Free Republic

Once again, congressional Republicans are facing a gut-check moment, forced to choose between supporting and defending the Constitution or Donald J. Trump. It’s not looking good. House Democrats introduced a joint resolution of disapproval on Friday aimed at canceling President Trump’s bogus national emergency at the southern border. Representative Joaquin Castro of Texas is leading the charge, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expediting the measure, which is on track for a floor vote on Tuesday. It is widely expected to pass the chamber, where Democrats have the majority. Once the resolution clears the House, the Senate is required to hold...

Tea Party Republicans are getting tired of the California GOP. Coming off a devastating performance in the midterms, some Republicans in California are calling for a full embrace of President Donald Trump, even at a time when the president has contributed to historic Democratic victories across the state. Loyalists blame “the establishment” for the losses and demand the party move in a more pro-Trump direction. That’s why California’s Tea Party Caucus is hosting a “Build the Wall Dinner” on Saturday. The sold-out 7 p.m. event will be held at the Claim Jumper restaurant — just a couple blocks away from...

Gov. Mike DeWine will propose an 18-cents a gallon increase in the gasoline tax to maintain and upgrade Ohio’s roads and bridges in the transportation budget he submits to lawmakers Thursday. That would amount to a 64 percent increase in the state’s current 28-cent gas tax, which the state transportation director has said is insufficient for the state and local governments to maintain current roads or finish major new construction projects. DeWine revealed the number Wednesday on WTAM in Cleveland. He did not disclose if the amount would be phased in over multiple years. He also did not discuss if...

Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday that he will propose an increase in the gasoline tax — and it could be a sizable one — to fix and improve Ohio’s crumbling roads and bridges. The first-year Republican would not reveal the size of the proposed hike. DeWine told reporters the recommended increase would maintain the status quo of highway maintenance and some major projects. That would require another $600 million per year, or an additional 14 cents a gallon — a 50 percent increase in the 28-cent tax — based on figures from the Department of Transportation. The elevation will be...

(VIDEO AT SOURCE) Monday on MSNBC’s “Deadline,” host Nicolle Wallace said given President Donald Trump’s declaration of a national emergency at the U.S.-Mexico border to get the funds for a wall coupled with the claims made by former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe during an interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes,” now was the time for Republicans to stop supporting the president. Wallace said, “This seems to me to be the off-ramp for anybody in the right wing propaganda operation that says I’ve done enough. I’ve gone along with the lunacy around the wall. Now he’s doing something authoritarian in nature,...

...snip..... Multiple defendants admit they have hired the Georgia Speaker knowing he would keep their cases from ever going to trial. They could outlast the memories of their victims. No judge is going to force the Speaker to go to trial. Georgia Republicans are enabling this and letting it happen. By keeping David Ralston as Speaker, they are preventing justice from happening. They are preventing rape victims from getting closure. They are preventing repeat abusers from ever having to face a jury for their crimes. This is not a right versus left issue. This is not a Republican versus Democrat...

The national debt hit $22 trillion this week. You won’t find many in either major party who think this is a healthy development. But isn’t part of the reason people vote Republican because that party presents itself as fiscally responsible compared to Democrats? For as long as the debt has grown, Republicans have been promising to stop it. Yet, in 1981 the national debt topped $1 trillion after former President Ronald Reagan’s first year. When former President George H.W. Bush left office in 1993, it was more than $4 trillion. His son, former President George W. Bush, would push it...

(WLUK) -- Republican legislative leaders say toll roads could be the answer to generating needed money for road repairs. The idea was brought up during a round-table discussion at a Wisconsin Counties Association meeting last Wednesday. Both Republicans and Democrats still have a lot of questions about the plan. Local leaders are ready to hit the pavement when it comes to finding a solution for fixing streets and infrastructure, and some republicans believe tolls may be the answer. "This is an idea that's been around for years, but it hasn't been talked about with any depth within the group of...

After 40 House seats swung to Democrats in the 2018 midterms, the Republican Party is targeting dozens of them ahead of 2020 in a bid to win back control of the chamber. The House GOP’s campaign wing has released a list of 55 seats it will target next year, mostly by portraying Democrats as the party of socialism, CNBC reported. The targeted seats include 41 of the 43 the GOP lost to Democrats — many weeks after polls closed in November.

Senate Republicans have introduced a proposal to drastically reduce the amount of time it takes to confirm hundreds of President Trump's nominees as Republicans mull going "nuclear" to muscle through the change. Under the resolution introduced by Sens. James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), the chairman of the Rules Committee, most nominees would only be subjected to up to two hours of debate after they clear an initial hurdle. Currently, nominees are subjected to up to 30 hours of additional debate after proving they have the simple majority needed to defeat a filibuster and be confirmed. Blunt, in a...

