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Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used a personal e-mail account to exclusively conduct official business during her time at the State Department, a move that raises questions about access to the full archive of her correspondence, as well as the possibility that she violated federal law requiring official messages to be retained for the record. The existence of the account was discovered by the House select committee investigating the deadly 2012 attacks on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, and was first reported by The New York Times.

Ever want to strike back at authority when that authority keeps sending out silly decrees? Seems as if a hot sauce company has done just that.

One of the biggest land grabs in American history occurred in 1976, when President Jimmy Carter signed into a law the “Federal Land Policy and Management Act.” That stroke of the pen transferred hundreds of millions of acres of land, located primarily in the western states, into the control of the federal government. In reaction, an alliance of ranchers, farmers, and other concerned citizens – the “Sagebrush Rebels” as they came to be known -- challenged the move and sought to return the land back into the hands of the states. Ronald Reagan, at the time running for president, supported...

Gopherus agassizii is the binomial name given to the desert tortoise, a roughly foot-long creature with a lifespan that can stretch to more than half-a-century. This turtle inhabits the Mojave Desert in America’s great southwest. On paper, the desert tortoise seems an innocuous amphibian; however, it has the curious attribute of being able provoke nearly open warfare between U.S. citizens and the federal government. The notion of a “range war” may harken back to the days of the American cowboy riding the fence each morning and protecting his homestead from attack. Yet, last week the federal Bureau of Land Management...

Marijuana is being smuggled out of Colorado in record amounts, according to a new report by a multi-agency drug task force, citing a 400 percent increase in pot seizures since 2005 from the state that has become something of an American Amsterdam.

It took 50 years for American attitudes about marijuana to zigzag from the paranoia of “Reefer Madness” to the excesses of Woodstock back to the hard line of “Just Say No.” The next 25 years took the nation from Bill Clinton, who famously “didn’t inhale,” to Barack Obama, who most emphatically did. And now, in just a few short years, public opinion has moved so dramatically toward general acceptance that even those who champion legalization are surprised at how quickly attitudes are changing and states are moving to approve the drug—for medical use and just for fun. … Washington policymakers...

Yesterday, the Supreme Court handed down one of its first major decisions of this term, striking down Arizona’s measure requiring proof of citizenship for voter registration. Media reports are already off base in interpreting this decision, says Heritage legal expert Hans von Spakovsky. Here are three things to know about the decision. 1. This is not a voter ID decision. This decision has to do with voter registration, not the act of voting. Von Spakovsky explains: In 2004, Arizona voters overwhelmingly approved a referendum that had two major components: voter ID for in-person voting and a requirement that anyone registering...

The State Collaborative on Reforming Education (SCORE), a group headed by former U.S. Sen. Bill Frist, released a poll showing voters support for the controversial Common Core national standards in the state. The poll found more than “4 in 10” strongly support the national standards after being read a description of them. The exact question posed to participants was not provided by SCORE, the polling firm Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, nor the newspaper that wrote a story, DNJ.com. What the poll proves is that the poll-tested language developed by the proponents of Common Core is working. Big surprise. Voters want...

Like a lot of Californians, Stockton businessman Matt Davies, 34, expected that when Barack Obama was elected in 2008, the new administration would not prosecute medical marijuana dispensaries operating under a law passed by California voters in 1996. After all, as a candidate, Obama contended that he saw federal enforcement against medical marijuana as a waste of resources. On Oct. 19, 2009, Deputy Attorney General David Ogden released a memo that instructed the Department of Justice not to focus federal resources "on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use...

Chris Williams, a Montana medical marijuana grower, faces at least five years in federal prison when he is sentenced on Feb. 1. The penalty seems unduly severe, especially because his business openly supplied marijuana to patients who were allowed to use it under state law. Yet five years is a cakewalk compared to the sentence Williams originally faced, which would have kept the 38-year-old father behind bars for the rest of his life. The difference is due to an extremely unusual post-conviction agreement that highlights the enormous power prosecutors wield as a result of mandatory minimum sentences so grotesquely unjust...

