Free Republic

Looking at declining poll numbers that are starting to make Jimmy Carter seem accomplished, many question whether the Obama presidency has officially entered lame duck territory. Chuck Todd of NBC News recently quipped “you look at the presidency here: Lowest job rating, tied for the lowest; lowest on foreign policy. His administration is seen as less competent than the Bush administration, post-Katrina … Essentially the public is saying [the] presidency is over.” The media would have us believe the Obama party is finished and it’s time to move on to the next contestant in the Who Wants to be President...

Witness how a handful of brilliant men lead a political battle to create a new form of government.

The federal Highway Trust Fund is running out of money, and some senators have proposed to fix the problem by raising gas taxes. This, however, is the wrong solution because it treats the symptom, and not the underlying reason for the shortfall. Here are five reasons for not increasing gas taxes. 1. The problem is not a shortage of funds but an excess of spending. For more than 50 years after Congress created the Highway Trust Fund in 1956 it was able to avoid a shortage of funds by a simple measure: it didn't spend more than was collected in...

The Republican Party has entered a new era of sectarian civil wars on multiple issues that bitterly divide and dangerously threaten the GOP through the 2016 elections and beyond. These intensely emotional and ideological issues create deep fissures in the tectonic plate of Republican politics, pitting warring GOP factions against each other and creating powerful strategic advantages for Democrats. A reverse realignment, which is possible for Democrats in 2016, would be achieved by subtraction if a smaller-tent GOP implodes from within while driving swing voters and demographic wave voters to Democrats.

One of my favorite fireworks are "fountain" based designs. As you review these Fountain Firework Images (or see them tonight in your neighborhoods), think of Founding Father's James Madison use of the "fountain" image (1788): "The people are the ONLY legitimate FOUNTAIN of power, and it is from THEM that the constitutional character, under which the several branches of government hold their power, is derived." (The Federalist Papers) Our government has forgotten this basic notion of freedom. With... ...the IRS targeting scandal and ensuing cover-up, ...ObamaCare attempted sovereignty of our lives, ...increased governmental encroachment, ...spend-happy 'pols' in D.C. and our...

Kent County business owner Brian Ellis denies that he's the "establishment" candidate in Michigan's 3rd Congressional District Republican Primary race, which pits him against two-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Justin Amash. Ellis, who founded Brooktree Capital Management and lives in Grand Rapids, has picked up endorsements from a number of "establishment" political action committees including Right-to-Life Michigan PAC, Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce PAC and Michigan Farm Bureau Agri-PAC. Yet, according to a recent poll conducted by WXYZ-TV and the Detroit Free Press, Ellis trails U.S. Rep. Amash by 20 percentage points. "Everybody likes to portray their opponent in that...

More than 30 Republican lawmakers are calling on President Obama to end his Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and make a public assertion that new arrivals will not receive legal status. In response to the ongoing flood of unaccompanied immigrant minors illegally crossing the nation’s southern border, 33 Republican congressmen, lead by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA), are pressing Obama to roll back policies and perceptions that they say have helped spur the onslaught. "As our country faces an unprecedented surge in the arrival of unaccompanied alien children (UACs) at our southwestern border, we call on you to immediately end...

WHEN BUSINESS owners enter the public marketplace, they should expect to follow laws with which they might disagree, on religious or other grounds. This is particularly true when they form corporations, to which the government offers unique benefits unavailable to individuals. The Supreme Court weakened that principle Monday. Congress should revitalize it. The justices ruled on the Affordable Care Act’s contraception mandate, which requires employer-based health insurance policies to provide contraception to covered employees. Several corporations challenged the law, insisting that the mandate unlawfully infringes on their owners’ religious rights. In a 5 to 4 ruling, the court agreed with...

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on Wednesday named Nick Muzin as senior adviser and deputy chief of staff for strategy, effective Monday, July 14. “Nick’s broad range of experience and networks make him the ideal person to help us craft a positive, forward-looking vision for America and take that message to every corner of the country,” Sen. Cruz said in a statement. “I am delighted to have him on our team, and look forward to working together.” Muzin, 38, an Orthodox Jew, is a physician and attorney, and is currently the director of coalitions for the House Republican Conference,...

