Free Republic

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Mary Burke is being accused of swiping significant sections of her jobs plan from earlier propsals published by three Democratic candidates who ran for governor elsewhere. BuzzFeed reported late Thursday that Burke's plan, called "Invest for Success," includes nearly verbatim passages from the economic development plans put forward by Delaware Gov. Jack Markell in 2008, Ward Cammack of Tennessee in 2009 and John Gregg of Indiana in 2012. Cammack withdrew from his race, and Gregg was defeated. The Burke campaign blamed the plagiarized passages on a consultant, Eric Schnurer, who worked on the jobs plans for the...

<p>That's really the only way to describe Politico's piece on DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz.</p> <p>Based on interviews with DNC staffers -- both former and current -- the piece described Wasserman Schultz as something of a modern-day Tracy Flick: over-eager, disloyal and not shy about promoting her ambitions.</p>

Throughout her political career, including during her current race against former GOP Sen. Scott Brown, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D., N.H.) has touted her experience as a small business owner. Shaheen’s small business “experience” was co-running a store that once sold thousands of dollars-worth of stolen jewelry. “As the former owner and manager of a small retail business, Senator Shaheen knows what it’s like to worry about meeting payroll and inventory costs to keep a business going,” the Issues section of her Senate website declares. Her Senate biography also describes her as a “former small business owner.” This week, the Shaheen...

CALLER: Rush 24/7 dittos, Rush. In line with your Battered Wife Syndrome, I have decided this election to vote straight Democrat and Libertarian to punish the GOP because they have treated conservatives so harshly for the last God knows what. Eight years? I'm done. I'm out. I'm leaving the relationship 'cause if I don't leave it, as that other caller said, I have no right to complain about it. I won't just not vote, 'cause that's apathy. I'm gonna vote the other party, and Libertarian wherever there are those candidates. RUSH: Wait a minute. I didn't say that Republican voters...

Alex Salmond’s independence blueprint aims to attract thousands more immigrants, who could use Scotland as a back door to England. The Scottish National Party say they would ’celebrate’ more people arriving from overseas, reversing what they claim is years of ’depopulation’. Mr Salmond says Scotland needs an extra 24,000 immigrants a year to fill jobs and bankroll the welfare system for ageing Scots, but without tough border controls many could use it as an easy route into England and Wales.

The mother of a teen slain at a Jacksonville gas station after he and his friends refused to turn down their music will be among the panelists at a seminar in Orlando about the controversial Stand Your Ground law. Jordan Davis' mother, Lucia McBath, will be among the experts examining whether there is racial disparity in the application or enforcement of Stand Your Ground laws. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights is hosting the forum, which takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Oct. 17 in the grand ballroom of the Rosen Centre Hotel on International Drive. The forum...

"I have long believed that a crucial part missing from this national discussion is England. "We have heard the voice of Scotland - and now the millions of voices of England must also be heard. "The question of English votes for English laws - the so-called West Lothian question -requires a decisive answer. "So, just as Scotland will vote separately in the Scottish Parliament on their issues of tax, spending and welfare so too England, as well as Wales and Northern Ireland, should be able to vote on these issues and all this must take place in tandem with, and...

The first results are coming in for the referendum to decide whether Scotland should stay in the UK or become an independent country.

What do you think of an Oceanside gun shop owner naming a gun part "Obama's Blaster?" POLL HERE Current results:

The National Rifle Association on Tuesday said it's launching a $1.3 million television ad campaign to promote Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton's bid to unseat Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor, a little over a year after the group ran radio ads defending Pryor's record on guns. The NRA said the 30-second spot will begin running in Little Rock and Jonesboro starting Wednesday and will run for at least four weeks. The ad touts the group's endorsement of Cotton and doesn't mention Pryor. The group is also spending six figures to run radio ads in the state and has been sending direct...

C-Span3 is carrying the election returns live from Scotland - so far no's are winning by 59-41%, but only 3 of the smaller 32 councils (states) have reported - final results are not expected for about another four hours......

