this battery industry. But this year, for the first time ever, the fastest-growing energy storage market appears to be Texas, a free-market-affirming red state that officially cares little about solving climate change. Nonetheless, the state’s low-regulation, business-friendly landscape has created ideal conditions to build batteries quickly and at scale, just like it previously incubated thriving wind and solar markets.

“Trade Compliance” is a subset of regulatory compliance, focused primarily on export controls and the Customs rules concerning importing and duty assessment. Outside of the occasional discovery of illegal Chinese copies of branded gym shoes, or the even rarer news story about a company caught selling technology to the Iranians or North Koreans, this specialty rarely makes the mainstream news. An exception occurred as April, 2024 came to an end: the Federal Trade Commission announced a record fine against an American retail chain, Williams-Sonoma, and its subsidiaries (including Rejuvenation, Goldtouch, and the Pottery Barn family), for violations of the FTC’s...

The Biden administration hasn’t hesitated to rule by fiat, especially when it comes to environmental regulations. Separation of powers? Who cares? Why worry about constitutional processes when you can ramrod your agenda through the bureaucracy? Congressional Republicans are taking on the Environmental Protection Agency’s latest rule that seeks to govern greenhouse gas emissions for heavy-duty trucks. The rule is set to take effect on June 21. Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) introduced a resolution in their respective chambers on Wednesday that would invoke the Congressional Review Act (CRA) to allow Congress to vote to nullify the...

The Biden Administration has become quickly and justly infamous for damaging American industry in every way possible. If there’s a way to make it difficult or impossible for Americans to make lawful products or provide lawful services, if there’s a way for them to force American manufacturing out of America and into the waiting arms of our enemies, they’ve discovered and implemented it. This is nowhere as true as in the energy and firearm sectors. Graphic: Lake City Army Ammunition Plant Pallet.This morning [04-25-24], a briefing will be held by the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS)...

Breitbart economics editor John Carney said Thursday on Fox Business Network’s “Kudlow” that President Joe Biden is implementing regulations that were crushing the economy. Carney said, “When you add on giant regulatory burdens onto the private sector what you end up doing is crushing the ability of businesses to grow, crushing the ability of businesses to hire people, crushing people to start new businesses. That is what happened under Obama when it was just 1/5 of what Biden has done. Biden this is just the track record so far, imagine what he will do when he is a lame duck...

The president made the announcement in an address to union workers in Pennsylvania.President Joe Biden called for tripling tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum Wednesday when he spoke to union members in battleground Pennsylvania. In remarks at the headquarters of the United Steel Workers, Biden said that China was "cheating" in its steel trade practices and that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative — the federal agency charged with developing U.S. trade policy — is investigating the Chinese government's practices tied to the trade of steel and aluminum. "If that investigation confirms these anti-competitive trade practices, then I’m calling...

From N.C. Bar & Tavern Ass'n v. Cooper, decided yesterday by the N.C. Court of Appeals, in an opinion by Judge April Wood, joined by Judges Donna Stroud and Jefferson Griffin: Plaintiffs appeal from the trial court's order granting summary judgment for Defendant and dismissing all their claims arising out of Defendant's Executive Order No. 141 issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 17 March 2020, Defendant issued Executive Order No. 118 closing all bars including those in restaurants. On 20 May 2020, Defendant issued Executive Order No. 141 letting some types of bars reopen with specific safety precautions...

President Biden argued that it never occurred to former President Trump to take a competitive stance against China, while rolling out a slew of actions Wednesday intended to protect the U.S. steel industry from Chinese exports. Biden was in Pittsburgh at the United Steelworkers headquarters touting the new actions, which involves him calling on the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to consider tripling the existing 7.5 percent tariff rate on Chinese steel and aluminum imports. The president also said to boost competition with China, he has revitalized partnerships in the Pacific with countries like India, Australia, South Korea, the...

Let’s face it: Central planning of the economy hasn’t worked out so well in many places where it has been tried (e.g., Soviet Union, Cuba, North Korea, etc.). But then, here in New York, we are so much smarter than the dolts who fell on their faces in those backwaters. With utter confidence in our genius, we have embarked upon the total centrally-directed transformation of the economy into “net zero” utopia, via the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019. But that project is barely getting under way. It will be a few years before we have enough feedback...