House Speaker John Boehner recently shocked many of us when he announced that he is planning a lawsuit against the president for abuse of power. Many Americans feel that a harmonious working relationship between the branches of government has been seriously compromised in recent years. But when Alexis de Tocqueville visited America in 1831 to perform an in-depth analysis of the American phenomenon, he was impressed with our well-structured divided government and its separation of powers. The writings of the founders of this nation certainly referenced the Bible frequently, but they also paid homage to the writings of Charles de...

Do you remember what President Obama initially said about the Internal Revenue Service scandal? Do you recall his professed outrage? Obama wanted us to know how furious he was. He said, "The misconduct that (the inspector general's report) uncovered is inexcusable." "It's inexcusable," he repeated, "and Americans are right to be angry about it, and I am angry about it. I will not tolerate this kind of behavior in any agency -- but especially in the IRS, given the power that it has and the reach that it has into all of our lives." He declared that the "responsible...

It's going to be a little more difficult to ferret out which members of Congress are lavished with all-expenses-paid trips around the world after the House has quietly stripped away the requirement that such privately sponsored travel be included on lawmakers' annual financial-disclosure forms. Read more at the link. . . .

Two years ago, I sat on a panel before Congress, testifying to the importance of religious liberty in America today. It seems like a long time ago. Since then, we have seen and heard a steady stream of news, from the church and the culture, about the Health and Human Services’ mandate and the Affordable Care Act, abortifacients and the conscience, religious freedoms and what this means for women. Thankfully, the wait is over. The Supreme Court has ruled, and the verdict is in: In a landmark case, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of religious liberty, specifically in regard...

<p>President Barack Obama announced Monday that he will use executive orders to reform the U.S. immigration system as Republicans in Congress refuse to take up the issue.</p> <p>"I take executive action only when we have a serious problem, a serious issue, and Congress chooses to do nothing," he told a press conference in the White House Rose Garden. "And in this situation, the failure of House Republicans to pass a darn bill is bad for our security, it's bad for our economy and it's bad for our future."</p>

Saying he's grown frustrated with waiting for congressional Republicans, an angry President Barack Obama said Monday he will bypass Congress and act on his own to make changes to immigration policy by the end of the summer. Obama spoke Monday from the Rose Garden, where he slammed House Republicans for being too accommodating to the conservative, anti-immigration wing of their party and chided House leadership for not working to pass a "darn bill." "They're unwilling to stand up to the Tea Party and do what's right for the country. And what's worse — a bunch of them know better," Obama...

(Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama is to ask Congress for more than $2 billion to deal with the surge in unaccompanied children from Central America flooding into the United States along its southern border.

Americans' confidence in all three branches of the U.S. government has fallen, reaching record lows for the Supreme Court (30%) and Congress (7%), and a six-year low for the presidency (29%). The presidency had the largest drop of the three branches this year, down seven percentage points from its previous rating of 36%.

It’s not too uncommon for Republican leaders from the House and Senate to occasionally meet, trade notes, and work out bicameral strategies, but as a rule, rank-and-file members tend to stick with colleagues from the same chamber. When they have ideas or grand plans, GOP lawmakers usually turn to their chamber’s leadership or committee chairs. Which is why it’s odd to see House Republicans huddle so frequently with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Last September, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) presented a plan to avoid a government shutdown. Cruz met directly with House Republicans, urged them to ignore their own leader’s...

Tens of thousands of illegal immigrant children from Central America are pouring over the border and the only bright idea we’ve gotten from Washington is a call for more funding – more money for border control, more money for corrupt Central American governments, and more money for the kids. What we haven’t heard is a single practical solution that will do anything to stem the tide that is threatening to overwhelm our nation. Rather than asking Americans to pony up more of their hard earned cash to address this problem, there is an obvious solution available that can turn off...

When asked if the endorsement of Senator Santorum would change the complexion of the race for the GOP nomination in the 6th Congressional District, Senator Grothman said that he expected the establishment to go against his campaign and feels that the establishment does not like conservatives. Former Senator Santorum said that he is no big fan of the establishment. The 6th Congressional District is located in parts of Northeastern and South Central Wisconsin. Major cities in the district include Beaver Dam, Fond du Lac, Manitowoc, Neenah, Oshkosh, Port Washington, and Sheboygan. The winner of the August 12th GOP primary between...