Free Republic

Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy has temporarily blocked an appeals court ruling that declared gay marriage legal in Idaho and Nevada. The order came minutes after Idaho on Wednesday filed an emergency request for an immediate stay. The state's request said that without a stay, state and county officials would have been required to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples at 10 a.m. EDT. Kennedy's order requested a response from the plaintiffs involved in Idaho's gay marriage lawsuit by the end of day Thursday. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declared gay marriage legal in Idaho and Nevada...

WASHINGTON—The San Francisco-based Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday struck down same-sex marriage bans in Idaho and Nevada, setting the stage for legal gay marriages in five more Western states. The unanimous decision comes a day after the U.S. Supreme Court let stand lower-court rulings that ended bans in five other states, a move that effectively expanded the right to gay marriage to 30 U.S. states. The Ninth Circuit decision will apply to five states with marriage bans in that appellate circuit, likely expanding to 35 the number of states with legal same-sex marriage.

<p>The Supreme Court on Friday night allowed same-sex marriages to begin in Idaho, ending a dramatic week in which the right of gay couples to marry expanded dramatically across the nation.</p> <p>In a one-sentence order, the justices denied a request from Idaho Gov. C.L. Butch Otter (R) to delay the unions so the state could continue its appeals. The court gave no reason for the action nor were there recorded dissents.</p>

Legal momentum for extending U.S. marriage rights to same-sex couples accelerated on Tuesday as a federal appeals court struck down bans on gay matrimony in Idaho and Nevada a day after the U.S. Supreme Court let stand similar rulings for five other states. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled the bans in Idaho and Nevada violated the constitution and cannot be enforced, adding to a growing list of states where same-sex unions are now legal. "Idaho and Nevada's marriage laws, by preventing same-sex couples from marrying and refusing to recognize same-sex marriages celebrated elsewhere, impose...

The Senate approved a continuing resolution for the budget which included a provision authorizing President Obama to arm and train Syrian rebels for the purpose of combating Islamic State terrorists. The legislation passed 78-22. Of the 22 Senators that voted no, here are the 12 Republicans that voted against the provision: John Barrasso (WY) Tom Coburn (OK) Michael Crapo (ID) Ted Cruz (TX) Mike Enzi (WY) Dean Heller (NV) Mike Lee (UT) Jim Moran (KS) Rand Paul (KY) James Risch (ID) Pat Roberts (KS) Jeff Sessions (AL)

An Idaho State University assistant professor with a concealed-carry gun permit shot himself in the foot with a semiautomatic handgun that accidentally discharged from inside his pocket in a chemistry classroom full of students, police said on Wednesday.

Claims in the media do not seem to match up with the scientific datasets A few days ago, Channel 7 KTVB out of Boise, Idaho was reporting the following: “Idaho is drying out. Charlie Luce, a hydrologist with the Forest Service, says the Gem State is using more water, but seeing less in the aquifers. There’s 20 percent less water coming into our basins, when compared to the 1940s.” As I noted at the time: “That’s not what the NOAA National Climatic Data Center database shows. There has been no significant trend in annual precipitation for the state since records...

Going fast on a private stretch of race track is quite enjoyable. Especially when there happens to be enough room to really let the car stretch its legs. That is why Volkswagen owns the Ehra-Lessien testing facility in Germany, which comes with a 5.4-mile long straight. It's also the perfect place to find the upper limits of a Bugatti Veyron. Sometimes though, an owner might get a chance to push his machine in a setting that's not quite as prepared for such an endeavor. The 2014 Sun Valley Road Rally recently took place near Ketchum, Idaho. This event turns the...

A bull elk is back in the wild after a wild night in Garden City. The Idaho Department of Fish and Game says someone called police to report seeing an elk in a vacant lot at 42nd and Adams Street. The responding officer called Fish and Game. A conservation officer found the elk, which appeared to be stressed. Fish and Game says people were getting too close and trying to take "selfies" with the animal. Because of the stress, the elk ran off through the neighborhood including Veteran's Parkway. "When people get this close to a wild animal, the stress...

WORLEY, Idaho — A Native American tribe has canceled an Aug. 4 concert by Ted Nugent at its casino. The Coeur d'Alene Tribe on Monday said that the cancellation of the concert at the casino in the northwest Idaho city of Worley was because of the rocker's "racist and hate-filled remarks."