What's driving gun sales spike? Federal law, women and zombies. BELLEVUE – Karen Manley stood strong in the range Tuesday afternoon, her right hand firmly gripping a handgun. “There had been a rash of home invasions,” said Manley, of Brier. “If anything happens, I could defend myself, my kids, and my home.’ Women are just one factor behind a recent spree of gun sales, locally, and across the nation, according to gun lobbyists. The FBI reported Tuesday that it received 154,873 buyer background check requests on Black Friday, up roughly 20 percent over the same day last year. The requests...

If elected, Mitt Romney vows to “end” it. If re-elected, Barack Obama says he’s “open to amending” it. But regardless of who wins the presidency next month, conscientious voters need to know this: Obamacare is already costing taxpayers lots of money, and within the next few months it will cost millions of dollars more. It’s bad enough that President Obama’s “if you like your Doctor, you can keep your Doctor”promise has proven false. And it’s bad enough that his promise to “bend the healthcare cost curve downward” has proven to be fictitious, as well (according to MIT Economist Jonathan Gruber...

The legislation created two conflicts that rose to the national stage. The first is whether any government may morally and legally interfere with freedom of association based on the birthplace of the person with whom one chooses to associate. The second is whether the states can enforce federal law in a manner different from that of the feds. Regrettably, in addressing all of this earlier in the week, the Supreme Court overlooked the natural and fundamental freedom to associate. It is a natural right because it stems from the better nature of our humanity, and it is a fundamental right...

SAN ANTONIO, April 26 (Reuters) - U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood called on Thursday for a federal law to ban talking on a cell phone or texting while driving any type of vehicle on any road in the country. Tough federal legislation is the only way to deal with what he called a "national epidemic," he said at a distracted-driving summit in San Antonio, Texas, that drew doctors, advocates and government officials.

Two former U.S. attorneys general are urging House Republicans to adopt a new rule in the new Congress to rein in federal criminal charges. It's an important step to protect innocent Americans from the net of an overzealous government leviathan.The recommendation from Edwin Meese III and Richard L. Thornburgh would require that every bill creating a new or enhanced federal criminal penalty be referred to the HouseJudiciary Committee for review of its criminal-law provisions. For instance, if a bill defines a new violation to be enforced by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and punishes violators with criminal penalties,...

Juan's room shows a life shaped by American education. It's painted in the colors of Dallas' Thomas Jefferson High School, his new alma mater. Trophies and medals brag for him: top 10 percent of his class, captain of two sports teams, a district first-place finisher in track, an almost perfect SAT score, the only football player in band. He's a poster child of American schooling, with wishes to enter the military or teach English. Neither option is open to Juan, who has grown up in the country illegally. Now he must realign his goals to fit his immigration status. Thousands...

We know White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel asked Clinton and his longtime adviser, lawyer Doug Band, to talk to Joe Sestak about the race and offered a position to him if he did not run against Arlen Specter. We know the laws involved : Article II, Section 4: The President, Vice President and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. Also: TITLE 18 PART I CHAPTER 29 § 600 Also: TITLE 18 PART I CHAPTER 11 § 211 The...

Is an illegal immigrant a criminal, by virtue of being in the country illegally? No, a civil infraction is not a crime Yes, all of those people are criminals by virtue of their immigration status I don't know I don't care

Tiny Turtles Not Safe for Children Published : Wednesday, 11 Nov 2009, 10:12 PM CST Sophia Reza FOX 4 News DALLAS - They're cute, but they are trouble. FOX 4's Sophia Reza reports some local stores are selling baby turtles even though they are illegal and can carry salmonella. VIDEO at the link

Needed: A 'clean line' to determine lawfulness"You don't need to know. You can't know." That's what Kathy Norris, a 60-year-old grandmother of eight, was told when she tried to ask court officials why, the day before, federal agents had subjected her home to a furious search. The agents who spent half a day ransacking Mrs. Norris' longtime home in Spring, Texas, answered no questions while they emptied file cabinets, pulled books off shelves, rifled through drawers and closets, and threw the contents on the floor. The six agents, wearing SWAT gear and carrying weapons, were with - get this- the...