Results for State Senator District 11 State Senator District 11 Results By Precinct Party Candidate Totals Pct Graph Legal Marijuana Now John "Sparky" Birrenbach 193 2.08% Republican Jason Rarick 4889 52.63% Democratic-Farmer-Labor Stu Lourey 4185 45.05% WRITE-IN** WRITE-IN**

A resolution has been introduced nu Rep. Matt Gaetz this week that calls out Hillary Clinton, James Comey, Eric Holder, amongst other combatants of President Trump for lying to Congress and escaping punishment. It was also noted by Gaetz, R-Fla. that former Trump campaign operative Roger Stone was arrested on five counts of lying to Congress, but others have avoided punishment for the same offense.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on Monday that he is “not very optimistic” that Democrats and Republicans will strike a deal over border wall funding. He warned that there could be a “war” among Republicans if President Trump decides to take matters into his own hands. Trump has given up on trying to convince Democrats to support wall funding, calling it a "waste of time." Since his negotiations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer failed last month, Trump has strongly hinted that he will declare a national emergency to build the U.S.-Mexico border wall. He gave...

ALBANY — Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Monday announced a dramatic drop in state income tax revenue of $2.8 billion, which he says will prompt him to revise his 2019-20 budget and reconsider spending on schools, health care and repairs to roads and bridges. Cuomo, a Democrat, blamed the shortfall on a federal tax plan backed by Republican President Donald Trump. Cuomo said the law's cap on deductions for state and local taxes at $10,000 was to blame and suggested it is, anecdotally, triggering high-earners to leave New York. “At this point there is no doubt that the budget we...

G.O.P. congressional leaders used tactics to minimize the president’s influence and maximize their own control over public policy. Donald Trump has a Congress problem. He can’t get Republicans to promote his policies. And when he forces the issue — as with his border wall — he can’t win their support.But most Americans don’t know that. After all, Republican legislators voted with the president well over 90 percent of the time during the 115th Congress. Record numbers of appellate judges were confirmed, and the president signed major tax legislation. Many observers have concluded that Mr. Trump dominates the Republican Party, and...

Vice Media CEO Nancy Dubuc announced to employees Friday morning that the news outlet will slash its headcount by 10 percent as part of a “strategic” restructuring. A Vice Media spokesperson told The Hollywood Reporter that 250 of its 2500 staffers will be let go to refocus its growth efforts in production and branded content. Employees from departments, including finance and IT, are expected to be impacted by the decision. “Having finalized the 2019 budget, our focus shifts to executing our goals and hitting our marks,” Dubuc (pictured) wrote in a company-wide memo. “We will make Vice the best manifestation...

“Through Her Eyes” is a new weekly half-hour show hosted by humanitarian and women’s rights activist Zainab Salbi that aims to explore a hot button news issue through the lens of a female newsmaker. You can watch “Through Her Eyes” every Tuesday at 8 p.m. on the Roku channel, and see full episodes at yahoonews.com. Weeks after Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., made headlines by calling for a top marginal income tax rate of 70 percent in an interview with “60 Minutes,” her fellow freshman congresswoman, Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., suggested that the rich could pay even more. “There are a...

How far will changes at the beleaguered Illinois tollway go and how will that affect day-to-day operations? Illinois House lawmakers voted 100-6 Tuesday to end the terms of nine tollway directors appointed by departing Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner after concerns about "unethical behavior." The state Senate is expected to vote Wednesday, and the tollway directors could be sent packing shortly after Democratic Gov.-elect Pritzker takes office Monday. The agency can continue to run normally without a board in the short term, one expert said. "The tollway will be fine -- at this time of year they're working on long-term planning...

Failed U.S. Senate candidate Kelli Ward, a conservative firebrand, will lead the Arizona Republican Party through the 2020 election. In a contentious three-way race for AZGOP chair, Ward came out on top Saturday, defeating incumbent chairman Jonathan Lines. Meanwhile, Arizona Democrats opted to retain their party chairwoman, Felecia Rotellini to another two-year term. Republican losses in the 2018 election were a common refrain throughout the AZGOP state committee meeting Saturday at Phoenix’s Church for the Nations. Prior to the election, Republicans held all statewide elected offices, a majority of the congressional seats and majorities in both chambers of the Legislature....

On Friday January 25, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced that 95,000 individuals registered to vote in the Lone Star State have been identified as "Non-US Citizens," meaning they are illegally registered to vote. Further evidence brought forth by Texas Secretary of State David Whitely confirms that 58,000 of these individuals have broken the law and voted in "one or more" recent elections. “Every single instance of illegal voting threatens democracy in our state and deprives individual Texans of their voice," AG Paxton said in a statement. "My Election Fraud Unit stands ready to investigate and prosecute crimes against the...