A San Francisco supervisor wants to require grocery stores to provide six months of notice before closing a location A San Francisco lawmaker introduced a proposal that would require grocery stores in the city to provide six months of notice before closing a store and to explore a replacement supermarket at the vacated location. Dean Preston, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, introduced what he calls the Grocery Protection Act – which is based on a proposal the board approved in 1984 that was vetoed by then-San Francisco Mayor Dianne Feinstein. Preston's proposal would require grocery store...

American truck drivers are sounding the horn on the Biden administration's recently finalized environmental regulations that aim to push for the heavy-duty vehicle sector to go all-electric. The truckers voiced concerns that electric heavy-duty vehicle technology is not nearly advanced enough to replace the nation's existing diesel-powered fleet, noting limitations on vehicle batteries, like low performance in cold weather conditions and shorter range. They also warned that the lack of high-powered charging infrastructure and power grid upgrades needed for fueling vehicles would present additional problems. "I'm an owner-operator. I've been in the business for 30 years," Mike Nichols, a Wisconsin-based...

Why shipping choke points like Panama are FUBAR and getting worse. Long, detailed explanation of all the problems.

The Biden administration has announced in recent weeks new stringent emissions requirements for virtually the entire American transportation system.The Environmental Protection Agency will mandate by the year 2035 that virtually every car made and sold in America must be an EV. No more gas cars. The New York Times comically declared that motorists don't have to worry because this "is not a ban on gasoline-powered vehicles." Sure it isn't. Today less than 2% of cars use the electric power grid for fuel. So soon we will see 50 times more demand for electricity from autos. Then the EPA announced new...

Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg said Tuesday on Fox News Channel’s “America Reports” that people who do not want electric cars were like those who wanted “landline phones forever.” Buttigieg said, “Let’s be clear consumers have wanted and purchased more EVs every single year than the year before. Tesla is facing more competition as GM and Ford and Stellantis and other competitive players make sure they get a piece of the EV market. Let’s be clear, the automotive sector is moving toward EVs and we can’t pretend otherwise. Sometimes, when these debates happen, I feel like it’s the early 2000s...

The war on gas-powered vehicles continues. While the White House recently released new rules to phase out gas-powered vehicles by 2032, several states have gone further. Eight states plan to completely ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035, the U.K.’s Daily Mail reported. Who’s leading the charge, you might ask? Why, it’s California, of course! They are joined by Rhode Island, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington. Washington, D.C., has also committed to the ban, according to Money. If you live in one of these states, you won’t be forced to take your gas-powered car...

It’s ethnic discrimination to force Big Apple pizzerias and matzah-makers to cut the smoky pollutants from their wood- and coal-fired ovens, according to a new bill sponsored by a state lawmaker. Assemblyman Sam Pirozzolo (R-Staten Island) told the Post that his proposed law would exempt businesses — some of them legendary local establishments — from a controversial city green edict that orders them to reduce such emissions by 75%. “I’m trying to stop discrimination against ethnic restaurants. These misguided laws go against businesses that cook ethnic cuisine,” Pirozzolo said. “A cop just got killed. People are getting thrown in front...

YGTBFKM Until today, I didn't realize that individuals are now being assigned ESG scores that some institutions use to decide whether they will do business with a person. I obviously knew about ESG scores that huge investment firms are using to force corporations to conform to ideological demands. I knew that in some cases, prominent individuals or troublemakers have been blackballed by banks and other firms. And, of course, I know that some companies that sell politically incorrect items are getting deplatformed by PayPal and even web providers. But I didn't know that an industry has sprung up to analyze...

A constitutional battle is shaping up over whether the U.S. government can force the owners and top employees of small businesses to send their addresses and photo IDs to federal financial crime investigators. The Biden administration has appealed a decision by a federal judge in Alabama, who ruled this month the Corporate Transparency Act exceeded the powers granted to Congress by the Constitution. The government says the information collected from small businesses will ferret out shell companies and help law and intelligence officers foil human smugglers, drug traffickers and terrorists. The appeal has a good chance because courts rarely strike...