A write-in candidate for the US Kentucky Senate is bringing his controversial message to voters. Robert Ransdell said he knows he cannot win against Republican Mitch McConnell or Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes but wants to use the campaign to spread his slogan, “With Jews We Lose.” The signs placed at US 25 and Mount Zion Road in Florence caught one driver off guard. […] “I believe that there is no such thing as racial equality. You see that in our cities everyday,” Ransdell said. …

A hearing was recently held by the House Select Committee on Benghazi. A witness testified against the Accountability Review Board, the Independent State Department panel was not independent in the least sense. Meet Todd Keil. He served under Obama from 2009-2012. He was the Assistant Secretary for ‘infrastructure Protection’ at the I.S. Department of Homeland Security. Todd Keil testified that the ARB was NOT “fiercely independent”. Watch the interaction below:

Exposed: Obama Admin's Former Chief Israel-Palestine Negotiator Paid $15 Million by Qatari Government Disgraced former Israel-Palestine negotiator Martin Indyk, who served in his position just prior to the outbreak of a 50-day war between Israel and Hamas, reportedly has cashed a $14.8 million dollar check from the government of Qatar recently. Qatar is known to be a fierce enemy of Israel and a staunch supporter of Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Many in Israel and Egypt have called out Qatar for fanning the flames of war in the Middle East. While serving as chief negotiator, Indyk was accused of deliberately...

Sen. Ted Cruz tried to get the Senate to consider a measure Thursday providing that any American who joins the fight with terrorist groups such as the Islamic State would immediately renounce their U.S. citizenship, but a Democratic senator objected, saying more time is necessary to weigh the significant constitutional issues it raises. Ahead of the Senate’s scheduled consideration Thursday afternoon of a proposal to arm and train Syrian rebels, part of President Obama’s strategy to combat the terrorist group, the Texas Republican asked for unanimous consent to pass the Expatriate Terrorist Act he introduced earlier this month. The measure...

<p>After last month’s fatal police shooting of an unarmed black teenager, the city of Ferguson, Mo., postponed its August council meeting. Instead of holding the forum, it sent postage-paid comment cards to residents and asked them to mail their feedback.</p>

“Sen. Lamar Alexander has voted with President Barack Obama 62 percent of the time. I have voted with him 0 percent of the time,” U.S. Senate Candidate Gordon Ball said after learning that the TNGOP had launched a website and video attacking him as ‘another vote for Obama. “I have said consistently that Harry Reid, Mitch McConnell and Lamar Alexander should be replaced. If we want to change Washington, we have to change the people in Washington.” (SNIP) Ball, who has been campaigning this past week in Memphis and upper east Tennessee will be in Nashville this week for the...

Democrats are sending warning signals on a previously sleepy southern California House race — a tangible sign of an increasingly tough midterm for the party. Freshman Rep. Julia Brownley is one of three House Democrats receiving extra and early help from the national party. A year ago, her district was barely on the party’s radar of competitive races, after President Barack Obama carried it by 10 points last cycle. “This is a tight race and a difficult seat, and we are committed to hanging onto it,” said Matt Thornton, a spokesman for House Majority PAC, a Democratic super PAC aiding...

Rep. Cory Gardner (R., Colo.) is leading Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Udall by eight percentage points, according to a new poll released Thursday. According to Quinnipiac: Colorado U.S. Sen. Mark Udall trails U.S. Rep. Cory Gardner, his Republican challenger, 48 – 40 percent among likely voters, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Independent candidate Steve Shogan gets 8 percent. With Shogan out of the race, Rep. Gardner leads 52 – 42 percent, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. This survey of likely voters can not be compared with earlier surveys of registered voters.

Friend, I would love to meet and personally thank you for your efforts in supporting Republicans this election cycle. Make no mistake – 2014 is a huge opportunity for the Republican Party. With Election Day just weeks away, Republicans have a great chance to win control of the United States Senate! But we’ve got real work to do. To support our efforts, I’m proud to participate in the NRSC’s latest contest, where one winning supporter will be flown out to grab lunch with me. We’ll be able to talk campaign strategy, my experiences with President Reagan, and policy ideas for...