Free Republic

Last year saw “the highest number and rate of abortions measured in the United States in more than a decade,” according to a report from the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute. In 2023 — the first full calendar year following the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade — there were an estimated 1,026,690 unborn babies killed in abortions in the formal U.S. health care system and a rate of 15.7 abortions per 1,000 women of reproductive age, the institute’s Monthly Abortion Provision Study found. That number is a ten percent increase in abortions from 2020.

The jobless rate rose to 3.9%, up from 3.7% in January, even as employers added 275,000 jobs, the Labor Department said. Its monthly report is being closely watched for clues into how the world's largest economy is absorbing the jump in borrowing costs since 2022. The latest numbers sent mixed signals. Overall, analysts said there was little in the report to fuel major worries or raise fears that the economy would be harmed by higher interest rates. "Overall things still looking good," said Harvard professor Josh Furman, a former economic advisor to Barack Obama, on social media, while adding that...

A COVID-19 map from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows where new cases and hospitalizations are rising in states throughout the country. Overall, data from the CDC showed that across the U.S., COVID-19 testing positivity, hospitalizations and deaths declined for the week of October 29 to November 4, but some states saw a rise. In August and September, many health officials across the nation warned of a possible rise in new cases during the upcoming winter months, which coincides with what the CDC calls respiratory season. "Fall and winter are a time when viruses that cause...

Home foreclosure activity in the US surged to the highest level since the start of the pandemic, a sign that the financial aftermath of COVID-19 has been wearing out cash-strapped homeowners. Foreclosure filings – including default notices, scheduled auctions, and bank repossessions – jumped 28% in the third quarter from the prior quarter to 124,539, the real estate data group ATTOM said in a recent report. That represents a 34% surge from a year ago, attesting to growing financial distress among US homeowners.

President Biden’s approval rating has climbed to its highest point in nearly a year, according to new Gallup polling, as he ramps up his campaign for another four years in the White House. Biden’s job rating among U.S. adults climbed 4 percentage points between May and June, the survey found, to 43 percent who say they approve of the way the president is handling his role. It’s the highest rating since last August, but still below the approval in the upper 50s recorded at the start of his time in the White House. Fifty-four percent of U.S. adults overall disapprove...

Renters living in the New York metro area have the highest rent-to-income ratio in the country at nearly 69 percent, according to a new report from Moody’s Analytics. Figures show that for the first time in over 20 years, the entire United States is rent-burdened, as the average American rent-to-income ratio reached 30 percent. The ratio reflects what percentage of a household’s income is spent on rent. That total is up 1.5 percent from last year’s estimation. New York was followed by Miami, Fla.; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Los Angeles, Calif.; and Palm Beach, Fla., respectively. Northern New Jersey; Boston, Mass.;...

President Biden’s approval rating has reached its highest level since last December in a new poll. The Politico/Morning Consult survey, published on Wednesday, found that 46 percent of all respondents approve of the job Biden is doing as president. Eight-five percent of Democrats surveyed currently approve of the job Biden is doing, while only 10 percent of Republican respondents agree with the sentiment. Thirty-five percent of independents in the survey approve of the job Biden is doing as president.

California is reporting some of the highest gas prices in the nation, nearing $6.00 a gallon on Tuesday, according to AAA’s data. As of Tuesday, the national gas price average stood at $4.242, slightly lower than the record high, which the U.S. broke in a series of consecutive days earlier this month. On March 11, for example, the national gas average reached $4.331, rising 49 cents over one week, beating records made during former President Obama’s presidency.

Inflation climbed to another four-decade high in February with prices expected to push even higher on the back of soaring energy prices following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Department of Labor said that the consumer price index rose 7.9 percent compared with a year ago. Prices were up 0.8 compared with the prior month.

Illinois health officials on Monday reported the highest number of new daily COVID-19 infections in the state since Dec. 1, 2020. The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 12,328 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, a yearlong high for the state. The Chicago Tribune noted, however, that the day's results could be inflated due to reporting delays caused by the holidays. The uptick in infections come amid heightened concerns over the new omicron variant, discovered in South Africa last month, which has not been detected in almost every U.S. state.