Cameraman Ilyas Khan, left, and reporter Iftikhar Hussain, two Pakistani journalists working for Voice of America, covered the reaction of the Hailey community to the release of Bowe Bergdahl from Taliban custody last week. Two Pakistani journalists stopped in Pocatello last week on their way to Hailey to cover the story of American soldier Bowe Bergdahl’s release with listeners in the tribal region of northeast Pakistan. Ifthikhar Hussain and his cameraman, Ilyas Khan, work for Voice of America. Voice of America, operated by the U.S. government, provides programming for broadcast on radio, television and the Internet outside of this country...

HAILEY, Idaho — An Idaho county commissioner held a press conference in the hometown of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl this week to tell reporters and outsiders to leave the town and the Bergdahl family alone. The Times-News reported that Blaine County Commissioner Larry Schoen said people should stop attacking Bergdahl, his family and the people of Hailey for standing by the former prisoner of war. Schoen said the town only wanted to see the local man reunited with his parents, Bob and Jani Bergdahl, after spending five years as a prisoner of the Taliban in Afghanistan....

As of 3:35 PM local time in Moscow, Idaho, the 2014 Idaho Republican Convention is history. And what a piece of history it is! The fireworks started a couple weeks prior to the convention, in events surrounding reorganizational meetings for county Republican Central Committees throughout the state. These are meetings in which officers are elected; sometimes the old ones are reelected, sometimes new ones are elected. Also at these reorg meetings delegates for the convention are elected. Operative word, "elected." This year, there were abnormalities in three counties that drew complaints that were subsequently handed off to the Credentials Committee...

In the wake of Eric Cantor's shocking primary election loss to Dave Brat earlier this week, the choice to replace him as House Majority Leader seemed a foregone conclusion, as Pete Sessions (R-TX) decision to bow out appeared to seal the decision and ascend Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) to the second highest position in the House. This changed yesterday as Raul Labrador (R-ID) announced he will challenge for the role, a move Dignitas News Service both applauds and has no reservations in providing our endorsement for. Not only would the second-term Representative from Idaho bring solid conservative credentials and voting record...

It was a bit lost in the hubbub over rules and credentials fights, but the platform committee at the Idaho Republican Party convention in Moscow today voted to remove one of the most controversial planks in the party’s platform: The one calling for repeal of the 17th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would have the effect of doing away with direct election of U.S. senators and instead letting state legislatures choose senators. “I was the one who made the motion,” said Rep. Brandon Hixon, R-Caldwell, a delegate from Canyon County. “It passed the committee. Now it will go to...

Rep. Raul Labrador, a fiery conservative lawmaker from Idaho, will challenge House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy in next Thursday's special election to replace Eric Cantor as majority leader, according to Republican sources. "I want a House Leadership team that reflects the best of our conference," Labrador said in a statement provided to National Journal. He later added: "I am running for Majority Leader because I want to help create a vision of growth and opportunity for everyone and start getting to work for the American people." A sophomore representative from a heavily Republican district, Labrador's election would dramatically alter the...

Idaho Rep. Raul Labrador said Friday he will run for the House majority leader position being vacated by Eric Cantor. The decision sets up a race next week between Labrador, a leading conservative voice, and Kevin McCarthy, the current House majority whip.

The father of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl creepily stalked twin sisters for four and a half months, watching them as they showered and even accusing one of being a “two-timing bitch” though she never dated him, according to reports. Bob Bergdahl allegedly began harassing Allie and Lacey Hillman, then 28, in June 2011 – two years after his son was captured by the Taliban — leading the terrified sisters to call the police because they were “very scared” of his “disturbing behavior,” the Daily Mail reported. The bizarre stalking began when Lacey caught Bergdahl, 51, creeping around the sisters’ Hailey, Idaho...

(CNN) -- As the controversy surrounding Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl release gains growing attention, Bergdahl's family is now the target of recent threats, according to an FBI spokesman. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl family have received threats following his release after five years in captivity at the hands of the Taliban, an FBI spokesman told CNN on Saturday. "We are working jointly with our state and local partners and taking each threat seriously," FBI Special Agent William Facer said in an e-mail. Facer declined to detail the nature and severity of the threats. Additionally, the military spokesperson for the Bergdahl family...

Reuters reporter Mark Felsenthal reports that Sgt. Bergdahl's hometown in Idaho is cancelling its planned celebration. "Bergdahl's home town in Idaho has canceled plans for a celebration, city administrator says," reports Felsenthal on Twitter.