Illinois on Wednesday reported 6,119 new COVID-19 cases, the highest amount in a single day since January. The surge is largely fueled by unvaccinated residents, the Chicago Tribune reported. In the week ending on Wednesday, residents who were not fully vaccinated were being hospitalized due to COVID-19 at a rate of 38 per 100,000 residents, surpassing the peak rate during fall 2020, according to the Tribune. Nearly 1.9 million people in Illinois have received the COVID-19 booster shot, which is more than one in seven of the state's residents, the Tribune noted. The number is an increase from the 1.5...

COVID-19 deaths in Germany reached its highest level in nine months on Wednesday with 446 deaths. Germany’s infectious disease agency said the country saw 67,186 new cases along with the 446 new deaths from the virus, Reuters reported. That is the highest recorded daily death toll in Germany since Feb. 18 as lawmakers grapple with how to slow the spread of the new wave of infections.

More than 10,000 people in the United States reported being the victims of hate crimes in 2020, according to the FBI’s “2020 Hate Crime Statistics” report. Over 60 percent of the victims were targeted because of race, ethnicity or ancestry bias and over 13 percent because of religious bias. Out of the 7,426 hate crimes classified as crimes against persons, 53.4 percent were for inti midation, 27.6 percent were for simple assault, and 18.1 percent were for aggravated assault. Over one quarter of the hate crimes classified as property crime were acts of damage and vandalism. In 2020, nearly 30...

Canada has recorded the highest temperature in its history after a village in British Columbia reached 115 degrees Fahrenheit on Sunday. Temperatures in Lytton, B.C., surpassed the previous national record of 113 F (45 C) set on July 5, 1937, in Saskatchewan, according to Environment Canada. “Did we read this correctly… you’re saying all-time maximum temperature for all 10 provinces for anytime of the year? That is phenomenal!” tweeted the National Weather Service of Missoula, Montana. More records are expected to be broken Monday, said Environment Canada meteorologist Derek Lee, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Forty-five percent of Americans now have a favorable view of the Republican Party, a nine-point gain from last September's 36%. It is the party's most positive image since it registered 47% in January 2011, shortly after taking control of the House in the 2010 midterm elections. Forty-four percent give the Democratic Party a favorable rating. The parity in Republicans' and Democrats' favorable ratings marks a change from what has generally been the case since Barack Obama's election as president in November 2008. Republicans have usually been rated less positively than Democrats over this time, with the Republican...

Wow, highest Poll Numbers in the history of the Republican Party. That includes Honest Abe Lincoln and Ronald Reagan. There must be something wrong, please recheck that poll!https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1023534604148518912

Gallup's job creation index at +37 in July—a record high Optimism for small-business owners about their business situation is at the highest level seen in a decade, according to a poll from Gallup. Business owners were asked about their current business situation and how they felt about their businesses' future. While business owners are historically more positive about the future than their current situation, the results from this poll show a large uptick in how businesses feel about their current situation. "The overall increase in the index this quarter is mainly the result of an uptick in present situation...

The instrumental hymns are, (There is a Fountain Filled with Blood) and the chorus of - (God Be With You, Till We Meet Again), both are accompanied with lyrics.

Paris (AFP) - US Secretary of State John Kerry has been given the Legion d'Honneur, France's highest honour, with his French counterpart calling him "the most French of American officials". At a ceremony in Paris on Saturday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault also said the top US diplomat was a "tireless champion of peace". "Francophone, Francophile, you are certainly the most French of American officials" Ayrault said. Kerry's French heritage and fondness for the country saw him attacked on the presidential campaign trail in 2004, when he was the Democratic candidate running against Republican George W Bush. Tensions were running...

With US equity markets on a 7-day roll and excited TV anchors proclaiming the worst over and new all-time highs must signal recovery as they 'celebrate' five years on from Lehman, the following two charts of the state of real America should open a few eyes to just how blinded American has become to the truth (unless you live it). A stunning 20.0% of Americans were found to have struggled to afford food in the last year - surging in recent months to its highest since the peak of the crisis in 2008 - as American's ability to consistently afford...